Blow That Dough! -2021

[Dtail]

If your lobster has no flavor, you have bad lobster. Shrimp should taste like shrimp, crab should taste like crab and...

I've had tasteless crab and shrimp too. Sometimes you just get bad stuff.

Agree and sometimes I find the smaller lobsters have a little more flavor than the very large ones.

 

[CardsFan]

Agree and sometimes I find the smaller lobsters have a little more flavor than the very large ones.

I agree. Large lobsters are also tougher, particularly the tail.

Many years ago I remember my family cooking a 20+lb lobster (we lived near Boston) for a family gathering. Mostly it was made into lobster salad, but I remember taking the little claws, that are usually too small to fuss with, and pulling out tender pieces 2" long and about 1/2" in diameter.

OK, gotta think about ordering some live ones from Maine.

 

[Life_by_Fire]

Wasn't lobster historically prison food until it started being marketed as a delicacy?

As for mentioning of grass fed beef, I grew up on a grass fed beef breeding farm. It is delicious, but the taste is definitely different. As some say, "gamey." I enjoy the steak but find grain fed steak better in flavor, due to taste and marbling. However, the grass fed ground beef is far superior to anything I've tried.

I can't wait to be able to post to this thread about my own Blow that Dough, but sadly, I'm still in the accumulation phase. Everyone's posts inspire me.

 

[finnski1]

I have to agree. Cooking a lobster is not simply dunking it in a big pot of boiling water -- that will lose much of its flavor.

I have lived my entire life in New England and have vacationed in Maine for over 40 years. I have eaten it at "fine" restaurants and dock side shacks and every where in between. While I like it ok. IMHO it is over rated and I just don't get the excitement over it. I've also probably eaten more than my share so I know what "bad " lobster is or isn't. Now that also probably means I like it. I do. Just not as impressive as most people think. Maybe I've eaten my life share and don't get excited about it anymore. I don't even bother eating it any more on our trips to Maine. Would rather eat whole belly clams or shrimp or crab etc.
My "tasteless" comment was a bit sarcastic but meant to agree more with the other posters comment about shrimp and crab tasting better.

 

[CardsFan]

Would rather eat whole belly clams

Now, that I can agree with. But getting whole belly clams outside of New England is next to impossible. Though I did some places in SW FL (Naples/ Cape coral area) advertising them. I also saw several cars with Red Sox stickers. Coincidence, I think not.

 

[finnski1]

Now, that I can agree with. But getting whole belly clams outside of New England is next to impossible. Though I did some places in SW FL (Naples/ Cape coral area) advertising them. I also saw several cars with Red Sox stickers. Coincidence, I think not.

Ok I didn't realize they were that rare outside of New England. That's a shame. More for me.

 

[CardsFan]

Ok I didn't realize they were that rare outside of New England. That's a shame. More for me.

If you order fried clams in almost any place outside New England, you will get fried clams strips. Made from the sea clams we would grind or chop into clam chowder.

And speaking of clam chowder, every one else (outside New England) thinks it is supposed to be so thick your spoon can stand up in it. And it is mostly potatoes.

 

[RobbieB]

Lobster should be steamed. You can kill them first by snipping through the brain with kitchen shears if alive. I boil shrimp in the minimum amount of water needed to cover. With salt, a splash of vinegar and a goodly dollop of Old Bay. You don't want the flavor left in the pot.

Oh and speaking of shrimp, don't boil them either. Bring water to boil, dump in shrimp and stir gently until a simmer just starts. Then lid the pot and turn off the heat and let 'em coast for 4 minutes.

 

[TheWizard]

I agree. Large lobsters are also tougher, particularly the tail.

Many years ago I remember my family cooking a 20+lb lobster (we lived near Boston) for a family gathering. Mostly it was made into lobster salad, but I remember taking the little claws, that are usually too small to fuss with, and pulling out tender pieces 2" long and about 1/2" in diameter.

OK, gotta think about ordering some live ones from Maine.

I usually ask for a "larger" lobster, 2-3 lbs, at my local grocery store. They don't always have any, just 1-1/4 lb chicken lobsters.
They were going for $10.99/lb last time.
Once they get down to $9.99, I'll pull the trigger...

 

[finnski1]

If you order fried clams in almost any place outside New England, you will get fried clams strips. Made from the sea clams we would grind or chop into clam chowder.

And speaking of clam chowder, every one else (outside New England) thinks it is supposed to be so thick your spoon can stand up in it. And it is mostly potatoes.

You mean clam chowdah!

 

[TheWizard]

If you order fried clams in almost any place outside New England, you will get fried clams strips. Made from the sea clams we would grind or chop into clam chowder.

And speaking of clam chowder, every one else (outside New England) thinks it is supposed to be so thick your spoon can stand up in it. And it is mostly potatoes.

Yes, clam chowder can be cheapened easily that way.
My RI girlfriend takes time to make it properly once in a while.
But myself, I just do steamer clams every few weeks, with melted butter and hot sauce.
Unlike lobsters, steamers don't scream while being steamed.
(That rhymes...)

 

[RobbieB]

I agree. Clam chowder should be made of mostly clams. Not potatoes. A small amount, ok, but never more than the clams. C'mon, then it should be called clam flavored potato chowder eh? I'm also a fan of Manhattan style, thin red tomato broth. Same wrt the clam/potato/other veggie ratio.

Yeah, fried full belly clams are the only way to do a clam roll. Just like an oyster roll.

Making me hungry and eager for the east coast this fall -

 

[CardsFan]

OK. Totally off topic, but a trip down memory lane:

My grandparents lived on the Cape (Cape Cod for the unfamiliar). Early 70's. Grandma is about 85, I am in my teens, Mom and Dad late 40's.

We all head down to the local harbor to dig quahogs. Knee deep in muck (not sand) we hit the mother load. Came back and made stuffed quahogs and clam (quahog?) chowder.

Not a blow the dough moment, but I would blow the dough to do it one more time.

 

[NW-Bound]

Lobster should be steamed. You can kill them first by snipping through the brain with kitchen shears if alive. I boil shrimp in the minimum amount of water needed to cover. With salt, a splash of vinegar and a goodly dollop of Old Bay. You don't want the flavor left in the pot.

Oh and speaking of shrimp, don't boil them either. Bring water to boil, dump in shrimp and stir gently until a simmer just starts. Then lid the pot and turn off the heat and let 'em coast for 4 minutes.

My wife steams shrimp, but instead of a colander, she uses a plate that is placed inside a larger pot. The juice that is on the plate is good for sipping, or you can use it to add to a shrimp dish. Hmmm...

Now, I still have to make an RV trip to the Gulf Coast, and park there for a week just eating wild fresh shrimp, if I can find it.

 

[USGrant1962]

I just got my triple monitor setup, three 27" IPS gaming monitors - Gigabyte M27Qs. I already had three monitors but they were different sizes (a 27" and two 24") and different models so, for example, colors didn't match across the screens. I really wanted three identical 27" monitors and this one dropped to its lowest price in history. All three with tax were under a grand. My old 27" was moved to DW's desktop, one of the 24-inchers will upgrade my summer house desktop and the other will go to DS.

While nice and fun for home computer use (web browsing with email open in a different screen, gaming with guides/walkthroughs in another screen, occasional multi-screen gaming - though that can kill frame rate), multi monitors are a huge efficiency in my part-time consulting gig where I do proposal work. The doc I'm working on is in the center, references/web on the right, and file folders/SharePoint/OneDrive/go-bys on the left.

 

[explanade]

Thing about a lot of these foods is that people associate them with special occasions or splurges.

And you have them once in awhile.

What happens if Costco makes you buy a lot and you gorge for a week or two on them?

Will it be as special?

 

[USGrant1962]

Thing about a lot of these foods is that people associate them with special occasions or splurges.

And you have them once in awhile.

What happens if Costco makes you buy a lot and you gorge for a week or two on them?

Will it be as special?

LOL at Costco MAKES you buy a lot...

But actually, we buy the big bag of frozen scallops when "the seafood guy" is there and just thaw what we need. Much cheaper than buying smaller quantities of scallops to sear, and they are all previously frozen any way.

 

[audreyh1]

You don’t have to eat it all at once! If you get it frozen, just use what you need.

 

[NW-Bound]

Thing about a lot of these foods is that people associate them with special occasions or splurges.

And you have them once in awhile.

What happens if Costco makes you buy a lot and you gorge for a week or two on them?

Will it be as special?

If you have Wagyu beef for a week, you will be craving canned tomato soup.

 

[Sunset]

You know, it's interesting to me that those posting here seem mainly consumed by thoughts of either buying land, or cars, or imported foods, or home improvements.

There is such a huge variety of things on which we could Blow That Dough, and I suppose we each have our own preferences. This is why it is such fun to read this thread. It's fun to see what other people are into.

......

It's quite fun and informative to learn about some of these things, it's inspiring

 

[RobbieB]

I saw some frozen A5 steaks at Costco last time I went but didn't get them as we had other plans. I'mma gonna get some next time!

 

[athena53]

Coming up 8/2:

Front tooth extraction (well, that was done in April or so).

Drain infected area above tooth and sew up gum (done).

Add in bone graft material (done).

8/2 - drill and tap hole for new insert. Stitch up, wait.

8/? - remove stitches, check insert, prepare for tooth implant.

9/? - New tooth put in place.

About $6,000.00

I'm in the middle of something similar except that the decayed tooth was holding up one end of a bridge so I'll be getting an implant in the gap the bridge covered, too! Fortunately the infected area didn't need to be drained but the decayed tooth is gone, bone graft put in at the same time, a consult to set up the next step (bone graft in gap plus the 2 inserts) 10/25. I'm budgeting $12K total based on previous work I've had done.


Not the most glamorous BTD expenditure but I'm very grateful. Overall my health is very good but I've always had problem teeth. These will be my 6th and 7th implants over 15 years. I'd likely have dentures by now if I couldn't do this.

 

[finnski1]

I'm in the middle of something similar except that the decayed tooth was holding up one end of a bridge so I'll be getting an implant in the gap the bridge covered, too! Fortunately the infected area didn't need to be drained but the decayed tooth is gone, bone graft put in at the same time, a consult to set up the next step (bone graft in gap plus the 2 inserts) 10/25. I'm budgeting $12K total based on previous work I've had done.


Not the most glamorous BTD expenditure but I'm very grateful. Overall my health is very good but I've always had problem teeth. These will be my 6th and 7th implants over 15 years. I'd likely have dentures by now if I couldn't do this.

Wow that's almost identical to what I am in the middle of right now.
Had a bridge across tooth #4 with #3 and 5 as the anchors. Developed some decay under tooth #3 so had to remove bridge, extract #3 and had some bone grafting. That must have been 10-12 sutures and was not a fun day or few weeks following. #5 was still ok so put a new crown on that($2000) and waiting to schedule 2 implants and crowns for another $9000+. So I will be over $11000 myself. There are many more things I would like to spend $11k on but it is what it is.

My health is very good also and can't complain either. This will be my first implants. Are they worth it? Do they seem real secure etc?

 

[albireo13]

I am trying to shake off my frugal roots ...
Retired last year, DW still working for 2+ more years. We figure to take care of some big ticket items while we still have her income so ...

* remodeling master bathroom - started planning the project, likely finished Q1 of next year
* having a stone patio installed this month
* looking into a trailer/camper - we love camping and are ready to move on from tent camping (usually in the rain ... LOL).
* I need a new car - my Pilot has 251K miles on it and I need something that can tow a trailer. The Pilot runs like a top but, has no tow package. Looking at an F-150 this weekend!

 

[finnski1]

I am trying to shake off my frugal roots ...
Retired last year, DW still working for 2+ more years. We figure to take care of some big ticket items while we still have her income so ...

* remodeling master bathroom - started planning the project, likely finished Q1 of next year
* having a stone patio installed this month
* looking into a trailer/camper - we love camping and are ready to move on from tent camping (usually in the rain ... LOL).
* I need a new car - my Pilot has 251K miles on it and I need something that can tow a trailer. The Pilot runs like a top but, has no tow package. Looking at an F-150 this weekend!

Well I'd say your giving it a pretty good go!