I am a Whole Foods shopper.  "Whole Paycheck" jokes aside, I admire their commitment to fresh, organic ingredients that are local where possible.  I like the people that work there.  I like the people who shop there.  I like the place.  I might be unduly influenced by the fact that they opened their first store where I live, and I remember shopping as they built their business.  This was long before they used Wall Street cash to buy up everyone doing the same sort of thing with the same sort of commitment and learn how to do it all a little better.  Maybe the stores elsewhere are different, but I have been to plenty and they seem to all have the same commitment to quality that brings me back.

The stores are disorganized.  I find things in the strangest places.  One day, while I was waiting for the seafood guy to finish up with his customers and package up my green chili smoked salmon, I was poking around the case next to smoked fish.  I noticed something strange, yet recognizable.  Salt cod.  Fish in a wooden box is not something that jumps out at you, but I knew when I saw that little box it was not the first time I had heard of salt cod.

Stamp and Go is really a recipe for cod fritters.  I have heard various stories of where the name comes from - something about a bus and the fritters being served at bus stops.  I love buses, so Stamp and Go seemed like a good place to start with salt cod.

Stamp and Go is really fried salt cod fritters.  The recipe involves a simple way of making a batter with the cod, but it does involve the fish sitting overnight to get the salt out.  So leave some time to prepare the batter - these little cakes are not a quick snack.  This is an intentionally small recipe, since I have found that these do not keep well.  They are best served fresh and hot, which really makes them the perfect street food.  This recipe will make 10-12 fritters, depending how big and how flat you make them.

After making the batter, I cooked the fritters by dropping a bit of batter in the oil and building the fritters up to the right size.  Don't try to get enough batter on a spoon to make one fritter - just drop some in and build them up the way you want them.  I make three fritters at the same time in a cast iron pan with a cover.

Stamp and Go

1/4 lb salted cod

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tomato, diced

1/2 in grated ginger

1/2 cup green pepper, diced

1 habanero pepper, seeded and minced

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup water

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp ground black pepper

2 green onions, chopped

Oil for frying

Directions

1. Rinse the cod under cold water.  Soak the cod in cold water overnight.  Use enough water to cover the fish well and give the salt lots of room to dissolve.

1. Rinse the cod one last time, then thoroughly flake the fish and set aside.


2. Heat the oil and sauté the onion with the garlic until the onion is translucent.  Mix in the tomato, ginger, green pepper, habanero and set aside.


3. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt in a bowl.

1. Beat the egg with the water and add to the flour mixture.

1. Add the vegetable mixture to the flour mixture and blend with the pepper, green onions and flaked fish.


2. Heat the oil in a skillet to about 350 degrees.  Drop the batter in the oil by the spoonful, building up each fritter until it is the correct size.  Cook 3-5 minutes, until nice and golden brown, then flip over and cook another 3 minutes.


3. Serve hot with lime and hot sauce or salsa.

photo by S x 2

There was a time when I regularly followed the New York Times Magazine's food column.  A friend that's a chef told me she would cook whatever they published each Sunday.  The column seems to have gone downhill over the last couple years.  These days, I barely read the food section and never seek it out.

The upside is the travel section.  Every couple weeks the Sunday Times publishes a great story about food on the road.  The stories are wonderfully written, with great photos and completely make up for the Magazine falling off my reading list.

Back in December there was a great article on street food in Bali.  I've never been there, but I've heard or read about the roasted pig.  I've also had Whole Food's terrible version of Bali chicken.  The article peaked my interest in how to do Bali chicken correctly.  After a few tries, this is what I came up with.

Maybe I am too heavily influenced by pollo asada, but I think this recipe should be grilled.  I think the grill adds the right amount of smoky flavor to the meat.  My proximity to Mexico influences the ingredients too - dried shrimp are a common ingredient on the border, so I used them to recreate the shrimp paste used in Bali.

These make for a fantastic appetizer or snack, and don't take long to make.  They are best as chicken wings, but a whole chicken would well too.

Ayam Taliwang

1 small whole chicken or 2 lbs chicken wings

Salt

3 Tbsp oil

2 shallots

4-5 cloves garlic

2 tsp red chili pepper or 2 small, hot green chilies.

2 tsp ground shrimp

1 tsp brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

Juice from 1 lime

Directions

1. If using a whole chicken, cut into pieces.  Salt the chicken and set aside.  Pre-heat a broiler.

1. Grind the shallots, garlic, chilies, shrimp, sugar and salt into a paste.

1. Heat the oil over a medium heat.  Add the paste and cook for 3 minutes.  Add the lime juice and set aside.

1. Broil the chicken for 3 minutes under a hot broiler.  Turn once if the broiler is very hot.

1. Brush the chicken with the paste.  Be sure to cover it well.


2. Grill the chicken until cooked.

1. Brush the chicken with any remaining paste.

Table for Six: Cupid's Dinner Update and Jeff Smedstad's Elote Recipe -A fresh take on Elote.  Elote trucks are littered throughout my state.  [Phoenix New Times]

Curry Up Now - Another bay area Indian food truck.  I've seen this one mentioned before.  [curryupnow.com]

Spanish tapas & Jewish deli food trucks to roll into O.C. - Spanish tapas food truck.  That may be a bit much, but the paella sounds worth the trip  [fastfood.freedomblogging.com]

The short history of Indian Chinese food and where to breathe fire in Mumbai - Chinese food influences in India street food. [cnn.com]

Street vendor harassment in California - Harassment of street food vendors really is inevitable in high rent areas. [zenkimchi.com]

Generations of Malaysian street food families find tantalizing new home in 'heritage village' - I'm in Malaysia in a few weeks.  I've never tried a "food court" in a mall.  [startribune.com]

Homemade Tahô - A Filipino street food dessert - Taho  [panlasangpinoy.com]

FRIDAY’S RECIPE: PERFECT THAI FRIED RICE - A great recipe for Thai fried rice.  [newyorkstreetfood.com]

photo by craigemorsels

The first time I had roti canai, I recognized its source.  Without knowing the name, I knew I had been served something very similar in southern India.  At the time, I didn't realize just how important this would be to some of the things I started cooking from India.

Turns out Roti Canai is closely related to Kerala Porotta, which like most Indian breads, has been impossible for me to get right.  Kerala Porotta is particularly frustrating, as I have many friends that tell me how they or their family members make great Kerala Porotta, and here I am banging away my miserable attempts.  The last step of making Kerala Porotta is clapping the bread together between your hands to break the bread up.  Try as I might, I either couldn't get the breaking right or wasn't making the dough right.  Either way, what I ended up with never matched my memory or expectations.

Making Roti Canai is different for a couple reasons - the dough is sweeter, and more importantly, easier to finish.  This recipe makes a bunch of breads - probably too many if you are having a small meal.  The dough keeps for a couple days in the fridge if you decide to make it all.

There is of course a more authentic way of flattening the dough than using a roller.  There are some great videos on YouTube that show the process in detail.  I've tried them, but to be honest, they make a bit of a mess.  Using a roller is not that difficult, so I just stick with that method.

This recipe helped me learn how to make Kerala Porotta, so eventually I will post that recipe too...

Roti Canai

3 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar

1 cup warm water

1 egg

olive or vegetable oil (I use olive oil)

Directions

1. Mix the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl.

1. Beat the egg with the water and add to the flour mixture.

1. Knead the dough until it is smooth.


2. Oil your hands and divide the dough into balls.  This will leave the dough balls covered in oil.


3. Let the dough balls rest overnight or for a couple hours.


4. When ready to make the breads, oil a roller and roll each ball out until it is very thin, about 1/8". 


5. Cook the breads on a hot flat iron skillet until light brown.


6. Take each bread as it comes off the skillet and crunch it together in your hands, which will lighten the bread.

An Indian Palate Meets A California Street Corner - NPR covers a street food stand in Berkeley and the relationship of diners to the food in India. [NPR.org]

A street-food serenade to Mexico City's fresh flavors - a great set of recipes for carnitas, a Mexican street food favorite. [star telegram]

LA Street Food Fest attracts thousands - Los Angeles Street Food Festival happened to long lines and frustrated "epicures".  Hard to imagine folks eating at a food truck would wear that badge. [LA Times]

A new app and web site to track street food - cool idea - a street food aggregator. [Roaming Hunger]

An iPhone app for tracking street food - personally, I use Yelp, but its interesting to see an actual app. [Taco Loco]

Street vendors stir food debate in Castro district - conflict with their bricks and mortar neighbors in San Francisco. [SF Examiner]