Michael Ruhlman's Blog, page 52

The Friday Cocktail Hour: Gascon Sidecar

Some cocktails seem worthy of making based on the name alone, regardless of what’s in them. Since reading that there was a cocktail called a Sidecar 20 years ago, I’ve wanted to make one. But the brandy threw me off. Brandy is an after-dinner sipper, not a mixer. And if it’s just brandy, rather than [...]

Le Creuset Giveaway!

Announcing the first episode of my Le Creuset Technique series! In December, in Charleston, South Carolina, while promoting my book, Ruhlman’s Twenty, I met Will Copenhaver and Grimsley Matkov, from the Marketing Communications team at Le Creuset US. They loved my book (and the many photos of the food we cooked in Le Creuset products, which [...]

Snake Oil Pills Proven to Prolong Life! (AND Ensure You’re Ready Whenever the Moment’s Right)

  Last week’s reports calling into question the benefits of fish oil pills pissed me off because they remind me yet again how utterly credulous (i.e., stupid) the general public seems to be about what is good for them and what is bad for them. I suppose it’s not their fault given all the confusing messages [...]

The Friday Cocktail Returns

  More than any other type of post, readers have asked for a Friday cocktail post and so, for the fall at least, starting next Friday, we will return to posting on classic or great cocktails. Let me know if there’s a specific cocktail you’d like to see covered, or photographed (I think one of [...]

A Staple: Baked Butter Corn

Just when I was back home I thought, I’m off again, in NYC and up to no good if I run into Chef Pardus. But while I was home, I noticed sadly that the corn was getting fatter. Now is the time for baked corn, an easy and delicious way to make use of the [...]

The Magic of Making Salt

I’m thrilled to publish this guest post from Carri Thurman, baker and chef at Two Sisters Bakery in Homer, Alaska, on one of life’s vital substances, salt. Without it, we die. A kitchen without it is incomplete. A cook who uses it carelessly will flounder. And the cook who, curious and surrounded by salt in [...]

Sunday Breakfast—Bacon, Eggs, Grits

Now that the kids are back in school and Donna and I are back from travel, life returns to its homey routine. Which happily includes an actual late Sunday morning breakfast. It’s one of the best times to cook and can be one of the most satisfying meals of the week. First of all, I’ve [...]

Labor Day Weekend Hot Dog Buns

  I had an unstoppable hunger this past weekend for old-Chicago-style all-beef hotdogs from Vienna Beef, the best hotdog in the country in my opinion. I wanted that charred skin flavor of summer, the grill smoke from fat dripping on coals, the juicy snap when you bite into them. I decided to make buns. Why? [...]

Donna’s Portrait of Us in Food

She sent this to me in an email this morning, with the note, “You and me together.” It was too sweet not to want to share it. Donna’s the best.

Salumi—Winners of the Giveaway

Thanks to the more than 500 comments for the signed copies of the Salumi giveaway. The winners, chosen via random.org: Jeff Knox, of Charlotte, NC Chef Carlin, of Atlanta, GA And Mitch Rosenbaum, of Albany, OR, who wrote: “Polcyn, Ruhlman and all the piggies run scared. I can’t wait to delve into “Salumi”. Your “Charcuterie” [...]