eG Foodblog: Chufi - Shopping and cooking in Amsterdam

[Chufi]

The one food "thing" that blows me away is the fried potatoes with the various flavors of mayonnaise. And the mayonnaise is so good.  If you have a chance, please get a shot of one of these places and the range of mayo flavors to pick from.

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It's funny, because in Holland, all the good fries places call their fries "Belgian fries". Belgium is considered to be THE place for fries!

I will try to have fries this week.. if they'll fit in with all the other things I want to eat!

Uh . . . If you could get a mayonnaise recipe, it wouldn't hurt my feelings.

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I make my own mayo all the time, but it's nothing like the mayo you get with your fries. Homemade mayo always comes out more like a sauce, much thinner. I suspect they put some kind of emulsifier in it in the mayo factory!

[jackal10]

Ohh...this is good stuff.

Is it Matjes herring season?

Any plans for Rijstafel?

[Chufi]

Ohh...this is good stuff.

Is it Matjes herring season?

Any plans for  Rijstafel?

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You can get haring (herring) all year, but the season for Hollandse Nieuwe (dutch new) herring starts in june. I'll try to get some more info on this.. looks my lunches for this week are booked, with fries and herring..

As for the Rijsttafel (ricetable), I'm afraid Indonesian food is not really my favorite! We eat Indonesian (or Thai, Chinese, etc.) in restaurants sometimes but I almost never cook it myself. Too bad for my husband because he loves this kind of food...

[Chufi]

Now, a question. I bought red rice yesterday because it looked pretty

Now what can I do with it? none of my 200 + cookbooks seem to be able to offer a recipe. Any suggestions?

[Chufi]

I made a chorizo omelet for my husbands lunch. Next to it is my midmorning snack: some walnut sourdough bread with peanutbutter, and a glass of applejuice

and this is a view from the kitchen where it's all happening, as seen in the 'butler mirror'. I love my kitchen. This was an empty space when we moved here, and we planned and designed the kitchen ourselves. It turned out exactly (or almost exactly anyway) the way I wanted it:

I'm off for an afternoon of shopping. No not for food, sometimes a girl has to do another kind of shopping But I'll be meeting some friends along the way and I'm sure there'll be some food and drink involved.

[Swisskaese]

Now, a question. I bought red rice yesterday because it looked pretty 

Now what can I do with it? none of my 200 + cookbooks seem to be able to offer a recipe. Any suggestions?

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Here are few recipes:

Butternut Squash Red Rice Risotto with Duck Confit

Chicken Tortilla Soup with Himalayan Red Rice

[Chufi]

they look good! but I think my rice is different. It's Camargue red rice, with a long thin grain that stays long and thin when cooked (I found 1 recipe, with picture, on Delia Smith's website), where as the grains in your links seem to break down in cooking.

I had no idea I bought such an unusual ingredient!

[jackal10]

I think the Carmargue red rice is like brown rice, and still has the outer part, like wild rice. You need to cook it for 30-35 minutes, and the gfrains will break down some.

[Swisskaese]

they look good! but I think my rice is different. It's Camargue red rice, with a long thin grain that stays long and thin when cooked (I found 1 recipe, with picture, on Delia Smith's website), where as the grains in your links seem to break down in cooking.

I had no idea I bought such an unusual ingredient!

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I see. Yes, that rice is from France. I cook with the Himalayan or Bhutan rice. I haven't seen the Carmargue rice here. I am not sure how you prepare it. Good luck.

[fifi]

I love your kitchen. Those open shelves under the cooktop are really neat. I am doing some open shelves under the island counter across from my range. I think that having those open shelves for my most used pots will be quite handy. That picture using the mirror was a stroke of pure genius.

Thank you for reminding me that the fries are deemed Belgian. I couldn't remember the Dutch words when I typed my post. Please update me. (My Dutch sucks and is just about non-existent within 15 minutes of strapping a KLM to my butt. I am un-teachable.)

[ludja]

Well, it's hours later and I returned from a very succesful shoppingtrip that took me all over Amsterdam.

But before I did any shopping, I did what I do almost every day that I'm off work: I went for a walk in the Vondelpark, and had a coffee in Het Blauwe Theehuis (the blue teahouse) afterwards. This is the Teahouse:

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What a great way to be able to start your day!

Looking forward to blog very much; I love visiting Amsterdam.

[Chufi]

I had lunch at Morlang, a restaurant in the centre of Amsterdam on one of the canals (it's on the far right of the picture)

One of my best friends is a waiter here and I often stop by to have coffee or lunch while I watch him work . Today he served me a raisin bagel with aged Gouda cheese (and some fries I tried not to eat..):

As it's getting dark, I head over to another part of town to meet friends for a drink. Amsterdam has a couple of breweries, but this one, Brouwerij 't IJ, has by far the most picturesque location. It's in an old mill:

It's always very crowded. Their bar hours are a bit weird, like shopping hours, so you can hear the call for the last round at about 7:30 pm .

Below is their most famous beer, Columbus. It's strong (9%), sweet and has quite a strong effect on me. . I have one of those and then another one of their beers, Struis (meaning ostrich), also 9 %.

After that... dinner has to be simple. (In the background, todays soundtrack: Lori McKenna - Pieces of me)

I make a spicy, garlicky tomato-fennelsauce. I add the mussels I cooked yesterday. Toss it with spaghetti and lots of chopped coriander and then we eat in front of the tv (sometimes that's just what you have to do..):

Edited February 6, 2005 by Chufi (log)

[Pan]

Chufi, you realize you're selling your picturesque city big-time with those photos! Even more tourists (this time, food-loving ones) will be beating down the doors. As for me, not this summer, but one of these days.

[Safran]

Chufi, you realize you're selling your picturesque city big-time with those photos! Even more tourists (this time, food-loving ones) will be beating down the doors. As for me, not this summer, but one of these days.

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Pan is right, Chufi. You're an excellent ambassador.... oh and I love your kitchen! Dinner looked fab again tonight! And thank you for introducing your little furry friends, the rats. Cute little guys!

[Bux]

You can get haring (herring) all year, but the season for Hollandse Nieuwe (dutch new) herring starts in june. I'll try to get some more info on this..

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[arbuclo]

Chufi, your rats are extremely cute! Sadly I think my cats would have other plans for such pets if I had them! You take great pictures by the way.

Thanks for bringing up the red rice topic as I purchased some on a whim before. (It's pretty!) I must have the kind you have, Swisskaese. Mine has a subtle floral smell to it and it's chewier than regular rice. Been just using it like normal rice, though.

I definitely know what you mean about cooking meat. I don't have much experience with oven roasted meat so I rarely attempt it for guests and don't practice much for hubby and I to try. I find it a bit scary!

(edited to add last comment)

Edited February 7, 2005 by arbuclo (log)

[Chufi]

I had a minneola for brakfast, and after that I went to the park. Dennis had the morning off so he joined me for my walk and my coffee (exept he had tea )

After that, a trip to the supermarket for staples, and to the Albert Cuypmarket for fruits & vegetables. Tomorrow a friend is coming for dinner. I asked him what he wanted to eat and he said: 'something weird, like parsnip". I know he loves curry, so I'm going to make Jane Grigson's curried parsnip soup.. and I need some spices for that so I go to the spice shop, where they have everything. The herbs and spices are alfabetized, and this is only the A-H section!

It's quite a coincedence but as it's about lunchtime, I pass the haringkar. Time for some herring and some herring talk with the expert. So this is the story: in the winter, the herrings don't eat much and they get very skinny. Then in the spring they start to eat like crazy and they get very fat! Around May, the herring fishing season begins. The first barrel (if that's the correct word) is usually sold early june, for an enormous amount of money, that's donated to a charity.

So the herring I bought today, was caught in the spring of 2004 and deep-frozen. Every spring there are only about 6 weeks that they're fishing for herring. So the supply has to last for about a year, because then the new ones are coming in. If there are any left over, they get shipped to Russia

It's not the prettiest food but it sure tastes good! Many people eat herring with pickles and raw onions, but I like them just as they are, on a soft roll.

[pingarina]

Sigh...Chufi, I almost cried looking at the herring stand pictures! I love, love fresh new herring, but, alas, it's nearly impossible to get in the U.S. Like Bux, I go to Grand Central Oyster Bar in June for the new herring festival, but there's nothing like eating it on the street, all cold with chopped onion. Yum!

[Susan in FL]

I just found your blog, and caught up on reading it. It is wonderful. I'm so glad you are doing this... I have admired your meals since you first started posting on eG.

Now for the rest of the week, I will be checking for new entries on this thread every time I come near my computer!

[Behemoth]

I had Matjes in season when I was in Hamburg last summer. I knew it was a bit of a big deal but didn't realize it was such a big deal...good though. But I like eel better

Chufi, if it helps, I have a copy of the Alford and Duguid rice book and they list a bunch of red rices, some milled, some semi milled, some polished. If you know what country yours comes from I can check and see what they say about it. (They have listings for Bhutanese, Himalayan, Japanese, Mexican, South Indian, Thai, Vietnamese cargo and Wehani.) FWIW yours sounds like thai or himalayan, just looking at their pictures. They recommend 1 cup rice to 1.5 water, bring to boil then steam on lowest heat for 30 minutes, and let rest, covered, for another 10-15. Sounds like semi-milled brown rice method.

edited, for I am a moron of typing. Gah!

Edited February 7, 2005 by Behemoth (log)

[Swisskaese]

Thanks for bringing up the red rice topic as I purchased some on a whim before.  (It's pretty!)  I must have the kind you have, Swisskaese.  Mine has a subtle floral smell to it and it's chewier than regular rice.  Been just using it like normal rice, though.

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I have also been using it like regular rice, but I want to try both of those recipes.

I love herring!!! I really wish I could fly to Amsterdam right now.

Edited February 7, 2005 by Swisskaese (log)

[Chufi]

They recommend 1 cup rice to 1.5 water, bring to boil then steam on lowest heat for 30 minutes, and let rest, covered, for another 10-15. Sounds like semi-milled brown rice method.

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this is what my rice looks like:

I will try the method you mentioned tomorrow. I'm curious how it will turn out!

It's so nice that people all over the world are thinking about my rice-problem!

[Chufi]

I have to work tomorrow so I get ahead for tomorrows dinner. I'm making curried parsnip soup. Like all Jane Grigson's recipes, it's deceptively simple but very, very good. Here are the spices for the currypowder - coriander seeds, dried red chiles, turmeric, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds. I grind them in my ancient grinder (that used to be my husbands' grandmothers coffeegrinder) and it turns out like this:

Parsnips, onions and garlic sweating in some butter, then I add some flour and a tablespoon of the currypowder:

After that, add stock and cook until the vegetables are tender.. and blended, it looks like this. In the picture, it looks sort of green, while it actually is a beautiful pale golden yellow! I will reheat it tomorrow with some cream:

While preparing dinner, a drink for the cook. If you thought lasts night's beer was heavy (9%), this one, Kanon (which means cannon ) is actually 11.6 %!!

Tonights dinner: roast green beans (if you never had these, you really should. It's the best way ever to eat green beans. I toss them in oil with some salt and roast them in a very hot oven for about 20 minutes, together with some unpeeled cloves of garlic. When done, I scrape the soft garlic out of the skins, and add that to a dressing with balsamic viegar. Ohh so good!) The other thing on the plate is a piece of cod, ovenroasted with lemon juice, capers, some chopped shallots and tomatoes:

after that we have room for a little cheese plate, the dutch blue cheese and the Emmental I bought Saturday, with the last bit of the walnut sourdough bread:

Edited February 7, 2005 by Chufi (log)

[Susan in FL]

Mmmm the cod and the green beans look so good, as does everything. This won't be the first time I have been inspired by your posts, and tried to create the meal.

I like that combination for a curry powder... will try that, too.

Already: Thanks for blogging.

P.S. I share your taste for good beer, as well!

[Safran]

Oh Chufi, another excellent food day! Wow, those spices!!!!! The soup looks wonderful. Off to the kitchen I go!!!