JasonZ

At the West Chester Farmer's Market (Saturday, 9-1), there is a farm that sells yogurt and cheeses made from their own organic sheep's milk. Their farm is about 35 minutes west of West Chester. I've never asked if they would sell sheep's milk, but they would be a wonderful source.... If you like, come to the market ... otherwise, I'll be there this Saturday and can ask for you. What do you need to know -- quantity? price? ??

the Ming Tsai 'signature' ceramic knives are made by Kyocera; the chopping blocks are by Boos, I believe. Quality there is nothing to sneeze at. For sauces and condiments, unless you have an oriental market nearby, or are willing to cook from scratch, having a trusted name and an authentic product readily available could bring novice chinese chefs to the next level ... not a bad thing at all. Re the comparison to Tyler Florence, I view this as a different category. Ming is providing an ingredient and Target is a distribution network. The consumer still has to be involved in the final prep of the food, even if it's to microwave an entree (ideally, using his Master Recipes book, it's to get a leg up on a homemade meal) ... with Tyler Florence and Applebee's, the consumer places and order and is given a finished product -- no cooking, no involvement, no chance to learn ... Not at all the same.

Irradiation is a good solution, but remember, that only kills current contaminating bacteria. Post-irradiation, food can be recontaminated, if not properly packaged (sealed) and handled.

Pat, Applebee's theme is a family-style, sit down, "southern" home cooking ... similar menu to TGI Friday's, Ruby Tuesday, perhaps Chili's. It's 1-2 steps above McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, but it's not fine dining. It benefits from (and suffers from) the advantages of a chain: relatively consistent ingredient quality and standardization of menu and food prep. I know it because if I couldn't get my kids (now 14 and 16) to agree on a common cuisine (Chinese, Italian, Indian) and we had to have a meal, Applebee's gave me the option of taking them somewhere where they could choose something they'd eat and I could be reasonably sure it was a level above "fast food". At one point, my daughter was vegetarian while my son was a carnivore ... there were few compromize restaurants. Re Tyler Florence, no he's not the world's greatest chef, and he does focus on the part of the food world that is just starting out or isn't very sophisticated as yet ... and if he can raise the consciousness of the American food consumer AND put some better food (either more sophisticated, or healthier, or both!) onto the Applebee's menu, then more power to him .... Applebee's, like most chains, has an executive chef responsible for their menu, and whoever that person is, was smart enough to recognize he/she could use some star power and (as in "Field of Dreams"), "if you build it [good food], they will come ..."

As has been said in another thread, "enough is enough". If we have some insight to add that hasn't been expressed before, great. Otherwise, we know that some people love thier TVFN hosts (irrationally) and some people hate these same people (irrationally). To the extent that these hosts get people to cook or to enjoy food who otherwise would not have done either, great. To the extent that these hosts (or newspaper reviewers) don't enlighten their audiences at all ... they should stop wasting their and our time ... I don't have the specific newspaper reviewers article, but it sounds like he pretty much diss'ed everone -- was there anyone he said anything positive about?

Actually, I had a friend in Ohio who was a member of a gourmet club ... and decided to get a BATF Alcohol importation license to handle the many requests for cases of wine from club members. It's not a bad process and it eliminates one of the issues raised in the Customs notice. The IRS exice fees won't be much, since by the time you're done dividing this among 2-3 people, you'll be under the personal limits. You may have to form a club or association in order to make this process transparent. There are brokers who, for a fee, will go to the airport, pay all the fees, pick up the material, and deliver it to you. Alternatively, if you have a day, you can do it yourself and just pay the parking ... The last time I came back from Japan, with a little more sake than regs permitted (4 bottles over), the customs fee was 10% of the purchase price. There was no IRS excise.

I watched her for 2 years while living in the UK ... and can understand many of the comments made by others here ... Yes, her accent and use of the English language is mesmerizing (she studied Medieval and Modern Languages from Oxford), although I think Tamasin Day-Lewis is more eloquent (she is the Saturday food column in the Daily Telegraph, the sister of Daniel Day-Lewis and daughter of the former Poet Laureate of England -- she spontaneously quotes verse from memory, as she cooks -- and has a degree in English Literature from Oxford, is a cookbook author, TV producer and director [bBC; ITV]). Learn a bit about Nigella's background and she's even more amazing ... her first husband (who died of throat cancer) suggested she do a cookbook, which was followed by her first TV series. She became Deputy Literary Editory of the Sunday Times, and now contributes to the Food section of that paper. She does not have formal cooking credentials and her husband's cookbook suggestion ("How to Eat") was the first thing she had ever done professionally in cooking. And, yes, Nigella has a way with food that is absolutely sensuous (sometimes, watching her eat should be "R" rated!!) ... and absolutely homey and informal, in the midnight snack visits ... She is far more approachable than Giarda DeLaurentis (who DOES have academic culinary training) and Rachel Ray doesn't even get out of the starting blocks in these comparisons. I'm afraid that, other than Ming Tsai (who has a degree from Yale as well as a culinary degree from the Cordon Bleu), no American chef can hold a candle in terms of eloquence and viewability to Nigella or Tamasin ...

Ah Leung, I'm not familiar with "rice cooked in clay pots" ... can you provide a recipe? I assume the clay pot (sand pot?) is used to cook the rice slowly in a braising liquid -- would this be water or some form of master sauce? The issue, I would guess, is how to prevent slow cooked rice in liquid from turning into a form of congee ... Regards, JasonZ

Already a treat for the eyes ... I can only imagine the treat for nose and taste buds!! Will have to see if surf clams are available on the East Coast ... Regards,

The "megachefs" (W Puck, E Lagasse, B Flay) have learned that they can train an executive chef to turn out food that tastes just like theirs, so they can have restaurants in 10 states ... not so different from hotel chain restaurants or cruise lines .. or McDonalds/BK for standardization ... or now Applebees (I don't think Tyler Florence will be in all x,000 of their restaurants!!). If you really expect to get THE chef cooking in the namesake restaurant (eg, Batali at Babbo), call ahead and make sure he/she won't be at a convention, on a TV talk show, or on vacation that evening. If he/she has restaurants in multiple cities, assume he won't be in the kitchen -- he's graduated to running a global business, not a restaurant, and traded his apron for a business suit ...

There has been a whole thread that describes Studio Kitchen and Shola's leaving ... but no updates to describe his whereabouts, plans to return (we all fervently hope!!) ... or plans generally!! I'd even be happy to know when he's visiting PHL, so I can shake hands with this giant of PHL cuisine ...

I haven't seen this particular program, but I couldn't agree more that An Leung's simple recipes, beautifully photographed and described, make up some of the best instruction in Chinese cuisine that I've seen or received ... and that brings up an interesting idea ... The Italian section of eGullet has a "The Cuisine of ..." series that covers a different region of Italy each month. This month (just beginning) it is Umbria. Last month it was Campania, and the month before Sicily. Each month begins with a list of recognized classical cookbooks for the region (or websites), followed by descriptions and photos of food cooked from the region. There is active participation from eGulleteers who live in the region, so you may get local variations, a sense of the markets, the geography ... a wonderful, intense exposure to the country and the cuisine. Italy has been doing this for almost 2 years. ... would anyone be interested in doing this for Chinese cuisine? I'm sure we could learn and teach each other a great deal ... and, as with Italy, as we progress, more people will join and more knowledge will flow ... What are your thoughts?

Fascinating thread ... I am a fan of Copeland Marks, who showed in his many books that a country's cuisine could show you what its history was, what its geography and agriculture were like, who it traded with (and what trade routes they used), who had conquered it, who it had conquered, what ethnic groups were present, and how it changed over time ... Certainly, Americans (other than in Hawaii) knew very little about Japanese cuisine prior to 1950, compared to today. Personally, I have been to Japan almost 40 times in 15 years (lots of business trips LOL), and have been exposed to traditional cuisine as well as Japanese takes on other cuisines (Chinese, American -- steak), but I still view myself as a novice when it comes to truly understanding the underlying structure and logic of the cuisine. eGullet has been a wonderful source of information, but I'm sure there are more sites ... and more we could do if we wanted to learn. As an example, if you go to the eGullet section on Italy and Italian cuisine, there has been a marvelous experience going on for at least 2 years ... each month, a small group takes a different region of the country and studies its food ... they provide a list of recognized classic cookbooks for the region, then they describe what they are cooking ... and provide photos. What ensues is a discussion of subtle differences in recipes (perhaps based on the cookbook author, perhaps based on a family or local variation), some history of the region, and participation by eGullet members who live in the region ... each month is an incredible education in a different aspect. The most recent links would be for Umbria (October, just started), Campania (the food of Naples) -- September, and Sicily -- August. Perhaps we could do the same for Japan ... and learn from each other ... Is anyone interested?

Having lived in the UK for two years and traveled to Canada frequently (and Australia on occasion), the style of the equivalent of TVFN in each country (and BBC "Saturday Morning in the Kitchen") is quite different, both in the cuisine and in the style of presentation. There has been only minor cross-over onto US TVFN: what comes to mind is Iron Chef (Japan), Two Fat Ladies (UK) and, this season, Nigella Lawson ... otherwise, it's US hosts and US styles ... which (conveniently) matches to the marketing of host books, cookware, etc. ... US viewers have never seen Giorgio Locatelli, Tamasin Day-Lewis, Jancis Robinson, Antonio Carluccio, just to name a few ...

Right on, Mimi ... agree fully! I spoke to Ming Tsai about a year ago and he is going in the same direction ... wanting more control over his programming, rather than letting TVFN mold it. Especially with its current direction, TV Food Network is becoming more "TV" and less "Food" (unfortunately not "more taste ... less filling") ... there's a niche for someone (PBS?) to fill ...

You'll have to head north instead of south, but this should help your Irish friend: Brian Duffy's Shanackie Pub and Restaurant in Ambler has authentic Irish traditional as well as nouvelle Irish cuisine and there's live Irish music most nights of the week ... and the pub is fully stocked with Irish beers, whiskeys, etc. Located in Ambler, just off the PA Turnpike. You'd be best off heading up 95 North or 1 North to 476, then 476 N, then east on the turnpike to the exit for Route 309. Brian is very friendly, usally in the kitchen (he also does a food segment for CBS locally and The Today Show 1-2 times per month; and has two shows on TVFN), authentically Irish and loves to come out and say hello (just let the maitre d' know when you come in). Brian's website site is BRIAN's web site Directions, menu, and special events are on the Shanackie web site HERE Also, do you know about Irish Philadelphia? IRISH PHILA

So, to summarize the questions here: Scientifically, is there sufficient information to justify a ban? Commercially: (a) Is there a free market mechanism that could handle this, e.g., advertising "transfat free cooking" (a la Chinese restaurants going "MSG free", without the need for any governmental interference)? (b) How would a ban be enforced and regulated -- is this yet another governmental bureaucracy in the making? Governmentally: (a) is it clear what is being banned (artificial trans-fats only; use in ALL products or only in restaurants directly serving the NYC public)? (b) is it clear what the alternative to transfats are and what their health effects are -- are we really not having a significant effect on long-term health? (b) does the government have the right to regulate the right of informed citizens to make personal decisions re their own lives (given that the prior "education and choice" program showed that people generally didn't change their eating habits) -- in this case, transfats don't affect others (unlike second hand smoke), and the "added health care burden on the rest of us" is true for almost everything (we all pay for diabetics' food choices; our national lack of exercise; our huge portions of food [whether cooked healthy or not], and we saw the disastrous effects of the government's attempt to regulate alcohol consumption, etc.)? Personally, I think the issues isn't transfats, but our excess of all foods, whether "good" for us or not. We can certainly do without transfats, but if we replace them with excess butter, oil, etc., there will be no long term change in public health. I don't think this is a legitimate area for governmental regulation -- other than providing a safe, quality food supply, the government should not be in the business of telling people what they may or may not eat. Education is the business of universities, and foundations with that specific interest. People need to understand that "fast food" (in the modern Western sense) should be a rare need, with the "usual" being good food, well prepared (whether at home or in a restaurant). Fast food as a regular diet -- go see "Supersize me" and realize that that is fully in accordance with the government regulations on food and nutrition (regulations, not recommdations) -- perhaps NYC should ban the consumption of more than 4 "fast food" meals per week, that would have a more noticeable and beneficial effect on public health.

this isn't about whether we like or consume foie gras or not ... and it's not about technology that becomes obsolete on its own (the buggy whip) ... it's about how far a government can go in limiting what people (both in and out of their jurisdiction) can choose to eat. This week, foie gras; next week, tofu ("it's Unamerican") ... and eventually, barbecue ("doesn't wood smoke generate carcinogens in the meat?") ... I'm not going to force foie gras down anyone's throat (sorry for that choice of words ... ). The last time the government tried to decide such a private matter was the failed experiment of Prohibition. People should make these decisions individually and not collectively ... and certainly not for a unique national resource.

We'll disguise it ... tell the "duck squad" it's uncooked McDonald's burgers ... they won't taste it, so they'll never know ...

Reasonable thought ... when we have the time for a long-term solution. But for now, we need the short-term goal of preventing this from destroying D'Artagnan, so we can work on long-term solutions. It IS time to stand up and be counted ... let the legislature know how short-sighted this is ... and, if necessary, to help D'Artagnan move the foie gras operation to another, more progressive state. Do I remember correctly that the eGullet website has the ability to conduct polls of its members? Should we see what our constituency (and we can separately measure NJ, Tri-state, US, and global) thinks?

Andrew, you're right ... as usual. However, Holly, it looks like assemblyman Panter has already shown that he's not just kidding around ... and there are non-freshman politicians involved. An earlier bill was introduced June 01, 2006: A3230, which "Prohibits forcible feeding of ducks, geese, and other poultry for the production of Foie Gras; directs State Board of Agriculture and Dept. of Agriculture to establish standards for humane feeding and raising of poultry for such purposes." Sponsor was Joan M Voss (primary), with Thomas Giblin and Michael Panter as co-sponsors. Bill was referred to the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. The link to the bill text is A3230, pdf text As Tony Bourdain indicated, the new bill would add SALE to the list of prohibited activities. If you want to write to your assemblyman/woman ... or to the relevant people involved in this, the names, addresses are: Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee: Fisher, Douglas H. - Chair Albano, Nelson T. - Vice-Chair Conaway, Herb Dancer, Ronald S. Karrow, Marcia A. Committee Aides (often very useful to alert you on when a bill will be coming up for discussion in committee and how much support it has -- BTW, aides to individual assemblymen are often quite influential, so a phone call there can be better than any letter): Democratic Aide: Elizabeth Stone (609) 292-7065 Republican Aide: Christopher Hughes (609) 292-5339 OLS Aides: Lucinda Tiajoloff (609) 292-7676 Bill Sponsors (listed above): Voss, Joan M (primary) Giblin, Thomas (co-sponsor) Panter, Michael (co-sponsor) Form of address is "The Honorable xxxxx" and salutation is "Dear Assemblyman/Assemblywoman" The address is: The Honorable xxxxx New Jersey Senate State House P.O. Box 099 Trenton, NJ 08625-0099 or The Honorable xxxxx New Jersey General Assembly State House P.O. Box 098 Trenton, NJ 08625-0098 If you want to contact your own representatives, you can find them here: NJ Legislative Website, along with an electronic link to their email ... or use the address above to send regular mail. As Andrew noted, a real letter is given much more weight by legislators (and their staff), since it means someone really has to sit down and write it ....

Holly, you're definitely correct that this is a great example of biased questions leading to the result that the originating organization wanted in the first place. ... and you may be right that this will blow over -- but can the employees of D'Artagnan take that chance? And can we, as people serious about food and about the righ of individuals to make their own culinary choices, take that chance as well? I very rarely eat foie gras ... and bordain is right -- this isn't about perceived cruelty. It's about whether a government: (a) can choose to effectively kill a small business that provides essential services to many people outside the scope of authority of that government; and (b) can limit freedom of choice for a significant population in an area that represents no danger to anyone. I'd just as soon bury the NJ assembly with emails saying "vote no", so they understand that people are watching them ... and thus ensure this motion quickly dies and the assemblyman goes back to anonymity. Let me see if I can find a website allowing us to send opinions to the NJ assembly.

This thread ends in 2004 ... was there ever an event or should we think about re-igniting this thread in 2006? Even if you did RibRunRedux in 2004, it's been 2 years ... BTW, for a pitmaster, I'd like to vote for Pig Daddy's BBQ in Drexel Hills. Website, menu is HERE Just a few miles up the road from Overbrook Station, and does wonderful "dinosaur" beef ribs (weekends only). During the week there's the usual chicken, brisket, pulled pork, both as platters and sandwiches. Good sides. Chef/owner was active and successful on the competition circuit, but now spends time training national competition judges ... in itself, a recommendation. It's purely take-out and have a great Texas-style hot sauce as well as regular ... JasonZ

Tough questions ... I have almost 400 cookbooks, most of them autographed to me by the chef/author, many of them signed when eating in the chef's restaurant (the rest signed at Philadlephia's Book and Cook Festival, where the chefs will do demonstrations and sign afterwards). For me, they bring back memories of special dinners, events, friends ... whether I cook from them or not. It's often fun to read the recipe of the meal we had ... and see whether we were right in our guesses of ingredients and techniques. Tetsuya, Charlie Trotter, Vongerichten are my favorite memory books. For a travelogue (where I hope to go next) -- Fiona Dunlop's Land of Plenty (Sichuan) and Fred Plotkin's La Terra Fortunata (Friuli Venezia-Giulia) [interesting similarity in names!!]. I've never cooked all the way through a book, although I have cooked more than 5-6 recipes from many of them, as I've gone through my French, Indian, Thai, Vietnamese phases ... I'm always in Chinese and Italian modes ... and with my son now a teenager, often into BBQ mode. Favorites: Nina Simonds, especially her more recent health focused books (A Spoonful of Ginger; Spices for Life) Lidia Bastianich, Lidia's Table, Lidia's Family Table Ming Tsai, especially Blue Ginger, Master Recipes My latest find: Giorio Locatelli, Made in Italy ... got it two days ago, have made two recipes so far. As beautiful to cook from as it is to look at ...

I used to live in the UK, so I had an account with amazon.co.uk, ordered it, and had it shipped to the US. Arrived less than a week after I placed my order. Spectacular photos (wonderful work, danlepard!!), but more than that, the text itself is beautifully typeset and the photos are reproduced exquisitely. It reminds me of some of the photographic art texts I have that are printed in Singapore on heavy, acid free, blazing white stock. Fourth Estate (London) is to be congratulated -- it is as much an art book as a cook book. This could easily sit on a coffee table in one of the McMansion's living rooms, next to any art classic. Haven't had time to make any of the recipes, but just reading them brings tears to your eyes ... and saliva to your taste buds!