Sign up for Round 5

gr82bart said:

:confused: You messing with voodoo and spells again, Tim? Eye of newt and toe of frog sort of thing? Egad!

Regards, Art.

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Hey Art!

In a couple weeks I'll be doing a research run down to N.O. to catch up on my spells (and eating and drinking). Marie Laveaux and all that.

Puttin a spell on the camera.

tim in san jose

The camera arrived today. What to shoot what to shoot ?

semeuse said:

The camera arrived today. What to shoot what to shoot ?

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Shoot something - anything - really soon. Before some strange person gets the idea to take pictures of chickens as well.

BTW - it's a while before the camera gets to me, but I'm already looking for the recipe that includes "roadkill chickens".

Actually, I had planned on shooting chickens, but my friend (who had them)'s father beat me to it - with a 22

Now wait a minute! I'm next in line and being in NYC I don't have many chickens running about to shoot. So I was thinking about homing in on a pigeon.

copake_ham said:

Now wait a minute! I'm next in line and being in NYC I don't have many chickens running about to shoot. So I was thinking about homing in on a pigeon.

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All in for a vote... Are Pagan Squab recipes OK?

tim in san jose

Sorry about that George. I was just Carrier on with the pigeon jokes.

And my jokes are just as extinct.

tim in san jose

k_jupiter said:

Sorry about that George. I was just Carrier on with the pigeon jokes.

And my jokes are just as extinct.

tim in san jose

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Aaaaak! He ruined my yolk! He ruined my pigeon yolk!!!

Alright, here's my pagan chicken recipe. Be advised that this is both from memory and was never really written down, so spice measurements are inexact. I apologize for this. When I shake in the spices, I shake in a healthy amount, 2-3 Tbsp probably. I usually go until it looks the color that a curry often is, that brownish-yellow. If you're going to overdo any of the spices, overdo the garam masala first, curry second, cumin third.

However, I must state that this is probably my best recipe. My ex used to rave about it and she was a great cook who thought I was all thumbs in the kitchen. People at her work would comment on how good it smelled and ask her for the recipe. When I bring in leftovers to work, I usually get comments about how good it is as well - it won a homemade-curry shootout at lunch one day.

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:
1 oven stuffer (5 lbs ish?)
4 medium tomatoes
1 large onion
shit ton of garlic
peppers, if you so desire
2 Tbsp ground cumin
2 Tbsp curry powder
2 Tbsp garam masala
2 tsp tumeric powder
1 tsp coriander seeds - I just shake a fair bit in
10 or so cloves
1 stick of cinnamon
Oil - I use extra virgin olive oil

optional:
1 can of tomato paste
flour

1. Boil chicken whole in large stock pot. Boil it good. Boil it until the meat is falling off of the bone. At this point, remove chicken from pot, remove skin from chicken, and remove meat from chicken. Throw carcass away. Save 12-16oz of chicken water for later, store rest in freezer for later use.

If you don't feel like doing all this, buy your choice of meat (lamb, chicken, beef) and have a can of chicken stock ready. A pound or so of meat is about the right amount. A pound and a half is alright, two pounds might be pushing it. I don't really know. You can and should brown the meat before hand.

2. Clean out stock pot if it's dirty. Put on stove and put some oil in the bottom. Heat it. Put in chopped onion and a bit of chopped/crushed garlic (3-5 cloves?). Add in crushed cinnamon and cloves. Stir. Cook until onion starts to get soft.

3. Add in 4 chopped tomatoes. Cook a bit longer. The goal is ultimately for these babies to basically disintegrate. But this happens a later in the game.

4. Once the tomato/onion mixture is doing alright and it's cooked down enough for some liquid to appear, throw in meat, rest of garlic, cumin, curry powder, garam masala, and tumeric.

Add in some of the chicken broth too and tomato paste if you want. You all know what the consistency of curry should be like, so if you want it a little runnier, add a bit more in, if you want it thicker, add in less. You can always add this near the end if it's too thick. If it's too thin, add in some flour (Tbsp at a time - usually 2-3 is enough).

That being said, I usually put in the equivalent of a can of broth in when I add in the spices. I throw in a can of tomato paste too if I have it around. The last time I made this curry, I didn't use any chicken broth, just the tomato paste, and it still turned out pretty good. It's a forgiving recipe.

How long does one cook it? Here's the deal. I use a ton of garlic. I like garlic. I usually put in probably around 20-30 cloves of it. I chop up about 10, put some of that in the beginning, and the rest with the tomatoes. I then put in 10-15 whole cloves of garlic when the meat and spices go in. The curry is done when the whole cloves of garlic are soft enough to easily smush up against the side of the pot with a spoon.

If you don't like this much garlic and don't want whole cloves in there, then cook until the curry has a nice consistency and the meat is done. Tomatoes and onions should be cooked down so much that they are basically nonexistent.

You can always add in some plain yogurt and/or potatoes too. I've made it with tempeh as well instead of meat.

OMG!

I could never come up with a recipe to match that - but I do have an idea for the dessert course.

"Obtain one bottle of Pepto Bismol, one box of Alka-Seltzer. Ingest entire contents of both while having a companion call your local hospital to instruct them to ready the stomach pump."

Hey, its not that hot... the chili recipe that I make IS hot.

It's actually very similar (different meat), minus the curry, cinnamon, clove, coriander, and tumeric. AND a ton of peppers. I usually do about 6 habaneros, 5-6 chilis, and a 3-4 big milder ones, like poblanos.

The curry is better though.

We be trying it, probably after the holidays, Mr. Gray.

Take the curry and the tumeric out, put all the rest of those spices in the chile and you have Cincinnati Chile. Of course, those east coasters don't eat their Chile that hot, excepting one or two of you.

tim in san jose

If I don't have confirmation the next day that I ate chili, I didn't eat chili.

Tim Gray said:

If I don't have confirmation the next day that I ate chili, I didn't eat chili.

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More information than we needed to know Mr. Gray. Those of us who eat on the thermal edge already know, the rest need not.


tim in san jose

Yeah, I figured

The thermal edge. Nice.

And the camera is on its way...so, here without any further ado is my pagan chicken recipe:

toasted lime chips and beer
1 large bag of lime flavored tortilla chips ("Tostitos" are good)
6 bottles of Red Stripe beer

Open first bottle of beer, drink half. Open bag of chips. Finish first beer, open second. Eat some chips. Repeat as desired. Goes wonderfully with old black and white movies.

Oh, and did I mention that I don't like chicken

semeuse said:

toasted lime chips and beer
1 large bag of lime flavored tortilla chips ("Tostitos" are good)
6 bottles of Red Stripe beer

Open first bottle of beer, drink half. Open bag of chips. Finish first beer, open second. Eat some chips. Repeat as desired. Goes wonderfully with old black and white movies.

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This has to be one of the best recipes ever! I love it

Life isn't like a box of chocolates, it's like a bowl of chilis....what you do today may burn your ass tomorrow....

****UPDATE****UPDATE****UPDATE****

Camera has arrived in NYC.

Of course these are the shortest days of the year; cloud cover is a given and tonight we are getting a "wintry mix" of rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow!

While the film may be FP-4; I suspect my pic will just be a monotone grey! Highlights? Contrast? Tonality? In this kind of weather - fugghedaboutit!

Will endeavor to shoot in next couple of days and forward to Art.

copake_ham said:

****UPDATE****UPDATE****UPDATE****

Camera has arrived in NYC.

Of course these are the shortest days of the year; cloud cover is a given and tonight we are getting a "wintry mix" of rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow!

While the film may be FP-4; I suspect my pic will just be a monotone grey! Highlights? Contrast? Tonality? In this kind of weather - fugghedaboutit!

Will endeavor to shoot in next couple of days and forward to Art.

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Maybe you need a pagan fish recipe?

Matt

MattKing said:

Maybe you need a pagan fish recipe?

Matt

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Maybe he needs one of those famous Bars or Pubs he has been talking about.

Don't fret George. It's down to almost 30F out here too. But certainly no snow, nor ice. I feel for ya. Think how nice a photo you can take with the icicles reflecting sunlight on a cold Friday Morn.

tim (ex-east coaster) in san jose

copake_ham said:

Will endeavor to shoot in next couple of days and forward to Art.

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George,

Check your PM as to where to send the camera to me. Thanks.

Regards, Art.

gr82bart said:

George,

Check your PM as to where to send the camera to me. Thanks.

Regards, Art.

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Art,

PM reply sent.

George

Picture has been shot. I had to brave the holiday hordes on Fifth Avenue to take a "schmaltzy" tourist shot - but hope it comes out.

Art (grt2bart) has a tight travel schedule coming up so I'm forwarding camera to him via USPS Priority from Copake. It should get to him before he departs for his holiday travels. If not, he'll have it in early January.

Below is a m/l pagan (or devilish) chicken recipe I obtained from Mr. Google. It may be interesting to try - but I haven't done so yet - so you're on your own if you follow it!

Pollo alla Diavola (the Devil's Chicken)

2 (2 1/2 to 3 pound) chickens, cleaned and trimmed
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon plus 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
Salt, to taste
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 bunches Italian parsley, leaves only
1 red onion, thinly sliced
12 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
Chili oil, recipe below

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Season the chicken inside and out with salt and pepper. Truss the chickens and brush each one with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Place in 1 or 2 roasting pans and roast until browned but only half-cooked, about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the 4 tablespoons black pepper, a pinch of salt and the mustard and stir well to combine. Drizzle in the 1 tablespoon olive oil and mix well.

Once the chickens are half-cooked, remove from the oven and brush each with the black pepper and mustard mixture.

Return to the oven and continue roasting until the juices run clear from a pricked spot, about another 30 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before carving.

While the chicken rests, in a medium-sized bowl, combine the parsley, red onion, tomatoes, remaining 3 tablespoons oil, sherry vinegar and salt and pepper, to taste, and toss well to combine.*

Allow 1 breast and 1 leg per portion. Drizzle each portion with the pan juices and hot chili oil, top with the parsley salad and serve immediately.

HOT CHILI OIL:
OLIO PICCANTE
2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
10 jalapeno peppers, coarsely chopped
4 tablespoons red chili flakes

In a small saucepan, combine the oil, pepper and chili flakes. Heat to 140 degrees F and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit overnight or for 8 hours. Strain out solids. Yield: 2 cups

*I would also add Sumac to the salad (it's a piquant spice used in Middle East recipes). [No, it's not poison sumac - although related! ]

copake_ham said:

Picture has been shot. I had to brave the holiday hordes on Fifth Avenue to take a "schmaltzy" tourist shot - but hope it comes out.

*I would also add Sumac to the salad (it's a piquant spice used in Middle East recipes). [No, it's not poison sumac - although related! ]

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Why thank you George. I am sure Art will get the camera before he leaves. Your recipe looks wonderful. I have a long week of vacation to try some of these.

tim ( one more week before winter vacation) in san jose