Being a Foodie in London (Events & Markets)

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been keeping myself busy with an abundance of food markets and events in London. And I’ve quickly learned.. there are PLENTY of both.. although I think I may need to find some sort of sailing or car event to satisfy my husband who’s been obliging my foodiness 🙂 I’ve blogged about Borough Market before but here are a few more events and markets I’ve been too recently and some old photos too.. As these photos are about being a foodie in London, I thought it appropriate to share a link to a blog I’ve just discovered The London Foodie written by a Japanese-Italian Londoner born in Brazil. Check it out!

Various Veggies at Borough Market

Meat at Borough (incl my all time favorite truffle mortadella)

Seafood (and a crispy duck sandwich) at Borough

Raclette (type of cheese & a Swiss/French dish of crispy gooey cheese!) at Borough

Experimental Food Society Exhibit at Truman Brewery (tried camel's milk ice cream!)

Cupcakes baked in quail eggs (creative but not easy to eat!)

Various Food Shapes

Mealworms, lambs testicles and more!

Whitecross Street Market

Hope you enjoyed the photos. I’ve been eating very well as you can see! The Experimental Food Society was, as expected, very interesting. From cupcakes in quail eggs to medicinal marshmallows.. I even ate my first ‘bug’ : a mealworm! It had been fried so really it was just a crunchy thing that didn’t taste like much. One day I’ll get the courage and opportunity to try something realllyyy “insect-y” like grilled crickets. Here are some links for the photos above:

• Borough Market
• Gastronomica
• Experimental Food Society
• Ginger’s Comfort Emporium (for camel’s milk ice cream)
• Pomp de Franc Cake Society (for the mini cupcake and cupcake in quail eggs)
• Whitecross Street Market
• Eat My Pies (for pies, scotch eggs and more! at Whitecross Street, owned by the Foodnetwork UK chef Andy Bates)
• Wild Game Co (for the venison burgers and more at Whitecross Street)

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Instant Ice Cream!

A couple of weeks ago – James Martin made instant ice cream on BBC’s Saturday Kitchen (Live). I couldn’t believe it so had to try myself. Chris and I made it with our niece and nephew who are 2 and 4 years old. We made it with pre-frozen raspberries bought from the store and skipped the vanilla. It was incredibly easy! The kids wanted to eat it right away in their cones. It was just a bit soft but after being in the freezer for about 10 minutes it firmed up right away! I still have a container of it sitting in our freezer that I snack on 🙂 This is a must try recipe!

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ARTICLE: FIRST CAMERA, THEN FORK

Big thanks to my friend Teresa (FRESHisBACK) for sending me this NY Times article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/07/dining/07camera.html?src=me&ref=homepage

It highlights the fact that we’ve become a food-crazy era. A fact that is hard to deny when you think about how there is an entire network devoted to Food and with more foodie shows leaking into prime time on other networks. Chefs are no longer hidden away in the back of the kitchen. They have become uber celebrities or “TV personalities”. Even people who aren’t chefs become famous (like food critics and bloggers) and make us believe their opinions matter. And I tell you – if you haven’t figured it out already – this phenomenon is happening all over the world with some chefs crossing boundaries to expand their celebrity empire (i.e. Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsey, Marco Pierre White).

As I haven’t officially started school yet (or worked in the industry yet), I don’t quite know what the overall opinion is of these celebrity chefs. Or what the pros think of shows like The Next Food Network Star where “regular” people are getting their own shows without any formal training or experience. But I do know that I love food and I can’t get enough of it 🙂

I could sit and watch the Food Network or BBC’s Saturday Morning Kitchen on BBC iPlayer all day. And I know lots of people who would and do the exact same. I even grew up watching cooking shows with my mom after school long before the Rachel Ray and Bobby Flay days. I buy food magazines frequently too – often choosing them over my other guilty pleasure of gossip mags. I also get weekly emails from sites such as MyRecipes.com and CookingLight.com. Food is everywhere. It’s amazing, isn’t it, that it took so long for food to become such an entertainment phenomenon. But it makes perfect sense. Food appeals to all of us. And with the vast array of shows, magazines and websites out there, there is something for everyone. Whether you are a professional chef or can’t boil an egg, you are sure to find something that appeals to you.

Back to the article though.. The article discusses the trend of photographing food. Some people do it professionally and some do it as a sort of photo-journal of their daily life. Either way, it is becoming more and more normal or accepted rather. At first when I started this blog, I was a little embarrassed to be taking a picture in a restaurant (always with no flash). But I soon realized that no one blinked an eye. I’m getting better too, slowly, at capturing what I try to convince myself are artistic shots. But for my sometimes embarrassed boyfriend and friends, read this article and you’ll see I’m not the only one! I’m not even the worst of it! In fact, I think I feel a little more encouragement to go out there and snap some more. It just goes to show that with the power of the internet – even if you don’t think anyone is going to care, someone, somewhere, will end up on your site  🙂

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101 Chowdown Countdown

5-way chili

If you haven’t discovered this, then I highly recommend it. Tune in to watch the Travel Channel’s 101 Chowdown Countdown. They even used a new word “hungrify” as a warning of the incredible food they’re showing you. 

http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Chowdown_Countdown

This show is amazing, but I suggest watching it after you’ve even otherwise it will make you very very hungry. They show a great mixture of cuisines plus a balance between sweet and savory. Some of the food is a little over the top – like a pizza that weighs 30 lbs. or a burger on a donut instead of a bun (don’t forget the cheese and bacon to go with it).

Chinese egg roll, quesadilla, Cuban beans, and more..

The other great thing about it is that you’ll learn about places you’ve never heard of right in your backyard. I’ll be visiting the ‘Chino Bandido’ in Phoenix, AZ some time soon (http://www.chinobandido.com/). The owners are a mixed couple (Chinese and American) who grew up in Phoenix and have blended their at-home Chinese cuisine with the Mexican flavors that are inherent in Arizona. Very interesting.

Another place I have heard so much about but never got the chance to eat at is Sylvia’s in Harlem, NY (http://www.sylviassoulfood.com/). I heard Sundays are packed with all the folks coming in from church, so maybe go on a Sunday.

  They’ve been repeating a lot of the episodes, so I hope you get a chance to watch it! And even better get a chance to eat at some of these fantastic places.

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