Home Made Taco Shells

Working with 6 tortillas at a time, wrap in a barely damp cloth or paper towel and microwave on High until steamed, about 30 seconds. Lay the tortillas on a clean work surface and coat both sides with cooking spray. Then carefully drape each tortilla over two bars of the oven rack. Bake at 375°F until crispy, 7 to 10 minutes. Source: Eating Well

No longer any need to buy box of 8 or 12 already premade.

Spices can be pressed into uncooked shell before microwave/baking.

Taj

I do not know how many Indian restaurants have opened and closed in greater Portland since I started working here 36 years ago. Some are still around for reasons that escape me. When visitors from out of town ask about Indian restaurants I tell them that my fantasy is that a converted milk truck leaves Boston every Monday morning filled with a mother sauce that tastes very much likes curry powder. The truck backs up to the kitchens of the Indian restaurants in Portland and delivers the same sauce to all. The restaurants in turn serves all their dishes covered with this same sauce.  Gross exaggeration to be sure but I challenge anybody to visit the current Indian restaurants blindfolded and correctly pick the restaurant based on the taste of the food. Now good news. Taj, a new Indian restaurant in South Portland, seems to be an exciting change to the above scenario. The menu is the first thing that grabbed my eye. Clearly a variety of offerings not usually seen in current Indian restaurants. For example, Onion Mirchi Bajji (Hot Green Pepper mixed with Ckickpea Flour, fried, and stuffed with Onions in Lime Juicee), Uthappam-Onin/Masala/Veg (Indian Style Rice & Lentil Pancake with onions,potatoes,veg. chili & cilantro toppings) & Green Chicken (freshly chopped gongura with chicken in sauce). Do not confuse this latter dish with Thai Green Chicken Curry. Gongura is a green sorrel that is frequently used in South Indian cooking. A truly different taste.

Things I like in addition to the taste of the food. Menu is partially divided into South & North Indain recipes. Dishes are not watered down  because they are worried that people will find food too spicy. One interesting note. The menu describes the restaurant as serving Indian & Indo Chinese Cuisine. The term Indo Chinese  refers to dishes that are a fusion of Chinese and Indian. I think a more descriptive term is Chindian but it is commonly referred to as Indo Chinese. The menu does have a separate group of offerings labelled Indo Chinese which includes 3 offerings (fried rice, hakka noodles & taj szechwan rice). I tried the Taj Schezwan Rice and would not order it again. I look forward to trying the Hakka Noodles. Interestingly there are a number of other Chindian recipes that are not included as Indo Chinese on the menu (Gobi 65, Gobi Manchurian and Chicken Manchurian).. Give it a try if you like Indian. It is clear that the dishes are not from a converted milk truck.

Take It With a Grain of Salt

An incresing number of restaurants are taking the salt shaker off the table. It seems that it angers the chef when the person eating the food determines how salty they prefer the food. Fine, then let the chef pay the bill when I find that I would prefer additional salt when there is none available. As an aside, I have never been refused when I have asked for salt to be delivered to the table. Why the charade?

Spread

Spread is a relatively new restaurant in Portland. Have been there twice. Menu is divided into 3 categories: spreads, small plates & large plates. Huge discrepancy between the three. Spreads and small plates have been very impressive including smoked trout with capers(spread) and Wagu beef sliders (small plate). Large plates were very disappointing including Buttermilk fried Cornish Hen & Pan Seared NY Strip. The steak was noticeably smaller than other strips I have  had in Portland restaurants and certainy overpriced at $28 for this size. Confusing to say the least. Not inclined to go back anytime in near future.

A Hot Dog With Your Pizza?

When I used to turn my nose up at a food when I was a child, my father liked to break the food down into separate parts and, after pointing out that I liked the separate parts, would conclude I should like the combination. For example, I like vinegar (love it on french fries) and I like cabbage (always have cabbage salad with baked beans) therefore I should like sauerkraut which I dislike. This image reminded me of those conversations.


While I love pizza and hot dogs, this combo does nothing for me. At this point, you have to go to a Pizza Hut in England to buy it.

Heads Left On

Very difficult to find shrimp with heads left on. Last week ran into them in the Hong Kong market on Congress St. in Portland. Essential for Salt & Pepper shrimp recipe. Yes, you eats the heads. No different from crawdads in Louisiana where you suck the heads and pinch the tails. Thanh Thanh II, a Vietnamese restaurant in Portland, originally had Salt & Pepper shrimp on their menu with heads left on but switched over to headless shrimp when customers complained about the heads.See video below for preparation of Salt & Pepper shrimp by Ming Tsai.
  http://videos.howstuffworks.com/ming-east-west/4677-salt-and-pepper-shrimp-video.htm

Are You a Cooking Whiz?

Are You a Cooking Whiz?