C. sapidus

Spinach and cilantro with shrimp, egg, coconut cream, and feta

Chorizo and egg tacos with guajillo salsa, feta and Mexican oregano. Some of the guajillo sauce was mixed with the fried chorizo, and some was drizzled over the tacos. Guajillo sauce was blended, strained, and fried guajillo chiles (toasted and rehydrated), garlic (roasted), Mexican oregano, black pepper, and cumin. Simmered the sauce with turkey stock and finished with a little salt and brown sugar. Sauce turned out really well - I should have made more.

Chorizo and egg tacos

Interesting - opposite here. I keep looking for mutant 8-legged turkeys with no breast. At our house Mrs. C cooks the proteins. Bird is usually capon but probably not this year. She might ask me to partly smoke the bird on the Weber bullet for her to finish in the oven. We shall see. She also makes steelhead or salmon with a maple-soy glaze (nephew's favorite). In-laws contribute mashed potatoes and stuffing. I cook the veggies. Vegetarian sis always requests palak (saag) paneer - I hope to successfully make my own paneer this year. Other staples include Brussels sprouts braised with lemon and cream, green bean salad, braised carrots (sometimes with endive), and Bourbon sweet potatoes with orange sauce. Haven't decided whether to shake things up this year. Before dessert, if the weather cooperates we walk through the historic district downtown. Not sure what to make for dessert this year - baklava is popular, but I have been hankering for flan and Mrs. C makes killer fruit crisps. After the feast and cleanup, Mrs. C makes a big batch of stock with leftover bird parts.

Gai yang (roasted chicken) marinated with ginger, garlic, cilantro, white pepper, fish sauce, soy sauce, coconut milk, and bourbon. Cultural mash-up rice with coconut milk, turkey stock, sliced ginger, turmeric, cloves, and green cardamom Mrs. C made broccoli and apple salad with pistachios World’s smallest cucumber relish (we only had half a cuke)

Dinner from random fridge contents: Green beans and kale with Mexican chorizo, white onion, garlic, serrano and Fresno chiles, canned tomato, cumin, cilantro, and Mexican oregano. Mrs. C sous-chef'd the chorizo, picking out all the gristly bits. ❤️

Cheers

Non-metallic gridiron, from the second link above. I expect that wet/green wood was needed.

Yes in the US people will say they are "Having a barbecue" (Australian meaning - high heat from below) so the terminology is severely jumbled, even before traveling the world. Probably too wordy to say, "Indirect heat with smoke at 230°F (110°C)" rather than "BBQ".

Here are a couple of articles on the history of barbecue, for those who are interested: The Origins of the Word “Barbecue” (JSTOR Daily) The History of the Barbecue: A Native American method of tenderising meat goes global (History Today)

I see quite a few posts blurring the lines between (in decreasing order of temperature) grilling, BBQ, and cold-smoking. Clarity on that terminology would help focus this discussion. I suspect that people from many cultures have contributed to what we call American BBQ. 🤷🏼‍♂️

Bay scallop sambal (maybe more of a thick curry), jasmine rice, and microwaved peas with butter. Chile paste of what we had in the house: long red chiles, bird chiles, shallot, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, cashews, and toasted shrimp paste. Sauce was fried and then finished with coconut cream fish sauce, palm sugar, and rice vinegar. I was happy with the end result but it took a bit of fiddling.

Gertie's crab cakes, from 'Chesapeake Bay Cooking' - one of my favorite things on earth. I usually broil crab cakes but this time I tried shallow-frying in ghee and oil. The advantage of the broiler is you can see when the crab cakes need to be flipped. I flipped these a bit early, which meant I had to flip them twice, which meant more falling apart. Fortunately falling apart had zero affect on taste. 😋 Tartar sauce to go with: dill pickles, capers, horseradish, brown mustard, S&P, and mayo. Mrs. C added asparagus from the air fryer to a bagged mix of stir-fried potatoes, mushrooms, and asparagus. No pics, sadly.

Spinach with chorizo, onion, garlic, red chiles, cilantro, and feta cheese, seasoned to taste with fish sauce and fermented fish sauce.

Now you tell me . . . 🤣

The Missouri bridge in Kansas City is indeed beautiful. Drove across that last month. Wow 12 hours is a long day on the road. We aim for 8 hours or less, but once we drove to San Antonio in two 12-hour days. That was not fun. I look forward to your further adventures!

I rarely make quesadillas so perhaps that is why these were wildly overstuffed. Quite delicious, though. Frying the fillings in chorizo grease probably didn't hurt. Well, except for my coronary arteries. Fillings: chorizo, shrimp, and sauteed shishito and serrano chiles, shallot, and garlic. Feta cheese, cilantro, and raw shallots not pictured. I doubt shishitos are traditional but we had leftovers . . .

Good luck with the Princessmobile, and watch out for naked running men. Or maybe that's just a Minnesota thing.

Plantains, a saga: I found nice, ripe plantains at the store. I looked forward to frying them up for breakfast but couldn't find them. Turns out that Mrs. C thought they were over-ripe bananas and put them in the freezer for banana bread. We chuckled, and then I set the plantains on the counter to thaw. As dinnertime approached it became obvious that neither of us had planned a meal. Mrs. C offered to air-fry shishito peppers and bake a freezer lasagna (bought for when younger son was watching the dogs). I offered to fry the plantains. When de-skinned they had a weird gelatinous texture so I was not optimistic but surprisingly they turned out just fine. Note that we both prefer very well-browned plantains (when Mrs. C orders plantains in a restaurant she says, "Burn 'em!"). I left the room momentarily and when I returned about half of the plantains had been sampled for quality control. 🙄

Chorizo tacos

Jhinga curry – Shrimp with onion, garlic, ginger, tomato paste, coconut milk, and a cabinet full of dry spices, finished with cilantro and minced Serrano chiles. Yum. Basmati rice with ghee to go with Carrot and toasted cashew salad, courtesy of Mrs. C. Toasted coconut, cilantro, lemon juice, and a tadka of curry leaves, cumin seed, black mustard seeds, garlic, and a halved Serrano chile.

Shrimp with scallions and fresh fenugreek leaves (methi). Water-based sauce well-flavored with lemon juice, ginger, garlic, serrano chiles, cayenne, turmeric, and basil. Shrimp marinated with turmeric, cayenne, lemon juice, and salt before poaching in the sauce. Cauliflower with ginger, cumin, cayenne, and garam masala. Basmati rice scented with cardamom, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon stick, and a little ghee.

Dissolved the palm sugar in the water/coconut cream mixture before cooking the rice. Coconut rice has long been one of younger son's favorites.

Thai tuna salad (yam tuna) from ‘Pok Pok’ - Canned tuna tossed with cherry tomatoes and sliced lemongrass, shallot, cilantro, Chinese celery, and scallions. Gently warmed dressing of fish sauce, lime juice, palm sugar, slivered ginger, sliced garlic, and sliced green chiles. Yum Shrimp paste relish (nahm prik gapi) – toasted shrimp paste, garlic, bird chiles, and palm sugar, all bashed up in the mortar and finished with lime juice and fish sauce. Rich, complex, funky, and makes everything it touches better. Sadly, no one else in the family agrees. Jasmine rice with coconut cream, water, salt, and palm sugar.