johnnyd

Dim Sum Number One and a half Bakuteh Chicken, Duck and Pork broth Very restorative, and delicious The Hosts had also come up with a killer collection of teas that were imbibed throughout the day, including this curious blossom... After a little while it looked like this,

Hosts Joe and Jon were able to find an iPhone app that programs Chinese Pop Music of questionable merit, but it set the mood perfectly. Things got underway at the crack of Noon when Courtney arrived and started making dumplings... Dim Sum Number One: Dumplings Duck, Shitake, Cabbage, Soy Sauce, Mirin, Garlic, Ginger, Coriander, Chili Flakes Seared, then steamed, which is really Japanese, so we are cheating right out of the gate here, but Deathmatch never follows the rules as regular readers already know. Suffice to say they were pretty damned good.

It had been over a year since The Deathmatch Crew - a group of talented Portland chefs got together for one of their legendary cook-offs, so on June 13th, 2010, after weeks of preparation, the Iron Curtain of Secrecy was at lasted lifted for... Deathmatch - The Reunion Word had quietly circulated that Dim Sum was to be the theme, as directed by... The Chairman... ...and The Panda As usual, top-notch decorations were mandatory (Thank-You, Lauren!), befitting so highly esteemed a collection of cuisine creativity, ...but actually, most of us were attempting things for the first time, and although a couple things didn't work out as, um... planned, everything was delicious and a fabulous time was had by all. There were twelve dishes...

Oil Spill Seafood Stew I was making one of my Iberian-style squid, cod and shrimp stews this week and decided to trap the ink and add it to the pot, inadvertently creating a homage to our brethren along the Gulf of Mexico. While simmering, pools of the stuff on the surface reminded me of an oil slick. As usual, the addition of squid ink made this batch particularly delicious.

I commuted eight hours from Vermont to Maine once a week to dive for sea urchins. I ended up moving here for the seafood.

There is no shortage of local opinion about this episode here in Portland. Most view the city's restaurant choices as half-baked, but I see Street & Co and J's Oyster as a nod to Portland's established Old Port restaurant scene rather than choosing among the flurry of newer, and arguably better, places that command most of the attention these days. The sailing crew was awkward - I know characters like these - but I felt the segment was edited in because it demonstrated a rugged determination that people up here have to do shit like go sailing in January, or trek up to their camp to chill out in the snow, and basically enjoy their vast backyard in a way people to the South and West can't come close to doing, or even imagining. Conte's Restaurant is a known love-it-or-hate-it dump, but the man himself is hard-core. Personally, I would treat those scallops differently. The episode spoke to me about the people in Maine, not the food. In that sense, I'm happy about it - especially the folks in pairs that bookend the segments. Sure, lots of worthy coverage was missed - stuff way beyond blueberries and lobster like hard-working organic farmers and innovative Portland cuisine, but I sense Tony was trying to get to what Maine was about, and for that I applaud him, and his team.

Next week's episode is set in Maine. Portland is bloated with average-quality food blogs. When Tony hit town in January, he was mobbed. I asked a fishmonger friend who had dinner with him how it went and he said there was a line of food-geeks at his table that went out the door. Apparently he had a much better time up in Milo (where a producer hails from) at a communal bean supper, and on the coast where he went for a little sail and met some more indigenous folks. Watch for a meal with Melissa Kelly, chef/owner of Rockland area Primo Restaurant.

Trader Joe's Moving Into Old Wild Oats Space - The Forecaster 3-10-10 Two Buck Chuck! Just what we need around here.

Happiness is shrimp so fresh they still snap after you tear their heads off. Fresh Maine Shrimp Ceviche Lime and orange juice, garlic, red onion and cilantro Fresh Maine Shrimp steamed over rice, chicken, bokchoy, carrot, celery, garlic and ginger, seasoned with mushroom soy, black vinegar and mirin, garnished with cilantro and scallion Local Shrimp Fishermen say it's been the best season in years - great demand and good prices. My job is done.

You probably need it today but if you don't, Mustapha's Moroccan Gourmet in Seattle are the tops. I found jars of his products in a Crate n' Barrel in Eastern Massachusetts.

Most inspiring, Baron, and this... ...couldn't be more true. I have to get back at it and conquer the terrine. My version 2 is on the menu for this weekend.

Tony Eats Portland Maine episode slated for April '10

Newly posted multi media version of this visit at Portland Cooks

Harbor Fish in the Old Port is open Xmas eve until 3:30p. They had this morning: Eels - from Canada, previously frozen @ $9.99 Fresh Maine Shrimp - whole/$1.39/lb - headless/$3.99/lb - peeled/$5.99/lb Whole RI Squid - $3.99/lb Fresh Ocean Perch - $2.49/lb Imported Branzini - $7.99/lb Whole Flounder - $5.99/lb Damiriscotta Oysters - $1.40/each Winterpoint Oysters - $1.30/each ...and the usual Cod cuts, Salmon, Sword, Tuna, Haddock, Hake, Pollack, Monkfish, Halibut, Clams, Mussels, Lobster, Shrimp from away, and Crab. I'm sure I missed something. If you are a wuss, the capable staff will clean your whole-fish selection for a couple extra bucks. The eel, however, will cost you $15.99/lb Merry Christmas!

A small band of Maine fishermen called Port Clyde Fresh Catch will start closing the gulf-to-table gap next month when they begin deliveries of seasonal shrimp to Brooklyn's Marlow & Sons Daughters. The fishermen, who will also operate a stall at this weekend's New Amsterdam Market, own all aspects of the supply chain, a clutch move that provides traceability and keeps the retail cost down and all preservatives out. The shrimp are harvested, hand-sorted, and frozen with a small amount of ocean water in one-pound vacuum packs. After that, they board the truck bound for the BQE. Read more: Community-Supported Fishery Comes to Marlow & Sons Daughters -- Grub Street New York http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2009/12/community-supported_fishery_co.html#ixzz0ZmYl5oPR

It came in the weekly delivery from Europe - baby polpo and sardines from portugal - so I thought it came from there. I will ask when I'm there next. Sardines were priced at $8.99/lb (which kills me - they were so cheap over there), polpo too. They all get snatched by local restaurants but I was there at the opening bell. Never saw Spanish Mackerel there before so I went for it. Freaking crazy-delicious, it was.

Spanish Mackerel was $4.99/lb in Portland Maine, so I bought one and roasted it Drizzled EVOO in and around, S&P, stuffed with lemon, red onion and parsley, splash of white wine hither and yon - 15 minutes covered at 400F and 15 minutes uncovered. Add heirloom potatoes and a glass of pinot grigio.

My wife has a million of 'em. Boston Irish Catholic raised on boiled everything. Me? lived on 3 continents by age 18 and forced to eat whatever or starve. Most recent vein-buster: I made a killer stuffing with local rye bread cubes, local celery, local onions, local garlic, local fennel, local fresh chorizo, our own fresh oregano and thyme... moistened just so with my homemade chicken/hamhock stock and baked for half hour... ...she says the rye bread smelled "funny" and didn't eat any. Another one is whole fish. Guess how long it's been since I've baked a whole fish? Not to worry: it's a challenge to create things she'll eat and we've made much progress. Sushi? check. Pate? OK w/that. Finally conquered mushrooms last Autumn. Slow is the march of love in the kitchen but worthy is the journey.

That's fascinating stuff Adam. Welcome to eGullet!

Laughing Bird shrimp, mentioned in this week's New York Times, has been available at Harbor Fish Market on Custom House Wharf since the Spring. Today's price: $9.99/lb

My vote is for Salsify. Grown in Thomas Jefferson's garden, it disappeared mid century but is making a comeback. I found a catalan recipe with salsify and chicken but they're great fried. More complex than parsnips.

"You were awesome on that Zimmern show!" good enough for me

Inspired by the article, 100 things a customer should never do

"Diver Scallops" are collected by scuba divers licensed in their state to "hand harvest". They are considered preferable on menus because the product is regarded to have been treated gentler than the normal drag-harvest method. In this video, the diver has retrieved 5 or 6 scallops so he'll end up with 5lbs of scallop meat per scuba tank. At a rate of $7/lb, he's made $35, and probably unable to supply even one lunch rush in a busy restaurant. A much more practical way - and the normal harvesting method - is dredging or dragging a chain-metal "bag" behind a sturdy vessel on flat ocean bottom, which scrapes everything up in it's path, hoisted on-deck and picked through for scallops. Not the prettiest way to treat the ocean, or scallops, but you get 100 pounds a whack - a decent days pay. So I know a couple guys here in Portland who sell their scallops to places in Boston, but they don't go out everyday - the point being that there isn't enough genuine diver product generated to legitimize menus claiming to serve "diver scallops". Not really caveat emptor here because all (dry) scallops are pretty damn good to begin with, but "deadliest catch" crab could be another similar stretch of marketing imagination.

It's like "diver scallops". If people only knew how few scallops were actually harvested by divers - but it sure sounds cool