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The Ten Most Recent Comments By gmunger

From Required Eating

Who Knew There Was a Conundrum?

Was anyone else astounded at the repeated references to rare cooking temps using standard supermarket ground beef?

From Required Eating

Michael Ruhlman Interviews Judith Jones

I'll name names. Why does someone as talented, passionate, and articulate as Mario Batali have to use so much gratuitous vulgarity? I'm not a prude, and an occasional well-placed expletive can be useful on rare occasions. But c'mon Mario, this ain't the fraternity house, brutha.

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

With all due respect to Mr. Batali, I have to disagree about the obligate use of Italian tomatoes. While I am a firm believer in the concept of terroir, I am a firmer believer in the virtues of local food. Most areas of the US are capable of producing high-quality San Marzano tomatoes. The seeds of the variety are readily available, they are not difficult to grow, and they are easily preserved at home using well-known techniques.

I have tasted the tomatoes pictured above. They are indeed very good. I have also grown San Marzano and other varieties myself that are at least the equal of their Italian counterparts. I invite Mr. Batali to come enjoy my pizza with homegrown San Marzanos, and see if he can tell the difference.

From Required Eating

Cook the Book: 'Beard on Food'

My friend Smitty, who showed me the possibilities that can be achieved with food and wine.

From Required Eating

Cook the Book: 'How to Pick a Peach'

Cooking: tomatoes
Raw: tomatoes

Responses to Comments by gmunger

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

Ravara: Wut wut wut?!!! Of COURSE I have it! I've turned too many people on to Super Marzano not to have it Yes, yes, it's not technically San Marzano, it's better.....it's SUPER Marzano! Come on out to my tomato seedling sale and pick some up. I've always got a lot of Super Marzanos for peeps. www.GrowBetterVeggies.com

Does this constitute spam? Forgive me if so. Just trying to spread the tomato love....

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

In case anyone who might benefit sees this, I agree with gmunger that I'm sad to see Mario, who has seen the joys of California produce, claim you can't get good San Marzano tomatoes in the US. I assure you that Mariquita and twosmallfarms dot com have fabulous San Marzanos for cooking- they suck for raw stuff, they are TOO low acid, but holy jeez cooked.. Love Apple Farms doesn't have it on their grow list this season- http://loveapplefarm.typepad.com/growbetterveggies/love-apple-farms-2008-tom.html but I bet Cynthia can tell you something good...

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

This is the way I have always made my bacis tomato gravy (though not always with the carrot, though I can see using it for the sweetness it adds. This is a good basic tomato sauce. A good place to start off.

From Required Eating

Who Knew There Was a Conundrum?

If you want a great hamburger/meatloaf, try using your own food processor to grind up a sirloin steak. Then flavor the meat with a combination of spices from your spice drawer, such as paprika, dried onion flakes, garlic powder, salt, pepper, oregano, etc, and then add ketchup, and bbq sauce, and mix it all up.

From Required Eating

Michael Ruhlman Interviews Judith Jones

Okay, sorry, excuse me. Perhaps my attempt at humor was ill-conceived, and I apologize if I offended. It does seem to me that gmunger has a point about "an occasional well-placed expletive" being occasionally useful, but in an online forum such as this, the element of timing is lost, and that diminishes the effectiveness of it. So I'll be better behaved in the future.

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

I make a sauce from home-grown Roma tomatoes cut in half and layered with fresh basil and garlic cloves - slow cooked in the oven and then run through a food mill. I freeze as much as I can to get me through the winter. Don't add salt or pepper until you use it.

Add a couple heads of garlic to the roasting pan for other uses.

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

I have been using this recipe since 1997 when it was published (exactly as written here) in the New York Post with the title "Mario's Secret Sauce Recipe." My note says "From Chef Mario Batali, Po's Restaurant." How far he has come since then!

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

as an addendum....
Kim Pierce at the Dallas Morning News
http://eats.beloblog.com/archives/2007/10/dop_means_real_san_marzano_tom.html
has great info on the San Marzano DOP tomatoes. worth reading

cheers,

From Recipes

Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce

I made this tonight. Excellent! Thanks for posting.

Unfortunately, I had a jar of leftovers ready to go in the freezer, dropped it, and it spilled everywhere! Ouch.

From Required Eating

Cook the Book: 'Beard on Food'

Thanks to everyone for commenting and congrats to our winners:

hotsaucedaily
beanish
justboycrazy
uninorth
topdog
gratefulted
kwanito
souldawg
jenjw4
hreisig