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Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Okay, I’ll admit right from the start. This is a pretty silly post. (It’s also a post that may really upset some very devout Buddhists out there but I’ll take that risk.) Last year, some rather crazy but always fun friends gave us a set of some of the wackiest jelly / pudding molds I have ever seen. The Il Buddino molds, as you can see, allow slightly deranged foodies like me to make Buddha-shaped desserts.
S’s birthday was this past weekend. One of our celebratory meals was a fantastic lunch prepared for us and several friends by Chef Jimmy Chok, who is hands-down one of the best guys in the country when it comes to catering exquisite meals for small groups. For fun, I also decided to break out the Buddha molds, which had gone unused since we received them a number of months back.
S suggested that I make Milo agar-agar Buddhas to serve as our apres-dessert course. Which seemed like a fine idea until I realized that not only had I never made Milo agar-agar before, I’d never even tasted it (hey, I grew up in New York). S assured me it was a simple thing to make. All I needed to do was get the ration of Milo, sugar, water and agar-agar correct. After a little experimentation, I settled on a 5g agar-agar, 450g water, 75g milo and 25g sugar ratio, which seemed to work just fine. As you can imagine, the Buddhas went over well — that is to say, everyone laughed. Fortunately, our group of friends is pretty darned tolerant. And while a big hunk of Milo agar-agar isn’t the ultimate gustatory pleasure, it sure can be fun when shaped the right way.        Posted by Chubby Hubby 
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What a neat way to end, what sounds like a wonderful celebratory meal. Your post has me begging the question, what was on the menu that Cehf Chok created?
Posted by: OysterCulture | 10 March 2009 @ 9:24 pm
Hi Lou-ann,
Here’s Jimmy’s menu (sorry about the Caps… menu taken off of an email he sent me):
LIGHTLY TORCH MAGURO LOIN, SEAWEED SALAD, SESAME DRESSING
HOT SEARED SCALLOPS, YUZU MISO SABAYON
SILK HEN CONSOMME, PORK PRAWN DUMPLING
WARM ANGEL HAIR PASTA,BOTTARGA DUST, CHIVES
BRAISED KURABUTA PORK CHEEK,TRUFFLE MOUSSELINE, MICRO SALADS
Posted by: Chubby Hubby | 10 March 2009 @ 9:34 pm
That sounds like a wonderful meal - what a great birthday celebration! Thanks for sharing the menu. I’m in San Francisco and reading this post before breakfast and already my granola does not look up to snuff.
Posted by: OysterCulture | 10 March 2009 @ 10:13 pm
When I saw this picture, I cracked up! Absolutely hilarious! Now I have to get these molds!
Posted by: CrazyC | 10 March 2009 @ 10:21 pm
Awesome!
NAOmni
Posted by: NAOmni | 11 March 2009 @ 10:08 am
hi, was wondering if you used the agar agar that comes in a yellow pack?
Posted by: tingles | 11 March 2009 @ 11:38 am
Tingles: I bought a big jar actually, but I think whether it is in packets or jars, it is the same thing.
Posted by: Chubby Hubby | 11 March 2009 @ 11:48 am
hey! a ~1% agar gel is what we use in lab to run DNA gels! i’m sure yours taste better, though (and aren’t carcinogenic)
Posted by: MKZ | 11 March 2009 @ 12:27 pm
How cool! If someone gave me those molds, I would definitely use them!
Posted by: Y | 11 March 2009 @ 1:12 pm
Hi ChubbyHubby, I came across your blog a few days ago–and was immediately immersed in it. I noticed you had dealings with many top chefs in singapore. I am 17 this year and am very passionate about cooking. I am also aspiring to be a chef. My parents do not know of my dream, but they seem very unenthusiastic whenever I spoke of cooking. Would you give me some words of advice, please? I don’t know whom else to turn to. Thank you!
Posted by: Cheryl T. | 12 March 2009 @ 12:36 am
LoL! What is Milo? What about using lime or some exotic juice next time.
Posted by: Labelga | 12 March 2009 @ 10:26 pm
Where did you get the mould? Its really nice!!
Posted by: missp | 13 March 2009 @ 6:28 pm
I’m not a religious person…but Im not sure if I could bring myself to eat a Buddha
But still I think it’d be pretty fun to poke him and watch him jiggle.
Posted by: Jon | 13 March 2009 @ 11:06 pm
Agar agar Buddhas - what a perfect idea. I’ve had a packet of agar agar sitting on my counter for ages. Now I know exactly what to do with it.
Cheers!
Posted by: CookingSchoolConfidential.com | 14 March 2009 @ 4:53 am
awesome post and awesome mold. my initial reaction was “where’s the food” and then I read that what appears to be a Buddha figurine is actually Milo agar-agar. Milo, very appropriately asian.
Posted by: J. | 14 March 2009 @ 12:38 pm
OMG I want some of those Milo Buddha!!! Had lots of agar-agar Milo growing up. Unfortunately the Milo they sell here is not the malty, chocolatey, creamy sweet Milo they have back home - it is imported from Nigeria.
Gotta make some and find a good alternative.
Have a great weekend, Aun & S!
Posted by: valisa | 14 March 2009 @ 6:48 pm
Wacky indeed!
Posted by: Mrs Ergül | 14 March 2009 @ 10:08 pm
ch, you should try baileys agar agar next time ! or baileys + kahlua!
Posted by: dimply | 14 March 2009 @ 10:40 pm
“As we need food, so do we need emotional nourishment……” - a part of something Buddha said. He would have laughed with real amusement if someone had told him there’d be people eating edible versions of him in the future. And I think laughter is quite nourishing!
Really cute stuff!
Posted by: Miakoda | 14 March 2009 @ 11:40 pm
I love Milo agar agar and I think the Buddha moulds look cool…. but, I would have trouble swallowing it!
Posted by: Becklee | 19 March 2009 @ 2:16 pm
hi..
would you mind e-mailing me the recipe for your Milo Agar Agar, please?
my friend’s birthday is coming up and she LOVES milo (she eats it straight from the tin) and im thinking of preparing the milo agar agar for her after reading your post!
i don’t cook .. so i really have no idea how to make agar-agar in the first place. it would be a great help if you could e-mail me your recipe. please?
thanks alot!
Posted by: Jocelyn | 30 March 2009 @ 3:21 pm
Jocelyn: The formula is 5g agar-agar, 450g water, 75g milo and 25g sugar. Make your milo with the water, sugar and milo powder. Heat everything in a saucepan/pot. Make sure the milo powder and sugar dissolve completely. Bring to a boil. Add the agar agar, then turn off the heat and stir. Then quickly pour into your mold.
Posted by: Chubby Hubby | 30 March 2009 @ 4:55 pm
just to round off your agar-agar buddha story:
il buddino is italian wordplay on “budino” (with 1 “d” meaning pudding) and “buddino” (2″d”s meaning little buddha).
Posted by: siok kuan | 31 March 2009 @ 3:07 pm
I’ve been lurking on your site forever and I have to say that posting these Agar-agar buddha has made my morning! They’re AWESOME.
I also had no idea that you were from New York. I’m here right now and I wish I could get my hands on some Milo to try to make milo agar-agar. Is it more pudding-like?
Posted by: Joanna | 4 April 2009 @ 5:03 pm
Fabulous. They came out beautifully
Posted by: Jacqui | 5 April 2009 @ 5:38 pm
is gelatine and agar-agar the same?
Posted by: ah loy | 24 June 2009 @ 5:11 pm
Sooo Cool….
Posted by: MzP | 25 July 2009 @ 10:29 am
Hello CH, I also have set of these molds. I tried making pandan panna cotta but I lost the face and eyes of the buddha after I tried to heat up to demould. Probably I should try with Agar powder instead of gelatine….
Posted by: shirley@køkken69 | 21 October 2009 @ 10:23 pm
i just bought these molds when i was in rome! i’m so scared to melt them though…do you have any suggestions for things to make? have you tried anything else in them aside from milo agar-agar? i was thinking of pudding and panna cotta
Posted by: Kate | 23 October 2009 @ 8:15 am
Hi Kate & Shirley,
A friend just recommended this recipe
http://www.chow.com/recipes/27808
Posted by: S | 23 October 2009 @ 2:49 pm