Food Notes: 2/25

Flan, spleen sandwiches, fondue, and more

On our way out of Miami, we stopped for lunch at Taquerias El Mexicano. I found the place on a list of 20 best tacos in Miami from Time Out, and it happened to be on the route out of town.

The inside was decorated with festive colors, piñatas, and the kind of kitsch that in the north, feels artificial, but somehow appropriate in Miami. Maybe it’s just because I think of Miami as party town. I could definitely see how you spend a night sucking down margaritas here.

I was driving, so I had a coke and a combination platter with a taco, flauta, and enchilada. These were all very good. But what I really wanted was a flan.

Flan had been on my mind since our first night out in Miami. The menu then had described a flan topped with coconut, which is not really my flavor of choice (don’t cry for me, I had an excellent key lime pie instead).

I first fell for flan back in the early 2000s when I lived in Jersey City. An unassuming taqueria served homemade flan sliced from a 9 x 14 aluminum baking sheet, which is how you know its an “authentic” dish. Too bad the cantankerous owners were unpleasant people, and eventually I stopped going there. I may not like the people, but I still think about their flan.

It’s not that flan can’t be found in Brooklyn. Just not flan that lives up to the memory from fifteen years ago. I’ve had a few slices at various taquerias in Bushwick over the years, but none came close to the creaminess or the caramel flavor.

And while I have had decent flan in Newark, New Jersey, these are slightly different than the Mexican-style flan. The Ironbound section, so-called since its bound on two sides by train tracks, is home to a Spanish, Portuguese, and Brazilian population, and the neighborhood is famous for classic mid-20th century Spanish, Portuguese, and Brazilian restaurants where everyone is supposed to order a paella. Still, while the flan is good, it’s quite right, probably with more of a Spanish or Brazilian influence.

By now I should probably just figure out how to make my own flan. Unfortunately, flan is a custard made from eggs. Have you seen the price of eggs lately?

So I ordered the flan in Miami. It was pretty good, with the right flavor profile. But the texture wasn’t quite as smooth, and the gooey sauce not quit as creamy. Maybe this is just an excuse to keep up the search.

The Latest

Authentic Authenticity

Taco expert José R. Ralat has a brief bit about authenticity, or rather, how its literally about as relevant a word as “literally.” What makes something authentic? I once told an interviewer “if you eat it, it becomes authentic.” One reason authenticity has become so important is that so much of the food we eat is homogenized by national chains, and to a lesser degree, supermarkets and prepared foods. Consumers want to feel they are eating a part of something real, not concocted by a corporate chef in a centralized commissary. But as Ralat points out: “Food is constantly evolving, and every version and iteration of a dish or cuisine can be argued to be as legitimate as the one that came before it.”

The Battle for Texas Barbecue

There are few things Texans take more seriously than barbecue, and apparently there’s a schism brewing among the people. There’s a big list of the best barbecue, which much like Olympics and Presidential elections, comes every four years. The people, it seems disagree on what is the best.

France’s Cheesy Superlative

The world’s largest fondue was cooked up in France, defeating the previous record holders, the Swiss. The 4,800 lb cheese sauce was made from 40 wheels of comté cheese.

Popcorn Secrets

If you’ve been following along here, you’ll know I’ve become a fan of making stovetop popcorn. Well, welcome to the popcorn party, Food & Wine: they have some hot tips for making it taste better. Here’s one I learned today when making stovetop popcorn: butter burns before the kernels pop. I’ve been cooking up stovetop popcorn with a dash of olive oil, but suddenly was out of oil. I threw in a pat of butter, and while the kernels that popped were delicious, most of them just burned. Oops.

Brave New World of Pizza Toppings

Bon Appétit looks at pizzerias doing strange things with toppings. From “Big Mac” flavored pizza to bahn mi sandwiches, these 8 spots are changing what pizza can be. Meanwhile, I recently learned someone I know has eaten a pizza topped with pineapple and black olives.

Cinnamon Buns Are The New Croissant

Upscale bakeries are adding cinnamon buns to their menus to try and capture the nostalgia of canned rolls. Overlooked on this list is are buns from L'imprimerie which are absolutely spectacular, although the croissants are pretty good too. Why not both?

Modern Temperance

The “neo-Prohibitionists” are coming for our drinks. The far-right extremists are now looking to curtail alcohol consumption through higher taxes and lobbying groups. Wine Enthusiast looks at one group in Oregon pushing a wine-free agenda. While I agree we should all drink less wine from Oregon, that’s an aesthetic choice rather than a blanket statement about wine.

Falling in Love With Amaro

Italian-style Amaros have been growing increasingly popular. Inside Hook takes a look at a few of them, and how they get their distinctive flavor. With these herbal flavored drinks, one of the appeals is how varied the flavors can be. Plus, herbal flavors can cover up the terrible taste of distilled spirits.

Italian Spleen Sandwich Shop Closes

Ferdinando’s Focacceria in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, suddenly closed. The oldest Sicilian restaurant in the city, it specialized in things like spleen sandwiches and pasta con le sarde. These flavors are best described as pungent.

Speaking of Italian Sandwiches…

Check out these Italian sandwich facts from Picone’s Quality Deli! The Oregon-based deli looks into the myths and legends behind the names of grinders, submarines, hoagies and more.

I Ate At Money Cat

I took a visit to Money Cat in Bushwick, Brooklyn where I found a fun, tasty neighborhood Vietnamese restaurant.

Philly’s Sandwich History, Reviewed

I reviewed Mike Madaio’s A History of Philadelphia Sandwiches, a book that’s all about what it says its about.