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demiglace

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    Weekend Down South

    in Southeast: Dining

    Posted

    Any and everything I could clear up for you, I'll be glad to translate. Southern Barbecue is a thing unto itself, a long-cooked, Heaven-scented, fall-apart bit of Glory here on Earth. Any shape or size or amount of pork, parked on the rungs of a long-used pit, and given the time and attention of a master pit-man---that's entirely a food group on its own.

    From the first rub, be it dry with salt and ground pepper and whatever other spices and dried herbs please the cook (and whose esoteric, exacting combination of special flavors have probably been in the family for a LONG time) or wet, with a rag-on-a-stick mop dipped into vinegar-oil-lemon-juice-garlic and any of myriad combinations (but never sauce---not 'til the end; tomato and/or sugar, the basic components of any Deep South sauce will burn black from the get-go, giving even the smoke a tang of bitter regret at the travesty). It makes me shudder to see even Miss Ina, champion cook that she is, douse raw chicken parts entirely in a whole bowl of red stuff, then slap it on the grill. It just 'taint fittin.'

    And the wood---that's a debate amongst barbecue lovers all over the world. Most swear by a bit of hickory, some by apple or mesquite---but always wood, for the best. We drove up to a much-touted barbecue place in Kentucky a couple of years ago, and got into a quite-considerable line a-waiting. I stepped around the corner toward the scent, and walked between four-foot walls made entirely of bags of Kingsford. Then I knew. It was OK---but it wasn't Barbecue.

    The meat goes onto those pit-rungs with the care and placement of a ritual sacrifice, and I suppose it's as close as it comes in the modern scheme of things---meat sizzle and the anthem of good smoke rising to Heaven. The time, the covering and uncovering, the shovel-shuffling of the coals and the wood and the blaze into the proper proportions and temperature---all these go into making up a good batch of barbecue.

    You can be invited over to a neighbor's house for "a barbecue" and be served burgers straight off the charcoal, the unholy aura of starter-fluid tainting each mouthful---THAT'S not a Barbecue---that's a cookout.

    The only barbecue comes from a real pit; night-long tending for a whole pig that will be served WAY up in the day to follow; conversation and sandwiches and beer and hoopcheese and crackers, beer and more beer, maybe some cans of Viennies or sardines---those are proper sustenance for the pit-folk, age-old tastes for the REAL taste of home.

    The meat is turned, turned again, with a sissssss of water to the coals now and then when they rage too hot; a sussssshhh of the bellows to re-kindle the red when need be.

    Ribs are either dry-rubbed to start, then sometimes rubbed again, the seasonings gilding onto the surfaces like brazen armor, or they are swabbed at the last, with the red sauce of choice, then left just long enough for the deep burgundy glaze to meld to the meat in a shiny shellac like the paint-job on a well-loved Camaro.

    The butt-or-shoulder-meat comes from the pit naked as it went on, the only change the night-long tenderness and the perfection of smoke all through. It can be shaken from the bone, which slips out like fingers from a glove. The great chunks of steaming fragrance are then pulled (my favorite---the long, tender strands separating with the grain, one of the few times true tenderness is achieved that way) or chopped, which means just what it says---sometimes two-handed cleaver-chopping worthy of an Asian kitchen.

    Meat is piled onto grilled or toasted buns, anointed with sauce, with a little haystack of good crisp, vinegary coleslaw shreds atop. Top on, little salute from greasy grill spatula, and a miracle is born.

    Brunswick is Brunswick Stew---a conglomeration of lots of kinds of meat (originally mostly game, but could include terrapin, shrimp, beef, pork, or chicken), with too many finely-chopped vegetables to name. It's a hunting-camp dish, sometimes made over an open fire, the boiling mass in the big black pot stirred with a boat paddle. It was usually done well before the meat came off the grill, and bowls were passed around to the hungry bystanders to quell the uprising until the pork was done.

    Slaw is just the Southern word for coleslaw, of which there are several camps, the main two being mayonnase or vinegar. It's a shredded or chopped head of cabbage, with any additions customary to the locale---green onions or peppers or grated carrot; fancy-dancy folks have been known to add chopped apple or a little can of crushed pineapple or even sunflower seeds. I like both kinds of dressing, and I like it "ON" which means a spoonful actually ON the sandwich, as well as some to eat with a fork alongside.

    Baked beans are most usually started with a sizzle of onion and chopped bell pepper, then any amount of barbecue sauce and brown sugar that pleases the cook. Beans of choice where I'm from are cans of Showboat Pork 'n' Beans, drained of their extra liquid, and divested of that clammy little white waxy bit of "pork" which they sport in deference to their name.

    All this is stirred together in the skillet, then poured into a baking dish; top that with a nice lattice of bacon strips, stick it in a 350 oven for about 45 minutes, and you've got the perfect Southern Side for anything from burgers to barbecue to fried catfish. Nirvana is reached when some of the crispins and messy meat from the pulled or chopped pork are stirred in before baking.

    Potato salad---that's a hard subject to discuss, especially if there's more than one Southern cook in the conversation. Talk gets hot and heavy, always including, "Well, the way I make MYE Potato Salad. . ." and ranging on to pickles, dill or sweet; onion, yea or nay, and if Miracle Whip ever rears its ugly head, the WAR is on.

    It's usually just nicely boiled small potatoes, skins on or off, cut up warm into a bowl, salted, and left to sit a few minutes while you chop a bit of sweet onion, some sweet pickles, a hard-boiled egg or two, and a bit of cold crisp bell pepper. A big clop of Duke's mayo, a squirt of French's mustard, a little handful of celery seeds, and serve when you want---right now, warm, or cover and chill.

    And sauce---I won't get into the sauce debate. Every section of the country has their own tradition, and I'm from the darrrrrrk-red, brown sugar section, though I DID have some beef ribs in a place on the Riverwalk in San Antonio that still haunt, dry ribs though they were. And I just now saw Bourdain watching a South Carolina pit-man take off the pork, break it apart with his hands, and pour on what looked like a pint of yellow mustard. My tongue is curling just thinking about it.

    And I have NO idea what "Lion Ribs" are---that was in Atlanta, two states removed from my raising, so I don't know what-all they do over there.

    But I'd be honored and delighted to have you sit at our table for barbecue or anything else, anytime.

    I think that's the best thing I've read all year! I might have drooled on myself..I'm too embarassed to look. Thank you Miss Rachel. I do know now, without a doubt, that I have not eaten barbeque yet.

    Strawberry picking around Vancouver

    in Western Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    large, juicy and sweet.

    I have to say, I was very disappointed with the berries that my wife and kids picked on Canada Day (I was working). However, the ones we picked last Saturday were much better, although the sweetness seems quite uneven.

    One batch of regular strawberry-vanilla jam and freezer strawberry jam are already tucked away.

    July 5 was the first day of raspberry picking at Krause Bros. We bought a tray from Driediger Farms and thought they were a bit early, but that's what you get when you don't pick the berries yourself.

    I must agree that the local strawberries are not as good as I remember. They are not as sweet and I find the USA strawberries better in taste. Instead of eating them straight I froze them for future smoothies.

    Wow sorry to hear this..that first box we bought was great.

    Hell's Kitchen U.S. (2008)

    in Food Media & Arts

    Posted

    None of the current crop are real contenders for anything beyond the local McDonalds. That being said, didn't the show end with a shadowy figure seen entering the dining room causing everyone to gasp?

    So who is it? Jen?

    If so, my money's on her.

    maybe it's that contestant that he was going to send to culinary school and then have back on the show..forget her name.

    Great concept! I never thought of that. I figured it would be the girl who quit two weeks ago after the burn. I hope it turns out that way.

    I thought it would be interesting..oh well...I think her name is Julia.

    Hell's Kitchen U.S. (2008)

    in Food Media & Arts

    Posted

    None of the current crop are real contenders for anything beyond the local McDonalds. That being said, didn't the show end with a shadowy figure seen entering the dining room causing everyone to gasp?

    So who is it? Jen?

    If so, my money's on her.

    maybe it's that contestant that he was going to send to culinary school and then have back on the show..forget her name.

    Dinner! 2008

    in Cooking

    Posted

    I've never seen a plaited loin..very nice looking! Was it difficult to do? Your meal is wonderful..I'd like a taste :biggrin:

    I saw some pickled Peppadew peppers in a grocery store yesterday, so I immediately had to buy some (last time I saw these on sale was 2 years ago in Scotland!). These became our starter:

    gallery_43137_2974_3203.jpg

    For dinner, we seasoned a pork loin with Nomu African Rub mix, then plaited it, seared quickly on a frying pan and roasted in the oven. With some salad leaves from the patio, it made a very decent main course:

    gallery_43137_2974_22095.jpg

    gallery_43137_2974_19661.jpg

    And some panna cotta for dessert  :raz:

    Patrons with Tea bags

    in Restaurant Life

    Posted

    So you work out then go for a burger?   :wub:  I knew I liked you!

    :blush:

    It's one of my trade-offs. I can only have a burger if I've gone to the gym first (plus it's a 40-ish minute bike ride--return trip)--I hate exercising, but I love my burger! Plus eating after exercising helps burn calories more efficiently, or so I like to tell myself as I rationalize all my bad eating habits! :biggrin:

    Back to the original topic--years ago, I recall going to McD's (in Japan) for breakfast with some friends. One of them brought some bread with her, and although we had all agreed to go to McD's, she didn't order anything (except for asking someone to order some tap-water for her) and instead openly ate whatever bread she had brought with her.

    I remember being shocked that she would do such a thing, and I told her that I thought it was rude. She replied that it was OK (in a tone of entitlement), since McD's didn't sell what she wanted to eat (remember, though, we all agreed to go there).

    I also remember one of the staff walking by and doing a double-take at my friend eating her non-McD's meal. I think had my friend not been caucasian, the staff would probably have said something, but back then, Japanese people were a wee bit more apprehensive when approaching foreigners.

    Back then I thought she was rude, but at this moment, I'd really like to bring my own root beer to my burger place. But I guess that would make me rude, too. Is it still rude if I ask? I would be more than happy if they would buy a few cans just for me and then charge me a premium for them, but failing that, I want my own root beer!

    I'd ask...they might be quite happy to carry your root beer.

    Patrons with Tea bags

    in Restaurant Life

    Posted

    What about water? Would it be bad to bring your own water? Or a beverage the restaurant doesn't carry?

    My favourite burger place is a teeny tiny little shack that only has four beverages on the menu--coke (in a bottle), mineral water, ramune, and cold oolong tea. The mineral water is Y150/bottle, but I always have a refillable water bottle with me (I usually go to the burger place from the gym), so I usually just drink what's in my bottle.

    Is that rude, too? I'm guessing yes, but I just can't bring myself to spend Y150 on bottled water, not to mention the guilt over wasting a plastic bottle...

    And since they only have four beverages, none of which is root beer, could I bring my own root beer?

    I've been thinking of asking if I could do that. I really like root beer, and there's no way a restaurant in Japan (other than the Hard Rock Cafe) is going to carry root beer.

    So you work out then go for a burger? :wub: I knew I liked you!

    Vancouver/Western Canada Ingredient Sources Topic

    in Western Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    I'm looking for tomatoes sold in jars instead of cans.  I don't know if there is such a thing but I'm trying to stay away from canned tomatoes with the exception of Eden's products.

    I prefer to buy whole organic tomatoes.  I like to make my soups with this and if I have to, I will compromise with organic diced tomatoes. 

    Thanks.

    Not a jar but if it's the tin that you object to Pomi brand tomatoes come in a tetra box. I don't know if they have organic or not. The lady at Giancarlo Italian Deli

    seems quite happy to special order for people. Maybe give her a call to see if the product you are looking for is available.

    1101 AUSTIN AVE, COQUITLAM, BC V3K 3P4

    in between Gatensbury & Marmont

    (Cross Street: Austin AVE and Marmont ST)

    Phone: 604-931-0556

    Fried Chicken: Cook-Off 5

    in Cooking

    Posted

    Thanks kbjesq..that means a lot :smile:

    Toliver..it was ok..maybe just a bit too much oil..it was half way up when started and I never left its side. I made sure not to overcrowd the pan..I'll try less next time. The leg wasn't floating..just an illusion :biggrin:

    Thanks for the imput David Ross.

    Fried Chicken: Cook-Off 5

    in Cooking

    Posted

    I tried the buttermilk overnight soak. Dusted with seasoned flour(in a leaky paper bag :blink: ) and used what oil I had...a mix of canola,olive,grapeseed and lard. I really liked the results..I think I will spice up the next batch a little more but all in all it worked well. The chicken isn't greasy and has a lovely crunch to it. Thanks to all for the imput..it really helped.

    gallery_17322_5511_28946.jpg

    Fried Chicken: Cook-Off 5

    in Cooking

    Posted

    demiglace, if I were on death row, that would be my last meal.  Fried chicken (with buttermilk and Crystal!), mac & cheese, and collards!  Especially if you had some salt pork in there when you cooked those collards.

    I hear what you're saying :biggrin: Kbjesq did a great job with that chicken dinner!

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