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    1. Summer dinner salads suggestions please

      I always look forward to fresh ingredients for substantial salads during the hot months of summer. Unfortunately, my repertoire is wanting. I make the same basic salad every time just changing a...

      I always look forward to fresh ingredients for substantial salads during the hot months of summer. Unfortunately, my repertoire is wanting. I make the same basic salad every time just changing a few ingredients depending on availability. This consists of greens, sometimes cold penne or other pasta, usually garbanzo beans, sometimes meat of some kind, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, basil or oregano and/or mint and perhaps hard boiled egg, sometimes pickled beets.

      Thanks for any suggestions or recipes.

      4 votes
    2. What's your favorite "treat yourself" meal?

      What I mean by "treat yourself" is something which makes you happy, not just something which satisfies an urge. We all get days where we just want to gulp down a nice plate of spaghetti but what...

      What I mean by "treat yourself" is something which makes you happy, not just something which satisfies an urge. We all get days where we just want to gulp down a nice plate of spaghetti but what meal do you prepare/buy for yourself when you really want to eat something special?

      22 votes
    3. With meta-discussions high-quality content meaning civil disagreement, let's put it to the test: What constitutes as a sandwich?

      So, where do you draw the limits on what constitutes as a sandwich? I am kind of fond of this alignment chart as a starting point. I think I fall somewhere around True Neutral-ish. While I think...

      So, where do you draw the limits on what constitutes as a sandwich?

      I am kind of fond of this alignment chart as a starting point.

      I think I fall somewhere around True Neutral-ish. While I think everything in the structural purist row constitutes as a sandwich, I do not consider Choctacos, burritos or poptarts sandwiches.

      Speaking of poptarts, potential spin-off debate: Is a poptart a ravioli?

      13 votes
    4. Do you have a favorite meal to cook?

      When I have the time, money, and energy, I like cooking proper meals from scratch (as much as is reasonable, anyway). There's one that I like making more than any other, though, and that I've been...

      When I have the time, money, and energy, I like cooking proper meals from scratch (as much as is reasonable, anyway). There's one that I like making more than any other, though, and that I've been making for several years now: pizza. There's nothing quite like a pizza made from freshly rolled dough, a good sauce, and cheese shredded by hand (with none of that cellulose getting in the way), and the smell of the yeast from the dough is wonderful. There's still quite a bit I need to learn to make it better, but I've so far gotten to the point of preferring it over anything you'd get from the popular pizza chains, so I'm pretty confident in what I've managed so far!

      What about you? Do you have a favorite? What meal do you consider your "specialty"? Is there anything in particular that keeps bringing you back to it?

      13 votes
    5. Dolmas [how to legally roll your own weed leaves]

      In a nutshell (TL;DR) Dolmas are stuffed grape leaves or vegetables (commonly peppers or zucchini) steamed for several minutes inside a pot with about an inch of salted water (or broth) brought to...
      In a nutshell (TL;DR)

      Dolmas are stuffed grape leaves or vegetables (commonly peppers or zucchini) steamed for several minutes inside a pot with about an inch of salted water (or broth) brought to a boil, then kept at a low simmer with a lid. The stuffing components vary and are easily tweaked for vegan/vegetarians or allergies, but often include a mixture of herbs and spices, rice (cooked or uncooked), eggs as a binder, and/or ground meat.

      For my next trick, I'll show you how to make them using only 4 words in the next sentence. Here's the entire process.


      Grocery list (ingredients in bold are suitable for vegans. Ingredients with a † are optional.)
      Dolmas
      • † 30 - 50 fresh grape leaves or brined leaves
      • 4 bell peppers
      • 1 - 2 tablespoons olive oil for drizzling
      • † juice of half a lemon
      • water or stock enough to cover an inch in the pot
      Filling
      • 500g [1 lb] ground meat (pork, beef, and lamb are most common)
      • † 180g [1 cup] uncooked white rice
      • 10g [1 TBSP] kosher salt
      • † 1 whole egg
      • † 1 diced medium onion
      • 2 - 4 tablespoons ground cumin
      • 2 - 4 tablespoons ground paprika
      • † 2 - 4 tablespoons ground coriander
      • † 1 - 2 tablespoons ground turmeric
      • 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
      • † 1 tablespoon dried red chili flakes
      Vegan prep

      Double the uncooked white rice and cook as directed on the package in water or vegetable stock with the salt, pepper, and spices. Let cool, then mix in diced onion (if using) and proceed with assembly and cooking as directed below, but reduce the total simmering time to 15 - 20 minutes.


      Step-by-step (with higher res photos)
      • Trim the stems off your fresh grape leaves and cut the tops off the bell peppers (if using), removing the stem and seedy core. Retain the cut piece as a "lid" for each pepper.
      • Add your stuffing ingredients to a large bowl and mix them all thoroughly with a spoon or clean wet hands.
      • Hold a prepared leaf centered on your palm underside (veiny side) up and place a tablespoon of filling towards the center of the leaf.
      • Fold the left bottom part of the leaf up horizontally and press onto the wet filling.
      • Fold the remaining left half vertically over the filling and press gently to crease.
      • Fold the right bottom part to cover the remaining exposed filling.
      • Fold the remaining right half of the leaf over the left.
      • Firmly roll the filled part of the wrapping up once. Press to shape into a rough cylinder.
      • Continue rolling until the end point of the leaf can be tucked under on a flat surface.
      • Repeat for the other leaves, but retain enough to cover each pepper lid.
      • Stuff the bell peppers with the remaining filling and top with a lid and a leaf to cover the stem hole.
      • Place the peppers upright in a large pot, leaning them against the sides if necessary.
      • Layer the stuffed leaves on the bottom of the pot between the peppers, flap end facing down.
      • Add cool water (or broth) just to cover the layer of wrapped leaves, or at least an inch. Don't worry if a few float up.
      • Drizzle with olive oil, grind some black pepper on, and add a couple good pinches of salt to the water - if you're only using bell peppers, squeeze in the juice of half a lemon to mimic the flavor the grape leaves would've added during cooking.
      • Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then add a lid and back the heat down just enough enough to simmer.
      • Let simmer for at least 45 minutes (60+ if using bell peppers) or until the meat is cooked and the rice soft enough to eat.

      Storage

      Store with the broth in the cooking pot for under a day. For longer, refrigerate and reheat on the stove or microwave. You can experiment with freezing cooked grape leaf dolmas and steaming them to thaw and re-cook, but I've never tried - they don't last long enough in my house.


      Sourcing grape leaves

      To identify a potential vine, look for curly forked tendrils that climb and clusters of tiny immature green grapes. This source has good photos and background info.

      Wild grapevines grow in many locations that are conducive to growing wine grapes. They often thrive in moist habitats located next to streams or riverbanks, but can also be found in forested areas, meadows, along roadsides and are especially fond of any kind of man-made fencing.

      Or you can get them in a jar online or in the international section of your local large grocery store.

      NB: Do your research and be careful when harvesting wild plants. The dangerous lookalikes to wild grapes are Canada moonseed (Menispermum canadense) and porcelain berry (Ampelopsis glandulosa var. brevipendunculata)


      Storytime?

      What? Does this look like a typically self-indulgent food blogger post florid with vapid musings only tangentially related to the recipe because longer word count pushes such entries to top SEO results? ...ok, just this once.

      Used to work with an older Iraqi watchmaker who came to the country as a highly-skilled refugee. Sometimes I'd give him a ride to the shop from his apartment, and in limited English he'd insist on cooking us dinner before I left. When he visited another co-worker's place, he noticed wild grape leaves on several vines growing out of the property, and collected them. I saw the leaf pile on the counter and asked what he was going to do with them, and if he was sure they were edible. "Yes, yes! For dolmas. I'll show you," he said, removing a pack of ground pork and bell peppers from the fridge.

      For the next couple summers, I made dolmas from the wild grapes in the neighborhood, and now I have good neighbors who allow me to prune and harvest excess leaves from their fruiting grapevines during the season.

      9 votes
    6. What's your weekend food?

      What's your go-to weekend dish? Whether it's a fried breakfast or eight hour smoked pork shoulder, what do you love to cook on the weekend? Personally it's split between bacon and egg sandwiches...

      What's your go-to weekend dish? Whether it's a fried breakfast or eight hour smoked pork shoulder, what do you love to cook on the weekend?

      Personally it's split between bacon and egg sandwiches on homemade bread; my chili recipe, loosely based on SeriousEats Best Ever Chili and potato, chorizo, and cabbage hash with a runny egg on top.

      8 votes
    7. Just had surströmming yesterday – here is my experience (and what experience it was!)

      For the uninitiated, Surströmming is an infamous heavily fermented herring. Below is my experience with it. Happy to answer any questions :) Preparations I “smuggled” (more on this below) it from...

      For the uninitiated, Surströmming is an infamous heavily fermented herring.

      Below is my experience with it. Happy to answer any questions :)

      Preparations

      I “smuggled” (more on this below) it from Sweden a few months ago and yesterday evening my brother, a brave (or naïve) soul of a schoolmate of his, and I (not to mention our dog) opened it up near the river. We chose the riverside and the night time strategically, of course.

      As was advised to us by a friend, we also took a bucket of water with us. Not – as some may wrongly assume – to vomit into, but to open the tin under water. Due to the fermentation continuing in the tin, it builds up pressure and when you open the tin, it inevitably and violently discharges the bile water. The best way to avoid it spraying your clothes is to open it under water.

      The tasting

      Since this was an impromptu action, – other than the bucket – we came only half-prepared. As condiments we brought only a little bread, a shallot and three pickled gherkins.

      The hint with the bucket was greatly appreciated, as the opening of the tin was the most vile part of the whole experience. So if you plan to try it, do get a bucket! It stopped not only the bile spraying us, but also diluted most of the putrid smell that was caught in the tin.

      Once opened and aired, the contents of the tin were actually quite recognisable. Fish fillets swimming in brine. The brine was already brownish and a tiny bit gelatinous, but darkness helped us get past that.

      As for the taste and texture, if you ever had pickled herrings before – it’s like that on steroids, married with anchovies. Very soft, but still recognisable as fish, extremely salty, and with acidity that is very similar to that of good sauerkraut.

      Washing the fish in the pickle jar helped take the edge of – both in sense of smell and saltiness. The onion as well as the pickles were a great idea, bread was a must!

      In summary, it is definitely an acquired taste, but I can very much see how this was a staple in the past and how it can still be used in cuisine. As a condiment, I think it could work well even in a modern dish.

      We did go grab a beer afterwards to wash it down though.

      P.S. Our dog was very enthusiastic about it the whole time and somewhat sullen that he didn’t get any.

      The smuggling

      Well, I didn’t actually smuggle it, per se, but it took me ¾ of an hour to get it cleared at the airport and in the end the actual carrier still didn’t know about what I was carrying in my checked luggage. The airport, security, two information desks and the main ground stewardess responsible for my flight were all in on it though. And in my defence, the actual carrier does not have a policy against Surströmming on board (most probably because they haven’t thought about it yet).

      As for acquiring this rotten fish in the first place, I saw it in a shop in Malmö and took the least deformed tin (along with other local specialities). When I came to the cash register with grin like a madman in a sweetshop, I asked the friendly young clerk if she has any suggestion how to prepare it, and she replied that she never had it and knows barely anyone of her generation who did, apart from perhaps as a challenge.

      16 votes
    8. Favorite vegan recipes?

      I've somewhat recently become vegan and am looking for more recipes to cook. I love pretty much all kinds of food, especially kinds I haven't tried before. If anybody has any great recipes that...

      I've somewhat recently become vegan and am looking for more recipes to cook. I love pretty much all kinds of food, especially kinds I haven't tried before. If anybody has any great recipes that are vegan, I would love to share.

      9 votes
    9. What’s your desert island beer?

      You probably know the drill, but in case not - you get an unlimited supply of one specific beer to drink when marooned on an island - presumably til death. I love California blondes. I want to try...

      You probably know the drill, but in case not - you get an unlimited supply of one specific beer to drink when marooned on an island - presumably til death.

      I love California blondes. I want to try some others that ~ loves, and thought other folks might like to do the same.

      Firestone Walker 805 for me. You?

      edit: just to say, oops, not dessert...desert.

      11 votes
    10. My venison tasted like beef

      I went to the local farmers' market on Saturday and was impressed by both the mushroom guy and the stand selling venison. I've only been able to find venison a few times (don't have any hunter...

      I went to the local farmers' market on Saturday and was impressed by both the mushroom guy and the stand selling venison. I've only been able to find venison a few times (don't have any hunter friends), and the times I've made it before, it's gone into chili. So, I bought a pound of stew meat, a half pint of Cinnamon Cap Chestnut mushrooms, and some produce to finish out a stew. I braised it all up last night in some beef broth and red wine. That may have been a mistake, as the venison basically came out tasting like stew beef. Process went a little like this:

      • chop up the venison into bite-sized chunks
      • brown the venison in a bit of butter
      • add more butter and some flour to make roux
      • add a splash of red wine and about a carton of beef broth
      • add mushrooms, potatoes, garlic
      • realize I'm out of onions, so add onion powder
      • reduce until gravy-like

      All in all, it was tasty (the mushrooms were great!), but the venison was basically very tender, $9 / lb stew beef. Did I treat it wrong by using beef broth, or is that just the way it tastes?

      6 votes
    11. "In Bloom" Puer Tea of Jingmai, Yunnan, China - by Bitterleaf Teas

      Any other puer tea fans? This is a 250g beeng ("cake") of pressed sheng puer tea by Bitterleaf Teas from the Jingmai area of Yunnan, produced last spring, so it has settled into itself quite...

      Any other puer tea fans?

      This is a 250g beeng ("cake") of pressed sheng puer tea by Bitterleaf Teas from the Jingmai area of Yunnan, produced last spring, so it has settled into itself quite nicely.
      Dressed
      Undressed

      Don't know what puer is? Puer tea is a Yunnan, China specific tea that is very unique. It is processed differently than the more common white, green, oolong, and black teas. It is valued for its capacity to be aged for years (to decades) transforming through oxidation and fermentation into something much darker, earthier, smoother, and funkier. It is also consumed young for its fresh, floral, fruity, pungent, bitter, vegetal, and/or pleasantly musky green tea-like qualities. Traditionally, this type of tea was pressed into these cakes for ease of transport, and that tradition has held up (also makes it easier for modern shipping due to the dramatically reduced volume of the tea upon pressing). I use a letter opener to pry away several grams of the tea, and brew using gongfu methods. ( If you're curious, I posted more about this over here on the creative tilde )

      This is a very nice tea packed with floral aroma (hence the name "In Bloom"). Great tea from a great producer. I can't say enough good things about Bitterleaf. They can be a bit pricey, but its because of their dedication to producing teas from high quality material.

      7 votes
    12. Nice stuff to make in an Instant Pot

      Quite a lot of us will have them. They are pretty damn useful, and make for decent lazy meals. Apart from stock, here is one of the recipes I really like for the IP....

      Quite a lot of us will have them. They are pretty damn useful, and make for decent lazy meals.

      Apart from stock, here is one of the recipes I really like for the IP.

      https://www.justonecookbook.com/pressure-cooker-pork-belly-kakuni/

      Japanese pork belly slices. Works brilliantly and stunning flavour. In fact Just One Cookbook is generally a great site, but this was the first of theirs I tried. I make it every time my wife goes away as it's not her thing, but I love it.

      Interested in your favourites!

      15 votes
    13. Summer Potluck Favorites

      I'm in the U.S. and Summer potluck season is upon us. What are your favorite crowd-pleasers? I recently made this Mexcian Street Corn Salad for a work event and it went over really well. That was...

      I'm in the U.S. and Summer potluck season is upon us. What are your favorite crowd-pleasers? I recently made this Mexcian Street Corn Salad for a work event and it went over really well. That was branching out for me. I feel like I always make the same two tired potluck dishes and would love to hear yours.

      6 votes
    14. Are there any people in the industry here?

      New group, new topics, this is all so exciting. I'm a chef myself and enjoy discussing the business and philosophies of what I do. I'm wondering if other people in the industry have found their...

      New group, new topics, this is all so exciting. I'm a chef myself and enjoy discussing the business and philosophies of what I do. I'm wondering if other people in the industry have found their way unto Tildes at this point.

      8 votes