finefortips

Some of you may have already seen this short and disturbing video clip of celebrity cook Paula Deen, and her recent wardrobe malfunction. Apparently, the weight of the cordless microphone set on her pants pulled them down causing her to moon the audience - who seemed to enjoy it a little too much. This really upset me because if I ever get a show on Food Network, I had planned to do the exact same thing as a publicity stunt. Now, I've have to come up with a Plan B. The question in the poll is regarding whether you think this was an accident, or she planned the whole thing. Did Paula Deen intentionally expose her buttocks? No! They probably just slipped from all the butter on her. Yes! That's how those southern ladies roll.    Free polls from Pollhost.com Paula Deen Cake Photo (c) Flickr user bunchofpants

This video recipe is my fairly weak attempt at the famous Vietnamese spicy beef noodle soup, Pho. As I shopped for the ingredients, I ha d a nice package of bee f oxtail in my hand, but since I was just making a s mall batch, and I already had two beautiful beef shanks in the basket, I decided to not get them. That was a mistake. While this beef noodle soup wasn't bad, it wasn't spectacularly great w hich is what Pho should be. The signature of this soup is a very rich, deeply flavored, collagen-infused beef broth. I overestimated the beef shanks, and it was lacking exactly what the oxtails would have added. Also, to add to this Pho's fauxness, I went pretty light on the spices. Real Pho has more of the aromatic spices you'll see in the video. I also didn’t add the extra sliced beef that is traditional, like brisket, flank, and thinly sliced, rare filet mignon. I also didn’t char the ging er, which is recommended. I also didn't pronouce Pho correctly - I say, "...

Balls have always been problematic for menu and recipe writers. You can't write "Pork Balls" on a menu, you have to write "Pork Meatballs." Even though there would be no possibility of confusing these Bison balls with the reproductive parts of a male buffalo, the "balls" would never be written without the "meat." Well, I think it's high time this practice is sacked. Are we still so immature as a nation that we can't just serve balls? Do we have to keep a dding those extra letters for fear some 15-year old can't control his giggling at Hooters? Besides, now that 72% of all information (my estimate) is transmitted via text message, I would think we'd all benefit from chopping off a couple letters, e.g., MMA Tonys 4 bison balls. This recipe is inspired by the retro classic, cocktail meatballs in grape jelly. I took that idea, along with my love of spicy orange beef, and came up with this combination. I chose bison as the meat du...

Okay, so you're probably aren’t fasting for Lent, at least not in the traditional sense, but that doesn't mean you still can't indulge for Mardi Gras (French for "fat Tuesday" …and it's not called that for nothing!). The official motto of Mardi Gras is, "Laissez le bon temp rouler" (pronounced lazay-la-bon-tom-roulay), which means, "let the good times roll!" With that in mind, I've linked below to some New Orleans-inspired classics I've posted before. I hope you give them a try. Enjoy! Creole Sausage and Shrimp Jambalaya Spicy Shrimp Etouffee Sausage and Chicken Gumbo New Orleans-Style French Toast "Pain Perdu"

I'm still in the jury pool, but it looks like today may be the last day. I hope to have this new video up tomorrow, and let me say, it was every bit as delicious as it looks and sounds.

That's right, you can now subscribe to Food Wishes on iTunes ! Of course, I really don't know how it works, only that my video recipes can now be watched by a whole new segment of society - the one with those white wires hanging from their ears. Instead of listening to their teachers, kids can now watch me bone chicken in the back of class. People will be watching onions sweat instead of paying attention in meetings at work. Test scores and productivity will plummet! So, please go to my Podcast page on iTunes and click on the " subscribe " button. If you need further assistance, just ask any 16 year-old. Enjoy!

Starting Monday, I will be doing my civic duty by reporting for jury duty. So, next week's content could be a ffected, in both quantity and quality. The last time I checked, "producing video recipes," wasn't on the list of acceptable reasons for being excused. I've always thought juries should be made up exclusively of retired senior citizens, and homeless drifters. I won't go into the specific of my plan, but it makes sense on many levels. Luckily, I have many connections to law enforcement, which can be used to get out of jury duty if you know how to work it. In criminal cases, you are always asked if you have any relationships to law enforcement. Bias towards the police over a defendant is a big no-no. So, once I list all my relatives that are cops, I'll be sure to say a few things like, "If they weren't guilty, why would they have been arrested?" and "I don't have a problem with police bending the rules if it keeps the scum off ...

Celebrity chef Tyler Florence, my neighbor (he lives in Mill Valley, just North of SF), and good friend (he has no idea who I am), just announced a video recipe contest sponsored by Macy's, called Macy's Keeps America Cooking . The contest's theme is explained in the video below. I suggest watching it twice, since if you' re like me, the first time I could only focus on trying to figure out what was the deal with that dude's accent. I'm hoping to partner with TF's people on future projects, so help a brother out - go enter the contest and tell'em Chef John from Food Wishes sent you. As far as reason #91 for why I'll never have a show on food network, two words: demo tape. Every online cooking contest, reality cooking show audition, Food Network open call, et al., requires you send in some kind of demo tape, or video, so they can see you in "action." But, not cooking action, they want to see personality, and lots of it. I think after watchi...

For many years hearing the word, "curry" was like fingernails on my culinary chalkboard. Where I'm from, "curry" meant a thick, greasy, bright yellow sauce made with copious amount of turmeric, covering chunks of mystery meat. I know, as good as that sounds, I still did n’t like it. All through culinary school, and on into my early career in California, even the smell of turmeric made me cringe. It was my Kryptonite. As the years went by, and my culinary horizons expanded, so did my understanding and appreciation of curries. I learned that the horrible yellow curry from my youth wasn't even really a true curry, and that curries came in almost every color, from countries all over Asia. My favorite curries today are definitely the Thai red and green curries. Even though it's one of my older, and cruder productions, the Red Curry Beef Stew is st ill one of my favorite video recipes on the blog. This green curry chicken recipe was filmed for About.com's...

When I'm cooking corned beef, watching it simmer in the aromatic broth, I'll sometimes close my eyes and picture the delicious plate of food I have coming. The funny thing is, it's not the sliced corned beef and cabbage I'm dreaming of, it's the corned beef hash I'm going to be making with the leftovers. There are certain dishes I would never talk someone into trying, or argue on behalf of its virtues. It's one of those, "there are two kinds of people in the world" things. Either you really love corned beef hash, or you don't eat it. It's not a dish for the indifferent. Now, th at the non-hash people have stopped reading, let's talk crust. As you well know, what separates a great hash from a transcendent hash is the "crust." You can't rush a corned beef hash crust - it's built slowly, over medium heat, with multiple turnings and pressings, the meat and potatoes crisped and caramelized in the combination of butter and b...

I guess this is a combination of "Tuesday Tease" and "What I Had for Breakfast." This corned beef hash video recipe is finished, but still processing. I hope to post it later this evening. It was as good as it looks, and I think it looks pretty damn good. Enjoy!

I just filmed a flour tortilla video for About.com, but since I'm not sure when it will air, I thought I would post this video I found on Youtube, which uses the same basic recipe. It stars the lovely and talented Blanca Díaz. She doesn't do a voiceover, but this is a very well done, and easy to follow clip. I hope she inspires you to make some homemade tortillas. Enjoy!

Those nutrition labels on food do not easily frighten me. But, one label that always takes my breath away is that of he avy whipping cream. The fat and calories are staggering, yet nothing compares to its indescribable effect on a recipe. Those of you who made the chocolate mousse know what I'm talking about. It's the quintessential special occasion ingredient. So, when the craving struck for a nice spaghetti with Alfredo sauce recently, I decided to try an alternative to the 4,000-calorie all-cream version, and grabbed a head of cauliflower. If there was a game (called "Oppafoodosites") where someone yells out a food word, and you have to yell back the complete opposite - "cauliflower" would be my response to "heavy cream." But, as you'll see in this video recipe, the creamy cauliflower puree, with just a small splash of cream, makes a beautiful sauce. I also love the dusting of crispy Parmesan breadcrumbs that top this delicious pasta. ...

Here are some links to six previously posted video recipes that would be p erfect for any Valentine's diner. There's something here for everyone, even a very sensual non-meat option . All these recipes are easy to shop for, simple to prepare, and relatively fast to cook. I hope you all have a great Valentine's weekend . Enjoy! Mushroom Ragout on Garlic Toast Seared Top Sirloin Steaks with Pan Jus Black Pepper Crusted Pork Tenderloin with Black Cherry Reduction Classic Roast Rack of Lamb with Dijon Gratin Chicken Marsala a la Ryan’s Cafe Easy Indoor "Barbecued" Shrimp

Many years ago, I took Michele away for a romantic getaway up to Mendocino, CA. I told her I had arranged everything, but being a typical ma le, I procrastinated and assumed dinner reservations would be no problem. Much to my horror, there were only a handful of restaurants open that time of year, all of which were booked. How was I going to get out of this one? Luckily the Bed and Breakfast we were staying at had a fireplace. I had a brainstorm...I told my wife I had a surprise for her, and that I was going to cook her a romantic dinner in the room, in the fireplace. She loved the idea! Now , I had to find the food. Fortunately, this area is home to some great salmon fishing, and I found some amazing wild salmon at a local store. I bought some foil, and did a simple salmon filet wrapped with butter and fresh herbs. I also wrapped up some baby potatoes seasoned only with salt. I tossed these foil pouches into the hot ashes, and in no time we were enjoying one of the most delicious, se...