Food in a Vacuum: The Sous Vide Craze November 30, 2005 • The latest food fad among top chefs is putting food in a plastic bag and vacuum-packing it. The method is called sous vide. But why are so many of today's leading chefs embracing the technique?
Kitchen Window Mussels Made Easy November 30, 2005 • Mussels cooked in calvados with shallots, bacon and mushrooms sounds more like something to order on a menu than cook at home. Anthony Bourdain sent the recipe to this food writer, and she's got the tips to make it easy.
Organic Farmers Divided over Synthetics November 26, 2005 • Organic foods are mainstream... an established and fast-growing sector of the food business. But synthetic substances are creeping into food that is branded "organic," and the issue has split growers.
Austin Firehouse Touts Veggie Fare November 26, 2005 • Firefighter James Rae loves fried fish, but after a health scare, a colleague convinced him to eat healthier. Now Rae and his colleagues at Austin Firehouse No. 2 feast on soy-cheese pizza and vegetarian enchiladas.
Charities Cook Up Holiday Cheer in New Orleans November 24, 2005 • New Orleans marks its first Thanksgiving after Hurricane Katrina. Charities are cooking 10,000 turkey dinners for residents still trying to put their lives back to together.
Opinion Roundtable: Holiday Feasts November 24, 2005 • Guests: Joe Randall, head of the Chef Joe Randall Cooking School in Savannah, Ga.; Patty Pinner, author of Sweets: A Collection of Soul Food Desserts and Memoirs; and Vertamae Grosvenor, an NPR contributor, author and culinary anthropologist.
A Thanksgiving How-To Christopher Kimball Saves the Thanksgiving Feast November 24, 2005 • Thanksgiving can turn into a nightmare when your best-laid plans go awry in the kitchen. That's where Christopher Kimball can help. He is the creator of Cook's Illustrated Magazine and hosts the PBS television show America's Test Kitchen.
The Joy of Cooking in New Orleans November 24, 2005 • As they work to revive their restaurants, some of New Orleans' most storied cooks -- Michael Regua, Jo Ann Clevenger and Leah Chase -- are preparing their own special Thanksgiving meals for family and friends.
Oyster Season on Cape Cod November 23, 2005 • November is the height of oyster season on Cape Cod, where aquaculture workers are harvesting the shellfish for Thanksgiving stuffing and holiday parties. Susan Keese from Vermont Public Radio reports.
Obituaries Appreciation: Stove Top Stuffing and a Late Inventor November 23, 2005 • For those who don't have time to make perfect homemade stuffing, there has long been a boxed alternative: Stove Top. Ruth Siems, a lead inventor of the quick-prep stuffing, died earlier this month at 74.
Obituaries Ruth Siems, Stove Top Stuffing Inventor November 23, 2005 • Author Laura Shapiro discusses the invention -- and inventor -- of Stove Top Stuffing. Ruth Siems, who was the first person listed in the 1975 patent for the stuffing, died November 13 at age 74. Shapiro, who wrote Something from the Oven: Reinventing Dinner in 1950's America, says Siems' invention was a true "convenience food."
Cooking Disasters: Tales from the Kitchen November 23, 2005 • As you start to prepare for Thanksgiving, here's a timely word of advice from chef Sara Moulton: don't trust the dinner to the chef in your family. Moulton, other chefs and food writers talk about their personal cooking disasters, along with other tales from the kitchen.
Alternatives to Turkey on Thanksgiving November 23, 2005 • Deep-fried turkey? Vegetarian "turkey?" Turducken? Jason DeRose reports on the latest alternatives to the traditional turkey-centered Thanksgiving feast.
Kitchen Window Turning a New Leaf on a Misunderstood Sprout November 23, 2005 • More reviled than broccoli and as intimidating as artichokes, Brussels sprouts are a favorite of unabashed Belgiophile Howard Yoon. He offers a spririted defense of the vegetables that he says "can delight the senses with their nutty, woodsy flavor."
Your Money Slate's Shopping: The Best Knives for Carving November 23, 2005 • Madeleine Brand speaks with Seattle chef and Slate food writer Sara Dickerman about the best knives to use for your Thanksgiving turkey. Dickerman and three other cooks tested a variety of carving sets, and the results surprised them.