Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I've got a rather large extended family, and on December 23 every sub-family within the extended family brings a soup to the rendezvous point and we all chow down. There's usually a borscht, a hot and sour soup, a stew or two, maybe a potato soup, and last year I brought my West Texas Blowtorch chili. It was devoured within the half hour so I shall have to double the recipe this time round.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Bowmore is my favorite single malt, and I've tried a whole slew of 'em.

As to the original post, Lagavulin is the peatiest I've ever had, with Talisker not far behind.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

"Cuisines of the Caucusus" by Kay Shaw Nelson is an overlooked gem. I've made numerous recipes from the book and haven't put a foot wrong yet.

My wife swears by "Mediterranean Light" by Martha Rose Shulman. She's made lots of flatbread recipes from this book and I've devoured them all without complaint.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Velveeta is proof that God loves us. Richard Dawkins and RetiredChef be darned. ;)

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I love good rye and pumpernickel bread. I also love good pastrami, sour kraut, swiss cheese and spicy mustard.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I confess my love for Totino's frozen pizza. Not that they're crappy--they're actually quite good, which is why I like them--but I'm sure their reputation is quite crappy simply because they're dirt cheap. In any event, they're manifestly superior to the high-end California Pizza Kitchen and the abominable Papa John's.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I actually like ranch dressing, but then I like most creamy dressings. Those sorts of dressings work best, IMO, on traditional iceberg or wedge salads with carrots and radishes. Not so hot on fancy, leafy greens or baby greens.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

But an oven at 400 is a very dry thing. I suspect 15 minutes of this treatment will cook the sauce into the chicken and crisp up the wing even further. Nevertheless, I'll probably do some wings as you suggest and the others according to my plan just for the sake of comparison.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

By simmering I actually only meant submerging them in warm sauce for a while. The sauce won't be bubbling and there will be no further cooking, only, hopefully, further flavor enhancement.

As for your reservations about "cooking again," why do you see this as a problem?

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I'm going to try a little wing experiment tomorrow: cook my wings until very crispy; simmer in a combination of 1/3 cup butter, 1/4 cup Frank's Hot Sauce and 1/4 cup Skyline Hot Sauce; drain and then bake for 15 minutes at 400.

The Skyline Sauce is some delicious stuff I picked up in St. Kitts. The ingredients are red scotch bonnet peppers, yellow Burkina peppers, sweet peppers, cucumbers, papaws (papaya), vinegar, salt and spices.

These should be delicious; I can't wait.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

For the record, the only reason I eat oatmeal practically every morning is the fibre content. That is one of my few concessions to the health uber alles craze. Truth be told, I don't particularly care for oatmeal. Would much prefer biscuits and gravy or breakfast burritos.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Thanks, fellas. And this is actually very good news because the multiplicity of hot sauces out there far outstrips the amount of wing sauces. And also I'm pretty much of the mo' hotta mo' betta school of eating. I'm guessing few commercial wing sauces generate enough heat to satisfy my palate. Hot sauces, on the other hand...

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Thanks. I may have to see if I can lay my hands on a bottle of the stuff.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I think I've seen them available for purchase on the Internet, but I simply buy pitted kalamatas and stuff them myself. Maytag, blue stilton and gorgonzola also work, but nothing quite measures up to Roquefort, IMO.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Another question: Is it advisable to use regular hot sauces (Louisiana, Dave's Insanity, CaJohn's, Big Orson's, Blair's, etc.) combined with butter instead of a wing sauce? Or do regular hot sauces tend to be too thin to adhere to the wings?

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Possibly, but I still love Roquefort cheese above all other bleus even if it's not in a dressing.

Off topic, but Roquefort-stuffed kalamatas are devastatingly good in gin martinis. Not half bad in vodka martinis either.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Good point. And I remember that French dressing was also extremely popular simultaneously with Roquefort. Whenever my fambly went out to dinner my mom ordered Roquefort and my old man ordered French. I sided with my mom on that one.

Incidentally, is anybody aware of a commercially available Roquefort dressing? My--admittedly desultory--Internet searching has turned up a big, fat zero.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

What about the "necessity" of thawing? Outside of some spattering oil caused by ice crystals (if you deep fry) are there any adverse effects from cooking frozen wings?

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

That's possible, I suppose. But in my mind's tongue that olde tyme Roquefort, or "Roquefort" dressing tasted sharper and just plain better than the bleu cheese that is dished out in today's restaurants.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

For some reason--and I'm hard-pressed to say exactly why--I do not like fettucini. Linguini is fine (so to speak), and I adore spaghetti and capellini as well as pappardelle, but fettucini just does nothing for me.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I'll DEFinately give 'em a shot. ;)

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

I shall have to do a taste test. Brutal labor, no doubt, but there ya' go.

Perilagu Khan commented 12 years ago

Surely we can get some more input on such a "hot" topic. Frank's, of course, is the classic and the most famous. But I'm curious about some of the more obscure brands out there and if they're any good?