Author Archives: Dennise Rivera

Smorgasburg Reaction Blog ~ Dennise Rivera

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Jianbing, Shanghai-Inspired Street Food

The day I went to Smorgasburg the food choices were minimal. Due to the bad weather many vendors decided not to go and those who were there were having a hard time cooking and serving the food, because of the wind and rain that flew all over the place. From those few places one that caught my attention was jianbing which is original from China. The best way to describe it is as a savory crepe. The flour mixture is spread through a big circular pan where the pancake immediately starts to form, then he added eggs on top of the flour mixture and started to mix the egg with the flour cooking it simultaneously. Next, he added chopped scallions, coriander, mustard pickles, and chicken to the middle of the pancake. After, he folded one side of the pancake to add hoisin sauce, followed by baocui which is a thin and crisp deep-fried pancake. Finally, he folded the rest of the pancake multiply times, and finished by cutting it in half.

The taste of the jianbing was pretty interesting. The fluor of the pancake was thin and delicate as well as the crispy deep-fried pancake that they added. The flavor of the chicken was mild and felt almost unseasoned. What gave the overall taste in the jianbing was the hoisin sauce which had a sweet and salty taste, and the chopped mustard pickles with a bittersweet taste. You could taste the sweetness in every bite but it wasn’t very pungent. Is not something I would like to eat for breakfast, but it can be great for lunch or as a snack.

Due to the bad weather there were few people and almost no lines at all. From ordering to getting served it took about five minutes which was fast. The portion size was about a foot long in total. I payed $15 dollars which I do not think it was worth it since a jianbing is considered to be a “street” food which is sold at a low price due to the affordable cost of ingredients that requires to make it.  My overall experience was not as pleasant as how I expect it. The location of the place was difficult to find, the cold-rainy weather made it worse, and the food sold was not as flavorful and tasty as it looked.

Field Trip Blog – Dennise Rivera

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Hundreds of years ago before technology and industrialization took over, people were mainly focused in farming. It did not only provide them with food, but also for many people farming became their way of living. Humans started to trade goods from all over the world adapting them to their soil and climate. It created a much bigger variety of vegetables and fruits people could choose from. From that period of time to today’s, farming has changed very drastically. From the video we saw in class the food system they use to grow goods is mainly operated by machines and it’s in massive sections of land. These gigantic crops use fertilizers and pesticides to help their crops grow fast and free of any plague, that can cause them to lose hundreds of money. These huge crops are the ones that provide most of the food in America. Hundreds of people don’t like the idea of eating food that has been altered by any way, since for many it’s not healthy. Food that claims to be organic and free of pesticides is often preferred. These farmers are usually local and grow their crops in much smaller ratios. For this reason organic crops are a lot more expensive and it may not be accessible for everyone. As we saw in the trip the roof farm was about one-acre and in had dozens of crops. Each one of them is cultivated in a ratio that could only feed a very small amount of people. However, it can be considered to be healthier and flavorful compared to the massive crops. The food system in this roof farm is much complicated than the mass-production farms. There is a probability that the crops won’t grow, since we live in New York and we have the four seasons, it can get too hot or too cold and the plants can easily die. I believe it’s a great way to incorporate farming back to the city and also it encourages people to start a roof farm. By having more roof farms, these crops can become more accessible to people and maybe replace some of the foods bought in the super market. Going for a healthier and organic option since you will know how the crops are grown.