Did anyone ever hear of "Pasties"

[shroomgirl]

Didn't I read somewhere fried curds? Fish fries????is that just fried fish or some adulterated version?

Fish fries was a misspell! I should have typed Fish Frys. Meaning the Friday night fish fry at the local bowling alley, which is very popular among the largely Catholic and Lutheran communities in Wisconsin. ...sorry about the "largely", totally unintended!

[shroomgirl]

I love that Americana....Friday fish frys at the bowling alley.....what do they serve with the fish?

S. Louisiana it's fish frys during lent but also Jambayla...rolls, iceberg salad dressed with an Italian dressing....not at bowling alleys usually in churches.

BBQ chicken hindquarters with slaw or salad, beans and a roll....is also popular.
I'm going to start a thread on Americana, fundraising dinners.

[Greg]

The most popular fish for fish frys in Wisconsin is lake perch; some restaurants offer bone-in as an option. Usually served with slaw and french fries, preferably on some type of paper dinnerware or plastic basket. None of them high-falutin' fancy-dancy plates!

Okee dokee, since we are getting serious about this pastie turned fishy thread, I will expound! (and hopefully not expand)
When my husband and I were just months from leaving for Thailand, we went out for the traditional Friday night fish fry. My husband looked at me, hand over mouth and eyes bugged out..."I can't believe how many fat people there are in Wisconsin!" It was one of those moments. Mind you, I'm not a size 10 either. But, it was a funny moment. They served fried fish (boneless), coleslaw, German potato salad, rolls, potato pancakes with either syrup or applesauce, and then more fish! Now, I am Mexican and from L.A., so it was a completely cullinary culture shock. Somehow I didn't eat with as much vim and vigor as the others, and observed a lot. Oh yeah, it's all you can eat. The thought of potatoes mixed with onions, plenty of grease and Log Cabin syrup somehow still gives me the heebie jeebies.

[Nick.Shu]

log cabin, potatos and onions?

On the same plate?

[Greg]

Yep, and the fried fish. Lots of Catholics of German descent in Wisconsin (My Grandfather grew up on a farm there, his first language was German till he was 5 and went to school). The food in Wisconsin might be weird to some, but they make the best cheese, sausage and beer in the states, in my very biased opinion.

[judy]

Cornish pasties originally were made with the meat up one end, lots of potato and carrot mixed in to bulk out the meat, and jam up the other for dessert. better still the proper name is tilly oggie. i supply lots to a local cafe run by a dutch man. Not with the jam bit I hasten to add, he isn't game to try

Wisconsin has the most delicious cheese I ever tasted. I am sad to say that many of the small time cheese factories have closed down. I have fond memories of the cheese factory in Mapleton.
Anyway, to tie this in...I think you can even add cheese to your pastie! (mr. crudeau)

[Mezzaluna]

Geez (or should that be 'cheese'?), this has turned into the Wisconsin food thread! I grew up in west-central Illinois, where there was no cuisine except good ol' boring. No fish frys or anything that interesting. I was entranced by all the food traditions and pecadilloes I encountered. All seem to be tied to the ethnic/religious groups here- fish frys are a case in point. As for the cheese, I found a humdinger cheese place outside Wausau run by a state Cheese grader. That place had the best extra sharp cheddar I have ever eaten. Out of curiosity, I asked him how his innards could stand to eat so much cheese without... er... stopping up. His secret? Lots of celery.

How in the world did we get from pasties to fish fries? Can't we keep a thread going in one direction, or do we just unravel everything?

[Greg]

Mezzaluna, I drive through Wausau when I visit home. Is it close enough to make a little side trip on the way to Green Bay?

MMMMMmmmm Cornish Pasties your making me hungry

------------------

Chef Robin Lane

[shroomgirl]

Crudeau~ that's how inspiration for other threads comes about...So who knows of other meat pies...emp[anadas, Natioches meat pies, seems like several countries have a handheld pastry with a meat or meat veg filling....anymore?

Shroomgirl your are reading my mind. (scary huh?) I was thinking...
empanadas
panzaratas
pasties
the thai even have something similar called gahree (curry) pap