Don't fancy going the whole Ray Mears and using a bow drill? He was nearly done in when in the rain forests as the chief had forgotten the old skills and was having to use matches.
In the civilised world normal matches have been sold alongside safety matches since forever. We call them swan vestas. Never got the hang of lighting one with a finger nail like in the old films.
The old books of matches you got given for free back when 50% of the population smoked I always found useful as a backup as they have a built in wind guard and no loss if the whole book goes up in one.
Here it's mostly birch, spruce and pine. Some places there's a lot of alder. Spruce is fantastic for getting it going and it's not impossible to find dry spruce even when it rains. Even if the bark is soaked on a dead branch it's just to shave off the outer, wet, layer and make some dry shavings for tinder.
Like you say, birch tree kindling (the thick "between" bark is also very nice for tinder shavings). Get a bit of heat with the spruce and toss on a bit of pine that's grown up in a shadier area, makes them more "fat" with sap. Burns for a long time and tolerate humidity well.
Like you say, birch tree kindling (the thick "between" bark is also very nice for tinder shavings). Get a bit of heat with the spruce and toss on a bit of pine that's grown up in a shadier area, makes them more "fat" with sap. Burns for a long time and tolerate humidity well.
The other day I was in my local Syrian grocery and saw some packages of something unfamiliar on sale. I had noticed that they had packages of dried thyme labeled "green thyme" and "red thyme", which meant nothing to me. Anyway on Saturday I saw packages marked down labeled in several languages, including "Extra Halabi Thyme" and "Mixed Aleppo Thyme". I did not have my up-close glasses with me and really wasn't sure what I was looking at, but figured $2.49 wasn't bad for 400g of whatever it was so hought a package. Turns out it is Zatar, though it doesn't say that anywhere, at least not in an alphabet I can read. It contains green thyme, sesame seeds, sumac, salt, almonds, sunflower seeds, coriander, anise, fennel, citric acid (for that lemony goodness), and "tree nuts". So anyway tonight SWMBO made some pita bread, and as we baked them on the bbq I brushed some with a bit of olive oil and sprinkled on the Zatar. Very nice and we made tian to go along with the pita.
hehe, that's actually pizza sauce with the mustard and yes I can see it looks like I used a shovel. I can assure you it's an illusion. A funny one at that. 🙂
Don't be shy Cal showing off your skills, but me thinks a Japanese master chef would roll home the prize, they would happily fillet an Alien and make it edible.
Lots of fresh spring asparaguses have hit our grocery store shelves, roasted a batch in the oven the other day, salt, black pepper, garlic and olive oil, delicious.
Lots of fresh spring asparaguses have hit our grocery store shelves, roasted a batch in the oven the other day, salt, black pepper, garlic and olive oil, delicious.
Attachments
Last edited:
I hit a stonewall the other day with a cook. He couldn't imagine roasting cauliflower rather than boiling it. I lost the fight sadly and couldn't even convince him to try. Entrenched habits...
Anyone can be a cook. Sounds like this one will never be a chef.
IMO the only time a veggie should be boiled is when it stays in the water. They call it soup.
You lost nothing. You gained pride knowing you are smarter at something than someone who is paid to do it.
Asparagus looks good.
Roasting, grilling, frying and deep frying are all excellent ways to get the most out of your fare. Heck, it's the only way to get kids to eat their veggies sometimes.
Roasting, grilling, frying and deep frying are all excellent ways to get the most out of your fare. Heck, it's the only way to get kids to eat their veggies sometimes.
In one of Gordon Ramsay's old shows he says basically WTF to a cauliflower steak.
He also cooks one in here : Gordon Ramsay vs Madelaine Petsch In VEGAN MASTERCHEF COOK OFF! - YouTube
Or not really.
Or not really.
Ultima: That asparagus looks great. I can hardly wait until our local asparagus becomes available, might be another month, certainly a few weeks. My brother in Ontario grows it and it is just peeking up through the soil now; ours will be som weeks behind that.