feats of eats

Big Jones, Wishbone, Chicago Q, The Southern and Lillie’s Q. Hit them all up as soon as you can, you won’t regret it.

This is one of those things that I guess you can call a dish, that I reacted to with a “why haven’t I ever thought to do this before?”

It’s simple: cut any kind of bell pepper into slices. Place on pan w/ a bit of olive oil over medium heat. Crack 1 egg into each slice and cook until the white are firm and the yolks almost so. Sprinkle with salt and ground pepper.

Flip it over if you want to make them over-easy, I did that with one and it was good, just not as runny as the one pictured below.

I also put them on top of some flatbread that I cut using the top of a glass so it was round, and drizzled Sriracha all over them because I can’t get enough of the stuff. Great breakfast.

Some friends of mine took me to Blue Palms while in LA, and they had an awesome beer selection. I did a flight so I could taste a bunch. Left to right, I had: Pliny the Elder (a double IPA described to me as the quintessential California IPA), Blue Palms’ own Hefeweizen, Beachwood BBQ Belgian Black Ale, and He’Brew ReJewvenator (described as a belgian/german hybrid w/ concord grapes).

Pliny the Elder was by far my favorite. I haven’t been a huge fan of IPAs in the past, but this makes no sense to me now that I think about it. I love hops. My friends told me that CA is all about the super hoppy IPAs, and it gets to the point like with coffee, where you just need more and more and you build up a tolerance to it.

I wish I could find some Pliny here, but I doubt that’ll happen. Guess I’ll just need to go back to CA in the near future and hit up some breweries.

They’re super salty, and taste amazingly similar to the real thing. Oh and cheaper, less preservatives… highly recommend making these.

See the full recipe and photo set here.

So eventually my taco streak had to come to an end. Sad, but it made way for 2 more awesome meals. I’m sure you can guess where the above giant burger is from.

But first I went to lunch with my bosses at a place called Farmstand in El Segundo. This place was real cute on the inside, decorated in a farm theme with leather cowprint seating. We got the Roasted Eggplant & Caramelized Onion dip with yogurt, sautéed mint and flatbread for dipping. I couldn’t have agreed with one of my bosses more when she said “I want to bathe in this stuff.”

I had the Caprese sandwich with fresh local Gioia mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and cilantro pesto with a side salad. This tasted fresh and awesome, and whatever kind of dressing was on the salad was incredible. It was a little spicy. I should have asked about it!

At dinnertime I was taken to In n Out Burger. Because I had to. Because everyone has told me I have to try it, and that it’s the best. I really hadn’t heard from anyone why it was so special, but I can now attest that it has a special taste to it. Fresh might be the x factor, but I think it’s also whatever sauce they put on it. I got the cheeseburger animal style, with everything on it. Definitely up there competing with some of the better burgers I’ve had. The fries I could do without, but the vanilla shake, another recommendation from a friend (in fact, I told told it’s a “must”) didn’t disappoint. It was extra thick which I love, and didn’t strike me as having the flavor like it just came out of a jumbo metal machine. Which it might have, I’m really not sure.

I didn’t plan to eat almost solely tacos fro 24 hours while on this trip, but I did. And I’m so glad I did!

For lunch one day, a coworker took me to what’s supposed to be one of the best food trucks in the city, Komodo. This is one that started out truck, and turned into a brick-and-mortar restaurant as well, which is always impressive to me.

You can order their stuff as tacos or a burrito, and I went for a 4-taco combo for $10. They were all so different and awesome, each in their own way.

Below are the Asian marinated chicken (grilled marinated chicken with stir fried rice and mandarin oranges) and the Komodo (seared top sirloin with jalapeno aioli and southwest corn salad). Jalapeno aioli?! Jesus, I want to eat that every single day. That flavor combination ruled. The chicken one was delicious, but just not as special.

I also got the Java (Indonesian shredded pork braised in coconut cream with fresh tomato and cucumber salad) and the Fish n’ Grapes (deep-fried Alaskan cod with fresh grape and roasted almond salad). Both great in their own way, These 2 were the better half of my meal. That pork was so juicy and flavorful, and the cod was deep fried so enough said there.

Again the FLAVOR combinations going on here are incredible. I think most of my favorite dishes I’ve ever eaten involved flavor and texture mixtures I’d never encountered before.

That day I also got to see Manhattan Beach. Extreme difference from 20 degrees and snow like a few days before!

Here I had more tacos, because it just so happened to be Taco Tuesday at Shark’s Cove. So I had no choice! 2 tacos for $5 is too tempting, even if I hadn’t been on a taco binge at the time. I got 1 beef and 1 chicken, and they were deeelicious as well. Paled in comparison to Komodo, but since those were the most impressive tacos I’ve ever eaten, what wouldn’t.

When I got back to Chicago I was asked the question: So who has better tacos, LA or Chicago? I realized I haven’t done enough investigative work in that area, so I’m on it! Anyone have favorite taco places here? Other than Big Star. Send recs my way and I’ll go try them. Maybe I can achieve 48 hours of tacos this time.

On my way out of town on a trip to LA, I was almost as excited to eat at Tortas Frontera as I was to go on the trip. I loved Xoco and especially loved the Mexican food I had when Rick Bayless helped out with Taco Hell at Lula Cafe, so I felt pretty sure I’d be having a good meal. And I was right.

I got the chipotle chicken torta, with a side of chips, guacamole and salsa. The torta was jam packed with chicken, poblan rajas, black beans, chihuahua cheese, cilantro crema (I think this made the sandwich), avocado and arugula. And somehow it all stays together very well in the crusty yet palatable torta bread: this is what I consider to be the magic of the torta.

The guacamole was some of the best I’ve had, probably just below the kind I had in Taos, NM where a lady brought a cart to our table and mashed it right there in front of us. His salsas are always pretty good, but I barely touched them.

I also had the Raspberry Prickly Pear agua fresca (I won’t lie, it was partially because the name had such a great sound to it). It was refreshing and a perfect complement to the heat in my meal. Very sweet but not so much it makes you thirsty.

Everything came in compostable containers, which I’m gonna say is a rare addition to any airport restaurant. There’s also a bar attached here, where you can sit and eat or order drinks.

I’ll be back and can only hope my gate is so close to it again next time I fly.

More to come on the actual food IN LA.

I’ve posted this recipe before, and it held up to its reputation. It’s very simple, it just takes a bit because of the multiple steps. If you invest in the right spices, it’s great to make a lot of and have in the fridge for future meals. I think it might even get better as it sits. I always crave Indian food but I think this time of year more than ever.

When I adapted this recipe I doubled the garlic and added more tomato paste. This time I had a better chicken-to-sauce ratio, meaning more sauce than the last time. I just needed some naan to dip in it.

I couldn’t have been happier with a meal of this and beer I can only find at home.

Chicken Tikka Masala recipe:

Ingredients

For the chicken:

• 1/2 Teaspoon Garam Masala
• 1/8 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
• 1 clove garlic
• Two (6 to 8-ounce) Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, trimmed
• 1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
• 1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
• 4 Garlic Cloves, minced
• 2 Teaspoons Grated or Minced Fresh Ginger

For the sauce:

• One (14.5-ounce) Can Whole Tomatoes
• 2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
• 1 Small Onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
• 1 Teaspoon Grated or Minced Fresh Ginger
• 1 Small Serrano Chile, stemmed, seeded, and minced
• 2 1/2 Teaspoons Tomato Paste (always use Contadina!)
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Garam Masala
• Salt
• 1/3 Cup Plain Yogurt

Directions

For the chicken:
Combine the garam masala, cayenne, and salt in a bowl. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then coat the chicken thoroughly with the spices, pressing to help them adhere. Place the chicken on a plate, cover, and refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes. Whisk the yogurt, oil, garlic, and ginger together in a medium bowl, cover, and refrigerate until needed.

For the sauce:
Process the tomatoes with their juice in a food processor until pureed, about 15 seconds. Heat the oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and cook until softened and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic, ginger, chile, tomato paste, and garam masala and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.