"favorite foods" news and stories

Having been with Slashfood a few days now, it is time for me to tell you about my favorite food: The onigiri.

I shall preface this by saying I am not Japanese, nor have I been anywhere in Japan other than the Tokyo airport. I have discovered and fallen in love with the onigiri in New York City alone. Let no ocean put us asunder.

The onigiri is like a rice and fish sandwich. There's fish or fish eggs, seaweed, what-have-you in the middle, packed in compacted rice and then wrapped in a handy piece of seaweed (for holding). I recommend the onigiri from JAS Mart in New York. I tried several from Sunrise Mart on Broome Street, but I always found bones in the salmon. Um...no thanks.

They are delicious, convenient, and cheap, we're talkin' like under $2 in New York City. Onigiri are the ideal thing to pick up on-the go, like a power bar for someone who prefers actual food to a science experiment wrapped in chocolate.

Eat your heart out, Earl of Sandwich. Can't find them in your town? For a great recipe (with pictures), click here!

Last night, my mom called me just as I was sitting down to eat some dinner. She asked me what I was having and I rattled off the food sitting in front of me, "a big salad, a pear and some olives." Sounding shocked, she said, "But I thought you didn't like olives!" I confessed that I crossed over to the olive loving side several years ago and have no intention of going back. She was so pleased to discover that I could now be counted among the olive loving crowd, as she has never met an olive that she didn't like and had been afraid I had inherited my father's dislike of the cured fruit.

These days, my favorite olives for straight eating are these Cerignola olives that I buy at DiBruno Bros. (their huge, gorgeous store is only a block from my apartment, which is both wonderful and extremely dangerous). I have also gone through phases where I prefer the tiny, salty Nicoise olives or the painfully sharp pitted Calamata olives.

So which camp are you in? Do you love or hate olives? If you love them, what's your favorite variety? Have you ever tried home curing olives?

Source

Alongside their article about Trader Joe's opening in New York, last week's New York Times ran a list of the top ten most popular items at Trader Joe's by volume sold.

• Charles Shaw Wines
• Mandarin Orange Chicken
• Nuts About Antioxidants Trek Mix
• Lite Shredded 3 Cheese Blend
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Trader Darwin's High Potency Chewable Multiple Vitamin & Mineral Formula Dietary Supplements
• Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
• Dark Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans
• Trader Giotto's Pizza Formaggi (Four Cheese Pizza)
• Cheese & Green Chili Tamales

Strangely, I only buy two out of the top ten items - Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Dark Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans. My top trail mix pick would be the one that has all the peanut brittle in it, not the antioxidant mix. If I'm getting cheese, I'll go for the imported Feta or Parmigiano Reggiano, not pre-crumbled Gorgonzola. With only 10 out of the three thousand items, I supposed that I shouldn’t be surprised that I only regularly purchase two of these items. Which of these are your favorites?

Pecorino with peppercorns from the Eastbank Farmer's Market, August.

I didn't keep track, but I must have eaten thousands of dishes in 2005, and tried hundreds of new foods. While I won't admit to how large a percentage "toast with peanut butter" and "breakfast: one cookie, one coffee" were in my personal dietary pie chart, I will offer up some of the unarguable highlights. The following is a photo essay on some things that warmed my stomach oh-so-well in 2005.

Marinated salmon and onion with citrus and cucumber, Tani's Sushi, November.

Crisp, melting, sweet, tangy, citrusy, flavorful, refreshing. One of my favorite dishes in the city.