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@rotuts My order of steak nuggets lounged in a small takeout container, looking like the desiccated remnants of a backyard barbecue from the previous week. The morsels did little to stimulate my appetite: They were thick, un-sauced, unevenly charred and losing moisture with every passing second. Get the Eat Voraciously newsletter for delicious dinner inspiration, delivered straight to your inbox. If these limited-time beef boulders are supposed to be Arby’s answer to chicken nuggets, they lost the battle before I even popped one in my mouth. They rivaled White Castle’s chicken rings for the crown of fast food with zero visual appeal. They looked like something I might mix into my dog’s bowl. I share all this as preamble for what happened next: I took a big bite of nugget and was shocked — and I don’t use that word loosely — at how tender it was. The meat was smoky, too, and apparently not the kind you get from a bottle. A cross-section view revealed distinct smoke rings, the pink-to-reddish hues that can result from genuine low-and-slow cooking with smoldering hardwoods. (You can get a similar reaction from celery powder, a curing agent that is indeed smuggled into Arby’s steak nuggets, but the technique isn’t foolproof.) The bites didn’t have the bark you would expect from aggressively seasoned barbecue, but they had enough onion and garlic powder to trip your umami taste buds. 🥂 Follow Dining & drinks What struck me was how unadorned and unadulterated the nuggets looked: just sliced-up chunks of beef, seasoned, cooked and tucked into a paper container with all the fanfare of mess-hall grub. The nuggets may be the closest thing to barbecue ever served at a fast-food joint, which, I grant you, is a ridiculously low bar. A look at the author's first steak nuggets order from a Maryland Arby's. (Tim Carmen/TWP) More than a decade ago, Daniel Vaughn, the smoked-meats maven at Texas Monthly, submitted himself to a tour of fast-food “barbecue.” He added the quote marks to signal that, yes, he understood the difference between the real thing and the slathered offerings served up at McDonald’s, Burger King, Sonic and the rest of these wannabe smokehouses. He predictably dismissed these sad imitations, but he also reported that Arby’s actually slow-smokes the meat for its “smokehouse brisket” sandwich. (The quote marks are mine here.) The chain even created a 13-hour “commercial” to prove it — or to test the stamina of those who like to watch paint dry. Arby’s isn’t bragging much about its process for the steak nuggets. They may “have the meats,” but they don’t have much information on how they prepare them. So I pinged a representative to learn how these morsels move from commissary (or wherever the company prepares them) to restaurant to the container that I grab at the counter. Anyone who has ever hosted a barbecue feast knows how quickly beef goes downhill once you remove it from the smoker, rest it and start slicing into it. I was hoping to gain some company insights, but the answers I received revealed little. I was able to extract a couple of things: The nuggets are hand-cut from the round section of the animal, and they’re "seasoned, seared, and smoked in a real smoker for 2 hours.” A quick glance at the ingredients also suggests that at least two additives help the beef retain moisture. More than anything, Arby’s nuggets (nominally) remind me of burnt ends, the charred chunks of fatty brisket that are all but synonymous with Kansas City barbecue. These bark-heavy trimmings were essentially a local delicacy until 1972 when Calvin Trillin, the essayist, humorist and world-class glutton, wrote a piece for Playboy about Arthur Bryant’s in his hometown of Kansas City, Missouri. “The main course at Bryant’s, as far as I’m concerned, is something that is given away free — the burned edges of the brisket,” Trillin wrote all those years ago. “The counterman just pushes them over to the side and anyone who wants them helps himself. I dream of those burned edges. Sometimes, when I’m in some awful, overpriced restaurant in some strange town, trying to choke down some three-dollar hamburger that tastes like a burned sponge, a blank look comes over me: I have just realized that at that very moment, someone in Kansas City is being given those burned edges free.” From left: Arby's steak nuggets, steak nugget bowl and steak nugget sandwich. (Marvin Joseph/TWP; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky) Later in the same essay, Trillin mentions that Snead’s Bar-B-Q in Kansas City “cuts the burned edges off the brisket with a little more meat attached and puts them on the menu as ‘brownies.’” In the intervening years, these traditions have evolved, as they always do, even with American barbecue, a cuisine that doesn’t surrender its ways without a fight. Brownies are still on the menu at Snead’s — though they now include ham and sausage options! — but burned edges have morphed into burnt ends, a dish so popular that pitmasters will now sacrifice whole briskets to create their version of the smoky little nuggets. Some are served sauced. Some not. Arby’s nuggets are, more or less, the latest iteration: Poor man’s burnt ends. Burnt ends for the masses. Burnt ends for those without easy access to a K.C.-style barbecue joint. They’re served with a tiny tub of Arby’s hickory barbecue dipping sauce, a sweet-and-tangy concoction that, while not subtle, doesn’t completely bulldoze the minimalist charms of the nuggets (even if you may accidentally bulldoze someone yourself if you try to dunk a nug while driving in traffic.) I can’t say the same for the steak nugget sandwich: The bun, toppings and garnishes neutralize the meat, forcing the nuggets to cede control to the fried onions, mayo, pickles and Havarti cheese. The steak nugget bowl, in which the beef blocks are dropped into a container of white cheddar mac and cheese, showcases the meat better, if mostly because you can compose your own bites. It’s hard to fathom that these nuggets will find a permanent home on the Arby’s menu, despite America’s ongoing protein craze. (A nine-piece order — $9.29 at my location, though prices vary — has about 30 grams of protein, or more than a third of what the average American man needs per day.) They seem too primal for the prissy, wax-paper-wrapped, hermetically sealed world of fast-food restaurants. Which may explain why some folks have taken to calling the nuggets “squirrel knees” and “moose knuckles” in social media reviews. Personally, I like this (relatively) straightforward injection of beef. It’s a bold move in an industry that tends to favor kooky mash-ups and sugar-rush monstrosities.

gift card only got the top. no Arby's near me. just saying

Really, the gift article should be readable. However, here's a taste of what else he had to say, from the article:

does your Costco carry steelhead trout? looks like salmon, slightly different, really good. our fav use for the rostissed chick is 'a meal' + chicken salad, then simmer down the carcass for chicken noodle soup base. when it gels, you get super stock for the soup!

Did you try the gift link that @Smithy shared? In my experience, WaPo gift links require the reader to create an account by entering an email address. You may not wish to do that but there’s no charge.

Went to Costco Tucson on Monday for fresh salmon, lamb racks and the mandatory $4.99 rotisserie chicken. Struck out on the lamb racks; a Meat Dept. employee came out to help me look. He didn't find any either, went back to check the butchery area, then returned to say, "I can't believe it: not an ounce of lamb in the store!" Dejected, I left with the salmon and rotis. There is no other place to readily find lamb near me in Tucson. I've been checking their online same-day delivery app and saw Out Of Stock on the lamb racks the rest of the week, until this afternoon. I will likely wait until post World Series and Football weekend, and head there Monday. Our local Costco has Express Self-Checkout lines. Have used twice and they are F-A-S-T!! Of course we only buy 4 or 5 items each trip, bring our own bags, but we never had to wait in a line to access these checkouts. Costco's rotis chickens remain large and tasty. We got 5 meals out of it for the two of us. A Thai chicken salad; an Indian-spiced hot sandwich topped with raita; two meals (4 servings) of white bean chicken chili; and a chicken salad sandwich with pecans and dill.

Although I grew up initially in an Apricot Orchard , ( 2 acres ) , gravel and dirt roads near by. both my parents were teachers, and benefited w sabbaticals in Europe thanks to a Senator who saw something in the Future ( Fulbright ) I lived two years in France and two in Spain and went to local schools .... I saw Thanksgiving as more or less what we had : roast Turkey , sage stuffing , mashed potatoes , pan gravy peas w +/- pear onions , baked thick sliced sweet potatoes , boiled , cooled , then broiled w a marshmallow and brown sugar. much later , living in the East , I discovered various Ethnic additions : Friends of Italian heritage had the basics then added Lasagna etc. @gulfporter I like the idea of fresh kielbasa and kugelis What a feast ! BTW that apricot orchard no longer exists . they were very common there then in Los Altos , CA 1950 ++

I would not mind reading the rest . just saying , PayWall and all. Cut and Paste for review purposes ?

I made the mistake of finding a mold I really liked and got that feeling that it was something I had to have. It is made by Greyas, a company perhaps best known for its affiliation with Luis Amado. I have one set of Greyas molds from Chef Rubber and another from Bakedeco (that one a Luis Amado mold) that are well made and sturdy, but nobody in the U.S. or Canada appears to carry the one I now want (which is a larger version of the one from Chef Rubber). I had seen reports from many chocolatiers that Greyas is not strong in customer support, but others said they had no difficulty with shipping at all. In any event I forged ahead and bought a substantial quantity of the new mold. I received an automated acknowledgement of the order and later an email (possibly also automated) from someone who said he is an owner of Greyas inviting me to reply, so I did and asked when my order would ship. There was no answer, and, in spite of trying to reach the company via many routes, I have had no further information. So in desperation I ask if there happens to be someone out there who would have more ideas on how to proceed. I don't want to have to cancel the order and have my credit card company get my money back because I really want the mold, but I also don't want to lose the money. Below is the object of my desire. It is rated at 16g, a size I like for making bonbons of several layers, and I think the pillow effect on top may make it unmold more successfully than flat squares.

My late MIL introduced me to creamed pearl onions on 🦃Day. In a cream sauce with a dash of nutmeg. When I am in US and making the Big Meal, I always include them. Growing up our 🦃Day table included my Uncle Wally's fresh kielbasa (he owned a meat market) as well as my grandmother's kugelis which had a very dark brown crust and a lot of salt pork in it. My family emigrated to US from Lithuania. I expect to be in Mexico for 🦃Day this year. While Turkey Molé is a Mexican 'thing' it's reserved for the wealthy as 🦃🦃🦃 are uncommon and expensive in Mexico and almost all are imported. I made a Turkey Molé several years ago that cost me 3 days of labor, and a thousand pesos for a rather small bird!

Chocolate Chip Cookies With Olive Oil and Sea Salt by Jesse Szewczyk (Instagram, and possibly paywalled recipe)... They we fine, I guess, but overpromised and underdelivered. I was intrigued by the technique of toasting some of the flour with olive oil, supposedly for a brown butter flavour. It did smell somewhat nutty, but ultimately didn't come through in the finished cookie. Butter is still king. Having said all that, they were better than other vegan chocolate chip cookies I've made, so worth a look if that's your thing.

He goes on to say that they tasted good.

Credit to @Tropicalsenior for the shriveled gonads 😆 Those all sound good to me!

Halved, roasted until dark, cacio e pepe treatment (LOTS of freshly ground pepper) is our favorite (but not served for Thanksgiving). As a child, I don't think anyone thought to make them any way other than boiled/steamed (green meatballs, as DH calls them).

Love your description! We like LGBoD, but not on 🦃Day. We halve then caramelize until almost charred (with shallots), often adding Indian spices to them as a side. Other times we incorporate into pasta dishes with pancetta, prosciutto or good ole bacon. Have tried shaving them thin to use as a salad base, but not worth the risk to fingertips.

Now that's an excellent idea. We often have a steamed vegetable plate for supper ...we eat our big meal at noon...and for Ed I always make a cheese sauce. For me, it's olive oil and lemon dressing.

perhaps im missing something , which happens regularly like clockwork : WaPo : and you have to know , the vial of BBQ sauce is going to be way too sweet .

That's a great writeup, gfweb. I hadn't bothered to read the article until you brought it up here. For those who don't subscribe to WaPo, this gift article should be unlocked. The article even quotes Calvin Trillin! I normally avoid the fast food joints, and have no love for Arby's, but I may have to try these now.

I usually made a cheese sauce or hollandaise sauce. My kids would eat anything if I put a cheese sauce on it.

Quite obviously, nobody. Never saw them again in that store.

I have never eaten or cooked Brussels Sprouts with cream of any kind. I've only eaten and cooked Brussels Sprouts in water. I know - boring. Ed has been known to put some kind of gravy or curry sauce on them...it's true...he doesn't like them. I like them naked or with an olive and lemon juice dressing. I've also been known to eat leftover LGBoD cold from the fridge.

@Tropicalsenior interesting points .... Soooooo who buy them ?

You wouldn't have liked the Costa Rican version. Brussel sprouts are not grown Costa Rica and these had obviously come in on a slow trawler and spent a week or so in customs before they made it to the grocery Shelf.

@C. sapidus betting ' creamy ' ++ gets you 72 % of the ' Likes ' which , of course , counts for 72 %

I like LGBoD / shriveled gonads of ancient hedgehogs. Creamy braised LGBoD / SGoAH from 'All About Braising' is our holiday go-to.