phaelon56

That's what I get for reading out of context and not clicking on the link - this place sounds like a winner.

Peeling eggs: roll them under your on a hard surface such as a counter, applying a bit of downward pressure. Works like a charm for me. The double boiler: even though I have replaced my old Revereware with some shiny new Cuisinart papots and pans, I may keep a sauce pan and try to find the insert they used to make (my mom has one and Mayhaw Man is trying to find one but apparently it's no longer made). It's a shallow stainless steel mixing bowl but the top fans out in two oblong ears, one on each side, allowing it to nestle into and sit in the top of the sauce pan.

I don't know.... when I read adjectives such as "featherweight", "see-through" and "redolent" all in the same paragraph describing a pizza.... I get a bit nervous. Then again.... if it has the name pizza assigned to it, this makes it fair game for the survey, correct?

It's been available for quite some time here in the Northeastern US. Apart from Fresca and perhaps a few of the diet root beers (A&W in particular), Diet DR. Pepper is one of the very few diet sodas that I find very tolerable. There's something about the mix of flavors that seems to neutralize the aftertaste so typical of artificial sweeteners. They were stocking it for awhile on one of the airlines I used to fly on (either American or Continental, can't recall which). I was bummed when they dropped it from their drink menu.

Either someone beat you to it or you've been very naughty.... publishing elsewhere under a psuedonym and not letting us in on the details (Lisa... couldn't you come up with a better alias than "Doc Love"?). Not to mention that I already have dibs on the name. I give you..... The System But who needs such trickery like that when food can be the fuel that drives the engine of seduction (did you really think I did all that blog work just because I like to cook and eat well?)

Their fish rocks - it really is good. I got some gigundo shrimp there two New Year's ago that were just about the best shrimp I've ever had and most likely the largest. Good deal at $11 per pound.

This.... is a plan that really works. It may be a cliche but "keep it simple" has been saving my butt for awhile now....

We're also in disbelief that it took you so long to get here.... we've been waiting. I'm a library kinda guy and having moved so many times over the years, tend not to accumulate books unless they're reference books that I'll look at repeatedly (art books, photography and cookbooks). Having gotten really enthused about and active with cooking only in the past few years, I have only a handful - not including pamphlets, brochures and clippings my "library" is comprised of exactly 8 books. When it comes to coffee varieties I think I've got y'all beat - about two dozen types of green beans in my stash at present and several more on their way. Donald Trump's got nothin' on that Pepin guy - except the hair and the supermodel girlfriend. But that doesn't count for much in my book - I'll guess that The Donald™ can't cook to save his life.

One of our local restaurant supply houses is liquidating their stock. The cheapo tongs are 25 cents per pair and the good ones are about 50 cents. Needless to say... I got a few extra pair!

I never salt the water when boiling potatoes but always do when cooking pasta. My water is definitely not salty like the sea but the small amount of salt I do use seems to help the flavor of the pasta. The exception of course, is a local summertime favorite in this area (central NY), known as salt potatoes. Dissolve one pound of salt into a quantity of water large enough to boil four pounds of small new potatoes (1" to 2.25" diameter). Boil the potatoes and serve with drawn butter for dipping. They are ridiculously salty but addictive in an odd way. I do happen to agree with you that salt is often overused but even very small amounts, too small to detect, have a way of bringing out the flavors in other foods or helping a disparate collection of flavors meld together.

I've seen a technique mentioned for fried green tomatoes that might be beneficial for seared scallops - cutious to know if anyone else here has tried this. After the initial dredging of flour (assuming the scallps are in fact being dredged in flour), they are place in the freezer for five minutes or so. They are then redredged or dusted with flour again immediately before searing. I'm clueless as to what the chemistry is or whether there's a good rationale. In theory, the cold is supposed to help absorb the initial layer of flour and allows the second one to stick more easily but not absorb moisture from the item to be cooked. I did try this once - it seemed to help but I had too many scallops in hte saute pan relative to the amount of available surface area. They browned but not as nicely as I thought they should.

I'm still working on what else to live for.... the list is so bountiful that I have trouble narrowing it down to just a few. What's so cool about it this that the holes are just the right size for ginger. Furthermore.... my big grater has two sizes of holes: one too small for ginger and one too large. This one is just right plus.... chicks dig it they always comment on how "cute" it is. I think I got this at Lechter's before they went under but that's just a guess.

I don't routinely order either of those dishes but have tried them when others did and shared. The yellow curry at Pam's really sucked relative to the yellow curry I've tried in two other places. My entree was some sort of "jungle curry" if I recall correctly. It' was a sort of peasant dish that is native to a highlands region of Thailand. It was okay but not great. Again.... I admit that I may just have been there on an off night but that makes two visits for me, neither of which was overly impressive.

Here's a tip (but you probably already knew this) - the produce market right across the parking lot from the Crow's nest, just north of it - has an really good fresh fish counter. The quality seems to very consistent and they have some of the best prices in the area. I have a friend who lived in the area - his wife is Brazilian and accustomed to cooking fish four or five times per week. She swore by this place and would not buy her fish anywhere else when they lived in Lodi.

Mine is a tiny little grater. It's the four sided type that looks a bit like a steep truncated pyramid - identical to a regular full sized four sided grater but each side is just a bit wider than your thumb and it's about 2" in height. The holes are exactly the right size for grating small amounts of hard cheese to throw onto a dish and also perfect for grating ginger. What I really like is the fact that it's so easy to clean - a quick rinse and spray and it's ready to go back in the drawer.

Must the sieve used in this process be made of silk? Would a very fine stainless steel sieve achieve comparable results?

This one is really weird in concept and appearance yet it tastes really good. I can NOT get with the notion of serving a dollop of mayo on it as was recommended but the rest of it actually works. My sort-of-ex (we were never married and have been apart for 20 years but I have to call her something) makes this every holiday season and refers to it as holiday jello. I pack lemon Jello 1 pack lime Jello Can of crushed pinaeapple Green olives Walnuts Make the jello, pour in the can of drained crushed pineapple, some chopped walnuts and chopped green olives (with pimento's of you like!) and chill. To me the combination of textures, colors and flavors seems a bit odd but it actually works.

Guy - thanks so much for clarifying that point. I think the process, now that I understand which phenomenon you refer to, has long since been well established in the U.S.. It's indeed regrettable to see it being foisted on the rest of the world as globalization of consumer products including food continues its relentless march. That said, there's evidence that at least in some segments of the population here in the US, admittedly mostly among better educated and more affluent consumers, a reverse trend is occurring. In the area where I'm presently living (central NY state), there are some excellent artisan bakeries now thriving and also a few restaurants who structure their menus around seasonally available local products whenever possible. We're also fortunate enough to have one major grocery chain (Wegman's), that has raised the bar on quality and selection of produce, meat and fish, a phenomenon that woudn't have previouslsy had enough consumer support to be successful in this region, even as recently as ten years ago. many peopel are eating better at home and elsewhere by choice, with processed and commercially prepared products becoming a smaller and smaller portion of their diets. I'm not naive enough to think that such folks are in a majority but the trend is encouraging and people who choose to shop and eat this way are no longer perceived as quirky, out of touch or inappropriately mired in tradition. I'm well versed in issues related to drug and acohol recovery and addiction. Although I'm aware of excessive food consumption as a "lifestyle problem" for some people, my knowledge of that addiction has only been tangential and through what I've read in the media. The programs under which major tobacco companies manipulated nicotine content etc to further their perfection of the "nicotine delivery device" known as the cigarette has long been well known but I'de never considered the possibility that such a scheme might possibly be an agenda for the multinational food conglomerates. Great observation on your part and something worthwhile for us all to consider but I'll leave any further discussion on my part to other threads.

Guy - can you please clarify this comment about industrial impact and a chain reaction similar to the tobacco industry? I'm not getting the connection here but am intrigued by the remark.

This sounds like they used "sea legs" or surimi, that awful stuff that is used in so many Asian products these days and routinely used in "Seafood salad" in delis. I can't stand the stuff, and it's reasonable to think that some unscrupulous Asian restaurants tried to use that stuff instead of real scallops. They also routinely use those "sealegs" in Crab cakes, and only upon intense questioning can you find out that very little crab is used-- should be illegal! If I recall correctly the restaurant was in NY, not NJ but I know Surimi and whatever these little things were - it was definitely not Surimi. It's conceivable that they were farm raised scallops from the far east (as in China or Thailand) - right? I can remember a time 25 years ago when the tiny little "bay scallops" were intensely sweet with a strong and distinct flavor. In more recent years the large scallops still have that distinct scallop taste but the small ones I've tried from the supermarket have been become increasingly more bland over the years. Perhaps this was just an especially bland batch of small scallops.

So..... freezing to death is humane and boiling to death is not? That's worth a chuckle! I suppose, given my options, I'd choose freezing but I still find the whol thing humorous.

Oh. THAT kind of Crafts. I was hoping it was something food related that touched on the Arts & Crafts movement of the late 19th and early 20th Century (William Morris, Gustav Stickley, the Roycrofters et al). I've often wondered if their approach to their work and living spaces extended to their food and in what manner. Absent that discussion..... I nominate the wine bottle encrusted with many layers and colors of molten and then hardened candle wax.

I'll have to look for a more authoritative source but I found this interesting The quote is from http://www.sff.net/people/benbova/extreme.html I assume they mean ten degrees F higher. That's still a significant number. If unsalted water reaches a rolling boil at 212 F and salted water (it would have to be about 3.5 % salt as the ocean is - pretty damn salty) reaches a rolling boil at 222 degrees shouldn't it meant that the pasta cooks at a higher temp int he salted water and therefore cooks faster? I'm not trying to be contentious - just trying to satisfy my curiosity.

I just now glanced at thate menu - one of the item descriptions says the dish is cooked in "Sicilian Lifeguard style". I tried running that phrase through the Google Language Translator from "Italian to English" - the results were astounding - it comes out exactly the same in English!!! Bleu - I sympathize with your dilemma as this guy was clearly a bit obsessive but I also sympathize with my father's plight. He's a very plain meat and potatoes type of guy (doesn't use pepper, won't eat any kind of salad, no rice, nothing with a red sauce - hopefully you get the picture). All he asks for when he eats out (which is rarely and not in expensive restaurants) is that he get only the meat and potatoes on the plate. He painstakingly and very politely clarifies that he wants there to be no garnishes on the plate: no pasley, no lettuce, no little cup or tartar sauce or pickle or lemon wedge - just the meat or fish and the potatoes. Sounds simple enough, right? Uh uh. Time after time the plate is delivered with all the extra crap on there, despite the eager server having given assurances that they understood his request. One waitress even informed him that "the cook makes me serve it this way"! I recognize that this is a bit OT but it kills me to see a situation like this where the simplest of requests is consistently ignored (he only orders ice cream ir pie for dessert and thankfully, that doesn't come with garnish in t he places where he eats!).

I was thinking maybe mirepoix, garlic, a bay leaf, parsley, a bit of fennel and some peppercorns - plus some sea salt. Does this sound okay? I don't think I have a chinoise anymore or sure don't know what happened to it. Would a fine mesh strainer be okay?