Weird Food Wednesdays: Tripe

Beef tripe, one of my top 10 favorite foods! For real.

If tripe is on the menu, I will order it. I have such a weakness for it that my husband has used it to bribe me (usually to get me to spend time with my in-laws).


Yes, it's the stomach of a cow. Get over it. Do I have to remind you what's in a hot dog? There's just something so unique about the flavor of tripe that keeps me coming back for more. So unique, in fact, that I'm kinda at a loss for words on how to describe it (tripe lovers, please help me out here!)

I've seen tripe described as gamey or barnyard-y, but I think those words tend to be overused when referring to offal or leftover cuts of meat and only result in scaring people off. 'Gamey' makes me think of mutton. And 'barnyard-y' is how I might describe a fresh goat cheese, but not tripe. The flavor's actually really mild. Earthy? No, mushrooms and truffles are earthy, not tripe. Grassy? Not really, but I do find something kinda bright and fresh about it. And the texture will vary depending on the cooking method and the kind of tripe used (a cow does have 4 stomachs, afterall) but can range from pleasantly crunchy to melt-in-your mouth tender.


I usually satisfy my craving for tripe at dim sum restaurants or Asian noodle houses, but I've also enjoyed a hearty tripe gratinée at Pastis (NYC) and a tender stewed tripe in marinara sauce at an Italian wedding in Long Island.

Growing up in a Chinese family, I probably ate tripe more often than hamburgers. And from what I can remember, I've always liked tripe and never had to acquire a taste for it. But I couldn't help but wonder whether my fondness for tripe is purely nostalgic.

This is where Hubby Kris comes in handy, he's still an offal 'novice' but always such a good sport when dealing with one of my weird food obsessions. I've made Hubby Kris try beef tripe several times at dim sum, and since he's never objected, I've always assumed he liked it. I managed to get in a quick Q&A session while hubby was getting ready for work this morning:

Phyllis: Tell me how you feel about tripe.

Kris: Good morning to you too. Tripe, well...um...it's just OKAY. I don't hate it or anything. But it's not something I would ever order on my own.

Phyllis: Why not?

Kris: Is this for Weird Food Wednesdays?

Phyllis: Just answer the question!

Kris: Well...cause it doesn't really taste like anything. And it's chewy, like calamari.

Phyllis: But you LOVE calamari!

Kris: Yeah, but that's because it's battered and deep fried. How come no one ever deep fries tripe?

***end of Q&A***

So what I've gathered from this conversation is that my hubby is currently indifferent about tripe but would probably love it if I battered and deep fried it for him (flashback to tempura gefilte fish). Hmmm...maybe my undying love of beef tripe does stem from childhood memories.

Well, perhaps I can entice you with some yummy dim sum photos...

Beef Tripe stewed in a delicate ginger and scallion sauce at The Orient Restaurant, Bethpage NY:

I almost ate the entire dish myself! Fragrant ginger and scallion, crunchy, chewy, and texturally interesting with the tiny bumps of the bible tripe:


Stewed Beef Tendon with Beef Tripes at Golden Harvest Restaurant in Vancouver, BC:

Juicy succulent pieces of honeycomb tripe stewed in a glistening curry garlic sauce (natural nooks and crannies deliver more of the mouthwatering sauce in every bite):

Golden Harvest used to offer this dish with beef tripe only, so I was initially upset that some of my beloved tripe was replaced by tendon. But the tendon was awesome - gelatinous melt-in-your-mouth perfection (and hubby's favorite):

An interesting surprise in the bottom of the dish - french fries to soak up the excess sauce (or what my cousin Francis jokingly referred to as 'Chinese poutine'):


So I bet you're dying to try it now, right?

No?

Seriously, guys...just trust me on this one, it's really GOOD. Yeah, I know, I still haven't given you a good answer about the flavor of tripe. But you know who'd be a good person to ask? The person who developed the simulated tripe flavor for Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean. I mean, there can't actually be ground up tripe in a Jelly Belly, right?

And my darling hubby will be thrilled to learn that people actually do deep-fry tripe:

Here's the recipe: Deep Fried Tripe from UK chef Fergus Henderson

Well, if dim sum and deep fried tripe don't float your boat, check out Wikipedia for an extensive list of international delicacies that feature tripe (menudo, mondongo, and pacalpörkölt are next on my list). So go out and get your tripe on!



p.s. This will be my last weekly installment of Weird Food Wednesdays :(

p.p.s. I'm not retiring WFW for good, I just won't be doing it on a self-imposed weekly deadline anymore :)

Weird Food Wednesdays: Tripe

Weird Food Wednesdays: Juustoleipä

Juustoleipä or leipäjuusto translates to "bread cheese" in Finnish and its signature browned exterior comes from being baked during the cheesemaking process!

You're unlikely to find the reindeer version of this cheese outside of Finland or Scandinavia (juustoleipä is traditionally made with reindeer milk), but you can probably find domestically produced cows milk 'bread cheese' from Wisconsin at your local supermarket.

I've been staring at the Carr Valley Cheese version at my local Wegmans for months, and I finally brought some home with me after trying a sample during a cooking demonstration ("It's like grilled cheese without the bread!")

Relatively inexpensive at $11.49/lb, $8 bought me a fairly substantial slab of bread cheese.

With such a large piece of cheese we were able to try it in every way possible to find our favorite preparation.

Plain/ unheated - mild buttery flavor, similar to mozzarella but a bit saltier. There was a rich milky flavor present which reminded me of Indian paneer cheese. Firm chewy texture, mild squeak when you bite into it:


Dipped in coffee - surprisingly good! The bread cheese takes on a sweet profile when dipped in coffee (with milk and sugar). And it hardly melted at all:


Soaked in coffee - took on more of the coffee flavor when soaked for 10 minutes in coffee. Delicious! Melted slightly and produced the squeakiest cheese:


The packaging recommended sautéing the bread cheese in a skillet and topping with jam, honey & walnuts, or syrup. I cut the breadcheese into 3/4 inch cubes and let them brown in a non-stick skillet, flipping them after a few minutes on each side. The outsides get crispy and while the insides don't completely melt, they start to ooze appealingly when warmed.


With lingonberry jam - sweet and slightly tart, flavor reminded me of cranberry cocktail juice:

Cloudberry jam is the more traditional pairing but I couldn't find it so I used lingonberry. But Kenny from Chic Eats says you can probably find it at IKEA (thanks Kenny!)

With warmed honey and toasted walnuts (yum):


With warmed maple syrup (even yummier):


Out of the three sweet toppings, our favorite was the lingonberry jam - the tanginess was a perfect complement to the salty cheese. This trio would make a fun appetizer for company.


I also thought I should try a savory presentation, so I topped one of the pan-fried cubes with roasted peppadew bruschetta topping (from the olive bar at Wegmans but you can substitute your favorite salsa or bruschetta topping). Tasty!


And finally, baked with cream, sugar and cinnamon (a serving suggestion from Wikipedia). I cut the bread cheese into 1/3rd inch slices, layered them in a small casserole dish, drizzled liberally with heavy cream and sprinkled sugar and cinnamon on top. Baked till bubbly (about 15 minutes) at 400 degrees (F).


The easiest dessert ever. And also our favorite way to enjoy bread cheese:

Where to buy:
Outside of Wisconsin, you can probably find bread cheese (aka juusto, juustoleipä, leipäjuusto, fennuusto, brun-uusto, ostbrod, kaffeost) at your local Wegmans.

Or purchase online from the following Wisconsin cheesemakers:

Carr Valley Cheese
Bass Lake Cheese
Pasture Pride Cheese
Seguin's Cheese
Henning's Wisconsin Cheese

References:
Ehlers, Steve, and Jeanette Hurt. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cheeses of the World (Complete Idiot's Guide to). Indianapolis: Alpha, 2008
Weber, Katie. New Speciality "Bread Cheese" Unveiled At The University Of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences website.
"Leipäjuusto." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 5 Jul 2009, 17:00 UTC. 5 Jul 2009 .

Weird Food Wednesdays: Juustoleipä

Weird Food Wednesdays: Black Pudding

As a weird food enthusiast, I couldn’t leave Dublin without trying some black pudding, a variety of blood sausage made by cooking pig’s blood with some type of filler ingredient (onions, barley, oatmeal and/or suet).

I know what you’re thinking. But there are probably scarier ingredients inside a hot dog.

Hubby Kris and I first tried black pudding as part of a traditional Irish breakfast at Bewley’s Café on Grafton Street. The black pudding was nothing more than a harmless looking sausage patty (but our server still asked me whether I was ‘frightened by it’- LOL!) It also tasted pretty harmless – the flavor was like country sausage with a hint of offal, reminding me of scrapple but with a firmer grainy texture.

Later in our trip we tried a fabulous artisan version of black pudding at The Winding Stair restaurant. The sausage had been removed from its casing, crumbled and fried until nicely charred in some areas (we ended up fighting over those crispy charred bits). When I asked hubby what he thought about the flavor, he replied, “It tastes like blood.” (When asked to describe his food, Hubby Kris is often a man of few words, which is why he is no longer writing guest posts for me). I found the flavor really complex – rich, savory, slightly spicy, and earthy. There were a couple moments where the deep purplish color and the crumbly dense texture would remind me that I was eating blood and only then would I detect a slight iron/liver aftertaste. But hubby and I had no trouble polishing off the entire dish; we left nothing on the plate.


So if you are a fan of offal and dishes like foie gras or chicken livers, I bet you’ll like black pudding. And if you like your meat extremely rare and bloody, there’s no excuse not to try this!

Bewley’s Cafe
78/79 Grafton Street, Dublin 2

After fighting our way through busy Grafton Street the night before, we found Bewley’s Café surprisingly quiet and relaxing at 7:30 the following morning. Bewley’s Café has been a beloved institution for over 80 years and was the perfect spot to have breakfast on our first morning in Dublin.

I ordered the full Irish breakfast and hubby had pancakes. The food was delicious and the portions were perfect- just enough to fill our tummies without weighing us down. And the total bill was only € 15! If you don’t have time to sit down for breakfast in the beautiful Harry Clarke room, make sure you stop by for a pastry and coffee at their take-out counter. But prepare to wait – by the time we left that morning, the lineup for coffee was out the door.

full Irish breakfast (€ 9.95)
potato farl, grilled bacon, sausage, tomato, black and white pudding, mushrooms, poached egg, toast (came with freshly squeezed orange juice and tea or coffee)


sweet pancakes (€ 4.50)
choice of 2 toppings – hubby chose blueberries and bananas and asked for a side of maple syrup



The Winding Stair Restaurant + Bookshop
40, Ormond Quay, Dublin 1

Another cherished Dublin landmark, opened in the 70s as a bookstore and café, reborn in 2005 with a full-service restaurant re-inventing traditional Irish cuisine with local organic ingredients. I made sure that we’d packed some dressier outfits since we were having our anniversary dinner (8 years – woohoo!) at the Winding Stair. But when we stopped by to confirm our reservation at lunchtime, they told us we looked perfectly fine in our rumpled tourist clothes/jeans, so we never bothered going back to our hotel to change and spent the time sightseeing instead.

Reservations are a must at this place. Our reservation was for 7pm but we were told that we could show up anytime as long as we were out by 9pm. The small dining space was flooded with gorgeous natural light. We also loved the distressed wide-planked wood floors. If you’re really lucky, you’ll get a window seat overlooking the Liffey river and the famous Ha’Penny bridge.

The tables were quite close together and I would have preferred a bit more room to stretch my tired legs, but our friendly and attentive server made us feel very much at home. Despite the busy dinner service, our meal was served at a leisurely pace. And no one kicked us out at 9pm – we were still waiting for our dessert!

Kris ordered a Young’s double chocolate stout (chocolaty and very filling):


For our appetizer, O’ Doherty’s black pudding, Fingal Ferguson’s chorizo and new organic potato salad with homemade rye toast (€ 11.95). An amazing combination of ingredients – loved it!


For his entree, Kris chose the Irish spring lamb chops with minted peas, cheesy bake with gravy (€ 26.50). I’m not a huge fan of lamb, but hubby loved this dish so much he insisted on cutting me a piece to try. Hmmm…not bad, maybe I do like lamb. The ‘gravy’ was to die for – super rich flavor like a demi-glace. The ‘cheesy bake’ was yummy as well (but who doesn’t like a potato gratin?)


I decided to go vegetarian that night and try Ian’s Gabriel cheese potato cake with fried shallots and oyster mushrooms, organic greens, and crème fraiche (€ 22.95).

This potato cake was HUGE, a perfect crispy crust around velvety mashed potatoes. Here’s the inside of it:

Gabriel cheese (similar in taste to grana padano or parmesan) gave the potatoes an addictive flavor. Perfect with the lightly sautéed oyster mushrooms and greens (spinach?). And the crème fraiche – amazing! (forget sour cream, I’m only buying crème fraiche from now on)

For dessert, we shared a sticky pear and ginger cake (€ 6.95). I don’t usually like ginger in my dessert but this was fabulous- warm, moist, and surprisingly not too sweet with only a hint of ginger. We managed to scrape every bit of toffee sauce off that plate! And our dessert ended up being free because our server felt bad that we waited so long when the kitchen got backed up.


Hubby and I had a wonderful experience at the The Winding Stair, probably our favorite meal in Dublin. Dinner didn’t break the bank either, coming in at less than €70. They definitely deserve their 2009 Michelin Bib Gourmand status!

Weird Food Wednesdays: Black Pudding

Weird Food Wednesdays: Fuyu Persimmon & U2!

Yes, this is indeed a slice of a ripe fuyu persimmon! Kudos to doggybloggy of ChezWhat? who guessed correctly within moments of me putting up the photo!

I hadn't tried a persimmon in over 25 years, after having had a bad experience with them as a kid. Persimmons look so much like tomatoes that I was totally weirded out when I bit into one and found it sickeningly sweet - a total fake-out to my tastebuds. At the time, I felt like my mom had played a mean trick on me.

Persimmons have become more mainstream in the past few years, even showing up at my local Wegmans. Perhaps it was time to give them another chance. A couple weeks ago, I stopped at my local Asian market and bought 2 fuyus at different stages of ripeness, one smooshy red one and a firm orange specimen.


We ate the red ripe one almost immediately - it barely held together when I cut into it, the insides bursting all over the plate. The skin was a bit tough but we ate it anyway, the juicy insides (like an over ripe tomato) were very sweet with the flavor of pear, mango, and papaya.


The orange fuyu has been slowly ripening on my counter for over 2 weeks. Apparently it's fine to eat when firm, but won't be as sweet. I'll probably wait for it to become soft and smooshy before eating it, but I bet it would be great sliced up in a salad right now. Another variety of persimmon, the acorn-shaped hachiya, is too astringent to eat before it's completely soft and ripe. Make sure you check which kind you have before you bite into it!

Now for something totally unrelated to food...Hubby Kris and I just got back from Dublin, Ireland, where we saw U2 in concert! I'll be writing more about our trip and local Irish food in future posts, but for now, here are some highlights from the concert:

Weird Food Wednesdays: Fuyu Persimmon & U2!

Weird Food Wednesdays: ???

You know that I was just kidding around with that last post, right?

Here's the real Weird Food Wednesday. Can you guess what it is?

(will post the answer next Wednesday)

Weird Food Wednesdays: ???

Weird Food Wednesdays: Turdaroon

I found myself a little strapped for time this week, hadn't even started to think of topics yet... but then I got an email from a cute little fellow named Turdaroon, asking to be considered for Weird Food Wednedsday.

What is a Turdaroon? Well, basically a chocolate macaroon gone wrong, one that ends up looking like a turd. Despite the unfortunate swirly turd pattern, Turdaroon bears the mark of a true macaroon - he has feet!

He's also proud to possess a shiny crusty top with soft insides (but the little bugger refused to come clean off the parchment paper).

A huge thank you to Heavenly Housewife for letting me borrow Turdaroon for Weird Food Wednesdays! Check out her fabulous blog, From Donuts to Delirium: My Life as a Housewife, for more culinary adventures (she really is quite an amazing baker).

Weird Food Wednesdays: Turdaroon

Weird Food Wednesdays: Longan

If you grew up in an Asian household than this week's topic, longan, is definitely NOT weird to you. Still, most people in North America have never heard of it. And I sure have a heck of a time finding it around here, always hit or miss, even at my local Asian food market.

Longan's better known cousin, lychee, is bigger, fleshier and has reached a certain celebrity status in the cocktail world, appearing in fashionable lychee martinis across the nation. Meanwhile, the smaller, less-showy longan still lives in relative obscurity. I've always been confused by this because whenever I'm confronted with having to choose between buying fresh lychee and longan (the seasons overlap a little), longan is the clear winner!

Longan literally means "dragon eye" in Chinese due to its appearance - underneath the thin leathery beige/brown skin you'll find translucent juicy flesh surrounding a non-edible shiny brown pit. The size and shape is similar to a red globe grape. The texture is also grape-like but the flavor is really unique - so unique in fact that I had to eat almost half my stash to come up with an accurate description for you guys (OK, maybe I was just greedy - as a child, I would eat them non-stop until I gave myself a tummy ache). I may have to go back and eat the rest for a better description but for now, here's my best attempt: sweet, fragrant, refreshing, and slightly floral, like the nectar from a honeysuckle. There's nothing like it! And perhaps I've been lucky, but every longan I've tasted has been sweet and ripe.

Although longan hasn't inspired me yet to write poetry (like I did for my beloved cherimoya), I'm slightly obsessed with them. So I now present...

Longan: A Love Story...

The skin is easy to remove, just use your fingernail to pierce it gently and then it slips off very easily:

Unadulterated sweet glory, translucent, shimmering juicy flesh:

Separate the flesh from the shiny pit:

All gone! (sorry, Kris)

One of my top 5 favorite fruits of all time. I bet you'll love it!

Where to buy:

Fresh (in season during the summer months)
Chinatown/Asian Food Markets ($-$$ I paid a reasonable $4.99 per lb)
Specialty/Gourmet Food Markets ($$$ you'll pay a lot more at non-Asian places)
Online: ($$$$ - only if you are desperate)

Tips on selecting fruit: Longan are harvested when they are ripe. Choose fruit with skin that is free of any mold spots and tight to the flesh (no air pockets - this means the flesh inside is starting to rot). Longan still attached to the branch are fresher than fruits that have become detached. Longan can be kept at room temperature but should be eaten within a couple days of purchase.

Canned/Dried
You can also find canned longan (in heavy syrup) in your local Chinatown/Asian food market and sometimes in the international aisle of a well-stocked supermarket. Or buy canned longan online here. While not as good as fresh, the canned version retains much of the texture and the flavor of the fresh fruit. Serve it with fruit cocktail and almond jelly as a refreshing dessert. Dried longans are sold in Chinese herbal medicine shops and Asian food markets for their purported health benefits.

And a huge SHOUT OUT to my good friend, Heavenly Housewife, who had her own Weird Food Wednesday adventure with Charentais Melon (which I am unlikely ever to feature since melons are the only fruit I'm allergic to!)

Weird Food Wednesdays: Longan