rancho_gordo

Yes, exactly. I'm buying EVOO not because it's extra virgin or because it's unadulterated, but because it tastes good. There are plenty of bottles I would never buy, even if they are extra virgin, simply because they aren't what I'm looking for. I find this reasoning a little cynical. i also want olive oil for health reasons. If they can manipulate the taste and use corn oil and salt, I don't want it. I'm not saying that can do that but if there's anything I want food regulations for, it's things like this. People will cheat, sure but that doesn't mean you stop any efforts. As I mentioned above, we're in the process of importing chiles and they're being tested like crazy and it's not cheap. I don't like it and I know how ours were grown but other countries that seem to take shortcuts whenever possible, have made it rough for all chile importers. But what's the alternative?

You've got it right. Fresh masa from nixtamal should probably last about three days in the fridge and one day left out, as it mostly is in Mexico. But the tortillas you make from it can last up to two weeks or so. The same is true for commercial tortillas made from nixtamal- they can last. If it's white corn and the tortillas are an odd shade of yellow, like many WHole Food and Trader Joe tortillas I see, it means they didn't rinse the cal off very well so they have a longer shelf life but more of a chemical taste. But if you're buying commercial tortillas, make sure they have corn, cal (or lime) and water and nothing else. if they have more, I would pass. But I would place commercial tortillas made from nixtamal above homemade ones made with Maseca (masa harina). I would make homemade tortillas with fresh masa. Living in the bay area or anyplace with access to good tortillas, I wouldn't bother making my own Maseca tortillas unless I was out and it was too late to find more. That's just my thinking. But if you buy masa, you can also make atoles, champarrado, tamales and more. Mole Amarillo from Oaxaca is often thickened with a little bit of masa added to water to liquefy it and then added to the mole and it is the most wonderful flavor imaginable and the natural corn starch thickens the sauce. Here's a video I made of a very talented woman in Oaxaca making various treats from fresh masa. The leaf she is using is Oja Santa/Hierba Santa and easy to grow: I think it's worth the pain to hunt down fresh masa. Obvously. re the dried hominy, I don't know about uncooked, but if you could get the grind just right, the cooked, wet hominy could be masa, but I think we tried it here once and it didn't work so well.

I've heard from chefs that Tortilleria Nixtamal is uneven. Maybe they've worked out the kinks and that would be great but ONE tortilla factory making nixtamal in all of NY and not even in Manhattan is pretty weak. I think it's great that Los Tacos makes their own. I believe Roberto Santibañez does the same for his Fonda restaurants. I'd start with those places that do make nixtamal, beans from scratch and use good chiles. I don't have a problem with upscale except, and I don't mean this to throw stones, but in NY cocktails seem to be more important than the food. It's rare to come across a margarita in Mexico, Beer and shots, aguas frecas and upscale, the rage is wine pairings, especially if the wine is from Baja.

Most of the tortillas in New York are not made with nixtamal. They are using masa harina, which is ok but a very distant second. My rant, as always is, NY is obsessed with Mexican food but until they really understand corn, chiles and beans, it's from a very limited perspective. (Apparently there is one tortilla factory in Queens that use nixtamal and the last word was that the quality was uneven.)

If a bottle says extra Virgin, that's what I'd expect. I think it's shocking that it's often not. I've heard now we have a similar problem with honey. Yet another reason to buy local. I hate to constantly pick on the Chinese but it seems if there's a corner to cut, they'll take it. Have you had Chinese chiles? The taste sharp and antiseptic and now they're testing positive for heavy metals. And they can be marked made in Mexico! Chinese hibiscus flowers are dyed so they have a redder color.

I don't think there is an organized boycott. I think people are reacting to the stupidity of the statement. Italy is very backwards when it comes to gay rights. Singer Lucio Dalla died recently and the news was practically stuttering to avoid talking about the fact that he was gay. When someone says something nasty, it's ok to call them on it. And it's ok to express sadness or disbelief. And it's ok to tell people you aren't buying their goods any more. My problem is I was offended by the Chick-Fil-a scandal and I'm offended by this jerk, but they're both crappy products I find it easy to not buy. I wonder if I'd be so moral if it turned out someone who made a really good product were racists or homophobes.

I am currently in love with In the Charcuterie by the Fatted Calf people. It's a very different look at meat with their great aesthetic

It's the Spanish version.

The article reminded me of the movies Imitation of Life. The first one from the 1930s has the white woman fronting a huge pancake company while the black woman is happy in the background. The remake is pretty great with Lana Tuner at her lacquered best but she's in show business, not pancake this time. I've never understood the appeal of Paula Deen, especially the last few years when she's seemed like a cartoon version of a southerner.

Ta da! Looks like Amazon is getting it this Oct. After living with it for awhile, I do have to say I'm keeping my old one as well. But this one is great (despite kind of cheap printing) and the price is nice!

Rice, I don't know about. But I do remember the corn thing with Africa and I understand it's a very complicated issue, but if it's real humanitarian aid, why force them to make a decision like starve or take our non-sustainable corn? That's my point. i would love it if it turned out GMOs were great and those of us who prefer (and are in a position to indulge) heirlooms can all live happily side by side. But these new GMOs have so many unknowns, why risk it, especially when the yields aren't come in much higher, if at all. It's especially sad to see the influence of one mega-corp in particular.

Sorry. Your science is wrong. Again, no is complaining about hybrids. But the whole point of sending sterile corn to starving countries so they have to buy it from us in the future is morally dubious to a lot of people. WHy not send them "real" corn so they can seed save and be self-sufficient?

I think you're confusing hybrids with GMOs. No one is arguing against the use of hybrids.

...and marketed. Is there a problem with using integrity in reference to food?

I'm sure they are publishing this to see if there is much outcry. Please politely complain if you go to one. And only order the carnitas! We're so neck deep in all of this, I think it would be hard not to have GMOs to some degree. I didn't know about rice and that makes my heart sink. But it's hard to find non-GMO wheat so I figured the tortillas would be tainted. They seem to just use corn for their crispy tacos and I assumed these were GMO. If you want a soft taco, it seems like they make it with a flour tortilla. Odd. But I think it's easier to make good flour tortillas anywhere whereas corn takes some skill. So this must mean the soy is GMO. What about the chicken and steak? Yuck. My concern with GMOs is that we really don't now what is going to happen if they cross and our future is at stake. I've seen corn cross and it's scary and now we're reading that the yields aren't so great as touted and the Round Up Ready corn is finding enemies that are resistant. I think we really should have waited or banned them outright. Maybe Monsanto shouldn't be considered a citizen just yet. But really, the whole point of Chipotle was supposed to be their superior ingredients. It's certainly not the way they fold a burrito. But with this stuff, your local taco truck has a level playing field, and if they make their tortillas from nixtamal, they're way ahead of the game.

Mexican food seems mostly about balancing rich things (fried pork, heavy sauces) with acidic things (like limes, xoconostle). Enchiladas suizas without the "edge" of the green sauce would be more like Tex-Mex, which doesn't seem so acidic. I'm not saying it was smothered in green sauce but I bet the original had some.

In Ricardo Muñoz Zurita's Enciclopedico de Gastronomia Mexicana, he describes the dish as having a green sauce and coming from Sanborn's. He also notes it's loaded with cream and cheese.

It's not something I would normally order but to me there is a tomatillo sauce involved.

Oh, I forgot Richard Sandoval. His Modern Mexican Flavors is a little dated with lots of stacked food and squirts of sauce from squeezy bottles but the idea of taking apart and then reconstructing classics seems like what might inspire. Un-requested advice: Modern or traditional,(here's my broken record), the foundation of Mexican food is chiles, corn and beans. You need to know these three ingredients inside and out before you start exploring modern, regional or whatever. You need to play with nixtamal and see how it cooks, fries, heats. etc. You need a firm command of the chiles; frsh and dried and you need cook good beans from scratch. You should have tried working with a metate (to master it you'd have needed to start years ago) but you should be able to make a green salsa in a molcajete. If you combine all of this with your traditional European skills, you should be set to go.

The book is Sazones y andanzas por el Centro Historico by Victor Hugo Aguilar Morales. It's very pretty without being silly.

If you're serious, you should get Enrique Olvera's huge blue book. Larouuse has a dinky one that's fun but if you're really high end, you need to know what he is doing. (P.s. I just got back from Mexico last night and bought a book on Modern food in the centro historico and I'll try and remember to post the name tomorrow.)

I'm not a huge fan but I find what they do kind of interesting. But hats off for the Kona Shortbread half dipped cookies. They're a very lightly sweetened shortbread with coffee (it would be impossible to tell if it was Kona) half dipped in a very sweet icing. They're delicious.

Kale/Parmagiana chips. Nasty, nasty nasty and then the aftertaste hits you. Almost funny it's so bad.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you haven't really done Mexican until all these trendy places are making their masa from nixtamal. I understand there is one place in Queens that does it and that's it. Like most cuisines, Mexican is about the ingredients and the foundation is corn, chiles and beans. From what I experienced and read, this hasn't changed much. Cocktails and innovation are prized over traditions and quality. (Notice I didn't say "authentic". That's a horrible word.) But I'd ask you to constantly ask, are the tortillas made from nixtamal? Shame them into doing a better job.

I've used the book twice, and with excellent results. Mexican food is so different that I might have left it out. You can't have anything but a superficial look at it but she's done a great job with everything.