Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 Have a friend coming to visit next week - we're going to raid every Asian grocery store that we can find (or at least remember where they all are). We've done Top Ten Pantry item lists before ... what would be your Top Ten Asian Pantry items? MFJ Our gods are dead. Ancient Klingon warriors slew them a millennia ago. They were more trouble than they were worth. ~Worf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 F. Jewett wrote: >Have a friend coming to visit next week - we're going to raid every Asian >grocery store that we can find (or at least remember where they all are). > >We've done Top Ten Pantry item lists before ... what would be your Top Ten >Asian Pantry items? > > > >MFJ >Our gods are dead. Ancient Klingon warriors slew them a millennia ago. > They were more trouble than they were worth. ~Worf > I am off to the Ko Kos market today. I am not familiar with this top ten pantry thing, but I'll give it a whirl. No ranking here, just the flow off the frothy top of mehead. It would be different if I could include refrigerated items. 1. Dried anchovies 2. Dried shitake mushrooms 3. Dried nori 4. Dried wakame 5. Fermented shrimp paste 6. Oolong tea 7. Wasabi 8. Shoyu 9. Rice wine vinegar 10. Tamarind Now, I have a question about sushi. NT doesn't recommend raw fish, only fermented because of parasites. But I love my sushi, even as a vegan I longed for tender bits of it so succulent yummy... Anyway, if I buy frozen yellow fin and octopus, isn't that much the same as in NT, where SF says freeze the meat for so many days to kill pathogens? I realize there are worm issues with raw fish, but does freezing take care of these problems? I have never gotten ill eating sushi. Au contraire, I find it gives me life and energy and libido like nothing else. I'm gonna buy me some raw fish! ~ Deanna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 At 10:27 AM 12/30/04 -0600, you wrote: >I am off to the Ko Kos market today. I am not familiar with this top >ten pantry thing, but I'll give it a whirl. No ranking here, just the >flow off the frothy top of mehead. It would be different if I could >include refrigerated items. Oh no, I didn't mean " pantry " in terms of a limitation. By all means include refrigerated items. > >1. Dried anchovies >2. Dried shitake mushrooms >3. Dried nori >4. Dried wakame >5. Fermented shrimp paste >6. Oolong tea >7. Wasabi >8. Shoyu >9. Rice wine vinegar >10. Tamarind Anchovies is DEFINITELY a new thing on my list, but it's a no-brainer after all that talk of fried dried! I go also with dried mushrooms, nori, shrimp paste, wasabi, shoyu. Have to add coconut milk, though. > >Now, I have a question about sushi. NT doesn't recommend raw fish, only >fermented because of parasites. But I love my sushi, even as a vegan I >longed for tender bits of it so succulent yummy... Anyway, if I buy >frozen yellow fin and octopus, isn't that much the same as in NT, where >SF says freeze the meat for so many days to kill pathogens? I realize >there are worm issues with raw fish, but does freezing take care of >these problems? I have never gotten ill eating sushi. Au contraire, I >find it gives me life and energy and libido like nothing else. > >I'm gonna buy me some raw fish! Raw and wriggling, huh? I thought the freezing concept was the same for fish v. meat, but that's just me. The last time I had sushi or sashimi was back when I couldn't get over the ick factor of " OMG, RAW?????!!!! " I need to try it again. Hmmmmm ... I think another friend is going to get a phone call ... " Hey, sweetness, let's go out for sushi! " MFJ Once, poets were magicians. Poets were strong, stronger than warriors or kings - stronger than old hapless gods. And they will be strong once again. ~Greg Bear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 -----Original Message----- From: F. Jewett >>Have a friend coming to visit next week - we're going to raid every Asian >>grocery store that we can find (or at least remember where they all are). >>We've done Top Ten Pantry item lists before ... what would be your Top Ten >>Asian Pantry items? Connie's top ten list for the Asian grocery: 1. Rice flour 2. Sweet rice flour 3. Tapioca starch 4. Potato starch 5. yam flour or starch for breading & frying things 6. rice wrappers for making dumplings 7. sea weeds of various kinds 8. fish sauce (the kind made with anchovies) 9. Panang, Green, red and yellow curries (canned) 10. fresh vegetables and fruits that are not common or not fresh in regular grocery OK, so I can't get out of there with only 10 items. ;-) 11. Coconut frozen dessert bars (like a popsicle or ice cream bar on a stick, eat it immediately) 12. spring roll sauce for dipping those home made dumplings 13. spices like peppercorns and white pepper 14. coconut milk is cheap 15. exercise balls for hands 16. Kwan Yin figurine 17. agar (in solid form) exact thing as the crystal deodorant stones sold in hfs. They bake with this. 18. shoes - I like those cotton Jane shoes. 19. Teas 20. medicinal herbs (My family has celiac so we depend on all these flours for our desserts.) Have fun shopping! My Asian store is really close to my house and I have some Asian employees. You know, Chinese New year is coming soon. Don't forget to look at the Chinese new year stuff if it is out. Connie Bernard http://www.PandoraPads.com Organic Cotton Feminine Pads, Tampons, Nursing Pads, Natural Progesterone Cream, and Children's Supplements. On-line Discount Voucher: nn242g223 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 >Have a friend coming to visit next week - we're going to raid every Asian >grocery store that we can find (or at least remember where they all are). > >We've done Top Ten Pantry item lists before ... what would be your Top Ten >Asian Pantry items? Korean ribs! They are basically ribs sliced across the bone into little thin slices. You just sprinkle some salt/pepper on them and broil (or marinate them if you want to be fancy). I haven't met anyone who can resist them. Fresh crab: our Asian stores have a live fish/crab/clam tank. They often have sashimi ready to eat too, and stuff like fried chicken feet, but I haven't tried those because of the gluten potential (they tend to put soy sauce on everything). Looks wonderful though. OK, well those aren't " pantry " items. The pantry items I do get there are: 1. Dried seaweed 2. Dried anchovies 3. Yam or bean noodles 4. Rice paper wrappers 5. Potato, tapioca, and rice flour. 6. Kimchi fixin's (napa, red pepper powder, salted shrimp) 7. Alternate produce (good chestnuts, persimmons) Coconut ice cream is wonderful, and they have stuff I haven't tried (like " 1,000 year old eggs " ) and sometimes canned grubs or bugs. Heidi Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 and they have stuff I > haven't tried (like " 1,000 year old eggs " ) and sometimes > canned grubs or bugs. > > > Heidi Jean I have a recipe for " 1,000 year old eggs " which, if I remember correctly, was hard-boiled eggs with cracked shells soaked in either tea or soy sauce (it has been quite a while since I made them - preGF) I was not impressed enough to repeat the experiment. But they were pretty! I like the acorn flour (I use it in cornbread and millet muffins - it makes the bread very dark brown - makes me wonder about the " brown bread " that European peasants lived on, especially with the added note that oaks were sacred all over forested Northern Europe (kinda hard to grow grains in the forest....) I'm so impressed with the variety of frozen fish and shell fish at my local Korean market. I just tried some " snack " seaweed - really good, but salty. Connie H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 At 08:14 PM 12/30/04 -0000, you wrote: >I have a recipe for " 1,000 year old eggs " which, if I remember >correctly, was hard-boiled eggs with cracked shells soaked in either >tea or soy sauce (it has been quite a while since I made them - >preGF) I was not impressed enough to repeat the experiment. But >they were pretty! I've made those before - soaked in tea. I wouldn't call them pretty, but they were interesting (I never managed to get the truly fine lines for the presentation, there was always some blurring of color). They tasted really nice, though - best with a fermented black bean/garlic dipping sauce. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!! MFJ Our gods are dead. Ancient Klingon warriors slew them a millennia ago. They were more trouble than they were worth. ~Worf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 Just wanted to jump in to say that true Century eggs are duck eggs treated with ammonia and then " baked " in hot ashes. The eggs you're describing are tea eggs and tend to be chicken eggs, with a more mild flavor. Both are good with some soy sauce or mixed into porridge, as Century eggs are often eaten. Time for me to go back to my college apps... -Nina > >I have a recipe for " 1,000 year old eggs " which, if I remember > >correctly, was hard-boiled eggs with cracked shells soaked in either > >tea or soy sauce (it has been quite a while since I made them - > >preGF) I was not impressed enough to repeat the experiment. But > >they were pretty! > > > I've made those before - soaked in tea. I wouldn't call them pretty, > but they were interesting (I never managed to get the truly fine lines for > the presentation, there was always some blurring of color). They tasted > really nice, though - best with a fermented black bean/garlic dipping > sauce. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!! > > > > > > MFJ > Our gods are dead. Ancient Klingon warriors slew them a millennia ago. > They were more trouble than they were worth. ~Worf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 I am a big fan of Asian cooking. There are many different cultures to consider, Japan, Korea, China and Thia. I have a great little market close by that I frequent. The following are must have's. Here's my top 10: 1. Kim Chee ingriedents 2. High quality toasted sesame oil and sesame seeds 3. Tamari 4. Miso 5. Bonita flakes - for making miso soup 6. Wakame - seaweed for miso and sauerkruat 7. Nori - sheets 8. Flying fish roe 9. Soba and rice noodles 10. Frozen mackerel and eel I LOVE sushi. So I get all my sushi stuff there. Asian food can be quite healthy and very nourishing. > Have a friend coming to visit next week - we're going to raid every Asian > grocery store that we can find (or at least remember where they all are). > > We've done Top Ten Pantry item lists before ... what would be your Top Ten > Asian Pantry items? > > > > MFJ > Our gods are dead. Ancient Klingon warriors slew them a millennia ago. > They were more trouble than they were worth. ~Worf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 [Deanna] High quality toasted sesame oil and sesame seeds [MAP] I'd say get the non-toasted sesame seeds for greater flexibility and control and toast them yourself when you want them that way. Who knows what toasting process was used commercially? Also, in the spirit of NT, you can germinate them (if they're not toasted) by soaking in plain water before proceeding with whatever use you have. Generally speaking, brown (not black or white) sesame seeds are the best bet. Hmm, I wasn't aware that the oil was toasted or that such an option is available? Seems odd to me. Never thought about it. As far as the folks who listed sea veggies like wakame, I hasten to remind you that you can get *much* higher quality sea veggies from (NT recommended and NN praised)Larch Hanson in Maine (http://www.alcasoft.com/seaweed/) instead of buying them from Asian shops. They are wild and uber-organic; the stuff in Asian stores is probably from sea veggie farms in Asia of questionable ecological virtue. They even cost less than the stuff in the Asian stores!!! Talk about one of the things in the universe that is truly right! You can also feel good about supporting small-scale, family-based, artisanal nonpareil, and (if you live in the US) bioregional food production in harmony with WAPF philosophy. As far as the preserved duck eggs, I've eaten a lot of them, the flavor is reasonably nice, and they can be stored at room temp for a long time, so they're great as a convenience food you can grab on the go when you're in a bind... I agree with Deanna about the tamarind!! That stuff is amazing, and keeps for many months in room temp " pantry " storage. Get the blocks of pressed stuff, not the paste or the dried-in-the-pod whole ones. I absolutely always have tamarind on hand! My addition to the (East) Asian store shopping list would be *fresh young coconuts* if they're available (don't expect them in Korean/Japanese shops, but definitely Vietnamese, Thai, maybe Chinese, Indonesian). That and frozen small fish would probably be my top 2 most valuable East Asian store items, things that are simply not available otherwise in general and are tremendously high-quality foods. More stuff: fresh lemongrass ginger (typically fresher/better/cheaper than other sources) frozen turmeric roots (if you're lucky) frozen baby octopus rice vinegar dried and/or frozen lychees (litchis), longans perilla/sesame leaves (shiso) umeboshi perilla seeds fenugreek seeds star anise large brown cardamom pods licorice root slices dull brown, large cinnamon bark (the milder kind) [Connie] agar (in solid form) exact thing as the crystal deodorant stones sold in hfs. They bake with this. [MAP] Hmm, that's interesting. I thought agar was some kind of polysaccharide thickener or something, don't know much about it, but I do use those " Thai deodorant stone " type thingies from a HFS. Are you saying I could buy agar from an Asian shop and use it instead? I'm having trouble imagining how those thingies could possibly be used in cooking! I hate it when those damn things fall and break because they get too sharp to use without cutting yourself, so you have to throw them away! At least the Now brand ones are very cheap. Mike SE Pennsylvania The best way to predict the future is to invent it. --Alan Kay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 > 8. Flying fish roe Is that what its called during food fights? Darrell -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.298 / Virus Database: 265.6.7 - Release Date: 12/30/2004 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 >[Deanna] High quality toasted sesame oil and sesame seeds > >[MAP] I'd say get the non-toasted sesame seeds for greater >flexibility and control and toast them yourself when you want them >that way. > [Deanna] Uh, dahlink, that is not my quote. Now while my list was missing miso and frozen fish, it didn't have any stinking sesame seeds. However, I do use raw seeds in kimchi. I agree that toasting seeds for sushi is better done immediately prior to use, otherwise they might go rancid being toasted and sitting on a shelf for months. I only spell this out for your edification and future care in quoting others. Here was my halfway decent list for your information. 1. Dried anchovies 2. Dried shitake mushrooms 3. Dried nori 4. Dried wakame 5. Fermented shrimp paste 6. Oolong tea 7. Wasabi 8. Shoyu 9. Rice wine vinegar 10. Tamarind ~ Deanna, spinning faster since the tsunami Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 <My addition to the (East) Asian store shopping list would be *fresh young coconuts* if they're available (don't expect them in Korean/Japanese shops, but definitely Vietnamese, Thai, maybe Chinese, Indonesian).> I wish I could recall where I read about these coconuts and the exact details, but if you are buying Asian coconuts, you might want to do some research on the kind of cling-wrap they usually come in. The stuff is either highly toxic or carcinogenic and supposedly able to penetrate the hard outer shell. Sorry to be so vague, but since I don't buy coconuts (I can get the cream made fresh where I am)I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to this report. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Mike- >but I >do use those " Thai deodorant stone " type thingies from a HFS. Inasmuch as those stones are made of alum and alum contains aluminum, I'd recommend against using them. - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Mike wrote: >>but I >>do use those " Thai deodorant stone " type thingies from a HFS. wrote: >Inasmuch as those stones are made of alum and alum contains aluminum, I'd >recommend against using them. Not necessarily. This is a popular myth. http://www.pandorapads.com/thai_deodorant_stick.htm (From the above source.) Alum vs. Aluminum THAI Crystal Deodorants are made of potassium alum. THAI deodorants are a PURE and SAFE product made without the addition of chemicals, fragrances, oils or alcohol. The chemical formula for potassium alum is K2SO4Al2(SO4)324H20. Potassium alum is a colorless substance that forms octahedral or cubic crystals. Bauxite is the ore from which alum is drawn. It is formed by the rapid weathering of granite rocks in warm, humid climates and can be purified and converted directly into alum. Potassium alum is soluble in seven times its weight of water at room temperature and is very soluble in hot water. When crystalline potassium alum is heated, some of the water of hydration becomes chemically separated, and the partly dehydrated salt dissolves in this water, so that the alum appears to melt at about 90 degrees C (approx. 392 degrees F), potassium alum swells up, loses all water, and becomes a basic salt called burn alum. Potassium alum has a density of 1.725. Alum's are used for a variety of uses including as a powerful astringent. Very soluble aluminum compounds, such as aluminum chlorhydrate or aluminum zirconium, are commonly used in antiperspirant and readily absorbed. Once in the body, the aluminum portion of the molecule ionizes, forming free or radical aluminum (Al+++). This passes freely across cell membranes, and forms a physical plug, that when dissolved is selectively absorbed by the liver, kidney, brain, cartilage and bone marrow. It is this concentration of aluminum that has been the source of concern in the medical community and has prompted the research being done on ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE and BREAST CANCER victims. Potassium alum molecules have a negative ionic charge, making it unable to pass through the cell wall. THEY ARE NOT ABSORBED. This is why THAI deodorants are safe to use and will not cause high levels of ALUMINUM in your system. ALUM and ALUMINUM are two different substances, with distinct chemical signatures. They possess different chemical properties which create different chemical attributes. We hope this information helps to dispel some of the misunderstandings about ALUM and puts your mind at ease about the safety of alum deodorant products. Reference source: Microsoft® Encarta® 96 Encyclopedia©1995 Also, just for reference, waste management engineers use alum powder to prevent the growth of bacteria which causes odors in sewage treatment plants. Connie Bernard http://www.PandoraPads.com Organic Cotton Feminine Pads, Tampons, Nursing Pads, Natural Progesterone Cream, and Children's Supplements. On-line Discount Voucher: nn242g223 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 4, 2005 Report Share Posted January 4, 2005 Connie- >Potassium alum molecules have a negative ionic charge, making it unable to >pass through the cell wall. THEY ARE NOT ABSORBED. This is why THAI >deodorants are safe to use and will not cause high levels of ALUMINUM in >your system. ALUM and ALUMINUM are two different substances, with distinct >chemical signatures. They possess different chemical properties which >create different chemical attributes. I don't have the requisite biochemistry to know for sure whether this is true, but it sounds a bit voodoo to me, and I certainly wouldn't trust the health of my brain to the idea that (a) aluminum from alum can't be absorbed by individual cells, and ( it would only be harmful if absorbed by individual cells but is totally innocuous floating around between cells. - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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