Hector

many sabzis (veggie side dishes, north or south indian style) use a pinch of hing at the tarka stage. the dals also use it as a tarka ingredient. most south indian dishes use hing. dishes that use onions and garlic don't use hing, as it is seen as a substitute.... use up your stash fast or it will lose potency milagai ← Ok thank you, it will be very hard to use it all up, I've got loads and recipes call for pinches. Can't make all my Indian food taste like hing.. Please explain the "tarka" thing...Not very familliar with indian cooking stages. Very interesting to know that Asafoetida was once one of the most common seasoning in European cooking, during the antiquity dishes was often seasoned with asafoetida, along with condiments and spices as grape must, black pepper, honey, levisticum and fish sauce.

I have a bunchload of Hing (or Asafoetida) that I've used when re-enacting ancient Roman dishes (only to be used pinchwise in). Now I don't know what to do with the whole lot. I understand that it's used in Indian dishes, but in which context? I have read that it should go well with pulses, and I have some recipes with dhal containing it. But is there any more dishes to try it in?

I know there are variations. But the ajvar I always have bought in balkan immigrant stores and on travels to Croatia and Slovenia is more based on eggplants and of course coloured red by peppers. Never heard anything about valnuts in ajvar. interesting.

In Poland, some "wisents" are being shot every year, so then people can buy the meat totaly legaly. Some eastern european bisons are even shot by farmers when they go across fences and interfere with the crops. So that meat is sold too. Wonder if it hard to diffrentiate between legal and illegal bison-meat.

This cake is almost exactly the same as "Spettekaka" or "spit cake" from the region of Scania in Southern Sweden where I reside now. It's a cake baked on a spit with thousands of eggs and tons of sugar, very popular at festivities. It is ussually made in the countryside, the cooking process is very hard, very traditional and very much to do. I was cooking it one time with a French culinary interested guest at a famous bakery, and it took a whole day to finish the whole big bowl of beaten eggs. Lots of effort, Lots of sticky cake! To see this cake in Lithuania was a pleasant surprise... Great thread, I've never expected the baltics to offer this much good! Guess I was proved wrong again

It should definitely be sliced as thin as you can. Then besides eating it as is, you can make a börek with it (pachanga) and kashar cheese. Wrap the two up in an oblong case of phyllo, dip in beaten egg and then in a bit of grated cheese (not too much) and fry.

Which reminds me, I have two more "necklaces" of dried okra, which I find superior to the fresh as they are not at all slimy and have an intense flavor. It would be worth keeping an eye out for that sort of thing. ← Is this the kind that looks like very small stalks put like a necklace? Bought some stuff like that, it didn't look like okra much, but it could be a very tiny variety. If it is.. how are you supposed to cook it? treat it?

Make the classic of classics: Soupe D'oignon!

I can't imagine how anyone can say the words "Like" (as in the meaning 'take liking to something'" and "Natto" in the same sentence! can you imagine anyone saying "like" and "lutefisk" in the same sentence? ← Off course yes! ok. sorry for my ignorance..

I can't imagine how anyone can say the words "Like" (as in the meaning 'take liking to something'" and "Natto" in the same sentence!

You should come by this November and I'll make you a terrific South Swedish local soup with dried fruit, brandy, goose intestines and goose blood! No I think it's great to try diversity in cuisines, just as long that you not forget your own tradition and value it.. There are great Swedish restaurant here, especially in the country side, they are just getting somewhat hard to find in the big cities (except for Stockholm)

How do you make it?

Ok.. this question might sound odd, but Is it true that you eat Guinea pigs in Peru? that you at least can get served it up in the mountains.. Is this a myth? because it seems like that in a way.

I have a pile of big plastic bags of Turkish bought spices in my kitchen right now filling my house with glorious scents! I think you should get the cheap big quantities of the good quality semi-red paprika, red pepper flakes, cumin, black cumin (which is a kind of onion seed) and the really nice "köfte" (meatball)-spice mix which is excellent in many dishes, not only in meatballs. I don't know about saffron, if bought at a marked place. Try to ask the seller for you to smell, and ALWAYS request whole threads (allthough there's fake thread too. not very smellable though)

Ok.. I'm very late in this thread.. But I have to get this out haha Here in Sweden; there's a type of candy in shape of small ball rolled in coconut shavings; consisting of butter, cocoa, coconut, oatmeal and sugar that's called..: "Negro Balls" Yup you heard right. Very recently there was a debate if you should ban that name or not because of racism.

WOW!! dee-licious.. Jason.. Didn't they make bolinhos de bacalhau?

In Sweden where I live, partly thanks to the EU and immigration there's definitly been a bigger increase in more exotic and good food. E g. Better meat products, (game, chorizo, lean beef) great new and better vegetable (sweet potatoes, belgian endive, RIPE tomatoes, coconuts, herbs, new spices, hundreds of different varities of chillies etcetra) lots of groceries were Middle Eastern, Iranian, Thai, Malaysian, Eastern European, Carribean, Chinese, Somali specialities is sold. And that's mostly in the last ten years (as long as Sweden has been a member of the EU=. This is mainly because the immigration has given us very much new products to work, and because people travel. There's not very much Thai people in Sweden, but there's lots of Thai style food stores that both has it's customers in the Thai community and in Swedes who's been to Thailand. This is mostly home-cooking wise. The average "immigrant-food" in Sweden is found everywhere, is rather boring fast food, except in places where the number of immigrants outnumber Swedes, over there it's always great.

I think that EU has done some great things in keeping good food versatile and good, especially with all their DOC-markings on good quality products, forcing low-quality producers not using the name of a thing with good rumour. And also protecting small countryside producers. And the Slow Food moment is excellent too.

Think that mint and yogurt dressing might be what people imagine as "greek style" but it probably the combination is more often found in other parts of the mediterranean where the cooking is very much related to Greek cooking (e. g The Middle East, Bulgaria).

Would like to add my own very great Borsch! Carl's Lovely Lamb Borsch from RecipEgullet

I'm looking forward to Valle D'Aosta!!!! let see you making Civet and Fonduta, rustic alpine treats!

Culinaria: Italy is mostly excellent.. I was very surprised about the great chapter about Bascilata, and mostly dissapointed at the pizza-making chapter. But it's really great, really great photos, really great facts, really great food.

To my knowledge piri piri are African peppers not related to Brazil at all. I'll try to find out what's in this mollho composition ← http://www.portcult.com/Portugal.48_piri.htm I've read in some chilliesque litterature that some scientists even believe that Piri-Piris or "Malagueta-peppers" as they are sometimes called is the only kind of caspicum that's native to the old world. But I don't know. Good Molho Picante is made in a blender with vinegar, whole piri piris, small clove of garlic & lime.

You are joking, right? I mean, ALL of them? Even kulfi??? Or a delicate rice pudding, nicely chillled, and perfumed gently with rose water?? Come to Berlin, and I will feed you Indian desserts which will change your mind. I don't like rose water. and the Kulfi I got served was just some boring ice cream. Not very bad, but definitley not the best. And then there's those sticky deep fried cookies that are really hot and is so sticky they get stuck in your mouth and burn your tounge. Not fan of those "milk balls" either. But I have probably been unlucky in chosing what places I ate those things. There's probably some people and some dishes that are better! ← Whereas Adam and I would argue that haggis is universally excellent. ← Good God no! Canned Haggis is a crime against humanity! ← Definitly.. The more freshly made, the better! Idealy served with mashed potatoes, mashed suede and a selection of the finest Single Malts. It's bliss!

Do you think this is exotic? I eat it every sunday breakfast.