Mudpuppie

You are my new hero. Aside from the staples -- onions, garlic, potatoes, cheeses, good beer, cat food -- the one thing I am never without is Mezetta's pepperoncinis. Edited to add "good" to "beer," and cat food.

How's about including a paneer recipe? Not a tangible thing, but still good to have. It's really not hard to make.

Ok, maybe I'm an idiot, but I always keep frozen ginger around. A few days after I buy and use a fresh ginger root, I wrap it in foil, stick it in a ziploc, and put it in the freezer. When I need "fresh" (as opposed to powdered) ginger, I grate the frozen root with microplane. It might not have the kick of truly fresh stuff, but it's certainly better than dried, and better than nothing. FWIW, I've also planted a few roots in the backyard so I could have a constant and cheap supply of fresh ginger. They've always rotted, though.

I didn't mean it to sound dirty. I just couldn't remember. Now it's coming back to me -- I think I remember both white and yellow being sold in Fiesta markets in Texas. I know I've bought a can of yellow hominy at least once in my life, and I don't remember it being all that different from the white stuff, taste-wise. But it was yellow(-ish). No. Sorry. Yellow hominy may be less yellow than yellow corn, but it's not white. Google rules! Here's some background info on hominy and how it's made: http://www.glifwc.org/pub/summer01/hominy.htm

The USDA people really, really don't want these in the country. I know this because I tried to cross the border with one. Got it at the Granville Market in Vancouver, thought it would be a cool souvenir. Man, was that a scathing lecture.

Not wrong. Right. Except, I have seen yellow hominy. Don't ask me where. Ha! You've fallen into the grit vortex!

I feel your pain. I am too. Next time you venture toward the bridge, try G.B. Ratto's in downtown Oakland, or the Housewives Market around the corner from there. They both have them.

Anyone else see a big irony here? If tripe is inherently digestible, why doesn't the cow's stomach digest itself? Ooh, I think I just got dizzy.

I'm not a tripe eater, so I won't comment on how much I like or don't like it. But there's a great essay on the stuff in Best Food Writing 2003, where the author describes it as smelling like cow's breath, or something similar. Really fun article. Sorry, can't remember the author or source.

What was the question??? Everything in your recap is spot on, in my opinion, except I think that white southern grits pretty much are always hominy grits. (Now, white polenta is another story....) As you've said, they don't necessarily have to list the alkaline solution as an ingredient, since it's more of a processing element. And no, southern grits are not always white in the same way that polenta is not always yellow. I'd offer, though, that yellow southern grits are a statistical anomaly and should therefore be stricken from the record!

Sorry to post three in a row, but heads up -- get out your food dictionaries. We mostly use lime now, not lye. Big difference! (I think I mentioned lye myself. I always get the two mixed up. Who decided to name them so similarly, anyway?)

It's hardly a stupid question. How could you know if you've never eaten them? Grits can have a texture like cream of wheat if they're cooked loosely -- with lots of water, I mean, ending up with a soupy product. They can also be firm, like cooled polenta. (You Canadian eat that, right?) All depends on how they're cooked -- how long, with how much liquid, etc. Also, with which liquid; they turn out creamier if they're cooked in milk. If you're curious enough, there are lots of companies that do mail order grits. I don't want to post links because I don't want to endorse any. But being in grit-starved Canada doesn't mean you have to go without. For what it's worth, I HATE cream of wheat, but love grits....

I didn't misunderstand it, I was avoiding it because I didn't know the answer! I looked it up, though, and here's what I've come up with. (I only back this answer 96%.) No, polenta is not treated with an alkali (e.g., lime). It's basically coarse corn meal and uses the whole kernel. Hominy is corn that's had it's hard outer shell removed by an alkaline solution. This is not the type of ground meal that's used, traditionally, in polenta. Although, if you cooked yellow hominy grits and called them polenta, you wouldn't technically be wrong. I'm trying my best to obfuscate, if you hadn't noticed, because I don't think there's any real right answer. We're back to the semantic thing again.

But are they grits or polenta? It said right on the label "otherwise known as ..." The label also said they should be kept refrigerated and there those bags were, sitting out on the shelf. They are grits and they are polenta. Because -- remember class -- polenta is a variety of corn grits. "Polenta" doesn't describe the raw material so much as the finished product. But to really answer your question, the Bob's people sell only yellow corn grits, aka polenta. They can call them grits because they are. We can't really hold the semantic issue against them -- they're from Oregon and probably don't know any better. The Bob's grits are not the white, southern hominy grits you were looking for, Jensen. They'd make a fine batch of polenta or "yellow grits," but you couldn't pass them off for the real thing in, say, Mississippi. As for the refrigeration issue, I think Bob's does small batches. Their stuff is generally of higher quality and has no preservatives. Therefore, the oils can go off faster. Once the bags are opened it's a good idea to keep the product refrigerated. And if you're worried about the fact that the stores sell Bob's milled products at room temp, buy their stuff at a store with high turnover. Jensen, are you in the Bay Area? (If not, why do I think that?) If so, I can point you to a grit supplier....

Isn't that a Tony Bennet song??

You'll be so sorry you asked.... Here's my attempt at explaining the differences, and lack thereof. "Grits" is basically a generic term that refers to a ground grain of fairly coarse texture. There are, in fact, wheat grits and rice grits and rye grits and, well, you get it. Polenta is grits just by virtue of the fact that it's coarsely ground corn. And southern grits are grits because they're coarsely ground corn. The real difference is in the cultural, agricultural, and culinary traditions of the people who eat them. The grits common in the south are made from white hominy, which fifi explained. (Hominy can be yellow, by the way. It can be any color, really. You could make blue corn hominy if you were so inclined, but it would look pretty nasty, if you ask me.) Italian polenta is usually made from yellow corn. The real question isn't what's the difference, it's why do southerners make a porridge from white corn, while Italians predominately use yellow? It's mostly a horticultural question. Bear with me, here's some background. Corn is native to the Americas. We all probably remember that from 4th grade history, and most of us probably remember that the Europeans were really impressed with it and took it back to their neck of the woods, and it's now the most widespread crop in the world. The attraction? It's nutritious; it's relatively easy to grow; it can be grown in an insane variety of climates/altitudes; and, most importantly, it's really, really easy to hybridize. So generations of people in different parts of the world have been able to selectively grow corn that suits their particular needs and tastes. When Europeans ended up on the east coast, the natives were mostly notcultivating yellow corn. Their varieties were sometimes white, sometimes red, sometimes blue. For whatever reason, they weren't growing yellow corn. And they were definitely making hominy out of white corn in order to make it last past harvest.** And, elliptically, a southern tradition was born. Italians started their own tradition, and it was made with the yellow stuff. Most (all??) cultures have grain porridges. The stories of their reasons for existence are all similar: You use what you've got, you learn to like it, and it sticks around. So. To recap: It's all grits. And it's all semantic. And in most of the south, grits are white, and don't you dare tell a southerner otherwise. And, garlic-cheese grits rule. For fun, check out this NPR piece: http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/grits/ You can also check out -- duh! -- http://www.grits.com. A question: Why is "polenta" a singular/collective noun, while "grits" is plural? (I know the "grits is"/"grits are" debate was covered in My Cousin Vinny, but they didn't mention polenta. [**One theory on the birth of grits is that pilgrims who landed in Jamestown were immediately handed welcoming gifts of steaming bowls of "rockahominie" by friendly natives. This grits precursor was a kind of hominy porridge. Now, this theory comes from Quaker oats http://www.quakergrits.com/QG_Heritage/history.htm, so who knows how historically accurate it is. More likely, it's a mix of anthropology and warm/fuzzy branding.]

I got some fresh-milled, keep-refrigerated grits at Dean and DeLuca about a year ago. I only bought them because real white grits (as opposed to yellow polenta) is/are hard to find in No. Cal -- so, I was thrilled to come across them. In the end, I didn't like them any better than the traditional kind (which doesn't mean instant or quick cook). The texture was a little more gummy, the flavor wasn't any more corny, and they took some hours to cook. Probably they'd be a treat if they were served to you in a restaurant, but I don't personally find them worth the investment. (And I've since found that you can find "white polenta" in bay area Italian markets, which has made me a very happy camper.) (Grit tip: Saute some chopped garlic in browned butter and pour it over your grits. Yummy yummy yummy.)

On a third or fourth date, a new romantic interest decided to cook dinner in her tiny studio apartment. I should point out that I'm a bit of a food snob.... She made a stir fry, though, so I wasn't too worried. But the stir fry consisted of: waaaaay overcooked vegetables, close to half a bottle of soy sauce, oregano, curry powder, and worcestershire sauce!!! I made up some excuse about having stomach problems and choked down a mouthful. Turns out she was a big proponent of chaos theory and anarchy. (I won't get political here except to say that these ideas have no place in the kitchen.) Although I should have known better, it turned into a four-year relationship with two cross-country moves. The cooking issue was always a big one; she was offended that I didn't like her cooking. Gawd, I'm glad that's over.

If I remember right, the bay leaf repels critters (esp. weevils), but it doesn't do anything to keep larva from hatching. So if there are any grain moth larvae in the flour you bring home from the store, the bay leaf ain't gonna help. The freezer does, though. (I know two freezer camps: Those who maintain that 24 hours in the freezer will keep anything from hatching, and those who maintain that flour and grains must be stored in the freezer.) Anyway, if the flour takes on moisture in the freezer, can't you just adjust the amount of liquid you add to it in a recipe? It seems to work for me.

Ohhhhh. I thought the Ozark folks just didn't know how to spell "compote." I've always known the "concrete" thing as a Blizzard, having grown up in DQ country.

Maybe for the small, locally-owned businesses and manufacturing plants and family farms, etc., that companies like Wal-Mart drive a) overseas, or b) out of business? Hey, they might even make more than minimum wage....

I once drove by, but didn't stop at, a Missouri "family-style" restaurant that advertised "Dutch Apple Concrete" on its signboard.

Any place where the waitstaff sits down in your booth while taking your order. Any place (this may be a given) that smells like urine, inside or out. Any place with "Olde" or "Shoppe" in the name. Or, for that matter, "Ye." Personally, I also avoid places that are adjacent to dry cleaners. Or near crematoriums. I also avoid places that keep their fly strips or bug zappers in public view. I never eat at places that employ "sandwich artists." Automatically on the list: any restaurant adjacent to or within walking distance from Wal-Mart. Hell, let's make that within sight of Wal-mart.

Celestin's would be a good choice. It's got good Caribbean food in a nice space. Can be noisy, though.

I'm not convinced that caffeine itself has any flavor, but I know that the decaffeinating process can sure monkey with the taste of a product. Maybe that accounts for the perceived differences. (...And maybe it's irrelevant. It's a slow day at work, so I can manage to care.)