donbert

That's hilarious!

I have yet to get into baking and to be honest I'm a little intimidated aftering seeing Ling's work. but actually I can't really bake right now because my oven is broken and has only 2 settings. Off and 600 degrees. It works well for roasting birds and the no-knead bread but not much else. Once I move to a place with a real oven though I'll have to try it.

There were three of us there. I can put away quite a bit but not that much.

I've had Ip but I don't recall any specifics of it. Isn't that the one with temperature sensitive ink on one of the leaves on the bottle. If you press a finger against it to warm it up it changes color? With O-shipseju here in NYC you have to specifically ask to have them bring you the kettle to mix yourself or they'll bring you something premixed in a kettle. There's also this whole pagentry that's involved where two people (the older/senior person gets the baeksaeju) pour into the kettle at together and have to finish at the same time.

I second the request to see this SojuMan. [voice of Duff Man]"Oh yeah!"[/voice of Duff Man]

I'm not sure if it's mentioned in the article but the pork shoulder at Momofuku is Berkshire pork and very fatty. They bring hot towels to wipe the table afte you're done. For a nominal fee the cocktail road show could be brought to a town near you...

I've tallied the results but I haven't had a chance to decode which brand was which. I'll try to get that done once I finish batching egg nog, aviations, and jack roses for tonight's cocktail party. The top three were all from the 4 hour group.

[cocktail ice 101] Perhaps the most overlooked ingredient in a cocktail is the ice. Besides the obvious need for ice to chill a drink, as the ice melts the drink is diluted with water. This water is a crucial ingredient and just as you would measure the amount of the other ingredients you need to control the amount of water that gets added to your drink from ice. In order to do so you need to ensure that the temperature of the ice is cold enough that it should feel dry when you touch it and use the proper size. Too small and there's too much surface area from which the water will melt off. Too big and not enough water will be incorporated. (cocktail ice 102 will cover the various shapes if ice ideal for shaking and for serving drinks over.) [/cocktail ice 101] For ice in Cambridge I've been going to Acme Ice. If you call in advance you can order a 300lbs block. Since we don't have enough people coming to warrant a 300lbs block we went with the large bricks they have left over from carving down large blocks into ice luges for frat parties. Another indication that you may be a cocktail geek, you empty out your friends freezer every time you visit to fill with block ice. edit:spelling

Got into Boston at about noon today an proceeded straight to a late lunch of Brazillian food. Mu Que Ca Fango a Passarinho (fried chicken with garlic) Picanha (steak ) Moqueca de Peixe com Camarao Sururu (sea food stew) Seafood Rice Casserole

Packing a suitcase full of booze and heading to Boston now by the Chinatown bus. Next post will be from bean town.

I use Alton Brown's basic recipe and make variations from it. I actually never had egg nog until last year. We never had it at home growing up and egg nog from a can was never appealing. From my little experience with it I prefer a hot and spicy bourbon with my nog. Wild Turkey Rare Breed works very nicely. It is barrel proof (Wild Turkey whiskeys tend to be a lower proof compared to other bourbons) and the spice really comes through nicely. I usually do 1 oz bourbon to 4-5 oz egg nog base. When I spent a summer at InJae university in KimHae I drank a lot of "C1", which pronounced in English sounds like ShiWon or "refreshing" in Korean. Most people outside of Korean don't know that there are regional brands. I forget what the reason for this was. I'll have to ask my father. My avatar is a picture of the statue at PopJusSa temple at SongNiSan.

After cocktails 9 of us went over to the Momofuku Ssam Bar for a late night pork-fest. During the day the restaurant serves an asian fusion burrito/wrap but at night it becomes a temple of pork. If you call 6 hours ahead you can order the Bo-Ssam special. It isn't a traditional Korean Bo-Ssam but delicious none the less. You get bib lettuce, kimchi, rice, 12 oysters, and a whole roast Berkshire pork butt. (the photos from last night doesn't come out well so here are some photos from the last time we did this) Sides Pork butt So tender you just tear at it with tongs. Ssam.

First drinks of the night a (2006) Stagg Nog and a Baby Saz Nog.

Dulce de Leche Experiment! 8 brands - 2 hours, 4 hours, and 12 hours.

Egg prep for the nog. Egg Nog station. (reusing the sake bottle to hold the egg nog batter) Stirrings Soda samples to play with.

The only thing I've eaten today. $1 dumplings.

Went to LeNell's to stock up for tonight and tomorrow. This store is seriously the meca of all things cocktail, with a special focus on American Whiskeys.

For some reason I thought the recipe for a Death in the Gulf Stream was 12 dashes of Angostura and that's how I've been making them at home. As you can tell by know I like dry and bitter drinks. Though I learned the hard way not to try this with the Riemerschmied Angostura.

Ok, so I've gone back and updated last night's post with comments. No breakfast today, was still full from last night . Lots of SCM simmering away on the stove. Got to go restock on alcohol and prep for cocktails. Maybe a banh mi for lunch or something from Fairway when I go buy fruit later... We have to go to Ureña for tapas and drinks soon. Thanks Daniel, I'm still in awe of your pork party. ::oink:: The sausages and farro risotto were split but everything else I somehow managed to eat on my own. The short walk in the cold between Ureña and Gramercy Tavern followed by an hour wait for seats at the bar helped me get my second wind. I was tempted to stay for another drink at Pegu but the Death on a Gulfstream is such a great closer that I didn't want to follow it up with anything.

(Here are the pictures for now. I'll post comments on everything tomorrow morning.) Started the evening off at Ureña after work for a couple drinks and some tapas. Persimmon MdO Caipirinha They were out of the Fig Blackberry so the bartender made this for me instead. The persimmon and lime balanced each other out really well while not covering up the distinctive cane and slightly smokey flavor of Mae De Ouro. White Asparagus Soup Amuse Just delicious, I would have been happy with just a big steaming bowl of this on a cold night like yesterday. Picho De Gambas Y Chorizo Shrimp, chorizo, goat cheese with chorizo aioli. Cochinillo Confitado Confit of suckling pig, granny smith puree, star anise scented sauce. Perfect crackly skin with fork tender meat. Tarta de Ropa Vieja Duck confit, port chorizo, foie gras, and truffle with a chorizo aoili. Further proof that deep frying things make them even better. Braised Short Rib Growing up the only preparation of short rib I had was kalbi (korean bbq of short rib). I'd take this over kalbi any day now. Khukri Egg Nog Khukri is a dark rum from Nepal that I first tried at Rum Fest this year. It has a really deep caramel and almost molassas flavor. My first instinct upon smelling it was to cook with it but this is the best cocktail I've had with it thus far. The egg nog was very light and all the sweetness came from the rum. Deconstructed Creme Catalan If I didn't know better I would have guessed that this was something that Sam Mason put together. One of the many amazing things about Chef Ureña is that he does all the pastry for his restaurant as well as the savory. This was a perfect example of a playful deconstruction. Instead of marrying all the flavors into a single creme dish each flavor was separated into components with different textures. The bruled cream, huckleberry sauce, grapefruit jelly, and anise sorbet could have easily each a stand alone dessert. I then met up with a friend in the bar room of Gramercy Tavern for dinner. Tequila Grapefruit Crusta Jim Meehan started us off with this cocktail while we were waiting for seats to open up at the bar. Very refreshing use of tequila. Bacardi Cocktail sans Bacardi [cocktial geek]The "Bacardi Cocktail" is essentially a daiquiri with grenadine and there has been a very intense discussion about who put "Who put the Grenadine into the Bacardi Cocktail?" over on DrinkBoy. Also of note is the fact that Bacardi at one point won a lawsuit against bartenders/bars that weren't using Bacardi in a Bacardi Cocktail.[/cocktail geek] Guinea Hen with Foie Gras Possibly the best thing I had all night if had to choose one. Perfectly cooked guinea hen, slight hint of pink in the center. So many places overcook all their fowl which ruins not only the moisture but the texture. The combination of the guinea hen, the foie and raisin dressing under the salad was divine. Gin and Jim's Homemade Tonic We got to try Jim's tonic that was mentioned in the NYTimes last wed. Jim, Johnder, and some others have been working on their own tonics here if you haven't read about it yet. Rabbit Sausage with mustard onion confit (potato bread from balthazar on the side for making sandwiches) They had two special sausages last night. My dining companion and I couldn't agree which was better but they were both great. I have to guess that these sausages were poached because of thier amazingly soft texture. Merguez with Fenel, Frizee, and Squash This was my favorite of the two. The fenel with sweet squash and spicy lamb worked really well together. Fresh Bacon with Poached Pear and Spaetzel mmmmmmmmm.... bacon.... 'nuf said Farro "Risotto" with Carrot Yeah, I'm still on this farro kick and couldn't resist ordering this. Farro doesn't create the same kind of creamy texture you get with Arborio where the grains of rice stick to each other. Each individual grain of farro plumps up and has a similar feel of biting into barley. Whiskey Tea Highball The smoky flavor of lapsang tea with scotch was a great way to end this meal. And to cap it all off one final drink at Pegu before heading home. Death in the Gulf Stream Eric, formerly of Pegu and now at Trois in Atlanta, turned me on to this drink earlier this year. It's a great last drink to wake you up after a long night of drink and was invented by Ernest Hemingway. The 4 dashes of angostura really dries out the drink and was just what I needed to settle my stomach after all that food. edit: added notes

Just got home after a long evening of eating and drinking. Usually I eat out more often so I'm catching up on a weeks worth today. Stand by while I wrestle with image gullet.

The best is a place I've been to was Fort Lee but I don't know the name. I'll look it up for you. There was a place on 32nd between Madison and Broadway call Geun Ryong (Golden Dragon). It recently changed its name to Shanghai Dong though and I haven't been back since. If you walk along 32nd on the south side they usually have a guy standing at the front window pulling the noodles.

For lunch today I went to a Korean style Chinese place for some JaJangMyun ($6.95). I came here on the recommendation of a friend who prefers the sauce here to the place I regularly go to. I have to agree that the sauce was less greasy and better but the noodles weren't being hand pulled so I'm not convinced of this place yet. Guess I'll just have to go back a few more times until I can decide.

Do you eat it it straight or on bread? Both jam and geitost on bread? I just remember it being more sweet than savory and being annoying to cut. It doesn't really fit the traditional idea of "cheese". Maybe it would be more popular if it was sold as a Norwegian style dulce de leche.

I've tried it a couple times while working at Murray's but it didn't do anything for me. It was rarely requested by customers and with all the other great cheese there I was too busy snacking on the ones I really liked.