Behemoth

Moving away from Philly (and Dmitri's) is exactly what pushed me to try making it myself. I daresay I have been coming pretty close lately! so... you wanna post a recipe for us? i remember reading an article one time, where they were talking to the folks that cook at dmitri's, and the reporter said, what's the trick to making it so tender? he said, what trick? boil it for three hours, it'll get tender. i haven't ever tried it, though. ← Yup, the long boil is pretty much the trick. Seriously. Actually, I defrost, rise well, quickly sautee with some garlic and hot chili until it changes color, and then cover with water, add a bay leaf and simmer for at least an hour or so. Basically as soon as you can easily poke a knife through it. After that, whenever you are ready, just chuck it on the coals for a minute or two, and then add salt, vinegar or lemon & oil. I think what I did ended up being some combination of the instructions out of the Babbo cookbook, and Bittaman's how to cook everything.

See here, boiling is the father of sous vide, just at a higher temperature and without the plastic. ← Damn straight!

...and we're all deeply impressed by mom's apple pie over here of course. Run me through the entire canon of American home cooking not derived from your British ancestors would you, I've got 30 seconds to spare. ← Lighten up andy it was a joke. Anyway, I'm not exactly apple pie american...and I definitely don't have british ancestors.

Wait, does this mean he thinks the previous generation of British women could cook?

Moving away from Philly (and Dmitri's) is exactly what pushed me to try making it myself. I daresay I have been coming pretty close lately! edit: Katie, I became a huge fan of conch after living in florida. There was a tiny little Caribbean place near my grandparents' house that had the most amazing spicy conch chowder. Another sea creature that benefits from being frozen, actually...

I've been able to buy frozen octopus at both mexican and korean food markets. This is one of the few seafood products that I think are as good frozen as fresh. I make it all the time. Trick is really to simmer it for a good hour or so before doing anything else to it. After simmering I love to grill it and then toss with olive oil and lemon or vinegar. I also love it with a gochujang-based sauce, korean style.

Leave that to us. If you ever come out my way, I'll point you toward a place that will serve you squid and octopus so unrubbery, it'll really open your eyes. I'm sure other members in other locations could do the same for you, though perhaps not in Duluth. ← I'm close to Duluth. My octopus is very unrubbery! I simmer it for at least an hour before I do anything else to it -- works like a charm. As for lamb, we love it, and eat it about as often as any other kind of meat. But we invited our neighbors over once for rogan gosht. The wife of the couple had never eaten lamb, because it was too "cute". Oops. They both ended up eating it, though, and thought it was delicious (at least, that's what they said, and never turned down a subsequent invitation )

Sujuk are also great drizzled with pomegranate molasses. Never heard of Oregano water. The parsley could well be for the Lebanese in the neighborhood, we use tons of it. Tabbouli for one takes a lot, but it's also good chopped up into keftas.

It's true in Lebanon as well. And so many dishes feature olive oil (and lots of it) as a main flavor component.

Are there any enameled cast iron gratin pans in the Target line? Those never seem to go on sale. I found a cheap version at a discount store once, pretty decent quality though I think the enamel will eventually chip. But only 9", and I would like something closer to 14" or more.

Finally got around to cleaning out TiVo. The Sicily episode was very good, so good in fact that I ended up watching the Vegas episode as it was finishing taping. Did he really meet those people for the first time at the bar? For the first time I could actually imagine wanting to go to Vegas. Yes, it does seem like the show is hitting it's stride. Actually, I think what I liked about both these episodes, as well as the Jersey one, is that he (or in any case his audience) starts off with one set of preconceptions about a place, and over the course of the show uncovers something much more nuanced and interesting. Something you really don't see very often in any other travel shows, but has always been for me the most rewarding part of travelling. Nice job.

Chris, if you are still on the hunt for a good cannoli by the time you head down to Philly for StudioKitchen, I would recommend Termini Brothers bakery. Their main store is in the Italian Market but they have a branch in Reading Terminal. That and an espresso from Old City coffee? Heaven.

And to think...right now a large part of the rest of the world is celebrating Ramadan....

That's exactly it. When I moved to the US I was surprised that people let the okra get so big. In Lebanon they keep it small and use the whole pod, the idea being, if you don't split it open it doesn't get all slimy. Since I can't get fresh baby okra here, the dried stuff is a good substitute. I use it mainly in middle eastern-style stews -- in which case there is enough liquid to reconstitute the stuff. But I have also used it in indian-style fried dishes, you just need to use a little extra liquid and cook it a little longer. Basically, same as you would use normal okra but with a little extra time and liquid. Well, I don't think it would be good deep fried though, the big pods are good for that. Oh, you can initially keep the okra on the thread, so that if you want to stir the pot you can pull up the okra and avoid breaking it up. Then remove the thread once everything is cooked, obviously.

Merhaba, sazji. Brilliant bunch of first posts. (Yes, we've been watching ) Welcome!

I think you mean the green coriander chutney? I use Suvir Saran's recipe from recipegullet: link

The article is a lot less controversial than you're making it sound. They just don't make that much beer, and they are saying anything that ends up in the States is probably there illegally. edit: oops, crossposted.

That was intentional, you know.

Exaggerating to make a point is the definition of satire. I think of him more as the Augusten Borroughs "amusing rant" type than a source of serious political commentary. My main problem with the Julie/Julia piece was that it was on the Op-Ed page of the New York Times. Another sign our country has a serious problem separating entertainment from news. Although, now that I think about it, I saw his rant about salt on his Daily Show interview.

Yeah, but he writes for the NPR crowd, and I'm guessing they are not the primary customer base for Tuna Helper. I get what he is saying in some ways, but with the caveat that he is speaking to a very exclusive audience.

Not to mention that quite a bit of the bottled water for sale is simply municipal water that has been filtered. I've never had bottled "spring water" that comes close to the NYC tap water I run through my massive plumbed-in under-the-sink water filter.[...] ← You might change your mind if you go to Mount Shasta, California, and try some of the water that comes straight off the glaciers. Best-tasting water I've ever had! ← Lebanese spring water...thousand year old melted snow coming out of a rock.

I'm pretty sure they are black radishes. Great photos, Adam!

Jamiacan Jerk Hut is in the movie? That's wonderful publicity for them. They deserve it. Great Philadelphia institution. I'll take their jerk pork and friend plantains over pat's and geno's any day of the week.

I know it's a food site and all, but do make sure you see some mosques as well Beautiful city.

Thanks carswell, I'll have a look at it. We will be in Munich so there is some possiblity of getting it closer to the source.. I never offer cappucinos after dinner, only espresso. Or possibly tea if you don't drink coffee and I really really like you... Speaking of which: Let's say I have 8 people over for supper. To make 8 espressos out of what ought to be a 16-cup capacity tank, only the first (let's say with the recent improvements) 4 will be okay before it overheats, and then I have to turn the thing off to cool it down, then turn it back on again. How much time are we talking here? That might be the dealbreaker...