"food quest" news and stories

American whiskey has been around as long as there has been an America. In fact, the decision to tax whiskey led to the famous Whiskey Rebellion, one of the first violent protests that followed the American Revolution. However, while numerous whiskies were once part of America's distilling heritage, corn whiskey (aka bourbon) has long since become America's more or less official alcohol.

Fair or not, in recent years, America's love affair with bourbon has led to a massive amount of sour-mash snobbery. Craft-style, small-batch, and limited edition bourbons have driven up the prestige (and price) of what once was the most proletarian of whiskeys. This is particularly ironic, given the fact that bourbon was, in many ways, the traditional whiskey of America's most rough-and-tumble element.

This is not to say, however, that good, old-fashioned, cheap American whiskey hasn't survived. Some of America's oldest and most respected brands are still around and are still reasonably priced.For example, Old Grand-dad is a lesser-known, but well-established bourbon. It is comparatively inexpensive and makes a great mixer. Similarly, Old Crow offers incredible value ($17 for a 1.75 Liter bottle) and a good, solid flavor. Best of all, it has an outstanding pedigree: if anybody casts aspersions on it, you can note that it is America's first sour-mash whiskey, was the preferred drink of Senator Henry Clay and President Ulysses S. Grant, and was one of Mark Twain and Hunter Thompson's favorite tipples.

I generally try to eat wisely and well. I avoid greasy foods, turn my back on excessively processed ingredients, constantly rail against high fructose corn syrup, and try to eat all my veggies. Unfortunately, however, just as my day-to-day dietary Dr. Jekyll is upright and intelligent, I also have a culinary Mr. Hyde, who comes out when I find myself confronted with particularly delectable deep fried delicacies. Generally, this isn't much of a problem, as the fried food in my neighborhood mostly consists of unmentionable pig parts and the occasional codfish pancake. Moreover, since I've moved away from Southwest Virginia, I am no longer tempted by the Salem Fair, a horrifying assemblage of rides, petting zoos, and oil-soaked goodies that used to be the highlight of my year.

Recently, however, I came across a website for Big Tex, the Texas State Fair. While I will always maintain a warm spot for the food options at Salem, it is painfully clear that Southwest Virginia's yearly orgy of deep-fried wonders pales in comparison to the pure, unrestrained genius of Texas' chefs. With items like "Chicken Fried Bacon," "Texas Fried Jelly Belly Beans," and "Fried Pop Rocks Fundae," the Lone Star state has staked an unquestionable claim to national fryolator dominance. I was particularly impressed by "Fire and Ice," a battered, deep-fried pinapple ring that is covered in banana-flavored whipped cream that has been dipped in liquid nitrogen.

Liquid nitrogen? These guys are GODS.

Anyway, the fair is over for this year...but I'm looking ahead to next fall. Only 330 days to go!

Last fall, in the beginning of my first year in New York, I discovered the Vendy awards. Sponsored by the Urban Justice Center, the awards honor the city's best street vendors. I was particularly interested because of Mohammed Rahman, proprietor of the Kwik Meal cart on 45th Street and Sixth Avenue.

On some days, when I had a little extra cash, I'd grab my lunch at Mohammed's stand. While his menu was, ostensibly, the same as most other halal vendors, Mohammed had previously worked at the Russian Tea Room, and his classical background showed through. His genius lay in the little details, like the green papaya marinade that he used for his lamb, the basmati rice that he served it on, and the intricate spicing that made it truly unique. Although the 2007 Vendy ultimately went to Thiru "Dosa Man" Kumar, Mohammed still reigns high in my personal vendor pantheon. After all, he introduced me to the world of gourmet street food.

Bob Laughton is something of a coffee fanatic. He needs to have his coffee strong and hot, and will go to great lengths to ensure that his morning cup satisfies these needs. Recently, while visiting a friend who had effectively stopped drinking coffee, he found himself forced to rig up a makeshift drip coffee maker in order to get his daily delivery of caffeine.

As you can see in the picture (if you follow that link, he's annotated his version with a series of entertaining notes) he wrapped a pre-heated Mason jar in a towel (to prevent heat loss) and placed that in a bowl. On top of that he perched a warmed, old yellow porcelain Melitta filter (the handles always seem to be broken off those old models, my parents had a cracked white one for years). In that went a Chemex unbleached filter and then, finally, into that filter he put his grounds, fresh Blue Bottle coffee from Chiapas. A lot of effort but I'm certain that the coffee tasted all the better for the work.

I'm sure that there are lots of you out there that are like Bob, willing to put a little extra work in so that you can have the best version of your favorite food or drink. Tell us about your food quest. Upload a picture of your set-up to our Flickr group and include the story with the image. We'll feature the fun and interesting ones here on the site.

Source

"I wanted to be The Girl Who Is Not Afraid To Order Tripe And In Fact It Makes Her Even Cooler And All The More Sexy Because She Enjoys It. Alas, it was not meant to be." Carol at French Laundry at Home

Hear, hear!* I don't know about you, but this sort of rationale is what made me a foodie. I was a fairly picky eater growing up. I wasn't so bad that I'd eat PB&J for every meal, but if they weren't like the usual meat-potato-veggie triumvirate, or something else I'd eat normally, I'd get testy. If you were at the Mexican restaurant about 25-years ago where a little blonde girl went nuts because her beef was shaved instead of ground, that was me.

But then I got older, moved to the big city, and shed many of my food inhibitions. I hated it when my friends gazed at me in disappointment whenever I wouldn't try anything. I couldn't say no when someone slaved over a hot stove to bring me a meal full of food I didn't like. Soon, eating became an adventure -- discovering new tastes, learning about the foods, making meals fresh and fun.