KennethT

Southeast Asia is tropical - so I don't think salmon would do well there. In the western hemisphere, consider if you would find salmon in the caribbean or in hawaii...

I know it's a lot of work, but you could make your own fresh rice noodles. Check out hot-thai-kitchen.com . In one episode she shows how to make them.

@TicTacSorry about that, you've mentioned your wife's shellfish allergy before - I should have remembered that. Is she allergic to fish as well as shellfish? My brother is allergic to crustaceans - shrimp, lobster, crab, but can eat anything else - like mussels, clams, fin fish, eel, etc. The fish sauce I have is only made from anchovies, salt and sugar - even though the brand name is Squid.... ha!

lots of southeast asian food is great for celiacs because the staple is rice rather than wheat... rice based dishes, rice noodles, etc.... but other than that, I enjoyed reading about your pancake invention, @TicTac! Also, the salt addition is typically fish sauce rather than soy sauce (which I gather sometimes has wheat gluten added).

I don't know if I posted it here.. but a long time ago, I saw a kickstarter for a weeding robot. Looked like a pretty good design!

Looks great! There is palm sugar available in non-rock form... it comes in a small plastic tub with a screw cap. It has the consistency of a thick paste - or maybe like maple sugar candies that are soft and have a wet sand texture. When you first open the jar, the sugar is covered by a layer of wax that must be removed, but then scoops out easily with a teaspoon. If it starts to dry out, you can stick it in teh microwave for 10 seconds which will make it easier to scoop temporarily.

I wish I could "like" and "haha" at the same time! What are you using for a growth medium?

Where did your andouille come from? To me, the right andouille makes all the difference in a good gumbo....

My issue with the Rotimatic is that the roti that I make (like in Malaysia/Singapore) is a laminated dough, made by taking the dough ball and stretching to a very thin sheet, then rolling up into a snake and curled into a disk. This gives the roti a great flaky texture - it's not just puffed...

Thank you! Can't wait for more.

@liuzhou Am I correct in assuming that fresh noodles are available near you? If so, how long do they last from purchase to cook time? Are they meant to be purchased the same day you'll use them, or do they last for a few days in the refrigerator or something?

@David Ross I'm curious as to your source for your satay recipe. In all of my sources, including from a cooking school teacher I had in Chiang Mai and Andy Ricker's Pok Pok book, coconut milk/cream is usually used in both the marinade of the satay and in any type of peanut sauce. All of the satay I've had in Thailand had a distinct coconuttiness (sp?) to it, as well as the red curry flavor. Interestingly enough (at least to me), the Malaysian Nyonya version of satay (also found made by Muslims in Singapore) use no coconut at all, but make a rempah that would be similar to a red curry paste and a paste made from ground roasted peanuts cooked in boiling water for about a half hour.

I dont' know about indeterminate chilis, but bell peppers can be either depending on the cultivar. From what I can tell, most greenhouse production use the indeterminate variety- just like in greenhouse tomato production. The determinate peppers are commonly called "field" peppers.

Do you need to use a phylloxera resistant rootstock for the cab franc?

For determinate plants, 18/6 is vegetative cycle, 12/12 is flower. I can't imagine 18/6 is causing your peppers to flower... however, peppers can be indeterminate (are not light cycle sensitive) depending on the variety - just like some varieties of tomatoes, or some strawberries (and I'm sure other plants as well but I haven't looked into it). They basically start to flower after a few weeks of growth. For indeterminate tomatoes, I would pinch off flowers until the plant forms its 3rd truss of leaves... that will make sure the plant is strong enough to support fruiting. I haven't grown indeterminate peppers (or any peppers for that matter) before so I never researched the point at which you can let them fruit.

Yes, thanks for this! I also had the pleasure of going to Jay Fai - I wrote about it and showed pictures in my "memories of Bangkok" thread... I was really impressed with that place.

@BonVivantYour meals have looked great - they made me yearn to return to France soon!

I used to go to Ssam bar pretty frequently, and have never seen anything on the table other than a napkin holder with chopsticks, and a squeeze bottle of chili paste...

I'm a fan of MSG... I never used it as an ingredient until I read the Singaporean cookbook "Nyonya Specialties". This is a Singaporean book, not an American one, and it many recipes it has MSG as one of the ingredients. I don't think an American cookbook would call for MSG at all. Ever since trying it because of this book, I use it all the time with no ill effects - and my bloodwork has never looked better!

Wouldn't it be easier to get a space heater that you can use while you're down there for any extended period of time?

Are fresh pancakes available at the market or do you make them?

I don't know the exact chemistry, but from what I understand of it, used oil has more "soaps" which allow better contact between the watery food and the oil. Shirley Corriher had a whole thing about it - and I believe it's in McGee as well. But on that topic, it turns out that you really don't need that much old oil... I've always heard it recommended that when you dispose of old oil that's been used a few times, to save a few tablespoons of it and add it to the new oil... evidently, that's really all the soap you need...

My first cookbook was used as the textbook in the professional cooking class for non-professionals that I took in college... I don't know if it is still in print, but at the time, it was a great book that not only had good recipes to illustrate the theory that was taught, but had chapters on knife skills, sanitation, etc... It was "On Cooking" by Labensky and Hause... I'd highly recommend it.

Some recent dinners.... SV salmon with viet style ataulfo mango salad (similar to thai som tum but with more fresh herbs): Red curry chicken - Maesri red curry paste with added grachai, thai basil and chilis, using frozen coconut milk: Thai stir fry of what the H-mart called "bok choy tips"...

I'm looking forward to meals on Singapore Airlines coming up at the end of June... And for the return trip, I can choose my meals in advance - there are like 10 choices! I chose the chicken-rice (when in Singapore and what not) and dim sum for breakfast...