Weird foods

[diablita]

I made a salad today that was in the Food and Wine email... it was weird but good. Fresh cherries, cilantro, onions, white wine vinegar and fish sauce.

this does not sound good to me at all 

[siamesedream]

I just had jalapeno, cheese, pepperoni, and ham on a toasted bagel.

[srsly]

A long while ago, a Jewish friend commented on how we turned a jewish food into completely something no jewish person (kosher folks) would ever eat, bagel with cream cheese and bacon bits. I had not even thought of how it appeared disrespectful to my Jewish friend let her see our kids eat something Jewish that had pork in it. Or maybe she didn't care.

[Dagstag v 2.0]

A long while ago, a Jewish friend commented on how we turned a jewish food into completely something no jewish person (kosher folks) would ever eat, bagel with cream cheese and bacon bits. I had not even thought of how it appeared disrespectful to my Jewish friend let her see our kids eat something Jewish that had pork in it. Or maybe she didn't care.

I wouldn't worry about it, I don't think it's disrespectful at all. Jews can't really afford to make rules about bagels anyway

[Newt]

I still occasionally have simple ketchup sandwiches. Preferably on cheap hamburger buns.

[caribougrrl]

I still occasionally have simple ketchup sandwiches. Preferably on cheap hamburger buns.

the only other person I ever met who did this (but preferably white wonderbread) also put ketchup on his mashed potatoes.

[srsly]

I wouldn't worry about it, I don't think it's disrespectful at all. Jews can't really afford to make rules about bagels anyway

That was my first education on food and religion clashing with one another. Before that, I had no idea that Jewish people had rules on food. Then I learned about muslims' food restriction later. I was already an adult at the time. So for almost half of my life, I assumed people are the same everywhere. It made no sense to me to include food as part of one's faith. Anyway, I'm always happy to see Jewish friends dig into cheesesteaks.

[Chasing Amy]

Okay, this one isn't weird, it is just not commonly found in North America - bitter melon. Mags, is it used in any dishes in the Philippines?

I had a dish similar to this in Thailand: http://praneesthaikitchen.com/2011/08/04/stir-fried-bitter-melon-with-egg-recipe/

I'm getting bitter melons in my CSA this weekend so I think I am going to make it.

[srsly]

Okay, this one isn't weird, it is just not commonly found in North America - bitter melon. Mags, is it used in any dishes in the Philippines?

I had a dish similar to this in Thailand: http://praneesthaikitchen.com/2011/08/04/stir-fried-bitter-melon-with-egg-recipe/

I'm getting bitter melons in my CSA this weekend so I think I am going to make it.

Did you make it yet? How was it?

Bittermelon is one those veggies with whcih I had a love-hate relationship.It's regularly served at our dinner talbe  in the Philippines when I was growing up. I couldn't stand how bitter it was and hated it. But I learned that it wasn't always bitter and learned to love it as an adult.

And the way it's prepared is why it tastes extremely bitter, or just slightly bitter. It's either cooked with dried salty shrimp brine and a bit of tomatoes, or with coconut milk. I like it both ways.

As a kid, when there was no other choice at the table, I made myself eat it or would to hungry all night. I tucked little pieces of it in a ball of rice to avoid tasting the bitter taste. But tasted the bitter flavor anyway. I had tasted a dish prepared by one of my aunts, and was surprised to discover how was very tasty it was. She cooked with pork and shrimp brine and tomatoes. I learned that best way to get rid of the bitterness (most of it anyway), was to sweat it in salt for about half hour to an hour after seeding and slicing them in half circles. When the slices are soft from the salt, rinse and squeeze out the juices until there's nothing left to squeeze. you can put them in a kitchen towel to best perform this step. Cook pork in salted water until the fat is rendered and the meat is crisped. Then use some of the fat to sautee the onions and the melon before adding the shrimp brine. Then add the pork. Season with more brine to taste. Do the same thing with the melons when cooking with coconut milk. I don't remember the recipe for this however. I'm sure it's available online.

[srsly]

This is exactly how we cook the bitter gourd or "ampalaya" in tagalog.

http://www.filipino-food-lovers.com/ginisang-ampalaya/

This is a simple recipe for the one cooked in coconut milk (ginataan is a term used for any filipino dish that is cooked in coconut milk, which is nearly everything!).


http://jeepneyrecipes.blogspot.com/2014/05/how-to-cook-sauteed-ampalaya-in-reduced.html

[Chasing Amy]

Well, after all that, they switched out the ampalaya for boring old green onions.  Lack of rain has limited supplies.

ETA: I found the picture I took of the dish I had in Thailand. Pretty certain they salted the bitterness out of it.

[srsly]

Well, after all that, they switched out the ampalaya for boring old green onions.  Lack of rain has limited supplies.

ETA: I found the picture I took of the dish I had in Thailand. Pretty certain they salted the bitterness out of it.

I'm not able to see the image. Did you post it on FB? I seem to recall the cooking lesson. I thought that was cool!

Green onions are far from being as exotic as the amplaya. They have those in asian markets all the time, though. You might still want to cook some. Remember to buy the small ones instead of the large melons.