OT In Defense of Tofu

On Sat, 03 Jan 2004 04:50:12 GMT, "Lennie Richardson"
wrote:


"Ken Fortenberry" wrote in message
igy.com...
Reading roffian discourse on the subject of tofu is like reading
the report of a Japanese sports writer who mistakenly wandered in
on a performance of the Bolshoi Ballet and wrote it up as a really
dull Sumo match.

You just SO don't get it.

But what do you expect from folks who actually think deep fried
turkey might be a good idea.

--
Ken Fortenberry


You speak as if liking tofu and deep fried turkey are mutually exclusive.

Tofu is great stuff. I especially like it braised in salted black bean sauce
and snow peas, garnished with chopped scallions. Ma po do fu is one of my
favrotie dishes to eat and to cook, but is not strictly vegetarian. Yummy.

It is tasty cubed, fried in a wok and then added to pad thai. But without the
frying part, it's pretty rank, imo...

Have you ever had deep fried turkey, Ken? Sounds like contempt prior to
investigation to me...

Well....perhaps it's just too scary for him...

/daytripper (who loves deep fried turkey - if someone else does the frying ;-)

Daytripper:
It is tasty cubed, fried in a wok and then added to pad thai.

Agreed! But that may be because the spice and seasoning combinations in a
good Pad Thai keep you from feeling the texture of the tofu.

As a source of protein, it beats most live insects in palatability. Many
dead and cooked insects eclipse tofu.


--
Stev Lenon 91B20 '68-'69
Drowning flies to Darkstar

http://web.tampabay.rr.com/stevglo/i...age92kword.htm

"slenon" wrote in message
. com...
Many
dead and cooked insects eclipse tofu.


--
Stev Lenon 91B20 '68-'69
Drowning flies to Darkstar

http://web.tampabay.rr.com/stevglo/i...age92kword.htm




Interesting! Fried crickets are something I've always wanted to try but have
never had enough tequila around to make me brave.

It's fascinating what people eat in different regions around the world. It's
also interesting what virtually all the different "poor peoples' " cuisines
have in common: Rice, beans, flat bread, and chilis.

I wonder if, given a chance, the Thais would forgo deep fried locusts with
garlic chili sauce for a daily Big Mac. I know the coronary artery disease
in their country would rise to match ours if they did.

Off to cook dinner: chateau****inbriand with vienna sausages.

"Lennie Richardson" wrote in message
.com...

Interesting! Fried crickets are something I've always wanted to try but
have
never had enough tequila around to make me brave.

I had fried grasshoppers when I was boy. I had heard or read about them
somewhere, and they sounded exotic and appealing. Lo and behold, a small
deli in Kenosha, WI., for God's sake, actually sold little tins of them. I
pestered my mother for months until she finally gave up and bought them for
me. They were crunchy and tasted pretty much like oily ashes. That was a
long time ago, so I'm not really sure, but I like to think I learned
something that day.

It's fascinating what people eat in different regions around the world.
It's
also interesting what virtually all the different "poor peoples' "
cuisines
have in common: Rice, beans, flat bread, and chilis.

Well, I would substitute cereal crops in general for just rice.....corn in
the Americas, millet in Africa, wheat in the Middle-East and Europe,
etc.....and add potatoes and a couple of other non-cereal starches (starchy
root crops are very important in native cuisines virtually everywhere in the
world)....but point taken, and it's a good one.

The vast majority of staples in virtually all cultures throughout history
have always been as bland and tastless as a deep fried turkey. The notable
exception on your list above is chilis, which differ from the rest in that
they are, in most places, not a staple at all, but rather a seasoning used
to make the staples more interesting. Chilis also happen to be, depending
on exactly how one defines the term of course, the most popluar "seasoning"
in the world.

An interesting ommission from your list is a group of foods that, in most
places, inhabit a sort of middle ground between staples and adjuncts.
Tomatoes and the entire onion family come readily to mind. Onions ARE in
fact a staple in much of India, and just try to imagine Italian food without
tomatoes. Um......****, I'd better stop before I get carried
away......people gonna think I'm obsessed with food or something.

I wonder if, given a chance, the Thais would forgo deep fried locusts with
garlic chili sauce for a daily Big Mac.

Only if sufficient pressure were applied. The psychology of advertising is
complex and fraught with all kinds of pitfalls but in the main, it DOES
work.

I know the coronary artery disease
in their country would rise to match ours if they did.

Amen.

Off to cook dinner: chateau****inbriand with vienna sausages.

Navy bean soup with onions, bacon, and Kassler rippchen here tonight!

Wolfgang

In article ,
says...

I had fried grasshoppers when I was boy. I had heard or read about them
somewhere, and they sounded exotic and appealing. Lo and behold, a small
deli in Kenosha, WI., for God's sake, actually sold little tins of them. I
pestered my mother for months until she finally gave up and bought them for
me. They were crunchy and tasted pretty much like oily ashes. That was a
long time ago, so I'm not really sure, but I like to think I learned
something that day.

Obviously, you need to eat fresher grasshoppers. Come visit me
anytime from late July to mid-September, and you will find about
a bazillion (roughly) grasshoppers in my garden, cheerfully eating
all my veggies down to the ground. If you eat enough of them, I
might even quit spraying them with insecticide.

Kevin

"Kevin Vang" wrote in message
...

Obviously, you need to eat fresher grasshoppers. Come visit me
anytime from late July to mid-September, and you will find about
a bazillion (roughly) grasshoppers in my garden, cheerfully eating
all my veggies down to the ground.

Well, the freshness issue did occur to me, but the truth is that after my
initial experiment my zeal was somewhat diminished. However, I appreciate
the offer but, while we don't have so many here that they are a problem in
the garden (locust plagues seem to be pretty much an arid land phenomenon),
we have enough to satisfy my needs.....even in the seemingly unlikely event
that I should suddenly become enamored. I'll keep you in mind if we ever
run short.

If you eat enough of them, I
might even quit spraying them with insecticide.

Um.....thanks.....I guess.

Wolfgang
who, if the truth be told, was never really all that fond of diazanon
either.

Grasshoppers have large amounts of chitin as do crickets and beetles. The
palatability is greatly decreased from the larvael stages of beetles and
termites. As Wolfgang notes, these demand seasoning to be at all attractive
to the palate. Still, they are life-sustaining and, in the case of grubs,
if fixed well, not to unlike shrimp.

But I do prefer the left-over cioppino, tasting brightly of tomato and
basil, thick with shrimp, grouper, cod, and lobster, that calls me now from
the refrigerator.

--
Stev Lenon 91B20 '68-'69
Drowning flies to Darkstar

http://web.tampabay.rr.com/stevglo/i...age92kword.htm

Lennie Richardson:
I wonder if, given a chance, the Thais would forgo deep fried locusts with
garlic chili sauce for a daily Big Mac. I know the coronary artery disease
in their country would rise to match ours if they did.

I suspect that large percentage of them would if such fair was locally
available at an affordable price. On the other hand, I can live without any
McDonalds product but would miss Mee Krob and Pad Thai, and Sing Ha if I
lived someplace that did not have a source of these comestibles.


--
Stev Lenon 91B20 '68-'69
Drowning flies to Darkstar

http://web.tampabay.rr.com/stevglo/i...age92kword.htm

"slenon" wrote in
. com:

Lennie Richardson:
I wonder if, given a chance, the Thais would forgo deep fried locusts
with garlic chili sauce for a daily Big Mac. I know the coronary
artery disease in their country would rise to match ours if they did.

I suspect that large percentage of them would if such fair was
locally available at an affordable price. On the other hand, I can
live without any McDonalds product but would miss Mee Krob and Pad
Thai, and Sing Ha if I lived someplace that did not have a source of
these comestibles.



My favorite bit of Jewish trivia is the observation that locusts are
kosher!!

I guess the reasoning is that if there are enough locusts around, there may
not be much else to eat.

Scott

My favorite bit of Jewish trivia is the observation that locusts are
kosher!!
I guess the reasoning is that if there are enough locusts around, there may
not be much else to eat.
Scott

That may be as logical a reason as any I've heard. The most important part
of the feast is to discard the legs before eating the insect.


--
Stev Lenon 91B20 '68-'69
Drowning flies to Darkstar

http://web.tampabay.rr.com/stevglo/i...age92kword.htm