3 Thai bird chiles OR one Serrano or Jalapeño chile, or more or less to taste 1 tsp. minced garlic 3 T. light brown sugar 2 T. lime juice 4 T. fish sauce (see note below) 1/2 c. lukewarm water 1 T. grated carrot, optional Using rubber or latex gloves, thinly slice the chiles. Put […]
Food & Drink
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Shrimp and Corn Soup
Shrimp and corn soup is as commonly found as gumbo on Cajun restaurant menus. Most – in fact, all – recipes I’ve seen for this classic use canned creamed corn, and usually canned corn as well. I developed this recipe using only fresh (or fresh-frozen) corn. The puréed corn has a surprisingly velvety texture and […]
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Gulf tragedy gets personal
“The Cajun…. may be forgiven for being proud: for at one time he was the “poor folks” of the swamps. Then he took a land that nobody else wanted and turned it into something special: he made it his.”– From The Longest Street by Tanya Brady Ditto It’s personal for me – the Gulf oil […]
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On the trail of gooey goodness
Who created it? When? Where? Who makes the best? What are acceptable ingredients? Which is most authentic? Whether it’s French ratatouille, Italian ragu Bolognese, Mississippi ribs or New York reubens, regional specialties inspire passionate loyalties and provoke arguments that could rival a debate between Sarah Palin and Ralph Nader. So it is with gooey butter […]
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Molly Killen’s St. Louis gooey butter cake
Molly Killeen, owner of Made By Molly, is a St. Louis native who for years was pastry chef at NYC’s renowned Amy’s Bread. Her recipe harks back to the original bakery gooey butter cakes; she also reworked hers to be somewhat less sweet – something I appreciate, having found several versions I’ve tried cloyingly sweet. […]
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Grilled bananas with coconut-caramel sauce
Raichlen’s recipes come with provenance: stories of where they come from and how they got there. As often as not, those stories are as interesting and compelling as the recipes themselves. Here’s what he has to say about a Bangkok grill mistress, Saisuwan, and her specialty: “Five years ago she scraped together enough cash to […]
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Pollo al mattone
3 garlic cloves 2 T. stemmed fresh rosemary leaves 2 T. stemmed fresh sage leaves 2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper ½ c. coarse salt (Kosher or sea) 4 whole baby chickens, poussins, or game hens (each 1 – 1 ¼ lbs.) OR 2 whole chickens (each 3 ½ – 4 lbs.) About ½ c. […]
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The professor of barbeque
What picture pops into your head when you hear the words “barbeque expert”? Is it a big beefy guy, tongs in hand, maybe a bit red-faced from hovering over the coals and the beer can in his other hand; his ball cap and t-shirt or apron inscribed with the logo of his favorite barbeque competition, […]
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Record good food, from start to finish
Remember the tale of The Little Red Hen? The plucky chicken finds some grains of wheat. She asks her barnyard buddies if they’ll help plant them, but none are willing. The same thing happens when she requests their help harvesting it, threshing it, taking it to the mill to be ground into flour, and baking […]
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Mu Shu pork
Record’s tortillas are customer favorites. Tortillas are made in virtually the same way as bao bing – a.k.a Beijing pancakes, northern Chinese flatbreads traditionally served with Mu Shu pork. In fact, the PBS cooking show, “Simply Ming,” featured a flour tortilla/Beijing pancake factory, just because they are so similar. Though fun to make – especially […]
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Grilling from the garden
What does grilling bring to mind? Brats, burgers, or steak? Chicken or shrimp? But most vegetables are good for grilling, too. For omnivores, grilled vegetables can be the focal point of the meal, an accompaniment, or both. Diced, leftover grilled vegetables make a delectable filling for quesadillas, combined with melting cheeses such as Monterey Jack, […]
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Strawberries with real shortcake
Obsessive compulsive disorder – a.k.a. OCD. It’s become one of those “in” conditions people use to describe themselves or others. Like depression, OCD can be a genuine clinical disorder requiring treatment. In popular vernacular, though, it’s merely become a reference about someone caring about getting something right. And most of us have at least one […]
