Text 17954, 99 rader
Skriven 2008-12-16 08:34:04 av Michael Loo (1:18/200.0)
  Kommentar till text 17902 av Barbara Mcnay (1:382/48)
Ärende: gigglers 388
====================
 > there's good congruence on most subjects
 BM> Oh, agreed, most subjects, but not most foods.

We agree to respect each others' culinary opinions on
pretty much anything except chili and hamburgers.

   Speaking of which, in
 BM> the  WashPost, there was an item about the fruiting Ginkgo 
 BM> Biloba trees in DC.  The smell of the fruit apparently 
 BM> bears some resemblance to that of durian, and the article 

No resemblance to durian at all. Durian smells like melon,
vanilla, rotten egg, cabbage soup, Juicy Fruit gum, butterscotch,
and flatulence. Ginkgo smells like corpse, vomit, and chestnuts
with an undefinable almost metallic sharp aspect.

 BM> indicates that the fruit is edible, though apparently not
 BM> desired by the local wildlife.  Has anybody who frequents 
 BM> that area at this time of year ... ?

There's a woman who lives about 3 blocks from a stand of
ginkgo trees; she was a sort of beneficial friend a decade or
two ago and has remained a friend of greater or lesser intensity
ever since. Parking in her area is at a premium, except for in
that half block which has the trees, so being a practical sort
(she never counted on me to provide the more practical of the
boyfriendly things, like jewelry, for example, going elsewhere
for that) she tends to park her car there. Not so long ago I
stepped in some fruit there. Worse than dog poo.

For many years there has been a running battle in DC (funny,
the trees grow all over the world, but it's only here that the
controversy has erupted) about whether to cut down the trees.
On the one side are the lily-snouted aesthetes and those who
don't like to slipslide on a pool of puke when they step onto
the sidewalk; on the other are the ecological aesthetes and
those who (read Asian immigrants) swoop down and clean the
trees every season so they can get their year's supply to make
Buddha's delight with. Unfortunately for pedestrians and
passers-by, the edible part is actually the nut, and the smelly
exterior gets discarded wherever it can be. Contrast the lychee
"nut," where the fruit is eaten and the nut is discarded.

By the way, I took the cue of the natural food cookbooks and
used papaya seeds for pepper today: unfortunately, they don't
taste anything like pepper, but rather more like mustard, which
didn't go with what I was eating.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.01

      Title: Bean Curd Rolls
 Categories: Vegetarian, Beans, Chinese
      Yield: 6 servings

      1 c  Uncooked shortgrain rice            2 ea Green onions, sliced
      6 ea Dried shiitake mushrooms            1 tb Hoisin suce
      1 tb Vegetable oil                       2 tb Soy sauce
      1 ea Garlic clove, minced                2 ts Rice wine/dry sherry
    1/2 sm Carrot, cut into 1" slivers         2 ts Sesame oil
      3 ea Asparagus tips, cut into            6 ea Dried bean curd sheets,
           --1/2" pieces, diagonally                -- soaked for a few minutes
    1/4 c  Slivered bamboo shoots              1 tb Flour mixed with 1 tb water
    1/4 c  Ginkgo nuts, optional               6 tb Vegetable oil
      2 ea Pitted dates, chopped

  Cover rice with warm water & soak for 30 minutes.  Drain.  Line the inside
  of a steamer with a damp cheesecloth.  Place rice on cheesecloth.  Then
  cover & steam the rice over boiling water for 30 minutes.  Set aside.

  Meanwhile, cover mushrooms with warm water & soak for 30 minutes.  Drain
  well. Cut off & discard stems.  Thinly slice caps.  Set aside.

  Place a wok over high heat till hot.  Add oil, swirling to coat sides. Add
  garlic & cook, stirring for 10 seconds.  Add carrot & asparagus & stir fry
  for 2 minutes.  Add reserved mushrooms, bamboo shoots, nuts, dates, onions,
  hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine or sherry & sesame oil.  Stir fry for 2
  minutes.  Add rice & mix well.  Transfer to a bowl & set aside.

  To make rolls, spread about 2 heaping tablespoonfuls of filling diagonally
  across a bean curd sheet.  Keep remaining sheets covered to prevent drying.
  Fold bottom corner over filling to cover, then fold over right & left
  corners.  Roll over once to enclose filling.  Brush sides & top of triangle
  with flour & water mixture.  Fold over to seal.  Cover filled rolls with a
  damp clot while preparing the rest of the rolls.

  Place a non-stick frying pan over medium heat.  Add 1 to 2 tb oil.  Add
  rolls two at a time & cook for 2 minutes on each side, or till golden
  brown.  Transfer to a heat proof dish & keep warm in a 200F oven while
  cooking remaining rolls.

  To serve, cut each roll into thirds.

  "Vegetarian Times" February, 1992.

MMMMM
___ Blue Wave/386 v2.30

--- Maximus/2 3.01
 * Origin: Get your COOKING fix here! - nsbbs.info (1:18/200)