budrichard

I shop at the market you go to, I assume it is called China Market. The turtles sold are fresh water turtles and are not endangered. The geoducks are best removed from the shell and the siphon split in half. A short time in boiling water followed by an ice bath will allow one to easily remove the outer covering. Then use raw(Mirugai) or cook. The innards can be used for soup except for the stomach which I don't use. I purchased one last Friday, cost is NOT cheap. Tonight is clam chowder with the leftovers. Giant conch is poached removed from shell and used. Same with snails, periwinkles and whelks. i usually prepare a fume in which to poach followed by an ice bath. Fish is fish so prepare how you want. -Dick

I purchased this at our local Mitsuwa. It was quite expensive. We did a blind tasting with a range of Kikkomen from Japan and the US including one Kikkomen 'Chef's Choice'. This one was preferred over all. I think a label around the bottle is gone but I seem to remember that this is an aged shoyu in cedar barrels. Am I correct and what does the label tell one? Thanks-Dick

Cleaning fish and filleting fish are two different things. A filet knife is flexible to allow it to follow the rib contour while removing the flesh from the bones, as such the knife is more delicate than a chef's knife or any of the Japanese blades I have seen. So if your cleaning fish rather than filleting fish, a knife with a sturdy blade will probably hold the edge better breaking the neck bone while a filet knife is not really meant for cutting bone. I have heard a lot about Wilson's blade but just don't have one yet.-Dick

Growing up just south of Boston and spending part of the summer in Maine, I was introduced to oysters early on with just a hint of lemon. My first trip to New Orleans and the Acme Oyster House and Hollywood changed all that. A drop or two of Tabasco fast became my favorite add on. Lately I have changed to Crystal because it is more mellow than Tabasco but my wife still prefers Tobasco. Since Katrina, Crystal is impossible to get in Wisconsin anymore. Over the year i have tried various other add ons but Tabasco or Crystal is my favorite. Sauce of any kind is out!-Dick

Food poisoning does not always result in death, in fact the outcome is usually somewhat dependant on age. I know for a fact that food poisoning can result in kidney failure as my mother-in-law found out. Her son survived without kidney failure. This was from restaurant food. So, the consequence is not always death. In some cases it is a slow death. When one knows the consequence can be death, kidney failure or some other lasting consequence and the product manufacturers along with the USDA will not certify that consuming raw Country Ham is safe, hoping that it is safe is folly. EOT for me! -Dick

That's utter nonsense. Refusing to understand the risks might be called stupid, but an informed choice to take a risk is just an informed choice. I go rock climbing and ice climbing. Some closed minded people call these pursuits stupid, but the fact is that I spend a lot of time studying and managing the risks. My choices to to accept or not accept those risks are personal ones. They can be judged on a scale of cautious to reckless, but not smart to stupid. In the same spirit an intelligent person on this board might choose to uncooked ham, smoked fish, soft cheese, or raw eggs. ← A short lesson in risk is in order. Risk is ALWAYS coupled with consequence. Low risk, low consequence, do it. Low risk, high consequence, most individuals will chose to do it. Certainly flying in a commercial airliner is low risk, high consequence. Moderate risk, high consequence, most will avoid When one writes about rock or ice climbing, one needs to specify what type of climbing one does. Do you free climb, climb with aids or 'top rope'. If 'top rope' or climb with aids, then you obviously believe there is a substantial risk associated with free climbing that you avoid because the consequences are high(death). One cannot talk about risk without talking about consequence. In this case the risk for free climbing is dependant on your ability but the consequence is always high and does not depend on your ability. Which type of climbing do you do? I used to 'top rope'. Low risk, high consequence. Eating uncooled raw cured ham probably has a moderate risk but high consequence. One might think that its low risk, high consequence but that is debatable. In any event its the high consequence associated with the risk that determines whether or not one does something. If the consequence for eating uncooked cured raw ham were low, then I would not be writing this response.-Dick

One can drive a vehicle without seatbelts or air bags. One can have unprotected sex with someone you don't know. One can eat eat raw cured ham not certified free of Listeria. When one has the information at hand about the consequences, it is not risk anymore, but stupidity.-Dick

This is patently not true and has been commented on before. This is used to sell rotting fish. It's an urban legend that people keep repeating. I have eaten LOTS of skate for LOTS of years. Most has been ammonia free. That which smells of ammonia is not any different than any seafood that smells of ammonia, the smell is the result of decomposition.-Dick

I have subscribed since I purchased the first issue on the newstand. With anything, when the creative individuals who had a vision and worked hard, leave, the result is a decline, which is what I see in Savuer today. The last issue Jan/Feb 'The Saveur 100' was/is the last straw. #4 "Peas, Please". Anyone with half a brain cannot reccamend canned peas. There is no comparison to fresh from the garden! It's like I'm back in the 1950's and Betty /Crocker is touting the virtues of all the prepared products. #15 "Our Favorite Hack".What is this? #20 "Star Anise". You'd think Saveur discovered the Holy Grail! Someone forgot to tell them that Star Anise has been used by cooks and chefs for a long time! #31 "Most Comforting Color on the Plate". There is NO redeeming information here, only a picture and words designed to take up magazine space and decrease expenditures to find and understand real world foods. #32 "Straight from the Pan." Huh? I could go on and on but leave you with: #8 "The Other Thing That Made Milwaukee Famous". Since I live near Milwaukee and like custard, I can unequivocally tell you that the writers of this little vingette, never ever made it to Milwaukee but are just parroting something they read. EVERYONE in Milwaukee knows Kopp's Custard is best! I want my money back for the rest of my subscription! -Dick

Only 60's I have left is part of a a case of 1961 Bordeaux, still going strong. All the rest are gone other than the odd Magnum. We are now drinking the 1970's which are near the end of life but still excellent. Had a bottle of 1970 Lascombes with rib steak marinated in Dales the other evening. Just about perfect, no decanting but the wine did not fade over the hour it took us to consume it. Next comes the 1975's for us. -Dick

I didn't leave anything out but merely quoted the last words. The refernce was clearly supplied. A Google search will easily find the following http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlere...gi?artid=243105 It appears that this is how the organism is isolated from the inoculated ham. If you keep your head in the sand, it probably doesn't have anything to do with the 'real world'. If you are objective and search for objective evidence then the study has meaning. It may not be the result indivduals want to read on this Forum but it certainly is better than a ham producer saying that his ham is fit to eat raw without certifying that on his product. For myself, I prefer to do research into the body of knowledge easily available these days on the Internet provided by experts in the field, rather than the hopes and assumptions of individuals not qualified to make these judgements. As I stated before, I have to yet to find any objective evidence that country hams can be consumed raw without risk from Listeria.-Dick

Use olive oil for searing all the time when not concerned about the tatse of the olive oil but if i want a neutral taste its a different type of oil.-Dick

I am a fan of Jamon and have the first order for the Jamon Iberico from Tienda. But until the producer of the country ham produced in this country certifies that thier ham is fit to consume raw, it would be folly to do so. Listeria occurs even in imported Prosciutto from time to time with frequent recalls so the matter is not academic. It is easy for writers and others to say the product is safe raw but the producer needs to stand behind his product with the USDA at his side. Say what you want about USDA standards about raw milk products and other items, but they have done a good job in food safety. You are correct in saying that Scotts uses no nitrates or nitrites for that matter which is why we use thier products but not raw.-Dick http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo..._g.htm#symptoms http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/recalls/prelease/pr052-2002.htm http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/1....2002.tb08742.x Pay particular attention to the last reference, "Therefore, the survival of L. monocytogenes on country-cured ham represents a risk."

"Followed your link; they don't sell to the public anymore!" So what! Find a dealer! -Dick

I long ago drank up my 1966's although I may have the odd Magnum of Talbot and others floating around. It was good vintage and the prices were excellent at the time of offering. I would not spend a single dollar for any of the 1966's at this time. I certainly agree with you about the Cos d’Estournel. I gave a bottle to a Francophile physician friend of mine and he was estatic about it. -Dick

Devonsheer Melba Toast used to be the product that I turned to for serving cheese, pates, different spreads and caviar. The Non Salt varety was especially useful for caviar. The product has become progressively thinner and the package weight progressively less while the package stays the same size trying convince one that nothing has changed. The product is now so thin that ANY attempt to spread anything results in the product simply crumbling in your hands! About 25% of the wafers arrive broken b the time one opens the package anyway. The listed website on the package http://www.devonsheer.com doesn't work and a link to Old London which may have purchased Devonsheer doesn't work. The company listed in the box is O.L.F. of Bronx, NY but there is no listing in the Yellow Pages for this company. It appears that the parent compnay knows the product is substandard and has decided to just keep up production until sales tank. Any resource to contact the parent company would be apperciated. Can anyone reccamend a substitute that is readily available that doesn't suffer from breakage at the slightest touch? Thanks for any replies.-Dick

When we were in Graduate School and poor we had two sources for wine. Daily wine was Gallo Hearty Burgundy(actually only consumed on the weekend because we were just working such long hours) and a wine shop in Milwaukee where the Celler Master was very knowledgable. He would pick out outstanding European wines at reasonable prices and give me a 10% discount on any number of bottles. He only asked that when we were through with school to purchase from him. Sadly he is departed, the wine shop in other hands and I no longer shop there. To answer the query, German Reislings of all persuations and Bordeaux/Burgundy(French that is). Our palats were formed on European wines and that is what we like. Sadly the price increases have cause us to switch to other sources for the most part but I still purchase Bordeaux and Port futures and the occassional case of Burgundy(white mostly). In the case of Reislings, I deal directly with the grower and the importer/retailer just pass the wines through with markup.-Dick

The lowest prices on in stock wine, futures and anything else. Longevity in the business if I am to have my money tied up for a number of years. The ability to act as a retailer for wines that i order from Importers or foreign makers and tack on a reasonable markup. All else is superficial. That said, I do like to walk through Sam's in Chicago looking for gems. The prices are not usually the lowest but they do deliver futures at the agreed upon price. Most retailers these days are only interested in selling you wine that they have purchased to realize the greatest profit margin. They could care less about the wine and what you like. -Dick

If you must use a powered device then consider the Tormek http://www.sharptoolsusa.com/ . I have no difficulty sharpeneing my Wusthof knives which range from the 13" Bone Splitter to small paring knives. I have probably invested over $3K in Wusthof.-Dick

These Country Hams cured with salt and smoked are NOT safe to eat raw. Listeria is not killed by any of the above. June Scott of Scott Hams and I have had this discussion before. -Dick

The standard business plan for all Cable channels is to use max draw/expensive programming until a substantial subscriber base is attained that can provide sustainable revenue. The programming costs are then reduced to maximize profit assuming that the subscriber base is inelastic.-Dick

The real concern in knife sharpening is heat. Too much heat and you will lose the temper or hardness in the steel. I suspect that is what happened to your knives. The use of these so called 'Chef's Choice' or a so called Professional sharpening service is all done basically with grinding wheels. Guaranteed to heat your blade and lose the temper. I know of only two ways to sharpen. First is by hand on sharpening stones. Second is the Tomak water cooled device. I use the first method and my brother-in-law has a Tomak. I sharpen everything from my Wusthof knives to custom knives with exotic super hard steels and Japanese Sashimi knives sharpened on hand quarried stones with water. The use of Chef's Choice or a Service would ruin these knives.-Dick

CO2 is not your problem. What you have is known as an 'open source of ignition' in the Fire Protection trade. Contact your local Fire Department to find out whether your local Fire Code allows the use in the building.-Dick

Venison backstraps were cut into 2" thick slices and briefly marinated in Dale's seasoning. Seared on a hot griddle served with baked potato and chantrelles. Absolutely no gamey taste at all. Actually I believe one can taste the difference between venison from Northern Wisconsin where the food is mostly browse and a deer from Southern Wisocnsin that is corn fed. -Dick

I imagine the the list of actors and others waiting to meet him will be quite long!-Thanks for the info.-Dick