NulloModo

Hehe, I really don't get the okra hate. After all, there are lots of things which have a much more disgusting texture, like oysters, but are still regarded as tasty (I do enjoy oysters as well). And really, even if Okra can be a bit slimy when stewed, I don't notice it being any more gluey than any other stewed veggie. There should be a national okra commission to counter the smear campaign ;). Hey, I wonder if Okra is nutritious at all...

I think the loyalty comment about mayo is spot on. I bought a big jar of Acme brand mayo a bit ago because it was cheap, and wow, the stuff just seemed vile. I am also not a huge fan of miracle whip, it just tastes disgustingly sweet to me. Oh, how could I have forgotten about club sandwhiches, truly, they must be thickly slathered. BMLTs as well, Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, and enough mayo to make it a named ingredient. I am curious what else everyone uses mayo on, the texture, the taste, the richness, just seems such a perfect addition to so many things. I saw a recipe for a 'mayo cake' a bit ago, and honestly, I have to say that I never thought about using mayo in sweet baked goods before, but people seem to be raving over it. Then again, eggs, oil, and salt usually go into baked goods so it isn't that much of a stretch...

Hey, A recent comment in the hot-dog thread combined with some other posts I have read around make me wonder if I don't have some odd views on the use of mayo. I will come out and admit it, I find mayonaisse to be a wonderful comment suited for just about any and all situations. Hot dog? gotta have some mayo, same with a cheeseburger (or a cheesteak for that matter), or pastrami on rye, or a rueben, peanut butter on toast, or liverwurst and onion. Really, as far I'm concerned there is nothing that mayo doesn't go with. Heck, it is even the perfect topping (along with tons of vinegar) for french fries. What possibly bizarre and strange uses for mayo do you have? How do you enjoy it most? Do you make it yourself, or are you just as happy with storebrought? Let the emulsified love-fest flow.

For me the toppings have a lot to do with the dog and how it is prepared. If it is a good dog, grilled or griddled so it has a crispy skin and is still juicy on the inside, and especially if it has picked up some smokey flavor from being grilled over charchoal, then I am all about the basics: mayo, mustard, sauerkraut, onion. Now, if it is a a lesser specimen, or was cooked on one of those rotary rotor things, or even worse, god forbid, boiled (blech, if I can even bring myself to get near it) then the toppings must be loaded up with great abandon: mustard, mayo, sauerkraut, cheese, onions, relish, salsa, jalenenos, chili, whatever I can find. Chili-dogs are sort of a sub-set of hot-dogs though, while they are certainly wonderful, not every dog has to be a chili dog. With regards to the actual dog, Hebrew National are definately pretty good. I am also quite partial to the Usinger's Knockwurst, which is such a mild sausage it might as well be a hot dog. My overall favorite hot-dog like item though is the Bahama Mamma from 7-11. i have no idea what they put into it to make it look and taste so red, but it keeps me coming back.

Well, my season 2 downloaded so I burned a couple onto VCD and watched them tonight. I saw the bars episode, which was fairly underwhelming, I was hoping for more in depth food content, but at least it wasn't hokey. I also saw the Rio episode, which totally rocked. This was hands down one of the best food related shows I have ever seen, so, as long as Bourdain's travels are more along this level when he is outside of the country I think I will really enjoy the rest of the show.

My fridge freezes sour cream a lot. It can get sorta bizarre texturally if you use some of the bits while seperated, but I bet if you let it thaw then mix it back well it will be fine, and Sour Cream is cheap anyway. As for the test, you should definately be fine.

Salad or raw veggies with dressing is always a good choice. I always keep a couple bags of prepared salad greens around, and most bottled dressings are decent enough, so toss some greens in bowl, drizzle something over it, and the hunger is satiated by something pretty healthy.

Hopefully by the time I get home from work today I will have the first two seasons ready to go. My Tivo managed to snag one off of of FoodTV at like 3:30 am or something ridiculous the other day, it was the one were Tony goes to New Orleans. I thought parts of the production were incredibly hokey and sometimes the humor felt really forced, but parts were genuininely entertaining and the food of course all looked incredible. I am 75% of the way through Kitchen Confidential, and his TV persona just seems radically different from what I was getting from the book. I think I will hold off final judgement until I see some more episodes, perhaps N.O. is too tame a town for Bourdain to really go nuts.

My vote goes for Cayenne and Cocoa in hot chocolate. I am not sure where I read it, but the last couple mugs I have made I have added a couple hearty shakes of cayenne powder, and wow, it really wakes the cup up, who'da thought? (besides those ancient Aztecs or Mayans or whoever)

That has my parents house as I was growing up written all over it, except for our random leftover dishes were mostly Country Crock, the Coop Whip containers were only brought out for the really special stuff ;).

They don't have mall locations that I know of, though they are a (local) chain. They are all over northern DE too, with at least three or four around the UD campus. I personally haven't ever eaten at any of the beach locations, but there can be a pretty big swing in quality from location to location at the ones I have been to. it is just a different style of pizza, the crust is very crispy, the cheese is sort of swirled on, and there isn't tons of it, but the sauce is flavorful and it has a really interesting bright orange grease that just permeates everything... It sounds bad from the way I describe it, and in many ways, it is, but at the same time, it is also very very good, and I find myself getting odd cravings for it every so often. Sort of bizarre stuff, you know it isn't the best, and you know that after you eat it you will feel a bit dissapointed, but hidden in that dissapointment is the reward, it always manages to surprise you in some way and remind you of why it is so good... but that feeling tends to fade faster than the lingering sense of it being regrettable pizza. Maybe they put crack in it.

I have to ask: Are there Grotto Pizzaerias in Philly? Grotto's is a bit of a DE institution, and there pizza is well... different than normal. It looks sort of like a regular pizza, but something they do with the basic ingredients gives it a very different taste. It is odd in that the first bite tastes somewhat bad, but after that you just want more and more, and it keeps getting exponentially better, so much so that you can ignore the inevitible GI side-effects that follow the next day, or that night.

Should you find yourself in the hinterlands of Newark, DE, check out the Cuban Sandwhich at Picnic Mexitacos on Main St. Now, granted, it is the only cuban sandwhich I have ever had, so I can't compare it to any others, but it is super tasty, especially with their home made green salsa.

So.... I have to say, that as good as my gumbo was the first day, it has been even better after sitting in the fridge a bit. Gumbo is truly a wonderful foodstuff. Anything that keeps getting better the longer you let it sit, and is so adaptable that you can use almost anything you have in the fridge to make it, gets my vote as a great thing to have under your culinary belt.

Well of course there is, there is the beer, and the pot, and, umm, the beer and the pot ;). Still, awesome blog, even if it was lacking in debauchery ;).

I flirted with vegetarianism briefly. There was a topic on an Atkins board about whether it was possible to combine the two lifestyles (it is) and I had read so much on eG about vegetable recipes that I figured I could do it. Anyway, I lasted about two days before I bought some liverwurst and dug in. I rarely go a day without meat, it is just a perfect foodstuff, but hey, I have lots of respect for those who can...

That is what I have been saying all along. It only costs more if you actually care about the codes and bother to follow through with them. If you just use some common sense, get decent ventilation, and are careful with your new toy, you can save a bundle. I understand the insurance can be tricky, but hey, saving the money for me would be worth the gamble. Then again, I don't have homeowners or renters insurance of any kind, so, I guess if it all goes up in smoke I am really fucked. Oh well, I can live with that risk, if you are willing to or not is a matter of personal preference.

I don't ever throw formal 'dinner parties' but when cooking for others four is the perfect number for me. It means I don't have to make multiple batches of whatever I am making, there is usually good conversation, without it seeming like a crowd, and I don't have to take too many dietary constraints into account.

I didn't mean the inspectors, I meant the actual codes and safety. I agree, dealing with inspectors, or, for that matter, govt. officials of any kind, can be an exercise in futility if you expect to be able to actually get anywhere other than where they want to go. I just meant that a lot of the required safety bits in building codes are a bit overkill in what they call for and what requires that they be added. A little common sense and caution and you should never run into a situation where you would need a professional halon fire extiguishing system, so having one installed in your home seems a bit beyond wacky just to meet a code, that's all I meant. Sure, you are increasing yourself to more risk, but you are also saving lots of money, and as long as you can live with your risk, I don't see where building inspectors should get to come into it, especially not for a freestanding house where if it burns down it is only your ass in the fire.

The AGA seems like a really bizarre concept for a stove, but I can see how it could be somewhat appealing. The one thing I really don't get though, and the same is true for induction cooktops, is why you want that huge flat cooking surface with no real burners? It seems like that huge flat top would take a while to heat up a pan, and if your pans are at all warped on the bottom (as most of mine are) they aren't going to heat up evenly, where with gas the flames will get everything going even if it isn't really touching the grate. Induction just seems sorta gimmicky, I wouldn't buy any stove that limited that materials my pans could be made of. With regards to the codes arguments above: I realize the codes are there for a reason, but you know as well as I do that there is plenty of 'wiggle room' built into them.

Insulting names for sandwhiches? Like what?

Gin is great stuff. I too am a huge fan of Sapphire, I find it has much more flavor than the regular Bombay or Tanqueray. A Martini made without Gin just isn't a Martini in my mind, it is just as bad as those candy-appletinis you see everywhere now. Actually, I was planning on picking up a bottle of bourbon for the weekend tonight, but I might decide to go gin instead...

Well, I only really started cooking for real a little over a year ago. So, my biggest change was moving from just baking or frying up frozen dinners to actually creating real food from whole ingredients. I have learned a ton in just one year, so, I have to imagine that anyone who has been a cooking enthusiast for 15 years would easily have skills that rival many professionals, no need to call yourselves amateur ;).

man-CHAY-go

I have a couple: Gnocchi for one. I've always pronounced it 'no-key' with a slght soft g sound before the n, sorta like in gnome. My roomate insists on saying 'yonkee'. Please tell me I have the correct version of this one. Also... Gyro. Is it like 'Jai-Roh' or 'Eeh-Roh', I have heard both are supposedly authentic...