BikeToEat orders organic rendered lard from Many Hands Organic Farm, where it costs around $15 a quart plus shipping. “It smells very piggy,” says BikeToEat. “But after cooking it doesn’t taste nearly as piggy as it smells out of the container.” Unfortunately, the farm is sold out of lard for 2008, but you can get on the mailing list for next year.

Mexican grocery stores often sell house-rendered lard, notes Ruth Lafler, while jlafler has had luck finding it at her local farmers’ market.

And you can always render lard yourself. Just buy fresh pork fat from your butcher (even a supermarket butcher might be able to supply you with some), and render it in a pan over very low heat, or in the oven at around 300ºF, recommends edburns. CHOW contributor Daniel Duane demonstrates his method here.

sebetti says Flying Pigs Farm is an excellent source of unrendered leaf lard, before asking, “Is it weird that I ordered it for my husband as part of his birthday present?”

Board Link: Where can I find pure lard?

A perfect Mojito is a matter of taste, says sku, whose own taste is to use simple syrup rather than granulated sugar. sku also says you should avoid the bitter flavors that come from aggressively muddled mint: “Muddle it gently but consistently until you get a big whiff of mint when you stick your nose in the glass.”

ShadowedOne likes to use a simple syrup made with Demerara sugar (an unprocessed, natural sugar) to add a more complex flavor. davis_sq_pro uses a preminted simple syrup to give a stronger mint flavor. Just simmer mint leaves along with the sugar when making your syrup, then strain.

MichaelG dispenses with the syrup altogether and simply uses good-quality limeade, like Odwalla or Newman’s Own, adding that the best limeades use agave as a sweetener. And barleywino goes so far as to use maple syrup instead of simple syrup, and even sneaks in some muddled fresh Bing cherries and a bit of Averna liqueur in place of the lime. “Nice,” says 2top, “but you can’t call that a mojito.”

Board Link: Looking to perfect a Mojito

Since discovering the soy milk at VK Food Products, crystaw says the stuff available everywhere else pales in comparison: “I’m not a big fan of soy milk but I really like theirs.”

VK makes its own soy products fresh, says raytamsgv, which might explain why it’s crystaw’s favorite.

VK Food Products [San Gabriel Valley]
9210 E. Valley Boulevard, Rosemead
626-288-1001

Board Links: New Chinese Breakfast Place in Arcadia
Where to buy Dessert Tofu (tofu fa) in L.A.?

Sam’s on Court Street is one of those old-school neighborhood perennials that Chowhounds rarely mention, but guttergourmet thinks it belongs in New York’s never-ending pizza conversation, right up there with the most celebrated places in Brooklyn and beyond. “Beautiful pizza, precious place,” guttergourmet writes.

curly30 agrees, calling it “the most underappreciated pie in the neighborhood. It’s really first rate and you can’t beat the throwback, one-of-a-kind charm of the place.” This includes the mock-gruff service and a sign on the wall that reads: “Today’s special menu: 1. Take it. 2. Leave it.” It’s also safe to venture beyond pizza, suggests fishermb, who is a “huge fan” of Sam’s scungilli fra diavola.

TBird strongly disagrees, describing Sam’s pizza as “average at best,” and adding that places like this are the reason non-Brooklynites “don’t get” Brooklyn pizza.

Meanwhile, down in Bensonhurst and Gravesend, Brklynbobby puts in a word for another sleeper, the Sicilian pie at Italia on Kings Highway. “The crust is lighter than air and the sauce is heaven,” says Brklynbobby.

Sam’s [Cobble Hill]
238 Court Street (at Baltic Street), Brooklyn
718-596-3458

Italia [Gravesend]
307 Kings Highway (at W. Sixth Street), Brooklyn
718-339-0666

Board Links: Lucali’s closed for lunch, Grimaldi’s line too long, Franny’s boring, DiFara mobbed, Tottono’s too far…Try Sam’s
5 Day Outer-Borough Eating Tour- HELP NEEDED!!

Mother’s Bake Shop calls it a peach cobbler, but it’s an unorthodox one, says petefeliz, who describes it as a simple square of puff pastry topped with fresh-cut peaches, glazed, and baked. “The puff pastry is deflated, but it’s pretty good compared to the rest of what they offer.”

One other noteworthy bite at this shop in the Riverdale section of the Bronx is a Friday special of Russian coffee cake, either chocolate or cinnamon raisin. petefeliz describes it as “delectable awfulness,” before encouraging us to try a slice to see what he means.

Mother’s Bake Shop [Bronx]
548 W. 235th Street (between Oxford and Johnson avenues), Bronx
718-796-5676

Board Link: Liebman’s Deli–Bronx, NY–a Chowhound Recco pans out

The al pastor from Taqueria La Selva’s taco wagon setup is a thing of beauty, reckons rworange. “This is no pre-formed, pre-cut pastor. The irregularly-cut slices in the spit are topped with two golden roasted rings of fresh pineapple,” she says. “It tastes even better than it looks … rich and complex with heat.”

Nearby, outside Central American market Mi Raza, there’s a lady turning out top-notch pupusas on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Hand-patted and cooked on the spot, they are the “least greasy pupusas” rworange has ever had. Loroco pupusa is just what it should be, she says, with the herb’s distinct flavor. The curtido is nice and tangy, with actual bits of puréed tomato in the sauce.

A few vendors can be found in front of St. Mark’s Catholic Church on Sundays while the two Spanish-language Masses are going on (which begin at 9:15 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.). Look for the one under a shady tree selling tamales, pan de elote, and bags of fresh fruit with chile.

“The pan de elote are wonderful: oblong, griddled and pancake-like filled with fresh corn flavor,” says rworange. “In texture [they’re] somewhere between cornbread and a pancake and about 1/3 inch thick.”

As for the pork tamales, she says, “the pork in the moist masa tasted like it had been roasted rather than stewed. Now why hasn’t anyone else thought of that? There was a rich porky flavor like getting a slice of roast pork out of the oven.”

Taqueria La Selva [East Bay]
1049 23rd Street, Richmond
510-237-0913

Mi Raza Market [East Bay]
1045 23rd Street, Richmond
510-232-5620

St. Mark’s Catholic Church [East Bay]
159 Harbour Way, Richmond
510-234-5886

Board Links: Richmond: After mass street chow at St. Mark’s–pan de elote and pork tamales
Richmond street feast part 2: Taqueria La Selva–the best al pastor tacos vapor in the Bay Area
Richmond street feast part 3: Mi Raza Market’s sidewalk pupusa lady

In this season of outdoor cooking, even pizza can be cooked on the grill. Here’s the basic technique, according to flourgirl: Place the crust on the grill over medium heat and close the lid; let it cook for about 3 minutes, then remove with tongs and flip it over onto a pizza peel with the uncooked side down. Add your toppings and return the pizza to grill over indirect heat with the lid down until the bottom is golden brown and the cheese is melted. todao suggests using tongs to check the bottom of the crust frequently to avoid overbrowning.

firecooked says that after you roll out your pizza dough, you can place the rounds on parchment paper (you can even stack them that way); then you can easily flip a round onto the grill upside down and peel the paper off. Cheesy Oysters finds it easier to make smaller, individual pizzas on the grill. Finally, jesoda notes that vegetables such as onions, peppers, and mushrooms should be precooked because they won’t have time to cook on the grill before the pizza is done.

Board Link: Grilled Pizza Questions and Help

Summer is when watermelon really tastes great, but there’s only so much you can eat in one go. Chowhounds have some creative ways to use up the rest.

Watermelon purée makes tasty beverages. karykat recommends this recipe for Mexican watermelon and lime agua fresca, and DiningDiva suggests adding some rum to create “an interesting and drinkable cocktail.” twodales cuts watermelon into chunks and freezes it. Then, whenever he feels like it, he purées some in a blender, with or without rum, for a refreshing drink.

sugarbuzz makes watermelon ice pops by puréeing melon with sugar and lime juice, then straining and freezing the mixture in molds. HillJ simply pushes sticks into fat slices of watermelon and freezes these for a cool snack.

Watermelon works well in savory dishes, too. Nigella Lawson’s watermelon, feta, and black olive salad is a big hit with livetocook, while andrewm rates this Indian watermelon curry. And Emme recommends watermelon gazpacho, either with tomatoes or with cucumbers.

Here are some CHOW watermelon recipes as well.

Board Links: Lots of Watermelon
Too much watermelon!

Cider doughnuts, which are cake doughnuts made with apple cider, are “simply the best, most engaging expression of what a cake donut is all about,” says jcr1. “The cider gives them a natural sweetness, not overly so, and a subtle hint of apple,” says TongoRad.

You usually encounter them, if you’re lucky, at cider stands in the Northeast, or at church socials and auctions. If none of these sources are available to you, cider doughnuts may be successfully re-created at home: Where do you think those church ladies make them? “Perhaps the internet or an old-time cookbook will have a recipe or two,” suggests jcr1.

Board Link: Please help me understand the finer points of cake donuts.

The rash of new dumpling restaurants around Garfield has mostly disappointed exilekiss—until Noodle House. The dumplings are handmade to order: exilekiss put in an order for baozi (steamed buns and dumplings), walked over to the open kitchen, and watched the staff start kneading the dough for the buns and rolling out the skins for the dumplings.

Yu ruo shwei jiao (fish, pork, and vegetable dumplings) are transcendent, says exilekiss. And the filling—tender minced gray sole, ground pork, and diced yellow leeks—“was melt-in-your-mouth.” Baozi are equally fresh, outstanding in texture, and moist, with a perfect degree of light chew. Pumpkin-shrimp dumplings are a real winner, says Frommtron, packed with whole shrimp and shredded pumpkin. Seafood jiazi (with shrimp, sea cucumber, and whitefish) is “OUTSTANDING,” says J.L.

Fish ball noodle soup came with “the best fish balls I have ever eaten,” says Chandavkl. “Not dense at all, which I presume means more fish and less starch.”

Nio jing tahng mien (beef tendon noodle soup) is excellent, and smells amazing. While the noodles aren’t hand-pulled, they are made from scratch, and are fresh, soft, delicately textured, and superbly paired with the broth, says exilekiss.

The manager and chef are proud of the fact that Noodle House uses no MSG, ever. Be prepared to wait, though. Since the dumplings and buns are made from scratch, it takes about 25 minutes to get your food, in the best of circumstances. exilekiss even recommends staggering your order, placing one every 5 to 10 minutes, so the food comes out one by one, and you can enjoy everything at its peak of freshness.

And it’s all incredibly affordable. “On average we spent ~$7.50 per person (*including* tax and tip already). Their prices are so low for the legendary quality of their food, it’s ridiculous,” says exilekiss.

Noodle House (Mian Hsiang Yuan) [San Gabriel Valley]
958 E. Garvey Avenue, Monterey Park
626-280-0831

Board Link: Legendary, Made-To-Order, Fresh Steamed Buns and Dumplings! (or “Are You Kidding Me?!”)—NOODLE HOUSE (Mian Hsiang Yuan) [Review] w/ Pics!

Shin Okinawa Izakaya is LA’s first Okinawan restaurant, as far as we know. It’s got the traditional Okinawan lion décor, all kinds of Okinawan beers, and many fine examples of Okinawan home cooking. gachimai is from Okinawa, and he proclaims Shin Okinawa Izakaya to be quite good.

Okinawa is best known for its soba, and, indeed, Shin Okinawa Izakaya’s best dish is soki soba: soba noodles in broth made from the usual kelp and dried bonito, then flavored with pork ribs. “The soup was flavorful enough that we drank the whole bowl,” says gachimai.

The goya champuru is pretty good, made from stir-fried bitter melon, pork, egg, and bean sprouts, topped with bonito fish flakes. This is a staple dish in Okinawan home cooking, explains gachimai. There’s a good version of rafute—boiled pork belly—too. Mozoku (Okinawan seaweed) and papaya champuru (green papaya salad) are disappointing and underflavored though.

There are Okinawan beers, too—like shikwasa, a beer flavored with the tart shikwasa citrus fruit. And there’s awamori with shikwasa, the Okinawan liquor that’s the local equivalent of sake. “This is the stuff all Okinawan people drink,” says gachimai. Try it on the rocks, he suggests.

Shin Okinawa Izakaya [South Bay]
1880 W. Carson Street, Suite A, Torrance
310-618-8357

Board Link: Shin Okinawa Izakaya

It started at Nice Matin, the West Side brasserie that boasted of an upscale hamburger so drippingly delicious it was dubbed the Five Napkin Burger. Last month the restaurant’s owners spun off a Midtown bar and grill called (what else?) Five Napkin Burger.

The namesake specialty, a jaw-breakingly thick 10-ouncer topped with Comté cheese and caramelized onions, does not disappoint, Miss Needle reports: “The juices kept running down my hand and arm as I was biting into it.” Other variations include a bacon-cheddar burger; a bunless, lettuce-wrapped “Inside Out” burger; turkey or tuna burgers; and the lamb kefta burger (“incredibly tasty,” delikado raves).

Beyond burgers, hounds like the crisp, salty fries; mussels steamed in ale; and the impressive beer list. They’re less enthusiastic about the lineup of sushi rolls, which some find out of place. “I couldn’t help but wonder why I was eating sushi as a precursor to my burger,” delikado says.

Five Napkin Burger [Theater District]
630 Ninth Avenue (between W. 44th and 45th streets), Manhattan
212-757-2277

Board Link: 5 Napkin Burger–Review

What lifts Il Laboratorio del Gelato’s black plum sorbetto to the next level, Ruth Lafler observes, is bits of plum skin. The delicious and unusual result: true plum tartness.

Il Laboratorio del Gelato [Lower East Side]
95 Orchard Street (between Broome and Delancey streets), Manhattan
212-343-9922

Board Link: Do you need reservations at small restaurants…

The former chef at Thai House Express in San Francisco has left, along with his sous-chef, and opened Chai Thai Noodles in Oakland, says DezzerSF. It has about 10 nicely spaced four-tops and a flat-screen TV on the wall.

The new place has all the atmosphere of an institutional shower room, complains Robert Lauriston, who doesn’t like the bright fluorescent lights and white tile. However, the squid salad is “stellar,” and he also liked the Dungeness crab noodles despite a paucity of the promised crab.

The menu is basically the same as at Thai House Express, minus a few items, say hounds. The much-loved pork leg stew is there, almost as good as ever, says pastryqueen, whose only quibble is that the rice seems to be regular long-grain, not jasmine.

Catfish salad (yum pla dook foo) is “more like an airy batter with catfish bits mixed in, served over a bed of shredded lettuce, and topped with cashews and red bell pepper,” says DezzerSF. It’s served with a mixture of fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, red onions, and cilantro.

The finely textured, lemongrass-scented fried sausage is nicely browned, with “an addictive snap,” says daveena, who adds that another catfish dish, this time deep-fried pieces of fish with vegetables, is also really tasty, with a similar sauce as the salad.

Back in SF, Thai House Express doesn’t seem to have suffered. The pork leg stew is still juicy and tender, reports DaveMP. “One of the best meals you can get for $8 in San Francisco,” he says, even though here, too, the rice now seems to be long-grain.

Chai Thai Noodles [East Bay]
545B International Boulevard, Oakland
510-832-2500

Thai House Express [Tenderloin]
901 Larkin Street, San Francisco
415-441-2248

Board Links: Chai Thai Noodles (Oakland) Thai House Express chef alert
Quick Thai House Express Report

Having thoroughly explored the duck noodle soup options in Oakland’s Chinatown (or at least tried all the places with a duck hanging in the window), daveena has concluded that the best of the bunch is Gum Wah.

Tender duck meat that comes easily off the bone with no fat; springy, skinny wheat noodles; and broth that tastes “like it came from roasted duck carcasses” makes this place a winner for daveena.

Ying Kee Noodle House is a runner-up thanks to its tender duck with a little fat, slightly soft noodles, and rich broth that tastes like a chicken-duck combo. You can get veggies as an add-in; the noodles are also extra. The whole roast duck, though, is awfully salty.

At New Gold Medal, daveena had duck that was “flavorful but tough.” The skinny wheat noodles had great texture, and daveena also liked the home-style scrambled eggs with bitter melon: “The squash was barely bitter, super silky, really delicious.”

Gum Kuo is “wildly inconsistent, even within a single bowl,” reports daveena. But the noodles are good, and the chicken-duck broth is fairly rich.

The duck at Café 88 has a strong star anise flavor, but is slightly tough. It’s served separately from the excellent broth and noodles. Rice vermicelli is standard here, and wheat noodles are an option, although daveena reports receiving a “fairly skimpy portion” on one visit.

Gum Wah [East Bay]
345 Eighth Street, Oakland
510-834-3103

Ying Kee Noodle House [East Bay]
387 Ninth Street, Oakland
510-465-1888

New Gold Medal [East Bay]
389 Eighth Street, Oakland
510-465-1940

Gum Kuo [East Bay]
388 Ninth Street #182, Oakland
510-268-1288

Café 88 [East Bay]
388 Ninth Street #181, Oakland
510-844-0651

Board Link: My Tuesday Project: Oakland Chinatown Duck Noodle Soup Roundup