Let me preface this by saying that the following is more a commentary on my personal skills in the kitchen than a critique of German culture, culinary conventions, or kitchens. As her blog shows, Christina, a friend here in Berlin, is able to produce delicious meals in spite of (even in light of) our location. And, the included picture is not from here in Berlin. It's from a birthday party for John and other friends last year. (We miss you, Yada!) It's just picture evidence that I do cook.
When I go into a Spätkauf (sort of like a convenience store) looking for eggs and get worried because they are not in the refrigerator, I have to remember - Germans don’t refrigerate eggs. I just need to look on the shelves next to the cookies.
Neither sour cream nor cream cheese are sold in 8oz packages. American recipes repeatedly and consistently call for these amounts and I repeatedly have to sprint to the computer (because inevitably I don’t remember this until I’m in the middle of making something) do calculations, run the numbers and then maybe, approximately come out with the correct amount.
Mexicorn does not exist in Germany. However, other canned corn mixes do exist in great variety. zum Beispiel (for example): corn + red peppers and green beans, corn + pineapple, corn + kidney beans, corn + carrots.
My mother has always been “on call” when I’m in the kitchen and this tradition hasn’t stopped just because I live in a radically different time zone. (Thank you Skype, for letting me call US home phones, work phones, and cell phones when necessary.)
zum Beispiel:
Me: “Mom, my cake is bubbling over and out of the bundt pan in the oven. There are blobs of cake cooking all over the bottom of the oven and running down the sides of the pan. Should I take it out?.”
Mom: “Yeah, you can’t save it. You’re going to need to take it out before it makes a bigger mess.”
Me: pause...“So this is a total loss?”
Mom: “Yes, definitely. Go get it out of the oven immediately!”
Cooking without a microwave is really only an inconvenience when it comes time to reheat leftovers. I can soften butter by letting it hang out on the radiator. I can (begrudgingly) do without popcorn for a year. But trying to cook meals that last for more than one sitting is a pain in the butt. Reheating pasta is particularly a challenge (one that requires my special brand of trial and error.)
Why have I had to learn to go to the grocery store with at least two viable recipe options for dinner? Because our grocery store erratically stocks meat. Today it’s nothing but turkey schnitzel and chicken wings. Tomorrow it may be ground beef and pork chops. Oh, they always have sausage. Always.
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You don't have to go without popcorn! Make sure you have a big pot with a lid, pour some vegetable oil in the bottom, heat, then add enough popcorn kernels to cover the bottom of the pot. Be sure to jiggle the pot as the popcorn is popping to prevent it sticking and burning to the bottom. When the popping slows down, it's done!
ReplyDeleteYou might need some practice before it's really done well, but it isn't as difficult as it may seem, it's cheaper than microwave popcorn, and you're closer to really, truly being independent of the microwave. :)
Anonymous is right about not having to do without popcorn completely but what he/she failed to mention was that you'll never get it salty enough, you risk serious burns from that crazy hot oil and buttering is near impossible. There is just nothing like that cancer-causing buttery goodness on microwavable popcorn. But hey, enjoy your popcorn, circa 1975.
ReplyDeleteSo funny and so true. Grocery shopping here is always a crapshoot. I alternate between just showing up and seeing what's available, and going, as you do, with a few recipe ideas in the back of my head. Often I'll be standing in the produce section going, "I know there's something I can do with celery root...if only I could remember....agh!" Or I'll blank on a word for a key ingredient.
ReplyDeleteI haven't figured out the logic of the grocery store yet. Netto carries cranberries as a special import...only in October. It seems to stock Suppenbund (those bundles of veggies for making broth) only every OTHER week. You wanted chicken soup? Tough it out til next week!
But hey, these are kind of amusing problems to have, right? I think they key is to start cooking German and Eastern European recipes, rather than insisting on making American food who ingredients are totally foreign (although I'd love to see the look on a grocer's face when you ask after Mexicorn!)
-Christina
I found a fun cooking blog you might enjoy: http://www.emperorscrumbs.com
ReplyDeleteIt has recipes that use ingredients commonly available here, which can't hurt!
-Christina (again)