Get to Know a Serious Eater.

anapestic's Profile

Website: http://anapestic.blogspot.com

Location:

About:

Favorite foods: lemons, ginger, dark chocolate, eggs, cheese, soup

Last bite on earth:

The Ten Most Recent Comments By anapestic

From Required Eating

Canned Confessions

If it tastes good, it is good. I make a mean, Velveeta-based chili con queso, and everyone loves it.

On the other hand, I use cheddar when I make macaroni and cheese, and it's light years better than mac and cheese made with Velveeta.

And I can make a scratch chocolate cake that will kick your cake-mix-and-pudding cake's ass. Any time you make a cake from a box, you get the distinctive flavor of something that is not butter, and no amount of covering up will cover that up.

From Talk

What's the one piece of kitchen gear you can not function without

There are plenty of pieces that I always knew I couldn't get by without, but this weekend, I broke the handle on my heat-resistant spatula, and it was terrible. I had no idea how dependent on it I'd become.

From Talk

Question of the Day: The five-second rule—is it OK to eat food you've dropped?

The relevant question isn't whether a piece of food dropped on the floor will pick up any bacteria in five seconds; the relevant question is whether that bacteria is likely to hurt you. There's bacteria everywhere, and if you drop food just about anywhere and then culture it, you'll see lots of bacteria. Presumably, however, you're going to eat the food before you culture it. Anything you're likely to pick up from the floor pales in comparison to what you get if you let your food sit out at room temperature for more than two hours. Your body is used to handling the former. The latter is begging for food poisoning.

If I drop something on the floor, I'll eat it unless something's happened to make it unappetizing. But I won't serve it to guests.

Some public health scientists believe that a lack of exposure to bacteria as a child keeps a child from developing a healthy immune system and may lead to more serious diseases as an adult. Here's an article about that. I don't think the theories are universally accepted, but I think it makes sense not to be too squeamish about a little bit of bacteria.

From Talk

Rachael Ray - love, hate, ignore, pity, envy?

I think you have to ask what she's accomplishing. Is she getting people who wouldn't otherwise cook to cook? Or is she getting people who would otherwise cook better to cook worse?

I suspect that it's more the former than the latter, and I think that's a good thing. I don't understand many of the criticisms of her. There are plenty of Food Network shows that include baking, so a show with no baking is not such a terrible thing. I don't think she says that nobody should bake: she says that she doesn't bake.

My impression is that many RR haters are more annoyed at the totality of the Food Network programming than they are at RR specifically. I think the haters view RR as symptomatic of FN's reliance on more entertainment and less actual cooking. And FN is definitely guilty of that, but I don't think RR is. I agree that RR is probably not the person to expand my culinary horizons, and I wish there were more shows on FN that did. But there are many people for whom RR provides a valuable service.

From Required Eating

Michael Ruhlman, on Bourdain's Food Network Rant

I was hitherto blissfully unaware of Mr. Bourdain's rant. Much of what he says has merit, but he's so obnoxious that he makes me inclined to disagree with him simply because he's objectionable.

I abhor a lot of the Food Network's programming. Especially things like The Secret Life of ... and anything else where there's no actual cooking going on. ("Today we're showing you the top five foods that begin with Q!) That said, I don't think that chefs need to be the only people who have shows. There is a significant difference between what a chef does every day and what an excellent home cook does every day. It's entertaining to watch a chef be a chef, but it doesn't necessarily show you anything you can do in your own kitchen.

As for least favorite show, I really don't mind Rachel Ray at all, but Sandra Lee gets on my very last nerve. People really don't need to be encouraged to use cake mixes and prepackaged cookie dough or whatever.

From Talk

Do you like company in the kitchen while you cook?

Oh, and gwen: doesn't everyone do that? If I've been drinking wine while I'm cooking, I use my Julia Child voice.

From Talk

Do you like company in the kitchen while you cook?

I once lived in an apartment with two other guys, and one of them and I could share the kitchen peacefully and effectively. And the reason that worked was that we were both good cooks, but I was clearly a better cook, and he always acknowledged that. Also, I think the kitchen was set up well for that sort of collaboration because the range was a stand-alone unit and it was four or five steps from the countertops, sink, and refrigerator, so it was easy for one person to be doing one thing and another person doing another without them having to cross paths all the time. Right now, I'll be working in the kitchen, and my partner will always be getting in my way to throw something in the garbage can, which is under the sink, which is right near the range, and it makes me grumpy.

I'm happy, in theory, to have other people around, but our kitchen doesn't really have a place where they can sit and not get crushed by my constant back and forth. If they could sit on stools somewhere and just watch me, I think I'd like that.

From Required Eating

Eggs Benny

Cream gravy, at least as the term is used in that link, is basically béchamel, or white sauce. Actually, what "béchamel" means has evolved a great deal over time, but what it usually means now (and what cream gravy means) is a roux (butter cooked with flour for a few minutes) with hot milk whisked into it, brought to a boil, and simmered for a couple of minutes to thicken, then seasoned to taste. It's the basis for a lot of other sauces that are less plain and would, in my opinion, be better overtop the egg in this dish.

From Required Eating

Eggs Benny

I am generally in favor of any variation on the Sausage Egg McMuffin, but I think that cream gravy is a somewhat dreary affair. I would top it with hollandaise or at least whisk something colorful and flavorful into the bechamel. Maybe a couple of egg yolks, some roasted red peppers, and/or some cayenne.

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

This recipe sounds delicious, but I would encourage you to cook it to a significantly lower temperature. I would pull it from the oven at 160 (for a final temperature of 165), and a lot of people would go as low as 155.

Responses to Comments by anapestic

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

Follow up on that Wild Boar Pernil. It came out great - really tender and yummy. I pretty much let it cook all day on low heat - covered. Thanks for the input.

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

Thanks, will do that! I wondered if covering would help - since most Pernil recipes call for uncovered but Boar is ...well, tough would be an understatement, wouldn't it. I'll let you know how it turns out.

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

My 2 cents' worth on the wild boar: I'd leave it in the marinade longer, and cook it long and slow, mostly with a cover on it - a braise, really. I've marinated venison 5 days, and it was worth it.

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

Nelson, I came across your recipe for Pernil which you posted last year and am in the process of making one right now. The difference is I am using a Wild Boar Shoulder, that was given to me by a hunter friend. Since you seem very knowledgeable about it - I was wondering if you think I need to add some fat - a lot of wild game recipes call for bacon - or if you think that the slow cooking will tenderize the meat enough with what little fat is there.
Thanks, LeeBee

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

My husband makes something like this but he does it on a grill at a fairly low temperature for about 6 hours. Also, you can boil the marinade and reduce it to make a sauce. So delicious.

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

The fresh OJ appears to be a substitute for actual sour oranges (naranja agria), which you should be able to get at a Hispanic grocery store, particularly in NYC. They look beat up and mottled and have a more dried out and hard skin.

The sour orange really helps, it you want it to be a true mojo. What you have above is closer to an Adobo Mojado

http://www.daisycooks.com/pages/recipes_detail.cfm?ID=3

Also I would toss the white wine vinegar in favor of cider vinegar and / or some lime juice, you need the higher acidity.

Also if you really want to make it latino, it also needs recaito in the marinade.

http://www.daisycooks.com/pages/recipes_detail.cfm?ID=5


From Talk

Rachael Ray - love, hate, ignore, pity, envy?

My goodness, I wonder how she can be so popular, when bloggers everywhere seem to hate her.

Personally, I love Rachael, and always have. I love her incessant cheeriness, and find it refreshing, not annoying. She is pretty, informative, and tells stories while she works. I see talent when I watch her, and she does not burn the food, like some other cooks. She chops veggies fast and fearlessly, and I like how she does every single bit in real time.

And I think Yum-O is a catchy, unforgettable name for a website, and a good cause, too.

From Talk

Rachael Ray - love, hate, ignore, pity, envy?

Rachael is annoying, and her food is mediocre at best. I can see why people may like her - her food is easy, and she is easy to relate to - definitely a girl-next-door type. The food is uninspiring, and I don't find her shoes to be very educational at all, though I have only watched a few, and had no desire to watch anymore.

From Talk

Rachael Ray - love, hate, ignore, pity, envy?

She is coarse and vulgar. I wish I could spit her out of my mouth.

From Talk

Pernil Recipe

Ah I love pernil with a big bowl of arroz con gandules y tostones. It was always the thursday special at this little HIspanic restaurant I worked at. For some reason, I always happened to be working on thursdays. haha