MACARONI AND CHEESE !!! !!!

arugula has a really good flavor, so I can imagine it would make a good pesto, I will try it

I saw some Thai basil pesto in the store. I should have bought it.

I find arugula incredibly bitter. I wonder if that's similar to some people's aversion to cilantro?

do some people have an aversion to corilantro ? bloody hell, to quote Meades, that sounds about as imaginable as the proposition of the repeat suicide bomber!

if I'm making any kind of curry/chilli/onion bhaji type food and I don't have no fresh coriander. I often cry myself to sleep at how much I've failed in the kitchen.

do some people have an aversion to corilantro?

A number of people genuinely think it tastes like soap! I think it's a genetic thing?

I love coriander but my genetic issue is I literally can never tell if I am buying a bunch of coriander or parsley from the corner shop and always have to ask the guy if I have the right kind.

they do look pretty much look the same. I didn't know that, there is something heavenly about the aroma of fresh coriander to me.

My issue isn't really genetic I am just shit at telling the difference between different smells it seems. But the "coriander=soap" thing is totally a real thing.

I had it for many years but either it's fading or I'm finding dishes where soap is an appropriate flavor.

I once bought parsley thinking it was cilantro/coriander. Now if I'm unsure, I sniff it and there's no mistaking one's scent for the other's.

Yeah, it's a source of constant hilarity to my partner that I cannoy successfully purchase coriander unaided

Let's get back to pesto, I came home from vacay and my basil has gone BONKERS and now I need to use a lot of it, really fast. I tried using an immersion blender last year and I hated the texture. Do I need a mortar to make this really work?

I make a lot of pesto and always cut the basil up with scissors, stalks and all, then use a hand blender when it and all other ingredients are in the bowl. Comes out fine. I also have a 350ml Kenwood blade mixer, and still cut up basil and parsley before putting them in to chop.

I use a food processor. I can see where using an immersion blender would be challenging.

Mortar and pestle is the way to go imo

there is something that scans like missed monetising in late period capitalism about how you can get a decent granite mortar and pestle for like 12 quid or whatever, it will last you a lifetime and looks and feels so great. When do they start charging a hundred quid for them!

when they make ones that will text you

have a marble mortar and pestle, I love it and it wasn’t expensive either, but it doesn't feel big enough to process a significant volume of pesto, so I use a food processor like quincie

I guess arugula can be a little bitter, but it is also nutty and peppery and I can imagine it would be good in pesto

https://food52.com/shop/products/724-natural-stone-mortar-pestle

I meannnnn

I'm here for the mortar and pestle talk (I don't like macaroni & cheese). I thought I read that marble wasn't a good material, but I dunno. What's a good material, and also, what size should I get? I'm cooking more South Asian these days and want to grind my own spice mixes & also make curries.

At present I make pesto in the food processor & it seems good to me.

i think the idea is that crushing bursts more of the plant cells than the shearing you get from a food processor, right? it's just a matter of degrees though, you end up with the same flavor, one's just a bit stronger

I *do* like mac and cheese and I want to make mac and cheese for work lunches next week. show me your best recipes!!

my 4-5" marble mortar and pestle was $25 at sur la table but I think you can get them cheaper. I use it for grinding small quantities of nuts and spices and it works great and is easily cleaned with soap and water.

Since I stopped grinding my own coffee beans I use my coffee grinder for larger quantities of spices, it saves a lot of time