estherschindler
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Posts posted by estherschindler
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Any ideas of how long the dish has been sold in Arizona, and when did it begin being called the chimichanga? Carlotta Flores of El Charro claims that until a couple of decades ago, they were usually called "fried burros", though elsewhere she credits her grandmother, Monica Flin. with coining the name long before that. What gives?
And perhaps a better question: what's the proper filling for a chimichanga? Anything that can go in a burro? Or only machaca? Carne seca?
I'm not exactly sure when the chimichanga came to be (much less who's responsible for accidentally dropping a burro in a vat of oil), but I have a Jane Butel Tex-Mex cookbook that I bought in 1981 that refers to it as a Tucson specialty... and with wording that implies that it's not (yet) well known.
I've had chimis filled with almost anything you'd put in a stew, though the most common are a chicken guisado (basically a chicken-chili-onion stew), machaca beef, and -- in the last couple of years -- fajita filling.
My favorite restaurant for chimichangas, at least in Phoenix, is Manuel's -- it's a local chain with maybe 6 or 7 restaurants. The one on 28th Street and Indian School is the original, I think, but all of them are good. Anyway, they serve a chimi "norteno style" with a chicken filling, enchilada sauce, guac and sour cream. Pretty darned good, and I think it's about $10.
Least favorite, at least in recent memory: Los Olivos. They don't do anything to the chicken at all, so the filling is rather flat.
But if you have to look for a chimichanga outside Arizona... well, don't go to Ellsworth, Maine. We lived there for nearly 7 years, moving to an island off the coast initally because of a job offer.
As you might imagine, after having lived in Phoenix for 4 years, we pined for Mexican food, so at the first opportunity we drove up to Ellsworth to "The Mex." My husband ordered a chimichanga, and should have known something was wrong when they asked him if he wanted it with barbecue sauce.
What he got was a plain flour tortilla (not fried, or anything) wrapped around some chicken, which I swear wa a can of Swanson's chicken. Because he said he wanted it spicy (not something we're used to being asked), they carefully laid three slices of jalapeno on top.
We learned to cook our own Mexican food, after that. I make a pretty good chimi, but it's a real mess.
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I, too, have about 200 cookbooks. But the ones whose binding is most worn-out, and which I really ought to replace before all the pages fall out, are:
* the original Moosewood Cookbook (not the later version which tried to be fat-free)
* Irene Kao's Key to Chinese Cooking (gosh, can't imagine why the book opens to her hot-and-sour soup recipe)
* The Common Ground Dessert Cookbook (everything used honey and maple syrup -- alas the book's out of print, but it has the best cheesecake recipe I've found anywhere)
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One item that WOULD be good would be Black Forest ham. But don't try it -- you can't bring meat into the U.S. and (as I learned to my dismay) the US Agricultural Service will confiscate it at customs.
We brought back some chocolate, but it didn't last long.
Assuming that you like German wine, you could bring back a few bottles... or a case. That's especially so if you like wines from a region that doesn't get imported much, such as weissherbst (what we'd call Rose') from the Kaiserstuhl (near Freiberg).
But the best foodstuff I brought back was another sort of booze: Kirschwasser. A bottle of the good stuff in Germany cost us about $8US, but sells for $40 here. (Actually we came back with more than cherry... there's also apricot, plum, pear, etc.)
Not food, but food-related: you can get pretty good prices on serious cooking knives in Germany, but you should probably check the prices here before you go. I'm happy with the steak knives I bought (in, alas, a tourist store), but in retrospect I suspect I didn't save much money. I should have gotten that spaetzle maker when I thought of it, though.
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I'm just back from a weekend in San Diego. Most of the time I was stuck with my family (my sister canNOT cook -- her idea of home-baked includes the words "poppin' fresh") but we escaped for a few hours to Balboa Park.
While there, we had lunch at Prado, which proudly advertises itself on a sign outside as "voted best new restaurant." It was an excellent meal, with fresh local ingredients (awesome fish tacos, superb grilled chicken with pasta and gorganzola sauce) and gorgeous presentation. It's fancy and special without going so far overboard that one is tempted to say, "oh come ON!"
I'd go back there again.
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I'll second the recommendations for Pasqual's and Rancho de Chimayo!
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I generally can't afford the high-end places. I've had wonderful meals at Roxsand, Roaring Fork, and The Farm (I'm not sure the latter is still going, except for the lunch take-out), but I'm no authority on the subject.
However, your friend may be interested in the recent review of Mary Elaine's at the Phoenician. If he wants to take a local out to dinner, I'd be happy to come along.
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I use Bittman's book all the time, along with Julia and Jacques Cooking At Home, which is a beautiful volume.
You've certainly all convinced me to check out Bittman's book!
I have Julia and Jacques Cooking At Home, and I love it too (Jacques' recipe for pot roast is simply awesome) -- but I decided not to consider it for budget reasons. While they do make plenty of things affordable for the kids, I can't imagine that they'll be able to afford the serious cuts of meat for a while. Nor does it expect that its readers are newbies in the kitchen.
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And I always turn to my vintage Joy of Cooking. Good heavens - there's an illustration on how to skin a squirrel in there! Yes - it will answer vurtually any question anyone might ever have!
I've never been keen on Joy of Cooking. I bought myself a paperback copy when I got my first college apartment (which would make it, oh, 1977 or so -- thus among the originals?).
After our halloween pumpkin lighting, I decided to try making a pumpkin pie using what I could scrape out of the jack-o-lantern. My very first pie. The recipe said "3 cups of pumpkin" but, you see, it never said to COOK the pumpkin.
Let's just say that it was not a success.
Thankfully, I got better since then. But I'm not sure I ever used Joy of Cooking again.
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We've made vanilla a couple of times. We've found that it comes out better if you use _cheap_ vodka rather than decent stuff.
We chop up the vanilla beans before dumping it in the bottle. When the vanilla is all done, crunch up the bean remains and use them in vanilla ice cream.
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It might be nice to get the Bittman book plus a subscription to Cook's Illustrated or Bon Appetit or which ever magazine you think will contain information on the right level for them. Those spice collections are nice but they mostly go unused.
The recommendations here are fantastic. I'm going to take a look at them, and have a great time deciding which is best. (Though I'm leaning towards the Julia Child.)
I also like Jason's idea of giving them a magazine subscription, as I'm a fool for Fine Cooking. But I may still stick with the spice collection, partly because Penzey's wedding sets include "wedding charms:" traditional spices with love-and-marriage significance, such as rosemary for rememberance, a whole nutmeg for family happiness, etc.
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My nephew is getting married in a couple of months. I don't have a heck of a lot to spend on a wedding present, but I like Ivan and his bride quite a bit, and want to give them something they'll enjoy.
Since we're known in the family as the gourmet cooks (which is a nicer way of saying that the rest of them can't cook to save their lives), the obvious candidates are food related. I'm thinking of giving them a solid cookbook and, perhaps, one of the wedding spice boxes from penzeys.com.
I have something like 200 cookbooks in my collection, but few of them seem suitable for a new couple starting out. A high percentage of my personal favorites are ethnic or too specific (such as Kafka's Roasting, which has the right "heft" for a gift like this). I'd prefer a title that'll help them get started, the one book they turn to repeatedly, probably because it's the only major one they own. So it should probably cover the entire meal rather than just the entree. (I don't think they're afraid of cooking, but they're definitely beginners.)
Also, I don't want to pick a cookbook that has a lot of recipes for expensive foods that twenty-somethings can't afford (which is why I eliminated Roasting, as beautiful a book as it is). That was the problem with the "Cooking School" book we bought, lo, 23 years ago (damn, now I feel old). It had lots of good "beginner" recipes, but too many of them were for lobster and prime rib -- not exactly what I could afford on my then-salary of $185 a week.
I was considering something like Witt's Classic American Food Without Fuss but (a) it seems to be out of print and (b) it seems like a cheap gift, even if it's the most useful. (Ivan wouldn't care, but my sister would sniff) My husband suggests the Jamisons' Real American Breakfast, which is a possibility (and a great book, if you haven't seen it), but I'm looking for more suggestions.
Esther
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I think the best way to deal with Emeril besides using the guy in an occassional schticky situations like on eGullet is to let him fade away in to the mire without all of this back and forth. He did pioneer a thing or two so let's let him have his cake...I just personally refuse to watch him eat it. But we're goddamned forced to if we want to tune into food television.
I think your last point is the big one: that the abundance of Emeril has taken over the TV network. It's certainly chased me away from turning on the channel (as has the station's east-coast centricity, which means that there are many shows I can only see at weird hours... but that's another thread).
I don't begrudge the guy his success. I mostly feel sorry for him. He's obvious a serious chef who loves his business... and he earned admiration more for his ability to say BAM! than for what he does best. It's like having someone gush over you for folding your napkins cutely and paying no attention to the perfectly cooked meal.
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I agree wholeheartedly with the Wine Avenger. But I do want to add one of my own surprises about food in Germany: an abundance of venison and rabbit on the menu, and a lot more duck than we're used to. The last time, I counted: in ten days, I saw only one restaurant that had a chicken dish listed.
The good side of this is that I discovered what good things could be done with venison and rabbit. The disadvantage is that I can't afford to make any of them myself, because the meat is so much more expensive here.
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if you want a distinctly Phoenix experience... there's Bill Johnson's Big Apple BBQ. The sign says, "Hongry? LET'S EAT!" and it does the cowboy thing, complete to sawdust on the floor and pistol-packing waitresses. The downside is that I've never been all that thrilled about their lunch menu. They're a great breakfast spot (assuming that you think that biscuits and sausage gravy, done right, is heaven on earth -- and theirs is the best I've found anyplace) but the lunches are merely okay. But it's RIGHT next to the airport, on Washington, possibly closer to it than your rental car pickup spot. This is definitely more of a spot for locals on lunch break than a place where you'll see other tourists or Jerry Colangelo.
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I've been through the Black Forest twice, and though I had enjoyable meals in Baden-Baden I'm not sure I know enough to give specific restaurant recommendations.
However -- I'll recommend what to order, instead. If you're leaving soon (and your note implies that you are), you'll be in Germany in the middle of asparagus season. Most restaurants have asparagus specials, often advertised as "frische spargel" (I'm murdering the spelling). In fact, most have a separate menu with the asparagus items , and a major one is asparagus as entree.
That sounds odd to us, but IMHO it's wonderful. You get at least a half pound of white asparagus per person, generally accompanied with boiled white potatoes and hollandaise sauce. You often have a choice of add-on, such as sliced Black Forest Ham (for which we have a weakness).
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One good restaurant that's close to the airport is Carlsbad Tavern. It's on Hayden at Osborn, which is south of Indian School Road. (From the airport, follow the signs for the 202 East. Take the 202 to the Hayden/McClintock exit. Left (north) from the exit, then about 4 miles to the restaurant. It's next door to a great little store called House of Rice, which has Chinese ingredients and cooking supplies and cooking classes -- though I'm sure it'd pale in comparison to what you see in Chinatown.
Anyhow: Carlsbad Tavern looks like a fish restaurant (which is what it was before), and it serves very good, spicy New Mexican food. You can stay as simple as a burro or order a major entree. It's inexpensive; two of us usually get out of there for under $30, assuming you're drinking iced tea rather than booze.
Another major destination is Los Dos Molinos, which I believe is mentioned in the Zagat Guides. Very inexpensive, VERY spicy -- not for wimps. It's in a weird neighborhood, on Central at South Mountain, which is sort-of but not-quite on your way down to Tucson. But the food is awesome and the atmosphere "representative."
If you want something more casual and less demanding, I'd recommend Manuel's. On Indian School at 28th Street. (Take the airport exit that puts you on 24th Street going north. Indian School is 4 or 5 miles north. Turn right on Indian School, left at the light at 28th Street and then right into the shopping center parking lot.) It's where I took my NY-area boss when he came to town and wanted Mexican food: excellent, _excellent_ chimichangas, and good at everything else. My idea of a neighborhood restaurant. Probably $25 for two, maybe less if you hit a lunch special.
--Esther
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There's a good Mexican restaurant inside Tlaquapaque; I can never remember the name of it. It can sometimes have a long wait. The same shopping center has a good brewpub, upstairs, but at the other end of the parking lot.
If you head north into Oak Creek, there's a restaurant at the Junipine resort -- right on the road -- that has a few specialties worth looking for. In particular, they do very good things with the local trout.
But the foodie fix isn't in a restaurant. Halfway along the road up to Oak Creek, you'll see signs for a historical marker. Park at the shop in front of it. The marker isn't anything to write home about (in fact I don't remember what it marks) but the general store stocks WONDERFUL apple cider in season; and they also sell a really good homemade breakfast sausage. (When I go to Sedona, I rent a cabin with a kitchen, so I'd actually get to consume these before I come home.)
Greater Phoenix Dining: Where To Eat?
in Southwest & Western States: Dining
Posted
First, Beverly, welcome to Phoenix! With a 7 year hiatus, I've been here since 1981, and my husband is second-generation Arizonan. I'm sure you'll love the place.
You'll find that, with a few exceptions, most of the Chinese restaurants are in the southeast part of the valley. Although I live up toward Carefree, every so often I made a pilgrimage to C-Fu Gourmet, at Ray and Dobson, for dim sum. Obviously, it's worth the trip.
You'll also find a few decent restaurants in the Copco Center, at 44th Street just south of the 202 -- but more importantly (assuming you cook and don't only consume) the 99 Ranch Market is the place in town to find all the Chinese (and many other Asian) ingredients you want; live fish, several kinds of bok choy, etc.
What you don't find there, you'll find at the smaller (and in some ways much nicer) House of Rice on Hayden at Osborn -- which also has cooking classes at reasonable prices. (A nice side benefit to visiting House of Rice is Carlsbad Tavern. It's a New-Mexico mexican restaurant just next door that I highly recommend, despite the vaguely seafaring decor left from a previous inhabitant.)
It's been a few years since I've gone there, but closer to (your) home is Big Wong's, on Indian School and 5th Avenue; you used to have to ask for the "other" menu, but you could get the authentic stuff down to stir fried pig's feet.
For Italian, try Pasta Brioni, on Miller just south of Camelback. I went there (for the first time in many years) earlier this week, and it's simply outstanding. The main restaurant had a 1.5 hour wait (which is really amazing in this town, especially on a Tuesday night), but they have a "takeout" joint next door that has sit-down tables and a nice patio.
That may be enough to get you -- and the lurkers -- started.