Kent Wang

That's the same rationale for brining as explained in the brining thread. If the mechanism is the same then why would you want to pre-salt instead of brining? Pre-salt would not be able to penetrate as deeply as the brining. I'd just like to hear a scientific explanation of why pre-salt is better than brining, or vice-versa.

What does pre-salting do -- as opposed to just sprinkling on the salt right before cooking? Is there a similar chemical reaction as with brining?

Just tried this, tasted great. Subtle, just as you described. I also made another batch and folded in some wakame at the end, which tasted fine but perhaps detracted from the creamy nature of the rice. I think we have a nice Japanese take on risotto going here: miso soup for stock, scallions instead of shallots or onions, and chopped shitake mushrooms.

Salmon roe floats? There's something wrong about shooting sparkling wine. To me, its fizzyness is what's particularly inappropriate. I like to sip sparkling wine, not shoot it. That said, a clear beer alternative is certainly possible like a Belgian Pale Ale, Witbier or Kristall Weizen.

I just helped my friend make a beef Wellington and honestly, it was only so-so. I love pate and I love steak but the two ingredients just did not incorporate well. Do you think a good idea would be to chop up the beef into bite-size pieces (1-inch cubes) and then mixing that with the pate? I'd hate to chop up a beef tenderloin so maybe this can be done with a cheaper cut of beef.

Uchi, a contemporary Japanese restaurant in Austin, offers a specialty called the Uchi Shot, a raw quail egg and a piece of uni (sea urchin) placed in a double shot glass then filled to the brim with sparkling white wine. I think it's rather interesting but I don't really like the sparkling white wine. It's nice that it's clear so that you can see the beautiful raw quail egg but I don't think it complements the flavor of egg and uni. So how would you modify the dish? Perhaps another liquid like tomato juice or Bloody Mary mix? The salt and acidity would balance nicely with the egg and uni. It'd be nice to have a clear liquid, though. Maybe sake? How about modifying the proteins? I think the quail egg is essential as it's so pretty. Maybe substitute the uni for some salmon roe?

I also prefer the taste of organic milk but I have heard that this is because they simply add a bit more milkfat. Can anyone substantiate this?

Sometimes it pays to be creative with ordering from the menu. At Monsoon in Seattle they offer freshly squeezed orange juice and mimosas. We knew that we were going to be there for a while so I ordered two glasses of orange juice and a bottle of champagne and made our own mimosas. Saved a couple of bucks that way.

I have had a lot of success with brining whole chicken with just salt and dried shitake mushrooms. I don't boil the brine. I swear, the perfumey shitake flavor distributes throughout the chicken, even well into the breast meat. I have not had nearly as much success with dried herbs. Is there something special about the dried shitakes? What is the effect of acid on a brine? I know that acids are used in marinades to tenderize the meat, so is it a good idea to use acids in brine?

LED lights will not generate nearly as much heat. They are a bit pricey though.

On Friday, July 21, a friend and I went to Chambar on the advice of BeerFly. I was just going for their selection of Belgian beers, not realizing that they also had a good reputation for food. We ordered two bottles of Orval, which is not available in my town. Pretty good for a Belgian Pale Ale. Carpaccio d'autruche. 20 year old sherry vinegar marinated ostrich carpaccio. Buckwheat angel hair salad, horseradish mustard ($13). I've never been a fan of ostrich in steak form as I find the gamey taste unappetizing. Carpaccio, however, seems to be the perfect application for this meat as the gameyness can be enjoyed in small portions. Excellent dish. Poutine á la Belge. Poutine with blue cheese. Having never had poutine before, I liked this dish a great deal. The pink peppercorns were delicious. They had the best cocktail menu I have ever seen. I had both the Bazil Zayjax and Blue Fig. Both were superb.

Rouge 5027 W Lovers Ln. Dallas, TX 75209 214-350-6600 For our last meal, Richard and I met up with Kevin72, irodguy and their respective wives at Rouge. The cuisine is much more contemporary than either Hola or Cafe Madrid, with many dishes straying out of the border lines of traditional Spanish cuisine. Rouge has a very intimate decor, dimly lit with -- as the name suggests -- a lot of red. The semi-private section in which we were seated was reminiscent of an Arabesque boudoir -- not Spanish, I know, but the food is not strictly traditional either. Rápe. Beer battered monkfish served with a pear dipping sauce ($8). Berenjenas con Centollos. Crab and eggplant lasagna torte ($7.50). Croquetas de Jamon y Queso. Jamon ham and cheese hush puppies ($6.50). Not at all like the bland American version; both the Jamon ham and cheese were sharp and held their own against the flavor of the crust. Huevos al la Russa. Crab stuffed eggs with garlic mayonnaise ($7.50). I don't think I've ever met a deviled egg that I didn't like; this, however, was certainly one of the best ones I've had. Gambas al Ajillo. Gulf shrimp sauteed with roasted garlic and smoked paprika. Atun ceviche. Marinated ahi tuna terrine with mangos, avocadoes and basil tomatoes ($9). My favorite dish of the meal. Smart combination of tuna with the complementary texture of mango. Photos of menu on my Flickr. Rouge is my favorite of the Dallas tapas restaurants, by a wide margin. Traditional or not, this was unique, well-executed food. It was a great pleasure to meet everyone. I had a terrific time

Cafe Madrid 4501 Travis St Dallas, TX 75205 (214) 528-1731 www.cafe-madrid-dallas.com Saturday, June 24, Richard and I went to Cafe Madrid for lunch. The restaurant is much smaller, very much a cozy cafe with tables on the sidewalk welcoming passersby to come in. The dishes offered there are also more homey, similar to what you may find in a Spanish home kitchen. Blood sausage. These were much better than the ones at Hola, more robust flavor and casing that has a nice snap to it. Oxtail stew. Fair amount of meat, wonderful high collagen broth that leaves your fingers sticky. Sweetbreads with lemon and capers. I much prefer seared sweetbreads as boiling them in a stew does not generate a sweet, crispy carmelized crust. This preparation is rather bland though the lemons and capers were a good choice to help to cut the fatty, organ flavor. Clam stew. No Spanish meal can be complete without a seafood dish. The broth was a joy to mop up with bread. Cantaloupe wrapped in Serrano ham, watermelon, cake. Ham and melon is a classic combination, the Serrano ham being a bit drier than prosciutto. The watermelon was unripe. Pics of menu on my Flickr. Cafe Madrid is a bird of a different feather. It is much more casual than either Rouge or Hola and focuses on home-style cuisine. Hola can also be said to be casual with simple dishes but the dishes at Cafe Madrid are much more traditional (e.g. oxtail and sweatbreads) and not just safe dishes adapted to the American palate.

With tapas becoming ever more trendy throughout the country let's use this thread to discuss the tapas restaurant in Texas. I think of tapas as the Spanish version of dim sum -- plus lots of wine! On July 23-24, Richard Kilgore and I visited three tapas restaurants in Dallas in two days. Hola! 4831 McKinney Ave Dallas, TX 75205 (214) 522-0505 We went to Hola! first. The restaurant was dimly lit filled with plain, unadorned wooden furniture. The atmosphere is suggestive of a small, cozy house. On the Friday night that we visited, the restaurant was packed and very lively. Boquerones en Vinagre. Fresh anchovies marinated in garlic ($5). Chorizo Soria. Spanish cured Soria-style chorizo ($5). Croquetas de Bacalao y Maiz (left). Codfish and fresh corn croquettes ($5). Dry and bland, hardly any cod flavor at all. Blood Sausage (upper right). A bit bland and the sprinkled rice further diluted any flavor; not as good as Cafe Madrid. Poached pear in chocolate sauce. Black pepper ice cream with strawberries and oranges. I've never had black pepper ice cream before; I loved it. We did order wine at each of these restaurants but I don't feel that I know enough about the subject to comment on it. The complimentary bread was the worst I've ever been served. It was just downright underbaked with a chewy, raw flour center. Overall, the food was simplistic, but of middling quality; not the best value for the money. No dish really stood out other than the black pepper ice cream. I've little doubt that Hola! will continue to stay in business, though, as it is located in a very busy part of town with an active night life.

In China, haggling is assumed. One can often get the price down by around 20%. Is it acceptable to haggle at farmers markets in America and other parts of the world? I certainly have never seen anyone haggle at the markets in Austin. I rather enjoy haggling. It's a psychological game that keeps one's negotiation skills sharp.

Molinari Meltdown! Five salami from P.F. Molinari & Sons (San Francisco). Clockwise from top left. Finocchiona. Mild fennel flavor relative to other finocchionas I have had. Toscano. Coarse grind, rich, complex flavor. The best Molinari salame. Salametti. Small diameter, weak flavor. Worst of these five. Milano (Hot). Similar to regular milano, yellow tint, substantial spice. Milano. Both milanos have a not unpleasant mild, lingering, waxy, greasy mouthfeel. Minimal pepper, mild salt. Compared with the Columbus salami, Molinari is decidedly inferior. Even the Toscano pales in comparison with the Columbus Felino.

July 19. Sample plate. Look at how coarse the grind is and how loosely packed it is. It really falls apart which, although is inconvenient for eating directly, is perfect for a sandwich. The flavors were bold and unlike any commercial charcuterie I've ever had. I sorely wish we had a charcuterier like Salumi in my city!

I went to Salumi in Seattle on July 19. I sorely wish we had something like that here! Look at how coarse the grind is and how loosely packed it is. It really falls apart which, although is inconvenient for eating directly, is perfect for a sandwich. The flavors were bold and unlike any commercial charcuterie I've ever had.

I've been doing a lot of pan-frying lately in my shallow cast-iron skillet lately and been getting a lot of oil splattered all over my stove. Do you find a splatter screen effective or is it more of a frivolous gadget? Any tips on purchasing one?

I just tried it with a strongly flavored dashi, shallots, no cream, some parm. It was great, you can really taste the mild but pervasive smokiness of the bonito. Shalamenes, what do you mean "miso broth"? Is that dashi with a good amount of miso paste added to it?

OK, it's your friends that are ordering the kung pao chicken. I was about to reprimand you for that.

Is this how it's usually done? If so, why is the niban-dashi, according to torakris "stronger flavored"? I'm thinking of making a risotto with dashi, should I use ichiban or niban dashi? I'm leaning towards the ichiban.

For those unfamiliar, dashi is a Japenese soup stock flavored primarily with bonito flakes.

Haven't been. It's at the top of the to do list, for sure.

On Tuesday, August 8 my friend and I made the pilgrimage to the Mecca of barbecue, Lockhart, home to four renowned joints, Smitty's, Kreuz, Black's and -- slightly less renowned -- Chisholm Trail. We went to each restaurant in succession, starting at 11am. Most of these restaurants are open until 7pm so lunchtime is probably the best time to visit. Before I give you my impressions of each restaurant's barbecue I'd like to quote a great explanation by Jaymes in another barbecue thread: I can only comment on the meat that I was served but you really need a much bigger dataset to scientifically declare which restauarant is the best. Take my opinions in consideration with the experiences of the many other barbecue enthusiasts on this forum and elsewhere. Smitty's Market 11:30 am That's my friend Chuck standing in front. I've only seen this setup with the meat kept in the pits at Cooper's in Mason, but all the places we went to in Lockhart did this. Brisket - Big cap of fat but dry insides suggests their technique may be off and let the meat lose too much moisture. Pork ribs - This was one of the ribs towards the shorter end and was very tender, with the bone easily pulled off, which is overcooked by Central Texas barbecue standards. I can only speculate if the ribs on the longer end were better or not. Sausage - Nice give on the casing, but not as incredibly juicy as some of the sausage in Elgin that I've had though. Black's Barbecue 1:00 pm Brisket - We got lucky with the cut with a great strip of fat running straight across the center. Pork ribs - Lacks smoke flavor, otherwise average. Sausage - The skin was too tough and the stuffing too dry. This is apparent just from this photo. Kreuz Market 2:00 pm No, the flame wasn't really supernaturally purple, just a quirk of the camera. Brisket - Dry and flaking apart, consistency similar to roast beef. Pork ribs - Terrific, prodigious amount of black pepper in the rub, heavy smoke flavor. Sausage - Juicy, better casing than even Smitty's. We had planned to go to Chisholm Trail but were way too full. I'll be sure to go next time. Best brisket: Black's, Smitty's, Kreuz. Best pork ribs: Kreuz, Black's, Smitty's. Best sausage: Kreuz, Smitty's, Black's. It's hard to name a best overall of these three as the restaurant with the best brisket, the most important meat, Black's, had rather inferior ribs and sausage. Kreuz, which had the best ribs and sausage, had the worst brisket. In the end though, I have to give the tip of the hat to Black's; the brisket was the clincher. My current favorites: 1. Cooper's (Mason) 2. Louie Mueller's (Taylor) 3. Black's (Lockhart) Tied for 4: Southside Market (Elgin), John Mueller's (Bastrop, temporarily closed) Tied for 5: Smitty's (Lockhart), Kreuz (Lockhart)