What's Cooking?

[rps]

No pictures - sorry - but Creamy Bacon Broccoli Pasta with Toasted Bread Crumbs tonight.

[snagged in outlet 3]

My favorite, Cioppino!!!  Get it at Momma's Fish House on the north shore of Maui.  You will not be disappointed.

[snagged in outlet 3]

Grilled boneless skinless chicken breast.  Over cook it and it's dry and tough.  And the window of perfection is very narrow.

A buddy of mine in the restaurant biz told me this trick to grill it to perfection.  Mix seasonings in oil, whisk it well and then put chicken and coat and marinate for 30 minutes.

Grill as usual about 4-5 minutes per side and probe with thermometer to 165.  They come out juicy and perfect every time.  I prefer chili spices because Pete likes his chicken spicy! 

 

[BilletHead]

        Just what do you do with the first morels and wild asparagus of the season?

     Made some toast out of traditional rye bread. Then grate some Asiago cheese add to the toast and melt under the broiler. Saute the good finds in some goose fat. Cut up the toasty cheese and top with the found bounty and proceed to enjoy with a glass of wine ,

  BilletHead

[Chief Grey Bear]

A little back story here. In high school I took Home Ec. And we had to decide on a dish, get on the bus, go to Consumers, get our ingredients, cook it, and hopefully enjoy it.  Now mind you, this was not all in one day. 

I had no clue what I was going to make. While strumming though a magazine, there was a recipe for Cashew Chicken. It was was of those easy, quick recipes they put in with an advertisement. I think it was for a Soy sauce but after 30 some years, that tidbit escapes me.  

Now mind you again, I, to this point in life, had never eaten Chinese food but, I knew I didn't like it. But this was a simple, very few ingredient recipe. Just what I was looking for. 

So the day for preparing came. And I do. I follow the recipe exact word for word. That was to this day the most amazing Cashew Chicken I have ever in my life eaten! I judge all others by this! Even though it was almost 15 years before I had my next plate. 

I think about that foray into the depths of fine Chinese culinary art occasionally. I wish I would have kept that recipe, but at the time, I had no more use of it.

Until tonight. Some 35 years later, I have made my second batch of Cashew Chicken. I didn't get the same punch in the mouth with fantastic flavor, but by golly it was pretty good!

[ness]

Oh yeah, asparagus. I'd better go out back and check. Thanks for reminding me ?

Welp, there was a little. 

[BilletHead]

 

A little back story here. In high school I took Home Ec. And we had to decide on a dish, get on the bus, go to Consumers, get our ingredients, cook it, and hopefully enjoy it.  Now mind you, this was not all in one day. 

I had no clue what I was going to make. While strumming though a magazine, there was a recipe for Cashew Chicken. It was was of those easy, quick recipes they put in with an advertisement. I think it was for a Soy sauce but after 30 some years, that tidbit escapes me.  

Now mind you again, I, to this point in life, had never eaten Chinese food but, I knew I didn't like it. But this was a simple, very few ingredient recipe. Just what I was looking for. 

So the day for preparing came. And I do. I follow the recipe exact word for word. That was to this day the most amazing Cashew Chicken I have ever in my life eaten! I judge all others by this! Even though it was almost 15 years before I had my next plate. 

I think about that foray into the depths of fine Chinese culinary art occasionally. I wish I would have kept that recipe, but at the time, I had no more use of it.

Until tonight. Some 35 years later, I have made my second batch of Cashew Chicken. I didn't get the same punch in the mouth with fantastic flavor, but by golly it was pretty good!

           Chief I know your problem,

 After you have eaten 35 years worth of small mouth bass your taste buds have been burned out. You will never be able to taste like you did as a young man. If you consume a measuring cup of Southern Missouri  dirt daily you may be able to revive the taste sensation  again. Let me know how it goes . Maybe back then you used farm raised chicken instead of tyson caged confined so called chicken?

  BilletHead

[ness]

 

A little back story here. In high school I took Home Ec. And we had to decide on a dish, get on the bus, go to Consumers, get our ingredients, cook it, and hopefully enjoy it.  Now mind you, this was not all in one day. 

I had no clue what I was going to make. While strumming though a magazine, there was a recipe for Cashew Chicken. It was was of those easy, quick recipes they put in with an advertisement. I think it was for a Soy sauce but after 30 some years, that tidbit escapes me.  

Now mind you again, I, to this point in life, had never eaten Chinese food but, I knew I didn't like it. But this was a simple, very few ingredient recipe. Just what I was looking for. 

So the day for preparing came. And I do. I follow the recipe exact word for word. That was to this day the most amazing Cashew Chicken I have ever in my life eaten! I judge all others by this! Even though it was almost 15 years before I had my next plate. 

I think about that foray into the depths of fine Chinese culinary art occasionally. I wish I would have kept that recipe, but at the time, I had no more use of it.

Until tonight. Some 35 years later, I have made my second batch of Cashew Chicken. I didn't get the same punch in the mouth with fantastic flavor, but by golly it was pretty good!

Great story.

I know the feeling...you eat something and it's perfect. It's burned into your memory forever and everything else is judged against that benchmark. 

I think there are some variables other than just a recipe sometimes. For example, in college, after going without much food for the best part of a week, I was treated to 'steak and potatoes', which turned out to be beans and franks.  Even typing that makes me salivate. 

Congrats on getting close. Can you pin down what you want to change? I'm not that great at Chinese, but can turn out a decent stir fry. 

[BilletHead]

    Yep hope you can get it figured out Chief and share it with us. We like Asian food. If it wasn't for cook books I could not get it close. I am figuring out there is real Chinese food and then there is modern American inspired Chinese dishes.  Healthy Chinese and unhealthy Chinese. Like them both,

  BilletHead

[Mitch f]

I had a moment like that. I went to a wine tasting with a few people who were friends of my friend. They got to about the 5th or 6th shot of wine, and I tasted the most wonderful wine of my life. I actually said "wow". Everyone kind of looked up at me (including the presenter) and didn't seem like it as much as me. I bought a case of it and my wife and I thought it was the best ever. She actually called it heaven wine.

The next year we bought another case and it was never as good as the 2002. I'm afraid to buy another case. The name of the wine was Abecela Syrah 2002