Foodie news, reviews and how-tos from Arkansas and beyond.
A few weeks ago, my 13-year-old daughter started having pretty serious stomach pain. The first time it happened, we thought it was a virus, kept her home a day, and carried on.
The next time it happened, she was home for three days with severe pain. Something was off….
The Saucepan Chef utensil set
DISCLAIMER: The marketing team from The Saucepan Chef gave me two sets of their utensils for review and a giveaway. No promise of a positive review was given in exchange for these products.
If you’re like me, you probably love your kitchen toys. Zesters, blenders, high-tech or basic, these gadgets can make cooking even more fun! I must say that, with professional training, I don’t use them quite as much as I once did. But sometimes there’s just no substitute for what a cooking tool can accomplish.
We’re starting a new series here on Fancy Pants Foodie, the Foodie Tool Review. These reviews may be of a product I already have, or I may accept a sample product to complete the review. Either way, there’s no promise of a good review…I’ll just tell you what I thought.
My first Tool Review subject is a set of cooking utensils by The Saucepan Chef. These utensils are unlike anything you’ve ever seen or used. They’re kind of big and bulky, and a little heavy. And they’re awesome.
The heft and size comes from their unique design. The business ends are a little bigger than average, and they’re at weird angles…more on that in a minute. Made of vinyl, they can withstand high-ish heat (I did rough up the end of one in some super-hot bacon grease). They’re solid black with grooved handles for your thumb, so they look sleek and would probably match most kitchens.
The spoon in the set is narrowish and squared off on the end, allowing you to scrape the corners of a pot easily. I also found the flat end helpful when stirring a sauce that might burn or reduce too much if it didn’t get scraped thoroughly while stirring in the pan. When serving a hard-to-grip product like rice, the narrow spoon gets down into the pan easily and scoops it up well, without a lot of spillage.
The spatula is really wide, curved at the edge, and, most noticeably, and tilted at a precarious angle. I wondered how this would feel while cooking, but my test on a burger patty worked great. Learning to flip at this angle took a bit of brain retraining, but once you get the hang of it, the Saucepan Chef spatula feels quite natural. Later, I used it to cook some bacon pieces and noticed it worked well turned upside down to move the food around. Then I could scoop it up easily with the spatula turned the other way.
Well, yeah, this is where the outer limits of the spatula’s temperature range got tested…when the grease got really hot, the spatula’s edge started to get a bit of a rough texture. But there was no outright melting like you’d see with a cheap plastic spatula.
The slotted spoon functioned pretty much as expected, if a bit sturdier than usual. And I honestly haven’t used the “spork” just yet, although it does look like it would be handy at lifting heavier meats. The leaf-shaped “knife” was handy, however, at breaking up ground meat in a pan.
Okay, so this blackeyed pea concoction looks a little gross in photos. I liked it!
I’m saving the ladle for last. It’s magnificent, my daughter says. She’s not wrong.
I mean, why haven’t ladles always had corners? Some do have a slight edge, but I’ve never seen a large ladle like this. The corner directs the flow of what you’re pouring. Right. Into. The. Destination. It’s a thing of beauty. My husband’s cheese dip will never be the same. (And by never being the same, I mean I won’t have to scrub it off the countertop anymore.)
The Saucepan Chef utensil set retails for $39.95 and is sold exclusively on their website at this time.
I would say it’s worth it. I’ve seen high-end spatulas alone retailing for $15 or so, and this is a whole set of tools that will last you a long time. (I mean, if you’re smart enough to not dip them in boiling grease.) Plus, there’s a 30-day guarantee on full sets and a one-year guarantee on individual utensils.
And how do I prove that they’re great? A giveaway! I’ve got an extra set of Saucepan Chef utensils that you can win, just by commenting with what you’d make with them. Do so below, and on Friday, Nov. 14 we’ll randomly pick a winner.
I finally have some video (sorry my version of WordPress won’t display it) of my appearance earlier this week on Good Morning Arkansas, demonstrating some of the newest, coolest kitchen gadgets available.
For more information on the products and the recipe shown on the air, see my earlier post.
As stated before, this appearance was sponsored by T-fal, and if I didn’t love these items, I wouldn’t have done the appearance.
Disclaimer: This post and today’s appearance on Good Morning Arkansas are sponsored by T-fal, for which I received compensation. Just as with everything else, I wouldn’t take their money or stuff if I didn’t love their stuff. I hope you like it as much as I do.
The finished steak as it appeared this morning on Good Morning Arkansas. I shouldn’t have heated the topping…it’s less pretty than it was.
Hey y’all!
So, I guess you saw me on Good Morning Arkansas. Or maybe you didn’t. Either way, I’m glad you’re here, and I hope I didn’t say anything stupid. Live television, it has no mercy.
I demonstrated a recipe that Chef Marc Forgione (yeah, the Next Iron Chef dude) developed for T-fal, a marinated steak with chimichurri. They shared that recipe with me to try out on the T-fal OptiGrill on teevee, and now I can share it with you.
The original recipe called for Hanger Steak, which wasn’t available during my omigosh-I’m-on-TV-tomorrow-need-steak-right-now grocery run yesterday. It’s a lovely cut, though, so if you can find it, by all means, pick it up. You can use any steak, though, and I used a boneless sirloin strip.
Although I was skeptical, I was really impressed with the OptiGrill. It automatically senses the thickness of the product you’re cooking, then heats appropriately to reach the doneness level you want. My test steak came out a perfect medium, and the onions grilled beautifully.
Closeup of KATV weatherdude Todd Yakobian’s steak, just to show how perfectly medium it is. Yay!
So, for those of you who heard about our fancy-shmancy outdoor grill practically exploding a couple weeks ago…I’m suddenly not in a big rush to replace it.
Questions about the OptiGrill or any of the other products (IMUSA Electric Espresso Maker or WearEver Pure Living Bakeware) I talked about on GMA? Shoot me a comment.
Enjoy!
(Recipe below the photo slideshow)
Hanger Steak courtesy of Chef Marc Forgione and T-fal
Ingredients
For the Meat Marinade:
For the Chimichurri Sauce:
For the Grilled Vidalia Onions:
To Assemble the Dish:
Directions
Make the Steak:
Combine all herbs, shallots, garlic, and peppercorns in a small container and cover with enough EVOO to cover the herb mixture. Add steak and marinate overnight or up to one day ahead. Remove most of the marinade and grill on the OptiGrill on the Red Meat setting until your desired level of doneness. Remove to a clean plate, cover with foil and allow to rest at least five minutes.
Make the Chimichurri Sauce:
In a medium bowl mix together the olive oil, parsley, cilantro, shallots, pepper flakes, garlic, and salt. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. Right before serving, add the sherry vinegar.
Make the Grilled Vidalia Onions:
While the steak is resting, toss the onions rings with some olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Grill the onions on the OptiGrill using the manual setting, until cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. Finely chop the onions and combine with the chimichurri.
Place steak on serving plate and dust with smoked salt and freshly ground pepper. Place chimichurri sauce on top of the steak and lightly garnish with Maldon salt.
The sushi bento plate with salmon roll. No subs allowed on the nigiri, though.
Ah, Hanaroo Sushi Bar. The legendary downtown Little Rock sushi joint, where dutiful workers run for a quick Asian repast during their all-too-short lunch breaks.
I’d heard a lot over the years, mostly good. But one thing I’d heard repeatedly was something about cockroaches. Quick, call adam’s pest control! Eurgh.
This week, I am working in the office quite a bit more than usual (I’m usually part-time, teaching out of town), burning some end-of-fiscal-year hours. My office is at the 700 Main DHS complex, a quick walk from Capitol and the handful of business-friendly joints in that area. Today, I ventured out in search of food and remembered Hanaroo.
Well, actually, I had already diddled too long looking for somewhere to eat, hovering near Subway (had that last week), Sufficient Grounds (hopped in, but no obvious reference on the menu to lunch food until the sidewalk, on my way back out the other side), and oh yes…Hanaroo. So be it.
I was a little wary about the fact that they likely wouldn’t have any gluten-free soy sauce available, but I decided to risk it anyway. I needed to eat and get back to the office. At approximately 12:09 p.m., I was seated at the sushi bar, an appropriate place for loner diners like myself. Well, actually, I seated myself since nobody came to my aid and I didn’t know the protocol. They could use one of those “please wait for hostess” signs.
By 12:15, I had placed my order, and shortly after that I was presented my miso soup.
Tiny cubes of tofu made the miso soup even more fantastic.
I love miso soup, y’all. It’s one of my favorite things. I know it’s glutinous and all that (likely containing wheat-laden soy), but I’m willing to take the fall now and then. Hanaroo’s miso soup was a little different, with a heavier texture (meaning they used more miso paste, which is good) and the addition of tiny little tofu cubes. The green onion slices were fresh and pungent, maybe even a little too strong and plentiful for my liking, but that’s just me.
The server came back to me. There are quite a few orders in front of you, she warned. It may be a little while. I nodded a faux agreement. What am I going to say at that point? Hope they’re not looking for me back at the office.
After a full 30 minutes of playing on Facebook and Twitter, my meal finally arrived. I had ordered the sushi bento lunch special, with a salmon roll and five pieces of nigiri. The diner chooses from five simple sushi rolls for this special, but the nigiri is take-it-or-leave-it: one each of tuna, salmon, crab, shrimp and snapper. At $8.95, including the soup or a salad, this is a heck of a deal.
My first bite into the salmon roll prompted one of those omigoshthisisawesome eye-roll-sigh things, where you look around and see if anyone saw you do it. What struck me was the texture of both the salmon and the rice. The salmon was silky and supple; the rice was distinctively fluffy, more tender and gently rolled than you usually get in these parts. Having watched Jiro Dreams of Sushi (which I highly recommend on Netflix), I wondered what special technique they used in cooking it. The sushi was dressed lightly with more of the green onions, which were more palatable here, for some reason.
Shrimp nigiri. This one’s for you, K-Shay.
I can’t say I had the same fantasmic experience eating the nigiri, but that has more to do with my lack of experience with some of the choices. I loved the tuna and salmon; the shrimp and snapper, meh. The crab was particularly troublesome because I’m pretty sure it was imitation. Imitation crab is made with wheat. Did you know that?
As not to be rude (and because my lack of experience with seafood was such that I wasn’t 100% sure it was fake), I ate the crab. I went back to work a blotchy hot mess, so I’m pretty sure my inkling was correct.
Overall, I must say that Hanaroo was a win, but don’t go in a hurry, or at least during the lunch rush. A quick review of online, er, reviews show a similar theme. It’s great, but don’t expect to be impressed with the facilities or the speed of service.
Oh, yes, the facilities! Walking up on the outside, one might question whether this is a restaurant or a seedy nightclub. Inside was just okay, not offensive but not sparkling, either.
At least I didn’t see any of the legendary cockroaches. Maybe next time.
Hanaroo Sushi Bar
205 W Capitol Ave
Little Rock, AR 72201
(501) 454-0599
Ibérico de Bellota ham, atop gluten-free cracker bread I brought in from Dempsey Bakery.
This time of year, an exorbitant amount of my posts revolve around the fall food shows: Wildwood, Arkansas Hospitality, North Little Rock Taste of the Town. While I haven’t even had time to write the latter of these, I was invited to an impromptu food blogger gathering today that had to trump that writing.
Fancy ham. From Spain.
The kind many of us have lusted over in the glowing digital pages of Gilt Taste or some such.
Who even knew that Hillcrest Artisan Meats carried Jamón Ibérico de Bellota, one of the finest, rarest delicacies of the cured meat world?
Apparently, Michael Roberts of Arkansas Foodies / Eat Arkansas did, and he invited several of us who happened upon the Twitter conversation to join him today for a tasting.
This stuff was indeed pricey, at $89 / lb. We split it up five ways, though, and a half-pound was plenty to sufficiently experience the awesomeness. Just under $10 each wasn’t too bad, all considering.
The Ibérico hogs are a particular breed of black pig, found only in Spain. And, apparently, there is Ibérico ham (a lesser grade), and there’s Ibérico de Bellota, which is allowed to run free in Spain’s oak forests and feast on acorns in the last period of its life. This exercise and diet gives the meat its unique flavor and complexity.
Brandon Brown, proprietor of Hillcrest Artisan Meats (the locale often simply known as HAM), carefully sliced the precious product onto a tray for our group. We settled into the back room to survey our treasure. We all just stared at it and took photos for a little while. Finally, we jumped in.
Our trayful of Ibérico de Bellota ham, lovingly sliced by HAM’s Brandon.
“It really does melt in your mouth, even just from the heat of your fingers.”
“It tastes like acorns!”
“Ohhhmmmmmmmm.”
There may have even been a few more inappropriate comments.
It was sultry and decadent, yet light at the same time. It wasn’t as salty as you might think, considering it was cured for some time in sea salt. In fact, Brandon sprinkled it with coarse salt before serving the tray to us. It was just the right touch.
And yes, even without ever having tasted an acorn, I would venture that Ibérico de Bellota ham tastes like one. The deep smell of fall embedded each bite and even lingered on my skin for hours after.
Brandon brought us a small portion of American-raised proscuitto, for comparison. It was delicious, a little richer, but lacking the depth and delicacy of the Ibérico. This is one of those times you can really taste the extra money spent.
While the jamon was amazing, there are two real stories here: first, an ambitious local meat and sandwich shop bringing the world to Arkansas, and second, a growing, thriving group of local food writers who got to experience it.
I’m thankful to have experienced both.
The #HermanosJamones:
Joel DiPippa, Daniel Walker, Jess Miller, Michael Roberts, me, Kevin Shalin. Photo by Sara Shalin.
Joel DiPippa of Southern Ash
Daniel Walker of Eat Arkansas
Jess Miller and Michael Roberts of Arkansas Foodies
(Michael also writes for Eat Arkansas)
Me, Christie Ison of Fancy Pants Foodie
Kevin Shalin of The Mighty Rib
And we’re not an exclusive group, y’all! We just happened to be on Twitter at the same time and coordinated. Are you a blogger and want to join us for our next food outing? Make sure you’re a member of Arkansas Food Bloggers Network on Facebook and we’ll be more organized about it next time. I’m pretty sure it will include a play date with sous vide machines.
It was 4:55 p.m., five minutes before I was supposed to start my first stage, or mini culinary internship. I sat in my car in the parking lot of the wildly colorful building, having a mild panic attack.
I was at Caribe Restaurant + Cantina in Eureka Springs, or just Caribe, as the locals call it. It’s Fleur Delicious Weekend, the city’s annual celebration of food and fun with a French twist. And Caribe’s owner, KJ, was as laid back (and pleasantly wound up) as all get out, I could already tell from our email and Facebook conversations. So what was the problem, already? Just.go.in.and.COOK.
You see, ever since that terrible, awful, amazing class in culinary school called Food Production IV, where we did restaurant service every week, I’ve had this same paralyzing fear: What if I don’t really know how to cook? What if I’ve just skidded by so far, and they’re gonna find me out? I’ll have to go back into PR. And that’s not happening.
Anyway, I finally mustered the courage to step into the building, and I asked the server for KJ. She’s in the kitchen. Of course.
KJ Zumwalt is a fireball, if you haven’t heard. But if you’re from Eureka, you’ve heard. She’s a presence, one that I picked up on right away. She’s here to work like all heck putting out the restaurant’s stunningly beautiful Caribbean-style fare, strutting her stuff while she does it, and having a good time doing it.
No time for a lot of pleasantries, or even to show me how to do the dish she’d pre-assigned me, a lovely crab cake number. Orders had already started rolling in, and they were just about out of their famous guacamole.
“KEEGAN!” she hollered, with a mix of urgency and family sweetness. Keegan was the adorable sous chef/salad guy, the only other soul in the kitchen besides KJ when interlopers like me aren’t around. “Keegan! I need that guacamole like yesterday, baby.”
I stood awkwardly while Keegan slung salads and salsa platters from previous tickets. He managed to get out a bowl of ingredients to be prepped for the guac, and KJ had an idea.
“Hey, Christie’s got knife skills. Put her on it.”
So here I am, about 90 seconds in the door, and I’m making one of their most famous dishes. No pressure. Lemme just put up my hair and wash my hands right quick.
Despite my earlier doubts, I did remember how to use a knife and dispatch a couple dozen avocados, several onions, a handful of serrano peppers, lime juice and some other stuff. (Hey, I’m not giving you the recipe!) She told me what seasonings to work in. Done. Plated. And it was beautiful.
KJ started to show me a few of the entrees she was preparing, telling me stories about herself and the restaurant as she went. Another of her famous starters, the salsa platter, came from a rather unusual muse — Oysters Rockefeller plates.
A few years back, KJ and her partner, Panama-born Clary Perez, ran the restaurant in downtown Eureka, an entirely different experience (and real estate price point) than her current digs further down Highway 62. When they first started renting the rather 
expensive downtown space, the previous tenant’s dishes were part of the deal. The heavy, white dishes were shaped for holding Oysters Rockefeller. Six oysters, to be exact.
Guess how many salsas went into their salsa platter? Yup. With a dollop of sour cream in the middle and a basket of freshly-made corn chips and spicy wheat crisps.
Clary later passed away, and KJ moved from front-of-the-house operations to the kitchen, turning out all the dishes the community had grown to love. (Read Kat Robinson’s touching story about this part of KJ’s journey over at Tie Dye Travels. I didn’t know she had written this when I first connected with KJ for a stage; it was a great introduction to the restaurant and its history.)
KJ’s passion for her community continues to draw her in and hold her up, as evidenced by the very night I was there to cook with her. She had agreed to offer specials as part of Fleur Delicious, then host a large gathering that evening after normal service hours for a music event. This included feeding a good number of those involved in the project for free.
“We do a lot of charity events and dinners. You have to support your people, the community,” she said. “I’m totally into that. I’m not just doing this for the money.”
To be continued…
A market customer visits a booth with flowers and lots of yummy greens.
Last Saturday, a friend and I visited the Argenta Certified Arkansas Farmers’ Market (CAFM). She is young, newly married, and wanting to learn more about fresh, local foods. It was the first official day of the market for the season, although they did a kickoff the week before.
We arrived around 9, and the crowd was just starting to buzz. (Oh, heck, what do I know…I can’t see straight before that time, anyways.) We looked over booths of produce that were nothing short of spectacular, especially considering that much of it is grown organically. Not many bug munches to be seen on those greens.
At first, I was a bit bothered by the fact there wasn’t a huge variety of items available. There were gobs of early strawberries, lots of leafy greens, flowers, some herbs and the like, but I found myself wanting more.
Soon, however, I came to myself realizing that this isn’t Kroger, and eating in season means waiting for some stuff to make its way out of the ground.
I was specifically looking for asparagus. It is early spring, after all. My guest was coming back to my house for a quick cooking lesson, and I planned to help her make asparagus risotto. One booth said they had a little, but sold out early. Some others said they won’t have any.
I did have a good conversation with Kelley Carney, owner of North Pulaski Farms. He said his booth had better selection earlier in the morning, and much of it had already sold. (Note to self.) He also told me about his plans for the future to offer even more varieties, such as my coveted asparagus, even during cooler months.
I’m not knocking anyone else there, though. A good number of them specialize in just one or a handful of things (cheese, meat, peppers, etc.) and do them very well. The others may just have things they like to grow, and that’s what they grow. And others still, like Hardin Farms, grow a bazillion things that just aren’t available yet.
Okay, so I’ll keep coming back and see what crops up. (See what I did there?) And maybe I’ll get there when they open, at (gulp) 7 a.m. Or not.
I still love them. Meet you there!
Argenta Certified Arkansas Farmers’ Market
6th and Main, North Little Rock
7 a.m. – noon, Saturdays during growing season
P.S. I’m really into P.S.’s now, so I’ll add one. I’m totally not knocking off the Pioneer Woman.
P.P.S. This is where I get really sad the CAFM is no longer doing online ordering. I could pick what I wanted and schlep by there before noon to pick it up!
My friend/student's asparagus risotto. Turned out nice, huh? Great job, Jenna!
P.P.P.S. Whatever happened of the asparagus risotto, you ask? Well, I bought the asparagus elsewhere and helped my awesome student make it. Yummers!
P.P.P.P.S. Consider this another random plug for the Food Blogger Bake Sale next Saturday, April 28, benefiting Share Our Strength. It’s gonna be right next to Argenta CAFM, so you know I still love them!
CookCool trades in a bit of polish for comfort, but still not too bad.
Since I’m still pretty much slammed with school lately, I’ll just tell you about something I’ve had in my back pocket for a while, a review for Happy Chef.
The purveyors of chef coats, pants, shoes and the like recently offered me my choice of wearable to review. (Disclosure: I accepted this as a free sample and did so with no promise of a positive review.) Since I’m just about to finish culinary school and plan on entering some culinary contests on my own soon, I opted for a shiny, new chef coat, one that could have my spiffy new logo put on it. (I didn’t ask them to do that part, as my sister-in-law has an embroidery machine.)
I already love Happy Chef. I really love their pants, particularly the women’s line. Generally, chef pants can be a bit, shall we say, Hammer-pants-ish, and Happy Chef’s Women’s Cotton Chef Pants (my older pair say “Ladies”) are slim and flattering, riding just a hair below the waist. They have a little cargo pocket for your keys, or a cell phone, or whatever. Just enough. And their prices are always reasonable.
So, I get my Women’s CookCool Panel chef coat in the mail, and I’m… underwhelmed.
Check out that black string all up in my chef coat!
The first thing I notice is the big, black string that shows through the thin fabric. The thread was used to attach the black plastic buttons, and had quite a tail remaining that showed right through the coat.
I removed the thread and gave the coat a good look-over. Maybe it’s not so bad. The design is nice: a paneled heat-wicking style, similar to some outdoors shirts I have from Columbia. This would work well for outdoor events in warmer months. But the fabric, a polyester blend, is a bit less, er, polished than I’m used to. And those black plastic buttons!
I suppose I’ve grown accustomed to my coat from school, a heavier cotton one with French knot buttons. It looks sharp. Since my first day wearing it, I pretty much feel like a rock star with it on. Best I can tell, Happy Chef carries coats of this caliber, like their Cotton Executive French Knot coat, I just didn’t choose it this time around. I think I will next time I buy one.
All that to say, if you need a lightweight chef coat and don’t mind a less-polished look, the CookCool coat may be a good option. But if you need a more formal look, the Executive coat may be better. And Happy Chef’s selection of pants, shoes and the like are excellent, at a great price.
P.S. Want to be all matchy-matchy with your kids as a chef for Halloween? They have kids’ coats, which are remarkably similar to the Executive line coats. (See photo in the slideshow of my little chef!)