112642 Tue Apr 22 13:16:42 -0700 2003 9 7 Chicago Area 0 611908 Chicago Chowhounds. This coming Thursday (4/24), I’m going to be doing an on-camera interview with Holly Gibson, the curator of the Potted Meat Museum. The show will be aired next month on Comcast cable outlets. For those of you (and I can’t imagine there are many) who are unfamiliar with Holly’s remarkable collection of canned meat comestibles, you can find out more at the link below. I heard about The Potted Meat Museum on this board (I think Rene told me about it), and I will also be taking the opportunity offered by this airtime to mention Chowhound.com., which I intend to describe in broad terms, referencing perhaps the 24 hour Chowathon. This is not, however, a Chowhound-sponsored event (though I have discussed with Mike G, Ultimo, Da Mare and others the possibility of producing a continuing program on Chicago eats). This is also, needless to say, a not-for-profit venture. At the moment, I’m developing interview questions for Holly, and I’ve come up with a dozen or so, but I’d like to know if any of you have any special questions for this pioneer archivist of potted products. Think of it this way: if you had one question to ask Holly about her museum or about the vast universe of tinned tasties she has acquired, what would it be? PS. During the show, I will also be doing some dramatic readings of Spam-related haiku (Spamku), so please send me any of these works that you might have (your name will appear in credits, unless you prefer that your spam-passion remain closeted) Link: http://www.pottedmeatmuseum.com/. Tue Apr 22 13:16:42 -0700 2003 0 David Hammond 1 611909 I wonder if she has visited Chicago's own Sara Lee Corp., which, in recent years, has practically cornered the potted/processed meat market, buying up brands as diverse as Best Kosher and Sweet Sue, of whole chicken in a can fame. Tue Apr 22 13:41:37 -0700 2003 611908 0 JeffB 1 611910 I would ask, "What is an appropriate wine pairing for Armour Potted Meat?" I haven't eaten potted meat since I was a young child. Back then we mixed it with sweet pickle relish and mayo. And we served it with a nice grape Kool-Aid. I stopped eating it right around the time I started reading food labels. I also loved these big hot dogs, dyed dark red, called "Dinewell's". I can still remember munching one while reading the label and asking my mother, "What's a 'salivary gland'?" It was the end of the innocence. I never ate them again. Tue Apr 22 13:49:27 -0700 2003 611908 0 chris robinson 1 611916 You could ask her whether she's ever visited the home of Spam, Austin, Minnesota. My husband and I were there in January picking up our new puppy from the breeder. I still covet the street banners proclaiming "Spam Town U.S.A.". Tue Apr 22 15:21:18 -0700 2003 611908 0 MAG 1 611917 let's see. . . . since most of the places that love spam (korea, hawaii) seem to have prolonged significant US military presence, how she sees spam being incorporated in Iraqi food - spam dolma? With new packaging technology (such as VI's beloved vacuum-sealed indian food) is the golden age of canned meats over? With globalization/immigration what changes has she seen/ forsee - rendang in a can? tandoori in a can? Any plans on doing a joint venture with the condiment packet museum so one can assemble a virtual meal? on a related front why did "sack o sauce in a can o meat" fail (Rene G can provide more info on this particularly great potted meat product) Tue Apr 22 15:43:20 -0700 2003 611908 0 zim 1 611918 Is Paul Theroux's theory correct, that there is a relationship between Spam popularity in the South Pacific, and tastes developed for "long pig"? I think Cecil settled this in his column some time ago, but it might be a fun question. Tue Apr 22 15:59:51 -0700 2003 611908 0 Jim S. 1 611922 I can’t wait to see the interview! I’m a huge fan of the Potted Meat Museum. Now that Holly finally has her coveted potted haggis, I would ask her what is the Holy Grail of potted meat? Might it be the Sack o’ Sauce in a Can o’ Meat? I know she is familiar with this disturbing product. Link: http://www.lileks.com/institute/gallery/ads/sos.html Tue Apr 22 16:52:10 -0700 2003 611908 0 Rene G 2 612032 Rene, I doubt it's her Holy Grail of potted meat, but I'm betting Ms. Gibson doesn't have aged sardines in her collection. I have a couple of cans of aged sardines I bought at Hediard last summer, one of which I may be willing to part with for a cause as noble as the Potted Meat Museum. I also have a few cans of Portuguese sardines sold as aged by Zingerman's in Ann Arbor, of which I would also be willing to part with a can. Patricia Wells has an interesting sidebar on aged sardines in her Food Lover's Guide to Paris, fourth edition. Enjoy, Gary Image: http://www.sptsb.com/Sardine.jpg Thu Apr 24 18:13:33 -0700 2003 611922 0 G Wiv 1 612021 Once upon a time, my father, a rib fanatic, thought he had found his dream product. Armour (I think) introduced BBQ ribs in a can. They were rolled like an ammo belt and put in a round can. He proudly brought these home and we all tried them. The entire family was laid out ill for 36 hours. So we sent a little note to Armour saying there may have been a problem. We were rewarded with another can of ribs. Same results. Haven't seen this product since. This was circa 1963 or 64 as best I can recall. Mostly I recall the end result of consumption. On another note, I was happy to see the canned steak and kidney pie on the museum website. I worked in a grocery store in Evanston in the early 70's. We had some of these on the bottom shelf of the prepared food area (right below the Broadcast Corned Beef Hash). In the four years I worked there not one moved. I was always curious about them, but never courageous enough to try one. Just another potted meat memory. . . . Thu Apr 24 16:25:21 -0700 2003 611908 0 Dan 1 612108 Anti-matter My famous collection of old Chicago potted meat lacks one last trophy In which antique store, in what ancient farmhouse Shall I track down the can that holds the squeal. (written in honor of David Hammond, the world-famous author of the poem on Oaxaca tamal) Sat Apr 26 20:54:11 -0700 2003 611908 0 RST