baconburner

Hi I am getting a large shipment of oysters which we will enjoy in various fresh forms. This is probably a naive question. What can you do to save them for later use? Thanks Malcolm

I grew up in Montreal and salivate for the Cannelloni that I got from Paesano on Cote des Neiges. If anybody has an equivalent recipe I be extremely grateful. Thanks Malcolm

Many times when I look at a recipe I am lacking an ingredient. I did a search and didn't find this topic but I think it is buried somewhere. What did you lack and what did you substitute? Cheers Malcolm

Don't forget about the olive/pickle pluckers. Push the button on the top and four retractable prongs came out to snare the unsuspecting prey. Cheers poorsh

Hi I used to be in the chemical business. Soaps or detergents had to have bubbles or people thought it wasn't working! The opposite was true. Wonderful smells masked the delightful smell of grease. It is called marketing. Cheers

I don't want to get into the Smoked meat vs. pastrami debate. Growing up in Montreal the smoked meat always came out of a steam table. At first I thought this was just to warm the meat. I (much later) found out that the real reason was to re-hydrate the meat after the spicing and smoking. Steaming is the answer but depending on the size of the brisket it can take a couple of hours. Cheers Baconburner

Thanks for your input we will give it a try. quote=baconburner,Jul 2 2007, 04:49 PM]

Hi We are expecting Mother and Daughter from Japan as Guests. What is you favourite restaurant for authenticity on the North Shore? Any special dish recommendations? Thanks Baconburner

Keith Johnstone,s BBQ & Parts at 165 Pemberton in North Van has Hardwood Lump Charcoal-20 pounds for $26.00. 604-985-0234 web www.johnstones.com I think they opened a new place in Coquitllam. Cheers Malcolm [

One item we use a lot is an $11.00 CDN pepper/spice grinder we got from Ikea. It has an adjustable grind and one sweet advantage. The grinder is on the top so you have to invert it to use it. No more traces of pepper etc on the table when you put it down. The mechanism is ceramic so it works very well. Cheers

The main difference is in the metals used in knives between the Japanese and Western ones. There is a scale of hardness called the Rockwell scale which is a measure of how hard a metal is. Most Western ones are between 46-48 on the Rockwell scale. Japanese (good ones) are between 62-64 at which point the metal can become brittle. This is a logarithmic scale so a small increase in the number is quite large. This is sometimes why when you look closely at a Japanese knife you will see two different colours. Quite often a softer steel is folded over the core. to absorb the impact. My understanding of sharpening is that you have to have something harder than the object you are sharpening to make it effective. Waterstones meet that criteria and bear less on a single point. I may be all wet but that what I am led to believe. Cheers

Endy After seeing the outstanding performance of Scott Jaeger at Bocuse D'Or I would have to put the Pear Tree restaurant on my list Cheers Baconburner

You don't say what type of "Deli". For Italian Cioffi's at 4156 E. Hastings German/Scandanavian Jolly Foods on the north shore. Eat in or take out? Grotto di Formaggio on Victoria Drive. Great Pannini and inexpensive as well as other goodies. Cheers Poorsh

Hi Fat Guy There is a phenomenem that is happening in Chinese marketing. It is called second shift. I design a product and realize that the only way I can sell it at a certain price point is to have it made in China. I need 20,000 widgets. The Factory can produce 50,000. Minimal polution controls, price is right. I now have the specifications for the product. I produce for the original company who ordered it. Now I run a second line that I sell under a different name that undercuts my other product. Ethics? Cheers baconburner

Bekki There was an article about a lady on Vancouver Island who contracted to build her own house. She was Vertically Challenged and came up with a solution I have never seen anywhere else. She had her kitchen cabinets made with slide out boards between the lower drawers so she could use them as steps to access the upper cabinets. She also had a section of the counter top made to the height of her forearm at a 90 degree angle to her upper arm. Much more confortable for chopping and working. Just a few ideas. Cheers Baconburner alias Malcolm

Eatrustic Unfortunately in Vancouver we have one paper masquerading as two under the same mismanagment. Until we get competition mediocracy will prevail. There are a lot of Advertorials. Look at the Real Estate and Automotive Travel & Leisure Sections and try to get objective information. The food to a non pro sometimes has some good recipes but I rely more and more on the web Cheers Baconburner [ quote=eatrustic,Oct 4 2006, 11:38 PM] I picked up todays Sun and as usual glanced over the sorry excuse we have for a food section. I wasn't going to bother saying anything but after looking at the lead picture for the article "Catch of The Holiday" about substituting salmon or trout for turkey I was stunned at how awful the picture was. They used it to illustrate the fact that "breaking with tradition can be a tasty experience". It truly is one of the worst, lazy, sorry excuses for food styling photography I have ever seen. Just a dry, dead trout on top of some dry salad greens with lemon wedges. And this should make anyone want to skip the Turkey? The larger question is why a segment of the population that obviously spends money on all things food should be ignored and subjected to such crap on a weekly basis. The funny and truly ironic thing is that in the same paper the Vancouver Sun had the nerve to put a self promoting insert that trumpeted "Content is Crucial" with such comments as "It's not the wine glass that is important. It's what fills it that matters. The same can be said of the Vancouver Sun." That is a direct quote and is repeated three more times with different examples. They even have the nerve to talk about "Compelling photograpy" and "Insightful reporting". OK I guess I'm flogging a dead horse here but much smaller cities have way better food coverage in their papers and the plethora of food bloggers and food tabloids around here show that there is no shortage of interesting stuff to write about. The bottom line is money and I can't believe that our demographic is not worthy of better treatment. Perhaps if they combined Gismondis wine page with Mia's restaurant stuff it might be something worth buying every week. ←

Tommy I had this discussion with a Sommelier and got the nose in the air treatment. Room temperature in the old Castles was probably closer to 58-65 F . The cellars probably colder. We were budget challenged ski patrollers and the $5.00 top of the house wine that we could afford tasted better slightly cooled. Cheers Baconburner ill Riiight...I guess whenever a novice thinks they know better than a professional... ← yeah, a server knows more about food or my tastes than i do. that reminds me of a time that i asked for a bucket of ice to cool down a bottle of red. the server looked down her nose at me and said "that's red wine. it's not supposed to be cold." ←

Hi I learned to make a garlic bread spread as follows. One pound of butter just soft enough to mix. Chopped garlic buds to your taste chopped parsley and juice of one lemon. Divide into four and roll into waxed paper. I freeze them and when ready to use soften and spread on french bread and then to the broiler watched carefully. I also use them on steaks by slicing off about a half an inch which I put on the steak just after i have flipped it. It combines with the juices and make a great garlic sauce. Cheers Poorsh It has been cold and rainy lately and I have been craving soups, stews, braised dishes, etc and what better to accompany these than a nice hunk of warm garlic bread. Just how hard can garlic bread be?? but when I just try and toss it together it just doesn't turn out right. I think part of the problem is I am not really sure what I am looking for, I'll just know it when I find it. How does everyone make theirs?? ←

Visited a neighbour two weeks ago and he produced a bottle of 12 year old vintage rum. I will not go into my last experience with rum after I got off my ship in the Navy. It was a vintage bottle of Ap*pleton Estates served over ice. Velvet, almost like a good sipping brandy. I have changed my mind. Cheers Poorsh

They had a big Architects perspective drawing at Eat Vancouver. Same Bosa with Parking!! Cheers Poorsh

Thanks for your replies. We did a trip down the Coast 6 years ago on the way to Arizona. Our stops were hit or miss. As this is a special trip the info is muchly appreciated. Malcolm

My wife and I are celebrating our 30th Anniversary and at the same time travelling to San Francisco from Vancouver for the wedding of our nephew and his bride to be on the 28th of October. We are in no rush as we travel down, four to five days is probably what it will take. Any suggestions from you re "Don"t Miss" to accommodations that are not Motel 6 would be appreciated. Budget is not in the French Laundry Catergory. The one area is that my wife and garlic are mutually exclusive. (Unfortunately) Any tips or experiences would be appreciated. Thanks Malcolm

Hi Zuke Have you tried Screaing Mimi's in Lonsdale Quay? Crab Louis, seafood chowders, oysters and a barrage of sandwiches made to order, and you get change from $5.00. Cheers Baconburner

Hi Got the zyliss vegetable peeler for under $10 dollars. It has a serated edge that can peel tomatoes and the thin skin off of onions. Only the lead dogs view changes BB

Four North Shore denizens who are seldom lured out at night, bravely crossed the bridge to the Hamilton Street Grill. We were welcomed at the door by Neil where I explained a little problem. My wife and garlic are mutually exclusive. She ordered the blackened snapper minus the sauces and the onion tart starter. We had the mussel soup and the Hanger steak which was excellent. A lovely bottle of Quails Gate helped. I unfortunately didn't catch our waiters name but between him and Neil our group was made to feel special. We will be crossing the bridge again. Thanks Neil and? Baconburner alias Malcolm Barnes