fifi

Here in Houston, I have been to several "Cajun" suppliers and have yet to find tasso that tastes like the "real thing". Whatever that is. All I know is that dishes that I have had with tasso in New Orleans have a really unique flavor that I can't put my finger on. What I have gotten here tastes like bacon or ham and that just isn't it. I have seen some recipes that have everything in the rub including cinnamon. All I know is I haven't found it yet. Do I have to order it from Paul P to get the "real thing"? Or do I have to wait until I get my house built, get my smoker out of storage and make it myself? HELP!

I ordered mine from Amazon and it came last week. Pink. I have to agree about the photographs. They suck. I read a recipe and can't for the life of me figure out how it comes out looking like the picture. As encyclopedic as this book is, I would have thought that the extensive use of photography could have been better employed to instruct the reader. Pictures of some of the more obscure ingredients would have been nice. I found myself googling on some of them when I got curious as hell. And I do some Thai cooking. I even have a cooking friend that has her own Kaffir lime tree for Chrisakes and we still found things in this book that we had never heard of. Oh well... Back to Hong Kong Market. The recipes are intriguing and I intend to try some of them. However, I have a basic question. It occurs to me that the elaborate nature of Thai cooking has to be an anomoly in the history of the world. Even the "country" cooking (as opposed to palace cuisine) seems to be incredibly time consuming. How did the Thai people come to develop such a labor intensive cuisine? Are they in such a land of plenty that they don't have to spend all of their time in the rice paddies and can indulge themselves in this complex pastime? Am I missing something here? Do we have a cultural anthropologist lurking on this site that can explain this phenomenon? I do love the book. Good reading and it does capture a lot of detail. But I draw the line at making my own coconut cream.

Oh... Thank you mamster. I have been on the same journey and now only go for the tub. I am also gratified to see that some of the products that you have in your article are the ones that I use. The great thing about this is that I can even turn leftovers into a great quick meal. Put the brown rice in that fuzzy logic rice cooker, make up the curry, and I am in Thai leftover heaven.

Now that I have recovered a bit from reading this... I had a couple of cooking buddies over for some sort of Cajun feast. Said feast included some boudin (the dirty rice type) that only needed to be cooked in a skillet started with a little water. The intent is to then take the lid off and allow said boudin brown a bit before serving. Well... When the lid came off I screamed. The sausage casings had opened up some perfectly round holes. Innards were oozing out of these holes. Cooking friend #1 says... "Looks like a dog taking a crap." It was quite graphic. The laughing session became a total incapacitation event. I don't trust boudin to this day. Glad it was the cooking buddies and not a REAL party.

Whew... This thread may be excellent evidence that we are separated by a common language. All I know is that my local mega-grocery has an aisle labeled with a big sign "Ethnic Foods". This is where I find all of the "good stuff", including LaChoy brand, Pace Picante sauce and Matzo balls. I am about to take it that is anything other than Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

HMMMM... Perhaps this concept is the ultimate oxymoron. A crock pot is meant to simplify your life. If you subscribe to the concept that "gourmet" means complicated (I don't necessarily) then you have defeated the purpose of owning one of the damned things. (Yes... I own one and love it for some things.) It occurs to me that you could upgrade the ingredients. However, my favorite recipe is a classic beef stew that calls for coating the beef chunks with Lipton's onion soup (excuuuuuse me... Recipe Secrets) putting the vegs on top of the meat and dumping a can of Campbells cream of mushroom soup on top of all of that. Sounds like something that would be cooked in homes on wheels but it is really about the best beef stew I have ever made. Any suggestions from this group will be appreciated. I work too much and the crock pot is my friend.

Went to the local Kroger. They had chuck roast on sale. I found one that was incredibly marbled. (Mutant cow?) This was in the typical plastic tray. Said chuck roast became an inspiration to try the basic boeuf a la mode from my new Peterson book. Oops! Need to make glace de viande. Go to local HEB. (They have odd parts of animals for making stocks.) OH MY GOD! The oxtails are in those funny shrink wrapped things! They do look odd. Buy some. Expensive! Oxtails and neck bones total up to over $18. With mushrooms and other stuff (I am messing with the recipe. Peterson seems to encourage that.) my little pot roast is now topping $20! Flash back to a month ago when I did this recipe from a Chinese friend for a braise of a fresh ham. I went to the local asian market that has a REAL butcher shop. The butcher presented the WHOLE pig haunch (complete with the trotter) to me and allowed me to indicate were I wanted him to cut a shank portion. This turned out to be the most gorgeous hunk of pork I have worked with in a long time. Moral of the story... I am going to drive a few more miles and support my Chinese butcher. The only problem is, Sam's is about the only place to reliably get USDA Choice beef around here. Is this a moral problem?

I would love to try to make a marmalade from kaffir limes. I have a cooking friend that has a kaffir lime tree (bush?). If it ever bears fruit I will try it.

I recently read Bourdain's Typhoid Mary and was totally blown away. (Drat that evil "people who ordered this book also ordered..." thing on Amazon.) This little book is deeper than you might imagine. I don't want to piss off the author but he is starting to look like a scholar. The research was amazing. Just a look at the bibliography and the acknowledgements is impressive for a 145 or so page read. And it shows. Not only were the facts presented in a creditable way but the author also did a creditable job of "getting into her head". I am impressed. And I am not easily impressed.

I count 52. More on the way. I have been reading the thread on the top 10 and see some obvious gaps. Amazon here I come... AAAAARGH!

Wierdest thing I ever got into was when I was a kid. My mother was quite a gardener and cook. One year she had all of these beutiful violets growing under the pine trees. We got it into our heads that we were going to make violet jelly! We went to the "exotic" liquor store here and bought a bottle of violet liqueur. (It was called Creme de Yvette, I think.) Then we proceeded to make jelly with it, putting in some violet flowers after it had cooled some but before it had set. I had collected some baby food jars from a neighbor and even spray painted the lids purple. (Martha has nothing on us.) It was lovely. I don't think anyone makes that liqueur anymore. At least I can't find it. I have also turned the kitchen blue making elderberry jelly when the crop in the ditches was particularly good one year. That has to be the best jelly ever, worth battling the water mocassins and mosquitos to get the berries. Then one year we got into the prickley pear jelly business. Gorgeous color but painful to execute. Have good tweezers available if you have the opportunity to try it.

(oops, hit the wrong key... to continue...) Peterson's Glorious French Food just arrived and I am amazed. This will definitely be a favorite. Emeril's Real and Rustic. OK, all you Emiril bashers. So he acts like a clown on TV. But if you get a chance to eat in one of his New Orleans restaurants, prepare to be amazed. Real and Rustic is one of the few books that I actually follow the recipes time after time. Beef Fricassee is... well, words fail me. True Thai by what's-his-name. (Just bought Thai Food by David Thompson. Looks good but I haven't tried it yet.) CI's Best Recipe. A workhorse. Mostly good if not always the best. Bourdain's writing is amazing. I have to list it even though not a cookbook. (BTW. I picked up his Typhoid Mary. This may hurt his feelings but the guy is a friggin' scholar!) I love Harold McGee. He taught me how to make ices and sorbets that always work. (I will add for project... I think I read somewhere that he is a chemist of some kind. I was an organic/biochemist in a previous life and I can tell you he knows what he is talking about.) In the same vain, Jeffrey Steingarten taught me a wonderful potato gratin dauphinois. And he makes me laugh.

Anything by Rick Bayless, Diana Kennedy and Zarela Martinez.

Pickled Shrimp This recipe is at least 50 years old. I remember eating it at my Aunt Audrey’s house where we went every Christmas Eve. She was old enough to be my father’s mother so there is no telling how old it is. My sister got this recipe from her before she died and it has been handed down in my family ever since. It is truly terrific and I find it fascinating that this was around so long before recipes like this were trendy. Think of it as a very early escabeche. I have no idea where she got the capers back then but she did use them. I remember wondering what the heck those things were. 2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined 3 medium sweet onions, thinly sliced 12 or so whole cloves 6 or so bay leaves 1-1/4 c salad oil (Canola or other light vegetable oil, NOT olive oil) 3/4 c white or cider vinegar 1 large clove garlic, finely minced 1-1/2 tsp salt 2-1/2 tsp celery seed 2-1/2 tsp capers and juice Boil cleaned shrimp. Do not over cook. Arrange shrimp and onion rings in layers in a glass bowl or jar. Sprinkle with cloves and tuck in bay leaves as you go. Cover with marinade made with the last 6 ingredients. Let stand in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. Can be kept for 3 days in a jar with a good lid. Pretty served in clear glass. Notes: I tend to increase the cloves, bay leaves and capers. I think it makes it better. I have marinated blanched asparagus in the left over marinade after eating all of the shrimp. Fabulous. You could do other vegetables as well and serve on top of greens as a terrific salad, including the onions. Fresh shrimp are always best but you could get pre-prepared shrimp from the grocery and it would probably still be good. At least that might inspire you to make this. Alternate cooking method for the shrimp: Instead of boiling the shrimp, brine them for 30 minutes in ¼ cup Kosher salt to 1 quart of water. Drain and rinse. Steam the shrimp until just done. Reduce the salt in the recipe by about half. Keywords: Appetizer, Easy, Shrimp, Snack, Hors d'oeuvre ( RG838 )

Texas Caviar The original Texas Caviar recipe that I was introduced to was in the Pace Picante cookbook, sadly not available anymore. I have changed it quite a bit to our taste but the basics are there. Consider this a starting point as the variations are endless. Friends endlessly request that I bring this to our gatherings. There is some added advantage that it is healthy and even appeals to the odd vegetarian. 1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed 1 can white hominy, drained and rinsed 4 green onions thinly sliced 2 garlic cloves minced 1/2 c chopped onion, preferably white, rinsed after chopping 1/2 c chopped celery 1/4 c chopped parsley 1 c Pace picante sauce or more to taste 1 T cider vinegar or more to taste Salt to taste Mix all together and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. Serve with saltine crackers or tortilla chips. Variations: Consider this a starting point and vary the ingredients to suit you. I don’t think I have ever made it the same way twice. The original recipe called for chopped green pepper instead of celery. I like celery better. The original recipe called for chopped cilantro instead of parsley. I find the cilantro too strong. But then, I am not a cilantro fan. You might try adding a little. You can use any combination of canned beans and hominy. Or, no hominy. If you use more than 2 cans, adjust the other ingredients accordingly or vary quantities according to your taste. This recipe is infinitely expandable to match the size of the crowd. Garbanzos are particularly good and black beans add a nice color contrast. I particularly like to use Goya brand canned beans. You can find them in any Hispanic market or maybe in the “ethnic” department of a large grocery. They are preferred because they are perfectly cooked and not mushy. Heat it up with a little cayenne or Tabasco sauce. The new flavors of Tabasco like Chipotle or Garlic add a nice flavor note. Of course, there are now many flavors of Pace Picante to choose from and a gazillion other brands. Add fresh chopped jalapeno or other chiles. Add fresh chopped red or yellow bell peppers. Adds nice color and is not as strong as green pepper. Diced jicama adds a nice crunch. Keywords: Appetizer, Vegetarian, Easy, Beans, Snack ( RG788 )

Pickled Shrimp This recipe is at least 50 years old. I remember eating it at my Aunt Audrey’s house where we went every Christmas Eve. She was old enough to be my father’s mother so there is no telling how old it is. My sister got this recipe from her before she died and it has been handed down in my family ever since. It is truly terrific and I find it fascinating that this was around so long before recipes like this were trendy. Think of it as a very early escabeche. I have no idea where she got the capers back then but she did use them. I remember wondering what the heck those things were. 2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined 3 medium sweet onions, thinly sliced 12 or so whole cloves 6 or so bay leaves 1-1/4 c salad oil (Canola or other light vegetable oil, NOT olive oil) 3/4 c white or cider vinegar 1 large clove garlic, finely minced 1-1/2 tsp salt 2-1/2 tsp celery seed 2-1/2 tsp capers and juice Boil cleaned shrimp. Do not over cook. Arrange shrimp and onion rings in layers in a glass bowl or jar. Sprinkle with cloves and tuck in bay leaves as you go. Cover with marinade made with the last 6 ingredients. Let stand in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. Can be kept for 3 days in a jar with a good lid. Pretty served in clear glass. Notes: I tend to increase the cloves, bay leaves and capers. I think it makes it better. I have marinated blanched asparagus in the left over marinade after eating all of the shrimp. Fabulous. You could do other vegetables as well and serve on top of greens as a terrific salad, including the onions. Fresh shrimp are always best but you could get pre-prepared shrimp from the grocery and it would probably still be good. At least that might inspire you to make this. Alternate cooking method for the shrimp: Instead of boiling the shrimp, brine them for 30 minutes in ¼ cup Kosher salt to 1 quart of water. Drain and rinse. Steam the shrimp until just done. Reduce the salt in the recipe by about half. Keywords: Appetizer, Easy, Shrimp, Snack, Hors d'oeuvre ( RG838 )

Texas Caviar The original Texas Caviar recipe that I was introduced to was in the Pace Picante cookbook, sadly not available anymore. I have changed it quite a bit to our taste but the basics are there. Consider this a starting point as the variations are endless. Friends endlessly request that I bring this to our gatherings. There is some added advantage that it is healthy and even appeals to the odd vegetarian. 1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed 1 can white hominy, drained and rinsed 4 green onions thinly sliced 2 garlic cloves minced 1/2 c chopped onion, preferably white, rinsed after chopping 1/2 c chopped celery 1/4 c chopped parsley 1 c Pace picante sauce or more to taste 1 T cider vinegar or more to taste Salt to taste Mix all together and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. Serve with saltine crackers or tortilla chips. Variations: Consider this a starting point and vary the ingredients to suit you. I don’t think I have ever made it the same way twice. The original recipe called for chopped green pepper instead of celery. I like celery better. The original recipe called for chopped cilantro instead of parsley. I find the cilantro too strong. But then, I am not a cilantro fan. You might try adding a little. You can use any combination of canned beans and hominy. Or, no hominy. If you use more than 2 cans, adjust the other ingredients accordingly or vary quantities according to your taste. This recipe is infinitely expandable to match the size of the crowd. Garbanzos are particularly good and black beans add a nice color contrast. I particularly like to use Goya brand canned beans. You can find them in any Hispanic market or maybe in the “ethnic” department of a large grocery. They are preferred because they are perfectly cooked and not mushy. Heat it up with a little cayenne or Tabasco sauce. The new flavors of Tabasco like Chipotle or Garlic add a nice flavor note. Of course, there are now many flavors of Pace Picante to choose from and a gazillion other brands. Add fresh chopped jalapeno or other chiles. Add fresh chopped red or yellow bell peppers. Adds nice color and is not as strong as green pepper. Diced jicama adds a nice crunch. Keywords: Appetizer, Vegetarian, Easy, Beans, Snack ( RG788 )