rancho_gordo

Your recipe has very little garlic. I don't if you'll be able to tell. I would also add that with my experience with Mexican food, once someone says that a proper guacamole contains no garlic, someone will come up with a village or region that does! I think that's why Mexican food is so fun to read about and try to document. And why yo always need to keep an open mind about it.

Often you hear specifically that guac in Mexico doesn't contain garlic. Once DK said no, I couldn't use it again. But I had a friend who couldn't care less what Kennedy thought and insisted on using garlic. But then we did a side by side comparison with the garlic and non-garlic guacamoles and eveyone agreed that garlic-free was superior. You may not have the same results but it's might be interesting to try.

I think a cast iron is perfect. I keep hearing such bad things about non-stick at higher heats that it makes me a little nervous, although I don't know if it's been proven. If you get the cast iron, you can also pan roast chiles and slices of onion and bits of garlic, etc, which is handy. I use a comal (steel and a ceramic one) but I love my toys.

I don't see how selling organic cherries flown in from Chile in January allows Whole Foods a role as an educator and a pendulum-direction-indicator. And I thought you were arguing that they are a business first and foremost. Why not take all those really brilliant business minds and create a model where everyone wins?

Easier, but not impossible. If the Michael Pollan's are making the Whole Foods uncomfortable, good. If Whole Foods takes a leadership role, even better. Pollan might also argue that local isn't an aesthetic issue, and I bet Al Gore would agree. The current system does not work and is being artificially subsidised. From soil erosion to dependency on fossil fuel to farm subsidies, the current system can't handle all we're asking it to do.

I use a large wood mesquite press and fresh, real masa as I'm lucky enough to have access to it. I press it once, then pick up the tortilla and two plastic sheets and flip them over and press again. I press firmly but gently. If I do this twice, it seems to even out the width. it can be too thick or thin on one end because of the hinges. I use a very hot comal made of steel that gets an occasional wipe of oil and once the tortilla "sets", I immediatley flip it until the bottom gets some brown flecks. I flip it again and I get a good puff about 95% of the time. I cook until there are nice brown flecks. I was getting weird bubbles that I thought were from too wet a dough but it turns out I was dropping the tortillas too haphazard when you should really roll them evenly abnd carefully on to the hot comal.

I'm pretty sure that's what it means.... Pto V is nice because you can get cheap flights, the airport is zero hassle and it's a short flight from SFO. You can stay pretty cheap and you can stay in the old part of town and it's not so bad. I did meet a lot of very boozy ex-pat Americans there. You can also take the night bus and spend a few days in Guadalajara.

Good food in Pto Vallarta is a challenge, but you can find it. I love the fish you mentioned smothered in Huichol sauce. We drove about half an hour inland and went to the most glorious bbq place I've ever been to. Tons of food, a place for the kiddies to play and lots of beer. Cheap and fun and one of my favorites. There is also a good taco to be had on the big square where all the buses turn around. Shhhhh. Don't tell but there's a fabulous bistro called Hooters, which means "where the sea meets the butterfly" in ancient Huichol, I think. Very exotic and one of the reasons I love to travel, to discover little gems like this!

I agree it would have been nice for someone to check on you. But the first thing that enters my mind is that peanuts aren't nuts and my friends with nut allergies can both eat peanuts. As you know, there are nuts in everything and you just can't relax, especially in a busy restaurant. But it would have been nice for someone to check in on you.

Corn tortillas should have no lard!

I saw it in Gandhi when I was there a few weeks ago and I have to say I passed. And I was in shopping mode! Now I'm questioning myself a little.

As a vendor at the farmers market, I was pretty excited to see Pancho Villa's opening up. There's a lot of good food at the ferry building but after several years, the thought of a regular taqueria is pretty great. I'm sure Mijita is fine but the portions seem so off from the price and Mexican food should be gracious and abundant, not miserly and stingy. But Pancho Villa's is bizarre. A regular burrito ends up over $7. They wrap it so tight that it seems like work. And there's something sterile and anti sceptic about the flavors that make me not want to repeat the experience. Plus, they steam the tortillas, rather than grill them, which at the price is pretty lame. The shrimp taco looks good but I fear the price!

Sounds great to me! u.e. ← We discussed it here. How quickly they forget! But we're still on for tacos!

Don't forget Heidi Swanson's 101 Cookbooks. I think it' smuch more than a blog but she's been a real pioneer and now has a great book out and writes everywhere. She really is the poster child for what's good about blogging. I do notice many bloggers start out great and then peter out. I think that's why there are professional writers and traditional press still.

I'm not necessarily recommending it but I know you were considering it and after reading your descriptions (which have been spot on), I'd be curious how you'd react to GD. Then I'll treat you to some al pastor tacos in the Mission. No, really. My treat! I insist!

Will your promise on your next trip to go to Gary Danko? I'm really curious what you'd think, not just of the food but of the whole "show".

I think you know this, but just to be clear, the line refers to CaL, which the corn is soaked in to loosen the skin. The skin is removed and then the corn is rinsed. The lime is only residual and it's not a nice flavor if there's too much left on, although I've been told it works like a preservative to some degree. That's why when you see "organic" 100%white corn tortillas at Trader joes and they're a lurid yellow, it's because they leave too much CaL on to preserve it. Otherwise they would go bad unrefirdgerated. So is this masarepa just cornmeal?

I'm not saying the people who sell (or sellout) are forced to do it. Hell, you may be able to print out this thread and shove it my face in five years when I sell out to Kraft! But I think it's naive to think any consumer benefits from this kind of a buyout. I would argue further but there's a clear guideline here about not discussing politics. And it's normally food politics that get me in trouble here on eG!

It was really quality stuff at one point!

Have you tasted a Bruce Aidell sausage lately?

...and when they run the little guys out of business, is this also good? When they discover cheaper ways to produce what were once artisan products, like adding preservatives, transfats, etc, is this also good? Do you remember when Bruce Aidell sausages tasted like something? Do you believe Scharfenberger will benefit as a quality product now that Hershey's has bought them? When the groovy chain insists your product be produced for less or they drop you and you look to China, making California more of a giant suburb than an ag state that actually produces something, how good is that? The current model of food production in our country is in quite a state and I'd just encourage us to look at it a little deeper than being satisfied with cheaper prices and being impressed with business smarts. I don't have the answers but I don't think Kraft does, either.

Did you end up contacting the manager? What was the response?

I went on this merry jaunt with Jaymes. It was pretty swell. My photos aren't so good but there are a few here: http://www.ranchogordo.com/html/rg_news_df_taxco.htm The highlight of the trip was dinner at Patricia Quintana's Izote. She is my new hero. This was in my all-time top 10.

Uh, hello???!!! There's a steam table of "oriental" food at the Raley's grocery store! And if I'm not mistaken we have the world famous Panda Express!!!!!

An American Classic? That makes me shudder. ← Taylor's had been there a long time. I remember when it was a pretty typical but excellent burger place. Maybe that's when they received the award.