mamster

Glad you asked. I have an announcement almost ready to go, and I'll try to post it tonight. I wanted to wait until everyone had recovered from the holiday season.

I have no comment on Bayless's salsas, since I haven't tried them, but awbrig, it's harder to screw up fresh salsa than to get it right. Toss some onions, garlic, cilantro, canned tomatoes, and chiles in the food processor and pulse to the consistency you like. Stir in salt and lime juice. Then taste it. Tastes terrible. Let it sit in the fridge for two hours. Tastes great. Magic.

I pretty much like all of them, but if I could only have one vegetable for the rest of my life though, it would definitely be onions. It's just not eating without onions.

Also recall that a roux loses thickening power as it cooks, so if the finished product ends up too thick, you might be using too much roux or you might just not be letting it get far enough. Keep the heat moderate and the roux nice and brown.

That was from smokers, MsR.

That would be great, Belmont. You're welcome to talk up your own restaurant, too, as long as you make clear which one it is.

Did he test divining rods from six different manufacturers and announce a "highly recommended" product?

Idaho is definitely one of us, Belmont. Want to start a thread about some of your favorite Boise restaurants? I've never been there and I'd love to see our coverage expand.

snowangel, I'm so jealous that you get to shop at the actual Penzey's store. If they open one in Seattle, I will personally keep it in business.

I've also cooked a number of things from the Babbo book, and I think the big winner is the fish chapter. It's mostly just variations on the same method: make a salad, put a piece of seared fish on it, throw on a dressing/sauce. I can't think of a better illustration of how chefs work: the basic techniques are few, the variations endless.

I'm sorry, I didn't intend to be sarcastic or attribute anything to you, trillium, although I see now that it could read that way. I just meant I was interested in the technical articles, as GJ said. Anytime you see a ludicrous leap of scientific logic in one of my posts, that's all me.

That's true, I used to get the passatelli, which is spaetzle-like breadcrumb dumplings in meat broth, and it was great. It's amazing how you get the world's most stereotypical "actor waiting tables until I get my big break" types on Broadway. I've come to kind of enjoy it.

Just flavor.

Whole peppercorns last a long time. Everything else that I can think of, if it's a year old, chuck it.

What I object to most is the fact that you can't serve liquor in your concert hall and also admit minors. When Laurie and I first moved to Seattle we were both 20 and didn't particularly drink, and we were shut out of seeing many of our favorite bands. We were married, taxpaying, full-time working people, and it was against the law for us to see the Posies at Moe. (Okay, sometimes we were able to sneak in.) If there's one thing I believe with all my heart, it's that if you keep kids away from rock n' roll, you are doing the devil's work. It's not just Washington, of course: the whole country's approach to alcohol is that if you're buying it, you're presumed to be up to no good. That's an idea that increases the harm caused by alcohol and frustrates attempts to innocently enjoy its charms. Hey, that reminds me that I have some lambic in the fridge.

The fact that spices never actually go bad in an obvious way is what makes me feel virtuous when I toss them. Then I cash in that virtue by noticing a box of toffee in the cupboard and eating like six ounces of it.

Hey, how the hell do you pronounce "Laphroiag"? I hardly ever drink Scotch, so it hasn't come up, but I see it on the shelf and silently give thanks that I don't have to order it, since it's probably pronounced "le-FROO" or something.

Recently we got in a new order of spices from Penzeys and I set to portioning them into jars and getting rid of last year's faded glory. I also found a few jars we had inherited from a friend who moved, some sort of Indian cooking set with ground cumin and coriander of uncertain but surely advanced age. Some five-spice of similarly uncertain pedigree. Anything that wasn't provably knock-you-on-your-ass fresh went into the trash. It was incredibly satisfying. Some people hoard. I love throwing things out. How about you? Any parts of the kitchen you've taken a metaphorical bulldozer to lately, or should?

Yes, and often garlic powder, too. You can fine-tune your whole life, and it's fun, but it's also pretty hard to go wrong. Keep adjusting the seasonings, simmer a long time, and relax.

No doubt.

You don't understand--the box was rectangular. Also, the chicken was on a skewer. Maybe the teriyaki places avoid that because we have so much satay in Seattle. Okay, I admit it, it's not particularly different from teriyaki, and no, it wasn't brilliant food, but it ruled over anything served at the cafeteria or the nearby McDonald's. (Actually, since this was downtown Portland, there were lots of other great options available.)

Portlanders, this one's for you. When I was growing up in Portland, the standard student lunch (and often dinner) was bento. I went to Lincoln High, and several times a week we'd go over to Big Dan's West Coast Bento. For about $4, you'd get a plastic box filled with good rice, topped with a skewer of big chunks of chicken or beef, teriyaki sauce, and his homemade chile sauce. I'm pretty sure Big Dan was one of the first bento operations in Portland and spawned tons of imitators, most of them also pretty good. For example, there was Zee Bento (now defunct, I think) which had "unfortunate cookies" with negative fortunes in them. As far as I can tell, this trend never made it to Seattle. We have plenty of teriyaki here--probably too much--but it's not quite the same thing. It's less portable, the rice is usually gluey, and so on. How's the bento scene in Portland these days? Anyone else have bento reminiscences? Anyone willing to open a bento place in Seattle?

When I make quesadillas, it's with a little cilantro, and then I saute them in butter. You can fold the tortilla over into a half-moon or you can use two and make a sincronizada. Also, you should make Jaymes's carnitas. This is a goofy fusion idea that you did not hear from me, but thin some sambal oelek or similar chile-garlic sauce (with chicken broth, maybe) and spread a thin layer on the tortilla, then crisp it up in peanut oil. Top it with scrambled eggs that have a little lime juice and fish sauce added. Do not call it a Thai Breakfast Burrito. Oh, about the simplest thing but surprisingly good is to make burritos with refried beans, cheddar cheese, salsa, and crumbled tortilla chips. Then you can crisp them up in a lightly oiled pan if you like, and I do. The flour and corn tortillas crunch in different ways. It's a good thing I never claimed to be a gourmet, huh?

If you're using anchos, especially, it's worth first roasting them in the oven until they puff up. Not only does it add a little flavor and make them easier to grind, it looks cool.

I'll just steal your idea, jb. I want to make that bizarre tortellini pie from The Splendid Table. I doubt I will, but I'll say it again next year.