What did you eat last night for dinner?

iammatt said:

I'm going to order off the menu and tell them foodguy says chefs like a challenge to their creativity.

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kwilkinson said:

Make sure you name the dishes yourself, too.

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foodguy said:

actually, that would make a fun thread: made-up names for french laundry dishes. too bad i'm not funny.

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foodguy said:

iammatt said:

He is Thomas Keller taken to his logical conclusion. It all starts with naming great dishes "Oysters and Pearls" and "Peas and Carrots" and "Coffee and Cigarettes" or whatever, and then you end up with some stoned guy in NY writing a book using "****" in every third sentence and feeding people real BLTs or coffee and cigarettes, or whatever, and having them think they are getting the greatest thing on earth, or something like that. No hate, I just think it is an unintended consequence of Keller's ironic naming of food and incredible rise to celebrity.

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i disagree (big surprise). there is a long history of somewhat whimsical names for dishes. And Keller's always make concrete reference to what the dish contains (oysters and pearls are poached oysters and pearl tapioca; coffee and doughnuts is coffee ice cream and ... a doughnut).
i think the chang phenomenon has a lot more to do with the bourdain end of the celebrity chef spectrum, with the kitchen being a peter pan pirate ship where no one ever grows up and where bad behavior is enthusiastically endorsed.
hope you have a good meal.

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mordecai said:

foodguy, have you had the brandade at Bouchon? The waitress told us that their method is "traditional," which I found hard to believe. Is deep frying a ball of brandade traditional? Nevermind the crisped sage leaf and tomato confit.

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foodguy said:

of course. it's a french version of a hush puppy. almost any puree has been turned into a fritter. being an authentic dish, though, is not the same as being THE authentic dish. brandade itself is a mixture of saltcod (stockfish?) beaten with potatoes, etc. it's like a casserole. form it into balls, roll in breading an deep fry and y ou've got their fritters. by the way, i love that dish. that and the oysters are two of the dishes i always eat when i'm at a bouchon.

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foodguy said:

that's a nice chicken. "pastured" birds do tend to be tougher ... that's the result of them actually being able to move around and develop muscle. when you get used to it, regular birds tend to feel like chicken jello. no way i know of to cure it in a roast.
cmon baron, would it kill lyou to spring for $5 worth of butcher twine? it'll last the rest of your life.

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iammatt said:

I think there is something nicely rustic about the way his garden twine looks on the cooked chicken. I can't say how it tasted, but the bird looks beautiful.

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Baron said:

That pastured bird was interesting - I didn't mind the texture and the flavor was great. I think I had the oven too hot. Next time I'll try a lower temp and a longer cook time, or else just cook it on a rack or directly on a cast iron pan. It was a little under on the bottom but perfect on top but that was probably roasting it on the bed of potatoes.

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Baron said:

I also like the way that twine looks, but it leaves fibers on the skin that have to be meticulously picked out after you untruss, so I'm picking up some kitchen twine today.
That pastured bird was interesting - I didn't mind the texture and the flavor was great. I think I had the oven too hot. Next time I'll try a lower temp and a longer cook time, or else just cook it on a rack or directly on a cast iron pan. It was a little under on the bottom but perfect on top but that was probably roasting it on the bed of potatoes.

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