chicken fried steak and other local favorite foods

[ssampier]

a weber grill's mostly good for steaks, and other quick things. I do my steaks 3-4 minutes per side, maybe twice per side at most. These are 1" thick at least. I usually brush A1 or other sauce on them before they hit the grill. A1 is better cooked on it, than as a table condiment. Plus, it's kind of like fire armor...

never ever fry a steak in a pan. Every time you do, a cow dies needlessly.

I do occasionally saute steaks in a pan. Seriously, it's freaking cold right now (-1 F this morning).

When I do it, I use the Alton Brown way:

Pan Seared Rib Eye Recipe : Alton Brown : Food Network

 

[Pbartender]

When I do it, I use the Alton Brown way:

Pan Seared Rib Eye Recipe : Alton Brown : Food Network

I might have to try that... I've got a whole freezer full of 4H raised cow in small pieces.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

never ever fry a steak in a pan. Every time you do, a cow dies needlessly.

Only if you do it wrong.

I like a nice, medium-rare to rare butter pan sauteed steak...possibly even more than grilled.

 

[Bingle]

The best local thing around here is Pal's.

Pal's Sudden Service - Great Food in a Flash

They're scattered throughout Northeast TN/ a few places in VA. It's the best fast food ever. It's usually cheap, running at or below the $5 mark for a full combo meal (big drink, big fries, and a big burger). It's sanitary to an insane degree (you can ask any former/current employee on all the stuff they have to do...it's pretty dang clean). They've always got weird/random sayings on the billboard outside like: "Wash your dog, learn to ski, etc".

Their food is just...so awesome for fast food. Everything's high quality and in large portions. Their french fries (Frenchie Fries) are the greatest thing on earth, and have this awesome seasoning on them...

I'm so hungry.

 

[Wycen]

When I was growing up, my dad worked for the Naval Base in Alameda. Actually when I was grown up he was still working for the Navy, with some of the same crew.

He was invited to a variety of functions, like weddings and christenings for Hawaiians, Guamanians, Ph(F)illippinos, etc. That's how I got to try poi. First and only time I think.

But that means I also got yummy adobe and other stuff. When I worked for the Navy base later, I always looked forward to Cezar's chicken and pork adobe at July 4th or for birthdays.

Then I ended up with some friends married to Filipinas and was introduced to the perplexing "menudo" dish. When I was young, menudo soup was served by his Mexican coworkers along with their hand made tamales. Margie's tamales were awesome, but "tripe soup" never passed my lips.

Occasionally enterprising Filipino families started up local joints selling their cuisine. My dad of course brought some home and introduced a "menudo" dish. It was not a soup, but a savory dish of beef or pork, potatoes, veggies, plus other mysterious things. I'm still not sure if menudo was the right name or not but it doesn't matter.

Later I recognized this "menudo" during various Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Years dinners with these friends and happily gobbled it up.

Now, here is the kicker. The commercial version was either from a different island/family/recipe, or Americanized because the homemade version from Sally would always be tasty up until the 4th or 5th bite and then my face would sour and I'd power through that mouthful and continue.

Finally, after a couple years of this perplexing situation, I sat down with a bowl and ate it item by items. There had always been bigger bits of meat and then browner smaller cuts of meat. It was the smaller bits that soured the dish.

The smaller bits tasted like liver. So, I learned to dig around the little bits in the bowl. That might be considered bad food etiquette but too bad.

Now, pancit, I just don't like.

 

[ssampier]

This may or may not be local foods, but I did make a killer cuban pork sandwich yesterday. The Cuban Pork* has layers of roasted pork marinated in sour orange juice, with ham, pickles, and swiss cheese.

It may not be local, but it was, "Mmm, good."

*made by a person who has never been to Cuba, known any Cubans, or been to Miami, Florida

 

[Dioltach]

Wisconsin is the cheese capital.

You have no idea how funny this is for a European!

I won't get involved in a discussion about local American foods, but I'd like to mention that the best fajitas I've ever had were from a street vendor in Santa Fe.

(That same holiday I also had deep-fried rattlesnake in Grand Canyon. It wasn't particularly tasty, but at least I can look at snakes in disdain and claim, "Snakes, ha! I eat snakes as an appetizer!")

 

[Pbartender]

You have no idea how funny this is for a European!

It's not as funny as you think...

The US produces more cheese than Germany (2nd biggest cheese producer) and France (3rd) put together. A quarter of what the US produces comes from Wisconsin.

Wisconsin, all by it self, makes slightly more cheese than Italy does, and of all the countries in the world aside from the US, only Germany and France make more cheese than Wisconsin.



Now, if you're talking about quality... Well, that's hard to say. While the bulk of Wisconsin cheese is the less expensive grocery store blocks, there are quite a few small dairies that make excellent gourmet cheeses as well.

 

[dogoftheunderworld]

It's not as funny as you think...

The US produces more cheese than Germany (2nd biggest cheese producer) and France (3rd) put together. A quarter of what the US produces comes from Wisconsin.....

Heck, I bet there's a brick of cheese in Europe right now that's older than Wisconsin itself.


As for Indiana, I think most our food styles have been imported from everywhere else. White Castle & Steak-n-Shake originated in these parts. That's about it. Fried Pork Tenderloin sandwhich, maybe?


I know when I was vacationing in Mrytle Beach, SC.. I kept seeing signs for "Calabash" seafood. Everywhere. I had to ask at the hotel, "What's Calabash seafood?" Basically, deep fried. Woot! Now that's a local style I can get into

 

[wingsandsword]

I was born and raised in Kentucky. Country Fried Steak (aka Chicken Fried Steak) is a favorite of mine I have a lot at a local diner, never thought of it as exotic or even really regional.

Sweet Tea is another thing that I like that is apparently a regional favorite.

Ale-8-One (commonly known as "Ale 8") is a very popular soft drink in Kentucky. Sold in Kentucky and I think in a few parts of bordering states near Kentucky, it's a mild but distinctive ginger ale that has die-hard fans and aficionados (I prefer it chilled directly from a glass bottle, never ever from plastic or a can).

I love a good Hot Brown, and I know that's native food to Kentucky (particularly Louisville). It's an open-faced sliced ham & turkey sandwich on toasted bread, smothered in mornay sauce (a very mild and thin white cheese sauce), often topped with a little cheddar cheese, pimentos, or bacon. Now that's good eatin.

Beer Cheese is a favorite snack food of mine. I used to think it was popular everywhere, but I've found in recent years that apparently it's a regional thing. It's a cheese spread/dip made from cheddar cheese, beer, and spices & peppers and sold in shallow tubs. Since it's only made by a few local companies I should have figured it's a local specialty.

Burgoo is another Kentucky specialty, it's a very thick and well spiced meat & vegetable stew.

The Mint Julep is a mixed drink that is distinctive to Kentucky. Take the signature liquor of our state (Bourbon Whiskey), add some mint, a little sugar and some bartenders water it down a little and you've got a drink that's widely consumed in Kentucky (especially in the month of May, around the Kentucky Derby)

The Goetta mentioned earlier as being a Cincinnati food is eaten in Northern Kentucky too, but then again Northern Kentucky is the same as the Cincinnati metropolitan area (since Cinci is literally right over the river, to the point that the Cincinnati airport is in Kentucky). Definitely not eaten in the rest of Kentucky though, just the Cinci metro area. I grew up in Central Kentucky and have never seen it served or even discussed, but my wife is from Northern Kentucky and has at least heard of it and knows of people who eat it.