How do you pick a fresh melon? Joe Shaw, chef of the downtown Standard at the Smith House on Eighth Avenue, tells all in the place you need the info most: the Nashville Farmers' Market, where Shaw has done cooking demonstrations throughout the summer. Shaw will be on hand at 11 a.m. tomorrow in the market's Farm Shed demonstration kitchen to walk spectators through three easy-to-prepare honeydew, cantaloupe and watermelon dishes.
Then get ready to live la vida okra with Julia Helton, chef of East Nashville's Mitchell Deli. At 1 p.m., Helton will appear in the Farm Shed kitchen with techniques for pickling and preparing the mod pods. Maybe she can tell me how to get my cornmeal-battered fried okra crisp instead of soggy and blackened. (Please tell me it doesn't involve giving up bacon grease, the key ingredient in any vegetarian dish.) Both events are free and open to the public.
(Melon photo swiped from World Community Cookbooks.)
