From Bacon to Habanero...
Continuing my musings on condiments discovered in Portland. I blogged a little bit about the Portland Farmers Market, which is unbelievably fabulous with all kinds of artisanal cheeses, lamb sausage, legal non-hallucinogenic mushrooms, and lots and lots and lots of fresh, locally-made condiments. This is one of the food waves of the 21st century that I truly appreciate - a huge variety of non-mass produced condiments that don't contain lots of chemicals, just copious amounts of vinegar, garlic, ginger, chipotle (I swear, this has become the Paris Hilton of condiment ingredients). We were on a bit of a budget and had to save money for the Bacon Bar, so I had to limit myself to one jar, so after sampling a few booths, I settled on the Rose City Pepperheads extremely spicy Garlic Ginger BBQ, Dipping & Cooking Jelly. Now I will tell you why this Jelly is a Jelly amongst Jellies - it burned my tongue. In an oh-so-good way. It's sweet, but ginger, garlic, and habanero gang up to light a fire under the sweet jelly's ass. It's really complex and very addictive - it's one of the few condiments that actually deliver a taste of each advertised ingredient. And I like the fact that is has a simpler name, unlike some of the Pepperheads other products, like Pomegranate Pizazz. Just Ginger Garlic, which almost lulls you into a overspiced stir-fry state. God, in life we need more Ginger Garlic experiences. A taste, smell or idea that is consumed innocently and opens up our pores to the beauty and comprehensive spiciness and kick-assedness of it all. Quick note: Thus far, I have only tried this on crackers and salami, but I will try preparing a stir-fry with it soon. Condiment Grrl
