tartare

About That McDonald's Happy Meal...

Shelf-life, defined?

Great Sous-Vide Steak Primer

Serious Eats always has great stuff.  Whether you are new to sous-vide or already dabbling it, this guide is a great starting point.  Lots of great links and overview material.

Jean Robert's Table Has an Opening Date

Sure, I'm an unabashed fan of Chef de Cavel, but this is great news for everyone in Cincinnati.  Jean Robert is back in the saddle as of June 1st.  Some more details here from Polly Campbell.

British Restaurant Serves Wartime Rationing Food

Ah, for the good old days.

Grant Achatz Describes His Stage at El Bulli

Very clever of Adria and Soler to close El Bulli, never allowing it to become anything less than what it had been.  The New York Times ran a great piece by Grant Achatz and his stage experience at El Bulli.

Merle Ellis Has Died

I didn't see this anywhere in the news.  Merle Ellis, butcher, television host and most notably, the author of the excellent "Cutting Up in the Kitchen" has died.  My grandmother, who taught me so much about cooking, was a big Merle Ellis fan and a good deal of her meat cooking technique came from him.

 Though Cutting Up in the Kitchen is out of print, it is often available on Amazon.com used.  I bought a copy for my brother as a gift; I found it for $0.50, significantly less than I paid to mail it.  

Foie. Gras. Jelly. Donut

Scott Gold confronts a gastronomic Godzilla and survives to tell the tale:

"Foie gras jelly donut, $16

No way…could it really be?  I spoke the words aloud, just to make sure something in my cranium wasn’t all tangled up like an Oliver Sacks patient, causing me to see things that weren’t actually there.  ”Foie.  Gras.  Jelly.  Donut,”  I said.  And then, “Holy shit.”  Now, I normally try not to swear in front of my parents, but some things just have to be said.  I needed to order it - the decision was made as soon as I saw the words.  I wasn’t really even in the mood for it, but when confronted with something so outrageous, all will power is lost.  It’s as though the menu had performed the Jedi mind-trick on me: “You will have the foie gras jelly donut.”  ”I will have the foie gras jelly donut.”  When the server came to take our orders, I pointed at the menu and asked, simply, “Seriously?”  ”Oh, yes,” he said.  Oh well, I thought.  I guess we’re going to do this."

German Molecular Gastronomist Looses Hands

According to the UK Telegraph, a 24-year old German man lost both hands and very nearly his life in a liquid hydrogen accident.  The details are a bit sketchy, though there is little doubt that liquid nitrogen has to be handled with care. 

While often attributed to so-called "molecular gastrononmists", using LN2 for food preparation has been around at least since 1885. 

Mmmm...Spider Pizza

Of course, different cultures will have varied tastes in ingredients, so why not have the ultimate Italian and Japanese mashup?  I give you Spider Pizza.

But Who Will Rescue Gordon Ramsay From Himself?

It seems to me that  Thomas à Kempis said something like "Gladly we desire to make other men perfect, but we will not amend our own fault."  And as such, it seems ironic that Gordon Ramsay finds himself as a possible contestant for "Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares".  

Perhaps Little Gordon may come to his rescue?