Savor Thai Barbecued Chicken — Inspired By Cream Co. Meats

My whole chicken from Cream Co. Meats was turned into this turmeric- and curry-tinged grilled chicken feast.
My whole chicken from Cream Co. Meats was turned into this turmeric- and curry-tinged grilled chicken feast.

Before the pandemic, Oakland’s Cream Co. Meats were available only to celebrated San Francisco chefs such as David Nayfield of Che Fico; Stuart Brioza of State Bird Provisions and The Progress; and Brandon Jew of Mister Jiu’s.

A distributor for sustainable and regenerative ranches across the West, Cream Co. it is one of the few USDA-certified processing facilities in Northern California.

If there’s one shining light in this COVID madness, though, it’s that this certified whole-animal butchery has pivoted to offer its top-notch products directly to everyday consumers now.

The "Basic Bunker Box'' from Cream Co. Meats in Oakland.
The “Basic Bunker Box” from Cream Co. Meats in Oakland.

That means even if you can’t dine in at restaurants these days, you can still enjoy the premium meats they use — if you’re willing to do the cooking, yourself.

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What To Cook With Half A Pound of Ground Lamb …

Better than takeout: Ma po tofu, made with ground lamb instead.
Better than takeout: Ma po tofu, made with ground lamb instead.

As cookbook writer Andrea Nguyen learned on a trip to Chengdu, there is no one way to make the classic dish of ma po tofu.

As she writes in her seminal cookbook, “Asian Tofu: Discover the Best, Make Your Own, and Cook It at Home” (Ten Speed Press, 2012), this home-style, saucy dish is sometimes made with ground beef; other times, ground pork. And sometimes chile bean sauce; or other times, a heap of Sichuan peppercorns.

So hopefully, she won’t consider it sacrilege that I actually made it with ground lamb instead.

But when I had a half a pound of ground lamb left over from another recipe, and was looking for a home for it, I found it ideally in this recipe of hers.

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What I’ve Been Drinking of Late, Part 2

If you only know Seghesio for its Zinfandel wines, summer is the perfect time to try its Vermentino.
If you only know Seghesio for its Zinfandel wines, summer is the perfect time to try its Vermentino.

2018 Seghesio Family Vineyards Vermentino

I’ve long been a fan of Seghesio Family Vineyards’ Zinfandel wines, so elegant and concentrated in deep berry flavors with often a back note of cocoa.

In 2008, it started planting more Italian white varietals in its Russian River vineyards, including Vermentino, a grape that traditionally grows near the Ligurian Sea.

I had a chance to try a sample bottle of the 2018 release ($24), which garnered 90 points from Wine Enthusiast.

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Cool Off With Crunchy, Fragrant Tadka Carrot Salad

Just turn on the burner to warm the cumin-mustard seed-scented oil for this carrot salad. That's all the cooking required.
Just turn on the burner to warm the cumin-mustard seed-scented oil for this carrot salad. That’s all the cooking required.

When the day brings a record-setting scorcher, what better way to cool off and still ignite the taste buds than with a veggie salad full of delicious warming spices?

“Tadka Carrot Salad with Cumin, Coriander & Mustard Seed Dressing” is the simplest of recipes that delivers all of that.

It’s from the new cookbook, “Khazana: A Treasure Trove of Indo-Persian Recipes Inspired by the Mughals” (Mobius), of which I received a review copy.

The book is by Saliha Mahmood Ahmed, a doctor who triumphed on “MasterChef” in 2017 with her creative Indo-Persian food.

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Get Snacking With Mighty Lil’ Lentils

Teeny crisp, fried lentils aim to be the next snack sensation.
Teeny crisp, fried lentils aim to be the next snack sensation.

They have the hard crackling crunch of miniature corn nuts. And a great roasty, toasty, nutty, and earthy taste.

Mighty Lil’ Lentils is a new plant-based snack made from lentils that are crisped up in safflower or sunflower oil, then salted and dusted with other flavorings.

It’s the newest product from Seapoint Farms, the California company that’s the largest importer and manufacturer in the United States of edamame.

The company is now turning its attention to lentils, the tiny legumes that are a good source of protein and fiber.

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