Did U Dine Out This Weekend??? 4/27

[Rosie]

Be sure to give us a report.

[tommy]

the usual suspects.

wondee's thai in hackensack, which was very good as always.

and

la carbonaia, or something like that, in ho-ho-kus.  byo italian.  3rd time there and it has been very good every time.  a very ambitious specials menu daily.  a great neighborhood place.

[Rail Paul]

Tommy -

slightly out of state (by about 1,000 feet), but have you tried the Mountain Valley BrewPub's new incarnation? We stopped by in February, as they were brewing. They expected to have the restaurant (as distinguished from the bar menu) up and running "in a few months."

US 202 in Suffern, almost directly opposite the train station

Paul

[tommy]

i haven't, but i was there years ago (i think) when it was another brew pub.  it's hard to get there though, as you have to pass kinchley's pub on the way there.  yummy pizza!

what were they expecting the menu to be like?

[Rachel Perlow]

Very asian week/weekend. Saigon Republic on Wednesday, China 46 on Thursday, a sidetrip to Spain at Spanish Sangria in Newark on Friday, Wondee's on Saturday, Silver Pond for dim sum on Sunday and I made a chicken stir fry on Sunday night!

[tommy]

rachel, if you'd be so kind, talk a bit about your stir-fry.  i've got 2 chicken breasts and i want to do a quick and tasty stir-fry tonite.  i know you do this quite often, so maybe you can help?  

i tried last week, and the damned thing didn't have much flavor.  i pretty much stuck to:  garlic, ginger, a little chix broth, a bit of oyster sauce, soy sauce.  the dish looked perdy, but didn't have much flavor.  what am i messing? up?

edit:  i just posted this on the cooking board as well, so if anyone wants to help you can do so there!

[Beachfan]

Whoops, I posted a non NJ restaurant, sorry.

[Rachel Perlow]

rachel, if you'd be so kind, talk a bit about your stir-fry.  i've got 2 chicken breasts and i want to do a quick and tasty stir-fry tonite.  i know you do this quite often, so maybe you can help?  

i tried last week, and the damned thing didn't have much flavor.  i pretty much stuck to:  garlic, ginger, a little chix broth, a bit of oyster sauce, soy sauce.  the dish looked perdy, but didn't have much flavor.  what am i messing? up?

edit:  i just posted this on the cooking board as well, so if anyone wants to help you can do so there!

I posted a response in cooking. I don't know what you are messing up, all your ingredients sound good. Perhaps you just needed more. More garlic and ginger is always good. A spoonful of chili paste helps. Did you thicken your sauce with cornstarch (mix it into the cold stock first)? If it was a thin sauce all the flavor wasn't sticking to the meat & veggies.

Also, like I said in Cooking, sherry and sesame oil are my secret ingredients.

[tommy]

thanks rachel.  i just didn't use enough.  cornstarch yes, good consistency, but not enough umph.  tonite will be better.  i totally forgot about chili paste!  i never have sherry in the house.  i wouldn't even know where to buy it.  does it really come in handy?

[Rachel Perlow]

Dry Spanish sherry, any liquor store or supermarket that carries wine. $5-8 for a bottle. I use it for Chinese stirfries and Spanish food.

Pork Chops Ajillo: Brown flour dusted pork chops in olive oil, adding lots of sliced garlic after the first turn. When chops are mostly done, remove and deglaze the pan with sherry about 1/2 cup. Add a pat of cold butter and stir. Return chops to pan and turn to coat in sauce and simmer to finish cooking for a few minutes.

Mushrooms Ajillo: Quarter white button or cremini mushrooms. Saute in olive oil with lots of sliced garlic and a little salt until the mushrooms don't give up any more of their liquid. Deglaze the pan with about 1/4 cup sherry.

For a great Spanish meal, make the above with some rice with saffron and some broccoli sauteed with garlic & olive oil (or steamed if you must).

Oh, for the stirfries, our latest ingredient is Chili Soy Sauce, and for regular soy sauce get real brewed soy sauce, if it says Superior on the label that's even better.

[NJ2FLA]

Had dinner on Friday night at McDonald's with my 5 year old niece.  Does that count as gourmet?

-Scott

[Rosie]

Scott--We didn't specify that it had to be gourmet. Thanks for sharing!

Tommy-sprinkle some hot pepper flakes into your stir fry.

[Rachel Perlow]

When I use hot pepper flakes, I do it like adding garlic, a little bit at a time throughout the process. Some seasoning the meat, then the veg, then at the beginning of the sauce process. In fact, when I am planning on adding dry pepper flakes I just sprinkle them all over my mise en place so that guarantees it gets added throughout the process and also so I know how much I've added. If you need more heat at the end of the cooking, use a liquid sauce or paste as the dry flakes won't have time to rehydrate and develop flavor.

[Kim WB]

Had 4 wonderful days at Jazzfest in NOLA.

Went to Smith and Wollensky's on Friday night, wonderful wines and great steaks, which fortified us for days of eating to come.

Saturday was poboys and muffelattas and boudin (sp?) from

the  Fest, and plenty of crummy beer. ( They only have Miller Lite, Genuile Draft and Fosters inthe fairgrounds)  Left a bit early, rested a bit before our reservation at Peristyle. Excellent, but lacking the little extra that makes a place extraordinary. ( Last year's visit to Bayonna was extraordinary) Sunday was brunch at Commander's, and I know many purists compain that its a tourist trap, but I maintain that there is simply no greater ambiance, nor turtle soup, in the US!!  I've had a few dinners there, but brunch somehow fits the surroundings the best! Then Sunday at Jazz Fest, lots more crummy beer ( riding on the Bullshot high from Commander's. too!) and we stayed for Melissa Etheridge, who is one of my favorites. However, we were wiped out and had to cancel our reservations at Rene Bistrot. So Sunday night was a pick up dinner in the Quarter, crawfish, fried oysters, etouffe.  Monday we prepared for the trip home with Breakfast at Brennans ( better bullshots, not as good turtle soup...but bananas foster, nuf said!)   All in all, a wonderful, relaxing well fed long weekend.