Saturday, December 11, 2004
Stop carping
This evening I sent of an email to a family friend back home about the various Czech Christmas traditions, including the Golden Pig and the traditional Christmas carp. This is his response in full (he was a game warden and is an avid fisherman and the captain of a small fishing craft):
"The lowly carp. Remember it was the Germans that brought the "German Carp" to our shores as a food fish. Which it is. Lots of good fish protien in a fish that will grow fairly large in almost any water that has sufficent oxygen.
When we were in Boscobel the local warden and others introduced us (me) to carp.
The most popular way was to smoke it. Brine of salt water with some brown sugar (just like salmon) and smoke away. Smaller to medium fish are better because there is less fat. The fat is the problem in the USA becasue that is where the mercury and pcbs are concentrated. This is becoming more of a problem here. Then eithere eat it like that or with a little lemon juice to cut the fat that is left. Alot of people break it into small pieces, the bones are easy to get out, easier than other fish, and use in salads. Much like you would use tuna. Butches Anchor Inn in Oshkosh used to specialize in their "Smoked Carp Salad" it was always ont he menue and they would often run out at lunch time. I always ordered it when I went there.
It is also good baked. You "skive" it first. There is a layer betweek the scales and the skin and if you are careful you can work a knife between and peal off the scales and one layer of skin leaving the rest of the skin intact. This holds the meat together. Then fill it with bread dressing (like a chicken) sew up the cavity some and bake until done. Traditionally the head is left on, I don't. This can be done with other fish too. It is a little more "mushy" but if you don't overcook it it comes out o.k.
Also frying it is good. We filleted it and cut it into smaller pieces to fry since it tends to be a thick fish. The smaller pieces fry faster so absorb less fat. It would probably be good in beer batter too tho I've never done it like that.
The big thing to watch out for is the "laterial line". On any fish there is a line of dark meat that runs along the middle of the side. This is where most of the sensory organs, smell, pressure, etc are located. It is just full of nerves and small blood vessels and tastes like uugh. If you skin a fish as in filleting, cut that "v" out from front to back and it will taste alot better. I like to soak fish in some lightly salted water before cooking or freezing. The salt in the water pulls out any residual blood and other moisture and makes the meat more firm. This is important with what would be a soft fleshed fish like, whitefish, carp, buffalo fish, etc.
If the fish is already cooked and served to you, take the skin off (lots of fat there) and use a fork or knife to scrape the dark laterial line off before you eat it. You will notice a real difference.
Now quit "carping" about the lowly carp. Remember it is is just a poor "goldfish" and they eat and rever them in Japan. Try buying a full grown Koy(goldfish/carp) for less than $1000 US in Japan.
The biggest thing is to watch the fat, that is where the bad stuff is for mothers and nursing mother. No more than one meal a month. Trim off as much fat as possible throughout the preperation and cooking process. Parboiling will also float off some fat and firm the fish up some. I know people who do that with lake trout (very fatty fish). They cut it into smaller chunks, par boil it (it will shrink quite a bit and firm up) then french fry it. I've never boiled carp, but whitefish is a staple of "poor man's lobster". Boiled, some seasoning, lemon butter and wonder what the rest of the world is doing.
Don't forget the dark rye bread and cole slaw. Now about the piece of cherry pie?
Take care and say hi to all.
Have a great Christmas and watch for the "golden pig".
Is that pig any relation to the pig I saw in Boscobel that had three legs?
I asked the farmer about it and he said that one night his house caught on fire and the pig ran up and banged on the door so much that it woke them. The got out of the house and called the fire department and managed to save the house.
I then asked him again about the three legged pig. He said that was because you don't eat a valuable pig like that all at once. Taa daa"
This evening I sent of an email to a family friend back home about the various Czech Christmas traditions, including the Golden Pig and the traditional Christmas carp. This is his response in full (he was a game warden and is an avid fisherman and the captain of a small fishing craft):
"The lowly carp. Remember it was the Germans that brought the "German Carp" to our shores as a food fish. Which it is. Lots of good fish protien in a fish that will grow fairly large in almost any water that has sufficent oxygen.
When we were in Boscobel the local warden and others introduced us (me) to carp.
The most popular way was to smoke it. Brine of salt water with some brown sugar (just like salmon) and smoke away. Smaller to medium fish are better because there is less fat. The fat is the problem in the USA becasue that is where the mercury and pcbs are concentrated. This is becoming more of a problem here. Then eithere eat it like that or with a little lemon juice to cut the fat that is left. Alot of people break it into small pieces, the bones are easy to get out, easier than other fish, and use in salads. Much like you would use tuna. Butches Anchor Inn in Oshkosh used to specialize in their "Smoked Carp Salad" it was always ont he menue and they would often run out at lunch time. I always ordered it when I went there.
It is also good baked. You "skive" it first. There is a layer betweek the scales and the skin and if you are careful you can work a knife between and peal off the scales and one layer of skin leaving the rest of the skin intact. This holds the meat together. Then fill it with bread dressing (like a chicken) sew up the cavity some and bake until done. Traditionally the head is left on, I don't. This can be done with other fish too. It is a little more "mushy" but if you don't overcook it it comes out o.k.
Also frying it is good. We filleted it and cut it into smaller pieces to fry since it tends to be a thick fish. The smaller pieces fry faster so absorb less fat. It would probably be good in beer batter too tho I've never done it like that.
The big thing to watch out for is the "laterial line". On any fish there is a line of dark meat that runs along the middle of the side. This is where most of the sensory organs, smell, pressure, etc are located. It is just full of nerves and small blood vessels and tastes like uugh. If you skin a fish as in filleting, cut that "v" out from front to back and it will taste alot better. I like to soak fish in some lightly salted water before cooking or freezing. The salt in the water pulls out any residual blood and other moisture and makes the meat more firm. This is important with what would be a soft fleshed fish like, whitefish, carp, buffalo fish, etc.
If the fish is already cooked and served to you, take the skin off (lots of fat there) and use a fork or knife to scrape the dark laterial line off before you eat it. You will notice a real difference.
Now quit "carping" about the lowly carp. Remember it is is just a poor "goldfish" and they eat and rever them in Japan. Try buying a full grown Koy(goldfish/carp) for less than $1000 US in Japan.
The biggest thing is to watch the fat, that is where the bad stuff is for mothers and nursing mother. No more than one meal a month. Trim off as much fat as possible throughout the preperation and cooking process. Parboiling will also float off some fat and firm the fish up some. I know people who do that with lake trout (very fatty fish). They cut it into smaller chunks, par boil it (it will shrink quite a bit and firm up) then french fry it. I've never boiled carp, but whitefish is a staple of "poor man's lobster". Boiled, some seasoning, lemon butter and wonder what the rest of the world is doing.
Don't forget the dark rye bread and cole slaw. Now about the piece of cherry pie?
Take care and say hi to all.
Have a great Christmas and watch for the "golden pig".
Is that pig any relation to the pig I saw in Boscobel that had three legs?
I asked the farmer about it and he said that one night his house caught on fire and the pig ran up and banged on the door so much that it woke them. The got out of the house and called the fire department and managed to save the house.
I then asked him again about the three legged pig. He said that was because you don't eat a valuable pig like that all at once. Taa daa"
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Turning that big ship around
Love the tone in this Guardian snip.
What's going to go next? I mean, after we have prejudice permanently enshrined in the US constitution. "Dig a hole and throw them in."
Love the tone in this Guardian snip.
What's going to go next? I mean, after we have prejudice permanently enshrined in the US constitution. "Dig a hole and throw them in."
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
There's something very odd about floating into the offices of some of the top executives and tech boys in this country and listening to them describe so openly what they do and how: the migration of servers from DHL London to Prague and the process of configuring them to the peculiarities of this country. This morning I spoke to one top manager hovering in a position between Telecom and Eurotel, as he described how he is working to break down old communist ways of doing things, and in the process firing people who have worked in the company since the early 1970s, and who haven't done anything since the 80s. He paints it as a clash of visions. They were protected by iron clad union contracts; however he managed to get them to sign a new contract that undercut their union contracts by **** million crowns. But they're not complaining, as they will get a juicy bonus and six months' paid holiday, car and phone. No wonder the company has to maintain its monopoly status. The old apparatus needs to be fed. I pity the poor buyer of this insular, shifty and ultra-protective company. Very often I have been in the offices of the competition of Eurotel and Telecom, listening to their position and how see the telecommunication scene here as it transforms into shark infested capitalist waters. Everyone wants a piece of the old monster.
Saturday, December 04, 2004
If you haven't heard, the Lizard cometh...
Arrival is predicted for the end of December. A little historical haiku seems appropriate from a trip we took to London a couple of years back. They open in the airport in Prague when we ordered overpriced food and stuffed as many cheap cigarettes as we could into Liz’s sax to sell to her friends in London.
December Haiku
Ten days with Liz in London
Taxi in the snow
Gouged in the airport
Producing bags from her cuffs
Smoking saxophone
Jeff orders coffee
Suspicious lumps of pink meat
In place of Tripe soup
Left side of the road
To Victoria Station
Liz writes a message
The tango is back
That reptile from the brothels
Uncorking the past
Bag o’ Nails and fire
Two pints of ale speak so loud
Outside the rain falls
Suburban heaven
Outsandwiched they never were
In history’s land
Wiz has orange hair
Disarming her enemies
On goat’s feet and charm
“Describing my mood
In seventeen syllables
Is very diffic...”
etc.
Arrival is predicted for the end of December. A little historical haiku seems appropriate from a trip we took to London a couple of years back. They open in the airport in Prague when we ordered overpriced food and stuffed as many cheap cigarettes as we could into Liz’s sax to sell to her friends in London.
December Haiku
Ten days with Liz in London
Taxi in the snow
Gouged in the airport
Producing bags from her cuffs
Smoking saxophone
Jeff orders coffee
Suspicious lumps of pink meat
In place of Tripe soup
Left side of the road
To Victoria Station
Liz writes a message
The tango is back
That reptile from the brothels
Uncorking the past
Bag o’ Nails and fire
Two pints of ale speak so loud
Outside the rain falls
Suburban heaven
Outsandwiched they never were
In history’s land
Wiz has orange hair
Disarming her enemies
On goat’s feet and charm
“Describing my mood
In seventeen syllables
Is very diffic...”
etc.
Friday, December 03, 2004
Mirror Man goes to the beach. This was years ago. Mirror Man now has a child named Robin.
The dollar in 2001, as compared to the Czech Crown
Notice the way it soars over the 40 crown peak, catching a bare glimpse of the distant horizon.
The dollar in 2004, as compared to the Czech Crown
As I was saying to Theo, I may be one of the few poor Americans that has directly benefited from the Bush administration. Long live the King!
Notice the way it soars over the 40 crown peak, catching a bare glimpse of the distant horizon.
The dollar in 2004, as compared to the Czech Crown
As I was saying to Theo, I may be one of the few poor Americans that has directly benefited from the Bush administration. Long live the King!
Thursday, December 02, 2004
How do you say, "Leave me alone!" in Kalmykian?
An article on Europe's only Buddhist nation.
The Czechs sometimes talk about being the small guy and pushed around by bigger and more aggressive neighbors. But after reading about the history of Kalmykia... let's just say that size is relative.
An interesting bit:
"Curiously, the spiritual head of the Kalmyks is a native of Philadelphia. Erdne Ombadykow was born to Kalmyk parents and sent to study Buddhism in India as a 7-year-old. There, the Dalai Lama recognized Ombadykow as the reincarnation of Telo Tulku Rinpoche, a Buddhist saint who could supposedly revive animals from the dead. Though his wife and child live in Erie, Colo., Ombadykow currently lives in Elista, where Kalmyks revere him as a holy figure and seek his blessing."
An article on Europe's only Buddhist nation.
The Czechs sometimes talk about being the small guy and pushed around by bigger and more aggressive neighbors. But after reading about the history of Kalmykia... let's just say that size is relative.
An interesting bit:
"Curiously, the spiritual head of the Kalmyks is a native of Philadelphia. Erdne Ombadykow was born to Kalmyk parents and sent to study Buddhism in India as a 7-year-old. There, the Dalai Lama recognized Ombadykow as the reincarnation of Telo Tulku Rinpoche, a Buddhist saint who could supposedly revive animals from the dead. Though his wife and child live in Erie, Colo., Ombadykow currently lives in Elista, where Kalmyks revere him as a holy figure and seek his blessing."
