The Sean Dog

05 Jan 2018 6 Comments

by scolgin in Markets & Stores, Recipes, World's Best Sandwiches Tags: , , , , , , ,

Necessity, as the saying goes, is the mother of invention. But could that really be true of a hot dog? Is there such a thing as necessity when it comes to a hot dog.

Sit back, friends, and let me tell my tale.

The Sean Dog

It all begins at our local Ralph’s supermarket (Krogers to you folks on the East Coast). I’ve become obsessed with the hunt for their “Woohoo” deals — items throughout the store which, due mostly to rapidly approaching “sell by” dates, have had their prices precipitously cut and have been flagged with a little yellow-and-red “Woohoo!” sticker. It has the same appeal as mushroom hunting or garage sale-ing: sometimes you find something, sometimes you don’t. More often than not, I make staggering discoveries — $14 Italian La Tur cheeses for $4; $20 dry-aged ribeyes for $6. More

Kim Chee to the Rescue, Again!

10 Feb 2017 13 Comments

by scolgin in Humor, Pork, Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , ,

It was Super Bowl Sunday, and things were not going well.

A few evenings earlier, I had awoken in the middle of the night with one of those sneezes that tells you immediately a cold is imminent.

We had friends for dinner Friday night, and despite feeling a bit under the weather, I cooked and ate and drank and toasted and laughed. And then went to bed. And didn’t sleep a wink — the entire night.

My medicine

My medicine

I got up, jittery, tired and sick. And went for a run. When I got home, I showered, took a Benadryl, climbed back in bed. And slept for four hours. When I woke, I felt wildly out of sorts — even sleepier than I had been, my vision skewed, my depth perception practically non existent. More

Dinner with the Dear Leader

11 Nov 2011 10 Comments

by scolgin in Recipes, Video Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Something happens to me when there are Korean short ribs around. I don’t like the man I become.

The Dear Leader, upset to find no short ribs

Our friend Pirco is from Berlin, his wife Jean is Korean. Every summer they have a party for Pirco’s birthday, and Jean makes short ribs — “kalbi”, in Korean. This year, Pirco was manning the grill. I bet he’s dynamite with a steamed bratwurst. But when it came to the short ribs, he looked in over his head. “Sean, do you think these coals look correct?” he asked. I was giving him tips, and next thing I knew it was I who was manning the grill. Which I could not have planned better — I was now in control of the short ribs. More

It’s Alive!!!

10 Jun 2011 10 Comments

by scolgin in Cooking Tips, Recipes Tags: , , , , ,

I eat a lot of kim chee. I usually have a jar in the fridge, and I find it makes a nice snack. Plus, it’s a Super Food — packed with antioxidants and other unquantifiable health-improving properties. During the avian flu outbreak in Asia, it’s said that Korea derived a good deal of protection from eating kim chee. My wife, on the other hand, is not so fond of it. “What is that awful smell?” she says whenever she comes into the kitchen after I’ve snacked.

My kim chee

When I stumbled on a kim chee article in an old issue my favorite cooking magazine, I took that as a sign it was time to try making it on my own. More

The World’s Healthiest Things and Me

10 May 2011 10 Comments

by scolgin in Cooking Tips, Observations, Starlets, Yoga Students & Quinoa (stories) Tags: , , , , , , ,

I eat my fair share of salt-cured pork products. I like sprinkling my food liberally with flaky sea salt. I enjoy rib eye steaks, and I’m a fan of potato chips and ice cream. But I also eat a good amount of some of the world’s healthiest things. And not because I should, but because I like them.

sardines

More