liuzhou

Back in the second half of the 70s and first half of the 80s, I was living in London bringing up two kids with my partner (not their birth mother). We both worked long hours, but Saturdays were sacrosanct. We had a routine. We would skip breakfast apart from a coffee and a cigarette for me (I stopped long ago!) and head out shopping. First to the bakery. A real bakery where they baked stuff. We bought bread - wonderful proper bread five minutes from home. Then we would head to meet with Norman. Norman was a butcher from a long line of butchers. Two of his brothers were butchers; another was a farmer. Lovely man. He looked like a proper butcher. Not fat, but healthy and with shining eyes. He knew meat and taught me a lot. He always had time to answer my dumb questions. As the years went by, I think he began to respect me for my discerning attitude to meat purchasing. When I went into his shop, where he butchered everything himself, no one else, not his apprentices, were allowed to serve me. His elder brother retired from his shop, but would help Norman out at busy times. Even, he was not allowed to serve me. One Christmas season he made a bunch of beef chipolata sausages, some of which I bought and loved. No one else did, so he didn't make them again, except for making a batch every Christmas just for me! He taught me the delights of breast of lamb, which I had never considered before, but now ranks among my favourite meats. He would be delighted when I asked him to bone a duck for me or perform other knife skills that were beyond me. He would grin when I asked for bits of animals that no one else would ask for, then send one of his confused apprentices to either find it in the fridge or, more likely, dig it out of carcase. He happily supplied me with caul - impossible to find in the "super"markets. His younger brother, the farmer, would occasionally shoot wild rabbits and send to Norman, who would immediately call me to tell me. Yes, we had exchanged phone numbers. Some time in the mid-80s, Tesco's opened a supermarket a few yards from his shop and the rot set in. Plastic wrapped unidentifiable meat and untrained staff on minimum wage became the norm. Norman battled on for a year or two, but in the end had to give up and retire early. A year later he died. His old shop is now a tanning studio. I weep.

Too little seasoning is a major fail. A decent Scotch Pie is well seasoned. I have nothing against a good beef sausage. My "real" butcher, Norman*, in London, used to make me a few pounds of his wonderful beef chipolatas every Christmas, but couldn't sell them to other customers. Their loss. He finally retired early, tired of fighting the nearby supermarkets where the "butchers" knew nothing about meat except sealing it in plastic wrap! Grrrr! That said, I am 100% behind the banning of beef sausage rolls. What a ridiculous concept. * Always be on first name terms with your butcher! And fishmonger!

If someone is salting and sugaring your sashimi, you need to change restaurants.

These ought to be illegal. Soooo good!

because that's what sushi is. vinegared rice.

Thai style green curry w prawns.

I use mine (the attachment) several days a week on average. It is perfect for most single person cooking needs and/or for sauces etc for more people.

No. Long before Pizza Hut and chains turned up!

Yes, that is a consideration, but not the only one.

Chicken breast (1-10-10 as usual). Couscous. Cherry tomatoes, black garlic and capers cooked in the chicken emissions!

Same in the UK.

I was out and about yesterday, so decided to satisfy my own (and perhaps others') curiousity about the clams. As I said they are saltwater clams from the Tonkin Gulf. All supermarkets and market stalls hold them in running water. As you can see, they are submerged. The water is what I would describe as lightly salted - certainly not seawater salty. (The sign requests that you don't use the water to wash your hands!) The supermarket staff were, as usual, clueless, but I did enquire in the market and was told by different traders that the clams will survive happily in fresh water for two to three hours. This bears out my own experience. In fact, I've held them in fresh water for longer than that. Information turned up by Google is very mixed, but a few sites concur that fresh water isn't going to do any damage in the short term I hope that clarifies things, slightly.

They are saltwater clams from Beihai near the Tonkin Gulf on the border with China and Vietnam. The second image in the relevant recipe shows them in the market. The water is usually running but although the water is shallow they are submerged.

Wouldn't surprise me.

A new low! I've mentioned before, in other topics, that scrambled egg with tomatoes is the one dish that everyone in China can cook and the first all kids learn. No need to make it any longer! Instant scrambled egg and tomato noodles! The second image is on the side of the box. I'm 100% sure it in no way resembles the contents! Millennia of human advancement and we revert to this! The end is nigh!

Glad to fill a gap in your culinary knowledge!

no. What @Kim Shook said. So rude! And ignorant.

No, you haven't. I love a good bridie, although I haven't had one in many years. The best still come from Forfar.

Well, I don't know but every supermarket and market stall here with clams holds them all day in cold water. My market woman gives me my clam purchases in a plastic bag of fresh water to carry them like a fairgound goldfish prize.

Any time I refrigerated them, they rapidly died.

I did once meet a middle-aged Scottish woman here in China who complained to me that she couldn't find “mince“ in the local supermarkets. I told that she could find beef and ask them to mince it! She looked baffled. “I don't want beef! I want mince!“ Quite which animal she thought her Scottish “mince“ came from never became clear!

I'm sorry, but anyone reading 8-10 clams per person (similar to littlenecks), then rushing out to buy 8-10 huge clams per person is beyond my help.

What's the fuss about? I used the common American term first. I merely pointed out an alternative name. I wasn't attacking anyone or suggesting anyone was wrong or asking anyone to change their vocabulary. Calm down!

I like "Beef Meat Pies". As opposed to "Beef Fruit Pies"?

I have no objection to ramps at all, but the whole allium family is already confused enough. My local neighbourhood supermarket has about ten different varieties. One fewer suits me fine.