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Need something to keep the bears out of the garbage, melt ice in the driveway, weld soft metals, kill weeds, etch glass, cure Beri Beri, cauterize wounds, waterproof basements, intimidate door-to-door salesmen, disinfect ground water, defoliate invasive plants, strip paint, deter ants, remove dandruff, toast yer innards, and make yourself eligible for a lingual dermoplasty at the local Burn Center? This is the place!
The Great Northern Salsa Faceoff
The GNSF began as a an
end-of-quarter
celebration at The College of St. Scholastica convened by Dave Swenson
and Mike Jubie, was soon joined by Kim Roufs and Doug Dunham (Univ. of
MN) as co-conveners, and most recently by Bill and Ann Fleischman and
Joyce
and Dale Grahn. Faculty and staff from the two respective institutions
as well as community members, who have the poor judgement to imbibe in
capsaicin, meet semesterly at a private home in close proximity to the
Miller-Dwan Burn Center. The last count for this occasion numbered
about
35 diverse people, and over 50 flavorful and steaming salsas, curries,
and chutneys. Honestly-- we're really interested in flavor and
uniqueness,
not just heat...
The
Fall CSS/UMD 33rd GNSF will be held
News: Spices (and hot stuff in particular) has been found to facilitate healing and have an antimicrobial effect for certain types of conditions (Billing, J., & Sherman, P. W. (1998). Antimicrobial function of spices: Why some like it hot. Quarterly Review of Biology, 73, 3-49). Now, just go ahead and pack a few habaneros in that freshly scraped knee...
News: Capsaicin has also been added to creams to ease the pain of arthritis. Combined with taffy, it has releived the mouth sores of patients undergoing chemotherapy (but it takes several weeks). Could be too that the pain from the peppers are so great that anything else is a relief?? Extremely high and regular dosages of capsaicin may irritate the bowel and bladder-- but with levels that high, you probably deserve it anyway. They can boost metabolism and thereby facilitate weight loss. Some indigineous people use it for sore throats, ear ache (that's right, they hang it in your ear!), and use it as a decongestant or cold remedy. There are some studies that show it can also lower cholesterol and triglycerides, and may lower blood pressure.
News: The Army Rangers have contacted Doug about using his salsa as a defoliant during training operations in heavily forested areas. Doug has not responded to requests from Saddam Hussein regarding the use of his products for interrogation purposes. Actually, the Army Special Forces Handbook describes the use of peppers to kills intestinal parasites. The new MRE's: you can use the packet for food, kill intestinal parasites, or as a chemical deterrant in hand to hand combat.
News: The extract from peppers has been found to lessen the experience of phantom limb pain (really!). In the same way that frequent eating of peppers desensitizes one to the heat, the injections apparently deaden the nerve endings of the limb. Now what kind of person musta been the first to try that out!
News: As an animal deterrant, chilis can be added to bird food to keep squirrels out. The birds seem to benefit from somewhat brighter ploomage. I've used it in garbage to keep bears out-- I expect to stumble over a pile of black fur in the woods someday with a large charred hole in the middle. It's also been used in a compouind to keep animals from pulling out surgucal sutures. To keep zebra mussles and other critters from attaching to boat and drain surfaces, pain has capsaicin added to discourage their sensitive little feet. It has also been used to repel woodpeckers, ants, and to discourage cats from chewing on phone cords.
News: The tongue has about 10,000 taste buds. About 10 die a day. Why not give them something to remember-- salsa!
Swenson's Salsa Construction Model
Ok, so this isn't rocket science, and my model is simply a collection of ingredients, but I'm asked so often how different salsas can be made or new ones can be developed, that I put my ideas here. In general, you can take one or more ingredients from two or more categories and combine them into a salsa. There are some obvious combinations, for example most "South of the Border" salsas have tomato and onion as a base, while Caribbean flavors tend toward fruits and Southeast Asia may include coconut-- but what the heck, combine what tastes good. Be careful of some combinations that might clash, and try them in small quantities first. For example, I can't quite palate one made of smoked oysters, chocolate, and orange... Anyway, enjoy the model and experimentation!
The model can also be applied to three different ethnic types of salsa. These "core" ingredients are intended as suggestions to differentiate the types:
- Mexican: base ingredients include onion, tomato, lime, cumin, cilantro, peppers
- Caribbean: base ingredients include fruit (e.g., mango, papaya), lime, allspice, cilantro, habanero peppers, garlic
- Asian: coconut, cucumber, lime, sesame oil, mint, peanuts
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Hot Spotson the Web
The Blue Heron, Dewitt-Seitz Building, Canal Park, Duluth, MN. Moderate collection of high quality and unusual salsas and a few cookbooks.
Hot places to eat in the area
Thai Krathang, 114 W. 1st St, Duluth, Nice variety of meat and veggie dishes. Moderate heat and you can ask for more.
India Palace. Superior St. Duluth. Excellent flavors,
especially
the curries and chutneys.
