[Sca-cooks] Okay, anybody doing anything unusual for Thanksgiving?

[Phil Troy / G. Tacitus Adamantius]

On Nov 25, 2008, at 5:53 PM, Kathleen A Roberts wrote:

> the sauerkraut needs to be a bit soupy.

Ah, yes, that famous consistency known all over Central and Eastern  
Europe, regardless of the language spoken locally, as "slushy" ;-),  
and almost invariably applied to such sauerkraut or cooked fresh  
cabbage dishes.

>   in a crock pot i mix 1 jar of sauerkraut, 1 small chopped onion, 1  
> small chopped apple, about 1 cup of white wine, a heaping tablespoon  
> of brown sugar (not packed), fennel or caraway as you like, and lay  
> some plain pork sausages or pork chops on top and cook until the  
> sausage/pork is about done.  then i moosh (technical term)

Technical jargon is important among cooks. I remember being taught in  
culinary school what happens to boiled hollandaise; this phenomenon is  
known among professionals by the technical term, "all **BLEEP**ed up."  
There are other expressions that can be used, but none as effective --  
sometimes simple profanity is the way to go. In this case, however,  
since it is essential to use universally understood terms, "moosh" is  
an excellent choice. There's no mistaking its meaning.

> everything around and drop the dumpling batter on top, return the  
> crock pot lid and cook until the dumplings are done.

My [extremely German] grandmother, who probably learned this technique  
in the 1880's, used to make sweet dumplings in almost exactly this  
way, steamed on top of stewed berries. Of course, there must be sour  
cream added on top, for service.

Adamantius






"Most men worry about their own bellies, and other people's souls,  
when we all ought to worry about our own souls, and other people's  
bellies."
			-- Rabbi Israel Salanter