Jump to content
Chapala.com Webboard

Rib-eyes at Walmart and Scallps at the other place


HelperGuy

Recommended Posts

(Starting another thread to avoid hijacking the Tango thread.)

RevImmigrant: you said you grilled a ribeye you bought at WalMart, and it was pretty good. Now, I know you're a pretty good cook, but I don't know about your steak talents... I have given up on the standard steaks at Walmart, but I have never purchased one of the higher-priced ribeyes there. Is that what you got?

Because I won't buy the other cuts anymore, and have decided I might as well go to the various butcheries that have sprung up and pay (through the nose) for better grade steaks.

I purchased a half-kilo of scallops at the newish place behind the gas station on the libramiento. Same scallops as at Pacifico, but quite a bit more expensive per kilo. Even though the place is an easier trip for me, I will go back to Pacifico next time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

First, a swcond hand opinion from my neighbor who has purchased every steak at Wakmart and has been extremely disappointed. She said they were all lousy. I know they're much cheaper than Costco, but we have NEVER had a bad steak or tough one from Costco. Unless you know a good Mexican butcher, I will stick to Costco.

Now for scallops, are they the large scallops or baby scallops? Are they tender? We get our baby scallops from our fish monger who comes to the door every two weeks. 1 kilo for 80 pesos and we get 4 meals from it. Sweet and tender.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

First, a swcond hand opinion from my neighbor who has purchased every steak at Wakmart and has been extremely disappointed. She said they were all lousy. I know they're much cheaper than Costco, but we have NEVER had a bad steak or tough one from Costco. Unless you know a good Mexican butcher, I will stick to Costco.

Now for scallops, are they the large scallops or baby scallops? Are they tender? We get our baby scallops from our fish monger who comes to the door every two weeks. 1 kilo for 80 pesos and we get 4 meals from it. Sweet and tender.

The filets we have been getting are very tender. That could change though at any time. When they are good, I stock up.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now for scallops, are they the large scallops or baby scallops? Are they tender? We get our baby scallops from our fish monger who comes to the door every two weeks. 1 kilo for 80 pesos and we get 4 meals from it. Sweet and tender.

So how do you get this fish monger to come to your house?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest RevImmigrant

Helper Guy, thank you for your kind comments. This was one of the regular ribeyes from the packaged meat counter. It was just the right thickness for me, not too thick, but not too thin like the locals like either. I grilled it slow and basted it with the recipe from my father (cooking oil with some vinegar - I used Heinz salad vinegar and added some garlic paste to it). I made a sauce with pureed roasted red peppers, beef broth, balsamic vinegar and garlic.

Periodically I go to Carnes Selecta next to El Serape and stock up, but in between I just pick up things at Wal-Mart. I like Wal-Mart's meat, although their ground beef is too lean for my tastes. Since I'm only feeding myself (my roommates like dry food) and I don't buy really expensive items like caviar, champagne, lobster, etc, I can indulge myself and get filet and ribeyes whenever I want. Food is my shtick, much to my cardiologist's dismay. I consider eating one of life's great pleasures.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now for scallops, are they the large scallops or baby scallops? Are they tender? We get our baby scallops from our fish monger who comes to the door every two weeks. 1 kilo for 80 pesos and we get 4 meals from it. Sweet and tender.
I only go for the sea scallops; these are the large ones. The bay scallops I've bought here are full of the STP that makes them lose a ton of water and shrivel up to ridiculous sizes. The sea scallops, as I've just recently discovered at Pacifico and the other place, do not have the chemical. They are large enough that you can cook them properly in a searing frypan for 3 minutes or so, and they are definitely tender. Overcooking makes them chewey. I was advised to take them off the heat when they are still underdone, and that works perfectly... they will keep cooking anyway, and they react more like steak when you take it off medium-rare. At Pacifico, they run about 280 pesos a kilo, and that's one good (perhaps indulgent) meal for two people. Over at the other place, they are about 40 to 50 pesos more per kilo.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

LOVE Pacifico! Just this week, they had fresh tuna for something like 120-140/kilo. I compared that to the guys up on the Libramiento (frozen and $185/kilo). No comparison! Go fresh and go Pacifico!

Valerie :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest RevImmigrant

Hey, Valerie, do you know if Pacifico has cod fish? The last 2 times I was at Tabarka they had cod, my favorite fish, and it was delicious. They must get it somewhere here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest RevImmigrant

Mike, I score the steak on both sides before I throw it on the grill. This is what Helmut always did. I don't know if it makes them more tender, but they cook better and cook through. Basting them keeps the meat from getting dry and helps them cook better.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The scallops I bought at Pacifco were definitely bigger, but that doesn't make them better. They are frozen; one hopes flash-frozen at time of the catch, and not twice frozen. In any case, they cook up just fine.

I score my sausages and such for the grille, but haven't scored my steaks for what seems like centuries. Cooking them quickly enough over high heat helps to keep them from drying, and even though my BBQ isn't powerful enough to get super hot, it works okay in that department for steaks. Not so for scallops.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I only go for the sea scallops; these are the large ones. The bay scallops I've bought here are full of the STP that makes them lose a ton of water and shrivel up to ridiculous sizes. The sea scallops, as I've just recently discovered at Pacifico and the other place, do not have the chemical. They are large enough that you can cook them properly in a searing frypan for 3 minutes or so, and they are definitely tender. Overcooking makes them chewey. I was advised to take them off the heat when they are still underdone, and that works perfectly... they will keep cooking anyway, and they react more like steak when you take it off medium-rare. At Pacifico, they run about 280 pesos a kilo, and that's one good (perhaps indulgent) meal for two people. Over at the other place, they are about 40 to 50 pesos more per kilo.

What is this STP you talk about? And as far as water, we pat dry the baby scallops and have never had a problem with too much water in them. Maybe that only occurs in the larger scallops. Many times when you buy large scallops, they are not real scallops, they are cod or pollock shaped into scallops. And almost none of the seafood here is fresh and will not or cannot compare to California or New England seafood.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

STP: a solution of water and sodium tripolyphosphate (STP) to increase shelf life and retain moisture. This additive is why most scallops, especially bay scallops, shrivel away to nothing and boil in their own water when they are cooked. Patting them dry only works with scallops not packaged in STP. I've never bought bay (baby) scallops here that did not have the STP in them. On the other hand, I have never bought bay scallops at Pacifico, either. Only the sea scallops.

I'd note that for anyone who ever had a scallop, it's pretty easy to tell the difference between one of them and a chunk of fish. I don't know where you got your info, but I can say for a fact that no one in his right mind would substitute the almost-extinct and very pricey cod for a scallop.

That little of the fish here is fresh is not an overriding concern; I am just glad we get what we do. And Pacifico has proven that they provide the best choices available. When I buy corvina on ice, I know from the cooking that it's about as fresh as it can be. And I always buy the frozen-only-once half salmon, which cooks up perfectly. I bought a half-salmon today at Pacifico, for $145 pesos a kilo. The same "looking" stuff at WalMart is $180/kilo, and at the place on the libramiento is $225/kilo.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Never tried to buy cod here; never asked. 25 years ago, my brother-n-law, who teaches Ocean Fisheries in Nova Scota at Dalhousie, lamented over dinner one night that all the kerfuffule about the cod disappearing was a waste of time. He said they disappeared a long time ago, basically, and gave me a long list of other endangered types of fish which would soon be gone. And he was right: the thing is, cod used to be very, very large fish, and the largest cod I was buying 25 years ago was pretty damn small.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Helper Guy - Cod is still around. You can get it in the US and Canada. I suspect a lot may be caught by trawlers, but I believe it's still available in colder waters in New Engkand and off the coast of Maine as is Haddock. I don't see Haddock here.

Rev Immigrant - Are you sure that was real Cod you were eating? I don't believe you can get that from the Pacific.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest RevImmigrant

I meant that I will check the Pacifico fish market to see if they have cod; I didn't mean to imply it's Pacific cod. You can get cod in Germany all the time not just at Christmas like here (it's a cultural difference). I'm sure it's the same in Norway and Denmark since Norwegians and Danes like cod and both counties have big fishing industries. I used to get cod from Greenland when I was over there and really enjoyed it. It's my favorite fish.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Helper Guy - Cod is still around. You can get it in the US and Canada. I suspect a lot may be caught by trawlers, but I believe it's still available in colder waters in New Engkand and off the coast of Maine as is Haddock. I don't see Haddock here.

Rev Immigrant - Are you sure that was real Cod you were eating? I don't believe you can get that from the Pacific.

Yes, cod is still around. I was speaking figuratively. If you look at the current cod population and size, comparing it to 30 or 50 years or 150 years ago, you would say that the "cod is gone". Cod was comparably so plentiful when I was young that it was used as the catch-all for fried fish and frozen fish fingers. Rarely do you see it used that way now.

Pacific cod is also being fished.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, cod is still around. I was speaking figuratively. If you look at the current cod population and size, comparing it to 30 or 50 years or 150 years ago, you would say that the "cod is gone". Cod was comparably so plentiful when I was young that it was used as the catch-all for fried fish and frozen fish fingers. Rarely do you see it used that way now.

Pacific cod is also being fished.

Brings back memories HelperGuy. Growing up in New Brunswick, Canada, cod was plentiful and frequently served, in many ways. Got me jonesin' for a big pot of fish & brewis now. And nothing can beat a good beer battered cod with some tasty fries.

And on an entirely different food note. Tried the walnut soup at La Boheme as you suggested. Quite possibly the best soup I've ever tasted.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...