Sifting the Inner Belt 篩羅內環 Tamizando el Cinturón Interno: Springtime Sesame Salad

Artists and Authors

catherine D'Ignazio a.k.a. kanarinka
New media artist interested in collaboration, community and public space.

Contact Info:
144 Moody Street
Building 4, 4th Floor
Waltham, MA 02453
phone: (617)501-2441
email: [email protected]
Hiroko Kikuchi
A performance and public artist. Originally from Tokyo, Japan. Her work explores the formative and communicative meaning of everyday activities as a mutual "language," influenced by the social environment, tradition, and aesthetics which all co-exist within confining behavioral structures. For the last 2 years, she has been working on creating a protocol to address social and cultural matters by re-structuring the concept and form of performance art.

Contact Info:
57 Boylston St. #3 Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
phone: (617)905-6323
email: [email protected]
Jeremy Chan Peng Chu
Singapore born, artist and photographer, explores cultural space production in-between the processes of change, interested in Chinese diasporal space and collaborative practice.

54 Clarendon Street Level 1
Boston MA 02116
phone: (617) 375 6399
email: [email protected]
Jeremy Chi-Ming Liu
Director of Community Programs at the Asian Community Develpment Corporation, public artist, activist

57 Boylston St. #3
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
fax: (617) 482-3056
email: [email protected]
Kim Szeto
Student at Wheaton College (Norton, MA) pursuing a self designed major in Environmental Studies.

cell: 617-957-5087
email: [email protected]
Natalie Loveless
artist, critic and theorist interested in dialogic space, performance practice, critical and cultural theory.

Contact Info:
History of Consciousness Ph.D. Program
University of California at Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, CA 95064
phone: (617) 549-3239
email: [email protected]
William H. Ho
Community Organizer and photographer interested in how urban spaces affect and interact with the public

Asian Community Development Corp.
888 Washington St., Suite 102
Boston, MA 02111
phone: 617-953-1288
fax: 617-482-3056
email: [email protected]

The Bitter Melon bandwagon is gathering steam as local support for the gourd increases! I've been shopping it around, sharing bites and offering taste tests to local chefs and foodies. The sampling has spurned exciting conversations about its many flavor nuances. Adjectives that have come up in these interactions: "floral", "clean", "fresh", "...interesting...", and even "mmm! That’s good!" Its flavor has been compared to dandelion greens. What it lacks in bouquet, Bitter Melon makes up for in finish. The bitter bite cleans the palette, a quality that makes it a great salad complement to rich, heavy dishes.

I brought one to a chef at Central Kitchen in Cambridge, MA. He had never tried it and was intrigued by my enthusiastic ruminations of its different flavor qualities and health benefits. He asked for a melon to experiment with and whipped something up for that evening's staff meal. The salad was received quite well by the unsuspecting group. It was served as a complement to southern fried chicken, mustard mashed potatoes, and gravy. I was told that the bowl was nearly empty by the time the was cleared!

Here's the recipe. It is definitely one to try at home!

Chef Jimmy Bigtime's Bitter Melon Salad

Vegs:
1 Bitter Melon (semi-mature), cored and grated
1 Carrot, grated
1 Bunch scallions, sliced

Sesame Vinaigrette:
1 1/2 T Sesame Oil
1 1/2 T Olive Oil
2 t Soy Sauce
Juice of 2 limes
1 T Ginger Vinegar (can substitute 1 t chopped Ginger)
1 t chili flakes

Toss veggies in vinaigrette and serve chilled.

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