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Little one came back yesterday night from a one week school trip to the Chiemsee. Arriving at 21.00h he announced that he had lunch at 12.00h and no snacks since then (which I doubt, but DW agreed he looked famished 😎) … Luckily, I had some sausages in the freezer. Made a quick curry sauce with the help of Japanese curry roux and airfried some fries. And as per request BBQ sauce on the side … Happy and slightly tired kid (and happy parents that he is back) … And a little treat from the mancave, just because … No complaints (at all !) 🥳

Another day; another lunch 大闸蟹 (dà zhá xiè), mitten crabs aka hairy crabs. With 蟹醋 (xiè cù), crab vinegar for a dip (in the bottle).

So I (semi) regularly make a roasted tomato soup for the family. It's easy, freezes well, and everyone loves it. Tomatoes are just coming into season here (South Africa), so I got a couple kg's worth and made a big batch a couple of days ago. It's very simple: I chop and roast tomatoes, carrots, onion, garlic, red & yellow bell pepper, and a couple of small chillies (birdseye this time) under the broiler, toss with salt & pepper and a little olive oil, then into a pot to simmer, then blend with an immersion blender. At the very end I add cultured buttermilk before we eat it. This time, for the first time ever, while simmering (after blending) I got a persistent layer of scum on the top that had to be scraped off. Similar to when you're making a stock and you have to skim it. Because the soup itself is so thick, it was quite hard to get the gunk off the top without losing a lot of the soup itself. The only difference this time: Normally, when I chop the tomatoes, I dump the insides (seeds and goo) into the trash, but this time I thought I would try to get some of that 'tomato water' so I put them into a fine sieve over a bowl while I did the rest of the prep. I ended up with about two cups of very delicious tasting juice that I added to the mixture. Could that tomato water/juice be the culprit? Or is there something else I'm missing? Thanks in advance!

They're at it again! This a screenshot of a dish sold as western food. The video is going viral here in China. Overcooked but unseared steak, some kind of spaghetti, random salad, a fried egg and a lump of cØrn. As served in every western home every day! Thankfully, the restaurant is over 1,000 miles from me.

You may have noticed that a number of the mooncakes I’ve mentioned are described as 冰皮 (bīng pí) something. This means ice skin. They are not baked like normal cakes but are fresh and are sold and stored frozen. They are not ice cream like, but are defrosted and then immediately eaten. These have been around a couple of years but have really exploded this year with lots of ‘new’ flavours turning up. These two are from the grasslands of China’s northern province, Inner Mongolia. First up is 醇厚奶香地道蒙味 (chún hòu nǎi xiāng dì dào méng wèi), full milk flavour authentic taste. Hmmmm. Next is 咖啡混合味月饼 (kā fēi hùn hé wèi yuè bǐng), coffee blend flavour mooncakes. Blended with what?

Just an update - tonight was the first time I was able to try the most ripe of the rawit chillies. It is now obvious to me that chilli plants do not require heat to make the chillies spicy - just lots of light. This one chilli was fantastic - lots of flavor but also, quite spicy. One mashed up chilli amongst a pound of smashed cucumbers definitely made itself known....

I, too, would request leftover oxtails for breakfast if only there was the slightest chance!

Yesterday. Crayfish in a Sichuan style mala sauce. Vinegar fried potato slivers and stir fried cabbage. Served with rice.

I think your husband and mine might be long lost brothers

The heat drying idea makes sense. I have a small sized Kitchen Aid santoku where the plastic handle has cracked appart and about a third has fallen off. I don't heat dry, though, because I'm an energy-miser. I sometimes toy with the thought of fixing the handle with some epoxy, but the knife isn't really worth the effort and it isn't that uncomfortable to use. Btw, it is actually a pretty handy knife that serves well as a petty to abuse and as a cheese knife.

I am in lust... sigh

Pressure can. When using, add them to the soup with no need to cook a long period. (Basically the same as opening a can of beans from the store.)

Do you pressure cook the beans?

Looks absolutely beautiful!

I am not the one that does dishes.i asked partner if he would handwash knives. No. That said, knives i do not want to go thru the dishwasher, get washed by hand and are also of the "only for my hands to use" variety. Partner skewered himself on a chef knife when he was unloading the dishwasher. After the staples were removed and the course of antibiotics were done, I mentioned that handwashing knives reduces the potential for skewering oneself. I still handwash *my* knives.

I process all the birds myself, which is kind of a time-sink but it means I don't have to negotiate in order to get giblets.

I got yesterday a mail parcel from Murray's, a famous NY cheese store. I got like > 10 different cheeses and some salumis (I am planning to make a fondue soon), but the Alp Blossom blew my head away. It has been some time since a cheese surprised me in a great way! I cannot suggest any one enough to put his/her hands on it!!!

I make partner soup nearly weekly for his lunches and use a quart of white beans to do so. Making soup this week it registered that I was down to 1 quart left. So today (and probably tomorrow), I'm canning navy beans. 25 lbs worth.

I'm impressed you can get the hunters to keep the "bird guts "! I think I've managed to get 2 birds plucked, the usual is skinned breasts and legs/thighs, no matter the species! (I love gizzards and hearts and am resigned to buy them at the grocery every couple years)

Most decent knives cost money. So we don't have a lot of them, just enough for the tasks we need. Nothing with wood goes in the dishwasher, including, god forbid, wooden utensils like spoons. I use my knives more often than I run the dishwasher, so letting them sit until the next cycle would be counterproductive. Dishwashers use very hot water; not so kind to wooden knife handles. The argument that you are wasting water by handwashing your knives is pretty silly. It doesn't take much water to wash a knife by hand, and then it's there when you need it. The same argument goes for knives with plastic or steel handles. My little Victorinox paring knife, which I would not by any means call valuable since it's costs eight dollars, has a daily conversation with garlic, so I can't afford to let it out of my sight.

Not my typical- leftover biryani and egg. A new Indian restaurant opened in town and we went there for lunch yesterday. I know partner isn't a big fan so i tried to order what i thought he'd like. A combo biryani, tandoori shrimp, papadum and chicken pakoda. The biryani was not a hit so it became my breakfast today, and probably tomorrow too.

I picked up a couple celeriac roots off the quick sale table and decided to make ravioli. I had enough puree for about six dozen so we had a nice serving for dinner and the rest were frozen. The ravioli were served with brown butter, sage, prosciutto and parmesan cheese. My camera was a little wonky and gave a yellow cast to the food with the sage leaves appearing burnt although they were lightly browned! @Smithy I've also been enjoying tomato pies this summer. I usually make two quiche and one tomato pie per session using prepared pie shells. I place the seasoned tomato slices on a wire rack and cook at 220F for a couple of hours to get the moisture content down. I also enjoy the pan juices😋 We've had a few meals this week from a piece of smoked brisket that was hiding in the freezer. This is the last portion of the really fatty well marbled point.

Moe requested leftover oxtails for breakfast. Served with scrambled eggs and toasted homemade sourdough rye bread.

@weinoo he is The Master .

I need a few food stylists. Wondering if @blue_dolphin and @Ann_T are available? The full carbo load breakfast... Bread flapjacks, ala Jacques Pepin. Leftover Amatriciana Estiva frittata with extra added potatoes.