Crab Season Starts for the Single Guy

Local Dungeness crab season started last month in the San Francisco Bay Area right before Thanksgiving. But I haven’t had a chance to go out and get my first fresh crab – until this weekend. So in my eyes, the crab season didn’t really start until now.

I was in San Francisco’s Clement Street shopping district so I picked up a live crab from a seafood store in the Asian shopping area. This is supposedly a bountiful season for the Dungeness crab compared to last year’s crop. So at the tanks crabs were stacked one on top of each other and could hardly move. I felt bad for these crabs, and worried that they weren’t really lively, so that’s why I walked to another store where the crabs had more room to swim and snap at each other.

The going price on Clement Street is $3.99 a pound for a live crab, and the one I got was a little over 2 pounds, bringing my total to about $10. I carried my crab on the Muni and then the BART until I got back to my Oakland apartment. Luckily, my crab survived the trip and after a cool spell in the refrigerator, it got its snap back just as I was ready to cook it.

But when I gave my crab a scrubbing, I noticed that I got what I would call a pacifist crab. That’s because when left alone, I noticed my crab didn’t want to fight. It didn’t raise its claws at me at all. When I tapped it with a chopstick, all it did was withdraw its claws under its chin, almost like a little puppy. See in the photo how the claws were laying around and then I tapped it and it moved its claws under its chin? See what I mean? Pacifist.

Despite being a pacifist, the crab still tried to knock off the cover of my pot when I steamed it prior to using its sweet meat for my dish – garlic crab noodles.

Garlic noodles is a popular side dish to Dungeness crab in Vietnamese restaurants, just like how garlic bread is popular with crab at seafood restaurants. The famous garlic noodles were created by Thanh Long in San Francisco, but no one knows the secret family recipe.

At the restaurant, the garlic noodles are served on the side. But in my recipe, I cracked the crab and got the meat and then tossed it with the garlic noodles, basically combining everything into one dish to make it easier to eat. My noodles were really garlicky, probably because I minced the garlic when most restaurants would just infuse the butter with garlic and then cook the noodles. I went full on with the garlic bits blending with the crab.

It ended up tasting good, but not amazing like Thanh Long. Still, how can you go wrong with fresh crab and garlic noodles, combined or served on the side? Enjoy!

Garlic Crab Noodles Recipe

Copyright 2010 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
Crab meat from one large Dungeness crab (about 2 lbs.), reserve some as garnish
12 oz. egg noodles
4 T unsalted butter
3 T extra virgin olive oil
2 T minced garlic (about 4 to 5 cloves)
1 T fish sauce
1 t sugar
salt for seasoning
green onion for garnish, thinly sliced

Prepare the crab meat
You can buy a cooked crab for convenience or a live crab for freshness. If you buy a live crab, you can steam it or boil it for about 15 minutes until it turns orange. (If you boil the water, add a bit of salt to the boiling water.) Then remove the top shell and clean out the fins and guts, and then start getting out the white meat that’s found in the body and mostly the legs and claws of the crab. Set the meat aside until you’re ready to cook your noodles.

Cook your noodles per packaging. If you don’t have Chinese egg noodles, you can substitute it with spaghetti or linguine.

In a wok or large skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Toss in the garlic and cook for about a minute to let the garlic infuse the butter, making sure not to burn your garlic (turn down the heat if the garlic looks like it’s browning too fast). Add your noodles to the hot butter and toss to loosen them, then remove from heat. Mix sugar with fish sauce in a little bowl and then add to your noodles along with the crab meat. Toss until everything’s blended.

Plate up the noodles and garnish with the extra crab meat you set aside, and then sprinkle with green onions on top. Serve immediately.

Makes 2 servings.

Pair with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc.

TIP: Under the top shell of the crab you’ll discover a greenish substance near the top toward the head of the crab. Some call this crab “butter” or the “brains,” and it’s a delicacy for others. You can use a bit of this and blend it in with the butter and garlic to give you that extra crab flavor.

Workplace Romance = Career Suicide

Office sex. It’s the forbidden Argentine tango meets the deadliest game of Russian roulette. It blends excitement with danger and serves it up piping hot on a high gloss mahogany desk. Or at least that is what the pornos portray.

Office sex is a fantasy shared by millions, myself including. Unfortunately though, that’s where the fantasy should stay - in your head and not acted out. Statistics say that 4 out of 10 people have dated a colleague at some point in their careers. (I use the word "dated" loosely. For the sake of this post, the word "dated" is going to be a generalization to describe any type of unprofessional involvement with a co-worker. An emotional and/or sexual affair with a co-worker either in, or out, of the workplace.) And with the office holiday party season upon us, temptation is at an all-time high! Office holiday parties are a breeding ground for bad behavior because everyone is looking their best, cutting loose, dancing and of course drinking. It’s a deadly combo and one that your career can suffer greatly from should you fail to use your best judgment.

After college it becomes harder to meet new people and make friends. These days the average person works between 50-60 hours a week. That means people spend MORE time with their co-workers than they do with their significant other, family or friends! Spend 50-60 hours a week with ANYONE and a relationship of some kind WILL form. Now whether you keep that relationship strictly professional, turn it into a friendship or something more is completely up to you. Nearly every H.R. department prefers you find romance outside the workplace. However, if you still insist on inviting unnecessary drama into your professional life and risking your career, there’s only one rule you need to remember when it comes to office romances...

Don't.

Not clear enough? Then try this...

DON'T!!!

Still not getting the message? Then here are a 5 things you may want to consider before those harmless office flirtations spiral out of control and end up costing you your job!

1. Stop Being Lazy
Relationships take work. And finding someone worthy of entering into a relationship with often takes even more work! If you’re too lazy to find someone outside your office to be romantically or sexually involved with, then you’re too lazy to be in a relationship. It’s easy to pursue someone you work with because they’re right there working 3 cubes down! It’s convenient. Plus, you already sort of know them so it feels comfortable. You share at least one common interest with them and have plenty of friends/co-workers in common. So striking up a conversation isn’t very difficult, especially considering you could always lead with a work related question. Basically, you have a legit excuse to chat them up without appearing like you want to feel them up.

2. Welcome To Rumorville
Sometimes all it takes is a couple lunches together and buying a co-worker a drink at happy hour to get the rumors at work on Monday flying! It was because she was attractive and flirty. And because I’m a man with hormones. So to onlookers, it only made sense! Then when word got around that I was actually dating her best friend (who didn’t work there), the next rumor was "he’s doing both of them!" And that’s how rumors get started. No matter how platonic one relationship may be, and no matter how discrete you think you’re being with another not so innocent relationship, people will take notice and will jump to conclusions. Co-workers will assume the worst because it adds a little excitement in a normally mundane 9-5 grind and gives them something interesting to talk about over morning lattes with their cubemate.

3. R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Start up an office romance and see how quickly EVERYONE in the company loses respect for you! Your hard work no longer seems earned. Your opinions will be called into question and your choices will be carefully scrutinize. People will wonder if your decision making process is one based with the company’s best interests in mind, or your own. You will appear sneaky and untrustworthy. And some may become hostile toward you for bending/breaking the company’s dating policy.

4. No Escaping!
Want to talk about awkward moments, jealously flare-ups, uncomfortable board meetings, snide remarks and power fights? Then become romantically involved with a co-worker. Better yet, wait until the two of you breakup and you’re forced to see your ex EVERY SINGLE DAY, ALL DAY LONG! The office becomes an emotional prison and there’s no escape.

5. Over And Under Rule
If they're over you, they shouldn't be "over" you. If they're under you, they shouldn't be "under" you. Get what I'm saying? Simply put - it's bad enough to sleep with a co-worker who is at the same level as you, but NEVER sleep with a boss or one of your subordinates! Not only are you asking to be fired, but you may find yourself wrapped up in an ugly sexual harassment case as well.

It doesn't matter how large or how relaxed of a company you work for, engaging in a workplace romance is committing career suicide. And in today's tough job market, believe me when I say you're easily replaceable. So don't give them an easy reason to let you go. Expand your dating pool.



***SIDE NOTE***
At risk of sounding like a hypocrite, it's only fair that I mention the advice I've just given comes from my own personal experience. When you know better, you do better. While I've never engaged in an workplace romance, I did receive a BJ at work (from a girl I was dating that didn't work there) during my rookie year in the workforce. I was fresh out of college with a bit of an ego and with lots to learn. I was young, dumb and full of...

Well, I’ll just end this post on that. Lesson learned.

You Can't Beat Beets

This is the season of the root vegetables, and no root gets me rooting for it more than the beet. Yeah, they're kind of a pain to work with, and yeah, they stain your fingers, but when made fresh, they're soooo good. I'm a fan. I'm seeing a lot of beets at the farmers market recently, like this colorful chiogga beet that has that interesting design in the center. These particular beets are pretty nice when thinly sliced and blanched and then added to a salad. I have to start cooking more with beets now that they're plentiful.

Feeding on Art No. 3

I typically use this feature to showcase some nice artwork I've spotted at local restaurants. But recently I spotted this mural in a neighborhood I don't typically get to. Since the artwork had a food theme, I thought I'd snap a picture and see if you guys recognize on what wall you'd find this beautiful piece of work. (I love artichokes.) Actually, the artwork looked like it was on some kind of billboard, but it doesn't look like it's advertising something. Pretty huh? So who's lucky neighborhood would you find this?

Actions (Performance) Speak Louder than Words

We have all heard the phrase that actions speak louder than words and it can be implied in various situations. One area that I apply this consistently is at my work.

Throughout my career I have been and I still am a big believer that in business your performance speaks louder than your words and/or anything else. A tip that I share with every member of my team, some of my colleagues, and most of my friends is that if you perform to the level that is expected out of you, you will always be successful, will be given every opportunity to shine, and will never have to worry about looking over your shoulder.

So when Alex Kovalev of Ottawa Senators comes out today and says that he is being picked on or is a scapegoat or is a victim of blame game after being dropped to the fourth line it makes me think that if he performed to the level that is expected out of him he would still be playing on the first line.
To give a bit of context to the Kovalev situation for those who are not hockey fans or don’t follow the Ottawa Senators, on July 6th 2009 the Ottawa Senators signed Alex Kovalev to a two year $10 Million dollar contract which at $5 Million dollar per year made him the second highest paid player of the organization.

When an organization signs you as one of the important pieces of the puzzle and they pay you like one it comes with a big expectation. The expectation is that you will contribute like a top employee and do it consistently. This is not just true in NHL or is something new; it’s like this in every business and it has been this way throughout the history.

An organization’s responsibility is first and foremost to communicate the expectation to you and ensure that you both mutually agree on what is expected out of you. Second they should give you all the tools and opportunities so you deliver to the agreed upon expectation. As soon as those two criteria are met the onus is now on you to perform. If you are not meeting the expectation then they will have to hold you accountable for your performance or lack their off.

Now a few exceptional and outstanding organizations will take the time to communicate proactively if you are not meeting the expectation before holding you accountable, will try different routes to motivate you, and will provide you with a lot of coaching and training to ensure that you perform to your level of capability. And if you still are not then they will ultimately hold you accountable.

If you are part of the team and if you don’t do your share of the work, it creates more workload for the rest of your team members, they have to work harder, and they have put more efforts because you are not performing to your ability. Holding you accountable when you are not performing is called team fairness.

Similarly the Ottawa Senators have given Alex Kovalev every opportunity to perform and perform consistently. From giving an opportunity to play with elite players of the world like Daniel Alferdsson & Jason Spezza, to playing on the line with fast and energetic young & talented players, to playing on special teams, to playing with two playmaking centers, time and again they have given him every opportunity to succeed and play at the level that is expected out of him.

In return what Alex has accomplished in 30 games in only 7 goals 4 of which came in two games where he scored two goals each. So in 28 other games he has only scored in three games which means 25 games where he has not scored a goal. To analyze it a bit further 83.3% of the games Alex Kovalev hasn’t done what is expected out of him. He has only contributed in less than 17% of the games he has dressed up.

How many of us can go to work and not do what is expected of us 83% time or more than 4 days of a 5 work day week and not being held accountable? How many of us can work for the 17 hours of 100 hours that we are paid for and expect that we be treated as a top employee?

Now according to me Alex Kovalev can take care of all this issues, disappointments, and frustration if he performs to the level that is expected out of him and does it consistently.
When the coach and management sat him down and told him that he has to be better as a player he didn’t care to improve and when he was called out in front of the media that he is one of the players that is expected more out of he didn’t pay any attention so what other choice did he leave for his manager (in this case Coach Clouston) but to hold him accountable and put him on a 4th line. If his performance doesn’t pick up anytime soon Alex could find himself watching the game from pressbox instead of playing it on the ice.

Every organization and every manager require their top players to be their top performers. Most of the managers including yours truly reward their top performers by giving them every opportunity to keep up the performance or exceed the. We all try to keep our top performers motivated, satisfied, and upbeat so they continue their dominance. We also hold our bottom performers accountable albeit first giving them every opportunity to improve including coaching, training, & support they need.

My philosophy and coaching tip that I could pass to Alex Kovalev would be that instead of showing your disappointment and being frustrated for being held accountable you control your destiny.

So Alex, my friend, perform to your level of expectation and earn the opportunities instead of being inconsistent and demanding it. Perform to the best of your abilities and don’t worry about being “picked on” or being a “scapegoat” for actions (performance) speak louder than words.

I personally believe that by holding Alex Kovalev accountable for this lack of performance the Ottawa Senators organization are not only doing the right thing but they are also being fair to the rest of his teammates who are working their tails off to succeed.

Do you agree?

Thanks for reading.

For more information please visit:

http://www.musthafaebadi.com/

Smuggler’s Cove Bar in San Francisco

Tropical Past in a Cocktail Glass
650 Gough St. (at McAllister), San Francisco
Hayes Valley
PH: 415.869.1900
Open daily from 5 p.m.
No reservations, major credit cards accepted
www.smugglerscovesf.com

Because my friend Ken and I had an early dinner Saturday trying to beat the rush at Una Pizza Napoletana, the night was still young when we were done with our pizzas. So I suggested getting some after-dinner drinks. A bar I’ve been meaning to try for the past year is Smuggler’s Cove, which coincidentally celebrates its one-year anniversary this week.

The tiki-kitsch bar is the brainchild of mixologist/owner Martin Cate, who created a Prohibition-era rum lover’s paradise. It’s a little bit of Trader’s Vic meets Pirates of the Caribbean. When it first opened, the tiny three-story bar had people lining up out the door behind the velvet ropes wanting to get a peek at the tropical décor and a sip of one of the 70 specialty cocktail drinks.

Ken and I got a spot on the second-floor lounge area that overlooks the tiny bar. (The basement was closed for a private show.) We were surrounded by tiki statues, blowfish lanterns and colored glass balls in netting. It’s the kind of kitsch reserved for the tourists when I was growing up in Honolulu, but on this night it felt a bit nostalgic for me.

After flipping through all the options, I decided to order something that sounded like Hawaii, so I got the Kona Cocktail ($9), a never-used recipe from the Don the Beachcomber cocktail book. I guess Ken wanted to get something that reminded of his hometown of Fresno because he ordered something called the Fogcutter.

Memo to self: Don’t let Ken get the drinks. What happened was Ken went to the bar to order the drinks, but he totally didn’t ask the bartender which drink was which.

So when he returned, we pretty much spent the next half hour trying each other drinks to figure out which was which. We finally settled on the fact that this is the Fogcutter because it had a lot of the citrus taste that makes the base of the drink.

This was my Kona Cocktail, made with muddled pineapple, passion fruit, and dark Jamaican rum. Ken and I both liked this cocktail the best, which also had some honey that we didn’t initially taste because it all sunk to the bottom of the glass.

I decided to try one more cocktail, this time the Straits Sling ($9) because it’s based on the Singapore Sling and I remember that drink from this year’s Top Chef finale when they were in Singapore. It’s a refreshing blend of gin, cherry liqueur, Benedictine, lemon and two kinds of bitters. The seltzer water makes the drink feel light too.

Smuggler’s Cove definitely has a lot of kitschy fun to it, and the umbrella-accented drinks are all perfectly blended. (Although the over use of pineapple definitely attracted the fruit flies in the place.) The upper floor lounge is a nice respite from the packed bar below. It’s definitely a little bit of paradise, which is especially nice during these cold winter days.

Single guy rating: 4 stars (Aloha Rum)

Explanation of the single guy's rating system:
1 star = perfect for college students
2 stars = perfect for new diners
3 stars = perfect for foodies
4 stars = perfect for expense accounts
5 stars = perfect for any guy's dream dinner

Let it pour:
Pisco Latin Lounge: “Trying to Shake Up the Neighborhood”
Clock Bar: “Time Stands Still at this Hotel Bar”
Kingman’s Lucky Lounge: “A SOMA Lounge in Oakland”