jtcookie

It does seem contradictary to subscribe and diss, but I have that right, given a long association with the magazine I believe set many modern benchmarks for food journalism, food photography, and food awareness. I guess we apply the "tall poppy" syndrome to all facets of life now, however much revered they have been. I respect any mag that has prospered as long as Gourmet; they've been doing a lot of things very well for longer than any other food publication. That being said, I'm now feeling as dissapointed as I did when Wine Spectator became a quasi-food, quasi-cigar publication. John

Ditto the above regarding culinary content! I'm seriously doubting the future of a 20 year subscription. When we saw the cover the first question was "Why the hell are they serving boiled rice under a steak?" Ill conceived, poorly constructed, and sloppily executed, though not bad for a glossy travel brochure! Maybe the editor should stick to her desk, and leave food styling to others. John

The weather is awful, isn't it?! If you can bear to crank a saute pan up to high. slice your squid into strips, dry marinade of salt, garlic and fresh red chili, well minced/ground into a paste, for an hour, and give them the quickest flash with some evoo in your pan; presto! Although the thought of chili doesn't appeal so much in this weather, I find it has a cooling contrast gustatorily. Moisten your pasta with the reduced, creamed stock, throw on your squid, and finish with some cilantro sprigs. Clean tastes, and lots of pairings available for a refreshing white wine. John

Sorry Daddy, but if it's a Kiwi "clickety" you're suggesting here, it should be "CLUCK"!! "CLEEK" recognizes the Aussi shortened, clipped enunciation, whereas "cluck" is unmistakeably the lazy NZ drawl. Speaking of pies, I will be sampling the Kiwi Pie Company's product next week, and they had better have a real "dressed pie" available, and not all these wankerish nouveau-chic varietals. Dressed pies have been available in NZ for about 60 years, dragged into the NZ culinary lexicon by "cafe-de-curb" proprietors who couldn't figure what else to do with last night's left-overs. Slap a generous portion of mashed potato on top of day old meat (steak, steak and kidney, or mince) pie, slather on a heaping hill of last night's stewed green peas, and for that je ne sais quoi a couple of slices of canned beetroot on top. mmmmmmmmmmmm....dressed pie. John

That's a great looking combo Paul! For ready-for-the-pan crab cakes I go to the fish store in Ladner (Superior Fish Market & Clothing Co.), where they have the best 'grab'n go' cakes around, and sell so many of them you're pretty much assured of freshness. They have all the ingredients listed at the front of the case. Nothing much out of the ordinary, and lotsa crab meat! The plentiful supply of iced-packed cooked crab they have right now sure look larger than usual. I asked about the current supply situation - they are not impacted directly by the imminent lobster onslaught - and was told it was usual for this time of the year. Their prices are $7.99/lb for whole cooked, and $33.00/lb for cooked meat. As an aside to this out-of-the-way but nevertheless well worth a visit store; the second string to their bow is a clothing store, which is displyed at your back as you point out your pescatorial purchase to the staff! An unusual combination to be sure, but testament to the cleanliness of the fish side of the business in that the tee shirts our guests sometimes buy there never smell of fish! The family owns their own boat, so you're guaranteed wild fish. My all-time favourite fresh crab buying venue, which has only happened 3 times for us, and is somewhat hit-or-miss, is the back deck of the Duke Point to Tsawwassen ferry. Look for a flat-bed truck with one of those pale blue fish boxes on the back. He's got a box o' crab there, going to market, and is usually amenable to an on-deck transaction! John

We've had success with viewings that were supported by a fresh baked cookie aroma (hazelnuttiness permeating the kitchen), and a pot of coffee warming on the kitchen counter. Make sure you're ready to serve them though, because we had several requests one cold winter afternoon! John

I was tempted to mention the tiny (4 tables, 3 bar stools) little Japanese cafe at the south end of the McD's parking lot on the corner of Marine and Pemberton in the thread enquiring about good Japanese in North Van. I'll do so here! Don't know the name of the place, but their short menu was very honestly prepared and presented when I worked close by, and the young couple ekeing out a living there deserved support. My lunch time sometimes coincided with his salmon delivery, and it was an added delight to see chef-san carve up that night's fish on the spot! I hope they're still in business. John

Well, almost: during their periodic wars with the French, British claret importers had to find alternate sources of wine. So it was really already-existing British merchant firms that created the Douro wine industry. The fortified aspect of things came along fortuitously, at a later date. ← As I recall, the fortification was as a result of the wine having to endure the arduous sea voyage in barrel from Porto to the importers of London and Bristol. In their natural state the wine was not often successfully landed in England, given the agitation and soaking the barrels would experience. Adding grape liquor to the barrel strengthened and stabilized the wine, and thus ensured a more reliable import. It also gave us Port! John

That beef stew looks fabulous! When I was a newbie in the NZ hospitality industry, a few and some years gone, the deal with St Paddy's Day was colouring as much of whatever you sold a bright shamrock green! Draught beer, whiskey, mashed potatoes, meat pies, stuffed shoulder of hogget, orange roughy, pavlova, ice cream, were but a few to be 'dyed' for! Serious St Patrick's Day always had Irish Stew amongst some seafood and simple veg, and my alltime favourite cooked oyster dish; Oysters Kilpatrick, which was assembled on Bluff Strait oysters on the half shell. Well cooked bacon baton, butter and Worcestershire Sauce on top, thrown under a salamander for 30 secs. Manna of heaven! These were washed down with Black and Tans, or Black Velvets, with cheddar, oat cakes, and Jameson's on the side. This year I'm doing Irish Stew, with leeks and parsley dumplings. Looking forward to the 17th! John

Great work Allan!....and who's the gal in the background of photo #1?? Most of your technique applies well to the beloved Dungeness crab we feast on over here on the Wet Coast. The one difference to your method that I use is at Step #12. Instead of twisting off the legs and claws as close to the body as possible, I lay the crab down on the board, spreading my left hand over the legs and claw of the crab's left side. Holding it firmly on the board, I lift the left side of the top shell with my right hand, and quickly pull off the shell. This gives you unbroken cavities of flesh where the leg joints to the body, cutting down on some of the fragments, and enabling you to pick out larger intact white meat pieces from those cavities. I sometimes use this method pre-boil, if I'm going to be cooking the beasts in advance, as the mustard tends to stain some of the internal white meat. If its going to be straight from the pot to the plate, they're whole! Speaking of the "mustard" found under the top shell; the all-time best preparation for this is to mix some warm, in the shell, with some scotch, and drink same from the shell. Manna of heaven! and the only exception I make to what I mix my scotch with. We usually have "crab and corn" fests in summer, when our local corn is but a 1 hour drive, field to boiler, but lately I've been eating winter crab, which has been noticeably firmer-fleshed - almost 'crisp'. I put this down to colder water maybe slowing down metabolism, but think now that it may have something to do with the mating cycle. Any thoughts? And many thanks for the lovely tutorial. Cancerally John

The quinine-malaria connection has always been a good fall-back position for me! You never know when you're going to be in the tropics next, right?! I prefer Tanqueray for the classic G&T as well, but the tonic must be Schweppes, as most others are a punk, sweetened version. Sapphire gets my hands-down vote for a life-sustaining martini.

I grew up on canned sheep's tongue - delicious as a picnic meat - and lamb's brain in thick parsley sauce. Maybe a little too extreme to begin with for you! We used to cook a lot of calf's liver and kidney during my time in London restaurants. The kidney was preferred when it came fully surrounded by a layer of crisp suet fat. We trimmed the fat to an even 0.5 cm all around, and then roasted the kidney whole to a medium rare. Only then was it sliced and dressed with sauce. Creamy grain mustard sauce or fresh red currant jus were very popular (both sauces monteed with some of the dissolved suet, of course!) The calf's liver we trimmed, skinned, and sliced, and kept in a tub of milk until required. This seemed to dissipate the 'pissiness' of the liver, which only required 30 seconds saute au beurre noisette with fresh sage for a taste and texture treat!

When you do get a night off you may also like to sample the foie gras croquette (so called even though it's square!) at C restaurant. It pairs with the Octopus Bacon Wrapped Kagan Bay Scallop, and is warm and runny! Buon appetito!

As with Regalade, Chez Michel (chezmichelvancouver.com) is on the North Shore, one bridge north of Robson, and also worth the trip. The ambiance is white-cloth-bistro, and it's not as atmospheric or up-market as other restaurants mentioned above. Consistency has been the key here for a number of years, and good value menu selections. Their PF menu right now has some good ol' stand-bys; both rabbit and duck! and the Moules Frites (with the garlic cream sauce) is a great lunch-time choice. Bon appetit!

And so say all of us, Judith!! He was one of the original sushi chefs in Vancouver, and has developed a widespread following in the many (about 20 I think) years he's been plying his art. He put the fu...n in fusion, long before it was vogue, or even being described as such. Chanterelles with black cod, venison with enoki and mirin; the man's repertoire is endless, and he has a charm with his guests that doesn't seem at all jaded, given his longevity. His restaurant was one of the first we visited where one could say "feed me" with absolute confidence, and never be disappointed. There are few things in this world worth more than knowing your next visit is going to be as successful and enjoyable as your last, and to this end, Tojo is as golden as his roll!

I will never again snort the seasoning pack that comes with the Sicilian olives we buy; there's lots of good chili in that wee pack - multo, multo stupido! I will never again lean over the deep fryer to check on the progress of the (ulp!) unscored chestnuts. Kaaaaawhuuuuumph! The simultaneous explosion of most of said chestnuts emptied the fryer in a millisecond, leaving a startled, greasy, hysterically laughing sous chef with a little bit of cleaning up to do, and no chestnuts left for service that night.

Ditto, doc. This has been a fabulous thread to follow! I can't help but think that there may be a fourth factor to the wine sculpture (thanks jrufusj for such a sensory description) and that is the marketing aspect. *ducks for cover as the tastvins come raining in!* If one knows where one's wine is going to be sold, or who might be reviewing it, doesn't it stand to reason that one might also sculpt according to one's broker's/marketer's/ad-man's advice? If there are some imports going only to particular parts of the country, then one may be inclined to shape the wine specific to the perceived tastes of that part of the country? It's my impression that the continent's palate has been shaped by historical and cultural differences from E to W coast. The traditional European importers of the EC have done a splendid job for most of the last two centuries (Prohibitional blips notwithstanding) at ensuring a constant supply of fine European wines to their clientele. Wine came to the EC and there it was consumed, as it didn't travel at all well once landed. Trans-continental logistics improved post WWll, coinciding with the conversion of orchards to wineries in California, but was an expensive proposition for a long time. Boomer parents were drinking what was available on each coast, and as they established - in the case of the WC- or perpetuated - in the case of the EC - their family's drinking habits and tastes, a new generation of wine drinking palate may have developed. Generalistic? You bet! But there is the "go West young man", and the attendant lack of tradition personified in many aspects of WC life, as opposed to the more conventional attitude prevalent back E. *ducks once more!* We drank Old and New World wines over the New Year's break. 1988 Chateau Mouton Rothschild was impressive, and very fine, but short of spectacular, and the Caymus 1995 Cabernet was just down-right delicious. Long live both!

I'm a huge fan of Delongi, and swear I'll put a couple into the yet-to-be-redesigned home kitchen! The older dial control style (as opposed to push-button)seems to be very reliable, and the thermostat is very dependable. Legs o' lamb, whole chooks, kids snacks, and yes, even toast, comes out perfectly every time, though I echo the previous comment about colour; the top of our previously white model now resembles the toast that it produces!