Curry has me in its heady grip, and as I was curious to see its permutations as it made its way around the world. I touched on some of the varieties that could be found in India, how the English stamped their influence on curries by adding a few of their own, such as Balti,...
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Tags: curry, England, Japan
Posted in Britain, India, Japan, country, culture | 39 Comments »
See for yourself… April Fools’ Day, or All Fool’s Day is celebrated in many countries on April 1 with practical jokes played family members, colleagues, and neighbors. The origin of April Fools’ Day is obscure. One likely theory is that the term referred to someone still adhering to the Julian Calendar, as opposed to adopting...
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Tags: April Fool's, Italy, nowruz, pasta, spaghetti
Posted in Britain, France, Italy, celebrations, food, pasta, travel | 26 Comments »
As I touched on in a previous post, salt is commonly obtained in one of two ways, from the sea or mined, and those methods go back millennia. Rock salt occurs in vast beds of sedimentary minerals, the last reminder of dried up lakes and seas. In the United States and Canada extensive underground...
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Tags: history, salt, sea salt
Posted in Africa, Britain, Germany, Ireland, condiments | 26 Comments »
I was asked to participate as a judge for this year’s “Tasty Awards” and I thought what a fun way to peek behind the curtain and check out what all the fuss was about with the celebrity chefs. Being a food lover means I indulge in watching Food TV, read any and all food...
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Tags: celebrity chefs
Posted in Britain, San Francisco, United Kingdom, United States, Washington, DC | 22 Comments »
I love to travel and frequently collect cookbooks from my destinations. However, sometimes I get into trouble when a recipe calls for ingredients and I have no idea of the American equivalent. Sugar is one ingredient that I’ve had this problem with frequently, so I decided to investigate the differences. I suspect part of...
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Tags: Asia, black sugar, cassonade, demerara, France, India, Japan, Mexico, sugar, turbinado, United States
Posted in Britain, India, Japan, Mexico, Sweden, United States, food | 32 Comments »
The custom of eating pork on New Year’s is based on the notion that pigs symbolize progress or prosperity for many cultures – not a connection that may immediately come to mind. The animal pushes forward, rooting in the ground before moving, symbolizing progress. In Italy, the fatty meat also symbolizes the fattening of...
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Tags: celebrations, New Year, New Year's Eve, Persian New Year
Posted in Africa, Britain, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Phillipines, Poland, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom, United States, culture, dessert, family, history, oysters, religion | 24 Comments »
I recently swapped a few emails with FoodGal about haggis before my trip to Ireland and the exchange reminded me of my time in London when I enjoyed sampling the different flavors of potato chips (or crisps as they call theme) with my lunch time sandwich – I tried to never repeat a flavor....
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Tags: chips, crisps, Great Britain, Ireland, potato, United States
Posted in Britain, Huh Foods, Ireland, United States, fast food, history | 35 Comments »
Gulp! I have a huge confession to make: I used to think the only universal ingredient required to make a good curry be it Indian, Thai, Chinese was a good dose of curry power along with the desired vegetables and protein of choice. I was so, so wrong, and despite the fact that the...
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Tags: curry, India
Posted in Britain, India, spices | 18 Comments »
Altoids have been around forever, at least in candy years; more than 200 years now to be precise. Produced by Callard & Bower-Suchard in Great Britain, Altoids have a long and storied tradition. History In the late 1780′s, during the rule of King George III in England, a confectionary company called Smith & Company...
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Tags: candy, confections, United Kingdom, United States
Posted in Britain, United States, candy | 9 Comments »
Jean-Antheleme Brillat-Savarin called cheese “milk’s leap toward immortality” and I couldn’t agree more. If cheese is something you like sandwiched between two sheets of plastic, than you will not appreciate this post. But if you’ve had the real live thing – you are passionate about what cheese is and can appreciate its diversity and...
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Tags: cheese, cow, cow milk, dairy, goat, goat cheese, milk, sheep, sheep milk
Posted in Britain, France, Greece, Italy, San Francisco, United Kingdom, cheese | 21 Comments »