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Blake Royer

Dinner Tonight and Sausage City Columnist

Born and raised in Chicago, one of Blake's earliest food memories was a Chicago-style hot dog with all the toppings. It was the start of a beautiful friendship.

As a co-founder of The Paupered Chef And a Serious Eats Contributor since the beginning, Blake has been writing about food regularly since 2006. He currently contributes weekly to Dinner Tonight and writes the Chicago-based column Sausage City. He studied professional cookery at Kendall College in Chicago, and is creative director of Jamco Creative, an outfit in Chicago that specializes in social media marketing.

Location: Chicago, IL
Favorite foods: Marcona almonds, roast chicken, olives, and negronis. Negronis are a food, right?
Last bite on earth: A slice of toasted sourdough with butter, avocado, lemon juice, and sea salt.

Comments

Sausage City: Chorizo Queso Fundido at Big Star

@raulb There are definitely better tacos in Chicago than Big Star, no doubt (though none of the places that serve them play vinyl and pour whiskey). But I'd stack the queso fundido up any day.

25 Quick Dinner Recipes in 20 Minutes or Less

@carriebwc Great catch. You should add the tuna in that recipe just after heating the canning oil with the mustard, and break it up just a little bit. This way it will meld best with the pasta.

@meleyna @kdewitt Thanks for the nice words, guys!

8 Great Places to Buy Sausage in Chicago (And Nearby)

@wizzy @likenoneother Great suggestions. Both of those places are on my list for Sausage City.

@Jim-Bob Looks like quite a trek, but sounds like it's worth it, too. I'll add it to the list.

Serious Eats Neighborhood Guides: Julia Kramer's Wicker Park

Great list, Julia! I live nearby so it's fun to compare favorite spots.

@nikkos350 Red Hen used to be great, I hear, but my impression of their bread is it's pricey and not all that excellent. I've been there a number of times and given up.

Sausage City: Thai Sausage at Thai Aree

@cookiequiz Looks a bit like cabbage in the photo, but it's definitely iceberg lettuce.

Shrimp Scampi with Artichokes

@candide @hointz

My apologies -- the artichokes should go into the skillet in step 3, along with the garlic. @Douglas Kitchen had it right on!

The Serious Eats Chicago Lenten Fried Fish Survival Guide

Joe, I LOVE the distinction between breaded fish and battered fish.

While I love Fish n Chips dearly (Kate -- great rec for Owen & Engine) I am excited to branch out from that battered style into breaded, as you recommend.

This is incredible research, folks. Joe, hats off.

Eataly Eyes Location Near Michigan Ave.

It's pretty impressive. The food I ate there didn't blow me away, but the product selection did.

I worry a little about accessibility near Michigan avenue, unless they offer free parking somehow. But otherwise, this should be a great addition to Chicago.

This is great news.

Also, it seriously looks like Lidia is spittin' some epic rhymes in that photo.

Five Poutines We Love in Chicago

@huge I'm in for your Montreal-style diner, too.

Also, next time you're home, try the poutine at Au Pied de Cochon if you haven't yet. They have a version with foie gras -- a fat, glistening lobe of it, and foie fat infused into the gravy.

Sausage City: Presenting the Natural Casing Hot Dog Map

@blchitwn For now, we limited the scope to hot dogs within the city limits. We'll be expanding it as time goes on!

Dinner Tonight: Roasted Caper Caesar Salad

@cmeadee2 About half of the capers turned crisp when I made this. I would suggest cooking them a little longer, though be careful as they will burn at some point.

Dinner Tonight: Butternut Squash Baked Risotto

@Will K
It is indeed from Everyday Food -- thanks for noticing the missed reference. We'll update the post shortly.

Dinner Tonight: Pasta with Broccoli, Goat Cheese, and Oregano

@emilydev

I used chevre, the kind commonly found here in the US. I imagine anything with a rind would be a little firmer, so you would just need to cook it a little longer to make sure the cheese fully melts. With the chevre it turned into a creamy sauce right away.

Dinner Tonight: Roasted Poblano-Potato Salad with Grilled Steak

@phillamb168
Yes, the potatoes are effectively blanched, but without any added water they are kept drier in the microwave. Without a microwave, I'd recommend boiling them whole, then cutting into cubes once they're cooked.

Dinner Tonight: Chiles en Nogada

@Kenji
I actually really enjoyed it, though I do see what you mean about the sauce seeming broken. The flavors are weird--sweet and meat is something I usually steer clear of--but I think they really work together.

@reposado
This is definitely a simplified version of the dish, mostly to make it more accessible for folks looking for a weeknight dinner. For example, I didn't soak the poblanos after de-skinning in vinegar and I pared down the number of spices in the meat stuffing mixture. Thanks for the link, I'd like to read more.

Dinner Tonight: Orecchiette with Sausage, Broccoli, and Caramelized Garlic

@Flufflseworth
I'm not sure what you mean -- I photographed this myself using the above recipe.

Dinner Tonight: Pasta with Brown Butter, Capers, Walnuts and Spinach

@Brian Burke

Sorry to hear about that -- there should be a ton of flavor in there. Pasta water should definitely be very salty, that's something I've learned. It should be as salty as the ocean.

Otherwise, there's lots of flavor here. Did you let the butter get nice and deep brown? Use good quality Parmesan? Good quality imported pasta?

This is a simple dish, and it's as much about the noodles as it is about the sauce. Personally, I'm happy with a bowl of pasta dressed with butter and Parmesan, but that's just me.

Dinner Tonight: Pork Scaloppine with Brown Butter Salsa Verde

@finsbigfan
I'm obsessed with brown butter right now. It recently made it into a vinaigrette for asparagus, which might have been my favorite preparation yet.

@orangina,
Awesome combination. Beans and corn are not only delicious, but together a complete and nutritious diet. Just ask the Mexicans.

Dinner Tonight: Braised Chicken with Leeks and Cream

@mainer
Thanks. I roughly chopped it for this recipe, but it tends to just melt and disappear into the sauce during the braising.

@plazmaorb
I'm not picky, usually just what I have in the fridge.

@Jeanne-Marie
I find ovens always produce better results than the stovetop when it comes to braising. It provides more exact, all-around heat instead of just from underneath. But with a short recipe like this, you may be right in that it's less hassle.

Dinner Tonight: Spaghetti with Bottarga and Almonds

I feel your pain, everybody -- really hard to find. Nick and I finally found it, as he notes above, at an Italian market in Chicago for a very reasonable price. It is also sold in New York at the place in the Chelsea market. Most online dealers charge many times what they should because it's such a small market.

Best bet is to call a local Italian market and see if they can order some!

@Rodzilla It is not really similar to anchovies or fish roe. It is cured, so it's the hardness of an aged cheese like Parmesan.

Mexican 'Fondue' with Chorizo and Tomatillo Salsa

@cptBuck
Excellent tip, thanks!

Dinner Tonight: Parisian Chicken

@DanielJ - Would be great with rice or a rice pilaf. Cous cous. Green beans. Asparagus.

@IndyGal @ dhorst - Vermouth is great to have around for deglazing and building sauces, and if you keep it in the fridge door it lasts forever. Also makes a great base to steam mussels.

@DomesticMuse - Also great pairing ideas!

Dinner Tonight: Korean Fried Chicken

@all

Thanks for the help with gojujang (or gochujang) paste.

@vinnyger

Actually, I attempted to bake these in the oven first, and it was a rather epic fail. I left the flour batter coating on, which just sort of turned gummy in the oven. If you want to bake them, I'd say lose the flour-water paste, and instead marinate the wings in some of the sauce for a little bit beforehand (then throw it away to avoid cross-contamination), then bake them at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes on one side, then flip and 15 on the other. Toss with more sauce after cooking.

They won't be nearly as crisp but I'm sure they'd be delicious anyway.