On Apr 2, 12:37 pm, "Nunya Bidnits" wrote:

Still raining down there? g

Hey, I missed this great post because we had a dry day! Got in a full
ten hours for a change and it was great.

Ever grow the ones with the purple husks? They are the best I have had.

I have seen them in the gourmet stores, but never grown them. We just
have the common green paper husked type around here.

There is some kind of fly around here that lays eggs in the tomatillo
flower. The fruit grows up around it and the larvae eats its way out.

I think that is a type of fruit fly, but it could be just about
anything. I had that same problem with my tomatoes, but then went to
dusting them once a week with Sevin dust, and that took care of it.

But when I have had a good harvest or
crop in the store it usually goes into green salsa. But why don't you post
that recipe because it sounds great!

I'll dig it out and post it.




When I was a kid there was a Mexican restaurant in the neighborhood that,
way out of character, served a traditional Mexican style chili, in soupy
brown broth, with chunks of pork, pieces of roasted green chilis and other
vegetables, light on the beans, and tortillas on the side. Very rare in
South KC in the 60s and early 70s. I would go in there after school, even
when I was in grade school, for an after school treat of their chili. I've
been chasing the dream ever since.

What a treat. Most folks don't know that the traditional chili isn't
a thick, tomato and bean ridden mess with sour cream on it. Many of
the chili recipes I have tasted rely on the chili pods only as the
thickening agent. Good stuff.

I would have preferred to have learned
by watching the abuelitas cookin in their own kitchens, but I managed to
find my way somewhat.

It is a tremendous help, although they don't share much most of the
time. And most (I cook the same way) start out with the basic
ingredients and methods, and then just adjust until done. That way
you can adjust the recipe to the quality/strength/taste of the
ingredients.

But try as I might, I cannot learn nor evidently be taught how to make
a light, pillowy flour tortilla. I make all manner of Mexican/Latin
foods, but the tortilla is a staple, and I can't get it right. I have
made some good ones, but can't get any kind of consistency.

Here are a few good books that combine good knowledge of the sweet hot fruit
with good cooking:

Peppers The Domesticated Capsicums by Jean Andrews (THE authoritative
botanical guide!)

Jane Butel's Southwestern Grill by Jane Butrel with Gordon McMeen

Great Green Chili Cooking from the Albuquerque Tribune

Chili Lovers Cook Book by Al Fischer and Mildred Fischer

The Whole Chile Pepper Book by Dave DeWitt and Nancy Gerlach

Peppers: Pickled, Sauces, and Salsas by Sue Dremann (from Redwood City Seed)

and for some authoritative tomatillo information:

Ground Cherries, Husk Tomatos, and Tomatillos by Craig Dremann (Redwood
City)

Wow... thanks for the recommendations! I will be looking for those
soon as I want to start cooking with more hot stuff again. I messed
up my innards with too much of it, but now that things are healed up I
am ready to have a go at it, just going a little easier.

Pork steaks are just band-saw sliced pork butts, that's about as cheap as it
gets. I wait till they go on sale for somewhere between .99 and 1.20 a pound
and have the butcher cut up a bunch for me extra thick.

You can tell this isn't pig country. I haven't ever seen them that
cheap. So, since you are in pig country, tell me this: what exactly
am I getting when I buy pork steak labeled "pork loin steak"? I can
see the loin in most of them, but occasionally I see (and buy) the
ones that look almost like a beef steak.

They are about roughly oval in shape, and they have light, consistent
marbling. Usually they are about 8 inches long, about 5 inches
across, and have a round bone about 1/3 of the way into the meat. The
bone is about half again the size of a quarter and is round. I always
thought they had cut up a picnic to make these.
In the package they are very consistent in size, and like I said they
look like a piece of round steak with a bone in it. Comments?


You'll find a some restaurants around here offering mole, but it can get
pretty scary. My rule of thumb is that if the folks in the restaurant speak
good English, don't order the mole.

LMAO! No kidding! I couldn't agree more. I speak fluent spanish,
and most of the restaurants I go to when I really want some good eats
are "spanish only". It isn't unusual for me to be the only English
speaker in the joint.

Ole'!

Thanks for the info. There used to be a couple of good private forums
on the net that did nothing but chat about chilis and their apparent
powers. I don't cook like most to them do, but that didn't lessen the
enjoyment. I like to eat a lot of chilis, so I don't hammer myself to
pieces with the heat. For many of them it was bragging rights to see
who had any colon left after a dish they concocted. But sadly, even
those are pretty much gone anymore.

Good to be in touch with another couple pepper heads.

Robert