# What ya eating lately...



## Mucho Bocho (Oct 17, 2017)

FOOD
What are you eating today
What makes your tum tum say yum
Sweet Sour Salty Bitter Umami


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 17, 2017)

I wanted to start a thread about food and taste. I've been actively and passionately cooking for most of my life and I find food and all its ramifications endlessly fascinating and creatively satisfying. I'm always seeking new ingredients, techniques and flavors. I discover new things daily and wanted to post a thread on what others have discovered in their food journey?

Share what you discovered today. What you're eating, what you just discovered that just blowing your mind and can't get enough of...


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## DamageInc (Oct 17, 2017)

Shoyu ramen at Slurp in Copenhagen has had me wanting to try and recreate it at home.


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## TheCaptain (Oct 17, 2017)

Roasted Greek lemon chicken with perfectly browned golden potato wedges. I normally do not like lemon in my cooked foods, but this ticks all my flavor boxes (except sweet which I'm ok with).

Love colder weather comfort food!


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 17, 2017)

Milk braised pork belly w/paprika new potatoes and bay leaf. Lately I've been trying to simplify my dishes. To elevate the flavor and texture of a few choice ingredients presented irresistibly.

1.)Pressure cook a salted/seasoned 3 LBS skin-less pork belly in chix broth and parsley stems (30 min). Press and cool.
2.) Cut into three squares brown edges in med-hot pan
3.) Dump fat, add whole milk 1/2 up the side of pork, add new potatoes, dust them with salt, pepper, paprika and add a few fresh bay leaves. Cover with parchment, cook 350 for 60 min. Remove to stove top, reduce pan sauce as desired. Serve along side med. dice pickled beets. 

You could really taste the bay leaf in the cream sauce. The paprika did well to give it a nice red almost saffron color with a hint of smokey pepperiness. The milk braised an already tender pork belly gave a nice flavor contrast to the sauce and really amped up the porkyness of the meat.

I know, I know. No pics so this never happened. It was good though.


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## TheCaptain (Oct 17, 2017)

I'm not sure reading this thread at work is a good idea. The puddle of drool on my desk is endangering my workpapers. :spin chair:


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## WildBoar (Oct 17, 2017)

homemade pita (thanks to kostantinos) and just purchased up a used smoker yesterday so I can try out his half smoke recipe.


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## naifu (Oct 17, 2017)

Probably not quite in the spirit of this thread, but I will mention *Supermoon Bakehouse* because it recently opened in NYC and I recently discovered it just outside my hotel a couple of weeks ago at lower Eastside. It is a very clean layout storefront that displays what they have on a long pink granite counter, and behind a tall glass wall are the pastry chefs who craft filled crescents, donuts, and cruffins. The taste of these artisan pastries blew my mind. I have never ate a filled donut that tasted as good as these do. I don't know what they use to fill them, but it is pure magic.

Check out the yelp page for more photos, and I recommend that you make a diversion to Rivington and Essex next time you are in NYC.


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## chinacats (Oct 17, 2017)

Thanks for a positive thread Dennis, makes me smile.

As for me, I'm slowly starting to discover some of the excellent restaurants in my new state (Maine) and its been amazing.

As far as cooking I'm looking forward to trying Sebastian's creme fraiche dumplings.


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## panda (Oct 18, 2017)

pink tacos


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## Keith Sinclair (Oct 18, 2017)

Tuesdays is 15% off for seniors at Japanese place. Janice had Miso butterfish. Everything is set with miso soup, rice & salad. I had Tempura shrimp with veg. (tempura pumpkin, beans, carrot, sweet potato. ) & fried oysters.


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## krx927 (Oct 18, 2017)

chinacats said:


> As far as cooking I'm looking forward to trying Sebastian's creme fraiche dumplings.



Me too! They look fantastic.

Did not have time yet as this weekend I was attempting chinfana. Portuguese dish with goat meet braised for hours in red wine. Delicious!


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## rami_m (Oct 18, 2017)

I have something I am embarrassed to admit. 

I lay down at night and dream of the food we ate in Japan.


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## DamageInc (Oct 18, 2017)

Rami Dreams of Sushi?


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## OliverNuther (Oct 18, 2017)

Asparagus is in season in Australia at the moment. So far this week we've had asparagus soup, roasted pumpkin, asparagus and feta quiche, orrechiette with asparagus sauce and roast pumpkin and asparagus risotto is on the menu for tomorrow night. 

Did I mention I love asparagus?


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 18, 2017)

A Golden cup of coffee from my Technivorum. Black of course


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## JMJones (Oct 19, 2017)

Cured and smoked bacon at home earlier in the week. Currently Pizole in the new instant pot by wife picked up on sale yesterday.


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## naifu (Oct 19, 2017)

Spanish cured meats: Jamón Pata Negra, Chorizo Ibérico, Caña de lomo, and Salchichón Ibérico
Foie Gras mouse encrusted with pistachio 
Assorted cheeses

Life and food good!


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 19, 2017)

naifu said:


> Spanish cured meats: Jamón Pata Negra, Chorizo Ibérico, Caña de lomo, and Salchichón Ibérico
> Foie Gras mouse encrusted with pistachio
> Assorted cheeses
> 
> Life and food good!



Hope your drinking some nice wine with that charcuterie


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## naifu (Oct 19, 2017)

Mucho Bocho said:


> Hope your drinking some nice wine with that charcuterie



Sadly for me, no, but my Wife had a glass of wine with it. I am eating a Ketogenic diet to keep my blood glucose low, so I have deleted alcohol from my diet. I miss cocktails, wine and beer, but I'm sticking to my plan.


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## rami_m (Oct 19, 2017)

DamageInc said:


> Rami Dreams of Sushi?



Japanese cuisine is much more than sushi. But yes, rami dreams of sushi


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## GRoc (Oct 19, 2017)

I am on a diet so food intake and variety is limited now. My guilty pleasure is homemade pumpkin preserves with habanero peppers over arrugola....


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## DamageInc (Oct 20, 2017)

rami_m said:


> Japanese cuisine is much more than sushi. But yes, rami dreams of sushi



Rami_m dreams of Ramen?


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## StonedEdge (Oct 20, 2017)

This week following a visit to my friends' farm I went on a Latin meat tear.. tira de asado con chimichurri, beef cutlet silpancho, pulled pork carnitas. May have to check my cholesterol after this week


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 20, 2017)

Savory lipton mushroom and onion soup mix salisbury steak with dark brown gravy and whipped butter potatoes. 

There is wonderful food being made all around the world, but for those that didn't grow up on Lipton Onion Soup Mix (and derivatives) you must see it out. 

It's the mother classic American seasoning mix for meat in any minced form. When incorporated into meat loaf, meat balls, Salisbury steak, Swedish meatballs... for us, its a transporter back to our childhood. Brings you back to when we we're fighting with our siblings on who's going to go first.

Ironically, I don't make soup with it. Yuck.

Its salty, savory, peppery, bold, a little in your face, but all love.

Tip: I mix the spices with water to hydrate it before adding to the mince. 

OH, It only improves the dish when saved as a left over.

See it out. Life it too short.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003TRL87U/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20


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## Chef Doom (Oct 20, 2017)

Vegan Protein Shakes &#128514;


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## daveb (Oct 20, 2017)

Harissa Pork.


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## Salty dog (Oct 21, 2017)

Salami on rye, Lay's BBQ chips, grapes.


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## rami_m (Oct 21, 2017)

DamageInc said:


> Rami_m dreams of Ramen?



&#129315;&#129315;

First time we went we happened across a soba festival up in the mountains. I was hooked. No where else have I found soba as good. 

We found passable ramen in Sydney. But no where as good as Tokyo.


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## TheCaptain (Oct 21, 2017)

Korean steamed pork and veggie buns. OMFG! Just wow!


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## Von blewitt (Oct 21, 2017)

rami_m said:


> &#129315;&#129315;
> 
> First time we went we happened across a soba festival up in the mountains. I was hooked. No where else have I found soba as good.
> 
> We found passable ramen in Sydney. But no where as good as Tokyo.


Jugemu & Shimbasi in cremorme does excellent soba


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## rami_m (Oct 22, 2017)

Von blewitt said:


> Jugemu & Shimbasi in cremorme does excellent soba



On my way there right now.


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## Paraffin (Oct 22, 2017)

I'm a transplanted South Florida native up here in the Pacific Northwest, and I realized lately that I've never tried cooking anything with manila clams. Which are delicious, I just had them at a local restaurant. So later this week, it's fresh manila clams steamed in garlic and butter over linguine. 

The local fish monger is running a special on live Dungeness crab too, so that's next in the project list. I miss Florida/Caribbean seafood -- stone crabs! florida lobster! conch! mangrove snapper! snook! redfish! -- but I need to get more into the local stuff up here besides halibut and salmon.


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## TheCaptain (Oct 26, 2017)

So I had to work last Saturday and drove in. Decided to stop at Joong Boo (asian grocery store) on the way home in my never ending search for demi glaze for omurice (which some is now on order from amazon). Did my shopping and decided to pick up a few steamed buns to snack on during the drive home. There's a little booth outside the store that sells them along with a few other things.

Pork and chopped veggies. Originally I planned to eat them in the car in the parking lot, but couldn't because they were too darn hot. So I set the bag on the floor and got on the expressway...

...and immediately realized I made a HUGE tactile error. The fragrant aroma of mouthwatering porky goodness soon became overpowering. Even though as a rule I don't eat while driving I was driven (pun intended) to break that rule by the siren smell. Or at least, try to.

These "buns" were easily the size of a small softball and I'm not exaggerating. Plus, way more filling than bun and there was NO WAY I could safely nom on these while driving in Chicago bumper to bumper traffic.

Pure torture! Gathering every last ounce of willpower I had, I wimpered at the container on passenger floor next to me but kept driving at a reasonable speed until I got home.

Then promptly tore into them (60 minutes later!!!) they were still warm. Ohhh, so good! Street food at it's best.

I now am slightly upset because, BUNS have been on my way home when working weekends for years and I didn't know it!!!

While having to go in on the weekends sucks (when working a full week), these mounds of porky joy will make it just a bit easier.


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## StonedEdge (Oct 26, 2017)

Might be a dumb question....Why don't you make your own demi glace seeing as it's a breeze to make? Or is the stuff used for omurice significantly more complicated to make?


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## DamageInc (Oct 26, 2017)

StonedEdge said:


> Might be a dumb question....Why don't you make your own demi glace seeing as it's a breeze to make? Or is the stuff used for omurice significantly more complicated to make?



Veal bones are pretty expensive.


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## StonedEdge (Oct 26, 2017)

DamageInc said:


> Veal bones are pretty expensive.


Not if you know where to look.
MUST demi glace be made with veal bone exclusively?


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## DamageInc (Oct 26, 2017)

StonedEdge said:


> Not if you know where to look.



I checked under the couch. Nothing.


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## TheCaptain (Oct 26, 2017)

StonedEdge said:


> Might be a dumb question....Why don't you make your own demi glace seeing as it's a breeze to make? Or is the stuff used for omurice significantly more complicated to make?



https://www.reluctantgourmet.com/demi-glace-recipe/

"Making demi glace at home, in culinary school or a high end restaurant is arduous and extremely time consuming but when done right, the backbone of most of the worlds greatest sauces."

Am I over complicating it? First off, believe it or not for being in such a large metro area, it is really hard to source veal and beef bones, which I kinda think would be needed for the depth of flavor?

I even have a hard time getting chicken necks when I want to make a really good pot of chicken soup. Curse the wing craze, cause that used to be my cheap fallback.

In my area we mostly have chain grocery stores with a few ethnic stores that still get the bulk of their meat pre-cut. No bones for me.

I'm willing to try?


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## DamageInc (Oct 26, 2017)

TheCaptain said:


> https://www.reluctantgourmet.com/demi-glace-recipe/
> 
> "Making demi glace at home, in culinary school or a high end restaurant is arduous and extremely time consuming but when done right, the backbone of most of the worlds greatest sauces."
> 
> ...



Order the bones from a butcher or nice supermarket or find some under the couch. Everybody should make demi-glace at some point in their life.


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## StonedEdge (Oct 26, 2017)

Essentially water + bones, very low heat, lots of time and a fine strainer/cheesecloth. Easy as pie (probably even easier).

I forgot you're in the Chicago area, I can definitely see how finding heaps of (cheap) bone in a sprawling metropolis is a challenge.

Veal bones or not, any reduced bone broth or demi glace made at home will have sooooo much more flavor than anything you can find in a store.

I guess my question was indeed dumb....I now realize I take being on a first name basis with the local meat farmers for granted.


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## TheCaptain (Oct 26, 2017)

In my part of the US it's sadly common even for higher end "butcher" shops to receive only primal cuts and further process them from there. And please don't get me started on what goes on in the chain grocery stores. America's food distribution, while relatively cheap and very effective, does have drawbacks in terms of quality and flexibility.

Local places that do sell soup bones/beef bones are small organic operations where you start a $5 a pound. The only way to get bigger chunks is to go in on a quarter share, and that's a bit rich for my blood.

We do awesome with fresh produce year round, though, so I can't really complain.


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## DamageInc (Oct 26, 2017)

TheCaptain said:


> In my part of the US it's sadly common even for higher end "butcher" shops to receive only primal cuts and further process them from there. And please don't get me started on what goes on in the chain grocery stores. America's food distribution, while relatively cheap and very effective, does have drawbacks in terms of quality and flexibility.
> 
> Local places that do sell soup bones/beef bones are small organic operations where you start a $5 a pound. The only way to get bigger chunks is to go in on a quarter share, and that's a bit rich for my blood.
> 
> We do awesome with fresh produce year round, though, so I can't really complain.



In Denmark, at least in the area I live in, if you go to the local butcher or the meat department in a medium to high end supermarket, they can usually get you anything from veal bones or chicken wings to wagyu beef or whole geese with a 48-72 hour lead time.

But you do usually have to pay out the nose for it.


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## Aleque (Oct 26, 2017)

daveb said:


> Harissa Pork.


Speaking of harissa. I've been on a harissa butternut squash craze. I first tried it at Toro Bravo in Portland, OR and immediately had this childhood holiday season deja vu moment. It's simple to make at home, but Toro Bravo has the recipe down to a T and I always order it when I stop by.


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## Paraffin (Oct 26, 2017)

Aleque said:


> Speaking of harissa. I've been on a harissa butternut squash craze. I first tried it at Toro Bravo in Portland, OR and immediately had this childhood holiday season deja vu moment. It's simple to make at home, but Toro Bravo has the recipe down to a T and I always order it when I stop by.



Oooh, I looked that up (supposedly the Toro Bravo recipe here) and I want to try that instead of my wife's usual butternut squash soup. That is, if I can wrangle that seasonal squash thing away from her... I've been accused of muscling in on her soup specialties lately.

That recipe calls for rose harissa, which sounds nice, but I can only find it in a $15 jar on Amazon that only lasts 4 weeks refrigerated and not sure I'd use that much. There are recipes online for making it from scratch, but not sure I want to go out scouting dried rose petals. Regular Harissa work okay, 'ya think?


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## Aleque (Oct 26, 2017)

Paraffin said:


> Oooh, I looked that up (supposedly the Toro Bravo recipe here) and I want to try that instead of my wife's usual butternut squash soup. That is, if I can wrangle that seasonal squash thing away from her... I've been accused of muscling in on her soup specialties lately.
> 
> That recipe calls for rose harissa, which sounds nice, but I can only find it in a $15 jar on Amazon that only lasts 4 weeks refrigerated and not sure I'd use that much. There are recipes online for making it from scratch, but not sure I want to go out scouting dried rose petals. Regular Harissa work okay, 'ya think?


I've only used a harissa paste that I found at my local grocery store. It comes in a tube similar to concentrated tomato paste. 

The recipe doesn't really mention this well, but in order to cook the squash properly, it take longer than you think. The first time I made this, the squash wasn't enough and didn't get the soft stew like quality Toro Bravo gets. 

I add a lot more cream than the recipe states because it starts to dry out in the pan due to needing to be cooked longer. Also the fresh cheese turns an awesome dish into something spectacular. I've eaten it with the cheese and it's still good, but that tangy fresh cheese adds a nice balance to the very rich squash. 

If you get the chance to eat at Toro Bravo, you should order the squash. It's a good price as well. I bought the cook book primarily for this recipe and for the fact I love eating there. The cooks are very friendly while eating at the bar by the kitchen. Fun to watch as well.


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## Paraffin (Oct 27, 2017)

@Aleque, thanks for the tips! I'm headed to the store tomorrow for some squash. I just discovered that Mt.Townsend Creamery here in town has a fresh, locally made fromage blanc. So I'll pick up some. Never tried it, this will be an adventure. And I'll definitely check out Toro Bravo next time we're headed down the coast to the Portland area.


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 27, 2017)

So Im down at the Disney food and wine festive, kidless of course. Today was the Epicot food and wine event. Wow was the food terrible. Reminded me of Carnival fair food. Going to the Swan/Dolphin food and wine event tomorrow admission was $131 so my expectations are high.

The Wagner family presented some of their new Camus offerings. Thats was strong.


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## DamageInc (Oct 28, 2017)

Mucho Bocho said:


> The Wagner family presented some of their new Camus offerings. Thats was strong.



I thought it was completely absurd.


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## Drosophil (Oct 28, 2017)

DamageInc said:


> I thought it was completely absurd.



You beat me too it. We are horrible people.


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 29, 2017)

D, sorry not catching your drift? 

So the swan and Dolphin was not much better than Epicot. Todd English did make a tasty lobster roll but Im no much for truffle oil so a ding there. The wine was paltry too. Nothing but Pinot and oaky chards. Camus did have a nice white emollo that was decent. 

Saving grace was the brunch at Narcoossees at the grand Floridian was the bomb.com. 

$70 a head, Bloody Mary with crab claw, Monster shrimp and bacon as garnishes. Endless menu ordering. Pure fine dining decadence. Hope there pics post


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 29, 2017)




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## DamageInc (Oct 29, 2017)

Mucho Bocho said:


> D, sorry not catching your drift?



Just a wee joke.

"Albert Camus (/kæ&#712;mu&#720;/;[2] French: [alb&#603;&#641; kamy]; 7 November 1913  4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, and journalist. His views contributed to the rise of the philosophy known as absurdism."


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## Mucho Bocho (Oct 29, 2017)

Ah, love Camus pronounced cam-oo  Camus Wine vintner pronounced Came-us nice one D


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