Friday, June 9, 2017

Crossroads: When Cultures Collide in Food

If Mexican tacos can encase Japanese sushi (see Takumi Taco), then Somali chickpea pancakes can withstand a good Irish poached salmon topping. Why not? Cultures aren’t clashing with these foods. OK, there are haters out there, but we stand on the side of wide-reaching acceptance on any interracial marriage meal. We reserve judgement until we’ve taken a bite. Or nine.

Admittedly, sometimes the pairing doesn’t work or it’s not done right. Other times one dish is only slightly influenced by another culture. A Columbian arepa made from quinoa can hold arugula. That’s not necessarily “authentic.” But the tweaks work when Palenque does it.

Dishes made from grandma back in the Old Country — where ever that country is — sometimes can’t be made authentic. The ingredients aren’t available. So cooks do what countless others are doing, and use local ingredients. Grandma may smack these cooks on the head for the sacrilege, but she doesn’t have to know. Or maybe, errrm, she can’t know. (Bless you, Nana!)

For our first exploration into this crossroads of cuisine, we hit Madison Square Eats, a pop-up food market featuring more than 20 of New York City’s best restaurants and food innovators.

Check out how these eateries combine cuisines:

Coney Shack

Starting with Southeast Asian-inspired tacos, two American-born cousins incorporate the food of their parents, who are ethnic Chinese via Vietnam.

  • Fish Taco: Beer-battered crunchy basa, shredded cabbage, sliced red onions, with lemongrass aioli, cilantro, and scallions.
  • Holy Phuc! Dog: Beer-battered crunchy fish on top of a hot dog, with a Mexican four-cheese blend, pickled red onions, scallion oil, and tomato-basil Creole sauce with a blow-torch finish to meld the flavors together. (It’s a crazy-as-phuc combo.)

Arancini Bros

Here, the old country is Sicily, where arancini (ah-rahn-chee-nee) are a handheld street food made with arborio rice and a filling in the middle. The fundamental ingredient is the rice. The filling, however, can be flexible. The classic filling is ragu with mozzarella. Then there are these variations:

  • Buffalo Ball: Spicy chicken and gorgonzola cheese.
  • Mac and Cheese Ball
  • Pizza Ball: Marinara, mozzarella, and fresh basil.

Bolivian Llama Party

This eatery offers Bolivian-American food. But don’t call them fusion.

  • Cholas: Slow-roasted brisket or pork, locoto hot peppers, bacon, hibiscus onions, carrots, cheese, and parsley on a toasted bun.
  • Papitas:  cilantro sauce, fish oil, white wine vinegar, Parmesan.
  • SalteƱas: Traditional sweet chile dough, but there aren’t potatoes and olives inside. Instead, there’s a hard-boiled egg in a savory stew.

KBBQ by Korilla

Expect Korean cuisine distilled for the mass market, a little bit McDonald’s style.

  • Rice Bowl: It’s essentially bibimbap, a traditional Korean dish meaning “mixed food.” You choose the protein (bulgogi, a Korean-style ribeye; gochujang-marinated pork shoulder or chicken; or ginger-scallion-glazed tofu), sticky or purple rice, up to three vegetables, and one of six Korean-style sauces.
  • Korean Sausage: Pork shoulder, gochujang, Korean red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger, salt, and black pepper.

Amy Sowder is the assistant editor at Chowhound in New York City. She loves cheesy things, especially toasties and puns. She’s trying to like mushrooms. Her running habit is the excuse for her gelato passion. Or is it the other way around? Follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and her blog, What Do I Eat Now. Learn more at AmySowder.com.



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The Basics: How to Make a Bacon Cheeseburger

It might sound like no big deal, but if you’ve never made your own bacon cheeseburger, you can benefit from a few tips. Your first bacon-cheeseburger will go from edible to amazeballs when you follow these basic instructions. We tossed out exact measurements and complicated techniques to provide you a method we call recipe-free cooking.

To make a burger, you’ll need:

  • a frying pan
  • a knife
  • a spatula
  • two slices of bacon
  • 4 ounces of lean ground beef (or whatever looks good to you)
  • salt and pepper
  • toppings and condiments of your choice (e.g., onion, lettuce, tomato, pickle, mustard, mayo, ketchup)
  • one hamburger bun
  • two slices of your favorite cheese
  1. Heat the frying pan over medium heat on the stovetop. Add the bacon to the pan.
  2. Form the ground beef into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. Don’t knead it too much, or the meat will toughen up. Season both sides with salt and pepper, and press the seasonings in with your hands.
  3. Spread the condiments on the bun (you can toast the bun first if you want), and slice the burger toppings.
  4. Cook the bacon until it’s crispy and golden, about four minutes; flip and cook a few minutes more on the other side. Remove the bacon from the pan.
  5. Keep the pan over medium heat and place the hamburger patty in the hot bacon grease. Don’t press the burger down, or you may cause it to lose juice. Cook undisturbed for about four minutes on each side for medium.
  6. A minute or two before you’re finished cooking the second side, lay two slices of cheese on top of the burger to melt.
  7. Place the burger on the bun, top with bacon and other fixin’s, and serve.

These are a few of our favorite burgers that have a little more to them, instructions-wise:

1. Juicy Lucy Burger (a.k.a. Jucy Lucy)

Chowhound

Anything stuffed with cheese is wonderful. But a juicy burger filled with oozy, gooey cheese in the middle of the beef patty is out of this world. Get our Juicy Lucy Burger recipe.

2. Kimchi Chicken Burgers

Chowhound

The acidic tang of the kimchi cabbage slaw coupled with the spicy, creamy mayonnaise means this chicken burger is anything but boring. Get our Kimchi Chicken Burgers recipe.

3. Middle Eastern Lamb Burgers

Chowhound

Some people are afraid the lamb meat flavor will be too gamey. It’s not, especially when it’s mixed with all these herbs and spices and topped with this crunchy, creamy sauce. Get our Middle Eastern Lamb Burgers recipe.



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CBD Infused Flavored Energy Waters

The company will be producing multiple flavors that will appeal to a vast consumer market.

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Sour Cream Pound Cake

Sour Cream Pound Cake
With sour cream to promote exceptional browning, and a blend of butter and coconut oil for a rich crumb that melts on the tongue, this pound cake deviates from the traditional formula in a most delicious way. Get Recipe!


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Ciao Bella Partners With Diageo

Ciao Bella and Baileys continue to collaborate and plan to launch new flavors in the future.

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Three New Kettle Brand Flavors

The new chip varieties like other Kettle Brand chips are Non-GMO Project Verified and Gluten-Free Certified.

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Sales of Pasta Fall 2%

While Italians still consume the biggest volume of pasta per person globally, they are cutting back on this traditional staple.

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Roha Group Appoints New Leadership

Ducroux brings in the expertise to meet these challenges, through a proven track record and hands-on experience in acquisitions, integrations, operational leadership, transversal management and business development.

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