Duvel

I never had a Banh Mi in a restaurant setting. In fact I never had Banh Mi outside of Vietnam. The many, many times I had the chance to enjoy it there, usage of cilantro was liberal and thus for me something is missing without. YMMV.

You make a very valid point. For me, this is the essence of the “skill” cooking. To know why a certain quality (acid, fat, salt ...) is required in a dish and how to creatively adjust or substitute it. If you combine that with a solid repertoire of basic preparations (frying, braising, grilling, ...), you are all set ...

For me this is an essential part of the game. However, I would not overstress the authenticity part. From my viewpoint, it is a kind of street food and inherently flexible. I usually aim to have these categories of ingredients in it: creamy/fatty: pâté, mayo (I like kewpie) protein with mouthfeel: cooked/braised/grilled meats, slices crunchy/fresh: quick pickled curls, carrot, daikon, cabbage herbal: cilantro, mint, garlic chives salty/umami: Vietnamese hoisin, bean sauce spicy: chili, chili condiments

Cheeeeese !!!

When I don’t have daikon at hand (more often than not), I use just the quick-pickled carrot ribbons and cukes. For me, its about that fresh crunch, paired with the cilantro (which is not optional) ...

Lazy evening: Quiche Lorraine from store-bought fresh dough ...

This is what we call a Römerglas - classic indeed !

The weather was pleasant enough to light up the BBQ and sit outside to enjoy the dinner ...

Two steps back and zoom in.

5 liters in Germany ... beat ya 😜 !

Isn’t this whole topic all about drinking in style ? 😉

Luckily, tetra bricks come in 1 and 2 L ...

You mean the bread ? Thats a toasted pita bread. The turkish ones here are a bit fluffier that middle eastern pita and get toasted in a contact grill prior to be stuffed with meat & veggies ...

In the Palatinate area of Germany (where I work, but not live 🤗), wine is drunk from the so called „Dubbeglas“, a 0.5 L stemless glass with a lot of circular indentations. It stands sturdily even on wet surfaces and you can grab it safely even after the contents of 3 or 4 glasses have been consumed.

Chinesy tonight ... Pork trotter jelly with vinegar dip, „fish flavor“ eggplant and smacked cucumber salad.

A lunch reminiscent of late night after-party refueling when I was in my 20s 😉 Döner Kebap, purchased just outside of the gates of our company, eaten sitting in the car listening to Incubus ...

I swirl directly in the tetra brik and save $$$ for not buying fancy glassware or dish detergent ...

A bit improvised “Catalan” dinner, based on a dish I remember seeing in a book somewhere and still wanted to make ... Chickpeas, in a sofregit-based sauce with raisins, topped with crispy blood sausage, roasted pine nuts and parsley. Very good.

I usually make two pies for „pizza and movie night“. Out of curiosity, I decided to use the same amount of dough, but double the amount of pies. You could call it thin crust, and it bakes in my setup in 2.5 min ... quite tasty ! Mushroom & salami Anchovy & olive Artichokes & parma ham Half „quattro formaggi“, half mushroom & salami. Featuring the leftovers from yesterday’s cheese board. Enjoyed with „Das Sams in Gefahr“ ...

I will not comment anything more on the subject itself. As others have pointed out, material-wise vac-sealer bags and zip-locks should not differ in terms of safety. If endocrine disruptive effects would be present, a decade of daily exposure would have led to a manifestation. Concerning the cited study: please look through the author list and their affiliations. If you are looking for „harmless“ plastics, two of the authors work for a company that certifies these (for a fee).

Four shad fillets - ahhahhahhhah ..

Due to Covid restrictions my sister and her husband couldn’t join my parents and my family for Easter this year. As they are visiting us right now, I try at least to replicate some of the food we had. Tonight: cheese board & breads ... Made (again) some rye bread with walnuts (and nut vinegar), plus some regular bread: The milder ones (clockwise from the top): St. Felicien, Comte 12m, fresh goat cheese, St. Maure. The slightly more pungent ones (starting with the plastic packed one, clockwise): Epoisses, Bleu d’Auvergne, Langres, Brie de Meaux and some fig-horseradish marmelade ... A local off-dry Grauburgunder and a very fruity Primitivo to go with.

Family breakfast ... Recently, we discussed the usage of a different egg preparation for the Eggs Benedict. My wife doesn’t care much for poached eggs, so today I used 6.5 min eggs. She and the little one preferred it over the traditional prep (probably a textural thing), I am not sure ...

That looks pretty good ! Butter for Germans is a must indeed, in some areas butter with chives is served as well. Mustard might come with the sausages, that accompany the Brezn, but not with the bread itself. The Liptauer is definitely an Austrian treat; the southern German / Bavarian version is called Obatzda and is more rich and pungent due to the use of (ripe) Camembert instead of cottage cheese. Typically, one orders a portion of it and then the Brezn comes as an accompaniment. It’s pretty much a meal.

I think throwing the skin (or any tasty bits) into the beans will always be a good idea 🤗