Category Archives: Blog

Americans Don’t Know The Real Thing

Most Americans live with a perspective of cuisines and flavors that is very far from what is real. Americans grow up eating Mexican food at Taco Bell and think they know what Mexican food tastes like. Americans grow up eating Chinese food from the local takeout joint and they think they know what Chinese food is about. The truth is, real authentic Mexican and Chinese is completely different from the American perspective, and that is a good thing.

I grew up in a New York suburb and wasn’t really exposed to either Chinese or Mexican food. One reason is that my father thought he didn’t like Chinese food, so we never had it. As for Mexican food, it basically didn’t exist in the New York suburbs in the 1960’s. I first experienced Mexican food in the 1970’s when my girlfriend Susan (Now wife) took me to Nito’s restaurant in New York’s Greenwich Village. Her brothers had lived in the village and exposed her to Mexican food. Nito’s was great and became our gold standard for Mexican restaurants. The food was fantastic, but nothing like the real thing.

In the 1980’s I had business trips to Mexico and found out what real Mexican food was like. The fresh seafood and sauces were like nothing I had ever had. In later years working in the Flavor business, we would bring chefs from Mexico up to our flavor labs in the States to expose our flavorists to authentic Mexican flavors. The business for authentic Mexican flavors never really developed, but I learned that I really like real Mexican food.

Our daughter Jennifer and her husband just moved to Albuquerque New Mexico. An exciting piece of the move is the chance to get exposed to authentic Mexican cuisine. Jenn has always been a huge fan of American Mexican cuisine and I have been looking forward to see her reaction to the real thing. To be honest, our first few restaurant experiences with Albuquerque cuisines were, while good, not what I had remembered. A cool part of the move is that our niece Lindsey, originally from New Hampshire, lives in Albuquerque. Lindsey’s husband Oscar, who grew up in Mexico, is a good cook.

Dinner at Oscar’s and Lindsey’s house was a special culinary experience. Getting to enjoy the flavors of real Mexican food again was great and watching Jenn and Ethan experience it for the first time was fun. While the food and culinary experience was great, the highlight of the day was watching cousins, young and old reconnect. Lindsey and Jenn have always had a special bond. Coincidently, the whole crew had gotten together last summer in Westhampton, long before we knew about Jenn and E’s move to Albuquerque. Watching Jenn’s Max (8), Dylan (4) and Hadley (2) bond with Lindsey’s Alyda (3) and Cullen (1) was a gift.

Jennifer, Lindsey, Cullen and Oscar enjoying real Mexican Cuisine

Cousins, Jenn and Lindsey bonding in the kitchen

Cousins Alyda and Hadley, bonding in the play kitchen

Cousins Max, Dylan and Alyda bonding with Lindsey’s guidance

Oscar and Lindsey did an amazing job of presenting an array of real Mexican flavors:

  • Assorted Real Mexican Flavored Chips served with:
    • Drizzles of hot sauce, lime juice and Maggi Sauce
      • There very few condiments that you will see in more places around the world than Nestle’s Maggi Sauce. It is made with Hydrolyzed vegetable protein that is high in glutamic acid (of which MSG is derived). It is cheap and delivers an amazing Umami flavor to countless authentic cuisines around the world.
      • Oscar’s Mexican combination of hot sauce, lime juice and Maggi would make anything taste great.
      • Real Mexican chips on their own, deliver a different flavor profile from their American counterparts. It is amazing how the same brand of snack tastes different in different countries. Mexican snacks have a common chili component. In the Philippines there is a common profile that food scientists refer to as “dirty sock” which comes from rancid vegetable oil. While most of the world wouldn’t like this, it is what the Philippine consumer knows and loves. As the French would say: “Viva la difference”.
  • Guacamole with lime juice. It seems lime juice is everywhere in real Mexican cuisine.
  • Fried fish with a dusting of corn flour and a sprinkle of MSG
      • The key to this dish is in the frying. It really doesn’t matter what type of fish it is. A friend in Memphis with his own fry station in his back yard once told me (Hell you could fry turd and it would taste good).
      • The type of fish doesn’t really matter. Once I was at nice restaurant in Guangzhou The waiter went through a great presentation as he deboned the fish. Making conversation, I asked our host what kind of fish it was. The host gave me a blank look. Then looked at the waiter and then back at me and said it was “Chinese Fish”. No kidding. Oscar’s “Mexican fish” was tilapia. While I am generally not a fan of tilapia. The way Oscar fried the fish, anything would have tasted good.
  • Oscar made two types of Salsa:
    • A red sauce with multiple types of chiles combined with onion and garlic which he simmered for a few hours to condense the flavor and then emulsified with an emersion blender. The result was a rich flavor that had a little kick but was a big hit with Oscar’s Gringo guests.
    • A Pico de Gallo that highlighted by a lime juice profile.
  • Lindsey made a wonderful bean side dish that benefited from blending in onion, garlic, cheese and lard. Adding a little fat is key to delivering authentic flavor
  • A rice dish with chile and tomato flakes
  • A friend of Oscar makes his own tortillas. Oscar reheated the tortillas on an iron skillet
  • A green salad

The meal was fantastic. Watching cousins bond was special. Experiencing real Mexican cuisine was memorable

If you enjoyed this blog and similar other stories/wine group/supper club lessons follow me on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to get future blogs at www.impromptufridaynights.com/blog and check out my book Impromptu Friday Nights a Guide to Supper Clubs. Published by Morgan James Publishing and available through most channels where books are sold.

 

Playing Chopped

Have you seen the Food Network’s show “Chopped”? The basic premise is that participants are given a few core random ingredients and challenged to make a dish that will impress a panel of judges. While you may, or not, be a fan of the show, it is fun to play the game with a few random ingredients.

We were up in Canada helping our daughter Jenn and her husband Ethan get ready for a move to Albuquerque NM. As we were cleaning out the refrigerator, I decided to play the game to make an appetizer for a neighborhood birthday party. In the freezer was a package of phyllo dough that had probably been there for quite a while. Our grandkids are major consumers of cream cheese, but a Costco purchase of two containers of cream cheese was too much. Hence the question.

What can be made with phyllo dough and cream cheese?

Phyllo dough, while not easy to work with, became a wonderful base. Using a mini cupcake pan as a shaper, I was able to bake up a good set of phyllo cups.

Cream cheese became the base for a homemade Boursin. Combining the cream cheese with butter, and:

  • Dried spices from the pantry (dill, black pepper, and marjoram),
  • Fresh chives, thyme, parsley, and basil from the herb garden
  • Sauteed shallot and garlic

This resulted in a tasty product that was easy to make and better than the store-bought version.

With these bases in place, I raided the refrigerator and came up with two version of

Phyllo Cup Boursin Appetizers with: (check out the recipe)

  • Bacon, Scallion and Tomato
  • Blue Cheese, Strawberry and Apricot Preserve

The best part of the game was the audience. Jenn and Ethan have been in Ottawa for close to 4 years and have the best set neighbors. After corporate stints in Virginia, Saint Louis, and Charlotte they have found that all neighborhoods are not that receptive to short timers. Their neighbors in Ottawa have been the best, especially given the difficult environment caused by Covid over the last two years. The group in Ottawa doesn’t need much of an excuse to party and are particularly appreciative of whatever I make. They loved the Phyllo Dough, Boursin Appetizers

 

The moral of this story is that sometimes the combination of  Impromptu Appetizers, an Impromptu party and a great set of friends can be more than a lot of fun.

If you enjoyed this blog and similar other stories/wine group/supper club lessons follow me on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to get future blogs at www.impromptufridaynights.com/ blog and check out my book Impromptu Friday Nights a Guide to Supper Clubs. Published by Morgan James Publishing and available through most channels where books are sold.

 

 

 

It’s A Gift

My mother celebrated her 99th birthday on August 10th and she continues to amaze. We had lunch with her recently along with my daughter Jenn and her children. (See the featured picture).  At 99 she still has an amazing ability to engage with anyone, but especially with children. She soon will have 12 great grandchildren and the older ones in particular love their time with mom-mom. She somehow makes each of them feel like they are her favorite. It’s a gift.

A friend of mine once said about mom: “She is both interested and interesting”. My dad used to refer to her as the “Brains of the Operation”. (Click on this link to read the story about the night I realized why)  Unlike most of us, mom is a good listener. Last week, after our lunch with the grandchildren, I asked her how she does it. Mom explained that throughout her life she has been around people who like to talk. She said that she has always enjoyed listening, because that is how she learns. She followed that up with: “Did you know that your cousin Maureen’s husband Bob McGee, had a master’s degree in speech therapy. I know a few things about Bob, but that I didn’t know.  My cousin passed away last year and Bob still calls mom. He is one of the many, caught in her spell. At 99 she is still learning. It’s a gift.

Mom at lunch with my son Brian and his family 

For the readers of this blog you might remember the piece we did on Mom Mom’s potato salad. (Click on the link for the full story) It is one of her specialties that is a family favorite. A few years ago I did a FaceBook live piece with her. She was great. Her years in front of a classroom made her particularly good in front of the camera. After we finished the live take and turned the camera off, she took one last taste of her masterpiece potato salad and exclaimed: “Boy that’s good”. Mom can cook and communicate.  It’s a gift.

The last year hasn’t been easy for mom, as it hasn’t been for many. Mom continues to talk about the “Little Miracles”   in her life. (Click on the link for the full story) She talks about how she likes something sweet with her toast in the morning and the homemade jam that my cousin Virginia from Maui made and how it magically appeared. And how her iPhone continues to automatically display pictures of her great grandchildren. She doesn’t know how it works, but she loves it. Through it all, she decides to focus on the positive. It’s a gift.

A favorite picture of Mom doing a reading at our daughter Jennifer and her husband Ethan’s wedding.

Mom started doing readings at weddings years ago. Our son Brian asked her to read something my father had written. Mom called me and said that might be difficult given that most of dad’s writings were commencement addresses and political speeches. I told her to pull a piece of something dad had written and just tell a story. From that she has developed an art that provides a memory for the special couple and all in attendance. An investment banker friend of my sister came up to her after a recent performance and asked her: Did you ever think of starting a business? We could call it: “Rent a Mom-Mom”. Again, it’s a gift

Happy birthday mom-mom. You are a gift!

If you enjoyed this blog and similar other stories/wine group/supper club lessons follow me on Facebook and Twitter and subscribe to get future blogs at www.impromptufridaynights.com/blog and check out my book Impromptu Friday Nights a Guide to Supper Clubs. Published by Morgan James Publishing and available through most channels where books are sold.