Blog
What is galangal?
At HIP we recently made a yellow Thai curry. The base is a curry paste which includes garlic, lemongrass, salt, shallot, galangal, dried red chili, coriander seed, kefir lime peel, curry powder, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, cardamom, and nutmeg. While most of these...
Diced tomatoes: did you know?
Did you know that canned, diced tomatoes are treated so they actually hold their shape longer? I know this might seem obvious, but diced tomatoes aren't just....well...diced tomatoes. They're actually diced tomatoes with calcium chloride and citric acid added to them...
Guest Essay: The Problems With Not Offering Free Meals for All Students in Public Schools
By Kendall Rice Last school year, students in the Seattle Public School District received free meals from waivers issued by the USDA. Last summer, the waivers were removed, and now students must meet requirements to receive free and reduced-price meals. Being a...
Volunteer Spotlight: Meet Carlos
It’s time for another volunteer spotlight, and this month we’re featuring prep volunteer Carlos. Carlos has been volunteering in HIP’s kitchen regularly since July 2022, and he came to HIP in search of a way to do tangible work that helps his community. Carlos...
What are dangmyeon?
Taking a deep dive in the Korean pantry, today we'll discuss dangmyeon. These translucent noodles are at the center of japchae, a dish that also features stir fried vegetables and strong notes of garlic and sesame. This is something I always keep in my back pocket as...
Onion. Celery. Green bell pepper.
This "Holy Trinity" is the mirepoix of Louisiana Cajun and Creole cooking. So how did we get here? The French settlers of the region came with their mirepoix of carrot, onion and celery. Chances are, while both the carrot and bell pepper were capable of being grown in...
What is a marionberry?
This last weekend I was driving to Montana for a hockey tournament when I saw a sign on the side of the road for "the best marionberry milkshake." While I didn't stop and try it, the sign grabbed my attention and made me dig a little deeper into what a marionberry is....
Who is the Alfredo in Alfredo sauce?
Lifting the cloche on another piece of food history, this week we discuss the origins of Alfredo sauce. At first glance this sauce may beg the question, "is this sauce even Italian?" Noodles with butter and cheese? Sure, but it's a far cry from the ubiquitous...
What is ham? Is it pork?
We're going back to our butchery class to answer the question, what is ham? I can tell you that growing up, a lot of the families I knew would have ham on Easter, and I can also tell you that most would have ham without knowing the reasoning behind it. Ham is pork...
A roux? A slurry? Beurre Manie?
How and why would you use these to thicken a soup, sauce, or stew? I still have nightmares thinking about calling 30 seconds out from a meal being delivered to the pass and knowing my sauce would never thicken to the right consistency in time. A good...
