What I learned today (Take Two)

Speaking of waffle irons…. I mainly use mine now to crisp up leftover stuffing the next day and top with fried eggs

If I had mine back I would totally do this, too!

Really, how far off from a panini press is a waffle iron?

I would say they're close. The indentations are just for collecting syrup.

I've been wanting a Danish bread whisk/stirrer for some. I bought one today at Hobby Lobby, of all places, for a third of the price in cooling stores. Who wudda thunk?

You boycott Goya but shop at Hobby Lobby?

[Jenise]

Speaking of waffle irons…. I mainly use mine now to crisp up leftover stuffing the next day and top with fried eggs

If I had mine back I would totally do this, too!

Really, how far off from a panini press is a waffle iron?

I love that idea. Ditto hash browns. I presume both work better in a deeper Belgian style waffle iron vs. the classic I have. Which I still love, though I only make savory waffles. Did black truffle waffles for a Beef Burgundy kind of topping for our Vancouver lunch group once, and I often add semi-mashed avocado into a cumin-scented batter to go with grilled fish with a cilantro butter sauce.

We've had Kenji's The Wok book for a while, but haven't used enough. I grabbed the other day, and just thumbed through. I found myself really enjoying the writing (beyond the recipes, the intros/histories - personal or cultural).
I was looking for something quick (for cooking when I got home, marination earlier doesn't count) I ended up doing a velvet chicken & snow peas with lemon sauce. The technique was water velveting, not oil. I found an earlier discussion on that in an old thread here:
posting.php?mode=reply&f=5&t=61814

Certainly less mess/wasted oil than oil velveting, and very good texture.

You boycott Goya but shop at Hobby Lobby?

I guess I can be sold for a $25 difference. I did hold my nose.

A corrected link to the discussion of the velveting/pass-through-once technique.

-Paul W.

ok, I learned about a cut of meat I'd never had before. During a lamb sale at Flannerys last year I ordered several saddles, a couple of racks, and a 32 oz pack of riblets. Didn't really know what that was, but sounded interesting. Thursday I saw in freezer and decided to thaw for Fri. Kind of like baby backs.
I rubbed with oil and did s&P and za'atar. Following a couple of online suggestions, did 325 oven for an hour. Finished in 450 oven for couple minutes (planned on grilling,but had sides that needed hot oven and didn't want to be cooking 2 places). Did a squirt of Meyer lemon before the finishing.
Fantastic flavor, but a bit chewy.
Worked well, but next time I think I'll try maybe 1.5-2 hrs at 250 like I do with baby backs. Not as much fat as pork, won't get as tender, but think might help.
Next lamb sale I might buy 2 or 3 packs (there were 5 little racks in 2 lb package, we had 2 each) and do for a big backyard party (slow oven then finish on griLL), cut into single ribs as a nosh.

I've had lamb riblets once or twice before. They've always struck me as too much work for too little chew.

[Jenise]

They are indeed delicious, and I love eating things off the bone. Probably haven't seen any in 20 years though--now that stores no longer break down whole animals things like lamb riblets have disappeared.

Jenise, when I want a special cut of meat, I ask the butcher at our local stores to cut it for me. They always do. Is that option not available up there? I recall one time I asked for a special cut, which I cannot recall at this moment, and she told me she was not familiar with doing that but would get her book out and find out. She did, and I got my cut.

[Jenise]

No. The butchers don't have the whole animal to cut special cuts from. Rather the stores buy whole primals from the abbatoirs and cut those down. Things like prime rib, new york/sirloin and briskets come cryovacced from the processor. And that applies to lamb up here in spades. Shanks and chops is all the lamb we see; ribs never show up.

That is rather scary, Jenise. Too bad folks don't demand those things. However, I recall years ago when Gene and I were RVing, how surprised I was when visiting grocery stores up there and into Canada and how different cuts of meat and availability were then.

Spring has sprung here in the valley, and birds are happy. Mallard ducks have visited my pool twice, (happily, they have not taken up residence) roses are leafing out, and the rosemary shrub is full of purple flowers. Yesterday, I put chicken legs, thighs, wings, and 1/2 of a breast in the marinate using buttermilk, tabasco, and juice from Bruno's peppers. Today, I am turning the pieces again and adding fresh rosemary. The pieces will be coated with Oven Fry, a product I discovered decades ago, and love better than any other breading I tried homemade or boxed. A side dish of Farro cooked in chicken stock, sun-dried tomatoes, lemon, and parmesan cheese. Veggies will be a stir-fry of broccoli, red onion wedges, large mushroom slices, and garlic. I am craving beans again and placed an order with Rancho Gordo for a new bean plus Midnight Black beans which I love. If they arrive today, I may put on a slow cooker, if not, will wait until later in the week. Happy Spring everyone!
I put this in the wrong spot, but cannot find the delete button??

Yesterday I learned just how much acrid smoke can come from two slices of bread that get stuck in the toaster while you're distracted with preparation of another part of the meal.

-Paul W.

I know the feeling Paul, my toaster tosses certain bread out and onto the floor. Sometimes I catch, sometimes NOT!

Tonight I learned that if you bring salmon rillettes to a neighborhood potluck, no one eats it. (Even though the party was in honor of a family leaving our neighborhood to move to France, so it was thematic and all that.) Oh well - more for us!

[Jenise]

Pot lucks can be tricky. My personal rule of thumb is to only bring things that can be served one-handed, like with a spoon or tongs. Anything that requires assembly won't get the love it otherwise deserves.

Pumpkin's rule about pot lucks is to only bring food that you'd be happy to take back home.

Pumpkin's rule about pot lucks is to only bring food that you'd be happy to take back home.

He's right! And that definitely worked in this case.

[Jenise]

Last week I learned that top American chefs--in unrelated circumstances I heard it from two different well-respected American chefs on food TV--pronunce the Ethiopian spice blend berbere as "BEAR-berry". Decades ago I had a roommate who grew up in Addis Abbaba (sp?), and who kept berbere in our shared kitchen where I fell in love with it. He pronounced it ber-ber-RAY and I'm confident that this is how any self-respecting Ethiopian would pronounce it.

Addis Ababa.

That's right, Jenise - it is 'burr' not 'bear'. We use it regularly, mostly with chicken or pork dishes.

This is a good write up by a chef you will be familiar with: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food ... ere-354610

Even adding just a little bit to many recipes adds a certain 'je ne sais quoi'.

[Jenise]

So yesterday I discovered something new at Trader Joe's, conical cabbages they call Dew Drops. Of course conical cabbages aren't new, it's just that it's something TJ's hasn't stocked before (in addition to regular round cabbages) let alone applied a trademark name to. I love the loose leaves of this style cabbage, they're sweeter.