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haresfur

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Everything posted by haresfur

  1. They sponsor soccer teams in Mexico and now apparently in Philadelphia. Nice to see blokes run around in shirts that say Bimbo.
  2. My curry tree has been looking kind of sad for a few years, since the apprentice servicing the evaporative cooler on the roof dropped his ladder on it. I'm letting a couple of suckers grow up in case I decide to chop it off and start over. But the Eastern Rosellas love it as is. I've pretty much maxed out the possible pot size.
  3. Nice. I started a little pomegranate growing in a pot after I saw a beautiful one like that at our local Stupa. The last couple of years have had a single flower but no fruit.
  4. Made some red cabbage sauerkraut that turned out pretty good. My last sauerkraut batch turned out kind of limp because I bashed it pretty well to get brine out of the cabbage so this time I didn't do that and just made-up more brine with salt. Nice and crunchy. I was going to add juniper berries but couldn't find them in the pantry so it wasn't spiced at all. Nice red colour.
  5. Late to the party but it has been a cool enough early summer to turn on the oven and turkeys pretty much show up this time of year and disappear after Christmas. So I cooked a "Banquet turkey" Which is basically just the breast on the bone and one joint of the wing to help it stand up. Small birds by N. American standards but large by two person family standard. And ovens here are European-size so there was barely room for a tray of smashed rosemary and olive oil potatoes. Asparagus and homemade red cabbage sauerkraut on the side. First time trying dry brining and it worked really well. 205 C for 35 minutes then 175 C until done. Fan-forced setting. The dogs were very happy with the scraps. eta: gravy
  6. This is something that many people don't realise. Most of the cooling comes from heat of melting, not merely from the initial cold temperature of the ice. That's why whisky stones don't do much. You would be better off keeping the bottles in the fridge.
  7. haresfur

    Mussels

    It sounds good to me. Personally, I'd leave out the cream. There is one way to find out! I usually just do garlic, parsley and white wine
  8. Although HoJo did have a somewhat more limited influence on American culture
  9. First you say you know the etymology then argue about the description of an American Diner, based on etymology. Don't think I can help you with that. But anyway hauling a rail car, horse cart, or streetcar onto a lot is as prefab as it gets. No I'm not going to dig up original sources but they were apparently manufacturing Lunch wagons by 1891. I don't think you can fix a cultural phenomenon to a point in time when it obviously is a concept that grew through the ages. The comparison to British caffs is merely in terms of cultural setting. They are clearly not the same thing. But you did ask what defines a diner, not what the earliest representation was.
  10. I haven't seen any evidence that American diners were originally railroad dining cars. Some apparently were repurposed horse-drawn streetcars. However, there clearly were companies who specialised in making diners for transport and installation on site. Did you read the Smithsonian article I linked above? "This 1956 photograph was taken during the short time that two Nite Owls sat cheek-by-jowl in Fall River, MA. Soon the old lunch wagon was carted away and demolished, replaced by the gleaming diner." Of course the whole internet could have it wrong, "The concept of the diner began when Water Scott, a Rhode Island entrepreneur, repurposed a horse-pulled wagon into a car that served sandwiches, coffee, pies, and eggs to people late at night. He quit his job as a printer to sell food from the wagon. Soon other companies followed to produce lunch wagons or early diners." Weak coffee - yes really.
  11. Diners originated from horse-drawn food carts catering to the working class at a time in America when restaurants catered to the wealthy (although I think working class bars often served food at the time; need to check Imbibe by David Wondrich for the timelines). Started in the northeast but can be found across the country. They morphed into a uniquely American form of sit-in dining and are embedded in the cultural DNA. Diners were originally (generally, anyway) pre-fabricated and moved to the site. This defined the classic diner architecture. They were often added onto later. The Wikipedia article has some pictures and decent info. Also check out an article from the Smithsonian Magazine. So characteristic features (not all have to be present) include Metal wall construction, often with rounded corners and ceilings Dining counter with stools Booths and possibly tables Short-order cook often works in the open behind the counter. Serve breakfast all day Frequently open 24 hours so become a focus for night workers and partiers Typical breakfasts: Eggs any style (except usually not poached!), bacon, sausage, hash browns, weak coffee with free refills, pancakes, waffles Classic lunch/dinner: Soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, club sandwiches, chili, burgers, French fries, hot roast beef with mash, and of course pie. I think the closest British equivalent would be a caff.
  12. I understand they had to move the Tastee Diner in Silver Spring MD a few blocks to make way for development. Probably a bigger deal than it should be because diners were originally meant to be dropped into place. Shame that Ye Olde College Diner in State College PA is no more. For me the prerequisite for a diner is a waitress who calls you "Hun"
  13. Those are beautiful. Are they all single bevel? I'm left handed so am wary of Japanese knives.
  14. I was about to start a topic like this but always love to revive an old one. I don't have a great knife collection but in any case will dole out any additional entries slowly to prolong the fun. In light of prolonging the fun I just received this "Dingo" utility knife from a kickstarter by 2 South Australia blokes. So I got to follow the progress through the end of the campaign, manufacture, and covid-slow delivery. The makers designed a set of "Aussie-inspired" knives that are kind of a highbred in terms of manufacturing. Quoting specs from their website: Specs: Collection: Big Red Knives Manufacturer: Koi Knives Made in Australia Blade steel: VG-10 Japanese hard steel core with Stainless Steel cladding Blade length: 200mm (7.75 inches) Handle wood: All local but varies from wood of olive trees, Shiraz grapevines from McLaren Vale (wine region of South Australia) to specially sourced wood Australian deserts. Handle length: 136mm Feels nice in the hand. I have a huge chunk of pork shoulder that I'll try it out on for carnitas this weekend
  15. Yeah I have a wok burner on my cooktop (not the highest end one they make) and the filters on the exhaust fan get disgusting.
  16. You can also use the Hawthorne strainer (with the prongs) for stirred drinks like martinis. If you want less stuff like ice shards and citrus gunk in your shaken cocktails pour from the cap through a mesh strainer.
  17. I believe it is legal to distill essential oils in Australia so when you order your still from New Zealand it needs to be dual purpose. I considered it but decided not to because I don't drink enough. I have a drinking problem - when I'm stressed, the last thing I want is a drink.
  18. Not a totally successful shopping trip. One of the staff told me the truck from Melbourne was 5 hours late, but it looked like more that a single truck being delayed. I would assume the delay is related to covid and the lockdowns.
  19. I think my green tomato chutney from a few years ago is still good. By good, I mean it won't kill me, but the reason it is still around is that I'm not that fond of it.
  20. I confess to never trying them, but butcher shops here sell pre-breaded schnitzels. Don't look like they use egg so I'm not sure how they are gluing the crumbs on. They must be doing something because they have to stand up to the abuse of display and transporting home. Maybe I should take one for the team.
  21. Which suggestions did you take?
  22. IMO your problem is that you are frying it. I've gone completely over to oven baking chicken katsu (and schnitzel/parma using the same method) using this technique. I do it in a fan-forced oven on a wire grill rack to get heat underneath the pieces. TL;DR: Toast the panko in a little oil before breading and baking.
  23. Saw a social media post that Nick's in Australia had Smith & Cross in stock and immediately went to the website to find out that it was sold out. But it is sometimes hard to tell from the normal lack of availability. You would think that you could get Batavia Arrack since it is from our neighbour to the north.
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