Goat Day 13: It's Your Unlucky Day
4Happy Friday the 13th! Has everyone walked under their ladders, let black cats cross their path and broken their mirrors yet! Whee! It's the most unluckiest time of the year.... This kind of unluckiness hasn't happened since.... last month.
TODAY'S DEAL
Sold out! That's OK, I already have an immersion blender. Is it me, or did these things only really become popular because of the Food Network? Did you ever use an immersion blender before watching a chef use one of a cooking program?
This leads into a bit of a problem I have lately with the Food Network. Why is 95% of their programming now competition based? Remember when you used to learn how to cook on the Food Network, or find out about different cuisines and dishes there? Now every show has to have a food competition element. You have to have this meal done in 30 minutes, or YOU LOSE!
While I'd be lying if I didn't enjoy those programs, I do think these types of shows work to the detriment of the general population. The goal of good food shouldn't be if you can get it done quicker than the next guy; it should be if it tastes better than the next guy. Some of the best tasting food can take a day or more to prepare. You will always remember your mom's special sauce, or your family's special pot roast recipe, or an amazing Short Rib dish. Why was it special? Because it took FOREVER to cook. "When is dinner, ma?!?!?!" Did you ever turn your nose up at it because it wasn't completed in an arbitrary time? Would it taste the same if you made it in a half hour? No way.
Instead, we have shows like Chopped, where amazing chefs make dishes that might be palatable... Or Guy's Grocery Games, which is basically just an updated version of Supermarket Sweep... Or Iron Chef... 60 minutes to make 5 dishes with a main ingredient in each dish. So what? I'd rather take a good hunk of brisket and cook it for 12-16 hours, low and slow, with a nice smoky flavor.
Food isn't a sport, it's an experience. I wish the Food Network would focus more on flavor than speed.
TODAY'S QUESTION
What do you consider the most unlucky break you've ever had?
Until tomorrow.... BLEAT!
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Back in the 90s my mom had an immersion blender called "The Daily". She used it quite a lot. She made homemade mayonnaise and peanut butter, and other stuff, I don't remember.
I don't think she saw it on the Food Network, although apparently it was around back then. Pretty sure we didn't get it though.
The most unlucky break... I'd guess it was when my mom was stationed in Okinawa for a year and a half and she left me in the states with my grandparents. I could have learned so much.
Most unlucky break? My little toe when I accidentally ran it into the corner of a wall. Dropped me to my knees in a mixture of tears and "fuck fuck fuck's!" Knew that poor little guy was broken immediately.
@cinoclav I had a marble disc land on mine and crush the bone. That is some eye watering pain for sure, and yeah, you KNOW when it is broken. Took years before it stopped aching in bad weather.
You want to watch the Cooking Channel for actual cooking shows, and other local channels for other cooking shows.
My family quite likes Guy's Grocery Games, except for when Melissa is a judge (always wish Jeffrey had won instead of her).
I occasionally watch Cutthroat Kitchen, and that's always worth it- the sheer skill of the competitors makes it worth it.
What is this "Food Network" you're talking about? Ooohhh, wait a minute. Do you mean the Guy Fieri/Chopped channel? Seems like that's the only programming they have these days. The rare treat is when I'm home sick from work and catch the Barefoot Contessa during the daytime hours. ::: sigh ::: I love her style and cooking.
Most unlucky break: My first wife.
Can't win 'em all.
I've been indicted (Federally - long story - ultimately dismissed, but took a lot out of me, emotionally, financially, and physically - my health suffered terribly).
She was worse.
Yeah, I prefer the PBS cooking shows and youtube for actual cooking lessons/recipes/knowledge.
Unluckiest break? When I was 14, I was working as a LAN assistant at the charter school that I attended (my mom worked there) and the Owner/Principle offered to put me through college if I could pass my senior exams a few years early. The "catch" was that I had to agree to work at the school while I was in school. I passed them, that week... my mom wouldn't allow them to graduate me and put me through school, because I was too young.
I think that was a wasted opportunity. I wasted plenty of them on my own, later - but that one still grinds my gears.