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Inglenook - for discussion


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Inglenook.

 

Not a bar, but a cosy corner for homely* folk to chat about the kitchen, about equipment and raw materials and perhaps the kitchen garden.

*I use ‘homely’ in the English sense (where it is a compliment) not the American

 

I have a feeling that there are a lot of subjects, not specifically tied to a particular recipe or group of recipes, where the discussion of useful general info is being tacked on to recipe specific threads, almost as a diversion, never to be seen again.

 

Perhaps it would help if new generalist threads were started when discussion starts to diverge. Borg’s BBQ thread is excellent for BBQs. But there has been a shift to pizzas which might have been better as a separate thread. The onion thread is a great reference – never realised there were so many different names for onions! These are excellent threads for specific subjects.

 

But, for instance, the warm-up to a brewing thread is at present a general discussion on the advisability of such a thread – Inglenook material. There are a lot of questions that could be discussed in general before deciding whether to start a thread. Not recipes, they go in without saying, but ‘do you think anyone would be interested in….?’ It would save some of us big mouths (yes Timi I do mean me) from posting ill considered threads which get zero response.

We could listen to tales of rhubarb wine, childhood reminiscences, discuss the latest kitchen equipment, and market prices, and what on earth are cibees (to give just one of the spellings) and how best to clean the pans (if that is what you call them). What is a casserole for instance, what’s the difference between braising and stewing? Not thread material. Just general chat.

 

To a large extent The Dark Kitchen covers this need, but perhaps in every kitchen there is some need for a quiet corner where you can sit and chat about nothing in particular…not the noisy bustling atmosphere of the bar (which is great) but somewhere for quieter contemplation and exchange of snippets relative to kitchen matters.. Borgs BBQ thread goes some way in this direction, a nice chatty open thread.

 

A quiet drink or two yes, but nothing exotic. Taste a drop of home-brew or parsnip wine.

 

Just a thought, not well expressed…and us old folks do rattle on at times. :unsure:

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This is an excellent idea for a thread. It sounds a lot like my Grandmother's kitchen when I was growing up. A place to learn the basic art of cooking and to learn Grandma's recipes that she made by rote ( we would of course measure everything before she would put it in the mixing bowl and then write it down). And also sit and relax and talk over a cup of tea at her kitchen table about the weather, her garden or what was happening in town.

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.

 

Perhaps it would help if new generalist threads were started when discussion starts to diverge. Borg’s BBQ thread is excellent for BBQs. But there has been a shift to pizzas which might have been better as a separate thread.

 

Just a thought, not well expressed…and us old folks do rattle on at times. :unsure:

Actually there is a thread for Pizza New York Pizza that is running my comments and others kind of went back and forth between the two and I actually commented it should be in the Pizza thread. That being said when I started an idea of the pizza it was reffering to cooking a pizza on a BBQ -Best of both worlds barbecue.pngpizza.gif

And as for being old I probably have you beat phiphi.gif

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And as for being old I probably have you beat phiphi.gif

 

Wanna bet on it ? 250 cholesterol free sausages says you are just a kid! Betcha.

And you never did tell me where those super cartoon 'smileys' of yours come from.

 

Meanwhile I'll go scrub the old wood kitchen table and put the kettle on.

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Let’s get a bit of atmosphere in here first :)

 

How do you see the Inglenook? I see a compact modern kitchen in one end of the space, a large old fashioned kitchen working area taking the other 2/3 of the space with an entrance in one long wall between them, and behind that door on the old side a large fireplace and chimney with the inglenook behind the door, for easy access to old or modern working area, and either a large open fire, or perhaps an old iron range (Carron Ironworks). In the centre a large scrubbed wooden table with wood chairs around accessible to all, and someone like Gogo’s gran to act as housekeeper (a very respectable and responsible senior position, in case anyone thinks otherwise).

Fridges freezers etc along the wall opposite the door at the modern end, storerooms, larder with stone, slate or marble work surfaces, pantry along the same wall at the old-time end. :)

 

How would you see it ?

 

I should also say that this thread is to some extent a revival of the somewhat prosaically named ‘General discussion and queries’ thread, which contains some useful information for those who care to check it out.

 

OK, the kettle is on or maybe a cauldron of water is coming to the boil over the fire. It’s a bit hot in here, but it’s raining outside …sneaks into the modern area and mixes an iced drink. Old hypocrite. :)

 

Well I am settled, if no one else is.

 

Can anyone tell me about what I know as E numbers? The classified list of ingredients that are used in commercial foods. In GB and France ingredients are listed on the package, with all the E numbers for additional ingredients, flavourings, preservatives (that may be a dangerous word in some languages, I’m not sure) and the like. Some are OK, others not so good. There are books giving guidance on what is acceptable and what to avoid. Is this system universal, or just European? What is the US, Canadian, Australian, Chinese equivalent if any?

 

Another thing I wanted to ask about. I think the onion thread is great, just the type of info that is needed in this multi-racial kitchen. I have already, several times, found it a useful reference source. Do any of you feel that similar threads on such basics as, say, beans, cabbage, bottles sauces, or even potatoes would be worth thinking about? Or have these been done?

 

Suppose I had better get busy setting up the brewing equipment. That is a separate building.

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o.k. kid *lol* I will keep up this thread as a general thread not specifiably related to cooking and ( slash ) kitchens but skirting around the subjects.

Age My last birthday I turned 65 Your turn

us1.jpg

The wife and I

2005_0424newagain0011.jpg

my good life

"And you never did tell me where those super cartoon 'smileys' of yours come from."

It's an add on for Mozilla Firefox

Edited by Borg
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Well, 79 last birthday. I have kids nearly as old as you young feller - well er...NEARLY as old. At 65 I was still playing 5-aside football, Nearly 2 hours every week.

 

JIbert-do.jpg

 

Took a while to find this photo in your honour lol. I usually try to avoid cameras. Rugby Club I captained once .. I was the only one absent from the team photo. This one was taken last year at the annual do of the choir, bring and share meal - big log BBQ just by the photographers right shoulder. What the blazes have I got specs on for. I only wear them for reading. Must have preferred the folks opposite out of focus.

 

Her there laying down the law to someone off-camera is the boss....er...mebbe.

 

I've seen your second photo before. I have sandals exactly the same, but much bigger feet.

 

And the bike! My last was only a 500. Gave it to my son about 20 years back when I reckoned the safety margins were too risky. But he is above such things now. Big business exec, poor lad.

 

You remind me of an old pal of mine from way back, but can't place him for the mo.

 

Anyway. Hi there.

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I really came in to ask about subjects for new threads if anyone feels up to it...E numbers, beans, cabbage (!) maybe windfall apples? And bottled sauces! The ones you folks seem to treat as household names, but which I have never heard of. Spread a little info around. :D

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That shot with the bike was in 2005 just before the hurricane took it and my car away this is my new bike ( well new for me a 1994 vulcan 1500) and FINALLY someone has me beat in age. I am happy to loose that contest

0_0000saddlebags0001.jpg

Edited by Borg
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Right, there we are. I can call you "young fella" (make you feel good)and you can call me "kiddo" (cos that's what I do all the time)

 

Yes, it is intended to be a chat thread, but kitchen/food/drink orientated - as distinct from the bar which is more general for making whoopee (old fashioned phrase)

 

Like...we had a sort of chilli con carne today, and the thought connections went from spicy...curry...hotness of ditto (wife always says its hot when I think it is mild, and the French idea of 'curried' is a very very mild curry sauce, very nice but so so sophisticated)...to is there any way of measuring hotness of a dish? Is there a sort of dipstick that measures spicy hotness scientifically, rather than tasting which gives a very subjective indication, and what sort of 'hotness' is it? We say it is so hot it burns our mouth, but does it?

 

Any scientific minds out there? Does it turn red litmus blue?

 

Have curries been covered in this forum?

 

P.S. My first bike was a 500 Rudge, then I had a 600 Panther with side-car. Then it lapsed for a long time. I came back looking for economic transport, and found that while the bike has all sorts of inebriating qualities (and some excruciating discomforts - try 13 hours from LeHavre to Bordeaux in winter), economy is not one of them....so I bought a medium-sized van. I can sleep in it, move house with it, fetch wood for DIY in it...and it uses much the same amount of fuel as the 500, and the opportunities here to squeeze thro traffic are limited.

 

And, hey Borg, don't forget my cholesterol free sausages.

Edited by Bondbug
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Double posting. but old folks often mutter to themselves.

 

Sunday dinner today. Roast lamb with a leek and potato dish and the 5th reincarnation of the sauce from the chili con carne. That should be in 'left-overs' as a possible track record.

 

Do I recall from last year that people don't have Sunday dinners any more? Shame. High point of the eating week and often these days the only family meal of the week. What they are missing....which includes the uncomfortable full belly.

Edited by Bondbug
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This for Borg when he looks in. This was for a baked chicken from an Indian recipe but I thought you might like to try it as a marinade and ‘rub’ for your BBQ.

 

Marinade:

1” cube fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped

2 marge cloves garlic, peeled

6 tablespoons natural yoghurt

½ tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp salt

½ tsp cayenne pepper

freshly ground black pepper.

 

Ginger, garlic, half the yoghurst into blender. Blend to paste. Add turmeric, salt, cayenne, black pepper. Blend briefly to mix. Empty into a bowl (don’t wash out blender yet). Add rest of yoghurt and beat with a fork.

 

Marinade meat (chicken, skinned) for 2 hours unrefrigerated.

 

The ‘rub’

8oz onions

4 cloves garlic

1” cube ginger, as above

1oz blanched flaked almonds (or ground almonds)

2tsp cumin seeds

2 tsp coriander seeds

½ tsp turmeric

1 tablespoon ground paprika

¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper

1 tsp salt

8 tablespoons vegetable oil ‘less will do)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper

½ tsp garam masala if you have such!

 

0nions, ginger, garlic almonds into blender. Blend to paste. Add cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, cayenne, salt. Blend again to mix.

Heat oil in a large non-stick frying pan on medium flame. Add the paste. Fry stirring for about 8-9 mins. Add lemon juice, black pepper, garam masala. Mix. Leave to cool.

 

Sorry I can’t translate that into Key West ingredients.

 

Hopefully after all that you will enjoy it. If not, it is at least an experience.

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No Borg. It's from an Indian cook book and I don't think they had BBQs...it would be cooked in a Tandoor ..."a vat-shaped clay oven heated with charcoal or wood".

 

The paste should be fairly thick, rub it inside the bird as well as outside if you are doing a whole chicken.

 

WoW! How many BBQs have you now .. every guest has one of his own to use:)

 

P.S.

I see I can still edit this. A note for Gogo and others.

I discovered a Canadian cookbook here, tucked away in the wrong bookcase. "The Chatelaine Cookbook" 1965 edition. Something our daughter brought back after her first stay in Canada (Calgary). Does Chatelaine and the Chatelaine Institute still mean anything to you?

Edited by Bondbug
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No Borg. It's from an Indian cook book and I don't think they had BBQs...it would be cooked in a Tandoor ..."a vat-shaped clay oven heated with charcoal or wood".

Actually they do.Check this thread

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tandoor

 

The paste should be fairly thick, rub it inside the bird as well as outside if you are doing a whole chicken.

 

WoW! How many BBQs have you now .. every guest has one of his own to use:)

 

P.S.

I see I can still edit this. A note for Gogo and others.

I discovered a Canadian cookbook here, tucked away in the wrong bookcase. "The Chatelaine Cookbook" 1965 edition. Something our daughter brought back after her first stay in Canada (Calgary). Does Chatelaine and the Chatelaine Institute still mean anything to you?

http://www.antiqbook.com/boox/intern/20605.shtml

d030.gif

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What an awesome thread, idea and title. Our first Dark Kitchen sticky! :hugs: And now to bring something up...

I'd love to do Sunday Dinners...but dining rooms seem to come at a premium these days... all that space, and furniture :) I'm trying to get that same feeling of "connecting" while going out for breakfast...yeah it's not the same thing, but committing to something like this every Sunday feels good, and maybe I'll be able to upgrade to home cooked dinners ? We used to do the once a week thing, but our family's so spread out now, and it's hard getting all of us together.

 

The few times we do do it, it's always a party and especially enjoyable because in a room full of relatives, everyone looks like me!

 

 

:)

 

gogo

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'd love to do Sunday Dinners...but dining rooms seem to come at a premium these days... all that space, and furniture :D

I'm trying to get that same feeling of "connecting" while going out for breakfast...yeah it's not the same thing, but committing to something like this every Sunday feels good, and maybe I'll be able to upgrade to home cooked dinners ?

The few times we do do it, it's always a party and especially enjoyable because in a room full of relatives, everyone looks like me!

 

 

:viking:

 

gogo

Well you could always try a pot luck with your friends Gogo. Less work for you to get the meal together because everyone brings something. And a little less clean up too.

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  • 10 months later...

Struth! Pinned. And I never knew. Mind you it seems to have been the kiss of death....have to do something about that. What, by the way, does 'pinned' imply...to me it suggests dead flies or butterflies....raw, not cooked.

 

Well, the fire seems to have gone out...have to get it going again...where's the matches...that's better...and the rocking chair...no sign of dry rot or worms in the wood...OK.

 

One thing I have been wanting to ask about. Matter of terminology. The French use the word 'legumes' as a general overall term for vegetables. The boss found the word being used in an American publication for something quite different and more specific. So...what do you lot over there understand by the word 'legume'? And also, what does the French Canadian understand by it?

 

On the blether track, I have gone back to writing these posts with 'WordPad' then Cut & Paste. I got this lot written out earlier, then when I tried to post it the Internet connection had broken down.

I've been trying to follow the Tour de France on the PC with France2TV - 'streaming'. Broke down and cut off every 10 minutes with buffering problems. Furious. Wrote to Computing.net for advice and got very politely sorted out. Seems that up here in the mountain shack I am lucky to have any connection - branches on the line, sections of line on the ground, and at (if not outside) the distance limits for ADSL. So instead of swearing at the supplier I should count my blessings! So if the connection disconnects every hour or so...not to complain, tough (tant pis) I am lucky to have anything.

 

Oh, and thanks Borg for the link for Chatelaine cookbook, which I have just found. I'll try it in a sec. :P

 

 

What! $5! Try this link Borg; March this year; interesting background:

http://curiousdomestic.wordpress.com/2009/...laine-cookbook/

Edited by Bondbug
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One thing I have been wanting to ask about. Matter of terminology. The French use the word 'legumes' as a general overall term for vegetables. The boss found the word being used in an American publication for something quite different and more specific. So...what do you lot over there understand by the word 'legume'? And also, what does the French Canadian understand by it?

Hey Bondbug, long time not see post. Legumes here in the states isn't used much but is used to refer to beans such as kidney, black or any bean that you would bake (peanuts fall into this category too).

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Need someone to come in and cheer me up. I have been looking at a few recent threads, and I get the impression this forum has lost some of its international flavour and become almost entirely north american. To some extent it is understandable you have similar culture and products, and it is easier when other people understand your vocabulary.

 

I was looking at the thread on forgotten/lost food and drinks and there was not a single product mentioned that I had ever heard of, except perhaps Timotheus brief note from Holland. Not just a generation gap (or two or three) but lots and lots of ocean. My own list would have been meaningless to folks in North America.

 

I have spent much of my time in here asking for explanation of american terms, and there used to be a fairly lively international involvement discussing such things, if I remember rightly, as onions and cheeses and salsa's - types and names in various parts of the world. I would have expected some serious contribution from northern GB in Gogo's "Sheppards Pie" thread. That is a recipe that should have been contributed to the thread on 'left-overs', together with "Bubble and Squeak" - two traditional left-overs dishes here.

 

Has membership changed to such an extent in the year (almost) I have been away - or to be precise, have not posted

 

Have I got the wrong impression?

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I have to leap in drooling here! Sunday Lunch is a must for us here....as many Sundays as I can ,manage!...kids, mates, family...anyone who is around lol gets to eat, stir, poke meat and have a few drinkies. Don't worry about the space gogo I live in the smallest house ever and I just serve the kids first, clear away then start again, it's kind of fun the kids run off to watch dvd's, play, fight etc then drift in and out making us all giggle!

 

Oh Bondbug, Hendersons Relish....yummy, in shepherd's pie, on cheese on toast, on loads of things! deeeelicious! The kids have a mad love of reggae reggae sauce here, my eldest adds it to his shepherd's pie, hehe his signature dish that he loves creating.....friends who come over are always invited by him to have him cook them some and I have been sent out twice for mince LOL

 

Ahh food threads, why do I read them so late at night!...me thinks a bacon butty with a good lashing of English mustard is in order! :drinks:

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Et voila! Cured in a oner. Thanks Claire.

 

I must be older than I thought. What the §*!* is reggae reggae sauce?

 

Daddy's I remember. Harrison's was/is perhaps more regional? But perhaps, now that I know that all is not N.American, I should put these thoughts in the right thread. I have been away from GB 13 years now and some things may still be available, I dont know.

 

Did Shepherds Pie and Bubble & Squeak ever get added to the thread (yours?) on left-overs, which seemed to become a discussion on what to do with left-over bits of pizza.

 

Yep Sunday dinner tomorrow - Viv"s weekly special. Always a roast - whatever is on special offer at the local hypermarket...lamb tomorrow. Always just for the two of us nowadays. Always with something better than plonk, though I suppose it should be a pint of Real Ale. And my kid's, when I was young enough to still have kids at home, helped dad with the washing up.....or else. Real nasty dad I was.

 

But all still on speaking terms. All turned up for my 80th in Sussex. The first time all my 6 kids, different mothers, had ever been together. So a special occasion.

 

Has anyone thought of publishing Gogo's recipe finding stories as a special package?

 

And now I know you are still here, there is another little thread I might start. :Just_Cuz_21:

 

I think we need some emoticons with chef's hats for this forum.

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And my kid's, when I was young enough to still have kids at home, helped dad with the washing up.....or else. Real nasty dad I was.

haha Bond, it was the same at our house!...3 girls til I was 12(got a little bro then and he had to help when he was big enough) and it was wash, dry or put away...or else LOL, my kids are useless though! They asked me in horror when my dishwasher packed upp what was going to happen to the dirty dishes....boys eh! I have tried to get them to help but they just cause havok and soak the kitchen! You weren't nasty, I should borrow you to train my monkies!

 

Reggae Reggae sause was made by a guy called Levi roots, I think he first presented it on that show Dragons Den...here's a linky for you Reggae Sauce quite nice and hot n spicey!

 

Oooh I am drooling at the thought of your roast lamb sunday lunch tomorrow! Can't beat a leg o lamb! I'm off out for dinner very soon (10 mins lol) so I will come back to this later but I couldn't resist saying hi to you Bond....I want to come to your 81st and chat about food and beer with you!

 

:D be back later and always great to hear from you!

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Reggae Reggae sause was made by a guy called Levi roots, I think he first presented it on that show Dragons Den...here's a linky for you Reggae Sauce quite nice and hot n spicey!

 

I wouldn't dare say it is better than Gogo's special spicy sauce (how would I know anyway, I doubt if I would find either here), but certainly yours has more charisma.

 

Oooh I am drooling at the thought of your roast lamb sunday lunch tomorrow! Can't beat a leg o lamb!

 

So am I. We are just winding up to it. Glass of white wine in hand; melon waiting, and I can smell the roast. Viv, bless her, found this special offer in the hypermarket at, she thought, 6.95euros/kg (the equivalent of under £5/kg before the pound went off) - got to the check-out and paid 6.95.....for the 2kg joint. Nuff said. Pay, prepare, cook and enjoy...enough for about 3 meals for the two of us.

 

....I want to come to your 81st and chat about food and beer with you!

 

Well this one was in Selsey, so if the next is there you are invited. Having said which - I have forgotten where you are! I have Yorks in mind, or was that Pev, and I remember one or other of you is no longer there. Senile decay is a terrible thing. :BlobRed:

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Well this one was in Selsey, so if the next is there you are invited. Having said which - I have forgotten where you are! I have Yorks in mind, or was that Pev, and I remember one or other of you is no longer there. Senile decay is a terrible thing. :)

 

I am in Sheffield not so far! ;) Pev left Yorkshire I think. I would be honoured to attend even if I invited myself :)

 

I'd be more than happy to send you some reggae reggae sauce! haha it goes oddly with so many things! pm me seriously if you want a bottle! haha surely customs can't stop sauce...can they:)

 

 

Our meal on Saturday was lovely!..I had aspargus to start with a propr poached egg and parmesan (I can't poach eggs so if anyone has a tip or 3 hundred make a thread!) then veal with veggies! the veal was ok not the best but ok :D

 

But I am hijacking your thread....sauces...ahh daddies hahah remember that stuff very crazy-looking and sharp...not had it for years wonder if they have made it sweeter! I swear sauces are sweetened up these days!

 

 

Chefs emoticons hahah yeah Bond we should have some...pinches gogo and the team :P:

Edited by erialc
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