Small Talk: ...not Top Carrot

[theatremouse]

The thing that I think is totally and exclusively southern California is how instead of saying "I'm going to take I-5 today" people say "I'm taking THE 5 today." Every single freeway or highway is THE _____.

I read a really interesting article a few months ago I can't find now that explained how that phraseology came about and it had a good reason. Basically, before freeways had numbers in Southern California they had names, ie The Santa Ana freeway, etc. (I mean, most still have both names and numbers but the notable part was the names being commonly known before a numbering system existed.) Then once there were enough of them and interstates started and what not, everything got numbered. But people were used to saying "the BLAHBLAH highway" and so when the names dropped out of fashion and people started primarily using the numbers in conversation, they still never dropped the "the". Edited February 28, 2016 by theatremouse

[Julia]

I am a Northerner and I never heard of chicken and waffles until I saw them on an episode of Throwdown.

I think they were more of a mid-Atlantic thing.

[SingleMaltBlonde]

Day laborers, like my grandfather who worked for NCDOT, would take a piece of fried chicken in their lunch box because it was easy to carry and eat. And an apple for some type of liquid juiciness. PaPaw always had a big thermos of coffee, but some of the poorer people didn't have that and would drink from a dipper of water in a big barrel that was taken to the job site. Fried chicken became so popular in the south due to it being easy to carry in one's pocket wrapped up in wax paper.

 

Both of my grandmother's were born on upper midwest farms....chicken was cheap protein to feed to hubby and the men who came in for lunch working the fields.  Even a small farm could keep a decent sized flock of chickens for eggs and meat without the need for refrigeration.   Frying was the best way to prep what might not be the most tender chicken.  Like lots of traditional cooking it was a way to make the most of cheaper food, especially for a large group of people.  I still wish I had my great grandmother's cast iron chicken fryer (and lefse wheel) her fried chicken was apparently legendary.

[cooksdelight]

My PaPaw learned how to make fried chicken, and it was goooooooood! He wasn't a church-goer, and Granny taught Sunday school so she and I would always be there until church service was over (we'd babysit any little ones that the parents wanted to leave with us during service). He'd get the chicken started for Sunday dinner before we all got home.

I also remember him having a couple of hard-boiled eggs in his lunch box. Or some smoked ham after they'd butcher one each year.

[The Solution]

Personally, I find chicken and waffles to be disgusting. All the same color. Fried. Grease. No vegetables. But that's just me.

[Calamity Jane]

The thing that I think is totally and exclusively southern California is how instead of saying "I'm going to take I-5 today" people say "I'm taking THE 5 today." Every single freeway or highway is THE _____.

 

There was an episode of Criminal Minds where one of the geniuses deduced that a suspect was from NorCal because he said "the" whatever freeway.  Oops!! Nope, it's SoCal only, as my daughter quickly learned when she started at UC Davis and people really razzed her about that.  I think it started because originally the freeways in the LA area had names as well as numbers, and people referred to the Pasadena Freeway or the San Diego Freeway.  That has faded out quite a bit, but we still use "the" in front of the number, so we take the 101 to the 10 to the 405 (and then run screaming into the hills after all that traffic.  Not to mention going in a big circle). 

[Calamity Jane]

Personally, I find chicken and waffles to be disgusting. All the same color. Fried. Grease. No vegetables. But that's just me.

I love waffles.  I love fried chicken.  I hate them together - they make no sense at all to me as a unit.  Same with chocolate and peanut butter - love them separately, just hate Reeses.  

[FormerMod-a1]

Waffles aren't fried, nor are they greasy. And good fried chicken isn't greasy either. However, if one doesn't like them (separately or individually) they don't like them.  I hate coffee, the smell, the flavor, in desserts (what a way to ruin ice cream, or truffles - blech), and I get a lot of crazy looks for that.  People just assume that everyone likes coffee.  So I would never insist someone try something they don't like just because I think I make it better or assume they've never had the "good" stuff or some such.  But I do take offense to people putting attributes on something that aren't true, whether they like them or not.  So if someone were to say they hate bananas because they are hard, I'd like "Hate them all you want, however they are not hard, describe it correctly please".  ::giggle::

 

So other "foods" I hate, there's not much, but I do have a few.  The aforementioned coffee, frisee, peas, papaya (but I love mango and other tropical fruits), olives, capers.

[Julia]

I don't understand frisee. I've never had a frisee salad that wouldn't have been better with any other green, up to and including iceberg lettuce.

I'm pretty sure it violates the inedible garnish rule.

Edited February 28, 2016 by Julia

[cooksdelight]

Guy I am currently seeing doesn't like coffee. Maybe I'll make tiramisu just to see how MUCH he doesn't like it. And not tell him what's in it. LOL

[FormerMod-a1]

I can taste it in tiramisu, that's why I never order it anymore.  But it would be a good test, a lot of people don't even know there's coffee in it, I've found.

[Calamity Jane]

Guy I am currently seeing doesn't like coffee. Maybe I'll make tiramisu just to see how MUCH he doesn't like it. And not tell him what's in it.

 

My aunt's husband used to hold forth at great length about how much he hated cottage cheese.  My mom made a lime Jello salad one time that had shredded cucumbers and chopped celery in it (yes, we lived in the Midwest) and also included cottage cheese.  My recollection is that it was topped with a dollop of mayonnaise.  (blech, but it was the 50's and the Midwest)  Anyway, said uncle raved and raved about it, not knowing it had cottage cheese in it.  The third sister egged him on to talk move about how good it was and then sprung my mom's "secret" ingredient on him.  I still remember the look on his face.  

Edited February 29, 2016 by Calamity Jane

[The Solution]

Waffles aren't fried, nor are they greasy. And good fried chicken isn't greasy either. However, if one doesn't like them (separately or individually) they don't like them. 

 

 

Waffles may not be fried (don't put it past anyone), but they do become greasy when greasy fried chicken is placed on top of them. And I agree that good fried chicken is not greasy. I like waffles, I like chicken. I detest them together.

[Julia]

(speaking of PA Dutch food) I have terribly missed scrapple since I gave up pork. I'm totally psyched to discover that a market less than five miles from here has beef scrapple.

[cooksdelight]

Oh....scrapple.....

I don't know why, but the thought of that always reminds me of the time I was having dinner at my great-grandmother's home (no running water, she still cooked on a wood stove) and we were to have the delicacy of frog legs.

:)

[Julia]

Do they really taste like chicken?

[SingleMaltBlonde]

(speaking of PA Dutch food) I have terribly missed scrapple since I gave up pork. I'm totally psyched to discover that a market less than five miles from here has beef scrapple.

I will admit half way thru your comment I was expecting vegan scrapple.

[Julia]

I will admit half way thru your comment I was expecting vegan scrapple.

 

I almost want to invent that now.

[Christina]

I really couldn't figure the best place for the following comment, so I guess this will do. But first, I feel the need to point out that "vegan" scrabble sounds like a sin against nature that should possibly require jail time or mental health visits. I mean, how can you make scrapple vegan? That seems like it would require hoodoo or visits to a crossroads at midnight. But anyhoo...

I came across a show on the Viceland channel called Bong Appetit. Although I have no interest in cooking with cannabis, I watched because it had Marcel Vigneron as the chef who prepared a dinner using different types of cannabis products.  I also suffer from insomnia and have an attraction to crap television. There was someone who worked with him who understood the strengths of the different products, so that the diners didn't have too much from the dinner as a whole. I was most impressed with Marcel's continually changing hair style. I wish I could post a photo of it, but it looked different in every singe scene he appeared. It would have been nice if there was more about the actual food and the cooking, but I guess the show is about cooking with cannabis, and it was.

I'm going to try and Link to the show page even though some of my links are not working, and try and link the video under the spoiler tab so it doesn't take up space on the main screen if it decides to post as a video. It was 22 minutes, and rated TV 14

Spoiler

Bong Appetite episode with Marcel

[spiderpig]

6 hours ago, Christina said:

I really couldn't figure the best place for the following comment, so I guess this will do. But first, I feel the need to point out that "vegan" scrabble sounds like a sin against nature that should possibly require jail time or mental health visits. I mean, how can you make scrapple vegan? That seems like it would require hoodoo or visits to a crossroads at midnight. But anyhoo...

I came across a show on the Viceland channel called Bong Appetit. Although I have no interest in cooking with cannabis, I watched because it had Marcel Vigneron as the chef who prepared a dinner using different types of cannabis products.  I also suffer from insomnia and have an attraction to crap television. There was someone who worked with him who understood the strengths of the different products, so that the diners didn't have too much from the dinner as a whole. I was most impressed with Marcel's continually changing hair style. I wish I could post a photo of it, but it looked different in every singe scene he appeared. It would have been nice if there was more about the actual food and the cooking, but I guess the show is about cooking with cannabis, and it was.

I'm going to try and Link to the show page even though some of my links are not working, and try and link the video under the spoiler tab so it doesn't take up space on the main screen if it decides to post as a video. It was 22 minutes, and rated TV 14

  Reveal hidden contents

Bong Appetite episode with Marcel

Christina, this is the weirdest post I've seen on PTV.  I'm off to my remote to check for Viceland channel.

[Christina]

Insomnia makes you stupid. Crap TV makes you stupider. I may have had a contact high from watching the show about cooking with cannabis, and had fallen under a spell by Marcel's hair. 

Vegan scrapple is a sin against nature in any state of sleep though. 

This is the link to the episode. It didn't ask me to sign in with a cable provider, but I don't remember if I have watched something online before and entered it. Vice has some pretty decent documentary shows peppered in with what seems like an overabundance of marijuana based shows. It took over the former H2 channel, and one of the best commercials ever is posted below. It is about a minute long, and you have to stay until the end.

[Christina]

Oh my goodness! My nightmare of vegan scrapple may be coming true! The horror! The sin! It's wrong! WRONG I tell you!

[spiderpig]

On 2/28/2016 at 5:00 PM, The Solution said:

Waffles may not be fried (don't put it past anyone), but they do become greasy when greasy fried chicken is placed on top of them. And I agree that good fried chicken is not greasy. I like waffles, I like chicken. I detest them together.

I'd never heard of chicken and waffles until the HBO remake of Mildred Pierce, where plucky Kate Winslet opened a chicken 'n' waffles place that became a raging success back in 1940.

I thought it sounded gross.

[chiaros]

Chicken & Waffles.

Also this, and this.

Maxine's Chicken & Waffles. Not greasy.

Amish-style.

Edited December 20, 2016 by chiaros

[mlp]

Quote

I'd never heard of chicken and waffles..............................

I thought it was just me.  I'd never heard of that dish either until 4 or 5 years ago.  I didn't get it.  Since then, a local restaurant has opened that serves chicken and waffles and I tried it.  The fried chicken was good; the waffle was nice.  Why that combination is a thing still escapes me.

[The Solution]

6 hours ago, chiaros said:

Chicken & Waffles.

Also this, and this.

Maxine's Chicken & Waffles. Not greasy.

Amish-style.

I wish I hadn't clicked on that Amish-style link. I mean, I've seen and had Amish food before (nothing worse in the world - heavy, greasy, shit cooked out of it, covered in gravy), but that was vile.

[Bastet]

I'm a Los Angeles native, and Roscoe's has existed pretty much my entire life, so chicken and waffles (the soul food version) is normal to me, although not something I eat all that often. 

[HunterHunted]

8 hours ago, mlp said:

I thought it was just me.  I'd never heard of that dish either until 4 or 5 years ago.  I didn't get it.  Since then, a local restaurant has opened that serves chicken and waffles and I tried it.  The fried chicken was good; the waffle was nice.  Why that combination is a thing still escapes me.

There used to be a restaurant in Austin called Lucky J's that only served chicken and waffles. All of their Austin locations closed, but I think they still have a location open in Montauk. I never really understood chicken and waffles until I had one of their waffle tacos. It's not even that they're so good. They're not, but all of the tacos are served with maple syrup and hot sauce. The interplay of salty, sweet, and a little sour from the hot sauce is what works for me when I eat chicken and waffles.

[cooksdelight]

I grew up in your typical small-town Southern area, and never had chicken & waffles. Fried chicken, all the time. Waffles were something of a luxury. We had a waffle maker, but this was long before non-stick waffle irons. The first one....always stuck, it was the one that paved the way for the rest of them. 

Someone shared a photo on Facebook of fried squirrel with squirrel gravy. It showed the little leg bone sticking out... I happen to like squirrels (as does my dog) so I've never had the desire to eat one. Nor 'possum, frog legs, rabbit or anything else that seems like it needs to be left alone and not on a plate. Didn't eat venison until I was in my 30s, didn't care for the gamey taste. 

[HunterHunted]

On 12/20/2016 at 9:35 PM, cooksdelight said:

Someone shared a photo on Facebook of fried squirrel with squirrel gravy. It showed the little leg bone sticking out... I happen to like squirrels (as does my dog) so I've never had the desire to eat one. Nor 'possum, frog legs, rabbit or anything else that seems like it needs to be left alone and not on a plate. Didn't eat venison until I was in my 30s, didn't care for the gamey taste. 

I grew up in western Pennsylvania. I live in Texas and joke that I'm the one who grew up with country eating habits. I've never eaten squirrel, but I know people who have. I've eaten frog legs, rabbit, and venison. Some of the schools had the first day of deer hunting seasonot off, even in Pittsburgh. My dad didn't hunt, but his best friend did. He'd usually bring us a deer. One year he bagged a deer for us. My dad told him to use the spare key to stick the deer in the garage, which wasn't heated. It would be cold enough to keep until my dad came home from work. My dad told me that his friend might be stopping to drop off a deer. I get off the bus and go home after school. I walk into the house. My dad's friend has staged this elaborate scene in the house. Chairs are knocked over. Things are astray in the kitchen. There is a dead deer in the kitchen with an outstretched hoof next to the handset of the phone which is off the hook in the kitchen. He's made it seem like the deer was murdered by a home invader. It's surreal. Redneck surreal. It didn't stop my dad from saying yes to another deer next year.

[cooksdelight]

OMG, great story!! My ex-husband was a hunter and would kill at least one deer every fall. He told me I needed to learn how to cook them. OK, no problem, doesn't mean I will eat it, however. I would take the venison roast and cut slits, insert garlic cloves and strips of bacon, put it in a large bag with lots of Worcestershire and soy sauce. Anyhow, my one requirement was that it was wrapped up in butcher paper so it looked like it came from the store. One year, he pulled a shoulder out of the freezer for me to cook. I unwrapped it, and there were still some fur/hairs on the upper leg. I cried. I couldn't cook Bambi. It still looked too much like it was just killed and dragged through the woods.

[nitrofishblue]

I have read that in many cities and that includes New York, restaurants and other food producing businesses are not permitted to give leftover food to soup kitchens or any other charity. Any leftovers must be thrown away. That is why I was wondering what happens to the food. I really hate to see them take a huge fish or side of beef in the quickfire , cut it down then serve just a couple of portions from that huge piece of protein. I sure know that the crew can't eat raw meat. 

[wallflower75]

1 hour ago, nitrofishblue said:

I have read that in many cities and that includes New York, restaurants and other food producing businesses are not permitted to give leftover food to soup kitchens or any other charity. Any leftovers must be thrown away. That is why I was wondering what happens to the food. I really hate to see them take a huge fish or side of beef in the quickfire , cut it down then serve just a couple of portions from that huge piece of protein. I sure know that the crew can't eat raw meat. 

I wonder why?

[FormerMod-a1]

Usually for health code reasons.

[cooksdelight]

My local grocery store (large chain) throws out everything, instead of donating it to our local shelter. I was shocked to see them tossing bread and cakes from the bakery dept. into the Dumpster.

The food on these shows isn't going to be critical to feeding the homeless or hungry, based on the small quantities, I don't think.

[Jesse]

I'm guessing if it's not packaged, etc., they wouldn't be able to take it -- and for good reason, I think. I mean, half a piece of meat that's been sitting under tv lights for god knows how long? No thanks. 

[Canada]

55 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

My local grocery store (large chain) throws out everything, instead of donating it to our local shelter. I was shocked to see them tossing bread and cakes from the bakery dept. into the Dumpster.

The food on these shows isn't going to be critical to feeding the homeless or hungry, based on the small quantities, I don't think.

The amount of food that grocery stores throw away and waste is disgusting!!  And they lock up their garbage areas so that people can't come and take it, including homeless people.

[rose711]

4 hours ago, nitrofishblue said:

I have read that in many cities and that includes New York, restaurants and other food producing businesses are not permitted to give leftover food to soup kitchens or any other charity. Any leftovers must be thrown away. That is why I was wondering what happens to the food. I really hate to see them take a huge fish or side of beef in the quickfire , cut it down then serve just a couple of portions from that huge piece of protein. I sure know that the crew can't eat raw meat. 

There is A massive charity New York called City Harvest that collects food from many restaurants and food places around the city. You see their trucks frequently picking up food.

I have no idea where it is published that all  the food is wasted. I worked with  a soup kitchen that got plenty of food from Starbucks and Fairway and other local places.

heres a link and quote:

https://www.cityharvest.org/donate-food/donation-guidelines

DONATE FOOD

DONATION GUIDELINES

City Harvest has strict food safety guidelines for the food that we accept. We gratefully accept perishable and prepared foods maintained in safe temperature zones and chilled or frozen before being donated. Donated food must be prepared by a regulated or licensed food business, such as a restaurant, caterer, wholesaler or bakery. Donated food must exclude foods previously served to the public. City Harvest supplies clear, food grade bags for food donation use. Click here for detailed donation guidelines.

also the extensive list of places that donates are here:

https://www.cityharvest.org/donate-food/who-donates

[dleighg]

5 minutes ago, rose711 said:

I have no idea where it is published that all  the food is wasted. I worked with  a soup kitchen that got plenty of food from Starbucks and Fairway and other local places.

our church runs a food pantry and every weekend someone from our church goes to the two local Panera breads and picks up their leftover bread to give that day to the food pantry.

[Happytobehere]

3 hours ago, wallflower75 said:

I wonder why?

Sadly, scammers and our overly litigious society cause the must throw out requirement.  I used to work with the homeless and restaurants would routinely give us was they did not sell.  FF to claims of being made sick and threats to sue, and that soon stopped.

Edited January 8, 2017 by Happytobehere

[sourpickles]

Re: the throwing out of food..........lawsuits.  Lawsuits, lawsuits, lawsuits.  God forbid someone get sick (maybe) as opposed to putting the good food to use.  There was some exposure about a certain big box store throwing stuff out (appalled employees came fwd) and it died quickly.  I had a friend send me a video a few months ago about how Europe handles food waste vs. here.   Sad, all the way around.  I'm damn near militant about not wasting food.  We'll compost or feed the animals or whatever, if it doesn't get eaten here.  I seriously get anxious about throwing stuff out, I think it is the way I grew up.  Obviously, if it is growing mold, that can I forgot, then whatever, but other than that................Getting myself back on topic, sort of, I wonder what goes on in some of the restaurants these chefs work in, and Emily.  Gosh, Emily.  I do not like her and the upcoming promos indicate redemption, or total annihilation. 

[Nysha]

Let's hope total annihilation...

Our local food bank gets wrapped cooked food from gas stations and sometimes Taco Time, as well as bagged salads, dairy products, and bread from local grocery stores. You have to sign a release form to get food, stating you know it may be out of date and releasing them from any liability if you eat it and get sick. 

[biakbiak]

Restaurants are protected from being sued for food donations under the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act which is national. Also from that article: 

Quote

There is no available public record of anyone in the United States being sued ― or having to pay damages ― because of harms related to donated food, according to Nicole Civita, a professor and director of the Food Recovery Project with the University of Arkansas School of Law and assistant director of the Rian Fried Center for Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems at Sterling College.

Edited January 9, 2017 by biakbiak

[bitchin camaro]

My dad does a lot of work with our local soup kitchen, and I have helped out a few times (not as much as I should) and they get a lot of stuff from local stores. Bagged and pre-packed deli salads (they're fine, but they need to be served basically when they're delivered), day old cakes from the bakery, that sort of thing. They don't serve expired stuff, but I'm always impressed at how they can put together a meal for 300ish people out of random stuff when I'm doing well to feed myself dinner with a full pantry.

[chiaros]

Eater Chicago just put out a guide to places to get Chicken & Waffles in Chitown. :-) 

http://chicago.eater.com/maps/best-chicken-and-waffles-in-chicago-map 

[cooksdelight]

I made chicken satay yesterday, the dish Jamie couldn't swing. It was easy, especially since they had 24+ hours to get their act together. Boyfriend and I loved it. Oddly enough, we couldn't taste even a hint of the peanut butter. I used both boneless and bone-in pieces, and cooked them on the grill. Not too spicy, but really tasty. I used the full 2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes.

3-1/2 lbs. boneless chicken, cut into strips or cubed
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup orange juice
3 TB vegetable oil
1/2 to 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes (to taste)
1 to 2 TB minced garlic (to taste)
1/4 smooth peanut butter
2 TB minced onions
1 teaspoon coriander (I substituted cumin, which is in the same flavor family)
1 teaspoon tumeric
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro
1 pinch black pepper
Salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, except the chicken and salt, and mix until well combined. Place the chicken in a ziplock bag and add sauce, squeezing to coat all pieces. Refrigerate 24 hours, turning occasionally.

Prepare your grill or use your oven broiler. Thread the chicken pieces onto wooden pre-soaked skewers. Sprinkle lightly with salt.

For chicken breast pieces, grill or broil for about 5-7 minute or until done, turning once. For bone-in pieces, grill or broil on each side for about 7-10 minutes or until done. Use a meat thermometer to check doneness. Be sure to coat your grill or broiler pan with non-stick cooking spray so the chicken won't stick.

Edited January 18, 2017 by cooksdelight

[susannot]

I was just watching an episode of Worst Cooks in America:  Celebrity Version because I need to watch TV while riding my stationary bicycle.  The contestants made chicken and waffles that looked pretty darn good.  One of them, a black female comedienne I have never seen before (they're very minor celebrities)  said "Why can't we just go to Roscoe's?"

[archer1267]

This past episode had me wondering...how common is it for chefs to leave a restaurant and move on to the next in a short time?

I read that Casey left Aveline in San Francisco, just five months after opening...but then there's John, who left four Dallas restaurants in one year. I get that sometimes things aren't a good fit, you have differences with other investors, etc. and that the restaurant industry is notoriously fickle.

[cooksdelight]

Kwami's went belly-up in just a couple of months. Poor planning, poor hiring, not reading your audience and serving something the locals want.... a myriad of reasons. 

[cooksdelight]

Amazing!!!

http://www.grubstreet.com/2017/01/usa-just-won-gold-in-the-bocuse-dor-for-the-first-time-ever.html