What I find most fascinating (or ironic) about this concept, is that this is how my grandparents grew up. There were no strawberries imported from Chile in the winter months, no perfect-looking yet flavourless tomatoes all year round in the supermarket, no imported New Zealand lamb…one just ate what was available when it was available. An international cold storage supply chain had not yet been invented that would transport anything to anywhere in the world. I don’t know about you, but this just seems downright sensible to me.

Beyond the fact that there is a carbon footprint for everything we eat and do (OK – we travel a lot, so I don’t want to get on too high a horse), eating locally just tastes better. Growing up in North Carolina, there was nothing better than peach season where on the roadside local farmers would sell bushels of peaches – you have never had a more perfect peach. And when living in New York, everyone looked forward to the season for New Jersey tomatoes – it made you never want to eat another mealy out of season hydroponic specimen again. And on country weekends in Connecticut, we used to buy bacon and pork roasts from a local pig farm –you can absolutely taste the difference. Ever had farm fresh cheese? You’ll never even look at processed cheese again. After recent decades of eating things with infinite shelf lives in plastic wrappers, I find myself just wanting the real, fresh food of my youth.

And beyond the quality and taste issue, there is an economic issue. If you haven’t watched the movie Food Inc, please do. They take 91 minutes to make some very convincing points. But for me the key takeaway was, we as consumers can direct the development and growth of organic and local farming. The almighty dollar speaks louder than any letter to your congressman or blog article such as this. As is the basic nature of economics, supply will rise up to meet demand. So if we each as individuals choose to buy local and / or organic produce, we are directing the future of farming and food retail. It’s as simple as that.

Unfortunately for us living in Singapore, there is no significant local agriculture to speak of. We live in an island, country, city, state of 26 miles in length, or about 3.5x the size of Washington D.C. In America, the USDA has defined “local” to extend to a maximum of a 400 maximum mile radius. While this seems appropriate for the US, it doesn’t always work as well in SE Asia. So instead in Singapore we try to buy most of our foods from Singapore when possible or imported from Malaysia, 187 miles or 300km away.

It does not always work out, but we try as much as we can. And you should too. Eating locavore is good for you, good for the community and over time will certainly prove good for the local economies and the world in which we live.

This graphic from blog Clusterflock illustrates better sushi manners. Did you know not to mix wasabi in the soy sauce? Or that you eat sushi fish side down? Or that you can eat with your hands?  Well now you do.

How many times have I snapped my chopsticks apart and started rubbing off splinters? I’ve certainly dunked the rice in the soy. I wonder if Japanese diners at nearby tables watched in horror as I ate… or if they’re used to seeing this sort of thing by now. It’s kind of how I feel seeing northeastern US folks eating fried chicken with a fork and knife

Of course etiquette is also about group behavior. If you’re dining with a group of westerners and everyone starts their meal by preparing their soy sauce… don’t be a douche that guy in the moment. Maybe wait till everyone is enjoying their sushi and then drop a little wisdom on them. At the end of the day, most of us will never truly be sushi aficionados or eating it in a fancy, traditional restaurant in Japan.

So enjoy it how you will… but know that most of how we’ve been eating is wrong

Paul

In Spanish cooking pimentón is used to flavor almost everything…. it’s like Oyster Sauce to Thai cooks… you can find it flavoring chorizo, dashed on fried eggs, and even sprinkled on top of grilled seafood. It’s so important to Spanish cooking that they’ve established Denominations of Origin (D.O.) for the various versions… like fine wine in France.

There are several types of Spanish Paprika (from about.com).

• Pimentón Dulce or Sweet Paprika – Round red peppers make this mild, light orange paprika.
• Pimentón Agridulce or Medium Hot Paprika – Longer, dark red pepper make a medium hot paprika.
• Pimentón Picante or Hot Paprika – Made from any of several different types of long red peppers.

Any brands of Pimentón that you prefer? Any ingredients to share? Cant wait to get some and try out the Mark Bittman recipe for Tri-Tip

Paul

Hey All,
For this Epicurean Concept we bring you a dining etiquette tip from Joanna’s days at finishing school. No I’m not playing an epic, online version of The Circle Game. This is a visual clue like making a L with your left hand (if you can’t separate your right and left hands… which shouldn’t still be practiced past age 5 people). With this little trick you can avoid a common table faux pas.

The picture above represents that b is for bread and d is for drinks. I learned this little trick while in Hanoi this past weekend. Four of us sat down to eat at a very compact table. I had a wine glass and a water glass and I wasn’t sure which was which as others would take a drink and set their glasses down in different areas. Also I accidentally used my neighbor’s bread dish as my own, throwing the whole table off.

Joanna lifted up her hands and showed me b is  for bread and d is for drinks. Easy peasy, Japanesy. My drink was on my right hand side and I should have used the bread plate on my left, not on my right. In this case, classic dining etiquette serves not to make the eating experience stuffy, but instead according to James G Lewis:

…the point of etiquette rules is to make you feel comfortable, not uncomfortable… The idea is that if there are standards that people abide by, then you can have confidence that you are behaving “appropriately.” It takes the guesswork out of public behavior.

I like the phrasing of that. Proper etiquette takes the guess work out of public behavior. Having this simple little rule keeps us from having to stop dinner while everyone decides which glass is theirs or their neighbors. Done.

Maybe this is elementary for most of you guys out there, but I grew up eating most of my meals wrapped in some type of paper or on a stick of some sort

Paul

Howdy Yall,
To commemorate my travels around Texas and the states I’ll be doing a short series of “Texan Epicurean Concepts” over the next few weeks. These concepts will hopefully help you more fully enjoy your next trip to Texas.

First up is a childhood favorite of mine – Sweet Tea.

Growing up in Abilene, TX, sweet tea was the only tea I knew. When you go to a restaurant or truck stop diner you’re given a choice of drink.

“What yall want to drink.”

“Tea”

“Sweet or Unsweet”

“Sweet please m’am”

“K, sug (pronounced shoog), yall keep lookin at yer menus and I’ll be right back with yer teas”

There was no hot tea, Earl Grey, Oolong, Green, or anything else. Tea was cold. It was usually either a variety of instant tea or sun tea. People were firmly in one camp or another… and unlike beer preferences, there’s not a typical sweet tea drinker. Anyone with a sweet tooth drinks sweet tea… old men, little girls, cowboys, etc. Amazingly I’ve even seen folks add more sugar after the drink hits the table!

According to Wikipedia Sweet Tea is

a form of iced tea in which sugar or some other form of sweetener is added to the hot water before, while, or after brewing the tea but before the beverage is cooled or chilled and served. Adding sweetener to hot water allows for supersaturation of the solution, enabling the tea to hold more dissolved sweetener than under colder temperatures.

Sweet tea is a staple of the south and can still be found in many local eateries around my home town of Abilene, TX. Sweet tea is best enjoyed in either a glass jug (as pictured above) on in a giant styrofoam cup. It may not be good for the environment, but I swear the delicious nectar tastes all the sweeter when contained in styrofoam and passed through a straw

Sweet tea may not have as refined a history as in China or the Virginal White Tea of Sri Lanka but it stands as a culinary staple for us in the south regardless. In fact I’ll be so bold as to equate it in taste and sweetness to the highly revered orange Chai Yen (or sweet Thai Tea) everyone enjoys when visiting their favorite Thai restaurant.

So next time you find yourself in the south, satisfy that sweet tooth with a giant glass of sweet tea.

Paul

An apéritif is served before a meal to stimulate the appetite. Popular apéritifs include, my personal favorite, Pastis, ouzo, vermouth, Campari, fortified wines, and other drinks. Apéritifs are usually also served with a small snack such as cheese and olives.

Studies have shown that drinking 20 minutes before a meal does seem to lead to more food consumption. I’m curious to see if it actually makes the person more hungry or if it just lowers their inhibitions to eat more

A digestif is taken after a meal. The thought here is that the drink will help to aid in digestion. Some digestifs contain bitters or carminative herbs which are believed traditionally to help one digest. Common digestifs include amari, bitters, port, grappa, sherry, etc.

There’s no scientific research currently supporting the idea that digestifs settle the tummy. In my mind they make sense as you normally drink them “neat” (so they’re stronger drinks and therefore sipped slowly). The act of sitting calmly after a meal, slowly sipping a drink, and engaging in pleasant conversation will surely be better than staying with the wines and quickly leaving a restaurant and walking home or hopping in a taxi.

So there you have it. Now you know which one comes at which point in the meal and some common types. Now get out there and research your favorite of each so you know what to order when at a fine dining establishment or fancy dinner party.

Have a favorite pre or post-meal drink? Let us know in the comments.

Paul

The wikipedia link above can give you most of the details about this famous fungus. The highlights:

• they’re a fungus
• they grow underground, normally near trees
• they’re found by truffle sniffing dogs or hogs (dogs are preferable since they don’t try to eat them when found)

Truffles are expensive because they’re somewhat rare. Steps were taken historically to plant fields of trees and cultivate them in France in the 19th century. Truffle cultivation began to take off, but due to a series of setbacks (the WW’s and development of land) truffle cultivation is still in its infancy today… hard to imagine since it’s considered a muse by chefs around the world.

In Asia, unfortunately, most people are falling into the hype. Truffles are truly amazing in fragrance and taste, but what you find on most menus here is truffle oil. Truffle oil is typically made up of a large amount of olive oil combined with a synthetic agent such as 2,4-dithiapentane. Most “truffle oil” contains little to no amounts of actual truffles!

Newer chefs with an extra measure of pretension or thriftier chefs who want to seem like they’re using choice ingredients use this oil as a substitute for the real deal to save costs and seem elite. Since the dishes are usually made to impress and seem epicurean, the results are often uninspired and in worse case scenarios are truly bad. Former NYT food critic Frank Bruni when giving advice on how to navigate a menu in a restaurant went so far as to say, “then scratch off anything that mentions truffle oil.”

True white or black truffles are a delight. Just smelling them once will leave you with a smell memory  you can recall on command. The earthy, pungent aroma and flavor is instantly recognizable in any dish… it is rightly prized by top chefs worldwide, but it should be the real deal, not a cheap substitute.

Recently, we enjoyed a meal in one of Singapore’s premier restaurants (I’ll go so far as to say the nicest meal I’ve had to date in Asia) – Gunther’s. At the start of the meal the waiter came to each table with a tray of fresh, highly sought after ingredients including live lobster, specially marbled wagyu beef, etc… and as if that all wasn’t enough, he leaves and comes back with a simple tray with a glass top. Inside were 3 beautiful white truffles. The moment he lifted the glass dome from the tray the room filled with the ethereal scent of truffles. I enjoyed the moment again and again as each table was set throughout the night. We chose the chef’s tasting menu for the night and many of the courses that night featured white truffle in some way and it worked. But to answer the above question, truffles don’t make everything better. At the end of the meal we were treated to petit fours from the kitchen. One of the tasty treats was a white truffle macaroon and I’d have to say it’s the only thing that didn’t work all night. I can understand why some would go for the taste, but to me, not everything needs to taste earthy and developed

Who’s had, seen, smelled, and / or tasted real truffles? Have a favorite memory to share?

Paul

Burrata Cheese is a luxurious version of the more widely known mozzarella cheese. Burrata is traditionally an artisan cheese crafted from mozzarella and cream. It’s not a super common cheese as it’s best eaten within it’s first 24 hours of life and is considered past it’s prime after a mere 48 hours!

Specifics on the making of Burrata from Wikipedia -

When making Burrata, the still-hot cheese is formed into a pouch, which is then filled with scraps of leftover mozzarella and topped off with fresh cream (panna) before closing. The finished Burrata is traditionally wrapped in the leaves of asphodel, tied to form a little brioche-like topknot, and moistened with a little whey. The asphodel leaves should still be green when the cheese is served, to indicate the cheese’s freshness.

If you ever see it anywhere, be sure to give it a try. The first time I had it was at Spasso’s served as an appetizer. We were close to canceling our food orders and just dining on this cheese with bread and tomatoes…it’s that good. It’s great when eaten in an Insalata caprese or by itself with maybe some oil and bread. I’m obsessed with looking for it these days, asking at every Italian restaurant I dine at.

Any artisan cheeses you love or cheeses in general? Let us know in the comments… always looking to try something new

Paul

Ever been at a wine tasting, dinner party, or other event featuring wine and some know-it-all (probably with a beard and wearing a sweater) swirls his glass vigorously and then tilts the glass sideways to observe the streaking wine (wine legs)? Don’t feel bad if you believed the explanation that followed explaining that this was a good wine because it had “nice legs” or some other nonesense. This is one of the most persistent wine myths around. Read the explanation of why wine “has legs” (or “tears” for our francophile readers) after the jump.

The fact that a wine has more legs tells you absolutely nothing about the wine’s quality. Let’s just make sure that’s clear from the get go.

This answer, from Wikipedia, is pretty thorough and explains the science behind what you see happening in the glass.

The effect is a consequence of the fact that alcohol has a lower surface tension than water. If alcohol is mixed with water inhomogeneously, a region with a lower concentration of alcohol will pull on the surrounding fluid more strongly than a region with a higher alcohol concentration. The result is that the liquid tends to flow away from regions with higher alcohol concentration. This can be easily and strikingly demonstrated by spreading a thin film of water on a smooth surface and then allowing a drop of alcohol to fall on the center of the film. The liquid will rush out of the region where the drop of alcohol fell.

Wine is mostly a mixture of alcohol and water, with dissolved sugars, acids, colourants and flavourants. Where the surface of the wine meets the side of the glass, capillary action makes the liquid climb the side of the glass. As it does so, both alcohol and water evaporate from the rising film, but the alcohol evaporates faster, due to its higher vapor pressure and lower boiling point. This change in the composition of the film causes its surface tension to increase – this in turn causes more liquid to be drawn up from the bulk of the wine, which has a lower surface tension because of its higher alcohol content. The wine which moves up the side of the glass then forms droplets which fall back under their weight.

So there you go. Nothing at all to do with the quality of the wine. Feel free to stop the phenomenon and drive your point home if anyone doesn’t believe you by covering the wine glass with a coaster or menu and watch the legs of the wine stop developing. Do keep swirling the wine, however, as this actually aerates the wine allowing you a better smell.

The only question left is what to do with your newly acquired information? Do you speak up and put the know-it-all on the spot? Do you just let it go and say nothing with a smug smile on your face?

Paul

This weeks Epicurean Concept is relatively simple, but one that we were curious about and so thought maybe others were as well. Often at restaurants I’ll see lamb dishes on the menu, but other times mutton dishes. I wondered if there was really a difference or if it was a restaurant’s way of dressing up or down a dish through verbal trickery. Answer after the jump.

It’s actually not (or at least shouldn’t be) verbal trickery on the part of the restaurant.

Lamb is a sheep less than one year old, typically slaughtered between the ages of four and twelve months. This meat is more pinkish in color and has a large amount of white fat surrounding the meat. The lamb should have a firm texture, but still be tender.

Mutton is any sheep that’s older than one year…. or to be really precise it’s a “a female (ewe) or castrated male (wether) sheep having more than two permanent incisors in wear” (wikipedia). The older meat of mutton can be a bit gamier and tougher if not prepared correctly, hence the limited usage of it in the states. Mutton is undergoing a huge comeback as of late though (as are most cheaper / forgotten meats these days).

Hogget is another variety you might hear about. Hogget is sometimes used interchangeably for Mutton but it’s slightly different – “a young male sheep or maiden ewe having no more than two permanent incisors in wear” (again Wikipedia).

Careful in the US though. Any sheep under two years of age can be legally labeled and sold as lamb. So that could also account for someone tasting lamb and finding it too gamey…maybe it is, or maybe they were slipped some 23 month old “lamb” meat.

So there you go. If you dislike the gamier (sometimes it reminds me of bleu cheese) taste of Mutton, maybe look for lamb. These days chef’s are doing some creative things with mutton and I think it’s worth the risk if you see it on a menu…they know the negative associations folks have with the meat these days, so to include it on a menu says they think it’s worth it (or are getting it cheap)