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Stickman's 2014 Glog- That's all folks!

Hi All,
   I've got Manzanos sprouted and my Bhuts, Lotah Bih and Donne Sali seeds planted so it looks like time to leave 2103 behind and begin to concentrate on 2014. Last year I started some of my late-season varieties right after New Year's Day, but our season was too short to bring the pods to full ripeness so this year I started 2-3 weeks earlier.
 
Manzano seedlings...
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Fruts and Bhuts ;) ...
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There are many more varieties yet to plant in the proper turn, and I have 4 overwintered pepper plants from 2013 that I'll report on later. Have a great weekend all!
 
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stickman said:
 
Who says you need flatbread to eat Indian? Here in America we have forks and spoons. You could just make rice, or if you want to take a vacation from washing the flatware,  buy whole wheat pita bread. The differences are miniscule.
 
Started a batch of Vindaloo this morning... cut 2-1/2 pounds of pork into bite-sized pieces and marinated them for 2 hours with 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar and a teaspoon of salt. Then ground a 1-inch piece of fresh ginger root and 10 cloves of garlic with 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar and another tablespoon of water so it would puree smoothly, then ground and stirred in the spice mixture of 12 dried Thai chiles, 1/2 tsp black peppercorns, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 12 whole cloves, 1/2 tsp turmeric, a 3-inch cinnamon stick (broken up), the seeds from 5 cardamom pods and 1 tablespoon of paprika. Added half the spice mixture to the meat and put everything away in the 'fridge to marinate overnight.
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Finishing up will take about an hour and a half in a Dutch Oven.
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Everything is looking great Rick. Looking forward to dinner pics, love me some Vindaloo!!  :cheers: 
 
Thanks guys. :)
 
OCD Chilehead said:
I haven't yet. Most of the Indian dishes I have made are vegetarian. My girlfriend is veggie. I don't have a Dutch oven. Maybe cast iron skillet? Or crockpot?
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I just use a Dutch Oven because I have one Adam... you could use a big skillet or a wok too. The main thing is to have a lid for that puppy 'cause you're gonna cook the meat slowly in its own steam at the end. I think India is the home of the vegan movement, and they have some great food for that diet. If you can find a copy in a used book store, see if you can find "Madhur Jaffrey's World of the East Vegetarian Cooking". Everything in it is well-researched and tasty as all %#*$...  I've been cooking from it for 5 or 6 years, and haven't found anything I didn't like yet. Some are classics, like Brussels Sprouts stir fried with dried Shiitake Mushrooms, Potatoes with Chickpeas (and tomatoes and Good Olive oil), Sweet and Sour Okra and Chickpeas, etc. :drooling:
 
I've finished the curried Cauliflower and Coconut Rice, and picked up the Vindaloo where I left off yesterday. Here are the ingredients for    Part II... Sorry the pics aren't very good... %#*@$!# backup camera...
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Measured out, we have a can of fire-roasted chopped tomatoes, 5 crushed cloves of garlic, 3 sliced onions, 3 slit Serrano chile, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, the marinated pork and the reserved half of the spice mixture.
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Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a Dutch oven or other lidded pot, and fry the crushed garlic cloves over medium high heat until lightly browned
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Add the sliced onions and continue to fry until lightly brown
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Add the chiles, tomatoes, sugar, vinegar and remaining half of the spice mixture and fry until browned
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add the pork and fry until the pork begins to exude its juices
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Add 10 oz. of water, bring to a simmer and cook, covered for 40-50 minutes until pork is cooked through and tender.
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Curried Cauliflower
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coconut rice
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Be back in half an hour to 45 minutes with a plate pic.
 
Awesome Rick. Thanks for the rest of the recipe. Looks great. I always feel full and satisfied after eating Indian food. I never get tired after eating it as well. Good healthy stuff there. I will look into that book.

Thanks for sharing that. Have a good day.

Chuck
 
Thanks guys... wish you could have all tried it! :D
 
 
OCD Chilehead said:
I always feel full and satisfied after eating Indian food. I never get tired after eating it as well. Good healthy stuff there. I will look into that book.
Thanks for sharing that. Have a good day.

Chuck
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The paper-bound version is kinda cheap. The pages are getting brittle and pulling away from the spine. If you can, get the hardcover edition. You won't be disappointed!
 
Time once again for the Tuesday morning Dawn Patrol...
 
It's a cloudy morning after a night of intermittent thundershowers. It's 66 degrees and already muggy as #@&%. The Bhuts really like this weather... I hope the Guwahati Bhuts and BOCs finally set pods like the King Naga. The Lotah Bih has finally started putting out blossoms.
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and the Donne Sali has started setting tiny pods
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Both Aji Lemon plants are beginning to really kick in now
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and the Cascabel
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The Takanotsume is just loaded with flowers and the earliest pods are about 4-5 inches long
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And lastly, the first PeriPeri pods are getting redder... I think they'll be fully ripe by the end of the week. Only 3 tiny pods to start, but many more to come!
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Have a great Tuesday all!
 
Vindaloo looks great. My only comment is you need some roti for the pairing! Sometimes the rice just doesn't do it for me. Good for soaking up the sauces but man a good roti, naan, or chapati can't be beat. Or even a nice paratha. Mmm. 
 
Going to give your jerk marinade a try with a pair of MoA's this week. Wish me luck!
 
Plants are looking great bud.
 
i second the idea that curry doesn't need flatbread. i prefer flatbread, but given that i usually have curry twice a week yet rarely with flatbread.. curry is awesome. you know whats a good side dish to vindaloo??
More Vindaloo! 

that looks really tast Rick! i'd be more jealous if i hadnt recently finished a curry with chocolate bhut and mixed grain rice. i regret not growing choc bhut this year!

wow, those takanotsume are huge! ive not seen them that big before!
they have a really nice flavour and decent heat. i found they taste a bit like red apple skins. i sliced a few fresh and put in a cheddar cheese sandwich. beautiful! 
 
maximumcapsicum said:
Vindaloo looks great. My only comment is you need some roti for the pairing! Sometimes the rice just doesn't do it for me. Good for soaking up the sauces but man a good roti, naan, or chapati can't be beat. Or even a nice paratha. Mmm. 
 
Going to give your jerk marinade a try with a pair of MoA's this week. Wish me luck!
 
Plants are looking great bud.
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It does make brown-bagging it much easier if you have the Vindaloo and rice wrapped up in a Roti. :)
 
Heck, if you can hang with one of Scott's Jigsaw pods, a couple of MoAs shouldn't present a problem with the marinade Adam... ;)  Can you get the Cassava bread called Bammie in Atlanta? If not, you might like to try "JA Peas and Rice" as a side dish. You can probably get the Cassava root anyway, and if you boil and drain it a couple of times first, then cut it up into fries and deep-fry it, it makes wonderful light and crunchy on the outside, soft and creamy on the inside french fries.
georgej said:
i second the idea that curry doesn't need flatbread. i prefer flatbread, but given that i usually have curry twice a week yet rarely with flatbread.. curry is awesome. you know whats a good side dish to vindaloo??
More Vindaloo! 
 
No argument here G... :)

that looks really tast Rick! i'd be more jealous if i hadnt recently finished a curry with chocolate bhut and mixed grain rice. i regret not growing choc bhut this year!
 
S'ok brother... we'll get ya next time! ;)

wow, those takanotsume are huge! ive not seen them that big before!
they have a really nice flavour and decent heat. i found they taste a bit like red apple skins. i sliced a few fresh and put in a cheddar cheese sandwich. beautiful! 
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They're about as wide as tall at 2/3 of a meter... Never grown them before, but if the taste matches the output, you can be sure I will again! Cheers!
 
Is the Takanotsume related to the Yatsufusa?  I have a few Yatsufusa plants that I grew from pepper joe seeds and they look eerily familiar.  Is there a big difference in the taste between the two?
 
TIA.
 
bpiela said:
Is the Takanotsume related to the Yatsufusa?  I have a few Yatsufusa plants that I grew from pepper joe seeds and they look eerily familiar.  Is there a big difference in the taste between the two?
 
TIA.
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I can't speak to the flavor Ben... georgej would be the man for that... but both varieties seem to have a very similar (if not identical) growth habit. Another name for the Yatsufusa peppers is chilies Japones, and you're as likely to find them in a Mexican bodega as an Asian food store.
 
 
Thanks guys, and welcome home Scott.
 
I went out the the garden to pick some hot wax peppers for making young radish kimchi, and saw the Hungarian stuffing pepper has a pod of harvest-able size
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I also just touched one of the Piri-Piri pods and it fell off the stem... Guess that means it's ripe enough... and the other 2 did as well.
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They're all as big around as a pencil eraser and about twice as long. I just had to pop one in my mouth to see what they taste like... very sweet and fruity up front, juicy flesh, what there is of it, and lots of seeds. Very respectable burn for a pepper of its size. It seemed to be sticking needles into the tip and center of my tongue and sending a wave of warmth down my throat and into my stomach. The burn peaked quickly and faded slowly... lasting about 6 minutes, and leaving a sensation of warmth in my mouth for another 20 minutes or so. Yeah... these'll make a great sauce!
 
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