Japanese Burger King Launches Meat Monster: A 1,160 Calorie Burger

Photo: Burger King

First, Godzilla devoured Tokyo. Now Tokyo is about to take on the Meat Monster. With everyone so health conscious these days, it's hard to believe that Burger King is introducing a new sandwich, (in Japan only) that flies in the face of sensible eating: The Meat Monster. The website Opposing Views says the "aptly named sandwich" consists of two hamburgers, a chicken breast, two slices of cheese, three pieces of bacon, and, of course, lettuce, tomatoes, and onion.

Total calories: 1,160. That's more than half the daily recommended amount for a 40-year-old woman of average height and weight. (A regular Whopper has 670 calories.) Japanese customers can also personalize their Monster, adding teriyaki sauce, an egg or even a fish patty.

No word yet if the Monster will be available in the States, but we assume, if it is, that we'll be allowed to get creative, too. Maybe we can toss on some Spaghetti-Os or Cheez-Whiz to add a real American touch.

Is Porgy the Next Catfish?

A fish better known for its contribution to the American songbook than the American dinner plate is being touted as a sustainable alternative to grouper and red snapper. Southern conservationists are now championing red porgy, the fish that was once so ubiquitous on low-country docks that it lent its name to the hero of George Gershwin's opera, "Porgy and Bess."

While the effort has been slightly hampered by chefs' reluctance to tinker with unfamiliar proteins and the lingering social stigma associated with eating red porgy, backers believe the fish's taste and history make it an excellent candidate to diversify coastal diets.
"There is such immense diversity in the ocean that's edible, and, contrary to logic, we focus on just a few species," says Megan Westmeyer, coordinator of the South Carolina Aquarium's Sustainable Seafood Initiative. "What we need to do is widen the diversity of what we're eating."

To relieve pressure on overfished species, Westmeyer's organization is pushing eaters to embrace so-called "trash fish," which don't have the cachet -- or the threatened future -- of marquee varieties. But red porgy has emerged as a somewhat tougher sell than amberjack, wreckfish and triggerfish, and a regular menu item at leading Charleston eateries like McCrady's and FIG.

Red porgies swim close to the shore, well within the reach of hungry fishermen without fancy boats or elaborate tackle. Much like mullet, its silvery Southern cousin, red porgy quickly became known as a poverty fish.

"It was probably consumed by slaves, and could have had a cultural taboo," Westmeyer says. "The upper class didn't want to eat the same thing as the slaves."

Still, enough Carolinians and Georgians ate enough red porgy – about 2 million pounds of it annually when its popularity peaked in the 1980s – that regulating bodies intervened to limit its harvest. Westmeyer says the fish has recovered so quickly that it's now considered an environmentally sound choice.

Having mastered red porgy's management, fans of the fish must now persuade chefs to cook with it.

"To bring in a new fish and get customers to try it can take time," concedes Westmeyer, who says the restaurants she's approached are still figuring out how to pry profit from the delicate porgy, which has to be scaled rather than skinned.

"It's a very mild, flaky, white fish," Westmeyer says. "People enjoy it, but you need a skilled chef who can deal with the pinbones."

Fortunately for ocean caretakers like Westmeyer, there's no shortage of skilled chefs in Charleston, where porgy may once again rule Catfish Row.

Happy National Iced Tea Month!

 


 Happy National Iced Tea Day!

Served cold since the early 1800s, ice tea remains a popular favorite, particularly when served over ice on hot summer days. While the first American iced teas -- predecessors of the boozy Long Island iced tea -- were typically spiked with liquor (and appropriately called "punches"), today they're mostly flavored by a plethora of refreshing pairings. Peruse our recommended recipes on the side of my blog for some summery alternatives to the tired lemon iced tea:

Denny's Maple Bacon Sundae Reviewed

Photo: Erik R. Trinidad

America is obsessed with bacon. No longer is it just a side with eggs or the 'B' in a BLT; bacon and bacon flavoring have managed to find their way into chocolate, into mayonnaise, and even into vodka. As the slogan of America's Pork Checkoff Program says, "Bacon makes it better."

Denny's is no stranger to bacon, having served it up at breakfast for decades with their Grand Slams. However "America's diner," along with support from America's Pork Checkoff Program, has stepped up its bacon offerings with the new, limited-time menu called "Baconalia!: A Celebration of Bacon." The crispy and salted pork product invades Denny's like never before, with items like Bacon Flapjacks, Bacon Meatloaf, and the BBBLT. But the most peculiar and talked about new offering is the new Maple Bacon Sundae. Here's how it rates:

The Claims: Denny's Maple Bacon Sundae starts with a layer of maple-flavored syrup, topped with a layer of vanilla ice cream, topped with a layer of diced hickory-smoked bacon. All of this is topped by an additional set of the same layers.

The Price: $2.99. (Prices may vary at participating locations.)
The Verdict: C-. I should preface this review with the fact that I love bacon; bacon does make things better -- that is, in most cases. Bacon is a very salty thing, and that saltiness should be offset by a contrasting flavor when using it as an ingredient in a recipe -- which it often is. It is particularly tasty when combined with sweet things -- bacon-wrapped dates or bacon chocolate, for example -- and at breakfast, when it optionally comes candied or served with maple syrup.

With that said, with everything Denny's Maple Bacon Sundae has going for it, and as much as I was excited to try this creation, it didn't quite live up to my hyped expectations. Rather than make "a classic ice cream sundae more awesome" (as it says in the menu description), the bacon in this dessert tastes and feels out of place, almost as if the bacon slipped in there by accident, and not on purpose. It's baffled me why this is; it should be more awesome. Perhaps the bacon is too salty to be swirled in the ice cream. Perhaps the contrast between salty and sweet is too great in this case. Or perhaps bacon is good with sweets, but only if that sweet is not a dairy product. Many recipes for bacon ice cream are actually for candied bacon ice cream; maybe the caramelized sugar coating around bacon is necessary to serve as an intermediary between pork and dairy. Denny's may have tried to remedy this issue with the layer of maple syrup, but the ice cream melts so fast that the maple syrup seeps into the ice cream or to the bottom of the glass, away from the bacon. The result is the meat just sitting in the ice cream without being fused with anything substantial enough to cushion the clash between salty and sweet dairy.

Nice try, Denny's. The Maple Bacon Sundae may have fallen short from the expectations of someone living in our bacon-obsessed American culture, but you definitely get an A for effort.