The Gado Gado Butty!

I awoke this morning with a desire for hot buttery toast with peanut butter. Given that this is not a completely foreign occurrence, I gave it little thought until it dawned on me that the yearn may well have been fostered by a foodie story from the previous day.

Once upon a time..... an eclectic cluster of dinners shared food stories over morsels of delectableness called YumCha. Despite my instinctive Anglo aversion to eating chicken feet I've learnt to push through the 'yuck' barrier and indulge anyway but I must say  it was enlightening to learn the process of preparing these little guys. First deep fried to remove the skin then slowly braised to all their gelatinous glory. They are a typical example of the fabulous result achieved by the technique of  'twice cooking' often applied in the Chinese kitchen.

But the tale of the day that typified not just the diversity of our dinning party but the rich tapestry of Melbourne cuisine was the anecdote of the humble sandwich or butty as our English companion would say. The request for a simple peanut butter sandwich, not at all unusual in a food court. The addition of lettuce was not too peculiar, however the subsequent fillings where a most curious combination. To the customers delight this sandwich maker, of Chinese birth, was no food slouch and instantly recognised the traditional ingredients of the Indonesian salad Gado Gado. Of course traditionally served with peanut sauce not butter and definitely not served between 2 slices of bread. But there you go.. a mixed marriage! A classic Indonesian salad in a sandwich, here in our culinary melting pot called Melbourne!

Just in case you were wondering where to have YumCha, we were at TaiPan Restaurant - one of my favourites in the east.  TaiPan Restaurant, 237-239 Blackburn Road, Doncaster East