Lunch! What'd ya have? (2018)

[Okanagancook]

My all time favourite thing to eat....dumplings.  These are lamb filled.  Vinegar/soy/chili dipping sauce and a salad with veg from the garden. 

[HungryChris]

More ramen for me today. My local Aldi has closed for a little over a month and I have become dependent on them for small chickens (4 - 4 1/2 LB). Because I intend to do Korean BBQ rotisserie  chicken tonight, and chickens bigger than that will not fit on the rotisserie, I ventured a few exits up the highway to another Aldi, not too far away. Hence the flowers, which were $3.99 and worth it, I thought.

Since I am in the rolling in zucchini mode, I skipped the baby bok choy and used some more squash with a few sugar snaps.

HC 

[Anna N]

59 minutes ago, HungryChris said:

My local Aldi has closed for a little over a month and I have become dependent on them for small chickens (4 - 4 1/2 LB). 

4 to 4 1/2 pound chickens?  Small?  Up here we called those ostriches.  

[Kim Shook]

15 minutes ago, Anna N said:

4 to 4 1/2 pound chickens?  Small?  Up here we called those ostriches.  

I've bemoaned the paucity of 3 1/2 to 4 lb. chickens here at eG before.  I was looking for a small chicken last night to do my first CSO meal and the smallest one I could find was over 5lb.  I ended up with half pound thighs and a giant Dolly Parton breast.  I don't know how anyone makes fried chicken anymore.  Those giant pieces are not good for that.

[HungryChris]

Five pound and up is the norm, here. The rotisserie is off limits to birds that big, they will simply destroy their skin by dragging it over the catch tray. I always do two and give one to Deb's daughter and SIL, so they need to be of similar weights. Today, the smallest I found were about 4.8 pounds.

HC

 

[Okanagancook]

We used to get free range chickens but they are BIG...always 5Lbs +++  That big a breast is not what we like to eat.  I now only buy legs, either full legs or split into thigh and drumstick.  Our local butcher gets free range thighs in and they aren't too big so I wonder where all those whole smaller birds are?  I shall have to ask because they only have the thighs and whole birds for sale on Thursday afternoons and you had better get there early or be disappointed on the sell out.....Actually now I just order 16 or so and they call when they are in.

[blue_dolphin]

56 minutes ago, Okanagancook said:

I wonder where all those whole smaller birds are?

 

My theory is they go to the in-store rotisserie dept.  They're always much smaller than any of the uncooked birds on offer.

[HungryChris]

Mortadella, fontina cheese, marinated zucchini, roasted red peppers on Tuscan bread. This sandwich is really a late breakfast, but I am thinking of going clamming today and the tide is low around 1 PM.

HC

Edited July 24, 2018 by HungryChris (log)

[HungryChris]

The rain clouds refused to move on out today, so the clamming trip was put off. Around 1 PM, a lite snack was the order of business, as I listened to the sound of distant thunder. Cold hickory smoked salmon, marinated zucchini, some baked brie on crackers and a cold Grove Stand DIPA took care of things. Stuffed clams for dinner tonight, will have to come from the freezer 

HC

Edited July 24, 2018 by HungryChris (log)

[Kim Shook]

Cheese toast w/ Texas toast, Dijon, American and Swiss cheese:

Done in the CSO.  Served with local blackberries.

[MRE]

On 7/23/2018 at 12:16 PM, Kim Shook said:

I've bemoaned the paucity of 3 1/2 to 4 lb. chickens here at eG before.  I was looking for a small chicken last night to do my first CSO meal and the smallest one I could find was over 5lb.  I ended up with half pound thighs and a giant Dolly Parton breast.  I don't know how anyone makes fried chicken anymore.  Those giant pieces are not good for that.

 

We're on the same page here in California too. Some of the birds are running 6-8 pounds. They're like small turkeys. I won't have anything to do with these Frankenschickens. I bite the bullet and am able buy the free range blah, blah, blah, birds in the four pound range, and just break them down and freeze them.. Smaller chickens just don't show up any more. When I look at the breast meat of the big ones in the case, regardless of supplier, they almost always show evidence of white striping, and likely suffer from wooden breast. Not interested in chicken breast with the texture of cartilage. We eat a lot more pork these days instead.

[Kim Shook]

Just now, MRE said:

 

We're on the same page here in California too. Some of the birds are running 6-8 pounds. They're like small turkeys. I won't have anything to do with these Frankenschickens. I bite the bullet and am able buy the free range blah, blah, blah, birds in the four pound range, and just break them down and freeze them.. Smaller chickens just don't show up any more. When I look at the breast meat of the big ones in the case, regardless of supplier, they almost always show evidence of white striping, and likely suffer from wooden breast. Not interested in chicken breast with the texture of cartilage. We eat a lot more pork these days instead.

I can sometimes find a kosher bird that is smaller.  But they are usually frozen, so I have to plan ahead.

[Katie Meadow]

Here's my new crush. It's a sandwich I never dreamed of growing up and it's beyond simple, although all three ingredients have to be great to make it worthwhile: sliced ripe summer tomatoes, fresh home made white bread (shout out to my bread baking husband), and a generous slathering of your favorite mayonnaise. In my case that is Duke's---something I only discovered this year! Who knew? If anyone had told me that in my dotage I would have to mail order mayonnaise I would have told them they were crazy. I really think I'm southern farm material. Well, in a virtual sort of way.

[kayb]

4 hours ago, MRE said:

 

We're on the same page here in California too. Some of the birds are running 6-8 pounds. They're like small turkeys. I won't have anything to do with these Frankenschickens. I bite the bullet and am able buy the free range blah, blah, blah, birds in the four pound range, and just break them down and freeze them.. Smaller chickens just don't show up any more. When I look at the breast meat of the big ones in the case, regardless of supplier, they almost always show evidence of white striping, and likely suffer from wooden breast. Not interested in chicken breast with the texture of cartilage. We eat a lot more pork these days instead.

 

The more chicken horror stories I read, the happier I am I haven't cooked anything other than local, farm-raised chicken for the past 10 years. 

 

4 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

Here's my new crush. It's a sandwich I never dreamed of growing up and it's beyond simple, although all three ingredients have to be great to make it worthwhile: sliced ripe summer tomatoes, fresh home made white bread (shout out to my bread baking husband), and a generous slathering of your favorite mayonnaise. In my case that is Duke's---something I only discovered this year! Who knew? If anyone had told me that in my dotage I would have to mail order mayonnaise I would have told them they were crazy. I really think I'm southern farm material. Well, in a virtual sort of way.

 

Girl! Come on down here! My garden needs weeding in the worst way. .Will put you straight to work!

 

But I'll feed you Hellman's mayo.

[chileheadmike]

We get both Hellman's and Duke's here. I'd never seen or heard of Duke's until moving to Kentucky. I can't taste much of a difference. I usually end up with Hellman's because Duke's is only sold in 32 oz jars and I really don't use that much. 

[lindag]

Here in the West we get only Best Foods but I recently discovered that I can get Duke's thru online ordering from Walmart (no shipping charge for orders of >$35).  I took that opportunity to order some Duke's, which I've never tasted.

That jar is in my second fridge until I use up my current jar of BF.

[kayb]

Just now, lindag said:

Here in the West we get only Best Foods but I recently discovered that I can get Duke's thru online ordering from Walmart (no shipping charge for orders of >$35).  I took that opportunity to order some Duke's, which I've never tasted.

That jar is in my second fridge until I use up my current jar of BF.

It is my understanding that Best Foods is West Coast for Hellman's, with different labeling.

 

[lindag]

4 minutes ago, kayb said:

It is my understanding that Best Foods is West Coast for Hellman's, with different labeling.

 

True.

 

[Katie Meadow]

15 hours ago, kayb said:

 

The more chicken horror stories I read, the happier I am I haven't cooked anything other than local, farm-raised chicken for the past 10 years. 

 

 

Girl! Come on down here! My garden needs weeding in the worst way. .Will put you straight to work!

 

But I'll feed you Hellman's mayo.

Weeding is my least favorite task on earth. I did have a garden way back when, in New Mexico. See, that's why I qualified my farm desire as virtual. I grew up on Hellman's in NY. When I moved to CA I switched to Best Foods, which I also believe to be the West Coast version of Hellmans. There are several other threads about this subject; some people feel they can taste the difference, but I'm sure I can't. Be that as it may, it's a moot subject for me now that I have discovered Duke's. Mainly I like the taste, but I also like the fact that it does not contain sugar, unlike Hellman's / Best Foods. I'm a convert for life. My husband is a CA boy and is still attached to Best Foods. I am sure I am paying more for Duke''s, having to order it on Amazon Prime but I don't care. He eats a lot more sandwiches than I do, so maybe that's a savings right there if he continues to resist Duke's.

[robirdstx]

 

Back to Jimmy Changas, and after looking at the menu, decided to order the same salad (The Machete) I had the last time I was there. Ranch dressing on the side. Brought half of the salad home again, too!

[Duvel]

Lunch at Roppongi Hills in Tokyo; lunchset with 13 pieces plus Miso soup for about 18 USD. Picture taken after the first pieces disappeared ... 🙄

 

[kayb]

Lord, how I miss sushi in Japan. Preferably at Tsukiji at 6 a.m. I need to work on going back.

[robirdstx]

 

Killen’s Barbecue in Pearland! There was a bit of a line, but 25 minutes later...

 

 

...Pulled Pork with Slaw on a Toasted Bun. And a few minutes after that, the Onion Rings were brought to our table.

 

 

Well worth the wait! And I brought home a pound of their Brisket for dinner tonight!

Edited July 26, 2018 by robirdstx (log)

[Smithy]

Wow! They make 'em big in Texas. That looks delicious, @robirdstx. 

[demiglace]

34 minutes ago, robirdstx said:

 

Killen’s Barbecue in Pearland! There was a bit of a line, but 25 minutes later...

 

 

...Pulled Pork with Slaw on a Toasted Bun. And a few minutes after that, the Onion Rings were brought to our table.

 

 

Well worth the wait! And I brought home a pound of their Brisket for dinner tonight!

 

I'd drive to Texas just to eat that meal!