Sounds Like Space Command, Ford & Lopatin and Land of Leland Making a Thai Barbecue Brussels Wrap

Sometimes a simple cut is all you need. It is what takes my hair from a Billy Ray Cyrus trailer rave to a hipster tea party. It is what takes Peter Jackson movies from being rambling pieces of gorilla feces to, well, shorter pieces of gorilla feces. It is what took this Thai Barbecue Brussels Wrap from being ho hum to humdinger.

The first time I made it I lazily threw in whole Brussels Sprouts and there didn't seem to be enough flavor. The more I added, the more logged down it became. A few days later, I gave it another try with one change. I cut the Brussels Sprouts into small pieces. It worked like a charm.

Thai Barbecue Brussels Wrap
(printable version)

-2 cups Brussels Sprouts, quartered
-olive oil
-brown rice, cooked (I used day old rice)
-soy sauce
-barbecue sauce
-sesame oil
-tortillas

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a skillet. Add the Brussels Sprouts and saute until softened (about seven minutes). Add the rice and continue heating until desired texture.

2. Mix the soy sauce, sesame oil and barbecue sauce. I played around with the flavors but basically went with a 2 parts soy sauce, 2 parts barbecue sauce and one part sesame oil. Add to the rice and thoroughly mix.

3. Heat the tortillas. Place Brussels Sprouts mixture in the the middle of the tortilla and roll closed. Eat uncut as quickly as possible.

This dish toes the line between southern and Asian cuisine. To provide the sounds I needed bands that were familiar with a careful balance between two ends. New York's Space Command fits this bill. They are a combo platter of electronic, dance and emo music swaddled in an astronaut robot shell.

Space Command-Graveyard Shift Mix #1

Ford & Lopatin (formerly Games) make one think retro while at the same time peering towards the future. That future could be as close as June 7th when their debut album, Channel Pressure, comes out.

Ford & Lopatin-Emergency Room via Pitchfork

Land of Leland blend that 80's nostalgia with a spooky singer songwriter tone in their cover of "Your Love" (originally by the Outfield). It is one of the few 80's songs that I can actually get into. If you are interested, Land of Leland also does the cooking thing. Here is their recipe for Mostly Butternut Squash Soup.

Land of Leland-Your Love via cover me songs