Apologies to the Euythmics, but ever since I conceived the idea for this post, I could not get their song out of my head. When I made my batch of homemade olives, I researched the various techniques involved, including the use of lye. I suddenly seemed to encounter all matter of food made with...
So What is Miso? Miso is a Japanese fermented soybean paste made with soybeans, rice or barley, salt, and water. An all-purpose seasoning with a rich, hearty, often meatlike flavor and aroma. Miso can be used (like a meat stock or bouillon) in the preparation of soups, sauces, gravies, dips, dressings, and many...
Growing up, a favorite treat for me was the beef jerky my parents made. I loved that delicious, salty snack, but after I moved away I questioned my memory of those meaty treats. My subsequent encounters, left me cold, they were not so much dried as desiccated, tough as nails, so stringy that I...
If you had asked me about dragon boats before a few years ago, I am sure I would have looked at you funny. They were not on my radar until, while still living in Washington, DC, some of my work colleagues spoke excitedly about dragon boat racing on the Potomac competing against teams...
Spring is here, I see color wherever I look, especially at the Farmers Market – not the color coordinated palettes of winter – the lush jewel toned browns, greens, and golds, but the clashing vibrant fireworks of blues, reds, pinks, and greens – mostly greens that harold in the new season. One of my...
Hawaii, the United States’ backyard paradise, is one of those places that is almost impossible to define in terms of its cuisine and culture. The indigenous people were devastated by disease and fighting when Captain Cook settled on the islands. Since then, people from China, Japan, Thailand, Korea, the Philippines and points beyond arrived...
I had no plans to write about my experience at the Fancy Food Show that recently took place in San Francisco; I intended to incorporate what I discovered in future posts, but after receiving many requests to identify what I tried, I reconsidered. After all, is not food something of an ambassador of a...
The history of soy sauce is a bit like the sauce itself, kind of murky. What is consistent is that the precursor to soy sauce is something called jiang. Jiang was a method of preservation popular with the prehistoric people of Asia involving preserving meat and fish with salt. This process produced a bi-product,...
Imagine you are Zhu Yuanzhang living in the 14th century, and are of the Han tribe of China. You are tired of living under an oppressive Mongolian overload of the Yuan Dynasty, and desperate to overthrow this ruler. You hatch upon a brilliant plot to unite your people to rise against the conquerers. You...
When you think of curry, which country or region comes to mind? India Thailand Caribbean Japan China Britian Any of the above, and indeed many other countries would be correct, and you would still be thinking in the right direction if your mind wandered to Germany or South Africa and a host of other...
