SobaAddict70

babaghanouj (or babaghanoush) -- different spellings: roasted eggplant, tahini, LOTS of garlic, lemon juice, salt.

Suzanne and Wilfrid: try sauteeing the chix livers in unsalted butter and EVOO, to which add sliced roasted red/yellow/orange bell peppers and a couple of crushed garlic cloves. Cook uncovered for an additional five to ten minutes, or until the livers are cooked through; remove from heat and discard garlic or save for another use. Salt and black pepper to taste. Add some fresh sage or oregano, and use as a pasta sauce. Great with penne or penne rigati. No cheese necessary for this dish (too rich/too many competing flavors). The butter and EVOO form the basis of the sauce, so don't pour them off. SA

Last night -- duck salad (duck from our local takeout Cantonese joint, deboned and shredded the meat and skin; julienned a red and a yellow bell pepper; combined both with mache and blanched bean sprouts; dressing of mushroom soy, sesame oil, chile oil, ginger-garlic paste and shredded candied lemon peel); Chinese fried rice (leftover rice, stir-fried with ginger and garlic, scallions, slivers of Chinese sausage, julienned reconstituted black mushrooms. sprinkle of light soy, a little of the mushroom soaking water and gomasio.). green tea. plums. SA

Nina, you better tell all the people in Italy that they are pronouncing their language wrong. The "o" in Italian almost always does rhyme with "no". Vino Rosso Bianco Verdecchio Grosso and Toscana is in fact pronounced with a long "o" sound. Not t-uh-scana, but t-oh-scahnah Or, maybe you and I pronounce "no" differently, being from regions of the U.S. with vastly different accents and affectations in the language. This is why I prefer Latin and Spanish. One's a dead language and I doubt that y'all would have the intensity of debates trying to pronounce "magister". The other is better known as "The Language of the People". SA

if this were risotto alla milanese, don't forget the introduction of beef marrow (at least one version that I've seen has marrow in the preparation of the dish). other risotti/risottos begin with soffritto, in particular risotto nero (made with squid ink), so as you can see, its not always riso, brodo, cheese and saffron. but what do I know? I'm just an Asian wannabe Italophile. SA

That's why humans invented the concept of variety, because eating the same thing over and over, while correct as the French would say, is pretty boring in the larger scheme of things. I would venture to say that real Italians do in fact put things in risotto besides brodo, cheese and saffron. Just because you've never seen it in Milan doesn't mean it doesn't happen. Maybe they were hiding, I dunno. SA

Er, how do they pronounce it? SA

I'm reminded of that scene from "Big Night" where the woman customer asks her husband, "Aren't we supposed to get a side of spaghetti with our risotto?" to which Stanley Tucci's character's brother replies, "She wants starch with starch?!?!" hehe SA

I knew what you were talking about. When I make risotto, its always the traditional method. (Besides, I don't have a pressure cooker at home, but that's another story.) My tangent is that I'm a stickler for traditional risottos, or if you want to describe it another way, risotto made in the traditional manner with traditional ingredients or ingredients "in-the-style-of" Italy. Not new-fangled risottos that you would find in a New Age/post-contemporary vegetarian cookbook. And believe me, they're out there. There are risottos that are the equivalent of Wolfgang Puck and his new age pizza, that make me gag when I think about it. So, applying my definition, that would mean asparagus risotto, topped with shavings of Parm-Reg., not apple risotto with caramelized apples and apple crisps. (Its probably good, but "not real risotto", imo.) So, the definition of a "not real risotto" includes a lot of other things, at least as they apply to *MY* dictionary. Do they apply to yours? Well, perhaps or perhaps not. SA

Oh, something else occurred to me. As tangent to Steve P's. argument of what constitutes "not real risotto", that would include abominations such as apple risotto, grape risotto, foie gras risotto, and roast turkey risotto (made with leftovers the day after Turkey Day). No thanks, thank you very much! Back to topic...ahem. SA

A basic Google search for clarifying stock can be found here. As for the science, well, I'll let Steve Klc or other more expert hands touch that one. SA

Is that because UnitedStatesians are famous for culinary bastardization? heh Oh well. Hope springs eternal, as the saying goes. SA

Um, I've made risotto and I wouldn't know a "real" brunoise from my half-hearted attempts to make one. So I suppose I'm average then, huh? Seriously, there are way way more things out there that are "labor-intensive". Mowing the lawn, shoveling snow in a driveway, raking leaves in the fall, delivering newspapers, roasting a chicken, Thanksgiving dinner (turkey!), mashed potatoes -- all of these are labor-intensive. Cooking rice (which is essentially what risotto is), is NOT difficult. Anyone who thinks that it is, and I'm not saying that you or SteveP or anyone else who's posted thus far does indeed think that, needs to re-evaluate their mindset. SA

Risotto is labor-intensive? Heh. Its probably less labor-intensive than making lasagna, or chocolate chip cookies (from scratch, not Pillsbury cheat dough), or grilling hamburgers over a grill (you have to stand there, flipping burgers, making sure the meat doesn't burn and taking them out at the right time). Explain to me how standing there in front of a stove, stirring a pot of rice for 20 to 30 minutes, is "labor-intensive". I consider making a pie or cake (from scratch) labor-intensive. But that's just me. SA

Chinese chicken stock is basically chicken stock that's been made without the traditional aromatics (celery, carrot, onion, bay leaf, peppercorns, bouquet garni); garlic, ginger and scallions are used instead, along with chicken backs, necks, and of course the chicken itself. (skin on, to get that nice golden color) Otherwise its the same as any other stock. I'm sure others will post. SA

I grew up with a crockpot. They're great for meals you just don't want to have to bother with, spending time watching over and slaving away at a stove. Pot roast -- try it with beer as part of the braising liquid, along with your standard aromatics and spices. New England baked beans. SA

Its been ages since I had a chrysanthemum hot pot. Wow. For the uninitiated, its a version of shabu shabu, except that you add chrysanthemum petals at the end and drink it as a soup. SA

heh Suvir, you overreacted. I'm known for being facetious online and offline.....usually. SA

Well, Suvir, I did say "usually" in at least one place, if you re-read my post again. I didn't present the statement as etched in stone... And I bow to your extensive knowledge. I'm not worthy... SA

Perhaps they don't go bad because of what else is in them besides peppers and seasonings, eh? I hear you though. Suzanne, that sounds lovely. SA

Amen, Jason. SA

Its still a lot of lemongrass, even for an infusion. But hey, its only my opinion. You might try adding some finely minced lemongrass (1 stalk, perhaps less). Cutting things into bits and pieces increases the surface area of what you have to work with. Not to mention, there's less waste. SA

Ok. Do you have counterspace and a cutting board? There are lots of things you can do with ground beef, and not all of it has to be stuff you need an oven for. besides what's been suggested, here are some things that come to mind: meatballs (either Swedish meatballs, or meatballs in broth (Italian antipasti), or for pasta) menudo -- a ground beef stew with chickpeas, potatoes, carrots, onions, raisins, tomatoes and tomato sauce pastichio (not sure if I spelled that right; basically pasta with eggplant, potatoes, tomatoes, ground beef and a bechamel sauce, in layers) taco filling sloppy joes as a stuffing for stuffed peppers and stuffed eggplant (the veggies you can cook in pan sitting in a water bath, the entire thing covered in aluminum foil, over low heat on your stove top)). as a filling for omelettes (be sure to cook and season the beef first, obviously) as a stuffing for dolmades (stuffed grape leaves) you can make sausage (no casings necessary). simply season the meat with salt and freshly cracked black pepper, then refrigerate. In the interim, you can prepare a spice mixture to season the sausage forcemeat further. Yes, I know this isn't ground pork, but you can pretend. If you want American sausage, use a combination of sage, ginger, nutmeg and thyme. If you want Italian sweet sausage, go for fennel, oregano, basil, black pepper and a pinch of sugar. For hot sausage, use red pepper flakes, coriander, nutmeg and a pinch of sugar. For chorizo, use instead garlic powder, cayenne and thyme. Pour about 1/4 c. ice water for each 1 lb. ground beef (or pork/duck, etc.). If you want to make chorizo, replace the water with some chilled dry white wine. Using your hands (or if not, then a mixer...dunno about your implements, but using your hands is best), mix the spices into the meat and combine thoroughly, with kneading motions, as if you were kneading dough. Do this for about ten to fifteen minutes. If you had a mixer, you'd whip the meat about on a low to low-medium speed to homogenize the mixture thoroughly. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic weap and refrigerate at least 6 hours or preferably overnight. The mixture is best used within a day or two. You can use this mixture as loose sausage meat, or you can shape them into patties and fry them. To cook them properly, add enough water to a skillet to cover about 1/4" or so, add the patties and cook until their fat has melted into the water. Flip and cook the second side. Basically, you want the water to eventually evaporate and the patties to brown on both sides in their own fat. That's when they're done. I'm sure ppl will suggest other things. SA ------- PS. Per Jin's suggestions, using stuff like breadcrumbs soaked in milk, eggs or egg whites, cooked bulgur and wheat germ will do a lot to stretch out anything you might be making, not to mention they'll moisten the meat while its cooking so as not to have a dry finished product.

Thursday: anchovy spread (combine caramelized, slow-cooked onions in EVOO with pref. salt-packed anchovies (if you must get oil-packed, be sure to get the ones that come in a glass jar, at any Italian specialty food shop or someplace like D&D); cook until the anchovies disintegrate into a paste like substance. When you combine the onions and anchovies, be sure that the amount of liquid in the pan has reduced or is poured off, as the result should be a nearly dry sauce.), spread on thickly buttered pieces of bread -- sort of like an anchovy bruschetta. I recently learned the proper method to cook anchovies, courtesy of Marcella Hazan -- where have I been all these years(!). Special thanks to Toby for letting me borrow one of her cookbooks. Also, pan-seared halibut; roasted potatoes. sauteed sliced baby carrots and fennel in unsalted butter, salt, pepper. Perrier. Last night: black risotto (soffritto, calamari, squid ink, arborio rice, white wine, salt, white pepper, unsalted butter, chopped Italian parsley). sliced tomatoes w/EVOO, salt and pepper. Evian. Nectarines.

Here are two recipes for chatni. The first is a fresh one, and the second is a cooked one. Both are from "The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking" by Yamuna Devi (Dutton, 1987). I should also mention that the TYPE of chatni served in India depends on what's occurring during which the meal is served. Fresh, uncooked chatni can usually be found during home-cooked, family meals, while cooked versions are usually served on holiday, festival and banquet menus. Dry Coconut Chatni 1 c. unsweetened desiccated coconut, lightly packed 2 to 3 whole dried chiles, broken into pieces and seeded 3 T. dry-roasted chopped peanuts 1/2 to 1 T. salt about 1/3 c. plain yogurt 3 T. chopped fresh coriander or minced parsley In a food processor (with a metal blade) or blender, combine 1/2 c. of the coconut, the red chiles and the peanuts, and process until powdered. Add the remaining coconut and salt, and process until uniformly powdered. With the machine running, add the yogurt and pulse until light and fluffy. (To make a smooth puree, simply add more yogurt). Add the fresh herbs and pulse four or five times, just to mix. Serve at room temperature or chilled. Well covered and refrigerated, the chatni can be kept for 1 to 2 days. ----------- Spicy Plum Chatni 3 T. ghee or a mixture of butter and corn oil 1/2 t. fennel seeds 1/4 t. kalonji (this is also known as nigella or black onion seed; you can get it at Middle Eastern stores that sell it under the label "black seeds" or "siyah daneh"; the seeds have a peppery bite and when heated, an aroma reminiscent of oregano) 1/2 t. black mustard seeds 2 hot green chiles, sliced very thin (or as desired) 1 1/2 lbs. Italian plums, pitted and quartered 1/2 c. raisins, preferably muscat (altho I've found excellent results with golden sultanas) 1 1/2 c. sugar or equivalent sweetener (I sometimes use honey, and therefore reduce the amount of sweetener by half) 1/4 t. salt 1/4 c. coarsely chopped toasted walnuts (try this with unsweetened toasted pecans) 1/4 c. fresh or dried ribbon coconut 2 t. minced crystallized or stem ginger In a large saucepan, heat the ghee or butter-oil mixture over moderate-low heat. When it is hot but not smoking, add the fennel seeds, kalonji, black mustard seeds and chiles, and fry until the mustard seeds pop and turn gray or the butter froths. Stir in the plums, raisins, sugar and salt and simmer until thick, about 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate, well covered, for 2 to 3 days. SA