Text 2766, 225 rader
Skriven 2006-07-03 18:00:52 av hap newsom (1:275/311)
     Kommentar till en text av CAROL SHENKENBERGER
Ärende: Re: Coca-Cola Blak
==========================
Hi Carol! 
Happy 4th to ya!
-> 
-> -> checked in on our local meat place with the 'kosher' butcher and got a 
few 
-> -> sliced bits of beef and some marrow bones.
-> -> 
-> -> Our little shopping cart came back stuffed to the gills with all sorts of

-> -> oddiments.  Some more 'odd' than 'normal' for the rest of you perhaps, 
but 
-> -> suitable for us here.  It was about 75% fresh veggies and fruits, 
-> hn> 10% 'other' 
-> -> and 15% meat products.
-> -> 
-> hn> Our break down is pretty much about the same.
-> 
-> Should be the same for us all, but I grant USA folks eat way too much 
meat and 
-> I do too at times.  At home though, I am very simple and sane.  On the 
ship, I 
-> have limited options.
-> 
-> -> The marrow bones will be made up with some of the 'soup shrimp' into a 
-> hn> hearty 
-> -> stock that will grace many meals.
-> 
-> hn> Hearty stock meaning thick? or just full of different flavors? How do
-> hn> it, by adding other things to it or by putting it over something else?
-> 
-> Both in this case.  The marrow bones will make it an almost gelatinous 
stock 
-> (consomme?) and i'll use simple but deeply flavorful seasonings.  Thats 
-> something i learned in Japan to do.  It's amazing how you can make 'spicy' 
-> without any real spices.
-> 
-> When Michael Loo and Jim Weller talk about fancy cooks, they both say 
that the 
-> basic stock is the key to any dish going from 'acceptable' to 'sublime'.  A 
-> side effect of so many years of crockpot habits, is i know how to make a 
simple
-> 
-> and inexpensive 'stock' that is so much better than anything you can get 
at a 
-> store, there is no comparison.  You can see in my recipes, I imagine?  
They 
-> wont say 'a can of chicken stock' but instead, a cup or something like that.
-> 
-> Oh I cheat sometimes with bullion for beef or chicken, but normally only 
when I
-> 
-> just got home and Don/Charlotte ate up all I had left them while I was 
gone.  I
-> 
-> can definately tell the difference in the dish when I have to do that.
-> 
-> On making a good stock, for this type (marrow bones and shrimp), I need 
little 
-> other than water, bones cut down to 1 inch thick, and the dried shrimps 
which 
-> are already spiced.  I will add in whole (unchopped but washed) kangkoon 
as i 
-> have that handy but spinach or possibly 'kale' would do as well.  About 
what 
-> would be 1 cup if dry and smushed down into a cup?  I leave it whole as I 
may 
-> want to take it out after I decant the stock.  I normally store the broth 
with 
-> it still in there then remove it on defrosting if it isnt wanted in the next

-> dish.
-> 
-> I store the stock in many containers of various sizes. I use masking tape 
-> labels so I can tell what is in each one.  The most useful size for us is 
about
-> 
-> 3/4 cup in a ziplock baggie but I also use icecube trays when I make up a 
-> bigger batch as thats a really easy way to get just a small amount for 
-> flavoring a vegetable boiling water.  If you see all the recipes that call
for 
-> a tablespoon or so of stock, thats how you can most easily do that.
-> 
Ok, I got it now, and yeah, I used to do a lot of that when we had the 
freezer room to keep it and use it as we went! I seldom went out of my way 
for marrow bones however as it added much more fat than I was comfortable 
with...the way you use it, it is a good addition to many dishes! I am surprised

however that you didn't mention onions in the stock or celery...both of those 
go into almost every stock I make regardless of the other ingredients.

-> What will I do with it?  Since this one is a marrow-bone stock, thick 
looking 
-> and meaty, I will use it in some hundred or more ways.  Often as a fat 
transfer
-> 
-> flavor enhancer to a dish that otherwise would be 'vegetarian'.  In 
southern 
-> USA recipes that call for 'salt pork' I will be using this thick 'consomme'
and
-> 
-> in recipes that just need 'beef broth' I will water it down, add a touch of 
-> MSG, and perhaps a little scraped beef bit such as you would get if you 
-> dehydrate some meat then pulverized it.
-> 
-> As each stock is somewhat different, this one from the marrow bones is 
not 
-> suitable for anything requiring a clear non-fatty broth.  It's also not one
of 
-> the ones you try to 'defat' but just accept as is.
-> 
-> Now for chicken stock, my technique is rather different depending on the 
phase 
-> of the moon and my own desires (g).  That will normally be defatted, with 
some 
-> of the fat saved for other uses but mostly tossed out.  My cholestrol 
control 
-> habits have me generate far more chicken fat than is healthy for us to 
eat.  
-> Granted the beef marrow broth isnt low on that, but we use it as a special 
item
-> 
-> and a little goes a long way there.
-> 
-> 
-> hn>   It has to wait though for the baby-crock to 
-> -> be empty.  The baby crock is now going with a batch of 'cooking 
apples' 
-> hn> (little
-> -> 
-> -> tart bits of heaven, with honey and sugar for now, and later will add 
-> hn> nutmeg 
-> -> and cinnimon).  The apples will need to cook down overnight to 
be 'right' 
-> hn> and 
-> -> the resulting slurry will be a lumpy sort of apple filling for eati
-> -> cream or rice.  I've enough to make a nice noshe for a decent sized 
flock 
-> -> tomorrow and the word is quietly spreading already...
-> -> 
-> -> You can hear the flock whispering.. Chicken soup and appled rice..  
yumm, 
-> hn> lets 
-> -> go there tomorrow after the base tour with our parents..  You can hear 
-> hn> one of 
-> -> them whispering back 'appled rice?  Gross!' and another giggling an
-> -> 'more for the rest of us then'...
-> -> 
-> hn> Sounds like something we used to make and yep, we added raisens 
too! A
-> hn> sometimes even cranberries!
-> 
-> That would be a good optional addition!
-> 
-> Meantime, I just added more honey to it.  The slurry developed perfectly 
but 
-> was slightly dryer than I like so a bit of honey and a 1/4 cup water fixed 
that
-> 
-> up.  We are about to take off for the base festival (started officially 
already
-> 
-> but lasts til 10pm).  Had to hit up a neighbor for some rice as hadnt 
realized 
-> we were out already.  Asked for a 'couple of cups' and got back about 10 
cups 
-> of calrose so we dont need to shop for that for another week.
-> 
-> A little baggie of dried cherries, probably 1/4 cup, showed up as well but 
I'd 
-> already added too much nutmeg to match that flavor.  Next batch 
perhaps?
-> 
-> -> Jack's boy Mike has the sweets for Charlotte so he's taking part in the 
-> hn> group 
-> -> just to keep his hoodlum in bounds (grin, not to worry, Mike is a 
sweetie 
-> hn> and 
-> -> Charlotte is silently quite happy to have an admirer).
-> -> 
-> ->                                        xxcarol
-> hn> Oh my does THAT bring back memories! 
-> 
-> Me too!  Oh yes.  Mike's a sweety for sure.  The only fly in the ointment 
(isnt
-> 
-> there always one?) is his Mom.  She's a bit prejudiced and Charlotte is a 
-> little too 'white' for her tastes.  Product of her times (black lady with
blue 
-> eyes and probably suffered a bit of teasing as a kid over it).  She's 
otherwise
-> 
-> cool people, just a bit disgruntled when it's her 'own kid' but she shows 
-> healthy signs of getting over it.
-> 
Well that's good, growing up all over the world as I did on military bases it 
was hard to survive if you were prejudiced...there were simply too many "mix 
and match" families in the military and you had all sorts of combinations of 
kids in school with you....and it's unreasonable to expect kids to not play
with 
kids! When we came back to the US in the mid 60's, I had a hard time 
understanding the civil rights movement....cause overseas it was a non issue 
for military kids, we all went to school together, dances together, sports 
together, trips together etc etc......totally integrated and very very few 
problems at all....when I got back to CONUS I was surprised that it wasn't 
that way everywhere...happily it WAS that way here in Washington and I just 
slipped back into American Culture.

-> Me?  I wish I had had a boyfriend with Mike's deep blue eyes! He's also as 
well
-> 
-> behaved as any mom with a 12 yearold daughter could wish.  (hush, 
Charlotte is 
-> still primping!  Changed shirts 3 times already looking for just that right 
-> 'look' so she can safely ignore poor Mike while driving him batty at the 
same 
-> time).
->                                        xxcarol
-> 
Poor kid don't know what he's in for (grin) Poor Don too! I remember what it 
was like to have all those rascals coming up to the door! Tell him to get a 
Samurai sword and practice sharpening it when they come around! 
Chat with you soon!
hap 
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