weinoo

My love for Gustiamo is no secret, for very high-quality Italian foodstuffs. Also, Supermarket Italy (though the scope of products is much greater) and Buon Italia. For Spanish... This place has joined my list too...Donostia Foods. I also like La Tienda and Despaña for other Spanish imports.

This is what I've always learned - that they spend years making the rice! Makes sense, considering it's part of every bite of sushi, whether there's fish, or veg, or whatever. I wasn't even drunk yet, though the pictures are a tad cockeyed. Macaroni salad expertly plated with fixins' for pseudacos... Pork and beans to go in the pseudacos (with the tomato, avo, and cilantro). And some excellent corn off the cob, sautéed with shallots and red pepper, lots of dill, parsley and chives, too.

Where'd you learn this technique?

Uni can come from many places; usually Blue Ribbon has 2 or 3 types: Maine, Hokkaido, and California. And Blue Ribbon used to be a biweekly sushi place for us. But... I've been sadly having issues with Blue Ribbon (the one on Orchard). Not with the fish, but the rice has been terribly prepared. As a matter of fact, on our last visit (within the last month) Significant Eater and I decided that the best way to use Blue Ribbon Izakaya (the one on Orchard) would be for their non-sushi stuff. Like we've always enjoyed their fried chicken, grilled collar, and other stuff from the kitchen. Ever since Toshi passed, I wonder whose running the show. And who the hell is making the rice - which is kinda important with sushi.

Soon, we will find out that apples come in all sorts of colors, sizes, and flavors!

Bad picture alert... This is a few slices of a Presa Iberica Bellota, pretty sure sourced from Regalis. Marinated for like 2 nights, then roasted. (The cleaning out the freezer project). But boy, this thing cooked way faster than I thought it might...even in a low oven. So perhaps a little overdone, or maybe it's better cooked by a different method? I really wish I could grill something like this. Outside. On wood. Over Carolina Gold rice (which doesn't move me) and some quick tzatziki. On the side, celeriac.

If I recall, the Zojirushi manual does mention to add a few Tablespoonfuls of water to the rice if you're gonna use the extended keep warm function. Which makes sense.

It's good to have kitchen staff. I love those little presses; even purchased on Amazon, they work so great!

I don't want to enable you either, @Shelby. But it will arrive in fine condition; I you might mention where you live and how hot it is where the shipment is going, just to be on the safe side.

Oh - grilled onigiri is one of my favorite things. Must've taken you a long time to shape all of those by hand.

Or, their usual fare is their usual bullshit! Good job.

Well, there's always calling some local friends to come over? Or I call you to come over for dinner with C, and you happen to mention that you have some caviar you'd like to bring along... 😜

In other words, it's nutton without mutton?

I was certainly wrong about them making this pasta in-house… Hi Mitch, Thank you for posting your meal at Ernesto’s! Our pasta is handmade by a boutique family company in Barcelona that we get shipped and the fish is Arctic char.

I can't compare since I've never held rice in the Zo for longer than 2 or 3 hours. But it's surprisingly ok. Possibly some rices do better this way (like maybe Basmati?).

Just don't let the Catholic guilt get to you.

Someone in another thread was asking about making orecchiette. I like these videos (but since I have pretty easy access to good, fresh, handmade pasta, would never think of making them at home).

I can certainly find out - these tasted fresh, and considering the restaurant, my guess is made in house, but could be purchased. And you too can make orecchiette...

Right, but we're both talking about SONY digital cameras with WiFI/bluetooth. Transferring photos from my iPhone is not a problem.

Not homemade, but dinner out at our local Basque-ish resto, Ernesto's. Significant Eater started with a delicious cocktail...HELL IN A HAND BASQUE-ETTE La Quintinye Dry, Vermouth Routin, Ginger, Lime, Pineapple, Pimenton, while I opted to go straight for the wine bottle. A Catalan blanca called Massis de Bonastre, a blend of Macabeo, Xarel-lo and Garncha blana. Both the head bartender and the somm are quite excellent at their jobs; a cocktail like this isn't always easy to get nicely balanced; this one was perfect. Accompanied by croquetas, which were followed by two entradas: FRITOS DE CALAMARES Y SEPIA - local squid and sepia from Spain, perfectly fried and served with a classic alioli. And TRUCHA CURADA CON ENSALADILLA. Cured arctic char, over ensaladilla Rusa, topped with paddlefish roe and a drizzle of something too sweet for me. A dish I wouldn't order again, unless it was just the char and Rusa. Our platos principales followed thusly: Significant Eater's MACARRONES CON HONGOS, house made shells with porcini and a sauce made from Idiazabal cheese. Mmmmm. And though I really thought about a mixed grill with spareribs, butifarra and fresh chorizo served with fried potatoes, I decided to go a little healthier with... RAPE CON GAMBAS DE PALAMOS: monkfish, Mediterranean red shrimp and petit pois. It didn't disappoint. Dessert was a classic Basque cheesecake, which was, and is, a favorite and great. Accompanied by 2 glasses of Domaine de Souch's JURANCON, “CUVEE JOE DRESSNER” 2010, (Petit Manseng & Gros Manseng). We had not been to Ernesto's since pre-pandemic. They'd opened two months prior to shutdown. What a welcome return.

I find plain rice reheats just fine in the steam girl. And I really have no problems reheating other rice dishes in the same (but I only eat them for lunch!).

Probably more the soaps and rinse aids than the actual dishwasher. Oh - let me count the ways in which Americans have been led into parting with their hard-earned dough.

Years, well decades ago (like 40 years) I bought some Tools of the Trade Macy's cookware. it lasted a really, really long time; I might still have one or two pieces, with the others having been donated. Most of the reviews I've read above the Emeril branded All-Clad, have been less than stellar.

Yes, it's pretty crazy. Low low interest rates coupled with a lot of other stuff over the past 15 months.

Curious as to why you didn’t go with Blue Star hood?