Week 2: The Golden Phoenix

(listening to: Nothing! Writing in silence is sometimes needed)

One of my favorite foods in the world is white rice. I am often teased for this, given that I am someone who absolutely adores flavor. Nothing about a simple grilled chicken breast makes my mouth water. But give me that same chicken breast slathered in a honey barbecue sauce, or encrusted in herbs, and I will take two please. The way I like my white rice is plain. I like a little bit of butter, some salt and pepper and the biggest portion of rice you could give me. It may be humorous that someone who demands rich flavor from foods loves such a boring and simple dish but I promise you that it isn't my fault. Blame my crazy taste buds.

Heaven, in a bowl.

Now, when I found that my assignment for this week was to go to Golden Phoenix I was thrilled. I am a Chinese food fan through and through. I know that eating it often can slow you down and eating food that has MSG in it probably isn't the best way to get your health boost for the week but I don't care. Give me the lethargic movements. Let me fall asleep after I eat. Give me the bad cholesterol.... As long as I get to savor every delicious bite of fried rice. :)

I know that not all Chinese food is bad for you, and I also am aware that some of you may not like it at all. I have had my fair share of dried out rice, slightly soggy sweet and sour pork, and limp broccoli with beef. But when you bite into the texture combination of  soft noodles mixed with crunchy sautéed vegetables and your heart skips a beat and your mouth salivates even more.... well THAT, my friends is why I endure.

Some of you may not look at food the same way I do. My mother and I often joke about how sad our lives are that food controls us. You may be reading this right now, reading my descriptions and trying to find the number to that mental institution down the road. But don't bother. I refuse to be committed to an insane asylum and I am betting that I will be able to pass their crazy test. Plus, the food there sucks.

So I was a bit apprehensive when 'Crispy Peking Duck' was my dish to try at Golden Phoenix. What happened to REAL Chinese food? Why cant I go and eat Cream Cheese Wontons? or Sesame Seed Chicken? Why, oh WHY does Chef Evil hate me so much that he would send me to a promise land of Chinese deliciousness and make me eat crispy. duck.

I knew I should have been a more diligent student.

My worries only increased as I began to research the dish. It turns out that Peking duck originated from Beijing and has been prepared since the imperial era. It is a beloved dish and is now considered one of China's national foods. (okay, no problem there. I dig famous stuff)

Peking duck is prepared from the Pekin duck...

(Okay cool, no problems there... he is cute. Reminds me of the Aflac guy)

Newborn ducks are raised in a free range environment for the first 45 days of their life. (Like that. I envision tiny white chicklets running around going 'Im freeee! Free as a birrrd!')

And after the first 45 days the ducks are FORCE FED AT LEAST FOUR TIMES A DAY for the next 15-20 days resulting in ducks that weigh 11-15lbs. (Wait.............. what?!?!)

The ducks are then slaughtered, feathered, cleaned out and rinsed thoroughly with water.

Next, AIR IS PUMPED UNDER THE SKIN THROUGH THE NECK CAVITY TO SEPARATE THE SKIN FROM THE FAT. (WHO THINKS THIS STUFF UP??? Really, who was the first person to go 'you know what would make this duck superb? Let us pump air under his skin after we have forced it to become a fat little ducky.' Does this sound like a distorted version of Hansel and Gretel to anyone? )

Lastly the duck is boiled, has a giant hook shoved through it (thank goodness it is dead at this point) glazed in a syrup, and then after 24 hours it is roasted.

Those poor poor little ducks. They are truly the veal of the fowl world.

To take my mind off of the defenseless creature that had to be fattened before murdered just so I could enjoy its air-pumped skin, I began to focus on researching the restaurant. I could not find very many reviews or articles about it online, which also worried me that it was some hole-in-the-wall duck murdering eatery.

After digging around and making a few phone calls, some of which to Chef Evil (every conversation ended with malicious evil laughter.... hence the nickname), I was lucky enough to find someone who had a bit of information on the place. A local artist by the name of DG Smalling was familiar with the area and the restaurant in question. He told me a bit about himself, including how he grew up traveling overseas to areas including Cameroon, Hungary, Romania and South Africa, to name a few.

He was a terrific help in calming me down and helping me focus more on the story about the people that ran the business. It is family owned and the family has been in Oklahoma about 20-30 years. They own much of the real estate in the surrounding area, including the large Asian supermarket next door to The Golden Phoenix. He told me that this allowed them to receive top quality ingredients in a cost effective way. The entire family worked the multiple businesses they owned. With Grandma in the kitchen of the restaurant, keeping a watchful eye and making sure that her grandson and grandson-in law cook her recipes the correct way. Cousins and some of the younger generations working front of the house, and even the father next door, running the supermarket.

After speaking with DG Smalling, I began to get excited abut seeing this place for myself. Eating the food that is made with care and backed up by years of tradition. DG gave me a list of things he thought were the best on the menu and by the close of our conversation, I was hungry.

We drove to The Golden Phoenix that evening not really knowing what to expect. The restaurant was located in an older, smaller, strip mall type building and was very understated. We walked in and the first thing to meet your eyes was a large display case of hanging glazed ducks. An image that instantly made me think of 'A Christmas Story' for some reason.

Once we were seated, I was overwhelmed looking at the extensive menu of  over 250 Chinese and Vietnamese dishes, all of which, looked incredible. The prices were very reasonable and we instantly started our meal off with the looseleaf Jasmine tea and the Shrimp Spring Rolls with a Peanut Sauce.

The Spring Rolls came out massive. They were like small stuffed burritos filled with fresh lettuce, mint, cilantro, soft noodles, shrimp and what we believe was a crispy fried green onion down the center of it. The sauce was a thick, almost gravy-like sweet peanut dipping sauce that was savory and creamy in the way caramel sauces are. The crushed peanuts on top of the sauce gave a new texture and altogether, it was bliss. Fresh, cold, crisp lettuce with the soft noodles. The creamy sweet sauce with the crunch of the fried green onion and the punch of cilantro and mint. It got better with each bite and once it was gone, a certain sadness settled over me. I wanted about thirteen more rolls.

Our wonderful waiter must have sensed my sadness and instantly cleared any reminder of the amazing Spring Rolls and brought out our next dish, Shrimp Fried Rice. Scott laughed at me for ordering it, and not something new and exciting, but he doesn't understand my love affair with rice. And fried rice is one of the variations of my beloved carb that I could eat all day long.

It came out looking like Shrimp Fried Rice (always a good sign) and my first bite brought on a whole new wave of deep, immense pleasure. It is one thing to enjoy a guilty pleasure and know what you are getting, but I hadn't quite expected a dish that I had been eating since I was a toddler to be this good! It was moist and brimming with flavor. The shrimp was the perfect crunchiness and I actually tasted the scallions put in it. The rice was cooked to perfection and was an exceptional example of the dish that I know and love.

There were also two sauces on our table (pictured above) that I didn't try. I am a complete wimp when it comes to hot and spicy foods and so Scott tried them both for me. The first he described as a 'vinegary hot sauce' and the other was 'Just really freakin' hot'. :) So in case you go eat here, be warned of sauce number two!!

Our extremely observant waiter brought out the last dishes after I had made about three very loud 'mmmm' noises over my rice, causing others in the restaurant to turn and stare. Scott had ordered a Seafood Hotpot (We were really feeling the seafood) and I, of course, ordered the Crispy Peking Duck. (The duck was located under the 'Chinese BBQ' section of the menu which had confused me at first, but with the help of our waiter, we eventually figured it out)

Scott's Seafood Hotpot

Crispy Peking Duck

Scott's dish was a steamy metal pot filled with squid, shrimp, scallops, cilantro, lemongrass, flat noodles, tofu, bean curd, shiitake mushrooms, button mushrooms and other various vegetables which had been sautéed together, with a light brown sauce poured over it. It was good. Spicy, and had much flavor to it. All of the different textures made it a fun eat and one thing that I loved about it was the sauce, in which you could pick out the individual herbs that were used to make it. It wasn't like your typical 'Chinese food beef and broccoli' sauce that tastes like.... well, sauce. It had so many flavors to identify. You could taste the freshness of each ingredient clearly.

And then there was the duck.

If the picture looks a bit like the skin is floating on top of the meat, thats because it is. I never would have guessed that the layer of fat between the skin and the duck would be so big!!!

Now- just a bit of back history on myself. I don't eat fat very much. I don't like the taste of it. I also believe that if I would like to continue my wonderful lifestyle of staying semi-thin and not work out too strenuously (And by strenuous I mean working out at all), eating the fat of another animal probably isn't going to help me at all. I don't need more fat on my butt so why would I eat a steak that is marbled with tons of fat? Or pieces of fatty bacon that will end up hitching a ride to my fat storage area and staying there until I become depressed enough to go get it liposuctioned out? Well, I don't. I eat around the fat. It is a skill really and I am proud to say that I have become a master of separating the pieces of fat from the meat on bacon in a way only a true artist can. I can spot fatty bits in a pot roast and can maneuver my fork to clean the plate of everything else but that jelly like blob of flavor. The way that I have outsmarted fat over the years brings a small tear to my eye, I am proud of myself. Even if you think I am a flippin' nutjob.

So when the duck came to the table and I realized that I had to EAT the fat, skin and meat together... I cursed Chef Evil's name. (He really is very evil, and I know he did it on purpose) After a few timid moments of internal motivation, I scraped the meat, FAT and crispy skin off of the bone (like a cannibal) and began to eat my very first bite of Crispy Duck.

Me, trying to figure out if there is a way to separate the fat from the skin and meat and scrape it out... there isn't.

OH. MY. DELICIOUS.

The most tender meat and flavorful fat was perfect with the skin that had very light fruity notes to it. It was an unbelievably succulent bird that was warm and hearty and brought you home. Home, to holiday parties where nobody cares about watching their weight and enjoys dressed turkey, stuffing and gravy. To Christmas and Easter and Birthday dinners that your mom made you growing up of all your favorite foods. It was the oyster of a turkey that fell apart in your mouth and was so juicy that you found it running down your chin. The crispy skin was such an unexpected but welcomed crunch. The fat- I loved! It was rich and full of flavor. It was........ My bowl of white rice. It was that food that when you have a rough day, you eat to feel just a bit better. It was comfort food that you ate as a child and still eat to this day and once you do, you can conquer anything. It was like I had eaten this duck all of my life. I had grown up with it and loved it and remembered it from some of my favorite moments of life. It gave me the same feeling that eating a simple bowl of white rice gives me. Although the two are very different in flavor, they evoked such a deep sense of comfort, happiness and warmth that only food can give you.

It was.... superb.

Scott and I enjoyed our meal so much and the Jasmine tea complimented everything beautifully.

As we were finishing up our meal and the restaurant started to clear out, large plates of food were being brought from the kitchen to an enormous round table near the front. We thought that a large party was coming in to eat but instead it was the staff. The hostess and busser, the cooks and the dish washer, our waiter and the older man that was running the restaurant tonight, they all finished wiping things down and clearing out the display cases and then they sat down for a family meal. It was such a sweet picture and it made our meal all the more memorable.

The last thing we did before we left was break open our fortune cookies.

First was Scott's...

And then there was mine...

AWWWWWW CRAP!!!!

Our meal was wonderful and this restaurant AND special dish both receive a special 'U&A' grading from me. For 'Unexpected, and Awesome'

Thanks for reading this long, long post. And now I leave you with an image that we all know and love. Until next time, little bloggers! All my love.

Golden Phoenix Chinese B.B.Q. & Vietnamese Restaurant

2728 N. Classen Blvd.
Oklahoma City, OK
(405) 524-3988
Hours: Closed Wednesday