Suzanne F

The only places from your list that I know are Montrachet and ILO. Haven't been to either one since the summer, though. But I love them both. Montrachet has always (through all the various chefs) had very, very flavorful food, and good wine selections. ILO has very inventive food, great desserts, good cheese selections, and I like the space even though it is rather starkly modern.

Malawry, congrats on the externship. Will you be working sometime December 5, 6, or 7? I want to eat there when I'm in DC, and would love to be able to say hello.

Alas, I never had access to fresh leaves when I made them, so I used the ones in brine in glass jars. I think I had to blanch them to remove all traces of the salt. I used a ground lamb, onion, dill filling. The texture of a meat filling is so much better than that of rice, which so often goes all pasty/mushy. And I think rice-filled leaves absolutely need a sauce to give them flavor, whereas meat ones already have plenty of flavor. But then, I haven't been to any of the Middle-Eastern restaurants in Brooklyn in a long, long time -- and the stuffed grape leaves in my local Greek restaurant are probably out of a can. So it's probably time I tried to find some good ones again.

I notice that the executive chef was schooled at L'Academie de Cuisine. Hear that, Malawry?

One incorporates in a STATE, not nationallly, n'est-ce pas? Different states. Even if SI doesn't want to be part of NY.

luckily, sandra, this doesn't seem to be one of those threads where one's opinion can be proven wrong by circular arguments and diversionary tactics. no question mark necessary. have faith. be confident. Note yet, anyway. Maybe because some of the circular-arguer/diverters have no idea about cooking at home? NO, I don't mean any of our more rotund leadership!!! Signed, One of little faith ediot: to clear up a particularly egregious mis-typing

Well, considering that he's a successful AND small business man ...

Having been subjected to kishka at every family "affair" throughout my childhood, you'd think I'd hate the stuff. Oh, the memories of never-ending heartburn! But thank you for the recipe! If I do make it, though, I'll probably make it spicier with a lot of black pepper, as I remember it from my Uncle Freddy's delicatessen. And wrap it in cheesecloth to bake with brisket. (My husband has fond memories of it getting it at Jack and Marian's in Brookline, MA, with gravy from all the other meats slopped over it.) Taboni -- it's probably just an Eastern European poor-peoples' dish, not necessarily Jewish. How does the Polish version differ from this recipe?

And I was going to say "Poor planning" but then I thought no, I can't say that to these nice folks. But to add to the list: being afraid to diverge one iota from the recipe because they do not trust their own senses and knowledge and as a result believing that since everyone else knows EXACTLY how the recipe was supposed to turn out, they have to apologize that it didn't, with a full rundown of what they did wrong. Sheesh!

I pretty much only use Thai fish sauce, but not for any particular reason. When I worked for Chef Gary Robins, we made a Red Chile Chutney that included red finger peppers, tomatoes, garlic, and shallots, each roasted separately, then ground together with fish sauce, a little sugar, and other stuff. Also a Chili-Garlic Dipping Sauce that started with making caramel with sugar and fish sauce instead of water. Don't know whether I also got to make it because I did it best, or because I didn't mind the smell. At home I love adding it to all sorts of non-Asian dishes instead of salt; it gives an undefinable depth of flavor. But then I am a big proponent of mongrelization of cuisines

Thank you!! I've always wondered why we don't know more about this cuisine. Is there more a home-cooking and -entertaining tradition, than one of eating out? Or maybe Westerners shy away from sour foods? Just guessing. In any case, thank you, SA, for making me very hungry!

Oh. I thought maybe CathyL was suddenly affecting a British accent.

Oh, YES!!! That's what Nick Gatti uses at his place. Their pork is really, really good. Lean, but very juicy and flavorful. Great stuff. When I talked to someone from there at the WCR Conference, he said that they won't sell the meat under their own name if it's not up to certain standards. (Although this is one time that I'll bet "seconds" are still better than some others' top product.)

I was all set to make roasted brussels sprouts with garlic and ham, but instead saw some beautiful purple kale in the Greenmarket today. (Last day of South Street Seaport, NYC). Not that frilly ornamental kale, but big purple oak-leaf shaped leaves. Still going to cook it with garlic and ham -- actually, pancetta -- though.

Um ... just wanted to mention 2 favorite books: The Raj at Table: A Culinary History of the British in India by David Burton (Faber and Faber, 1993) and Curries and Bugles: A Cookbook of the British Raj by Jennifer Brennan (Viking, 1990) Carry on.

Wilfrid: that Q was asked on CH, but I don't think there was an answer. (For Jonathan's sake, I hope not. ) Jin: Yabbies in Chardonnay, butter, and shallots; Kangaroo chops with quince chutney; pan-seared Emu with parsnip purée and a vegetable mélange. It was for a month-long "Next Wave Down Under" -- Next Wave is the Brooklyn Academy of Music's annual "new music, dance, and drama" festival, and last year they focussed on Australia.

Jin is once again absolutely right -- a big (or even just biggish) kitchen will put you on gm (especially if you're a girl). A small one will force you to do almost everything. 200 pies, eh? Sounds like banquet work to me. Very real world. And yes, very boring. But if you're there, you have to do it. No one will ask if you're having fun.

Remouillage is the "second boiling" of the solids with which one has made stock. After the original batch of stock is drained off, water is added to cover the remaining bones, etc. and that is then cooked down again (sometimes with additional aromatics). The two liquids are usually mixed and further reduced, since the second stock will be considerably weaker. Who needs a nuker for thawing stock? Just throw it in a pot and melt it that way! Probably not any slower. Not that one can't use the microwave; I just don't see the need.

'Twas not I doing the testing -- it was the folks at Fine Cooking magazine (based in Connecticut). But I probably would place College Inn somewhere down in the "not much chicken flavor" range -- even though that used to be my standard. I usually use their #1 pick, Swanson Natural Goodness. It really IS pretty damn good -- at least as a base. Torakris: the Tom Yam cubes are pretty much simply salty, hot, sweetish, and sour. The ingredients in English say: Salt, Palm Oil, chili powder, sugar, soy sauce, lemongrass, citrus leaf, lemon juice, msg. The list in Thai seems to include 2 more items, but since I can't read it, I have no idea what they are. In fact, most of the printing on the package is in Thai, so to me it's simply a piece of artwork.

Oh, Gordon, Old Bay is the perfect secret ingredient -- so much going on that no one can ever guess. Have you ever used it in the flour coating for fried chicken? Yum.

From the library, Pickled, Potted, and Canned: How the Art and Science of Food Preserving Changed the World, by Sue Shepard. I'm almost through Drying, and still have Salting, Pickling in Vinegar, Smoking, Fermenting, ...Canning, ...Refrigeration and Freezing, and a couple of other chapters to go. More than one has ever thought about re: putting food by. Quite a piece of work -- it was nominated for the 2001 IACP Jane Grigson Award, which recognizes scholarship in food writing. I'm also working my way through James Peterson's Glorious French Food, but that's another story entirely.

This is grounds for divorce. Tell him I said so. What he said.

I was taught that if it's cooked inside the bird, it's stuffing. If it's cooked outside the bird, it's dressing. Wherever it's cooked, and whatever bread is used, and whatever extras go into it, it's my favorite part of the meal! I always add mushrooms, celery, onion (pre-cooked), fennel, sometimes water chestnuts (preferably fresh) or other crunchy stuff. And extra thyme and sage.

The January 2003 issue of Fine Cooking has a comparison of canned chicken broths. Unfortunately not available on their website (here). And the winners are: Top pick: Swanson Natural Goodness -- "The most authentic chicken flavor -- well balanced with subtle vegetal notes and a rounded consistency ... Brand-new and a truly improved formula (we tasted the 'old' version too)." #2: Pritikin Fat-Free -- "Overall, this broth was a fine option, although most tasters wanted a more assertive chicken flavor...." #3: Pacific Organic -- "Adding salt helped to draw out a subtle chicken essence in this somwhat pale, thin broth ...." #4: Health Valley Fat-Free -- "This brownish-gold broth didn't taste off-putting, but ... it just didn't assert much chicken flavor either. ... The salt level was adequate if not slightly too high." #5: Campbell's Low Sodium -- "Tasted straight, this broth had a subtle chicken essence reminiscent of white meat. ... Taster complaints included a watery consistency and an oily top layer." #6: Kitchen Basics -- Robust and sweetly vegetal, but not especially chickeny in flavor. ...t was quite salty and was considered too distinct for cooking a risotto or pasta, for example." #7: Imagine Organic -- "This product was the least reminiscent of chicken broth ... Few tasters picked up any hint of chicken. ..."

To get back to discussing the RESTAURANT (forgive me for shouting): when I googled on Jonathan Leff, the supposed chef at Bid Brasserie, all I came up with before I got bored was that he was the executive chef at BAM Café and was doing a special Australian menu a year ago. Does anyone know anything more about him? (I really feel sorry for him, given what Asimov said. )