Condiments

Sorry for being late to the party, I've been doing a fair amount of travel recently. I figured I'd start from the beginning, and make my way up. So, without further adieu, here are the three condiments I would bring on the desert island.

1. Texas Pete's Hot Sauce: Not actually all that hot, but very flavorful. I was introduced to this condimentary jem by one of my college freshman suitemates from Fort Myers, Florida, who would take a bottle similar to the one in the picture to the dining hall with him. It goes great on just about any protein-based food that one can think of, and ridiculously well on pizza. So well in fact, that I may have to look into constructing a solar-powered pizza oven for the island.

2. Ginger Mustard: I love mustard, and I love ginger. This is a match made in heaven! Though I've had this particular concoction on chicken and pork only, it is supposed to go great with fish, especially if you make some salmon-burgers. I suspect that there will be a high degree of pescatory consumption, as well as some possible wild board hunting, so seems like a good bet.

3. Thai Fish Sauce: Man I got into this stuff when I was in Southeast Asia! At first, it's too damn salty. Then, it's too damn spicy. A few experimentations later, and there isn't a single dish that it doesn't enhance. I can't think of much, aside from sweets and dairy that the fish sauce wouldn't work for: rice, noodles, all sorts of meat, even eggs. What a miracle. You just might not want to smell it when you're applying it.

Condiments

There is a pattern to the condiment choices so far. I wish I was about to share something crazy, but I'm not.

1. RedHot. I'm from the greater Buffalo-Niagara region and it's how hot wings are made. I'm not eating meat right now, but it's tasty on eggs and pizza and most other things.

2. Stone ground mustard. I don't have a brand favorite but I like when it comes in a little round jar. I think those jars would come in handy on the island. I could build a glass hut with mustard mortar.

3. Balsamic vinaigrette. Probably Newman's Own. Not because it's the best, but because I'll want to gaze on his face during hard times. Good on anything RedHot isn't. And it has antiseptic properties. Well, it stings on papercuts at least.

For a while guacamole made the list, but if I eat it with a spoon it's a food, right?

Condiments (IV)

I enjoy many condiments, maybe not as varied as Whitney, but there are a couple that would bring:

1. Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce. This BBQ sauce goes well as a marinade for chicken or some shrimp, but also is the perfect condiment for fries, chicken fingers, etc. As a St. Louis native, I have some experience with the sauce, so check it out, you won't be disappointed.

2. Raye's mustard, specifically the Ginger Brown. The Dundicott hot was also in the running, but I think this one will really compliment my BBQ sauce. I have visited the Raye's mustard factory in Eastport Maine and obviously have a tee shirt. It was really the highlight of the trip, that and the bat that was hanging out in my room. They stone grind their mustard and it never needs to be refrigerated. It is thus the perfect condiment for a desert island, just in case our generator goes out.

3. I guess I too would have to bring a vinaigrette of some sort, I choose a vinaigrette of my own making. It is a honey: balsamic: olive oil concoction with some shallots thrown in for good measure. It goes well with salads and roasted golden beets.

Condiments

I collect what I like to call elevator suitable conversation topics. These are topics and questions that you could be discussing in an elevator and not have to stop if your boss entered. Condiments is a fabulous one.

On my island I would take:
1) A1 - I may get some flak for this. I stand by it. I can eat it on lots and lots of stuff. including carrots. I anticipate a lot of carrots on my island.

2) Balsamic Vinegar (at least 5 year aged)- in an odd trend, I also choose balsamic, and I am consciously picking the oldest sweetest vinegar, not a vinaigrette. I like plain balsamic vinegar on salad greens (which will likely be plentiful on the island - growing next to the carrots). I haven't tried it, but I expect it will be a delightful marinade for lemur meat.

3) mayonnaise - versatile, tasty - don't ask me how I am going to keep it on a deserted island.

Condiments (II)

I'm not very big with condiments, especially to the depths of Whitney. I usually eat things plain if I make them myself. If someone makes it for me, I believe in what they did, and leave it alone. I'm not a meddler. I don't meddle.

1. Ketchup. Plain and simple. This goes for burgers and dogs. The lone exception was The Dog House late-night escapades in February, in which I added sauerkraut. But I had been drinking for a long time, and I'm pretty sure we got our orders mixed up. Either that, or I just went ahead and stole Whitney's food.

2. Roasted Red Pepper Hummus. I just picked this up over the weekend. And I like. I chose it because I am becoming more and more worried that I will waste away as I begin this vegetarian thing. So I cast a big net, buying a lot of groceries, with the idea that some of them will be pleasing to me, and stave off malnourishment. So far, so good. I've only used it with baby carrots. And I'm still alive.

3. Balsamic Vinegar. I really couldn't think of anything else.

Condiments

One of my favorite desert island questions is about condiments. I think what a person adds to their food says a lot about them. Also, I'm a really big fan of toppings in general and I like to spend time thinking about them. For our purposes we will be defining condiment as anything that is added to food, post-cooking. It does not include what are commonly referred to as ingredients. So, for instance, you could use salt in a cake recipe without choosing it as one of your condiments, but not on top of french fries.

3 Condiments:

1. Jalapeño Harissa Hot Sauce by pain is good.

Why: a spicy, versatile hot sauce. Flavorful enough for eggs and chunky enough to stand in for a salsa.

2. Stone Ground Brown Mustard with Apple Cider Vi

negar by Eden
Why: mustards are some of my favorite condiments, I couldn't live on an island without at least one of them. I've tasted better mustards than this, but none as refreshing or versatile as this little diddy. It would always be my first choice for a turkey sandwich, and makes a great pork marinade too.

3. a good balsamic vinaigrette.
Why: it goes on everything.