C. sapidus

Shrimp in chile pasilla sauce with roasted garlic, cumin, and Mexican oregano. Green rice to go with.

Even less of a looker, but also hit the spot. Spinach, shrimp, eggs, and half-and-half, flavored with onion, garlic, jalapenos, cilantro, thyme, and Mexican oregano. Feta cheese at the end. Originally intended as taco filling but I liked it as is.

Mushroom tacos with kielbasa and guacamole. Confirmed that the current batch of jalapenos are extra-zippy.

Had friends over for dinner. Mrs. C steamed Dungeness crab with melted butter to dip (not pictured), and salmon-stuffed crescent rolls. Neighbors brought Olivier salad. I made the cabbage, grilled slipper kebabs (waaaay more chilie hot than intended), and cucumber and seared ginger raita (also waaaay more chllie hot than intended). Must have been a particularly potent batch of jalapenos - I even seeded them.

Welcome! Can you recommend any good dog-friendly restaurants, breweries, etc.?

Leftover broccoli reheated with Parmesan and sauteed garlic. Omelet with feta.

Speaking of canned coconut milk . . . Green curry steelhead. I used curry paste from a tub, enhanced with whatever we had on hand - minced jalapenos, ginger, garlic, lime zest, chicken stock, palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and bay leaves. Mrs. C made broccoli with lime, sesame oil, and sesame seeds, which mixed in with the curry nicely. I topped mine with sliced jalapenos and a squeeze of lime. Rest of the family did not.

Breakfast tacos with roasted chile Poblano, onion, sliced jalapeno, half-and-half, lime, thyme, and Mexican oregano, topped with not-quite-ripe avocado.

Shrimp with leftover chipotle paste. Roasted chile Poblano strips with onion, garlic, thyme, Mexican oregano, and cooked-down half-and-half. Squeeze of lime. I will make that combination again.

Simba or Scar? (we recently saw Lion King at the Kennedy Center) 😆 Yes, tasty. Mrs. C mixed the steelhead with younger son's garlic-butter-lemon sauce before filling the crescent rolls, so the fish had a nice flavor.

This was a true family meal - I made Brussels sprouts with a mustard cream sauce, Mrs. C filled the crescent rolls with steelhead, and younger (adult) son made a garlic-butter-lemon sauce for the fish. Mrs. C had ordered skull molds for a glass project but they were too deep, hence repurposing for kitchen duties.

Braised Brussels sprouts with cream is pretty delicious. That's what we are having tonight.

Fried rice with repurposed red rice, kielbasa, gochujang, egg, and feta.

Interesting, I like achiote but have not seen it used to make Mexican/red rice. Sounds good though! All of my Mexican cookbooks use roasted tomatoes for Mexican/red rice. Perhaps achiote rice comes from a particular region. Sounds like a fun research project, thanks!

Red is from a can of fire-roasted tomatoes, which I blended with chicken stock, pickled jalapenos, and cilantro. We always have canned tomatoes on hand. The recipe (Rick Bayless - Everyday Mexican) calls for red salsa, so I approximated.

Broiled chipotle chicken with spinach cream and Mexican red rice

Folks already suggested two of my favorites: spanakopita (in phyllo or otherwise); and palak paneer. There is also a keema with lots of spinach if you like that sort of thing (I do). Another option is Thai meat or seafood salads (larb, crying tiger, etc. etc.), often with a dressing of lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar (hey, vitamin C couldn't hurt). These are particularly good in hot weather - I could happily eat Thai salads all summer.

Chipotle, leftover chicken, and green bean tacos

For a quick light meal, a can of grocery store sardines drizzled with hot sauce hits the spot. Dogs appreciate licking fishy oil from the empty container. Everyone wins, except the sardines. Canned anchovies are lovely as is. With regard to the article, I chose not click on the bait.

Glass noodles are an interesting idea. Jasmine rice would be traditional, but we just spent 2 weeks pigging out on a cruise ship so I was aiming for healthy-ish.

Thom kha Maryland blue crab 😉 Coconut milk and chicken stock with a paste of garlic, ginger (sub for galangal), lemongrass, shallots, cilantro stems, and toasted white pepper. Simmered with bruised lemongrass, sliced ginger, and lime zest (sub for lime leaves), and fish sauce. Strained the soup, added the crab meat, and finished with chile jam, lime juice. and palm sugar. Mrs. C declared it the "best soup she had ever had.", but I disagree. Roasted green beans with garlic, ginger, and lime juice to go with.

Garlic, ginger, dou ban jian, spinach, cilantro, salmon, egg, and feta. Good to be home!

Chorizo and roasted Poblano chiles in tomato-cream sauce. Sauteed onions, garlic, and a Serrano chile for flavor, and then finished with a goodly amount of cilantro and a squeeze of lime. Last of the chorizo for a while . . .

Apparently Obrycki's closed their original location and relocated to BWI airport: Obrycki's at BWI (click)

Firstly, I am no expert on Baltimore restaurants. I expect you will get good food at the places you listed. But. If you want the local experience you want a crab joint where they will dump a bushel of steamed crabs onto the brown paper covering the table. Tell stories, drink beer, and pick crabs until you become a) full: b) tired of picking crabs; or c) in acute pain from Old Bay in cut fingers. Usual accompaniments include Maryland crab soup, coleslaw, hush puppies, etc. Or you could go to a nice restaurant and get some delicious crab cakes. But it just isn't the same. The closest I see to Inner Harbor are Faidley's, which has been around forever, or LP Steamers (never been). But usually crab joints are more out in the country. Hope you have a great time, whatever you decide.