Hug a Farmer 

I went to Family Food Market in St. Lawrence market and talked to the owner Li Chunan Hsiung.  I asked her about her story, she said she has worked with produce for over 50 years and opened her first shop on front street. She opened up Family Food Market in 1999 and she has been in the market ever since.She did not really have much to say on political policies, but did say she does not like G.M.O.s.  She believes in buying only the best and freshest produce and trying to be as sustainable as possible. She says that she enjoys getting organic produce for her customers, but if they did not want it she probably would not be getting it in. From this experience I learned that fresh produce is the best kind, and that sustainability is not as easy to achieve as it should be.

For this blog I have chosen to use the cow as my subject. Most of the beef that we get in Ontario comes from Ontario, and the rest of Canada it's self. Majority of the cattle is corn fed and that produces a lot more fat and makes the beef more flavourful for when it is consumed. There is a grading system for the beef in Canada with Prime being the highest rank and the lowest being just A which accounts for over 75% of beef produced in Canada.  The cut I have chosen to use is the boneless rib steak because of it's flavour and fat, because it is prime quality the steak would cost $17.99 an lb. The best dry cooking method for this cut would be to grill it, and the best wet method would be to baste it in fat(preferably butter). I would make it in a pan, first get the pan smoking hot then throw in 200 grams of butter 10 twigs of time 2 twigs of rosemary and 3 crushed cloves of garlic and then the steak. Make sure you get everything in the pan as fast as possible so the butter doesn't burn. Once everything is in the pan baste the steak with a large spoon in the butter and flip it after two and a half minutes. Keep basting while the steak once it is flipped for two minutes then take it off the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes after it cooked.

                                           

Recpie- http://www.food.com/recipe/blue-ribbon-dill-pickles-241139

       

The market I went to was Coppa's at Dufferin and Finch. I decided to go to this market because it has the most local and fresh selection of produce out of any supermarket around my area. I wanted to select something new so I walked around the fruit section until i found a cactus pear. It comes from the cactus family and obviously grows in dessert climates, it's peak season is summer, but it is relatively inexpensive. It tasted like a very earthy fruit. Almost like a complete dish in one fruit, with a very sweet flavour to begin with then it mellows out and becomes almost earthy and herby in taste. It leaves an earthy after taste in your mouth, it is really a very interesting fruit. I don't believe I would cook with this fruit until I have a much greater understating of it. This was an awesome experience making me try new things and making me push my boundaries as well. 

Sensory Evaluation

The dish that I tried for my sensory evaluation was Ikapiri, a Japanese calamari with a side of wasabi mayo, spicy ketchup and roasted garlic chips. This appealed to a few of the flavours they were salty, sweet and umame. As for the senses it appealed to sight with the different sauces for colour and the squid them selves were in a ver rustic cut. It appealed to taste and smell with a crispy crunch from the squid and then a hot sharper spice from the ketchup, and a cool more subtle spice from the wasabi mayo. The dish was finger food an was easy to dip so it appealed to the touch as well. I learned that my palate enjoys different kinds of spice as well as a different than normal calamari. I enjoyed this food and I would eat it again because it was delicious and different than what I am used to. I enjoyed the garlic chips the most out of the topping and the squid was clearly the star of the dish in flavour and texture, and it was the most appealing. Now when I taste I am going to be much more critical of my food, and of how it is cooked. I got this dish at a great restaurant that has constant consistency in their food and that makes it a great place.

Hi my name is Eli Kerbel, I am 20 years old and I am training to be a chef. I chose to become a Chef because of my great love for food, and so I could understand the food I love so much it better. As a child I was an extremely picky eater, and as I grew up my horizons expanded. Now it is hard for me to find a food that I do not like. I love meat and bar-b-quing, it is my dream to one day open my own bar-b-que and smoker based restaurant. I found my love for food and cooking when I was two years old. When I would help my mom make cakes and other goods for me and my brothers. As I grew up I started watching the food network as well I started to cook more and more. Now food is my passion and I hope to peruse it a a career, and to find my niche in the vast spectrum of a field.