FaustianBargain

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I think I have tried the oxtail paella dish, but only without the paella. and no cheese. Did the bacalao dish have any potatoes in it? I can see how spanish cheese can be incorporated into the dish. It seems to be a complement to the basic dishes with additional pizzazz. Although, I am wondering if it is like the French AOC cheeses being used in French provincial dishes..matching regional cheese to regional provincial dish?

That is exactly what I thought. Even though it is a bloody shame. At this point, it is becoming increasingly difficult for France to wrestle her way out of the EU as there is too much at stake. I really doubt if they can ever be recovered.

Found this when I was googling for some info on Spanish cheese...I dont know if it has already been discussed in other forums, but I thought this to be an appropriate topic for discussion here... French mobilize to save cheeses under threat of extinction There are some interesting bits: [..] [...] It does sound rather bleak, but is it true?

I have once entertained the idea of employing evolution as an argument against intensive farming of the animals that come to our table as food. I gave it very serious thought for a couple of weeks and discarded it. Do our waters, our glaciers, our seasons evolve in synch with our evolving technologies. If they proceed at an even rate, then your argument might hold true. However, it is difficult to pace the random and often chaotic explosions of science and technology with the measured evolution of the species. Evolution, as you probably know, happens in small increments. I am currently reading Ancestors' Tale by Richard Dawkins and I am in awe about our species and earth..at the same time, I am a little concerned about how we fritter away our precious resources without paying heed to the consequences. There is actually an evolutionary theory(the key word being 'theory') that the animals we domesticated for our food or as our pets evolved to be eaten by us. The theory suggests that certain animals find evolutionary trade off in being domesticated because they can benefit from the humans during their reproductive phases. They are evolved so that they have lesser testosterone..higher serotonin levels etc.(experiments prove this) They escape the threat from wild creatures(those above them in the food chain, that is) during their most fertile reproductive phase when they are taken care by the humans. Their genes get a chance to replicate. Their demise and ultimately their appearance as food on our plates is a price worth paying for the fecundity of their genes. This applies to pets like dogs(derived from the vulpine family) and cows and goats and chicken etc. I have always found the practice of slaughtering young lambs for their tender flesh rather perverse and it would be ironic if the above mentioned theory were true. Relatedly, the factory farming of animals is a mistake that has compounded effects that effectively derail evolutionary designs. Let us take salmon for example. Salmon evolved to be food for bears. It is beautiful(in a macbre way) to witness the spawning instinct of the salmon at the same time as the bears come to the streams for their nourishment. Or let us consider the shark or the crocodile. They have reached the pinnacle of evolution. The shark need not evolve anymore. In its environment, it is the ultimate killing machine. It is at the top of it's food chain. However, it can still fear mortality because of human expansion into its territory. At its peak, the shark can evolve nomore. Vertically, it has hit upon its ceiling. With no more room for further evolution, the species will become extinct. Having said all this, it is an interesting experiment to consider human recklessness as a factor towards shifting evolution. It can and has been argued that evolution has frozen. We can evolve no more, but let us consider that invalid. Evolution takes tens of thousands and thousands of years to happen. From single celled creatures, from the bottom of an ocean, through a series of accidents and mutations and after thousands and thousands of years, we stand here today...at the top of the food chain. Assuming evolution to engage in what is obviously reckless behaviour will not offer comfort when the next couple of generations suffer. It is possible that we, the human species, might perish before the next evolutionary leap occurs. Thinking twenty steps ahead will only cause us to falter. On a different note, I must protest the term 'fundamentalist' used here. It is essentially an insult hurled and denotes fundamentalist xians who denounce evolution and embrace intelligent design. This is no place to argue the merits of evolution over intelligent design.

Thank you for posting this, Jamie Maw. I do remember reading this at that time when I was trying to decide which side of fence I'd like to be...It is informative and offers the view from the other side of the border. Your Canadian version and derricks' Californian experience are two objective pieces of reporting that I have read about foie gras farms. Thanks again.

I have been speaking to someone about creating a new standard combining iso 26000(social responsibility standards) and iso 14000/14001(environmental management) that is specifically designed for how we eat. So far, the response hasnt been very good. Basically, for restaurants it would be a completely new standard as a combination of HACCAP, social responsibility and environmental management all brought together. Although, it sounds like a far fetched concept, I think the idea itself has some merit.

A Faroese friend of mine absolutely loves puffin. Cute or not, it is food. It is the issue of the Grind that is a tad upsetting to me. Does Iceland have any such traditions?

Ronnie, I feel obliged to answer again because you have raised this issue again. Whether Trotter's extracted public comments have any effect on how the vote swings is a different issue from whether he is responsible for the vote. Having said that, you may as well be right when you say that his comments would have an effect upon the vote. I too hope that the members of the city council will not vote in a manner that would offend one's basic right to eat.

Surely, you are kidding me. Would you also like to know where I live?

Wow..what a slew of replies Ok, people. Think what you may..but there is a code in the kitchen. In professional kitchens, you DO NOT tell the chef what to cook. You DO NOT tell him how to cook it. You DO NOT criticise the techinique. It is simply not done. You can come up with any number of responses to follow this, but this is what happens in REAL kitchens. Trotter or anyone else do not have the right to tell any other chef how to cook. Do you know how Heston travels when he goes outside to cook? Often he lugs around his equipment and whatever it is he creates magic with...the menus are planned..the recipes are decided upon...When it is done, it is DONE. Good luck. I have tried my best. The next time another state bans foie gras production or possession..or when the next chef gets terrorised, I hope you have some other plan of action other than placing the blame on someone else or whining about the seizure of gastronomic freedoms. There are people who do. There are people who talk. Enjoy it while it lasts because without a sense of direction or strategy, the days of foie gras in the United States are numbered. I have wasted enough time on this.

Thank you, I am touched. I am sure there is some kitchen in this whole wide world that will take me in for what I am and where I will be happy....

Oh No!! bourdain, look at me. I am trembling.

What I had was a light brown and yes, smooth and soft. Not too crumbly, tho. Is there any other kind of cheese that I might have mistaken skyr for..?

What you are essentially saying above is that Chef Trotter should have 'vetoed' the wishes of Heston B/Tetsuya/diners who expect foie gras(possibly) to serve/enjoy because he doesnt want to serve foie gras himself? In other words, you are upset because he didnt trample upon the rights of others to cook or eat foie gras. Hmm.. ← I want to know why, FB, in your world, people either "veto" others wishes or "trample upon the rights of others"? Please read bourdain's screed. I was only repeating his words. Well, is there any legitimate give and take in the foie gras community? Why dont you guys fly to France or to Canada to enjoy your foie gras? This is such shoddy debating practice. <SNIP>