What's for Dinner #76 - the HO "Ho, Ho, Ho" Edition - December 2021

Because the stuff out of a can is just horrible. Once you have eaten fresh conch eating the canned stuff is like comparing fresh chicken to chicken out of a can.

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Simple dinner - soup made with chickpeas, potatoes, caramelized onions, chorizo and spinach

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Supermarket frozen Turkey pot pie . I spooned duck fat over it after pulling out of the oven.
Green beans with that shaved 2 year old Parmigiano reggiano. I’m on a comeback. Cheers.

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Thanks all!

The most memorable part was cleaning the chicken, so much fat! Watched a tutorial on YouTube before the operation. At one point, I couldn’t find the lungs. Luckily found another video to show how to take it out from the head side. This second video showed how to burn to get rid of the scales on the feet.

As a kid, I remember mom has received a live bird as gift, I don’t know how she dealt with it. Not sure I would be able to do it.

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Just grilled it, with the heart, liver and gizzard. Very fatty soft tissue…not bad.

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Conch is available from some of the vendors at Union Square Greenmarket every so often. I’ve only made ceviche and chowder from it, so thanks for the reminder about this prep. I know I’ve had it from Italian restaurants in NJ, but not for decades.

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you sure as hell are!

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what brand do you get, i’ve never seen it I don’t think. I’d totally be willing to try!

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Perhaps that’s true of this particular seafood that you’ve tried, but i’m a big fan of Spanish conservas - many different types of seafood come in cans and are excellent in their own right.

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That’s a fair point - some of the Spanish and French fish conserva can be very good. Even though I would argue that it is specific to fish and not to all seafood - I haven’t yet had calamari, octopus etc. even from Spain with a very high price tag which are worth buying compared to fresh

I made pinto beans from scratch in the IP and served them as taco filling with shredded Monterey jack, yogurt, and fresh jalapeños. Ranch slaw and roasted spiced butternut squash alongside.

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I find some Portuguese canned seafood is e excellent, and provides more bang for the buck than Spanish . I gave someone a few of these for Xmas. I’ve also been buying German,
Polish and Dutch canned herring and other fish.

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LaMonica is the only brand my local supermarket chain carries. However I recently found out that the one fishery nearby sells it fresh so I will have to try it.

I’ve honestly never had a problem with canned. I’m convinced that the few Italian restaurants I’ve had it at use canned as well. It’s never been fishy and always very tender.

It’s upwards of $20 a can for 29 ounces.

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German fish can are also very good, e.g. Kieler Sprotten etc. Haven’t seen really any Portuguese fish cans so far but based in the excellent fish I have eaten in Portugal there is a high chance that those cans are also good

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Use it raw which is much better than most cooked variations.

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To me, raw and canned seafoods are two very different things. Think this has come up before re canned tuna vs fresh. As much as I love fresh or flash frozen fish and shellfish, I do love to have some quality tinned fish on hand. This would include tuna, red salmon, clams and imported tuna in oil. Handy to have on hand for pantry dinners, clam chowder, sandwiches, etc. versatile!
*anchovies too, of course

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Last night’s dinner. Always a tradition after the (usual, but not always) prime rib. I’d like to say I saved half for lunch today, but I’d be lying. It was too good…

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Looks just like a childhood treat of mine - kotleta! Russian basically meatball but made into a patty instead. Raw gr chicken (my fav) or beef, lots of grated onion, garlic, s&p, egg, bread crumb. There were no herbs or cheese to make it Italian-y. This was Russian all the way. Likely served with boiled potatoes.

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Dinner last night - salmon gifted by a fisherman friend, rice pilaf, and spinach sautéed with mushrooms and onions. Salmon sauced with a citrus, soy, chile decoction.

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Catching up on a few dinners before we flip the page on this year. Thanksgiving 2021, changed up a few things this year, everything turned out well. Good day too - better than 2020.




Pies were pumpkin, vanilla Apple streusel, chocolate cream, and Key lime. Ample leftovers sent home with DD2 & SIL, also plenty left here. Turkey about 14 pounds.

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