Revival St. Paul This town was a barbecue waste land, until my friends Thomas Boemer and Nick Rancone opened their second location of Revival in St. Paul and decided to add classic smoked meats to the menu, celebrating Boemer’s southern roots. The fried chicken and burger were reason enough to battle the crowds getting their southern comfort… Read More →
Authentic Vietnamese Food at Quang Home to a vibrant Vietnamese community, the Twin Cities are a pho-lover’s paradise. Quang Restaurant is family owned-and-operated, always packed and serves some of the best traditional Vietnamese beef noodle soup in America. Don’t let the line out the door scare you away—even at their peak hour, the wait will… Read More →
Passover Recipes Here are a few of my best recipes for Passover, from the ultimate matzoh ball soup and my grandmother’s chopped chicken liver to roasted lamb and flourless chocolate desserts. Just a warning: I don’t keep kosher in my house, so not all of these recipes are kosher-friendly. Matzoh Ball Soup This is… Read More →
Modern Scandinavian-Influenced Fare Located in a historic 19th-century brick-and-timber warehouse in Minneapolis’ North Loop neighborhood, The Bachelor Farmer celebrates Nordic-inspired cuisine made with ingredients sourced from local farmers or grown on the rooftop garden. They created small masterpieces on top of a humble piece of toast before it became a culinary craze, so order a few toasts as an… Read More →
Southern Soul Food Takes Root When you think about Minnesotan food, the first thing that comes to mind is… well, anything BUT fried chicken. Lucky for us Northerners, chef Thomas Boemer filled the city’s Southern-food-void with crunchy, succulent Tennessee hot chicken, Johnnycakes and crispy pigs’ ears. They’re also serving one of the best burgers in town… Read More →
Highlights from the Southern Barbecue Trail I’ll line up at Aaron Franklin’s a thousand times to eat his brisket, but traveling through Georgia and the Carolinas along the Southern barbecue trail was truly unforgettable. Barbecue has humble beginnings. It’s essentially American, a meal for gatherings that has a diverse range of styles, techniques and influences.… Read More →
What is the best thing you ate while filming these episodes of Bizarre Foods? The classic fixins’ from the inside of the hog at Gerald Lemoine’s farm in Moreauville, Louisiana. They shoot a hog, clean all the entrails and collect the blood. The hog goes on the spit, split-open to be turned into their version of cochon… Read More →
How to Win Chrismukkah This Year No matter what holiday you celebrate, I’m sure we can all agree that food is what ties the season together. At my house, the kitchen smells of fabulous food from Hanukkah to New Years, whether it’s roasted duck or fruit cake. It’s the best time of the year. I’ve… Read More →
My Best Hanukkah Recipes The Festival of Lights refers to a lamp in the temple that had only enough oil to last the Maccabees one night but instead lasted for eight. The holiday celebrates the miracle of the oil, so fried foods are the perfect Hanukkah metaphor. If you’re sick of latkes and donuts, think… Read More →
You don’t have to battle the throngs of fairgoers to indulge in french fries and turkey legs. It’s no secret that I’m obsessed with the State Fair. I mean, 12 days of munching on the ultimate comfort foods—foot longs, turkey legs, french fries, pie—what’s not to love? Here are 10 crowd-pleasing, State Fair-inspired recipes to make at home any… Read More →
Where to Eat at the Minnesota State Fair I love the Minnesota State Fair so much that I try to go all 12 days. Every year there’s a list of new food booths, serving all types of novelty deep-fried on-a-stick creations, but I’m a traditionalist when it comes to state fair chow. What’s the key… Read More →
Kansas City Competitive Barbecue Once known for its stockyards, Kansas City is still famous for its incredibly diverse barbecue scene. It’s a barbecue obsessed town, with dozens of restaurants serving amazing ribs, burnt ends, pulled pork and brisket. But I found that some of the best barbecue is in the backyard smokers getting ready for the competition circuit. Here,… Read More →
Dr Pepper-Brined Smoked Turkey Legs By Andrew Zimmern Smoked turkey legs shouldn’t just be reserved for walking around the Renaissance festival or Disneyland. As long as you have a little patience, they’re easy to make, delicious and pretty economical next to that brisket you were looking at. The Dr Pepper brine is magic. Once you… Read More →
Austin City Bites By Bob & Sue A weekend in the country’s fastest growing city (which embraces its reputation for being weird, as well as the Live Music Capital of the World) included memorable dinners at a prominent food critic’s three favorite restaurants: Qui Credit: Nicolai McCrary Philippine native Paul Qui delivers an eclectic combination of… Read More →
An Insider’s Guide to Rome A Rome-based Italian-American journalist, Katie Parla lives and breathes Roman culture and cuisine. Originally from New Jersey, Parla graduated from Yale with a degree in art history, before pursuing a sommelier certificate and master’s in Italian gastronomic culture. She’s written and edited more than 20 books, including the ebook Eating &… Read More →
The Twin Cities’ Best Vietnamese Restaurants Home to a vibrant Vietnamese community, the Twin Cities are a pho-lover’s paradise. And in a town chock-full of great Vietnamese restaurants, it’s difficult to name the best. From fantastic noodle soups to Banh mi sandwiches, bao to broken rice platters here are our favorite Vietnamese spots. Quang If… Read More →
My Favorite Irish-Inspired Recipes To some, St. Patrick’s Day is an excuse to drag out a kelly green outfit, stand on the sidelines of an Irish-themed parade, and drink Guinness and whiskey all day. But naturally, for me, it’s all about the food. Here are 9 Irish-inspired recipes to help you celebrate the holiday, from… Read More →
La Barbecue’s Top 5 for Austin In the crowded, competitive and often ruthless Texas barbecue scene, La Barbecue sits among the best of the best. Sure it helps that owner LeAnn Mueller hails from barbecue royalty—her grandfather founded Taylor, Texas’ Louie Mueller Barbecue in 1949, a temple of smoked meat that never fails to impress.… Read More →
Deli-Style Corned Beef By Andrew Zimmern Brining your own corned beef at home is easy, all you need is the right equipment and time. Beyond the pink salt, which can be found at a butcher shop or on Amazon, you probably have the spices in your cabinets already. Once you taste the real deal, you’ll… Read More →
Cold Korean Noodle Soup By Andrew Zimmern Korean mul naengmyun (also called mul naengmyeon) has it all—it’s tart and earthy, beefy and cold, all on a field of chewy noodles and slushy broth studded with green onion and pickled radish. Naengmyun means “cold noodles” in English, and refers to chilled Korean dishes made of long,… Read More →
Devour Johannesburg A lively and diverse city, Johannesburg—known by locals as Jozi, Jo’Burg or Joeys—is the largest city in South Africa. With a history chock full of crime and decay, the city’s future is heading in a different direction. An influx of creative energy has tourists eager to visit and the city is coming back… Read More →
Championship Quality Barbecue Once known for its stockyards, Kansas City is still famous for its incredibly diverse barbecue scene. It’s a true melting pot of meat, with barbecue restaurants incorporating styles and traditions from all of the country, and doing it exceptionally well. One of the city’s newer establishments, Q39 was opened by CIA graduate and national… Read More →
Tired of the traditional turkey? Here are 10 stunning recipes that’ll steal the show, from centerpiece roasts to the perfect melting pot roast. • • • Bohemian Roasted Duck with Caraway Serve this roasted duck with braised red cabbage and sliced potatoes sautéed crisp in some reserved duck fat for the authentic Czech experience. GET… Read More →
4 Rules for Better Braising Everyone loves to braise, and the mythology indicates that it’s easy, but it’s not—it’s simple (and there is a difference). But for everyone who thinks that braising is forgiving, I would remind you of the last dried-out pot roast you’ve eaten. Here are some handy tips for braising. Brown well.… Read More →
A Zimmern Comfort Food Classic By Andrew Zimmern These braised pork shanks are the ultimate comfort food for me, hybridizing my favorite Asian flavors and techniques. They are even better the next day after a rest overnight in the fridge.
We made Pat LaFrieda’s Original Blend Burger & loved it. By Madeleine Hill While I have no complaints about good quality pre-ground beef, I’ve always wondered if grinding my own meat for burgers would result in a superior flavor that warrants the extra effort. Well, thankfully, my job requires that I put such experiments into action… Read More →
Feeding the Fire When Joe Carroll opened Brooklyn’s Fette Sau in 2007, he was among the very first pioneers to bring legit barbecue to New York City. A couple years ago, the New Jersey-native expanded his operation to Philadelphia, adding a second Fette Sau to his roster of restaurants (which also includes the neighborhood steakhouse… Read More →
Grills Gone Wild I love cooking over wood, live fire, coals and smoke. Grilling is very social—you can have friends over and stand outside and man the grill. It’s the best part about summer. Just in time for the unofficial start of grilling season, here are 12 reasons to fire up that grill, from seafood like scallops,… Read More →
America’s Leading Pitmaster Aaron Franklin cooked his first brisket in 2002. After seven years of practice, he opened a food truck with his wife Stacy, though a few glowing reviews resulted in long lines and a move to a brick-and-mortar location on Austin’s east side just a year later. Today, Franklin and his crew serve… Read More →
How to Cook Beef Ribs By Aaron Franklin If I had to name my own personal favorite cut of barbecue, it would probably be beef ribs. They are the richest and the most decadent, succulent, and flavorful cut of beef you can put on a smoker. That’s also why I don’t eat them much—too rich, too hedonistic.… Read More →
