gus_tatory

thanks for the heads up, carswell! i'm going to go check it out since it's kind of in my neighbourhood... but i also want to try to replicate it at home--i have a small hand-cranked ice cream maker... will report back, but i understand their version has swirls/veins of the maple taffy in it?

so by definition, is that as high as the Scoville unit chart goes, pure capsaicin? could it even be used in trace quantities, or not? if not then it's an Evel Knievel (stunt) food that's not even meant to be consumed, no?!

thanks very much, Kristin! this is my last question, i promise: say you start soaking your beans, then you realize you can't make the tofu (because you don't have time) for 2-3 days--will they be okay if you keep on rinsing and changing the water, or should you start over? like is there such a thing as "over-soaking" the beans?

scroll down to "pommes de terre tournees"...

OK, thanks Kristin! so i found some nigari (tofu coagulant = bittern), and it is magnesium chloride, and i have my soybeans. questions: --do i dissolve the crystal MgCl in the equivalent amount of water that is in your original tofu recipe? --are there any standout recipes i should make with the soybean pulp/lees after draining the milk? i've heard it's widely used in Korean stews, and is called "combini" or something in Korean... --does the amount of coagulant, as well as the amount of draining, determine how firm the tofu is? thanks for any answers in advance, and i'm sorry if i'm repeating questions (hope not). gus

this is no substitute by _any means_ for Schwartz's atmosphere or food, but there's a kosher deli and butcher in the cavendish mall too.

in addition to this fascinating post from Carolyn Tillie, seven is also the number of times sushi chefs squeeze and shape the onigiri (rice ball) for nigiri sushi, so that all the rice grains are lined up in the same direction.

yeah, thanks for posting the beautiful pictures. i too am aching for winter to be over. the whole schtick is getting tired...

Sizzleteeth-- the way i can buy agar it's in these kind of cloudy-coloured batons. how do you soften it in the water, at what temperature, and how do you blend it with the other ingredients? how much agar sets how much liquid? i'd like to start using agar as i've always found gelatine in sachets problematic in one way or another... thanks in advance for any answers, and good luck with your annindofu! edit: to remove potentially disrespectuful, although not intended as such, use of the term "dude".

the fiddleheads, you have to get them *super-fresh*, all dark green and tightly-coiled. and you have to rinse the bejeesus out of them like leeks and italian parsley, because of course they are packed with sand and grit. then, as NulloModo said, you can blanch and shock-fry them, or get more artsy with a sesame oil/sesame seed "goma-ae" sauce kinda stir-fry thing. they are divine, but they have a really short window of opportunity, depending on where you live... good luck! edit: to provide a recipe for vegetables "goma-ae"... sesame-pounded veg sauce...

Lay's has a great new chip in Canada called Sea Salt & Black Pepper. It sounds plain, but is soo much more than just the sum of its parts...

The same owners of the Bangkok have a sit-down restaurant on ste-catherine's--also called Bangkok--right outside, across the street from the Faubourg. It gets rave reviews from everyone that goes there.

hi amccomb-- here in Quebec, Canada, the maple syrup season and its associated parties ("cabane a sucre" = "sugaring off" = a big meal with everything dripping in maple syrup ) is one of the awaited, sure harbingers of spring. also the fiddleheads in the woods in later spring. the young rhubarb. aah, now i'm pining for the spring...

hi Keith Talent-- Persian (or Iranian) food is notable for, among other things: --kubideh, a molded skewer of ground meat and seasonings, grilled --faisan jun, a poultry dish with pomegranate seeds and walnuts --tah cheen or tah dig, a truly gorgeous steamed rice dish with each grain canoe-shaped and separate, and with a golden, crispy crust of potato/rice at the bottom of the pot that is so tasty people mock-fight over it. also, and i may get some argument here, the Shiraz wine grape originates in Persia.

Clickity. ← ...also Soto main page for contact info... and for the addresses of the take-out locations still open... their downfall *appears* to have been over-extending themselves with the opening of 4-5 food concessions of various types in the ill-fated Les Ailes de la Mode complex... although high-priced, less-than-sublime sushi in montreal has had its day, IMHO.

torakris said: The egg presses are really neat, you hard boil an egg stick it inside, push, and voila! star shaped egg. more manipulation of food into kawaii onigiri (cute rice balls): click here...

i heartily endorse Chocolats de Chloe as well. they are sublime and different. the caramels aux fleur de sel are, um, so lovely it's hard to find words for them.

it's called papain... click here...

Google search on velveting Q: What does it mean when a chef says he/she is "velveting the chicken"? A: When preparing stir-fried chicken dishes, Chinese chefs frequently begin by coating the chicken in a mixture of cornstarch and egg white, and then cooking it briefly in warm oil or hot water until the colour changes to white. The name comes from the fact that this process gives the chicken a velvety texture.

it's done in the Chinese restaurant business, and it's called "velveting"--there was a thread on it a while back: lemme go look...

This site is also *extremely* comprehenssive, re: Japanese Cuisine... good reading!!!

Pan-- it's a shiso (or perilla) leaf, usually described as tasting halfway between basil and mint... edit to add: if you want to try growing it in your home garden, it is hardy, and you can get seeds here.... click main catalogue and search.

easternsun-- interesting question. seeing that i can get some but not all necessary Japanese ingredients in my Western metropolis (Montreal), i have to answer your question in reverse. in other words, and perhaps i should start another thread, i find myself adding Japanese ingredients to Western food. examples (please do not cringe, as i take great liberties with traditional ingredients): --if i make a genoise or sponge cake, i'll add a tblsp of matcha (green tea) powder and black sesame seed, and i love this cake. as a "jelly roll" with chunky an (sweet azuki bean) paste, it's nice, and also visually interesting. --i have added a square of konbu (stock seaweed) and katsuobushi (smoked shaved bonito) to chicken stock. --i'll sprinkle furikake on a grilled steak at the table. --i routinely make salad dressings with part sesame oil, part rice wine vinegar. --i have a fruit salad in my fridge now that i put about 1/2 cup of sake on to macerate. i know this isn't the exact question you were asking, but maybe it'll encourage people to post here and/or try new things. edit: OMG it's hard to spell "katsuobushi".

cheese and curry. two great tastes that--for me, anyhow--don't go together at all.

hi cricklewood and welcome to eGullet! i am an adult (mid 30s) who is entertaining the idea of going back to school (i'm an administrative professional now)--to the ITHQ. if you feel like it, can you talk a bit about a typical day, the curriculum, etc? good luck.