This has been a sneak peek of Ms. Andrea Blaser's new 2008 Impreza 2.5i Wagon.
Friday, February 29, 2008
FEE Exclusive: 2008 Impreza AB Edition
This has been a sneak peek of Ms. Andrea Blaser's new 2008 Impreza 2.5i Wagon.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Oh Yeah...
I'm working as a blogger/content provider for The Truth About Cars... and yeah, I got the job from my daddy. You can check out my posts in the "News" section every day of the week, and I'll be trying to get editorials published on a regular basis. My first editorial appears here, and is part of TTAC's ongoing "Deathwatch" series covering the decline of the American auto industry. My piece discusses two-mode hybrid technology, and it's role in the profound unprofitability of General Motors. I hope to make energy-efficiency and globalization the focus of my editorials, but I'll be writing about all kinds of car-related nonsense for the foreseeable future. Just remember next time you are getting ready to head off to your office or place of employment... somewhere in Portland, Ted Niedermeyer is getting paid to hang out in his pajamas. New Media in the hizzy!
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Monday, February 11, 2008
Word To Your Daddy
It's possible that a few of you may have wondered why "The Truth About Cars" link shows up in my blogroll. It's not just because I like to read about cars from time to time (although I do), and it's not just because TTAC is basically the best place to get car reviews and editorials on the web (although it is). No, the real reason is because my dad writes there...
Anyway, I was just over there reading the latest wheezings from the saurian Brock Yates, when I noticed that my old man actually has his own category over there which includes his epic 27-part "auto-biography" series along with various other automobile-related musings. Anyway, check it out... the guy can write, and if you are at all interested in the auto industry, new cars, old cars or epic debates about the relative merits of Fox-body Fords TTAC is the place for you.
Anyway, I was just over there reading the latest wheezings from the saurian Brock Yates, when I noticed that my old man actually has his own category over there which includes his epic 27-part "auto-biography" series along with various other automobile-related musings. Anyway, check it out... the guy can write, and if you are at all interested in the auto industry, new cars, old cars or epic debates about the relative merits of Fox-body Fords TTAC is the place for you.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
One for the "it's funny to me" file...
Being new to Portland (not to mention incurably immature) and all, I got all giggly when my pronunciation of "Couch Street" was corrected by a housemate. Apparently it's the oldest Portland joke in the book, but the street is pronounced like the female genitalia, not the furniture item. As if that weren't hilarious enough, the damn street was named after John H Couch, better known as Captain Couch.
OK, for those of you who aren't rolling in the aisles that's pronounced "Captain Cooch."
Got it now? Good. Now check out Captaincouch.com and don't say I never did anything for you.
OK, for those of you who aren't rolling in the aisles that's pronounced "Captain Cooch."
Got it now? Good. Now check out Captaincouch.com and don't say I never did anything for you.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Happy Year of the Rat!
It's Chinese New Years today, and since the awesome local asian grocery is closed and I can't get the ingredients to whip up some Chinese food, I thought I'd post a recipe I've been working on.
For the sake of clarity, I'll call it Kung Pao Chicken, but its inspiration lies in "chicken in chili sauce," a bastardization of the Sichuan "Gong Bao Ji Ding" dish which is pretty ubiquitous in small Beijing restaurants. It's sweeter than anything that comes close to authentic Sichuan, but unless you're begging for a tastebud beatdown that will leave your eyes and nose flowing free that's no bad thing. I've tried to get the recipe as close to as I remember the dish in Beijing, but I tend to add more veggies than it usually came with.
Please note that all ingredient amounts are very approximate. There are lots of dash's of this and "to taste's" of that. Sorry, that's just how I roll.
Niedermeyer's Famous Kung Pao Chicken
Chop as much chicken as you want to make into small chunks. I don't have a huge wok or a gas range, so I typically do 2/3 breasts and I've found that small chunks work better than thin strips in this recipe. Most recipes tell you to marinate the chicken in a cornstarch/water mixture, but I never do with this recipe. Since this is the "prep" stage, chop up any of the following that you have around:
*Green Onions- chopped fine- minimum two, maximum ten. Look for the giant ones at your local asian market and use them in big chunks.
*Fresh Ginger- chopped fine- just a tiny chunk at most (the size of a bottle cap). Don't let it overpower the dish, and don't bother with the powder stuff.
*Garlic- chopped fine- a clove or two (one teaspoon?)
*Yellow/Red Onion- quartered- you can throw in a whole one or leave it out.
*Bell Pepper- chunked any size you like- best with one red, one yellow if you feel like getting extravagant.
*Bamboo shoots- chopped and rinsed well
*You can add any other veggies you want, but then you're on your own. Punk.
Here's what else you need.
*Dried Chinese Red Peppers
*Sichuan Peppercorns - These can be hard to find, because their importation was banned until '05, but you can find them at good asian markets. Mine came in an unmarked bag, and I had to dig around to find them. They are totally necessary for this dish though and if you like to cook they are a fun flavor to play with.
*Chili Bean Sauce. I use this brand.
*Hoisin Sauce.
*Chinese 5-Spice. Just a tiny bit, and even that isn't 100% necesssary.
*Oil. I use canola, but peanut is a little more authentic I think.
*Sugar.
*Chinese cooking wine.
First, find your wok and wok this way (wok-a wok-a). Ok, sorry... that was wiggity-wok. Damn!
Throw a few teaspoons of oil in there. Enough to cook the chicken quickly, but not deep-fry it. Turn your heat up and throw in 2-12 dried peppers and 1-3 teaspoon of peppercorns and let them fry until they sizzle, then take them out and set them aside.
Make sure the oil is really hot, then throw the chicken in. Cook it hot, cook it fast.
When the chicken is done, get rid of excess oil in the wok. You want about a tablespoon left.
Throw in garlic, ginger, onion, green onion (leave some for garnish!) a teaspoon or so of chili bean sauce, and a dash of cooking wine and stir fry with the chicken.
Add a bunch more Chili Bean sauce, the fried dried chilis and about a teaspoon of Hoisin. Throw in enough sugar to just take the salty edge off the the Chili Bean flavor. This obviously depends on how much Chili Bean sauce you use, but a tablespoon or two should do it. I also throw in a tiny bit of ground peppercorn here, with a dash of 5-spice, but be careful as they can easily overpower.
Throw in the rest of your veggies and stir fry until done.
Serve with rice. Gong Hay Fat Choy!
For the sake of clarity, I'll call it Kung Pao Chicken, but its inspiration lies in "chicken in chili sauce," a bastardization of the Sichuan "Gong Bao Ji Ding" dish which is pretty ubiquitous in small Beijing restaurants. It's sweeter than anything that comes close to authentic Sichuan, but unless you're begging for a tastebud beatdown that will leave your eyes and nose flowing free that's no bad thing. I've tried to get the recipe as close to as I remember the dish in Beijing, but I tend to add more veggies than it usually came with.
Please note that all ingredient amounts are very approximate. There are lots of dash's of this and "to taste's" of that. Sorry, that's just how I roll.
Niedermeyer's Famous Kung Pao Chicken
Chop as much chicken as you want to make into small chunks. I don't have a huge wok or a gas range, so I typically do 2/3 breasts and I've found that small chunks work better than thin strips in this recipe. Most recipes tell you to marinate the chicken in a cornstarch/water mixture, but I never do with this recipe. Since this is the "prep" stage, chop up any of the following that you have around:
*Green Onions- chopped fine- minimum two, maximum ten. Look for the giant ones at your local asian market and use them in big chunks.
*Fresh Ginger- chopped fine- just a tiny chunk at most (the size of a bottle cap). Don't let it overpower the dish, and don't bother with the powder stuff.
*Garlic- chopped fine- a clove or two (one teaspoon?)
*Yellow/Red Onion- quartered- you can throw in a whole one or leave it out.
*Bell Pepper- chunked any size you like- best with one red, one yellow if you feel like getting extravagant.
*Bamboo shoots- chopped and rinsed well
*You can add any other veggies you want, but then you're on your own. Punk.
Here's what else you need.
*Dried Chinese Red Peppers
*Sichuan Peppercorns - These can be hard to find, because their importation was banned until '05, but you can find them at good asian markets. Mine came in an unmarked bag, and I had to dig around to find them. They are totally necessary for this dish though and if you like to cook they are a fun flavor to play with.
*Chili Bean Sauce. I use this brand.
*Hoisin Sauce.
*Chinese 5-Spice. Just a tiny bit, and even that isn't 100% necesssary.
*Oil. I use canola, but peanut is a little more authentic I think.
*Sugar.
*Chinese cooking wine.
First, find your wok and wok this way (wok-a wok-a). Ok, sorry... that was wiggity-wok. Damn!
Throw a few teaspoons of oil in there. Enough to cook the chicken quickly, but not deep-fry it. Turn your heat up and throw in 2-12 dried peppers and 1-3 teaspoon of peppercorns and let them fry until they sizzle, then take them out and set them aside.
Make sure the oil is really hot, then throw the chicken in. Cook it hot, cook it fast.
When the chicken is done, get rid of excess oil in the wok. You want about a tablespoon left.
Throw in garlic, ginger, onion, green onion (leave some for garnish!) a teaspoon or so of chili bean sauce, and a dash of cooking wine and stir fry with the chicken.
Add a bunch more Chili Bean sauce, the fried dried chilis and about a teaspoon of Hoisin. Throw in enough sugar to just take the salty edge off the the Chili Bean flavor. This obviously depends on how much Chili Bean sauce you use, but a tablespoon or two should do it. I also throw in a tiny bit of ground peppercorn here, with a dash of 5-spice, but be careful as they can easily overpower.
Throw in the rest of your veggies and stir fry until done.
Serve with rice. Gong Hay Fat Choy!
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Because I just can't get enough awkward...
Via Hit 'n Run: Harry Schearer (a.k.a. Principal Skinner) has some fun with raw footage of Clinton and Romney, by creating the first ever silent debate. How can something so right be so damn uncomfortable?
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