Fat Guy

They have a lot of things like that upstairs in the natural foods section at Fairway on Broadway between 74th and 75th. They have both bins and packaged products, including a pretty extensive selection of the offerings from Bob's Red Mill. In addition, downstairs near the produce they have a pretty good inventory of specialty dried beans. You kind of have to poke around the store to find everything in the category, but they have quite a lot of different stuff. I don't know if they have the exact items you're searching for, though.

John's incredible public record of posts speaks for itself, but most folks probably don't realize just how much he also did behind the scenes. We owe him a huge debt of gratitude for those countless hours of thankless, anonymous labor.

I think uneven heating is best thought of as a species of underheating. I think an unevenly heated pan is symptomatic of the pan not spending enough time on the heat. (Unless it a really crummy pan, in which case it's hopeless anyway.) We're not talking about steak cookery here, where you turn the burner up to maximum and let the temperature of the pan climb and climb and climb. Rather, we're talking about long preheating over moderate heat. At some point your pan is going to reach equilibrium -- it's not going to get any hotter. If you've got your pan and burner figured out, that equilibrium will happen in the mid 300s. The problem is that most people don't have a good idea of what a 350-degree pan is like. They start their pancakes in the 200s. But I'm guessing there's nothing about cooking that pancake that contributes to the next pancake being better. In other words, assuming it took 5 minutes to spoon, cook and remove the first bad pancake and add the second pancake, and then the second pancake comes out well, all you had to do was wait that extra 5 minutes and let the pan keep heating (less, maybe, because the first pancake removed some energy from the system) and your first pancake would have been as good as the second pancake. That's my hypothesis at least.

Okay I found an October 2007 menu. For some reason I can't find the most recent one from when I was there in December 2007. Let's look at some of the prices of the dishes I think are the best on the menu: - The three raw seafood dishes that I think are three of the best dishes in town right now -- hamachi, scallops, uni -- are all $16 - The pork buns are $9 and the seasonal pickles are $10 - All the country hams are $10 - The apple kimchi is $12 and the fried cauliflower is $11 - The grilled mackerel is $15 - The lemongrass pork sausage ssam is $17 There are also some more expensive dishes: - Pan-fried skate $19 - Hanger steak ssam $21 - Pork spare ribs $25 - The $100 ribeye - The $180 bo ssam (but of course this is for several people to share) It seems to me this works out, for the most part, to a lower price point than, say, Balthazar. Admittedly, you're going to get somewhat larger portions at Balthazar. But for food that's at a far lower level of accomplishment. I mean, what's a better value: the amazing apple kimchi at Ssam Bar for $12, or an unremarkable "Balthazar salad" for $14? Etc.

There are some fancy chocolates, like some of the offerings from Godiva and various department-store private-label brands, that do indeed taste like Hershey's chocolate that has been melted down, reconstituted and relabeled. But serious chocolate from Valrhona, Michel Cluizel, Scharffenberger and other reputable makers is radically different. I've participated in a couple of chocolate tastings where some of the attendees were neophytes, and I have never once encountered a person who couldn't both taste the difference and recognize the superiority of better chocolate on the first try. In terms of the taste/smell issue, as mentioned above it's not about holding the bar up to your nose and smelling it. It's about chewing the food and activating its aromas, which waft up to the olfactory bulb and provide aroma information at the same time you're tasting the food.

I don't think it's entirely possible to generalize that way. I'm not looking at the most recent menu, but based on a couple of older ones it seems the acclaimed dishes are all over the map. Things like the fried cauliflower, all the country hams, the apple-and-bacon salad, and the famous pork buns and pickles are all about $9-$11. Then there are several acclaimed items in the mid teens, such as the uni and the hamachi (both $16 on the menu I have handy, which may be out of date). And then there's a lot of stuff at $19 and up -- way up. It just depends. But it's not that all the most delicious stuff is expensive. Several of the best dishes are priced quite low.

As Felice notes, the depth of the sommelier culture in the US is quite shallow. The thing about France is that you go to some hotel in the middle of nowhere with a Michelin-mentioned-but-not-starred restaurant, you sit down for dinner, and there's a big list of local wines in exhaustive verticals along with a professionally trained sommelier who knows everything there is to know about the region's vineyards, grapes, producers, etc., and is able to make very good, no-nonsense, correct recommendations. Not to mention, because the good restaurants are single-sitting operations and tend to have very few tables, you can actually talk to the sommelier and the sommelier will open and pour your wine and do all sorts of follow-up. I mean, sure, Daniel Johnnes is a great sommelier. But where exactly can I go out for a meal tonight and be served by Daniel Johnnes? Nowhere. American sommeliers at that level are corporate executives, the equivalent of Alain Ducasse. So maybe France doesn't exactly produce the Daniel Johnnes breed of sommelier. But France produces very well trained sommeliers that actually work in restaurants. On any given day, at equivalent restaurants, you're going to get better, more comprehensive wine service in France than in the United States. I can't imagine anybody who has dined in both places would think otherwise. The one thing you can say about the US is that if you happen to be in the right place at the right time and you fall into the orbit of one of the very best American sommeliers, you're in for a real treat. Like when Joseph Nase and Danielle Nally were handling the wine service at Lespinasse -- at the same time. I just haven't had that level of experience and interaction in France. But that's the outlier-type experience. It's not normal. Also, American wine lists are different. They're global and eclectic. Course-by-course pairings and by-the-glass programs are much more ambitious and prevalent. American customers prefer very exact matches, whereas French customers like to do a white and a red for the whole meal. There are so many points of differentiation that it's hard to evaluate one system by the standards of the other.

Pre-heating: this is another issue I gave considerable thought and observation to yesterday. I also lack an infrared thermometer, though I plan to remedy that situation at some point. But I agree with Chris. Here's the thing: there's nothing about the nature of the universe that says the first pancake has to suck. But there's something about the way people have been trained to cook that prevents them from preheating the skillet sufficiently. You need to preheat your skillet for like three times as long as most people are willing to. It's scary. It's agonizing. It's unsettling. But you just have to leave it there on the heat for a really, really, really long time. Not to where water just dances a little. It has to dance like you're in a saloon in the Wild West and some outlaw is shooting two revolvers into the floor near your feet and yelling "Dance!" Eventually, it gets there.

I'm glad you brought up the holding issue, Chris. I have a different view. For the longest time, I was fanatical about getting pancakes to the table and forcing people to eat them at their moment of readiness. They were my breakfast equivalent of risotto in that regard. But over time I've come to prefer pancakes that have rested in a 200-degree oven for about 15 minutes -- in a single layer, that's important -- before being served. Yesterday I made a ton of pancakes -- like 50 of them -- and tried to define for myself why I now have this preference, which I know runs contrary to orthodox pancake theory. And I think the issue is that it's a little bit like bread cooling: the pancake has time to set somewhat, it gives up a little moisture and the texture evens out. There are lots of things that intuition says will be best if eaten right away but that turn out to taste better after some resting: fried chicken, most baked goods, etc. I don't know. If nothing else, the preference has been liberating, because I can now sit at the table and eat with everybody else.

Oh good, I was hoping we could kick off 2008 with a discussion of price and value at Ssam Bar. I definitely acknowledge that you can go in to Ssam Bar and spend a lot of money for small portions. But I have two further thoughts on the issue: 1. I think the prices of many dishes are high compared to similarly casual restaurants, but quite low compared to restaurants that serve food at that level of quality. 2. You have a lot of control over how much you spend, and on what. You can certainly go in and spend $80+ per person, but you can also get a really strong three-course meal for half that and a first-rate two-course snack for half that again. And I see it all the time: the three people to the left of me at the bar might be having the $75-per-person tasting plus wine, and the guy on my right just comes in for an order of pork buns followed by the saltine ice cream and he drinks water. They all eat really well.

In about 1992 I got a cookbook by Jim Fobel called "The Whole Chicken Cookbook." It has something like 200 recipes. Conceptually, Jim divides chicken recipes into the following categories: 1- whole chicken preparations, 2- whole chickens, cut up, 3- chicken breasts, 4- chicken thighs, 5- chicken wings, 6- chicken drumsticks, 7- ground chicken, 8- dishes made with cooked chicken, 9- odds and ends (stuff like chopped chicken livers). My family eats a ton of chicken and I've had good luck using these categories in rotation as a way to introduce variety. I think any time you make several dishes from one category in a row, you're going to foster a sense of monotony no matter how much you alter the flavors. If we're talking about whole chicken, as opposed to whole chicken cut up, one thing to consider is that if you're consistently making simple, excellent roast chicken using a particular approach that you've mastered through trial, error and repetition, you've already reached the summit of whole-chicken cookery. There's nowhere to go but down. Thus, for variation, it may make the most sense to do very little: just alter your seasonings but keep your approach exactly the same. Rosemary and olive oil give a certain flavor. Butter and tarragon would give a different flavor. Various Asian, Latin, etc., seasonings could also be used without the need to alter your basic method. Then maybe it makes sense to look to accompaniments -- sides, garnishes, condiments -- for variety. At some point, though, there's nothing that can be done to make whole chicken interesting night after night. I think the trick may be not to try. Everybody has a whole chicken tolerance quotient, be it once a month, once a week or three times a week. Once you exceed that frequency, it's going to get dull no matter what. Thus, I'd suggest relying on the other chicken categories for variety. Not every category works for every family -- just try to serve chicken wings to my wife. But you find the categories that work for your group, you figure out your best recipe or two in each category -- the ones you can make efficiently and reliably -- and you start rotating. Also good for a change: London broil.

Count me as a member of the "unspoken cult of glove-free cooking." It's not that I never use them. I definitely use them for chilies and sometimes for garlic (if I'm doing a lot of garlic). Also for when I work with pesticides or WD-40 lubricant. But for regular food I'm happy to wash my hands when necessary, because I have such a strong preference for feeling the food. I haven't found that there's any time lost by sequencing my prep so that I deal with the meat and get it to the point where it doesn't have to be handled in its raw state anymore, then deal with everything else -- so there's only one serious hand-washing break. I'm having trouble envisioning why it would be more efficient to perform the back-and-forth off-and-on one-handed glove dance described above. I also prefer, from a food-safety perspective, not to alternate under any circumstances -- I don't even like to have meat and veg on the counter anywhere near each other at the same time. I deal with the meat, get it into a holding area or get it cooking (from here on in I'll be using tongs or whatever so no more handling), then remove the cutting board, wipe off the counter, and start with a fresh cutting board for the veg and other non-contaminating stuff. I also keep my fingernails really, really short.

Boiling for 15 or so minutes works like a charm for glass jars and metal lids. I'm pretty sure commercial-grade Lexan containers like Cambro can be boiled as well.

Szechuan Gourmet has lo mein, chow fun, mei fun and fried rice in various permutations. Numbers 151 through 156 on the menu.

Crispy lamb filets with chili cumin, as served at Szechuan Gourmet restaurant in New York City.

A carton of 100% double-yolk eggs would be pretty unusual as a random occurrence. The most likely explanation would be a carton of the largest eggs from a young flock. More likely, though, is that this person bought a carton of eggs that were selected for double yolks. A small percentage of eggs have double yolks, and they're easily identified during the candling process. Some stores specifically stock them, and there's even a restaurant in Chicago -- Lou Mitchell's -- that sources all double-yolk eggs for its omelets, etc.

While the hole-in-the-wall places can be challenging with a stroller and often don't have high chairs, the next level of place tends to be quite family-friendly. Pretty much any Chinese, Korean or Southeast Asian restaurant with an actual dining room, for example, will be totally equipped to handle babies. You have a lot of walkable choices from where you'll be staying: if you go over to Ninth Avenue and just start walking uptown, you'll see a dozen eligible choices. Walking downtown, you've got all the Korean places in the 30s as well as the much-buzzed-about Szechuan Gourmet. Just about all of Chinatown is easily walkable from the Canal Street stop on the N/Q/R/W lines, which you get at 42nd Street right near your hotel. I believe -- somebody will need to confirm this -- that there are even elevators on both ends. Also you might enjoy taking the 7 train out to Woodside to eat at Sripraphai -- there's an elevator at that stop as well. (Just FYI, car seats are not required in NYC cabs and limos.)

They can and I have. By the way, have you actually tried this technique? Has any person posting on this topic who has made these categorical proclamations tried it? Or are these all just theoretical objections?

I've now been three times to Masala Bollywood, one of the many Indian restaurant on Lexington Avenue near 27th Street. A friend suggested it was a cut above the neighborhood baseline, and I found that to be a correct assessment on my first visit, so I've been using it as my regular place in that neighborhood when I don't want to spend Bread Bar prices. I wouldn't advertise Masala Bollywood as one of the great Indian restaurants in the New York area. It does, however, hit the sweet spot for me with respect to the combination of quality and value that it offers: superior food to the East 6th Street places and to most of the places in the East 20s, at very attractive prices. Actually, there are a lot of attractive things about Masala Bollywood. The plates and platings are thoughtful: normally brown and dull-looking dishes are nicely garnished and served in interestingly shaped bowls. The decor is modern and bright, with gigantic Bollywood movie photos on the walls. There's a plasma screen showing Indian music videos but the volume of the music is kept low enough to allow for normal conversation. The restaurant never seems to be busy, which doesn't bode well for business but is nice if you want to show at 7pm with a party of 6 and be seated immediately (as was the case with our group tonight). And, as an added attractiveness bonus, the dining room is presided over by the smoking hot dancer-restaurateur Sonalee Vyas, one of the New York Post's "25 Sexiest New Yorkers." The menu is part standard-issue North Indian and part mix of Bombay street food, South Indian dosas and a pretty large vegetarian section. Stylistically, the menu headings have a film theme: "supporting cast" for side dishes, "happy ending" for desserts, etc. The aloo chat (potatoes, chickpeas, yogurt, mildly spicy sauce) is one of the better examples I've had. The bhel puri (puffed rice, chickpea-flour noodles, onion, tomatoes, herbs, chutney) is pretty good but not as good as what I've had in Jackson Heights. Both are $4 and big enough to share among 4 people for tasting (with 6 people we got double orders of each). The phool gobi Manchurian (fried cauliflower with sauce like you'd get with sesame chicken in a Chinese restaurant) is one of those dishes I alternate between being revolted by and being addicted to -- it's too sticky and sweet, but I can't stop eating it ($5). There's a green papaya salad that's tasty but shaved too fine ($4). The Masala Dosa is big, delicious and served with coconut chutney ($8) -- maybe not quite as delicate as what you get from the dosa specialists but really good nonetheless. Breads are good. Naan ($2) is puffy and correct, and the onion kulcha ($3) is irresistible. The saag paneer is a good rendition ($10), and the jeera aloo (potatoes with cumin and herbs) is also well executed ($9). Chicken tikka is pretty good for what it is ($12). You may be starting to suspect, and you'd be right, that the strength of the menu -- and the better value -- is in the non-entree sections of the menu. Six of us had all that stuff, with some doubles (2 x naan, for examples) and some rice for $97 including tax and gratuity. Not quite as cheap as East 6th Street, but pretty damn reasonable. Masala Bollywood 108 Lexington Avenue (between 27th & 28th Streets) 212.679.1284 http://www.masalabollywood.net/

So, every year or so I post to mention that if you live uptown and you want dim sum without schlepping to Chinatown then Evergreen is a great option. Admittedly for a premium over what you'd pay in Chinatown, you get dim sum that's mostly as good or better than at the big dim sum places down there, albeit not as huge a selection (but a very respectable selection). You avoid traveling and the experience is quite pleasant. I had a camera with me today. I didn't photograph everything, but here are a few of the items we had: Shrimp cheong fun (rice-noodle roll). Very well prepared. Beef in bean curd skin. Superb. Better than any example I've had in Chinatown: Shrimp with walnuts and that mayonnaise stuff, a dish I don't love anywhere. This was a fine example of it, though: Terrific steamed vegetable dumplings. Chinese broccoli and a few kinds of dumplings: shrimp, shrimp-and-asparagus, and pork-and-chive. All quite good. Evergreen uses a combination of carts and butlered trays for dim sum service. A piece of information worth having is that the tray system is not equivalent to that at many of the big dim sum palaces. At the big places, what usually happens is the carts run low and then they send waiters around with trays full of the dregs. So you never want to take from the trays at most dim sum places. But at Evergreen they use the trays for items that don't go on the carts: Chinese broccoli, bok choy, the fried shrimp, etc. I've watched the kitchen (it's in open view) and they prepare the stuff fresh a few portions at a time, load it on small trays, and send a waiter around with it. So you do want to take from the trays. I'm not a careful observer of dim sum pricing per item, but just as a point of comparison last weekend we went to Jing Fong with 5 people and spent about $70. This weekend we went to Evergreen with 6 people and spent about $110. I think we had similar amounts of food per person. So, it's definitely more expensive. Then again, at Jing Fong our friends paid $28 for parking whereas at Evergreen they parked easily and for free on First Avenue within a block of the restaurant. Evergreen's website, which has been at a couple of other addresses over the years (those posts have been removed from this topic), is now: http://cafeevergreennyc.com/ I noticed a reference to a New York Times article, and searched for it on the Times website. In 2005, Nick Fox wrote: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/02/dining/0...r=1&oref=slogin

The sugar and butter in the dough probably help with browning, at least in the recipe I posted about here, and also I have a fake-professional oven that seems to do crust a little better than normal ovens.

I don't have first-hand experience with that issue because I use the freezer. I eat whatever bread I'm going to eat on day 1, slice and freeze the rest, then toast whatever I need later. Sourdough breads with ultra-long rise times do keep much better than quick-risen breads, but I don't imagine there's much difference between microwave-quick-risen and making the exact same bread in a couple of hours longer without the microwave.

Dry? Heavens no. Have a look at the ingredients. Think about how brioche is supposed to look -- it's a similar concept. There's no difference in keeping ability attributable to use of the microwave.

Here's the loaf from the other half of the dough.

The Acme Medieval Torture Grater is sort of a cult classic in latke-making homes. They show up on eBay and elsewhere with regularity. You'll be able to replace yours, for a price.