I am a big fan of La Poblanita at 17th and Lake. It is a hole in the wall but the food is great and they are quite generous.

I was there one time when we were sitting to eat and my friends ordered them at teh beginning of the meal. She offered to make them fresh.

Bun Mi in Stadium Village had a head cheese Banh mi last time i was there. I was quite satisfied with it.

A friend and I are going to do a cocktail making competition in June and I am trying to work out something interesting. There are a few infusions I have recently heard about that sound interesting and I was wondering if anyone has tried making them or might have some tips to make them come out well.

First: Prune infused gin. It was used in a cocktail called the Montgomery Burns at la Belle Vie in Mpls. I have heard it is amazing but have not tried it myself. My questions for this one are how long for the prunes and what kind of gin should I use to complement the prune flavor?

Second: Curry infused vodka. I am thinking doing a toasted masala spice mix with coriander, cumin, cardamon, cinnamon, black pepper and clove. I am thinking that this might go with coconut and lime in some way. Questions: How does this sound? Has anyone done a curry vodka before. And finally, can anyone imagine these spices in a rum or brandy or whiskey of some sort? I prefer brown to clear liquors.

Thanks so much for any advice or thoughts that may come in.

Kolgrim

Deviled eggs with home made mayo are great. Also for future mayos, I really like to use EVO and sherry vinegar. It is a strong flavor but really excellent.

I just made a second batch this winter. Both times, I've used skin off jowls. Both times it has been excellent, though one thing i did the second time was to trim the jowls a little better. the super thin parts, particularly if they are more meat than fat, tend to get a little over salty and dried out. It is so easy, I would highly recommend making your own to anyone who can get their hands on fresh jowls. For preparation, I'd suggest using Marcella Hazan's Carbonara recipe. It is divine with the delicate guanciale.

Another amazing potato variant in the skillet is Sage Roasted potatoes. Heat the oven to 450. Put down a generous layer of olive oil, cover the bottom with a single layer of sage leaves. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Then a single layer of small halved potatoes (no more than two inches in diameter. Throw in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. It is one of my very favorite recipes.

For a complete Indian dinner, you should have at least one daal and one vegetable dish to go with your chicken curry. I usually go for two veggie dishes, one daal and one meat dish for a full dinner. Sambar would be an excellent daal. As for veggies, I did a really good green beans dish with curry leaves, mustard seed, dried coconut, hulled urad daal and lime juice. I think the recipe is in Jaffey's from Curries to Kebabs. Another vegetable (starch) dish i love is a simple Aloo. Boil some potatoes. In a skillet, fry a large scoop of mustard seeds, a couple of dried chilis, a bunch of minced garlic, tumeric and salt. Mix that with the potatoes. Right before serving squeeze the juice of a couple limes and toss in some chopped cilantro. it is great! Serve with plain rice and don't worry about bread. Most meals I have had in Indian homes have done either chapatis or rice and not both and in the South, they don't eat a whole lot of breads.

I moved away from the Burgh five years ago and am not up on the new restaurants that have opened. I am looking for somewhere nice to send my parents that they probably haven't been, either downtown near the theaters or on the East End. What is new and interesting? Cost isn't issue though the 20-40 range for entrees is what I am thinking. Interesting is important - they have had the standards of new american cuisine - what places are fresh and exciting? I appreciate the help.

Some of the scones at Cupcake, at University and Bedford are pretty good. The real gem in my mind is the Mayday Cafe at 35th and Bloomington. Their currant scone is excellent. I think they are my favorite spot for breakfast pastry in the cities that I have encountered so far. I'll second Swede Hollow as well. For me, their buttermilk scone is tops.

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Swede Hollow Cafe
725 7th St E, Saint Paul, MN 55106

I would suggest an even more drastic temperature reduction. Cook it at 225 or 250 for 5 hours or so. Then crank the oven to 450 and cook it just long enough for the outside to crust up and caramelize.

Are you thinking of the Mackerel Pudding Plan, with the snarky comments about weight watchers cards form the 70s? I do love that book.

I mash up garlic, sea salt, crushed red pepper and anchovies in my mortar. I then fry this in olive oil with currants, then toss in some collards, torn into bite size pieces. Stir, pop a lid on it and serve when tender.

Jowl is amazing and one really isn't too much. Mario Batali has a recipe for guanciale that is easily found on google. I found it to work quite well. Also, I sprinkled one jowl with salt, sugar, fresh thyme and cracked pepper and roasted it. It was also spectacular.

We had a good turn out this weekend at our Himalaya Chowdown (and bookswap). Himalaya is a new(ish) Nepali place on Franklin that replaced El Gaucho. Both food and service were good and there was a steady flow of custom.

We started with four appetizers:
Momos, both vegetarian and yak, served with a mild chili sauce
Kothe (deep fried momos), both chicken and vegetarian, served with a tomato chutney
Lo (fried lentil pancakes)
Samosa.

I found the Lo to be a bit on the bland and unremarkable side, but the rest of the appetizers were quite tasty.

For the main course:
Kwati - it is a mixed daal, but it is on the soup menu. A combo of kidney beans, black eyed peas, urad daal and more. The menu said that it had 8 or so varieties of beans. I really liked this dish, it was nicely spiced and not too rich or complicated. I would not order it by itself; it is good as part of the meal as a whole.

Lamb Choyala: Strips of lamb marinated in yogurt and spices and grilled in the tandoor, served with grilled onions and green peppers. I found the lamb to be a bit tough. we ordered this one hot and the flavor was okay, but I don't think I would order this one again.

Aloo dam: Potatoes in a gravy. I think I may have missed this one. Someone else will have to give their impression on this one.

Palak Paneer. Spinach and Cheese in a cream grave. This was quite a good palak paneer. it was rich and nicely spiced. The gravy seemed more like a tikka masala gravy than other palak panner gravies I have had, but it worked quite well. If you like a cream based gravy, I would defintely recommend this one.

Kataar Aaloo - This was a jackfruit and potato dish. It was good, but not as good as the one I had at Everest on grand. It is definitely worth trying. The jackfruit has a nice texture and taste and the dish works well.

Khosi ka Masu: Goat Curry. This dish was excellent. The goat was tender and the sauce was delicious.

Salmon Tikka Masala: This was the special of the day - Chunks of marinated salmon grilled in the tandoor served in a tomato cream gravy. The salmon was a bit overdone and the sauce was not stand out. I think there are definitely better ways to eat salmon and better fish curries both.

We had basmati rice, naan and poori to go with the meal. The naan was a perfectly good naan. The poori was deflated when it came to the table. This may be because we ordered five and things were busy at this point. While the taste was good, I love the presentation of a freshly cooked and ballooned poori. An important note, the breads were quite large, maybe 8-12 inches in diameter or so. We were unable to finish ours.

We were so full that we were unable to try dessert. It was the standard South Asian fair. Kheer, rasmalai and the like.

Finally, the service was good. Despite a twelve top and most of the restaurant being full, the waitstaff was attentive and unstressed. They didn't make any mistakes and the food came out in a timely fashion.

I'll definitely be eating here again.

My favorite recipe for sage is sage roasted potatoes.
Coat the bottom of a cast iron skillet with olive oil. Cover the entire bottom of the skillet with a single layer of sage. sprinkle with sea salt. place small halved new potatoes, cut side down, over the surface so the pan is crowded but there is only a single layer. Bake at 400-450 until the potatoes are done. The insides of the potatoes turn creamy and the sage fries crisp in the oil. It is a spectacular dish.

Dear Boston Hounds,
I am in Boston for the weekend and I have a few questions.
1) Most importantly, where is the best place to get a bowl of chowder? And where is the best place to get a lobster roll? I am willing to travel all over the city for this if necessary.

2) Are there decent places to eat around Copley Square? My hotel is there.

3) Are there any decent reasonable places to drink within 2 miles of copley square? Everywhere we have been has been ridiculously expensive. I like fairly low key places.

I appreciate the help.

I would argue that Chai's is certainly the best I have had in the Cities. Their Tom Kha and their curries are particularly delicious, though there isn't a single dish I have had there that hasn't at least been very good.
I've eaten at true Thai about five times. After two I decided I wouldn't go back, but after seeing glowing recommendations here on chowhound, I decided to try it again. Three more times, and I still have been underwhelmed with everything I have eaten there. It is never spicy enough, and the flavors aren't bright like they are at Chai's.
One thing to note about Chai's is the servings are not huge. It certainly will be enough food to hold you comfortably until your next meal, but it may leave you wanting a bite or two more. I actually love to see this in a restaurant, so for me it is a benefit rather than a detraction.

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Chai's Thai Restaurant
414 1/2 Cedar Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55454

In my original post, someone mentioned doing the aging in the fridge. It is cold and dry so it may work. I ended up not doing it because I wasn't sure if it would get infused with fridge smell, sitting in there for 3 weeks. Also it does take some space and if you don't have a huge fridge, it could be a pain.

I made the amatriciana last night. Simple Recipe - Onions, Olive Oil, Butter Guanciale, Red pepper flakes, salt and tomatoes. I splurged and used a can of san marzano tomatoes. The pasta was buccatini. Man is it delicious. onion butter tomato sauce is on of my favorite sauces and the light porky flavor and the texture of the guanciale was a winner of an addition. I think I like it even better than the carbonara. If you have a cool dry basement and know a pig farmer, get some jowls and make guanciale. it is delicious stuff.

I was driven to make guanciale when I read one of the carbonara debates here on chowhound. It wasn't available here in the twin cities, and people said it was essential for an authentic carbonara. Though I don't always put much stake in authenticity, carbonara is my favorite pasta and I felt I had to try it out.

I used Mario Batalli's recipe from Babbo. The New York Times article came out 2 days after I put the jowls in the cure.

After three weeks hanging up in my basement, the guanciale finally was ready to use this week. I used it in pasta carbonara, using Marcella Hazan's recipe from _Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking_. It was fantastic! The guanciale was slightly sweet with a mellow pleasant flavor. It is slightly reminiscent of proscuitto, but mainly in its scent; the flavor and texture were quite different. It really makes carbonara into a totally different dish from both the bacon and pancetta versions. The guanciale was pretty dry around the edges, but I cut off the driest parts and the wine in the recipe hydrated the guanciale just enough. Because of the hydration by the wine, I think I could have used the jerky like pieces and they would have been tender enough.

I am going to make bucatini amatriciana next week - I am super excited to see how it turns out. I can only imagine it will be awesome.

Beyond that, I will have a decent portion of guanciale left. I think I may see how it freezes. 1 jowl is about 2 pounds and after salting and drying I would guess they weigh between 1 and 1.5 pounds. I made two of my five jowls into guanciale.

The process of making it is really quite easy, so as long as you can get your hands on some jowls ( i got mine form a pig farmer at my farmer's market) and have a cool dry place to hang them, I would highly recommend giving it a try.

For the previous thread see:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/480408

I smoked my jowl bacon last monday. We used hickory chips and smoked it for about 5 hours at a low temperature. The bacon is sublime, some of the best I have had. It is slightly sweet, and jus tmelts in your mouth. I have been frying up poeces that are about 1/4 inch thick or so. The outside crisps up nicely and the inside is still a little chewy. I have saved about a pound of it in my freezer to eat over the coming months. The rest i have eaten or given away.

The guanciale is now hanging up down in my basement. There are a few places around the edges that got really dessicated by the rub, but on the whole it looks pretty good. I am going to try eating a little in a week and it hopefully will be done in two weeks.

One thing to be careful of when you put it in the cure is to make sure that none of the jowl is folded up. I found a spot that did not come into serious contact with the cure while it was in the plastic bag I had it in. I coated it with salt and sugar and left it that side up in the fridge for three days before hanging it up. Hopefully it will turn out.

Thanks everyone! We are going to give Duplex a try. The half-price wine was a perfect idea. I'll report later this week on how it was.

My friend had suggested a bunch of us going to Barbette for his Birthday tonight. Looking a the menu, It is a bit out of my price range and I wanted to pose a couple of other suggestions of places we could try. Are there any exciting interesting places that have entrees in the 12-22 range, apps in the 4-10 range and dessert in the 4-7 range, that have 20-30 dollar bottles of wine on the menu? Any type of cuisine is okay, but he would probably prefer something Europeanish. St. Paul is probably out of the question because of distance, but if there is a restaurant there close to the boundary, I could make it work. Thanks in advance.

Just saw it. A friend who was there when I was making it found the article too. I am so excited for it to be done.

For the cure mix, I used Mario Batali's Recipe of 1/2 cup salt, 1/2 cup sugar 4 sprigs thyme and some peppercorns per 2 pounds of jowl.

My basement was similar, but I was planning to hang it in a wardrobe box to keep it from the basement. When you use the fridge, do you still hang it for 3 weeks, or do you take more or less time?

Thanks

I finally embarked on my hog jowl project yesterday. I have two jowls curing in salt, sugar, thyme and pepper for guanciale, I have two curing in maple, brown sugar and salt for bacon and I roasted one in the oven with salt, pepper, thyme and a little sugar.

The oven roasted jowl was sublime when it came out of the oven. It spent about 1.5 hours at 400 then I reduced the heat to 350 until it reached 185 degrees. The sugar was caramelized by the heat and fresh from the oven, the jowl was one of the tastiest things I have eaten in a long time. I fried up some thin slices for a sandwich for lunch today. Also quite good. It is quite fatty but a porkier flavor than bacon or pancetta.

As for the other four jowls, they have 5 more days to sit in their cure and then the guanciale will be hung up in my basement for three weeks and the jowl bacon will go in the smoker. I haven't decided on which wood I will use yet.

If people are interested, I will keep updating the project as it moves along. Unfortunately, my digital camera is broken otherwise there would be photos to accompany. Such is life.

Anyone else tried to make their own guanciale before? Or make Jowl bacon? Any suggestions as I move along?

I made a jerk chicken this evening (I cut up a chicken and sauteed the pieces for about ten mnutes and then added a jerk sauce I made which was mildly acidic - a little cider vinegar and lime juice- to which I added pineapple, peppers and onions about 45 minutes before serving. When I went to serve the dish, I discovered that a number of the chicken pieces were turning into a nasty mush. I assume this is due to the acids in the pineapple. Am I right in this assumption? If so, what can be done to insure that this doesn't happen? I could always add the pineapple right before serving, but the pineapple flavor mixed well with the jerk sauce and the sauce had time to infuse the pineapple; I would be loathe to give up the mixing of flavors. Thanks in advance for the advice.