unbibium

So last night I carved my chicken without consulting the Dino-Cam video, and it turned out passable I suppose. there was a lot of meat still left on the carcass.

tamtrible says that you need to use five or six chicken carcasses to get a decent amount of stock going, of which I am skeptical, considering the inconvenience of having to store that many cubic feet of raw chicken around.

I used the electric frying pan this time, figuring I'd be able to control the temperature better, and the lid would do an even better job of trapping the oil mess. However, it also trapped in heat and water, as evidenced by the more rapid browning I saw on the top side of the chicken. Since it's steam pushing out of the meat that keeps the chicken from being greasy, I suspect that precaution no longer worked, since there was also steam on the outside. The good news is that it's doubtful I undercooked any of it, although I still can't find my probe thermometer.

Guests will be showing up soon. One of them will be getting the wing I forgot to season before dredging.

so I didn't feel like cooking. so I ordered Thai carry-out and biked a mile in 110°F to pick it up.

The first half-mile wasn't so bad.

And this is just a few hours after a morning trip to the doctors, so I knew how bad it was already.

I guess I just craved peanut sauce.

So apparently, at multiple times over the last few years, I would walk through the canned fruit aisle and think "gee, someday I'm going to want some pineapple."

Sometimes the Japanese use English too well. Last night at the Super L Ranch Market, I found a box of "Not Only Crispy, But Tasty".

They're sesame flavored, and the title is otherwise accurate.

I just realized that I made fried chicken on MLK day.

I assure you, it's a coincidence, and I apologize to the entire African-American community.

But while I'm on the topic, I should point out that as a white person, I didn't realize that fried chicken and watermelon were considered offensive stereotypes until I was in college. There was a story about Tiger Woods playing in some tournament, championship, open, mini-golf benedit, I don't even remember. And some old white guy said he imagines they'll be serving fried chicken and watermelon at the crafts table, luncheon, I don't remember that clearly. I just remembered thinking that fried chicken is awesome, but kind of heavy and unhealthy, which would make watermelon a refreshing, vitamin-rich contrast. Also, Lee Travino used to do ads for salsa.

Anyhow, if you're white, but haven't been around enough racists to know what the stereotypes are, you can find out most of them by renting Bamboozled. It's a movie about a frustrated black TV producer, who tries to take the piss out of his network by producing a revival of the blackface shows of the 1920s, pitching the offensiveness as "edgy". Hilarity ensues.

I'd like to fry my own chicken.

Alton Brown says I should carve my own, but I think the first time out I'll let the butcher do it. Everything else I'll do according to his plan.

Fry Hard 2: The Chicken (Fried).

Target is clearing out their nursery so they can fill it with Xmas trees. But there's an A&P nursery just a few miles away, and they say I can get fresh fruit and herbs growing on my balcony for probably under $100 total.

I probably won't save money or anything, but I'll have the freshest everything, and won't have to worry about $5 worth of cilantro going bad in the refrigerator, and I'll always have a lemon wedge for my fish when I need it.

My balcony is 11 feet wide, faces south by southeast at a 20-degree angle, and has a very porous terrace-like structure that will definitely let in more sunlight than the solid stucco wall I usually have. The ceiling extends as far as the floor does, being that it's my upstairs neighbor's floor.

I recognize that this interest might be fleeting, and that I tried to buy a window box five years ago and never planted anything in it. So I'm going to give it another few weeks of thought, to make sure it's something I'm really going to put to use.

OK, I think I didn't pre-heat it enough. Even though it doesn't look very brown, the crust is very stiff. Also, I don't think I used enough dough; even after two hours of resting at room temperature, the dough didn't fill the bottom of the loaf pan, and after 40 minutes of baking, it was still the same size and shape it seemed; sliding around the loaf pan when I took it out....

I'm letting it cool down overnight. I'll bring it to work and share it.

I finally bought it. But, it's not very useful yet, because I haven't bought any new lights for it, not until I'm positive I can get mounting brackets for the spare light and lock that I have.

Also, I made a big batch of red beans and rice, but forgot to put salt in the rice cooker. And when I add salt to things after I've cooked them, it doesn't seem to have the intended effect. I'll try it with a bowlful, and if it doesn't work, I'll throw out and re-make the rice for my leftovers.

Also, the bread book's first sandwich bread recipe calls for a loaf pan that's nine by four inches. The one I have is nine by five. Wish me luck.

tamtrible convinced me that herbs bought at the 99-cent store could be trusted. Plastic bags would have been unacceptable, but I chanced upon plastic jars, so I bought them. And I used some 99-cent rosemary and thyme in my latest half-batch of dough.

If you thought my apartment smelled good before, then just you wait.

Now, my nose isn't very well-trained, so if this stuff turns out to be mistletoe and crab grass, I can't say I'll be able to tell in time. I suppose I should at least buy a more expensive brand of dried herb. But later.

I suppose it might be in my best interest to grow an herb garden, but I have a very shady south-facing balcony; anything I grow wouldn't get all that much sun in the winter, and practically no direct sunlight in the summer.