Dave the Cook

Lily, you simply amaze me.

Um, cast-iron is my pan of choice for frittatas, though I admit it might not be the best one for everybody. But I have to ask: how ruined is your pan, alacarte? I find it hard to believe that a cast-iron pan can be completely trashed by a few nasty eggs (Bad eggs! Bad!).

Oh yea... it took me such a long time to copy the text from here, paste it in and change a few words to "bacon." Thereby inventing the pleasurable notion of liquid bacon:

You want bacon? You can't handle the bacon!

Oh, maaaaan! You gave it away! Now there's no point in watching it.

All the advice you can handle, right here.

Seems that a bunch of kids was raising some hell over at Burlington Cranton's property a few days back. Tore up the fields, turned over a tractor and everything. Today someone suggested to me there's been some trouble up at the high school. I think it was bacon.

I believe in the foie, the coq, the piggy; The smell of a roasting rack, the hanging primal; Madder mussels, stronger wine; That the cookbooks of erstwhile celebrities are as sorry as the scum from an unskimmed stock. I believe that crab is best served solo. I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing wet aging and pasteurized-milk soft cheeses. I believe in sweetmeats, food-based pornography, reading my cookbooks like novels, not like tax returns And I believe in long, slow, thick, crisp, dry-cured bacon that's smoked for three days. With apologies to Ron Shelton (and thanks to Maggie for editing and literary research).

. . . and into the stock pot.

Great work, whosrbud and zilla's friend. Doing design work for and by committee is really tough, isn't it? My two cents: - A tail on the backside piggie, as Varmint suggests. - I like the French, and I don't mind explaining to people what is says -- in fact, if it initiates a discussion about 'cue, why not? And the juxtaposition of the language of Haute Cuisine with the earthiness of a pig pickin' is witty. - But I'd drop the Latin in favor of repeating "Varmint's Pig Pickin'" and adding the date and place. - Everywhere except the title on the front, I'd like to see a font with a slightly thinner stroke, or better yet, use caps and lower case. I think either one will improve legibility. Also look at moving the lettering away from the circle just a little bit more. - I'd like to see the frontside piggie rotated five to seven degrees clockwise for a little better movement. You'll have to reduce him a bit and adjust the "tail," but that's why you're making the big bucks. - I'm pretty sure the design is too big overall. Come down ten to twelve percent. - For my money, the gray shirt is much better than the white one, but I'd like to see your color combinations on a black shirt. Given black's slimming effect, and the fact that we're all gonna roll out of NC a few pounds to the plus side, it's worth exploring this option. Edit to repeat: this is really nice -- a shirt I'd be proud to wear. Great work.

I guess you'll just have to adjust to the idea that Southern fried chicken, properly cooked, is already perfection, and you shouldn't be messin' with it!

I hadn't thought of that -- good point. For crunch, you might try corn meal. Even plain Kellogg's Corn Flakes have substantial added sugar.

Well, again, we're probably talking technique, aren't we?

What kind of difference? I find the ribs easier to eat. It's tough trying to chew threw the membrane. And that goes double for kids. I don't smoke ribs, just,marinade, slow cook em and grill em, but I do find the marinade soaks into the ribs better without the membrane barrier being there. I did like the papery crispness too, but they're just easier to eat this way You've got me thinking that the differences in cooking methods and the degree of doneness are related to the difference of opinion. If the membrane is still chewy, you're not cooking them as long (or maybe as dry, or both) as I do, so the membrane doesn't dry out. When I pull them off the grill (or out of the oven, where they've finished after some smoke time on the grill), the membrane is crisp and translucent. Chewiness is not even remotely a factor. When I wet- or moist-cook ribs, I remove the membrane, too.

What kind of difference?

Correct. This time and temperature combination works perfectly (though I always check a thigh with a temperature probe). And 325 is probably lower than you think -- it's just below medium on my electric range. Just be sure to let the pan and the fat come all the way to temperature before putting the chicken in.

I don't, because I kind of like that papery crispness. But I wondered about the smoke penetration thing. So when I did baby back ribs last weekend, I checked. I don't know if it's penetrating the membrane, contrary to common wisdom, or if it's just coming all the way through from the meat side, but these were smoky-pink one side to the other. I've decided that it's simply part of the ritual. I don't think that's a bad thing -- to a large extent, barbecuing and smoking are all about ritual. But the evidence says it doesn't make any difference in a properly done rib -- unless you object to the texture of the cooked membrane.

Harris Teeter closed their stores in Atlanta a couple of years ago; it's an extremely competitive market. Too bad, I really liked the stores: very urban in atmosphere, great service, good selection (though the cramped shelf configuration meant there was rarely a chance to buy anything in bulk -- there simply wasn't room for them to stock many of any single item). I'll try the 365 EVOO -- and the balsamic vinegar.

At my Harry's, there is a perennial aisle expansion project going on. This has to be coming at the expense of product selection, though I've only caught them on a few things so far. For instance, their dried pepper section is down to three: serrano, poblano and chipotle. And the bulk chocolate seems to be limited to Scharffen Berger and Ghirardelli. The bread section has been halved. Then, the other night, I noticed they had lopped about twelve feet off of the fish counter to make room for prepared seafood entrees and cheap surimi. (For those that haven't been in Harry's, the fish counter was to die for: at least 60 feet long, with more fresh fish and more types of fish than I've seen anywhere in a single store -- every fin fish available whole, filleted or as steaks cut to order -- plus live trout, Dungeness and blue crabs, and crawfish. Always at least five types of salmon, not including the seasonal varieties from the Northwest. The only place outside of the Gulf coast where I've seen the highly perishable Ruby Red shrimp in good condition.) Ethnic markets: well, I don't know exactly what I mean. Where do you go for Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Middle Eastern, etc.? There aren't really any chains, are there? Or do you find what you need at Harry's?

Every time I stop in Harry's (I go to the Gwinnett store), it's lost a little bit more of its identity (I can't help hearing that Borg "you will be assimilated" chant running through my head). I find it very sad. In particular, I don't get the WF 365 store brand, which seems to be a line of inferior products at premium prices (though cheaper than the brand names or imported items they sit next to on the shelf). The other night I was seduced by a 365 Merlot at $4.99 -- headache in a bottle. People who only know Whole Foods by its standard stores don't seem to understand the scale of the Harry's stores. I've never really been able to explain Harry's either, except to people who have been to its progenitor, the DeKalb International Farmer's Market, which is run by Harry's brother (yes, there really is a Harry). Tryska, if you've never been there, it's well worth your time, even from Cobb County. It has everything you like about Harry's, but it's cheaper -- and much less corporate-feeling. The biggest part of my grocery store dollar goes to Publix. I got fed up with Kroger: first the Plus Card, then the disappearance of unprocessed pork or chicken (I challenge you to find pig or poultry that hasn't been "enhanced"), then the apparent lack of real butchers. Everything is supplied out of a commissary -- I couldn't even get them to grind up a chuck roast for me. I emptied my cart and headed to Publix, where not only would they grind meat, they were happy to cut a two-inch Porterhouse on the spot. These days I watch the circulars and hit Kroger when they're having sales (connected to that invasive and insidious Plus Card) on commodities: milk, paper towels, soda and chips. Often their prices beat Sams and Costco. Speaking of Costco, Northern eGulls are quite enamored with it; I am less so. Anybody else in the South been to one? Are they worth some discussion? And what about ethnic or specialty shops?

You and me, apparently.

Oh, I quite agree. Just haven't made the pilgrimage yet. I do find it odd that you don't find hush puppies with barbecue in Tennessee, but you do frequently find barbecue served atop a hoecake. A couple of places here in Nashville serve it atop a jalapeno hoecake -- which makes for an excellent, if untraditional, barbcue experience... To quote Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride: "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." Merriam-Webster on dilettante. Definition 2 (and the referenced synonym) was the meaning I was using. Edit: (and the most common usage as well, despite M-W's errant numbering.)

The Montgomery Inn does great ribs. At least, it does for a place North of the Mason-Dixon line and the handicap of a paved drive and valet parking.

Cheerwine It's a cherry-flavored soft drink from North Carolina. So far, it's only available in the Southeast US.

Matthew's right. The book includes a half-dozen recipes, all of which are Pepin family specialites (and so far, every one of them bulletproof). There's a nice thread on The Apprentice here. Buy it using this link, and eGullet gets a tiny commission. Back to recipes. Matthew, how was the peppermint?