Two excellent questions. Caraway seeds and diced apple go in the sauerkraut for the kielbasa. I’ve found the apples in particular make it palatable even to people who don’t usually care for sauerkraut.
There is no way that buying spices in the grocery makes economic sense for a week or two. I use small 2" x 3" zipper bags and bring herbs and spices from home. I have a standard “prep” fee for that. All the little bags, labeled, fit in a quart bag. I buy disposable salt and pepper shakers as well - may not be on the list but something I just do.
Aromatics are pretty much mirepoix and Cajun trinity.
Thought maybe you were distilling acquavit on the high seas You probably know this already, but dollar stores are great for the disposable salt & peppers.
When traveling, I put herbs and spices in a pill box…the kind that one would use to lay out all of the pills one needs to take for the coming week. I typically took thyme, cinnamon, oregano., a few bay leaves, dried basil, and cumin at a minimum, plus a salt and pepper grinder (picnic size)
The largest ones hold a.couple of tablespoons of your favorite spices…plus they’re cheap enough to be disposable if necessary
Run a James Bond marathon starting with Dr. No. We are currently on Licence to Kill with Timothy Dalton. He’s ok but I prefer Roger Moore and later on Pierce Brosnan. My husband is older and prefers Sean Connery. I just wish I had $5 for every bad shot fired by the bad guys. Have you noticed they almost always miss? I’d be a millionaire by now.
Aside from salt and pepper in disposable containers (I get the mini grinders also if I can), what I carry depends on the meal plan for the trip. The make-ahead meals help cut down on what I have to carry. This trip is likely to include red pepper flakes, caraway seeds, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and probably a few other things that strike my fancy when I sit down to rummage through our spice cabinet middle of next week.
I have a personal oddity to avoid commercial spice mixes. I’d rather make my own taco seasoning than buy it. My biggest motivation is to avoid unneeded and unwanted salt. In addition, making my own mixes increases turnover of my core spices so they get replaced more often and stay fresher. I have a list somewhere of about twenty-six spices that are what I usually use. We have accumulated some other odds and ends for particular dishes.
I do carry a pill case for, well, pills. This has more implications than may be apparent. Having a bunch of unlabeled pills crossing international borders may be problematic if for some reason you come to the attention of authorities. In fact, I used to specifically advise my crews to carry medication and vitamins in the original bottle. The ubiquity of smartphones has allowed me to ease up. I ask people to take pictures of all their original containers, prescription and OTC. I fill my pill case and just start at whatever day of the week we start on. If the trip is likely to be more than a week I count out the extra pills and they go in a ZipLoc snack-sized bag to replenish the pill case. It’s very easy to lose track of time at sea so I try to be consistent about the time of day I take medication. Refilling the pill case, while not a shellback or bluenose ceremony (I am both), feels like a milestone. Such is aging.
One advances from pollywog to shellback on crossing the equator. Crossing at the International Date Line makes you a golden shellback and at the prime meridian an emerald shellback. Crossing the Arctic circle conveys the title of bluenose. Such minor things are a bit of fun and a morale boost. At one time there was some hazing associated with the events but I believe that has all pretty well passed.
If I recall, both military and merchant sailors had an elaborate system of tattoos that marked their geographic accomplishments.
Tattoos or no, that’s an impressive collection of feathers. I’m an avid traveler when we’re allowed to do so, but I’ve not managed any if those, even by air.
True, although far from standard. Generally a turtle for crossing the equator, a swallow for every 5,000 miles (I think I’d need about twenty), an anchor for an ocean crossing (BTDT), and a number of others. Nothing even close to common for bluenose. I’m not a tattoo guy - all the marks on my body involved the shedding of blood.
I used to be a personal chef and would go into people’s homes and cook for them for later consumption. My process was very similar in many aspects though I was on a MUCH smaller scale. I kept a basic set of pots, pans, bowls, and tools that pretty much covered 90% of what I would be cooking. I used small souffle cups for spices, again a basic assortment that I would augment as needed. I was lucky that in a pinch I could sometimes “borrow” from a client but most of them had nothing of their own.
Each client had their own file so I could keep track of their preferences and what I prepared each visit - and of course for billing purposes. Many of my clients had food allergies so I often would prefer cuisines that they were uncomfortable ordering from restaurants, especially Asian.
Prosperity In The Time Of Covid-19? Oh, That’s Rich
According to a new report from the Institute for Policy Studies, between 18 March and 22 April the wealth of America’s richest people grew 10.5 percent. The billionaire class has added $308 billion to its wealth in four weeks, even as a record 26 million people lost their jobs. (After the last recession it took over two years for total billionaire wealth to get back to the levels they enjoyed in 2007.)
And as the government handed out trillions of dollars to prop up an economy shuttered amid the coronavirus pandemic, some of the richest were at the front of the line. A flotilla of big businesses, millionaires and billionaires managed to sail through loopholes in a $349 billion bailout meant to save hard-hit small businesses. About 150 public companies grabbed more than $600 million in forgivable loans before the funds ran out. Very few have returned the money.
I knew about Ruth Chris’ steakhouse, Shake Shack & Potbelly(never even heard of the place) giving the money back after bad publicity. But this NYT article really opened up my eyes about the lesser known companies who grabbed a handout.
This whole thing stinks to high heaven. No wonder actual ‘small business’ owners are upset.
You probably know this already, but dollar stores are great for the disposable salt & peppers.
