Chris Hennes

I don't attach it: the handle of the cutter has enough weight that it rests out of the way with no problems. I dip with my right hand, then, after tapping off the excess, use my left hand to pull the wire towards the center of the bowl. A swipe across it clears the bottom quite well and prevents a foot from forming, and the chocolate drips back into the middle of my work bowl. I "de-fork" the chocolate, shift the wire to the back of the bowl, "rinse and repeat." Edited to add: the original post I made with this is over here, with lots of photos that might help. Maybe this makes it clearer?

So, do you locate a processor first, then call up various farmers and see who will work with that processor? Most of these farmers are located quite a distance from me, and I'd like to use a processor nearby so I don't have to drive as far, but I'm concerned that the farmer will balk at my request that he deliver a single hog an hours' drive away. Does your farmer roll his mileage into your price, or what? I have a hard time understanding the economics of this arrangement: I paid 80 cents per pound to the farmer, which seems almost absurdly cheap. Does that even cover the costs of feeding the pig over its lifetime? I'm going to our county fair this weekend - the swine show is at 9am and I'm hoping to find some old-timer who is happy to educate the "new kid in town."

Good point: I'm sure you're right. Compared to normal sous vide temps, 200 is very high, so you have far exceeded the FDA pastuerization time/temp guidelines by the time the bacon is fully cooked. Plus, bacon is loaded with salt, which is the primary preservative (the nitrite helps, but for short durations salt is good enough). I'd be hard-pressed to imagine a scenario where cooking bacon at 200F could be significantly riskier than any other cooking technique.

I have nowhere near the experience of the others here, but my one tip is related to scraping the chocolate off the bottom of a dipped confection. I used to try using the edge of the bowl, but the chocolate drips everywhere and makes a big mess, so I tried laying a wire cake slicer across my dipping bowl, like this: It works great, and is easy to move out of the way. I'd like to use a larger bowl, but then you have to melt SO much chocolate! I'm lazy, I don't want to deal with all that extra chocolate at the end of the day.

I have mixed feelings about the SMWS bottlings: I've never had one, so I'm not referring to the quality, but to the fact that they are almost too unique. The idea of something so ephemeral is both intriguing and saddening to me: I'd hate to fall in love with bottle 819 from distillery 42, never to encounter it again. And how do you discuss it? Almost no one else in the world has ever had it. Maybe if enough eGullet members were to join we'd have enough to talk about, but that price is pretty steep for my usual whisky habit: I try to stick to the <$60 bottles...

As recommended in the "10 Essential Cocktails" topic I gave the Bitter Elder a shot tonight. When I gave it to my wife to try she was confused: "but we don't have any grapefruit right now!" An avowed Campari-hater, she nevertheless refused to give the glass back, so I had to mix up another for myself .

200 degrees is not much lower than what I smoke bacon at when I am making my own at home, so I don't think there would be an issue. Of course, the only evidence I can proffer for this is that I'm not dead yet .

It fluctuates between 55 and 60 degrees F, which is the lowest you can set it. ← Chris, That sounds like a great temperature for brewing lager BUT much too warm for aging beef. Tim ← It's about perfect for both charcuterie and cheese, however . The humidity is going to be the major issue, so I'll keep an eye on things and see how it goes...

HOST'S NOTE: The recent discussion on Stoli Elit and other premium vodkas has been moved over to the Premium & Superpremium Vodka topic.

I cook a lot of bacon, and nearly always in the oven, but I use a slightly different strategy, one that amounts to culinary torture when you are hungry... I put the bacon on a wire rack over a baking sheet in the oven at 200 F. It takes many hours to achieve perfection, and the smell of bacon permeates the house the whole time, but it makes the best bacon I have ever had. My theory on this is that more of the flavoring compounds seem to stay attached to the bacon, rather than dripping off with the rendered fat. When you cook the bacon this way the fat that renders off is perfectly white, with little to no discoloration or flecks. I have no idea if this theory makes any scientific sense, but give this method a try: it's delicious.

Chris and Andrea can answer better since they tasted it, but I wanted sour apple with a hint of chile and subtle bite of wasabi. I heard from my spouse that he didn't taste the chile, just felt it on his lips...that's fine with me too. ← It was definitely primarily the apple: I could not taste the chile at all, but maybe that was because I OD'ed on them at the festival earlier that day and burned my taste buds off . There was also another lingering flavor that I associated with malt powder, but I guess was actually cocoa butter (right, Rob?).

The roasted corn dish and the cornbread fondue were my favorites. I know the cornbread was a toss-off in-between course, but the cheese you chose was so wonderful that I can't help but list it as one of the best of the evening. Hard to go wrong with a good sharp cheddar, in my opinion. And the tomatoes you used with the roasted corn were so perfectly ripe and fresh that they really did remind me that the tomato is really a fruit. I've never experienced tomatoes used in a so nearly sweet manner, and they were wonderful. And the tuile was perfect. And pretty cute, to boot .

I think you'll recognize these next few shots . andiesenji could not join us in person, but she managed to be with us just the same, by sending along these delights ---

In my experience they go soggy *very* quickly once filled: I'd definitely wait until tomorrow. Even then, they will absorb some moisture from the atmosphere and not have that wonderful crunch that they have right now. You might want to eat a few yourself immediately so you get the benefit!

After the tamale-making extravaganza the other evening in Silver City I have a couple dozen tamales tucked away in my freezer. Naturally, that won't last long: any tips on how best to cook them from their frozen state? Do I need to thaw them first, or just pop them in the steamer? How do I know when they are done?

Bud, do you have any tips for how to find a good processor? How do you get the live hog to them? A full-grown pig isn't going to fit in the backseat of my sedan! Do they pick it up from the farm, or how does that work?

Action Shots: Course 1: Pixie Sticks Rob had a syringe full of gelatin-clarified green chile essence that he added to the glass before we drank them. Course 4: Sushi Nofishi There was a green chile "caviar" added right before service. Course 5: Tuna Tempura From a diner's perspective this was the most complicated dish: the presentation involved lighting a piece of chile on fire at the table, then covering it with what looked like a hurricane lamp glass. The smoke from the chile wafted up and scented the "tuna" tempura, which was placed across the opening to the glass.

It fluctuates between 55 and 60 degrees F, which is the lowest you can set it. I've double-checked this with a real thermometer and the built-in sensor appears to be properly calibrated, though I have read some complaints online about others having trouble (I think mostly people who wanted to store white wine at serving temperature and were disappointed).

I wish I could take credit, but almost all the photos from the tamale workshop were taken by my wife while I carefully "studied" Tyler's margaritas . This batch is from me being a pest at dinner, however, harassing the other guests with constant flash photography. The sacrifices I make!! I'll start out with the main set of photos of the food itself so you can get a sense of the food, and move on to the "action shots" in another post (there were a couple courses that were a bit complicated!!). I'll also let gfron1 do the talking about the food, just giving the titles he gave each course here. First, the menu that was at each seat (18 in total): Course 1: Pixie Stix Course 2: Pan de Vida Course 3: Roasted Corn Course 4: Sushi Nofishi Course 5: Tuna Tempura Course 6: English Channel Course 7: Bison Under Pressure Course 8: Summer Fruit Course 9: Curso Queso Course 10: Tooty Fruity Course 11: Tamal Dulce Course 12: Margaritas

Here's the setup I've got running right now: first, without the cover so you can see what's inside --- In the bottom is a pan of saltwater with the salt heaped up over the level of the water. Theoretically this will keep the humidity at a steady 74%, though for the first little while with something added I expect the humidity to be much higher, since the salt can't absorb that much excess water. Despite being thermoelectric these refrigerators do have a fan and vent out the back, so the water does have someplace else to go. My house has considerably lower humidity, so I hope things equalize soon. Above the salt is a drip pan, and then a bunch of salt-cured pork jowl. Here is how I keep the light out: Just a pillowcase attached with some strong magnets (the stainless steel is non-magnetic, but in the corners the construction must involve some more magnetic stuff, because the neodymium magnets stick fine at the corners). I have it draped a bit so I can see the temperature readout, so it's not keeping out 100% of the light, but it's pretty dark in there, I think. And I can easily remove the cover to check on the meat without disturbing it. I've got my fingers crossed!

I see it -- here was gfron1's finished creation.... Tyler kept trying to insist that they were couscous, and I kept trying to insist that even if that's what Rob said he was going to use, there was no way this was couscous! Glad to hear I was right for once (Tyler was usually better than me at identifying whatever was appearing on our plates). The hard-core beet lovers at the table thought they were great. While I like beets, apparently not well enough to enjoy this one... (sorry, Rob!). The tapioca was very glutinous, which is not my favorite texture ever, and I don't think I could get past that. The egg on the bottom was tasty, though!

The next morning we got up and drove two hours to Hatch, NM, the self-proclaimed "Chile Capitol of the World!" : The main event was held at the local airport just outside of town (and was apparently sponsored by Bud ): Despite the overcast weather (it's monsoon season in NM), plenty of people showed up for the festivities: They were coming to see these beauties: ...and maybe some of these... There were people around making more: And some dried powder available as well: But of course the real highlight of the festival is hiding in these bags: One of the greatest smells ever invented, roasting green chiles: All to get one of these:

After misstenacity's report I don't have much to add except to echo her comments, so I'll just add a few photos onto the pile before we move on the reporting on the Chile Festival in Hatch the following day and the wonderful dinner that followed. Consuelo uses the Morrell lard, but says that freshly rendered would be even better. She also reconstitutes the masa using the heavily-seasoned pork-cooking liquid, rather than just water. The masa harina she uses is the regular kind, not the one labeled "for tamales" and she makes it much softer for tamales than for tortillas. I'm a sucker for avocados, so I feel obliged to include the guacamole prep: Consuelo showing the appropriate amount of filling: And the proper folding technique: Just can't get enough of that "hot tamal-on-tamal action"? Here ya' go: I now have enough tamales in my freezer to feed me for the rest of the week!

When my dad came to visit this past weekend he brought along a bottle of Balvenie Doublewood 12 year. It's aged for some of the time in regular whisky oak and some of the time in sherry oak barrels, according to the bottle. It's a tasty, if mellow, Scotch. A bit too mellow for my tastes, but it does have a nice complexity to it that makes drinking it fun, playing the "name that flavor" game.

Farm slaughter would be fine by me if they would not skin the animal, too. Having actually visited the farm in person, I am aware of the hogs' living quarters: plenty of space compared to a hog factory, but perhaps less than the pigs would have liked, and they were still concrete pens, entirely outdoors, with a small covered area for shade. I am also familiar with breeds and feeding options, but since I bought my hog "pre-finished" I didn't have any say in the matter. I'm leaning towards taking out an ad in the area co-op classifieds (where I found this one) early next spring in an attempt to find the perfect pig. Which is not to say I'm not happy with this one, but there are things I would do differently next time. Regarding that last, I should point out that local regulations may differ: for example, I didn't get the impression that he could not sell me the head, just that the head could not travel in the same cooler with the rest of the hog back to the processor, some kind of local law prevented it. Same with the feet. If you want to buy an animal direct from the farm it would be a good idea to chat with the farmer and processor before the day comes so you are clear on how things will work, exactly. I failed on this point and ended up with a skin-off hog. Live and learn...