nicksweeney’s Profile
Recent Comments
In Videos: Marco Pierre White on the 'Today' Show Explains 'Chopping Block' Premiere
When Marco did Hell's Kitchen (in the UK, with celebrities doing the cooking) it was his first big TV thing, and for those who expected him to out-Ramsay Ramsay, he was surprisingly understated. Ego the size of a planet, of course, unlike Raymond Blanc, but also intensely didactic.
Is Cheese Vegetarian?
That 'in a sense', Jamie, is the kind of sense that would also stop people from eating ethically, because at a sufficiently wide angle, nothing is unconnected to slaughter. All distinctions collapse. Vegetarians can't escape the cycle of slaughter. Vegans can't easily escape the massacres wreaked by farm equipment upon small creatures in fields. If you quibble about whether vegetarianism should extend to not eating things in a production model that allows other people to eat meat, then you might as well just order up the grain-fed, cow-crate steaks and be done with it.
(I'm reminded of the Jain monks whose vow not to take life leads to them starving themselves.)
I haven't consciously, deliberately eaten meat in a decade. I've no doubt unconsciously consumed animal products, especially in recent years, since the US is far behind Europe in taking animal fat and other stuff out of products you'd otherwise expect to be fine. And purity is a lofty goal: should I refuse the slice of birthday cake at my young relatives' parties because the eggs used to make it are from battery hens?
You just do the best you can in your own choices, and you trust that small-scale farmers handle the meat side of their agriculture with the conscientiousness of their other work. Because livestock farming is the exploitation (in a neutral sense) of animals' life and death, and that's just how it has been since the ancient hunter-gatherers had a few ideas to make their lives easier.
You May Also Substitute Vermouth
I just splashed the last of my Noilly Prat (refrigerated, natch) into a risotto, as you do; the bottle of white Lillet, though, is reserved for summer drinking on ice.
See more comments by nicksweeney »
Recent Posts
nicksweeney hasn't written a post yet.
Recent Favorites
nicksweeney hasn't favorited a post yet.
Recent Polls
nicksweeney hasn't answered any polls yet.
Recent Quizzes
nicksweeney hasn't taken any quizzes yet.

Rookworst at HEMA probably deserves a mention, too: sold to be taken home and eaten, but you'll see people snacking on them in the street.