Hassouni

hmmmm, this looks decent: http://mypersiankitchen.com/khoresht-fesenjan-persian-pomegranate-and-walnut-stew/

I really can't recommend fesenjoon strongly enough, though

Use it anywhere you would balsamic vinegar, since it's thick, sour, and sweet. A bit of olive oil, maybe a splash of lemon, shake it up, voila!

As someone who lives in the DC area, Tyler Cowen's reviews are basically the gospel, but I feel if you read his blog enough, the book is probably unnecessary (haven't read it)

It's almost surely the same thing. Start cooking lots of Iraqi food! (and some Persian and Lebanese and Caucasian too) Make fesenjoon Use it in the stuffing of dolma Use it in salad dressing Use it in eggplant stews That's just off the top of my head. Look up recipes for pomegranate molasses, or in Arabic - "dibs rumman" and you should be set.

No pics but tonight was: Kagayaki genmai from the Zojirushi (awesome!) firm tofu, maitake, and negi misoshiru Eggplant dengaku Aster (Bugigangie in Korean) no goma ae Renkon no nimono with strips of konbu Very nice vegetarian ichiju sansai!

I'll take a whole chicken, debone it, use the meat, and then boil the bones. Or you can poach the chicken, get some meaty effect in the broth, bone it, and return the bones and simmer. OR find organic wings or feet? Those must be cheap. That being said, Trader Joe's usually has organic free range chickens in the 10 buck range. If you can't find those, try Kosher chickens, which are basically raised the same and sometimes even cheaper.

No, it's not, it's meant for sprinkling upon stuff and eating on the spot. It's a bit sour, if that helps

It can be

The problem with the commercial masala powders it that they are SOOO salty.

Panch phoran is definitely neither a Delhi/UP or Panjabi thing, for what it's worth. Shame about the recipes, as Lahori cooking is my favorite of the North Indian styles.

Well I'm open to both, I guess

And that's why fuqi feipian was created, because that sauce could cover anything and I'd eat it

First off, which is the recipe you used? Because your picture on the dinner thread looks fantastic! Secondly, try cooking the chick peas with a bit of baking soda - it makes them much softer (good trick when making hummus bi tahina from scratch) Thirdly, as for Delhi vs Panjab vs Lahore/Pakistan: Chole is a Panjabi dish, from a region that you noted is split over two countries. The plurality if not majority of Pakistanis are Panjabi, and Lahore was the cultural capital of Panjab before partition (and arguably remains so). What's served on the Indian side is more than likely going to be the same (with exceptions for variations amongst individual cooks) as on the Pakistani side. Regarding Delhi, a LOT of "Delhi" food is Panjabi, given Delhi's proximity to that region, as well as Panjab->Delhi immigration. Finally, given my rudimentary knowledge of Hindustani, chole and chana masala are just two names for the same thing, and that's the same preparation that every Pakistani joint serves.

That looks better than any chole I've made. Is the recipe for that one in the thread?

oh MAN your cholay looks awesome...

No idea...

What affordable teas do you sencha experts recommend for daily drinking? I often do two rounds of 3+ steepings a day, so it has to be reasonably priced.

Man that looks awesome. I think the last time I had merguez was in November 2008....

Two Turkish cold bean dishes (you could kind of call them salads, I guess) come to mind - barbunya pilaki, and piyaz, both properly made with borlotti beans, I believe

First time cooking out of Land of Plenty in ages. Gong Bao Ji Ding, done almost exactly to recipe, except using thighs Tiger skin peppers (winged it, but I learned the technique from the book) And, not Sichuanese, but some steamed broccolini with oyster sauce and garlic oil

Tonight, my first time in ages making Sichuanese food. Kung pao chicken (from Land of Plenty) Tiger skin peppers made with shishitos that I found (never seen them for sale before) Steamed broccolini, with oyster sauce and drizzled with garlic oil (or whatever it's called) Not shown, rice, of course, as well as a huge heirloom tomato sliced up on the side for refreshing contrast

MOST Lebanese wine is quite good. I think three buck Chuck is about as bad as I've ever bought myself

I happily take flash-free, silent pictures at the table with my iPhone - my foodblog was all done on the 4S - but I would feel very awkward with an SLR or something like that. If people want to use them at their own tables, it doesn't bother me, but loads of flash certainly does

If you have a Lebanese or other Arab store near you, that's a better bet, as to my knowledge it's not used in Subcontinental cooking.