Re: mythology

[Howard Brazee]

On Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:39:14 -0500, Walter Bushell <pr...@panix.com>
wrote:

>Chile peppers, without that it would be like curry without curry powder.

So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).

--
"In no part of the constitution is more wisdom to be found,
than in the clause which confides the question of war or peace
to the legislature, and not to the executive department."

- James Madison

[Michael Stemper]

In article <qaeaj79g7n6a2uq8i...@4ax.com>, Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> writes:
>On Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:39:14 -0500, Walter Bushell <pr...@panix.com> wrote:

>>Chile peppers, without that it would be like curry without curry powder.
>
>So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
>True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
>curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).

I know that's what I thought when I got up this morning.

--
Michael F. Stemper
#include <Standard_Disclaimer>
Time flies like an arrow.
Fruit flies like a banana.

[David Dyer-Bennet]

Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> writes:

> On Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:39:14 -0500, Walter Bushell <pr...@panix.com>
> wrote:
>
>>Chile peppers, without that it would be like curry without curry powder.
>
> So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
> True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
> curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).

It ain't exactly anything, but ginger and cumin and turmeric and a
number of other things are extremely likely.

My good Indian cookbooks have very long recipes, because they call out
individual herbs and spices rather than using pre-mixes.
--
David Dyer-Bennet, dd...@dd-b.net; http://dd-b.net/
Snapshots: http://dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/data/
Photos: http://dd-b.net/photography/gallery/
Dragaera: http://dragaera.info

[Garrett Wollman]

In article <qaeaj79g7n6a2uq8i...@4ax.com>,

Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> wrote:
>So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
>True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
>curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).

Well, there *is* a curry plant, and you can dry and grind up the
leaves, but that's not what's in curry powder.

Supermarket curry power is generally coriander, cumin, and turmeric.
I don't think it's much good for actually making a curry, but it seems
to be a reasonable approximation of "curry flavor" when you want to
add that to something.

-GAWollman

--
Garrett A. Wollman | What intellectual phenomenon can be older, or more oft
wol...@bimajority.org| repeated, than the story of a large research program
Opinions not shared by| that impaled itself upon a false central assumption
my employers. | accepted by all practitioners? - S.J. Gould, 1993

[Robert Bannister]

On 11/02/12 1:46 AM, David Dyer-Bennet wrote:
> Howard Brazee<how...@brazee.net> writes:
>
>> On Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:39:14 -0500, Walter Bushell<pr...@panix.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Chile peppers, without that it would be like curry without curry powder.
>>
>> So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
>> True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
>> curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).
>
> It ain't exactly anything, but ginger and cumin and turmeric and a
> number of other things are extremely likely.

I'd have thought ginger in a "curry powder" was highly unlikely. You
must always use fresh ginger. Normally, the garlic and ginger and
occasionally the shallots or onions go in the mortar and pestle or
blender together and get mixed with the ground spices later. In
Malaysian style cookery, everything seems to go into the mortar together.

>
> My good Indian cookbooks have very long recipes, because they call out
> individual herbs and spices rather than using pre-mixes.


--

Robert Bannister

[Walter Bushell]

In article <ylfkd39m...@dd-b.net>,

David Dyer-Bennet <dd...@dd-b.net> wrote:

> Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> writes:
>
> > On Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:39:14 -0500, Walter Bushell <pr...@panix.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >>Chile peppers, without that it would be like curry without curry powder.
> >
> > So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
> > True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
> > curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).
>
> It ain't exactly anything, but ginger and cumin and turmeric and a
> number of other things are extremely likely.
>
> My good Indian cookbooks have very long recipes, because they call out
> individual herbs and spices rather than using pre-mixes.

Exactly and every Indian family has its own recipes, just like every
Italian family has its own recipes for various tomato sauces.

--
It is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant
and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting. -- H. L. Mencken

[John F. Eldredge]

On Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:25:30 +0000, Garrett Wollman wrote:

> In article <qaeaj79g7n6a2uq8i...@4ax.com>, Howard Brazee
> <how...@brazee.net> wrote:
>>So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
>>True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
>>curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).
>
> Well, there *is* a curry plant, and you can dry and grind up the leaves,
> but that's not what's in curry powder.
>
> Supermarket curry power is generally coriander, cumin, and turmeric. I
> don't think it's much good for actually making a curry, but it seems to
> be a reasonable approximation of "curry flavor" when you want to add
> that to something.
>
> -GAWollman

If you go into a grocery that sells Southeast Asian food, you will find
that there are many different "curry flavors", with different assortments
of spices. The "curry powder" familiar to most Americans is just one
such.

--
John F. Eldredge -- jo...@jfeldredge.com
"Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly
is better than not to think at all." -- Hypatia of Alexandria

[jcat...@gmail.com]

Curry is an incredibly vague term that's rather less specific than 'spicy casserole'.

Curry powder is any mix of powdered spices that could conceivably form the basis of a curry.

The curry powder you get in western supermarkets is a mass-market interpretation of what I'm guessing is an early-20th English concept of curry: cumin, coriander, way too much turmeric, powdered ginger, chilli, white pepper, garlic powder and onion powder would be my guess, judging by the smell.

Given that there's no single dish that particularly defines a curry, there's no right answer as to what 'curry powder' ought to be. However, that stuff is kind of nasty for making actual curries with.

If I were to make one up myself, I'd use one part each of coriander, cumin and chilli, plus about a fifth of a part turmeric. The onion, garlic and ginger really need to be fresh.

[Garrett Wollman]

In article <9q0irf...@mid.individual.net>,

John F. Eldredge <jo...@jfeldredge.com> wrote:
>On Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:25:30 +0000, Garrett Wollman wrote:
>> Supermarket curry power is generally coriander, cumin, and turmeric. I
>> don't think it's much good for actually making a curry, but it seems to
>> be a reasonable approximation of "curry flavor" when you want to add
>> that to something.

>If you go into a grocery that sells Southeast Asian food, you will find
>that there are many different "curry flavors", with different assortments
>of spices.

If your requirements were that specific, you wouldn't be looking for
"curry flavor". If you just want something to lend an exotic taste
(and yellow color) to your cauliflower casserole, curry powder works
well enough.

[erilar]

In article
<32759073.138.1329281749862.JavaMail.geo-discussion-forums@pbbpr3>,

hmmmmm I have all of those except possibly chili powder in my spice
collection. The garlic is even fresh because I needed less than I
bought in something I made this morning.

--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist

[Suzanne Blom]

OTOH I buy tandoori chicken seasoning because it has a lot of turmeric.
Tastes vary.

[James Silverton]

My local Indian supermarket has various types of canned "curry powder";
some of them weigh as much as half a kilogram and I can't see Westerners
buying them. Yes, I do start from scratch but not always!

--
Jim Silverton

Extraneous "not" in Reply To.

[Robert Bannister]

On 15/02/12 10:16 AM, John F. Eldredge wrote:
> On Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:25:30 +0000, Garrett Wollman wrote:
>
>> In article<qaeaj79g7n6a2uq8i...@4ax.com>, Howard Brazee
>> <how...@brazee.net> wrote:
>>> So what exactly is "curry powder"? (Plenty of room here for another
>>> True Scotsman argument - except maybe lots of people think there's a
>>> curry plant that gets ground up and put in the curry jar).
>>
>> Well, there *is* a curry plant, and you can dry and grind up the leaves,
>> but that's not what's in curry powder.
>>
>> Supermarket curry power is generally coriander, cumin, and turmeric. I
>> don't think it's much good for actually making a curry, but it seems to
>> be a reasonable approximation of "curry flavor" when you want to add
>> that to something.
>>
>> -GAWollman
>
> If you go into a grocery that sells Southeast Asian food, you will find
> that there are many different "curry flavors", with different assortments
> of spices. The "curry powder" familiar to most Americans is just one
> such.
>

They have an enormous variety of pastes and "simmer sauces", plus a
bewildering selection of spices, some of which I have never heard of or
more familiar spices in forms I had never seen before.

The one I shop in does, in fact, have a couple of things labelled curry
powder, but you have to look hard - I often wonder who buys them. Now,
when I was a lad back in England, curry powder was all we knew and I
think there was only one brand, maybe two, but they both tasted more or
less the same: not remotely like curry.

--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

On 16/02/12 2:58 AM, erilar wrote:
> In article
> <32759073.138.1329281749862.JavaMail.geo-discussion-forums@pbbpr3>,
> jcat...@gmail.com wrote:
>
>> Curry is an incredibly vague term that's rather less specific than 'spicy
>> casserole'.
>>
>> Curry powder is any mix of powdered spices that could conceivably form the
>> basis of a curry.
>>
>> The curry powder you get in western supermarkets is a mass-market
>> interpretation of what I'm guessing is an early-20th English concept of
>> curry: cumin, coriander, way too much turmeric, powdered ginger, chilli,
>> white pepper, garlic powder and onion powder would be my guess, judging by
>> the smell.
>>
>> Given that there's no single dish that particularly defines a curry, there's
>> no right answer as to what 'curry powder' ought to be. However, that stuff is
>> kind of nasty for making actual curries with.
>>
>> If I were to make one up myself, I'd use one part each of coriander, cumin
>> and chilli, plus about a fifth of a part turmeric. The onion, garlic and
>> ginger really need to be fresh.
>
> hmmmmm I have all of those except possibly chili powder in my spice
> collection.

Always better to grind fresh anyway. So you need dried chillies rather
than pre-ground chilli powder.

The garlic is even fresh because I needed less than I
> bought in something I made this morning.
>

I find garlic very annoying. I always have some in the house, but when I
come to use it, I find it's gone soft or dry and I have to buy fresh
anyway. I suppose I should grow my own.
--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

Have you tried fresh turmeric? It tastes quite different from the dried
stuff. Unfortunately, it's not often available.

--
Robert Bannister

[Howard Brazee]

On Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:16:56 +0800, Robert Bannister
<rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

>I find garlic very annoying. I always have some in the house, but when I
>come to use it, I find it's gone soft or dry and I have to buy fresh
>anyway. I suppose I should grow my own.

You must not use it as quickly as I do. Do you live in arid or humid
climate?

[James Silverton]

On 2/15/2012 11:22 PM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:16:56 +0800, Robert Bannister
> <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>> I find garlic very annoying. I always have some in the house, but when I
>> come to use it, I find it's gone soft or dry and I have to buy fresh
>> anyway. I suppose I should grow my own.
>
> You must not use it as quickly as I do. Do you live in arid or humid
> climate?
>

How do you keep your garlic? The only problem I find for mine in a
ventilated pottery garlic keeper at room temperature is that the cloves
may tend to sprout. A small plastic basket is as good as a keeper but
doesn't look as interesting.

[Sjouke Burry]

James Silverton <jim.si...@verizon.net> wrote in
news:jhivg5$hs5$1...@dont-email.me:

I have a glass jar in the freezer with cleaned cloves.
I crunch them in frozen state, then add them to my chow.
Or I use some powdered garlic.......

[Howard Brazee]

On Thu, 16 Feb 2012 08:14:54 -0500, James Silverton
<jim.si...@verizon.net> wrote:

>>> I find garlic very annoying. I always have some in the house, but when I
>>> come to use it, I find it's gone soft or dry and I have to buy fresh
>>> anyway. I suppose I should grow my own.
>>
>> You must not use it as quickly as I do. Do you live in arid or humid
>> climate?
>>
>How do you keep your garlic? The only problem I find for mine in a
>ventilated pottery garlic keeper at room temperature is that the cloves
>may tend to sprout. A small plastic basket is as good as a keeper but
>doesn't look as interesting.

I've seen those, but leave mine out on a dish on my sideboard. I
live near Denver, so I'm fairly arid. Maybe I just use it more.

[Suzanne Blom]

No, I haven't partly for the reason you mention, partly because I don't
have a grater. Since it has widespread ceremonial use in south Asia,
though, I figure it's got to be good for one.

[Suzanne Blom]

I buy the tandoori chicken seasoning from the local Spice House and use
it mainly in ... macaroni and cheese. Hey, a single person gets to cook
what they want.

[Kip Williams]

Suzanne Blom wrote:

> I buy the tandoori chicken seasoning from the local Spice House and use
> it mainly in ... macaroni and cheese. Hey, a single person gets to cook
> what they want.

That… sounds like an incredibly good idea. I'll bet my daughter and I
would love that. Any suggestions on how? Would it work if we started
with a box of supermarket mac and cheese, as is our wont? Would sliced
hot dogs be amiss?


Kip W
rasfw

[Suzanne Blom]

I have never used boxed mac and cheese partially because, as a single
person it's so easy to cook from scratch.
I pour elbow macaroni out of the box to cover the seven inch bottom of
my 1 quart saucepan. Pour into the saucepan enough water to maybe an
inch above the macaroni(hey, I don't measure). Turn on to medium.
While the macaroni's cooking, take 1/2 cup powdered milk, maybe 1/4 tsp
tandoori chicken seasoning, 1/8 tsp cayenne, maybe 2 Tbs whole wheat
flour, and stir it up. Peel 1 garlic clove, chop finely, put in the cup.
When the macaroni is al dente (or something like that. Actually, if I
can cut it with a spoon), I stir it to make sure it's not sticking, then
pour in maybe a couple Tbs olive oil. Then quickly pour in the dry
ingredients and stir like mad until it's smooth and thickened.
If I haven't already succumbed, I turn the heat down at this point, go
to the freezer, get a bag of shredded cheese, and throw in, um, I really
don't know, an eighth of a pound, maybe? Stir til mostly melted, go
back to the freezer, get the peas, throw in maybe 3 Tbs. Stir til
cheese is melted, take from the heat, stir some more til all the peas
are warm.
Eat.

[Robert Bannister]

On 16/02/12 12:22 PM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:16:56 +0800, Robert Bannister
> <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>> I find garlic very annoying. I always have some in the house, but when I
>> come to use it, I find it's gone soft or dry and I have to buy fresh
>> anyway. I suppose I should grow my own.
>
> You must not use it as quickly as I do. Do you live in arid or humid
> climate?
>

Arid. I use a lot of garlic one week and then may not use any for a
month. It just depends on my mood.

--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

Powdered garlic tastes nasty. I haven't tried frozen, but the stuff they
sell in supermarkets in jars doesn't work. Really, if you need garlic,
you need freshly crushed real garlic.

--
Robert Bannister

[Kip Williams]

Suzanne Blom wrote:

> I pour elbow macaroni out of the box to cover the seven inch bottom of
> my 1 quart saucepan. Pour into the saucepan enough water to maybe an
> inch above the macaroni(hey, I don't measure). Turn on to medium.
> While the macaroni's cooking, take 1/2 cup powdered milk, maybe 1/4 tsp
> tandoori chicken seasoning, 1/8 tsp cayenne, maybe 2 Tbs whole wheat
> flour, and stir it up. Peel 1 garlic clove, chop finely, put in the cup.
> When the macaroni is al dente (or something like that. Actually, if I
> can cut it with a spoon), I stir it to make sure it's not sticking, then
> pour in maybe a couple Tbs olive oil. Then quickly pour in the dry
> ingredients and stir like mad until it's smooth and thickened.
> If I haven't already succumbed, I turn the heat down at this point, go
> to the freezer, get a bag of shredded cheese, and throw in, um, I really
> don't know, an eighth of a pound, maybe? Stir til mostly melted, go back
> to the freezer, get the peas, throw in maybe 3 Tbs. Stir til cheese is
> melted, take from the heat, stir some more til all the peas are warm.
> Eat.

Thanks so much! This might be a good project for my daughter and me some
time when Cathy's on a trip.


Kip W
rasfw

[Joe Pfeiffer]

Suzanne Blom <bo...@sueblom.net> writes:

<mac and cheese recipe>

I'll be trying that....

[Joy Beeson]

On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 08:06:25 +0800, Robert Bannister
<rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

> Powdered garlic tastes nasty.

Freeze-dried garlic isn't bad if it's in the chorus and not singing a
solo. (But I store it in a freezer; it goes off at room
temperature.) Might do as principal seasoning too, but I never make
those dishes and can't testify.

I still have a few frozen cloves of home-grown garlic, despite having
forgotten to harvest it this year. Next summer I'm going to have a
huge volume of very small bulbs.

--
Joy Beeson
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://roughsewing.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

[Jaimie Vandenbergh]

On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 00:49:14 -0500, Joy Beeson
<jbe...@invalid.net.invalid> wrote:

>On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 08:06:25 +0800, Robert Bannister
><rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>> Powdered garlic tastes nasty.
>
>Freeze-dried garlic isn't bad if it's in the chorus and not singing a
>solo. (But I store it in a freezer; it goes off at room
>temperature.) Might do as principal seasoning too, but I never make
>those dishes and can't testify.

It's not *quite* right enough for that - best to get the fresh stuff.
Or frozen-when-fresh, which works tastewise though loses its texture
(same for chili peppers)

Normal powdered garlic is... not really garlic flavoured, Rather like
instant coffee, it's a thing-in-itself distinct from the original, and
should be used as such.

>I still have a few frozen cloves of home-grown garlic, despite having
>forgotten to harvest it this year. Next summer I'm going to have a
>huge volume of very small bulbs.

Fiddly. I love growing garlic, but that six-month phase between really
fresh and well dried is a pain to peel.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
A mind stretched by an idea can never go back to its original dimensions.
- Conan Doyle

[Suzanne Blom]

Arrgh! The pan is five inches in diameter.
Still, thanks for the friendly comments.

[Robert Bannister]

On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.


--
Robert Bannister

[Jaimie Vandenbergh]

And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"People can be educated beyond their intelligence" -- Marilyn vos Savant

[Howard Brazee]

On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 22:17:26 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh
<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org> wrote:

>>On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
>>short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
>>Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>
>And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!

I don't have a garden, so I can't get it at that moment. But I'm
looking forward to a local farmers' market where a wide variety of
garlic is available.

[Joy Beeson]

On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:38:36 -0700, Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net>
wrote:

> I don't have a garden, so I can't get it at that moment. But I'm
> looking forward to a local farmers' market where a wide variety of
> garlic is available.

For garlic, all you need is a square foot of a flower bed.

But never plant it anywhere you might want someday to have zero
garlic. Garlic is a noxious weed.

[Howard Brazee]

On Sat, 18 Feb 2012 00:50:16 -0500, Joy Beeson
<jbe...@invalid.net.invalid> wrote:

>> I don't have a garden, so I can't get it at that moment. But I'm
>> looking forward to a local farmers' market where a wide variety of
>> garlic is available.
>
>For garlic, all you need is a square foot of a flower bed.
>
>But never plant it anywhere you might want someday to have zero
>garlic. Garlic is a noxious weed.

I don't have a square foot of a flower bed.

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

On 2/18/12 12:50 AM, Joy Beeson wrote:
> On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:38:36 -0700, Howard Brazee<how...@brazee.net>
> wrote:
>
>> I don't have a garden, so I can't get it at that moment. But I'm
>> looking forward to a local farmers' market where a wide variety of
>> garlic is available.
>
> For garlic, all you need is a square foot of a flower bed.
>
> But never plant it anywhere you might want someday to have zero
> garlic. Garlic is a noxious weed.
>

I'm married to an Italian. The idea of ever wanting to have zero
garlic, or even less garlic, is foreign.

I hope you're right about its weedy characteristics, actually; I'd like
to see it grow here. Kathy's going to try it this year.


--
Sea Wasp
/^\
;;;
Website: http://www.grandcentralarena.com Blog:
http://seawasp.livejournal.com

[Kip Williams]

Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Sat, 18 Feb 2012 00:50:16 -0500, Joy Beeson
> <jbe...@invalid.net.invalid> wrote:
>
>>> I don't have a garden, so I can't get it at that moment. But I'm
>>> looking forward to a local farmers' market where a wide variety of
>>> garlic is available.
>>
>> For garlic, all you need is a square foot of a flower bed.
>>
>> But never plant it anywhere you might want someday to have zero
>> garlic. Garlic is a noxious weed.
>
> I don't have a square foot of a flower bed.

Window box?

(Though for all I know, that's not possible for a reason that I —
non-agriculturist that I am — don't suspect.)


Kip W
rasfw

[Howard Brazee]

On Sat, 18 Feb 2012 10:33:32 -0500, Kip Williams <mrk...@gmail.com>
wrote:

>> I don't have a square foot of a flower bed.
>
>Window box?
>
>(Though for all I know, that's not possible for a reason that I �
>non-agriculturist that I am � don't suspect.)

I do have a couple of windows - facing the condo 10' away. And
covenants about what I can do with my exterior.

[Robert Carnegie]

On Feb 18, 7:31 pm, Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> wrote:
> On Sat, 18 Feb 2012 10:33:32 -0500, Kip Williams <mrk...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> >> I don't have a square foot of a flower bed.
>
> >Window box?
>
> >(Though for all I know, that's not possible for a reason that I
> >non-agriculturist that I am don't suspect.)
>
> I do have a couple of windows - facing the condo 10' away.   And
> covenants about what I can do with my exterior.

Start a rumour that vampires are hanging around, sparkling and looking
for high school co-eds.

[Gene Wirchenko]

On Sat, 18 Feb 2012 10:24:39 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
<sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:

>On 2/18/12 12:50 AM, Joy Beeson wrote:

[snip]

>> But never plant it anywhere you might want someday to have zero
>> garlic. Garlic is a noxious weed.

> I'm married to an Italian. The idea of ever wanting to have zero
>garlic, or even less garlic, is foreign.

OK, so we now know what your wife thinks about it. What is
*your* opinion?

[snip]

Sincerely,

Gene Wirchenko

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

Whatever she tells me, of course.

Actually, I love garlic and use it in a lot of dishes. I'm not quite
the garlic snob she is (she's very much against garlic powder, I find it
perfectly good for some applications), but when fresh garlic is
available I'll happily use it.

[Howard Brazee]

On Sat, 18 Feb 2012 21:52:47 -0800, Gene Wirchenko <ge...@ocis.net>
wrote:

>> I'm married to an Italian. The idea of ever wanting to have zero
>>garlic, or even less garlic, is foreign.
>
> OK, so we now know what your wife thinks about it. What is
>*your* opinion?

He's married, and knows what opinions about food are healthy to have.

[Brian M. Scott]

On Sun, 19 Feb 2012 10:04:49 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E.
Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in
<news:jhr32i$hu2$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:

[...]

> Actually, I love garlic and use it in a lot of dishes. I'm
> not quite the garlic snob she is (she's very much against
> garlic powder, I find it perfectly good for some
> applications), but when fresh garlic is available I'll
> happily use it.

Garlic powder is perfectly adequate as one of the
ingredients used to doctor canned soup for a quick meal when
one's too tired to cook. (Along with a can of kidney beans,
maybe a can of chick peas, a generous dose of oregano, and
some hot pepper in powder or liquid form.)

Brian

[Walter Bushell]

In article <1nfcx9ft6iyji.i...@40tude.net>,

Add some ground beef and you can skip adding the soup, especially if you
have some butter handy. Now if you have bacon . . .

--
It is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant
and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting. -- H. L. Mencken

[Brian M. Scott]

On Sun, 19 Feb 2012 19:23:35 -0500, Walter Bushell
<pr...@panix.com> wrote in
<news:proto-51A497....@news.panix.com> in
rec.arts.sf.written:

> In article <1nfcx9ft6iyji.i...@40tude.net>,
> "Brian M. Scott" <b.s...@csuohio.edu> wrote:

>> On Sun, 19 Feb 2012 10:04:49 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E.
>> Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in
>> <news:jhr32i$hu2$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:

>> [...]

>>> Actually, I love garlic and use it in a lot of dishes. I'm
>>> not quite the garlic snob she is (she's very much against
>>> garlic powder, I find it perfectly good for some
>>> applications), but when fresh garlic is available I'll
>>> happily use it.

>> Garlic powder is perfectly adequate as one of the
>> ingredients used to doctor canned soup for a quick meal when
>> one's too tired to cook. (Along with a can of kidney beans,
>> maybe a can of chick peas, a generous dose of oregano, and
>> some hot pepper in powder or liquid form.)

> Add some ground beef and you can skip adding the soup,
> especially if you have some butter handy. Now if you have
> bacon . . .

The soup is the basis. Besides there is absolutely no
chance that I would add ground beef, and butter and bacon
are Right Out.

Brian

[Robert Bannister]

On 20/02/12 8:23 AM, Walter Bushell wrote:
> In article<1nfcx9ft6iyji.i...@40tude.net>,
> "Brian M. Scott"<b.s...@csuohio.edu> wrote:
>
>> On Sun, 19 Feb 2012 10:04:49 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E.
>> Spoor)"<sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in
>> <news:jhr32i$hu2$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:
>>
>> [...]
>>
>>> Actually, I love garlic and use it in a lot of dishes. I'm
>>> not quite the garlic snob she is (she's very much against
>>> garlic powder, I find it perfectly good for some
>>> applications), but when fresh garlic is available I'll
>>> happily use it.
>>
>> Garlic powder is perfectly adequate as one of the
>> ingredients used to doctor canned soup for a quick meal when
>> one's too tired to cook. (Along with a can of kidney beans,
>> maybe a can of chick peas, a generous dose of oregano, and
>> some hot pepper in powder or liquid form.)
>>
>> Brian
>
> Add some ground beef and you can skip adding the soup, especially if you
> have some butter handy. Now if you have bacon . . .
>

I think Brian was talking about a quick meal from what's in the pantry.
If you had ground beef then you ought to have fresh garlic and onions
and capsicum and...

--
Robert Bannister

[Howard Brazee]

On Tue, 21 Feb 2012 06:46:07 +0800, Robert Bannister
<rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

>I think Brian was talking about a quick meal from what's in the pantry.
>If you had ground beef then you ought to have fresh garlic and onions
>and capsicum and...

I keep chopped ham ends in zip lock bags in the freezer. Lots of
quick defrosting ingredients are available for quick meals (throw them
in Top Ramen?).

[Garrett Wollman]

In article <9qg0pf...@mid.individual.net>,

Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

>I think Brian was talking about a quick meal from what's in the pantry.
>If you had ground beef then you ought to have fresh garlic and onions
>and capsicum and...

That does not follow.

I often have ground beef. I usually have onions, assuming I rememberd
to buy more after I used the last one. I only rarely have fresh
garlic or chiles or herbs -- only if I'm specifically planning on
making something that requires them. Otherwise they will sprout
and/or decompose before I get around to using them. Sprouted garlic
is *not* tasty.

-GAWollman

--
Garrett A. Wollman | What intellectual phenomenon can be older, or more oft
wol...@bimajority.org| repeated, than the story of a large research program
Opinions not shared by| that impaled itself upon a false central assumption
my employers. | accepted by all practitioners? - S.J. Gould, 1993

[Wayne Throop]

:: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that

:: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
:: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.

: Jaimie Vandenbergh <jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
: And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!

Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw? Hrm.

Xref: http://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/194
"She only consides something really hot
if it's a war crime to manufacture it."

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

On 2/17/12 5:24 PM, Wayne Throop wrote:
> :: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
> :: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
> :: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>
> : Jaimie Vandenbergh<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
> : And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!
>
> Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw? Hrm.

No onion ever gets to that level.

Habaneros do (now) for me. Jolokia peppers do for just about everyone.

[Jaimie Vandenbergh]

On Tue, 21 Feb 2012 21:54:18 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
<sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:

>On 2/17/12 5:24 PM, Wayne Throop wrote:
>> :: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
>> :: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
>> :: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>>
>> : Jaimie Vandenbergh<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
>> : And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!
>>
>> Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw? Hrm.
>
> No onion ever gets to that level.

We were chatting about newly-sprouted garlic above, which doesn't get
too hot but does get too strong. Onions likewise, at least for other
people than the consumer.

> Habaneros do (now) for me. Jolokia peppers do for just about everyone.

Indeed they do!

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"If you think C++ is not overly complicated, just what is a protected
abstract virtual base pure virtual private destructor, and when was the
last time you needed one?" - Tom Cargil, C++ Journal

[Robert Carnegie]

On Feb 17, 10:24 pm, thro...@sheol.org (Wayne Throop) wrote:
> :: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
> :: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
> :: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>
> : Jaimie Vandenbergh <jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
> : And that's only a couple of months away.  Looking forward to it!
>
> Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw?  Hrm.

No, apparently they are "really tasty" for a few seconds before that.

For that matter, "too hot to eat raw" doesn't matter if that isn't
what you intend to do. And it wasn't "really tasty raw", in fact.

I don't like garlic. But I like logic. ;-)

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

On 2/22/12 4:09 AM, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
> On Tue, 21 Feb 2012 21:54:18 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
> <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:
>
>> On 2/17/12 5:24 PM, Wayne Throop wrote:
>>> :: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
>>> :: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
>>> :: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>>>
>>> : Jaimie Vandenbergh<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
>>> : And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!
>>>
>>> Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw? Hrm.
>>
>> No onion ever gets to that level.
>
> We were chatting about newly-sprouted garlic above, which doesn't get
> too hot but does get too strong.

My wife would not understand these words: "garlic... too strong..."
They SOUND like English, but together they make no sense.

Onions likewise, at least for other
> people than the consumer.
>
>> Habaneros do (now) for me. Jolokia peppers do for just about everyone.
>
> Indeed they do!

When I was younger I had more tolerance; now even relatively mild
peppers (Jalapenos) will get me hiccuping. It's rather annoying.

[Robert Bannister]

On 22/02/12 10:54 AM, Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor) wrote:
> On 2/17/12 5:24 PM, Wayne Throop wrote:
>> :: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
>> :: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
>> :: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>>
>> : Jaimie Vandenbergh<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
>> : And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!
>>
>> Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw? Hrm.
>
> No onion ever gets to that level.

I don't think of garlic as being an onion, though I suppose it's the
same family. I assure you they do get very hot, though in a quite
different way from chilli or cayenne.

>
> Habaneros do (now) for me. Jolokia peppers do for just about everyone.
>
>


--

Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

On 23/02/12 1:16 AM, Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor) wrote:
> On 2/22/12 4:09 AM, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
>> On Tue, 21 Feb 2012 21:54:18 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
>> <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:
>>
>>> On 2/17/12 5:24 PM, Wayne Throop wrote:
>>>> :: On the other hand, by growing your own, you can get them during that
>>>> :: short phase when they look like a spring onion and are really tasty.
>>>> :: Unfortunately, as they grow they quickly turn too hot to eat raw.
>>>>
>>>> : Jaimie Vandenbergh<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org>
>>>> : And that's only a couple of months away. Looking forward to it!
>>>>
>>>> Looking forward to them being too hot to eat raw? Hrm.
>>>
>>> No onion ever gets to that level.
>>
>> We were chatting about newly-sprouted garlic above, which doesn't get
>> too hot but does get too strong.
>
> My wife would not understand these words: "garlic... too strong..." They
> SOUND like English, but together they make no sense.

Does your wife eat a lot of raw garlic? Even grating it over a salad or
whatever seems to make it milder than chewing it.


--
Robert Bannister

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

She does indeed. And complains when I get "elephant garlic" because she
considers it far too mild.

[Joy Beeson]

On Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:16:47 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
<sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:

> My wife would not understand these words: "garlic... too strong..."
> They SOUND like English, but together they make no sense.

Tell her to try Aldi's "garlic lover's hummus" -- I don't know what
they put in it, but freshly-pulled wild garlic isn't anywhere near as
strong at that hummus!

Sometimes I have to move dozens of containers of "garlic lover's" to
find red pepper or tahini.

Come to think of it, I haven't seen any lately -- current container is
"spiced", which tastes exclusively of cumin. (As does the "garden
vegetable", but much less pronounced.)

[Brian M. Scott]

On Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:16:47 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E.
Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in
<news:ji37tv$g67$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:

> On 2/22/12 4:09 AM, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:

[...]

>> We were chatting about newly-sprouted garlic above, which
>> doesn't get too hot but does get too strong.

> My wife would not understand these words: "garlic... too
> strong..." They SOUND like English, but together they
> make no sense.

I agree with your wife.

>> Onions likewise, at least for other people than the
>> consumer.

That's just too bad for other people than the consumer!

[...]

Brian

[Brian M. Scott]

On Wed, 22 Feb 2012 19:05:24 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E.
Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in
<news:ji3vs5$5n5$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:

> On 2/22/12 6:31 PM, Robert Bannister wrote:

[...]

>> Does your wife eat a lot of raw garlic?

> She does indeed. And complains when I get "elephant
> garlic" because she considers it far too mild.

That stuff barely deserves the name 'garlic'.

Brian

[Ted Nolan <tednolan>]

In article <1gkpdy1doqmco.1...@40tude.net>,

Brian M. Scott <b.s...@csuohio.edu> wrote:

Actually it doesn't deserve it at all as it is a leek.
--
------
columbiaclosings.com
What's not in Columbia anymore..

[Robert Bannister]

On 23/02/12 3:09 PM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
> In article<1gkpdy1doqmco.1...@40tude.net>,
> Brian M. Scott<b.s...@csuohio.edu> wrote:
>> On Wed, 22 Feb 2012 19:05:24 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E.
>> Spoor)"<sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in
>> <news:ji3vs5$5n5$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:
>>
>>> On 2/22/12 6:31 PM, Robert Bannister wrote:
>>
>> [...]
>>
>>>> Does your wife eat a lot of raw garlic?
>>
>>> She does indeed. And complains when I get "elephant
>>> garlic" because she considers it far too mild.
>>
>> That stuff barely deserves the name 'garlic'.
>>
>> Brian
>
> Actually it doesn't deserve it at all as it is a leek.

It's an interesting word. In various Slavonic languages, лук ("look"
with the "boot" vowel) can be onion or garlic. The northern ones use it
for "onion", the southern ones use a (I think) Turkish word кромид for
onion, so лук is garlic. Both use "green leek" for spring onions (AmE
scallions?). I have never heard of elephant garlic. Is it an American
native plant?

--
Robert Bannister

[Jaimie Vandenbergh]

On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:24:15 +0800, Robert Bannister
<rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

> I have never heard of elephant garlic. Is it an American
>native plant?

Mediterranean origin. I've tried it once and it barely tastes at all,
very disappointing.

It's apparently good for warding off slugs and other garden pests.
Presumably you hit them with it.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
'Rings! Rings! Wherever they may be
I am the Lord of the Rings,' said he
'And I'll find them all, wherever they may be
And I'll bind them all in the dark,' said he -- Kevin Ahearn

[Joy Beeson]

On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:24:15 +0800, Robert Bannister
<rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

> I have never heard of elephant garlic.

It's a marketing term for giant garlic. It makes good
bread-and-butter pickles.

For subtle garlic flavor, I like garlic chives. (Wikipedia says they
are also called "Nira".) It takes them a few years to get
established, but if you want them only where you've planted them,
you'd be well advised to eat all the flowering heads before they open.
I moved my garlic-chive bed several years ago, and have yet to
exterminate the chives from the old bed.

Once established, garlic chives should be cut off at ground level as
soon as they recover from the previous pruning, because young leaves
taste much better.

Since I don't make salads any more (I can get fairly decent tossed
salad in bags), I mostly use them on the fourth of July, when I stir
lots and lots of minced garlic chives and a dash of salt into two
packages of drained whole-milk yogurt. (Note: the ingredients list
on the package *must* say "cultured milk" and NOTHING more, or the dip
will be horrible.)

--
Joy Beeson
joy beeson at comcast dot net

http://roughsewing.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

[Howard Brazee]

On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 09:13:36 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh
<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org> wrote:

>> I have never heard of elephant garlic. Is it an American
>>native plant?
>
>Mediterranean origin. I've tried it once and it barely tastes at all,
>very disappointing.
>
>It's apparently good for warding off slugs and other garden pests.
>Presumably you hit them with it.

I've seen it in a local farmer's market along with a dozen other
garlic flavors. Tried it once, but it didn't have enough flavor for
garlic recipes. Maybe leak recipes would work better.

[Robert Bannister]

On 24/02/12 5:13 PM, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
> On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:24:15 +0800, Robert Bannister
> <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>> I have never heard of elephant garlic. Is it an American
>> native plant?
>
> Mediterranean origin. I've tried it once and it barely tastes at all,
> very disappointing.
>
> It's apparently good for warding off slugs and other garden pests.
> Presumably you hit them with it.

What about vampires? We've never had any round our house, but we always
keep fresh, real garlic on hand.


--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

On 24/02/12 11:15 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:
> On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:24:15 +0800, Robert Bannister
> <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>> I have never heard of elephant garlic.
>
> It's a marketing term for giant garlic. It makes good
> bread-and-butter pickles.
>
> For subtle garlic flavor, I like garlic chives. (Wikipedia says they
> are also called "Nira".) It takes them a few years to get
> established, but if you want them only where you've planted them,
> you'd be well advised to eat all the flowering heads before they open.
> I moved my garlic-chive bed several years ago, and have yet to
> exterminate the chives from the old bed.
>
> Once established, garlic chives should be cut off at ground level as
> soon as they recover from the previous pruning, because young leaves
> taste much better.
>
> Since I don't make salads any more (I can get fairly decent tossed
> salad in bags), I mostly use them on the fourth of July, when I stir
> lots and lots of minced garlic chives and a dash of salt into two
> packages of drained whole-milk yogurt. (Note: the ingredients list
> on the package *must* say "cultured milk" and NOTHING more, or the dip
> will be horrible.)
>

I've had (bought) garlic chives. Quite pleasant, but not very garlicky.
That thing about weed-like growth depends entirely on climate and soil -
where I live, even mint can't take over the garden because of our long,
hot, dry summers. Bamboo is another issue.

--
Robert Bannister

[Kurt Busiek]

It wards off vampire elephants, of course.

kdb
--
Visit http://www.busiek.com -- for all your Busiek needs!

[Anthony Nance]

Heh. Now there's an image I've never had before. Reciprocating...

Have you ever thought about were-mosquitos (i.e. were-squitos)?
- Tony

[John F. Eldredge]

The solution to that is simple enough; get everyone in the group to eat
some onions, so that none of you will then smell it.

I once got a carry-out order of "Prime Minister Chicken", a Thai dish
that contains a considerable amount of garlic, and took it back to my
office. I found it delicious, but one of my co-workers walked in, a few
minutes after I finished eating, and said, "Who stunk up the place?".

--
John F. Eldredge -- jo...@jfeldredge.com
"Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly
is better than not to think at all." -- Hypatia of Alexandria

[Brian M. Scott]

On Sat, 25 Feb 2012 01:18:48 +0000 (UTC), Anthony Nance
<na...@math.ohio-state.edu> wrote in
<news:ji9cto$nvq$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:

> Kurt Busiek <ku...@busiek.com> wrote:

[...]

[elephant garlic]

>> It wards off vampire elephants, of course.

> Heh. Now there's an image I've never had before.
> Reciprocating...

> Have you ever thought about were-mosquitos (i.e.
> were-squitos)?

Presumably their mortal enemies are the vampire bats.

Brian

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

The test module during early 3e playtesting involved nasty undead
things including a swarm of mosquitoes which had fed upon a vampire and
become something vampiric themselves.

[Anthony Nance]

Brian M. Scott <b.s...@csuohio.edu> wrote:

Aha - well done!

[Anthony Nance]

"Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:
> On 2/24/12 9:45 PM, Brian M. Scott wrote:
>> On Sat, 25 Feb 2012 01:18:48 +0000 (UTC), Anthony Nance
>> <na...@math.ohio-state.edu> wrote in
>> <news:ji9cto$nvq$1...@dont-email.me> in rec.arts.sf.written:
>>
>>> Kurt Busiek<ku...@busiek.com> wrote:
>>
>> [...]
>>
>> [elephant garlic]
>>
>>>> It wards off vampire elephants, of course.
>>
>>> Heh. Now there's an image I've never had before.
>>> Reciprocating...
>>
>>> Have you ever thought about were-mosquitos (i.e.
>>> were-squitos)?
>>
>> Presumably their mortal enemies are the vampire bats.
>>
>> Brian
>
> The test module during early 3e playtesting involved nasty undead
> things including a swarm of mosquitoes which had fed upon a vampire and
> become something vampiric themselves.

Neat - and I was thinking of were-squitos being transmitters of
becoming were-<whatever>.

[Robert Bannister]

[hits head] Of course.


--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

On 25/02/12 9:21 AM, John F. Eldredge wrote:
> On Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:52:49 -0500, Brian M. Scott wrote:
>
>> On Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:16:47 -0500, "Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)"
>> <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote in<news:ji37tv$g67$1...@dont-email.me>
>> in rec.arts.sf.written:
>>
>>> On 2/22/12 4:09 AM, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
>>
>> [...]
>>
>>>> We were chatting about newly-sprouted garlic above, which doesn't get
>>>> too hot but does get too strong.
>>
>>> My wife would not understand these words: "garlic... too strong..."
>>> They SOUND like English, but together they make no sense.
>>
>> I agree with your wife.
>>
>>>> Onions likewise, at least for other people than the consumer.
>>
>> That's just too bad for other people than the consumer!
>>
>
> The solution to that is simple enough; get everyone in the group to eat
> some onions, so that none of you will then smell it.
>
> I once got a carry-out order of "Prime Minister Chicken", a Thai dish
> that contains a considerable amount of garlic, and took it back to my
> office. I found it delicious, but one of my co-workers walked in, a few
> minutes after I finished eating, and said, "Who stunk up the place?".
>

We had a Chinese lady who used to warm her lunches up in the microwave
in the staff room. We deduced she mainly ate garlicky rotten fish, but
most of us had to leave the room.

--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Carnegie]

On Feb 25, 1:18 am, na...@math.ohio-state.edu (Anthony Nance) wrote:
> Kurt Busiek <k...@busiek.com> wrote:

> > On 2012-02-24 22:47:51 +0000, Robert Bannister <robb...@bigpond.com> said:
>
> >> On 24/02/12 5:13 PM, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
> >>> On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:24:15 +0800, Robert Bannister

> >>> <robb...@bigpond.com>  wrote:

>
> >>>> I have never heard of elephant garlic. Is it an American
> >>>> native plant?
>
> >>> Mediterranean origin. I've tried it once and it barely tastes at all,
> >>> very disappointing.
>
> >>> It's apparently good for warding off slugs and other garden pests.
> >>> Presumably you hit them with it.
>
> >> What about vampires? We've never had any round our house, but we always
> >> keep fresh, real garlic on hand.
>
> > It wards off vampire elephants, of course.
>
> Heh.  Now there's an image I've never had before.  Reciprocating...
>
> Have you ever thought about were-mosquitos (i.e. were-squitos)?

They turn into elephants at full moon?

I don't remember whether this runs to any undead elephants
specifically:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornets'_Nest_%28Doctor_Who%29>

[Garrett Wollman]

In article <9qt772...@mid.individual.net>,

Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

>We had a Chinese lady who used to warm her lunches up in the microwave
>in the staff room. We deduced she mainly ate garlicky rotten fish, but
>most of us had to leave the room.

Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like -- the other reason being
that it's never possible to get it fully heated through without also
becoming unpleasantly dried out. It's not worth the effort to make a
single serving of fresh fish, and I always regret the result of
reheating leftovers in the microwave. (My impression, perhaps
erroneous, is that pre-microwave households used up leftover fish by
either throwing it out -- fish used to be cheap! -- or by putting it
into something of an entirely different nature, like a soup or salad.
That's long enough ago that I wasn't aware of what my own mother did
with leftover fish, but when I was that young, I probably only ever
ate frozen prepared fish product, which can easily be heated in just
the quantity desired.)

-GAWollman
--
Garrett A. Wollman | What intellectual phenomenon can be older, or more oft
wol...@bimajority.org| repeated, than the story of a large research program
Opinions not shared by| that impaled itself upon a false central assumption
my employers. | accepted by all practitioners? - S.J. Gould, 1993

[Brian M. Scott]

On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), Garrett Wollman
<wol...@bimajority.org> wrote in
<news:jicis5$2932$2...@grapevine.csail.mit.edu> in
rec.arts.sf.written:

[...]

> Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty
> smells when reheated in the microwave.

I eat a great deal of microwaved fish and have never
encountered such a problem.

> It's one of the reasons why I, a single guy, don't eat as
> much fish as I would like -- the other reason being that
> it's never possible to get it fully heated through
> without also becoming unpleasantly dried out.

It is if you put it in plenty of liquid and don't use too
high a setting.

> It's not worth the effort to make a single serving of
> fresh fish,

Put it in a bowl with a fair bit of orange juice, grapefruit
juice, or ale, season it, and microwave it. In my ancient
and decrepit microwave it takes about 12 minutes, rotating
the bowl after 8 minutes. Dead easy. I routinely fix one
or two servings at a time, reheating the second one the next
day if I've made two.

Obviously this won't do if you want something fancier, but I
prefer some of the stronger flavored fish that don't need
anything more done to them.

[...]

Brian

[Howard Brazee]

On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), wol...@bimajority.org
(Garrett Wollman) wrote:

>Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
>reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
>guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like

Why should being single matter here?

[Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)]

On 2/26/12 10:11 AM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), wol...@bimajority.org
> (Garrett Wollman) wrote:
>
>> Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
>> reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
>> guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like
>
> Why should being single matter here?
>

Possibly he finds it difficult to judge the right amount of fish to buy
and ends up with leftovers all the time?

[Carson Chittom]

wol...@bimajority.org (Garrett Wollman) writes:

> In article <9qt772...@mid.individual.net>,
> Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>>We had a Chinese lady who used to warm her lunches up in the microwave
>>in the staff room. We deduced she mainly ate garlicky rotten fish, but
>>most of us had to leave the room.
>
> Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
> reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
> guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like -- the other reason being
> that it's never possible to get it fully heated through without also
> becoming unpleasantly dried out. It's not worth the effort to make a
> single serving of fresh fish, and I always regret the result of
> reheating leftovers in the microwave. (My impression, perhaps
> erroneous, is that pre-microwave households used up leftover fish by
> either throwing it out -- fish used to be cheap! -- or by putting it
> into something of an entirely different nature, like a soup or salad.
> That's long enough ago that I wasn't aware of what my own mother did
> with leftover fish, but when I was that young, I probably only ever
> ate frozen prepared fish product, which can easily be heated in just
> the quantity desired.)

Why don't you think it's worth the effort to make a single serving of
fresh fish? My local supermarket has---I won't say lots, but some---fish
that's specifically marked "never frozen," including de-headed and gutted
trout. When my family's out of town, I've been known to pan-fry one
whole in olive oil or butter, stuffed with basil leaves, sliced Roma
tomatoes, and some sort (feta, parmesan, even mozzarella) of cheese
(plus a sprinkling of lemon juice, or a drizzle of reduced balsamic
vinegar, when it's done). Takes all of fifteen minutes. One,
along with a salad-in-a-bag, is a good lunch or supper.

Of course, if all you want is to eat more fish, you could always do what
folks did before refrigeration: dry it, salt it, or ferment it so that
it lasts a long time. I'm quite partial to gravlax. And even canned
tuna can be made very palatable if you add enough stuff to it.

[erilar]

In article <jidmv2$h7d$1...@dont-email.me>,

"Sea Wasp (Ryk E. Spoor)" <sea...@sgeinc.invalid.com> wrote:

> On 2/26/12 10:11 AM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> > On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), wol...@bimajority.org
> > (Garrett Wollman) wrote:
> >
> >> Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
> >> reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
> >> guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like
> >
> > Why should being single matter here?
> >
>
> Possibly he finds it difficult to judge the right amount of fish to buy
> and ends up with leftovers all the time?

I simply buy things that come in single-serving packaging.

--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist

[Robert Carnegie]

On Feb 26, 7:48 am, "Brian M. Scott" <b.sc...@csuohio.edu> wrote:
> On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), Garrett Wollman

> <woll...@bimajority.org> wrote in

> <news:jicis5$2932$2...@grapevine.csail.mit.edu> in
> rec.arts.sf.written:
>
> [...]
>
> > Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty
> > smells when reheated in the microwave.
>
> I eat a great deal of microwaved fish and have never
> encountered such a problem.

Well, there may be a strong smell of fish. And it may linger. It
won't suit the rest of the staff room. But it probably depends on the
fish - a large biological category - or no category at all, since by
descent /we/ are fish, and is there any sense in that?

[Gene Wirchenko]

On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 15:04:40 -0800, Kurt Busiek <ku...@busiek.com>
wrote:

Don't you mean elephant vampires?

Sincerely,

Gene Wirchenko

[Gene Wirchenko]

On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 08:11:43 -0700, Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net>
wrote:

>On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), wol...@bimajority.org
>(Garrett Wollman) wrote:
>
>>Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
>>reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
>>guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like
>
>Why should being single matter here?

He is not eating for two.

Sincerely,

Gene Wirchenko

[Robert Bannister]

A vampire bat is a bat that sucks blood;
Therefore, a vampire elephant is an elephant that sucks blood, and
an elephant vampire would have to be a vampire that sucks elephants.


--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

If I have left-over fish (I don't use batter - simply flour and fry), I
usually eat it up for breakfast - wrapped in kitchen paper, 1 minute or
less in the microwave on Medium - whack it between 2 slices of buttered
bread with plenty of pepper and salt and the merest touch of HP sauce
and it makes a lovely hot sandwich.

With my Chinese lady, it was more the nature of Asian cooking - not the
stuff they serve us in restaurants, but what they eat themselves, where
it isn't just salted with fish sauce - it more or less tastes and smells
like fermented fish.
--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

In a staff room or office or any confined space where people work
together, no strong smell is welcome. Ladies' perfume, men's aftershave,
sweaty armpits are equally offensive.

--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

On 26/02/12 11:11 PM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), wol...@bimajority.org
> (Garrett Wollman) wrote:
>
>> Even perfectly good fish has a tendency to make nasty smells when
>> reheated in the microwave. It's one of the reasons why I, a single
>> guy, don't eat as much fish as I would like
>
> Why should being single matter here?
>

It is much harder than you might think to cook for one person. I'm still
cooking meals for 2-6 people years after such a thing was called for,
and it's not just hard to stop - it's hard to even buy small enough
quantities.

--
Robert Bannister

[Robert Bannister]

Real fish does not come in packaging. It lies there amidst the ice, you
point to it and the fishmonger goes and fillets it for you. At very
least, you buy some of their pre-filleted fish. Unless you foolishly buy
some exotic species from far away, the fish was usually caught last
night. Of course, if you live a long way inland, I suppose you are stuck
with river/lake fish or pretend, frozen fish.

--
Robert Bannister

[Wayne Throop]

: Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com>
: In a staff room or office or any confined space where people work

: together, no strong smell is welcome. Ladies' perfume, men's
: aftershave, sweaty armpits are equally offensive.

To me sweaty armpits aren't nearly so often perceptably offensive as
perfumes and colognes. I suppose at equal stench levels, they might be
equally offensive. But a) they don't often reach equal stench levels,
and b) even then it'd often be debatable imo.

I conclude it's because perfumes and colognes have such good PR that they
are counted as pleasant, even at stench levels that are eye-stingingly
mace-like.

[Robert Bannister]

I was struck by a buyer's comment on a website selling men's colognes.
The writer had written something like: "Waste of money. Half an hour
after leaving the bathroom, you can't smell it at all." Most grown-ups
would be aware that you quickly become used to your own smell and that
if you don't, it's because the smell is too strong.

--
Robert Bannister

[David DeLaney]

Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>> I simply buy things that come in single-serving packaging.
>
>Real fish does not come in packaging.

Well ... technically it does. But it's single-fish, not single-serving.

Dave "and let us not mention eels or squid" DeLaney
--
\/David DeLaney posting from d...@vic.com "It's not the pot that grows the flower
It's not the clock that slows the hour The definition's plain for anyone to see
Love is all it takes to make a family" - R&P. VISUALIZE HAPPYNET VRbeable<BLINK>
http://www.vic.com/~dbd/ - net.legends FAQ & Magic / I WUV you in all CAPS! --K.

[erilar]

In article <9r002r...@mid.individual.net>,

Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

> Real fish does not come in packaging. It lies there amidst the ice, you
> point to it and the fishmonger goes and fillets it for you. At very
> least, you buy some of their pre-filleted fish. Unless you foolishly buy
> some exotic species from far away, the fish was usually caught last
> night. Of course, if you live a long way inland, I suppose you are stuck
> with river/lake fish or pretend, frozen fish.

Frozen fish was at least frozen fresher than the state ocean fish would
be in by the time it reached the middle of the country and I know no ice
fishermen.

--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist

[Greg Goss]

Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

> an elephant vampire would have to be a vampire that sucks elephants.

And I bet the video of a simulation of this is already somewhere on
the web.
--
"Recessions catch what the auditors miss." (Galbraith)

[Joe Pfeiffer]

Speaking as somebody who grew up in Seattle and made a point of going by
real fish stores on my home when I wanted fish, Chilean farm-raised
salmon at Sam's Club is better than it has any right to be.... I've got
no idea how they do it. And I'm probably better off not knowing.

[Greg Goss]

Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:

>Real fish does not come in packaging. It lies there amidst the ice, you
>point to it and the fishmonger goes and fillets it for you. At very
>least, you buy some of their pre-filleted fish. Unless you foolishly buy
>some exotic species from far away, the fish was usually caught last
>night. Of course, if you live a long way inland, I suppose you are stuck
>with river/lake fish or pretend, frozen fish.

Back before my first wife got sick, a friend from both coasts
(Haligonian living in Vancouver) went with us to Red Lobster.

He was amused by the "Catch of the day" item on the menu, considering
that the only local catch might be trout, and we're a thousand Km from
any coast.

[John F. Eldredge]

On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 19:32:26 -0700, Greg Goss wrote:

> Robert Bannister <rob...@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
>> an elephant vampire would have to be a vampire that sucks elephants.
>
> And I bet the video of a simulation of this is already somewhere on the
> web.

Yes, that would probably come under Rule 34.

--
John F. Eldredge -- jo...@jfeldredge.com
"Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly
is better than not to think at all." -- Hypatia of Alexandria

[John F. Eldredge]

I am Anglo, but have developed a taste for Thai fish sauce, and have
sometimes startled waiters who didn't expect to see an Anglo customer
sprinkling some of the stuff on his meal. Of course, as with any strong
flavor, it is possible to overdo the quantity.

[Joy Beeson]

On Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:18:45 +0000 (UTC), wol...@bimajority.org
(Garrett Wollman) wrote:

> (My impression, perhaps
> erroneous, is that pre-microwave households used up leftover fish by
> either throwing it out -- fish used to be cheap! -- or by putting it
> into something of an entirely different nature, like a soup or salad.

Cheap or not, food is sacred! You don't waste a molecule.
And inland, fish was a special treat.

My mother dealt with left-over fish by not having any: she'd fry just
enough to go around.

--
Joy Beeson
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://roughsewing.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.