Food Network

[waterytart]

Always have wanted to try lutefisk, to say I have. But, lye. Whew.

That’s my take on haggis.

 

[Gym Beam]

Spent a week in a remote cabin in the Norwegian mountains near Nesbyen. One of the highlights (?) was reindeer "jerky" that had been preserved in cold storage under the cabin floorboards. This was not long after Chernobyl, so my buddy warned me that there might be some issues with radiation. I wasn't too concerned since I had had plenty of gas station food in the U.S. previously.

 

[Machine Head]

But you've lost me with lutefisk. I get the concept behind traditional foods, and how they can honor one's ancestors and culture ... but dried out whitefish cured with lye? Which by the time it's served becomes white mush? It makes Hawaii's Poi taste good by comparison.

Because of my mother, she's been gone 30 years or so now and it makes me think of her.

She told me how the fish would get stacked in the old country during the winter and get a lil more liquid seasoning from the wildlife who I guess wouldn't eat it because of the lye.

A Chopped basket with Lutefisk, Spam, Tator Tots and corn would be fabulous.

Note, corn, not green beans. That's another MN talking point.

There's a local candy maker shutting down, Pearson's.

Got bought and sold several times in the last 15 years, sad deal.

They make Pearson's Salted Nut Rolls and Nut Goodies.

My mother in her later years would have those on hand, but never did when I was growing up. My kids, holy crap, they had all kinds of candy and sugar cereals at Grandmas's house. Where the was that when I was a kid?

Anyway, I get a Nut Goodie at times and think of her.

 

[Machine Head]

And for all you people not willing to give Lutefisk a try..

/insert animal house Niedermeyer drop and give me 20 gif

 

[Machine Head]

The only time I watch the Food Network is when I am at my sister’s. I like Michael Symons because Roast, before they closed it, was one of my favorite downtown Detroit restaurants. My sister is like you guys. She hates the Pioneer Woman.

Symon had that outdoor cooking show during Covid, now he's doing it from his place in Venice Beach.

He seems less into it now, was more engaged it seemed it Cleveland.

ymmv

 

[Machine Head]

And Kitchen Chaos, a new show on Food Network, needs to **** right off.

 

[Machine Head]

Another one, what's that bar show where they have hidden cameras?

Now Food Network is doing one with Antonia Lafaso.

wtf?

This is where we are now with content.

 

[I Should Coco]

And for all you people not willing to give Lutefisk a try..

/insert animal house Niedermeyer drop and give me 20 gif

I have tried lutefisk ... and thankfully, there were some of those butter cookies nearby to erase the taste!

 

[Jake from State Farm]

I don’t know if that was what I had but I had something nasty in Finland

 

[Machine Head]

I don’t know if that was what I had but I had something nasty in Finland

Fish jello, in a way. Servred with boiled potato.

I know I've posted this here before.

There were Fins on the Iron Range in MN before WWll, as there were all nationalities.

Every Sunday night you could go to a bar on HWY 33 or 37, I forget, and fight them. Bar's still there.

That was the deal, they were Communists, come fight us.

Many went back before the war started to join the Russians.

They didn't make it make.

My cousin married a Fin, great guy. Tough, he came from lumberjacks, the family business.

Hard to see him age.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

****, what I wouldn't give for just 3 or 4 how-to cooking and recipe shows mixed in there.

Went down a rabbit hole today and it really struck me how good the early days of the network was.

Shows like Grillin' and Chillin', Too Hot Tamales, early Emeril, whatever the David Rosengarten one was that devoted a whole show to a single dish (like Philly cheesesteaks), Alton Brown, Sandra Lee, Sara Moulton, Rachel Ray, Ming Tsai, that uber-hot Aida Mollenkamp, even the early Guy Fieri (Guy's Big Bite?) was tolerable.

Now they can't even make room and money for things like The Kitchen.

It's all Guy and Flay game show bull**** and obnoxious twats like Pioneer Woman and that Molly Yeh person.

 

[Machine Head]

Valerie Bertinelli made some valid points when she was let go.

Not going there with what happened with her relationship with the social media person.

 

[Machine Head]

I always thought a good premise for a Food Network show would be someone making something with a set budget with what they got at their local grocery store.
No, "We went to the butcher, fish monger, bakery, and green grocer to make lamb chops with an oyster reduction steeped in artichoke sauce with an avocado aioli."
How about, "Here's a good way to fix a pork loin, some baked beans, macaroni, and garlic bread."

Alex's Grocery Games.

 

[ChrisLong]

****, what I wouldn't give for just 3 or 4 how-to cooking and recipe shows mixed in there.

Went down a rabbit hole today and it really struck me how good the early days of the network was.

Shows like Grillin' and Chillin', Too Hot Tamales, early Emeril, whatever the David Rosengarten one was that devoted a whole show to a single dish (like Philly cheesesteaks), Alton Brown, Sandra Lee, Sara Moulton, Rachel Ray, Ming Tsai, that uber-hot Aida Mollenkamp, even the early Guy Fieri (Guy's Big Bite?) was tolerable.

Now they can't even make room and money for things like The Kitchen.

It's all Guy and Flay game show bull**** and obnoxious twats like Pioneer Woman and that Molly Yeh person.

Did you mean Katie Lee? Speaking of uber-hot.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

I like her, but no. Was forgetting my No. 1, Claire Robinson. And great show, making recipes that have only 5 ingredients.

 

[Bubbler]

I'm sure it's great in many ways, but it also has to be absolutely exhausting to be a Food Network personality.

They do a very good job of exposing their personalities with the cross-promotion between shows. That's good for the network, the viewers, and probably for the personalities too, but they just seem to flog these people to death and it does become forced when someone "pops in" on another show. Also, how many shows does Guy Fieri have?

Every one of those shows has this cornpone formula to it too. Beat Bobby Flay, for example. There's always the forced scenes where the panel talks **** to Flay or gets his competitor to do the same and there's always this kind of forced reaction from Flay that's supposed to be funny, but it's more awkward than anything else.

Whenever they set up Flay to get off his own punch line, it almost always bombs, but you still get this forced laughter from both the panel and the audience to point where it's laugh track-ish. Which, admittedly, is kind of funny in itself.