eG Foodblog: Pierogi (2011) - Rollin' the bon temps on the Left Co

[Hayley Casarotto]

That looks absolutely delicious. I've never had anything remotely resembling New Orleans cuisine - there just isn't anywhere that does it out here in this part of the world. You've inspired me to try making it at home - my tummy is rumbling from looking at that gumbo!

(PS Never had the food, but have touched Harry Connick Jr. So there's still a soul connection there.)

[haresfur]

The pierogi look great! I'll have to try to make some. I went to Polish friends for Boxing Day pierogi, fish and bigos. It was really a great meal.

[llc45]

OK - I am absolutely dying for some of that NOLA in my house now. May have to try and mix up a pot this weekend - looks fabulous and am loving the baked rice - stovetop rice not my forte. Loving your blog.

[lancastermike]

Dinner's perking along on the stove, and in the oven, so it's cocktail hour.

Rather than expose myself to the horror that is a Hurricane, I chose another Mardi Gras-appropriate adult beverage.

Made with these ingredients, two of which are the absolute essence of my beloved NOLA:

Along with a bit of sugar and water, and maybe a strip of lemon twisted over, but not dropped, you have a *real* N'Awlins cocktail.

Ladies and Gentlemen......

The Sazerac:

A bad picture of a true thing of beauty. Back in a bit, gotta go stir the pot (literally !)

last Friday after work I was sitting ans staring at the liquor shelf. My wife asked me what I was doing and I said deciding if I wanted a manhattan or a sazerac. I went with the manhatthan but this week I'll have a sazerac in honor of this wonderful blog

[C. sapidus]

Pierogi, this has been an absolute delight so far, and I shall savor the dwindling days. Our family is sharing one laptop at the moment or I would be littering your delightful foodblog with questions and comments. Let me just say that I enjoy lovely food sprinkled with sharp wit.

[Genkinaonna]

Really enjoying the peek into your food/life...

Short ribs looked amazing! That's on our dinner menu for tonight. And I have serious bread envy, FYI...

I love love love pierogies, there's a food cart in downtown Portland that makes amazing potato and cheese pierogies that I try to grab at least once every couple of weeks. At some point my goal is to make some myself, thanks for the step-by-step.

[PopsicleToze]

What a great blog -- so informative and I'm drooling over the food. You did a fantastic job with your gumbo -- and your Sazerac cocktail. Keep on blogging

Rhonda

[Pierogi]

Good morning all !

It's another absolutely lovely day in SoCal, so I thought we'd take our show on the road today.

It's time for a bit of retail therapy. Since the grocery chains I frequent are far, far more mundane than some of the ones back East (like Wegmans, Fairway and Stew Leonard's, all of which give me serious grocery store envy), and even as much a I love Trader Joe's, if you've seen one TJ's, you've seen them all. Couple that with the fact that all the major chains around here prohibit picture taking, I figured shots of my normal grocery haunts were't going to happen.

But, because this area is such a cultural melting pot, we are lucky to have an absolutely limitless amount of ethnic grocery stores. So today, we'll head off to Litle India in Artesia, one of the cities just to the east of Long Beach. If we have time (and I have energy) we may also go to an Asian market there as well.

Back in a bit.

[Jon Savage]

Oh little india! I found a great hole in the wall there than had a goat curry that was to die for. On the West side of Pioneer is all that I remember Oh! Google street view to the rescue;

it is Ambala Dhaba

17631 Pioneer Bl,

Look forward to hearing about your trip to little India!

[Cass]

Great blog!

Wonderful pictures, especially the puppies!

Mmmm.....pierogies.

And also....hello!

[Pierogi]

That looks absolutely delicious. I've never had anything remotely resembling New Orleans cuisine - there just isn't anywhere that does it out here in this part of the world. You've inspired me to try making it at home - my tummy is rumbling from looking at that gumbo!

(PS Never had the food, but have touched Harry Connick Jr. So there's still a soul connection there.)

Hi Hayley, and thank you. Cajun/Creole is really a marvelous cuisine, the flavors are so rich and deep. A lot of people think of it as "knock you over the head hot", but it doesn't have to be. It *is* spicy, but its usually a balanced, flavorful heat. Much like a good curry, although the flavor profiles are completely different, of course. Any good, heavily smoked sausage will do for the andouille, although andouille is better ! They also use a marvelous spice-rubbed, smoked ham called tasso in jambalayas and red beans and rice. Again, though it won't be 100% authentic, any very good, very smoky ham will work.

If you're looking for a good beginning cookbook, I'd recommend the Prudhomme. He gives you great basics, and also what you can use as substitutions. Both the Besh book and "Cooking Up A Storm" assume a bit of knowledge about the food.

[Pierogi]

The pierogi look great! I'll have to try to make some. I went to Polish friends for Boxing Day pierogi, fish and bigos. It was really a great meal.

Some day, maybe next winter, since winter officially seems over here on the Left Coast, I'm going to make bigos. I've been wanting to for a long time. It sounds wonderful.

Thanks for the compliment. Pierogies really aren't that difficult, just tedious and time-consuming. If you've made fresh pasta, and especially ravioli, you can make pierogies.

[Pierogi]

Great blog!

Wonderful pictures, especially the puppies!

Mmmm.....pierogies.

And also....hello!

Hi Cass, and welcome to eG. Hope you enjoy it here.

Thanks for the kind words, I've been having a lot of fun.

[Pierogi]

last Friday after work I was sitting ans staring at the liquor shelf. My wife asked me what I was doing and I said deciding if I wanted a manhattan or a sazerac. I went with the manhatthan but this week I'll have a sazerac in honor of this wonderful blog

They are a very nice drink, I must say.

[Pierogi]

Pierogi, this has been an absolute delight so far, and I shall savor the dwindling days. Our family is sharing one laptop at the moment or I would be littering your delightful foodblog with questions and comments. Let me just say that I enjoy lovely food sprinkled with sharp wit.

Awwwwwww, that's so sweet Bruce, thank you so much.... That means a lot to me. It's good to see you here, and hope you get your computer fixed soon. We miss ya, especially in the Dinner, Asian and Mexican threads.

[Pierogi]

Really enjoying the peek into your food/life...

Short ribs looked amazing! That's on our dinner menu for tonight. And I have serious bread envy, FYI...

I love love love pierogies, there's a food cart in downtown Portland that makes amazing potato and cheese pierogies that I try to grab at least once every couple of weeks. At some point my goal is to make some myself, thanks for the step-by-step.

Thanks Genkinaonna. As I said, if you can make ravioli, it's a piece of cake. Or, maybe a piece of dough.

[Pierogi]

What a great blog -- so informative and I'm drooling over the food. You did a fantastic job with your gumbo -- and your Sazerac cocktail. Keep on blogging

Rhonda

Rhonda, I know *you* know a thing or 3 about gumbos, so coming from you, that's a huge compliment. I'm on a roll, I ain't stoppin' now...

[Pierogi]

OK - I am absolutely dying for some of that NOLA in my house now. May have to try and mix up a pot this weekend - looks fabulous and am loving the baked rice - stovetop rice not my forte. Loving your blog.

Rick Bayless uses a similar technique in his "Mexican Everyday" cookbook, only he starts the rice in a saucepan on top of the stove, and sautes it like a risotto, along with onions and garlic. Then he adds the liquid and spices/herbs/tomatoes (if its a red rice) and so on. Then he puts the covered saucepan into the oven. I believe the temp is the same, but he doesn't bake it as long as Prudhomme recommends. I think Bayless' only cooks for about 20 minutes. His technique works quite well also. Prudhomme's rice is a bit more dry, probably because of the longer cooking time.

Stove top rice is hit and miss for me as well, although I've been having more success following the Cook's Illustrated method of rinsing the rice, using 1 part rice to 1.5 parts water, and then letting the rice steam, with a towel under the lid of the pot, off heat, for 10 minutes after it's done. I can get much more consistent results that way.

[Pierogi]

OK, we're back from Little India, and it was a totally mind-blowing experience. I have to say, I'm ashamed to admit it, , but even though I am such a huge fan of Indian food, and even though I love to make it from scratch, and even though I've lived in this area for many more years than I care to cop to in public, I'd never been to go food shopping there.

I have no excuse. I kept thinking I want to, I should, but never motivated to actually do it. Well. Now, I'll be a regular. What a fun place to shop I found !

As 6ppc mentioned above, Little India is a stretch of Pioneer Boulevard in Artesia, roughly from 178th Street north to 183rd Street. There's a ton of restaurants, sari shops, jewelers, Bollywood video stores and little markets.

Artesia has a very interesting demographic/history. Back in the early 20th Century, it was settled primarily by Dutch and Portuguese dairy farmers, so much so that the original name of the area was "Dairy Valley". You can still see some of the Dutch influence in some of the old architecture and a few shops. There still is a large population of both Dutch and Portuguese in the area, along with Asian (Chinese, Korean and Filipino, primarily), and of course, Indian.

Next door to the Indian market we'll see in a minute, is a furniture store called "Postma Furniture". Postma, is I believe, a Dutch name, and the style of the building is similar to others I remember from the area when I was a kid. In this whole stretch of very exotic smelling foods and spices, and the glittery sari shops and very Asian/Eastern furniture, Postma's was selling stuff that would look right at home in Granny's parlor in the middle of Wisconsin. Very traditional American stuff. Talk about culture shock !

Anyway, here's the intersection where the grocery store is. I walked a bit down the street, and then back up, to see what there was to see. Couldn't go too far, but I went as long as I could.

I wanted to try to go to this store as well, "Standard Sweets and Snacks", since I'd heard of it before, but alas, they've closed down:

That's our destination, but we'll looky-loo a little first:

Look at the pretty sari (and the not-so-pretty reflection, yikes). I've always thought saris were very closely akin to fairy princess dresses. So elegant and glamorous. And this one was one of the "plainer" ones !

And for the gentlemen:

Need a bauble or two? Indian goldwork is some of the most elaborate and stunning I've ever seen. And it's usually 22 karat !

Edited March 10, 2011 by Pierogi (log)

[Pierogi]

Ahhhhh, here's where we're going - "Pioneer Cash and Carry" (gotta love the name):

It's a tiny little store, just jammed with all foodstuffs Indian. My mind was, as I say, well and truly blown. I can't wait to come back again and really take the time to look at everything.

Here's a shot from the back, parking lot entrance. It doesn't really begin to show how compact the place is:

Along one wall are the bulk spices, masala and curry mixes, and seeds:

Anyone need a 5-pound bag of tumeric?

(sorry for the glare off that one, I tried to fix it as best I could...)

One aisle is all dried pulses and legumes:

And the other side is every kind of dal (lentils) you can imagine !

Lots and lots of bottled pickle...

...and cooking/simmer sauces....

...and some pre-packaged foods.

Along the other opposite wall from the spices and seeds is the small produce area. Which also had fresh naans, chapatis and rotis under refrigeration:

I just saw them use this on "Chopped" on Food Network ! No, I didn't buy it today, but that doesn't mean I never will !

Indian munchies:

Need some ghee?

Or some jaggery?

And a little more culture clash...

At that point, sadly, our tour of "Pioneer Cash and Carry" came to an abrupt, unplanned end. My camera batteries crapped totally out ! Major bummer.....I'd been getting the low battery warning all day, but thought I could squeeze out enough juice for the whole field trip. Yeah, fat chance there, bucko ! I'm actually very happpy I got that shot of the naan pizzas, I thought it didn't take.

Edited March 10, 2011 by Pierogi (log)

[gfweb]

Great pix! Is that you in one of them?

[heidih]

Great shots of the market in Little India. Sadly I am a virgin there as well. No excuse really but there is a small but well stocked Indian market within minutes of me (India Sweets and Spices on Sepulveda just east of Anza). Did you add to your pantry stock?

Oh and adding to other comments the gumbo was luscious in appearance and I am sure taste.

[Pierogi]

So did I buy anything....?

But of course !

Some spices I'd been looking for:

That's a bag of fresh curry leaves, a bag of kalongi (which is nigella seed, also known as onion seed), some tamarind paste and some citric acid. Hey, maybe I can start doing molecular gastronomy with the citric acid??? Yeah. Prolly not.

Some dal I couldn't get before:

I believe both the Urad dal and the Dhana dal are primarily used as garnish, or as an ingredient in other dishes, but I'll have to do some research and playing around. But I've been lookin' for these little guys !

And finally, the best treasure of all:

FROZEN IDLI !!! I haven't had idli in probably 20 years, since the ex-wife of my first boss used to make them and bring them for lunch. THAT find was worth the trip alone.

So, even though the batteries crapped out, I decided, since I was close, to check out the Asian market as well. We'll go back there with new batteries, because it was also really, really cool, and I think all y'all will enjoy that too. Plus, I have stuff I want to buy there too !

Back after dinner (an adult beverage or two) and clean-up.

Hope you enjoyed Little India. *I* certainly did.

[Jon Savage]

just a pic to tease Shelby- 80 degrees and had to stop at a bar 4 of 5 miles home on my bike .

(have I mentioned that LB is pretty darned bike friendly?)

Behold my commute! Long Beach is a nifty place to live.

Edited March 10, 2011 by 6ppc (log)

[Jon Savage]

Hope you enjoyed Little India. *I* certainly did.

Loving this blog Roberta thanks!