Foodies In The News

[Earthmaiden Profile]

Thought the curry recipes very good. As one who only likes certain spices there's a lovely selection. One of them has 'Carribean Spice'. On looking this up it seems to be one of those, like garam masala and harissa, that if you buy it ready made, contains very different spices depending on the brand. I must investigate.

Sue, thank you. Very interesting indeed and really complements what we see on TV. He is lucky and I hope he eventually makes the best recovery he can.

[Pepper Pig Profile]

It’s grim reading isn’t it?

Rachel Roddy has been making Rice Pudding tarts.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/j ... fiorentini

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Interesting curries. A couple of years back I gave a course on "World Curries" and was amazed to discover the huge differences across the globe. Japanese curries, for example, have only been around since the end of the 2nd World War - brought over by the British navy. And sweet, rather than hot. Thai red and green curries are full of aromatics, but very few spices. In the Caribbean, it´s curry powder which is generally used, rather than a combination of individual spices.

[Earthmaiden Profile]

Surely curry powder is a combination of individual spices? The difficulty, sometimes, is establishing what those spices are.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I think it’s a good list - can I just point out that the pumpkin curry by Emily and Amy Chung is Burmese and they are collectively the Rangoon Sisters? Because I didn’t think that was obvious - I went to one of their pop ups, lovely food, lovely people

https://www.rangoonsisters.com/

I need to go down the list and look for one I like

One of them has 'Carribean Spice'. On looking this up it seems to be one of those, like garam masala and harissa, that if you buy it ready made, contains very different spices depending on the brand. I must investigate.

Which one is that Earthmaiden?. I can’t find it, Andi Oliver uses Caribbean curry powder, which is not, in my experience, much different from medium Madras
Never heard of “Caribbean Spice”
This is the commonest Caribbean curry powder in my experience - certainly the easiest to get hold of

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/p ... /271760543

[Earthmaiden Profile]

Apologies, it was that one. By the time I'd finished reading the whole thing and looked up I had got the name wrong. I see now by looking at your link and others that the mix of ingredients is not unique to the Caribbean and as you say, is very similar to Madras. I'd hoped it was a slightly different blend.

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Surely curry powder is a combination of individual spices?

Well yes, it is; I should have explained myself better. What I meant to say was that, for example, a bit of turmeric, a tsp of cumin and 2 tsps of coriander will taste very different if added individually, rather than dumping in 3 tsps of curry powder. Commercial curry powder is often a combination of lots of different spices ground to dust, and that means the flavour of the spices gets lost fairly rapidly.
I´m sure there are some extremely good curry powders in the market right now, however. Nothing wrong with curry powder except that you´ll always get the same flavour, whereas with spices added one by one, you can change the taste of each dish.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

The thing is the tradition in the
Caribbean, or at least among London West Indians and in the relevant books I have, - is to use a base of “curry powder” and add fresh chillies and other spices & herbs to round it out and make it individual

Much as Andi has done in that recipe, though hers is more nuanced than most of the recipes I’ve encountered, and looks good to me

[Pepper Pig Profile]

Another recipe within a travel article. Mexican fish tacos.

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2021 ... lus-recipe

(And another use for halibut).

[Badger's Mate Profile]

Fish tacos...

[jeral Profile]

I'm surprised that pico de gallo isn't sold in jars over here considering how ubiquitous/indispensable it is in California. Maybe it's more associated with outdoor bbq meat fodder so no demand here? Although Doritos does a jarred salsa "dip" (hot or mild) that's not bad.

I've had a small pan of hot oil on the go this week (twice annually is enough) and fry fish as pieces or goujons as they fit in better. It's not the right time of year for the lovely salad additions, so even in corn tortilla are a poor imitation. Mind you, hot Californian sunshine ought to be sold in jars too if authenticity is the aim

[Lusciouslush Profile]

[quote="jeral"]I'm surprised that pico de gallo isn't sold in jars over here[/quote

The whole point of pico de gallo is its freshness & zing - jarring it would be a killer! And no, it's not just que fodder but a damn good salsa to go with many dishes - inside or out eating/ winter or summer.............

[Stokey Sue Profile]

You used to be able to buy Pace Thick ‘n’ Chunky salsa which is close to pick de gallo in U.K. supermarket s, not the same as fresh but a handy thing in the pantry, no longer imported it seems

Can I recommend a podcast? The Life Scientific with Jim Al Khalili can get a bit much if you aren’t into that particular corner of science but the new one today features Giles Yeo talking about the genetics of obesity, fascinating and I thought pretty accessible

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000rmp5

[oat Profile]

Very interesting Sue. Think I know now why I adore labradors its because we share the same genes

[karadekoolaid Profile]

I'm surprised that pico de gallo isn't sold in jars over here considering how ubiquitous/indispensable it is in California. Maybe it's more associated with outdoor bbq meat fodder so no demand here?

Pico de gallo is a fresh salsa - no way could you bottle it without destroying it. It´s meant to be used on the same day you make it. Typically, it´s served in Mexico with... almost everything!! (Take a look at the Latin-American thread for a recipe)

[Suffs Profile]

SSue I listened to The Life Scientific in tears, remembering the horrible insults I received from an endocrinologist some years ago, including
'... the trouble with people like you is that you do a bit of exercise then order a pizza and lie about it.'*

The programme revealed what I've felt for years, having observed the breeding of farm animals, particularly pigs (studying lineage/strains/heredity etc) and also having worked with children and young people with brain injury and syndromes such as Prader-Willi.

*Yes I wrote and complained; yes I got a written apology from the Trust .... and he was given some retraining re his interaction with patients'. What he needed was to be more curious about his subject and to respect and believe what his patients told him

[Earthmaiden Profile]

I am reading 'Spoon-Fed' by Tim Spector at the moment which I think goes well with the podcast. There seems to be a sensible way of thinking emerging which accepts that people are different and that one size doesn't fit all when it comes to battling with obesity or adopting a healthier diet. It's what many of us always suspected I think but very refreshing. It's getting it to filter down to GPs and the NHS and which will take time.

[ZeroCook Profile]

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Thanks for that curry list link PP and the fish taco piece - loads of good stuff on there.

Stokey, thanks for the Tim Hayward link. Grim heavy reading but has to be done. Reminds me of the piece written by an nhs doctor last year. And great hospital Addenbrookes - they looked after my mother so well as an outpatient in her later years.

There are decent bottled bottles salsas around - usually very locally.
Pace thick n chunky appeared along with early Old El Paso "Mex" supermarket offerings ...

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[Pampy Profile]

SSue I listened to The Life Scientific in tears, remembering the horrible insults I received from an endocrinologist some years ago, including
'... the trouble with people like you is that you do a bit of exercise then order a pizza and lie about it.'*

I had a very similar experience with an endocrinologist - when I complained, I was told to go easy on him as he had recently lost his son. Now that must have been dreadful for him but I think he should have taken time away from his job if it was affecting his ability to interact with patients.

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Pace thick n chunky appeared along with early Old El Paso "Mex" supermarket offerings ...

Yep - I´ve tried them. About as Mexican as grits and biscuits