# Help me find the missing ingredient?



## StacyH (Aug 16, 2013)

Hello friends!

About 10 years ago, I had a broiled chicken dinner at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Lexington, KY called Aladdin's.  The place has since gone out of business.  For whatever reason this week, I've been thinking about the chicken.

I'm pretty sure it was called Athenian Broiled Chicken.  It didn't seem particularly "Greek" to me though, and the restaurant served all Middle Eastern foods--shish kebabs, falafel, fatoosh...

I seldom order chicken when I eat out because I make it so often at home.  My dad ordered the dish the first time we were there.  I tasted it and it was amazing!  Whenever we went back, I ordered it.  It was served with rice and little pieces of pickled vegetables.

This week I tried to re-create the dish, and something's missing.  This is where I need your help.

I made the dish with Moroccan spice blend, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic.  It was close, but something wasn't bitter enough.  The lemon juice was right, I think.  But there was something else in the spices that I missed.  Today, I bought sumac and added it to the chicken when I warmed up a piece.  The missing ingredient isn't sumac.

The taste I'm looking for was bitter but zingy.  As you ate the chicken and rice, your mouth almost felt like it was drying.  I know that sounds unpleasant, but the chicken from Aladdin's was amazing.  It was juicy on the inside, crisp on the outside--which I captured.  But the spices made it taste like nothing I'd ever had.

The rice had the same dry, bitter spice in it.  Or maybe it was the pickled veggies on top of the rice that had dripped the flavor onto the rice.

I'll be honest--I'm more a pastry person.  I love to cook and bake, but I don't know much about Middle Eastern food.  Hopefully one of you uses the exotic spices that I'm unfamiliar with more often and can help.  That chicken makes me think of being young and dinner with my Dad.

Much thanks!


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## Hoot (Aug 16, 2013)

Howdy!
Welcome to D.C.!
I wonder if the missing ingredient is saffron. We had a discussion recently about it.
Saffron thread
It has a bitter constituent that may be what your taste buds are missing.
Note: True saffron is quite expensive. I have read that turmeric is use as a substitute but by all accounts, it is a less than adequate replacement.
I am sure others will be long shortly to offer suggestions.


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## Dawgluver (Aug 16, 2013)

Hoot, saffron was my initial thought too.  I don't have much experience with it, but apparently a little goes a long way.

Welcome to DC, Stacy!


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## Greg Who Cooks (Aug 16, 2013)

Preserved sour lemons:

how to make preserved sour lemons

the recipe it goes into: Moroccan Chicken with Lemons & Olives

My advice is purely intuitive. I've been studying Moroccan cooking and I've bought the preserved sour lemons at local import stores, but I haven't put it together and made any of the recipes yet.

If you want to try it I could arrange to visit the store I bought it at and get some brand information, then you can Google it and buy it online, or you can follow the recipe I linked above. (It's going to take you at least 3 weeks to make them yourself.)

Stacy, I'm pleased you started this topic. It reminded me of a cooking pursuit that I had entirely forgotten about. I bet you had a Moroccan chicken tagine. I bet that's the recipe you want to recreate.


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## Hoot (Aug 16, 2013)

Great suggestion!
I hadn't thought of preserved lemon!
I need to make some more. Haven't made any in a few years.


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## MysteryMunchies (Aug 16, 2013)

My suggestions would be to:

1) try using whole spices, then roast them and grind them yourself to maximize the flavour, rather than buying a pre-ground spice blend.

2) try adding a very, very light sprinkling of saffron, but make sure you are using the real saffron threads (ie, the stigmas of the saffron crocus flower), because unscrupulous people do use other vegetable fibres and dye them orangey-red to look like real saffron stigmas. Or

3) try using preserved lemons instead of fresh lemons.

Your search for the missing ingredient reminds me of this passage from Marcel Proust's Remembrance Of Things Past, which has wonderful insights into the lasting links which bind Memory to our senses of Taste and Smell:

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Many years had elapsed during which nothing of Combray, save what was comprised in the theatre and the drama of my going to bed there, had any existence for me, when one day in winter, on my return home, my mother, seeing that I was cold, offered me some tea, a thing I did not ordinarily take. I declined at first, and then, for no particular reason, changed my mind. She sent for one of those squat, plump little cakes called "petites madeleines," which look as though they had been moulded in the fluted valve of a scallop shell. And soon, mechanically, dispirited after a dreary day with the prospect of a depressing morrow, I raised to my lips a spoonful of the tea in which I had soaked a morsel of the cake. No sooner had the warm liquid mixed with the crumbs touched my palate than a shudder ran through me and I stopped, intent upon the extraordinary thing that was happening to me. An exquisite pleasure had invaded my senses, something isolated, detached, with no suggestion of its origin. And at once the vicissitudes of life had become indifferent to me, its disasters innocuous, its brevity illusory - this new sensation having had on me the effect which love has of filling me with a precious essence; or rather this essence was not in me it _was _me. I had ceased now to feel mediocre, contingent, mortal. Whence could it have come to me, this all-powerful joy? I sensed that it was connected with the taste of the tea and the cake, but that it infinitely transcended those savours, could not, indeed, be of the same nature. Whence did it come? What did it mean? How could I seize and apprehend it?[/FONT]
 

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]I drink a second mouthful, in which I find nothing more than in the first, then a third, which gives me rather less than the second. It is time to stop; the potion is losing it magic. It is plain that the truth I am seeking lies not in the cup but in myself. The drink has called it into being, but does not know it, and can only repeat indefinitely, with a progressive diminution of strength, the same message which I cannot interpret, though I hope at least to be able to call it forth again and to find it there presently, intact and at my disposal, for my final enlightenment. I put down the cup and examine my own mind. It alone can discover the truth. But how: What an abyss of uncertainty, whenever the mind feels overtaken by itself; when it, the seeker, is at the same time the dark region through which it must go seeking and where all its equipment will avail it nothing. Seek? More than that: create. It is face to face with something which does not yet exist, to which it alone can give reality and substance, which it alone can bring into the light of day.[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]And I begin to ask myself what it could have been, this unremembered state which brought with it no logical proof, but the indisputable evidence, of its felicity, its reality, and in whose presence other states of consciousness melted and vanished. I decide to attempt to make it reappear. I retrace my thoughts to the moment at which I drank the first spoonful of tea. I rediscover the same state, illuminated by no fresh light. I ask my mind to make one further effort, to bring back once more the fleeting sensation. And so that nothing may interrupt it in its course I shut out every obstacle, every extraneous idea, I stop my ears and inhibit all attention against the sound from the next room. And then, feeling that my mind is tiring itself without having any success to report, I compel it for a change to enjoy the distraction which I have just denied it, to think of other things, to rest refresh itself before making a final effort. And then for the second time I clear an empty space in front of it; I place in position before my mind's eye the still recent taste of that first mouthful, and I feel something start within me, something that leaves its resting-place and attempts to rise, something that has been embedded like an anchor at a great depth; I do not know yet what it is, but I can feel it mounting slowly; I can measure the resistance, I can hear the echo of great spaces traversed. [/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif][/FONT] 
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Undoubtedly what is thus palpitating in the depths of my being must be the image, the visual memory which, being linked to that taste, is trying to follow it into my conscious mind. But its struggles are too far off, too confused and chaotic; scarcely can I perceive the neutral glow into which the elusive whirling medley of stirred-up colours is fused, and I cannot distinguish its form, cannot invite it, as the one possible interpreter, to translate for me the evidence of its contemporary, its inseparable paramour, the taste, cannot ask it to inform me what special circumstance is in question, from what period in my past life.[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif][/FONT] 
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Will it ultimately reach the clear surface of my consciousness, this memory, this old, dead moment which the magnetism of an identical moment has traveled so far to importune, to disturb, to raise up out of the very depths of my being? I cannot tell. Now I feel nothing; it has stopped, has perhaps sunk back into its darkness, from which who can say whether it will ever rise again? Ten times over I must essay the task, must lean down over the abyss. And each time the cowardice that deters us from every difficult task, every important enterprise, has urged me to leave the thing alone, to drink my tea and to think merely of the worries of to-day and my hopes for to-morrow, which can be brooded over painlessly.[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif][/FONT] 
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]And suddenly the memory revealed itself. The taste was that of the little piece of madeleine which on Sunday mornings at Combray (because on those mornings I did not go out before mass), when I went to say good morning to her in her bedroom , my aunt Léonie used to give me, dipping it first in her own cup of tea or tisane. The sight of the little madeleine had recalled nothing to my mind before I tasted it; perhaps because I had so often seen such things in the meantime, without tasting them, on the trays in pastry-cooks' windows, that their image had dissociated itself from those Combray days to take its place among others more recent; perhaps because of those memories, so long abandoned and put out of mind, nothing now survived, everything was scattered; the shapes of things, including that of the little scallop-shell of pastry, so richly sensual under its severe, religious folds, were either obliterated or had been so long dormant as to have lost the power of expansion which would have allowed them to resume their place in my consciousness. But when from a long-distant past nothing subsists, after the people are dead, after the things are broken and scattered, taste and smell alone, more fragile but more enduring, more unsubstantial, more persistent, more faithful, remain poised a long time, like souls, remembering, waiting, hoping, amid the ruins of all the rest; and bear unflinchingly, in the tiny and almost impalpable drop of their essence, the vast structure of recollection.[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif][/FONT] 
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]And as soon as I had recognized the taste of the piece of madeleine soaked in her decoction of lime-blossom which my aunt used to give me (although I did not yet know and must long postpone the discovery of why this memory made me so happy) immediately the old grey house upon the street, where her room was, rose up like a stage set to attach itself to the little pavilion opening on to the garden which had been built out behind it for my parents (the isolated segment which until that moment had been all that I could see); and with the house the town, from morning to night and in all weathers, the Square where I used to be sent before lunch, the streets along which I used to run errands, the country roads we took when it was fine. And as in the game wherein the Japanese amuse themselves by filling a porcelain bowl with water and steeping in it little pieces of paper which until then are without character or form, but, the moment they become wet, stretch and twist and take on colour and distinctive shape, become flowers or houses or people, solid and recognizable, so in that moment all the flowers in our garden and in M. Swann's park, and the water-lilies on the Vivonne and the good folk of the village and their little dwellings and the parish church and the whole of Combray and its surroundings, taking shape and solidity, sprang into being, town and gardens alike, from my cup of tea.[/FONT]


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## MysteryMunchies (Aug 16, 2013)

I think the consensus is saffron and preserved lemons, HAHAH! Can't wait to hear from StacyH to see if these are the missing links!


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## taxlady (Aug 16, 2013)

Dawgluver said:


> Hoot, saffron was my initial thought too.  I don't have much experience with it, but apparently a little goes a long way.
> 
> Welcome to DC, Stacy!



Yes, welcome to DC, Stacy.

Definitely a little goes a long way. Remember Margi would often post a recipe that called for a specific number of saffron threads, to be softened in warm water before use. Okay, maybe I'm misremembering the part about softening them.


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## merstar (Aug 16, 2013)

Did the rice have a yellow tint to it? If so, there was probably saffron in it, and in the chicken also. 
If the chicken and rice had a Greek slant, they may have been flavored with Greek oregano.


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## Kylie1969 (Aug 16, 2013)

It may have been Turmeric too, that also makes rice go yellow


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## merstar (Aug 16, 2013)

Kylie1969 said:


> It may have been Turmeric too, that also makes rice go yellow


Good point!


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## merstar (Aug 16, 2013)

One of the essential spices in Middle Eastern cooking is cumin - The dishes may have had cumin powder and/or toasted cumin seeds.


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## Kylie1969 (Aug 16, 2013)

merstar said:


> Good point!



Cheers Merstar 

Turmeric has the taste described too


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## StacyH (Aug 16, 2013)

*Thank you!*

Thank you all for the kind, friendly, and helpful replies!

These are all good thoughts.  I know it wasn't cumin.  I cook with cumin often and use it as a base for a dry rub on ribs.

@Munchies--Yes!  Food is strongly linked to memory (and scent, taste) for me.  My Dad is in poor health now, so recalling our dinners at Aladdin's somehow makes him feel closer.  I lived 14 miles from my Dad until recently, when I moved to accept a job in Indiana.  The 130 miles isn't super far, but I also can't drive over and eat dinner a few times per week.

I'm excited to have found this forum.  Cooking is my favorite hobby.  I like blogging about what I cook and eat, or just sharing on Instagram.  

Recently I saw an article about how people using baking to show affection.  That's me!  

Here's the article:

How To Make A Crepe Cake: Slow Down And Win Hearts


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## Greg Who Cooks (Aug 16, 2013)

StacyH said:


> Recently I saw an article about how people using baking to show affection.  That's me!
> 
> How To Make A Crepe Cake: Slow Down And Win Hearts



Hey I really like that. I could totally do all the crepes. (I cook crepes often.) I have a housewarming party coming up soon. I have been planning on having most of it catered, but the crepe cake would make a nice center piece!


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## Kylie1969 (Aug 16, 2013)

Stacy, welcome to DC


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## GotGarlic (Aug 16, 2013)

Fenugreek is used in Middle Eastern cooking as well. That could be the flavor you're looking for.


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## StacyH (Aug 16, 2013)

@greg who cooks

I don't love Nutella--maybe you'll put something like whipped cream with hazelnut extract between the layers.  Or the Nutella if you're more into it than me.  Cocoa is my migraine trigger so I prefer other options.  

I hope it's a lovely centerpiece either way!


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## Greg Who Cooks (Aug 17, 2013)

I'm not a Nutella fan either. I'm a very freestyle amateur chef who thinks nothing of just changing any part of a recipe if I think my way will work better. Now that I have the idea of a crepe cake I can just go from there and use anything I like.

I like to "invent" my own recipes. Usually I'll find a couple dozen versions on the Internet and make notes of the common ingredients and select the differences and features that I like, and I'll end up with my own composite recipe. I cook it and keep tweaking it until it meets my criteria and is the best that I can make it. Then that's the recipe that I add to my collection.


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## KatyCooks (Aug 17, 2013)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> I'm not a Nutella fan either. I'm a very freestyle amateur chef who thinks nothing of just changing any part of a recipe if I think my way will work better. Now that I have the idea of a crepe cake I can just go from there and use anything I like.
> 
> I like to "invent" my own recipes. Usually I'll find a couple dozen versions on the Internet and make notes of the common ingredients and select the differences and features that I like, and I'll end up with my own composite recipe. I cook it and keep tweaking it until it meets my criteria and is the best that I can make it. Then that's the recipe that I add to my collection.


 
That's pretty much what I do too.   There is no point keeping minor ingredients if you just don't like them and they are not integral to the dish.


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## lyndalou (Aug 17, 2013)

Maybe sumac or zataar?


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## Addie (Aug 17, 2013)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> I'm not a Nutella fan either. I'm a very freestyle amateur chef who thinks nothing of just changing any part of a recipe if I think my way will work better. Now that I have the idea of a crepe cake I can just go from there and use anything I like.
> 
> I like to "invent" my own recipes. Usually I'll find a couple dozen versions on the Internet and make notes of the common ingredients and select the differences and features that I like, and I'll end up with my own composite recipe. I cook it and keep tweaking it until it meets my criteria and is the best that I can make it. Then that's the recipe that I add to my collection.


 
My granddaughter and daughter are both Nutella fans. My g'daughter's birthday is in January and she said she wants my Pineapple Upside Down Cake for her birthday cake. I just might may both. I would seriously consider making alternate layers of something other than Nutella though. I would also reduce some hazelnuts to a small grind and sprinkle on top. 

Alas, once again we have gotten off the subject of this post and request.


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## StacyH (Aug 19, 2013)

*Not sumac, not tumeric*

This weekend, I made a tumeric drizzle for when I reheated the chicken.  That, too, wasn't it.  I tried tumeric before saffron because tumeric is so much cheaper.

So, I'm going to have to make chicken again, and then try saffron, and if that's not it, fenugreek.

I could Google "what do I do with the saffron threads..." but who knows what advice I'll get.  I'd rather just have you all weigh in.  I saw the threads (a tiny packet was $17).  How do you use them?

Thanks!


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## PrincessFiona60 (Aug 19, 2013)

I would try the fenugreek first, it's cheaper.


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## Addie (Aug 19, 2013)

The following is a list of recipes that use saffron. There are three chicken ones. Take a look and see if any of the ingredients appear to be what you are looking for. 

Best Saffron Recipes - Allrecipes.com


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## Greg Who Cooks (Aug 20, 2013)

I remain convinced that it's the sour lemons that's missing. I'm tempted to buy some and send them to the OP as a gift. We have so many stores in L.A. that we have everything.

Stacy, do you got PayPal?


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## mysterychef (Aug 20, 2013)

StacyH said:


> Hello friends!
> 
> About 10 years ago, I had a broiled chicken dinner at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Lexington, KY called Aladdin's.  The place has since gone out of business.  For whatever reason this week, I've been thinking about the chicken.
> 
> ...


I wonder if the missing ingredient is ''Tamarind''. It is sour, bitter, and has a slightly orange- lemon taste. It is used in middle eastern dishes. A-1 sauce among others used it as a flavor component until Kraft bought them out . They now use orange rind because of the expense.


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## StacyH (Aug 22, 2013)

Great news!  I posted something on a Lexington, KY forum asking if anyone remembered Aladdin's Restaurant, and the dish, or knew anything about who owned the restaurant.

Someone just replied, saying who the owner was, and that the man owns another restaurant in Lexington now, King Tut's.  AND...King Tut's has the Athenian Broiled Chicken on their menu.

I'm planning a road trip to Lexington now.  It's about 200 miles from where I live now. I'm hoping I can see and taste the chicken, and make notes.  Maybe even sweet talk someone into telling me how they make it.

I'll keep you guys posted on the adventure!


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## Hoot (Aug 22, 2013)

Good luck and stay safe on your journey!


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

StacyH said:


> Great news! I posted something on a Lexington, KY forum asking if anyone remembered Aladdin's Restaurant, and the dish, or knew anything about who owned the restaurant.
> 
> Someone just replied, saying who the owner was, and that the man owns another restaurant in Lexington now, King Tut's. AND...King Tut's has the Athenian Broiled Chicken on their menu.
> 
> ...


 
I know this is OT but does the American Road Trip still actually exist?  (And if it does, what exactly is it?)  For me, any trip on a road, is a nightmare of snarled, congested traffic, delays, getting lost, and general stress until I get to my destination.   A "road trip" sounds like it is supposed to be fun.  Is it still fun in America to go on a road trip?


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## Hoot (Aug 22, 2013)

I certainly enjoy a road trip from time to time. I reckon I have passed the point of stressing over traffic. I will get there when I get there.


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Hoot said:


> I certainly enjoy a road trip from time to time. I reckon I have passed the point of stressing over traffic. I will get there when I get there.


 

Yes, but what is the "fun" part Hoot?


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## StacyH (Aug 22, 2013)

*Perspective*



KatyCooks said:


> I know this is OT but does the American Road Trip still actually exist?  (And if it does, what exactly is it?)  For me, any trip on a road, is a nightmare of snarled, congested traffic, delays, getting lost, and general stress until I get to my destination.   A "road trip" sounds like it is supposed to be fun.  Is it still fun in America to go on a road trip?



I think it's all a matter of perspective.  Is it often a PITA to drive somewhere?  Yes.  Traffic is no fun.  Finding parking in a city is no fun.  But ultimately, it's just perspective.  Did you get where you wanted to go?  See what you wanted to see?  Enjoy what you wanted to do?  Take some cool pics and make some memories?  Hopefully!  If you can say yes to those, the traffic and the other annoyances are just little blips along the way to what you wanted to do.  The end memories and photos are what you'll remember.


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## Hoot (Aug 22, 2013)

I think the fun is in the traveling...seeing places I ain't been to, meeting folks, even the prospect of getting lost is kinda fun. What was that line from "The Mountain Men"...._ "Lost!?? I ain't never been lost....well, fiercesome confused for a month or two, but I ain't never been lost!"_


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## Dawgluver (Aug 22, 2013)

StacyH said:


> Great news!  I posted something on a Lexington, KY forum asking if anyone remembered Aladdin's Restaurant, and the dish, or knew anything about who owned the restaurant.
> 
> Someone just replied, saying who the owner was, and that the man owns another restaurant in Lexington now, King Tut's.  AND...King Tut's has the Athenian Broiled Chicken on their menu.
> 
> ...



Stacy, I've found if I ask the owner or chef for a recipe I've fallen in love with, they are usually happy to at least give me an ingredient list.  I think if you told the restaurant staff how you've pursued the missing ingredient, and how you drove 200 miles just to find your favorite chicken, they would be very pleased and flattered, and would likely tell you the secret ingredient.  It's worth a shot!


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

StacyH said:


> I think it's all a matter of perspective. Is it often a PITA to drive somewhere? Yes. Traffic is no fun. Finding parking in a city is no fun. But ultimately, it's just perspective. Did you get where you wanted to go? See what you wanted to see? Enjoy what you wanted to do? Take some cool pics and make some memories? Hopefully! If you can say yes to those, the traffic and the other annoyances are just little blips along the way to what you wanted to do. The end memories and photos are what you'll remember.


 
Now see Stacy, that is exactly how I see flying!   A means to getting somewhere despite how unpleasant all the security and uncomfortable the confined conditions!   (And I have been to America several times BTW).  But it was always worth it to get where I was going.  No questions.  

But the "American Road Trip" is supposed to be a "trip" in and _of_ itself if you know what I mean?


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Hoot said:


> I think the fun is in the traveling...seeing places I ain't been to, meeting folks, even the prospect of getting lost is kinda fun. What was that line from "The Mountain Men"...._ "Lost!?? I ain't never been lost....well, fiercesome confused for a month or two, but I ain't never been lost!"_


 

This is what I mean!  I think we are about to get kicked off the thread, (and quite rightly), but my friend in Tucson has often said she and I should do a "Thelma and Louise" (without driving off a cliff of course).   And I just wondered if driving around the US was fun.


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## taxlady (Aug 22, 2013)

KatyCooks said:


> Now see Stacy, that is exactly how I see flying!   A means to getting somewhere despite how unpleasant all the security and uncomfortable the confined conditions!   (And I have been to America several times BTW).  But it was always worth it to get where I was going.  No questions.
> 
> But the "American Road Trip" is supposed to be a "trip" in and _of_ itself if you know what I mean?


That kind of trip means you are planning on stopping when there is something that seems interesting.

Stirling and I call getting lost an adventure.


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## Dawgluver (Aug 22, 2013)

I recently completed a 3 state, 2 province road trip, solo, and had a blast driving.  The scenery changed so much, as did the speed limits and traffic.  I'd do it again!


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## GotGarlic (Aug 22, 2013)

KatyCooks said:


> Now see Stacy, that is exactly how I see flying!   A means to getting somewhere despite how unpleasant all the security and uncomfortable the confined conditions!   (And I have been to America several times BTW).  But it was always worth it to get where I was going.  No questions.
> 
> But the "American Road Trip" is supposed to be a "trip" in and of itself if you know what I mean?



When we go on a road trip, we usually have a destination in mind, but we try not to hurry the trip so we can stop in interesting places along the way. 

For example, last year we drove to Michigan and back to visit family. On the way home, we got off the Pennsylvania turnpike and drove an old highway. We stopped at the memorial for Flight 93, one of the planes that went down on 9/11. We also passed a bison ranch where we stopped to look at the bison and browse the gift shop. I bought a pound of ground bison meat and a couple of steaks. I would never have known about it otherwise. 

Back on topic! Stacy, enjoy your trip!


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

taxlady said:


> That kind of trip means you are planning on stopping when there is something that seems interesting.
> 
> Stirling and I call getting lost an adventure.


 
I have never had a problem getting lost while I was with someone! Definitely an adventure!  

On my own, it was (and is) always horrible.


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Dawgluver said:


> I recently completed a 3 state, 2 province road trip, solo, and had a blast driving. The scenery changed so much, as did the speed limits and traffic. I'd do it again!


 

Solo DL?  I seriously could never do that.  (I hate driving in Britain - it's too busy and everyone is so aggressive.)   And how can you appreciate the scenery while you are driving?


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## Addie (Aug 22, 2013)

taxlady said:


> That kind of trip means you are planning on stopping when there is something that seems interesting.
> 
> Stirling and I call getting lost an adventure.



Three times I have been cross country on the road and loved each trip. One trip took us five weeks. Straight driving it is 2.5 days with two drivers. We would see signs telling us about local sites. Let's go. We got to see so many interesting. Stopped at a peacock farm. How often have you gotten to see about fifty male peacocks with their feathers spread in all their glory? Have any of you been to see the Petrified Forest? I was with a friend that grew up in the cement world of housing projects. Had never seen a horse, cattle or anything western. We stopped so he could watch cattle being branded and tagged with ear clipping. We drove through a mountain range in the middle of the summer. Snow on the ground at the higher level. Definitely an adventure. We never figured we were lost. We were somewhere. Just didn't know where at that moment and didn't care. He got to see parts of America he would never have seen in his lifetime. And it gave him the initiative to want to see more.


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## Dawgluver (Aug 22, 2013)

KatyCooks said:


> Solo DL?  I seriously could never do that.  (I hate driving in Britain - it's too busy and everyone is so aggressive.)   And how can you appreciate the scenery while you are driving?



The middle of North America is nothing like the east or west coasts, not much traffic unless you go through the big cities.  I probably wouldn't have been able to see as much scenery driving through New York or LA  

Oh, and GPS is my very dear friend.


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Addie, to my British eyes, that seems like the perfect "American Road Trip"!


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Dawgluver said:


> The middle of North America is nothing like the east or west coasts, not much traffic unless you go through the big cities. I probably wouldn't have been able to see as much scenery driving through New York or LA


 
I suspect we have to appreciate scale here:   Arizona would more or less be the size of Britain.  

Wide open spaces?   Just don't exist in Britain.   

Open roads? Nah.  

I like the idea though!  I love the thought of jumping in the car (with someone else driving) and just heading in a direction to see what we find! 

(I'd be inclined to sneakily plan ahead for places to stay though.)


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## Dawgluver (Aug 22, 2013)

In the meantime, Stacy is gonna enjoy her trip, especially if it will result in finding the missing ingredient!  This is like a mystery novel, it keeps us guessing....

Now, Stacy, once you find this ingredient, we do expect you to share!


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## KatyCooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Greg Who Cooks said:


> I remain convinced that it's the sour lemons that's missing. I'm tempted to buy some and send them to the OP as a gift. We have so many stores in L.A. that we have everything.


 
I think it's preserved lemons too. A very pronounced flavour. 

Look forward to hearing the answer!


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## GotGarlic (Aug 22, 2013)

KatyCooks said:


> I suspect we have to appreciate scale here:   Arizona would more or less be the size of Britain.
> 
> Wide open spaces? Just don't exist in Britain.
> 
> ...



DH and I rented a car and stayed in farmhouse B&Bs in Ireland for a week and absolutely loved it. The country roads weren't very busy and we loved the many signs that tell you where towns and ruins are. We made reservations for the first few nights and the last night, so we could get an idea of how long it would take to get around. It's one of my favorite trips.


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## Mad Cook (Aug 22, 2013)

StacyH said:


> Hello friends!
> 
> About 10 years ago, I had a broiled chicken dinner at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Lexington, KY called Aladdin's. The place has since gone out of business. For whatever reason this week, I've been thinking about the chicken.
> 
> ...


Has anyone suggested za'atar or ras el hanout?


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## Greg Who Cooks (Aug 22, 2013)

Mad Cook said:


> Has anyone suggested za'atar or ras el hanout?



Ras el hanout has a rather indefinite recipe:

Ras el hanout - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## GotGarlic (Aug 22, 2013)

Someone did suggest za'atar but I don't think the OP responded.


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## StacyH (Jun 15, 2014)

*Today!*

I'm excited! Going to get the chicken today!  I needed to go to Lexington for something else, so the four hour drive is justifiable!


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## StacyH (Jun 15, 2014)

*Nooooooo*

Website says they open at 11:00 a.m.  Arrived 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





to find sign that they're on vacation!


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## Mad Cook (Jun 16, 2014)

You shouldn't have any trouble finding finding jars of preserved lemons in the supermarket but it is possible to make your own if you have the time (it's a bit long winded!)


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## creative (Jun 16, 2014)

Mad Cook said:


> You shouldn't have any trouble finding finding jars of preserved lemons in the supermarket but it is possible to make your own if you have the time (it's a bit long winded!)



What is the advantage of preserved lemons?  Aren't they very salty?  Do you wash the salt off?  Are they just for moroccan dishes mostly?


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## CraigC (Jun 16, 2014)

Mad Cook said:


> You shouldn't have any trouble finding finding jars of preserved lemons in the supermarket but it is possible to make your own if you have the time (it's a bit long winded!)



Our regular, local markets don't carry preserved lemons. No problem as they are easy to make.

The salt is washed off and most people remove the interior "fruit" and seeds.

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f21/preserved-lemons-80078.html


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