taste2taste

May 15, 2019

Herring with a Twist in the Tale

Over the past few years Lindsey and I have been writing our blog, we have heard a number of fascinating stories about how folks came up with the idea for new food and drink products. However, few have been quite as unusual as the tale of how Naftali Engel, a young Chassidic Jew from Queens, New York, fresh out of Talmudic studies at Yeshiva (Orthodox Jewish School) in Israel came up with The Rebbe’s Choice Herring and it’s range of herb and spice infused New York style Herring salads

I stumbled upon The Rebbe’s Choice Herring entirely by accident. I was on a shopping trip to Evergreen in Monsey, NY which is one of the largest Kosher Supermarket’s in the New York region and spotted some rather different packaging in their extensive preserved fish section

The Rabbi holding an enormous Fish as seen on The Rebbe’s Choice packaging

Unlike the mainstream versions of pickled, preserved and cured herring, whose labels have regular typeface, pictures of boats, fish and the like, the sketched black and white drawn picture of a Chassidic Rabbi complete with a fur hat and long coat holding an enormous fish in his hands on the labeling of ‘The Rebbe’s Choice’ immediately drew my attention. Then, I noticed the flavor of one of the containers. Smokey Zaatar! I mean, what!? I’ve been eating preserved herring for donkeys years and I had never seen this sort of inventive flavor combo! I had a quick look along the shelf and saw a couple of other interesting flavors in their range including Honey Mustard Sriracha Herring and decided I had to find out more. What inspired the creator of this herring salad?

So, I connected with Naftali, the founder of The Rebbe’s Choice

Back in 2014, Naftali told me, he was in the middle of his studies in Israel and one weekend, on Shabbat, (the Jewish Sabbath) in the mystical Northern Israeli town of Safed in the Galilean hills, he tried some home made herring prepared by a ‘Breslav’ Chassid. He was simply amazed. It was the best herring he’d ever tried. In his words, much better than the rather ordinary herring salads he had been eating in Israel and better than the NY style he had at home. He asked the Chassid who had given it to him – what was the recipe? The response was not quite what Naftali expected…

‘You need to dance with the fishes….’ and recite various prayers

Naftali obtained the basic recipe and on his return to his Yeshiva school, he obtained the ingredients, adjusted them to his taste and then began experimenting with different spices and herbs, coming up with what was eventually to become The Rebbe’s Choice first two herring salad products. Living at the time in Israel, these original spice combinations were inspired by middle eastern / Israeli spices and ingredients one using Israeli Hot Peppers and the other Zaatar, a spice combination commonly used in Israeli cooking. He gave other students and teachers his herring salad combinations to try and they were a very popular hit. His path was set! On his return to the US, Naftali decided to make a go of producing herring salads as a business.

The Rebbe’s Choice – Sweet Black Pepper Herring Salad

Rather than follow the crowd his aim was to provide a unique product a sort of – Heimishe (home style) meets High End, a craft herring salad product with a spiritual connection for his original orthodox Jewish consumers. He also wanted the product to appeal to people who were looking for something different, using fresh, all natural ingredients with no preservatives or coloring and unusual flavor combinations. Traditional herring with a twist

According to Naftali, the inspiration for all the flavors were closely linked with his studies into famous Rabbis in the Chassidic world and their personalities. For instance, The Israeli hot pepper flavor mentioned above, which became The Rebbe’s Choice – Jalapeno Matjes in the US (see below), was a creative idea inspired by Rebbe David Levov, about whom Naftali was learning about when he came up with that particular spice blend

The Rebbe’s Choice, obtains its main herring ingredient from sustainable sources. Herring in oil from Belarus and pickled herring from Newfoundland. This base product, depending on the final salad, is combined with mixtures of fresh ingredients, spices and herbs and is only prepared in small batches. It is then sold ‘fresh’ in tubs rather than vacuum sealed jars

To date, The Rebbe’s Choice have come up with six unique flavor combinations which we have tried:

The Rebbe’s Choice – Honey Mustard Sriracha Herring Salad

Jalapeno Matjes, is full of slices of fresh green hot pepper which offsets well with the cool herring. It’s a great flavor for those looking for those who like a bit of heat

Smokey Zaatar in my opinion is a sort of Sephardi (middle eastern Jewish) meets Ashkenazi (eastern European Jewish) culture clash – you wouldn’t think this herring salad combo would work but it just does – subtle but surprising

Honey Mustard Sriracha – the genesis of this flavor actually started while Naftali was in Israel but finished back in the US – what Naftali was trying to do and I think succeeds with was to get a perfect balance between the heat of the ubiquitous famous asian chili sauce, with the bitter mustard and sweetness of the honey all mixed with the succulent fishy herring chunks

Sweet Black Pepper – was the first all American Rebbe’s Choice product. The base is herring in oil with sweetness coming from the onions and very freshly ground black pepper packing a serious punch

Zesty Matjes – is a bit of a surprise. A sort of Rabbi meets a Priest combination of flavors, full of Italian herbs like oregano and basil infusing the fish. The trick however, is how Naftali has used lemons to pickle the onions mixed with the herring, which creates a citrus like ‘zesty’ element in this salad

Sweet Onion – has a mellow and pleasant taste, quite savory. Instead of just using traditional onions, Naftali has added chives into the mix , adding a soft complexity in the final flavor

Naftali says a new flavor is in the works and this herring aficionado can’t wait to try it!

L’chaim (to Life) !!

The product is Kosher and is currently available in Kosher Food Stores across the USA. You can find out where to buy it and read stories of the Chassidic Rabbis who inspired each flavor Naftali has created, from the following link:

http://www.rebbeschoice.com

March 6, 2019

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Plant-Based Burger Review

Plant-based, meat-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, vegan, flexitarian – so many buzzwords! It’s a changing World. Adopting a more plant-based focused diet as a lifestyle change is a growing trend, as is the number of people giving up meat, gluten, dairy and also adopting a vegan lifestyle. There is so much posted on Social Media and new products to try, whether street food markets, cafes, restaurants, supermarkets and independents in the U.S. , U.K. and globally. We love cooking and eating vegetarian food and have made a conscious effort to cut down our meat consumption too, although not putting a label on it!

We decided to check out some plant-based burgers at Simon’s local Bareburger in New York. With so many options on the menu we thought we would keep it Classic and go with Impossible Burger, Beyond Burger and a Thai Chia: one of Bareburger’s in house veggie burger combos.

Lots more in house combos or build your own burgers to choose from whether you are a vegan, vegetarian or a meat eater! It was my last meal in Westchester County, New York before I drove back to Newark airport to fly home to London. Simon was also busy with family stuff so we made a quick decision to go with only a small number of relishes and condiments so we could focus on tasting the burger.

Our 3 choices:

Impossible Burger: with vegan American cheese, caramelized onions, stoneground mustard and ketchup in a brioche bun

Impossible Burger

Beyond Burger: vegan American cheese, caramelised onions, stoneground mustard and ketchup in a gluten free bun

Beyond Burger with Gluten Free Bun

Thai Chia: quinoa, chia & green pea patty, vegan American cheese, caramelized onions, 7 spice Thai ketchup in a sprout bun ( no mushrooms or spinach)

Thai Chia Veggie Burger

We cut them in half to look at the appearance before munching away for our taste2taste test!

So how did they taste? We were impressed with the flavour and textures of all three. The Thai Chia patty you could see and taste the green peas and had a slightly grainy texture from the quinoa and chia, very filling. It reminded us a bit of the veggie burgers we ate in Vegetarian restaurants such as Cranks in London. We liked the layers of flavours from the Thai spiced ketchup in particular. Both the Impossible and Beyond burger had a more meat-like texture and look. We enjoyed both. Simon said that if he visited again with his ‘tweenage’ son, ordered an Impossible and a Beyond burger without mentioning they weren’t made of meat , his son probably wouldn’t notice! Simon did visit Bareburger again recently and although he did let his son in on the secret, he said that his tweenager really liked the Beyond Burger finding it quite close in taste and texture to meat and it especially worked well in vegetarian stance with American cheese, salad leaves, tomato and ketchup!

Impossible Burger on Simon’s 2nd Visit

It got us thinking should a plant based meat alternative burger taste of meat ? We asked a few friends : vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian and meat eaters. We also polled our Yotam Ottolenghi Housewives FB Group foodie friends. There were lots of different views. Friends who were vegetarian/vegan because they didn’t like the taste of meat were clearly not fans, preferring something like a Portobello mushroom ‘burger’. Some non meat eaters both vegetarian and vegan, who did miss the taste of meat would consider eating on occasion. Our YO Foodie friends who love cooking lots of different cuisines and are fans of both plant and meat based recipes were mostly in favour of veggie burgers tasting of veggies, although one or two non meat eaters would consider eating. My local running shop manager, an ethical vegan for many years said it’s not something he would personally choose to eat. However if it was a vehicle for people to enjoy, that involved less animals being killed he supported the principle. Another neighbour of Simon’s also a vegan and a food entrepreneur again thought an interesting innovation, preferring Beyond Burger, as a lighter texture, not leaving him with that ‘carb heavy’ feeling after eating. Although he wouldn’t personally choose to eat something with the appearance flavour & texture of meat he pointed out that Beyond Burger is marketed towards meat eaters wanting to eat less meat, more plant based meals. Simon also bought a pack of Beyond Burger patties to cook at home.

Beyond Burgers bought to cook at home

Simon Cooking Beyond Burgers

Beyond Burger skillet cooked at home

Simon’s Homemade Beyond Burger

So we enjoyed doing this taste test and enjoyed all three options however felt the Impossible burger just edged it on overall flavour, texture and eating experience. The Beyond Burger is also widely available to buy in U.S. to cook at home, and in U.K. too in Tesco’s Supermarkets and at Honest Burger Chain.

https:/www.bareburger.com/

January 31, 2019

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Hetta Glögg – The Ideal Drink for the Polar Vortex

Being British, my co-blogger Lindsey and I both suffer from our country’s national obsession with the Weather

Having emigrated to the North Eastern corner of the USA, I’ve had the chance to experience my fair share of extreme winter conditions, having endured nor’easters and blizzards too numerous to count. However, in the last couple of days, the weather here in the US has been making headlines all over the world. A ‘Polar Vortex’ has barreled in, bringing us the coldest temperatures seen in living memory. Arctic conditions have stretched across the country and the mercury has plunged to around -41c / -42f in the mid west and a comparably balmy -17c / 2f, here in NY

Stars & Stripes freezing in the Polar Vortex

It occurred to me that this would be the ideal time to get the fire going and pour a glass or two of spiced wine in true Nordic Hygge (cozy) style, as our readers across the country try and keep themselves warm

Luckily, our friends at Hetta, who are a family business based just up the road to me here in the Hudson Valley of NY, had recently sent me a bottle of their Port based spiced wine ‘Glögg’ to check out

Glögg is a Scandinavian welcoming drink served to warm your guests up when they come in from the winter cold to your home and is often drunk in the winter on festive days. Darren from Hetta told me their Glögg is based on the founder’s Scandinavian family recipe. It is a handmade Port based wine infused with a mixture of orange peel, raisins, cinnamon and cardamon finished with Brandy and has minimal added sugar and an alcohol content of just below 22% volume

Deep claret in color, with a fruity spiced nose and soft palate, I found it to be a very pleasant heart warming fortified spiced wine with a decent alcoholic kick from the port and brandy mixed within. The spices are very subtle although I could detect a hint of both the cardamon and cinnamon

Hetta Glögg all warmed up by our blazing wood log fire

Hetta say their Glögg is not just a drink for a festive day or the winter, it can also be drunk cold, used as a cocktail ingredient, as well as a wonderful addition to cooking any time of year. Something I will certainly test out soon

However, this frigid evening, I could not think of a better way to sample Hetta’s Glögg, than to warm it up in the Nordic tradition and enjoy it by the fire after we came in from the freezer outside that is the extraordinary Polar Vortex that has descended on the USA

‘Skål’ as they say, in Scandinavia and to all our readers in the US, in Scandinavia, the UK and beyond, keep warm this Winter!!

Web: http://hettaglogg.com/