Hello All,
According to this website I have not posted on here since last September, which is accurate and pathetic. Obviously the rush and business of a new school pushed any thought of updates out of my overly-full mind. I, however, am back and have survived the first year of my grad program, along the way making some great friends, and having some amazing experiences in new, wonderful places.
I have decided to revive this blog to the best of my abilities (hoping it doesn't peter out again in a few months) and add a bit of a twist to its original concept. I originally started, as you may remember, this blog as a place to catalog my adventures finding, eating, and subsequently rating spicy food. The search went on, the blog did not. I found some spicy food, it was great...but I think a broader scope is a better idea for this blog. So, I present you the new and improved Spice Search, where I will catalog my adventures in a still somewhat foreign land, and my adventures will be to find not only good food (SPICY!), but to meet good people and experience new places. The search will be more for the cliche "Spice of Life" than for my spicy food fetish, but I will definitely continue to catalog any run-ins with mouth-burning, face-melting spicy food.
So with that in mind, how about an update and hopefully I will get in the swing of things over the coming weeks...
There have been many adventures this past year, whether it be driving to Boston for a night for a friends birthday or sledding at 3 in the morning (for the first time ever in my life) after the bars close, but we will start with one highlight and go from there.
Saratoga:
My good friend Phil, a fellow masters student, lives and works in Saratoga Springs, NY when he isn't here at school and invited me up for a New Year's Eve celebracion. I gladly joined and we immediately went to this Indian food restaurant Karavalli. This is where an interesting phenomenon in spicy food culture occurred, I was tested. I was in Saratoga for four days over that weekend, and I'm not afraid to admit (because it was so damn good) went to Karavalli with Phil all four of those days. The first night I told them I really liked spicy food and could handle the heat, and ordered some of their Chicken Phaal (a spicy, gravy like sauce that I loveeeeee). It was sorta, maybe hot, in the way that jarred salsa is hot, but damn was it delicious and perfectly authentic. Whatever, they didn't believe that the white boy from Texas could handle the heat. The next day was New Years Eve and we and several of our friends joined Karavalli for their New Years Buffet. All the same amazing food on an all you can eat buffet. Can't go wrong with that. They brought me a hot sauce to add to my Tika Masala, that rose the heat just a tad, but still I could tell they were testing my abilities. The third day we attended their restaurant later in the evening for a drink and to say hi to the guys that work there. They surprised us with a free dish of some of the freshest tasting delicious fish curry I've ever had and brought out something else with some kick to it to see how I handled it. One word... Pro. Hardly even phased me. They gave us a tour of the kitchen and showed us the Tandoor (I really want one of these) and wouldn't accept any of our attempts to pay or tip them. Truly gracious and generous people at this restaurant. So in order to repay their hospitality we returned Sunday morning for their lunch buffet. In true Karavalli style after I had already started in on my first plate of a myriad of delicious indian foods and some of the BEST rice you will ever eat, they brought over a dish of some Tika Masala that was a darker shade of reddish-orange than you usually see, complete with CHUNKS of fresh, uncooked chili peppers. Never have I ate something so hot that actually had such distinct flavors. It tasted amazing but it was hotter than hell and I loved every minute of it. This was a great food experience! and I feel like I passed their test with flying colors. I ate every last bite of that blazing sauce and chicken, and smiled and sweat through ever second of it. I've been back to Saratoga for multiple ridiculous adventures since and every single time this place has been a constant and never ceases to amaze me with their food and hospitality. In fact I was just there this a few weekends ago and had the Chicken Phaal again (or how I ordered it "I'll take something spicy with chicken) and they brought out a fiery dish that had me sweating but loving it till the last bite. Highly recommended if you are in the Saratoga/Albany area in New York, other places to check out: Gaffney's (watch out for Evelyn's drinks), Nine Maple, Legend's Cafe, The Wine Bar, and Phil's Apartment (watch out for Rue, guy is weird).
So as my journey and travels continue in New England and beyond, I hope you will join me for some laughs, some great food, a beer or two, and a hunt for the truly unique experiences I have wherever the road takes me.
Stay Spicy ya'll,
Dave
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Monday, September 13, 2010
Spicy food? Yes, Please.
A few days ago I joined a group of my friends at a lovely, and rather cozy, restaurant called Hot Basil Cafe. They offer a lot of different Thai specialties, that also have a bit of a fusion feel to them. Their menu items fall into the $10+ category for price and have things for every type of palette. I was told about this place by my friend Liz (there is your shoutout) and was throughly impressed. I ordered a dish called "Hot Basil" with chicken, but in order to make this dish up to my standards Liz suggested I tell them I wanted it "Thai Spicy". So I did and what I received was a beautiful dish of noodles and veggies and chicken. This dish was not overly covered in sauce and was sticky, in a good way, that allowed you to use chopsticks easily to eat it. Spice-wise, this was the hottest thing I have eaten in the north east since my arrival. It was not hot at first, but built to a scorching heat inside and around the outside of my mouth. It was also wonderfully flavorful and came in a large portion size. I was really happy with this food experience and give this dish my first 5. After eating it my mouth was ablaze, but I had also enjoyed it thoroughly. Thanks to Hot Basil for making some truly spicy food and as always thanks for reading.
Dave
P.S. Hot Basil is also BYOB and does charge a corking fee for wine, but you can also bring your favorite beer to drink.
Dave
P.S. Hot Basil is also BYOB and does charge a corking fee for wine, but you can also bring your favorite beer to drink.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Indian Explosion...err or not.
Dave
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
A Recipe for Spicy
Hello All,
I thought to add a little more to this blog I would present you with my two favorite salsa recipes. One is for a Roasted Tomatillo Salsa and the other is for a regular old tomato based one with a lot of spice. First up the tomatillo salsa.
Roasted Tomatillo Salsa:
Ingredients:
1 pound tomatillos, husked
1 white onion, peeled, sliced, and quartered
5 garlic cloves
2-3 Jalapenos, stems removed
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 small lime, juiced
Directions:
Start by taking the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and jalapenos and place them on a baking tray that has been brushed with olive oil (you can put a little on the vegetables if you like). Throw that in the oven for 12-15 minutes at 400 degrees. Take the vegetables out and transfer them and any runoff into a food processor. Add the cumin, cilantro, and lime juice to the mixture. Then pulse mixture to desired texture. I prefer this to be not overly chunky but definitely not the consistency of a smoothie. So something in between will work quite nicely. This salsa will be warm so make sure you keep your hand on top of the lid of the food processor as the heat will cause it to expand some. You can either serve it warm straight from the food processor or let it chill in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Enfuego Red Salsa:
Ingredients:
1 pint of grape tomatoes
4-5 jalapenos, stems removed
1 habanero, stem removed
1/2 cup of diced onion
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro (more or less depending on your cilantro preference)
1 small lime, juiced
Black pepper to taste
Chipotle chili powder, eyeball it (optional)
Directions:
Combine all items into food processor and pulse till desired texture. Chill in fridge for a couple of hours.
Neither of these salsas are going to kill you with spice but I would rank the Tomatillo variety in between a 3 and 4 on my scale and the Enfuego Red in between a 4 and 5 on my scale depending on who you are. So if you aren't a big spice fan maybe stick with the Tomatillo, which is a delicious and flavorful salsa. Both of these salsas go great on top of tacos, with omelets, or even if you are feeling real crazy, with tortilla chips. I hope y'all enjoy my recipes and enjoy these salsas. As a bonus I have included my guacamole recipe to cool you off if needed. It can be found below. Thanks for reading.
Dave's Homemade Guacamole.
Ingredients:
4 Avocados
1 cup of diced tomatoes
2 jalapenos, seeds removed and finely diced
1/2 to 3/4 cup of diced onion
4 cloves of garlic, diced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (more or less depending on your cilantro preference)
1 small lime, juiced
Cumin to taste
A turn or two of a black pepper grinder
Salt to taste
Teaspoon of chili powder(optional)
A quick dash or two of olive oil
Pit and scrape out using a spoon the meat of the avocado into a large mixing bowl. Add tomatoes, jalapenos, onion, garlic, and cilantro into the avocado. Mash and mix together using a fork, potato masher, wooden spoon, whatever you have handy. Then squeeze in the lime juice and add the seasonings and olive oil. Continue mixing till all ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Chill in fridge or serve at room temperature.
I thought to add a little more to this blog I would present you with my two favorite salsa recipes. One is for a Roasted Tomatillo Salsa and the other is for a regular old tomato based one with a lot of spice. First up the tomatillo salsa.
Roasted Tomatillo Salsa:
Ingredients:
1 pound tomatillos, husked
1 white onion, peeled, sliced, and quartered
5 garlic cloves
2-3 Jalapenos, stems removed
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 small lime, juiced
Directions:
Start by taking the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and jalapenos and place them on a baking tray that has been brushed with olive oil (you can put a little on the vegetables if you like). Throw that in the oven for 12-15 minutes at 400 degrees. Take the vegetables out and transfer them and any runoff into a food processor. Add the cumin, cilantro, and lime juice to the mixture. Then pulse mixture to desired texture. I prefer this to be not overly chunky but definitely not the consistency of a smoothie. So something in between will work quite nicely. This salsa will be warm so make sure you keep your hand on top of the lid of the food processor as the heat will cause it to expand some. You can either serve it warm straight from the food processor or let it chill in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Enfuego Red Salsa:
Ingredients:
1 pint of grape tomatoes
4-5 jalapenos, stems removed
1 habanero, stem removed
1/2 cup of diced onion
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro (more or less depending on your cilantro preference)
1 small lime, juiced
Black pepper to taste
Chipotle chili powder, eyeball it (optional)
Directions:
Combine all items into food processor and pulse till desired texture. Chill in fridge for a couple of hours.
Neither of these salsas are going to kill you with spice but I would rank the Tomatillo variety in between a 3 and 4 on my scale and the Enfuego Red in between a 4 and 5 on my scale depending on who you are. So if you aren't a big spice fan maybe stick with the Tomatillo, which is a delicious and flavorful salsa. Both of these salsas go great on top of tacos, with omelets, or even if you are feeling real crazy, with tortilla chips. I hope y'all enjoy my recipes and enjoy these salsas. As a bonus I have included my guacamole recipe to cool you off if needed. It can be found below. Thanks for reading.
Dave's Homemade Guacamole.
Ingredients:
4 Avocados
1 cup of diced tomatoes
2 jalapenos, seeds removed and finely diced
1/2 to 3/4 cup of diced onion
4 cloves of garlic, diced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (more or less depending on your cilantro preference)
1 small lime, juiced
Cumin to taste
A turn or two of a black pepper grinder
Salt to taste
Teaspoon of chili powder(optional)
A quick dash or two of olive oil
Pit and scrape out using a spoon the meat of the avocado into a large mixing bowl. Add tomatoes, jalapenos, onion, garlic, and cilantro into the avocado. Mash and mix together using a fork, potato masher, wooden spoon, whatever you have handy. Then squeeze in the lime juice and add the seasonings and olive oil. Continue mixing till all ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Chill in fridge or serve at room temperature.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
A Hot or Not Double Header
Recently before the idea of this blog came up I tried a couple of wings places here, in and around Hartford, and sampled their hottest sauce on their boneless wings.
First up: The Wood-N-Tap - Rocky Hill, CT
This place is not actually your everyday wing joint, it is more of a bar and grill type joint featuring the normal variety of bar food that you would find in any number of places such as this. Here I ordered their Engine #11 Firehouse sauce on their boneless chicken tenders. These wings claim to be habanero infused and boast a spicy and deadly kick that will leave "the roof of your mouth on fire". Bullshit. I whizzed through these wings as if I was eating kraft macaroni and cheese...you know when your taste buds say, "same shit different day...thanks for getting our hopes up Dave." Even though the waitress at this establishment asked me "if I was sure that I could handle this heat", which gave me the hope that they would be using an actual fire hose to put out the fire in my mouth, these wings come up way short at a No. 3 on my scale.
And the evening starter is: Wings over West Hartford - West Hartford, CT
"Wings over" is a chain restaurant group that specializes in what else but wings. So instead of being productive and getting in my car to go try this place, I decided to phone in this order and let them fly their wings to me. What I ordered was their DC-10, well over a pound of boneless wings (which I could not get anywhere near finishing) with the option to choose up to 2 flavors. I went with their Jamaican Jerk, which was a delicious flavorful wing, but the real goal of my dining experience was to try their buffalo style wing entitled "The After-Burner", the hottest on their scale of 5 varying buffalo style sauces. For some reason people in Connecticut must think I am crazy because the girl on the phone asked me, "are you sure you can handle that?" Obviously they do not know who they are dealing with. What I found with this sauce was a particularly flavorful and tomato-y sauce that provided a little bit of kick to what was a very enjoyable meal. Not really going to burn your face off or even approach a 6 on my scale, but "After-Burner" comes in for a landing at No. 4 on my list. Also if you have a chance to try wings, give their waffle fries a try. I tried them with their delicious cajun seasoning, it was really good and great compliment to the wings.
All in all a valiant effort, but nothing has impressed thus far. I can see, however, in the future some challenges and I am very excited to see what is out there to test my palette. Thanks for reading.
David Riddile
First up: The Wood-N-Tap - Rocky Hill, CT
This place is not actually your everyday wing joint, it is more of a bar and grill type joint featuring the normal variety of bar food that you would find in any number of places such as this. Here I ordered their Engine #11 Firehouse sauce on their boneless chicken tenders. These wings claim to be habanero infused and boast a spicy and deadly kick that will leave "the roof of your mouth on fire". Bullshit. I whizzed through these wings as if I was eating kraft macaroni and cheese...you know when your taste buds say, "same shit different day...thanks for getting our hopes up Dave." Even though the waitress at this establishment asked me "if I was sure that I could handle this heat", which gave me the hope that they would be using an actual fire hose to put out the fire in my mouth, these wings come up way short at a No. 3 on my scale.
And the evening starter is: Wings over West Hartford - West Hartford, CT
"Wings over" is a chain restaurant group that specializes in what else but wings. So instead of being productive and getting in my car to go try this place, I decided to phone in this order and let them fly their wings to me. What I ordered was their DC-10, well over a pound of boneless wings (which I could not get anywhere near finishing) with the option to choose up to 2 flavors. I went with their Jamaican Jerk, which was a delicious flavorful wing, but the real goal of my dining experience was to try their buffalo style wing entitled "The After-Burner", the hottest on their scale of 5 varying buffalo style sauces. For some reason people in Connecticut must think I am crazy because the girl on the phone asked me, "are you sure you can handle that?" Obviously they do not know who they are dealing with. What I found with this sauce was a particularly flavorful and tomato-y sauce that provided a little bit of kick to what was a very enjoyable meal. Not really going to burn your face off or even approach a 6 on my scale, but "After-Burner" comes in for a landing at No. 4 on my list. Also if you have a chance to try wings, give their waffle fries a try. I tried them with their delicious cajun seasoning, it was really good and great compliment to the wings.
All in all a valiant effort, but nothing has impressed thus far. I can see, however, in the future some challenges and I am very excited to see what is out there to test my palette. Thanks for reading.
David Riddile
The Reasoning and a Few Guidelines
Hello All,
My name is David Riddile and I am neither a chef nor a cultured food critic. I am simply your average 23 year old who enjoys good (hot) food and fun. I recently moved from my birthplace Fort Worth, Texas to Hartford, Connecticut to pursue a graduate degree and found myself in a whole new world. It is truly a cultural mecca being situated directly between Boston and New York City, and I have yet to experience all of the wonders this great area has to offer. There has been something missing though and that is hot, spicy food that was a mainstay of my diet when I lived in Texas. I have made due with your run of the mill jalapenos and an occasional habanero infused salsa. So what I will set out to do is to find hot and spicy food that is both flavorful and extremely hot, but before the search begins a few guidelines.
The Guidelines:
I will go out and find food that claims to be hot and rate it using my own unique scale.
The Scale:
Food will be rated on my patented 6 point scale.
1. Get Real - Devoid of spice and might as well be put in a food processor and put in a Gerber baby food jar.
2. Weak Sauce - not flavorful, not spicy... Send this stuff back to the minors where it belongs.
3. A Little Bit Hotter Now - Just like the really quiet part of the famed Temptation's song "Shout"... It leaves you wanting more.
4. Heat Attack - Bold, flavorful food that has a good kick to it.
5. 2% Please! - As in there damn well better be a glass of ice cold milk or a loaf of bread or this is going to hurt for awhile.
6. Ghost Buds - Excuse me, should my entire mouth feel like the seventh circle of hell?
Using this scale and probably a lot of Tums along the way, I will now set out to find the best and spiciest food available in this new land. Along the way please feel free to suggest to me places to try and if you feel that there is a true 6 out there let me know. I hope you enjoy the journey and I look forward to the challenge, and as always thank you for reading.
David Riddile
My name is David Riddile and I am neither a chef nor a cultured food critic. I am simply your average 23 year old who enjoys good (hot) food and fun. I recently moved from my birthplace Fort Worth, Texas to Hartford, Connecticut to pursue a graduate degree and found myself in a whole new world. It is truly a cultural mecca being situated directly between Boston and New York City, and I have yet to experience all of the wonders this great area has to offer. There has been something missing though and that is hot, spicy food that was a mainstay of my diet when I lived in Texas. I have made due with your run of the mill jalapenos and an occasional habanero infused salsa. So what I will set out to do is to find hot and spicy food that is both flavorful and extremely hot, but before the search begins a few guidelines.
The Guidelines:
I will go out and find food that claims to be hot and rate it using my own unique scale.
The Scale:
Food will be rated on my patented 6 point scale.
1. Get Real - Devoid of spice and might as well be put in a food processor and put in a Gerber baby food jar.
2. Weak Sauce - not flavorful, not spicy... Send this stuff back to the minors where it belongs.
3. A Little Bit Hotter Now - Just like the really quiet part of the famed Temptation's song "Shout"... It leaves you wanting more.
4. Heat Attack - Bold, flavorful food that has a good kick to it.
5. 2% Please! - As in there damn well better be a glass of ice cold milk or a loaf of bread or this is going to hurt for awhile.
6. Ghost Buds - Excuse me, should my entire mouth feel like the seventh circle of hell?
Using this scale and probably a lot of Tums along the way, I will now set out to find the best and spiciest food available in this new land. Along the way please feel free to suggest to me places to try and if you feel that there is a true 6 out there let me know. I hope you enjoy the journey and I look forward to the challenge, and as always thank you for reading.
David Riddile
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