FoodMuse

Wow. What great responses! This site and the good community on it never ceases to amaze me. Peter the eater: I'm with you. Love pork ribs. I don't undertand why anyone would go for beef when given the choice. rlibkind: this is prob what I'll go with. Bittman never disappoints. Nayan Gowda: I will be saving this recipe, but I'm feeling lazy today. Just want to stick it in a pot. and finally v. gautam: Thank you so much for taking the time to write such an interesting post. I will definatelly use some of those ideas. Grace

Here's some recession proof cooking. I picked up 2 lb of lamb breast for about $2. Now what? I've googled the heck out of it and now know it is tough, flavorful with not much meat. Anyone have experience with it. Also why is it called breast when it's all rib? LOL Sounds like braising may be the way to go. Recipes, stories, etc? I have a stovetop smoker, but want tender ribs. Essentially, if I understand it properly, these are the babyback ribs from a lamb. Thanks! Grace

A good friend's blood test just confirmed she is extremely allergic to dairy and eggs. She hasn't felt really well in years. Finally she knows why. Her scores were off the chart in terms of allergy. On the blood test: under 40 is not allergic, 40-150 is moderate. Anything over 900 is severe. She got 1439 for milk and 1435 for casein. She was told by the doc "no egg, no dairy products for you!" Yeah, she's screwed. Can you help me let her know the end of good eating is not nigh!? She's really sad about not eating cheese. Thoughts, pity, suggestions, allergy stories, recipes...? Grace

Visiting Staten Island tomorrow and would love to have a great dinner. I hear there is a thriving Sri Lanken community there. Flavor is my priority, but it would be nice to eat somewhere with a dining room. Less interested in a take out joint. Thanks! Grace

@FatGuy The steaks were dry aged. I find it curious that the cooking process wouldn't be different depending on how it's aged. Anyway, sweet juicy success! Cooked as I said I would in previous post. 3 min on one side 2 on the other and 5 in a 325 degree oven. Good med. rare color, but I would have preferred it more rare. Next time will just stick to 3 min on each side and let it rest 5-7 min, no oven time. Good flavor and it was tender. Served it with pureed green peas and a green salad with vidalia onion and a purchased Fig Balsamic Vinaigrette. Yum. Grace

Great links! Thank you. I guess part 2 of my question is do we cook aged beef differently from non aged?

<edited to add> I see you can't edit your post titles. couter = counter. I suppose I'll rub it with a bit of oil and lots of salt and even more pepper. Can't decide between a hot nonstick pan vs broiling til rare. Wish I had cast iron. It's dry aged and looks fantastic. Probably about 1 inch thick. Any tips for not screwing up this cut? Quick garlicky marinade? Feel free to merge, I did the eGullet search and as usual can never find what I want. Thanks, Grace

I can't answer your question, however when I was 6 or 7 I made peanut butter. I had learned to read the ingredient label. I remember thinking I can make that! I put a handful of peanuts in a plastic baggie with salt, a little sugar and some peanut oil and whacked it the on the concrete floor of my basement woodworking area with his biggest hammer. It was actually pretty good. I also made my own Thousand Island dressing by reading it's label. Ketchup, mayo, pickle juice and grated parm. Grace

I think I have the dill genetic equivalent to cilantro tasting like soap. Unless it's in a pickle- blech.

Fantastic replies! I ended up using a little vinegar. Thanks all. I like this thread. Let's open it up to all type of recipes that need that one final component that brings it all together or gives it a punch. I've got a pot on the stove with my simple red sauce. 1/2 minced onion, 1 garlic clove sauteed in lots of olive oil til soft toss in 28 oz plum tomatoes. Simmer til thickened. Any great final additions? I have some great whole olives a friend brought back from Italy. @maggiethecat Would it be weird to just toss them in with a mashed anchovie into the read sauce? Thanks, Grace

I have folks coming over for a Beef and Vegetable stew for dinner. I simmered it with half a bottle of red and some tomato. It's good, but thinking maybe I should add an acid/herb to brighten the flavor. This is a leftover stew I made 2 weeks ago and froze. Defrosted overnight. Serving it with popovers and my own homemade port wine cheese. Thoughts? I'm also interested in how you perk up braises, stews, thickened soups, etc. -Grace

Ned I have another way to screw up a shoulder. Behold my disasterous Incinerated Pork Shoulder. I used lots of rub, skin side up in a pan, 300 degrees for about 7 hours. Epic Fail. http://www.flickr.com/photos/foodmuse1/3347020885/ Once my bruised ego has healed, I'll give it another try. Project, I'll use your method of overnight at 210. Thanks for the notes. Grace

@Jaz Oops wished I'd seen your post in time. Just heavily salted it. Oh well. Will let you know how it turns out. Luckily I like things extra salty. Have had friends joke the best gift for me would be a salt lick. @Margo Thanks for you help. Went rack-less, but if I feel it's swimming in fat I might put it on one. Schlesinger is one of my favorite cookbook authors. I've never made one of his recipes that was a dud. Grace

Thank you!! Do I need to put it on a rack or is it ok to just stick it in my roasting pan? I have some Chris Schlesinger inspire BBQ rub I thought I might use on it. Essentially brown sugar, salt, pepper, chili powder, chipotle powder, etc. I thought I might rub into the skin. Is this a good idea or do you think I should stick with salt and lots of pepper? Grace

I put it on Indian and Thai delivery that is not up to par. Asian soups benefit from it. I always add a shot to my stirfries. It's great for dipping roasted sweet potato fries. I second Lilija, anywhere you would use ketchup. Ooh now that I've wrote that I think it would be insanely good on meatloaf and corned beef. -Grace

I'm hoping to get a quick response so I can get the 5lb bone in shoulder of pork into a 300degree oven ASAP. I've cooked shoulder in a covered pot in a slow oven before, but this is the first time it's had the skin on and bone-in. I looked at lots of recipes, but none mention the skin. Should I slash it, sear it or remove it. I like all things porky so I'd rather leave it on. I brined it for 2 days in a sugar salt and pickling spice mixture. Advice? Thanks so much! [edited to add. I plan on cooking it until it is falling apart for enchilada filling] Grace

I ended up frying quickly over a very high heat, until browned. Took them off, they finished cooking off heat. Briefly reheated in oven before serving over veg stew. I tend to overcook sausages and be very disappointed in the results. Thx Grace www.FearlessCooking.tv

Hello, Any thoughts on how to cook Merguez Lamb Sausages? I was thinking I'd like to do a sort of a stew. Brown them first, slice and add back in just before turnips, carrots, cabbage are cooked through? Thanks, Grace www.fearlesscooking.tv

I like it drizzled on a good steak.

It might be fun to try it sprinkled on raw oysters. Or maybe very plain pasta that's been tossed with just butter and maybe a few sauteed mushrooms.

I posted a recipe for Un-Dumplings, a kind of Lion's Head, to my blog Fearless Cooking. It's tasty and quick to throw together. edited to add I saw you were looking for non asian flavors, but it's such a coincidence that I read this the day after posting my recipe I thought I could get away with it. I do like the idea of turning potstickers on their head and using non asian flavors. Grace

I thought some of you might be interested in this menu. A Twitter (that's twitter.com a social networking site) friend Loic, took photos of the menu at a dinner he had with President Bush and French President Sarkozy today. Dinner with Bush and Sarkozy Menu http://flickr.com/photos/loiclemeur/sets/7...605592671742/nh For Future Reference, below is the Menu Languise marinee au citron de Menton pomme ratee au caviar Malloux de volailleaux artichauts et ses petits farcis Etuvee d'asperges et girolles The photo quality is quite poor, so jump in if you can correct my spelling. Translation would be welcome. In Flickr if you click 'All sizes' you'll get an larger image. Grace

Damn In the two years I've lived in NYC Both Siberia Bar and CBGB have closed. It's not my fault! So disappointing. How about Rudy's on 9th in Hell's Kitchen? There's a giant plaster pig outside and the booths are held together with ducktape. Free skanky hotdogs are a bonus. Zamir and Bourdain together are so much fun to watch. Now realizing I misspelled "turd" in last post, how embarrassing. I am sensing Romanian touchiness on the board. Come on people it's a TV show. -Graceb

Oh... Jesus.... Watching Bourdain basically wear another man as he is massaged in the Uzbek episode is painful. Great editing. But, where the hell is the food? Well, really who cares? It's funny. Screw you Bourdain, you know the real star of some of these shows is Zamir (sp?) But srsly you guys should consider importing him to the US as permanent sidekick. I would love to see him in .... I don't know ..Siberia Bar in NY? "I dont want to be the terd in the punchbowl" I aspire to that pithiness. Grace

Battered Pizza. Sounds like a good reason to visit Scotland.