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baconburner

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Posts posted by baconburner

    Did I Ruin My Le Creuset Pan?

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted

    Hi

    You are dealing with carbon which is inert. Most oven cleaners use a form of Sodium Hydroxide to soften it. Most of the new oven cleaners need heat to replace the more caustic chemicals. As your Creuset pan is cast iron use an oven cleaner and just follow the instructions. NEVER NEVER use caustic or Sodium Hydroxide products on Aluminum. It produces a gas called Hydrogen! Ta dah boom

    Cheers

    Poorsh

    I was reducing pomegranate juice in a la creuset pan and forgot about it!  Now it's black inside and I can't even chip it out.  Is there any way to save my pan?  I've  been soaking it, but it hasn't made a difference

    Benriner Japanese Mandoline

    in Western Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    Have had one of these for about four years for home use and would highly recommend it. Good sharp blade. Value for the money, easy to clean.

    Baconburner

    Hi everyone,

    Am busy crossing people off my xmas list and a fellow foodie has requested a mandoline. Have narrowed the choice down to the Benriner. Have any of you come across it anywhere aside from Ming Wo (their website says their standard size is $37.98 and their super is $69.98). I could swear I saw it somewhere cheaper, but cannot for the life of me remember where. Thanks in advance!

    Acetate

    in Western Canada: Dining

    Posted

    I don't think I've come across acetate sheets in any cooking supply store...does anyone know where I can find them for sure? (Gourmet Warehouse? Cookshop?)

    Hi Ling

    Used to work for Xerox and we used Acetate for slides for projection on board room presentations. Most of the office supply companies will still have them. Don't know if ther is a "food grade"

    What about Silpat? No stick mats?

    Sheers

    Malcolm

    Celebrating a Western Canadian Thanksgiving

    in Western Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    "Jello salad (orange, with carrots and pineapple)."

    I'll never forget the Thanksgiving that my Mum, who was in the kitchen getting the desserts ready, said plaintively "Oh, I forgot to serve the jellied salad!"

    A great cheer went up from her (grown) children. Luckily, she has a sense of humour and laughed and laughed.

    And jellied salad has not made an appearance since then

    Brenda

    I can't resist a good pun. Are you sure that wasn't from her groan children?

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    worst rum

    in Spirits & Cocktails

    Posted

    mine has to be Sailor jerry's. A shame because the packaging was lovely.

    Great for lighting barbeques though

    The Province of Newfoundland in Canada used to import a lot of rum from the Carribean in the good old wooden kegs. After the rum was sold or rebottled the locals soaked the barrels with a lttle water inside and produced a product that was so wonderful they called it "Screach".

    A local distiller here in Vancouver B.C. closed down and "my ex friend" bought some barrels to make planters. Before he did so he soaked them in the proscribed manner. That was 14 years ago and it still sits in the very, very back of my bar.

    Cheers

    Poorsh

    Ridiculously named Vancouver restaurants

    in Western Canada: Dining

    Posted

    To commemorate the passing of everybody's favourite oddly-named Vancouver eatery, I thought I would start the weird-names thread. What better way to honour our fallen ghetto-flavoured soup joint, and to find its successor as Restaurant-as-Punchline.

    So chime in with your favourite strange restaurant name. Might as well open it up to oddly-named dishes too.

    I'll start. Tony's Beef Noodle on Cambie around 41st. The only thing that would make it worse would be calling it Tony's Beefy Noodle. Maybe they could only afford so many characters for the sign.

    Hi

    This is not the name of a restaurant but I got a real chuckle out of a sign in front of a Nanaimo fried chicken place that proudly said

    "Try our Terminal location"

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    Distinctly Canadian

    in Ontario: Dining

    Posted

    Dave

    My Dad worked for the Rowntree Company for 52 years. (7 years with Macintosh which was bought out by Rowntree's). Smarties was one of their big sellers. It never came in a package like is shown. In Canada it was in a box about the size of a chocalate bar. Because I got them free, guess who was poopulair as they say in French?

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    The Basics

    in Cooking

    Posted

    How to make stock (decreasing Swanson's suckiness is a start, but I'd be inclined to think once you've got that far people often take the leap and make their own), how to make bread (I know - somewhat old school) and how to stir-fry vegetables.  Provided you're not on the Atkins, this will mean you can always feed yourself.

    My SO's smartalec response:  how to make breakfast, how to make lunch & how to make dinner.

    Hi

    I took a cooking course from Pol Martin in the 60's when I moved to my first apartment and one of the lessons that I remember is how to use a knife (Sharp counts). Stocks were also important. Turning a cheap cut of meat into a "Blue Plate Special" with sauce, spice and reduction was the goal. I would probably add what I feel is the most important talent, and that is the use of "SPICE". Maybe this should be a separate topic unless I have missed it

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    Nova Scotia/ PEI

    in Eastern Canada: Dining

    Posted

    wabi

    Haven't been there for a long time but if you are taking the Cabot trail don't miss the Alexander Graham Bell Museum in Baddeck Nova Scotia. He was involved in Aviation, Photography, de-salination, and many more things other than the telephone.

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    From Scratch vs. Semi-Homemade

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    Hi

    I used to have a high stress job and still loved to eat well as a batchelor. Took a cooking course because I didn't want to eat out of a can. I know this will probably turn some of the perfectionists off but my sister gave me a Seal-A-Meal for Christmas one year. On Saturdays I would make a Beef Bourginon, or a spagetti sauce, or chilli (from scratch) or any number of other re-heatable dinners. I would make ten to twelve portions at a time and then freeze them. I was able to then just reheat them in a pot of simmering water while I listened to the news or music. The key was planning ahead. On other occasions I would do the "from scratch dinners"

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    NY Style deli

    in Western Canada: Dining

    Posted

    Best spot is Kaplans deli.  One location on Oak and a new one open till 5 on West Pender, I believe. I'm from Montreal and it's the closet thing to Shwartz's that we have, although without Shwartz's great atmosphere.

    Hi

    Ex Montrealer (1981) and still salivate for a Schwartz's Smoked Meat. I found a place in Langley on 200th street just past the By-Pass on the left hand side. He brings in the meat from Montreal. After many tries at other places , i.e. people swearing that the smoked meat was from Montreal, something was missing. Sliced the meat and put it between two pieces of bread-UGH. If the meat is not steamed for two or three hours to re-hydrate it it won't taste the same.

    Baconburner

    The case of the missing crème fraîche

    in Eastern Canada: Dining

    Posted

    Lesley

    My wife and I (along with a large segment of the population) left Montreal in 1981 due to an offer in Vancouver. I agree with your supply and demand comment. There are many things we can't get in Vancouver but the Asian influence is outstanding and we are using spices and vegetables we never would have considered in Mtl. Some of the top Asian restaurants fly in product every night. If there is a demand (and a profit) some one will supply it. I can't say I am a fan of Marketing Boards and monopolies such as SAQ or the BCLDB.

    Cheers

    Baconburner

    Burger Toppings and Fixin's: The Topic

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    Hi All

    I know this is the antithisis of this post but had to relate about the worst hamburger that I have had. In the early 70's I went to England and craved a burger and spotted Whimpy*s also know as Popeyes burger eating companion. I was underwhelmed. After returning to Montreal about six months later there was a filler in the local paper. They had just passed a law in UK that in order to call it a hamburger it had to contain at least 6% meat! I had my answer!

    Cheers

    Baconburger

    THE BEST: Chinese Dumplings

    in New York: Dining

    Posted

    Hi slkinsey

    You have to schedule a trip to Vancouver, B.C. My wife used to work for a high level Pres who had lived in the far east and his opinion was that the food here excellent. Lots of competition keeps the quality up and prices level. Sun Sui Wah, Pink Pearl and Floata just to mention a few. This is a city where you don't say "do you want Chinese food? But What region or type!

    Cheers

    Baconburner.

    Wackiest thing you've ever eaten

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    I had the experience of somehow becoming involved with a "One Up" Dinner Banquet between Managers of a Chain of Hotels that operates in Tokoyo, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Manila, Kula Lumpar, Bangkok, Indonesia. Siri Lanka, China, Singapore, Fuji and various locations in India.

    This Banquet or Party was held at a neutral location at another well known hotel in Hong Kong since the availability, customs and access were the best in Asia.

    What I didn't know until I actually accepted was that this was a party that evolved by them having got together over drinks at a company meeting where they kept trying to out gross each other about what was eaten in their local communities on a regular basis.

    The Menu was set up with various courses with only several neutral items agreed upon such as Rice, Beer, Wine, Tea, Water and Congee. There were also Large Individual Bowls provided just in case.

    Courses were in several guises; Raw, Cooked, Fermented and Pickled or Smoked.

    Vegetables

    Insects and Spiders and Worms

    Fish and Seafood

    Birds and Eggs

    Reptiles of all types

    Rodents

    Wild Animals and Game

    Domestic Animals

    Combinations considered ethinicy acceptable.

    Medications

    I was awed as i'd be getting the opportunity of actually being able to see ediables that i'd never seem or imagined but hadn't considered that i'd be expected to actually eat the stuff. This was one occasion where I wished to become a Orthradox Jew or at least a Buddest, but two many of the hosts knew my eating ability.

    There were 60 people at the Banquet seated in 5 tables of 12 and all the dishes were served Chinese Style from Lazy Susans in the tables center, being potioned out by our grinning waiters. Seconds were available if requested.

    The only thing I approved of is that we didn't have to rate or comment on each dish provided, everything was served in good humor so we only tasred and ate what we wanted to try.

    What I wasn't aware of was that our hosts had previously arranged that all items were weighed before being served by the food checker in the kitchen and then again after being bussed from the tables.

    This was due to the fact that our Hosts had placed bets about how much of each dish would actually be eaten by the guests. The only table where the food wasn't being monitered was the Hosts since they felt it wouldn't be fair.

    Looking around the room I realized that the most popular item was actually the alcoholic beverages, especially since in Hong Kong everyone took taxis so no designated driver was required.

    My favorites were the Rice Worms, Civet Cat, Fermented Skate, Drunken Shrimp, Stinky Bean Curd, Hakka Beef Testicles, Pickled Baby Eel with Sea Slugs, Rice Birds, Monitor Lizard, Rice Field Rodents, Fried Soyu Cockaroaches and Beeatles, Fermented Fat Crabs in Pickled Vegetables.

    What I didn't eat and considered the grossest items were: Live Maggots in Fermented Fish Guts, A dish of Fish Eye Balls, Several of the Casseroles that looked interesting but really stunk, and quite a few dishes that I couldn't handle because they were much to spicy hot that even just taking a small taste swelled my lips.  I will admit that there were dishes that seemed repulsive to me that I wouldn't even consider that others seemed to relish.

    All in all it was a interesting experience that next time I will try to avoid if possable, since i'm no longer [i hope] getting paid to eat this stuff. I only wish that i'd kept notes as to what was served, but at the time I geared up apprehensively for the next course.

    It would have been easier if I actually knew what we were being served as there wasn't any written menu and the servers only spoke Cantonesse. Fortunately others at the table were more familiar about what we were served, and told me about those dishes they were familiar with but there were many that i'll never fiqure out what they were.

    Appearently the Medications were served to calm down our stomachs, but to me they looked and smelled the worst of all the items, even though others encoureged me to try them as they are good for you. HAH.

    Irwin :wacko:  :wub:

    You get my vote hands down

    Baconburner

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