Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
spendier than I thought they would be!

On Tue, 20 Sep 2011 12:05:02 -0700 (PDT), merryb >
wrote:

>Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>spendier than I thought they would be!

Are crab rangoons authentic or are they Americanised?

Lou

merryb > wrote:
> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure whether it
is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in Asian populations.

On Sep 20, 12:09*pm, Lou Decruss > wrote:
> On Tue, 20 Sep 2011 12:05:02 -0700 (PDT), merryb >
> wrote:
>
> >Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> >local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> >closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> >saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> >about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> >of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> >spendier than I thought they would be!
>
> Are crab rangoons authentic or are they Americanised?
>
> Lou

Wikipedia says they were first served at Trader Vic's, but originated
from a Burmese recipe.

"merryb" > wrote in message
...
> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

Many Asians see cheese as moldy milk. Their loss.


W. Pooh (AKA Winnie P.)

"Christopher M." > wrote:
> "merryb" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>
> Many Asians see cheese as moldy milk. Their loss.
>
>
> W. Pooh (AKA Winnie P.)

Where the cow has not been off-limits as a sacred object (India, for
example), it has traditionally been too resource-expensive a food source in
Asian cuisines. There is a reason why the soy bean has sometimes been
referred to as "the cow of Asia".

On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
canned milk is still used till this.

On 9/20/2011 3:09 PM, Lou Decruss wrote:
> On Tue, 20 Sep 2011 12:05:02 -0700 (PDT), >
> wrote:
>
>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>
> Are crab rangoons authentic or are they Americanised?
>
> Lou

They are American Chinese.

On 9/20/2011 3:25 PM, Hackmatack wrote:
> "Christopher > wrote:
>> > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>>
>> Many Asians see cheese as moldy milk. Their loss.
>>
>>
>> W. Pooh (AKA Winnie P.)
>
> Where the cow has not been off-limits as a sacred object (India, for
> example), it has traditionally been too resource-expensive a food source in
> Asian cuisines. There is a reason why the soy bean has sometimes been
> referred to as "the cow of Asia".

And the much more common ducks and pigs are smaller and easier to raise
and manage.

On Sep 20, 12:11*pm, Hackmatack > wrote:
>
> Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure whether it
> is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in Asian populations.

Seems like nobody wants t accept that what you state is correct.
However, cheese is used in India. I don't know if it is the type of
cheese of if they don't have the intolerance.

http//www.richardfisher.com

In article
>,
merryb > wrote:

> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

Most Asian people are lactose intolerant.

Miche

--
Electricians do it in three phases

Helpful person > wrote:
> On Sep 20, 12:11 pm, Hackmatack > wrote:
>>
>> Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure whether it
>> is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in Asian populations.
>
> Seems like nobody wants t accept that what you state is correct.
> However, cheese is used in India. I don't know if it is the type of
> cheese of if they don't have the intolerance.
>
> http//www.richardfisher.com

I've run across some studies that suggest that lactose intolerance is
decreasing as Asians adopt a more dairy-intensive Western diet,
particularly in China. Also, that Asian immigrants to the West tend to
adapt to dairy products over time (even non-dairy processed foods often
contain significant levels of milk by-products.) Not sure what, if
anything, this proves...

On 9/20/2011 9:05 AM, merryb wrote:
> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

That's just as well since the majority of Asians aren't very good at
digesting milk and milk products. The Mongolians OTOH, have no problem
with lactose and will probably have cheeses and yoghurts of their own.
As the Asian diet gets more Westernized, we'll see them eating more milk
products and having stomach problems because of it. I guess it's the
West's revenge for MSG. :-)

On 9/20/2011 9:25 AM, George wrote:
> On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>
> Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
> Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
> coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
> canned milk is still used till this.

I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
milk. I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.

merryb > wrote:

> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

That must have been a South-East Asian market. The rate of lactose
intolerance in South East Asia is higher than anywhere else in the world
and consequently no dairy food culture developed. Elsewhere in Asia
dairy products have always been widely produced and consumed.

Victor

On Tue, 20 Sep 2011 15:02:58 -0500, Sqwertz >
wrote:


>My best chicken tenders ever - using 1/2 part parmesan cheese (and
>AFTER I remembered I needed to put baking soda/powder in the batter).
>
>http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images...armesanba.jpg/

That looks delicious.

Lou

In article
>,
merryb > wrote:

> As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactose_intolerance

"Lactose intolerance, also called lactase deficiency[1], is the
inability to digest and metabolize lactose, a sugar found in milk. It is
caused by a lack of the enzyme lactase in the digestive system, required
to break down lactose. It results in symptoms including abdominal pain,
bloating, flatulence, diarrhea, nausea, and acid reflux.

Most mammals normally become lactose intolerant when they are young;
however, some human populations have developed lactase persistence,
where lactase production continues into adulthood. It is estimated that
75% of adults worldwide show some decrease in lactase activity during
adulthood.[2] The frequency of decreased lactase activity ranges from as
little as 5% in northern Europe, up to 71% for Sicily, to more than 90%
in some African and Asian countries."

So basically, many Asians don't consume dairy because it makes them sick.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

On Sep 20, 2:05*pm, merryb > wrote:
> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> spendier than I thought they would be!

I read somewhere that many asians are lactose intolerant.

Helpful person wrote:
> Hackmatack > wrote:
>>
>> Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure whether it
>> is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in Asian populations.
>
> Seems like nobody wants t accept that what you state is correct.

The problem is "Asia" can mean anything from the Latin word for what is
now Turkie through Yatkusk. If you go by national population it works
better. If you go by ethnic group it works better still.

In some ethnic populations the lactose tolerance gene is common and
becoming more so. In these populations dairy use is more common. So
Europe and their colony populations, India, other regions like Mongolia.

Lactose intolerance is common in Southeast Asia among the several ethnic
groups there. So cheese is rare in Vietnamese, Thai or Cambodian
recipes.

> However, cheese is used in India. I don't know if it is the type of
> cheese of if they don't have the intolerance.

In India the dairy is mostly yogurt based according to friends from
several regions on the subcontinent. One reason for making yogurt is
the culturing bacteria converts the lactose sugar to lactic acid. The
lactic acid is easily absorbed in digestion. It makes the intolerance
less relavent.

I think it's a bit of a chicken and egg situation with dairy and
culture. In a culture with high rates of lactose intolerance there is
not enough interest in dairy to bother making cheese. They grow their
cattle for meat and burden not for dairy. In a culture with high rates
of lactose tolerance there is enough interest in dairy to bother making
cheese. And then folks notice that some get indigestion from milk but
much fewer get intolerance issues with cheese. That's my theory.

On 9/20/2011 10:56 AM, Dan Abel wrote:
> In article
> >,
> > wrote:
>
>> As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>> of cooking- true or not?
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactose_intolerance
>
> "Lactose intolerance, also called lactase deficiency[1], is the
> inability to digest and metabolize lactose, a sugar found in milk. It is
> caused by a lack of the enzyme lactase in the digestive system, required
> to break down lactose. It results in symptoms including abdominal pain,
> bloating, flatulence, diarrhea, nausea, and acid reflux.
>
> Most mammals normally become lactose intolerant when they are young;
> however, some human populations have developed lactase persistence,
> where lactase production continues into adulthood. It is estimated that
> 75% of adults worldwide show some decrease in lactase activity during
> adulthood.[2] The frequency of decreased lactase activity ranges from as
> little as 5% in northern Europe, up to 71% for Sicily, to more than 90%
> in some African and Asian countries."
>
> So basically, many Asians don't consume dairy because it makes them sick.
>

You are correct about this. OTOH, I'm pretty sure that I can get the
ability to digest lactose by maintaining a colony of bacteria that
thrives on lactose in my guts. This would be done by eating a live
culture milk product to start the colony and then regularly drinking a
little milk every few hours to feed the little buggers. There's not much
point in doing this but it can be done - I think.

In article
>,
Ranée at Arabian Knits > wrote:

> In article
> >,
> Miche > wrote:
>
> > Most Asian people are lactose intolerant.
>
> Really? The entire continent of Asia? I understand that people in
> the Far East often have this problem, but tell that to my people, the
> people of India, the Persians, the Russians, all the -stans in Asia, the
> Mongols who drank goat's and yak's milk, Nepalese, Sri Lankans, etc.

Yup, I overgeneralised. My bad.

Miche

--
Electricians do it in three phases

In article >,
dsi1 > wrote:

> On 9/20/2011 9:25 AM, George wrote:
> > On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
> >> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> >> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> >> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> >> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> >> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> >> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> >> spendier than I thought they would be!
> >
> > Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
> > Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
> > coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
> > canned milk is still used till this.
>
> I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
> milk. I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
> also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
> way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
> maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.

I looooove Vietnamese coffee and my Vietnamese coffee maker. Mmmm.

Miche

--
Electricians do it in three phases

dsi1 > wrote:

>On 9/20/2011 9:25 AM, George wrote:
>> On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
>>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>>
>> Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
>> Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
>> coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
>> canned milk is still used till this.
>
>I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
>milk.
>I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
>also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
>way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
>maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.

Patience, grasshopper.

My favorite VN story is one that is told of how the Chinese invaded VN
& held it under their thumb just as the ?cherry? blossoms were
beginning to form on the trees. Before the blossoms fell to earth,
the Chinese had been repelled. In western years it was 300 years---
but those little guys don't have the same outlook on time as we do.

Jim

Helpful person wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> On Sep 20, 12:11*pm, Hackmatack > wrote:
> >
> > Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure
> > whether it is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in
> > Asian populations.
>
> Seems like nobody wants t accept that what you state is correct.
> However, cheese is used in India. I don't know if it is the type of
> cheese of if they don't have the intolerance.
>
> http//www.richardfisher.com

The lactose issues generally develop from China and east of that.
India and Mongolia do not share these issues. China is also split a
bit on it with areas of pretty close to european acceptance for lactose.

An interesting aspect of shopping in Sasebo Japan out in the local
stores, was I never saw milk cartons larger than 2 pint or cheese
larger than 4oz blocks.


--

dsi1 > wrote:
> On 9/20/2011 9:25 AM, George wrote:
>> On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
>>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>>
>> Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
>> Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
>> coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
>> canned milk is still used till this.
>
> I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
> milk. I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
> also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
> way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
> maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.

I can't stand sweetened condensed milk out of the can -- and I'm not
lactose intolerant! But the Cubans make a really sublime desert out of it
(dulce leche) by poaching unopened cans in hot water until the sugars
caramelize and the result turns into a lovely custardy chocolate brown.

dsi1 wrote:
>
> I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
> milk. I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
> also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
> way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
> maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.

I think the slow maker is how they can handle it. They brew so little
of it they just sip some and it isn't enough to get them sick.

On Sep 20, 12:50*pm, Hackmatack > wrote:
> Helpful person > wrote:
> > On Sep 20, 12:11 pm, Hackmatack > wrote:
>
> >> Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure whether it
> >> is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in Asian populations.
>
> > Seems like nobody wants t accept that what you state is correct.
> > However, cheese is used in India. *I don't know if it is the type of
> > cheese of if they don't have the intolerance.
>
> > http//www.richardfisher.com
>
> I've run across some studies that suggest that lactose intolerance is
> decreasing as Asians adopt a more dairy-intensive Western diet,
> particularly in China. Also, that Asian immigrants to the West tend to
> adapt to dairy products over time (even non-dairy processed foods often
> contain significant levels of milk by-products.) Not sure what, if
> anything, this proves...

Evolution? I guess that's not exactly what I mean. I would suppose
human's bodies adapt to the environment?

On Sep 20, 1:26*pm, (Victor Sack) wrote:
> merryb > wrote:
> > Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
> > local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
> > closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> > saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> > about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> > of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
> > spendier than I thought they would be!
>
> That must have been a South-East Asian market. *The rate of lactose
> intolerance in South East Asia is higher than anywhere else in the world
> and consequently no dairy food culture developed. *Elsewhere in Asia
> dairy products have always been widely produced and consumed.
>
> Victor

I believe the area is Korean & Vietnamese populated...The only dairy I
recall was in the American section. I recently returned from a trip to
Italy, and saw very little milk consumed, at least by kids. Plenty of
cheese of course, and lots of rather runny yogurt was available. I did
think it was strange to see milk (irradiated?) and eggs on the shelf
as oppossed to a cooler.

On Sep 20, 1:56*pm, Dan Abel > wrote:
> In article
> >,
>
> *merryb > wrote:
> > As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
> > saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
> > about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
> > of cooking- true or not?
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactose_intolerance
>
> "Lactose intolerance, also called lactase deficiency[1], is the
> inability to digest and metabolize lactose, a sugar found in milk. It is
> caused by a lack of the enzyme lactase in the digestive system, required
> to break down lactose. It results in symptoms including abdominal pain,
> bloating, flatulence, diarrhea, nausea, and acid reflux.
>
> Most mammals normally become lactose intolerant when they are young;
> however, some human populations have developed lactase persistence,
> where lactase production continues into adulthood. It is estimated that
> 75% of adults worldwide show some decrease in lactase activity during
> adulthood.[2] The frequency of decreased lactase activity ranges from as
> little as 5% in northern Europe, up to 71% for Sicily, to more than 90%
> in some African and Asian countries."
>
> So basically, many Asians don't consume dairy because it makes them sick.
>
> --
> Dan Abel
> Petaluma, California USA
>

The thought of drinking a glass of milk grosses me out, but have no
problem with cream, cheese, butter, etc...

On Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:58:26 -0500, "cshenk" > wrote:

>Helpful person wrote in rec.food.cooking:
>
>> On Sep 20, 12:11*pm, Hackmatack > wrote:
>> >
>> > Diary products are almost unknown in Asian cooking. I'm not sure
>> > whether it is cause or effect, but lactose intolerance is common in
>> > Asian populations.
>>
>> Seems like nobody wants t accept that what you state is correct.
>> However, cheese is used in India. I don't know if it is the type of
>> cheese of if they don't have the intolerance.
>>
>> http//www.richardfisher.com
>
>The lactose issues generally develop from China and east of that.
>India and Mongolia do not share these issues. China is also split a
>bit on it with areas of pretty close to european acceptance for lactose.
>
>An interesting aspect of shopping in Sasebo Japan out in the local
>stores, was I never saw milk cartons larger than 2 pint or cheese
>larger than 4oz blocks.

The store we do most of our shopping at has a large deli counter with
like 10+ people working it. I've never seen an Asian person there but
the produce and fish areas are loaded with them.

Lou

On 9/20/2011 11:40 AM, Miche wrote:
> In >,
> > wrote:
>
>> On 9/20/2011 9:25 AM, George wrote:
>>> On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
>>>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>>>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>>>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>>>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>>>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>>>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>>>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>>>
>>> Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
>>> Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
>>> coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
>>> canned milk is still used till this.
>>
>> I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
>> milk. I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
>> also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
>> way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
>> maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.
>
> I looooove Vietnamese coffee and my Vietnamese coffee maker. Mmmm.
>
> Miche
>

The Trung Nguyen coffee is pretty tasty stuff. It has heavy chocolate
notes and is smooth and doesn't have an unpleasant aftertaste. It's like
Kona but with a richer taste. I don't know how the heck they do it.

On 20/09/2011 7:41 PM, merryb wrote:

>
> The thought of drinking a glass of milk grosses me out, but have no
> problem with cream, cheese, butter, etc...

I have a little milk on hot and cold cereals. I have a little steamed
milk in my morning latte. I occasionally eat small amounts of cheese and
I have yogurt daily, usually with a Lactaid pill. I just can't imagine
drinking milk. If I were extremely thirsty and looked in the fridge and
there was nothing but milk, there would be nothing to drink.

On 9/20/2011 11:59 AM, Jim Elbrecht wrote:
> > wrote:
>
>> On 9/20/2011 9:25 AM, George wrote:
>>> On 9/20/2011 3:05 PM, merryb wrote:
>>>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>>>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>>>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>>>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>>>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>>>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>>>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>>>
>>> Dairy in general is not that common. You mentioned pho so say take
>>> Vietnam as an example. About the only common use of dairy there is in
>>> coffee which came about because it was a French colony and sweetened
>>> canned milk is still used till this.
>>
>> I don't know how the Vietnamese can drink their coffee with condensed
>> milk.
>> I'm Asian American and that stuff is deadly poison to my guts. I
>> also find their way of making coffee using the individual brewers to be
>> way too slow. How the hell did they win the war with such a slow coffee
>> maker? I love Trung Nguyen coffee though.
>
> Patience, grasshopper.
>
> My favorite VN story is one that is told of how the Chinese invaded VN
> & held it under their thumb just as the ?cherry? blossoms were
> beginning to form on the trees. Before the blossoms fell to earth,
> the Chinese had been repelled. In western years it was 300 years---
> but those little guys don't have the same outlook on time as we do.
>
> Jim


Getting beat by guys in pajamas was not one of our finest moments.

I guess humans do have an unrealistic notion about time but Americans
more so. I tense up if an event happens a few miliseconds longer or
later than it should. No wonder my guts is often tied in knots. :-)

On Tue, 20 Sep 2011 19:53:08 -0400, Dave Smith
> wrote:

>On 20/09/2011 7:41 PM, merryb wrote:
>
>>
>> The thought of drinking a glass of milk grosses me out, but have no
>> problem with cream, cheese, butter, etc...
>
>I have a little milk on hot and cold cereals. I have a little steamed
>milk in my morning latte. I occasionally eat small amounts of cheese and
>I have yogurt daily, usually with a Lactaid pill. I just can't imagine
>drinking milk. If I were extremely thirsty and looked in the fridge and
>there was nothing but milk, there would be nothing to drink.

I like milk with cookies or cake late at night but unless we're having
breakfast for dinner I don't drink much.

Lou

On Sep 20, 4:53*pm, Dave Smith > wrote:
> On 20/09/2011 7:41 PM, merryb wrote:
>
>
>
> > The thought of drinking a glass of milk grosses me out, but have no
> > problem with cream, cheese, butter, etc...
>
> I have a little milk on hot and cold cereals. I have a little steamed
> milk in my morning latte. I occasionally eat small amounts of cheese and
> I have yogurt daily, usually with a Lactaid pill. I just can't imagine
> drinking milk. If I were extremely thirsty and looked in the fridge and
> there was nothing but milk, there would be nothing to drink.

I'm with you- I'd try to dig a well!

On 9/20/2011 1:02 PM, Hackmatack wrote:
>
> I can't stand sweetened condensed milk out of the can -- and I'm not
> lactose intolerant! But the Cubans make a really sublime desert out of it
> (dulce leche) by poaching unopened cans in hot water until the sugars
> caramelize and the result turns into a lovely custardy chocolate brown.

Canned milk has a peculiar taste the takes some getting used to. I made
a rookie mistake when I was a kid and boiled a can of evaporated milk
for a few hours and nothing happened. After that, I realized the
difference between canned milks. The Spanish speaking peoples that have
had contact with our military forces seem to have adopted canned milk in
a big way. I could go for some tres leches cake right now but all that
lactose might just kill me right off - what a way to go though.

Chinese style custard pie is made with canned milk and boy is it tasty!

On 9/20/2011 12:58 PM, cshenk wrote:
>
> The lactose issues generally develop from China and east of that.
> India and Mongolia do not share these issues. China is also split a
> bit on it with areas of pretty close to european acceptance for lactose.
>
> An interesting aspect of shopping in Sasebo Japan out in the local
> stores, was I never saw milk cartons larger than 2 pint or cheese
> larger than 4oz blocks.
>
>

A popular drink in Japan is Calpis which is a slightly tart drink that
gets it's flavor from lactic acid which comes from fermenting milk to
break down the lactose. Oddly enough, it's a pretty refreshing drink
that tastes more like a lightly sweet and tart fruit drink than anything
that comes from a cow.

I could go for some right now. I have a carton of Calpis concentrate in
my refrigerator but it's been in there for about half a year and I'm
afraid to inspect it. :-)

"Hackmatack" > wrote in message
...
> "Christopher M." > wrote:
>> "merryb" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> Last week I decided to attempt Pho for the first time, so I went to a
>>> local Asian market for ingredients. It was not as nice as H-mart, but
>>> closer to my house. As I was cooking later, it struck me that I never
>>> saw any cheese- not that I was looking for any. I really never thought
>>> about it before, but I can not think of any cheese used in that type
>>> of cooking- true or not? BTW, the Pho was very good, but oxtails are
>>> spendier than I thought they would be!
>>
>> Many Asians see cheese as moldy milk. Their loss.
>>
>>
>> W. Pooh (AKA Winnie P.)
>
> Where the cow has not been off-limits as a sacred object (India, for
> example), it has traditionally been too resource-expensive a food source
> in
> Asian cuisines. There is a reason why the soy bean has sometimes been
> referred to as "the cow of Asia".
>
>
The only range beef we've seen in Asia is in Viet Nam. Other than that
country, beef just isn't part of Asian cuisine. As we know, the Vietnamese
dishes with beef are very good. When I get beef pho[pho tai], I always order
it with slices of raw beef on the side to individually throw each piece into
the broth to prepare each bite. We learned that in Viet Nam.

Kent

In article >, "Kent" >
wrote:

> "Hackmatack" > wrote in message

> > Where the cow has not been off-limits as a sacred object (India, for
> > example), it has traditionally been too resource-expensive a food source
> > in
> > Asian cuisines. There is a reason why the soy bean has sometimes been
> > referred to as "the cow of Asia".
> >
> >
> The only range beef we've seen in Asia is in Viet Nam. Other than that
> country, beef just isn't part of Asian cuisine. As we know, the Vietnamese
> dishes with beef are very good. When I get beef pho[pho tai], I always order
> it with slices of raw beef on the side to individually throw each piece into
> the broth to prepare each bite. We learned that in Viet Nam.

I've read that the French, who occupied Vietnam for many years,
introduced the eating of beef.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

"Dan Abel" > wrote in message
...
> In article >, "Kent" >
> wrote:
>
>> "Hackmatack" > wrote in message
>
>> > Where the cow has not been off-limits as a sacred object (India, for
>> > example), it has traditionally been too resource-expensive a food
>> > source
>> > in
>> > Asian cuisines. There is a reason why the soy bean has sometimes been
>> > referred to as "the cow of Asia".
>> >
>> >
>> The only range beef we've seen in Asia is in Viet Nam. Other than that
>> country, beef just isn't part of Asian cuisine. As we know, the
>> Vietnamese
>> dishes with beef are very good. When I get beef pho[pho tai], I always
>> order
>> it with slices of raw beef on the side to individually throw each piece
>> into
>> the broth to prepare each bite. We learned that in Viet Nam.
>
> I've read that the French, who occupied Vietnam for many years,
> introduced the eating of beef.
>
> Dan Abel
>
>
I'll bet that's true. I've always felt that the Vietnam war would have not
occurred if it had been a British colony to begin with. The British knew
how to inhabit a country, embrace it, and not destroy it. The French and the
German colonies were more like penal colonies.

Kent