David Ross

My ignorance is showing. I've seen bottles of Maggi in markets for years. I always assumed it was like the browning agent Kitchen Bouquet and I sensed it was full of salt and preservatives. Now I know better. Do you dilute the Maggi or just drizzle it on the pork when you are making the Banh Mi sandwich?

What's the purpose of the Maggi seasoning? Does it just add a soy type of salty flavor? Would a drizzle of sweet or dark, thick soy sauce provide the same flavor profile as Maggi?

It would be interesting to see a Vietnamese recipe for the "French" roll--especially the inclusion of rice flour. The French likely brought their beloved bread with them across the seas when they landed in Vietnam during the Colonial period. I'm not an expert on French baguettes, but I doubt they employ rice flour in the dough. Anyone know if the Vietnamese started baking French-style baguettes using rice flour as a substitute for wheat flour? I imagine it was probably somewhat expensive to export European wheat flour to Vietnam in the mid 19th century.

Wow, Banh Mi for breakfast. Makes sense of course, meat and bread. The local Asian store I shop at just started getting bread rolls for sandwiches and I'm sure they are intended for Banh Mi sandwiches. They also sell fresh pork belly, but it's cut in pretty small slabs, under about 1 1/2 pounds. We don't have a large Asian community and the Vietnamese restaurants only serve Pho soup and not much else. I can find decent pork pate in a regular grocery store. You mentioned thick Indonesian soy. I assume you mean Kecap Manis? I have a bottle on hand that I occasionally use. Do you use it as a condiment on the sandwich or do you cook the pork belly with some of the thick, sweet soy?

I'm going to resist temptation with this Cook-Off and not go directly into the kitchen. I'm going to gather my thoughts and recipe ideas while I gain some insight and relish in everyone's Banh Mi success stories. Then next weekend I'll put my mouth to my own Banh Mi and taste the results.

Well we are both basically in the same circumstance. While I've heard of Banh Mi sandwiches, I've never eaten one nor have I ever made one. But due to the urging of our Members and the popularity of Banh Mi sandiches today, I think we'll be embarking on a fun adventure in the kitchen--and I'll be relying on everyone's input before I start crafting my sandwich. From what I've researched over the course of the past week, the basics are French bread rolls, pork, (and often pate), and crisp vegetables dressed with some variety of vinegar--a marriage of French and Vietnamese cuisines.

Today we’ve reached a milestone, the 60th edition of one of the most popular discussions that graces our forums—the eGullet Cook-Off Series. (Click http://forums.egulle...m/#entry1581324 here for the complete eG Cook-Off Index). In celebration of reaching Cook-Off #60, we’ll be discussing a sandwich that is a marriage of French and Vietnamese cultures. A sandwich that has crossed international borders and now finds itself on restaurant menus throughout the world. It’s served on fine china at white tablecloth dining rooms and it’s delivered on a paper plate out of a food truck parked in downtown Manhattan. Yes, friends, you’ve guessed the subject of Cook-Off #60-the Banh Mi sandwich, the current king of sandwichdom.

This picture was taken at La Mesa de Blanca, in Ziracuaretiro, Michoacán, México. The chicharrones are made in-house and the avocados are from nearby groves. I just couldn't resist. Now that is delicious.

For this guacamole I combined avocado, yellow onion, garlic, tomato, cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, chili powder and chipotle powder. The chicharron's were heated in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes.

I'm also doing guacamole tonight--and I'm substituting "chips" with incredibly fatty, un-nutritional chicharones-fried pork rinds. It's very hard for me to find fresh pork fat back locally to be able to make homemade chicharones, but there's a very good Mexican market when I can buy a commercial brand that's pretty good. I like to warn the pork rinds in a 300 oven for about 15 minutes before serving them with chilled guacamole.

I've been doing a lot of cooking with Copper River Salmon recently in our Cook-Off #59 http://forums.egulle...80#entry1882480 here. As the season winds down, this will probably be the last dish I'll make until next year. Copper River Salmon "Poke"-

This has been one of the best Copper River Salmon runs in recent years--and I just can't help myself from using it in dishes that use "cured" fish. In this dish, I used a ceviche-style, "quick-cure" with citrus juice and Asian flavors for a Copper River Salmon "Poke." As you know, Poke is a traditional Hawaiian dish using fresh seafood dressed with lime or lemon juice and accented with other Asian-inspired flavors. Sometimes Poke includes diced tomato, cucumber or sweet peppers, but this time I left it nude with just the Salmon dressed with a simple vinaigrette. Once again I used the Copper River Sockeye for it's fresh, clean, deep salmon flavor and its high oil content. I cut the salmon into small dice and tossed it with some Chinese peppercorn chili oil, chives, toasted sesame seeds and a soy-ginger-garlic vinaigrette. The vinaigrette was composed of fresh ginger, fresh garlic, lime juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, fresh shallots and grapeseed oil. I used some dried seaweed sheets to create layers of the "Napolean," then the Salmon Poke, Seaweed, more Salmon Poke and a garnish of fresh chives and dried fried red onion. The only thing missing was a glass of crisp, chilled Riesling. Copper River Salmon "Poke-

One of my best dishes ever. I've been eating more Copper River Salmon this year than ever. I imagine an appetizer like the one I did above would cost a pretty penny in a restaurant.

David, Thank you for the suggestions. We ate at Luna last night and had a fantastic meal. I started with an interesting salad of watercress, shaved baby persian cukes, almond slices, shaved pecorino topped with crispy potato shreds. Really quite good and definitely tangy. Followed this with the Prime Sirloin which was perfectly cooked. Came with parmesan rosemary potato gratin, broccolini, and roasted shallot demi glace. My husband had the Pork Chop Argentine - which was a grilled double cut chop, white bean succotash, and chimichurri along with a side of broccolini. Nice wine and beer list as well. No room for dessert. We really enjoyed the restaurant and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a place to go in Spokane. Recommend reservations as it was extremely busy last evening. We sat inside but they do have patio dining as well. We appreciated your suggestion. Kay So glad you liked it and I'm glad my recommendation worked out well. It's a bit tough for restaurants in Spokane who cook "local and seasonal" as our growing seasons are quite short compared to the West side of the state. However, with some creativity and the marriage of local with good quality, restaurants like Luna do a nice job. Visit us in the late Summer and we'll treat you to fresh huckleberries and late-Summer peaches.

Fresh dill is delicious stirred into scrambled eggs. I heat a saute pan over medium heat, plop in a few tablespoons of salted butter, then stir in beaten eggs. And stir and stir to break the curds. When the eggs are almost set, yet still runny, take them off the heat and stir in the fresh dill. Dill is very delicate so if you cook it in the eggs it will lose a lot of flavor. Top the eggs with gravlax for even more levels of flavor.

Not a good season this Spring in the Pacific Northwest. I bought some morels yesterday at the astronomical price of $62.99 a pound! They were almost a month late in the market and they won't last long.

When I was a kid, the only "cod" my Mother served came in the form of chopped whitefish shaped into fish sticks. We loved them back then, but my tastes are a bit more refined now. Roast Alaskan Cod with Chimmichurri "Bacalao"-

We've been discussing curing, brining and smoking fish http://forums.egulle...93#entry1880493 here. Tonight I put together an appetizer with the Copper River Salmon that I've been curing this past week. Spiced Copper River Sockeye Gravlax with Aquavit, Spring Asparagus, Capers, Chive Blossoms, Lemon, Olive Oil and Rye Croutons-

Spiced Copper River Sockeye Gravlax with Aquavit, Spring Asparagus, Capers, Chive Blossoms, Lemon, Olive Oil and Rye Croutons-

For the second dish using Copper River Sockeye I used a Scandanavian recipe for gravlax-style cured and brined salmon. I have an employee whose family lives in Norway and twice a year she travels home, bringing back my requested gift of a bottle of Aquavit. The region where her family lives favors Aquavit with a heavy caraway influence and so that's the style that she brings back to America. Adding Aquavit to the cure/brine for gravlax isn't a taste that everyone would like--it's heady and the caraway gives it a pronounced licorice flavor and aroma. But not to worry, since Copper River Salmon is a bold fish with lots of oil it can stand-up to the intensity of the alcohol. I started with the spice mixture, a combination of 1 tbsp. caraway seeds, 2 tsp. fennel seeds, dash red pepper flakes, 1 tbsp. black peppercorns and 1 tbsp. juniper berries- I used a 50-50 ratio of 1/4 cup of Kosher salt to 1/4 cup sugar. Most recipes call for a greater ratio of salt to sugar, but I've always tempered the ratio down to 50-50 to cut down on the salt flavor in the finished product. A 1/2 cup of total salt and sugar doesn't seem much for a 6 pound fish, but with Copper River Salmon I just wanted to move the fish from raw to lightly cured and spiced gravlax- A 6 pound filet, boned, skin on, then cut in half- The filets rubbed with the spice and salt/sugar cure- Then a layer of fresh baby dill- And then the other half of the filet layed on top- I poured about 1/3 cup of Aquavit over the top salmon filet, then covered and refrigerated the salmon. I let the salmon cure 3 1/2 days, turning it over daily and basting with the juices from the cure/brine.

There is absolutely no redeeming value in watching someone berate, belittle, harass and disrepect others.

Well, without a doubt no other city can offer the full experience of Las Vegas during a culinary event.

I would agree--the style and personality of Feast is vastly different from Vegas Uncork'd. Las Vegas has a collection of world-class restaurants and Chefs, yet not much in terms of a local food culture. Combine the restaurants of Las Vegas with the atmosphere of an adult playground and it certainly makes sense to stage a food event on the Strip. No other city can offer such a limitless platter of entertainment and hotel options to travellers. That gives visibility to Bon Appetit from a food and lifestyle aspect. Although Portland and Seattle are less than 250 miles apart, trust me when I say they both have unique food cultures. Right now, Portland seems to be the trendy sibling of Northwest food culture, driven in part by this food truck fad that's swept through the country. So in terms of visual appeal to a large part of Bon Appetit's demographic, Feast makes sense this year. I think your statement that , "Maybe BA would do best hosting a range of these around the country, rotating among various local food scenes," probably makes the most sense. As we all know, trends in food, culture and dining change quickly these days and so to stay fresh and current, it would probably serve Bon Appetit well to rotate these events. But the local communities and attendees get very attached to these food gatherings and want to stage them annually. Unfortunately, as my experience at Uncork'd shows, as the event ages, the planning efforts and budget issues inevitably come into conflict with one another, souring the tastes of the guests.

Thanks. Yesterday I started curing another Copper River Sockeye--this time a traditional Scandanavian-style gravlax with spices and Aquavit that I'll let cure for three days but I won't be adding any smoke.

And the sliced Cured, Cold-Smoked, Copper River Sockeye- In all honesty, I wondered if I had even needed to go through all the effort to cure and cold-smoke this salmon. If they graded salmon like they do Kobe Beef, this was A-10 level. One could savor Copper River Salmon as sashimi and not be disappointed. Yet the cure added a hint of the salty sea and the driftwood scent of a Northwest campfire. And I can tell you no one else at the office had a bagel with Copper River Salmon for breakfast.