Learning about Tabasco

Tabasco sauce isn't just for dousing on eggs or doctoring your bloody mary. In fact it takes on a completely different character when used in cooking rather than as a finishing sauce. It's a surprisingly versatile condiment that can be used in a wide variety of dishes and drinks. There are seven different varieties of Tabasco sauce (actually there are a couple more as well that are not widely available). I learned all of this and more on a recent visit to Avery Island, home and birthplace of Tabasco sauce. The trip to Louisiana was with the inaugural group of Tabasco tastemakers. As one of the "tastemakers," I will be creating several recipes using Tabasco (for which I am being compensated).

During my visit I saw the pepper fields, the barrel room (where I tasted chili pepper mash), the factory (where I breathed in vinegar fumes), the lab, the bottling rooms and learned just how Tabasco is made. While almost 99% of the Tabasco chile peppers come from places like Latin America and Africa, all varieties of Tabasco sauce are made on Avery Island. The peppers are processed, made into a mash with salt, aged and fermented in bourbon barrels, then transformed into sauces.

At a dinner for the Tabasco tastemakers I was blown away by how chef Alon Shaya of Domenica restaurant in New Orleans used Tabasco in his cooking. Twice nominated for a regional James Beard award, Shaya cooks his unique version of Italian food using the best local ingredients he can find, and a good deal of restraint in a town where excess is generally taken to an extreme. He used Tabasco in everything from a simple yet intensely flavored handmade pasta with shrimp to a chocolate dessert.

Finally bartender Neal Bodenheimer of Cure used Tabasco in cocktails with spirits like Pimm's and rum and creme de banane. One of the drinks he made was a "cobbler" which traditionally is a drink made with wine or sherry, sugar and fresh fruit. His cocktails were both unexpected and amazing. Stay tuned for my first recipe...

Read more blog posts about the Tastemaker trip:

Comic strip of Camper English tasting pepper mash from Alcademics

Of Mash, Marsh and Memorable Meals from Food Orleans

Avery Island, part deux: boils, bottles, bloodies & boudin from Food Orleans

Tabasco taste test from Fritos and Foie Gras

Chef Alon Shaya goes Tabasco crazy from Fritos and Foie Gras

A Visit to Avery Island Louisiana Home of Tabasco Sauce from Recipe Girl

A Trip to Avery Island Louisiana from Eat, Live, Run

Top 10 Avery Island Louisiana from What's Gaby Cooking

Disclaimer: I visited Avery Island as a guest of Tabasco

Some of my Favorite People (and things)

Diane and Brian Campbell of The Candy Store

I feel like I was one of the first to discover The Candy Store because it's just a few blocks from my home. In fact I wrote a review of it almost five years ago, just months after it opened. And oh my, how far it's come since then! The store is compact, but carefully curated by the delightfully enthusiastic Diane and her husband Brian, a passionate burgeoning candy maker. Every time I visit the store there is something new and special to try from unusual Swedish candies to deluxe and nearly impossible to find chocolate bars made by a pastry chef. And that's in addition to the classics like wine gums, old fashioned marshmallow ropes, candy buttons, and more varieties of sours, licorice and gummies than you've ever imagined. Most recent accolades come from Target who chose their store as one of only five in the US for their store-within-a-store concept launching in May. Candy is one of the last great affordable luxuries, so visit their store on Russian Hill or this charming video featuring Diane, Brian and their store.

Daphne Mazarakis of Better Whey of Life Greek yogurt

Remember when Greek yogurt became all the rage? I did a review of all the ones I could find a little over three years ago. Since then, even more Greek yogurt brands have entered the market, but one in particular caught my attention. It was developed by Daphne Mazarakis, a Greek American, who used to work for Kraft but was looking for "a better way". Her yogurt has some real advantages versus most other brands. It is made from whey and has more protein, more calcium, more fiber, and is lower in sugar. But never mind all that, its most amazing benefit is how insanely creamy it is. The yogurt is low fat (only 1.5% fat) and yet tastes as creamy or creamier than other low fat varieties. There is no chalkiness and it's not too sour. I hope it will be more widely available soon, and in larger quantities. Right now you can find it in individual 6 ounce cups in just a few states.

Betty Teller of Betty's Amuse Bouche

I met Betty a few years ago at the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) conference in Chicago which is kind of funny since she lives not so far away, in Napa. Since then I've bumped into her in the Bay Area, but I feel like I am in touch with her on a more regular basis since I subscribe to her newsletter which is her column from the Napa Valley Register. Betty is a hoot; she's funny, chatty, insightful and a good cook. Her column/newsletter gives you a peek into whatever she is up to and her unique take on life up in Napa. Check out her columns online, if you enjoy them as much as I do, you'll want to subscribe to her newsletter so you can catch them all.


Cheryl Sternman Rule of Five Second Rule

I hate awards, I really do. But I am very happy for my colleague Cheryl Sternman Rule. For the past two years, Cheryl and Dianne Jacob and I have shared the stage at the Book Passage Travel Writers, Food Writers & Photography conference. Cheryl won the 2012 IACP award for best blog. She also has a new book out called Ripe all about the vibrant colors and flavors of fresh fruits and vegetables that I can't wait to check out. If you don't know her blog, do scurry on over to 5 Second Rule. She will also be at Omnivore Books on April 26th.

Michael Procopio of Food for the Thoughtless

Another pal of mine is Michael Procopio. We blogged at KQED's Bay Area Bites for years before I moved on to greener pastures. He has a truly unique voice that it seems the world is just now discovering--his writing is in the Best Food Writing of 2011 and he was recently featured in Bill Daley's article in the Chicago Tribune Dishing About Food Writing (one of seven writers your should know). His blog posts and recipes are always thoughtful, whether serious or silly and he is the only writer I know whose recipes are inspired by everything from the sinking of the Titanic to the candidacy of Rick Santorum. For a dose of dry wit, head over to his blog.

Cooking from another Culture

When it comes to cooking the food from another culture, the ingredients and techniques can be unfamiliar. Going to a foreign country and taking a cooking class is great, but not a readily accessible opportunity for most. Fortunately there are local cooking classes and cooking kits.

Recently launched Global Grub offers cooking kits with extremely well written instructions that will help you succeed in making things like sushi, or jerk chicken with coconut rice and beans. I used the tamales kit and was very impressed with the quality of the ingredients, the clear instructions and the wonderful results. My dad said the tamales were the best he'd ever eaten!

Kits include the dry and hard to find ingredients, and range in price from $13.99 up to $19.99 and for every kit purchased, Global Grub donates a meal to someone in need through their local food bank. Global Grub offers tutorial videos on their site, and the instructions with each kit are easily folded into a stand for easy reference as you cook.

I'm a big fan of La Cocina. I've volunteered with them, written about them and took a wonderful mole class at their Mission location. Now they are holding even more classes that you can take from cooks who are part of their culinary business incubator program. Classes are an "interactive cooking party" and also include a meal. The $65 class fee supports the non-profit programs at La Cocina.

Though I don't have any direct experience to report, I'm intrigued by Culture Kitchen. They are combining classes with home cooks, videos and cooking kits to get you up to speed cooking things like pad thai, masala chai and eggplant with garlic and mint. Each class costs $60 and includes a full meal, locations vary, kits are $34.99.

Note: I paid for the class I took at La Cocina, the tamales kit from Global Grub was a sample.

After Dark:Gastronomy

Photo credit: ©Intellectual Ventures/Modernist Cuisine

Are you curious about the modern techniques and ingredients often lumped under the controversial term "molecular gastronomy?" While I never ate at El Bulli or Alinea, and I don't have copies of Nathan Myhrvold's Modernist Cuisine I can't help but wonder if cutting edge techniques have the ability to make food taste significantly better. And although I've yet to invest in the equipment to cook sous vide, I have enjoyed reading Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking which has taught me a bit about food science.

This Thursday April 5th, the Exploratorium is hosting After Dark:Gastronomy from 6-10 pm. It will be a true hand's on experience for those with curiosity when it comes to the modern techniques and ingredients that utilize our understanding of science. Modernist Cuisine’s head chef and co-author Maxime Bilet and SeattleFoodGeek blogger Scott Heimendinger will demonstrate how tools such as centrifuges and homogenizers and ingredients like hydrocolloids and emulsifiers are used in culinary applications. Cooking for Geeks author Jeff Potter will also be on hand, and will demonstrate sous vide techniques with eggs.

Join me and lean how to make fruit juice “caviar," liquid nitrogen ice cream and find out if you are a “super-taster” (and if that's a good thing to be). Tickets are $15.

Exploratorium @
The Palace of Fine Arts
3601 Lyon Street
San Francisco, CA

Kitchen Upgrades

Non-stick pans, kitchen tools and storage containers. Your kitchen is filled with them, some good and some not so good. Sometimes your kitchen deserves an upgrade. Here are a few of my recent discoveries:

I've reviewed a lot of pots and pans over the years. I love the convenience for non-stick pans, but no matter what the brand or cost, eventually they flake. I like the ceramic non-stick, but they are a bit delicate and can chip if you're not careful, well, not the Earth Pan II from Meyer corporation. The non-stick surface is made from sand, and has no PTFE or PFOA and it can be used with high heat! It's stovetop safe up to 600 degrees. I've been using a 12-inch pan for several weeks and it is easy to clean, and shows no signs that it will chip and there is no coating to flake off. Of course, the true test is how it performs in the long term, but so far so good.



My old measuring cups were so ugly! They were stained and I hated looking at them, never mind using them. When someone from Trudeau offered to send me something of my choice from their line of kitchenware, I knew it would be their 5 piece measuring cup set. Each piece is a different color and the shape is particularly easy to use. I also got their can opener since my old one had melted from being to close to the stove one day. If you don't have a can opener that lifts the top rather leaving sharp edges this is a great upgrade. I already have and love the Trudeau pot clip spoon rests and one piece silicone spatulas (no wooden handle to burn or stain).



I just bought this Chef'n dual grater and I really like the design. It's coarse on one side, fine on the other, and it has little rubber feet so you can use it vertically or horizontally. It also takes up very little room when it's not in use. It's a really smart design and it was relatively inexpensive. I had another one from Microplane that I liked, but it broke. Eventually they also lose their edge and need replacing. The best Microplane product I have is the zester. If you don't have one, I highly recommend you get one.




My last recommendation is to ditch your plastic storage containers. Oh you can use them for dry things like sugar and flour, but don't use them to store cooked food or to reheat. They stain and they get scratched and they might just be leaching chemicals into your food. A much better choice is glass. I've just purchased a set of Boroseal, Borosilicate glass stroage containers and while they aren't cheap, I expect them to last for a very, very long time. They have airtight plastic tops and can be used in the freezer, oven and microwave. Unlike plastic they will not stain or scratch or melt! Pyrex glass storage containers are less expensive and also get high ratings on Amazon, though I haven't personally used them.

My thanks for Meyer for providing a sample of the EarthPan and Trudeau for the measuring cups and can opener. All other products mentioned I purchased.

In Organic We Trust

In Organic We Trust trailer

What do terms like “organic” and “natural” mean? Are they marketing terms or something more? The documentary “In Organic We Trust,” begins by taking a deeper dive into what the public thinks organic is all about and also how big corporations are getting in on the act. Through a very Morgan Spurlock style film with animations and interviews, filmmaker Kip Pastor raises as many questions as he answers.

While we might want to believe that organic produce is healthier, the film refers to research that shows, that's just not the case. And it turns out pesticides are often organic. Yet the numbers are climbing when it comes to organic consumption in America. At the root of the film is the question--is organic a philosophy? If so, what is it?

The interviews with government critics, educators, farmers and food entrepreneurs are illuminating, but I wish the film had gone further into the philosophy that is the underpinning of organic, a philosophy of taking care of the earth, sustainability, etc. At many times the very reasons for organic seem at odd with the heavily processed unhealthy organic food that is being pumped out by big companies.

Is organic part of the solution, along with eating locally, and better labeling? How do we encourage better food policy? There are no easy answers. We will just have to stay tuned as the story progresses...

In Organic We Trust will be available on DVD and shows at the San Francisco Independent Film Festival February 23, 2012.

Avocado Tofu Salad with Ponzu Recipe

This is a zen salad. For one thing, like meditation, it requires slowing down. Normally salad is something you throw together at the last minute. Not this one. Patience, little grasshopper. You need to marinate the tofu overnight. It's also simple and straightforward. And it requires no oil. I know what you're thinking, what does THAT have to do with being zen? I'll tell you. This is an enlightened salad. The avocado is rich enough that you really don't need any additional oil.

I know there are people out there who don't like tofu, but I wonder, have they had any good tofu dishes? I like tofu with something to really give it flavor and tang. Ponzu sauce is perfect. The extra firm texture of this tofu really shouldn't bother even people with "texture issues." But if you or your guests really are adversed to tofu, you could certainly substitute diced chicken breast or chunks of seared tuna.

This salad is perfect for when your are trying to eat healthy or to enjoy on a warm day. It's very light and refreshing but at the same time hearty and filling. If you try it, let me know what you think!

Avocado Tofu Salad with PonzuMakes 4 servings

Ingredients

1 large avocado, firm, not too soft
7 ounces of extra firm tofu (1/2 of a standard package)
1 small Persian cucumber
3 Tablespoons ponzu sauce (Kikkoman's is fine or make your own)
Salad greens, preferably baby lettuce
1 green onion, minced
Toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

Slice the avocado in half, remove the pit, cut into medium size chunks and place in a mixing bowl. Drain the tofu and cut into chunks, roughly the same size as the avocado. Add to the mixing bowl along with the ponzu sauce and toss, gently. Allow to marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. Use a mandolin to slice the cucumber into thin slices, or cut with a knife. Line each plate or bowl with salad greens, top them with cucumber slices. Place the avocado mixture on top of the salad greens and top each serving with green onion and sesame seeds. Drizzle each serving with a bit of the ponzu sauce.

Enjoy!