Tuna and Veggies

The rain lightened up by noon and I drove to Sichuan for lunch. I had not eaten there in weeks.

Lunch at the Sichuan restaurant and at 8 China Buffet unfailingly reminds me of what has become my most fabulous memory of eating - the nighttime beachside buffet at Boracay. 

On the most famous island resort in the Philippines, one wends through the lamplit path between the seaside guest cottages and table after table of tropical buffet next to open-air restaurants with tables in multicolored table cloths and white plastic chairs.  Obtrusive loudspeakers carry live music through the air. Filipinos are some of the best musicians in the world although not known for inventiveness. As a race we are great imitators.

At the restaurant we chose, the table lined with fresh banana leaves groaned under the burden of native delicacies like a whole suckling pig lechon, stuffed fried bangus, fresh crabs, prawns and shellfish, Spanish-Filipino specialties and platters of luscious tropical fruits, all lit by fllickering kerosene torches and overhead strings of lights. Dining to the accompaniment of ocean waves splashing on the nearby sand and salty breezes lapping your face for me is the apical gourmet experience.
Food has always been important to me. At Sichuan today, my favorite was the dish of tofu cooked with garlic, green onions, ginger, fermented black beans and savory Sichuan sauce. While hot, the sauce adds more than heat to the dish. The hot pepper is the heart of the dish's flavor core.

Yesterday, coming home from the park, I fixed myself a quick lunch using canned tuna that I quickly sautéed in olive oil, adding a Thai coconut marinade at the last minute to lightly coat the gold-flecked fish flakes. With my version of fried rice that I cooked with crisp dry salami pieces and quick-roasted tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and coarsely ground pink and red peppercorns, the platter looked good enough to photograph. 
After lunch, I arranged the basketful of vegetables I had bought at the grocery on my way home. First I tried using a Chinese silk runner as background. I unrolled the black mylan background I have not used in months. Shooting models I didn't realize that the black background worked best when the lights did not show it up. Whatever I photographed would appear to sit in pitch-black darkness.

I should really take the time to set up the lights and background if I want to shoot platters of food and food ingredients instead of shooting on the fly as I have been doing. Anyway here're a few of the resulting images.