North Minneapolis So-Low Sells Steak Seasoning BY THE GALLON! CHEAP!!!!

Photo and blog post by John Hoff

None of my relatives have ever seen my home in North Minneapolis (NoMi) with the exception of my 13-year-old son. I hope that changes in the near future. I will give my relatives a tour of the neighborhood, and one of the first things I will show them is the fantastic and amazing So-Low store at the intersection of Lowry Ave. and Emerson Ave. N.

This place has unbelievable deals. The other day I was shopping there with my girlfriend and we saw...

A gallon container of steak seasoning for $5.99.

I mean, who needs this much steak seasoning? A steakhouse restaurant? Isn't this enough seasoning to last most people a lifetime? Wouldn't it go stale before you ever used it all?

So-Low has a lot of economy-size deals like this, like veggies that come in gallon cans but don't cost much more than regular-sized cans you could buy at some other store.

Here's an idea I had for the super cheap gallon of steak seasoning: You could get some other ingredients, like rock salt obtained on a trip to the ocean, or dried peppers grown in one's own garden. Grind this stuff up and add it to the seasoning, then re-bottle the seasoning in smaller, specially-labeled containers and give it to your friends as a personalized, do-it-yourself gift. I have some other creative ideas, like what to do with five gallons of chocolate pudding but...

Well, not everything is meant to be shared on the internet.

So-Low African Snail Culinary Experiment Goes So, So Wrong...

Photo and blog post by John Hoff

North Minneapolis is home to numerous ethnic groups and, therefore, numerous ethnic food stores. And, while the jaw-droppingly affordable store known as So-Low isn't an ethnic food store, per se, they do have an incredible selection of ethnic food items. Anybody who reads this blog for very long knows I can't resist any kind of strange food, and I will go out of my way to try things I haven't tried before. So it was I got my hands on some African snails from So-Low. This happened a few months ago, but I am going through some of my old pictures and, well, I found the snail images like a pocket of suppressed memory. The horror, the horror...

My girlfriend Megan Goodmundson was a good sport about cooking the slimy beasties, after trying to marinate them. I tried to find some good and SIMPLE recipes on the internet, but I didn't have much luck. Most of the recipes I found involved putting the snails in a pressure cooker, which we didn't have available, as well as crazy talk about soaking the snails in alum. (Whatever THAT might be!)

Well, we figured we could just skewer the snails and throw them on a grill.

Wrong. So wrong.

I am not sure what shoe leather tastes like, but I am confident those grilled snails tasted pretty close.

This goes to show not every exotic food experiment goes right, not even with a cook as good as Megan Goodmundson.

But without a periodic spectacular failure, success wouldn't be as sweet.

Summer's here...Wheres your BBQ?

Photos and blog post by Your Eyedea

Well, it's summer here in NoMi and you know what that means! BBQ! One thing that all of us here in NoMi have in common is the greatness that is a BBQ. Nothing smells better then chicken skin getting caramelized with some homemade BBQ sauce or ribs being smoked with hickory chips and a Kansas City rib sauce with a Northside kick to it. What you do to make these finger licking, lip smacking, many napkin using ribs is......

Brine the ribs. It may sound strange to some of you but it's the first thing you should always do when BBQin' ribs, chicken ect. Or at least that's my mothers motto and I have NEVER not listened to my Mama when it comes to food.

The Brine Follows :
1/2 cup kosher salt Or 1/4th cup table salt
1/2-3/4 cup brown sugar (if ya like it sweet. But I'm already sweet enough)
Gallon of fresh water
10-15 Peppercorns crushed
Few dry bay leafs and crushed
Fresh or dried thyme (1 teaspoon)
Chili flakes (Go light on these because the sauce has kick)
Mustard seeds (Don't go too nuts with them, these are strong lil buggers)
2 sliced lemons (I like to twist them to get all the juice and oils out, same with the orange)
1 sliced orange
1 large onion chopped

Bring water to boil, turn off heat. Add EVERYTHING and let stand until cool.

Take a 3-5 gallon bucket and clean well. Place meat in bucket. ( Be sure to wash hands) Pour brine over meat. I like to put a plate on top and weigh it down with cans or even a clean brick. Cover and put in the fridge over night... DO NOT let it brine more then 24 hours... It will be VERY salty and over power the delicate flavor of white meats. Take the meat out and pat dry with a paper towel.

If you would like to use a rub by all means do so. This is my rub, I like to make big batches of this and put in jars and spread the love..

6 tablespoons mustard (yellow)
2 tablespoons ketchup
3 medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 tablespoon)
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons brown sugar

Next thing we do is soak the wood chips in COLD water (the hot water will draw out the flavor of the chips, you need the flavor in the chips, not the water). Let them soak for no longer then an hour. Start your grill. (I tend to use a good amount of coals being that I cook a lot when I use my grill.) If you are using a gas grill I suggest getting a small metal smoke box. Try not to overcrowd it as it will not work properly.

Once the grill is started I bust out my sauce (Pre-made the night or even weeks before hand)

Recipe follows:
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 cloves garlic, minced

(I like to smash the garlic with the side of my knife, add a little salt and scrape the knife while pressing down to make a paste. It tends to blend better and I know not everyone likes chucks of garlic like I do.)

1 teaspoon cayenne (feel free to add more, but beware!)

A shot of Sriracha
A splash of red wine, brandy or whiskey. ( I tried Bison Grass Vodka... VERY good flavor)

Squirt of mustard (any kind will do nicely)

Heat oil in a saucepan. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add remaining ingredients and reduce heat. Simmer for 15 minutes until thickened. I put my sauce in a squeeze bottle I get at a restaurant supply shop.

Once you have your coals/grill ready and everything is set up, this is called Mise en place (everything put in its place). If you are using coals we don't want them too hot so once they turn white spread them and wait 10-15 mins.. drain and put your wood chips on the coals or in the box.. Close lid and get your meat.. When you come back there will be a lot of smoke; don't be alarmed, we need this smoke. So work quickly. Ready?

Open the lid and be sure to turn your head away from the grill to not get smoke in your eyes... Place meat on the grill skin side down leaving at least 3 inches between each piece. Close lid. Now we need that smoke to stay in there so only leave a sliver sized opening on the vent. I can't tell you how long it will take to fully cook the meat, It all depends. American test kitchens Says " They usually are done after 4 hours at 220-225 degrees. The way to tell if there done is the meat will pull back a little from the ends of the bones, and there will be a bit of give if you give one of the bones a twist. I know some people like …" And I tend to agree with them cause they are a very reliable source for cooking instructions.

If you are smoking chicken wings then I would suggest only smoking them for 30-40 mins checking on the to insure they will not burn. About 20 mins in I start to slather the BBQ sauce on to get that nice charred skin.

One of my mother's famous side dishes made on the grill is her balsamic spiked zucchini. Cut three to four zucchini into four pieces the long way, place in a zip top bag with a cup of balsamic vinaigrette, seal the bag and shake (kids LOVE to do this so if you have some around, put them to work!) I also like to add some fresh garlic and more pepper. Let them chill in the bag for a half hour to an hour. Then grill them to your liking. I like them crisp so I cook them for 5 mins each side..Garnish with parsley or fresh thyme.

Now for one of my boyfriend's favorite is my sweet potato pockets. I chop two large sweet potatoes or yams and place in many layers of foil. I put about a stick of butter in the mix, then again, that's just me. Chop the butter into chucks and toss them with the potatoes. Add 3 tables spoons of brown sugar plus salt and tons of crack black pepper. Sprinkle with chili powder and wrap it up and place in on the grill flipping a few times. Takes about 20-40 mins depending on how hot your grill is. I like to garnish with more chili powder.



So now we sit down to eat... But wait... We need something sweet! Another favorite of my boyfriend is grilled peaches with ice cream. Can't go wrong with peaches in the summer right?

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. If your feeling fancy I like to use fresh vanilla beans by cutting them the long way then scraping out the seeds with my knife, mixing it in with the sugar)
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
(if your using the vanilla bean then I'd use granulated white sugar)
fresh peaches (not fully ripe)
grapeseed oil (or vegetable oil) (or BUTTER!)
vanilla ice cream

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut peaches along the seam all the way around and twist halves off the pit. Brush cut sides with grapeseed oil or vegetable oil. Cook, cut side down, on a hot grill until fruit has grill marks, 3 to 4 minutes. Brush tops with oil, turn over, and move to indirect heat. Sprinkle cut sides with cinnamon sugar. Cover grill and cook until sugar is melted and fruit is tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream (sprinkle on extra cinnamon sugar if you like).

Julia Child said it best. "Dining with one's friends and beloved family is certainly one of life's primal and most innocent delights, one that is both soul-satisfying and eternal."

So get out there and cook!!!

Note to readers:

All food items in the photos were purchased from So Low. Just sayin....

Oh How I Love So Low!

Post and photo by the Hawthorne Hawkman

As I prepared to blog the night away, I knew I needed to grab something to eat to keep me full. I went over to So Low, and once again I was not disappointed. The place had the air conditioning on at full tilt, for one thing, making me almost forget it's 94 degrees out there. They sell ice cream drumsticks for a buck as well. And Bill Withers is on maximum rotation. And the staff, mostly people who appear to be in their 20s or younger, are always extraordinarily polite. They'll even take your bags out to the car if you have a full load.

One of the last times I was there, I picked up a rack of goat ribs for $10 and a duck for $12. Let's take a look at today's bounty...

...First up is the mango juice, which I bought as a backup drink since I was trying grass jelly juice for the first time. The grass jelly juice was...drinkable, I guess. That is, if you like the idea of tamarindo-flavored cough syrup that also has gelatinous chunks throughout. It's a good thing I bought the mango juice, is what I'm saying. I didn't make it through the whole can of grass jelly juice, but at least I tried something new.

Next up, canned mangosteens. Do you know how hard it is to find mangosteens? So Low has them on a regular basis. These were the highest-priced item, ringing in at a whopping $2.49.

For a mere 99 cents, I picked up a frozen pizza that was impressively good, and in case that won't be filling enough for all the night's festivities, another buck got me some rather delicious pasta.

The grand total, including the ice cream drummy not shown: $7.14. So when you see tonight's series of posts, you can thank not only the Hawthorne Hawkman and the Johnny Northside blog, but also So Low!