SobaAddict70

I'm working my butt off to get out by 6:30 pm, but I don't think I'm going to be able to cut it. (Hope springs eternal though.) We'll see though. Why is it that people expect the world to happen on Fridays and never during the middle of the week?!?!? I have two distributions to do between now and 7 pm and I haven't gotten to the proofing yet. Time to sign off for now. Soba

I'm a southpaw, so I don't exactly have much of a choice. Soba

Wednesday: leftover dinuguan talong (eggplant) omelette w/banana ketchup (its like Heinz, but spicier and fruitier. I rarely use ketchup -- this is one of those occasions when the bottle comes out.) simple green salad steamed rice oolong tea Cranshaw melon for dessert Soba

As simple as possible... ALWAYS Minced garlic and scallions, maybe some mushroom or light soy, occasionally sesame oil or chopped Chinese sausage. Usually use leftover rice from the previous dinner, or sometimes will use fresh cooked rice. This is pretty much the way my mom does it. Sometimes simple is best. What I like to do is cook a piece of Chinese sausage along with the rice, this way the pork fat and sausage goodness permeates the rice and flavors it. Soba

Well, you see, with me, its the opposite that's true. I routinely clean out my refrig, or at least those things that are mine. My roommate is sooooooooo forgetful that he'll leave empty boxes of stuff in the freezer (threw out an empty box of popsicles last night), not to mention packaged pineapple chunks from three months ago. Not only that, but if the refrig begins to stink, he won't wonder why, because he WON'T notice!!! I am seriously thinking of moving out. The only reason why I haven't done so yet is because the apartment is a nice-sized apartment in a really nice neighborhood in Manhattan, at a way-too-good to be true-affordable price. There have been times when the refrig is full of food. Not many, mind you, but some. The irony is that it can get cleaned out in as little as three or four days. Soba

Hey, more information is a good thing, even wine lectures. I don't drink, remember? My palate isn't as developed as others, in that respect. Al_Dente, thanks. I suppose then that not all zinfandels are created equal? Even amongst the white ones, I guess? (Apologies for taking the thread offbase.) Soba

last night (Tuesday): Filipino comfort food -- dinuguan (pork and offal stew, with garlic, vinegar, chiles and pig's blood); made more than enough, since this dish gets better with each succeeding day. ampalaya (bitter melon) omelette steamed broccoli steamed rice jasmine tea pears for dessert ------------ edit: it occurred to me a bit after posting that there's a bit of disparity between hotle's post about grilled porkchops (sounds delish, btw) and my dinner last night, heheheh. Dinuguan is one of those things that doesn't look appetizing at all; the pig's blood turns black as the dish cooks and forms, along with the vinegar and chiles, the basis for the sauce. It's not something us pinoys like to spring on most Westerners since, like balut (embryo in either duck or chicken eggs), dinuguan contains a lot of stuff that most people (that is, non-egulleteers usually) don't or can't imagine eating....stuff like beef hearts, kidneys, chicken liver, pig's ears, etc. Anyway, thought I'd soften the visual blow, heheheh. Oh, and welcome to eGullet, hotle. Live long and prosper, or something like that. Cheers, Soba

what's Sutter Home? (gimme a clue pls...) I'm a non-drinker, so I take it that zinfandels aren't a good thing? Soba

As long as its not United, who I will never fly with again -- they "forgot" to send my luggage when I flew out to San Francisco last year. Totally put a damper on that trip for a day or two. Soba

Sidebar: Corporate Conscience Comes To The Pig Farms Of America ------------- Scotland's Chefs Present Their Best Plate Forward (R.W. Apple, Jr.) Avocado Expose (David Karp) Foreign Fish on Domestic Menus (Florence Fabricant) William Grimes reviews Nice Matin Cafe Topsy: Where English Food Sheds Its Comedic Image (Eric Asimov) Summer Plates For Light Eating (Nigella Lawson) The Minimalist: Fruit Soups (Mark Bittman) Bits and Pieces: Clinton Hill Ice Cream, A Towel For Glenn's Bacon Problem, Hudson Valley Foodies, Wild Arugula, and Raisins On The Vine (Florence Fabricant) Pairings (Amanda Hesser) Recipe: Summer Pudding Off The Menu: Thomas Keller In NYC x2, Maxim's Comes To London, and Short Orders (Florence Fabricant) Letters to the Editor Correction Recipes: 1. Crab Tartlets 2. Belgian Endive and Watercress Salad 3. Peach Chewies 4. Savory Cold Mango Soup ------------- Enjoy, Soba

well the last one I attended was in the mid 1980s, and the occasion was the wedding of one of my aunts. she had married into a family where Cantonese was spoken (keep in mind that our family speaks mostly Fukien dialect, in addition to Mandarin, Tagalog and English); her in-laws don't usually use Mandarin. I don't remember very many details except that the number of courses was at least twelve, that my aunt had changed dresses three times prior to the banquet -- she had a traditional wedding gown, then a wedding gown for the Chinese ceremony, then a gown at a private reception with her in-laws, and then of course, the wedding reception itself. Red seemed to be a color much in abundance. Of the meal itself, I was struck at the number of soups that were present. We had from what I recall, a winter melon soup -- the kind that gets served from a massive winter melon, with chicken, ham, mushrooms, shrimp and other goodies inside a carved, hollowed out melon; bird's nest soup (my first time, and I didn't think much of it), and red bean soup for dessert, along with the occasional palate cleanser. Come to think of it, it was the first time I had soup as something other than the role that soup usually plays in a meal ... as a starter or as a main course. The thought was enlightening. That banquet also contained a number of firsts for me. It was the first time I had eaten jellyfish, served cold and thinly sliced. The texture wasn't what a thirteen year old palate was quite used to. I think by the time the carp and noodles rolled around, that I was too full to eat any more, although somehow I managed to find room for dessert. I forget the progression of courses, except that the appetizers seemed to be endless -- a parade of cold plates, then dumplings, then hot plates, then soups, then main courses -- beef, pork, shellfish, fish, then noodles, and then desserts. Oh, before I forget, there was the beggar's chicken. It was chicken that had been completely encased in clay, cooked in an oven, and then brought to the table, replete with hammer and chisel with which to break the clay shell. It was at some restaurant in Chinatown that I don't remember the name of. There had to have been at least 100 people at the banquet. Round tables, and lazy Susans were the order of the day. Soba edit: added mention of the beggar's chicken.

That must make for some interesting family get-togethers... Soba

Monday: broiled skinless boneless chicken breasts -- this time, rubbed with minced garlic, lime salt, lemon pickle and a combination of 1 T. oil from the lemon pickle and a generous pour of EVOO, before popping it into the oven coucous steamed broccoli OJ soy milk bananas for dessert bedtime snack: cottage cheese, topped with tamarind chutney, minced scallions, lime salt and mesquite grill-style Mrs. Dash. Cheers, Soba

shredded zucchini? you can make zucchini pancakes -- sort of like ukoy, but not really. you can turn some of that zucchini into soup. saute zucchini in unsalted butter with some onions, carrots and leeks; add chicken stock, season to taste with s&p, simmer for a few minutes. then, working in batches, puree the mixture and return to pot, simmer for a few more minutes, then add light cream and stir; serve immediately. you can make zucchini slaw, or lightly salt the zukes and serve it as a quick pickle. Soba

pity this isn't winter, cabbage is just lovely around that time of year. stuffed cabbage stewed red cabbage in duck fat with onions and bacon and then there's stir-fried cabbage with pork (and all sorts of Chinese treatments) not to mention cabbage that's been sauteed in some ghee with mustard seeds and other spices, and chiles, sort of like a dry-cooked vegetable that I sometimes like to serve with rice or chapatis. and its great in soup and then there's colcannon -- mashed potatoes, cabbage, butter and lots of cream. *sigh* I love cabbage. Soba

its got nothing to do with you. it has everything to do with how its used. its like referring to garam masala as curry powder, and congee as rice glop. you know what I mean. 100 years from now, the language pendulum will swing the other way and marinara sauce will mean what it was supposed to mean, but in the meantime, we're stuck on its present incarnation. *sigh* Soba

I thought El Gordo was being his usual facetious self, but what the hell do I know. Soba

pasta salad doesn't have to be chilled....some of the best ones are those that are made with pasta that's been slightly cooled and tossed with the ingredients for the salad. And if you've made it properly, then it won't be a sticky gummy mess that it might have turned into. Personally, I like a nice pasta primavera salad. One thing that I've done on occasion is toss orzo or rotini with avocado, diced plum tomatoes and minced red or Vidalia onion, along with some basil, summer savory and EVOO; maybe salt and white pepper. Soba

Just a little OT here, one of my pet peeves reared its ugly head just now on reading that. Marinara sauce has nothing to do with present reality. Originally, marinara sauce came to refer to a seafood sauce made with tomatoes. Now, it's just tomato sauce. What I'm sure you really meant to say is that you make your own sugo di pomodoro, but for some reason it came out as "marinara sauce". Ok, back to your kitchen cubicles. Soba

I think the look I once got from cabrales (I get these looks from people all the time, so it wasn't limited to just her, mind you) when I told her that I HAVE to make my own stock if I've got the time and materials as opposed to buying it from a store or a restaurant, spoke volumes. I mean, seriously. Homemade stock is so much more superior than canned or (*shudder*) from boullion form that I always wonder why people don't invest in the effort to do it. And once you do it once or twice, it becomes effortless and routine, almost like doing laundry. For the record, I try to have at least two types of stock sitting in my freezer or refrig at all times. At the moment, there's a batch of chicken stock I made over the weekend, and some veggie stock from a couple of weeks ago that's going to be put to use this week. The looks alone are worth the price of admission. Soba

Thursday: my first attempt at potstickers and dumplings. Next time I think I'll refrain on the filling since a few burst when I cooked the dumplings. The dough came out right though. Oh well, its a learning process. It was supposed to be a batch of onion dumplings with soy-ginger dipping sauce. stir fried cabbage and minced pork with fermented black beans, ginger, garlic and chiles turnip kimchi steamed rice jasmine tea Medjool dates stuffed with mascarpone, for dessert Friday: got some soy sauce chicken and a quart of chicken stock from a local Cantonese palace. shredded the chicken and discarded the bones. with the addition of some soba noodles, blanched bean sprouts, torn basil and mint leaves, minced jalapeno and leftover cabbage/pork stir-fry from last night, I had a (mainly) chicken version of pho. What with all the rain, I didn't really feel like cooking especially after Thursday's near disaster. Edensoy carob soy milk Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia for dessert. Saturday: roast chicken with 40 garlic cloves and herbs roasted potatoes sauteed spinach simple green salad w/ white wine viniagrette Evian chocolate-Kahlua-banana bread pudding (made with banana bread which had been soaking in your typical bread pudding liquid mixture spiked with a little Kahlua to which was added some melted Valrohna (sp) chocolate), served with a scoop of Haagen-Dasz French vanilla. Sunday: leftover roast chicken made for a couple of chicken sandwiches: Kaiser roll, cranberry honey mustard, Bibb lettuce, chicken, roasted red peppers, sliced Vidalia onion, sliced plum tomatoes, and a couple of slices of crisped bacon for good measure. green salad with a sesame oil/rice vinegar/wasabi viniagrette Evian leftover bread pudding. Cheers, Soba -------- sidenote: the carcass from the chicken got turned into a nice pot of chicken stock.

I'm surprised none of you have mentioned pasta salads yet. They range in kind from the ones you find in delis and supermarkets (yes, macaroni salad qualifies) to properly made ones that aren't overdressed with Italian dressing. Soba

No to all of the above. Except for steak. Soba

can't do Thursday but I can do either Friday or Saturday dinner if people will be around Soba

I've decided to bundle the Sunday magazine report along with any travel related information regarding dining out overseas and within the U.S., as reported by the Times. Also appearing in this section will be the Diner's Journal report (but not until next week since I've already posted on Hacienda de Argentina). Soba ----------- Vegetables: It's Not Just Oshinko Anymore! (Elizabeth Andoh) Shell Games (Jason Epstein) Recipes: 1. Joel Robuchon's Lobster in Sauternes (Adapted from ''Les Dimanches de Joel Robuchon'') 2. Pan-Roasted Lobsters (Adapted from Jasper White)