legant

Sad to announce: the Wisconsin Ave location is closing at the end of June.  After a 25 year lease, the rent is "too damn high"

Does anyone have an opinion on (or experience with) "ugly food" companies (e.g., Imperfect Produce, Hungry Harvest)? Yes, I fell for the click-bait: I'm expecting my first box this week.

Wish I had found the TNR article before signing up. It raises some good points. However, for me, it's an affordable supplement for CSA during winter months.

Thoughts? Comments? Feedback?

Is there a re-sale market for these mags? Circa 2005 - 2008? Or, should I donate/recycle?

~ louise

I had a really great experience at Siroc recently. It's a small space, but able to accommodate groups: there were two large groups while my party of 5 dined. The food was excellent and reasonably priced.

~ louise

Oops! I done goofed. Again.

I mis-labeled some vacuum sealed ribs: I can't tell if they are beef back or pork ribs. (Definitely not short ribs.) Because they are seasoned differently, I need to figure out what type of ribs these are. The ribs are about 5" long. There is a silver skin that I had cut, before I sealed them. (Do pork ribs have silver skin?)

Okay"¦ I goofed. I bought home a rather large bunch of parsley (rather than basil) for a green goddess chicken recipe. What to do with all this parsley?

I'm cooking up a pot of beans. I'm out of carrots; can I use the carrot tops -- the green leafy things -- as an aromatic? If so, do I sauté them, or just throw them in the pot?

Tofu: one recipe calls for blanching the tofu in boiling water for 30 seconds; the other: simmer while the rest of the ingredients are prepped. Both are alternatives to the "drain and press" method. I really liked the texture of the blanched and pan-fried tofu in a mushroom and mustard greens dish.

My question: why does blanching tofu draw out excess moisture more effectively than draining and pressing? It seems counterintuitive.

[OMG! I've been away far too long! DR is giving cooking advice??!! Did hell freeze over as well??!! I've got nothing else to say.]

Can this meal be saved?

Last month I portioned, and vacuum sealed, fresh pasta.  Tonight, I cooked one of those portions, according to the instructions - fresh or frozen, 2 to 3 minutes in boiling water. Although the potion sat at room temperature for 10 minutes or so, when I dropped it in the boiling water it did not separate. I stirred and gave it 2 more minutes. Still one big clump. I then put the clump into the sauce, to simmer for 2 min. Again, one big clump. Turned off the heat, covered the pan with sauce, and waited 3 minutes this time. Guess what? One big clump!

I've cooked frozen, vacuum sealed pasta -- both dried and fresh... with success... but not this time. (The success was store-bought capellini; the failure was farmers-market sourced papperdelle.) What happened here? I've got 4 more portioned, vacuum sealed packets. What do I need to do differently?

Alas, I will not be hosting Thanksgiving this year.  However, after countless hours sifting through cookbooks and magazines and web pages, I present to you my imaginary Thanksgiving menu.

Appetizers: Pork, shrimp and cabbage raviolis; Wasabi deviled eggs

Salad: Lettuce mix with avocado dressing and pistachios

Main: Turkey roulade "“ stuffed with sage sausage, chard, and walnuts; tea brined, roasted turkey thighs

Sides: Ore Ida tater tots"¦ 'cause it's my menu and I can have anything I want; sweet potato biscuits with clover honey; Momofuku's Brussels sprouts; homemade apple chutney

Dessert: Black Pearl Layer Cake

That wraps up my fantasy menu for the coming holiday. (I definitely have an Asian theme going.) 

I'm meeting friends for dinner on Monday. Last positive review was 2011. Should we reconsider? (If so, craving Asian in Farragut North/West area. Suggestions?)

I was recently gifted a bottle of coffee syrup. I'm not a coffee drinker, so I'm at a loss on how to use this... other than in beverages. Any suggestions on how I can use this, maybe as a marinade or glaze for pork or poultry or beef?

(A quick Google search yielded recipes for coffee syrup, not on recipes that use the darn thing.)

~ louise

LTC Mark M. Weber. You fought the good fight; you finished the race. RIP

From his CaringBridge journal:

Fun fact. (And a practical one I want to plant the seed on now.) Kris met with a funeral director and apparently embalming fluid doesn’t mix well AT ALL with high bilirubin in the blood. Gives the skin a kind of green pigment. Kris asked me, “Are you okay? Do you not want to talk about this? What do you think?”

Me? Green-tinted skin and an open casket? That…would…be…AWESOME! As much as people say “I don’t want to remember him that way,” I would offer a different view. First, nothing will remove the image of who I was, in person or by picture. Second, that guy in the casket? That’ll be me – minus my spirit. A body that is thoroughly used up and totally worn out, just as desired. Third, having an open casket – wear and tear be damned? That IS my way.

Beef short ribs question:

Although I had a great braising liquid -- Asian flavors -- I couldn't get over how greasy they were. (It's not the gravy/sauce that I'm complaining about; it's the meat that left a shiny puddle on the plate.) I was thinking: what if I parboiled the beef ribs? I did a quick internet search and almost every source says that's a no-no. Then I thought...

... what if I roasted the beef short ribs prior to braising? Say for 30 minutes in a 350 oven, then add the braising liquid and finish it off. My thinking: the short, initial cooking would render the fat (much more than a searing), yielding a cleaner tasting meat.

Feedback?

FWIW: I've gotten beef back ribs from both Safeway and Giant.

Low key dining with friends. Need some place that is spitting distance from the Metro; have to jump on subway to catch 8pm theater performance. Don't know the area so the Dining Guide isn't helpful.

Thanks.

~ louise

To be replaced by 876 Cafe. Any word on the cuisine?

I'm curious what recommendations folks have for vacuum sealers. Looks like they run the gamut from $12 (Reynolds) to hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars.

I'm in love with my FoodSaver mini especially since I can get replacement bags at Bed Bath & Beyond. Use it for cheeses... last summer's produce... and portioning value-sized packs of meats.

I'm in. And, if there is a g-f section and taste test, will be +2.

Maybe a partial theme or idea can be a gf section and taste test? lperry's post on pizza got me thinking...(you can tell what I'm bringing.)

[One of the joys of participating in a CSA: you never know what you're gonna get.]

I got three of these suckers. I tried Bitter Melon Scrambled Eggs with mixed results. IF (yes... that's a BIG if) I try it again, I would dice the bitter melon, rather than slice it. I also added Parmesan cheese. Lots of Parmesan cheese.

Given that it's a long weekend, I'm planning on trying this Bitter Melon Shrimp Stir-fry recipe.

That leaves one more Bitter Melon. Any suggestions?

Tonight: Salmon and Sorrel Troisgros over brown rice w/ roasted carrots

Sunday night: oven roasted Elote; chicken salad (cream cheese, yogurt, red curry, cabbage, carrots, cilantro) spring rolls

Sorrel: a CSA surprise. WTF (other than salmon) do I do with it?

~ louise

Just in case anyone else faces the same quandary: 50 Things To Do With Fresh Sorrel

More than 2 1/2 years later, with the same request.

I'm looking to start doing a regular office happy hour / post-work drink-related get together. Here's what I'm after:

-Ideally, the location wouldn't be more than a few blocks from our office (at the corner of N, 18th, and Connecticut NW - just south of Dupont Circle).

-Someplace quiet and not too crowded - we're a more laid back office (i.e. no sardine cans full of 20-somethings and loud music; god I'm boring)

-The cheapest drink can't be $15 and full of diamonds

-Probably no more than 3-6 of us going out

Thanks!

Penang would have been my first choice; was surprised to learn it had closed. Any updates on previously mentioned locations? Any additions?

Sorrel: a CSA surprise. WTF (other than salmon) do I do with it?

~ louise