Dear CH Staff,
I can’t remember how long I have been a part of these boards- certainly ever since my home has had the internet, which is a long time. I have several CH boards saved to favorites and they have been as much a part of my morning routine as reading the news and email.
Due to the length of time I have been associated with CH, and the degree to which I am emotionally attached to these sites, I gave this issue a few days worth of thought, as quick decisions are frequently poor decisions.
I posted a thread last week to the Not About Food board. The post went something like this: “What does it mean to say that a food is ‘pedestrian’?” It was deleted the same day. I made an inquiry as to why it was deleted- that inquiry was deleted within a few hours.
I personally have been deleted more times than I can remember. I always researched the rules at every deletion to see if there had been a rule change I was unaware of. Well over half of the deletions were unwarranted. The others were warranted for various reasons, ie, posted on the wrong board, slightly off topic, etc.
(Yes, I read the Where Did That Post Go by Jim Leff, and I’m sorry, but that explanation does not hold water.
- “Moderators are invariably right.” Please- you have perfect people up there? I don’t think so.
- “We don’t read every post.” You certainly appear to read all of mine, then find something wrong with them.
- “tolerance, friendliness, non-commerciality” Never been anything but friendly, never wrote a fowl word, and never posted anything commercial.
- “we DO try to notify veteran posters when we delete them so we can explain” No, you’ve never attempted to notify me.
- “Don’t take it personal.” That would be an easy task if this issue of my (personal) posts were not deleted A) so frequently, and B) without there ever being an explanation (BTW, on this issue- I see where you frequently tell posters you are about to move or delete their post before hand and give an explanation as to why. I “personally” have never been given this heads-up.).
After several years of this it is difficult to not be offended and not take it personal.
In the time since my last deletion I have looked at other web sites similar to CH of which I am apart. I also looked into new web sites that could also meet my chow needs. I discovered that I can meet my needs without the grief that I get at CH quite nicely.
As a side note, coming from a business person- I fully expect this to be deleted within moments of it being posted. Further, I doubt that you will even read it, let alone respond to it, given your cavalier and dismissal attitude. However, it is a truism in the business world that if you treat people badly, it will eventually catch up with you. I am also sure that, if you DO respond it will be a very dismissive and pompous response akin to the Jim Leff explanation, which as I’ve already stated is mostly just hot air that denies any form of responsibility to the CH Team.
So, having said all that, I will delete you from my favorites and bid you adieu.
Regretfully,
Spencer

Is Red Ackers still around? This used to be THE go to place for catfish 20 years ago. I understand they moved closer to Tyler, but used to be out on Lake Palestine somewhere.

I like to add crawfish boil bags and a bottle of La. hotsauce. Also, I have some ice handy. After the shrimp or crawfish are done I throw in enough ice to stop the cooking process adn let the shell fish soak up more of the spices.
And, believe it or not, califlower is good boiled in this water as well- it really soaks up the flavor.

OKay, I did some mild research on salt cod. It seems that the salting is a way of presserving the fish.
It seems to me that the de-salting of the fish is a bit of a chore. Given this, is there a taste advantage of salt cod over regular frozen cod?

Don't get me wrong- I am not questioning your report.
I am sorry this happened, as I am a big fan.
We eat there at every NOLA visit and always get raw. We've not experienced this. I hope they were just having a bad day.

How do you use salt cod? I noticed it in the grocery store for the first time today. I was wondering how people use it. Think I would like to try it.
Thanks,
Spencer

Thanks for all the help everyone. I was apparently more ignorant of curry than I initially thought. Learned a lot.
Spencer

I have been running 5 miles 3 times a week for about 8-10 years. Decided to run a 1/2 marathon about 5 years ago. I didn't really change my diet. However, during my training I inched my mileage up until I got to where I could run 10 miles fairly easily. What happened to me was that once I got up past 8 miles in my training, my appetite(post run) went WAY down. I ran at night before my evening meal. I could eat only about 1/2 my normal meal.
BTW, I should have trained at a higher mileage than 10. I hit the wall at 11 in the actual run- calves tightened up, brain stopped working well. At a fruit cup right after race- brain cleared right up but calves stayed stiff for a day or so.
I always eat a light granola bar before any race.
Another piece of good advise- by good shoes often(every 6-8 weeks).

Neither myself nor my wife are fond of curry. A local Chinese restaurant owner encouraged us to try his curry chicken. We liked it and asked him about the curry. He said Chinese curry is fifferent from Indian curry.
I have three questions:
Was the owner accurate in saying that Chinese curry is fifferent from Indian curry?
In what way is it different?
If there is a difference and I wanted to purchase some, what would I ask/look for at the grocery store(clueless about curry)?

Hadn't thought of this- great idea! Bet a little cream cheese would add some body to this. Like the honey/balance thing too. Wonder how crushed pineapple would taste in this?

What type of enchilada sauce do you like to use for spincah enchiladas? If it matters, I intend to top them with crawfish tails or shrimp.
Thanks,
Spencer

Going to be staying the night in Crockett, Tx. tomorrow with my family. Any good food there?
Thanks,
Spencer

Seems like Laverne, from the Laverne and Shirley tv show(1970's I think), used to drink Pepsi with milk. Think they lived in Milwaukee though.
Part of my youth was spent in Reidsville, NC, but we were so broke back then I think we only drank water and homemade saspirilla(?sp.).

We have Pepsi and Pepsi products in the convenient stores, grocers, and some restaurants. And Dr Pepper, which I "think" is a Pepsi product, is pretty popular. But not Pepsi. I was discussing this issue with friends and relatives today. Most said they didn't like Pepsi- some said they would rather have water than Pepsi even.
Seems like RC was popular when I was a kid in both Texas and N.C. In Texas it was not uncommon to see people putting salted peanuts in RC and Dr Pepper bottles. Go figure...

Is U.S. cola preferance a regional thing? And, if so, is there a region that contains people who predominately choose Pepsi?
I've lived in East Texas and Southeast Texas all my adult life. I can't remember the last time I saw someone purchase a Pepsi. (I'm one of those weird people who actively notices random social things, and this is one of hundreds of events that I have paid attention to.)
Now we have several restaurants in my area that carry Pepsi products only- not sure why, but I'm guessing it is a marketing thing of some sort. Countless times I've heard people order Coke. The waitress will then say, "Is Pepsi okay?" I have never heard a customer respond in the affirmative. Most times the order is changed to Tea or Dr. Pepper.
I know there must be people that drink it, but they are not in my neck of the woods.
So help me out here- is there an area where people predominately drink Pepsi?
Thanks,
Spencer

Looking for excellent Brunswick Stew recipe. Anyone willing to share?
Thanks,
Spencer

This is slightly off-topic. For health reasons I went on a low sodium diet. For the first time ever I started using Heinz No Salt ketchup.
The first few weeks was tough since I was such a salt-aholic. Very soon, however, I realized that you could actually taste the tomatoes in the saltless ketchup. Now I love it and won't use any other ketchup.

I have done this before. I pull some out a little early for blonde rouxs.
Never thought to make a bunch at one time for future use. Great tip- thanks for sharing!!
Spencer

Thanks for the tip, and I will look at Emeril's recipe. The other recipe looked like it had lots of room for improvement for adding different spices and herbs, etc.
Spencer

Paula Dean and Robert Irvine made these on a show last month on Food Network. Looked wonderful and I hope to try them soon. You can word search it on their website. They are called Hasselback Roasted Potatoes.
If you make them please post the results.
Spencer

That does sound heavenly! Think you just described my menu for tonight :)

Where are you from Oz?
Where I am from, SE Texas, chili has neither beans or butter, but it is a regional thing like BBQ I think. I know folks in my neck of the woods that think pork is not, can not, be BBQ. Nothing could be further from the truth.
To each his own...

Thanks- the link was helpful.
Happy New Year,
Spencer

My friend called me last night stating he wants to learn to cook. He knows very little about cooking. I intend to help him learn. We live far a part, so my teaching will be via phone and email.
Does anyone know of any online resourse that can help with the basics of cooking?
Thanks,
Spencer

(I wrote this a few weeks ago, but for some reason I couldn’t log onto Chow until now.)
I made an inquiry last week regarding wings in Austin(thanks for all the responses!). My friend, who lives in Austin, is a big wing fan and had stated that he was going to take me to a few places this past weekend.
Well, we only went to 1 place- Pluckers. I’m no wing aficionado, but these were pretty darn good. I eat a lot of food with major heat, but these XXX wings had me sweating big time- I had to go wash my face half way through. The heat did not detract from the flavor though, and the bleu cheese dressing was a good balance.
Great place to watch a ball game too.
Spencer

What meal/foods do you crave after the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays?
I have 2 that are a bit bipolar- salads and Mexican food.

Hi, I'm looking for places that have exceptional chicken wings. I'm looking for places that have multiple preparation styles.
Thanks,
Spencer

Oh yeah- Killen’s! I read a review of this place a few months ago. Made a mental note and forgot where I put it, till you brought it up.
I googled their website. Looks pricey but worth a try.
Thanks for the heads up!
Spencer

Pearland seems to be growing by leaps and bounds. I notice there are many new chain restaurants on 288.
Was wondering if there is anything outstanding other than the new chains.
Thanks,
Spencer

I made a variation of Kari's recipe- last night. Family loved it and it is gone tonight. Though I intend to try all the ones here.
Yours sounds a little on the spicey side with the enchilada sauce. We like spicey, so I bet it will be a hit as well. Was thinking I would use the "hot" enchilada sauce along with fresh jalopenos from my garden(yes, I still have a few growing out back- temps still in the 80's here).
Thanks,
Spencer