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Experiments Smoking Salt: Part II
2008-04-01 05:23:00
Fresh from the smoker, my latest batch of mesquite smoked salt crystals. The color of good smoked salt should be as rich as the aroma and flavor it provides, ranging from a light amber to a dark pitch, almost black color. Almost two years ago I wrote up an article on a series of experiments I was doing smoking salt. At the time I promised a follow up article posting my results in a "couple of weeks". Clearly it has taken me longer to get here than a couple of weeks, but I didn't want to post on the subject again until I sorted out some of the details and techniques and had a chance to do some research. The art of salt smoking has prompted more inquiries than any other subject I have posted on Chilefire.com - I have received emails from both professionals interested in marketing their own smoked salt and amateur home smokers interested in making up a batch after having tasted the unique salt, all looking for a web resource on the topic. So, after experimenting f...
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Experiments Smoking Salt: Part II
2008-03-31 00:00:00
Almost two years ago I wrote up an article on a series of experiments I was doing smoking salt. At the time I promised a follow up article posting my results in a "couple of weeks". Clearly it has taken me longer to get here than a couple of weeks, but I didn't want to post on the subject again until I sorted out some of the details and techniques and had a chance to do some research.
More About: Cooking , Recipes , Food and Drink , Smoking , Experiments

Product Comparison Review: Santoku Knives
2007-12-15 00:00:00
The Santoku is a Japanese chef's knife, a low-tip style with a broad blade and a slightly curved cutting edge. in Japan, this knife is used as the same kitchen workhorse as a French chef's knife is in European kitchens. Its cutting edge is less curved than the traditional chef's knife, so it provides less rocking action. The blade is designed for superb straight-down slicing and precise chopping. The santoku is often ground with alternating hollows on each side called Kullenschliffs. The hollows create breaks in the blade, which provide air pockets, allowing food to fall away cleanly.
More About: Cooking , Recipes , Review , Product , Food and Drink

Columbus & The Humble Chile - A Meditation
2007-10-05 00:00:00
The chile, it seems to me, is one of the few foods that has its own god. — Diana Kennedy
More About: Cooking , Recipes , Meditation , Food and Drink , Chile

Book Review: Morimoto, The New Art of Japanese Cooking
2007-09-26 00:00:00
Book Review : Morimoto, The New Art of Japanese Cooking
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Chilefire Finds a New Kitchen and Much More, in Laramie, Wyoming
2007-07-20 00:00:00
Some of you may have noticed our absence the last several months. Naomi and I made some big changes not to long ago - and decided to sell the boat and find a new home on land.
More About: Cooking , Recipes , Kitchen , Food and Drink , Wyoming

Online Asian Food Shopping: Finding Hard To Locate Asian Ingredients Online
2007-07-16 00:00:00
A list of reputable online grocers and retailers specializing in Asian ingredient and kitchenwares
More About: Shopping , Cooking , Food , Recipes , Food and Drink

Ginger & Lemongrass, Star Anise & Thai Chiles - A Delicate Offering
2007-01-31 05:08:01
This is a dish that I came up with after some experimentation I have been doing with asian spice broths. I wanted to combine four distinct spice flavors in a broth or stock base that would not overpower the subtleties of flavor and aromatics offered by the seasonings; ginger, lemongrass, star anise and Thai chile.
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New Mexico Gold
2006-09-20 01:10:00
The final product, ready to grind into a fine powder; I use a Krups grinder as well as this Japanese mortar. Smoked Hatch chiles in the smoker - after about 60 hours total (between smoking and drying). A second batch of Hatch green chiles sits above another batch that is nearly done. I have spent the last several days making a about 2 pounds of hand smoked Hatch green chiles. I started out with about 15 pounds of fresh chiles and smoked them at about 150° for a total of about 72 hours until the chiles turned a dark golden color and were completely dried. This is the first time that I have smoked chiles and I am very pleased with the result that I have achieved. The process was certainly time consuming - but the ultimate results are well worth the wait. Chipotle chiles (smoked Jalapenos) are the most common smoked chile - - though morita chiles are also a commonly smoked chile. I have not personally had any smoked Hatch chiles - either red or green (chipotle chiles are made fr...
More About: Mexico , New Mexico , Gold

Unagi - The Secrets Of Japanese Grilled Eel
2006-07-02 07:42:00
When it comes to grilling fish, the Japanese have mastered the art. Which should hardly be surprising, when at least according to the Guardian "one in ten fish is eaten in Japan. " As a culture Japan has explored the eating of fish to levels quite literally never even thought of yet in the west. We have plenty of sushi bars in the States, but the food served at most American sushi bars is a very narrow range of possible selections you could make of Japanese fish dishes. The cooking process is what makes the eel both crisp and tender: The eel is first grilled over hot oak charcoal, then steamed to remove excess fat, then seasoned with a sweet barbecue like sauce and grilled a second time.
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Experiments Smoking Salt
2006-04-07 05:14:00
The first installment of a two part series on smoking salt. See the link at the bottom of the page to Experiments in Smoking Salt : Part II. Chilefire also hosts a Salt Smoking Discusion. Please Join us! William Fettes Douglas - The Alchemist The alchemists believed naturally occurring dew contained the divine salt or "thoughts of the One Mind". Dew was likened to Gods sweat, so to tease salt from it would give you quite a condiment indeed. My first smoked salt: The smoke and taste this salt provides is shocking, just a few grains as a finishing salt has a remarkableimpact on flavor. 2 hours of smoke & these crystals are beginning to color a slight amber with deep smoke aroma. I am surrounded by wisps of the sweet smoke of orange and mesquite woods, it is a windy spring night aboard the boat, blustery, with a slight chill that is unique to spring on the water. Tonight the smoke from the onboard cooker adds gravity to the evening, seemingly ...

Review: The Char-Broil Electric Water Smoker - $69.99
2005-12-18 22:44:00
Scoring: Each category is worth 20 points for a total of 100 Temperature Controls: 10 Smoke Controls: 6 Durability: 15 Versatility: 11 Taste Test: 10 Final Score: 52/100 The Char-Broil Electric Water Smoker is a "bullet" style smoker, named for the basic shape of the unit. The smoker does not allow the smoke to pass over the meat and exit though the top of the smoker, creating a smoke pocket in the lid that slowly pours out the lids seal with the base, inevitably bittering your meat which is left sitting in a kind of bowl of smoke. The Variac will allow you to have very precise control over your burner heat. With this addition you will be able to control the temperature of any electric smoker down to the degree – no joke. The Char-Broil Electric Water Smoker is a "bullet" style smoker, named for the basic shape of the unit. Bullet smokers are great introductory smokers for a number of reasons, the most important being the price - at $69.99 ...
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Cooking Gadget - The Flexicado Avocado Slicer
2005-12-06 21:10:00
I would love to be able say that I don't fall for gadgets. The thing is I do, and in general I end up not liking them. I have basically never found a "handheld" to be of any use at all. I just don't pick it up, they have a terrible interface,and are just not pleasing to use. ick. Thing is, I own two of them. In my kitchen, I don't actually have all that many gadgets. A few, that work, I do keep handy. For instance, I love my silicone spatula that I can stick in a fire and scoop out molten lead with (ok, but almost!). I like my fancy lemon zester, my bread machine, and... I do have a waffle iron. After that, its all woks and pans and knives, the essentials. The Flexicado™ is a gadget. No question. but is it a nice one? like my ginger grater, or a another piece of junk, Like... every pepper grinder I have ever owned. After my first two uses, I think it might actually be a keeper. I picked it up after reading a review that mentioned in a magazine, and I thought - "I have ...
More About: Cooking , Gadget

A Fiery Quest! (Part 2 of 2) Chimayo Chile Powders #1 and #2 from The Santa
2005-12-03 20:55:00
I received the last order of chile powder in the mail yesterday before I went to work. I have decided that to introduce the first two of the chile powders today: Hot and mild Chimayó Chile Powders from The Santa Fe School of Cooking So I am starting with the Santa Fe School of Cooking powders because they come in stainless steel resealable tins. Really it is more like a small paint can, but it's nice. I have been ordering this chile powder from the school's store for 2 years now, and each time I finish a can it is months before I can bring myself to toss out the tin. The tins are really nice.  
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DC Local Hot Saucer Takes 4 Awards at 2006 Scovies
2005-11-28 23:08:00
Brennan G. Proctor (a.k.a. Uncle Brutha) sells his hot sauces in person at Eastern Market on the weekends. I have been picking up the occasional bottle over the last year on the weekends I that I am lucky enough to have the time to go by the market. I haven't been lucky enough to have his Chile Verde sauce yet but the next time that I hit the market I am certainly going to pick one up. You can also pick up Uncle Brutha sauces at his website, http://unclebrutha.com.
More About: Awards , Local

A Fiery Quest! (Part 1 of 2) Finding the Best Chimayó Chile The Web Can Pr
2005-11-26 22:53:00
Throughout the country, you will find all kinds of chile peppers. Texans boast their citrus-hot jalapeños and squat poblanos. In Louisiana, cayenne and tabasco peppers are the chiles of choice. Cooks in Miami have fallen in love with the fiery habanero, and in California, the chiles selected are most often pasillas, fresnos, and California chiles. But in New Mexico, there is only one chile of any real importance, The New Mexico chile. The New Mexico chile comes in both fresh and dried varieties and depending on when they are picked are served either red or green. The New Mexico chile comes in many different varieties. The most popular mild pepper is the NuMex conquistador, which is great for chiles rellenos. The NuMex sweet variety is used like a bell or anaheim pepper, as it has little or no heat at all. The NuMex Joe E. Parker is a medium-hot pepper that is excellent for salsas. And for the serious chileheads, there's the Sandia, a very hot southern variety, that is used i...
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Brisket, Smoked Chicken Chile and Good Company.
2005-11-22 04:20:00
This week we had our first whole weekend back on our boat since we had it put back in the water last week. After 6 weeks living away from our floating home I was ready to do some cooking.I finished setting up my smokers on the dock in front of my boat and started them up. In the galley I had a brisket soaking in a quick rub I put together, two chickens and a mess of poblano chiles waiting.In our time out of the water I had worked up the recipe that follows this posting for a smoked chile - and man did it turn out! Naomi and I had a couple of friends over for the results; Slow Cooked Brisket with homemade Mango Habenero Barbecue Sauce, bowls of Smoked Chicken and Pablano Chile and a mess of Green Chile Cornbread. By the end of the day the smoker had let all of our neighbors know we were home.
More About: Company , Good

Los Chilernos Chipotle Powder - All the Flavor Without the Vinegar
2005-11-21 04:13:00
  My father has loved Tabasco Sauce for years, and for almost as long I have been trying to convince him that while there is a place for Tabasco - it isn't on everything you want hot; because when you add Tabasco you also add a lot of vinegar, and in my opinion at least, scrambled eggs just aren't any better with vinegar on them - even if it is spicy vinegar. Recently though my father switched from regular Tabasco to Chipotle Tabasco (which isn't really Tabasco anymore now is it?) In the last 2 or 3 years chipotle chiles have become very popular. A restaurant chain carries the name, and endless products containing some variation of the smoked chile have been put on the market, from sauces to mustards. When my father switched from regular Tabasco to Chipotle Tabasco - I saw my chance to introduce Los Chilernos Chipotle powder as an alternative to his vinegar habit. I have tried a couple of chipotle powders and so far this is the best I have found (though the search continues!...

Deer Brand Red Chillies (Chiles)
2005-11-18 03:36:00
I ran into this plastic tub of "red chillies" at a local Pakistani food store in Falls Church. I couldn't help picking it up for two reasons. The first was the price! At 1.99 I didn't think I could go wrong and I had never seen these little peppers before and I just had to try them out.I am not at all sure what kind of chile these little guys are, they are a bit smaller and much brighter in color than Hungarian cherry peppers or cascabel peppers. I would guess that they are related to cascabel though only about a third the size, and about twice the bite. These little chiles like Hungarian cherry peppers are loaded with seeds. Bright red , smooth, and round in shape, measuring about ½ an inch in diameter. medium fleshed and pretty hot, with a sweet fruit/raisin quality. Low in tannins, The flavors are a little smoky sweet, rather like a riesling grape. The heat is first noticeable at the back of the throat, but hangs on around the front of the mouth and lips. Great for sauce...
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