mudbug

I don't think it's stupid. And I'm not on any diet and I do exercise. I personally have never really been wowed by the buns and there are plenty of cultures which have dishes where meat is wrapped by lettuce leaves. It's a wonderful combination - warm meat wrapped by cold, crunchy leaves. Texture wise, it's much more fun. And if it's cutting out unnecessary carbs, then heck! Why not?

I grew Tagetes lucida this past summer. (When a plant has many common names across languages and cultures, I try to stick to the Latin/Scientific/Botanical name so there is no mistake of what it is.) It's pretty heat and cold tolerant and grows faster than regular tarragon which can be finicky, so it's great for those who want to grow their own herbs. You can smell it several feet away too. More recipes for you.

I highly suggest the following from this list because food is so prominently portrayed as a central theme: 301-302 1995 South Korea - John Hart : Horror / Mystery / Thriller Babette's Feast 1987 Danish / French - Gabriel Axel : Comedy / Drama Bella Martha aka Mostly Martha 2001 Sandra Nettelbeck : Comedy / Romance Big Night 1996 Campbell Scott, Stanley Tucci : Comedy Chicken and Duck Talk or Chicken and Fast Food 1988 Clifton Ko : Comedy [Gai tung aap gong] Chocolat 2000 Lasse Hallstrom -- Comedy / Romance Cooking with Butter [La Cuisine au Beurre] 1963 French - Gilles Grangier : Comedy Cuisine Americaine 1998 Jacques Teyssier -- Comedy Earth to Mouth 2002 Yung Chang : Documentary / Short Eat Drink Man Woman 1994 Ang Lee Taiwan : Comedy / Romance / Drama Eat This New York 2004 Kate Novack & Andrew Rossi Fine Food, Fine Pastries, Open 6 to 9 1989 David Petersen : Documentary / Short Four Seasons for a Feast 1999 French - Jean-Paul Jaud: With Chef Guy Savoy DVD includes recipes Garlic Is As Good As Ten Mothers 1980 Les Blank : Documentary (w/Alice Waters); Video Clip Like Water for Chocolate 1992 Mexico - Alfonsaso Aeau : Comedy / Romance / Drama Missing Person 1984 Arabic - Mohamed Khan Kharag Wa Lam Ya'ud Mostly Martha (Drei Sterne) 2001 Sandra Nettelbeck : Comedy / Romance A Private Function 1985 Malcolm Mowbray : Comedy Winner of the "Best Stimulator of Hunger" award at the 1997 Cinema and Food Retrospective Festival in Italy Tampopo : 1986 Japan - Juzo Itami : Comedy Tortilla Soup 2001 Maria Ripoll : Comedy / Family / Romance Vatel 2000 Roland Joffe; Drama extravagant seafood feast Water, Greenery and a Beautiful Face 2000 Arabic - Youssri Nasrallah Enjoy!

serrano chiles.... mmmmmmmm! The flavor of serranos is definitely heightened when in guacamole. Tomatillos are so underused. Could you please share your recipe with them?

markovitch, Please check out this list: Food in Film: A Compilation for Addicts

Which ones would you recommend? What are the choices?

Google.com: Web Hands down the best method to finding specific recipes when advanced search options are used. Google.com: Groups To see if it's been discussed before. Epicurious.com: Gail's Recipe Swap If I can't find it thru Google quickly, I'll go here and post an ISO: (In Search Of), then I'll go back to Google with different search parameters. There is a consistent group of people there who love to cook who have developed a community and have lots of tried and true experience even if they don't make their living as a chef. They are eager to help others find recipes, and some of them have very serious cookbook, periodical, and database collections. AllRecipes.com at allrecipes.com It has grown significantly in a short amount of time and the reviews of the recipes rival those of Epicurious.com. (Better interface too.) There are a handful of others I might use if their interfaces were user friendly but Google is truly the best place to search, again, stressing the advanced search options used in combination.

kpurvis, I believe you're referring to SOAR: The Searchable Online Archive of Recipes which has been renamed to RecipeSource! at www.recipesource.com (as ludja posted above)

Sridee, Look here for recipes. Let us know how it turns out!

I actually consider vegetables to be ornamental. Who the heck said they have to be planted in ugly rows anyway? (actully, don't answer that - I know it's just tradition and the way 'it's always been done') I've never understood why they are separated and deemed as 'not ornamental'. Vegetables (and herbs) are just as beautiful than trees, shrubs perennials, grasses, etc. if not more so. Check out the Edible Landscape link I posted above. I think you'll enjoy the threads.

I'm very surprised by all the comments on cleaning woks and trying to keep them shiny. Woks should be treated just like cast iron skillets. Season them when their new and never use soap to clean. As soon as you're done cooking, take a big natural hair heavy duty brush (sold for about $2.50 along side wok utensils in Chinatown and restaurant supply places) and rinse the inside under water. Throw it back onto the burner you just used which is still hot and the residual water should evaporate in a few minutes. Black isn't ugly when referring to cast iron or woks, it's the sign of a well used, high quality kitchen tool. If you live in an area where they are readily available, you shouldn't have to pay more than $25 for a wok that will last you the rest of your life with every day use. I've commented in the past on this at this thread on woks. As Hest88 said, "Get a carbon steel wok from Chinatown. It's light enough to fling from sink to stove and back again. It's easy to clean (once properly seasoned) and it's cheap enough so it won't matter if you bang it up. I've had mine over ten years. It's black. It's ugly. It's irreplacable..."

I frequent gardening forums throughout the year, a great way to keep you head in gardening during the winter months, and to continually learn. I particularly have learned a ton of information from the first three listed. Vegetable Gardening Soil and Compost Heirloom Plants and Gardens Tomatoes Herbs Asian Vegetables Fruit and Orchards Hot Peppers Organic Gardening Alliums Edible Landscape I'm watching the heirloom garlic bulbs I planted last fall and am eager to see how they do this year. I have several perennial herbs which I look forward to seeing again this spring. I brought in several herbs and plants for overwintering and am eager to get them back outside when it gets warm again. Over the past few months, the catalogs have been coming in and with a specific interest in vegetables - especially heirloom vegetables, non-hybrid, and non genetically modified vegetables - I've been browsing thru the descriptions and making my planting list according to my zone. My favorite sources are Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: Offers over 900 varieties of vegetables. (My favorite!) It's truly exciting to learn about varieties which many people think are 'new' only to find out they've been around a lot longer than we think. The Cook's Garden Lots to offer with great descriptions for cooks. Seed Savers Exchange Richters Herbs: Offers over 1000 herbs Plant Delights Specializes in ornamentals and always offers the best selection of the new and unusual. There is also website which rates mail order gardening companies so you can check customer opinions and reviews which has come in handy: Garden Watchdog It's about time to start getting some serious planning done!

No worries, there are plenty of sources: Many sources: JungleWarehouse.com $4.26 Sur La Table $5.50 Rains of Ojai $4.40 Cutlery and More $5.95 A Cooks Wares $5.50 Gourmet Sleuth $5.95

AzRaeL, I see you are located in Singapore. No wonder you have such a wonderful list! Maybe some day....

I absolutely love them. I think a good answer will depend upon the eater's tastes. I prefer mine light and not too sweet. Others prefer it more eggy and really rich. They're quite easy to make to one's liking. Check this thread

I have but I find that technique to be more efficient with more delicate herbs like chives, dill, fennel tips, tarragon, etc.

The following are gluten free: lotus root flour potato starch = potato flour = potato starch flour Look here for others.

Pan, I don't think there are responses regarding cleansing the parsley because that's not what the original question was in regards to. I always rinse, and assume most people do as well. But I'm also not so paranoid that I won't pick something out of my own garden and eat it on the spot. As a gardener who is particularly aware of hybrid, heirloom, and genetically modified produce grown for commercial production, I'll never be convinced that a simple rinse of water will ever rinse of pesticides which soak into the plant anyway.

I can't remember which chef I saw do this, but the technique was to chop the parsley up, stem and all. (This is coarsely chopped, not minced type cut.) Then just gently fluff the pile with the tips of your fingers when done and the leaves stay on top and the heavier stems fall to the bottom.

I also suggest the OXO Good Grip and/or the Serrated Peeler. The first is readily available just about everywhere. The second I've seen at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. You can also find it here and here for $5.95. Look here for more comments.

Agree with that one too. More people young and old would likely be inclined to eat their vegetables (especially green leafy ones) if they had flavor and crunch like they do with Chinese techniques of cooking vegetables. The methods are so easy and are in most cases faster than American methods which results in brilliant color and retention of nutrients. There's a great thread on favorites here: Green Chinese Vegetables

I agree. While I'm all for simplicity and maintaining the integrity of the seafood and flavor, I find American seafood dishes quite bland relative especially to Chinese methods of cooking. Hummm... may have to be making a seafood purchase here in a few hours....

Here's a different one, easy and good. They disappear at parties... Heroin Wings 4 lbs. chicken wings 1/2 cup butter 1 cup grated parmesan cheese 2 tablespoons dried parsley 1 tablespoon dried oregano 2 teaspoons paprika 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper First, preheat the oven to 350. Cut the wings up into "drummettes".Then combine the grated cheese and the seasonings. Line a shallow baking pan with foil unless you like scrubbing pans. Melt the butter in a shallow bowl or pan. Dip each "drummette" in butter, roll in the seasoned cheese, and arrange in the foil lined pan. Bake for 1 hour at 350. From: Dana W. Carpender

I know your post is specifically in regards to the Southeast but here's some interesting additional information. Did you know Kudzu is illegal to buy, sell or plant in most US states? But there are plants like this in every country. Take ong choy (water spinach) for example... I've often wondered the same thing about why, since it's considered an noxious weed in Florida and is taking over the swamps, someone doesn't harvest it and sell it. It's soooo good and a consistent favorite vegetable in the Asian community. But then, there are plants like this in every country. Considered weeds in one and consumed as a common vegetable in another.

There are actually some great suggestions at this thread as well.