Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Apr 18, 2016 11:45:43 GMT -5
Easy enough question, what national food do you hold in high regard? By that I mean a meal or recipe of a specific provenance be that a country you come from or someplace else's specific-to-them foodthing. Bonus question, where do you go when you want fast food but are too good for the regular places?
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Post by Ben Grimm on Apr 18, 2016 12:33:58 GMT -5
Asian cuisines, in general, are my favorite. Picking a specific favorite would be difficult; we have very good local Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian, Chinese, and Japanese places here, and a pretty good Korean place with incredibly weird hours we make it out to occasionally. If I'm in the mood for a burger, I'll usually go here: www.vertigoburgersandfries.com/or here: www.wellsbrothersbarandgrill.com/I almost never get fast food burgers; maybe once every six months, usually when I'm stuck with little choice. I like Krystal's from time to time, but we don't have one in town. |
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Post by Liz n Dick on Apr 18, 2016 12:52:23 GMT -5
I'm a red-blooded American, so my favorite national cuisines are Italian, Chinese, and Mexican. Preferably in the Americanized versions.  The super-greasy lowbrow Chinese place in my small town is my go-to for filling that fast-food void. That, or the mom-and-pop pizza place. Fast food isn't much of an option for me locally because I'm borderline rural, so there's not a huge density of big chain options. I mean, we have a Burger King in town, but who eats Burger King? The other fast food options are all just far enough away that it negates the point. The other option I go for is frozen food -- I love DiGiorno pizzas and Hot Pockets. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Apr 18, 2016 13:02:48 GMT -5
I tend to eschew the typical national chains, although the landscape of those is changing. But in general, I don't eat at McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Subway, Taco Bell, White Castle ... we have some local places and smaller regional chains I like - Culver's, Portillo's, Tom & Eddie's. Five Guys has good burgers but they're huge calorie bombs and there are no other options there. As for national cuisines ... I could eat Mexican (or Americanized Mexican in some cases) every day. Puerto Rican/Caribbean too. Just as happy with homestyle arroz con pollo or arroz con gandules as fancy Rick Bayless food. I also love Indian food, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, regional Italian ... would love to try more African cuisine, I dig Ethiopian but it's been a long time. As much as it's fun to ding British food, I will say, as a national dish, Chicken Tikka Masala is a winner.  |
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Post by The Sensational She-Hulk on Apr 18, 2016 13:28:11 GMT -5
I could eat Indian, Japanese, or Vietnamese food every single dang day. I just love them that much.
Wawa is one of my favorite fast-food restaurants, because it's not exactly fast food and it's technically a gas station, but they always use fresh ingredients and I've never had a bad sub from them. Sheetz is okay - they have a leg up on fried appetizers - but Wawa beats them any day. Their tuna salad is the only one I'll eat that I don't make myself, aside from the tuna salad at our local pizzeria.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Apr 18, 2016 13:29:52 GMT -5
Feel like maybe I should modify my question because I'm getting a few general answers like "I like food from <country>" when I'm more specifically asking about a meal or recipe of a specific providence be that a country you come from or someplace else's specific-to-them foodthing.
The fast food one nobody is slipping up on which is nice, keep it up.
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Gumbercules
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Post by Gumbercules on Apr 18, 2016 13:32:00 GMT -5
Feel like maybe I should modify my question because I'm getting a few general answers like "I like food from <country>" when I'm more specifically asking about a meal or recipe of a specific providence be that a country you come from or someplace else's specific-to-them foodthing. The fast food one nobody is slipping up on which is nice, keep it up. Oh, in Providence, I love Ken's Ramen. Long wait, but worth it! www.kens-ramen.com/ |
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Gumbercules
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Post by Gumbercules on Apr 18, 2016 13:34:40 GMT -5
Also, as a serious reply, for some reason my original post never went through.
Wasn't sure on what you were asking for the first part, but in regards to the fast food question, I'll usually go for a falafel wrap or a local, more authentic taco/burrito place. In general, most delis and other sandwich places only put vegetarian sandwiches as an afterthought, so they're usually not worth a visit for me.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Apr 18, 2016 13:42:02 GMT -5
I edited my OP to be specific even though I can't change "providence" to "provenance" now, thanks Gumbercules and fuck you autocorrect. |
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Post by pairesta on Apr 18, 2016 13:56:09 GMT -5
I'm not remotely Italian but that's what I cook most often. One of my very favorite Italian dishes is ragu Bolognese with tagliatelle. This is a topic of endless debate and you probably won't find any two recipes the same. I really like Marcella Hazan's recipe, for the most part, using canned tomatoes, not tomato paste, a key differentiator. However, rather than her all-beef version, I use 1/3rd beef, 1/3rd pork, and then ground up cured meat like pancetta or prosciutto. Not sure if that's what you were wanting from your revised question.
Fast food: we'll indulge alot of local mini-chains. When burger cravings strike we hit Five guys. I have a bizaare weakness for Chipotle so I have to have it once or twice a year, even though there's better Mexican, well, almost on every corner it Houston.
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Post by Liz n Dick on Apr 18, 2016 13:59:13 GMT -5
I'm not remotely Italian but that's what I cook most often. One of my very favorite Italian dishes is ragu Bolognese with tagliatelle. This is a topic of endless debate and you probably won't find any two recipes the same. I really like Marcella Hazan's recipe, for the most part, using canned tomatoes, not tomato paste, a key differentiator. However, rather than her all-beef version, I use 1/3rd beef, 1/3rd pork, and then ground up cured meat like pancetta or prosciutto. Not sure if that's what you were wanting from your revised question. Fast food: we'll indulge alot of local mini-chains. When burger cravings strike we hit Five guys. I have a bizaare weakness for Chipotle so I have to have it once or twice a year, even though there's better Mexican, well, almost on every corner it Houston. I also love Chipotle! We have one that's marginally within reasonable driving distance, if I'm already running errands out on the big commercial strips on the highway, but it's probably a good thing that it's not an everyday distance. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Apr 18, 2016 14:54:09 GMT -5
Easy enough question, what national food do you hold in high regard? Tacos. Bonus question, where do you go when you want fast food but are too good for the regular places? Tacos. ...but seriously, local taco joints in my area with $1.50-3 tacos. Pastor, chorizo, carnitas, tacos are my jam. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Apr 18, 2016 14:56:00 GMT -5
But my favorite national/ethnic cuisines are actually Turkish (my family is Turkish), French, and Japanese. Honorable mention: dim sum. Mmmm, pork buns and soup dumplings.
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moimoi
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Post by moimoi on Apr 18, 2016 19:43:25 GMT -5
My family is from Hyderabad, so I have to stump for our biryani, which is generally (and correctly) regarded as the best in the world: we're talking mutton falling off the bone on a yellow basmati pilaf and seasoned with about 20 different spices. None of that 'karachi-style' chicken biryani crap...
I also love some Korean bbq and the shredded chicken or skirt steak tacos you get here in chicago. My favorite local take-out is Portillo's and Culver's (and White Castle). I hear good things about Mr. Broast too - kind of like Nando's? I'll report back.
The Japanese are masters of salt and make the best-tasting potato chips, french fries, and rice crackers. Also phenomanal: their fruit juice in vending machines. In Egypt I became addicted to koshari, which is like eating three cans of chef boyardee at once. One of the best things I ever ate was unidentified meat on a stick grilled over a gas drum in China (pretty sure it was chicken gizzard, but army sentinels chased the vendor off as a vagrant before I could ask). In London I used to subsist on toffee waffles from eat cafe (I think that's what it's called) and a Toronto company called Crispy makes the best shortbread cookies i've ever tasted. On the east coast i'm devoted to Rita's ice custard and halal carts. In Socal, I love fresh fruit vendors and fro-yo.
Hope that answers the question.
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Post by Nudeviking on Apr 18, 2016 20:03:11 GMT -5
This is a hard question to answer, because there isn't a national cuisine I have encountered that doesn't have at least a couple bajillion things that are good to eat. I eat Korean food a lot, because that's where I live and therefore that is what restaurants/cafeterias/my wife serve most frequently. I eat a lot of Eastern European stuff, because that is where my peoples are originally from so those are the foods we used to eat and I learned how to cook, but again, it's hard to pick just one.
As for fast food? I am not stuck up and also don't have a lot of "high class" fast food places at my disposal so I'll just get Burger King or McDonald's if I want a hamburger type thing and don't want to make it myself. I mean there are some microbrewery places that have "deluxe" hamburgers and stuff but I don't go there to get a burger fix, I go there to drink beer...even if I am eating a hamburger also. So it's either Burger King or get fried chicken and beer delivered to my house by a delivery guy if I want fast food.
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Post by rimjobflashmob on Apr 18, 2016 23:26:18 GMT -5
Every Thai place I end up at, I order either whatever wide rice noodle dish they've got with peanut sauce, or Phad See Ew. Daaayyyuuuum. That's my go-to. In Seattle, there is no better fast food than Rancho Bravo, where you can get a burrito the size of your head and exponentially more delicious in a matter of minutes. It's like Taco Bell, if Taco Bell used actual ingredients and cared about their product. I've tried other things on the menu but I always end up with a Bravo Burrito, black beans, and when I wasn't a vegetarian, al pastor. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Apr 19, 2016 7:14:38 GMT -5
My family is from Hyderabad, so I have to stump for our biryani, which is generally (and correctly) regarded as the best in the world: we're talking mutton falling off the bone on a yellow basmati pilaf and seasoned with about 20 different spices. None of that 'karachi-style' chicken biryani crap... OK, so tell me ... First time I ever had biryani was at my favorite Indian place, I adore their lamb biryani, but I'm not sure what style it is - I jokingly call it Indian fried rice, it's not yellow, but is definitely pilaf with chunks of veggies, tons of spices and really tender chunks of lamb. I also had some in DC that was bright yellow and had raisins in it and I didn't like that as much. |
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Post by The Sensational She-Hulk on Apr 19, 2016 9:03:05 GMT -5
Feel like maybe I should modify my question because I'm getting a few general answers like "I like food from <country>" when I'm more specifically asking about a meal or recipe of a specific providence be that a country you come from or someplace else's specific-to-them foodthing. Ahhhh, okay! That makes sense. One of my absolute favorite foods from anywhere is the egg-yolk custard bun you get in really good dim sum restaurants. I don't know what it is about it that I love so much, just that I regret there aren't any good dim sum places in Baltimore to get my fix. They're so rich and creamy on the inside, and so fluffy on the outside. |
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moimoi
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Post by moimoi on Apr 19, 2016 10:07:49 GMT -5
My family is from Hyderabad, so I have to stump for our biryani, which is generally (and correctly) regarded as the best in the world: we're talking mutton falling off the bone on a yellow basmati pilaf and seasoned with about 20 different spices. None of that 'karachi-style' chicken biryani crap... OK, so tell me ... First time I ever had biryani was at my favorite Indian place, I adore their lamb biryani, but I'm not sure what style it is - I jokingly call it Indian fried rice, it's not yellow, but is definitely pilaf with chunks of veggies, tons of spices and really tender chunks of lamb. I also had some in DC that was bright yellow and had raisins in it and I didn't like that as much. Well, first off biryani is not, and never should be, fried; it's baked like a casserole. If it tastes greasy or fried, I'm guessing it's Bombay-style. Not sure how chunks of veggies got into your meat biryani - typically it is one or the other unless it's for the sake of economy (after all, lamb is expensive). What you had in DC is almost certainly Afghan or Iranian biryani - yellow from saffron and with raisins. Chicago is one of maybe two places in the U.S. you can get Hyderabadi-style biryani in a restaurant (the other being Houston), because that's where a lot of Hyderabadi immigrants settled. The last time I checked, Hema's Kitchen on Devon serves Hydro-style (not the one in Lincoln Park, though) and it's one place you needn't worry about getting sick. It should look like this:  |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Apr 19, 2016 10:20:16 GMT -5
OK, so tell me ... First time I ever had biryani was at my favorite Indian place, I adore their lamb biryani, but I'm not sure what style it is - I jokingly call it Indian fried rice, it's not yellow, but is definitely pilaf with chunks of veggies, tons of spices and really tender chunks of lamb. I also had some in DC that was bright yellow and had raisins in it and I didn't like that as much. Well, first off biryani is not, and never should be, fried; it's baked like a casserole. If it tastes greasy or fried, I'm guessing it's Bombay-style. Not sure how chunks of veggies got into your meat biryani - typically it is one or the other unless it's for the sake of economy (after all, lamb is expensive). What you had in DC is almost certainly Afghan or Iranian biryani - yellow from saffron and with raisins. Chicago is one of maybe two places in the U.S. you can get Hyderabadi-style biryani in a restaurant (the other being Houston), because that's where a lot of Hyderabadi immigrants settled. The last time I checked, Hema's Kitchen on Devon serves Hydro-style (not the one in Lincoln Park, though) and it's one place you needn't worry about getting sick. It should look like this: It may not actually be fried, it just has a slightly "fried rice" taste to it, but what do I know? -- and your picture isn't far off, really. I feel like I misrepresented it now. A few chunks of tomato, not like, massive amounts of veggies. I guess it does have a bit of a tinge to it, it's just not bright saffron-y yellow. (pictures: www.yelp.com/biz_photos/kama-indian-bistro-la-grange-2?select=hb3yOu0cl3-W85oQEGDlVg, www.yelp.com/biz_photos/kama-indian-bistro-la-grange-2?select=o_-Ye8OU-40CReLeLDyRLg)This restaurant is kind of fusion-y, though, so he's not claiming it's 1000% authentic (but the owner and chef is Indian, and his father was a renowned chef in India, sadly I can't remember what area he's from). |
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Baron von Costume
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Post by Baron von Costume on Apr 19, 2016 10:25:30 GMT -5
I could pretty happily be drowned in a giant serving a Mee Krob.
Fast food wise a Wendy's Spicy Chicken is my go to chain restaurant FF meal if needed but in general what I'll do if in the mood for grease is hit one of a couple different local greek run burger joints and get a burger and chili fries.
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moimoi
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Post by moimoi on Apr 19, 2016 10:51:31 GMT -5
Well, first off biryani is not, and never should be, fried; it's baked like a casserole. If it tastes greasy or fried, I'm guessing it's Bombay-style. Not sure how chunks of veggies got into your meat biryani - typically it is one or the other unless it's for the sake of economy (after all, lamb is expensive). What you had in DC is almost certainly Afghan or Iranian biryani - yellow from saffron and with raisins. Chicago is one of maybe two places in the U.S. you can get Hyderabadi-style biryani in a restaurant (the other being Houston), because that's where a lot of Hyderabadi immigrants settled. The last time I checked, Hema's Kitchen on Devon serves Hydro-style (not the one in Lincoln Park, though) and it's one place you needn't worry about getting sick. It should look like this: This restaurant is kind of fusion-y, though, so he's not claiming it's 1000% authentic (but the owner and chef is Indian, and his father was a renowned chef in India, sadly I can't remember what area he's from). In my opinion, the only 'authentic' Indian food is what Indian people prepare at home. As soon as someone opens a restaurant, they have to economize and consider what will attract customers (who may be put off by authentic stuff like goat-tongue soup, a personal fave). I think it's smart of restaurant owners to modernize and not cling to old recipes. For my money, the best Indian restaurant in DC is Rasika. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Apr 19, 2016 10:56:59 GMT -5
This restaurant is kind of fusion-y, though, so he's not claiming it's 1000% authentic (but the owner and chef is Indian, and his father was a renowned chef in India, sadly I can't remember what area he's from). In my opinion, the only 'authentic' Indian food is what Indian people prepare at home. As soon as someone opens a restaurant, they have to economize and consider what will attract customers (who may be put off by authentic stuff like goat-tongue soup, a personal fave). I think it's smart of restaurant owners to modernize and not cling to old recipes. For my money, the best Indian restaurant in DC is Rasika. A fair point We had an Indian family in our church when I was a kid who practically adopted me -- and loved to feed me. I don't even know most of what I ate, but I loved the homemade roti (hey, I was a kid). That was my introduction but I was too young to really be thinking about ingredients. Anyway, we actually had intended to eat at Rasika (which our friend told us was similar to the restaurant I mentioned, Kama Bistro) but we couldn't get a reservation and went to Le Diplomate instead - the Indian food we did eat was take-out later in the week. |
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Post by Ben Grimm on Apr 19, 2016 11:33:45 GMT -5
This restaurant is kind of fusion-y, though, so he's not claiming it's 1000% authentic (but the owner and chef is Indian, and his father was a renowned chef in India, sadly I can't remember what area he's from). In my opinion, the only 'authentic' Indian food is what Indian people prepare at home. As soon as someone opens a restaurant, they have to economize and consider what will attract customers (who may be put off by authentic stuff like goat-tongue soup, a personal fave). I think it's smart of restaurant owners to modernize and not cling to old recipes. For my money, the best Indian restaurant in DC is Rasika. I get the impression Indian food in the US in general hasn't been Americanized as thoroughly as, say, Mexican or Chinese or Italian has, at least at a lot of places. There aren't any nationwide chains specializing in watered-down Indian food. |
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moimoi
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Post by moimoi on Apr 19, 2016 11:55:59 GMT -5
In my opinion, the only 'authentic' Indian food is what Indian people prepare at home. As soon as someone opens a restaurant, they have to economize and consider what will attract customers (who may be put off by authentic stuff like goat-tongue soup, a personal fave). I think it's smart of restaurant owners to modernize and not cling to old recipes. For my money, the best Indian restaurant in DC is Rasika. I get the impression Indian food in the US in general hasn't been Americanized as thoroughly as, say, Mexican or Chinese or Italian has, at least at a lot of places. There aren't any nationwide chains specializing in watered-down Indian food. Wait another 50 years, I guess? The English have chicken tikka masala and I could see butter chicken (a similar dish) catching on here. Or samosas. Naan seems to be catching on in other countries and I see it at the regular grocery stores here. I think it's just a matter of time. |
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Apr 19, 2016 11:59:37 GMT -5
In my opinion, the only 'authentic' Indian food is what Indian people prepare at home. As soon as someone opens a restaurant, they have to economize and consider what will attract customers (who may be put off by authentic stuff like goat-tongue soup, a personal fave). I think it's smart of restaurant owners to modernize and not cling to old recipes. For my money, the best Indian restaurant in DC is Rasika. I get the impression Indian food in the US in general hasn't been Americanized as thoroughly as, say, Mexican or Chinese or Italian has, at least at a lot of places. There aren't any nationwide chains specializing in watered-down Indian food. There's a fast casual joint in our area called Masala Wok with several locations, serving both Indian and Thai. It's fantastic. |
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moimoi
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Post by moimoi on Apr 28, 2016 23:07:36 GMT -5
Add to my list: hot chicken pozole (or chicken & rice soup from a diner) on a chilly day. |
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moimoi
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Post by moimoi on May 1, 2016 20:59:12 GMT -5
Not sure which locality this represents, since cheesecake is hardly indigenous to Japan, but I just tasted Uncle Tetsu's cheesecake in Toronto and it is amazing! The softest, fluffiest, velvetiest cake I've ever had - and not too sweet. If you're ever in Canada, Hawaii (or Japan, China, Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia, or Thailand) I highly recommend! |
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Post by Judkins Moaner on May 2, 2016 7:14:23 GMT -5
Coming from Louisiana and living in Michigan, it's usually as much as I can handle to keep my cooking skills up when it comes to my native cuisine (I still consider Louisiana to be the greatest food region in the US and completely took this for granted when I was growing up). Just made Shrimp Diane with spaghetti last night and it was superb. So I've been trying to stay sharp on those, not least as there's nowhere around here I can get the kind of stuff I could get growing up (a Popeye's opened a couple of months ago, but that's a decided stopgap and a half-hour bus ride away). As for others, I've probably found myself cooking Italian food the most, though I've started to get into Tex-Mex stuff, especially Texas chili. I have quite a few chilies left over from my last batch, so I may well try a few Latin American dishes at some point in the near future. My interest in pupusas has lasted far past my infatuation with the girl at the bookstore (who was largely of Salvadoran ancestry); they sound like they'd be interesting to make. I've actually found, when it comes to home cooking, that I've gotten stuck on a core set of dishes: tarte provencale, tarte denise (my shrimp tart), Shrimp Diane, Eggplant Parmigiana, Caldo Verde (Portuguese greens soup) and Texas Chili. One thing I'd like to do in the next week or two is actually make something new, maybe from a different cuisine this time (I picked up a packet of butter chicken sauce at the grocery last time I was there; maybe that'll inspire me to try harder or at least further the culinary standardization of which moimoi spoke). There's a local Eastern Mediterranean chain that does gyros and such which I patronize more often than not. I'm also dangerously susceptible to the Subway Spicy Italian (phrasing). |
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