Hey Kids, Have A Snack!

I happened upon an interesting picture that made me think: just how wacky is the food we are currently eating?

I don’t mean chocolate-covered insects, or disgusting snake head soup – even if it exists, this isn’t the kind of food that interests me. I like the concept of this:

Say Hello To My Special Friend!

Yes, I am obsessed with the concept of a “Cheeseburger In A Can”. Go hiking in eastern Europe, and most stores will sell you this to take along.

So I decided to cruise around the internet and see where I landed, to see what was unique, different – yes, WACKY – but edible, and to many, delicious! Here we go:

Sausage-Wrapped Burrito!

Thanks to the website Ranker.com, I found this:

A Taco Bell Cheesy Double-Beef Burrito Wrapped In Sausage – a Taco Bell Cheesy Double-Beef Burrito wrapped in a fully cooked, juicy Jimmy Dean Premium Pork sausage.

This was baked by a sausage enthusiast who wraps everything in sausages. It comes in at 146g of fat and 1790 calories. Needless to say, eat at your own risk…

Deep-Fried Coke!

In the past decade, we have heard about state fairs, carnivals and conventions serving up a wide variety of deep-fried goods. Snickers, Twinkies and even Butter have been deep-fried. And now they’ve taken it to a new level. Coke.

Frozen Coca-Cola-flavored batter is deep-fried and topped with Coca-Cola syrup, whipped cream, cinnamon sugar, and a cherry.

This was apparently discovered in Texas, and is estimated to have 830 calories per cup and 28 grams of fat…less if you order Diet.

Humma Humma Hummos!

You like hummos? Do you LOVE Hummos? Well then, here you go, 4 metres of it!

Giant traditional Middle-Eastern 4 meter diameter hommos. The photo was taken May 5, 2008 in Jerusalem.

Behold The Haggis!

In the mood for something different? Then head to Scotland and dig into some nice Haggis! What is haggis? Well, how about this: oatmeal and spices stuffed tightly inside a sheep’s stomach. You can find Haggis prepared in the traditional way, the stomachs filled with “pluck” (a sheep’s heart, liver, and lungs). The dish is traditionally served with a big glass of scotch and potatoes. Enjoy.

The World’s BIGGEST Burger!

First of all, I would like to thank AP for taking this picture, much as I appreciate the children standing there to keep the size in perspective. Yes, this is the world’ biggest burger…order one today!

Children stand next to a 338-pound “Absolutely Ridiculous Burger” at the Mallie’s Sports Grill in Southgate, Mich. The three-foot-high sandwich packs 540,000 calories, takes 22 hours to cook and sells for $2,000. Manager Jason Jones says it comes with fries and a drink. (Mike Matkin/Mallie’s Sports Grill/AP Photo)

Darth Vader Burger with Black Bun

Yes yes yes, the French have done it again! The fast food restaurant Quick is selling a Darth Vader burger!

“In connection with the 3D release of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), the French fast food restaurant chain Quick will be selling a Darth Vader burger with a black bun and a Jedi burger (shown in the picture), both available from the 31st of January.”

I found this and other fun stuff at the Website Fastfoodfever.com

And remember, if you have too much to eat, then just take one of these and all is going to be just fine!

Behold the Hamburger. Meat, topping, and a bun. Simple. And , simply put, the world’s most perfect food.

Just like most things in life, hamburgers come in all shapes and sizes. They can be BIG….

And of course, they can be BIGGER…or, in some cases, just plain ridiculous…

Burgers can also be fun, and they can capture the flavors of the world in amazing ways! I elaborated on the world of sliders before, but since then I have learned SO MUCH MORE.

INTERNATIONAL SLIDERS!

The key to an international slider is the condiment. Whether cheese, spices or sauces, it is all about what flavors the basic hamburger patty. As for the bun, I make sliders by using small dinner rolls, but there are many specialty stores that carry slider buns as well.

Your basic hamburger uses good quality ground beef with at least 15% fat content, to ensure lots of juicy flavor. I put minced onion in as well, and sometimes when I am feeling adventurous I use minced garlic. Other than that, I like to use a fun salt – like pink Hawaiian sea salt, and a fair amount of pepper. That’s it for me – upon this temple of meat flavor, these international slider recipes add unique ingredients that give them a special flavor…have fun!

I Like It Cold, Baby! Iceland Sliders
The key to an Icelandic slider is the sauce – specifically, a hamburger sauce called hamborgarasósa. One Icelandic dictionary says it has water, egg yolk, tomato concentrate, mustard, vinegar, and spices in it.

So make a regular burger and then add a mix of the above ingredients – your own home-made Miracle Whip, and you will be set!

Spice It Up! Indian Sliders

Lots of indian spices make this stand out. As the picture above shows, you can also add some grilled onions to this, but the key is spice, spice baby. Here is a recipe that lays out the unique flavors to add to your slider:

3 lbs ground beef
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fresh ginger , peeled and minced
1/4 cup minced scallion top
1/2 cup firmly packed chopped cilantro leaf , soft stems included

Grill your burger with all of these spices inside the meat, then top with some scallion and chopped cilantro. No cheese required!

Mai Oui? Why Not, It’s Your Burger! The French Slider

The definition of a French slider is blue cheese, and blue cheese ONLY – take your regular hamburger, and fold in crumbled blue cheese into the meat before you grill. What happens is the cheese melts while the meat is cooking, creating a blue creaminess that oozes out of the meat as you bite it…and the stuff around the edges that oozes out while cooking is evern better, as it forms a bit of a crispy crust…so crusty blue cheese on the outside, and oozy goodness inside. Score! If you want to go crazy you can wipe a smear of foie gras on the bun as well, but I don’t add anything else.

Aloha Burger!

I found this special in Tokyo, but Hawaiians love their spam as well, and they grow the world’s pineapples, so why not a spam burger topped with a slice? Just grill a slice of Spam and a slice of pineapple, and voila, you are set!

I also think you can take any slider and top it with a slice of pineapple for the tropical flavor…but why not give spam a try?

Late Night Snack In Madrid – The Spanish Slider! – Hamburguesa

Spanish flavors take this slider to a whole new level – as always, start with your traditional hamburger patty. The key here are the condiments.

The topping here is an olive tapenade, that gets spread on top of the cooked slider – you can find recipes for making tapendade, or you can buy it in a jar, but it includes black olives, capers, anchovies, garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice – cook the burger first, and after you turn it add a slice of Manchego cheese (a sheep’s milk cheese from the La Mancha region in Spain) and Jamón Iberico, (Iberico ham – prosciutto-like ham that comes from Spanish black pigs). Let the cheese melt as the burger cooks and the ham warms up…Take a bite and you will wake up in Barcelona – or Madrid!

Go, White Castle, Go! – what can I say? If you live on the east coast, you know all about White Castle. They are what they are. For me, they are a retro taste sensation that come to life when you add on the extras!

I buy them frozen and just microwave for a minute. Don’t get mad, this is my only option on the west coast. Then, add a big slice of tomato, a slice of pickle, and a swipe of mayonaise, and you have a burger popper that goes down easy!

Got Some Seoul? Kimchi Sliders!

When I was in Seoul, we ate every night at a korean BBQ, where you grill your own meats and seafood on the round grill embedded in your table, then wrap the grilled food around lettuce or thinly sliced pickled vegetables.

Taking that as an inspiration, I have a great recipe here for Korean sliders – which can be made with grilled sliced beef, upon which you add pickled cucumbers, a splash of rice vinegar and kimchi. Thanks to the website The Chubby Vegetarian, you can also do a version without meat at all, or just pile it all on!

Vegetarian Kimchi

1 large head of napa cabbage
1/4 cup salt
2-inch piece of ginger (peeled)
1 small bulb garlic (about 10 cloves, peeled)
1 large Korean pear (peeled, cut away from core)
1/2 cup Korean red chili powder
1 cup daikon radish (shredded using a julienne peeler)
1 cup carrot (shredded using a julienne peeler)

Wash cabbage and chop into 1-inch pieces. Place cabbage into a large bowl and toss it with salt. Allow the cabbage and salt mixture to sit for at least an hour and a half.

While you are waiting, you can make the chili paste. Place the garlic, pear, and chili powder into a food processor. Blend until smooth; you may need to add a few tablespoons of water to get it going. Set mixture aside.

Now fill the large bowl with the cabbage in it full of cold water and rinse the salt off of the cabbage. Do this twice. Squeeze as much moisture out of the cabbage as you can using your hands. In a large bowl, toss the cabbage together with the garlic/ginger/chili paste and the carrots and radish. Place in an airtight container in the fridge. The flavor is best after about 24 hours and will become more sour over time.

Korean BBQ Sliders (Makes 6)
Recipe from The Chubby Vegetarian website!

1 tablespoon each of soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil (mixed)
3 green onions (thinly sliced)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large portobello mushroom cap (thinly sliced)
6 slider buns
mayo
Vegetarian Kimchi
half of an English cucumber (sliced longways using a vegetable peeler)

Get a frying pan screaming hot, and add the vegetable oil. Once it starts smoking, add the sliced mushrooms and cook for about a minute or until they start to brown. Turn the mushrooms in the pan and add the soy sauce mixture and the green onions. Continually move the mixture around for a few seconds then remove from heat. Divide mushrooms among the buns, and top with about a tablespoon of kimchi and a few slices of cucumber. I love these with or without meat!

Japanese Bacon Egg Burgers

Just a quick sidebar: Tokyo has a ton of places called “First Kitchen”, and they serve a variety of western-style food. What I got for breakfast was a bacon-egg burger, very much like an Egg McMuffin, except you use a hamburger bun. Kind of tasty…but here is the real Japanese slider…

THE WASABI-AVOCADO Japanese Slider!

I read about this over the holidays and I made one…it was delicious! By using wasabi mayonaise, you get the flavor without too much of the heat, but buy some extra and amp it up as you choose!

It is very simple: just cook a slider patty as usual…no cheese needed. After you turn the patty, add some sliced avocado for a moment to warm it up, and once you put it on the bun, wipe a heavy dose of wasabi mayonaise on the top bun. Trader Joe’s sells it, or buy some great mayo and wasabi and mix it together to the strength you can handle…this is delicious with a Sapporo!

The All-American Bacon-Cheeseburger Slider!

What can I say? Here is a burger from top to bottom. Just toast the bun, cook the burger, add the cheese, let it melt, put it on the bun with the added ingredients, and you are set!

Top Bun
Cheese – melted and dripping
Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!
Slider Patty
Tomato
Pickle
Mayonaise, mayonaise, mayonaise!
Bottom Bun

See that? DO NOT DEVIATE – this is perfection.

G’Day Mate! The Perfect Australian Sliders!

I uncovered these two years ago in Melbourne. It is the best flavor, and everyone who tries it agrees it’s an American slider made even better!

An Aussie slider is just like ours, with two key differences. They add a slice of beetroot – OK, we call it beet, they call it beetroot – underneath the burger. It adds a great, slightly sweet and nutty flavor to the taste. Everything else is the same – add cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce if you like – and if you want to go totally Aussie, take the second step to complete fulfillment – add a fried egg on top….the best!

And finally…THE BEST SIDE DISHES IN THE WORLD!

When you are enjoying sliders, you can make salads and vegetables, but why not just serve the greatest invention in the world: TATER TOTS! Just buy them frozen and bake them up and you are done!

Or try this: a tater tot casserole, which is basically baked mac-n-cheese with tater tots added!

Here are more than enough ways to celebrate A Super Sunday!

WRAP YOUR MOUTH AROUND THIS!

I feel like a little extra bacon on my cheeseburger – how about you?

Let’s face it, even I admit this is a bit much. But, with what is going on in the world today, there seems to be no end to the imagination – and appetite – of bacon and burger fans. Case in point:

The 30,000 Calorie Sandwich

I found this online – it’s a sandwich filled with ground beef, bacon, corn dogs, ham, pastrami, roast beef, bratwurst, braunschweiger and turkey, topped with fried mushrooms, onion rings, swiss/provolone/cheddar/feta/parmesan cheeses, lettuce and butter on a loaf white bread…

You can only imagine how it will sit for the rest of the day…think smart and go here instead!

The Sandwich of Knowledge

I was led to this one from the “This Is Why You’re Huge” website – The bottom tier contains eight strips of bacon, six sausages and four burger paddies; followed by a second tier of black pudding; topped by a third tier comprised of two diced chicken breasts and six fried eggs. Enjoy.

Behold The Pretzelnator!

In a move probably alleged to be a miracle of social marketing, McDonald’s Germany recently unveiled the top five crowd-sourced burgers that earned the most votes in their “My Burger” campaign, in which about 330,000 burger recipes were submitted online by McDonald’s fans.

Each with a vaguely German focus, the first and most interesting of the combo was the Pretzelnator, a burger with a pretzel bun, minus the exterior salt.

McDonald’s Germany successfully achieved that through its “My Burger” crowdsourcing campaign. An online burger configurator gives fans the opportunity to create their own burgers and give them individual names.

The BACONE -

How about this one? A cone made out of bacon, with eggs and country gravy inside, and a buttery biscuit on top.

Deep-Fried Bacon-Wrapped Mozzarella Sticks

Or these bacon-wrapped mozzarella sticks that have been deep fried…you know, to put the fat on the outside in case there isn’t enough inside already…

Secret Treasure Loaf

What about this? A loaf of ground Spam cubes with a Velveeta cheese center topped with a layer of hot Velveeta.

Krispy Kreme Bacon Cheeseburgers

Nothing to add to this: bacon cheeseburgers in a krispy kreme bun…

The Mega Mel Burger

And if you REALLY need to go all the way, try this Burger consisting of five pounds of beef, one pound of bacon and a quarter pound of cheese – you know, FOR YOUR HEALTH.

CHEEZBORGER! CHEEZBORGER!

And I leave you with this: the “World Famous Billy Goats” in Chicago proudly shows off this sign:

I wish I could have ordered a burger cooked by these guys!

I love burgers! YOU LOVE BURGERS! So let’s all love a few right now!

I’ve got a world full of new bacon surprises, like bacon pie, bacon turtles, and Bacon Poutine, so let’s go!

Behold The Sumo Burger!

If you read my review of Hollywood’s Fuku Burger, you know I’m a big fan of these japanese-influenced burgers:

Fuku’s Sumo Burger!

To celebrate National Burger Month, Fuku Burger LA launched what they call the “Sumo Burger!” This larger-than-life burger is roughly the size of about six regular Fuku burgers!

This terrific Hollywood restaurant has a multitude of specials, like this one: Fuku Burger customers can “Sumo size” any burger on the menu. For $40, you can get your favorite burger sumo-sized to 2 1/2 pounds of meat, bun and all the fixings.

I think I will just get my son and a couple of his friends and go tackle this baby as a team!

Bacon Poutine!

Presenting Bacon Poutine, french fries topped with cheese curds, bacon and covered in gravy. Make it yourself or find a restaurant in your neck of the woods to do it for you!

And for the best Poutine in the US, check out my post about Badhappy Poutine in Chicago!

http://johnrieber.com/2012/09/14/poutine-bliss-so-happy-about-badhappy-pork-belly-foie-gras-and-poutine-to-you-too/

Badhappy Poutine!

Badhappy Poutine is just the best – and Chef keeps trying new things to make his restaurant even better…like launching a line of burgers that look like THIS:

Check out my writeup of Badhappy’s burgers HERE:

http://johnrieber.com/2013/02/15/mega-burgers-badhappy-bites-down-hard-the-9-patty-triple-triple-tower/

More Badhappy news soon!

Behold A Bacon Pie!

Bacon pie is not exactly a pie – in fact, there is no “pie” involved, only bacon. And cheese. And more bacon. The bacon pie is a giant slab of weaved bacon, a ton of cheese and bacon strips, and another giant slab of weaved bacon.

The Bacon-Turtle Burger!

Thanks to our friends at GrubGrade.com, I can show you how they spent their Memorial Day – with this bacon-y masterpiece!

It’s a full pound of ground beef, stuffed with hot dogs and wrapped in bacon. Yes please!

Behold The Doughnut Burger!

This beauty is courtesy of the website A Hamburger Today, who reviewed this burger from Straw restaurant in San Francisco.

Straw calls its burger “The Ringmaster”, sandwiching a cheese-topped patty of ground chuck between two glazed doughnuts. Like any good amusement park operator, they offer an enticing up-sell. On a burger that costs $11.75, you can add an extra patty (five ounces or so) for only $1.25. Sounds like a winner, go to the site and read the whole review!

Japanese Wasabi Sliders!

This is how I spent my Memorial Day – with a simple, yet delicious slider involving a nice patty stuffed with garlic and celery, and topped with wasabi mayonaise and fresh avocado…delicious!

Burger In A Bowl!

Alex wanted lean and clean, so her garlic/celery stuffed burger was served over chopped spinach and topped with sauteed garlic and tiny sliced tomato!

The Cheeseburger Bed!

After all this food, time for a nap in my Cheeseburger Bed!

Welcome to the state fair! Whether it’s Iowa, or almost every other state in the union, this is a summer for deep-fried love!

The New York Times has bitten down hard on some new fried country fair food, – checkout the whole story on:

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/08/15/dining/20120815-IOWA-12.html

Double Bacon Corn Dogs!!!

Here’s the double-bacon, double-deep-fried corn dog on a stick! This is, simply put, magical!

A hot dog is wrapped in bacon and fried, then cooled and dipped into a corn batter studded with bits of bacon. The creation is then deep-fried again.

After a whole lot of crazy deep frying, this is a more traditional use for bacon – just wrap it all around a hot dog, batter it up, deep fry it and dig in!

OH NO, They Didn’t! Yes, They Did! Deep-Fried Breakfast!

And from our friends at the terrific website LaughingSquid:

Deep-Fried Breakfast Cereal Debuted at San Diego County Fair
By Rusty Blazenhoff on June 15, 2012

Deep-fried Trix

photo by Shauntel Lowe for Imperial Beach Patch

In 2011, fair food vendor “Chicken” Charlie Boghosian launched his deep-fried Kool-Aid balls at the San Diego County Fair. This year he is debuting Totally Fried Cereal, deep-fried breakfast cereal, at his San Diego County Fair booth in Del Mar, California. At this time, the cereals offered are Trix and Cinnamon Toast Crunch, shown below…

So the march to innovation continues, thanks to our State Fairs!

But Not This – Yet:

In the mood for a real mouthful of food?

Behold The Krispy Kreme SLOPPY JOE!

Time once again to shake off your preconceptions about food and bite down hard on this! It’s a “Krispy Kreme Sloppy Joe!” It’s all thanks to Chef Charlie Boghosian – let’s meet this visionary “state fair food” King!

California’s Chicken Charlie’s!

Chef Charlie Boghosian runs Chicken Charlie’s in Del Mar, Calif. Chef Charlie sells lots of unique fried food at state fairs across the country. Look at his great state fair booth!

Taking It Up A Notch!

Chef Charlie decided to take it up a notch this year, and just unveiled a sloppy Joe sandwich made with a Krispy Kreme doughnut. This magnificent creation features meat, cheddar cheese and two halves of a glazed doughnut, and it recently debuted at the San Diego County Fair!

It really is simplicity in a bite: A hefty portion of classic, saucy Sloppy Joe filling is covered in shredded cheddar cheese and sandwiched between two halves of a Krispy Kreme glazed doughnut.

Bring On The Bacon-Wrapped Pickles!

If you spot Charlie’s red and white flags at your local state fair, brace yourself for a menu of Krispy Kreme chicken sandwiches, bacon-wrapped pickles, deep-fried – wait, wait WAIT! BACON-wrapped pickles???

Yes indeed! But that’s not all! You can also get deep=fried Twinkies, deep-fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and deep-fried balls of battered red Kool-Aid. Again, look at his booth and see some of the creations on the board!

OK, OK, Must Have Now!

That’s exactly what I’m thinking too! If you are looking to get your “sloppy joe” on, Chicken Charlie’s is scheduled to serve up its deep-fried food at the Orange County Fair from July 12 to Aug. 11 and at the Los Angeles County Fair from Aug. 30 to Sept. 29.

And Don’t Forget The Original!

Charlie’s not alone in playing around with Krispy Kreme…Krispy Kreme itself recently rolled out a breakfast sandwich with egg, bacon and cheese – all housed within a krispy kreme doughnut. And that’s not all – it has gone deep-fried crazy at state fairs everywhere!!

Chicken-Fried Bacon!

State Fairs have a history of rolling out the deep-fried crazy food, and this year will be no exception. If you really want to explore the craziest fair food, check out my story about “chicken-fried bacon” by clicking here:

http://johnrieber.com/2012/10/29/bacon-to-cheer-you-up-chicken-fried-bacon-deep-fried-coke-crazy-fried-state-fair-food/

And Don’t Forget Your Breakfast!

Yes, you can also get deep-fried TRIX! A whole new world of crazy deep-fried food began showing up at fairs, and all bets are off! Read all about deep fried Trix, Coke and more by clicking HERE!

http://johnrieber.com/2012/08/16/deep-fried-bacon-deep-fried-cereal-county-fair-bacon-fried-food/

And remember – deep frying just makes food bettter – let me know your greatest deep fried taste!

I am overdue to share this…

One of the greatest bacon cheeseburgers I have ever eaten…it is EXACTLY the kind of food we should all be eating this holiday season…except that, for some of us, the holiday will turn out like THIS:

Time To Bite Down Hard!

Everyone loves great food. These guys certainly do. That being the case, it’s time to celebrate great food – THAT COMES IN A CAN!

Get ready to surprise your food fanatic with some of the most unique tastes they’ve ever experienced – you’ll not only get a big hug, but perhaps a look like this as well!

Time To Celebrate Food In A Can!

Yes, it’s time once again to bite down hard on some of the strangest stuff that comes CANNED! And yes, you know what I mean:

Cheeseburger In A Can!

Yes, my old favorite – I can NEVER get enough of this: the famous “cheeseburger in a can!” And not only can you find this online, you can find this picture of what someone looks like AFTER eating one!

Time to look at the strangest food that comes packaged in metal – the famous and infamous “foods in a can!” And what better way than with my all-time favorite:

The concept behind this product is easy: someone in Germany knew that hikers and campers would need a portable, “quick to make and easy to consume” food product – and nothing beats a cheeseburger, right?

Watch This Guy Bite Down Hard!

And yes, there is even a VIDEO of someone eating a cheeseburger in a can! Here is the experience in all of its glory:

If you want to see how this food monstrosity was reviewed by those brave enough to eat it, I have compiled a list of great quotes – just click my link HERE!

http://johnrieber.com/2012/01/22/worlds-wildest-burgers/

It’s hard to imagine that you can ever top a cheeseburger in a can – it is, after all, a food product that was never supposed to be put inside a metal tube – unlike this stuff!

So, in speaking of the greatest food ever canned, it’s time to look at some of the craziest stuff ever stuffed into a can!

Hungarian Canned Bacon!

Yes, our good friend bacon is also available in a canned version. And I see why it works so well – just stand it up on end, roll it up and slide it in! Now you have the goodness of bacon whenever you want it – just pop the top and unroll some deliciousness!

I can imagine taking a can of bacon along on my next camping trip to adding it to my cheeseburger in a can – once we have canned mayo, it’s all golden!

It’s hard to criticize canned bacon, which seems like a very normal canned food product…unlike THIS:

Hold Your Tongue!

OK, time to edge into wacky territory, and here’s an idea for you: canned sheep tongue!

Many cultures eat tongue, so it is something you will find on more progressive ethnic menus…beef tongue is eaten like bologna, so it’s not THAT unusual:

Well, after looking at ten pounds of sheep’s tongue, maybe it IS UNUSUAL:

Armadillo Meat!

Now, from the wacky to the bizarre, let’s take a look at other mystery meats coming out of a can soon:

Yes, you can keep a can of Armadillo at the ready, just in case you have the need – now you have the ability as well!

Creamed Armadillo On The Half Shell!

I can only imagine that if you want some Armadillo, but don’t have the time to “cream” it yourself, this is for you…and speaking of strange “creamed meats in a can”:

Creamed Possum!

I almost wish this was a joke – unless I am missing something, Possum doesn’t come to mind as a meat to eat in any way, especially creamed.

But, just in case this sparks some sort of cooking frenzy in you, I actually found a website that is all for you – here is a possum recipe!

http://southern.food.com/recipe/stuffed-roast-opossum-107969

Pork Brain In Milk Gravy – Hold The Cholesterol!

Time now to move onto a “smarter” meal:

Yes, if you need a week’s worth of cholesterol in a single day – with “milk gravy” no less, then I guess pork brains are for you! And here is a canned food product that doesn’t beat around the bush!

“Potted Meat Food Product!”

Hey, talk about “truth in advertising!” It’s a potted meat food product – there are many on the market, and this is NO knock against the quality of Libby’s version: it’s a product, much like spam, that uses lesser parts of an animal, and adds seasoning and spices…it’s mostly used on crackers as a sort of pate:

Among the ingredients: Mechanically separated chicken, pork skin, partially defatted cooked pork fatty tissue, partially defatted cooked beef fatty tissue, vinegar, less than 2% of: salt, spices, sugar, flavorings, sodium erythorbate and sodium nitrite.

Again, there is no knock against this type of food – it’s just a unique packaging style to be sure! And, to end on a very pointless note, I leave you with this:

Spotted Dick!

That’s right! Look it up! And yes, they sell it in a can!

STILL not enough for you? Then what about this new way to eat sushi!

Yes, sushi poppers! Sushi in a tube is close to food in a can, right?

Click HERE to read all about this amazing new food product!

http://johnrieber.com/2013/03/19/the-future-of-sushi-behold-sushi-poppers/

Enjoy all of this unique food goodness – and remember to bite down hard!

Time To Double Down HARD!

As you know, I LOVE to find the wackiest food on the planet, and this may be one of my favorites, but boy is it controversial! The Hungry Horse pub chain in England is causing a “burger brouhaha” with their wacky “double doughnut burger”! Here is why:

Pub chain Hungry Horse, which is owned by Bury St Edmunds brewer Greene King, has been criticised for creating a burger which contains almost 2,000 calories.

The ‘Double Donut Burger’ consists of 1,996 calories (98% of a woman’s recommended daily calorie intake) it also packs in 53g of saturated fat and 8.2g of salt.

Hungry Horse Bites Back!

The owners of Hungry Horse have responded to the criticism, and in fact, they proudly stand behind their 2,000 burger!

This is their promotional photo, proudly showcasing their burger:

They also released a statement defending the burger:

“Our popular menu caters for a variety of tastes and appetites and includes everything from lower calorie options such as our hot chicken and bacon salad at 393 calories, through to the indulgent occasional treat such as our new Double Donut Burger.

All the nutritional information for our menu is available on our website and in our pubs, so that our customers are able to make informed decisions about what they choose to eat.

– STEVE JEBSON, HUNGRY HORSE”

You can decide for yourself if this double doughnut burger is a culinary crime or not. Thanks to ITV.com for the original story.

Read the entire story here on “Itv.com”:

http://www.itv.com/news/anglia/update/2014-11-11/double-donut-burger-indulgent-or-irresponsible/

As for me, I’d bite down on this at least once!

Happy New Year!

Sydney Minick is celebrating her first new year, and I’m making a special burger in her honor! And why not? 2015 is going to be an exciting and DELICIOUS year – here’s proof!

It’s “SliderFest 2015!

In order to launch the new year on the best tasting note possible, I plan to make five different international sliders, and as always, I have the recipes to share with you!

Study this chart: it’s a beautiful thing. But big massive burgers aren’t he point right now – sliders are three bites – you enjoy one, and then you try another – a different flavor…with sliders you can go around the world in your mouth!

Fry One On!

OK, I admit it: I LOVE a slider with french fries and tartar sauce…I make them all the time and I’m not ashamed. But now I have another reason to try some new sliders – and I want to share all of them with you – thanks to Sydney!

Sydney Had A Little Lamb!

My gorgeous grand-daughter Sydney just turned six months old, and is therefore celebrating her FIRST New Year’s Day! So what better way to celebrate than with a Lamb slider in honor of her!

I made these lamb sliders for the first time at my daughter Jessica’s “BABY Q”, her way of doing a baby shower…they were delicious! And they are easy: for the patty, just mix ground lamb with onion, garlic, mint, parsley and salt and pepper…

Top With Some Tzatziki Sauce!

Yes, a cool yogurt cucumber sauce is all you need to add to this burger to make it great!

1 (16 ounce) container low-fat plain yogurt
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and grated
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Combine the yogurt, cucumber, garlic, parsley, mint, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Top the burger with this cool sauce and you are “lamb-tacular”! And I added some avocado to mine and here it is!

There you go, Sydney, your first slider! While Sydney’s not quite ready to join the slider fun yet, this is still a great burger to share with friends! And there is more to share as well: let’s go around the world for some great slider fun – I mean, how can you argue with Marilyn!

The World’s Best International Sliders!

I love to travel. When I do, I always eat local…but I have noticed that many countries around the world are making burgers….and the Japanese have taken it to the max!

While the hilarious Lotteria restaurant chain in Japan loves to offer up burgers like this, a slider ISN’T about the meat.

“It’s All About The Topping!”

The key to an international slider is what goes ON the meat! Whether it’s cheese, spices or sauces, it is all about what adds a unique flavor to the basic hamburger patty. As for the bun, I make sliders by using small dinner rolls, but there are many specialty stores that carry slider buns as well.

Your basic hamburger uses good quality ground beef with at least 15% fat content, to ensure lots of juicy flavor. I put minced onion in as well, and I use minced garlic as well. I also like to use a fun salt – like pink Hawaiian sea salt, and a fair amount of pepper.

That’s it for me – upon this temple of meat, these international slider recipes add unique ingredients that give them a special flavor…have fun, it’s time to head around the world!

Spice It Up! Indian Sliders

Lots of indian spices make this stand out. As the picture above shows, you can also add some grilled onions to this, but the key is spice, spice baby. Here is a recipe that lays out the unique flavors to add to your slider:

3 lbs ground beef
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1/4 cup minced scallion top
1/2 cup firmly packed chopped cilantro leaf

Grill your burger with all of these spices inside the meat, then top with some scallion and chopped cilantro. No cheese required!

But now here’s a burger that is ALL about the cheese!

Mai Oui? Why Not, It’s Your Burger! The French Slider

The definition of a French slider is blue cheese, and blue cheese ONLY – take your regular hamburger, and fold in crumbled blue cheese into the meat before you grill. What happens is the cheese melts while the meat is cooking, creating a blue creaminess that oozes out of the meat as you bite it…

…and the stuff that oozes out while cooking is even better. Score! If you want to go crazy you can wipe a smear of foie gras on the bun as well, but I don’t add anything else.

Late Night Snack In Barcelona – The Spanish Slider! – Hamburguesa!

Spanish flavors take this slider to a whole new level – as always, start with your traditional hamburger patty. The key here are the condiments.

The topping here is an olive tapenade, that gets spread on top of the cooked slider – you can find recipes for making tapendade, or you can buy it in a jar, but it includes black olives, capers, anchovies, garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice – cook the burger first, and after you turn it add a slice of Manchego cheese and Jamón – Iberico ham – prosciutto-like ham!

Let the cheese melt as the burger cooks and the ham warms up…Take a bite and you will wake up in Barcelona!

Got Some Seoul? Kimchi Sliders!

When I was in Seoul, we ate every night at a korean BBQ, where you grill your own meats and seafood on the round grill embedded in your table, then wrap the grilled food around lettuce or thinly sliced pickled vegetables.

Taking that as an inspiration, I have a great recipe here for Korean sliders – which can be made with grilled sliced beef, upon which you add pickled cucumbers, a splash of rice vinegar and kimchi. Thanks to the website The Chubby Vegetarian, you can also do a version without meat at all, or just pile it all on!

Korean BBQ Sliders (Makes 6)
Recipe from The Chubby Vegetarian website!

1 tablespoon each of soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil (mixed)
3 green onions (thinly sliced)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large portobello mushroom cap (thinly sliced)
6 slider buns
mayo
Vegetarian Kimchi – you can buy pre-made
half of an English cucumber (sliced longways using a vegetable peeler)

Get a frying pan screaming hot, and add the vegetable oil. Once it starts smoking, add the sliced mushrooms and cook for about a minute or until they start to brown. Turn the mushrooms in the pan and add the soy sauce mixture and the green onions. Continually move the mixture around for a few seconds then remove from heat. Divide mushrooms among the buns, and top with about a tablespoon of kimchi and a few slices of cucumber. I love these with or without meat!

THE WASABI-AVOCADO Japanese Slider!

I read about this over the holidays and I made one…it was delicious! By using wasabi mayonaise, you get the flavor without too much of the heat, but buy some extra and amp it up as you choose!

It is very simple: just cook a slider patty as usual…no cheese needed. After you turn the patty, add some sliced avocado for a moment to warm it up, and once you put it on the bun, wipe a heavy dose of wasabi mayonaise on the top bun.

The coolness of the fresh avocado goes perfectly against the spicy wasabi mayo.

Trader Joe’s sells it, or buy some great mayo and wasabi and mix it together to the strength you can handle…this is delicious with a Sapporo!

The All-American Bacon-Cheeseburger Slider!

What can I say? Here is a burger that never fails to satisfy. Just toast the bun, cook the burger, add the cheese, let it melt, put it on the bun with some or ALL of the added ingredients, and you are set!

Top Bun
Cheese – melted and dripping
Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!
Slider Patty
Tomato
Pickle
Mayonaise, mayonaise, mayonaise!
Bottom Bun

See that? DO NOT DEVIATE – this is perfection.

G’Day Mate! The Perfect Australian Sliders!

An Aussie slider is just like ours, with two key differences. They add a slice of beetroot – OK, we call it beet, they call it beetroot – underneath the burger. It adds a great, slightly sweet and nutty flavor to the taste.

Everything else is the same – add cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce if you like – and if you want to go totally Aussie, take the second step to complete fulfillment – add a fried egg on top….the best!

And finally…THE BEST SIDE DISHES IN THE WORLD!

When you are enjoying sliders, you can make salads and vegetables, but why not just serve the greatest invention in the world: TATER TOTS! Just buy them frozen and bake them up and you are done!

Or try this: a tater tot casserole, which is basically baked mac-n-cheese with tater tots added!

And if you want 2015 to be full of good things, then here is all you have to do:

Happy New Year And A “Hoppin’ John” To You All!

Of course, you MUST include some “Hoppin’ John” as well…as my friend and terrific Author Michael Ruhlman says, “this ‘Hoppin’ John’ recipe is a dish from the American south featuring black-eyed peas, often included in southern food and soul food recipes, traditionally served on New Year’s Day by those angling for good fortune all year long.”

The beautiful photo is courtesy of his wife Donna, and see his entire recipe on his great website here:

http://ruhlman.com/2010/12/hoppin-john/

Follow Ruhls for ongoing culinary magic! And bite down hard on a slider while you are doing it!

Happy New Year!

Time To Start Planning Your Memorial Day 2015 Menu!

I love this holiday! Of course, we are honoring our Veterans who have made great sacrifices for this country, and we are proud of them for that service. For an All-American celebration like this – what beats a burger?

This post is going to celebrate burgers of all shapes and sizes, and share some great recipes for your grilling pleasure – with no shortage of BACON!

Yes, it’s one of America’s most popular burgers – the Shake Shack bacon cheeseburger!

Shake Shacks are opening everywhere now it seems, and here is the reason why:

The burgers are big and beautiful – you can ready my entire review right here:

http://johnrieber.com/2015/02/04/bite-into-shake-shack-cheese-stuffed-burgers-my-shack-stack-review/

And there’s no better time than to try and replicate America’s greatest burgers!

Time To Be Inspired!

Why are burgers America’s greatest food? Well, a great burger picture answers that question, but also, remember the words of one of our country’s most beloved Chefs:

“The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook.”

Julia Child.

That’s right, this is the kind of food that says “I LOVE AMERICA!”

A cheeseburger, when done right, is a thing of beauty. When done with doughnut buns, as you see above, it’s a thing of PERFECT BEAUTY. And what do you do when something is perfect? You double it!

Now THAT is a thing of beauty! And since the Memorial Day weekend is a time for families and friends to gather, I call on all Artists to rise up and create a masterpiece or two – like this!

To begin, here is my ALL-TIME FAVORITE SLIDER!

I am happy to get this celebration started by showing you what, to me, is the greatest taste imaginable…

MY “FRENCH FRY ‘N’ TARTAR” BACON CHEESEBURGER!

I love burgers. And bacon. AND TARTAR. So why not take care of all of my vices in one big bite?

It’s so easy to be so happy: cook up a burger (i add diced onion and garlic to mine) and just before you finish cooking it, lay a few cooked french fries on top, then top with tartar sauce…finally, lay down a piece of cheese….i use both sharp cheddar AND Mozzarella….once it melts you are ready to bite down hard!

Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it – and you will never knock it again! OK, I understand that some of you don’t want to mix your burgers with spuds, so if that’s the case, here are some other fun recipes to try!

SLIDERS, SLIDERS, SLIDERS!

I like sliders because you can try more variations due to their smaller size. The key to a great slider is what holds it all together. That’s why I use sweet Hawaiian dinner rolls…they are the perfect size AND they add a nice bit of flavor, which you need when you are piling your mini-bun high like this:

The Ingredients For A Perfect Patty!

Now, time to get down to basics. A great hamburger uses good quality ground beef with at least 15% fat content, to ensure lots of juicy flavor. I put minced onion and garlic in mine, to provide a bit of sassy crunch. Other than that, I like to use a fun salt – like pink hawaiian sea salt, and a fair amount of pepper.

Let’s get cooking!

The All-American Bacon-Cheeseburger!

What can you say? Here is the all-american classic! Build it this way and you are golden – your ingredients are easy:

Sweet Hawaiian bun, Cheese – melted and dripping
Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!
Hamburger patty
Tomato, Pickle, then Mayonaise, Mayonaise, Mayonaise!
Ketchup and mustard if you MUST

If you do it right, it will look like THIS (you can shift things around in terms of order, but it needs to end up like this):

See that? DO NOT DEVIATE – this is perfection.

But what if you have a “spicy tooth?” Well, we have an answer for you as well:

The Sriracha Burger!

This is a GREAT idea…the recipe is from the terrific “Serious Eats” website, and it takes advantage of one of America’s most popular new condiments!

3 pounds ground beef (preferably chuck, 80/20)
1/4 cup soy sauce
10 tablespoons Sriracha
4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
4 slices thick-cut bacon
2 large sweet onions
3/4 cup blue cheese dressing
8 sesame seed buns
8 thick slices Swiss cheese
1 large beefsteak tomato, sliced
Arugula or romaine lettuce

This great looking Sriracha burger pic came from “cookingwithcristen.com” which is also a great site for recipes!

This is easy and fun: just combine the ground beef, soy sauce, 5 tablespoons of the Sriracha, and the pepper – make your patties.

Preheat a charcoal or gas grill to medium high heat.

Cook your bacon – once the bacon is cooked, remove the slices and drain onto paper towels, reserving the remaining bacon fat in the pan. Cook sliced onions in the bacon fat over medium-low heat until they caramelize, 20 to 25 minutes.

Grill the burgers, turning once, 4 to 41/2 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer registers 130° to 135°F for medium-rare.

While the burgers are cooking, in a small bowl, combine the blue cheese dressing with the remaining 5 tablespoons Sriracha. Lightly toast the buns on the grill during the last minute of cooking time.

To assemble, spread the blue cheese mixture on both halves of each hamburger bun. Stack a burger patty, Swiss cheese slice, bacon, caramelized onions, tomato slice, and a small handful of arugula between each hamburger bun.

Bam! Spicy good times for all!

Our next stop on this burger journey take you to a very unique and gooey place:

The “Bacon Mac’n’ Cheeseburger!”

That’s right, make a bacon cheeseburger and load it up with mac’n’cheese as your topping!

As you can see, simple and so so delicious – especially when serves with tater tots on the side!

And if you want a subtle “international” feel to your slider, this this on for size:

Australian Sliders!

I uncovered these two years ago in Melbourne. They add a slice of beetroot – OK, we call it beet, they call it beetroot – just add a slice underneath the burger. It adds a great, slightly sweet and nutty flavor to the taste. Look at how beautiful that big chunk looks on the burger above…Everything else is the same – but if you want to go totally Aussie, add a fried egg on top….the best!

Finally, if you want to begin your holiday weekend with a slider, do what I do:

The “White Castle Breakfast Slider!”

Here is a recipe for making your own breakfast sliders using frozen White Castles cheeseburgers!

http://johnrieber.com/2012/06/28/white-castle-breakfast-sliders-behold-the-380-calorie-wonder/

Enjoy your holiday!

Hungry For A Peanut Butter And Jelly Sandwich? ON A STICK?

It’s become an annual tradition: the Iowa State Fair has unveiled their list of new food item to be presented that this summer’s huge event!

Fairgoers walking along the Grand Concourse at the 2004 Sesquicentennial Iowa State Fair on Saturday August 21, 2004 in Des Moines, IA. (Iowa State Fair Photo)

Iowa’s Amazing State Fair!

Kudos to the Iowa state fair – for not only putting on a hugely successful event every August, but for now actually releasing an annual list of the new food to be unveiled at the fair!

A “Bacon Explosion!”

For bacon lovers, this was probably the biggest news: “The Ultimate Bacon Explosion” features 8 oz. of fresh brisket trimmings infused with a light jalapeno cheese, blended with seasonings, and then wrapped in bacon. It is then smoked and lightly sauced in a homemade Sweet Chili BBQ Sauce.

Here is one of many stories from local media showing you what to expect this year:

http://www.kcci.com/news/iowa-state-fair-to-release-new-foods-list-wednesday/33737086

And Iowa’s not the only state that is getting into the state fair food madness!

Thank You, Texas, For Your Deep-Fried Coke!

“Fried Coke” is Coca-Cola-flavored batter that’s deep-fried and garnished with Coca-Cola syrup, whipped cream, and cinnamon-sugar. Abel Gonzales Jr. won Most Creative for this concoction at the 2006 State Fair of Texas. Good job, Abel!

Indiana’s Pizza Cones!

Indian’s state fair offers this portable version of a pizza slice is a cone-shaped pizza crust filled with cheese, pepperoni, sausage, and tomato sauce, baked in an oven. And just like an ice cream cone, the cheesy treat comes wrapped in its own paper sleeve for on-the-go handheld ease. Sounds tasty and fairly healthy, considering the next item:

California Fried Avocado Bites!

It wouldn’t be California if avocado didn’t get a starring role! This recipe consists of spears of tender avocado that have been coated in a corn-dog batter and fried until golden. These vitamin-rich nuggets come with a choice of two dipping sauces: ranch or herb-infused oil.

Texas Unveils Chicken-Fried Bacon!

This ode to bacon won the award for Best Taste at the 2008 Big Tex Choice Awards. Creator Glen Kusak had been a fair vendor for 12 years running, but 2008 marked his first year entering the annual State Fair of Texas food contest.

Glen Kusak is now our hero!

The Huffington Post Food Section Digs Into Fair Food, Too!

The Huffington Post also had a great story in their food section, all about great state fair food. Among their choices:

Fat Elvis On A Stick – Wisconsin State Fair

Elvis loved his peanut butter, banana, and bacon sandwiches. Wisconsin paid tribute to this with their latest on-a-stick creation, the Fat Elvis: a peanut butter cup dunked in banana batter, then deep-fried, and served with bacon on top, of course.

Deep Fried Cotton Candy – Texas State Fair

And how can you top this? We saw deep fried Kool-Aid last year, so we should have known that cotton candy couldn’t be that far off. As the Huffington Post says, this is pretty crazy, because it seems like the spun sugar would melt in the deep fryer. Life is full of mysteries. Not enough sweets for you? Don’t worry, this treat is served by a frozen yogurt purveyor, so feel free to use these giant balls of fried sugar as a topping on your froyo.

Enjoy your state fair “food on a stick” experience!

“Smile! You’ve Got Bacon!”

Here are more ways you can get the most out of bacon this holiday weekend – we begin with a monstrous bacon cheeseburger that is a work of art:

No, not THAT work of art. I mean bacon that is used as it should be used: to smother a cheeseburger!

Shake Shack does a great job with their bacon-drenched double cheeseburger, but imagine if you added just ONE MORE THING:

Behold The Mac’n’Cheese Burger!

That’s right, it’s burger that is topped with mac ‘n’ cheese…and yes, it’s good! It’s just one unique item topping off a burger…how about this one?

Japan’s Burger King Goes Pumpkin Crazy!

Burger King Japan’s BK Pumpkin, and its bigger, pumpkinier sibling, the Pumpkin Bomb. Via a Google translated press release: both burgers come with beef patties, fried kabocha pumpkin slices, bacon, and lettuce. They’re also topped with a nut sauce made from sesame seeds, peanuts, almonds, cashews, and hazelnuts. The difference between the two? Pumpkin Bomb has a whole bunch more pumpkin on it, ten slices in total. A Pumpkin burger? I don’t think America is ready for this yet….

5 Guys!

So I had my first 5 Guys burger, and yes, it lives up to the hype…this is one juicy, cheesy, tasting burger – and it’s BIG!

I also mentioned that it’s “cheesy”, right? This baby was “all in” – everything they wanted to put on it, they put on it – and it oozed real good…

Your Bacon Org Chart!

However you want to utilize bacon, just follow these simple rules of social media:

And here are some other examples of burgers taken to the extreme…like my favorite from Big ‘n’ Little’s in Chicago – their homage to the Big Mac called the:

“Big Mack Daddy!”

Big ‘n’ Little’s is also famous for their “pork belly po’boy” which you can bite into right here:

Big ‘n’ Little’s really knows how to take bacon and turn it into something special! Of course you need to read more about this amazingly good restaurant, and you can by clicking on my review here:

http://johnrieber.com/2013/01/27/behold-the-pork-belly-poboy-big-littles-bites-down-hard-deep-fried-cheeseburger/

Burger In A Box?!?!?

Oops! A cheeseburger in a box? Who else has ever bought a frozen, pre-made cheeseburger in a box and taken it home to the microwave…..

And sometimes you just want a burger that is SO juicy, you might have to eat it with a spoon?

And of course, you can always just have your bacon ON A STICK!

Read all about the “bacon explosion” being sold at this summer’s Iowa State Fair by clicking here:

http://johnrieber.com/2015/06/25/bacon-explosion-pbnj-on-a-stick-deep-fried-beer-iowa-state-fairs-latest-food-mashups/

And don’t forget your bacon social media – smile, you’ve got bacon!

“Well, it sounds like you’ve gone through a whirlwind of emotions for a Sunday morning!”

What can make someone so emotional on a Sunday?

Yes, We Are Talking Bacon!

So much bacon goodness to share – from controversy to celebration, and seaweed too!

And so begins the story of bacon, three ways:

1. A bacon complaint gone viral

2. an amazing study on the health benefits of bacon

3. bacon-flavored seaweed!

Let’s get started!

Tesco’s Back Bacon Rashers!

It all began in England, when a dissatisfied customer went viral against Tesco food store for “shorting” him one rasher of bacon!

A “rasher” of bacon in England is a strip, so this guy got crazy for missing out on one of his bacon strips!

As you can see, “back bacon” aka a bacon rasher, has a different shape than traditional American bacon, but it no doubt is just as delicious, so of COURSE he would be angry!

You must click on the story to see how this incredible bacon controversy played out, beginning with Tesco’s initial response back to him via twitter:

“Well, it sounds like you’ve gone through a whirlwind of emotions for a Sunday morning!”

Read the hilarious story that of course has a happy ending here:

http://socialnewsdaily.com/55633/mans-hilarious-bacon-complaint-goes-viral/

I for one will never look at a “rasher” the same way again!

Now, onto a more serious, life-affirming discussion of our favorite meat:

Live Forever! Eat Bacon!

Yes, biting down on THIS will help you live forever!

OK, I have had a number of friends send me this study – knowing that I would appreciate bacon’s many health benefits…I mean, this chart says it all:

Here are some of the highlights:

Bacon contains thiamin, vitamin B12, zinc and selenium, which are all vital nutrients the body does not naturally produce.

B vitamins fight anemia and help you with high energy levels throughout the day. Bacon’s got lots of them!

Zinc and selenium are vital antioxidants, necessary for immune health. Bacon is full of them!

Bacon has less fat than you think, and NO trans fat!

Bacon is a natural mood enhancer!

Bacon contains omega-3 fatty acids, like those found in fish! Omega fatty acids reduce cholesterol!

The website “Bacon Today” actually has a “Top 10″ list of bacon’s health benefits – read them all here!

http://bacontoday.com/top-10-reasons-bacon-is-actually-healthy-for-you/

And finally, I got a ton of notes pointing this out:

Seaweed Bacon!

Thanks to Julie Sisk and others who shared this great report – Scientists have developed a seaweed that looks like this:

And it tastes like bacon! Read all about this amazing new invention right here:

http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/engineered-nutricious-and-delicious-algae-tastes-bacon

Once again, bacon saves the day! In fact, bacon is so important that it now has its own social media guidelines:

Read all about these by clicking on my story here:

http://johnrieber.com/2015/07/03/bacon-head-bacons-social-media-guidelines-you-are-bacon-me-crazy/

OK, now get healthy – get to your bacon!

“Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few are to be chewed and digested.”

Time For Some “Bacon Orgazmia”!

Author Thomas F. Shubnell Ph.D has given you this:

“every thing you ever wanted to know about pigs, pork, bacon, and more. A bacon foodie’s bible of the ambrosian porcine meat manna of the gods. It contains history, humor, definitions, over 150 recipes, bacon drinks, uses for bacon, bacon paraphernalia, bacon celebrations and bacchanal, restaurants and fast food bacon items!”

Shubnell wrote the book as “my humble homage to the goodness and gallimaufry of all the savory succulence of bacon.”

The book has the history of bacon, a ton of great bacon trivia, and lots of terrific bacon recipes, all written in a light, fun style!

For The Love Of Bacon!

We ALL eat bacon – or at least enjoy what makes bacon so special – and a single book that encapsulates all of our bacon-flavored love is a great thing! Thanks to the Author for such great work!

The Author shares one of the most accurate quotes of all time:

“Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few are to be chewed and digested.” ~Sir Francis Bacon

Among my favorite items is the “bacon weave”, which turns bacon into a vessel for goodness:

The “Bacon Weave Cheeseburger Burrito!”

This is one of my favorite foods of all, and you can see the recipe right here:

http://johnrieber.com/2014/10/07/the-bacon-weave-cheeseburger-burrito-recipe-is-here/

In the book, Shubnell also takes us to England for the world’s most expensive bacon sandwich…time to share the “Bacon Bling!”

Here is how the Author describe it:

“The Bacon Bling sandwich, named by the World Record Academy
as the world’s most expensive bacon sandwich, costs $237 (£150).
It can be found at the Tangberry coffee house in Cheltenham,
Gloucestershire and contains an impressive list of ingredients.
Some of the ingredients included are 7 rashers of rare breed pig
bacon, sliced truffles, saffron, a free range egg, and edible gold
dust!”

You can buy “Bacon Orgazmia” at Amazon, and see more of the Author’s work by checking out his website here:

http://shubsthoughts.blogspot.com

And since we are on the subject, how about this:

Bacon Sushi!

A friend shared this video, which shows you how to make your own bacon sushi!

I can’t wait to try this, and you can see more of it by going to the “Cook With Meat” Facebook page here:

http://www.facebook.com/cookwithmeat

Of course, those who read this blog regularly know that I recently shared my own version of unique sushi:

“Big Mac Sushi!”

Yes, you can make sushi using Big Mac ingredients! See the whole process here:

http://johnrieber.com/2015/02/17/delicious-big-mac-sushi-incredible-real-footage-of-a-sushi-mac/

And remember, bacon is designed to make you do one thing and one thing only:

Read all about bacon’s greatest social media guidelines here:

http://johnrieber.com/2015/07/03/bacon-head-bacons-social-media-guidelines-you-are-bacon-me-crazy/

And don’t forget to buy this as a holiday gift for your favorite bacon fan!

Happy Holidays!

It has been TOO LONG since I shared this, and since there is still time to get me a holiday gift this season, I wanted to give you this option:

The Cheeseburger In A Can!

I love this so much!

Sold by a German outdoor supply company, this amazing blend of science and nature allows you to take a cheeseburger out for a hike, or an overnight camping trip!

Now of course, as funny as the can looks, you DO have to bite into it at some point – and you will get this:

Tasty!

There was a pretty funny review on The Onion’s website – including some good quotes about what the “Cheeseburger In A Can” tastes like…for example:

• “Oh, auuugh. It’s awful. Have these people ever had hamburger before?”

• “Boy, that taste really stays in your mouth, doesn’t it?”

• “That was so bad.”

• “I think it’s more the soggy bun than the meat.”

• “No, it really is the meat that’s the problem. Oh God.”

• “It’s like the Salisbury steak in a cheap TV dinner.”

• “It tastes like Spam. Spam, but chewy. The texture’s about the same.”

• “I cannot swallow this. It will not go down.”

• “It’s not quite meat, is it? It looks like freaky airline food.”

• “It tastes like beef-flavored something. Beef-flavored matter.”

• “It’s a really dense meat-like puck.”

• “When I first tasted it, it didn’t bother me, but it festered.” “Really? I gagged the second it hit my tongue.”

What else is there to say? Well, there may be THIS!

The Scottish Deep-Fried Cheeseburger!!

It just may be the perfect blend of two tasty worlds!

Thanks to FXcuisine.com, there is a great writeup with pictures of the entire process of making a Scottish deep-fried cheeseburger!

FXcuisine is François-Xavier (FX), a French-speaking Swiss native living on the shores of Lake Geneva. He is passionate about gastronomy and cooking and created his website to share adventures with Internet users the world over.

The concept is simple: deep fry a cheeseburger. Boom. Done and done.

Go to his site to get more detail on how this burger is made, but a brief overview: take frozen hamburger that has been infused with cheese. Batter it, deep fry it, eat it. Repeat. Here it is again:

And finally, if you don’t want your burger in a can, or deep-fried, but just want it BIG BIG BIG! – well, I’ve got you covered!

Denny’s Beer Barrel Pub – A Big Burger Palace!

You like burgers? You like BIG burgers? You like BIG BIG BIG BIG BIG burgers?!?!?!?!

Welcome to Denny’s Beer Barrel Pub – located in Clearfield, PA. It was founded by Denny and Jean Liegey in September 1977. with a goal to make giant hamburgers to attract attention.

Here is the Beer Barrel Belly Bruiser from their website:

This Burger Weighs More Than Many People!

Denny’s held the Guinness Book World Record for largest burger ever – 123 pounds!

Read more about this creative outlet for massive burgers by checking out their website:

http://www.dennysbeerbarrelpub.com

And enjoy a bite of this!

This is a burger that can feed an Army – especially an Army going out on maneuvers – and since you are out in the wild…it all goes back to this: let me know if you’d ever bite down on one of these!

And if you want more variety in your “food that is served out of a can”, then try this!

“Can Me Some Possum!”

Yes, you can order just about anything served out of a can, check out the wildest ones here – yes, everything from armadillo, possum, brains and more – you will never look at potted meat the same way again!

http://johnrieber.com/2013/12/22/a-meal-in-a-can-can-this-potted-meat-food-product-canned-brains-armadillo-cheeseburgers/

Let me know if you’d bite into this!

If you have a taste for a “sliderific” holiday weekend, you can bite down hard right here!

Calling All Burger Lovers!

Time to start planning your upcoming holiday weekend menu – for SLIDERS!

I love holidays! Cooking burgers is one reason, grilling sliders is another. Look at how good this is, a perfectly composed slider getting a big assist from my best friend, BACON:

Here are some of my favorite slider recipes – all with an international flair!

A Worldwide Slider Celebration!

The key to an international slider is what flavors the basic hamburger patty. Your basic hamburger uses good quality ground beef with at least 15% fat content, to ensure lots of juicy flavor. I mix in raw minced onion and minced garlic, with salt, pepper as well.

That’s it for me – upon this temple of meat flavor, I add unique ingredients that give my sliders an international flavor…here are some of my favorite recipes!

Spanish Sliders – Hamburguesa!

Let’s get started with Spain, since I just got back from Barcelona…this is a great example of taking a regular burger and giving it an international feel…using some of the special spanish flavors to give the burger a catalonian flavor!

Begin by cooking the burger first with Manchego cheese (a sheep’s milk cheese from the La Mancha region in Spain) and Jamón Iberico, (Iberico ham – prosciutto-like ham that comes from Spanish black pigs). Then, top the burger with olive tapenade…you can find recipes for making it, or you can buy it in a jar, but it includes black olives, capers, anchovies, garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice. Take a bite and you will wake up in Barcelona…

Or, if you are just in the mood for a burger that will drive you NUTS…or perhaps you don’t want a burger at all, well here’s the answer!

The Nut Burger!

The Nut Burger was made famous at Matt’s Place Drive-In in Butte, Montana. Matt’s Place Drive-In was established in 1930.

And, in honor of vegetarians who have chosen to read this post, there is a great “no meat” burger waiting for you!

“No Meat” Nut Burgers!

1 medium onion
1 cup walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews or other nuts, preferably raw
1 cup (raw) rolled oats or cooked short-grain white or brown rice
2 tablespoons ketchup, miso, tomato paste, nut butter or tahini
1 teaspoon chili powder or any spice mix you like
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg

2 tablespoons peanut oil, extra virgin olive oil or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn.

1. Grind onion in food processor. Add nuts and oats, and pulse to chop, but not too finely. Add remaining ingredients except oil. Process briefly; don’t grind too finely. Add a little liquid — water, stock, soy sauce, wine, whatever — if necessary; mixture should be moist but not loose.

2. Let mixture rest a few minutes, then shape it into 4 burgers. (Burger mixture or shaped burgers can be covered tightly and refrigerated for up to a day. Bring back to room temperature before cooking.) Put oil in nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet and turn to medium. When oil is hot, add burgers to skillet. Cook about 5 minutes, undisturbed, until browned, then turn with spatula. Lower heat a bit and cook 3 or 4 minutes more, until firm.

This is good enough to satisfy meat eaters, too!

Korean Kimchi Barbecue Sliders

When I was in Seoul, we ate every night at a korean BBQ, where you grill your own meat and seafood on the round grill embedded in your table, then wrap the grilled food around lettuce or thinly sliced pickled vegetables. Taking that as an inspiration, Korean sliders are best when you add pickled cucumbers, a splash of rice vinegar and kimchi.

As you can see, it’s all about how you season your burger patty – and there’s a world of great flavor to enjoy!

Japanese Wasabi-Avocado Slider!

I read about this over the holidays and I made one…it was delicious! It is very simple: a slider patty topped with sliced avocado, and a heavy dose of wasabi mayonaise. Trader Joe’s sells it, or buy some great mayo and wasabi and mix it together to the strength you can handle…this is delicious with a Sapporo! One last look….trust me, MAKE THIS ONE!

The Sriracha Burger!

Wasabi not powerful enough for you? Well, THIS will do the trick:

This is a GREAT idea…the recipe is from the terrific “Serious Eats” website!

3 pounds ground beef (preferably chuck, 80/20)
1/4 cup soy sauce
10 tablespoons Sriracha
4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
4 slices thick-cut bacon
2 large sweet onions
3/4 cup blue cheese dressing
8 sesame seed buns
8 thick slices Swiss cheese
1 large beefsteak tomato, sliced
Arugula or romaine lettuce

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, soy sauce, 5 tablespoons of the Sriracha, and the pepper.

Cook the bacon. While the bacon is cooking, peel and quarter the onions. Once the bacon is cooked through and slightly crispy, remove the slices from the pan, reserving the remaining bacon fat in the pan. Cook the sliced onions in the bacon fat over medium-low heat until they caramelize, 20 to 25 minutes.

Grill the burgers. While the burgers are cooking, in a small bowl, combine the blue cheese dressing with the remaining 5 tablespoons Sriracha. Lightly toast the buns on the grill during the last minute of cooking time.

To assemble, spread the blue cheese mixture on both halves of each hamburger bun. Stack a burger patty, Swiss cheese slice, bacon, caramelized onions, tomato slice, and a small handful of arugula between each hamburger bun.

Bam!

Australian Sliders!

I uncovered these two years ago in Melbourne. They add a slice of beetroot underneath the burger. It adds a great, slightly nutty flavor to the slider. Look at how beautiful that big chunk looks on the burger above…Everything else is the same – add cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce if you like – and if you want to go totally Aussie, add a fried egg on top….the best!

Now, if you REALLY want to get creative, throw the concept of a slider out the window altogether!

THE CHEESEBURGER SUB!

From The White House Sub shop in Atlantic City, I got this delicious cheeseburger sub – it’s a cheeseburger on a sub sandwich roll…easy to do and a fun change of pace!

The All-American Bacon-Cheeseburger Slider!

What can you say? After a trip around the world, it’s nice to come home and have an all-american slider…made vertically like so:

Top Bun
Cheese – melted and dripping
Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!
Slider Patty
Tomato
Pickle
Mayonaise, mayonaise, mayonaise!
Bottom Bun

See that? DO NOT DEVIATE – this is perfection.

However, if you want to deviate, then do what I think is my all-time favorite burger:

WITH FRENCH FRIES!

WHAT THE – ???!!???

What do you think of THIS? My daughter Jessica poses in front of the ad for the “Green Peas Pachislo Burger” in Tokyo…we don’t know what it was, and didn’t bother to find out, but we loved the ad!

Jessica sent me a list of sliders being made by an innovative food truck in Seattle. Look at some of these variations on a slider!

Curb Jumper Classic Cheese Slider

Certified Angus Beef, Melted Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Roma Tomato, Red Onion,
Spring Mix with Roasted Garlic Aioli.

Shrooom Slider

Certified Angus Beef, Melted Provolone Cheese, Sauted Crimini Mushrooms,
Caramelized Sweet Onions, Spring Mix, Roma Tomato and Spicy Mustard Aioli

Southwest Turkey Slider

Handmade and spiced Turkey Patties, Melted Pepper Jack Cheese, Roasted Anaheim Peppers,
Cumin- Cilantro Slaw, Frizzled Onions with a Chipotle Aioli.

Salmon Slider

Handmade Salmon Patties, Frizzled Onions, Spring Mix, Roma Tomato with a Lemon Pepper Aioli

Paulie’s Pulled Pork Sliders

Rubbed and Slow Roasted Pork in a Sweet and Spicy BBQ Sauce topped with a fresh
Cumin- Cilantro Slaw

Don’t Be Intimidated!

And remember, if all else fails:

White Castle To The Rescue!

And when in doubt, grab a dozen White Castle sliders and dress them up with some of the above flavors – or make them for breakfast!

The “White Castle” Breakfast Slider!

You can begin your slider-fest first thing in the morning – just click here for an easy and delicious breakfast slider!

My Homemade White Castle “Breakfast Sliders!” Behold the 380 Calorie Wonder!

Leave me a message and let me know if you try any of these and how they turn out! Thanks!

“It Tastes Like Beef-Flavored Something. Beef-flavored Matter.”

Talk about a back-handed compliment! Time for one of my favorite reviews of all time!

A Face Only A Reviewer Could Love!

What can make a food reviewer look like this? Well, the title of my story gave it away, but if you’ve never seen one, get a look at this!

The Cheeseburger In A Can!

I love this so much!

Sold by a German outdoor supply company, this amazing blend of science and nature allows you to take a cheeseburger out for a hike, or an overnight camping trip!

Now of course, as funny as the can looks, you DO have to bite into it at some point – and you will get this:

Tasty!

There was a pretty funny review on The Onion’s website – including some good quotes about what the “Cheeseburger In A Can” tastes like…for example:

• “Oh, auuugh. It’s awful. Have these people ever had hamburger before?”

• “Boy, that taste really stays in your mouth, doesn’t it?”

• “That was so bad.”

• “I think it’s more the soggy bun than the meat.”

• “No, it really is the meat that’s the problem. Oh God.”

• “It’s like the Salisbury steak in a cheap TV dinner.”

• “It’s like Upton Sinclair nightmare bratwurst.”

• “It tastes like Spam. Spam, but chewy. The texture’s about the same.”

• “It is a little smushy. It’s spongy. I don’t hate it. I think I could eat it if it was hotter, and I could dip it in Ranch dressing.”

• “I cannot swallow this. It will not go down.”

• “It’s not quite meat, is it? It looks like freaky airline food.”

• “It tastes like beef-flavored something. Beef-flavored matter.”

• “It’s a really dense meat-like puck.”

• “When I first tasted it, it didn’t bother me, but it festered.” “Really? I gagged the second it hit my tongue.”

What else is there to say?

Well, there may be THIS! Here is the reviewer trying the “canned cheeseburger” – and boy, is he struggling!

I can watch this over and over…I have to give credit to the company that decided we needed Cheeseburgers anywhere and anytime…and I also have to give credits to the foodie minds who came up with this:

A “Fried Chicken Bloody Mary!”

This is one of the most hilarious things I’ve seen: an entire fried chicken served up in a Bloody Mary…and if you want pizza, well I have you covered as well:

I have to give big props to the folks who come up with this stuff…you can see it all here:

https://johnrieber.com/2014/08/08/a-fried-chicken-bloody-mary-the-worlds-wildest-bloody-marys/

Now, we started with a “canned cheeseburger”, so what else do you want in a can?

Hungarian Canned Bacon!

You can never go wrong starting with bacon!

Yes, our good friend bacon is also available in a canned version. And I see why it works so well – just stand it up on end, roll it up and slide it in! Now you have the goodness of bacon whenever you want it – just pop the top and unroll some deliciousness!

I can imagine taking a can of bacon along on my next camping trip to adding it to my cheeseburger in a can – once we have canned mayo, it’s all golden!

It’s hard to criticize canned bacon, which seems like a very normal canned food product…unlike THIS:

Hold Your Tongue!

OK, time to edge into wacky territory, and here’s an idea for you: canned sheep tongue!

Many cultures eat tongue, so it is something you will find on more progressive ethnic menus…beef tongue is eaten like bologna, so it’s not THAT unusual:

Well, after looking at ten pounds of sheep’s tongue, maybe it IS UNUSUAL:

Armadillo Meat!

Now, from the wacky to the bizarre, let’s take a look at other mystery meats coming out of a can soon:

Yes, you can keep a can of Armadillo at the ready, just in case you have the need – now you have the ability as well!

Creamed Armadillo On The Half Shell!

I can only imagine that if you want some Armadillo, but don’t have the time to “cream” it yourself, this is for you…and speaking of strange “creamed meats in a can”:

Creamed Possum!

I almost wish this was a joke – unless I am missing something, Possum doesn’t come to mind as a meat to eat in any way, especially creamed.

But, just in case this sparks some sort of cooking frenzy in you, I actually found a website that is all for you – here is a possum recipe!

http://southern.food.com/recipe/stuffed-roast-opossum-107969

Pork Brain In Milk Gravy – Hold The Cholesterol!

Time now to move onto a “smarter” meal:

Yes, if you need a week’s worth of cholesterol in a single day – with “milk gravy” no less, then I guess pork brains are for you! And here is a canned food product that doesn’t beat around the bush!

“Potted Meat Food Product!”

Hey, talk about “truth in advertising!” It’s a potted meat food product – there are many on the market, and this is NO knock against the quality of Libby’s version: it’s a product, much like spam, that uses lesser parts of an animal, and adds seasoning and spices…it’s mostly used on crackers as a sort of pate:

Among the ingredients: Mechanically separated chicken, pork skin, partially defatted cooked pork fatty tissue, partially defatted cooked beef fatty tissue, vinegar, less than 2% of: salt, spices, sugar, flavorings, sodium erythorbate and sodium nitrite.

Again, there is no knock against this type of food – it’s just a unique packaging style to be sure! And, to end on a very pointless note, I leave you with this:

Spotted Dick!

That’s right! Look it up! And yes, they sell it in a can!

STILL not enough for you? Then what about this new way to eat sushi!

Yes, sushi poppers! Sushi in a tube is close to food in a can, right?

Click HERE to read all about this amazing new food product!

https://johnrieber.com/2013/03/19/the-future-of-sushi-behold-sushi-poppers/

Enjoy all of this unique food goodness – and remember to bite down hard!

Ready To End Your Holiday 2016 On A Heartburn-ish High Note?

I want to end 2016 on a culinary high – or at least a culinary adventure, so I headed to Napa Valley’s burger shrine, Taylor’s Refresher, so bite down on this:

This is burger perfection, thanks to a long-standing hamburger stand in the heart of California wine country.

Some may know it as “Gott’s”, but it will always be “Taylor’s Refresher” to me…

the reason for the confusion is a burger battle that you must read to believe…here is the story:

https://johnrieber.com/2013/01/15/napas-burger-battle-taylors-gotts-great-burgers-a-mondo-burger-fight/

Once I enjoyed this great bacon cheeseburger, I decided to cruise around the internet to see what everyone else was eating – and to see what was unique, different – yes, WACKY – but edible, and to many, delicious! Here we go:

Sausage-Wrapped Burrito!

Thanks to the website Ranker.com, I found this:

A “Taco Bell Cheesy Double-Beef Burrito” wrapped in a fully cooked Jimmy Dean Premium Pork sausage. I also found it taken one step further – after all of the above, you then wrap it in bacon!

Well, I could see myself digging into this…what, it’s over 1,400 calories and 175g of fat? Oh my…maybe this is better:

Deep-Fried Coke!

Yes, these little nuggets of greatness are actually bite sized portions of deep-fried Coke!

In the past decade, we have heard about state fairs, carnivals and conventions serving up a wide variety of deep-fried goods. Snickers, Twinkies and even Butter have been deep-fried. And now they’ve taken it to a new level. Coke!

Frozen Coca-Cola-flavored batter is deep-fried and topped with Coca-Cola syrup, whipped cream, cinnamon sugar, and a cherry.

This was apparently discovered in Texas, and is estimated to have 830 calories per cup and 28 grams of fat…less if you order Diet!

I can’t wait to head to the next state fair to try these wacky inventions…but when do they start?

You’ll never wonder again! It’s easy to keep track of time with this “bacon clock” – and if you want to see more wacky foods from you local state fair, like deep fried bacon, click here:

https://johnrieber.com/2012/10/29/bacon-to-cheer-you-up-chicken-fried-bacon-deep-fried-coke-crazy-fried-state-fair-food/

Now, let’s head overseas to see how they are celebrating the holiday:

Behold The Haggis!

In the mood for something different? Then head to Scotland and dig into some nice Haggis! What is haggis? Well, how about this: oatmeal and spices stuffed tightly inside a sheep’s stomach. You can find Haggis prepared in the traditional way, the stomachs filled with “pluck” (a sheep’s heart, liver, and lungs). The dish is traditionally served with a big glass of scotch and potatoes. Enjoy!

Better yet, thanks to the UK Handmade Burger Co., you can now have a “Stuffed Haggis” Burger!

A Haggis burger, or even these Haggis sliders, will no doubt satisfy your “unique food” need for the holiday.

But what if it doesn’t? Want something “hotter?”

Bite Down On The World’s Hottest Burger!

It may not look it, but this is a XXX-rated burger from England – XXX for hot hot hot!

So what makes the burger so deadly? The beef patty is topped with a sauce “based on a Piri Piri chilli concentrate.” Apparently it ranks 9.2 million on the Scoville scale, which is higher than pepper spray. Gambardella says that of the 3,000 who have tried to eat the burger, only 50 have finished it!

I would head overseas to WATCH someone eat this, but I wouldn’t go near it! See someone try to consume this baby here:

https://johnrieber.com/2014/03/12/the-worlds-hottest-burger-xxx-hot-chilli-burger-madness-fire-up-your-meat/

You can wash this “bad boy” down with my favorite new drink:

Bacon Wine!

Yes, I found this “bacon wine” online – no idea who makes it or how good it is, but I’d try it for sure – right?

If all of this food and drink leaves you feeling bit “unwell”, perhaps a bacon drink tablet will help!

Yes, effervescent bacon tablets should have you feeling top notch….see all of my favorite bacon products here:

https://johnrieber.com/2013/04/02/bacon-mona-lisa-bacon-caviar-bacon-seltzer-brackets-of-bacon-madness/

I know who to count on when my stomach is upset:

Sammy Davis Jr.!

Sammy knows what you need – check out some of the other gift ideas from his fellow celebrities by clicking on vintage movie star holiday ads here:

https://johnrieber.com/2016/12/12/classic-celebrity-holiday-ads-frankfurters-cigarettes-vintage-stars-selling-smokes/

And remember, if you have too much to eat, then just take one of these and all is going to be just fine!

Time To Eat Your Breakfast Pancakes – On A Stick!

Don’t ever say I don’t help get your day off to a great start!

Here’s the hot new fad in Japan – and it looks like delicious food art!

Here’s how it is being reported on “RocketNews24”:

“It’s called the “Kushi Pancake” or “Skewered Pancake” from Osaka Kawaii Panbo, which recently opened its doors to customers in the western city’s Shinsaibashi district. With a focus on bringing “kawaii” or “cute” to Osaka’s popular food culture, the new creation takes pancakes to a whole new level by skewering miniature servings of them on a stick and interspersing them with slices of fruit and marshmallows along the way.”

One of the best parts is that you get to “dress” your mini-pancake skewer in any creative way you want, using sauces, sprinkles and other condiments that are sitting nearby – get as arty as you want!

Bravo RocketNews24!

As always, RocketNews24.com has the whole story.

See all of the wildest pancakes on a stick being shared on japanese social media – just click on the link to the original story on RocketNews24 here – with lots of great, creative pancake pictures:

http://en.rocketnews24.com/2017/03/15/pancakes-on-a-stick-are-japans-hottest-new-food-trend/

I share material from RocketNews24 a lot, because they are always at the forefront of cool new stuff in Asia…like these unique “Chickens on a stick!”

Now THAT’S a chicken skewer! Click here to see more about this tasty food adventure:

https://johnrieber.com/2013/07/23/the-mega-yakitori-japans-huge-chicken-on-a-stick/

Japan doesn’t have a monopoly on “food on a stick”….thanks to America’s obsession with state fairs – and our own unique foods on a stick!

How about this “garlic cheese on a stick?” Or even better, cut out everything that isn’t absolutely necessary, which leaves you with this:

Bacon On A Stick!

Now that’s a great “on a stick” taste treat…see them all here:

https://johnrieber.com/2015/06/25/bacon-explosion-pbnj-on-a-stick-deep-fried-beer-iowa-state-fairs-latest-food-mashups/

Let me know your favorite “on a stick” food!