Dinner for One: Moroccan Chicken with Rice

It never fails, whenever I end up watching cooking or travel shows I get the urge to compete in a solo Quick Fire Challenge and create a dish purely from my pantry and refrigerator.  On this particular lonely night, I was watching Anthony Bourdain's "Parts Unknown" where he traveled to Morocco. Knowing I had left over chicken in my fridge, I decided to make myself a Moroccan style chicken dinner.  I've never made this before so I mostly eyeballed everything.  I did cheat a little and searched for Moroccan chicken recipes on Pinterest to get a feel for a recipe and the proportions for the spices.

I noticed a recipe called for almonds-- and I was lucky enough that my roommate had left over almond slices she used for baking, so I snagged them.   I always have a range of spices: cumin, ground ginger, cinnamon, tumeric, ground coriander, paprika, and fennel seeds, which were used for my DIY recipe.  I also had rice, yellow onions, garlic, raisins, lemon juice (no real lemons on hand), mint and parsley to complete my self-induced challenge.

I toasted the almonds with the spices for a couple of minutes until fragrant.  I turned off the heat and let it cool.

I started cooking the rice while I prepared my chicken.  I seasoned the chicken with salt and pepper and set it aside.  I heated up olive oil in a skillet at medium heat.  I cooked the sliced onions and minced garlic in the skillet until the onions were translucent.  I took half of the spices and rubbed it on the chicken and placed it in the skillet with the onions and garlic-- cooking each side for 8 mins or so (until golden brown).  I did add a little water to the pan to avoid burning the spiced crust of the chicken.

When the rice was done, I added the left over spices/almonds and raisins and mixed it in.  For garnish, I sprinkled finely chopped parsley and mint and poured a tiny amount of lemon juice.  Below is the final and very delicious end product.  I think I would have made it on top if this was a real challenge (with no tagine or anything).

Mad Old Time

I'm proud to say that my annual Mad Men Viewing Parties are gradually getting more popular and dapper.  What started as a goofy night swooning over Don Draper with the roomie has become a slightly anticipated event amongst my friends.  To prep for Season 6, I made three trips to the store, spent too much money and wasted away over the stove all day.  The classics made another appearance: Old Fashioneds and Dirty Martinis, but I challenged myself and created a new 60s inspired menu.  

Mad Menu:

(Utz) Potato Chips and Onion Dip

Chicken Liver Tea Sandwiches

Cheese Fondue and Accoutrements 

Vietnamese Spring Rolls 

Hawaiian Grilled Pineapple and Shrimp Skewers

Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
Ice Cream Sundaes

Welcoming guests with an Old Fashioned.


If you don't have a fondue pot, which I didn't, check out Craigslist!  I got a decent fondue pot for $5 and the seller even threw in a fondue cookbook.  The accoutrements were a mix of precut baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, apples, and french baguette.  Keep an eye on the fondue when the pot is on though, the cheese burns quickly.

For the Canadian-French Megan inspired sandwiches, I bought my favorite chicken liver pate at Trader Joes and store bought white bread.  For the cute tea sandwich look, I cut off the crusts and cut them into triangles.

The Vietnam War spring rolls were a real time suck-- I definitely don't recommend if you don't have a lot of time.  Not only do you have to buy and prep all the individual ingredients (rice wraps, rice noodles, thai basil, mint, cilantro, scallions, cucumbers and carrots, I had to cook the meat (used ground turkey left over from the meatballs [kosher guests], lemon grass and garlic), and then assemble each one. I actually got so frustrated, that I didn't even bother to make a peanut or nuoc mam sauce to go with it.  

 The simplest dish was the favorite of the night: individual ice cream sundaes.  I just purchased Bryers Neapolitan Ice Cream, canned whipped cream, Hershey's double chocolate syrup and nuts and voila! happy guests again (since the premiere's lack of drama deflated the mood a bit-- I suggest a drinking game to avoid this).  

I can't forget to mention MUSIC! My Mad Men inspired playlist featured: Otis Redding, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, the Velvet Underground, Led Zeppelin and Bob Dylan. Of course, all songs were pre-1969 (it's all in the details).  

Shida and Karthik; Best Dressed

Mad Women and Men

Juicing Up

I recently got a cold and I needed to load up on vitamins.  I made frequent visits to juice bars like Naturewell and Kreation Juice but felt the dent in my wallet each time I shoved out $7 a visit.  My favorite is the Coconut Kale Smoothie at Naturewell which made such an impression on me that I had to try replicate it at home.

The ingredients are simple: ITALIAN kale (the curly kind is more bitter), coconut flesh, coconut water, agave nectar, bananas, cinnamon and ice.  I eyeballed the proportions but it was basically two generous handfuls of kale, 1 cup of coconut water, half a banana, 1/4 cup of coconut flesh, 1/2 tbsp of agave, 3 dashes of cinnamon and a handful of ice.

The hardest part was figuring out how to open the coconut, but after googling it and some elbow grease, I did it!  If you can find coconut flesh prepackaged or get a coconut that labeled "easy crack" I highly recommend it.

The fruits of my labor is exhibited on my Instagram (follow me @lesismore84).  Yay juice!

http://instagram.com/p/V5RgRduFSH/

Toys: Slow Cooker

Combining the week-long reading of slow cooker recipes on thekitchn.com and browsing online for holiday gifts, I decided to treat myself to a slow cooker on sale at Target. All the recipes filling my subconscious made it seem like the perfect tool for hearty meals on those cold nights.  An easy recipe that caught my eye right away was the Peppered Beef Shank in Red Wine.  I followed the recipe for the most part, but I didn't get the actual beef crosscut shank and replaced it with a beef brisket cut-- which was probably a bad idea since I felt my final product was a bit tough despite the 8 hours of cooking time.  But overall, the flavor was great and it was a satisfying meal -- it also made my apartment smell fantastic and it was nice coming home to a hot meal without worrying about a fire hazard.

The only gripe about the slow cooker was that I was expecting a one step cooking tool but in actuality you'll need another pot to sear the meat and reduce the red wine sauce, at least for recipes that require searing meat or sauteing veggies.  I was annoyed by how many dishes I ended up washing.  But after realizing this, I decided to cook a similar stew with my left over prime rib from my Christmas dinner feast.  I took out a large pot and sauteed a large yellow onion with a few chopped carrots.  After sweating the onions, I added some chopped garlic, a bay leaf, some left over red wine and 1 qrt of beef stock.  I turned on my slow cooker and added my (already cooked) prime rib left overs, then poured the reduced stock over it.  I popped in two sprigs of rosemary and 8 hours later, voila!

I only used ingredients that I had in my fridge, so adding celery and potatoes would be a great addition.  The beef was so tender and melted off the bone.  I also toasted some sourdough bread to soak up the rich broth.

I also got a dutch oven as a gift and can't wait to use it and see how it differs from a slow cooker.  But until I take it out of its box, here's a list of other slow-cooker recipes I'll be trying very soon!

http://www.thekitchn.com/10-seriously-awesome-slow-cooker-recipes-171262

A Christmas Feast J.C. would be proud of

Usually for the Christmas holidays, my sister will take on the main course of prime rib and I handle the appetizers and side dishes, but this year after seeing a recipe that claims to be the perfect prime rib recipe on SeriousEats I had to tackle the beefy beast.

My sister purchased a 20lb wet-aged prime rib, not dry-aged as the recipe suggested since that request needs to be made a few weeks prior, but honestly I don't know if there's a real taste difference.  I had to cut the beast in half to accommodate those who prefer well-done rather than medium rare.  I preheated the convention oven for 200 degrees.  Although this deviates from the recipe, I crushed garlic and thyme and stuffed it into the skin of the prime rib per my sister's suggestion (the family loves garlic).  I then rubbed the entire thing with room temperature butter.  Uncovered, I placed the prime rib in the oven for 3.5 to 4 hours until the internal temperature reached 120 degrees.  I then removed one half of the prime rib and allowed the other half to cook for an additional 30 minutes until it reached 130-135 degrees to get it to medium.




It must also be noted that while the beast was cooking, my family devoured the traditional yearly hor d'oeurvres of bacon wrapped dates (stuffed with either blue cheese or almonds), marinated olives (store bought), my sister's famous bruschetta, and washing it down with a Apple Cider Margetini.  

After taking out the 2nd half and wrapping it with foil, I cranked up the oven to 500 sear the outside while further cooking it to the 125 degree temp for medium rare and 135 for medium-well.  (Note: because the oven gets so hot and smokey, I hope your stove fan is on or have a window open.)  I seared the prime rib for just 8-9 minutes and it came out perfectly seared and crispy!  I personally let it rest for 10 minutes only since I had hungry people waiting anxiously, but I suggest letting it rest for 20 mins at least since it got bloody messy while I was carving it.

The finished product is below-- crispy seared exterior and a perfectly red interior without any grey overcooked sections.  Beautiful.

In addition to the perfect prime rib, I also roasted a "vibrant" medley of root vegetables, made a kale radicchio salad with blue cheese and hazelnuts (inspired by Sycamore Kitchen),  Joël Robuchon's famous potato puree, and my sister sauteed some fresh green beans.  For sure, the puree and root vegetables are coming back next year but I can honestly say without boasting too much that the entire meal was spectacular.  

Thanksgiving: My favorite time of the year

This is my fourth year cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my family and I try to make it more fabulous each year.   The menu was divvied up between me, my sisters and cousin.  I was in charge of the 20 lb turkey, roasted brussels sprouts, cranberry sauce, gravy and crispy kale chips.

Roasted Turkey 

I use Alton Brown's brine recipe to start things off.  It takes 12 hours so I prep the turkey the night before the big day.  I grab my mom's huge (holds 5+ gallons) pho pot to mix the brine and store the turkey.  Using a cheesecloth to hold the spices is highly recommended to avoid the peppercorns sticking to the turkey.  It's not in the recipe, but I like to add a slice of lemon, a few thyme and rosemary leaves too.
While the brine is cooling off-- I clean the turkey and take out the neck and gizzards.  I use the neck and gizzards to make the turkey broth for the gravy.  I placed the turkey inside the brine and stored it overnight.
The next day, the turkey is then removed, rinsed off and patted dry.  I finely mince and chop garlic and mix it in a stick of butter.  I then stick as much of the garlic butter under and over the skin as humanly possible.  This is ensure a crispy brown skin as well as a moist bird (since I don't baste the turkey more than twice).
In the cavity of the bird, I place a cored granny smith apple, a lemon I poke holes in, fresh sage, rosemary and thyme leaves.  I then take a piece of foil and fold it into a triangle to cover the breast and wings of the turkey.  I also poured 2 cans of chicken stock on the bottom of the roasting pan.  In a preheated 500 degree oven I placed the bird on the bottom rack for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, I turned down oven to 350 and cooked the bird for another 3-3.5 hours (basting it at the 1.5 and 2.5 hour mark).  I also remove the foil the last hour to brown the breast skin.

Sausage Sage Stuffing

I used both a rosemary loaf and french baguette for base, added granny smith apples and dried currants to the recipe.  It's a great recipe to make beforehand and reheat the next day.

 Suffering Bastard Cocktail

 Careful with this cocktail-- it got me in trouble.
 Recipe is  below.

1 part gin
1 part whiskey or bourbon
1 part lime juice
Splash of bitters
4 parts ginger ale (but I reduced it to 1 part)

Crispy Kale Chips
The only problem making the chips was that I didn't have the oven when I wanted it.  I needed a 375 degree oven that would fit two trays of kale.  I baked some in my parents' toaster oven and fit one small tray next to the turkey.  These were good--but I'll likely not make them again for a large dinner.



Gravy

I took the neck, livers and gizzards of the turkey and covered them with water in a 3-quart saucepan.  I let it simmer on low heat for 1 hour to make a concentrated turkey broth for the gravy.  I strained the broth and refrigerated it.
Once the turkey was removed from the roasting pan, I put the pan on the stove top and added a few tablespoons of flour and the turkey broth, whisking it until it thickened.  I then strained the gravy before serving.

Spiced Cranberry Sauce 
Still not a favorite dish with my family, but I liked it.

Corn Bread Muffins

I basically use the recipe on the side of the Albers Corn Meal box--but it works every year!

LA TIMES: THE TASTE 2012

What better way to spend Labor Day weekend than to munch and consume gourmet food and drinks at Paramount Studios?  Unless you really love family barbecues there isn't a better way.  I was lucky enough to attend one of The Taste events, the Cocktail Confidential, for free rather than paying the $75 entry fee (although you do get your monies worth since the food and [alcoholic]drinks are unlimited).

The Cocktail Confidential was held Saturday night inside Paramount Studios.  Dozens of gourmet food and drink vendors set up shop on the studio lot and provided patrons samples of food, beer, wine or cocktails from 8pm-11pm.  The event also had mixologist demonstrations but I was too busy stuffing my face to remember to watch.  The lines could get a bit long but if you had a food buddy like I did, splitting up and grabbing plates for each other was the most efficient way to sample each vendor.

   Everything was tasty but the highlights (i.e. the dishes that I remembered a month later) were:

Bulgarini Gelato:  almond gelato with red wine  and The Gorbals: confit beef tongue romesco .

Bulgarini Gelato: Almond Gelato with Red Wine (poured over)

The Gorbals: Confit Beef Tongue Romesco

Bourbon cocktails

Cheddar popcorn

The participating vendors are listed below.  (Photos courtesy of the lovely Christina Phan)
Restaurants

A-Frame
American Tea Room 
Ammo
Be. Flirty
Blue Palms Brewhouse
Bulgarini
Casa Azul Cantina
Creme Caramel LA
Factors Deli
FEED Body + Soul
Glendon Bar &; Kitchen
Haven Gastropub
Industriel Green Street Tavern
Katana
Marsatta Fancy Chocolates
Nonna Of Italy
Pig’s Feed Under Plantation Rum
Pig’s Feet Under
Pinches Tacos
Ray’s & Stark Bar
Red Lion 
Sadie
Sunny Spot
Takami Sushi 
Terroni Restaurant
The Blvd at Beverly Wilshire Hotel
The Cake Mamas
The Counter Custom Built Burgers
The Gorbals
The Pub at Golden Road 
The Roger Room
Villains Tavern
Wood & Vine

Wines, Beers & Spirits

ABSOLUT Vodka
Adult Beverage Company
Akvinta Vodka
Ancnoc Whisky
Atlantico Rum
Bernardus Winery
BlackBeard Spiced Rum
Bulleit Rye
Caorunn Gin
Chopin Vodka
Citadelle Gin
Cline Cellars
Coco Breve
Cold Spring Brewing Co.
Death’s Door Spirits
Don Q Rum
Double Cross Vodka
Francis Ford Coppola Winery
Freixnet USA
Gosling’s Black Seal Rum
Herzog Wine Cellars
Jefferson’s Very Small Batch Bourbon
Karlsson’s Gold Vodka
Karma Tequila
Kooksoondang Brewery/Bekseju USA
Mionetto
Pearl Vodka
Pearl Wedding Cake Vodka
Peroni
Prévu
Rebel Yell Bourbon
Seven Daughters
Simply Naked Wines
SkinnyGirl
Stella Artois
Svedka 
Tequila Semental
The Glenrothes Select Reserve 
Tyku Premium Sake & Spirits
VeeV Açaí Spirit 
Wente Family Estates
Wild Turkey 

http://events.latimes.com/taste/

FOOD SHOP LA: PART DEUX

This menu was so popular before that chef Itay and Hjeyin brought it back.  Since it was my second time, I remembered to take more pictures for the Dinette Set.  I brought Christina with me this time knowing that she'd appreciate the rustic romantic atmosphere and amazing food.

The Menu 

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Aperitif Vodka, lychee, kaffir lime leaves

Grape Salad Arugula, black grapes, Comte cheese, Marcona Almonds

Kaffir Kabobs ground brisket, kaffir leaves, Thai basil, la lot leaves

Curried Mussels fresh mussels, coconut curry, kaffir leaves, Belgian ale 

Garlic Fries Hand-cut potatoes, fresh herbs, Garlic

Crumble Warm peach crumble, Thai basil ice cream

Kaffir Kabobs

The meal always starts off with an aperitif to get guests to mingle while waiting for everyone to arrive.  The aperitif was refreshing but maybe a bit too sweet for my taste-- I'd prefer more of the kaffir lime taste.  For this meal it was suggested to bring Belgian ales but many guests brought bottles of white and red wine as an accompaniment.

The grape salad was perfectly dressed and I can eat handfuls of those marcona almonds.  But what took my breath away were the delicious Kaffir Kabobs, which tasted very authentic of Southeast Asian cuisine and really reminded me of eating out with my parents to a cheesy asian restaurant in Westminster.  The Curried Mussels with the Garlic Fries were also a delight.  I think Christina and I ended up eating 30+ mussels and a whole loaf of garlic bread.

Curried mussels with garlic bread

Peach crumble with Thai Basil Ice Cream

Ending the meal was the peach crumble, but the crumble was overshadowed by how good the thai basil ice cream was.  I've never had anything like it and it was phenomenal.

Dinner For One: Turkey and Crimini Mushroom Meatballs w/ Polenta

On my daily scouring on Seriouseats.com, I came across this recipe for turkey meatballs with marinara sauce and polenta:
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/07/turkey-and-porcini-meatballs-with-rosemary-and-polenta-recipe.html
I'm on a tight budget these days so any recipe that calls for a few ingredients is on my culinary radar.  Also the recipe is configured for just two it was easy to convert for my standard dinner of one.  I figured I can swap the dried porcini mushrooms with criminis and some marscapone cheese instead of milk that were already in my fridge, so the only thing I needed from the market was the marinara sauce and ground turkey.

Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup white onion, chopped and diced
1 egg
olive oil
4 crimini mushrooms, chopped and diced small
1 lb ground turkey
Japanese breadcrumbs, about 1/3 cup
3 rosemary leaves
2 heaping tablespoons of marscapone cheese
1 cup grated parmesan cheese, (more or less)
1 jar of marinara sauce
1 cup corn meal
basil

Preparation:
In a frying pan, I sauteed the onions and crimini mushrooms with some olive oil until translucent and soft.  I turned off the burner and while that was cooling, I combined the garlic, egg, turkey, most of the parmesan cheese, 1 tbsp on marscapone cheese, 2 chopped stems of rosemary, and breadcrumbs.  Once the mushrooms and onions were cooled, I added it to the turkey mixture with a generous sprinkle of kosher salt and pepper for seasoning.
I turned the broil on placed my french non-slip baking mat on a baking sheet for the meatballs.  I rolled the turkey mixture into generous sized meatballs and broiled them in the oven for 10 minutes to brown the outside.
While the meatballs were in the oven, I simmered the marinara sauce in a sauce pan with a rosemary leaf ( partially covered the pan to lessen the mess).  Once the meatballs brown, I added them to the marinara mixture and simmered the sauce (and finish cooking the meatballs) for an additional 15 minutes.

I then boiled about 1 1/2 cups of water (more if you like the polenta creamier) and slowly added the corn meal, whisking constantly.  Until you get the desired texture, I added 1 tbsp of marscapone cheese and a little left over parmesan cheese and mixed until smooth.  Then I finished it off with salt and pepper.

Onto the plating (my favorite part)!  I spread the polenta on a plate and topped it with a meatball and a generous spoonful of marinara sauce.  I finished it off with chopped basil and a sprinkle of parmesan.  I can't wait to eat the leftovers!  Bon apetite!

LA Street Food Fest

The 3rd Annual Los Angeles Street Food Fest is a nice place to come with a group of friends to indulge on a hot summer day.  For $45 (general admission) you get to enjoy small plates from over 100 vendors and the option to relax with a beer (or tequila shot) on the football field of the Rose Bowl.
But one of the drawbacks was that some of the vendors ran out of food in the middle of the day (The Mighty Boba Truck, The Jolly Oyster, and the wine vendors ran out of cups), so getting to the Festival early is a must if you're looking forward to a certain vendor. Another drawback are the long lines for beer and the popular vendors.  But the long lines can be alleviated if one person stays in the line while the other grabs samples for everyone from nearby booths.  By the time you get to the front of the line, you've already consumed your plate of food.
Maybe it was due to the high temperature, but the best part of the Festival was the Ice Cream Social -- a designated area for ice cream, desserts, and candies.  I think my favorite was the grapefruit sorbet, frozen banana, and the salted vietnamese coffee (so simple but genius).  Sorry for the lack of pictures-- I relied on the ones taken by Christina.

Highlights (Savory):
Parks Finest BBQ - coconut curry pork with rice
The Jolly Oyster - fresh oysters
Ayara Thai - spicy grilled clams 
Laxy Ox Canteen - paella
Moodaepo - pork belly
Picca - sweet potato beignet





Highlights (Sweet):
Waffles de Liege - caramel waffle
Sweet Lucie's - organic strawberry lemonade
Mother Moo Creamery- salty chocolate ice cream / grapefruit sorbet
Saints and Sinners - salted caramel chocolate ganache
Longboards Ice Cream - Chocolate covered frozen banana with potato chips
Beachy Cream - key lime ice cream sandwich
Secret Squirrel Cold Brew - Salted Vietnamese Coffee

LAFoodShop

FoodShop is just another fine example of how food is truly a communal experience.  Hosts and chefs Itay Zach with pastry chef Hyejin Cho generously invite 30 guests to enjoy a homemade 5 course dinner.  I was enlightened by this monthly pop up event through a friend of mine who attended few months back-- and I'm glad he did.  Not only did I enjoy a great meal, I was able meet a group of interesting foodies I would have never met before.  Two particular ladies I met were Juliette and Tracy --- both in the food and wine (and champagne) industry.  My friend and I were lucky enough to be sitting across from them-- and I mean lucky!-- they brought about 6 bottles of delicious wine that they generously shared.  


I RSVP'd to the Friday dinner held at 7:30pm.  When you arrive at the "Barn" -- dinner guests are already mingling around the large farm table which was finely set with candles and an eclectic array of plates and glassware.  Dinner guests are greeted by Itay's wife Adee (and her very pregnant belly) with a watermelon martini.  Once all the guests check in, you are seated at your assigned spot and the chefs personally bring out each course.  Although everything was delicious, the stand outs for me were the Watermelon Martini (because I'm a sucker for herbs in cocktails), the Moroccan Meatballs, and the Shrimp n' Grits.  The entire menu is listed below, but the menu changes each month.  

The Menu (Suggested donation $45)

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Waretmelon Martini gin, watermelon, thyme, lime

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Corn Soup corn, cream, shallots, vegetable broth

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Grilled Peach Salad fresh peaches, arugula, le Delice de Bourgogne cheese, balsamic

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Moroccan Meatballs grass-fed beef & lamb, tomatoes, garlic, serranos, spices

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Shrimp n' Grits fresh prawns, butter, garlic, polenta

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Fresh Berry Tart Fresh berries, orange verbena sorbet

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DRINKS Please bring the beverages of your choice (white or reds work)

After dessert is served, a donation box is passed around, but since it was my first time I just paid the suggested donation of $45/person to FoodShop's paypay account.  Another thing I must mention that adds to the charm of the dinner was the art gallery in the back of the Barn which you walk through on your way to the facilities. It felt like I was entering into another dimension-- from industrial barn house to a bright gallery of contemporary and modern art.  My only regret was that I wished I was more outgoing and talkative to other guests, seeing as how it was my first time and the Barn was a wee bit cramped.  Hopefully, I'll break out of my wallflowerness the next time around.  


http://www.lafoodshop.com/

FYI, baking soda does expire.  Your chocolate chip cookies will look like discs.

This is a non-hostile takeover. You can put down the cutlery.

For too long, the Dinette Set has consisted of a lonesome diner.  Although this was initially a collective of experiences amongst friends, the Dinette Set lost it's appeal to Tumblr, Pinterest and Twitter.  In order to revive the blog, the Dinette Set is now becoming my personal outlet of food, wine, and all things related. This is not a hostile takeover-- Viv graciously handed me the reigns and I hope to do her (and all of the authors I deleted) proud.

Yours forever (unless I'm yelping),

Les

Non-Foodie Men: Dateable?

My size may be deceiving, but I'm the biggest foodie out there. Just short of snob. So naturally I find myself instantly attracted to men (slightly questionable) who can reference famous chefs by their first names. However, most of the time my attraction quickly fades into disgust the moment the topic changes from food. After a few failed dating attempts with “foodie” men, I started to ponder: can I date someone who isn't a foodie? I'm sure the answer will be "depends on the right guy," but should a foodie like myself automatically discount a man with certain food allergies, dietary restrictions, or just plain finickiness.

Below is a short listing of non-foodie men in descending order of foodie dateableness.

The Sicko: No one should fault anyone with legitimate medical allergies. Although it can be funny to see someone break out in hives after eating shellfish, I try to be mindful of people's food allergies (more so if they could die from them). Usually these guys don't expect others to coddle them and their allergies, but watch how they order food to see if they are dateable. If the fella politely ask for substitutions, dateable. If he unexpectedly gets feta cheese in his salad, he’s dateable if he eats around it rather than send it back. However, if you sense any hint of fussiness or self-entitlement, undateable.

There is a narrow exception to the dateable Sicko. If the Sicko has too many allergies to make himself the equivalent of a vegan, then his dateable points go down. This includes those guys that are lactose intolerant and allergic to gluten. You’ve got to be realistic, eating out with these guys will just get frustrating and annoying.

Please note that guys who are just hypochondriacs and THINK they have allergies, avoid these guys like you would if you found a roach in your food. These guys are just needy and will expect you to coddle them at the dinner table and in everything else.

Just Green: These guys are inexperienced, either by choice, disinterest, or they just lived in a bubble (i.e. the meat-and-potatoes guy from Idaho). These fellas are the ones that shock me when they say they have never had sushi, dim sum, or naan. Los Angeles is not lacking in ethnic foods, and anyone who hasn’t tried common ethnic foods also is a good indication of their lack of traveling. Usually, the green ones are dateable and sometimes they can be flipped into foodies with the right sensai. But a red flag goes up for these guys because there’s a chance that they not really green, but are so disinterested in trying new food they are just narrow-minded idiots (see below). A good indicator in spotting these idiots is if they won’t order something based solely on the fact they can’t pronounce the dish.

The Dieter: Living in LA, you meet plenty of actor/model/waiters, and so most are conscious on what they eat. Usually the dieter’s food restrictions don’t affect foodies, but I personally feel strange when I’m the only person eating while my date is nibbling on a salad and sipping water. I’m usually more masculine than most guys I meet, so I don’t want to be reminded of it at the dinner table. I constant dieter will eventually be too frustrating for me to handle, but the occasional dieter trying to maintain his weight is welcomed and dateable (especially since I won’t date fatties).

The Vegetarian/Vegan: These are the tricky ones. On the one hand, I admire the veganetarians since it takes a lot of self-restraint to stay away from meat and dairy. And if they are doing it for humanitarian or environmental reasons, more power to them. But then again, one of my favorite places to eat is called Animal and last month I just ate a foie gras popsicle. Facing the realization that I’d rather spend time with those who enjoy eating and trying new restaurants, the veganetarians are likely not dateable unless there are other major plus factors that compensate. In my case, if the guy is witty, funny, and artistic I can try to look pass the food issues so long as the guy accepts my eating habits.

Junky: This isn’t referring to the William Burroughs sort, but rather “men” who have the eating habits of 8 year-old boys. Junkies will pick out the lettuce and tomatoes out of their double cheeseburgers, they believe Taco Bell is authentic Mexican, and their fridges contain only condiments and take-out containers. Us foodies pride ourselves (maybe a bit too much) on our refined palette and dating someone who actually eats Del Taco other than at 3am will never work, not to mention it’s just plain disgusting.

Narrow-minded Idiots: The most exasperating men of all. The fellas who refuse to eat seafood because it's "fishy" or won't try sushi because it's raw. The men who think "duck" is exotic. When I interface with these idiots, I can't help but look confusingly disgusted by them. I mean, to not even try something based on some preconceived notion that it won't taste good is absolutely absurd. Fucking try it and then decide not to like it. What's the worse that can happen, really? Not only is the narrow-mindedness an indication of odd reasoning abilities, it's a great way of spotting the bores. Absolutely Undateable!

Foodie Men?

I'm not in the dating scene right now but thought this article about was some interesting food for thought (pun unintended = punintended?)..

MEN I'M OVER: FOODIES

The ridiculous rise of male food snobbery has created a whole new way for men to be undate-able.

Jessica

May 18, 2011 at 3:02pm

Once, I was blown off by a guy who makes pickles for a living. We were both alone at a bar in Park Slope one afternoon and he asked me what I was reading. He was an art director or something before but now he spent his days knee-deep in brine. "I love it," he said, doing something weird with his eyes to let me know how sincere he was being. He talked about his pickles for about 45 minutes, during which I was able to conclude not only that they are much more flavorful as a garnish than a subject but that it is possible to have an extremely large ego even while you discuss the merits of canning.

“So, what do you do?” he asked absently while waving down the bartender for another beer.

“I write articles,” I said shyly, and in this short break from talking about him and his cucumbers, he had pivoted so his back was toward me and he was facing another woman.

“Sorry,” he tossed over his shoulder. “Food friend”

This is when I started to hate foodies, especially foodie men, who somehow making even preparing simple foods a macho, one-sided event. If a dude who makes pickles for a living can ask you if you’ve heard of his spicy asparagus with the same sort of smugness as a guy in Williamsburg who asks you if you’ve heard of his band then, women, we are in trouble.

The thing is I happen to love pickles. I will buy a jar of eight dollar McClure’s from the farmer’s market just like the next shmuck (damn those samples!) But the beauty of things like pickles is their inherent down-to-earthness.

It is the same with men who are just buying the food. I used to have daydreams about walking around the farmer’s market with a man and picking out food to cook together. In my fantasy I am wearing a sundress and we are stopping to laugh at some misshapen squash or feeding each other a sugar snap pea. In reality the men I’ve found who want to linger at farmer’s markets are like obsessive teenage boys at a vinyl shop.

“What kind of soil were these grown in,” they’ll demand, brandishing a clump of radishes at a sexily disheveled Brooklyn rooftop gardener. “This is a rare one,” they can be heard murmuring softly to a lumpy heirloom tomato. I knew a guy who practically went berserk during ramps season. “It’s. Only. One week. A. Year,” he said, breathing as though he needed the aid of a paper bag.

We will be doing men a favor if we don’t let this become a thing any more than it already has. For those men who neurotically look at the origin of every ingredient, who regularly order things like pork belly and make fun of how I say “radicchio” (you know who you are asshole), it’s fine to eat healthy and homegrown food but you can be quieter and nicer about it. Last time I checked, you just bought it and assembled it. I didn’t think I was Mies Van der Rohe when I put together my Ikea dresser.

For those men who actually do grow and butcher and preserve the stuff we buy on the weekend to impress people, it would be nice to remind them that food is vital and growing it is sexy because it makes you seem down to earth.

In other words: Hey buddy, you smell like vinegar, lose the attitude.

Original post: http://www.xojane.com/sex/men-im-over-foodies