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Naftal

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Posts posted by Naftal

    Tea Kettle vs. Electric Kettle

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted

    I grew up with a stovetop kettle, but during countless trips to and two stints living in Britain, the electric kettle was ubiquitous. I have to say, I kind of like the electric more. They're faster and less bother. 

     

    In my apartment in DC, I have a 4L Zojirushi boiler, with settings for 212 (kind of), 208, 195, and 175 degrees. I use it exclusively now and am EXTREMELY happy with it. Boiling water at the touch of a button whenever I want it? Yes please!

    Hassouni- I know this is a really stupid question: Is that 4 separate 1liter  pots, or is that one 4 liter pot that can be programmed with 4 separate settings? Please excuse my stupid question.

    Mijiu v Shaoxing/Huangjiu

    in China: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    I cannot find it listed in either Ontario or Quebec liquor stores but it does appear to be available in British Columbia

    http://www.bcliquorstores.com/product/100990

    Edited to add

    It is available in all our Asian stores and my current bottle is 19.5% ABV but it also boasts 1.5% salt! In the past I have seen bottles in locked cabinets in Asian stores. Not sure what that was all about as it is illegal to sell alcohol except in government controlled stores in Ontario. The stuff on the shelves is always very cheap.

    Anna N- shaoxing that contains salt is meant for cooking purposes only. It is legal in many places to sell "cooking wine" without a liquor license. The store you are referring to, however, may have a license. They just may be keeping the more expensive drinking wine locked up.

    Velveeta

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    Was in the supermarket today, noticed Velveeta on the shelf and remembered Linda's post.  Out of curiosity, looked at the label.  The problem, I think, is that they've changed the formula, in effect reducing the amount of cheese by about 43%.  I deduce this by comparing calories per serving of the current product with that from 1992, for which I happen to have an excellent book of nutrition values.  In '92, Velveeta was 100 calories per ounce, 70 of them from fat.  Now it's 70 calories total, 40 from fat.  Interestingly, in '92, that was their "light" product.  Incidentally, regular cheddar is 110 calories per ounce, 80 from fat.

    velveetagate?

    • Like 1

    Butter- French or.....?

    in Cooking

    Posted

    French yauort is generally bad, some exceptions of course. I use to love Michel et Augustin...it's very hard to find dense Greek yogurts. I had good yogurts in the UK.

    I'm not a butter fanatic, I don't have the habit of spreading bread on butter. But definitely French butter taste better to me than the average American butter, which to me doesn't have a lot of personality. Also it's seem to me in the States good butters are so much more expensive and I am more concerned I have the minimum requirements important for me: grass fed for example. So if I'm buying a lot of butter for baking I'm not going to spend a fortune on French butter. I do think I was eating more butter while living in France and lost interest here.

    Butter- French or.....?

    in Cooking

    Posted

    Experts? That's funny!!!  :laugh:

     

    This is silly!!!!

    The best butter is the butter YOU like best!!!!

     

     

    Former dairy farmer here.

    The flavor of butter varies with the breed of cattle and the forage.....it varies almost day to day!

    And yes, we did have some of those nice French Normandy cattle when we were dairying.

     

    Packaged butter lacks the subtle and unique flavors of real butter.

     

     

    Jersey butter or Dexter butter can be amazingly wonderful!

     

    Just depends......

    Canadians complain about shortage of ethnic chickens

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted

    In the Asian stores that I frequent the Hong Kong chickens are packaged in such a way that their heads and feet are not visible. Given that many people are extremely squeamish about such things I often giggle to myself wondering about the screams when an unsuspecting shopper gets one of these home and opens the package. A Silkie is obviously different but not so the Hong Kongs.

    "The Shaoxing/Sherry line": AKA, Determining the Extent to Which a Recipe has been Adapted

    in Cookbooks & References

    Posted

    Oh, for examples:

    Regional american food that calls for spice mixes (cajon seasoning, chili seasoning).  But not Old Bay, 'cause Old Bay is awesome (probably being hypocritical here)

     

    I think in indian recipes garam masala (a type of ground curr))y powder) should be given a pass, as it's not really an ingredient, more of a pointer to your-favorite-garam-masala-recipe.

    IMHO- 1) I never use a Shaoxing  if the bottle says "cooking wine".

                2) My current favorite is a Shaoxing  called "zhuang yuan hong" and also contains the words, "shao hsing hua tiao rice wine".

                3) I will use any Shaoxing that does not violate my rule #1.

                4) I will use Vermouth if, and only if, Shaoxing is unavailable.

                5) I never use sake or sherry.

                6) I always make my own garam-masala.

    The Generic Whisk(e)y Topic

    in Spirits & Cocktails

    Posted

    Have you explored any whisky from Cambeltown? Springbank is one to try

     

     

    This. This. This. This. Sorry but, ja, Springbank. I've only had a small number of the large range but heartily recommend the cask-strength, twelve-year-old expression. I've also had a Scotch Malt Whisky Society bottling--'Cowboy's Delight' at, I think, fifteen years of age--that was just incredible. They also put out whisky under the name Longrow. I tasted the entry-level Longrow recently and was very impressed. I've seen a sampler pack that bundles together the entry-level expressions of Longrow, Springbank and Hazelburn. If you can find that, it might be worthwhile. I've never had Hazelburn of any age but I'd happily blind buy a bottle based purely on my fondness for the Springbank expressions I've tried.

     

    Islay-wise, I assume you've ticked off most of the big names: Laphroaig (in its ten-year-old and 'quarter cask' variants, at least), Lagavulin (sixteen-year-old--haven't tried the younger expression yet) and Ardbeg. I like Ardbeg Uigeadail. The ten-year-old standard is good, too. Can't say I've tried many of the special bottlings. I really, really, really like Bruichladdich's work. The ten-year-old 'Laddie' is nice. I'm fond, too, of the very young 'Octomore'. At least the one I have (a limited run every year or so). I wasn't blown away by the Coal Ila I've tried but it was just an independent bottling, slightly younger than Coal Ila's own brand entry-level offering. I can tell you that exist but cannot recommend them based on a lack of experience. Same applies to Bowmore. I wasn't impressed by some well-aged Bunnahabhain I tried. Just didn't do it for me, much to the horror of the gentleman trying to sell me a (ridiculously well-priced) bottle. Still on the Islands (but beyond Islay), I like Talisker's Distiller's Bullshit Edition. I used to love the ten-year-old standard but have heard its gone down hill. If you can pick up a bottling from a few years ago, though--a dusty bottle on a shelf in some crappy little store--go right ahead.

     

    Lowlands ... hmm ... Auchentoshan's Valinch is okay. I've had the bottle on the go for a while now and doubt I'll buy another, though, unless I happen to stumble across a reasonably-priced Triple Wood. I know I've seen a sampler pack that contains minis of three or four of their expressions, including the classic, Valinch and the Triple Wood. Rather than blindly purchasing a 700mL bottle, that might be the way to go. Particularly if, like me, you're happy to try lots of stuff. Ralfy (ralfystuff/YouTube) rates Bladnoch very highly but I've yet to remember the name of this 'still when I've been at a whisky bar or anywhere else likely to serve it. Oh well. Glenkinchie's entry-level offering didn't hugely impress me.

     

    Other malts from here and there? 

     

    Aberlour a'Bunadh is good. At least the two or three batches I've sampled were good. Different, tho'. haresfur and I once did a side-by-side comparison of the bottle he owned (batch 30something) and the bottle I owned (28?) and found them clearly distinct. Both nice.

     

    Glenlivet's entry-level bottling doesn't do much for me but their Nadurra (a short-run special? a new permanent fixture? no idea) is pleasant. 

     

    Glenfarclas' aged variants--the 15, 21 and 25--are nice. Not a fan of 8 or 105. Want, badly, to try the 30 and 40. For whisky that's older than me--just--the 30 isn't crazy expensive. So far as old whiskies go.

     

    One cheapie worth snapping up if you see it is Dalwhinnie. It's hard not to like the standard bottling. Granted, I say 'standard' but I don't even know if there are other bottlings. Most Dalwhinnie winds up in blends.

     

    I might also steer you in the direction of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society bottlings. Yeah, membership is a bit expensive (at least if you're only buying a bottle or two and live, like me, a helluva long way away from their members-only bars) but you'll find the odd bar that sells their whiskies by the glass to the masses. Melbourne's Whisky and Alement, for instance, sells all of the current malts--plus a few from earlier in the year--by the glass. It's a bit of a trap, though. I've not had a bad one yet. And then, when I go to the SMWS site and see that the 'nice glass of whisky' was poured from a $400 bottle, I'm glad it was nice. These malts offer something I've yet to find in even very good whiskies elsewhere. I mean, going to any of Springbank's standard offerings--as lovely as they are--is a helluva step down after your introduction to the 'still was a SMWS bottling.

    Thanks for the suggestions!

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