http://www.saltshaker.net/20050807/mas-status Casting a little flavor (and a few aspersions) on the world of food, drink, and life Fri, 29 Aug 2008 23:53:02 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 http://www.saltshaker.net/20050807/mas-status#comment-978 SaltShaker » Blog Archive » A Mere Exaggeration Tue, 08 Aug 2006 18:35:43 +0000 http://www.saltshaker.net/20050807/mas-status#comment-978 [...] A few weeks ago one of our local food writers reviewed a new Japanese restaurant located just off the main strip in Barrio Chino. One of the assertions made was “Para empezar debo decir que probé las gyosas mejores de mi vida, sin exagerar.”, or, “To start I have to say that I tried the best gyozas in my life, without exaggeration.” At a later juncture, she also asserts that some of the sushi tried is, in essence, invented on site and not available anywhere else (an example given is salmon with mango and avocado, available from almost any sushi bar here I can think of). On the other hand, this same columnist recently wrote up one of our favorite Peruvian restaurants, Zadvarie, claiming that it is the only place in town offering ocopa arequipeña because they have the only source of huacatay herb in town through a store in Barrio Chino. We eat the dish regularly at other restaurants (and it’s better at some and not as good at others), and as regular readers here know, I buy huacatay in the markets in Liniers by the bagful for mere pesos. [...] [...] A few weeks ago one of our local food writers reviewed a new Japanese restaurant located just off the main strip in Barrio Chino. One of the assertions made was “Para empezar debo decir que probé las gyosas mejores de mi vida, sin exagerar.”, or, “To start I have to say that I tried the best gyozas in my life, without exaggeration.” At a later juncture, she also asserts that some of the sushi tried is, in essence, invented on site and not available anywhere else (an example given is salmon with mango and avocado, available from almost any sushi bar here I can think of). On the other hand, this same columnist recently wrote up one of our favorite Peruvian restaurants, Zadvarie, claiming that it is the only place in town offering ocopa arequipeña because they have the only source of huacatay herb in town through a store in Barrio Chino. We eat the dish regularly at other restaurants (and it’s better at some and not as good at others), and as regular readers here know, I buy huacatay in the markets in Liniers by the bagful for mere pesos. [...]

]]> http://www.saltshaker.net/20050807/mas-status#comment-212 SaltShaker » Blog Archive » Llajwa - Weekend Herb Blogging Thu, 02 Mar 2006 17:26:23 +0000 http://www.saltshaker.net/20050807/mas-status#comment-212 [...] Huacatay is referred to by some as Amazon Black Mint, and it has a pungent aroma, sort of a like spearmint; and others insist that it is a variety of the Mexican herb epazote - it doesn’t look at all like the epazote I used to get in New York at the Mexican markets, which had longer, arrowhead shaped jagged leaves, and it has a much more intense flavor. Other names for this are Chiquilla, Chinchilla, and Zuico. I’ve seen both the scientific name Tagetes minuta, and also Pazote chenopodium ambrosioides, which between them come back to a variety of different English names, including muster John Henry, Stinking Roger, Mexican Marigold, Hedionda Grass, Sagrada Grass, and Tall Khaki Weed. Searching for various photos online, some of these look the similar, some don’t. Such is the world of plant names, however I’m leaning more towards the non-epazote camp and something in the mint-ish world. It is a common ingredient in Peruvian cooking especially, and is the key herb in both ají de huacatay (not surprising), a spicy hot sauce from the Arequipa area, and in the sauce for ocopa, one of my favorite potato dishes. [...] [...] Huacatay is referred to by some as Amazon Black Mint, and it has a pungent aroma, sort of a like spearmint; and others insist that it is a variety of the Mexican herb epazote - it doesn’t look at all like the epazote I used to get in New York at the Mexican markets, which had longer, arrowhead shaped jagged leaves, and it has a much more intense flavor. Other names for this are Chiquilla, Chinchilla, and Zuico. I’ve seen both the scientific name Tagetes minuta, and also Pazote chenopodium ambrosioides, which between them come back to a variety of different English names, including muster John Henry, Stinking Roger, Mexican Marigold, Hedionda Grass, Sagrada Grass, and Tall Khaki Weed. Searching for various photos online, some of these look the similar, some don’t. Such is the world of plant names, however I’m leaning more towards the non-epazote camp and something in the mint-ish world. It is a common ingredient in Peruvian cooking especially, and is the key herb in both ají de huacatay (not surprising), a spicy hot sauce from the Arequipa area, and in the sauce for ocopa, one of my favorite potato dishes. [...]

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