Alexander Chalkidis

Category: Tips

  • Where is what I am looking for?

    Λόγω αλλαγής στον server, όλα τα ελληνικά άρθρα είναι πλέον μαζί στη διεύθυνση http://greekinter.net/

     

    I moved my server so if you are looking for that previous site with my shiny bald head, look no further.  All the content from that is now here.  I also threw in some other sites for good measure, various projects from the past with information people search for.  Being a good Samaritan, I saved it.

    If you are looking for Greek content, it is all together at www.greekinter.net  And I mean “all together” as in “fifty different topics all together!”  You will need to use the search function if you are looking for something specific.  As far as I can tell, Google has managed to follow my instructions and should point directly to the right content most of the time.  There are quite a few internal dead links which I will work on when I find time.

    There are bound to be some loose ends here and there, it is more than ten thousand articles to tidy.  Hopefully the content is worth your trouble!

  • Fig and Olive, Fig Charleston, the girl and the fig

    Why do so many popular restaurants use the name “fig”?  From the Fig & Olive website we read:

    “FIG & OLIVE is about passion for the best olive oils, flavors and cuisine from the Riviera& Coastal regions of the South of France, Italy and Spain. Our large variety of extra virgin olive oils was selected to be paired with each dish and to be offered for tasting at the beginning of each meal.”

    Multiple locations, NYC, Melrose place, uptown, fith avenue…clearly figs are the way to go!

    That is if you don’t go to “the girl & the fig” instead!  http://www.thegirlandthefig.com   Just make sure you don’t confuse them with “Food if Good” = FIG which is http://www.eatatfig.com/

  • Why do figs split open?

    It seems peculiar.  Why should the fig plant not protect its fruit until the seeds can fall to the ground?  Is splitting open some unusual way of enticing animals to eat the fruit?

    Slight splitting shouldn’t put you off eating a fig.  It is actually quite normal and caused by humidity.  Well drained land usually reduces fig splitting bug careful watering can also do the trick.  If the plant gets too much water as it nears the fruiting period,   The fig fruit is an extension of the tree’s stem tissue.  So if it rains, or – more often – at night when evaporation is reduced, the weak structure of the fig fruit just can’t take anymore!  It splits open and you wake up to disappointment!

    Have no fear though.  Unless you are infested with insects, freshly split figs are usually extremely tasty and just ripe enough to eat.  So called “heavy” soils can also help reduce fig splitting since they tend to keep a relatively constant level of humidity.  However most fig trees enjoy climates with 7 or more hours of constant sunlight, so it is never easy!  Especially in the morning and the evening, sunlight and heat help get rid of dampness which would otherwise assist insects which damage the tree.

    Some fig farmers claim that figs split because of rain hitting the trees.  They even try to cover the fig trees with umbrellas or other systems.  Others claim that particular angles of the branches with figs will keep them from splitting when it rains.  It seems unlikely that it is actually the velocity of the rain drops which would cause figs to split; if this was the case, splitting would occur when we wash them under a tap too.  After all that is much more water!

    Figs in containers have been observed to grow too fast when they receive a lot of water, thus causing splitting in the rest of the plant which doesn’t grow as quickly.

  • Do figs ripen after they are picked off the tree?

    No, figs don’t ripen after being picked.  So you need to read carefully.  If you are picking the figs yourself make sure they aren’t too hard and that they are easy to remove.  Just lift them gently and they should begin to become unattached or feel ready to leave the tree.

    Unripe figs don’t taste anything like ripe figs.  Not sweet and of course as we explained in a previous article much more likely to cause allergies.  Personally I don’t like them over ripe, a bit like bananas.  Some people like them the way they get sweeter when they get sugary ripe.  I love them straight off the tree and eaten whole!