Carlovski

302 in farenheit.

for those who don't know about Juniper or it's chef, the beef is pretty much the only recognisable dish you are likely to get - Have a look at the website (Link in original post). Lots of use of slightly 'alternative' ingredients (Weetabix, branston pickle, malted milk powder). I can't comment really, as I haven't been, but he has got plenty of rave reviews.

I just read this, written by the head Chef of Juniper restaurant in Altrincham ? I like chewy, bloody and seared!

So is that a complete strike out for Sichuan food in the UK?

How about a chilled white port?

There are still several available, There is one I bought for an ex girlfriend, whose title I have completely forget (I think it was written by Anne Willan), but it taught the basics, with pictures of things, under, over and perfectly done, with ideas on how to rescue the disasters. It was all a bit Mumsy and old schoolbut could be useful for a novice cook. The cross section pictures of the various degrees of 'doneness' for beef I think was what sold it, thought I could try and convince her that medium did not mean cremated.

I'm disappointed now!

I like the idea of a couple of quail on the side - Waiter - Would you like any side dishes with that sir? Me - Yes, Can I have have some spinach, a green salad, and oh, go on, a couple of quail. And maybe a pheasant on top as well. Meat accompaniments. The way of the future.

Plymouth is my tipple of choice for a G&T. And as that is about the only spirit I drink, I can't help any more than that!

And don't forget a decent pub. I'm not a londoner so I can't really give a decent suggestion (Unless you fancy a detour into Hampshire!) I'm sure someone can give you a recommendation (Wenlock arms?)

My standard one I buy is the unfiltered Arbequina from Belazu in the 1L tins. It is reasonably priced, and is good enough for general use, and comes in a nice tin (With a good pouring spout). I get it from Tesco, but I think they sell it in Sainsburys as well. I'm also a sucker for buying anything that looks interesting whenever I go into a deli or big supermarket. P.S I think putting these sort of threads in the regional boards is a good thing - let's have more!

My knowledge of the cuisine is pretty much limited to reading Sicuhan cookery by Fuschia dunlop, along with numerous introductions to regional cooking in chinese cookbooks. It is correct that the sichuan peppercorn is banned in the US - it is thought to be a carrier of a disease called citrus canker (Can't lose all those Florida oranges!) There is a very extensive thread on the subject somewhere. As far as I am understand, there is a royal/banquet cuisine in sichuan cookery, which is more refined, and makes a greater use of ingredients from outside the region. I have seen the odd reasonable interpretation of sichuan dishes in the better restaurants, the odd gong bao chicken and quite a few 'Fish Fragrant' dishes but normally Sichuan style dishes in UK chinese restaurants/takeaways appear to be covered in sweet and sour sauce, jacked up with a spoon or two of chilli powder. I'd like to be able to try a bit of the authentic stuff though. I think the closest I have come was a reasonable version of something like Pock Marked Mother Chen Beancurd at an all you can eat chinese buffet place in Milton Keynes (I was on a training course)! Anyone been there? It's very strange, they have at least 50 different dishes, but the quality is actually quite good. They had about 6 or 7 beancurd dishes, and a fair few seafood dishes which I approved of, and one of those hotplate bar things where you pick your ingredients, and they cook it for you. Not bad for about £13. I'd stay clear of the Sushi though.

Does anyone know of any restaurants specialising in Sichuan cuisine, or chinese in general with a decent selection of Sichuan dishes? I've been reading the descriptions of Grand Sichuan in the New York thread, and it's making me hungry.

I feel my sig may have given away my prejudice.... As I have probably said on several other threads, it is the whole stuff, or when raw I object to. In a mirepoix, fine. I don't even mind celery leaves too much. And I will stir my bloody Mary with a stick (Briefly, then fling it away as far as humanly possible).

It is still wrong.

Or both. One of the best restaurant egg dishes I've had in recent memory was a seafood medley (scallops, lobster, calamari, and other white-ish fish, all poached or steamed or otherwise minimalistically cooked) with a poached-then-deep-fried egg on top. The egg, once cut open, created the sauce. Sounds like the best of both worlds - but a potential disaster if I tried it!

I hear you. I do this often. Sometimes I even follow through. As do I. It then leaves the question of poached or fried (Quite often decided by a combination of how fresh my eggs are, and If already have a frying pan out)

I am no expert, but from what I have read on Sichuan cuisine (Which has a heritage easily as rich as European 'Haute' cusine) the royal and banquet style cooking was more refined, and was in general less fiery than the home cooked style dishes. The odd dish would still be very highly spiced however.

Personally I like to add the vinegar as much for the taste as for the coagulating properties, I thing it gives an almost metallic tang to the whites, which I like (Not sure if anyone else would agree). Think it comes from my Mother always adding quite a lot of vinegar. Malt vinegar actually. They just don't taste right without it too me! On a side note, am I the only one who sometimes looks at something they have made, and decided how much better it would be with an egg on top? Something about the yolk which can help lubricate, and bind the flavours together.

I'd definitely go with the mexican idea. A couple of Chili's (Maybe a pork one, a beef one and a veggie one? Possibly a white chicken one as well) All quite simple one pot stuff, loads of tortillas, salads, guacamole, salsa etc. A big bowl of pickled peppers if people want to spice it up a little. If people want a lighter option, they can just make up a salad, or a salad wrap type thing. Atkins people can just eat the chili. If you can get a big griddle, you could even try and do Fajitas to - but would mean constantly tending to it. Either that or a hog roast. But that might not go down well with some students!

Er, I'm not normally one to question a person's recipe, but anyone else feel that it sounded fine until we got to the 'serving suggestion'?

I'd be very surprised if a country the size of China, with such a diverse range of climates wasn't capable in areas of producing truffles. Seems a shame that people are jumping on this though, when China has a far wider range of native fungi based flavourings, and a far more sophisticatedapproach to their use than we have in the west.

Richard Feynman, Oliver Reed, CB Fry (See if he really was a bit Nazi...) and Edouard de Pomiane. Keith Floyd can do the cooking and join in for the drinking afterwards

Not really far out, but things that are often wasted - If you are making butternut squash risotto, roasting the seeds makes for a lovely crunchy topping to scatter over. If your bacon has a thick rind, and you are not a rind fan, at least fry it after trimming it off, and use the rendered fat to cook with. And I understand there are one or two things you can do with the breasts once you have removed the good parts of the chicken

Don't mean to gloat, but I just chucked away a huge tub of the stuff because it was getting a bit stale....