Do you know what you like or do you like what you know?

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 6:07 pm

I don't remember much from my college philosophy course, but I do remember that question. Most kids (and the term is relative, since I know some grown-up 12 year olds and some childish 45 year olds) cringe at trying something new. This is mostly with regards to food, but you can carry it over to music, movies, books, etc.

When I was in Indonesia, I developed a very special Chinese fried noodle recipe. It was flavorful, yet not spicy. It had pieces of meat in it, yet it had almost no cholesterol. And, unless you poured a lot of soy sauce on it (the word is kecap in Bahasa Indonesia and sounds like our word ketchup), it had a very low salt content. Everyone who tasted it loved it. And then I told them my secret ingredient: Snails. They were your normal, everyday Weinberg snails you see on every warm sidewalk in the world (where I have been, anyway!) Only I bought them in a can and they were very clean and safe.

I am willling to eat almost anything. And now, since I have connections in Vietnam, and I have been to Vietnam, I think I have actually eaten dog meat. Evenso, I am still a bit squeamish about eating dog.

But I say I don't like lamb, yet I love gyro sandwiches, which are made from lamb. I don't like liver, but I love Braunschweiger. I don't like sweet potatoes, but I like sweet potato pie.

If you close your mind off, you will miss so much of what the world offers. If you have never seen an opera, go see one. Go see a ballet. See a symphony concert, if you have only seen school groups perform.

There's a big word out there.

sc_curtis · Post by **sc_curtis** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 7:17 pm

And what WORD is that?

J/K

Do what the man says!

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 7:18 pm

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:10 pm

So, how do you feel about Soylent Green?

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:14 pm

SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!!!

Carroll · Post by **Carroll** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:17 pm

You have hit upon a subject very near to my heart. I teach in a VERY rural section of my state. We have no interstate highway access, no industry, very little tourism, failed farmimg enterprises, etc. My students have little. Some do not have running water and electric service. I endeavor to take them places and encourage them to experience life in it's varied splendor. We never eat fast food and hardley eat franchise food. I search out new and strange things for them to try. While I do hear some complaining (masking fear, I am sure) they do try at least a portion before refusing. We go to the ballet, to symphonies, to the theatre, to galleries and exhibits. I feel this is a much more important facet of my job than teaching them to play "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star". My students know which fork to use, what a chop stick rest is for, and when to unfold their napkin. If you have not experienced Vietnamese pho, German schweinhaxe, or Ethiopian doro wat... go do it!

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:20 pm

Around here, believe or not, you can get all that at fast food places! But don't much more than one serving of Schweinhaxe in a week--the cholesterol will kill you.

As far as the pho, my girlfriend is Vietnamese, and my favorite lunch now is banh mi and a bowl of pho.

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:30 pm

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 8:37 pm

Add about six eggs, two sticks of butter, and some lard, and you have one filling breakfast. Or supper, for that matter!

Feeds one.

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 9:05 pm

...and enough cholesterol for more than a week...

MartyNeilan · Post by **MartyNeilan** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 9:52 pm

Well, just have some of this for breakfast then...

Kevin Hendrick · Post by **Kevin Hendrick** » Tue Mar 28, 2006 11:56 pm

MartyNeilan wrote:Well, just have some of this for breakfast then...

It all seems just a bit much ...

Philip Jensen · Post by **Philip Jensen** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:34 am

My wife and I were visiting friends in Spain and we were trying all the foods that were new to us. The pig stomach was OK, not a fav, but I would eat it again. The pig and lamb tails were great. I even liked the liver and cheese pate, and I really cannot stand fried liver. Our friend's wife periodically hosts visitors from the US home branch of the company she works for. Invariably, they always want to go to the Hard Rock cafe for burgers!!!!! in Madrid!!!!

This always mystified her, as if you want a great burger, they are MUCH better in the US.

We have a dozen or so people over every other month or so to cook ethnic food and we always like to try something particularly exotic. Some time in May we're going to have a Belgian feast. We're still collecting recipes but we definitely will have mussels several ways (with pomme frites), some waterzooi (soup), maybe some snails, and I'm seriously thinking about trying some organ meats (other than liver). Maybe some kidneys - if I can find a decent recipe. I've never had them and this is pushing my limits a little bit - especially cooking it myself as opposed to being offered a taste cooked by someone else. Any suggestions for any quintesential Belgian foods to include on our menu?

corbasse · Post by **corbasse** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:46 am

Philip Jensen wrote:We have a dozen or so people over every other month or so to cook ethnic food and we always like to try something particularly exotic. Some time in May we're going to have a Belgian feast. We're still collecting recipes but we definitely will have mussels several ways (with pomme frites), some waterzooi (soup), maybe some snails, and I'm seriously thinking about trying some organ meats (other than liver). Maybe some kidneys - if I can find a decent recipe. I've never had them and this is pushing my limits a little bit - especially cooking it myself as opposed to being offered a taste cooked by someone else. Any suggestions for any quintesential Belgian foods to include on our menu?

Ermmm, exotic is not what comes to mind to me with Belgian cuisine

Rabbit with prunes is one of the great traditionals. I'll get my 1000 page Belgian cookbook out for you when I get home tonight to find some more.
Don't forget to include some (dark) chocolate deserts!.

And, you'll be banned for life from this place if you don't make the fries from scratch!

quinterbourne · Post by **quinterbourne** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 1:17 pm

Scooby Tuba wrote:
Philip Jensen wrote:Invariably, they always want to go to the Hard Rock cafe for burgers!!!!! in Madrid!!!! This always mystified her, as if you want a great burger, they are MUCH better in the US.

When I was working in Germany, I was pressed for time once and went into a McD's (I always try to eat with the natives). The burgers were incredibly good! Totally different. It was an actual burger (as opposed to what's served in the U.S.). I won't eat at McD's in the States, but I did go back to the McD's in Germany. Hard Rock? Yuck!

I've had McDonald's in the USA, and it is VERY BRUTAL. Actually all fast food in the US is quite brutal... especially compared to that in Canada (but still barely fit for human consumption).

Apparently, the standards for the type of meat fast food chains use in Canada are much higher than their counterparts in the US. I'd suggest you come to Canada to try it out!

Philip Jensen · Post by **Philip Jensen** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 1:37 pm

I don't consider those round (or square), proportedly meat, things on a bun, that one gets at a typical national fast-food chain to be a hamburger. If you sit down and someone takes your order, or it is a small local fast food chain, then OK.

Rabbit with prunes is one of the great traditionals.

We can do that. We've cooked rabbit a couple of times at our cooking events (Portuguese and German) and it always ends up being among the favorite dishes.

And, you'll be banned for life from this place if you don't make the fries from scratch!

I would not dream of not making them from scratch!!!! We'll also make our own mayonaise to go with them!

Maybe we'll make some Leigers (waffles) too. My wife makes a secret family recipe cookie they call Galletes (which I understand just means cookie) that is similar to the Leigers, but are more dense and use no yeast.

Philip "who spent a lovely day in Leige a year ago" Jensen

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:18 pm

When I lived in Indonesia, we would go go the Spring Festival at the Erasmus Huis, the Dutch fine arts academy in Jakarta. They called it a "spring" festival but it could have happened any time of the year (except Ramadan), because being in the tropics, you really don't have any seasons--just a wet one and a dry one. Anyway, they had some home-made fries that were great. We have one fast food chain here that makes fries from scratch (In 'n' Out), but these were much better! With home-made mayonnaise, it was wonderful. The only problem was the heat and the bucket the home-made mayonnaise was in turned out to be a pretty good fly trap!

Gulp!

No, I didn't eat the flies (they wouldn't allow it!)

corbasse · Post by **corbasse** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 6:55 am

LoyalTubist wrote:When I lived in Indonesia, we would go go the Spring Festival at the Erasmus Huis, the Dutch fine arts academy in Jakarta...... Anyway, they had some home-made fries that were great. We have one fast food chain here that makes fries from scratch (In 'n' Out), but these were much better! .....

Could be that it has to do with the potato variety used as this can make a huge difference. The absolute best one to use is "Bintje", an archetypical Dutch cultivar (the Erasmushuis probably imports these)
www.belgianfries.com lists a few substitute varieties for those unfortunate enough not to be able to get "Bintje". (i.e. almost anyone outside Holland or Belgium)
They also give the proper wat to fry them (thick cut, fry them twice; once low and once high temp etc..)

NickJones · Post by **NickJones** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:12 am

Tripe - boiled and bleached pig or cow stomach , looks odd tastes great , nice in a stew with loads of root veg..yum!
Haggis - best food to come out of scotland - lucky it is available from most superstores - very rich tho.
having eaten whale steak , rabbit , reindeer cassorlole , frogs legs , snail, the only thing I wont eat is any gland from any animal ( sweetbreads etc) and brain.
our local chinese takaway does a mystery "meat" stir fry...I found out later it was thinly sliced aberlone ( sorry about the spelling it's like a massive scallop) very nice it was too , other mysterious things in it where fried bean curd.
still for a traditional Welsh Breakfast it is lavabread fritters ( deep fried potato and seaweed) , cockels and mussels , bacon , leek and pork sausage , egg ( fried) , and toast or fried bread....heaven on a plate

corbasse · Post by **corbasse** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:49 am

Philip Jensen wrote:..
Rabbit with prunes is one of the great traditionals.
We can do that. We've cooked rabbit a couple of times at our cooking events (Portuguese and German) and it always ends up being among the favorite dishes.
...

Maybe we'll make some Leigers (waffles) too. My wife makes a secret family recipe cookie they call Galletes (which I understand just means cookie) that is similar to the Leigers, but are more dense and use no yeast.

Philip "who spent a lovely day in Leige a year ago" Jensen

Some more traditional stuff:
"paling in 't groen": literally "Eel in the green", fried eel cooked with a green herb sauce which has to contain sorrel.
"hutsepot" =hodgepodge, a big stew with among other things pig's ears and trotters.
"Vlaamse karbonnaden": a sort of beef bourguignon but with a good Belgian beer (a geuze lambic is excellent) instead of wine and the sauce is thickened by covering the stew with a piece of bread with mustard at the beginning. (pointing to medieval origins)
I've got some nice traditional recipes for tongue as well.

You can make the "Waterzooi" either with chicken or a mixture of sweet water fish. The latter is the earliest version.

It's more a Flemish than a Belgian list

, but it's a start.

Gallette is another form of the word Gaufre, which has the same roots as the words waffle and wafer. Basically, it's a wafer-thin waffle