Category Archives: Food

A successful experiment

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We’ve had our new induction range for several days now. So far, so good. The biggest problem right now is that I have no sauce pans that are compatible, and I expect it to be more than a week before my order of a couple of new pans is delivered.

So last night I tried out the “air fry” mode of the convection oven. When we were at the supermarket, I bought a large russet potato that weighed about a pound. Following the instructions, I washed it and cut it into fries, then soaked them in water for 90 minutes or so. I found conflicting recipes. One said to soak them in ice water. Another advised soaking in hot water. I happened to read the ice water recipe first, so that’s the one I followed.

I thawed a pack of chicken thighs while the potatoes were soaking. The chicken went on the grill outside. Then I dried the fries, mushed them around in a tablespoon or so of oil, added salt and pepper, and spread them in the large air fryer tray that came with the range. It was large enough to handle the full pound of potatoes, no need to cook in batches. And, according to the instructions, no need to preheat the oven. So I chose the air fry mode, set the temperature to 450 degrees, and in went the potatoes.

Somewhere around 25 minutes later, the chicken thighs were done, and the potatoes were ready.

Well, these were not crispy, crunchy fries. I’m not sure if cooking them differently would add a bit of crispiness on the outside. Further experimenting is in order, perhaps with even less oil, or a bit more time. But these were nicely browned on the outside, and were soft inside and potentially addictive.

Now I’m looking forward to further experiments in air frying. Suggestions?

The photo shows the fries on a glass plate. No worries, they weren’t cooked like that. I moved them from the air fryer tray while bringing the chicken in from the grill.

Our Thanksgiving turned out fine

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No turkey here.

In it’s place, a pair of Cornish game hens from our local Times Supermarket, thawed, butterflied, marinated in fresh lemon from a tree in our front yard, olive oil, garlic, dried rosemary, salt and pepper. When the grill was hot, two red potatoes went on first, rubbed with olive oil and salt, along with two beautiful apple bananas from the yard of friends in Kaaawa. The bananas were in foil, the potatoes on baking rods for uniform cooking. Then the game hens went on the grill for about 25 minutes.

The result was a feast, although we split one of the game hens and have the other for a second meal. Butter available for the potato and banana, canned cranberry sauce, leftover stuffing from an earlier night, along with leftover wine that proved to be insufficient and another bottle was required.

No extra charge for the cat. That’s Ms. Kiko, hoping for a feline friendly Thanksgiving.

Foods in 19th Century Hawaii: Waialua, Oahu, July 1832

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Here is another interesting excerpt, this from “Pioneer Days in Hawaii,” by Oliver Pomeroy Emerson (1928).

It is an account drawn from the journals kept by Emerson’s parents.

This post is from notes typed by my mother back around 1968-69 to assist the nutrition research of Carey D. Miller, who had retired from the University of Hawaii a decade before. The book is now considered in the public domain, and the link above is to a version available for free reading.

Emerson’s parent arrived in Honolulu as missionaries on May, 1832, and soon moved to Waialua, on Oahu’s North Shore.

I apologize in advance for my mother’s typos as she copied this section.

Hint: Click on the image to read a larger version.