Posts from the ‘Informational’ Category

Saint Patrick’s Day is Here

No sooner had I finished the last post, than I realized talking about a project I had underway was an ideal way to deal with St. Patrick’s Day and lead into discussing ways to use the shopping information I’ve been handing out in the past weeks.  As a holiday, this one seems to be fading. There used to be tinted carnations, everyone wore a touch of green, drank green beer and ate corned beef, whether home or out. Perhaps it’s because I’ve moved to a less cosmopolitan area, but I was used to having a choice of several different cuts of beef corned, not just the standard brisket and they were featured in fliers well in advance. Now maybe one market runs an ad, or showcases corned beef that week and it’s all brisket, but the price is right up there with steak. Read more

The Informed Shopper – Part III – Seafood – Mollusks

The term “Mollusks” covers a large variety of invertebrates, not necessarily aquatic, with soft, unsegmented bodies covered entirely or partially by a thick shell consisting of one or more parts. They breathe through gills and propel themselves with the aid of a “foot”. Some of the familiar, edible mollusks are clams, oysters, mussels, scallops, snails, abalone, conch and, a European favorite, cockles. Like other shellfish, mollusks must be alive until cooked. Whenever opening a shell is required, I prefer to ask the monger to do it, but be sure he saves the liquid, or liqueur from the shells, because that keeps the meat moist and retains flavor. The first five listed are those most often found on menus in the United States, and so, I will discuss them first. Read more

The Informed Shopper – Part III – Seafood – Shellfish

“Shellfish” is a large category that covers any aquatic animal, including mollusks, which lacking bones, depends on an encasing shell for stability and protection.  Commonly we use the term “shellfish” to refer to those which have jointed legs and are independently mobile: lobsters, crabs, shrimp; probably because their meat is similar to that of fish. So I’m going to talk about them first, one by one, and leave the clams and company until last, possibly another posting if this takes too long. Read more

The Informed Shopper – Part III – Seafood, Fish

No discussion of the information one needs to be an overall informed shopper would be complete without talking about seafood.  This is a huge topic. So to avoid boring you with pages and pages at one time I’m going to separate it into two posts; fish and shellfish.

The seafood industry, especially concerning fresh fish, has experienced as much expansion, if not more, than the poultry one. Faster transportation, improved refrigeration and freezing methods and the advent of Aquaculture (fish farming) have made fresh fish available in markets all over America, not just along the coasts. Moreover, there’s an abundance of varieties to choose from, many unfamiliar just a few years ago, and more arriving, it seems daily. Read more

The informed shopper – Part II – Poultry

Despite, as predicted, the price of chicken having risen 10% in recent months, it’s still a bargain compared to other meats. The margin is just narrower. Though not the saving it was, its nutritional value, plus its versatility are responsible for chicken being the favorite in the poultry category, but other birds, turkeys, ducks, game hens, to name a few are becoming more visible too. Read more

Some Valentine Ideas

I’m interrupting my discussion on “The Informed Shopper” for the second week in a row, because I realized Valentine’s Day was near. For once, I thought I’d be ahead of the game and write about a holiday comfortably in advance, not the day before. Actually my attention was caught by the supermarket flyers for next week. They featured the usual sales on Fillet Mignon and lobster, for preparing romantic dinners.

My guess is that the popularity of those two on this holiday can be traced back to the fact that they were always the more expensive items on upscale restaurant menus; the ones to be aspired to affording when ordering a romantic dinner for one’s love to prove how much you care. After WWII, when the G.I.s didn’t go back to the farms, but rather to college on the G.I. Bill, into the corporate world and settled into the new housing developments, supermarkets sprung up like weeds, offering a wide variety of products never available in the corner store.  Suddenly, the expense of a fancy restaurant wasn’t necessary. One could prepare these exotic foods for an intimate dinner in the privacy of home and so their romantic aura not only continued but gained momentum. Read more

Super Sunday

It’s that time of year again, so I’m going to interrupt my discussion of informed shopping to touch on Super Bowl parties.  Actually it’s not that far off base, because one has to rely on good sense in planning both activities. The wise host or hostess of a Super Bowl Party will take into account that special consideration must be given the menu of any event where the focus of attention will be other than pure socialization and where seating at a premium may result in mobile eating.  This becomes even more important if the party is to be indoors, which most Super Bowl Parties, by their nature, are.  Spills are real possibilities and “wet” foods, ones requiring a lot of sauce, gravy or broth like stews and soups should be avoided. This is especially true of recipes based on an excess of ingredients that really stain like tomatoes or red wine. Read more

The informed shopper – Part 1 – Meat

Before I begin this week’s post, there are a few announcements to make. For the past several weeks there was a spam filter on my wordpress, which made it difficult to leave comments. I’m having it removed because I enjoy your comments and would welcome any suggestions you have as to subject matter for future posts. If you’re interested in hosting or guesting, I’ll send you a link and we can discuss it. Meanwhile you can always “LIKE” me on Facebook. Read more