Cheeky.

One of the most interesting aspects of social networking is its potential to unintentionally reveal the truth about the self, the person behind the crafted public image. Along these lines, a surprisingly large number of self-described “foodies” – the kind of people who TiVo Food Network and would throw their panties at Michael Symon if [...]

Hats off to Hanukkah.

Note: I usually don’t republish old posts, but if you’re thinking of making potato latkes this week for Hanukkah, try these out. They’re delicious. I’ve omitted the discussion of sweet potato latkes and celeriac-potato latkes; if you want to try those, visit the original page. If you ask me, though, the classic potato latke, without [...]

Waste not, want not.

Here’s a question that comes up a lot: what happens to all the scraps and trim from all those nicely-plated dishes and tiny little vegetable cuts? Isn’t that a wasteful way to cook? A little history. When I was a kid in Milwaukee, my mother dispensed most parental wisdom in the form of aphorisms, usually [...]

Hambone.

A ham novice asks a few questions about selecting a ham for the holidays. Wet or dry? Bone in or boneless? Read about the differences among hams here, on the Ham page.

Secrets of the Spanish forest.

Normally I answer reader questions in a different format, but this time I’m devoting an entire post to a reader question as it coincides with something I was writing about already. From R.R., 2 December 2011, ibérico pork – how to cook it? Q: So we went on vacation to Williamsburg, and eded up bringing [...]

Safe to eat.

A reader asks about food safety and garlic confit. A discussion of the relative utility of salt, citric acid, and proper food handling practices, on the the Confit page. Note: fixed broken link.