Chris Amirault

Sigh. I'll never say it again. Speaking of silly, home enthusiasts like me should know that referring to yourself as a chef in a restaurant setting is liable to end with unpleasantness.

I've begun appreciating the benefits of pickles at breakfast. In particular, I have been enjoying having a few pickled jalapeños with my scrambled eggs and English muffin in the morning; if there's a bit of monterey jack cheese around, I might toss that on, too. Breakfast here tends to be a pretty rich affair when it's savory, what with eggs, bacon, hash, and the like. A pickle cuts right through that as a tasty contrast. I know that the Japanese figured this pickle for breakfast thing out long ago; makes me wonder if keeping some oshinko around would be a good idea. Anyone else out there eating pickles for breakfast?

Sick, so: 1 1/2 oz Fundador brandy 1 1/2 oz Appleton V/X 1/2 oz smoked pineapple syrup cinnamon stick Put all into a cup and fill with boiling water. Stir.

Part of what I find so interesting about this topic is speculating on the question: quality, culture, or physiology? I'm certain that, for me, the chicken sashimi was a cultural thing: I have no aversion to the texture or to raw meat or fish. But, man, was I schooled in the dangers of undercooked chicken as a kid. I think that if I ate it many times, I could undo that, but it's a deep reaction, I'll tell you.

Reports are that Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn have a second charcuterie book on the way. Their first book was a transforming one for many Society members, including yours truly. We have two massive topics devoted to discussions about the book, the first one here (with the index Chris Hennes built for it here) and the second one here. Amazon doesn't list the book on its Ruhlman page yet. What have people heard? ETA: "Salumi" product page.

Pesto? PESTO? My goodness: why?

Because "chef" is a sign of professional, not amateur, attainment. A chef is the person who oversees all aspects of food production: menu design, kitchen team coordination, purchasing, on and on. A chef is a person who has earned that title through experience. Stated personally, I crank out meals at home day in and day out, but I am not worthy of comparison with the chef at the restaurant where I bartend.

Wouldn't "serve" suffice? No, because "serve" means "give it to the person who will eat it." "Plate" means "put it on the plate." Two very different things.

Wow! Even the good stuff, Mike?

Mike's probably right. Problem is, those bars don't care too much about quality, or else they wouldn't be using mixers. No one comes into our bar asking for "natural mixers." I doubt they would elsewhere. If someone is slamming out Cosmos and Margaritas with a mix, they're probably likely to go with the cheapest decent mix. Especially in this economy, it seems tricky to fiddle with the margins as a bar manager unless you have some confidence that you're adding value.

John, what do you use your Suze for? BTW, feel free to unload any of that Del Maguey cluttering up your organizational perfection on me.

What other pieces are you cutting a chicken into when you're cutting it into whatever? I mean, you can butterfly, you can spatchcock, you can debone, you can cut up or break down but the parts remain the same, right? No. You can cut up roughly for stock; cut up wings into drumettes & tips; cut legs, thighs, breasts in half each. Lots of different ways to cut up; break down means those specific component parts.

Used fabricate in the culinary sense only when chefs did it, as in this post. Phew. Fascinating topic.

Break down to me means "break down into the component parts of breast, wing, thigh, leg, and backbone." Cut up means "cut into whatever pieces." Agreed on "fabricate" though. I hope I never used that word myself....

I think that the question is one of intent and effect. If you're using the term to be a blowhard, imitating chefs in a world you've seen on television, then, yeah, that's kinda dumb. But words aren't all equivalent, and the profession often defines terms with greater precision than lay cooking instruction does. In other words, protein isn't synonymous with meat, and if you're referring to protein in toto, go for it. But if you're referring to your chicken thigh and say, "Place the protein into the hot oil," well....

I definitely think of "breaking down a chicken" as having a very specific meaning. As did you, Mitch, it seems, given your response in that topic.

I would add shrubs to that list -- which is already covered by others producing high-quality product like Blair Reynolds at Trader Tiki.

Wow. Just... wow. Greg has always been extremely friendly with information and stuff with me, but that's some seriously amazing stuff you're playing with there. Eager to get one of those swizzle sticks soon. Sam, can you give me a primer in how you're approaching French press? I have been trying to get back in the game after many years due to my love of Intelligensia Diablo. Grind? Temps? Times? Bloom? Stirring?

Those are all great recommendations, 317indy. What would you get at Ravenous Pig?

I'm in for Friday.

I have, and they cannot replace fresh components. Most Society members who are interested in cocktails are familiar with the research on the degradation of citrus juices, the importance of balance and direction, and the variability of many ingredients. In addition, most of us got into cocktails, either professionally or as avid amateurs (or in many cases like mine, both) for the culinary aspect. For us, prepackaged mixers are the mixological equivalent of Campbell's chicken noodle soup. Sure, maybe it's not terrible, but who wants to "just add water, heat and serve" if, with a little care and effort, you can make something far superior?

Interesting Russell's scored so high. I would rate it lower than WT 101, based on memory. Maybe I gotta get another one...

I think most of the restaurants I know have been off the foam kick for some time. Where are you seeing it?

Never. I throw home parties, do group events, and so on, and would never use mixers. I'd just make a big bowl of punch with my trusty assistant.

I had some pork ribs and bellies this weekend that I was preparing in a few different ways, so I walked Lulu through the basics of butchering them: skin, fat, meat, silverskin, bones, tendons, that sort of thing. We then got into discussions about preservation methods -- I was smoking the ribs and curing then smoking the bellies for bacon -- that have become supplemental cooking techniques as well. This all lead to a conversation about the lives of pigs. Thankfully, these guys were from a nearby small farm, not an industrial production facility. The discussion was a lot more nuanced about that than I expected, particularly regarding the complicated morality of eating animals that would not exist if not for our desire to eat them. Finally, we agreed that bacon was very, very good.