The Pros and Cons of Brunch
Does anyone really need brunch, or is it just an excuse to drink in the morning, as Samalicious quips? Skeptics like ttoommyy wonder if anyone actually craves brunch’s “fancied-up” egg dishes, or if we...
View ArticleIs Colatura the Same as Asian Fish Sauce?
Colatura is Italy’s version of fish sauce, which katzzz describes as “liquid essence of anchovy.” It’s more expensive than Asian fish sauces, but does it differ in other ways? According to ipsedixit,...
View ArticleBig Love for Shrimp and Grits
Chowhounds go crazy for the classic Southern combo of shrimp and grits. jmcarthur8 loves it when the shrimp are poached in butter and the stone-ground grits are slow-cooked (extra points for adding...
View ArticleThe Best Canned Hash?
“I LOVE canned corned beef hash!” says Bacardi1, who has yet to meet a brand that disappointed. Hormel (sometimes labeled Mary Kitchen) is very good. John E. agrees: “I still [prefer] homemade … but...
View ArticleAny Good Garlic Powders Out There?
Garlic powder tastes totally unlike fresh garlic, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be a great addition to recipes like dry rubs. Which garlic powders are good? ipsedixit thinks the gourmet garlic powder...
View ArticleWoody Parsnips? Reach for the Food Mill
It’s a shame when the sweet taste and creamy texture of parsnips is ruined by stringy fibers. To avoid this problem, choose thin, young parsnips, rather than the thicker, older parsnips that are...
View ArticleKnow Your Garlic Scapes
Garlic scapes are “the thin flowering heads sent up by hard neck garlic varieties,” meadandale says. When cooked, they have a mild garlic flavor. Garlic scapes are occasionally available at farmers’...
View ArticleA Sweet Fix for Stevia’s Bitterness
Fresh stevia leaves taste sweet, meatn3 says, but processed stevia has a bitter aftertaste reminiscent of diet sodas. sedimental grows stevia plants and agrees: The leaves have a pleasant licorice...
View ArticleCrisp, Addictive Deep-Fried Capers
Salty, sharp-tasting capers are superb fried, chefathome says. Salt-packed capers can be fried as is, while brined ones should be drained and thoroughly dried first. “The flower unfolds and they become...
View ArticleCollier’s Powerful: The Best Welsh Cheddar?
Buttery, sharp-tasting Collier’s Powerful Welsh Cheddar is the best cheddar cheese jhopp217 has ever tried. Harters likes it too, but when it comes to cheddar made with milk from North Wales,...
View ArticleDoes Bottle Color Affect Nocino’s Taste?
Every year, quasistoic makes a batch of nocino, a liqueur made from green walnuts mellowed in red wine for at least a year. “Last year’s batch has mellowed into deliciousness, and we’re one week into...
View ArticleWhy Do We Need Tomato Paste Anyway?
Considering that we all have canned crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce in our pantries, achilles007 wonders: What’s the purpose of tomato paste? Well, Dirtywextraolives explains, tomato paste is a...
View ArticleIs a Shaken Martini an Abomination?
Is a shaken martini with lots of tiny ice slivers an abomination? JMF thinks so. While shaking is great for drinks containing juice or other cloudy ingredients, it doesn’t jibe with JMF’s aesthetic...
View ArticleCan You Tell If Corn Is Going to Taste Sweet?
Is there any way to tell by looking if the ears of corn you’re buying are going to taste sweet? Are white varieties automatically going to taste sweeter than yellow ones? According to raytamsgv, the...
View ArticleThe Holy Grail of Authentic Sichuan Cooking
Juan Cheng brand pixian doubanjiang broad-bean and chile paste is the “holy grail of authentic Sichuan cooking,” eatahorse says. The place where you can find it: Boston’s Posharp Store, which sells...
View ArticleShould Lamb Have a Strong Taste?
ns1 finds it confusing when people praise lamb dishes as “cooked perfectly, without a single hint of gaminess.” Isn’t the pronounced flavor the appeal of lamb in the first place? While lamb does have...
View ArticleThe Number 1 Tip for No-Cry Onions
Does slicing onions make you cry? Some Chowhounds go to great lengths to avoid getting weepy, including wearing goggles! But you don’t need any special gadgets to keep onions from making you cry,...
View ArticleCube Steak, the Heart of Chicken-Fried Steak
Cube steak, the standard choice for chicken-fried steak, isn’t a particular cut. Rather, todao says, it’s meat that’s been put through a tenderizer, “which makes countless little indentations in its...
View ArticleAuthentic Leavening for Empanada Dough
Are authentic empanadas always made with yeast-risen dough? That’s a tough question, wyogal says, since empanada styles vary from Spain to Portugal to Latin America. JungMann loves the flaky,...
View ArticleNixtamalization, the Process That Makes Corn Good for You
When corn becomes a staple food—like corn tortillas in Mexican cuisine—it must undergo a process called nixtamalization to make the nutrients available for digestion. e_bone says it’s a method...
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