Suzanne F

Even though I have no right to, I feel somewhat proprietary about the dinner at Diwan. So it pains me to see the followup discussion littered with arguments that have nothing to do with it. These arguments are valid, but NOT HERE. I have started another thread on the Site Tips board, and I wish that those who care to argue would move their discussion HERE. Thank you, and have a lovely evening.

To all who were unable to participate, for whatever reason: remember that Suvir has a cookbook coming out in the (near?) future, and some of the things we ate are in it. Buy the book, cook the food! And Monica Bhide (formerly spicegirldc) also has a cookbook out or out soon. Not what we ate, but I'm looking forward to getting it.

I will be in DC the weekend of December 6 (Friday) through 8, with Paul (hubby). Anyone care to get together for drinks or a meal? Any recommendations of new places to try? To give you an idea, we used to live in DC, get back on occasion, love Nora, Asia Nora, Jaleo, Obelisk; he's been to Kinkead's, I've been to Ann Cashion's other place (something with Grill in the name?), and we still have fond memories of Tucson Cantina, Cantina d'Italia, Le Lion d'Or, Bread Shop Café (where I Ricci is now), and Annie's Paramount Steak House.

Or even if they don't.

Great pictures, Rachel! Almost made me hungry.

there were some sounds at my table that were best left unrecorded. I'll bet there were!

What a great evening! The food, the company, the drink, the place -- it was well-worth any effort. Of course, it was Suvir who put in the biggest amount of work, which resulted in a phenomenal meal. Thank you, Suvir The only thing I have to add about the food is to mention the slab of paneer (cheese) that came along with the chicken, but didn't get listed on the menu. While opinions were divided, I found the smoky flavor fascinating, and it made a good foil for the sauces. But then EVERY item had a fascinating, distinct flavor, like nothing I've ever eaten before. To elaborate on what MHesse said about the sounds: roryrabbitfield's husband Daniel (who, btw, came dressed in a very handsome Indian silk suit!) suggested that in addition to posting pictures of the food, we should try to record and post the SOUNDS of each dish -- the "mmmm" and the slurp and the crunch. Does anyone have the necessary equipment? That way we can have a slightly more complete sensory record of events. Just a thought.

I thought smilies just sort of tag along when you hit the "Quote" button. Work? What's that? See ya soon!

You are so right about it getting better. Like just about every braise. My mother only used chicken, tomatoes, onions, sweet peppers, garlic, and mushrooms. Me too. I grew up eating it over plain boiled white rice. But now I also serve it with any cut pasta shape I have in the house that holds sauce well. Maybe sometime I'll use polenta or grits, though; thanks for the suggestion. BTW, SA: do you leave the chicken on the bone? I figure you do, just asking.

And I, you. Oh Wilfrid, YOU are beyond dreamy.

Posole??? With Hominy huh? Is it popular in Mexico? Now see that is something that I would not normally associate with Mexican and being from the north do not usually see grits either much less hominy. In fact, however the only place I have really ever seen hominy up north for sale was at Mexican eatery/import shop! And it was in a can already prepared. If you can follow my twisted reasoning of making sense of things. Which brings me to the question of why would anybody want to add lye to grits? Now that is a digression... EDIT: jus to make a little more sense... When I worked for a manufacturer that had about 95% Mexican staff, they always brought a big pot to the Xmas party. Hominy is just processed corn. I used to always hear the term "hominy grits" (not sure why I ever heard it at all, since I grew up in Flushing, NY, not exactly a hotbed of south-of-the-border cuisines back then). If you can find it, there was a really good article in Food Arts magazine a few months ago about hominy that is being grown by an Indian tribe in upstate NY (I think). BTW: my pot of posole smells terrific -- but since I use canned hominy, I haven't added it yet. Will do just before I serve it tomorrow.

Eep - Sorry, Suzanne! Hey, where's the from the first sentence? And the at the end? I hoped you would understand that I really didn't mind, just as I really don't mind that tommy asked for the list to be posted again. Please -- you'll see I'm no harpy. A Tough NY Broad , yes; a bit hyper sometimes, sure; but give me a list to update and I'm a happy kid. And especially to help out Suvir, who is so dreamey BTW: Just in case anyone was particularly looking forward to meeting them: CooksQuest and Diana will not make it after all

Okay: next time we do something like this, YOU keep the list. Yeah, I know the first 3 names are out of order -- but they're not on my secret list that identifies those 2. Moderators, may I have a poll as to whether I was snide to tommy or not? Not that it matters, really; it was an acknowledgment coming from a master.

For the record, I am not fond of their cassoulet, either. But I enjoy other food there, and the specialty cocktails. And I really like Ariane. So I go there.

All right, all right. 1 Anonymous 1 2 Aaron T 3 Anonymous 2 4 BklynEats 5 Blondie 6 Cakewalk 7 CathyL 8 Charles Smith 9 CooksQuest 10 CooksQuest: Diana 11 Damian 12 Damian: Ann 13 Double 0 14 Double 0: Mrs. 00 15 froggy 16 g. Johnson 17 Helena Sarin 18 jaybee 19 KimWB 20 Laura 21 Macrosan 22 MHesse 23 nervousnelli 24 Nina Wugmeister/La Niña 25 Nina Wugmeister/La Niña: her beau 26 nyfirepatrolchef 27 Rachel Perlow 28 roryrabbitfield 29 roryrabbitfield: Daniel 30 Rosie 31 Rosie: Bara Sapir 32 Rosie: Lowell 33 rstarobi 34 Sandra Levine 35 Sandra Levine: Alan Levine 36 SobaAddict70 37 StephanyB 38 Suvir Saran 39 Suvir Saran: Guest #1 40 Suvir Saran: Guest #2 41 Suzanne F 42 tigerwoman 43 Toby 44 tommy 45 Yvonne Johnson I do not know who Suvir's guests will be, nor will I tell who the 2 anonyms are. If they care to, they may reveal themselves but they have not given me permission. Anyway, you'll find out tonight at the restaurant.

I enjoy the place and the food very much, but I know it is not perfect. (Disclaimer: I have met Ariane Daguin on numerous occasions professionally, and she is a hoot!) And I can't think of going there in the summer -- the food is a bit on the heavy side. But so tasty! I find it interesting that people here have reacted to the cassoulet as they have. The menu states something to the effect of "Cassoulet isn't a recipe; it's a reason for people to get together and argue." In case you're interested, quack here. And Steve P: it's Gascogne, not Basque. Shame on you of all people for not knowing your French geography.

YES! Someone else just had to drop off, so you, SobaAddict70, are the LUCKY WINNER!!! The info is all a couple of posts back, but I'll try to PM and/or email it to you.

Yes, of course. One of the main functions of WCR is to give women in the field the opportunity to meet, teach, and learn from each other. Another is to recognize the accomplishments of women. For example, this year's President's Award for lifetime achievement went to Edna Lewis; in previous years it was given to Alice Waters (1999), Madeline Kamman (2000), and Barbara Tropp (2001). Anyone is interested in learning more about the organization can check out the WCR website. (I warn you, though, the site needs a LOT of work ) Or I'll be happy to start another thread somewhere about the group.

Just got back from Boston and Cambridge. Only ate at 3 restaurants: one with friends, and 2 through Women Chefs and Restaurateurs. I will be kind and not even name the first place. However, both Sage (in the North End) and Rialto (yes, Jody Adams's place that's been around so long) were excellent. Granted, they did special menus just for us; but most dishes were very, very good. The gnocchi with sage brown butter at Sage were delicate and light, and lots of lemon balanced to buttery sauce; and the pesto-like dip for bread (basil, parsley, tomatoes, and red onion) was incredibly fresh-tasting. At Rialto, we had the grilled clams plain (without the andouille) and they were very sweet. The "Slow roasted Long Island duck" was not as crisp-skinned as I like it, but the meat was succulent and the spicing worked well. Those who had the grilled tuna with chorizo and piri-piri sauce were quite pleased. Of the 7 desserts on the menu (we had all of them for 8 people, with doubles on the chocolate cream with molasses ice cream), my favorite was the Chèvre cheesecake with cranberry coulis -- neither too rich nor too sweet. I can't talk about the wines, since we provided our own. Other groups went to No. 9 Park, Mantra, Radius, Lumière, Sandrines, and Caffe Umbre, among others. All the reports I heard were positive. And this from restaurant professionals.

I get them in a Thai grocery in NYC's Chinatown. 3 for $1!!! Each cube makes 1 liter of broth.

Ah, a big steaming bowl of posole!!! Much like the soup in the original post with which 6-pack started this thread, but with chicken chunks (on the bone) and hominy as well. Sometimes, a mix of chicken and pork ("country ribs" are a great cut to use). I was just thinking of making some ...

So I'm not the only one... Do you mean the Tom Yam cubes? And you grew up eating the "authentic" thing. Then they really must be good!!

I also own, use, and love the Pasta Roller/Cutter attachment for the Kitchen Aid mixer. So much easier to be able to guide the dough with both hands, and the extra height off the counter is a plus. I have the extruder too, but never used it. I do, however, use a variation of the non-English recipe that came with it for the dough: 500 gr semolina, 500 gr AP flour; 3 to 4 large eggs; between 1 teaspoon and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.

Varmint: where's the Traditional Spaghetti Carbonara (à la Calvin Trillin)?

Will Suvir or someone else give us a lesson in proper eating-with-one's-hand etiquette at the Diwan dinner? I too love to use my hands, but have never eaten Indian food that way. Ethiopian, yes -- is it similar to using injera?