anakalia's Profile
When I comment about the actually area My comment gets erased?
I just had this happen to me. It really sucks. I've been a CHer for years, and I'm the last person to post offensive or aggressive posts (in fact, I hate conflict!)
That said, I'm so offended, I'm about ready to quit using CH. It seems that there are certain "mafias" of fans for particular restaurants (note to CH: I'm joking, and am in no way implying that organized crime networks use your web site), and if you mention that the atmosphere of that particular restaurant is lacking and the area is unsafe, they report you, effectively censoring the thread.
I assume they don't care, since they assume anyone who questions the safety of a restaurant must be some suburban chain-restaurant-loving moron who doesn't know good food if it hits them in the face.
Due to this policy of not posting on safety, my husband and I ventured into a neighborhood market where we felt completely unsafe -- thanks a lot, Chowhound! When I pointed this out in a thread where an out-of-towner was looking for suggestions, someone got mad at me within 5 minutes, and when I checked back two days later, it was deleted.
I understand that Chowhound doesn't want to get into crime rates, etc. That stuff is, mostly, off-topic. But if it IS fair game to comment on parking situations or the atmosphere of a restaurant, I don't know why it ISN'T fair game to comment on having to walk through sketchy-looking crowds to get to a restaurant! Just wait until someone takes a suggestion for a restuarant, gets mugged, and then later finds out that a comment warning them of a dangerous neighborhood was deleted off chowhound by overzealous moderaters!
This whole thing, to me, is just really dishonest. I'd hate to think of someone sending a tourist family with small children to a dangerous location for dinner.
Need Current Info re: Best Crabcake
Good luck choosing a few places - testing out more than one is probably a good idea!
Since my original post was removed (and because I would still like to offer my *opinion* for any future readers of this thread) I will simply restate my *opinion* that, were I you, I would skip Faidley's. I'm certain the "atmosphere" at other restaurants these posters have mentioned will be much nicer, and I'm sure the crabcakes will be just as tasty.
However, if you do end up driving into Baltimore and trying it out, I'd love to hear your thoughts.
And it Was Absolutely Delicious.
That sounds like an amazing recipe - it's making my mouth water.
And it Was Absolutely Delicious.
Whoa, I just saw this reply now, months later! Oh well, I'll respond anyway! Llapingachos are these great potato patties, filled with white cheese and mixed with achiote (gives them an orange color), flattened, then pan fried. I don't actually remember the specific flavorings of the beef strew now, although I remember it did have achiote, garlic and tamarind in in it and the marinade included beer!
Items that last for weeks Or months in the fridge?
Don't be embarrassed! My mom always kept it in the fridge, too - I thought that's just how you were supposed to store it? I finally had some go rock-hard (even in the fridge) last month, but read that if you put it in a bowl with a damp towel over it, in a couple hours it softens up. It worked! After that, I put it in a tupperware and left it on the shelf of a cupboard, instead of the fridge, because I ran out of room...
Buy turmeric root?
I saw it yesterday at Aditi Spice on Maple Ave. in Vienna -- that should be pretty close to your area, right?
Salad Bar Combos: What's your favorite?
I'm always a bit embarrassed about my daily salad-bar salads... I think people must look at them and think, "Ugh, gross!" But... I typically do baby spinach and some "spring mix," then top it with hard boiled egg, shredded carrots and cabbage, quinoa, chickpeas, kalamata olives, feta, lots of sunflower seeds and some olive oil/salt/pepper. I normally would add cucumbers and tomatoes, but since the bars usually charge by the pound, it gets too expensive to do that. Then, I take cottage cheese and mix it in like a low-fat dressing -- this is probably disgusting to 99.9% of everyone, but it works for me. It makes it creamy, but without the chemical-and-preservative-laden salad bar creamy dressings. I usually take a pasta salad or bean salad on the side.
What IS this food everyone is reportedly wasting?
I try really hard not to waste food, but inevitably, I end up tossing produce and, sometimes, eggs that I don't use in time. Personally, my main culprits are:
1. Fruit: I hate fruit. I make myself buy it, then I remember I hate it, and it rots. Solution? Quit buying fruit, I know.
2. Veggies: I've gotten better about this since making my own veggie stock -- I freeze things like cilantro, parsley, bell peppers, carrots, etc., for stock if I think they'll go bad. But I still end up throwing out zucchini and things like that that go "bad" before I notice.
3. Canned/bottled goods -- I never finish an entire bottle of spaghetti sauce, or a whole block of feta. Usually I use this for a recipe, put it in the fridge, then forget about it -- so that's probably the majority of my food waste. Oh, I toss out a lot of milk, too, because it goes bad before I use it (Even though I buy the small containers of it).
Two Ethiopian places just off 395/DukeSt - anybody been?
I got a livingsocial coupon for this place and am looking forward to trying it out -- when I viewed their menu online, I noted they also serve Ethiopian breakfast -- most of the dishes appear to be very simple (there's a bean dish, and one that seems like a way to use up last night's injera by chopping it up and mixing it with spices) but interesting, and I'd love to try them out. Anyone had breakfast there?
What is your single worst meal ever in the DC/Baltimore area?
Our worst meal in DC was actually served several years ago when we came out here for trip (we've since moved to the area). We tried "Indebleu," thinking that it sounded like a French-Indian fusion place,and that that would be really interesting.
Not so much. It was utterly disappointing and horribly pretentious and overpriced. There is absolutely no excuse for charging $15+ for a bowl of bland, oily dal (I think it was dal makhani). It was horrible, and all I kept saying was that my mother-in-law's dal blew this place's out of the park. My husband's meat dish was beyond bland. The icing on the cake, however, was a martini that we still joke about -- it was supposed to be spicy, but all they did was sprinkle garam masala on top... yes, so the martini was grainy as you sucked it down. I remember the dessert being awful, too.
Our experience was so bad that we turned the word "Indebleu" into a verb, with the meaning, "to try, but fail, in the attempt to fancy-fy Indian food" (I've indebleu-ized many a meal at home, sad to say).
This place so turned us off to the idea of "upscale" Indian food, that it took us 2+ years to try Rasika. Fortunately, we finally did, as it's become one of our favorite restaurants!
Best Indian food in DC?
You really can't beat Rasika, it's true! But if you're looking for something more casual, and you are ever out in the 'burbs, hit up Jaipur in Fairfax. It's the only place in the metro area that actually makes outstanding malai kofta, which is my usual go-to meal.
I've never been to Heritage India in Georgetown, but I found the Heritage in Dupont to be quite disappointing.
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Rasika Restaurant
633 D Street, NW, Washington, DC 20004
Heritage India
2400 Wisconsin Ave NW Ste A, Washington, DC 20007
Yogurt maker recommendations?
We go through so much plain yogurt every week that I've decided it would be better to make my own at home. Unfortunately, I'm not skilled enough to do it without a yogurt maker, so I've been looking to buy one. There are so many, though, and I'm not sure which is the best.
My main concern is that I want to make a lot, so a maker that has only 6-8 small glass jars won't work well for me -- I'd prefer a machine where I can just make a big bowl of yogurt... but I haven't been able to find any at my local stores. I've seen one called a "Eurocuisine" but even with that, there seem to be many makes/styles. Any recommendations?
** Apologies if this has already been covered -- I searched in past threads, but the last ones I found were a few years old, and I figured perhaps newer models of makers have come out since then. Thanks!
Soaking grains
I soak my rice before cooking, for about 20 minutes. Never used to, until my mother-in-law (who's Indian) told me I had to... I figured she would know! I've noticed that it drastically speeds up the cooking time, so that makes me happy :) I also soak quinoa.
Vegetarian Dinner Party
An alternative to lasagna (which I know you stated you don't want) would be a vegetarian moussaka with eggplant, zucchini, etc. Could work if you wanted something you could prepare in advance, and esp. if you wanted a Mediterranean-type theme...
What Meals to Freezing In Advance of Getting Sick
I like hearty soups when I am sick -- they freeze well, too. How about a ginger-carrot soup, or a butternut squash soup, or even, if you feel like it, a beet soup? Although I tend to like spicy food when I have a winter cold -- and I don't know if spicy peppers freeze well. Otherwise I might also suggest some sort of coconut-lemongrass-chicken-chili soup, too !
I'm scared of...
I often see posts that reveal the poster is "scared" of cooking/ making a particular food item. I definitely have my own "fears" too. I'm not talking about unusual foods that most of us would be nervous about cooking (e.g. rack of camel, foraged mushroom stew (yum!), ant egg omelet, etc.), but rather about somewhat "normal" foods that we are, for some odd reason, frightened to try -- what are yours?
Mine are:
*Making my own yogurt (hoping my Indian mother-in-law will help me overcome this fear next time she visits
* Shellfish (I'm always so scared that I will undercook them, since I've just recently started cooking with them and, growing up in the Upper Midwest, I never watched my mother make them ,either). I've mastered the mussel, but just about anything else sends me into nervous fits that end up in hours of online recipe searches ;)
* Custards. They never turn out, and I'm always afraid I didn't bake them long enough to kill any possible bacteria, etc. Do I need some sort of thermometer for this?
Where to buy Indian Spices online? [moved from Home Cooking]
I, too, think Penzey's has some great Indian spices. They don't have everything, but what they do have is very high-quality.
That being said, I actually do buy most of my Indian spices, in the bulk bags, from the Indian grocer. I know it may seem that they've been sitting around for a long time (and, of course, it depends on your grocery) but all my Indian friends buy them that way. I think that Indian cooks go through so many spices so quickly, that they MIGHT not actually have been sitting around as long as you think they have been!
Favorite multi-vegetable soup recipes?
I like French pistou soup (I use Ina Garten's recipe). It does usually have potatoes in it, but you could leave those out. I like throwing random vegetables in it, including zucchini, green beans, carrots, onion, squash, etc.
Tomato rice (possibly with coconut?)
Hi everyone -- I have basmati rice, a can of coconut milk and 3 ripe tomatoes sitting on my countertop. I'm obsessed with the idea of making some sort of gloppy, juicy savory rice dish with it, but I don't know how.
I was thinking Indian was the way to go, and I've searched the Internet, but I'm either pulling up dry rice dishes which just use pureed tomato and coconut milk to cook the rice in, or I'm finding tomato curries. I don't want either one of those... instead, I'm imagining some sort of wet rice dish with large chunks of tomatoes in it that haven't completely cooked down and lost that garden-fresh flavor... any ideas? This does sound tasty, right? Or is it just me...?
I did make a tomato-grated coconut curry one time that was pretty good, and I guess, worst-case, I can just remake that and pour it over the rice, but I'm hoping for a better recipe idea.
Milwaukee fine dining
I've never been to Sanford, but it looks amazing! I just wanted to add that my husband and I have been to Lake Park Bistro several times and it really is wonderful -- great view, too, if you can score a table overlooking Lake Michigan.
And ginkonut, I know this is off-topic, but if you are also searching for another place for your birthday, and are OK with a more casual atmosphere, I loved Roots. Great view there, too . Sorry! Couldn't help adding my 2 cents!
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Bartolotta's Lake Park Bistro
3133 E. Newberry Blvd, Milwaukee, WI 53221
Culinary gift ideas
I definitely agree with this. I've given the Penzeys' "Ethnic Milwaukee" set (which is probably a much smaller gift than what you would give your sister, but they have more expensive, wide-ranging spice packages, too) to several foodie friends, and they've loved them. More recently, I created my own spice package from Penzey's for my mom (I included things like the top-grade Kashmiri saffron, which she probably would not have bought for herself) for her birthday, and she loved it! I think spices are an excellent gift.
things we keep
Most of my "things kept" are sentimental... I have (a matching set, no less!) a "griddle" and a "waffle maker." I don't remember my mother using the waffle maker, but she used the electric griddle everytime she made chocolate chip pancakes for my slumber parties in middle school. There's no WAY I could get rid of it... and, actually, I can't make pancakes on anything else, even though it's a pain to clean.
I also have a color-coded set of teaspoons/tablespoons that came along with a cardboard book called "KIDS COOK!" when I was 6. It's actually the only set of measuring spoons I still use, though, so that's probably OK.
And then, I have a Mexican hot chocolate maker that I bought in Oaxaca when I went to a cooking class there with my mom about 8 years ago. I've never made Mexican hot chocolate, much less with that wooden instrument, but I still keep it. Can't throw it away!
Then, of course, there is grandma's china, the spatula I stole from my ex-boyfriend year ago, the cocktail glasses I most likely stole from college bars a decade ago, the cheap wine glasses my husband and I got for free with our wine tastings in Temecula on "our first vacation together"... and a metal tagine engraved around in Arabic that a random woman gave me when I bought something else from her off Craigslist... My kitchen is a trip down memory lane, utility and organization be damned! :)
Freezing eggplants/eggplant mush?
Posting this for my mother...
She has way too many Japanese eggplants in her garden right now. We're wondering what her options are for freezing them... I know people typically use the big old eggplants for roasting and making dips, etc., from, but one could also do this with Japanese eggplants, right? And, if so, could she freeze the eggplant mush (as in, roast it and mash it down, but then freeze it to use later in dishes like bhangan bharta, baba ganoush, etc)? Or would this not be something that freezes well?
Any other ideas for ways she could freeze the eggplant and use it at a later time? (I already mentioned things like moussaka to her, but I think she's wondering more if she can freeze the more basic eggplant and decide how to use it at a later date?)
Thanks!
Persons in my household sometimes have sentimental cravings for casseroles (like tuna noodle)
I'd like to add a great recipe that was in Bon Appetit for a tuna casserole -- but with gruyere and leeks... my father loved it (and he's your traditional tuna casserole kinda guy) but I also thought it was great (and I'm not a big tuna casserole person). No "cream of" soup required!
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2010/03/tuna_noodle_casserole_with_leeks_and_fresh_dill
And it Was Absolutely Delicious.
After a long trip to Ecuador, my husband and I returned adamant that my father (a Midwestern meat-'n-potatoes guy) would love Ecuadorian cooking. I successfully found recipes online to recreate a meal -- llapingachos stuffed with cheese, beef stew, topped with a fried egg, a salad of tomato and pickled onion, fresh avocados, hominy and herbs... I was pretty impressed with the results, actually! And dad was, too.
Childhood foods you would *totally* eat now...
When I was very little, and had trouble sleeping, my mom would break up graham crackers into a bowl of milk and give me a spoon to eat it with -- I've been craving that, on and off, for years -- but I never seem to have both graham crackers AND drinkable milk on hand at the same time!
Also -- when I was about 13, I used to babysit for a family who would buy me "hungry man" frozen dinners. They had chicken, potatoes, corn, a dessert of some kind... they were probably disgusting, but I have very fond memories of them. Every so often I pass them in the grocery store and get a (very short) longing for one...
Whipped cottage cheese? Uses?
Ah, ok. I did think that it seemed like a ricotta substitute, as I was spooning it out. So, I will go from there.
It's also interesting to know that this isn't something new -- apparently I've been living under a rock for the past 30 years, because I'd never noticed this product or heard of it before!
Too many unopened mussels in restaurants...
Egit, that's a good point about just how "closed" they were -- because I've wondered about this myself. In this case, three were completely shut and the fourth was ever so slightly ajar -- but I couldn't force it open far enough to pull anything out of it, so, for all purposes, it was inedible (unless someone had given me a toolbox, perhaps).
There were one or two more shells that were just slightly opened, but I was able to pry those open and pull the mussel out (and wondered at the time if that was safe to do, so now that you've told me, I know it was :)
Overall, I'd say the mussels seemed softer and a bit slimier than I'm used to when I cook them -- so perhaps they all just needed another minute or so. To be honest, I'm not really sure how soft and slimy mussels are "supposed" to be, when cooked properly. Perhaps I tend to overcook them at home.
Whipped cottage cheese? Uses?
When I went to the store the other day, they were out of my usual cottage cheese, so I grabbed a different brand. Got it home and realized it was "whipped cottage cheese." It's advertised as "Spreadable!" on the case.
I've never heard of this. Somewhat confused, I tried eating it -- but it's all mushy. Why would anyone buy this? Is it meant to be eaten on its own, or is it supposed to be used in cooking? And, more importantly, what can I do with it before it goes bad? Thanks for any suggestions...
Home in a hurricane, what are you cooking?
Agreed. I'm already trying use up whatever is in my freezer (thankfully, it's not a lot). I made the frozen potstickers tonight, and used up the bagged frozen spinach in a spinach dal last night. The problem is, a lot of what is in my freezer is stuff like vegetable stock, which doesn't really lend itself to quickly getting rid of in one meal...
