Of tomatoes, innards and Dear TasteTalk:
-- Puzzled in Portland Dear Puzzled: But what's the excuse for hard, tasteless tomatoes at the height of summer? There is none, only facts: They have a long way to come. Tomato growing is an industry. What Colombia is to cocaine, Holland is to tomatoes. To hear a vegetable wholesaler pitching his merchandise is to be educated. He'll describe his tomatoes by size, "4-by-5s" for example, meaning the tomato count on a standard "flat"; he'll describe them by looks, No. 1s being the firmest and No. 3s the most bruised. But he'll never describe them by flavor. He knows better than to mention that. Farmer's Market tomatoes are always better but sometimes hardly worth the effort. I often feel I'm supposed to react to the fact that they're "heirloom" as if I'm being informed of a long-forgotten family branch. The words "canned" and "vegetable" were never meant to be put together -- except in the case of tomatoes. Canned tomatoes have a use, unlike canned peas, carrots, mushrooms or any other vegetable except water chestnuts. They have a lot more body than fresh tomatoes and will bring it to any stock, pasta sauce or stew that they're added to. When I do find a great tomato I just slice it and add salt. I won't even complicate the total effect with basil. The taste of basil I can have any day of the week while the summer-filled burst of a great tomato is a rare treat. -- The Burnt-out Cook Dear TasteTalk:
-- Paranoid in NYC Dear Paranoid: "Did you explain what it was?" I asked the waitress. "It's not exactly an easy sell, you know," she said. "You either have to say it's the thyroid gland of veal or you have to point towards your tonsils." I appreciated her position and made it a point to never think up another special that required a waiter or waitress to point to a body part in order to explain it. The truth of the matter is that the English language has done no favor to this branch of cooking. "Offal" is awful and "innards" conjures up a crime scene. In French, on the other hand, it quickly becomes poetry. One practically wants to roll up with a "rognon" when it's made by the "patron" and "ris de veau sauté" is really quite "au fait." It's a shame. No one should go through life thinking that chicken, beef, pork, lamb and veal are the only meats. (I leave out game because most people will not try to cook it at home.) While brains and sweetbreads have to be blanched, kidneys and liver will cook faster than a steak. And they all carry wines beautifully. A white Burgundy from the Côte de Beaune goes beautifully with some sweetbreads in a cream sauce. And you can do a lot worse than a California Cabernet with some sautéed but still pink kidneys. The kidneys should always be well cleaned, particularly the white fatty tissue on the inside. Salt and pepper them and sauté in a very hot pan. Do not overcook. Take kidneys out and keep them warm. Degrease the pan. Deglaze with dry sherry. Allow a minute to reduce and add some cream. Bring to boil and add some good Dijon mustard. Pour sauce over thinly sliced kidneys and fresh pasta. Go to heaven. -- The Burnt-out Cook Dear TasteTalk:
-- Aspiring in Atlanta Dear Aspiring: Get into a kitchen. One service will tell you more about the profession than a hundred hours with a culinary school career counselor. You'll be given some occupation, you'll sweat, you'll cut yourself, you'll burn yourself, you'll be surrounded by frantic people and, as nerves fray, you'll be screamed at. But if somewhere in your gut this experience gives you some pleasure; if seeing a dish you've made -- for one second before a waiter snatches it away -- gives you a sense of pride; if you can't wait for tomorrow's service even though right now you can hardly stand, then maybe you're right to consider a life in cooking. -- The Burnt-out Cook Feb. 26, 1997 Need some kitchen guidance? Ask the TasteTalk guys. Please sign your full name, and let us know if you want your e-mail address to appear.
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Previous TasteTalk: 02/19/97