eG Foodblog: donbert - Roll Your Own...

[johnder]

Dulce de Leche Experiment!

8 brands - 2 hours, 4 hours, and 12 hours.

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I stopped by for a quick eggnog and the leche tasting before heading off to dinner at Ramsay (see the ramsay thread soon for more info on that)

I didn't bother tasting any of the 12 hour batch besides one. The texture was very thick, almost peanut butter like. It would be great cut up and rolled in some nuts possibly. My favorite 3 were 14,10 and 17. I left before knowing the results of the double blind, so I am curious what the results were. #23 was bad news whatever that was.

Also the stagnog rocks.

[Sentiamo]

Dulce de Leche Experiment!

[...]

8 brands - 2 hours, 4 hours, and 12 hours.

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Wow!

FWIW the commericial dulce de leche I picked up (manufactured in chile) is closest in color to number 16.

I'll post a photo in the cocktails forum later this week.

George T. Stagg eggnog, what an idea!

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The commercial D d L in New Zealand is pretty much the same colour as No 16 also.

Wow Donbert!! You actually DID boil up 24 cans...I am in awe. Does it freeze well one wonders?

I am assuming line 1 was 2 hrs, line 2 was 4 hrs etc, and also that the same brands are in vertical lines? Just interested in the colour changes, most intriguing and very very different.

Cant wait for your tasting notes.

Edited to add: On another look at your photo is is patently obvious that the same brands cannot be in vertical lines. Im colour blind. OK?? lolol

Edited December 9, 2006 by Sentiamo (log)

[nakji]

What a fascinating blog! I'm inspired to try all sorts of things now. First of all, I'm going to boil up a can of Ong Tho SCM to bring into my co-workers - I wonder if they've ever had anything like Dulce de Leche? Cakes made with straight up SCM seem popular here, so I'm willing to bet it'll be a hit.

Second, are you willing to share your nog recipe? What are your thoughts of rum nog versus bourbon nog? Ever since I moved to Asia and realized that nog was no longer available in the refrigerator section, I've been making it from scratch. I'll never go back, and I'm not sure how I stomached the pre-made stuff all those years. There's no comparison. Being from Nova Scotia, though, I've always made it with rum. One year, some intrepid Newfoundlanders even contributed some Screech as a side experiment. I'm not sure how it tasted, as I have no memory of that night. But this year, I'm tempted to try it with bourbon, which my husband loves. I've only got a bottle of Wild Turkey on hand, as this isn't really a bourbon drinking town, if you know what I mean. There's lots of Cuban rum available, on the other hand....

As to soju, it was always a diversion for my friends and I when we got out of Seoul to try the regional soju brands. San was always our go-to soju brand, but there was one available in Jeolla that was pretty tasty. Whenever I have friends visit now, they always bring bottles, but it's not the same drinking without the samgyeobssal. Such was our devotion to soju (it was, after all, less than a dollar a bottle in the shops) that my husband dressed up as "Soju-man" one Halloween (with a hat-tip to Duffman, from Simpsons fame). I have pics if any are interested.

One (non-food related) question - Is that Buddha in your avatar somewhere in Korea? It looks terribly familiar...

[mizducky]

Dulce de Leche Experiment!

8 brands - 2 hours, 4 hours, and 12 hours.

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Even the colors are yummy! I'm grooving on the color of #24, especially. I'll be very interested to hear reports on what it tastes like.

[sazji]

Wow, my teeth hurt from just *looking* at that! I hope it freezes well...

And then you can make it from scratch:

http://recipes.egullet.org/recipes/r1636.html

Somewhere on eGullet there is a thread about dulce de leche with another recipe as well. I can't get sweetened condensed milk where I live so I make it from scratch and it comes out great! I found that if you cook it really hot, it gets thick before it gets dark (you have to add water to keep it from becoming like glue).

I did get some condensed milk from Greece and tried boiling a can, did it way too long and got the very dark result...it was *not* good. I find it interesting that it can get dark with just heat but no actual evaporation of liquid. But them I was never very good at chemistry....

Edited December 9, 2006 by sazji (log)

[Domestic Goddess]

Nakji - I'd love to see the picture of SojuMan. If there was a way to send soju in the mail, I'll send some to you.

[donbert]

After cocktails 9 of us went over to the Momofuku Ssam Bar for a late night pork-fest. During the day the restaurant serves an asian fusion burrito/wrap but at night it becomes a temple of pork. If you call 6 hours ahead you can order the Bo-Ssam special. It isn't a traditional Korean Bo-Ssam but delicious none the less. You get bib lettuce, kimchi, rice, 12 oysters, and a whole roast Berkshire pork butt. (the photos from last night doesn't come out well so here are some photos from the last time we did this)

Sides

Pork butt

So tender you just tear at it with tongs.

Ssam.

[Domestic Goddess]

Donbert, we had slow-roasted pork butt for supper tonight. It looked as scrumptious as your Pork Ssam. Never thought of serving pork like that.

[donbert]

...

Second, are you willing to share your nog recipe? What are your thoughts of rum nog versus bourbon nog?

...

As to soju, it was always a diversion for my friends and I when we got out of Seoul to try the regional soju brands. San was always our go-to soju brand, but there was one available in Jeolla that was pretty tasty. Whenever I have friends visit now, they always bring bottles, but it's not the same drinking without the samgyeobssal. Such was our devotion to soju (it was, after all, less than a dollar a bottle in the shops) that my husband dressed up as "Soju-man" one Halloween (with a hat-tip to Duffman, from Simpsons fame). I have pics if any are interested.

...

One (non-food related) question - Is that Buddha in your avatar somewhere in Korea? It looks terribly familiar...

I use Alton Brown's basic recipe and make variations from it. I actually never had egg nog until last year. We never had it at home growing up and egg nog from a can was never appealing. From my little experience with it I prefer a hot and spicy bourbon with my nog. Wild Turkey Rare Breed works very nicely. It is barrel proof (Wild Turkey whiskeys tend to be a lower proof compared to other bourbons) and the spice really comes through nicely. I usually do 1 oz bourbon to 4-5 oz egg nog base.

When I spent a summer at InJae university in KimHae I drank a lot of "C1", which pronounced in English sounds like ShiWon or "refreshing" in Korean. Most people outside of Korean don't know that there are regional brands. I forget what the reason for this was. I'll have to ask my father.

My avatar is a picture of the statue at PopJusSa temple at SongNiSan.

[donbert]

Packing a suitcase full of booze and heading to Boston now by the Chinatown bus. Next post will be from bean town.

[johnder]

Packing a suitcase full of booze and heading to Boston now by the Chinatown bus. Next post will be from bean town.

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Your killing me -- I want the results of the DDL tasting! The suspense is killing me.

[jasie]

After cocktails 9 of us went over to the Momofuku Ssam Bar for a late night pork-fest. During the day the restaurant serves an asian fusion burrito/wrap but at night it becomes a temple of pork. If you call 6 hours ahead you can order the Bo-Ssam special. It isn't a traditional Korean Bo-Ssam but delicious none the less. You get bib lettuce, kimchi, rice, 12 oysters, and a whole roast Berkshire pork butt. (the photos from last night doesn't come out well so here are some photos from the last time we did this)

Sides

Pork butt

So tender you just tear at it with tongs.

Ssam.

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Oh My..... That looks absolutely awesome . Wonder if we can replicate it at home! Probably could... do you know if the pork was seasoned or can hazzard a guess? Hehe.

I love the Dulce de Leche experiment! I've never had any before... I'll wait for the results of the experiment before trying! Awesome blog!~

[johnder]

Oh My..... That looks absolutely awesome  . Wonder if we can replicate it at home! Probably could... do you know if the pork was seasoned or can hazzard a guess? Hehe.

NY magazine did his pork butt for a holiday dinny party article, recipe is here.

The ingredients basically are:

Bo Ssäm

David Chang, Momofuku

10 pounds bone-in Boston pork butt

2 1/3 cups white sugar

2 1/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons salt

4 each red and green chiles

1 tablespoon brown sugar

4 cups uncooked Korean rice

2 heads Boston lettuce

Sagyegeol ssäm jang (Korean soybean paste)

Salted shrimp

1 pounds cabbage or daikon kimchee

[jasie]

Oh My..... That looks absolutely awesome  . Wonder if we can replicate it at home! Probably could... do you know if the pork was seasoned or can hazzard a guess? Hehe.

NY magazine did his pork butt for a holiday dinny party article, recipe is here.

The ingredients basically are:

Bo Ssäm

David Chang, Momofuku

10 pounds bone-in Boston pork butt

2 1/3 cups white sugar

2 1/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons salt

4 each red and green chiles

1 tablespoon brown sugar

4 cups uncooked Korean rice

2 heads Boston lettuce

Sagyegeol ssäm jang (Korean soybean paste)

Salted shrimp

1 pounds cabbage or daikon kimchee

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Thank you so much! Store is having a sale on pork shoulders @ $1/lb. Guess what I just got? lol.

Now... if only I can get some of those drinks....

[Susan in FL]

As life cirumstances sometimes force, this has been a time I've had to follow a blog more quietly; however, I've enjoyed it so much. Take-my-breath-away beautiful!

[nakji]

When I spent a summer at InJae university in KimHae I drank a lot of "C1", which pronounced in English sounds like ShiWon or "refreshing" in Korean. Most people outside of Korean don't know that there are regional brands. I forget what the reason for this was. I'll have to ask my father.

I've never tried ShiWon. My husband informs me that the brand we enjoyed in Jeollanam-do was called "Ip" or "Leaf" brand, which makes sense, given the red Maple leaf on the label. It never occurred to me to wonder why there were regional labels. Did you get a chance while you were in Korea to sample some genuine Andong soju? We got some as a gift one year, and it was strong enough to light the Christmas pudding. I could never persuade anyone to drink it straight, though.

One of my favourite Korean liquors (hey - do we have thread on these?) is bokbunjaju - especially when drunk with crispy lovely kamjajeon. My mouth is watering. And O-shipseju - a 50/50 mix of Baekseju and soju poured out of a brass kettle...ah, good times.

I've also never been to Songnisan, as it turns out, but once again, hubby comes in handy and informs me that it's very close to Danyang, one of the most beautiful places I visited in Korea.

[donbert]

Got into Boston at about noon today an proceeded straight to a late lunch of Brazillian food.

Mu Que Ca

Fango a Passarinho

(fried chicken with garlic)

Picanha

(steak )

Moqueca de Peixe com Camarao Sururu

(sea food stew)

Seafood Rice Casserole

[donbert]

[cocktail ice 101]

Perhaps the most overlooked ingredient in a cocktail is the ice. Besides the obvious need for ice to chill a drink, as the ice melts the drink is diluted with water. This water is a crucial ingredient and just as you would measure the amount of the other ingredients you need to control the amount of water that gets added to your drink from ice. In order to do so you need to ensure that the temperature of the ice is cold enough that it should feel dry when you touch it and use the proper size. Too small and there's too much surface area from which the water will melt off. Too big and not enough water will be incorporated.

(cocktail ice 102 will cover the various shapes if ice ideal for shaking and for serving drinks over.)

[/cocktail ice 101]

For ice in Cambridge I've been going to Acme Ice.

If you call in advance you can order a 300lbs block.

Since we don't have enough people coming to warrant a 300lbs block we went with the large bricks they have left over from carving down large blocks into ice luges for frat parties.

Another indication that you may be a cocktail geek, you empty out your friends freezer every time you visit to fill with block ice.

edit:spelling

Edited December 9, 2006 by donbert (log)

[donbert]

Your killing me --  I want the results of the DDL tasting!      The suspense is killing me.

I've tallied the results but I haven't had a chance to decode which brand was which. I'll try to get that done once I finish batching egg nog, aviations, and jack roses for tonight's cocktail party.

The top three were all from the 4 hour group.

[donbert]

Thank you so much! Store is having a sale on pork shoulders @ $1/lb. Guess what I just got? lol.

Now... if only I can get some of those drinks.... 

I'm not sure if it's mentioned in the article but the pork shoulder at Momofuku is Berkshire pork and very fatty. They bring hot towels to wipe the table afte you're done.

For a nominal fee the cocktail road show could be brought to a town near you...

[donbert]

Nakji - I'd love to see the picture of SojuMan. If there was a way to send soju in the mail, I'll send some to you.

I second the request to see this SojuMan. [voice of Duff Man]"Oh yeah!"[/voice of Duff Man]

[donbert]

I've never tried ShiWon. My husband informs me that the brand we enjoyed in Jeollanam-do was called "Ip" or "Leaf" brand, which makes sense, given the red Maple leaf on the label. It never occurred to me to wonder why there were regional labels. Did you get a chance while you were in Korea to sample some genuine Andong soju? We got some as a gift one year, and it was strong enough to light the Christmas pudding. I could never persuade anyone to drink it straight, though.

One of my favourite Korean liquors (hey - do we have thread on these?) is bokbunjaju - especially when drunk with crispy lovely kamjajeon. My mouth is watering. And O-shipseju - a 50/50 mix of Baekseju and soju poured out of a brass kettle...ah, good times.

...

I've had Ip but I don't recall any specifics of it. Isn't that the one with temperature sensitive ink on one of the leaves on the bottle. If you press a finger against it to warm it up it changes color?

With O-shipseju here in NYC you have to specifically ask to have them bring you the kettle to mix yourself or they'll bring you something premixed in a kettle. There's also this whole pagentry that's involved where two people (the older/senior person gets the baeksaeju) pour into the kettle at together and have to finish at the same time.

[Pan]

Don, how many people ate the meal at Mu Que Ca? Don't tell me you put all that away?!

[donbert]

Don, how many people ate the meal at Mu Que Ca? Don't tell me you put all that away?!

There were three of us there. I can put away quite a bit but not that much.

[Pan]

Don, how many people ate the meal at Mu Que Ca? Don't tell me you put all that away?!

There were three of us there. I can put away quite a bit but not that much.

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Glad to hear it! I was starting to wonder about you.