SuzySushi

Ben Hong and sheetz are absolutely correct. Chinese-American egg rolls are made with thicker, larger skins than spring rolls -- usually egg noodle dough like wonton wrappers, but even thicker than that. They're most commonly filled with chopped cabbage (sometimes with the addition of bits of other vegetables like chopped onions, scallions, mung bean sprouts, shredded carrots, and celery) and some kind of meat (ground or chopped pork, char shu, chicken, or shrimp). They're rolled up, sealed with egg, and deep-fried. The finished wrapper is crisp with a lot of bubbles on the outside and doughy on the inside. A finished egg roll measures about 4.5 to 6" long (11.5 - 15.5 cm) by about 2" (5 cm) in diameter. The spring rolls served here at better Chinese restaurants or for dim sum use finer flour wrappers (more like lumpia skins) and measure no more than 3 to 4" long (7.5 to 10.5 cm) by about 1.25" (3 cm) in diameter. The wrapper fries up very thin and crisp, almost like that of Vietnamese rice paper wrappers (which some restaurants actually substitute).

Not that I've been able to trace, unless the Great Hawaiian Hot Dog stands changed ownership... Hmmm... the crust on mine was fine, a cookie crust as opposed to the usual crumb crust. The owner says they use the Carnegie Deli recipe, and I believe her. (I've seen the Carnegie Deli recipe, or at least the one the NYC deli gives out publicly, and it's not easy to duplicate!)

I'm not familiar with laundromats in the area, but try asking people in a local shop (like a small grocery store or charcuterie). Landromats in Paris quite often don't have visible storefronts, but are located in courtyards in between apartment buildings! When we lived in Paris for six weeks, we actually had to have our building concierge sketch us a map because we had passed the entrance alley many times never dreaming there was anything more inside! There were a whole bunch of "service" stores such as shoe repair, copy shop, locksmith, etc.! Laundromat in French is "laverie automatique." You'll either need plenty of coins to operate it, or they'll sell tokens. Be sure to put your washed laundry into the separate wringer-spinner for a cycle before using the dryer, or the dryer will take forever! There are also "laverie-blanchisseries," service laundries where you drop off your laundry and they wash & fold it for you. They usually charge by weight. They're more expensive than self-service laundromats, but worth it if you don't want to hang around.

Back to report on A Taste of New York. Some of it is very good indeed. As you reported, glossyp, the pastrami sandwich is excellent. My husband, a pastrami-lover from way back, was in beef heaven. Not so the tongue, which was boiled instead of smoked (they couldn't get tongue from a deli supplier so prepared it themselves) and came out solidly brown instead of pink, with a strangely mushy texture like that of overcooked brisket. I was disappointed and told them so (and also told them what good tongue should taste like). Michelle, the owner, offered several times to replace it with something else, and I finally ordered half a pastrami sandwich to go, as I was already stuffed. The owner and her husband are very gracious and eager to cultivate repeat business. I also gave them a list of other menu and take-out items I think they should carry (such as matzoh ball soup, knishes, whitefish chubs, Joyva jelly rings and halvah) as their present menu is limited. The potato salad is another winner. The coleslaw needs a bit of work... maybe a dash more vinegar. I'll have to dig up my "New York Coleslaw" recipe and give it to them. I'm not a pickle fan, but my husband loved 'em. The cheesecake is out-of-this-world fabulous and worth every penny! More than enough to share with two or three people. Much to our delight, A Taste of New York also carries the Dr. Brown's line of sodas, including regular and diet Cel-Ray, Cream Soda, and Black Cherry. (I also recomended that they get Manhattan Special coffee sodas.) We'll definitely be back again.... once we've digested this humongous meal.

A Japanese doctor friend taught me about rice with barley years ago. She said the barley was added to the rice to increase the vitamin & amino acid content (since the Japanese prefer polished white rice to whole grain). She made it with pressed barley (oshi mugi) in an approximate 3 or 4 parts rice : 1 part barley content, and cooked it just like regular Japanese rice. In the USA, pearled barley is most often used for soup. I like it cooked it like rice, though. I don't remember the proportions I used (I follow the directions on the back of the store bag I prefer) -- I think it's more like 2 parts water : 1 part barley. You can also use pearled barley to make risotto: saute the dry barley in a little butter or oil, then add broth a little at a time, stirring and not covering the pan, until the broth is absorbed and the barley is tender to the bite. You can add chopped onions & other risotto ingredients as desired when cooking.

Very nice, Tepee!

Oooh... oooh!!! I think I'm in seventh heaven. Last night, I was dreaming about a chopped chicken liver & tongue sandwich on a poppyseed kaiser roll... and that's before my husband told me there might be a new deli. It's been a long time between deli foods. (The cheesecake i can make myself, but the meats...) I'll report back on how authentically New Yawk it is!

A couple of days ago, my husband half-heard on the radio something about a new New York-style (Jewish) deli opening in Honolulu... he thinks it's supposed to be on Waialae near 11th Avenue in Kaimuki. Was he dreaming or is it for real? Anyone know anything about this? The only references I can find online are to the old Bernard's deli in Kahala Mall, which has long been out of business.

Do you say these things to hurt me????? Oh, right! This is a fast food thread. Actaully that sounds very good. An alternative, requiring a little bit of forethought, is to have the beans and hominy previously made and frozen. A little more hassle but justified by the superior flavor and texture over canned. ← LOL! The real hominy is reserved for posole around my house! (This thread was supposed to be 10-minute meals.

So sorry to hear about your foot, Kris. Hope it heals soon!!! (And tip... if it gets itchy under the cast, use a knitting needle... or a long cooking chopstick... to scratch it!)

Salad -- mixed greens, baby lettuce, or baby spinach; other veggies in my fridge (cherry tomatoes or sliced tomatoes, sliced Japanese cucumber, carrots, sugar snap peas, etc); herbs (cilantro, basil, dill, as available from my fridge); top with cooked shrimp (I always have a bag of fully cooked, peeled tiger shrimp in the freezer), leftover meat or poultry, and/or cubes of cheese; sprinkle with dried cranberries; dress with bottled salad dressing. Grilled, baked, or microwaved salmon. I buy a whole salmon fillet when it's on sale, cut it into serving-size portions, and freeze. If I'm cooking it in the microwave, it doesn't even need to be defrosted first -- cook on 70% power. Grilled, sauteed, or microwaved chicken tenders (fresh or frozen). Quick side dishes: couscous, orzo pilaf (saute in butter or olive oil, then add chicken broth to cover by about 1", simmer covered and do not drain), or kasha. I often cook extra rice and freeze it in individual portions, then reheat in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes per -- it doesn't have the fragrance of freshly cooked rice but is good in a pinch. Southwest salad -- combine canned black beans (rinsed), canned corn or white or yellow hominey (rinsed), and canned diced tomatoes (drained) with some fresh cilantro and a vinaigrette dressing. Add chiles as desired.

There's no shame in starting from plants, not from seeds. I started my own outdoor garden on the lanai (balcony) last year, the first time I had a place to. Of course, the weather is far different in Ontario than Oahu, but I found the most successful plants were: - rosemary (buy a small plant & repot in a larger pot) - basil (various types... they're annuals, so when they die off, just start over... cut or break off the top leaves frequently for cooking & don't let it flower or it'll all go to seed) - thyme (again, cut back frequently or it gets weedy) Strangely enough, I haven't had any luck with mint, though I'm told it grows like a weed. I had two crops of cherry tomatoes... the best I've ever tasted! ... and one of mache lettuce. The radishes I planted never plumped up. Never got around to planting the carrots. Happy growing!

Try Costco.

What's a Shmoo Torte?

Maybe they were matzoh meal rolls!

Not a professional chef, but.... 1) Antibacterial soaps are extremely drying. Use regular soap, or dilute the antibacterial stuff. 2) Crisco can be used as a good handcream that's edible! 3) To heal really painful cracks, before going to bed at night, slather your hands with hand cream or just plain Vaseline and put on cotton gloves (available in the cosmetics departments of drugstores) or even a pair of cotton socks. The process takes a few days, but it's worth it.

Reporting in from Hawaii... We've brought cakes to restaurants on several occasions (like birthday parties), ALWAYS asking ahead when we made the reservation. These were always ethnic restaurants that didn't serve Western-style desserts. They've all been accommodating, even keeping the cake in their refrigerator during the dinner. We've always cut and plated the cake ourselves at the table. It's pretty common practice here.

Over the weekend, I participated in the eGullet Sui Mai Cook-Off, so we had two different types of siu mai, along with other dim sum made from the leftovers. Yeah, I know it's not normally served at dinner, but we were out during the day so couldn't do it for breakfast or lunch. Tonight was grilled turkey & Swiss with tarragon mustard, mine on La Brea rosemary-olive oil bread, my husband's on Milton's multigrain bread, both with a side of leftover cold asparagus spears. My daughter had a "baby bagel" and lox followed by an Eggo chocolate-chip waffle topped with chocolate syrup. Don't ask!

When my daughter was 2, she was eating Thai curries with aplomb. That stopped when she turned 3 and learned how to talk!

Note to self: fill pan on top of the stove. I'll be trying these later in the week, from the same recipe #2 that Dejah used. Maybe the cook-off will find that the perfect dan tart is an amalgam of several different recipes!

We just finished eating the second batch of siu mai: Eggplant Siu Mai (filled with eggplant in black bean sauce. My comments are the same as for yesterday's classic pork & shrimp siu mai: the filling was delicious, but the brand of wrappers I used (sold as gyoza wrappers at my local supermarket) was too thick. Next time I'll go to an Asian market where there's a choice of brands. We ate these with steamed pork & cilantro balls, made from the extra ground pork leftover after making yesterday's filling. They were very simply seasoned with a dash of dry sherry, sesame oil, and a pinch of sugar. I'd make these again any time. Even my daughter (she who will not eat green vegetables) gobbled them up and requested more! Ooops... forgot to post the link to the photos.

I seem to remember reading/hearing somewhere that the Chinese egg tarts were developed under British rule in Hong Kong as an offshoot of English custard tarts. And suddenly, what I knew as "don tot" made sense as "tart"! They're also popular in Singapore & Malaysia, so it's possible they started as a Western concept there...

So? How did the second batch turn out? I was planning to use the Rhoda Yee recipe.

Thanks! It wasn't the meat filling I had left over; just extra pork. Good idea, though!

Go to a GOOD cheese shop and ask for samples. Explain to the proprietor that you'd like a selection of different types of cheeses for a cheese platter, and let him/her guide your selections based on your tastes (e.g., if you comment that one type is too strong, s/he will know to offer you milder choices). Don't write off all bleu cheeses, BTW. Try some Bleu d'Auvergne! And be sure to try at least one goat's milk cheese (my favorite is the small Cabecou de Rocamadour), and one sheep's milk cheese.