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JasonZ

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    Work in NJ, live in PA, travel the world
  1. A colleague has been writing a restaurant review column for several years for a local (county-wide) paper. He pays for the meals, but is known to the restaurant owners and includes information gathered from interviewing them. His column has gained quite a following in the community. He was approached recently and asked how much he would charge to do an independent review for a web site. There is no legal conflict regarding his contract with the newspaper. His typical review is 600 words in length. What would the going rate be for such work? Thanks in advance!! JasonZ
  2. Good marketing wins over "good making". If we can't get the equivalent of "public service announcements", maybe food establishments in a given area, especially if it's not Center City or Manyunk, ought to band together to become more than just "word of mouth" places. Eat at the BBQ joint one time, at the Italian place down the street the next ... but don't just drive past a "made with love" bistro on your way to Chile's or TGIF, because you recognize the logo ... Regards, JasonZ
  3. Hi all: Seems it's been a couple of years since anyone added to this thread ... my particular interest is in the extreme south of the Caribbean ... Curacao. We'll be going there in a few weeks and there have been no mention of Curacao (or the ABC Islands) in this thread or the two other threads that specifically asked for recommendations in the ABCs. The islands have a mixed heritage as Spanish, English, and (mostly) Dutch colonization, with the usual native/African slave history mix added. Cuisine should be wonderful, but at least on eGullet it appears unknown. Does anyone have comments or recommendations? Regards, JasonZ
  4. A couple of years later, but a similar request ... we're going to Curacao, 9 days, want to go with local cuisine. Guidebooks for the ABC Islands haven't been that good, mostly focusing on Aruba and mostly focusing on diving and shopping. Understand that in addition to seafood, fish, goat and iguana are popular meats and there is Sephardic Jewish food tradition, as well as the Dutch/Indonesian Rijsttafel. If anyone has specific dish recommendations and/or restaurant recommendations, I'll plan to photograph and write up our trip there ... and acknowledge all sources!! Thanks in advance!! Regards, JasonZ
  5. Well, a year later, and a slightly different request. SO and I will be going to Curacao, staying at a resort for 9 days. At least one meal should be an authentic Rijsttafel, but after that I'd like to sample local ingredients and culinary styles, rather than the standard Italian, French, American fare. Any suggestions on either: specific dishes to order; and/or specific restaurants to go to We're leaving early August and I've already read one guide book, but it had more info on shopping and diving than on diving ... Regards, JasonZ (edited to correct spelling of "Rijsttafel.".)
  6. Based on Elizabeth Young's "Breath of a Wok", thin cast iron only lasts 3-6 months in most commercial restaurants in Hong Kong and Singapore, base on the intense hot (75,000 BTU) and cold (washing) cycles. I order my "thin" woks from [http] http://www.asianequipmentworld.com; "Asian Equipment World"[/http]. My LeCreuset "thick" cast iron wok will outlive me. Regards, JasonZ
  7. You can buy them ready-made in the stores. ← Granted ... but if I wanted to make them home made, does anyone have a recipe or suggestions? I ask because I have friends who are orthodox Jewish and unless the ready-made is certified Kosher (rare for many Chinese products), they won't eat it ... it forces me to make many items "from scratch" ... all in all, not a bad thing! Regards, JasonZ
  8. Yes, I know it's 2+ years later, but for the sake of the archive ... King Arthur Flour makes a high gluten flour (Sir Galahad), beautiful for bagels and pizza as well as for soup dumpling wrappers. Likely your grocery won't carry it, although many do carry KAF All-Purpose (unbleached) and White Whole Wheat, so your grocer may be able to order it for you. I comes in 3 lb bags (can order on the website) and 100 lb commercial bakery bags if you REALLY like soup dumplings ... KAF Sir Galahad link
  9. Well, everyone's made the point about Charoseth being a traditional element at the Passover meal ... I'm not sure I'd consider it a food; it's more like a condiment, certainly not meant to be eaten in large quantities. Yes, I suppose you could eat it all year round, but then, just like matzah, observant Jews don't eat matzah for a period of time before Passover, so the eating at Passover will be unique and symbolic. Looking at the photo, I'm not certain it is charoseth ... looks more like tsimmis (cooked carrots) rather than an apple, nuts and wine mix ... For those who have a copy of Copeland Marks' magnum opus, Separdic Cooking, there are at least 8 versions of Charoseth, corresponding to different points along the Mediterranean Basin and along the Silk Road where Jews stopped and took up residence ... I used to make up at least 4 for our seders, so people could see how the concept and taste of Charoseth varied over time and space. If I remember correctly, there were Greek, Georgian, Ukrainian, Yemeni, Persian, Iraqi, Khazakstani (or Uzbecki?), and Indian (from the Benei Yisroel of Calcutta) variants ... in his book on the Mahgreb (Africa north of the Sahara), he provided Moroccan, Algerian, and Tunisian haroseth recipes ... Really love his books ... he was the Indiana Jones of cuisine!!
  10. Hi Chad; First, thank you ... for this wondeful book and Q&A and for the preceding course on sharpening. What little I know, I owe to you ... Wonder if I could get a quick opinion. Most of my cooking is vegetarian and my knife collection is almost entirely Global, augmented with a Kyocera ceramic and a MAC Santoku. I don't have a Japanese style blade -- these are all Western style -- and I'm thinking of an usuba as my first ... looking on the Korin website (since they're having a 15% sale), I was thinking of the Masamoto Shiro-ko Hongasumi Kamagata Usuba (19.5 cm). Since you've said the quality of modern machine-made knives, has improved so much, am I in a bad price range (around $300, so more than $100, where you defined basic quality as being excellent, but below $1,000, where one is getting a true work of art) for what will be the knife I am likely to make my mistakes on (eg, learning how to sharpen a Japanese style blade)? I am ordering the Korin DVD on sharpening, but is there a better choice for a first knife? Regards, JasonZ
  11. For the most part, agree with LindaK ... Publik House is going to be quite a ride out of the city. No Name is good, but touristy -- for fish or seasfood, I'd go with Union Oyster House (UOH) for the raw bar; Legal Seafood or Durgin Park for cooked fish/seafood. Re the previous comment that Legal is a "chain" ... well, yes it is, but it began in Boston and still is run by the founding family. The clam chowder is good enough that it's been served at every Presidential Inaugural since JFK in 1960. Durgin Park has atmosphere and history (Calvin Coolidge was a regular there, just like JFK was a regular at Union). If you can take a bit of a ride (or go by T), Jasper White's Summer Shack is real fresh, New England traditional fish and seafood. SS is definitely child friendly, as is Durgin Park. Union Oyster House, if you're in the middle of lunch time, may be too crowded and too rushed. Make some choices based on where in the city you are. If you go to the Computer Museum or the Children's Museum, No Name will be a very short ride away; UOH and Legal about 10 minutes more by cab. Go to the Aquarium and UOH and Legal are very close by ... Have fun ... it's a great city -- I grew up there and still call it "home".
  12. JasonZ

    Charoset / Haroset

    Sorry I've gotten to this thread a little late, but Copeland Marks' book, Sephardic Cooking, has multiple charoset recipes and I've routinely made 3-4 of them, to remind us that wherever we are and wherever we may be from, the universal traditions follow us ... this year I made recipes from Greece, Georgia, Persia, and the Benei Yisroel of India. Will post them next week, when I can bring my copy in ... For next Passover ...
  13. Fascinating topic ... I had first seen this equipment mentioned on Shola's blog, Food Kitchen, and had gone to the manufacturer's website for more info. The idea is similar to putting a pot of water onto the floor of an Aga oven and then cooking in it, except here you have far more control over temperature (Agas have no temperature dials/controls -- they have multiple ovens at different temps, so you could to time). I guess we differ in that you seem to cook a fair amount of meat, while I'm going to a more veg and fish diet ... and I have no one who will complain if I cook SV in a "plastic bag" , although your wife does have a good point there ... This reminds me of the most wonderful salmon I ever had ... at Tetsuya's in Sydney ... cooked low temperature in an oil bath in the oven ... came out looking as if it hadn't been cooked (red rather than pink), but with the most wonderful flavor and not at all oily. The recipe is in his cookbook -- I'll look it up and edit this post to include it, but I seem to remember he was cooking at around 50 C. Wonder if something like this is worthwhile in a more vegetarian household -- have you tried fish or veg dishes in it?
  14. Hi Liushou: First, thanks for correcting my link ... I guess my skills have become rusty. ... and yes, the problem with the site is that in addition to Chinglish, it provides no recipe quantities or directions for those not familiar with the recipe or the final dish ... I understand there is a recipe on a website in mandarin, but the recipe I had seen had gone through an "automatic translator" and came out looking like it had gone through a food processor ... Does anyone know this style of duck? Regards, Jason Z
  15. Hi all -- fascinating discussion ... but I wonder if you can help identify another regional roast duck -- Jiangxi (Yuzhang) Duck. I have a very vague description and photo from a Chinese tour site Jiangxi duck "recipe" Can anyone get an authentic, detailed recipe for me? I've had no luck with Google ... or at other recipe sites ... Regards, JasonZ
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