The name is because…now that I know how easy it is to experiment with queso fresco, I’m going to do a whole lot more of this in the future. This one is for a garlic and lime infused cheese I made for a dinner party that is better than any cheese I have ever had… Continue reading Experimental Cheese #1!

I LOVE corned beef, so I took a crack at making it, just starting from a brisket. It’s way easier than you might think. All a corned beef IS is a brisket that’s been brined for at least a week in salt water and spices. That’s it. It’s called “corned beef” because they used to… Continue reading Corned Beef (from scratch!)

HOLY SHIT THIS STUFF IS AMAZING! Packed with flavor. If you want to make thai curry, just throw this stuff in with some coconut milk and you’re done. This is adapted from the recipe from Hot Thai Kitchen, here: https://hot-thai-kitchen.com/green-curry-paste/ , but I couldn’t find some of the ingredients in Chicago so I had to… Continue reading Thai green curry paste

Mexican style chorizo, as opposed to spanish style. Makes amazing tacos. It is going to be a “wet” sausage, in that if you leave it to sit for a while some liquid will leak out of it. Not a big deal, just mix it back up before you use it. If you are stuffing this… Continue reading Chorizo

Spicy korean chicken.  It’s delightful, but the name is serious.  If you’re sensitive to spicy food you definitely want to give this one a miss. Also, I realize this might come as a shock to some of you, it’s apparently pretty common in Korea to eat this smothered in mozzarella.  I tried it and it… Continue reading Fire Chicken

This is just a nice simple little dish that I like, it goes well with any kind of korean barbecue.  It’s a little funky because of the fish sauce, which I like, but it might be a turn off for some people. Strictly speaking you’re supposed to make this with mu, which is the korean… Continue reading Korean Radish Salad (Musaengchae)

This is like…my new favorite thing.  As near as I can tell, Nepalese food is basically a cross between Chinese and Indian cooking.  Which, looking at a map, makes perfect sense.  But it’s kind of a weird and wonderful mashup of flavors that I never would have thought of before. This does make a lot,… Continue reading Nepalese Chow Mein

This is like a deep south jambalaya.  I found it by googling “southern side dishes” and it sounded good, and it is really good.  It what I would consider a BBQ vegetable, which means it’s mostly sausage and beans and rice and a couple of greens for color.  Tasty, though. Ingredients: 1/2 pound of smoked… Continue reading Hoppin John

Regional specialty of Nashville (of course).  This stuff is great.  It’s just perfectly fried chicken that is then tossed in this incredibly rich hot sauce, although that’s not even the right word.  It’s not really a sauce in any way I usually think of it, it’s a mix of hot bacon fat, cayenne pepper, and… Continue reading Nashville Hot Chicken