Category: food

What’s the difference between “lunch” and “luncheon”?

February 13, 2026 • 11:00 am

I have been wondering about the question above for a while, as I’ve read quite a few novels lately that use the word “luncheon”, with seemingly no distinction between that word and “lunch”.  I was too lazy to look it up, but, typing it in the search box, I found this short (1.5-minute) YouTube explanation below:

The Oxford English Dictionary agrees (the first meaning is “A large chunk of something, esp. bread, cheese, or some other food; a thick slice, a hunk; = lunch“).  The relevant entry:

There you go. But I still would like to be able to invite a friend to a restaurant for an informal luncheon.  That’s not correct, but it’s fun to say. And, at any rate, I don’t think I’ve heard anyone say “luncheon” lately, even referring to a formal meal. And in fiction it’s used incorrectly all the time.

Two old ladies hunt deadly sea snakes

January 25, 2026 • 11:30 am

We’re not going to have a political discussion today, which can apparently lead to a website version of a fractious Thanksgiving dinner involving a family with sharply different political views. Instead, marvel here at the courage of two aged Japanese ladies, whose job is to catch deadly sea snakes—to make soup. It’s shown in the four-minute BBC video below.

Now all banded sea snakes are highly toxic, and are the kraits (genus Bungarus). Although bitten victims can be treated with antivenom, mortality from some species can be as high as 80% in untreated victims (age of victim and time until treatment begins are crucial). The venoms are neurotoxic and the symptoms are dire.

The snakes being hunted in this video, are probably the black-banded sea krait (Laticauda semifasciata), and they’re caught for food. From Wikipedia:

Black-banded sea krait venom is reportedly ten times stronger than that of a cobra; however, as with the vast majority of venomous snake species, the black-banded sea krait generally does not aggressively strike at humans unless it is cornered or threatened (or otherwise maliciously provoked), preferring to conserve its energy and venom supplies for hunting purposes, reacting defensively only as a very last resort.

Despite its potent venom, which is concentrated in the snake’s venom glands (behind the eyes), the meat of the erabu snake is a winter staple food in southern Japan, where it is believed to replenish a female’s womanhood or increase fertility. Irabu soup, or irabu-jiru (ja:イラブー汁), is said to taste like miso and a bit like tuna. This dish was a favorite of the royal court of the Ryukyu Kingdom; it is thought to have analeptic properties.

During certain warm years, the sea snakes are drawn en masse to the sea caves and tide pools of the coastal Ryukyu cliffs, in search of fresh water to drink and possibly to mate. It is in these cryptic spots where, by cover of darkness (and usually guided only by lantern light), elderly women—who are the most experienced at preparing irabu-jiru—explore the dangerous caverns in pursuit of black-banded sea kraits, which the ladies catch with their bare hands. Some areas may contain hundreds of the snakes, some engaged in active breeding balls, yet the women hike through the caves barefoot or with minimal protective gear. As with the handling of any venomous snake species, the sea snakes are grabbed quickly behind the head, as to avoid any potential envenomation. They are placed in a cloth bag, alive, and later quickly dispatched and prepared in a simple broth with kombu or other edible kelp, and possibly a bit of pork.

Look how they handle these snakes! Bare-handed, and no real protection.  Would you do this?

The world’s three best cuisines

December 29, 2025 • 12:35 pm

In light of the absence of news as well as my recurring insomnia, which has made me unable to brain, I’m posting a list of what I consider the three best cuisines in the world.  What I mean by this is that if I were constrained to eat only one nation’s cuisine for the rest of my life, these are the three I’d choose among.

Now I have experience with all of these on their home turf (and I’m also a decent Szechuan cook), so I know I’d be happy with them. One notable omission is Italian, although it’s only because I’m not familiar with the cuisine and have been to Italy only a handful of times. I suspect if I knew it better, that would be on the list.  Here we go, and in no particular order:

French (all regions)
Indian (all regions, particularly the north where wheat and meat dominate over rice and vegetables, but I would never neglect the great food of southern India as well).
Chinese (again, all regions, though Hunanese and Szechuan are my favorites)

I’ll add that I am not looking for haute cuisine, particularly in France. The dishes that regular people eat are the dishes I want.

Sadly, I see Jewish food as constituting a mediocre cuisine. Yes, some Jewish food is great—latkes, pastrami, and (if you consider it Jewish) cheesecake—but you can’t eat just that for the rest of your life.

Of course you should weigh in below. And remember, this is a purely subjective list, but it is based on considerable experience.

A specimen of French food: a cassoulet:

BrokenSphere, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Indian: A biryani, Hyderabad style

Mahi Tatavarty, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

And mapo dofu, one of the glories of Szechuan cuisine (I ate it at the place in Chengdu where it was said to have been created):

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license

Pie Day!

November 2, 2025 • 12:30 pm

No, yesterday wasn’t the “official” Pi Day (March 14), but slap an “e” on the end and you have something better: Hyde Park’s annual “South Side Pie Challenge.”  Entrants submit two copies of what they think is their best pie, and judges taste them all in the morning. (I want to know how I get to be a judge!)  After the morning’s appraisal and awarding of distinctions to bakers, the pies are put out on a big table, with the public let in to buy slices.

There were well over a hundred pies on tap, with two copies of each. The winners were labeled, so if you wanted you could choose only those (it’s $5 a slice, with the profits going to hunger program charities).  But my tastes were also conditioned by the look of the pies, and I anted up $20 for four slices. I brought a container to carry them back to the office, intending to consume one on the spot and then one for breakfast over the next three days. I have always maintained that pie is one of the best breakfast foods available in America.

And here’s what you’re confronted with when you go into the school where the pies were set out:

The tables are divided up by type of pie (“nut pies”, “fruit pies”, “cream pies,” “pumpkin and squash pies”, etc.) What largesse! Below are nut pies (each one said “contains nuts” on the label):

This year meringue pies were not allowed, probably because they contain uncooked egg white. What a pity. . .

The first slice I ate, when I got back to the lab, was this beauty. I thought it was chocolate cream pie, but the thick layer of thick, luscious chocolate on top hid a layer of real pistachio cream below. The crust was fancy and full of butter (as a crust should be), and I have to say that this was among the best pies I’ve ever eaten. You can see the pistachio at about 11 o’clock below. The crust was a dessert in itself.

This morning I had a slice of blueberry pie, which is perfect for a morning pie as it wasn’t too sweet. It was of course washed down with my customary latte. It too was fantastic:

I have two slices left: a coffee cream pie and a Key lime pie (I hope they used real Key limes).  I was one of the first in the door, as I wanted the best selection (pies have only a finite number of slices). After I grabbed my four choices, I scuttled away with my prize, and by that time the line was out the door.

A visit to Christina’s for ice cream

September 30, 2025 • 10:30 am

It is a tradition that when I visit my friends in Cambridge, we all go to Christina’s Homemade Ice Cream, which, in my view, is the best place in America to get the stuff. Not only is it truly homemade on the premises, but it’s fantastic and creamy AND comes in a gazillion flavors. They had 45 flavors of ice cream yesterday and additional flavors of sorbet.

When you see the selection below, you’ll see the difficulty of choosing a flavor.  This time I had a lot of trouble, as they had my favorite flavor (burnt sugar, which is ethereal) but there was so much more!

Some photos:

The entrance, same as in years past:

A panorama of the inside (click to enlarge), which also never changes. (There is only one store.) Betsy can be seen eating at the left side, while the ice cream selection is on the striped board to the right:

Below: the Big Board (click to read)!  There were 45 flavors yesterday. Some of the ones I considered ordering included mango, burnt sugar (the best!), sweet cream (yes, that’s what you taste), ginger, ginger molasses, chocolate lavender, chocolate banana, malted vanilla, banana cinnamon, dulce de leche, chocolate Chinese five spice, and orange pineapple. In truth, I would want them all!

Please put in the comments which ones you’d order (maximum three flavors). You can have them in either a cone or a dish, but cones are drippy and it was hot yesterday. Plus my theory is that you get more if you get it in a dish.

Tim always gets the same thing: mint chocolate chip, and I always razz him about it.  And he gets only one scoop, even when I’m paying!

BORING!

Betsy got two scoops of salted caramel; I consider it a great shame not get only one flavor if you get two scoops, but at least it was an excellent choice of flavor:

My haul: three scoops. From nine o’clock clockwise: sorghum ginger snap, green tea, and adzuki bean.  The sorghum ginger snap was just as you might expect: a superb Indian Pudding of ice cream. And when I get green tea, I always get adzuki bean, as it makes a nice Japanese combination of flavors.  They were all terrific, though I much mourned the absence of burnt sugar. If you go to Cambridge, you must go to Christina’s and get that flavor, which they always have.

Me and my haul.  I’m a happy complacent man! (For a lugubrious Jew, complacency is the highest state of being.)

When you go to Christina’s and order burnt sugar ice cream, tell them that Jerry sent you. They’ll have no idea what you’re talking about.

To the Arctic, part 6: Ice day

September 20, 2025 • 9:45 am

On this day the captain and expedition leader decided, since we were in the area, that they’d take the ship as far north as it would go before encountering the Arctic sea ice that would prevent further progress. (The Ultramarine is a polar ship, but it can’t plow through thick sea ice).  We made for point #5 below where the ice stopped us. (This map was provided by the ship.)

The view from my cabin window when I woke up.

We’re approaching our northern limit.

As we headed north, I had a hearty breakfast in the main dining room.  Look at all that food (it’s buffet style, of course). I often had a made-to-order omelet, as I almost never eat breakfast, much less eggs, when I’m at home. I avoided the “Healthy Corner” except from fruit juice.

As we got closer to the edge, passengers went out on deck to watch our approach:

Ice everywhere (click to enlarge the panorama). And yes, it was that blue:

About as far north as we can go:


Floating sea ice, broken off the shelf, was everywhere:

Meanwhile, the bridge was active as the ship needed to stop dead before it hit the ice. Second from right is the captain.

Sarah, the expedition leader, is facing me. She was always upbeat: a great leader:

As we headed north, the ship stopped because a polar bear (Ursus maritimus) was sighted off the starboard bow. And, sure enough, there was one, and it was eating the carcass of what we were told was a sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus). Who knows how that whale got onto the ice floe, but it was surely a bonanza for the bear, which was feasting on the best part: the whale’s blubber.

I had my Panasonic Lumix point-and-shoot camera cranked out to the highest magnification (30X) and the boat was rocking, so this is the best I could do. Still, it was a fantastic sight: my first polar bear sighting and my first sperm whale sighting (if that’s what the whale was). This, to me, was the highlight of the trip. What you see is the world’s largest living land predator eating the world’s largest living marine predator!

I took a lot of photos. In reality, the photos are better than what I could see because they’re zoomed it. I was kneeling on the deck propping my camera on a rail:

Elsie Holzworth, a neighbor, touched up the photo above using computer magic:

 

There were plenty of birds around hoping for a nosh:

The bear walked away for a while, but then returned. I suspect he wasn’t going to go far lest another bear find the carcass. It was a fantastic sight.

We still weren’t as far north as we could go, so I went to look at our position in the lounge, and then had lunch in the informal spot. At this point we were at 81°53.89′ N, not quite as far as we’d get (red rectangle is mine):

After a big breakfast and no hikes onshore, I had a light lunch: a bagel on which I put the equivalent of lox. Some salad for the requisite greens. And, of course, several desserts, one of which—rice pudding with cherry sauce—was fantastic:

Too many to eat them all!

I had a large portion of rice pudding, as it wasn’t a normal dessert onboard:

And then we stopped, as far north as we could go. I was the first person on the bow, so I got to hold the sign and have my photo taken:

82 degrees north latitude!  This was the farthest north the ship had ever been, the crew and captain had ever been, and of course the passengers had ever been.  An AI question says that at this point we were about 332 miles (534 km) from the North Pole.

There were celebrations with champagne, and some of the naturalists dressed up as Arctic animals:

We then turned around and headed south (see map at top). Little did I know that the next day was going to be absolutely spectacular, seeing hundreds of thousands of seabirds nesting on a precipitous cliff, and watching from Zodiacs below. That will be in the next installment.

Do not do what I did

September 2, 2025 • 7:40 am

A few weeks ago I bought this “ice cream”—at least I thought it was ice cream—because it was on sale. (Now that I’ve discovered the fabulous Tilamook ice cream, I don’t think I’ll be buying any other brand, though I do recommend Trader Joe’s Super Premium Ultra Chocolate Ice Cream, which is not that expensive). I had a look at it this morning in the lab freezer (I put it there because it was too hot to carry this home), and, sure enough, it wasn’t ice cream. Look at what I’ve circled:

What is the difference? Mental Floss tells us:

Food labels aren’t filled out on a whim. They’re the product of standards and guidelines issued and overseen by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is charged with making sure we have at least some idea of what we’re consuming. (The FDA’s roots are in the government asking volunteers to eat small amounts of poison, but that’s another story.) For ice cream, the FDA has a mathematical formula. Products bearing that label must contain at least 10 percent dairy fat and must also weigh 4.5 pounds to the gallon. The latter is important because no ice cream can have more than 100 percent overrun, or the amount of air equal to solids. In broad terms, the FDA wants to make sure anyone selling you ice cream is selling you sufficient dairy milk fat and not a carton full of air.

If a product flunks on both these counts, it can be sold—but manufacturers can’t call it “ice cream.” It’s now a frozen dairy dessert. Thanks to more air and less milk fat, it’s likely cheaper to produce.

. . . Perry’s ice cream makes a point of boasting of their true ice cream status and also points out some variations within that definition. Some ice cream might be labeled “economy,” which meets the bare minimum standards. “Regular” ice cream falls below 100 percent overrun while adding a bit more milkfat. “Premium” ice cream might have as little as 60 percent overrun. “Super-premium” is as low as 50 percent, with milk fats as high as 18 percent.

Other companies may offer both. Breyers, for example, offers ice cream and frozen dairy desserts, a distinction that may not be apparent unless consumers examine the packaging carefully.

Because I wasn’t paying attention, I bought myself a carton of what is largely air. Do not make this mistake: examine labels carefully. Breyer’s Ice Cream, once my favorite, now has a lot of flavors that are actually “frozen dairy desserts.”  Caveat emptor.

And, of course, real ice cream used to come in half-gallon cartons. They’ve reduced that by 25%, and now you’re buying 1.5 quarts, or, in the case above, 1.44 quarts. They’ve chiseled us down another 0.06 quarts.  Since nobody looks at this stuff, we become victims of greed (one might even say “duplicity”).