Italian plum tomatoes have a special place in cuisine, especially Italian. No sauce is complete without the proper use of tomatoes, and gravies don’t taste as good without some tomatoes or puree for the base. Tomatoes, whether freshly chopped or pureed, are an important part of many recipes no matter where you are in the world.
I love jerky because it’s a great source of protein when you’re on those long hiking or camping trips and just need a quick pick-me-up. It’s pretty tasty too, and light enough that you can easily stash away dozens of jerky packs in your bag without weighing yourself down.
Simple syrup with Splenda can be a way to have your save Sunday morning pancakes when they are threatened by the low-sugar, reducing diet you recently adopted. Sugar has been linked to a number of adverse conditions including diabetes and obesity. But we humans do love our sweet flavors, and if you’ve been missing that special taste, then Splenda might offer a solution to your dilemma.
If you’ve never had Xiaolongbao before: strike one! Be gone with you, evil swine! Stemming from the outskirts of Shanghai, Xiaolongbao (literally meaning ‘little basket buns’) pack so much flavor and punch and whatever they squeeze in there that you are always left craving for more. Much like re-runs of Walker, Texas Ranger.
There are few tastes as distinctive as horseradish. It delivers a unique experience that’s somehow more than a taste. It’s not spicy in the same way as a pepper, but it certainly has plenty of kick. This makes it the backbone of many sauces, dips, and recipes. This means it’s tough to find a horseradish replacement.
I was at a sushi bar in Los Angeles perhaps two years ago when I witnessed a particularly embarrassing interaction. A woman was talking to one of the chefs (who spoke very good English) and she forced the poor man to explain in great detail what all of the ingredients in her sushi roll were. She wasn’t content with normal explanations, either. Instead, she demanded that he describe all of the ingredients in simple English terms — seaweed instead of nori and so forth. When he tried to define gobo, however, she refused to believe him.
On a recent ‘patient visit’ to Italy (where this good Doctor shall be relocating his drinking ‘practice’ as of late November) I stumbled into Sicily: yes, mafia land and home to scary dudes with lots of chest hair & gold jewelry. But its also home to some cracking vino and an absolute little gem called Marsala (which comes from, funnily enough, Marsala!).
The heavenly taste of dirt cake is simply awesome! This dish has remained one of my favorite snacks cum desserts since long. Initially, my grandmother used to prepare it during our Summer holidays.
American sauces are a nightmare to get right. With traditional French or Italian or even English cooking, it’s pretty easy to find a single, reliable source you can use for your recipe. This lets you quickly compare the dish you’ve made with an “ideal” version and make the appropriate changes. When you ask a friend for advice or look online, you can usually get a pretty definitive answer immediately. If you need to thicken a pasta sauce, there will be a note in the recipe that tells you exactly how to do that.
Fruits are pretty complicated. People have been cultivating various strains of our favorite fruits for thousands of years, meaning that we’ve got lots of exciting culinary options to choose from. Exciting doesn’t always mean accessible, however. If you’ve ever bought a granny smith apple to enjoy raw, for example, you almost certainly know that there’s a world of difference between different strains of the same fruit. Morello cherries are another great example of a delicious fruit that’s different than other members of the cherry family.
