I'm embarking on this post with no intention or plan, but... the horror... July 27 was my last post? And it's October? Practically mid-October? Practically my primary reader's 30th birthday? Say it ain't so!
The truth, dear reader(s), is that it is VERY hard to write at all when every single thought in your head is inappropriate to share with an anonymous and unrestricted readership. I am not under any misconception that this humble blog receives more attention than it does, but while the welcome mat is out, one must keep one's house tidy and ready for guests... with all the fluff and body hair discretely under rug swept.
Putting that aside (in an expression that makes it sound easier than it is), when I last was on US soil, I visited a friend in Seattle and he took me to a funny little place over the road from Pike Place Markets that served Russian dumplings with vinegar and sour cream with a big bowl of borscht. I remember at the time not being particularly 'whelmed' by these things, but in the way that I suspect only a pregnant woman can, I am fixated with them right now and will not be cured until I've made them, eaten them and been similarly underwhelmed. To that ends, I have been sent a recipe for 'Pelmeni' by that friend, but I need your help to de-American for me: the ingredient list calls for '1lb of turkey (you need to get 15% fat turkey because lean 7% is too dry; ground chicken is overly dry too'. Aside from being a CRAP load of fowl... what is this in Australia? Do I buy chicken thighs and mince them myself? Or some sort of turkey limb? This fat percentage thing is a little too obscure for me... and given that the only other ingredients in the filling are one brown onion and some water, I suspect it is important to try and get it right.
On another note, does fresh pineapple sting the crap out of your mouth?
I do appreciate being asked for my cooking advice (what the what?) in blog form! Here are two responses that will no doubt horrify you:
ReplyDelete1. Can you not get minced turkey in Australia?
2. The last time I used a recipe that called for minced turkey, I used crumbled textured soy protein. OH MY GOD THE GAGGING SOUNDS EMANATING FROM YOU RIGHT NOW ARE DEAFENING.
That said, just use minced chicken. Best of luck!
1) If indeed one could get minced turkey in Australia, I cannot begin to imagine where one would start looking for it.
ReplyDelete2) I'm so glad you 'crumbled' it - solid 'textured soy protein' (as you call it) would just be TOO much. (GAG... SPLUTTER... SPIT)