03 May 2013
by scolgin
in Recipes, Humor, Food
Tags: Mexico, margaritas, queso fundido, Cinco de Mayo, Mexican cooking, Baja California, machaca, Bri Winkler, Oaxaca, Yucatan
My friends and family (and probably quite a few of my blog readers) know that when it comes to food, I’m a theme-and-holiday geek. Oftentimes as a holiday approaches, various people will reach out to me. “So,” they’ll say, “What are you guys up to for St. Patrick’s Day?” They know full well what we’re up to, and are angling for an invitation.
The stuff Cinco de Mayo dreams are made of.
One of my favorite “reason-to-cook-and-drink-ethnic” holidays is upon us — Cinco de Mayo. Much like St. Patrick’s Day, it’s a holiday that’s more popular with Yankees than it is back in the home country. It’s the day everyone is Mexican! Also like St. Patrick’s Day, it’s a convenient excuse for those who would drink in excess to head for their favorite watering hole. For us, Cinco de Mayo — again, like St. Patrick’s Day — is an opportunity to celebrate the food and drink of the holiday’s culture. If we drink too much, it’s not on purpose. More
25 Apr 2013
by scolgin
in Food, Humor, Pork, Recipes
Tags: Chengdu, China, Chinese cooking, Huang Fei Hong spicy peanuts, ma la, peppercorns, Saveur, Sichuan, Szechuan
One of the strangest culinary experiences I’ve ever had was more than a decade ago, when our friend from Szechuan, Guonan, invited us over for Szechuan hot pot.
Among the more unusual items on the condiment plate that evening as we sat on the floor around a bubbling pot on the coffee table of her Marina del Rey apartment, gazing out at the twinkling lights of the boats in the harbor, was duck tongues. More
19 Apr 2013
by scolgin
in Food, Humor, Pork, Recipes
Tags: Alsace cooking, choucroute, Dar Maghreb, French food, Pierre Dupar, Pork, saffron, sauerkraut, spices, star anise
A few weeks ago, I was making choucroute, a German-influenced French specialty of the Alsace region, when I realized I didn’t have any juniper berries. (After all, who has juniper berries?) I emailed pal Ernie, who would be joining us for dinner that night to see if he might have some, in addition to caraway seeds and whole clove.
“I have caraway seeds,” he replied, “But I have no idea how old they are. They’ve been in here a long time.”
Old spices from my spice drawer (l to r): Chinese powdered ginger, herbes de Provence, something so old I don’t even know what it is, some Jamaican curry a friend brought me back from Jamaica when we were in our 20s, and ancient saffron from my dad’s friend Pierre
I then queried neighbors Chris and Glennis to see if they had any juniper berries, and was pleased when Chris responded that they did. More
05 Apr 2013
by scolgin
in Food, Recipes
Tags: bisque, Carlsbad Aquafarm, frisee aux lardons, fruits de mer, La Grande Motte, Marseille, oysters, pastis, Santa Monica farmer's market, shrimp
Like I’ve said before — when it comes to dinner, we’re a theme family. And often a theme evolves around random happenings on my shopping route.
Reading all the various comments to my recent post on oyster bars got me in the mood, of course, for oysters. So at my Wednesday farmer’s market, I picked up a dozen oysters from the (somewhat) local aquaculture guys as well as, among other things, a head of frisee lettuce, two duck eggs and a fennel bulb. I remembered that I had a nice chunk of stinky cheese in the fridge, and thought perhaps I had the makings of a French night, some night soon.
Frisee
I eyed some beautiful fresh sardines at the Japanese market later in the day. But there was rain in the forecast, and sardines are a food best eaten fresh off the grill. So I passed. More
29 Mar 2013
by scolgin
in Food, Recipes
Tags: bagels, breakfast, cowboys, Lake Tahoe, Nevada, Raley's, shmear, smoked salmon, steelhead, trout
I was wondering what kinds of things I might cook while in Tahoe. My friend Curtis, as I said, is a cowboy, so certainly there would be lots of beef. But when I’m traveling, I also enjoy cooking local-style food, or use local ingredients I might not find at home. In Hawaii I like to cook with macadamias, pineapple and fresh fish, for example; in the Northwest, I use salmon and hazelnuts. Would there be any equivalent for Lake Tahoe?
Browsing the Raley’s market just over the Nevada border one early afternoon after skiing, things looked pretty much the usual. I could’ve been at a grocery store in Santa Monica or Malibu. But then at the fish counter, something caught my eye — a red-fleshed Sierra lake trout. More
Previous Older Entries
