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Food Thread: Meatballs And Gin...A Match Made In Heaven (Not Really)

My favorite meatball recipe is by Marcella Hazan, whose cook books are a marvelous introduction to classic Italian cooking, and rather well written to boot. Of course rumor has it that her husband wrote them and she was just the cook, but that isn't a criticism, since the food is what is important, and she certainly is one of the best!

But frying all of those meatballs in oil is time consuming and messy. Is there a better way? I have seen loads of recipes that suggest that baking them on a sheet pan does the same job, but that feels so inauthentic, and do they really get as wonderfully crispy, with the depth of flavor that frying imparts? The Maillard reaction is effortless in oil, but in an oven it can cause problems like drying out.

Have you ever had a dried out meatball? Awful.

So: Who has done both, and who is going to admit that the baked ones were dry and boring and you had to drown them in tomato sauce to get anyone to eat them?

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I have lost my taste for commodity sushi, which is the only stuff available around here. I much prefer to make my own, because I know the quality of the ingredients and I know that they are being handled correctly. It's also a challenge to make, but it's fun, so why not? And it is absolutely the frugal way to eat sushi. I checked the takeout menu of the highest rated (by tripadvisor) sushi restaurant in the area and that platter is more than $100. I paid a small fraction of that for all of the ingredients.

Is it as beautiful? No...of course not! Do I care? Nope!

And yes, I have posted sushi photos before, but I'm sort of bragging now...I think I am getting the hang of it, and I am now going to see how to add some interesting flavors besides the classic fish and rice and seaweed.

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Well this sounds like fun! I like Pot de Crèmes in general, especially if they use bitter chocolate and don't taste like the pudding from my grade school cafeteria. The addition of bourbon is a lovely bonus, and bitters will make this very interesting. Bitters-and-Bourbon Chocolate Pot de Crème is definitely on my list of desserts to make. And for those in The Tribe, it is kosher for Passover!
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This is fun too! I'm not sure that I have the palate necessary to distinguish the various different gins in anything other than a Martini, but it is immensely amusing anyway. the GIN is IN rates gins, and includes a rather convenient little graphic that shows the basic qualities of the gin in question. It's surprisingly useful!

I am very careful with liquor and wine reviewers. Obviously their personal taste preferences govern their ratings to a certain extent, so it is imperative that if you want to use their reviews you figure out that taste. Then keep checking that they are consistent.

THEN they can be useful.

[Hat Tip: "someone who prefers not to be named"]

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Coblogger "Weasel" sent this to me, and clearly it forms the basis for his famous Two-Minute-Meal philosophy. Medieval dietetics is as weird as you would think! And follow the links to the recipes and even though they have been modernized, they still sound really, really, odd.

Of course Weasel might be trolling me, in which case I got hooked.

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I know all of you are terribly worried about the "Chicken Tenders Situation" here at Chez Dildo. Relax..all is well! Or at least better. The second batch was better than the first, mostly because I actually read a recipe instead of just winging it. Not for the chicken...that was great and didn't need a thing. The batter was a different story, and interestingly the addition of egg was the big difference. I am at a loss to explain why it made a difference, but that shouldn't surprise you.

Oh...wait! I also cooked them at a higher temperature. And it wasn't really a batter...mostly it was seasoned flour with baking powder. I just double-dredged and went to town.

So...really...it was nothing like my first attempt.

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Flap Meat...whatever the hell that is...just send it, Broccolini that isn't $6/bunch, garlic...lots of garlic! (and basil! My basil did not do well this year!), well-marbled hanger steaks and elk chops to: cbd dot aoshq at gmail dot com.

And don't think that the rest of you are off the hook with maple syrup and French Toast: so why don't you put maple syrup on your steaks and chops and chicken?

But the real culprits are those poor deluded souls who shake their Manhattans. These are are the same people who drink fine bourbon with coke, and probably shake red wine with ice too.

However, I will give dispensation to those who use maple syrup on Brussels Sprouts! I tried that last week and it worked nicely. I still prefer Agave, but still...

And yes, I used to demand fancy bourbon, but let's face it, $1,200 for a bottle of bourbon is just stupid, insulting, and a ghastly affront to most people's palates and wallets. I think the sweet spot is $40-$60 for excellent and interesting bottles, and bumping that to $100 gets you an incremental improvement in quality, but nothing mind-blowing. More than that and I think you are paying for hype and rarity, which may look good in your liquor cabinet, but doesn't translate to more quality in the bottle.