Westy's Profile
Great Western chef's knife for someone with small hands?
hello -
My wife is in the market for a not overly expensive chef's knife. I love my dexter, but it is much too large for her. So...something with a fiarly short (6") blade, and a small-ish handle.
Thanks.
Matt
Why is the Olive Garden so reviled?
My 2 cents. I have to say that i love Chinese and Italian food. Growing up, though, I thought the Italian food at a total red-sauce place called The Oxford (Marlboro, MA), replete with red vinyl booths, light bulbs that flickered (designed to replicate a flame) was the height of sophistication. The times we went to the Honolulu, complete with faux bamboo wall coverings, made me think I was actually in Asia.
I like to think places like PF Changs and OG might inspire somebody else.
Why is the Olive Garden so reviled?
Every year or so, I think "Red Robin. They make tasty burgers."
I go. And have the worst burger I will eat that year.
What cookbooks have you bought lately? Springtime edition! [old]
Have you looked at the new cookbook "Homemade"?
http://www.amazon.com/Home-Made-Yvette-van-Boven/dp/1584799463/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336159546&sr=8-1
I just got it and am really impressed.
Another Broken Egg Cafe in Cary (maybe Durham). Anyone tried?
Okay. I think i sawt he one in Morrisville. did not know it was a chain.
Another Broken Egg Cafe in Cary (maybe Durham). Anyone tried?
Has anyone tried this? It is over by the new Target.
Might be nice to have an option if Briggs is packed.
Looks a bit like a chain.
Matt
What cookbooks have you bought lately? Springtime edition! [old]
The roast chicken section in Simple to Spectacular is simply amazing.
I'll be itnerested in hearing if you like John Ash's book. I have seen it a few times and never picked it up.
What were your FIRST three cookbooks?
I wonder how many budding 'hounds were introduced to cooking by the Frug.
What were your FIRST three cookbooks?
You can't beat those two. That was a heck of a start.
Which did you find easier to cook from?
What were your FIRST three cookbooks?
1. Frugal Gourmet Cooks 3 Ancient Cuisines. I still use his Chinese roast chicken as well as the "Roman" roast chicken on occasion.
2. Cooking for the Roommate Impaired.
3. Gotham. I saw the cover and had to have it. Nope, never saw much use, aside from the amazing duck breast recipe, I never used it.
Best barbeque sauce out of a bottle?
I second that about HFCS. Every time i read a label that talks about some old family recipe that they "just had to bottle," I read the label and sure enough....first or second ingredient is HFCS.
Who here can actually cook excellent authentic or close to it Chinese food?
Baker Creek (www.rareseeds.com) is also exhaustive in Asian seeds.
My favorite cucumber, a Japanese Climbing variety, is also available from a few vendors.
Who here can actually cook excellent authentic or close to it Chinese food?
Hmmm...interesting post.
I still think I would go with the "crawl before walking" route and try a few simple recipes, and really nail botht the dish and technique. If you are still struggling with basic potstcikers, nail making good ones (Ming tsai's recipe on-line is fantastic), then worry about making really complex ones.
It is a little like roasting a chicken in French cuisine - sounds easy until you try to do it right, but once you can do it right, the rest of the cuisine makes a little mroe sense.
if you wait until you are perfect before starting...you may end not doing it at all.
As far as being "born to it"..hogwash. Anyone with basic aptitude can be very competent no matter where they are from. I consistently impress my VERY discerning Taiwanese wife and in-laws with my cooking.
Who here can actually cook excellent authentic or close to it Chinese food?
Ipsidixt raises a good point - do you experience similar troubles with non-Chinese cooking?For a confidence boost, try a really good basics cookbook in Asian cuisine. A nice start might be "Steamy Kitchen." Yep, it is a bit Americanized, but it always works. I have also never gone wrong with Ken Hom's books. Some may be out of print, but he has a basics/beginner ook that was always a champ.
As far a "wok hey"...it is nice but "Hot Breath of a Wok" cookbook insistence aside, is more than achievable with a good cook-top.
Help I have GIANT steaks!
This is exactly how I'd play it as well. Sear it well (maybe 3 minutes each top and bottom, and don't forget to use a pair of toangs and sear the fat on the sides).
I am usually a fan of Paul prudhommes' steak blackening spice...but not here. maybe a little salt, some pepper and a very small amount of cayenne as a rub.
Don't forget to take them out to get them to room temp before cooking.
ENJOY!
Showing off really good Cardamom
Toss a few (not many) pods in witht eh grounds when making coffee. YUM.
Hakkasan - new luxury Chinese restaurant in Midtown
My wife introduced my parents (both wonderful folks, but used to "Polynesian" Chinese restaurants (Think: tiki lamps) to stir fried water spinach with matchstick ginfger.
They loved it and eagerly awaited the next thing she would cook.
I can't see ordering offal, etc., but I am always surprised at how well simple well-made chinese food goes over. It always cracks me up when my mom says "It isn't heavy."
Hakkasan - new luxury Chinese restaurant in Midtown
My wife is froma majority-Hakka city in taiwan. The few Hakka home cooked and restaurant meals were really good, and I am not sure I would characterize them as "Catnonese." hakka folks travelled from Korea all the wway down through China and eventually out to Singapore/Taiwan/Indonesia/Malaysia. Accrodingly, hakka food is a bit of a mix. i found a lot of pickled and salted foods. It also seemed a little more noodle-than rice-centric, but my sample size was pretty small.
I did pick up a Hakka cookbook a few years back. again, i see an emphasis on pickles and preserves.
Shopsin
Agreed. Grade B has never been a challenge to find, and it makes a world of difference.
Best barbeque sauce out of a bottle?
I am not a huge Fieri fan, but I agree. The asian sauce though, redeems itself as an add-in for stir-fry. I add it in instead of soy sauce. Really not bad.
Your most prized recipe book and why.
Any particular recipes? I had the original River Cafe book and sold it, as I did not see any chance of me installing a wood burning oven in my backyard. I hear some people have had real success with these books, but I am not sure what I would make out of them.
tasty, freezable cassersoles -- please help if you can
The soup...condensed (Campbell's)?
New soul food place in Cary?
Has anyone tried the new soul food place in cary (I think on E. Chatham). it is named something like "BJ's Soul Food."
Matt
Best barbeque sauce out of a bottle?
What did you try in Texas? Most 'que there I had was either un-sauced or the sauce was fairly thin and reminded me a bit of Worcestershire (maybe a bit thicker).
Salt Lick has a good sauce, though. Kinda sweet.
Your most prized recipe book and why.
For me...Slater's book Appetite fills the bill. Once I had cooking basics down, I went to Appetite more often than any other book.
Also great Minimalist Cooks Dinner and Minimalist cooks at Home both taught me how to cook.
Bill Granger's books are also dead reliable.
