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V.H.

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Everything posted by V.H.

  1. V.H.
    Hmmm, shell on last week, shell off this week. Blacksalt doesn't seem like the type of place to sell shrimp past their prime but that's certainly what I seem to have gotten.
  2. V.H.
    I bought an assortment of fish and shellfish yesterday at Blacksalt for bouillabaisse. My purchase included some raw, peeled Maine shrimp. While they tasted great raw, they turned quite mushy when cooked in the bouillabaisse. I added the Maine shrimp after I turned the pot off and let the residual heat of the broth cook the shrimp. I served up as soon as the shrimp turned opaque so i don't think overcooking was the problem. I've had Maine shrimp before but it's been a while and I just don't recall this texture. Is this normal?
  3. V.H.
    Really gorgeous artichokes available at Trader joe's right now. Medium sized, no discoloration at all, and nice and heavy. Four for $2.29, perfect for Marcella Hazan's stuffed artichoke recipe.
  4. V.H.

    Smoking

    V.H. replied to plunk's topic in Shopping and Cooking

    As does Home Depot.
  5. V.H.

    Suet

    V.H. replied to legant's topic in Shopping and Cooking

    Lebanese Butcher in Annandale
  6. V.H.
    I'm looking to buy a traditional vietnamese glutinous rice cake, the kind that's filled with mung bean paste and pork and wrapped in banana leaves. I know of lots of places in Eden Center where I can buy them, as well as the Tet markets that will be coming up. My question is, where to find a reliably tasty version of one? Any recommendations? I've eaten them before and I've liked some better than others but never needed to know where to actually go get one. Right now my current plan is to go to Eden center and walk around to see where there seems to be the most turnover.
  7. V.H.
    I've had results ranging from okay to really good the three times I've tried smoking fish at home. There's a lot of info out there on the web as to brines and rubs. I've only done salmon but bluefish sounds yummy and worth a try once it's no longer 15 degrees out.
  8. V.H.
    Good to know there's a Hot Dog Council out there fighting the good fight.
  9. V.H.
    foie macarons
  10. V.H.
    We live within walking distance of the Lee Hwy Crisp and Juicy but still drive to get chicken from El Pollo Rico. The chicken at the Crisp and Juicy is just not as flavorful. Granted, we had two mediocre experiences and have not gone back.
  11. V.H.
    The one time I've had the Frito Misto is was highly disappointing. While everything was perfectly fried, the seafood had little flavor and the breading did not lend any either. I never salt my food but I did in that case to try to bring a little life to the dish. Since it sounds like you've had it at least a few more times than I have, could you describe your experiences with the dish?
  12. V.H.
    I have found Wilton gel food coloring at craft stores like AC Moore and Michaels. Sheet gelatin can be found at http://www.auiswiss.com/ in MD.
  13. V.H.
    Puff pastry at TJ's is a nice buy for the holidays. Take a sheet, cut into small squares with your pizza cutter, top with a bit of something, and bake for a 15 minute munchie that goes great with something fizzy. Added bonus? It's made with butter, not shortening like most store brands.
  14. V.H.
    I've gotten the pork and it's pretty good. For some reason it tastes not quite as good as the same product sold sliced to order at Arrowine.
  15. V.H.
    Got takeout from Hell-Burger tonight. Along with our three burgers we tried a side of the cheesy fried potato puffs. These appear to be golf balls of cheesy mashed potatoes and chives/scallions, rolled in bread crumbs, and deep fried. They're an addictive little snack until you take your first bite of burger and then you want nothing coming between you and all that beefy goodness.
  16. V.H.
    http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp...WELAID=61271904 These are readily available at any grocery store. We freeze soups in them all the time and
  17. V.H.
    Try the Lebanese Butcher. Since they have their own processing plant, maybe they can get the caul fat for you if you describe what it is and what you're using it for?
  18. V.H.

    Chocolates

    V.H. replied to Pete's topic in Shopping and Cooking

    I am a huge fan of the bourbon and whisky flavored chocolates at Artisan Confections. Make sure you try some of those. And the hot chocolate drink mix as well!
  19. V.H.
    Lebanese Butcher shop in Falls church
  20. V.H.
    Lobster sandwich? What? Where? Please describe a bit more.
  21. V.H.
    We told a friend about saltenas so she returned the favor and told us we had to try pupusas, specifically from Blanca's. As we were leaving her place, we realized it was getting close to lunch time and since Blanca's was on our way, we stopped in. As I waited for our takeout order of two pupusas and a tamale, I checked out what others were getting. There was a hot foods area next to their bakery case that had all sorts of amazing looking things in it. It looked like for a fixed price, you could choose several things from the offerings. I have no idea what any of the dishes were called but they all looked awesome. Like you got invited to a banquet cooked by someone's Salvedorean grandmother and their aunts and they pulled out all the stops and made you all your favorite stuff. Nearly everyone there was getting this and every plate was filled to the brim with food. As for our takeout order, the baby liked the tamale but we thought the pupusas were the hands down winner. We got the ones stuffed with cheese and pork and topped with the cole slaw-like curtido and salsa, they made for a filling lunch at a mere $2 a piece ($1.50 weekday lunch).
  22. V.H.
    I work down that way and have been here a couple of times in the last year. My impression is that while the space is lovelier than your average Thai restaurant, the food is just average. It's a good choice if you're taking someone who is only a little adventurous because it's definitely geared more towards American tastes. Everything is a little sweeter and less spicy than it ought to be. We've started going to Talay Thai on 1st St which is much better.
  23. V.H.
    How would you define traditional baking as different from artisan? When I think of artisan I tend to associate it when traditional methods.
  24. V.H.
    We love our Bosch but given that in both our old house and our current one we used to have old, cheap noisy dishwashers, I think it would have been hard not to be impressed. The Bosch is incredibly quiet and while I like the half load option in theory, our family of four always seems to need the whole thing.
  25. V.H.
    The school packing adventures are going well. Things I've learned: -kindergartners talk more than they eat, unless you pack dessert that they can only have if they finish lunch -homemade bittersweet chocolate pudding is way more successful than Oreos in getting your kid to eat their lunch -the food jars keep the food warm but are really hard for kindergartners to open -the thermos drink containers are awesome at keeping milk cold, even until the end of the school day Very few of the kids seem to buy lunch and those that do don't seem to eat very much of it, based on my two lunch time visits. It's interesting to see the spreads that the packers bring. One boy gets a plate along with his containers of food and sets out his lunch on his plate before eating. Another girl has a food jar and brings a warm lunch frequently. Everyone is always interested in what everyone else has and there is lots of comparing but no trading.
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