jsmeeker

what kind of maple syrup are you using? Obviouslly the real stuff, but are you using Grade A Dark Amber (which seems to be the most common type in the stores) or are you going for something a little lighter?

great drink. But may not be the best one to start with if you are used to sweet vodka based drinks. Ony if you have had whiskey neat or with a splash of water or something like that before and enjoyed it. And of course, getting a properly made manhattan seems to be a challenge, too.

There are plenty of drinks you could go to. The real question though, is will they be prepared PROPERLY at some random bar. A Sidecar would be great. I found that it's a very approachable drink. It was a pretty big hit for a large group of my friends. Most had never had it or even heard of it before. But the trick is you have to make it properly. In some random bar, it's very likely you'll have one made with sour mix. Yuck. I mean, it's a "Sidecar" but it's not going to be good. But if you get lucky, and they make it with fresh lemon and Cointreau and use the right brandy/Congac (nothing really dry), you'll love it. Another decent litmus test for a bar in this scenario would be to look at the cocktail list (if they have one). If they do, see how many drinks are vodka based. If it's full of vodka based drinks ending in -tini, it's a good sign they aren't super serious about cocktails. You might have terrible luck ordering something not like that. In that case, beer or wine or a simple highbal might be your best bet. But if the list has a dozen cocktails, and only ONE is vodka based and the rest are gin and whiskey and rum, etc.. based? You may have stumbled into a place that IS serious. Oh, and you only THINK you dislike gin. We can fix that really fast around here.

I tried the McDonalds Southern Style Chicken Sandwich yesterday for dinner. It as very similar to the Chick-Fil-A sandwich. But I would really need to try them side by side, I suppose, to best judge.

I think my PBS station just started to air this starting this past weekend. It was the sandwich episode. I managed to catch while channel surfing and now the TiVo season pass has been set.

For those of us not familiar with these terms, can you define them for us?

haven't tried it, but I have seen the new products at a McDonalds in L.A. There are actually TWO. One is a chicken biscuit served in the morning. The other is a "Southern Style" chicken sandwich (sold the rest of the day). Think Chick-Fil-A. Both products seem very similar.

I've only made them with Johnnie Walker Black. It's just happens to be the only Scotch I have on hand.

I made Carnitas over the weekend. Used the recent CI recipe. I didn't use as much meat as they called for because I only had what I had. But I kept everything else the same. They turned out OK.. I think maybe those country ribs i had maybe were not as well marbled as they could have been. They looked better then I remembered, but they came out a little dry. Also, I think I should have strained the cooking liquid before reducing it. And get back on the salt. WAY back.. The reduced liquid was VERY salty. And had big piles of the oregano in it. Another issue came with shredding and crisping under the broiler. Either my pieces were cut too small, or I really should have crisped BEFORE shredding. Might have worked better Still, I'd like to take another stab at making carnitas. Once made, they are versatile. Made tacos with them one night, the next I cooked some rice and heat canned black beans and did beans and rice topped with leftover carnitas.

There are laundromats and movie theaters in the USA that sell booze.

Indeed. And in my opinion, an abomination. I disliked them stongly even before I got on my cocktail kick. Would some sort of magical cocktail machine hold some interested to some people? Yeah.. Sure. Therere are some geeks out there that might dig it just from a technical/engineering standpoint. Maybe they would order a drink *just* to see the thing in action. Personally, I think this is all very "Rube Goldberg". Could it work in normal bar? I dunno. If there WAS a place for it, I would think it would be in a place where you would NOT have a normal attended bar. Like maybe in a club level lounge in a hotel. Instead of just having a fridge full of beer, they could have this machine and it could crank out cocktails. No need for a full time bartender. I mean, they have machines similar to this for espresso based drinks. Self service. Customer/guest pushes button, out comes some sort of froo-froo cofee beverage.

I forgot to mention that the simeple syrup I had to make this drink was the mint infused simple syrup I made for my mint juleps. Toby, you are right about this drink being a good way to get the vodka set to drink a cocktail NOT made with vodka.

While researching the Southside cocktail, I came upon this post from Alchemist for a cocktail named "King Sour". The only simple syrup I had on hand was mint infused simple syrup, so that is what I used. REALLY good. I don't have really huge chunks of ice, so I shook it "dry" first, but decided to add the wire spring from my Hawthorne strainer (can't recall where I saw this trick, but I saw it someplace). Then, I added my ice and did a second shake. really helped to develop the creaminess from the egg white. I really love sours, and also like the idea of egg white in them. This drink is going into my standard rotation. (It will be interesting to try it with bolder gin sometime. I made this one with Plymouth)

after digging around here some and watching Toby's video, I whipped up a Southside using lime juice, plus the dash of Angostura. Strained into chilled cocktail glass. Wow.. This is a GOOD cocktail. And I can totally see how this would work as a fizz with tonic water. Also, I'd like to try it with a "stronger" gin. I used Plymouth for mine.

School me on the Southside cocktail. I see a few different variations. Lemon or lime. Served up or made into a fizz or highball. Gary Regan offers up two versions in "Joy of Mixology". Both use lemon. One is served up, the other is served into a tall glass on the rocks with soda. I've seen posts here in the Cocktail forum that suggest using lime. I have gin and lemons and limes and some mint leftover from my Derby Day mint juleps. Help me make a Southside.

OK.. I'll take Chris's and Janet's tips and do some sort of braise. I pulled up the CI carnitas recipe, too. Looks pretty simple.

do you mean the tortillas themselves? We have a thread right here. But that shows a tortilla press being used. However, other members have reported that they use a heavy cast iron pot and "drop" it onto the dough ball for press out the tortilla.

Cino de Mayo is near. I have some pork in the freezer that I want to use for tacos. But I'm not totally sure WHERE from the pig it comes from. I THINK it's from the shoulder. But it's cut in long, thick strips. Should I dice it up, then marinate it, then cook it? I'm trying to go for "al pastor" here without doing the whole big piece of meat on a rotisserie thing.

Yeah, the subtitle says the Mint Julep isn't just for Derby Day, bit tomorrow IS Derby Day, so I think this is a suitable bump. I need to get some bourbon and some mint so I'll be set tomorrow come post time.

It's available here in Texas. Maybe it's a "Southern" thing. I've used it before, but have never done "side by side" tastings with items made with other extracts.

This is my observation as well. The ethnic stuff isn't too authentic. But typically, they are pretty good versions of non-authentic cooking. In many cases, probably better than what you can get at your supposed "ethnic" restaurant. So many of those are for far from authentic, too.

what's the difference between a fizz and a highball? On a recent episode of The Cocktail Spirit, Robert Hess presents a gin fizz. Which really seems to be nothing but a Tom Collins, but he said the difference is that the Gin Fizz just has more soda water.

Ok.. Here is my first real contribution to this cook off. (where I actually make some tacos!!) The "fajita meat" before marinating it in lime juice, some veg oil, a puree off chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and some Tapatio hot sauce. Then, cooked in the cast iron skillet, then topped up with sauteed red onions, some freshly made guacamole, some cheese, and some bottled salsa.

I love Popeye's chicken and that's my "target" for making fried chicken at home when it comes to the flavor and spice level. What exactly are you using for "cajun spices".

I'd like to try define some of the words/terms commonly associated with tacos for people who don't speak Spanish, or for people that just aren't totally sure what they all mean. Is it about an ingredient? A process or preparation? Here are a few terms to start off with. I'll make an attempt to define or describe them myself with the assistance of various online sources, including eGullet forums. Al Pastor. Al Carbon. Carnitas. Lengua. al Pastor -- "shepherd style". Some type of marinated pork that is then cooked on a rotisserie and sliced thin. (similar to a gyro, it seems) Also, pineapple is involved somehow. Can you do it without the rotisserie? that's how the ones I had today were make. marinated chunks of pork that were then cooked on a griddle. there was pineapple in there. al Carbon -- "grilled over charcoal". marinated beef. Then grilled over hot charcoal. Must it be beef to call it "al carbon"? What kind/cut of beef? Can it be "al carbon" if it's not over charcoal? carne asada -- "grilled meat". how is this different than al Carbon?? carnitas -- "small meats". Usually, pork and most commonly pork shoulder. Seasoned and then braised or slow roasted. Then, chopped up and roasted at high heat for a few minutes to crisp up the outside some. lengua -- "tongue" . This is about all I know. It's cow's tongue