Go Ahead, Maki My Day!!!

One of the problems associated with my willful exile here in Amarillo is the lack of quality in dining out. It isn't as though there's not a good variety of genres to patronize, rather there seems to be a general lack of concern for the product being served. It comes across as though the people here don't expect anything more than "fair to middlin'" so why should a restaurateur strive to serve a quality product for the generous remuneration expected. I know i'm showing a picture of a Maki Roll, but this is my general impression of most of the restaurants in town. Don't even get me started on steak. For a town billed as the "Beef Capital of America", there sure seems to be one hell of a lot they could learn from the Pappas Brothers in Dallas.
What's that idiom, "When in Rome, do as the Romans"??? I'm here to tell you that is flawed logic when it comes to tolerating some of the Honorable Mentions left over from the Jr High Science Fair that pass for restaurant fare. I mean, one would think a national chain would be the same no matter what town it's located in. I'm here to tell you that other than the peanuts on the floor, there is no similarity and when i Pei for chinese, i want rice noodles not tapioca. Though there are a couple of bright spots, but as you might expect they aren't national chains either. These are places that seem to care about what they turn out. If you want a Burger in Amarillo, there is only one place to go; Cowboy Gelato. A "Spaghetti Western" inspired burger joint that is like Sergio Leone himself, visionary in scope. I highly recommend the "Tucco"...just sayin. For good Mexican food i like, El Bracero. Other than that, save your money for when you get to where you're going and settle for something from the corner Valero station in the meantime.

Okay, so what does all this have to do with Maki Rolls?? Good question. I'm not entirely sure. I have tried them at most all of the Asian inspired restaurants here and honestly i wouldn't pay a dime a piece for any of theirs. So, what does this do for a guy with a craving for it?? Shut up or Make it Yourself!!! So, i made my own. Naturally!!! I mean what does it take?? You get some sticky rice, fake crab, avocado, cream cheese, a tube of wasabi, maybe a couple of shirmp, a cucumber, sesame seeds... actually you can end up getting quite a bit of stuff. A little bit, goes a very long way. Luckily, the local health food store had the toasted nori wrappers and wasabi. Though it isn't real wasabi, neither is most of the green horseradish out there, but it'll do.
I'll be the first one to admit that i do a hell of a lot of complaining. It just irritates me when a person would go through all of the time and effort to make something and then skimp on the little stuff to make it great. In the end i guess that's what i get for having expectations, though i promise you; in Dallas, these people wouldn't survive. I guess the inverse is true also. If i didn't have the skills to make it myself, i wouldn't survive here. I guess the thesis here is this; if there is something you want and you can't find it where you are, either try to find it somewhere else or learn how to produce it yourself.
Many thanks to my Grandmother, my Mom, and my Grandfather for making me stir pots, make cornbread, and check the vents on the grill.

Until next time, Peace be with you, Dave

Cucumber Salad w/ Mustard Pickle Mayo

I know this may sound rather peculiar in light of what i'm writing about, but i just don't like Yeller Mustard.  Yes, the King of Condiments. In fact, it wouldn't even be on the shopping list if i weren't married and since it isn't, by itself, grounds for divorce, here i am. I'm a Mayo Guy (not Miracle Whip) and other than the occasional batch of potato salad, my world would be devoid of it. However, there is a caveat to all this.
When i was a kid, my Mother and Grand Mother would "put up" jars of stuff from the garden. Pickled Peppers and Okra, Green Beans and Squash (YUK, i never got used to eating that stuff, other than raw in a salad and at that, sparingly), and of course; Pickles. Dill Pickles and Garlic Pickles, Sweet Pickles and Bread and Butter Pickles, and my two favorites, Hot Pickles and Mustard Pickles.
One of the foods we ate, regularly, this time of year was cucumber salad. Cucumbers, Tomatos, and Onions.  Always served in a soup of oil and vinegar, with a generous helping of salt and pepper. This i loved. I loved it then and do to this day. Well, i made cucumber salad today. Though, i've been missing my Mother's Mustard Pickles and thought why not combine the two. Quite often, combining two things you like is not a good idea, but this one turned out curiously good. This has a few different things going on, so if you find it a little hard to follow along, place the blame squarely on me. Okay, so let's get to the recipe, and then i'll finish the story.

Cucumber Salad w/ Mustard Pickle Mayo
(you can scale this at will and you'll have to play with the levels to accommodate your tastes as everything i make is like me UNSUBTLE!!!)
Make the dressing for the salad first and then come back and cut everything up.
I used:
3 Cucumbers
3 Tomatos
2 Medium Onions
Put a pot of water on to boil. When it comes to a boil, put the tomatos in the water for a few minutes, roughly 3-5. Take them out and chill them in a bowl of ice water. You are going to peel the tomatos. While the tomatos are chillin out, peel and slice your cucumbers and put in a large bowl. Then peel and slice your onion in section slivers and throw them in with the cucumber. Next go and peel your tomatos. The skins should be cracked and slide right off. Once peeled, slice them up the same as the onion and throw in on top. Here is the base for your salad.

The Mustard Pickle Mayo
There are two ways of doing this part. There is the easy way and the less than easy way. I'll tell you how to do this the easy way and if you are skilled enough to do it the less than easy way, make an emulsion with White vinegar, lemon juice, an egg yolk and a cup of oil like regular mayo, then just add the seasonings to the end of the emulsion and mix for a minute and let stand.
The easy way.
Combine:
1 Cup of Mayo, not Miracle Whip
2 T Dill Weed
1 tsp or a bit more Ground Mustard (Dry)
1-2 tsp Turmeric
1 T Granulated Garlic
Mix together very well and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours. It will need some salt to bring out the dill and  yeller mustard flavors. put 2/3rds of the mixture on your salad and mix together. If you don't want your fingernails turning a sad yellow color, you might want to do this with a spoon or other implement. Every piece should get a nice little coating of the dressing. If it isn't coated enough, add a little more until you have it all coated and eat it before someone else does. If you've done it right, you ought to taste everything. For many of you, it's going to be, at the minimum, a shock to the system and at most Horrible. Remember, you control the end flavor so you may have to play with it a bit. If you are a Mustard fan, you'll love it.

Okay, so i made it and they ate it. It was surprising how there was a little background heat from the mustard, the mustardlike flavor of the turmeric goes well with the onion and well let's face it, garlic and dill go with just about anything in a salad bowl.
I had a little dressing left over and wondered how it would go with a hotdog. Actually, it was amazingly good. Not too mustardy for me. The real surprise came when i ate one of the french fries bordering my salad. Okay, so mustard, dill, mayo taste thrown on top of fried potato. What do you think that would taste like?? It tasted strangely like my Grandmother's potato salad. I know, it sounds strange, but it just hit the spot for me today. I guess what they say about the tastes from your childhood being among the most powerful of all memories, is still true. I miss that vinegar and oil soup from the salad bowl. I miss working in the garden. I miss my mother's mustard pickles. And naturally, i miss my Grandmother.

Until i put pen to paper again, Peace be with You, Dave