What's the last thing you ate or are currently eating?

[Big Frank]

I had a Chicken Gyro and a Steak & Onion Pita today and that's it. But I have a box of strawberry mini Moon Pies setting here. As far as I'm concerned Moon Pies only need to come in 2 flavors, banana and chocolate. I saw salted caramel flavor for sale too, but won't buy salted caramel anything. Why ruin good caramel by making it salty? I had a salted chocolate bar once. ONCE! It was nasty.

The last time I went to that drive through it was called Coney Connexion, and had been for years. I would get the Gyro Trio for $15 almost every time I went there. That was $1.77 off 3 at the individual price. They were a lot better than the chicken gyro I had today, but I wanted to try something different. The Steak & Onion Pita had A1 steak sauce on it, or something that tastes just like it. I haven't tasted A1 in decades but I remember it. A1 is A zero for me. Putting any kind of steak sauce on a good steak should be a crime, I know some of you will agree, but I like a good sauce on steak & onion subs. Just not A1.

https://papasdrivethru.com/

[Big Frank]

I just had a dozen "boneless wings" with The Hot Ones Buffalo Hot Sauce. It was good but, ouch. I don't know if the packet of sauce I have is the same as what you can buy in a bottle, but they say the heat level is only 2/10, made with mild Cayenne peppers. It has so much vinegar that's all I could smell with my plate setting 3' from my nose. That's a "medium" level of vinegar. I'm going to have some cherry pie in a few minutes.

https://heatonist.com/products/hot-ones-buffalo-hot-sauce?srsltid=AfmBOoqqCjWiyM7ANKXPQaGKebSXhgnr190kWr88stBUJfSpcVL7ylrm

[Big Frank]

In 2023, Pepper X officially dethroned Smokin' Ed's Carolina Reaper as the new World’s Hottest Pepper. It's 2,693,000 Scoville heat units, compare to the Carolina Reaper's 1,641,183 SHU. That's over 60% hotter.   And it's more than 2.6 times hotter than a ghost pepper. If you're interested, the only place you can get Pepper X hot sauce is from Puckerbutt Pepper Company. I like hot sauce that doesn't make my butt pucker, either when I'm eating or the next day.

https://puckerbuttpeppercompany.com/collections/pepper-x-products

[Rastus]

Taco's using Chi-Chi's seasoning.  On Amazon you can get a box of 24 packets (1 lb meat to a packet) for under $18 as compared to a buck each of Old El Paso in the store....and so much the better.

[Big Frank]

I love tacos even more than I love a bargain, so I might order that. It's rated 4.7/5 stars. A 1 star review says LOVE THE CHI CHIS RESTAURANTE TACO SEASONING (GREEN PKG). HATE THIS!!! SAME BASIC CRAP ALL OTHERS MAKE.


https://www.amazon.com/Chi-Chis-Taco-Seasoning-1-25-Ounce-Pack/dp/B004S07GEG/ref=sr_1_6?rnid=2941120011&s=grocery


https://www.amazon.com/Chi-Chis-Restaurante-Seasoning-0-78-Ounce-Packages/dp/B000MBN5TK/ref=sr_1_4?rnid=2941120011&s=grocery


Better yet I might make my own. I saw a recipe for taco seasoning online before. I think it only had 5 ingredients. They said once you make your own you'll never buy packets of taco seasoning again, and you'll save a fortune, relatively speaking. Someone else rated the second one 1 star and posted this.


**Make your own Chi-Chi's inspired "Green Taco" seasoning**

INGREDIENTS
1 T. green bell pepper flakes
2 tsp. dried minced white onion
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. dried cilantro
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. Mexican oregano
1/4 tsp. dried crushed jalapeño
1/8 tsp. black pepper
large pinch cayenne pepper
large pinch crushed red pepper flakes

INSTRUCTIONS
1)Stir together all ingredients. If desired, use a spice grinder to incorporate more evenly and achieve a uniform size for all ingredients. If you want to make a larger quantity of seasoning, to keep on hand for future use, I would recommend grinding the mixture. Otherwise, the smaller granules settle to the bottom, while the larger flakes sit on top. If you don't grind a large quantity of this mixture, just be sure to stir it very well before using it.

2)A single recipe of this mix works great for 1 pound of ground or shredded turkey, beef, pork, or chicken. Once the meat has been browned in a skillet, simply add this seasoning mixture along with 1/3 cup of water. Stir well and turn heat to medium low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is absorbed. Taste and add additional salt, if desired.

3)Meat seasoned with this mixture is awesome in tacos, nachos, quesadillas, breakfast burritos, and so much more!

[Sponsor]

[Diamondback]

Cheesesteak snob here, gonna weigh in with the lessons of the mom-n-pop owner t the place where friends in Philly took me for my first.

If you have good meat, good cheese, good bread and good technique (keep the meat well marinated til it hits grill, know what you're doing on it) you don't NEED anything else. A joint that insists they won't make one without the onions and peppers either doesn't know what they're doing, or is cutting corners with prefab fillings or second-rate ingredients and using the stronger flavors to hide it.

*putting Food Historian chef's toque on* The cheesesteak originated as a cheap, grab-n-go lunch for steelworkers and other fatory/industrial labor. It needed to be hot, filling and cheap, which meant using cuts of beef nobody else would touch. To make it flavorful enough to be worth eating, the pioneer steakmakers added onions, peppers and a kind of tomato sauce somewhat comparable to marinara or pizza sauce--today this is called a Pizza Steak. As the sandwich's appeal spread, people were more willing to pay more and demanded better meat accordingly.

My favorite way to have a steak is a low-carb tortilla wrap, the meat soaked in red wine vinegar for several hours before cooking, balsamic vinegar drizzled on it while cooking and then marinara on top when assembled before folding it up. Runner up is a chicken-steak that a gal at my old neighborhood Jersey Mike's used to make for me, chicken and cappacuola chopped up on the grill together with Swiss cheese, Dijon mustard and mayo making a kind of "Cordon Bleu Steak," #3 being one I can't get any more called a Hambrosia. (A VERY old and long discontinued Steak Escape recipe that substituted ham and pineapple for beef and peppers--was GREAT with just a light drizzle of teriyaki sauce from my supply stash back in the college computer lab!)

Just ate: Walmart blueberry muffin with a cup of leftover Chik-fil-A coffee from yesterday. (I usually pay for 2-3 cups, so they're good with letting me fill my 1-liter thermos. Still hot! Not as muh so as McDonald's coffee at the same time-after-pour, but...)

[Big Frank]

My next meal will probably be Italian beef subs with mild Chicago style giardiniera. They also use "bad" cuts of beef, marinate it, and simmer it in au jus. The techniques and cuts vary, but it usually starts with tough meat.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_beef

[Diamondback]

Lose the peppers and the rest of it sounds really good... I just have certain flavors I'm really sensitive to, onions or peppers one bite and it's all I taste all day.