Category Archives: Enticing Events

Gourmet Jerky, Cookbook Recipes Finder & Curtis Stone

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Krave's Basil Citrus Turkey jerky.

Craving Krave Jerky

When you think of jerky, no doubt it’s of those jaw-breaking, tough as shoe-leather strips sold at convenience stores and gas stations that you reach for only in desperation.

Now comes Krave Jerky, which is jerky you’ll actually want to eat.

The company was launched a year ago by Jens Hoj, former general manager of El Dorado Kitchen in Sonoma, and Jonathan Sebastiani, a winemaker whose family started Viansa Winery in Sonoma.

What sets these gourmet jerky products apart is that they’re actually tender, soft, moist and even sticky with marinade. They’re so meaty tasting that you almost feel like you might need a knife and fork to eat them. But rest assured, fingers work just fine.

The jerky comes in eight varieties, including Lemon Garlic Turkey, Sweet Chipotle Beef, and Grilled Sweet Teriyaki Pork. The Teriyaki Pork is the most tender of the bunch, with a candied-salty flavor of  a perfect Hawaiian plate lunch.

The Basil Citrus Turkey is the most toothsome of the bunch with a mild tang. Surprisingly, it also boasts the most calories at 100 per 1 ounce serving, compared to the 70-80 calories of the others. It also has the most sodium at 610 mg per serving, compared to the 140-400 mg of the others. But the turkey has 0 grams of fat, compared to 1.5-2.5 for the other flavors.

Jerky that actually won't hurt your jaw.

A 3.5-ounce package is $7.

But starting today, for a limited time only, Daily Gourmet is offering a deal on Krave Jerky. The new San Francisco-based company offers gourmet food products in special discounts for limited time offers to members, who are notified via email. Among the products that have been offered or will be are jams and vinegars from The Girl and the Fig in Sonoma, and vegan cinnamon rolls by Berkeley’s Cinnaholic.

A five-pack of Krave Jerky will be $28 (includes shipping) on Daily Gourmet.

The company was started by David Rangel, formerly with Microsoft’s Corporate Strategy Group and an executive at Groupon; and Chad Jackson, a software and Internet entrepreneur.

CookBookKarma for Cookbook Aficionados

If you love to cook from cookbooks, take photos of your dishes and post the results on your blog, you’ll be glad to discover the new site, CookBookKarma.

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Pebble Beach Food & Wine Extravaganza and Food Gal Giveaway

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Team Lexus -- culinary-style. (Photo courtesy of Lexus)

The fourth annual Pebble Beach Food & Wine extravaganza rolls into town, April 28-May 1, with more than 70 top toques and 250 acclaimed wineries doing cooking demos, wine seminars and glam dinners at the picturesque Pebble Beach Resorts.

Among the who’s who of culinary talent who will be participating are: Tom Colicchio of “Top Chef”; Yigit Pura, winner of “Top Chef Just Desserts”; Charlie Trotter; Ming Tsai; Tyler Florence; and the one and only Jacques Pepin.

Ticket prices range from $100 for a single event pass to $4,750 for a VIP four-day pass.

If that’s too rich for your blood — and I’m sure for most of us, it definitely is — the Food Gal has another way for you to enjoy a little of the action.

Four lucky readers will each win an autographed apron. (Image courtesy of Lexus)

Contest: I’m thrilled to be giving away four Pebble Beach Food & Wine aprons signed by Daniel Boulud, Michael Chiarello, Dean Fearing, Christopher Kostow, Masaharu Morimoto and Michael Symon, who are all part of the Lexus Culinary Masters team.

Entries, limited to those in the continental United States, will be accepted through midnight May 1. Winners will be announced May 3.

How to win?

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A Wine Dinner at Saratoga’s Sent Sovi

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A sampling of Varner wines ready to be poured at Sent Sovi.

Chef-Proprietor Josiah Slone carries many fine wines on his wine list at Sent Sovi in Saratoga.

But his unabashed favorites are definitely the ones by Varner, a boutique winery in Portola Valley. The winery, run by twin brothers, Bob and Jim Varner, specialize in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. They are wines that marry well with Slone’s cooking, and the ones that he and his wife most like to kick back with in their down time.

I was lucky enough to sample the wines with Slone’s food when I was recently invited as a guest of the restaurant to a Varner wine dinner.

The first course was a refreshing cured artic char with the zing of preserved Meyer lemons from the chef’s backyard tree, which paired with the 2007 Varner “Home Block” Chardonnay. Slone made use of every bit of the rich fish, including frying the skin to make “chips” and scraping the flesh of the head to form a chopped fish salad of sorts.

Cured artic char with mache.

That was followed by what was one of the juiciest white meat chicken dishes I’d had in a long time. Cooked “sous vide’’ to keep the bird moist, the chicken was accompanied by caramelized fennel and a dice of sweet, spicy pears, which picked up the lush, complex quality of the 2007 Neeley “Holly’s Cuvee” Chardonnay that’s also made by Varner.

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Take Five with “Top Chef Masters” Contender Suvir Saran, on His Upcoming Bay Area Appearance with the Food Gal

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New York Chef Suvir Saran. (Photo by Jim Franco)

If you’ve been tuning in to this season’s “Top Chef Masters” on Bravo TV, you’ve probably already discovered not only how charismatic, but candid Chef Suvir Saran can be.

The 38-year-old, executive chef/owner of award-winning Devi in New York City will tell you he’s probably one of the most frank chefs you’ll ever meet. (Wait till you hear what he thinks of Zagat and Yelp.) That forthrightness, coupled with an energetic and telegenic presence, has made him a favorite speaker at seminars. See for yourself when he joins yours truly on stage at 7 p.m. April 29 for a lively Q&A session at the India Community Center in Milpitas. Tickets are $50 for ICC members; and $55 for non-members. Executive Chef Vittal Shetty of Amber India in San Jose will prepare signature hors d’oeuvres inspired by Saran’s recipes.

Saran’s South Bay appearance will be in conjunction with “Dining Out for Life Silicon Valley,” which is part of an annual  national campaign, in which participating restaurants raise money for those living with HIV/AIDS. Proceeds from the Silicon Valley event will support the Health Trust AIDS Services, which helps more than 800 people in Santa Clara County with hot meal delivery, food baskets, and housing assistance.

Forty restaurants in 12 Silicon Valley cities will donate at least 25 percent of their food sales on April 28 to that organization. For more details, click here. Saran also will be making a surprise appearance that evening at four South Bay restaurants, so keep your eyes peeled.

Additionally, at 12:30 p.m. April 29, Saran will present a talk about healthy cooking at the Health Trust Food Basket in San Jose. He will be joined by cookbook author and legendary restaurateur, Joyce Goldstein, who was an early pioneer in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Advance reservations are required by emailing Jon Breen at jonb@healthtrust.org.

Devi's mung bean chaat. (Photo by Ben Fink)

Lastly, Saran is not only donating four dinners for two at Devi, but also donating his time to cook a meal for eight at a private home in the Bay Area. These items will be auctioned off online on the Health Trusts Web site to the highest bidders, starting at midnight May 5.

Last week, I had a chance to chat by phone with him about what brought him to the United States at age 20, and what he thinks of the state of Indian food here.

Q: Why is ‘Dining Out for Life’ a cause near and dear to you?

A: I lost many friends to HIV/AIDS. My partner of nine years is a big civil rights person. He’s always yelling and screaming, and I realized that a voice demanding humanity was important in American society.

Most people take it for granted that we live in a democracy and everything is perfect. I have to be a champion of underdogs. I owe it to every underdog to speak up for them.

Q: Devi was the first and only Indian restaurant in the United States to earn a Michelin star. What did that honor mean to you?

A: That I should commit suicide now that they’ve taken it away after two years. (laughs) It was an honor. It was a wonderful thing. We got it at the top of our game. Then, it was taken from us. Since my business partner and I had a separation, we are now back at our prime. Who knows? Maybe next year, we’ll get it back again.

We had it two years in a row. It was a luxury. I don’t take it for granted. I look it as a sweet gift bestowed us on by powers that be. It’s not like those worthless Zagat ratings, which have no value in my mind.

Q: I’m almost afraid to ask what you think of Yelp?

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Foodie T’s and A Food Gal Giveaway

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Show your love for kimchi with this bold T-shirt. (Photo courtesy of Flavour Gallery)

You’ve heard of wearing your heart on your sleeve?

Now, you can wear your favorite food on  your torso.

Flavour Gallery, which launched about a month ago, specializes in specialty T-shirts that are all food-oriented.

The shirts, almost all made in Los Angeles, come in men’s and women’s sizes with artsy graphics spelling out “kimchi,” and “Gigi’s Oyster Bar,” as well as designs featuring knives or a hand sprinkling salt.

Recently, I received a sample of a women’s “medium” in the short-sleeve “kimchi” design.  The soft, 100 percent-cotton T is thin like a man’s undershirt. It fits pretty true to size. It’s cut long enough to cover the hips, so it’s perfect for jeans that sit at belly-button level or lower.

How's this for a "sharp'' shirt? (Photo courtesy of Flavour Gallery)

The company also makes scarves, tote bags and memo pads adorned with its distinctive designs.

Prices range from $4 for a memo pad and $20 for a scarf to $28 for a woman’s tank top and $68 for a man’s hoodie.

Contest: One lucky Food Gal reader will win his/her choice of a Flavour Gallery T-shirt, as well as a tote bag and memo book. Entries, limited to those in the continental United States, will be accepted through midnight PST April 23. Winner will be announce April 25.

How to win?

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