russ parsons

in the interest of good citizenship ... i looked at lots of produce books while working on mine. here are some of my favorites: all of deb madison's books; jane grigson's fruit book; faith willinger's "red white and greens"; the chez panisse books; elizabeth schneider; and cliff wright's mediterranean vegetables.

i am shameless. you all should know that by now. but i did refrain from mentioning the starred review in publisher's weekly ... whoops!

can you wait 3 weeks? I've heard very good things about "How to Pick a Peach." Oh, OK, so it was me who said them.

But not under Thos Keller, was it? ← the laundry started way back under Don and Sally Schmitt. TK took it over in 1994, as DVS points out. I don't think Jeanty started until 1998 or 99. It's kind of amazing how recent the napa dining scene is. i remember when it was mustards and taylors.

though there once was the beginnings of the wine scene in temecula, it really never produced anything of great distinction and from what i've seen, it's mostly died out because of pierce's disease, which is rampant in the area. from what i hear (and i haven't reported on this so i may be wrong) the few remaining wineries in teh area are mostly using grapes grown elsewhere.

i love zuni and have to have at least one meal there every time i'm in san francisco. i've learned over the years, though, that it's not everybody's cup of tea. it's a certain kind of restaurant that doesn't seem to be as much appreciated in this country as it is other places--a restaurant that is not based on surprise and novelty, where the menu stays fairly stable but where the individual dishes are so special that you find yourself hankering for them. is there a more perfect dish than the house-cured anchovies with celery and parmesan? and of course the roast chicken? i've been going for 20 years. it's like old love versus new romance.

i'm a big fan of quince and delfina. if you're in yountville and not going to tfl, i'd really recommend bouchon. i'm always very happy when i'm there. great food, really reasonably priced (very little over $25).

thanks suzy, i would love to read your paper. and while i would never argue that farmers don't need to have a profit motive, i would do the same for retailers as well. it's easy to see things as "marketing angles," but if i take a hard look at most of the organic farmers i know, that's exactly what they're doing--they think a) their customers demand it; or b) they can get some extra money for it. retail has a long and sorry history in food for most of the 20th century, but i do believe that that is what will finally pull us out, and we've got to allow them as well the opportunity to make some money by doing good work (most groceries operate on 1 to 2% profit margins).

i'm a big fan of mid-century food writing. I'd include the works of Idwal Jones, the Browns, marcel rouff, and of course the immortal wechsberg. i have to confess that though i like parts of Physiology, on the whole i find it tough slogging--to much erudition on fanciful science. I like Max' list, particularly the Belle Lowe. She is way under-appreciated. this was when food science was really about understanding cooking (as opposed to formulating isolated elements). the hess book is one that everyone ought to read, too, and then put away. they have some good points, but on the whole they are so hysterical that they wind up sounding like cranks. it is good, though, to be reminded that no one is above criticism (as if that was a problem today with the internet!).

ahem, another list i'm on allows for something called BSP (blatant self-promotion). file this under that heading (or however you choose to file it): (starred review in PW): "How to Pick a Peach", Russ Parsons: "Equal parts cookbook, agricultural history, chemistry lesson and produce buying guide, this densely packed book is a food lover's delight...For readers who have always wondered where their food comes from, why it tastes the way it does and how to pick a peach, a melon or a green bean, this book will be an invaluable resource."

this is certainly a fascinating time to be talking about agriculture. i think a lot of the things you're talking about Judith are already happening. the most important is that an avenue has been opened up by farmers markets that lets farmers earn more money for growing better products. this was something that was not available in the recent past. I think we'll see some farmers begin to brand their produce at retail--so you'll know that when you're buying Zuckerman's jumbo asparagus (to use a seasonally appropriate example), that it means something different than just the regular asparagus that will probably also be offered at a lower price. i also think that high-end groceries like whole foods and (in my neck of the woods) bristol farms and gelson's also hold a lot of promise because they are in ideal positions to grow into the middleman role as produce selector--they already have wine buyers, cheese buyers, meat buyers ... why not someone who specializes in sourcing outstanding produce? the question inevitably arises that this will be introducing a two-tier market for produce--great stuff at a higher price and not-so-great stuff at a lesser price. i'm afraid there's no way around that. it costs money and it takes talent to grow great produce and the people who are willing to invest both deserve an appropriate return. besides, great produce--even at twice the price of regular--is still pretty affordable as luxuries go.

it's obviously not news that the farmers market movement is facing growing pains. here's my analysis from this morning: growing pains

pork belly wrapped around shiso leaf.

i do wish that all writers--bloggers or not--would get the opportunity to work with a talented editor at least once in their careers (do bloggers have careers?, interesting question). in 30 years of journalism (jeez, now almost 35), i've worked with some really bad ones and some terrific ones. unfortunately--but not totally--you generally get better editing as you move further up the food chain, when you tend to need it least.

including the hank williams reference?

not wishing to speak for fg, but i've had the opportunity several times to taste those side-by-side. i do like the columbus products, at least the artisanal line. and they are quite affordable for their quality level. but the fra'mani is on another level. it's like hearing the same song sung by a really good bar band and, say, hank williams. there is something outside the normal parameters of analysis that makes it truly compelling.

i think it's great that you're trying these different techniques. too often, we get locked into rote: braise by searing then cooking at 350. there are lots of different effects you can get with different techniques--not necessarily better or worse, but different. one of my favorite braises--i've talked about it here before--is high-heat, braising a big cut at like 400 degrees until it falls apart. amazing flavor and texture, but most people would swear it could never work. Then the other day, on a whim, I partially braised a leg of lamb before finishing it as a roast. Just 20 minutes in a sealed casserole, the herbs and vegetables really penetrated the meat. Served it medium rare. i think it's really important to throw off the blinders.

i think to a certain extent asparagus' reputation is overblown. it's true i've never hit a home-run with asparagus, but it's not as tough as artichokes. the trick is getting a wine with good acidity, which seem to be in short supply today. last weekend i served a big platter of jumbo asparagus by itself as an appetizer, steamed just until tender and then marinated in a vinaigrette. I served it with a good high-acid Riesling (German--dr loosen), and a good high-acid Gewurtz (Mendocino--Navarro). i thought both worked well.

that is a GREAT video.

it's really important with flank steak that it be sliced very thin--hold your knife at an angle so you're almost cutting a wide scallop. it is a very tough piece of meat that is tenderized by being sliced this way. also, it may not go without saying that you should slice it across the grain, rather than with it.

i've done a bit, and will probably be doing a bit more in the next couple of months with the new book. 1) over-prepare: have everything ready and at different stages; run through the recipes several times the day before; if they give you a minute, try to do a dry run on set to make sure where your marks are. 2) forget about teaching. you've got 3 1/2 minutes (give or take) to sell your personality and that's what folks are watching tv for. remember that you already know so much that you will end up being instructive without being conscious of it. 3) that said, try to come up with 2 or 3 great tips, the kinds of things that will make a more experienced cook nod their heads. keep these simple: one sentence each. 4) stay in the moment: it's really tempting to set a script and try to follow it. that's really boring. know what the main points you want to get across are and then wing it; pretend the hosts are your best friends and just talk to them. don't be afraid to be spontaneous, but do keep your outbursts short and to the point. 5) have fun with it. doing GMA is the kind of thing you'll be bringing up at cocktail parties for years.

i was with a winemaking family for dinner one night and they opened three bottles in a row of their pinot noir--all corked. made for some uncomfortable conversation.

especially since so many of them are so ordinary.

not wishing to re-invigorate the whole foie gras debate, but in the interest of fairness it should be pointed out that these are animals that routinely swallow whole fish that are bigger than the feeding tubes.

Ha! Nice to see that there's somebody else that serves lovely bottles of "Fiji" water at every meal but nobody ever realizes it's Brita. I want to get some of those cool sterling silver Fiji-shaped water bottle holders. ← our local fancy grocery sells these european fruit drinks that come in wine-shaped bottles with rat-trap enclosures. teh drink is crap, but the bottle is very nice. i've got 4 of them, fill them with water and chill them good for dinner parties.