Unutterably Silly I love food porn! so...what are you craving?

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by wannabee

raw ground beef, with a raw egg sitting in a hollow on top. I freaked.

It's funny how tastes and expectations change, and cultures differ. Before I moved to Asia I would never consider eating raw fish. It was still very rare to find it in the US, and then only in the biggest cities. Now, eating raw horsemeat doesn't make me bat an eye, or raw sea urchin innards.

The first time I made dinner for my Japanese wife, I made a typical green salad to go with it. When she saw it she screamed! She thought I was going to poison us, serving raw broccoli, raw peas, and raw spring onion cut up in the salad. It took me 10 minutes to assure her that these were OK to eat uncooked.


Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

A cute story from my misspent youth...

I was 17, on a 'first date' with a girl who was part of the "In Crowd" in high school. (I was on the fencing team which is NOT 'in crowd' material. You need basketball or base ball for that.) I had taken her to a really fancy restaurant in NYC, had borrowed 'proof of age' so we could drink, etc., etc. I really wanted to make a good impression on this girl, so when the menu came along, and I didn't recognize ANYTHING, I pretty much panicked. I did see something called 'Steak Tartare' and that was about the only word I recognized on the damn menu, so I ordered that, thinking I was set. Being young and not very worldly, I figured any kind of steak would work.

Then the waiter brought over a plate with what looked to me to be a supermarket sales portion (kind of rounded but molded?) of raw ground beef, with a raw egg sitting in a hollow on top. I freaked. I never ate ANYTHING raw back then, and the idea of raw meat or raw egg almost made me retch! I didn't know what to do!

I didn't want to appear so provincial to my date, but I knew I couldn't put any of this into my mouth, so I looked at it for a moment, looked at the waiter, (who must have recognized the anguish in my eyes) and said "Sorry, but I don't think this is prepared properly. Please have the cook make me something better." He returned with a knowing eye, and a nicely cooked Salisbury Steak, (probably the same meat and egg, just mixed up and broiled,) and never cracked a smile.

The girl never went out with me again anyway.


Stitchawl

having grown up on, in and around ranches and farms, and also hunting, snacking on raw meat was not at all unusual for me. imagine my delight and amazement upon going to Europe and finding out that it was not only accepted, but encouraged!

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

It's funny how tastes and expectations change, and cultures differ. Before I moved to Asia I would never consider eating raw fish. It was still very rare to find it in the US, and then only in the biggest cities. Now, eating raw horsemeat doesn't make me bat an eye, or raw sea urchin innards.

The first time I made dinner for my Japanese wife, I made a typical green salad to go with it. When she saw it she screamed! She thought I was going to poison us, serving raw broccoli, raw peas, and raw spring onion cut up in the salad. It took me 10 minutes to assure her that these were OK to eat uncooked.


Stitchawl

some of those cultural things really do make you go HUH!? I was sent to the Siemens school in Munich along with two other women that worked as telephone operators, I was a technician, but being able to "hotel" 3 of us together they thought was a great cost savings. the other two were from the deep south of the US and had actually known each other before their husbands joined the military. I had completely gone native during my first tour so had few food issues (other than organ meat). for some reason they had a HUGE issue with fish and milk, indeed any dairy product not only being cooked or served together, but being on the same table. this came out in our one and only joint visit to the Hofbrauhaus, and it almost became a second bierhall putsch the way those two freaked out about having fish on a table THAT big where almost anything INCLUDING MILK could be eaten!!!!

that was an area 51 sort of night there

[montsnmags]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Great minds, and all that! I made a Thai Green curry for dinner last night! But I cheat. I use Mae Ploy curry pastes. Mother Ploy can do it better than I can. I discovered her when we lived in Thailand, recommended to me by my Thai friends. I buy the larger tubs of her red and green curry, and they last long enough in the fridge to be worthwhile.


Stitchawl

We finally made it to Rajas Asian Supermarket today, and oh boy was it a treasure trove! We found the coconut vinegar, the Chinese dark vinegar, cassia bark, some coriander seeds that look freshly dried rather than like old stale peppercorns as we usually get, glutinous rice, and a whole lot of other stuff that we couldn't think why we needed it but we pretended we did. They even had (frozen) pandan leaf which I don't think I've seen anywhere outside of Sydney's Chinatown.

But, to the point, they also had those larger tubs of Mae Ploy's products. I had recognized it from your link, but that was back in Sydney where there is a much broader demand. I didn't buy any, but it's likely we will later buy a smaller tub to give it a try, or just keep for last-minute efforts.

Also, cheap bamboo steamers in a variety of sizes, and good, large, decent woks (functional over fancy)...future presents for The Loved One.

Great place. I wish I'd found it and gone in sooner. Now we know, and we ride our pushbikes past all the time, so we'll grab stuff as we need it when passing by. Happy.

Cheers,
Marc

[Stitchawl]

Tabuli! With lots of mint and lemon juice and tomatoes! I haven't had it in quite a while, so tonight it will be!

Stitchawl

[Latinandgreek]

Coffee cake:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2...fee-cake-ever/

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by montsnmags

Also, cheap bamboo steamers in a variety of sizes, and good, large, decent woks (functional over fancy)...future presents for The Loved One.

Some years ago (25? 30?) there were several Chinese cooking shows on TV. Martin Yan's "Yan Can Cook" was my favorite! He said get the really cheap hammered iron woks without wooden handles. At the same time, there were some Occidental Chinese chefs pushing Teflon coated woks for $39.95, cast iron woks, and even electric woks! Martin Yan's instructions were to keep away from the department stores and instead shop for a wok in a Chinese hardware store. Cleavers too. And that's where I got all my Chinese cooking gear, including the bamboo steamer baskets! In a hardware store in the Chinatown section of Montreal! A couple of woks of different sizes, a good cleaver, wok spoon and spatula, bamboo baskets, large mesh ladles for removing things from hot oil, etc., etc. I doubt I spent more than $50 on everything together, and I'm still using those same iron things today. The bamboo baskets got lost in one of my moves... New ones here, even in the Chinatown area of Kobe cost about $50 for a set of three.

Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Some years ago (25? 30?) there were several Chinese cooking shows on TV. Martin Yan's "Yan Can Cook" was my favorite! He said get the really cheap hammered iron woks without wooden handles. At the same time, there were some Occidental Chinese chefs pushing Teflon coated woks for $39.95, cast iron woks, and even electric woks! Martin Yan's instructions were to keep away from the department stores and instead shop for a wok in a Chinese hardware store. Cleavers too. And that's where I got all my Chinese cooking gear, including the bamboo steamer baskets! In a hardware store in the Chinatown section of Montreal! A couple of woks of different sizes, a good cleaver, wok spoon and spatula, bamboo baskets, large mesh ladles for removing things from hot oil, etc., etc. I doubt I spent more than $50 on everything together, and I'm still using those same iron things today. The bamboo baskets got lost in one of my moves... New ones here, even in the Chinatown area of Kobe cost about $50 for a set of three.

Stitchawl

that's interesting... in the little chinese shop in the warren of shops across the street from Pike Place Market in Seattle I get those stacking sets for about 10 bucks for the small ones and 15-20 for the large ones. I've cooked them to pieces more than a few times

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

that's interesting... in the little chinese shop in the warren of shops across the street from Pike Place Market in Seattle I get those stacking sets for about 10 bucks for the small ones and 15-20 for the large ones. I've cooked them to pieces more than a few times

Prices on everything here are nuts. That's why I don't mind paying shipping costs to bring things in. It usually costs less in the long run.


Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

I can see that! especially as these baskets originate somewhere on your side of the water!

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

I can see that! especially as these baskets originate somewhere on your side of the water!

They are usually made in either China, Thailand, or the Philippines and cost about $2-$4 in those countries. But by the time they reach here...
Imagine paying $1.50 for a bulb of garlic. Or $4 for an apple. One stalk of celery (not the entire head, just one stalk,) at the supermarket today was going for $1.75. These are all locally grown...

Think of it this way. A Big Mac, Fries, and a Large coke set costs $8.50 in Japan. This is NOT a place to try to retire and live on S.S.


Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

They are usually made in either China, Thailand, or the Philippines and cost about $2-$4 in those countries. But by the time they reach here...
Imagine paying $1.50 for a bulb of garlic. Or $4 for an apple. One stalk of celery (not the entire head, just one stalk,) at the supermarket today was going for $1.75. These are all locally grown...

Think of it this way. A Big Mac, Fries, and a Large coke set costs $8.50 in Japan. This is NOT a place to try to retire and live on S.S.


Stitchawl

there are a LOT of Navy personnel here that have been stationed in Japan. I've heard many of the stories!

[Stitchawl]

Thinking of the Navy makes me thing of SOS. I was Air Force so we didn't get it more than once or twice a year when the regular cooks were on leave, but I always liked it. I'm going to see if I can find some real dried beef around here and whip up a batch. I know I can get plain toast.

Stitchawl

[bjones6416]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Thinking of the Navy makes me thing of SOS. I was Air Force so we didn't get it more than once or twice a year when the regular cooks were on leave, but I always liked it. I'm going to see if I can find some real dried beef around here and whip up a batch. I know I can get plain toast.

Stitchawl

OMG, my brother-in-law, who started out as a Navy cook in his early military career, makes the best SOS in the world (although he calls it creamed beef when he serves it at church breakfast.) Everybody loves it, and we traditionally have it on Christmas morning even though we have a big dinner later on that day. We eat it on biscuits until they run out, then we finish up with toast. Yum!

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

OMG, my brother-in-law, who started out as a Navy cook in his early military career, makes the best SOS in the world (although he calls it creamed beef when he serves it at church breakfast.) Everybody loves it, and we traditionally have it on Christmas morning even though we have a big dinner later on that day. We eat it on biscuits until they run out, then we finish up with toast. Yum!

Does he make it with the dried chipped beef? Or is there another way and still have it come out as good?


Stitchawl

[bjones6416]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Does he make it with the dried chipped beef? Or is there another way and still have it come out as good?


Stitchawl

Don't tell anybody, but (whispers) he uses ground beef. It is SO good, though. It's a good thing I only get it a couple of times a year or I'd be as big as a house.