ability to cook well. One does not need to know the science behind cooking but it can help you understand why something happens the way it does. If you are one that likes to know the why, consider Harold McGee’s book On...

to change laws in other places because this craft is exploding due to demand. Along with changes in laws and technology to accommodate the surging knowledge and interest in artisanal products such as fine cheeses (not to mention...

with many high end restaurants today is that they have lost their ability to evaluate what an appropriate plating is for an a la carte meal and what is appropriate for a fifteen course tasting menu. They are not the same! Or at...

polenta and grits), often slathered with lovely sauces containing all sorts of veggies (wild and market-bought), spices and bits of meat. The locals prefer the round cast iron version, which has three legs in order to lift it...

I work at Trader Vic’s, but if I feel the urge to insert a random dish name I use the Froo-Froo Menu Generator. The Szechuan impala was the most likely candidate for something we’d serve if we suddenly found ourselves...

ha! iirc, whole foods stopped selling live, in the tank lobsters, due to cruelty concerns, but they still sell the tails & meat frozen— apparently cruelty is fine as long as it takes place somewhere else, not right in front...

, get Rick Bayless' most recent book (name slips my mind). Photographs are enough to make you get up and start cooking, and the book will tell you how to make good use of cheap staples—rice and beans and inexpensive (read...

But, say you cooked some sort of meat for the filling – and you freeze the extra, along with the unused tortillas – both should last for months in the freezer. Surely the left overs of the other ingredients could be...

Thank You Jim This, esteemed Alpha Dog, is what makes Chowhound special. The ability to recognize greatness in it’s most humble surroundings. No lobster, no truffles, no foie gras, simple perfection. I have a suggestion for...

Thanks Tom & MA. I’ve been buying from Española Meats in Harbor City (310 area code) near LA. No website but a very complete catalog with peppers, spices, candies, white asparagus and many kinds of chorizo and other meats....

's ability to eat a dish, provided that guest is invited. Sometimes we throw in some quesadillas, late night. Generally quiche in the morning, as that’s what our current teen contingent (girls) love, along with fresh fruit...

WOW thanks for the list. I will have to check it out after I have my checkup and blood test. I wish I have the time and the ability to write a list like this on any subject. Looking forward to trying and trying.

I still marvel over people who won’t eat any meat unless it is cooked beyond well-done. I understand the concern over salmonella and e coli, but what’s wrong with a little pink??? I have a sister-in-law that cooks her...

penniless, draft-beer-drinking friends. Needless to say, I made very little money, but I did have time to work out a few basic skills that served me well later, if not the ability to handle a six-deep crowd of raucous, thirsty,...

for cheese, butter, meat, and mayonnaise. I don’t even like candy or French fries (which many find un-American). My idea of heaven is cheese and bread, a filet with mushrooms, a cheese danish, or ethnic cooking like rich...