Help keep AmazingRibs free!
With a $25 donation you'll get a 100% cotton, brushed twill, adjustable, low profile cap with the AmazingRibs.com patch sewn on. I'll even toss in a small bag of BBQ'rs Delight excellent wood smoke pellets.
Click for more info and pictures of the hat.
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Testimonials
I bought all the books on barbecuing before discovering our site, but have learned more practical technique from from you that all the other so-call BBQers put together.
Jim Davis, Hendersonville, NC
Give all of us an update on your cookbook, please? IT'S ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS! Thanks, thanks, thanks for your website and expertise.
Susan Thele, Eagle, Nebraska
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Click here for more testimonials and pix from readers
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Show Me Yours
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I've been getting wonderful emails and pix from you. Man, you folks
know how to party! Send me pix of your versions of my recipes or your party and I might publish them on my site.
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Be My FB Friend
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| Smoke Signals is Free
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About Smoke Signals
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 Smoke Signals is the free email from AmazingRibs.com and Hedonism Evangelist Craig "Meathead" Goldwyn.
If you like my website, please click here to forward a copy of this to a friend. And remember: No rules in the bedroom or the kitchen!
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Hash: It's What To Do With Leftover Corned Beef
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 After St. Patrick's Day I have two things: A hangover and leftover corned beef. Someday I'll write about hangover cures. When I find one. Here's what to do with the corned beef and potatoes. Make a hash of it. Much much better than the stuff in the can. Click here for the recipe.
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Learn All About Ham Before Easter
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 There's fresh ham, dry-cured ham, wet-cured ham, country ham, city ham, spiral cut ham, Prosciutto di Parma, Black Forest Ham, Westphalian Ham, Serrano Ham, Ibérico Ham, Bayonne Ham, Smithfield Ham, canned ham, ham steak, picnic ham, and, heaven help me, turkey ham. I can explain all this (except why USDA allows something called turkey ham). Click here for The Zen of Ham.
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Ras el Hanout Spice Mix Recipe
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Ras el Hanout, which is Arabic for "head of the shop," is a spice mix often used as a rub for meats, especially lamb and goat in North Africa and the Middle East. Every spice shop, every restaurant, every home has its own recipe, and it can contain dozens of ingredients. It is also used as an ingredient in sauces and marinades, and to flavor rice or cous cous. Some say it is an aphrodesiac. Let me know if it works for you. Click here for the recipe for Ras el Hanout.
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Comments: Join The Discussion!
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You now have the ability to comment on every article and recipe on the site! Agree? Disagree? Suggestions? Questions? Or discuss among yourselves. I read all these posts and respond to many.
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I've Vastly Expanded My Links List
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In preparation for an interview on NPR I spent two weeks seeking the best websites and blogs about food and used the info to significantly expand my links lists. I have commented on many, and you may be surprised to hear what I have learned about some of the best known recipe web sites. Click here to see the list of my links lists.
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A Really Fun Read
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 The Foie Gras Wars: How a 5,000-Year-Old Delicacy Inspired the World's Fiercest Food Fight by Mark Caro
Most of us have never tasted foie gras. If you're among them, I'm here to tell you that there is nothing like it, and that, if you love food, you must try it. When prepared properly, the taste is unforgetable.
But the delicacy has been at the center of a controversy that has given it a bit of a bad taste. So I came to Mark Caro's book hopeful that he would answer the question for me: Is the way they make foie gras cruel?
Caro is a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, and when, out of the blue, the Chicago City Council, decided to ban the serving of foie gras, even though many members admitted to never having heard of it, no less tasted it or studied its production, he was assigned to cover the story. It grew into a fascinating tale that weaves together Chicago politics, animal husbandry, physiology, Philadelphia politics, history, culture, California politics, the animal rights movement, new age farming, New York politics, food fights between chefs, and cooking. And he does it well, with more than a few chuckles along the way.
How can the livers of geese and ducks be so controversial and interesting? It seems that, as long ago as 5,000 years, hunters discovered that geese and ducks, when preparing to migrate, gorged on food to build their fat reserves for the long journey, and at that point in time, their enlarged livers were spectacular tasting. Rich, complex, not like any other liver, more akin to eating a stick of the richest buttery cream cheese imaginable. They wanted it year round, so they came up with a method of replicating the process on their farms. The took a funnel, stuck a tube on the end, and inserted it in the mouth and down the throat of their geese and ducks. Then they poured in the feed.
French farmers became experts at the technique, where it is sold in groceries and gas stations. In the US, at one time, the dish was served only in fancy French restaurants, but in recent years, it's popularity has grown slightly, showing up on upscale menus, and even occasionally in unsuspecting places, like embedded in hamburgers.
Despite the fact that very little of it is made and it is sold only to the wealthy, animal rights activists, especially vegetarians, saw foie gras a low hanging fruit, an easy target for advancing their cause. They declared the method of feeding, called gavage, to be torture, made some video of the birds being fed, and started showing it on the web and to politicians.
Caro gets to know the animal rights activists and introduces them to us, as well as the farmers, the chefs, importers, physiologists, and the politicians, and weaves their fascinating personalities and tales into a fine story. He visits farms in California, New York, Minnesota, and even stays on a farm in France, where he is allowed to observe the process.
So, is gavage as painful? Alas, if you come to this book hoping that Caro will give you a simple answer, you will be disappointed. There are only a handful of legitimate studies, and the results are inconclusive. Among them, there are documented cases of animals coming towards the feeder willingly, while others shy away. Scientists point out that the throats of ducks and geese are a lot different than ours, and they have no gag reflex. Remember, they swallow spiny fish whole. Caro reports these studies and more in detail.
Early in the book he tells us how superstar chef Charlie Trotter quietly, without fanfare, decided to stop serving foie gras. Caro mentions this to another star, Rick Tramonto, who calls Trotter's decision hypocritical. "Either you believe in eating animals for sustenance or you don't." Ouch.
Caro asks Trotter for a response and gets this: "Rick Tramonto's not the smartest guy on the block. Yes, animals are raised to be slaughtered, but are they raised in a way where they need to suffer? To then be slaughtered for pure enjoyment? He can't be that dumb can he? You should quote me on that. What's up with that? It's like an idiot comment: 'All animals are raised to be slaughtered.' Oh, OK. Maybe we ought to have Rick's liver for a little treat. It's certainly fat enough." Touché!
Click here to order the book on Amazon.com.
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Tools Every Kitchen Needs
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 What does every kitchen need? I went through my cabinets and drawers and made a list of all my favorite tools and what to look for when shopping. I'm not done yet, but it's a pretty good start. Click here to see my list of required kitchen tools.
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Diverstech Grill Pads
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 My wife hasn't noticed the burn hole yet. It's pretty substantial. For the life of me I don't understand why the deck didn't go up in flames and take the house with it. Must be some sort of flame retardant in the wood. But a hunk of charcoal somehow jumped from my grill and tried to escape before I caught it. But not before it burned a substantial hole in the deck. My wife hasn't noticed because I covered the burn with a Grill Pad. A little late, but not too late. This lightweight flexible fiber cement pad protects my deck from runaway coals, spills, and grease driopping from the grease pan on my gas grill (have you emptied yours lately?). Grill Pads come in a variety of sizes, shapes and logos. I got mine with a Florida Gator logo, my alma mater. Click here to see the different sizes, shapes, and logos available for Grill Pads.
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A Useful Change To My Homepage
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It's a minor thing, but I think you'll find it helpful. If you go to my homepage, in the upper right you'll see an orange column titled "What's new on this site." It's a list of what I've been cookin' up lately, what new articles I've posted, and which old ones have had significant revisions. Don't know why I didn't do this sooner.
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Save This Link
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 If you like all the info I give you for free and would like to help me buy charcoal, copy this url link and save it: http://tinyurl.com/yazmwlq. It takes you to Amazon.com and tags anything you buy with my affiliate code so I get a small referral fee. It works on anything from grills to diapers and it has zero impact on the price you pay. Low prices, fast delivery (often free), good refund policies, and often there is no sales tax, are the best reasons to buy from Amazon.com, but clicking on that link before you shop helps me devote more time and money to you. Thanks!
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Great Gifts for the Barbecue Fan
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 Visit the AmazingRibs.com Gift Shop for a chuckle. There are now more than 30 steak-themed designs, about 20 hotdog-themed designs, and more than 30 wine-themed designs. Order aprons, hats, shirts, sweatshirts, intimate wear, and
other apparel for men, women, kids and pets, beer mugs, posters, and
other tschotschkes.
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