Good morning from snowy Madison WI!

[BryanQuocLe]

Hello all! My name is Bryan, thank you for allowing me to join. I'm very excited to explore the world of food in more detail.

 

I'm originally from California but am now a transplant to Wisconsin. The winter is still an adjustment, even after 3+ years living here (has it really been that long?!)

 

I'm currently studying food science at UW-Madison after making a tiny leap from studying straight chemistry for many years - I realized that I had a big passion for food after I met my wife and we started exploring in the kitchen together.

 

I stumbled on eGullet after procrastinating on my work and getting fixated on the homemade soy sauce thread. I have a particular fondness for soy sauce fermentation and was amazed to see people actually giving it a shot at home. This is a real adventurous bunch!

 

On the side, I do a little consulting with small food businesses and would be happy to lend a technical hand anywhere I can. I also do some food science writing for fun, with a particular interest and love for all things involving flavors, fermentation, and chemistry. I also have strong opinions about soy and fish sauces 😉.

 

Thanks again, and looking forward to exploring and contributing!

[Smithy]

Welcome! It sounds like you'll fit right in here.  I particularly love the idea that you were procrastinating on your work and stumbled over us...it sounds like something I'd have done, back in the day. (I came to chemistry via cooking, rather than the other way around, incidentally.)

 

Do you and your wife generally share cooking duties? Do you trade off? What sorts of food do you like to cook and eat?

 

I sounds as though you probably know your way around already, but if you have questions about how to use the forums or where to post, feel free to ask a host by PM, or ask openly in the Moderation and Policy Discussion forum.

[BryanQuocLe]

Thank you for the warm welcome. It can be easy to get sidetracked by all the amazing things out there on food

 

We try to share the kitchen as much as we can. I would say my wife does most of the actual directing in the kitchen - she finds the recipes, puts together the meal plans, etc. I tend to be the experimenter, for better or worse. Most nights we try to do a 50-50 share of the work.

 

We're both big fans of Vietnamese cuisine (my background, she's Romanian-Israeli). So far, it's mostly been variations on pho, rice dishes, marinated tofu, noodle salads, and broths, soups, and stews. We used to do a lot of chilis before for the winter, but started moving away towards fresher cuisine. We also enjoy a bit of dabbling in Japanese and Chinese cuisine - I especially like to make Japanese tsukemono pickles.

 

And sounds good, I'll be sure to take a look at the posting forum to get a better feel for the way things work around here. Thank you again.

[Okanagancook]

Hi Bryan.  Welcome to this wonderful forum.  Looking forward to your contributions.  On that note, I visited your website and went down that rabbit hole!😍. I particularly enjoyed this https://khni.kerry.com/news/blog/is-3d-printing-the-future-of-personalized-nutrition/

cheers and stay warm.

[kayb]

Welcome! Will be looking forward to your posts. Tell us what you like to cook, and how you're using that marvelous cheese that you can get everywhere up there!

 

 

[Kim Shook]

Welcome, Bryan!  I think that once you establish yourself here, you'll get lots of questions!  You should try to get your wife to join, too.  We used to have a few spouse teams here, but I don't think they participate anymore.  It's always fun!

[BryanQuocLe]

@Okanagancook Appreciate the read, I hope it wasn't too much of a rabbit hole! That's probably one of my better ones

 

@kayb I do feel fortunate to have quite the cheese selection here. Sadly, I feel I haven't made quite the effort to truly explore the amazing cheese diversity of Wisconsin - tasting recommendations are always welcomed by me and my wife!

 

@Kim Shook Wonderful, I'm excited to get them. And that does sound like a lot of fun, maybe I can entice her to join. She definitely has a better eye (and tongue) on the actual aesthetics of food...

[suzilightning]

@BryanQuocLe  can't wait for your posts.  Love pho....love bun bo Hue....love all kinds of Vietnamese food.  Any other foods you like as your wife does not share your food heritage?

 

oh, yeah....and snow is a pain but it makes it easier to cook heartier food now.

Edited December 5, 2018 by suzilightning (log)

[BryanQuocLe]

@suzilightning Street tacos. I can't have enough of them with a delicious salsa. Madison has a few excellent eateries, but it's hard to compare to 1. Mexico itself, and 2. California. We gave them a try this past weekend with our friend, who made a great marinade with orange juice and spices, but I do miss that authentic flavor that I can't seem to replicate at home. I do want to try making al pastor at some point, but I'm waiting for fresh pineapples to be back in season.

[ElsieD]

A warm welcome to you from this Canadian.  We already have one thing in common- winter!  I'm looking forward to hearing more about tsukemono pickles.

[BryanQuocLe]

Thank you - we haven't had much snow yet, but looking forward to some cozy nights with hot chocolate by the fireplace. And I'll be sure to post pictures of those pickles.

[Darienne]

Vietnamese and Israeli cooking.  A great combo.  Welcome to the forum Bryan.  Coming here was one of the best things I have ever done.