Food in the time of a pandemic

[rotuts]

@Shelby 

 

look into On-Line

 

or delivered Meds

 

right to your door

 

or Mail Box

 

then , again , you would has missed those peppers ...

 

if always going to be something ....

[Shelby]

6 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@Shelby 

 

look into On-Line

 

or delivered Meds

 

right to your door

 

or Mail Box

 

then , again , you would has missed those peppers ...

 

if always going to be something ....

I'd love to get meds delivered, but our usps mail around here....leaves a little to be desired.  Things get "lost" a lot.  I can't risk that on Ronnie's meds.

[Toliver]

41 minutes ago, Shelby said:

I'd love to get meds delivered, but our usps mail around here....leaves a little to be desired.  Things get "lost" a lot.  I can't risk that on Ronnie's meds.

I feel your pain.

I'd love to have a 90-day supply of meds mailed to me, but our USPS mail delivery is horrendously bad. We don't even have a dedicated mail carrier for our area. Whichever carrier gets back too soon from delivering their own routes get assigned to deliver to our area. It's not unusual to see carriers wearing headlamps, well after sunset, delivering our mail. 

[Shelby]

4 minutes ago, Toliver said:

I feel your pain.

I'd love to have a 90-day supply of meds mailed to me, but our USPS mail delivery is horrendously bad. We don't even have a dedicated mail carrier for our area. Whichever carrier gets back too soon from delivering their own routes get assigned to deliver to our area. It's not unusual to see carriers wearing headlamps, well after sunset, delivering our mail. 

Yeah.  I feel you too.

 

And, I can't imagine the nightmare with his doctor trying to say we never got the meds delivered.  AND a lot of the times right now, we don't even get the full refill due to med. shortages.  

[MokaPot]

1 hour ago, Shelby said:

I had to go to the smaller town grocery store to pick up meds at the pharmacy inside the store.   As always, I did a quick shop of a few staples that we needed.  I had to get lettuce.  Turned the corner to check out when out of the corner of my eye I spotted what looked like SHISHITO PEPPERS!!!!!!!!  HUGE cardboard box full.  I bought probably 3 lbs.  Happy dance.

 

Maybe you should've bought more than 3 lbs. You could probably roast & can or freeze.

 

[kayb]

Went to lunch today with a couple of women with whom I go to lunch about once a month; they're clients, and I'm there, these days, just monthly. Got my standard -- Chopped steak, baked sweet potato. It was predictable, and good.

 

[gfweb]

3 hours ago, Shelby said:

Yeah.  I feel you too.

 

And, I can't imagine the nightmare with his doctor trying to say we never got the meds delivered.  AND a lot of the times right now, we don't even get the full refill due to med. shortages.  

Docs understand.

[weinoo]

11 hours ago, MokaPot said:

 

Maybe you should've bought more than 3 lbs. You could probably roast & can or freeze.

 

The whole idea with shishitos (IMO) is eating them, still warm from the blistering, salted, with apéritifs.

 

Some more loot arrived...

 

 

First - @Franci - this sofrito is pretty good (have we discussed this one before?) when you don't want to bother really making sofrito.

 

Spanish saffron, to go along with the recent arrival of saffrons allegedly from "Persia" and Afghanistan.

 

S&B brand curry powder is evidently the choice of Japanese home cooks. My plan is to try making the curry bricks written about in the Times.  It has, let's say, a lot of ingredients. That powder seems like the easy way out (as does the sofrito), so I also got this...

 

 

From Sonoko Sakai.  Most of the spices in whole form, premeasured, to be toasted and ground. 

 

And there's this, which was in my freezer;  I hopefully have more coming at the end of the month. It's so good...

 

Edited October 9, 2020 by weinoo (log)

[Franci]

2 hours ago, weinoo said:

 

 

First - @Franci - this sofrito is pretty good (have we discussed this one before?) when you don't want to bother really making sofrito.

 

 

 

I’ve not tried yet the sofrito from Matriz. I’ll keep my eyes open if I see it in stores. 

 

Btw, we have only one supermarket on the island, it’s a Winn-Dixie, I don’t like the place much, quality is not great to me but I swear, so many ingredients I don’t know from South America. Too bad I am not particularly interested into it. I am sure I could find dishes I like but it requires a lot of investigation that I am not willing to do at the moment. 

[ElsieD]

 

 

S&B brand curry powder is evidently the choice of Japanese home cooks. My plan is to try making the curry bricks written about in the Times.  It has, let's say, a lot of ingredients. 

 

I use the S & B curry bricks and like them a lot.  I'm sure homemade is better but it's not something I'd ever tackle.

 

[weinoo]

1 hour ago, Franci said:

 

I’ve not tried yet the sofrito from Matriz. I’ll keep my eyes open if I see it in stores. 

 

Btw, we have only one supermarket on the island, it’s a Winn-Dixie, I don’t like the place much, quality is not great to me but I swear, so many ingredients I don’t know from South America. Too bad I am not particularly interested into it. I am sure I could find dishes I like but it requires a lot of investigation that I am not willing to do at the moment. 

 

Lots of roots and tubers?  I also see tons of stuff in my local markets, with a big Hispanic population in the neighborhood.

 

16 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

 

 

S&B brand curry powder is evidently the choice of Japanese home cooks. My plan is to try making the curry bricks written about in the Times.  It has, let's say, a lot of ingredients. 

 

I use the S & B curry bricks and like them a lot.  I'm sure homemade is better but it's not something I'd ever tackle.

 

 

Once you have the powder, the curry is as easy as making a roux and adding the powder to it, but yes if you don't want to bother making a roux, the bricks are the answer.  They do have stuff in them I'm not all that interested in ingesting, however...I'd rather have that stuff in my ice cream 🤣 .

[MokaPot]

@weinoo, I like the S&B curry powder a lot, but it can be a little expensive, IMO. If you like it & want something that costs less, the Frontier brand "muchi" curry powder is really similar and just as good (IMO), plus cheaper. Stores that sell spices in bulk might have the Frontier product.

[heidih]

@weinoo - nice haul. It must be like Holiday present time every couple days at your place!  

Edited October 9, 2020 by heidih (log)

[weinoo]

Indeed it is.  This stuff came today.

 

 

A mailer came a couple of weeks ago, as usual asking for donations. I figured this might go well with the dried, roasted Hatch red chiles, once I make sauce with them...

 

 

It was all a surprise for Significant Eater, an esteemed graduate of the University of New Mexico law school. And a Lobo for life, evidently...

 

[dtremit]

21 hours ago, Shelby said:

I'd love to get meds delivered, but our usps mail around here....leaves a little to be desired.  Things get "lost" a lot.  I can't risk that on Ronnie's meds.

 

You may want to look at PillPack — at least in my experience they use UPS exclusively, and send things out *way* early. 

[dtremit]

4 hours ago, ElsieD said:

S&B brand curry powder is evidently the choice of Japanese home cooks. My plan is to try making the curry bricks written about in the Times.  It has, let's say, a lot of ingredients. 

 

I use the S & B curry bricks and like them a lot.  I'm sure homemade is better but it's not something I'd ever tackle.

 

I have read quite a few times that a lot of Japanese home cooks will mix and match curry bricks from different brands to come up with a preferred blend, and nearly all add a few "secret ingredients" to the pot.

Not sure if anyone else here is a video game nerd, but Sony published a Tasty-style video of the curry recipe from Cafe Leblanc in Persona 5. Kind of fun to watch. 

 

Edited to add: this appears to be the full recipe. Only 26 ingredients! 😳

Edited October 9, 2020 by dtremit (log)

[weinoo]

True.  But who wants that aggravation - with the spice mix I got , I only have to make a roux!

 

[heidih]

I've never made it with the powder and roux though S & B curry tin has been in my pantry for ? years. I don't use it much as am more South East Asian curry fan. When there were no blocks in the house and kids jonesing I sent them across the road to major chain market to get a box which usually had S & B and Vermont (House). I think those "extra" lubricants were part of the appeal for them.  Prior discussion 

 

Edited October 9, 2020 by heidih (log)

[MokaPot]

IMO, that S&B curry powder has more flavor than what's in some of the pre-made bricks. I think you'll get a better curry in the end. I have eaten curry rice in Japan (and elsewhere) and I think the S&B powder is a decent product.

[Shelby]

Well, I'm 45 years old today.  I couldn't have ever predicted a pandemic 45th lol.  I told Ronnie all I wanted was to order some fun foods from the internet so that's what I did.  Crossing my fingers that it would all get delivered ok.  And it did!  Along with all of the things I ordered, there was a box from Pike Place Fish Market from my Mom and Step Dad.  They did waaaaaay to much.  I'm stocked up!!!  I am so excited.

 

Umami sauce (can't wait to see what that tastes like), smoked salmon spread, Goose Point Oysters and smoked scallops

 

 

Salmon burgers

 

 

Gorgeous scallops

 

 

Clam chowder (saving that for a nice, cold evening--it's been very hot around here still)

 

Halibut cheeks!

 

 

Squid!!!  I see calamari in my near future

 

 

I didn't get a picture of the bag, but part of what I ordered were 50 Wellfleet Oysters.  Oh they are so briny and fresh!

 

 

More here later and more on the dinner thread.  I'll be putzing around the kitchen, watching some horse racing....maybe a mimosa in a bit

 

 

[rotuts]

Happy Birthday !

 

and congratulations on your Haul !

 

Bon Appetite !

[KennethT]

Happy bday Shelby!!!  Looks like some amazing stuff you got!

[Kerry Beal]

Nice score Shelby!

[rotuts]

ultra delicious score

[SLB]

Happy birthday, Shelby!  

 

I'm witcha on the weird pandemic b-day, I'm three weeks from my 50th.  Which was supposed to be at Prune, here in NYC, with my nearest and dearest. 

 

Sigh.  I am sad about it, and I am also mad.  I'm trying to look for an outdoor situation with heaters, but it's kinda late and also, with our infection numbers ticking up, I'm not sure I want to gather folks.  Most of my friends have kids who are back in school (with great trepidation) and . . .  I think I just need to hope we can do something really fun and delicious later.  

 

Meanwhile.  In a super-strange pandemic-turn, three days ago I got invaded by a sweet tooth.  I don't mean the kind that fiends for pastries and desserts.  I mean the kind that is fiending CANDY.  

 

?!  Egullet.  I NEVER eat candy, save the occasional snickers.  I don't even ever want candy.  

 

Until now.  

 

I'm afraid, very afraid.  I've been eating up my stores of dried-sugared fruit which I put up for hiking and camping.  It does not normally tempt me!  But I've been eating it like some kind of reasonable SNACK!?  [It IS a reasonable snack when you're hiking and hauling gear uphill in the cold, etc., which is why I have it; but it don't make NO kinda sense when you sit in a chair at a desk all day.  And -- did I mention?  I don't ever even really THINK about candy.  Until two days ago.]

 

Last night I was in the grocery store which had these hard green mangos.  It's not even mango season, I wasn't even thinking about mangos!  I was over there needing some limes! 

 

And it came into my mind like a vision, the kind that *spiritual* people report:  something from a cookbook I haven't looked at in a decade:  Diana Kennedy's green mango rolls.  

 

Almost two pounds of sugar.  Two.Pounds.  For two little sheets of dehydrated green mango candy.  [In perhaps the MOST embarrassing part of this story -- I walked BACK to the store to get the sugar.  Because I don't have a lot of sugar over here, did I mention, I don't really eat too many sweets?  Dudes, I went to the store twice today.  To make candy.]

 

Everything went into the dehydrator at 10, dried all night.

 

 I had some candy with my breakfast.  My breakfast which otherwise consisted of sensible salmon croquettes.  

 

Pandemic in the time of food is getting scary over here.