Friday, September 23, 2011

Food for Thought


So there was this Polish take out place, and it finally opened. No joke here, really. They had Polish food. Stuffed cabbage, pierogis, haluski, etc. You just don't see that anywhere.
-
I once learned that if you are trying a Chinese restaurant for the first time, order Moo Goo Gai Pan. If they screw that up, don't go back because it is probably the easiest thing to make.
-
Along those lines, my corollary to that is, in a Polish take out place, start with the stuffed cabbage. I'm sorry to report it was awful. So bad, that if I myself made stuffed cabbage, which I don't, like on the first try, I'm sure mine would be better because I have eaten so many good stuffed cabbage rolls that I would at least have a target to shoot for. I know this is petty, especially since the people really are from Poland, but the cabbage shouldn't be green and tough. I mean like escarole-green. The cabbage needs to be cooked so much with grease that it falls apart with a fork and turns into a washed out non-color.
-
Next... tomato soup is the sauce of choice. Not an ala-vodka orangish type heavy sauce. And I do like a lot of rice. Rice is not only a good filler, but it gives a meaning to the dish. Not just stuffed with meat with a little bit of rice. The rice helps it to fall apart nicely and make a big mess on your plate. That is part of the experience of eating a stuffed cabbage. It shouldn't be perfectly uniform and firm and packed to the point you have to get up from the table and get a knife to cut it and then really spend time chewing it. You eat much less that way.
-
That's just a start.
-
I feel bad. These people need someone to let them know that we all have had grandmothers and aunts who made/still make this stuff. And we like it our way.

No comments: