Epicurious?
September 14, 2007|
One of the things I have learned to love the most about being a mil-spouse is the food.
Really it makes the top ten list.
But then again I am a foodie.
Noun 1. foodie - a person devoted to refined sensuous enjoyment (especially good food and drink)
bon vivant, epicure, epicurean, gastronome, gourmet
As a mil-spouse, I have had the opportunity to feast on foods, I never thought likely.
Particularly with my very rural, Midwesty background. Where spice means pass the salt and pepper. Don't get me wrong, I can eat me some fried chicken, and mashed potatoes and gravy all Sunday long. I grew up in a meat and potatoes home. I am a fantastic "low country", comfort food cook, it is my specialty.
I have been lucky to make friends from all over the World and Country. One of the wonderful perks of being a military family! WE have been lucky enough to be exposed to all different cultures. I have not had the luck or good fortune of international travel, but DH has. But, there is always the good fortune of meeting spouses that meet and marry abroad. When we were stationed at Fort Bragg, many of the other mil-spouses were from all over the World, and I loved that. I quickly learned that food is a common language we can all share. Food that is made in order to have wonderful fellowship, is ALWAYS some of the best food on the planet. Plus it is always a wonderful way to get a free cooking lesson. (Even if I never mastered making hand made tortillas, and am stuck eating cardboard tasting ones for the rest of my days.)
I have fallen in love, and grown addicted to food from around the World. Spring Rolls from Vietnam, hand made Mexican tortillas.
My DH and I are currently addicted to the Guamanian condiment Finadene, after he made friends with the Guamanian international students at his last military school. It is easy to make and addictive indeed! Delicious on Jasmine rice.
Finadene Sauce
4 Tbs soy Sauce
2 Tbs lemon juice*
1 Tsp chopped green onion
1 Tsp finely chopped white onion
3 Pcs fresh red 'Bird's Eye' hot peppers
Optional: Pinch of Tinian ground pepper
What is your favorite international dish, share with us? And is there something you MISS and cannot replicate?
My favorite is Kurdish (or Turkish depending upon who you speak to) Pizza and Doner Kebaps. I miss them and try as I might, I cannot replicate them at home! I miss them. They were my staple food items both times I was pregnant.
Posted by: Love My Tanker | 09/14/2007 at 10:41
OHHHHHH! I used to LOVE to make Finidene sauce in Guam. My husband would always 'doctor' his up with boonie peppers. (I knew someone who had put one on his tongue for 5 minutes as a bet and ended up with a blister the size of a quarter! That's how 'hot' they are.)
As for foreign dishes... I don't know if I can pin it down to any one dish. I love Philippine Adobo, Guamanian Pancit, German Schweinbraten and brot, and Spanish Sangria made at a small Mom and Pop restaurant over there.
Sadly the only thing I can reproduce reliably is the Adobo. I will have to dig the recipe out and post it.
Now I am sooooo hungry!
Thank you for the GREAT post!
Posted by: Lemon Stand | 09/14/2007 at 12:10
Love My Tanker,
are you talking about Lamajun?
Used to live in a part of Turkey that had absolutely no Aamerican fast food and so what we teenagers used to eat were Adana kebabs and Lamajun.
I love the stuff and there is actually a place around here that sells it frozen.
I am pretty sure I have a couple of recipes for that if you like?
Posted by: Semperfiwife | 09/14/2007 at 12:50
I have to say that I'm a foodie too! Me and my husband always go out to little local resturants and try new things every weekend. It's one of the best things I've come to love about being married to my Marine.
Back in Missouri (where we both grew up), there aren't a lot of seafood resturants like there are here in Georgia, so right now we're on a seafood kick.
The only bad thing is that I grew up on food that is basically only found in St.Louis, like toasted ravioli and Fritzs frozen custard.
I've only been a military spouse for about six months now, so I hope that we get to experiance different cultures before he gets out.
BTW, I have to say that I'm impressed with this blog. It's really entertaining to read and very informative! I've spent the last few hours reading the past articles and neglecting laundry!
Posted by: Riskie_Kristy | 09/14/2007 at 13:11
Semperfiwife, oh my goodness, any info you have to pass along would be so very wonderful. I am drooling!!
Posted by: Love My Tanker | 09/14/2007 at 13:11
After 2 separate tours to England, nothing beats English fish and chips from the fish and chip truck with salt and malt vinegar!!!!! (they used to have a truck like the ice cream man). They would make a paper cone out of blank newsprint, fill it up and it only cost about 50 pence. Of course, that was 25 years ago. mmmmmmmmmmmm mmmmm
Posted by: Shanna | 09/14/2007 at 13:45
I love vinegar chips!!
and now want some of those too!
Posted by: armywifetoddlermom | 09/14/2007 at 14:41
AWTM,
I'm a foodie too!! I really love to cook and try new things.
The finadene sauce sounds delicious but is it really spicy or just a little bit of heat?
I just tried real chimichurri sauce a month ago. It was "heated" but I wasn't spontaneously combusting...
I did find a recipe for it at food network but I haven't attempted it at home yet.
oh and I am addicted to lumpia!!!!
LMT,
recipe for lamajun coming up.
the book I got it from calls it Lebanese...:)
we know different...
Posted by: Semperfiwife | 09/14/2007 at 14:49
the recipe for lamahjun starts out with recommendations for the pizza dough. Seems the easiest is to get premaid bread or pizza dough and roll it out thin.
This makes 4 servings.
8 ounces lean ground lamb
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 medium onion, minced
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper or to taste
1/2 teaspoon seven spices blend or ground allspice or to taste
1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper* or pinch cayenne
1 8 oz can diced tomatoes, drained and chopped smaller
1/2 cup Italian parsley finely chopped
1/2 cup pine nuts
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Topping:
In bowl, ,thoroughly mix meat with tomato paste, onion, garlic,salt, pepper, spice blend and Aleppo pepper.
Add tomatoes, parsley and pine nuts. Mix well.
Broil a teaspoon of the mixture on a piece of foil till it's cooked through to test for seasoning. Adjust as needed.
Lightly oil two baking sheets. Divide dough into 4 pieces. Roll each out to a 7 or 8 inch round slightly more than 1/4 inch thick.
Place on oiled baking sheets.
Spread topping out with the back of a spoon gently, leaving a 1/2 inch border.
Press lightly so that topping adheres and sprinkle with oil
Preheat oven to 400. Let pizzas rise for 15 minutes.
Bake for 18 minutes or until dough is golden brown and firm and meat is cooked through.
serve hot.
*Aleppo pepper. I had Lancelot try and find Aleppo pepper the last time he was in Jerusalem. No dice but you can get it online.
It's not as hot as cayenne..more smoky than hot.
recipe from:
Feast from the MidEast by Faye Levy
Posted by: Semperfiwife | 09/14/2007 at 15:02
Anyone at Ft. Sill? If so, there's an awesome Greek restaurant there. Looks like a hole in the wall, and I can't remember the name of it, but it's yummy. I used to go out there when my husband was working, have lunch by myself and talk to the lady who owned the restaurant. It was a long time ago, but if it's still there, you need to check it out.
Posted by: Andi | 09/14/2007 at 15:31
the sauce is spicy and hot, however it is easy to control, by the amount of peppers one uses as well.
we also like cherry tomatoes in ours, and scallions.
I will say, we add more peppers everytime we make it!
Posted by: armywifetoddlermom | 09/14/2007 at 15:42
I LOVE sushi and got my husband and most of his family hooked. Not much sushi that one would want to eat in Montana...so I'm undergoing withdrawal right now. Believe it or not, St. Louis, MO had some of the best sushi restaurants I've ever been to!
Posted by: Heather S. | 09/15/2007 at 13:04
They're not called "Guamanians," they're Chamorros. The only people who call them Guamanians are U.S. mainlanders who've never been there or don't know much about the place. Also, interesting that they were
"international students" considering Guam is a United States territory and they are therefore U.S. citizens... same as you and me. I lived there for 10 years. And yes, finadene is awesome.
Posted by: Meagan | 10/07/2008 at 18:25