As I was digging into making my own British bangers for my Full English Breakfast challenge, I kept stumbling onto the same sad story which may or may not be complete bullshit: During the early 20th century thanks to two World Wars, meat was scarce in England and pork sausages were padded with some grains and extra liquid to help stretch the meat reserves. When cooked, these padded sausages had the tendency to burst out of their casings and the "banger" was born.
Exploding sausages! How cool is that?
Though this tale may be made up, it oddly shines a light on one aspect of the banger--besides the exploding part--which turned out to be...
How to make better bangers
Comments
Our weekly roundup of what the two of us have written over on Serious Eats.
"Dinner Tonight" Column
QUICK MEALS TO YOUR TABLE FIVE DAYS A WEEK.
Seared Scallops with Spinach and Arugula
This simple recipe sears scallops over high heat and serves them with a side of spinach and arugula.
...
[Image courtesy of Troy Fields and the Houston Chronicle]
Welcome to Wednesday Links. This is our weekly collection of four of the most interesting food links we've discovered in the past week. Enjoy!
Not So Clear Cut
A disturbing tale of what really goes into a plate of fajitas.
The Last Days of Kugelis
The worlds oldest Lithuanian restaurant just closed on the South Side. Sky Full of Bacon was there to record the last days.
Feast: A Video Essay of Food in Film
Set aside 15 minutes and watch this...
Sometimes you need to start with the basics.
I was recently bumming on a friend's membership to Costco, arms full of inexpensive bulk yeast and Dijon mustard for salad dressing, when I discovered the can of tomatoes you see above. It seemed like the deal of a century. For $3.89, I walked away with a can of San Marzano tomatoes weighing almost 7 pounds. That's the price you sometimes pay for a single 28 oz can of them.
I immediately contemplated the massive pot of tomato sauce that would fill my freezer. Once you have good tomatoes, the idea is to do as little as possible to screw them up.
Everybody has their own way of making tomato...
Our weekly roundup of what the two of us have written over on Serious Eats.
"Dinner Tonight" Column
QUICK MEALS TO YOUR TABLE FIVE DAYS A WEEK.
Pasta with Spring Herbs
It doesn't get much simpler than this pasta that comes together while the water is boiling.
Jacques Pépin's Quick-Roasted Chicken
A technique to solve the problem of breast and...
Taking the balance in a whole new direction
Do they belong together?
Most cocktails have too much sugar in them. I'm not sure when the barrage of overly sweet cocktails began (not to mention the tradition of putting mini umbrellas in the glass), but it leaves me with a stomach ache. Unlike the bracing experience of an Old Fashioned, possibly the first cocktail to be invented in a dusty bar in the 19th century, a succinct, aromatic sip that slowly grows on you, most cocktails these days go down like a soft drink. Sugar is the easiest way to make alcohol palatable for those who don't really like the taste of it. Which is incidentally probably why vodka is so popular. Because it doesn't really taste like anything.
Thankfully, cocktails are rapidly becoming more nuanced, especially as old...
[Oxford American]
Welcome to Wednesday Links. This is our weekly collection of four of the most interesting food links we've discovered in the past week. Enjoy!
Oxford American Food Issue
Guest editor John T. Edge puts together an issue all about food in the American South, from haute soul food to the apparent controversy of the heritage of Creole cuisine, concluding that "food is caloric fuel, sure, but also a means of cultural expression, on par with music and literature."
Healthy Preschool Eating, The French Version
Preschools students in France regularly eat better than their three year counterparts...
Can you replicate the best English breakfast at home?
To eat well in England you should have breakfast three times a day.
- W. Somerset Maugham
I survived my half a year in England on a diet of boiled potatoes, canned peas, Heinz beans, and 99p egg and cress sandwiches I purchased from a convenient store. The dollar was nearly worthless next to the mighty pound at that time, and I hoarded what little cash I could for bus passes and the odd pint, relegating whatever was left to keeping me alive. Needless to say, I ate miserably.
Except during breakfast. While I could never afford a nice dinner, I could occasionally dig up a few pounds for a Full English breakfast. To get it right is to have a plate filled with bacon, sausage, eggs, beans, toast, mushrooms, and...
"Dinner Tonight" Column
...
Which Italian deli in Chicago makes the best subs?
We assembled at 11 a.m., seven hungry men, at J. P. Graziano's. This unadorned storefront in the restaurant supply district of Chicago's West Loop seemed like an odd place to begin a journey to find the best Italian sub in Chicago. The shop's exterior had no tell-tale signals that it made sandwiches--just a sign stating their business as wholesale importers. The interior contained no vine covered trellises or nostalgic pictures of the Tuscan country side. All we saw were barren wooden floors and enormous barrels of spices. But we had reason to believe that they served one delicious sub.
Indeed, the Grazianos' sub was a wonder. A slightly crackly exterior to the bread gave way to a pillowy, tender interior. The meats were the highest quality--Hot...
[moohaha/flickr]
Welcome to Wednesday Links. This is our weekly collection of four of the most interesting food links we've discovered in the past week. Enjoy!
Whale: To Eat, or Not to Eat?
Should whale be served at restaurants? Some people think it is more ethical than beef.
Jonah Lehrer on The Philosophy of Cooking
"To cook is to insist that every hunger is a potential occasion, not just for something delicious (because deliciousness can be easily bought), but for that quality of experience that comes when the flame is on high and the last knob of butter is being whisked into the sauce....
Our weekly roundup of what the two of us have written over on Serious Eats.
"Dinner Tonight" Column
...A tastier and quicker version of the classic.
I'm tired of people lying about cassoulet. Every recipe I've ever read calls it a "peasant dish," and the fact is, cassoulet is really, really expensive to make. You need duck confit, which, if you don't buy pre-made, costs you either in the form of overpriced duck fat or the need to buy a whole duck to render it yourself. Then, you need fancy sausage, preferably the garlicky "Toulouse" variety, which is apparently plentiful in France but nowhere to be found in Chicago and $15/lb at the above website. Then you need lots of other meat (never an inexpensive ingredient if you buy from good butchers) and if you really want to take it to the next level of authenticity, you need the proper...
[From Eating L.A.]
Welcome to Wednesday Links. This is our weekly collection of four of the most interesting food links we've discovered in the past week. Enjoy!
Straining Valentine's Day with Thomas Keller
Are Thomas Keller's damned recipes worth it, or just overcomplicated? Sky Full of Bacon's Michael Gebert attaches his erudite crankiness to Chicken and Dumplings and inquires.
Should Junk Food Be Taxed?
A recent Psychological Science study discovers the...
The Big Mac will always be better.
I should apologize in advance for this fast food rant. I've never indulged in such a tirade before, but I simply couldn't resist this one. Regularly scheduled content will return later this week, I promise.
The Mac Snack wrap is the stupidest, most idiotic, dumbest fast food creation I've ever seen. It purports to be a Big Mac in flour tortilla, except it betrays logic and any culinary common sense. From the moment I saw the commercial I knew why it sucked and why it must be destroyed. And after setting off to McDonald's to taste it next to the Big Mac I am certain in my convictions. Since no one else (that I can tell), has stood up and cried foul against the machine, then I will.
...
Our weekly roundup of what the two of us have written over on Serious Eats.
"Dinner Tonight" Column
Quick meals to your table five days a week.
Spicy Black Bean Cakes
Though suspiciously close to a veggie burger, this meal made from pantry staples is moist and flavorful.
Tomato Sauce with Mushrooms and Anchovy
Adding two known "umami-bombs" to a simple tomato sauce elevates this dish from your ordinary pasta sauce.
...
What we did with an unwanted bottle of vodka
I cannot be fooled. If a bartender accidentally swaps vodka for some gin in my drink, I can tell. I'm not trying to be difficult, but I will send it back. Why?
Because I hate vodka. Hate hate hate hate it. I hate the way it smells, and how it makes me feel. While I can talk your ear off about every other spirit you throw at me (Gin, Rum, Tequila, and especially Bourbon), I don't really have anything nice to say about that clear tasteless spirit. So when I was left with an unwanted bottle of vodka after hosting a party, I decided to see how I could transform it into something else. Hopefully I wouldn't have to pour it down the drain.
I related this dilemma to...
How to save the oyster while cutting up chicken.
The chicken oyster. It sounds strange. But also intriguing enough to suggest deliciousness. I've heard other people talk about this elusive piece of meat hidden somewhere on the chicken. Only smart cooks know about it, like Thomas Keller, who mentions it in his recipe for "My Favorite Simple Roast Chicken" in the Bouchon cookbook. When the chicken is done roasting, the skin golden and fragrant, he locates the oyster on each side of the chicken and greedily gobbles it up as a cook's treat.
The other week we were cutting up chickens at culinary school, starting with the legs, then...
[Photo from www.andrewcusack.com]
Welcome to Wednesday Links. This is our weekly collection of four of the most interesting food links we've discovered in the past week. Enjoy!
Why Do People Always Order Ginger Ale When They Fly?
This neglected soda is astonishingly popular on planes.
Why I Cook
Michael Ruhlman asks himself and others: why do you cook? The responses are thoughtful and fascinating.
...
Our weekly roundup of what the two of us have written over on Serious Eats.
"Dinner Tonight" Column
Quick meals to your table five days a week.
Alton Brown's Ramen Shrimp Pouch
Yes, you can make ramen in an aluminum pouch, but why oh why wouldn't you just simmer it in a pot?
Piquant Chicken
It has has all the same "deep, seductive flavors" and hits all the notes of a good puttanesca in a meatier form. It's a superb way to quickly and dramatically prepare chicken.
...
All content copyright Nick Kindelsperger and Blake Royer.
