Text 1115, 111 rader
Skriven 2010-09-05 23:52:49 av Ruth Haffly (1:396/45.28)
   Kommentar till text 1033 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: heating up 541                                           [1]
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Hi Michael,

 ML> Sometimes one has to back off from social ties - we understand.
 RH> It's going to be the norm for the next couple of years or so.  He will
 RH> be more active during the Christmas break, then go (mostly) dormant
 RH> when 2nd semester starts.

 ML> When work heats up, other things cool down. Makes perfect sense
 ML> to me.

Yes, and in this case, the work is being a student.


 RH> I have uncoated cast iron for all my cast iron stuff.  Funny thing is,
 RH> I still run slightly anemic so my doctor wants me to take an iron
 RH> supplement (which I do).

 ML> Eat more!

 RH> I only eat until I'm comfortable most of the time. It's usually a
 RH> fairly small meal.  Even on buffets I'll just take small bits of most
 RH> of the things I want--but my plate fills up fast.

 ML> So cook your tomato sauce longer in the cast iron.

I usually cook it in Calphalon.


 RH> sometimes tipping the ratio in favor of a bit more vinegar.  I don't
 RH> usually use sugar in the marinade.

 ML> To temper the vinegariness of vinegar I occasionally add
 ML> a little sugar even when it isn't called for.

 RH> Some folks do that with any kind of tomato sauce.  I guess it's
 RH> supposed to help neutralise the acid of the tomatoes.

 ML> Not exactly neutralize but balance. I actually prefer tarter

Choice of words; I guess balance would be a better word.


 ML> tomato sauces but balance the acid with olive oil or butter.
 ML> Also, I use less sauce than most do.

Your choice.  I like a decent amount but not drowning the pasta.

 -=> Ruth Haffly said to Hap Newsom <=-

 hn> Indian spices are often quite different
 hn> than other ethnicities...or so it seems
 RH> Each ethnic group has a different definition of "hot" in their spice
 RH> vocabulary.  You wouldn't get a Tex-Mex hot in India, nor a vindaloo
 RH> one in TX.

 ML> There are so many Indians in Houston now that you might be able to.
 ML> Plus there's always been Texan competitiveness hot, which can be
 ML> quite hot. That said, I've always had a hard time in Houston getting

I've not been there so I won't comment.


ML> spicy food prepared to my liking. As with most southern places, they
 ML> seem to cope with requests for heat by dumping vast quantities of
 ML> hot sauce on your food - something I could do myself but generally
 ML> choose not to.

Southern cooking isn't southwestern cooking.  Southern cooking is
technically south eastern cooking.  And, no, they don't really do 'hot".


 hn> to me...I made the mistake of ordering
 hn> extra hot at a Goa'n run Indian place once,

 RH> Should have asked the server. That's what we usually do in a new to us
 RH> place.

 ML> I should like to see that Goan place sometime. Not to order anything
 ML> extra hot but rather "as hot as you would like." I once ate with a

That is best--"hot as you like it" is a good way to ensure you get the
heat level you're comfortable with.  That's why we ask.

 ML> south Indian at a south Indian place outside San Fran, which was
 ML> reputed to have the hottest food in the area. The food comes in a
 ML> 1 to 10 rating, and I asked the owner what I should have. He sized
 ML> me up and said, oh, a 5. So I asked for a 7. Mistake - I could hardly
 ML> taste the heat, while my south Indian friend could hardly taste the
 ML> food. I ended up having to ask for red powder as a corrective. On the
 ML> other hand, at one restaurant in Cambridge, MA, I asked for the food
 ML> as hot as possible, and it came grainy with chile, and it was too hot.

Interesting.

 RH> Real staying power to that heat.  It's what you want in cold months to
 RH> warm you up. (G)

 ML> If you don't have indoor plumbing, that is.

Even if you do. (G)

---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net  FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Not all questions worth asking have answers...

--- PPoint 3.01
 * Origin: Sew! That's My Point (1:396/45.28)