russ parsons

Very cool. but i would skip the step of squeezing the mushrooms dry. That is good flavor that will be absorbed in the first reduction. try it and see. i think duxelles are one of those things like bechamel that have been wrongly tossed aside in the quest for "modernity". they're wonderful stuffed under the skin of chicken that's going to be roasted (and i second RETRVR's suggestion of using a dry white wine instead of the port ... unless that's the way you like it ... with port, it would be nice to use with beef or pork in some way).

a couple things: 1) i have been involved in repeated taste tests of organic vs. mainstream produce over the last 20 years and while there are some organic farmers who do a very good job, there has never been the slightest evidence that growing organically improves the flavor of the produce. 2) choosing organically grown produce (as witnessed by most of the comments in this thread) is a theological, not culinary choice. if it makes you feel better to do it, then you certainly should. but there is little evidence to support the choice being healthier. 3) people tend to treat this as a black-and-white issue--on the one hand, pious organic farmers, on the other the rapacious chemical spewing "agri-industry". in fact, there are many possible steps in between. very few of the farmers whose produce i like best are certified organic, but almost all of them practice some form of integrated pest management and only use chemicals when they are necessary. i think pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers in agriculture are a lot like antibiotics in humans: way, way over-used, but i certainly wouldn't want to be caught without them should disaster strike.

that's a good suggestion that has the added benefit of removing the possibility of celebration-enhanced judgement that sometimes leads to late-night calls for "what the heck, let's open something really good."

the best advice anyone gave me when i was buying my setup 4 or 5 years ago was to buy twice as much capacity as i thought i would need. of course, i ignored it. and i'm constantly juggling wine between my office and my 40-case vinotemp. i have been happy with the vinotemp.

after years of making do with sub-par roasting pans, i sprang for the miniature all-clad this year ($80 on e-bay, including shipping). i used it for christmas day's standing rib roast and was really pleased. the two areas i noticed the biggest difference (my previous was a heavy aluminum nonstick) was in stovetop browning (i seared the fat side since i was going to roast it at low temp) and in something for want of a better phrase i'll call "juice retention". in my old nonstick, exuded juices during roasting coagulated in a weird way. with this pan, i got really great jus to use as a sauce. since i didn't do the same road side-by-side in my old pan, this is not a scientific comparison. but on a strictly anecdotal basis, i'm really happy with the money i spent.

i've got leftover prime rib, too (4-rib rack from niman ranch, fat-side browned on range, then slow-roasted at temps from 250 to 300 to 130 .... mmmm). the absolute best t hing to do with the ribs is to cut them apart, paint them with good mustard, then roll them in bread crumbs. drizzle with butter and bake until well done, about an hour at 350, if i recall. amazing meat.

i've got an l&l in my neighborhood. stopped in to give it a try a couple of times. huge portions, pretty indigestible for the most part, but i do love their spam musubi!

Russ, Keller would and does eat at Bouchon? (As would I.) ← let me be clear that what i attempted was a "nuanced" reply. it was not a defense of the puck franchises, but a defense of the concept (and, frankly, in defending the concept but not the reality, i thought i had made my point pretty clear--apparently not, all the more reason to thank god i'm normally edited).

as someone who likes to get paid as much as possible for everything that i write(well, most, i'm still waiting on a check from fat guy), i'm not so quick to jump on the crass commercialization bandwagon. i'm happy to be out of my garret (or, rather, toiling in a nicer one than i had when i started), and i don't expect anyone else to feel different. everybody has their own idea of how to succeed (and indeed, what success means), and i think what we're hearing from this thread is that though the puck cafes are not statements of art, they do often offer good food at a good value in places where that might not be the norm. what's wrong with that? how is a wolfgang puck cafe different in theory from a bouchon? the practice is different, though and i think the real lesson to be learned is the importance of keeping everything under your own control. agood reputation is too valuable to be risked by licensing it to entities who might not place the same value on it that you do.

my wife and i saw sideways over the weekend and i've gotta say i really hated it--not for wine reasons, but for the storytelling. i agree with tess: the two male characters were just pathetic, with hardly a single redeeming quality between them. i am so tired of movies (and books) where the author seems to have absolute disdain for his characters. santa barbara county did come out looking nice, though.

that is a gray area, since the meat in the sausage gravy was cooked in the sauce, er, gravy. where's albert when we need him? sugo is literally translated as "juice". But my Italian culinary encyclopedia says (badly translated): in the language of cooking, it means that which is the "foundation" of braised meat, fish or vegetables, which can then be used to dress pasta, rice or polenta. ragu, on the other hand, refers to meat which is cooked in a "sugo" that will be used to dress a pasta. so i guess it comes down to how big the pieces of meat are ... or whether there are pieces of meat or just the juices of the meat. in which case, sausage gravy would be a ragu, rather than a sugo. but definitely not a salsa.

robb, i was talking about your reference to the closing of spago, that's all.

you're probably right sam. i've always understood sugo and ragu to be used interchangeably, depending on the region.

italians differentiate between a salsa (sauce) and ragu (gravy). the first is added to the dish, the second is intrinsic to it. an example would be a tomato salsa that is made by chopping tomatoes and adding it to the pasta at the last minute. a ragu would be made by chopping tomatoes and cooking it with braised meat for a long time (the meat would usually be served separately, the gravy would go on the pasta as a separate course).

let me repeat: puck is not closing down restaurants ... at least not many of them. robb left a wrong impression (how's that for diplomatic?). Spago is up and running and is probably better and busier than it has ever been. for various reasons, i'm probably the last person in the world wolf would expect to come to his defense (well, after ms. lazaroff). but i do think it's important to understand what he is trying to do, because it may well be a model (or at least a lesson) for the star chef industry. The puck empire is a pyramid with Spago at the top, followed by the various Spago-ettes (including Chinois). Below that are the Wolfgang Puck cafes, which are designed to serve puck cuisine on a bistro level. Then come the Expresses, which are designed to serve puck cuisine on a fast food level. Supporting all of this is his commercial ubiquity: the home shopping network, the cooking shows, the cookbooks, the printed underwear of whatever. this is all about the establishment of a brand name, using great cuisine as a driver (well, i don't like spago, but most of my friends do). Each of the parts builds on the other. Without Spago, Puck would (eventually) lose food credibility. Without the merchandising, he would lose much of his national presence. i'm not advocating this as a model for restaurateurs, just pointing out the theory behind it.

oh god no! don't remove the skin. score it. roast it at 325. turn the heat up to 450 to crisp the skin. you don't even need a fancy rub. salt and pepper and maybe a hint of minced rosemary. it is pure porkiness. here's a version i did. paula wolfert, who is much smarter and a much better cook than i am, disagrees on the cooking temperature and there is a lot to recommend about her method. i do find that the crackling doesn't crisp up quite as well, though the meat is somewhat moister (it slices like a wet sponge). mine is more of a compromise between moistness and crackling. Roast pork shoulder master recipe Wolfert's method for incredibly moist pork shoulder, roast the pork at 250 degrees to an internal temperature of 170 degrees, about 6 hours. 1 (8-pound) leg of pork Salt 1. Pat the roast dry with a paper towel and carefully score the skin into diamond shapes. This is most easily done with a small sharp knife. 2. Sprinkle the roast liberally with salt, about 2 1/2 tablespoons. Place the roast upright on a plate, with the shank pointing straight up. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 2 hours to overnight. 3. Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Remove the roast from the refrigerator; pat dry. Arrange on a rack in a roasting pan, skin-side up and place in the oven. Roast to an internal temperature of 150 degrees, about 2 3/4 to 3 hours. 4. When the meat is done, raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees for 15 minutes to crisp the skin. Remove the roast from the oven and let stand at least 20 minutes to 1 hour. 5. To serve, use a carving knife to slice away the cracklings, keeping them in a single sheet as much as possible. Place on a separate plate. Slice away any thick pieces of fat that may remain. Slice the meat from the bone in 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces. This is most easily done by slicing parallel to the main leg bone, working your way around the leg. Arrange the sliced meat on a platter and place the cracklings on top.

my story on japanese knives is up on the website. enjoy and thanks for all the tips www.latimes.com/food

there is a new edition that came out several months ago. i think it's on amazon, but i'm not sure.

but he'd have the good sense not to try!

and the ball either goes in the hole or it doesn't. your point?

let me know how the plan develops and when. i'd love to if i can.

it's a little hard to find, but japanese-knife does honor the 15% discount as well. it's just taken at check-out rather than on the list. i had very good experiences working with korin and recommend them highly. i also liked world of knives (www.worldknives.com) and the blade gallery (www.bladegallery.com).

he doesn't have an online presence, but darrel corti at corti brothers in sacramento has both of those things in his catalog. and you know with darrel you're getting the best product that is available.

i do think it needs to be pointed out that a lot of us home cooks benefit from extremely low expectations on the part of our diners--something that is not shared by someone going to a 3-star restaurant. i do wonder why people seem to be so hesitant to credit the talent aspect of this discussion. it's kind of funny, really. if we were a bunch of playground basketball players, i don't think we'd hesitate to say that kobe bryant can do things that we can't. if we were living room cellists, we wouldn't be afraid to admit that rostropovich was capable of more than we were. good cooks can be made, but i'm afraid truly great chefs--like great writers, great musicians, great athletes--are born. and then to be able to realize their ability, they must work, work, work. combine innate talent, years of practice and an absolutely unshakeable drive and seriousness of purpose--that's what it takes. to think that we should be able to equal that in our spare time is ludicrous.

mexican? or mexican-american? john sedlar, formerly of st. estephe, bikini, etc., now consulting.