Whatcha Cooking today?

[karstopography]

My dad always got Steens cane syrup. Put it on cornbread.

BTW, the foraged oyster mushrooms were to die for and no, I didn’t die from eating them! I believe they top the chanterelles I forage for in the summer, but it is close.

[worth1]

Steens is the only syrup I buy.
That and honey.
The rest of the stuff is pretty much industrial high tech garbage in my opinion.
Excepting real maple syrup of course.
Was raised on ribbon cane syrup molasses and sorghum.
I won't even mention the thick syrup I make from apple cider cooked down.
Down to my last quart.

[karstopography]

I had to dig a little deeper into the Steen’s syrup story. https://www.steenssyrup.com/about
Abbeville, LA, why am I not surprised! Those folks there don’t tolerate bad stuff for long.
Steen’s makes a cane syrup vinegar and a molasses. I can’t remember seeing either in the store.

[Tormahto]

@worth1; "They are good brushed with soy sauce." Never thought about that...but I'am thinking about now...so's the lovely and long suffering Mrs. Gotch, who, having just been alerted, expressed a profound interest and will be trying that later today!

"Everything is good with soy sauce." I use it as part f the marinade for boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

@Tormato; the thing for me is counteracting their natural sweetness. Those were the biggest, fattest Sweet Spuds I've ever dealt with. Had to do a series of nukings @medium-low to get them to where I didn't need a jackhammer to cut them.

The Gotch

There are many recipes on line for glazed sweet potatoes with soy sauce.
What I can't buy in Bastrop is dark soy used for cooking.
It's thicker and richer than the usual watered down stuff on western market shelves with lots of salt.
Soy in the right ratio to other ingredients gives the umami flavor.
Something the sweet potato on its own lacks.

I think I'll soon try roasted sweet potatoes brushed with a modified teriyaki sauce. I'll ditch the brown sugar, increase the garlic, ginger, and pineapple juice, and then think about subbing apple cider vinegar for white vinegar. I'll likely need about 5 pounds of sweet potatoes and four or five tests of different modified teriyaki sauces before I arrive at what I'm striving for. What am I striving for? I have no idea. But, when I get there, I'll know. And, whether to include carrots or other veggies in the roasting is another thing to ponder. Gotch, I just wish you had posted this a while back. I like to experiment in the oven during winter.

I cook with a lot of sweet potatoes.They go into chicken soup, turkey soup, beef stew, lentil soup, turkey pot pie, etc...

And once a year, I go over the top with "fair food", as in the state fair. One booth serves french fried sweet potatoes with a pure honey dip. The sweetness of the sweet potatoes is counterbalanced (in an overbalanced way) with the ultra sweetness of the honey.

[worth1]

@worth1; "They are good brushed with soy sauce." Never thought about that...but I'am thinking about now...so's the lovely and long suffering Mrs. Gotch, who, having just been alerted, expressed a profound interest and will be trying that later today!

"Everything is good with soy sauce." I use it as part f the marinade for boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

@Tormato; the thing for me is counteracting their natural sweetness. Those were the biggest, fattest Sweet Spuds I've ever dealt with. Had to do a series of nukings @medium-low to get them to where I didn't need a jackhammer to cut them.

The Gotch

There are many recipes on line for glazed sweet potatoes with soy sauce.
What I can't buy in Bastrop is dark soy used for cooking.
It's thicker and richer than the usual watered down stuff on western market shelves with lots of salt.
Soy in the right ratio to other ingredients gives the umami flavor.
Something the sweet potato on its own lacks.

I think I'll soon try roasted sweet potatoes brushed with a modified teriyaki sauce. I'll ditch the brown sugar, increase the garlic, ginger, and pineapple juice, and then think about subbing apple cider vinegar for white vinegar. I'll likely need about 5 pounds of sweet potatoes and four or five tests of different modified teriyaki sauces before I arrive at what I'm striving for. What am I striving for? I have no idea. But, when I get there, I'll know. And, whether to include carrots or other veggies in the roasting is another thing to ponder. Gotch, I just wish you had posted this a while back. I like to experiment in the oven during winter.

I cook with a lot of sweet potatoes.They go into chicken soup, turkey soup, beef stew, lentil soup, turkey pot pie, etc...

And once a year, I go over the top with "fair food", as in the state fair. One booth serves french fried sweet potatoes with a pure honey dip. The sweetness of the sweet potatoes is counterbalanced (in an overbalanced way) with the ultra sweetness of the honey.

If anyone can come up with a crispy fried sweet potato let me know.
Is it even possible???

[Tormahto]

@worth1; "They are good brushed with soy sauce." Never thought about that...but I'am thinking about now...so's the lovely and long suffering Mrs. Gotch, who, having just been alerted, expressed a profound interest and will be trying that later today!

"Everything is good with soy sauce." I use it as part f the marinade for boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

@Tormato; the thing for me is counteracting their natural sweetness. Those were the biggest, fattest Sweet Spuds I've ever dealt with. Had to do a series of nukings @medium-low to get them to where I didn't need a jackhammer to cut them.

The Gotch

There are many recipes on line for glazed sweet potatoes with soy sauce.
What I can't buy in Bastrop is dark soy used for cooking.
It's thicker and richer than the usual watered down stuff on western market shelves with lots of salt.
Soy in the right ratio to other ingredients gives the umami flavor.
Something the sweet potato on its own lacks.

I think I'll soon try roasted sweet potatoes brushed with a modified teriyaki sauce. I'll ditch the brown sugar, increase the garlic, ginger, and pineapple juice, and then think about subbing apple cider vinegar for white vinegar. I'll likely need about 5 pounds of sweet potatoes and four or five tests of different modified teriyaki sauces before I arrive at what I'm striving for. What am I striving for? I have no idea. But, when I get there, I'll know. And, whether to include carrots or other veggies in the roasting is another thing to ponder. Gotch, I just wish you had posted this a while back. I like to experiment in the oven during winter.

I cook with a lot of sweet potatoes.They go into chicken soup, turkey soup, beef stew, lentil soup, turkey pot pie, etc...

And once a year, I go over the top with "fair food", as in the state fair. One booth serves french fried sweet potatoes with a pure honey dip. The sweetness of the sweet potatoes is counterbalanced (in an overbalanced way) with the ultra sweetness of the honey.

If anyone can come up with a crispy fried sweet potato let me know.
Is it even possible???

The ones at the state fair were about 1/4" square for thickness. and very crispy on the outside. I don't care what the texture of the inside is, they are sooooooooo good, especially with that honey dip. To those unaware at the fair, there could be just one small problem. That food booth is about 100 yards from a live bee hive demonstration every year. But then, with all of the fried dough with powdered sugar that gets dropped, the soda that gets spilled, the ice cream that melts, and there being so few that buy the sweet potato fries, the bees are likely busy elsewhere. Also, the fair grounds are extensively planted with flowers, all over the place.

[JRinPA]

Duck breast, seared 4-1/2 minutes per side in a cast iron skillet, butter, kosher salt on top. That is the time for mallard or black, big puddle ducks. They taste the same, basically they're same duck, since they can and do cross/hybridize when they can't find the right colored mate. I don't mark the vacuum sealed packages as to species, just "duck" and year.

Wild rice from a Reservation, gift to my mom, from a former coworker friend of hers. They are not allowed to sell it. Pretty good stuff.

Corn on the cob from last year's garden, husked and vacuum sealed.

Vacuum sealing and a good freezer without a defrost cycle...just keep on humming, freezer, don't quit on us.

[worth1]

Been eating weird stuff all week.
Last night was a double wedge salad topped with a homemade dressing made of.....
Duke's mayonnaise.
Orange soda pop, 'Say what?
White sugar, 'Really?
Later I had a cold hotlink.

Tonight will be boiled cabbage, taters, link sausage and corned beef brisket I found in the freezer.
Fatty point end of course.

[worth1]

Oh yes corn, frozen corn was in the salad.

[JRinPA]

Worth you mention the Mainers, I often wonder how much acquired tastes vary depending on where you grew up. I don't really love the white gravy and chicken fried steak either. Though I only had it a few times while passing through. Grits too, that must be an acquired taste, in my mind. I loved the mexican places in the southwest, other than the bowls of stale nachos as appetizer.

I have read many times where southern hunters don't like the taste of straight cooked duck. Instead they use it for gumbo, or for jerky, or put lots of hot peppers in somehow. Or use them for poppers. But I rarely read about them just cooking it straight without trying to hide the taste.

I've often wondered if ducks taste different (wild game not farm raised) as they migrate south. Does the exertion and changing diet actually change their taste as they move south? Up here, seared duck breast and wild rice is pretty much the standard. Duck breast with just a touch of kosher salt can be exquisite. The legs are amazing when pan braised for hours, like cooking rabbit.

[JRinPA]

Delicata Sweet Dumpling, a very nice bush plant, grew a bunch mostly under the corn. We cook them the same way as butternut, brown sugar and butter, just a little shorter time in the microwave.

One was kind of skinny, the other about average wall thickness. Some have been really nice with thick walls and small cavity, but I don't know why or how they got that way. Probably just the weather was perfect timing for those ones.

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[JRinPA]

Thankfully no Nicolas Cage-esque cring-worthy acting (he ruined that phrase for me)

The easiest cooking there is, the kind done in November and thawed out in the fridge whenever needed. But it sure goes fast with a few hands nearby.

Venison ring bologna, just deer, no greasiness, lots of fresh garlic was in there, and Hunter's Sharp cheddar, now relabeled "seriously sharp" but still has the red wool checker.

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[worth1]

Worth you mention the Mainers, I often wonder how much acquired tastes vary depending on where you grew up. I don't really love the white gravy and chicken fried steak either. Though I only had it a few times while passing through. Grits too, that must be an acquired taste, in my mind. I loved the mexican places in the southwest, other than the bowls of stale nachos as appetizer.

I have read many times where southern hunters don't like the taste of straight cooked duck. Instead they use it for gumbo, or for jerky, or put lots of hot peppers in somehow. Or use them for poppers. But I rarely read about them just cooking it straight without trying to hide the taste.

I've often wondered if ducks taste different (wild game not farm raised) as they migrate south. Does the exertion and changing diet actually change their taste as they move south? Up here, seared duck breast and wild rice is pretty much the standard. Duck breast with just a touch of kosher salt can be exquisite. The legs are amazing when pan braised for hours, like cooking rabbit.

I've had some pretty bad white gravy myself.
As for the duck I love duck and have all my life.
I make a wood duck breast schnitzel to die for.
The people from Maine were just hateful people.
Complaining about everything from the south and southwest.
I've been great friends from up northeast way that embraced and loved our food.
More so than not.

[karstopography]

I grew up eating ducks and geese. We had our favorite species. Wild White-fronted geese, a.k.a. Speckled bellies were for years our Christmas dinner, sometimes I was the one that actually shot the goose and sometimes it was my dad. We roasted the whole goose skin on, there wasn’t anything fancy done to the bird. We picked off all the feathers. Christmas was a wild shot goose and sides, just like people have turkey and sides. Thanksgiving, we’d often have a wild turkey.

Wood ducks and teal were great to eat. Those got picked and also roasted whole. Mallards and pintail were also choice. Northern Shovelers a.k.a spoonbills were considered inedible. Dad always waved me off shooting those. I shot my first wood duck when I was maybe 8 years old. Shot it dead with a daisy bb gun. Slipped up on it and shot it in the eye. I was always good at slipping up on wild critters. Dad witnessed it all, couldn’t believe it until he saw it.

I like game without having a bunch of additional or covering flavors that obliterate or mask the taste. I’d eat more game, but my wife is less than excited about most of it. She likes well made venison sausage, hates ground venison. She loves mourning and white winged dove, up in the northeast those are mostly considered songbirds and are protected species. Pheasant, quail, grouse, it’s all good. Grilled quail is wonderful.

It’s difficult to broad brush people from different areas. No doubt some are more adaptable than others. Some never can get over their longing for their homes of childhoods. When I lived in the Northeast, I never ever complained about how things there weren’t like things back here, however which way I might have felt about whatever it was being talked about. Nothing worse than a chronic complainer.

[worth1]

Sunday brunch.
My previously frozen calzone and some marinara on vermicelli.

[worth1]

The long awaited calzone.
The HEB store brand marinara sauce is really good.
Less tart than other more expensive brands.

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[worth1]

Bratkartoffeln is on the menu for this evening.
Along with eggs toast and breakfast sausage.

[pepperhead212]

I took some drumsticks out of the freezer (mainly because I just put in 3 more vacuum seal bags of some I got on sale at Aldi), and cooked it in the IP, then sort of shredded the meat (and put the skin and bones back in the IP, to make some broth). I had some leftover brown rice and barley in the fridge, and I used that, and some thawed green beans from last summer, and about 2/3 of that chicken meat, in a fried rice. I started with about 2 tsp minced ginger, and a large clove of garlic, minced, plus a tb of Szechwan chili paste, and a large scallion, chopped up. I made a mistake and forgot to turn my range hood on, and choked myself, with that chili paste!
I added about 2/3 of that scallion early on, with the rice and soy, and the rest at the end. As usual, when I have leftover, I chop just enough cilantro for the present serving, and more, when I reheat the rest.
Fried leftover brown rice and barley. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished fried rice and barley, with green beans and chicken. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

[pepperhead212]

I finished that fried rice for lunch, then I made a salad later today, with a can of chick peas, and the chicken and green beans left over from last night. I also put some cutting celery and parsley, from the hydroponics, and some garlic chives, from outside.
Garbanzo and green bean salad, with some chicken and red bell pepper in it. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

[karstopography]

Chef’s salad. Merlot lettuce and touchon carrots from the garden, plus deli ham, hard cooked eggs, cucumbers, ranch dressing.