ExtraMSG

Glad you enjoyed yourself duckduck. Here's a rundown of what we did: Salvador's Bakery (Woodburn) - 6 tacos de asada - 2 lb carnitas - Bakery goods Taqueria Ochoa (Hillsboro) - 2 huarache platters (beans, rice, guacamole) one with lengua, one with al pastor - 3 gorditas de carnitas - 1 lb birria de chivo Poncho's al Pastor (Vancouver) - 6 tacos al pastor - 3 quesadillas de maiz con queso Tortilleria y Tienda de Leon (Gresham) - Puerco con nopales en salsa roja - Costillas de puerco en salsa roja - Barbacoa (Cabeza) - Chiles rellenos - Frijoles negros - Salsas - Tortillas calientes For all this food, plus a 15 person van and gas for this huge loop, we only spent $20/person. We're thinking of doing something similar in early fall for the wine country. It's hard to say what's the best of these. They're all unique. But I did re-affirm that Poncho's has the best al pastor in the metro area that I've tried and as good as any I've had anywhere, really. Plus, the lady there is extremely nice. There were also mariachis at Su Casa in Hillsboro when we did a quick tour. I'm not sure I ate a single mediocre thing all day. Some things weren't as good for my palate as others. But everything was at least good, with some things excellent, like birria de chivo at Ochoa, the pastor at Poncho's, the guisados, frijoles, and salsas at de Leon, and the carnitas at Salvador's (which wasn't even as good as it normally is). btw, every one of these places made the tortillas fresh. Here's the thread at portlandfood.org: http://www.portlandfood.org/modules.php?na...=viewtopic&t=30

I would just add the basil at the end like you would cilantro on a taco. You could use/add mint or cilantro, if you wished. Maybe keep it "simple" and only do coconut milk, galangal, fish sauce, and lime juice in the braising liquid. Maybe some red onions or shallots. I guess you could throw in some red curry paste for a little added complexity and some heat. Then add any aromatics at the end. Maybe make a lemongrass oil or salsa or something like that. I don't know if oil would work for it either. I'd try to pare it down to the items that will actually make a difference. I imagine it will be hard enough to make a truly balanced flavor since the boiling off will change its character. You may not know what you needed more of until you're done. I imagine it will taste at least decent, though, with some room for improvement once you realize what you would have liked more of. btw, maybe Thai carnitas "salad" or spring rolls?

Fifi, my experience with Thai seasonings like lime leaves and lemongrass is that they're as important for the aroma as they are for the flavor. I've tried using lemongrass infused water, eg, to poach chicken and it didn't add much flavor at all, even though the broth that it left was quite nice. I think it's one of those things that could be an Achatz aroma and be nearly as effective as if it were in the dish. I imagine coconut milk would add a ton of flavor, though. And galangal probably would, too. It'd sort of be like a tom kha gai carnitas, I guess, with those two things. Not sure how you'd incorporate the lemngrass, maybe a salsa?

When I did water method, it took about 2 hours for the water to simmer off. I had it at a true simmer in a standard sized 3 qt saucepan with just enough water to cover enough meat to just barely have space in the bottom. I partially covered it. (And I was using just water, I would think something like alcohol would evaporate quicker.) I talked with someone offline who had done it and it took him 1 hour, but he had it at a low boil, not a simmer, it sounded like. He didn't see any detrimental effects from the higher temp, but he hadn't done a simmer versus a boil head to head.

Thanks MiguelCardoso and Smarmotron. You are both too kind. I hope you'll report back with any successes or failures and ideas for improving any of the recipes you try.

I'm sure I have, but I don't remember it. Maybe I'll stop in and test them out some time when I'm out and about. You missed a trip you probably would have liked today. Our portlandfood.org group went to what I consider the four best taqueria-level Mexican places in Portland Metro: Salvador's Bakery (Woodburn), Taqueria Ochoa (Hillsboro), Poncho's al Pastor (Vancouver), and Tortilleria y Tienda de Leon (Gresham). Eleven of us piled into a 15 person van and did the huge loop, probably well over 100 miles total driving. I'll be posting some info on the PNW board tonight. We only spent $20 per person and had a ton of food, plus that paid for the van and gas. I bet I tried more than a dozen distinct salsas and I've tried to recreate several before to no avail. It can be tough to narrow one down. I can usually get most of the major components, though.

Well, if you're buying, I'll have one. Really, though, I've never been much of a fan of foie unless it's offset with lots of tangy or sweet flavors. Dump a wine reduction or berry sauce on it, though, and I'm game. That's the nice thing about morels, too, is that they match so well with that type of stuff. Makes me wish morels came later in the season. At least they re-hydrate really well. I wonder if you could clean the insides with some sort of toothbrush type device. I should call around and see who's using them and go eat out.

SE corner? Prairie Creek Farms maybe: http://www.extramsg.com/modules.php?set_al...=view_photo.php I was thinking of getting some of those huge ones and stuffing them. Although you'd probably want to split them to pick out any grubs. Maybe grab some chevre from Juniper Grove or Alsea Acres. Or creamy polenta topping them with a nice pinot noir reduction with some lavendar infused in the reduction. Get some honey from the market.....Mmmm. I was just thinking about your omelette. Imagine making a morel relleno! Stuff it, egg it, fry it.

Went to the market again this week to get some oil from Jim and to feed my BBQ lamb rib craving. I almost wish I wasn't heading on vacation so I could have bought some morels, too. Damn there were some awesome ones. This may be the best crop of them I've seen. Check out my new blog entry and the highlights here: http://www.extramsg.com/modules.php?name=N...order=0&thold=0 Plus new pics here: http://www.extramsg.com/modules.php?op=mod...bumName=album57

It's been a while since I've been there. I should probably go back. They really have a wide range of prices. They do have $25+ entrees, but it's not like they only have lamb and lobster and duck. They do also have their vegetarian stuff. Although, even there, the prices are about twice what you'd probably pay at Curry Leaf. Don't they have a tandoori oven? I seem to remember that you could actually see it or something. Maybe the bread was actually cooked in it giving the bread more texture (maybe overcooked; I don't know authentic naan texture). I don't remember the bread at all there. Thanks for the report.

Looks great. How big/old was the boar, do you know?

Khun Pic is in a house on Belmont. There are a few on Division, which do you mean? There's a new one I haven't heard anything about called Krua.

I'd be tempted to actually go with a lower temp if you can. I'd be worried about cooking rather than melting all those gristly bits.

I like flavoring oils or sugar or even salt with it.

Four is high-traffic for us Portlanders. Well, Portland does have Plainfield's Mayur. They've garnered some national recognition on their wine list, their vegetarian offerings, and that sort of thing. It's certainly an atypical place. I'd love to see a Bayless of Indian food come along, though, and give Indian more credibility. There isn't even much recognition of Mexican regional differences, though. I see stuff called "Mexico City Mexican" in Texas reviews that has nothing to do with Mexico City's Mexican food and I see stuff called Oaxacan that isn't Oaxacan at all. eg, a recent review of Nuestra Cocina called it Oaxacan. There's nothing distinctly Oaxacan on the menu that I've seen. Taqueria Nueve at least has a mole or two. Same with La Calaca. But Nuestra Cocina is nearly all Yucatecan and coastal Mexican. I saw the same thing in California where a place got referred to as Oaxacan and there wasn't anything Oaxacan on the menu. It actually seemed like Jaliscan home cooking to me, but I believe they were from a border town on the Michoacan side. Since they named their restaurant after the town, you'd think the reviewer would have looked it up. Oh, well. People know Oaxaca to some degree. It's good marketing. It's partially famous for its food from people like Kennedy, Trilling, Bayless, etc. The two cuisines I can think of that do pretty well at being distinguished on the basis of regionality are Italian and Chinese. They largely get lumped together, but you're much more likely to have a restaurant referred to as Cantonese, Sichuan, Hong Kong, or Hunan style Chinese than you are any region of Thailand, India, Mexico, France, Germany, Spain, Japan, or whatever. Same with Italy. You actually hear things like Roman, Tuscan, Sicilian, etc. I wish every cuisine was treated at least as carefully. I don't think Portland really has anything world class right now, though. Cafe Azul was world class. They were possibly the best Mexican restaurant in the country. Others had a good claim. But, certainly it was conceivable. It was nice when we had Cafe Azul, Taqueria Nueve, La Calaca Comelona, Salvador's, and de Leon. With Nuestra Cocina added in that was a pretty damned good set of Mexican. Add in Esparza's, some mission burrito places, and a typical Mexican-American place like Lindo Mexico or even Chevy's, a respectable chain on a par with many of the respectable chains of Texas like On the Border, and you've got a good claim on being a very respectable Mexican food city. We don't have any breadth like that in anything else, really. Well, brew pubs.

I'll keep an eye out. That Indian fella had Sizzle India cater his wedding. I guess it was huge and they were arguing over whether to have 1000 or 1500 guests. Apparently they had planned on having elephants, but did finally get rid of that hefty budget item. I had a lot of fun in that area of Chicago touring all the groceries, getting some sort of weird smoked asofetida that stunk up my hands something awful and looking at the jewelry places with a friend's wife. Looking for good Indian eats? Follow the gold. Same in Berkeley. I don't think we have any big Indian jewelry stores here, do we? I imagine we'll do Chaat and Abhurachi next, maybe Swagath, although the westside is a pain for most of us. We're also doing Thai, though, and could do the Tibetan place as well. I really should start talking to the owners of some of these places. It's nice because Indians generally speak much better English than most ethnic restaurant owners. I bet if I did I could get a PortlandFood.org dinner where they made whatever regional food they make for themselves rather than whatever they make in order to be all things to all people.

It was Jamesongrrl. I don't know if she's commented on the fiery nature of Indian foods or not on Chowhound. Certainly there are regions where Indian food is damned fiery. I've known Indians who have asbestos mouths because of it. Trillium, did you ever eat at Sizzle India in Chicago? They had a chilli chicken so fiery that I think I went through two pitchers of water myself. A friend from Texas who had gotten the rec for the place from an Indian friend marrying an Indian woman from Chicago (Sizzle India specialized in the same region the guy was from), looked like he had run a marathon there was so much sweat dripping from his forehead. Interestingly, they had a wonderfully delicate and balanced cabbage-mustard seed dish that was my absolute favorite on the buffet. Best buffet Indian I've ever had. (Best Indian food I've ever had might actually be from a Sri Lankan restaurant in Puerto Vallarta where nearly everything was made to order. Mexican and Indian share so many styles and spices.)

Check out Sukhothai and see if they've got Kao Soi on their menu. Everyone, including people who've travelled to Thailand, really enjoyed theirs.

Better to ask for forgiveness than permission. I've actually had the privilege of helping dig the pit (at least they told me it was a privilege) and watching the prep at a real luau since I have Samoan family in Hawaii and they do that sort of thing with any excuse whatsoever. Also been to a couple commercial luaus and watched some the prep and removal of the pig. The chicken wire is a must. They wrapped it all in banana leaves (or was it taro leaves?) and covered it with coals and put it on rocks and buried it. It took a while, of course, but I don't think you'd need to brine it. The meat is so succulent from the low oxygen/low heat cooking method and just falling apart tender. That's why the chicken wire is so important. Sam's post brought back some nice memories. (Definitely do the whole pig, if you can.) btw, this was an interesting link I found: http://www.cbbqa.com/meat/pork/LuauPig.html And a couple others: http://www.alohafriends.com/Luau2.html http://www.ehow.com/how_6296_make-imu.html I can't imagine trying to talk my anal-retentive-won't-eat-meat-off-the-bone-or-skin-wife into any part of this exercise. Take some pictures and make me jealous. btw, the boys at Mythbusters had some...er...luck getting a pig into a Corvette. They never did get the stink out, though.

Hunter on Chowhound recently posted that the Swagath, the Orenco Station Swagat replacement for Shalimar is much better than the others. Maybe the owners or their best cook moves to the newest location and whichever one they're focusing on has good food.

I would think you'd have some good Indian food up there with the huge tech industry. One of the biggest issues down here is that every place merely claims "Authentic North and South Indian". Which is fine and good, but usually when a place specializes, especially on a region they're familiar with, they do better stuff. Do you guys have regional Indian restauants up there? I don't know any places down here that specialize, except maybe the Chaat House in chaat.

Michoacan-Style Carnitas Serves 4 as Main Dish. On a trip to Guadalajara, a cabbie I was badgering about food recommendations took offense at my disappointment with the variety of offerings as compared with Mexico City. He rattled off a list of dishes available in Guadalajara that would be lacking in DF. Some I could follow, with my mediocre Spanish, some I couldn't. But his passion for carnitas, Michoacan-style carnitas, came through loud and clear. He became more and more animated describing how much better they were than others and where to get the best. Indeed, the carnitas of Michoacan have become my guiding star for the succulent pieces of pork. Think pork confit crisped on the outside, often with a hint of citrus. The richness of the meat can withstand the brightest and hottest salsas. Serve with tortillas, as a filling for tacos, along with steamed nopales, in burritos, in enchiladas, or a million other ways. 1 lb Pork Shoulder or Country Style Pork Ribs Lard 1 Orange (optional) Salt Preaheat oven to 250. Cube pork into 2 inch squares. Add pork to baking dish. Optionally, you can peel the zest from the orange and add it to the pork. You can even add the juice of half the orange. Bring enough lard to cover meat by 1/2 inch to 180 degrees or a simmer. If you add some water to the oil, bubbles will form as the fat approaches a simmer. However, a thermometer, especially a probe thermometer makes this easiest. Water should start to pop in the oil once the temperature goes beyond boiling. Add the simmering oil to the baking dish, covering the pork by at least a 1/2 inch. Add the pan to the oven and simmer the meat until tender, approximately two hours. Do not let the oil heat above 200 if possible. This will cook the meat too fast. If you have a probe thermometer you can watch the temperature. If it begins to climb above 190, turn down the oven temperature to 200 and open the door of the oven for a minute or two. If the temperature of the oil begins to fall below 170, increase the oven's temperature. You can slso do this on the stovetop, but it does take more effort to maintain the lard's temperature. INCOMPLETE....WILL FINISH AFTER I GET SOME SLEEP... Keywords: Mexican, Main Dish, Dinner, Lunch, Pork, Intermediate, eGCI, Tex-Mex ( RG1039 )

Michoacan-Style Carnitas Serves 4 as Main Dish. On a trip to Guadalajara, a cabbie I was badgering about food recommendations took offense at my disappointment with the variety of offerings as compared with Mexico City. He rattled off a list of dishes available in Guadalajara that would be lacking in DF. Some I could follow, with my mediocre Spanish, some I couldn't. But his passion for carnitas, Michoacan-style carnitas, came through loud and clear. He became more and more animated describing how much better they were than others and where to get the best. Indeed, the carnitas of Michoacan have become my guiding star for the succulent pieces of pork. Think pork confit crisped on the outside, often with a hint of citrus. The richness of the meat can withstand the brightest and hottest salsas. Serve with tortillas, as a filling for tacos, along with steamed nopales, in burritos, in enchiladas, or a million other ways. 1 lb Pork Shoulder or Country Style Pork Ribs Lard 1 Orange (optional) Salt Preaheat oven to 250. Cube pork into 2 inch squares. Add pork to baking dish. Optionally, you can peel the zest from the orange and add it to the pork. You can even add the juice of half the orange. Bring enough lard to cover meat by 1/2 inch to 180 degrees or a simmer. If you add some water to the oil, bubbles will form as the fat approaches a simmer. However, a thermometer, especially a probe thermometer makes this easiest. Water should start to pop in the oil once the temperature goes beyond boiling. Add the simmering oil to the baking dish, covering the pork by at least a 1/2 inch. Add the pan to the oven and simmer the meat until tender, approximately two hours. Do not let the oil heat above 200 if possible. This will cook the meat too fast. If you have a probe thermometer you can watch the temperature. If it begins to climb above 190, turn down the oven temperature to 200 and open the door of the oven for a minute or two. If the temperature of the oil begins to fall below 170, increase the oven's temperature. You can slso do this on the stovetop, but it does take more effort to maintain the lard's temperature. INCOMPLETE....WILL FINISH AFTER I GET SOME SLEEP... Keywords: Mexican, Main Dish, Dinner, Lunch, Pork, Intermediate, eGCI, Tex-Mex ( RG1039 )

Yeah, I live in Vancouver. I've been to Namaste a few times. I think it's decent. I'd agree that it's better than Swagat or India House. I've only been to Curry Leaf once, but I would say that the consistency on the buffet was much better than Namaste's, unless they've improved. I haven't been there in probably 8 months. I do have a coupon, though (they often have coupons), so I should give it another try. I have to go by myself, though, because my wife doesn't really eat Indian. There actually used to be an Indian place just down the road from me near the Cascade Park area, next to two other quality ethnic restaurants, Patrick's Hawaiian Cafe and Lindo Mexico. I can't recall the name right now. But they went out of business. Their buffet crowd was okay, but the dinner crowd was non-existent. Sad, too, because the buffet was mediocre but the dinners were very good. Everything was pretty fresh. I liked them better than Namaste. I had heard bad things about India Grill and never wanted to try it. A friend said that they weren't very clean, too. I consider Bombay Cricket Club in about the same league as Swagat and India House, maybe a little better depending on what you get. But I think it's very uneven. I've gone in there with people and had dishes that were very good and some that were executed poorly, like too much salt. Plus, they're always too packed. I've only given the Chaat House one try and I'm not sure I knew what to order. The thing I got was pretty good, but I didn't have a basis for comparison. They're always packed, though, no matter what time I drive by there. If they're open, they're busy, and always with Indian clients. I'd like to go there with people who know what they're doing. Have you tried Plainfield's Mayur? It's a very different experience because it's Indian fine dining. What I've had there was very good, but much of it is very expensive. The vegetarian stuff isn't too bad, though. The chutney platter they bring out is very nice. It's been a while and I need to go back. I went there several times kind of close together when I was making the big bucks during the tech boom. But I got tired of it because the menu was so static and the items on it pretty expensive. I need variety. The place is gorgeous and has a very well-respected wine list, from what I understand. (Kosher, too.) Have you tried the Swagat outlets in Orenco Station and Beaverton? I've heard from a couple people that they're better than the NW location. Also, I've heard some votes for Abhiruchi as the best in town. I haven't been there. There's Saffron, too, which is pretty new. I haven't been there either, but I've had it recommended by a couple people. btw, what are your references for good Indian? I'm finding that people are coming from a lot of different perspectives on Indian. I've eaten Indian in Chicago and Berkeley -- at least as far as Indian that people say is good. Other than those places the most Indian food I've had has been stuff I've made or stuff in Portland restaurants. I have little or no feel for regionality. There's a person in our curry club who has travelled extensively in India that has made some comments I've found interesting. eg, she liked India House because it reminded her of commoner foods she ate in India. She didn't eat at fancy restaurants. She ate what the people ate and the people were poor. So they couldn't always put as much intensity into the dish that I expect from an Indian place, eg. I don't know if that's to say that the food is better, though, because I wouldn't want someone coming away from the US thinking good American food comes from Denny's or Applebee's. I have a friend from Dallas (where there are large Indian populations) who was very underwhelmed by the Indian food we ate together in Berkeley (and this was at places recommended from sources like Chowhound). There were some things I wasn't too thrilled with, but some things I thought were pretty good, he didn't really like. But then again, he is someone for whose favorite dish is probably Chicken Tikka Masala. which, of course, is not an "authentic" Indian dish, but an anglo-Indian dish invented in Britain. But he had very concrete points about the same dishes in Dallas that he thought were meaingfully better. It's a broad cuisine and there's a lot of play in what people like about it and what forms their opinions. So I'm always interested in hearing the backstory.

Tinga de Pato Serves 4 as Main Dish. Tinga Poblana is a traditional Mexican stew flavored with chipotles and made with a base of tomatoes. The dish is usually made with pork, but I find the rich meat of duck a perfect compliment to the smokey, sweet sauce. Since pork was introduced by the Spanish, interestingly, duck actually has deeper roots in Mexican cooking than pig. You can serve this stew simply with tortillas or rice, but it also makes an excellent topping for tostadas, huaraches, and sopes. Or, do like I do and never give it a chance to be eaten with a starch because you've already used a spoon, a ladel, and finally the scraping of your index finger to eat up every last drop. 7 lb Whole Duck 1 lb Tomatoes (2-3 medium, Diced) 1/2 lb White Onion (1/2 large, Diced) 4 Garlic Cloves (Minced) 1/3 lb Mexican Pork Chorizo 2 Chipotles (Rehydrated or Adobado, Minced) Duck or Chicken Stock (optional) Salt Remove the giblets and set the liver aside. Remove the leg-thigh quarters and the wing drumettes and set aside also. These pieces are all you need for this recipe. The breast, however, can be seared and served atop the tinga for an elegant touch. YOu can also use the skin of the duck to make chicharrones de pato (duck pork rinds) and serve these crispy bits with the tinga, also, for texture. (If you're going to make chicharrones, remove the skin from the duck leg-thigh pieces.) Otherwise, save the carcass for duck stock. Brown the duck leg-thigh pieces and drumettes on both sides over medium-high heat in rendered duck fat, lard, or bacon grease. Remove and set aside. Lower the heat to medium and add the onion and a pinch or two of salt. Sweat the onions and as liquid is released from them, use it to scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan left by the duck. When the onions begin to become translucent, add the garlic. Stir and sautee only briefly and add the chorizo. Once the chorizo is browned, add the tomatoes and a pinch or two more salt to help them release their liquids. Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and the tomatoes have mostly broken down. Add the chipotles and mix. Either type of chipotle works well. I prefer to use one of each because you get more depth from the rehydrated chipotles, but the adobo adds a nice sweet and tangy note to the sauce. You can also substitute one to two teaspoons of Bufalo chipotle sauce for each chipotle. Mix and add back in the duck pieces, including the liver. (You can also mince the liver and add it during the previous steps.) The liver adds a nice depth to the sauce and more complexity, but it is optional. Add enough duck stock (or other liquid) to cover halfway up the side of the meat. Increase the burner to medium-high. Bring to a light boil, cover, and reduce heat to low, maintainin a simmer. Simmer the meat for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, flipping at the halfway point. Remove the duck and set aside to cool. Shred when it has cooled down enough. (If you can keep from gnawing on the bones and eating half the meat, you have more will power than me.) Reduce the sauce to a consistency and intensity that you enjoy, salting if needed. You can also puree the sauce and then reduce if necessary. I like to take a little more than half of the sauce and lightly puree it, leaving a little texture and then adding that back into the pan with the un-processed portion of sauce. It thickens it nicely and blends the flavors while maintaing a rustic texture. Add the shredded meat back to the pan and warm through. Serve with your favorite starch, and with avocados or guacamole, crema or sour cream, or cheese. Keywords: Mexican, Dinner, Main Dish, Intermediate, Duck, Hot and Spicy, eGCI ( RG1038 )