pete pearce – THE DUDE OF FOOD

Wondering About Vortex Plus Air Fryers?

Being the son of pioneers I’m not well rehearsed in modern kitchen tools. One gadget that has been getting quite popular recently is known as an air fryer and has me wondering about kitchen tools. Questions like ‘How am I this old and have never used one of these cooking devices?’ and ‘Do I really need this thing?’ kept floating up to the top of my head along with all the things I daydreamed that I could potentially prepare. My neighbor ended up purchasing an Instant Pot Vortex Plus from Amazon and I had to go over and check out the unboxing.

Food Network says the following about the Vortex Plus;
“While it’s very similar to the 4-in-1 air fryer, the standout feature in the Vortex Plus is the dehydrator. If you’re looking for a reliable air fryer that can also produce perfectly dried fruits and veggies, the Vortex Plus is for you. Just like the 4-in-1, the Vortex Plus has a roomy, 6-quart basket with a nonstick coating for easy cleanup. Equipped with pre-programmed settings and a temperature-controlling dial, the interface is also super user-friendly. The only downside to this model is the broiler function, which is preset to 400 degrees F for two minutes and didn’t perform well for us in testing.”

The Instant Pot Vortex Plus has 6 cooking options:

             Air Fry (increments between 180°F and 400°F)
             Roast (180°F–400°F)
             Bake (180°F–400°F)
             Reheat (120°F–360°F)
             Broil (350°F–400°F)
             Dehydrate (95°F–175°F)

Chef Carmen Spillette has created 31 Best Air Fryer Recipes that are worth checking out by clicking on the photo below. Thank you Carmen.

I’m still curious and can hardly wait to prompt my neighbor into making some cauliflower buffalo wings and some of the other things that look really good on the Eat with Carmen page.

Bon Appetit, the Dude of Food

“Create tapas and you create joy!” the Dude of Food

This form of eating called Tapas can be traced back many moons to when bar owners used salty meat strips to cover drinks to keep the flies from swimming. The salty meats promoted thirst amongst the patrons and drink sales thrived. Soon the drink covers became other salty creative snacks and a bar culture of food was born. Spain gets most of the credit for this type of nourishment as many of the ingredients used in creating these food gems are found abundantly in their region.

This salty sales theory is why in the 70’s and early 80’s many bar owners in the US offered free peanuts to bar patrons. Peanuts were cheap and salty and the President (Jimmy Carter) was a peanut farmer. Jimmy’s brother Billy was a famous beer drinker. See how these things go together!? The cool thing was back then that many places just let you throw the empty peanut shells on the floor like at a hockey game.

The Dude of Food was really impressed with the tapas in Donostia/San Sabastian. While visiting this beautiful Basque city many great items were discovered. I stumbled upon a place named Bar Desy that invited me to try tons of great foods including an extensive tapas menu. I went back to Bar Desy a bunch, sometimes 3 times a day, for the next week. The staff was really great and I even met the owners father.

The top photo is one I took after I created a few tapas for my Brazilian girlfriend to enjoy while listening to some Samba and sipping on wine. We would look deep into each others eyes and share moments that made the world outside go quiet. Love was in the air. I digress.

Anyways as stated, the Dude of Food created the above pictured tapas. On the various breads are oil, cheese, meats, tomato sauce, veggies, sardines, salt and herbs. Tapas are fun to make, great to share and super enjoyable to eat.

Below was my first pass by the home made tapas table.

Don’t be afraid to try this style of eating. Combine some of your favorite flavors and enjoy some tapas soon.

Bon Appetit, the Dude of Food

Discover Roasted Almond Snacks

M & W Gourmet Foods – Oxnard, CA

M & W Gourmet Foods of Oxnard, CA was begun in 2006 at 3 Farmers Markets with the desire to create “a healthy snack alternative.” Over the last 16 years these snack makers have grown into a really good thing keeping many people happily snacked up.

The Dude of Food discovered these tasty snack treats while being on set and finding his way to the craft service table. These roasted almond filled snack bags are a great replacement to donuts and potato chips. Over time more and more flavors became available with 11 roasted almond flavors currently available at their web page (https://www.mwgourmetfoods.com) including many creative tasty flavors. Some of the Dude of Foods favorites include Coconut Macaroon, Honey Cinnamon and Cappuccino.

For more information you can visit https://www.mwgourmetfoods.com or call 661.305-3515. They can also be found on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/mwgourmetfoods and on Instagram, @mwgourmet

Thank you M & W Gourmet Foods.
Enjoy.

The Dude of Food

The Dude of Food creates a great new oatmeal-tapioca breakfast treat.

Tired of the same old thing for breakfast? Gave up on your quest to eat healthier 10 days after your New Years resolution? Perhaps you are a hockey player and have no front teeth to bite a burrito with. What ever the case may be, the Dude of Food has created an awesome new way for people of all ages to enjoy a pretty healthy breakfast.

The Dude of Food decided that he wanted to try a German packaged cereal thing he saw on a market shelf in Munich. The package was made by a guy named Dr. Oetker and was called Griesbrei. As you can see below the label is in German as were the directions for preparation. I had a heck of a time trying to decipher exactly what the proper measurements and times were when it came to try and prepare it. I only know like 5 Bavarian words; prost, liebe, obatzda, steckerl fische und Oida! Anyways to make an interesting long story short, the stuff was like a cross between creamed wheat and tapioca pudding. I liked it and mentioned it to my Bavarian friends. Oddly, they all said the same thing, “You like baby cereal?”

Well since the stigma is that this griesbrei stuff is too sweet for a proper adult breakfast the Dude of Food had another idea and decided to try mixing tapioca pudding with oatmeal.

Now, in the German market the small packet of Dr. Oetker Griesbrei was like .89 euro or about 93 cents at the time. If you can find it in the states or online it is $3.99 a packet or more!

So the Dude of Food prepared 1 cup of oatmeal. Separately I made tapioca pudding. Just as it was time to turn off the oatmeal to cool down I added a little bit of warm homemade tapioca pudding and stirred it all together. Ratio was something like 2/3 oatmeal to 1/3 tapioca. there is no rule here, so mix to desire. Spooned into a bowl, I topped the mix off with a little bit of cherry preserves as seen in the photo above and put it to the taste test. The results = excellent.

Get ready world, a brand new and delicious little some-some for breakfast is here. Get some.

When in Florence the Dude of Food loves Bar Porta Al Prato.

Seen from the street, Bar Porta Al Prato looks like this corner building. Sitting quietly, this recently opened culinary beauty awaits your entrance, offering everything one could desire once you make your way through the doors and into the soul of this gem. I went daily.

Bar Porta Al Prato in Firenze offers both a great indoor environment or a huge patio out back to enjoy. The staff here are awesome, extremely helpful, talented, generous and fun besides offering many delicious and thoughtfully prepared Tuscan dishes.

Their menu offers everything from pizza and gelato to pasta and fine wine and everything in between. What a great way to spend quality time dining with your family, friends or team while in Florence.

The delicious wine comes from local vineyards that produce some excellent flavors. The homemade gelato is delicious and kid approved. (see photo below)

Thank you Bar Porta Al Prato for everything. The Dude of Food thinks you guys are doing a great job. Keep up the awesome hospitality and great food. They can also be found on Facebook by searching Bar Samus Porta. Grazie.

Johnny’s Off License Store, Rome for beer.

Located at Via Veio, 4, near the San Giovanni metro station in Rome is the greatest beer and wine store around. The staff at Johnny’s OFF LICENSE are super knowing about the processes and tastes of their products and offer an awesome selection, especially beers.

You can drink on the streets in Rome, so you go in and buy yourself a coldie and simply enjoy it out front while talking with other beer professors. Much local knowledge can be learned from respectable folks at these street meetings, i.e. restaurant recommendations, train and bus info, etc.

These guys at Johnny’s OFF LICENSE are a hospitable bunch and even gave me a beer book to read while traveling. (3 Sheets to the Wind, Pete Brown). Johnny is a good dude and you certainly should go by and say hello. Thank you guys for your hospitality.

This place is a must if you are tired of feeling like a tourist at the hotel. Tell Johnny that the Dude of Food sent you. Enjoy.

“Saibling, Char, whatever. Steckerlfisch is awesome!”, the Dude of Food.

luds lunche — **Brotzeit made by the Dude of Food in Sindelsdorf**
photo: pete pearce

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steckerlfisch

If you like fish, especially salmon then you’ll most likely love Saibling fish, also known as Char. It is a lake fish once forbidden to be eaten by all Bavarians, except King Ludvig himself. It’s referred to by some as ‘the Kings fish’. A heavy penalty would come to those caught stealing the King’s fish.

Munich vendors in the local beer gardens have these grills designed so they can put a fish with a stick running through the center of it in a good spot to cook over the charcoals. Make sure to visit these fish vendors, set up in the beer gardens, as they are worth checking out. Get yourself a date, a masse of beer each, a bowl of obatzda to share, a pretzel and your choice of stick fish in paper and set up at a table with your friends and enjoy the fun. You won’t be disappointed. The English Garden is really nice and one of the largest urban parks in the world. The Hirschgarten is 2 hectares in area, dates back to 1791 and has deer’s in it. There are numerous beer gardens of various sizes all over town and all worth visiting.

When south of Munchen, in Sindelsdorf, on farmer’s market day you will most likely find a vendor selling freshly smoked Saibling fish. The Dude of Food says run, don’t walk, to this vendor and get the biggest fish you can choose. I cannot speak for the Forelle, which is supposed to be ‘as good’ but never sells out as fast as the saibling fish. The third common fisch you will see is Mackerel which are also really good. Personally, I think Saibling is the best and I love the town of Sindelsdorf. Oida Sindelsdorf family und prost. Vielen danke und liebe. Ein prosit, ein prosit . . .

Steckerlfisch can be eaten for breakfast, brotzeit, lunch, dinner or while sleep walking at night and is best consumed with cold German Helles Bier. Get some!

It’s better than ice cream!

RAVENSWOOD California Cabernet Sauvignon

Going to a party and can’t decide how much to spend and not trying to buy some junk wine that was a waste of money? Nobody wants to hear the voice of ridicule as party goers make their statements regarding your choice of wine. Well there is a wine to add to the buy list that won’t get you ridiculed. It’s reasonably priced and decent tasting. The Ravenswood line of wines are alright. Try some.

Glazed Swai with zucchini isn’t what it appears.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy_1YqKtNbw

This link above was the video used by the Dude to complete his mission.

As stated in the video, Swai is not expensive but it tastes mediocre. I made the dish pictured to the right according to the video and it was pretty tasty.

What it doesn’t tell you is that Swai is raised in the Mekong River.

The Mekong River is one of the most polluted waterways in the world. Numerous factories get rid of the chemical waste by dumping them into the river. While pangasius fish (swai) can survive in such an extreme environment, they absorb all these contaminants. As omnivores, they eat whatever is available in the environment. Some breeders feed the fish trash and rotting matter to cut down the cost. Pangasius fish bred in such circumstances, certainly contain these toxic chemicals.

Injecting the fish with hormones helps to stimulate their growth. Certain breeders are able to make their fish grow four times as fast as they do in the natural habitat. Frequent use of antibiotics serves to control disease but can lead to the contamination of meat and development of antibiotic resistant pathogens.

Reliable farms utilize the clean areas of the rivers or breed the fish in artificial ponds. Frequent water changes and filtration maintain the quality of water, so that the fish avoid absorbing the pollutants. Trustworthy breeders feed the fish food scraps, dedicated fish pellets and rice bran. The carefully selected diet leads to healthier fish and improves the quality of their meat. Limited use of the antibiotics allows the fish to break the toxins down, instead of accumulating in the bodies of Swai fish.

To choose the safe fillets, check if the meat has been tested for the presence of the antibiotics and contaminants. Try to avoid panga fillets of unknown origin, as there’s a good chance that they are imported from these shady farms. The responsible shopping habits serve to reinforce the correct commercial breeding techniques. They protect the consumers from ingesting the toxic ingredients.

Bottom line, cheaper isn’t always better.

The Dude of Food Fact – Cellulose (wood chips)

Wood Pulp is A Popular Food Additive

Think you won’t eat wood? Think again.

Cellulose is added to many foods as a thickening agent, lending texture and boosting fiber content.

This reduces the need for expensive ingredients like flour and oil.

While cellulose comes from wood, it is the same structure as cellulose found in celery, serving as a

source of dietary fiber.

The Dude of Food is not opposed, but I still think this kind of information should be more clearly marked on food labels.

In the case of the Mozzarella cheese above, the front of the label says organic. They are not lying, but I’d rather have flour and oil.