text:
Chechen Republic Чеченская Республика (Russian) Нохчийн Республика (Chechen) |
— Republic — | |||
Political status | |||
Country | Russia | ||
Federal district | North Caucasian[2] | ||
Economic region | North Caucasus[3] | ||
Established | January 10, 1993[4] | ||
Capital | Grozny[5] | ||
Government (as of January 2015) | |||
- Head[7] | Ramzan Kadyrov[6] | ||
- Legislature | Parliament | ||
Statistics | |||
Area (as of the 2002 Census)[8] | |||
- Total | 17,300 km2 (6,700 sq mi) | ||
Area rank | 75th | ||
Population (2010 Census)[9] | |||
- Total | 1,268,989 | ||
- Rank | 40th | ||
- Density[10] | 73.35/km2 (190.0/sq mi) | ||
- Urban | 34.9% | ||
- Rural | 65.1% | ||
Population (January 2014 est.) | |||
- Total | 1,346,500[11] | ||
Time zone(s) | MSK (UTC+03:00)[12] | ||
License plates | 95 | ||
Official languages | Russian;[13] Chechen[14] | ||
Official website |
The Chechen Republic (/ˈtʃɛtʃɨn/; Russian: Чече́нская Респу́блика, tr. Chechenskaya Respublika; IPA: [tɕɪˈtɕɛnskəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə]; Chechen: Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika), commonly referred to as Chechnya (/ˈtʃɛtʃniə/; Russian: Чечня́; IPA: [tɕɪˈtɕnʲa]; Chechen: Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria (lit land of minerals), is a federal subject (a republic) of Russia.
It is located in the North Caucasus, situated in the southernmost part of Eastern Europe, and within 100 kilometers of the Caspian Sea.[15] The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny. As of the 2010 Russian Census, the republic was reported to have a population of 1,268,989 people;[9] however, that number has been questioned by multiple demographers, who think such population growth after two deadly wars is highly implausible.[16][17]
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Chechen-Ingush ASSR was split into two parts: the Republic of Ingushetia and the Chechen Republic. The latter proclaimed the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, which sought independence. Following the First Chechen War with Russia, Chechnya gained de facto independence as the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. Russian federal control was restored during the Second Chechen War. Since then there has been a systematic reconstruction and rebuilding process, though sporadic fighting continues in the mountains and southern regions of the republic.
According to Leonti Mroveli, the 11th-century Georgian chronicler, the word Caucasian is derived from the Vainakh ancestor Kavkas.[18]
According to Professor George Anchabadze of Ilia State University
The Vainakhs are the ancient natives of the Caucasus. It is noteworthy, that according to the genealogical table drawn up by Leonti Mroveli, the legendary forefather of the Vainakhs was "Kavkas", hence the name Kavkasians, one of the ethnicons met in the ancient Georgian written sources, signifying the ancestors of the Chechens and Ingush. As appears from the above, the Vainakhs, at least by name, are presented as the most "Caucasian" people of all the Caucasians (Caucasus – Kavkas – Kavkasians) in the Georgian historical tradition.[19][20]
American linguist Dr. Johanna Nichols " has used language to connect the modern people of the Caucasus region to the ancient farmers of the Fertile Crescent" and her research suggests that "farmers of the region were proto-Nakh-Daghestanians." Nichols stated: "The Nakh–Dagestanian languages are the closest thing we have to a direct continuation of the cultural and linguistic community that gave rise to Western civilization." Dr. Henry Harpending, University of Utah, supports her claims.[21]
People living in prehistoric mountain cave settlements used tools, mastered fire, and used animal skin for warmth and other purposes.[22] Traces of human settlement that date back to 40,000 BC were found near Lake Kezanoi. Cave paintings, artifacts, and other archaeological evidence indicates continuous habitation for some 8,000 years.[22]
This section's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. (February 2014) |
As Russia set off for the first time to increase its political influence in the Caucasus and the Caspian Sea at the expense of Safavid Persia, Peter I launched the Russo-Persian War (1722–1723), in which Russia succeeded in taking much of the Caucasian territories from Iran for several years. Notable in Chechen history, this particular Russo-Persian War marked the first military encounter between Imperial Russia and the Vainakh.[31]
As the Russians took control of the Caspian corridor and moved into Persian-ruled Dagestan, Peter's forces ran into mountain tribes. Peter sent a cavalry force to subdue them, but the Chechens routed them.[31] In 1732, after Russia already ceded back most of the Caucasus to Persia, now led by Nader Shah, following the Treaty of Resht, Russian troops clashed again with Chechens in a village called Chechen-aul along the Argun River.[31] The Russians were defeated again and withdrew, but this battle is responsible for the apocryphal story about how the Nokchi came to be known as "Chechens"-the people ostensibly named for the place the battle had taken place. The name Chechen was however already used since as early as 1692.[31]
Under intermittent Persian rule since 1555, in 1783 the eastern Georgians of Kartl-Kakheti led by Erekle II and Russia signed the Treaty of Georgievsk. According to this treaty, Kartl-Kakheti received protection from Russia, and Georgia abjured any dependence on Iran.[32] In order to increase its influence in the Caucasus and to secure communications with Kartli and other minority Christian regions of the Transcaucasia which it considered useful in its wars against Persia and Turkey, the Russian Empire began conquering the Northern Caucasus mountains. The Russian Empire used Christianity to justify its conquests, allowing Islam to spread widely because it positioned itself as the religion of liberation from tsardom, which viewed Nakh tribes as "bandits".[33] The rebellion was led by Mansur Ushurma, a Chechen Naqshbandi (Sufi) sheikh—with wavering military support from other North Caucasian tribes. Mansur hoped to establish a Transcaucasus Islamic state under shari'a law. He was unable to fully achieve this because in the course of the war he was betrayed by the Ottomans, handed over to Russians, and executed in 1794.[34]
Following the forced ceding of neighboring Dagestan, most of Azerbaijan, and now officially Georgia by Persia to Russia, following the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) and its outcoming Treaty of Gulistan, Russia significantly widened its foothold in the Caucasus at the expense of Persia.[35] Another successful Caucasus war against Persia several years later, starting in 1826 and ending in 1828 with the Treaty of Turkmenchay, and a successful war against Ottoman Turkey in 1828, enabled Russia to use a much larger portion of its army in subduing the natives of the North Caucasus.
The resistance of the Nakh tribes never ended and was a fertile ground for a new Muslim-Avar commander, Imam Shamil, who fought against the Russians from 1834 to 1859. In 1859, Shamil was captured by Russians at aul Gunib. Shamil left Boysangur Benoiski,[36] a Chechen with one arm, one eye, and one leg, in charge of command at Gunib. Benoiski broke through the siege and continued to fight Russia for another two years until he was captured and killed by Russians. The Russian tsar hoped that by sparing the life of Shamil the resistance in the North Caucasus would stop, but it did not. Russia began to use a colonization tactic by destroying Nakh settlements and building Cossack defense lines in the lowlands. The Cossacks suffered defeat after defeat, and were constantly attacked by mountaineers, who were robbing them of food and weaponry.
The tsarists' regime used a different approach at the end of the 1860s. They offered Chechens and Ingush to leave the Caucasus for the Ottoman Empire (see Muhajir (Caucasus)). It is estimated that about 80% of Chechens and Ingush left the Caucasus during the deportation. It weakened the resistance which went from open warfare to insurgent warfare. One of the notable Chechen resistance fighters at the end of the 19th century was a Chechen abrek Zelimkhan Gushmazukaev and his comrade-in-arms Ingush abrek Sulom-Beck Sagopshinski. Together they built up small units which constantly harassed Russian military convoys, government mints, and government post-service, mainly in Ingushetia and Chechnya. Ingush aul Kek was completely burned when the Ingush refused to hand over Zelimkhan. Zelimkhan was killed in the beginning of the 20th century. The war between Nakh tribes and Russia resurfaced during the times of the Russian Revolution, which saw the Nakh struggle against Anton Denikin, and later against the Soviet Union.
On December 21, 1917, Ingushetia, Chechnya, and Dagestan declared independence from Russia and formed a single state: "United Mountain Dwellers of the North Caucasus" (also known as Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus) which was recognized by major world powers. The capital of the new state was moved to Temir-Khan-Shura (Dagestan)[37][38][39] Tapa Chermoyev, a prominent Chechen statesman, was elected the first prime minister of the state. The second prime minister was elected as Vassan-Girey Dzhabagiev, an Ingush statesman, who also was the author of the Constitution of the land in 1917, and in 1920 he was re-elected for the third term. In 1921 the Russians attacked and occupied the country and forcefully absorbed it into the Soviet state. The Caucasian war for independence restarts, and the government goes into exile.[40]
During the Soviet rule, Chechnya and Ingushetia were combined together to form Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In the 1930s Chechnya was flooded with many Ukrainians fleeing the genocide known as Holodomor. Despite the threats from the Russian government not to provide food and shelter to starving Ukrainians the rebellious peoples did not follow Russian orders. As the result many of the Ukrainians settled in Chechen-Ingush ASSR on the permanent basis and were able to survive the famine.[41]
Despite the fact that over 50,000 Chechens and over 12,000 Ingush were fighting against Nazi Germany on the front line (including heroes of the USSR: Abukhadzhi Idrisov, Khanpasha Nuradilov, Movlid Visaitov), and despite the fact that Nazi German troops were stopped at two Chechen-Ingush ASSR cities Malgobek and Ordzhonikidze (renamed to Vladikavkaz) to a complete stop after capturing half of the Caucasus for less than a month; Chechens and Ingush were falsely accused as Nazi supporters and entire nations were deported during Operation Lentil to the Kazakh SSR (later Kazakhstan) in 1944 near the end of World War II where over 60% of Chechen and Ingush populations perished.[42] American historian Norman Naimark writes:
Troops assembled villagers and townspeople, loaded them onto trucks – many deportees remembered that they were Studebakers, fresh from Lend-Lease deliveries over the Iranian border – and delivered them at previously designated railheads. …Those who could not be moved were shot. …[A] few fighters aside, the entire Chechen and Ingush nations, 496,460 people, were deported from their homeland.[43]
The deportation was supposedly justified by the materials prepared by notorious NKVD officer Bogdan Kobulov accusing Chechens and Ingush in a mass conspiracy preparing rebellion and providing assistance to the German forces. Many of the materials were later proved to be fabricated.[44] Even distinguished Red Army officers who fought bravely against Germans (e.g. the commander of 255th Separate Chechen-Ingush regiment Movlid Visaitov, the first to contact American forces at Elbe river) were deported.[45] There is a theory that the real reason why Chechens and Ingush were deported is the desire of Russia to attack Turkey, a non-communist country, as Chechens and Ingush could impede such plans.[33] In 2004, European Parliament recognized deportation of Chechens and Ingush as an act of genocide.[46]
The territory of the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was divided between Stavropol Krai (where Grozny Okrug was formed), the Dagestan ASSR, the North Ossetian ASSR, and the Georgian SSR.
The Chechens and Ingush were allowed to return to their land after 1956 during de-Stalinization under Nikita Khrushchev when Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was restored but both boundaries and ethnic composition of the territory significantly changed. There were many (predominantly Russian) migrants from other parts of the Soviet Union, who often settled in the abandoned family homes of Chechens and Ingushes. The republic lost its Prigorodny District which transferred to North Ossetian ASSR, but gained predominately Russian Naursky District and Shelkovskoy District that is considered the homeland for Terek Cossacks.
The Russification policies towards Chechens continued after 1956, with Russian language proficiency required in many aspects of life, and for advancement in the Soviet system.[33]
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On November 26, 1990, the Supreme Council of Chechen-Ingush ASSR adopted the "Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Chechen-Ingush Republic". This declaration was part of the reorganization of the Soviet Union. This new treaty would have been signed August 22, 1991, which would have transformed 15 republic states into more than 80. The August 19–21, 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt led to the abandonment of this reorganization.[47] With the impending dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, an independence movement, initially known as the Chechen National Congress, was formed and led by ex-Soviet Air Force general and new Chechen President Dzhokhar Dudayev that rallied for the recognition of Chechnya as a separate nation. This movement was ultimately opposed by Boris Yeltsin's Russian Federation, which firstly argued that Chechnya had not been an independent entity within the Soviet Union—as the Baltic, Central Asian, and other Caucasian States had—but was part of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and hence did not have a right under the Soviet constitution to secede; secondly, that other republics of Russia, such as Tatarstan, would consider seceding from the Russian Federation if Chechnya were granted that right; and thirdly, that Chechnya was a major hub in the oil infrastructure of the Federation and hence its secession would hurt the country's economy and energy access.[citation needed]
In the ensuing decade, the territory was locked in an ongoing struggle between various factions, usually fighting unconventionally and forgoing the position held by the several successive Russian governments through the current administration.
The First Chechen War took place over a two-year period that lasted from 1994 to 1996, when Russian forces attempted to regain control over Chechnya, which had declared independence in November 1991. Despite overwhelming numerical superiority in men, weaponry, and air support, the Russian forces were unable to establish effective permanent control over the mountainous area due to numerous successful full-scale battles and insurgency raids. For three months, Russia lost more tanks (over 1,997 tanks) in Grozny than during the Battle of Berlin in 1945.[48] The Budyonnovsk hospital hostage crisis in 1995 shocked the Russian public and led to international condemnation of the Chechen rebels.
In April 1996 the first democratically elected president of Chechnya, Dzhokhar Dudayev was killed by two laser guided missiles fired from a warplane which had an equipment of voice recognition and triangulation on Dudayev's position. American journalist Eric Margolis in his article "Stalin's Crimes Haunt the Sochi Games" writes:
Dzhokar Dudayev, the moderate Chechen leader, was assassinated in April, 1996 by the Russian FSB thanks to technology reportedly supplied by the US National Security Agency. All the moderate Chechen leaders were assassinated, leaving only a handful of extreme militants. The US largely financed Yeltsin's war.
The widespread demoralization of the Russian forces in the area and a successful offensive to re-take Grozny by Chechen resistance forces led by Aslan Maskhadov prompted Russian President Boris Yeltsin to declare a ceasefire in 1996, and sign a peace treaty a year later that saw a withdrawal of Russian forces.
After the war, parliamentary and presidential elections took place in January 1997 in Chechnya and brought to power new President Aslan Maskhadov, chief of staff and prime minister in the Chechen coalition government, for a five-year term. Maskhadov sought to maintain Chechen sovereignty while pressing Moscow to help rebuild the republic, whose formal economy and infrastructure were virtually destroyed.[49] Russia continued to send money for the rehabilitation of the republic; it also provided pensions and funds for schools and hospitals. Most of these funds were taken by Chechen authorities and divided between favoured warlords.[50] Nearly half a million people (40% of Chechnya's prewar population) had been internally displaced and lived in refugee camps or overcrowded villages.[51] There was an economic downturn. Two Russian brigades were permanently stationed in Chechnya.[51]
In lieu of the devastated economic structure, kidnapping emerged as the principal source of income countrywide, procuring over $200 million during the three-year independence of the chaotic fledgling state,[52] although victims were rarely killed.[53] In 1998, 176 people were kidnapped, 90 of whom were released, according to official accounts. President Maskhadov started a major campaign against hostage-takers, and on October 25, 1998, Shadid Bargishev, Chechnya's top anti-kidnapping official, was killed in a remote-controlled car bombing. Bargishev's colleagues then insisted they would not be intimidated by the attack and would go ahead with their offensive. Political violence and religious extremism, blamed on "Wahhabism", was rife. In 1998, Grozny authorities declared a state of emergency. Tensions led to open clashes between the Chechen National Guard and Islamist militants, such as the July 1998 confrontation in Gudermes.
The War of Dagestan began on August 7, 1999, during which the Islamic International Brigade (IIPB) began an unsuccessful incursion into the neighbouring Russian republic of Dagestan in favor of the Shura of Dagestan which sought independence from Russia.[54] In September, a series of apartment bombs that killed around 300 people in several Russian cities, including Moscow, were blamed on the Chechen separatists. Some journalists contested the official explanation, instead blaming the Russian Secret Service for blowing up the buildings to initiate a new military campaign against Chechnya.[55] In response to the bombings, a prolonged air campaign of retaliatory strikes against the Ichkerian regime and a ground offensive that began in October 1999 marked the beginning of the Second Chechen War. Much better organized and planned than the first Chechen War, the Russian military took control over most regions. The Russian forces used brutal force, killing 60 Chechen civilians during a mop-up operation in Aldy, Chechnya on February 5, 2000. After the re-capture of Grozny in February 2000, the Ichkerian regime fell apart.[56]
Chechen rebels continued to fight Russian troops and conduct terrorist attacks.[57][page needed] In October 2002, 40–50 Chechen rebels seized a Moscow theater and took about 900 civilians hostage. The crisis ended with a large death toll mostly due to an unknown aerosol pumped throughout the building by Russian special forces to incapacitate the people inside.[58][59][60] In September 2004, separatist rebels occupied a school in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia, demanding recognition of the independence of Chechnya and a Russian withdrawal. 1,100 people (including 777 children) were taken hostage. The attack lasted three days, resulting in the deaths of over 331 people, including 186 children.[61][62][63]
In response to the increasing terrorism, Russia tightened its grip on Chechnya as well as expanded its anti-terrorist operations throughout the region. Russia installed a pro-Moscow Chechen regime. In 2003, a referendum was held on a constitution that reintegrated Chechnya within Russia, but provided limited autonomy. According to the Chechen government, the referendum passed with 95.5% of the votes and almost 80% turnout.[64] The Economist was skeptical of the results, arguing that "few outside the Kremlin regard the referendum as fair".[65] In 2005 and 2006, prominent separatist leaders Aslan Maskhadov and Shamil Basayev were killed.
In April 2009, Russia ended its counter-terrorism operation and pulled out the bulk of its army.[66] Three months later, the leader of the separatist government, Akhmed Zakayev, called for a halt to armed resistance against the Chechen police force starting on August 1, 2009.[67]
Insurgency in the North Caucasus continued even after this date. The Caucasus Emirate has fully adopted the tenets of being a Salafist-takfiri jihadist group through its strict adherence to upholding tawhid, its obedience to the literal interpretation of the Quran and the Sunnah, and its complete rejection of bid'ah, taqlid, and ijtihad.[68]
Situated in the eastern part of the North Caucasus, partially in Eastern Europe, Chechnya is surrounded on nearly all sides by Russian Federal territory. In the west, it borders North Ossetia and Ingushetia, in the north, Stavropol Krai, in the east, Dagestan, and to the south, Georgia. Its capital is Grozny.
According to the 2010 Census, the population of the republic is 1,268,989,[9] up from 1,103,686 recorded in the 2002 Census.[69] As of the 2010 Census,[9] Chechens at 1,206,551 make up 95.3% of the republic's population. Other groups include Russians (24,382, or 1.9%), Kumyks (12,221, or 1%), Ingush (1,296 or 0.1%) and a host of smaller groups, each accounting for less than 0.5% of the total population. The Armenian community, which used to number around 15,000 in Grozny alone, has dwindled to a few families.[70] The Armenian church of Grozny was demolished in 1930. Birth rate was 25.41 in 2004. (25.7 in Achkhoi Martan, 19.8 in Groznyy, 17.5 in Kurchaloi, 28.3 in Urus Martan and 11.1 in Vedeno). According to the Chechen State Statistical Committee, Chechnya's population had grown to 1.205 million in January 2006.[71]
At the end of the Soviet era, ethnic Russians (including Cossacks) comprised about 23% of the population (269,000 in 1989).
According to some Russian sources, from 1991 to 1994 tens of thousands of people of non-Chechen ethnicity (mostly Russians, Ukrainians and Armenians) left the republic amidst reports of violence and discrimination against the non-Chechen population, as well as widespread lawlessness and ethnic cleansing under the government of Dzhokhar Dudayev.[72][73]
However, regarding this exodus, there is an alternative view. According to the Russian economists Boris Lvin and Andrei Iliaronov,
The Chechen authorities are regularly accused of crimes against the population, especially the Russian-speaking people. However, before the current war the emigration of the Russian-speaking population from Chechnya was no more intense than that from Kalmykia, Tuva and Sakha-Yakutia. In Grozny itself there remained a 200,000 strong Russian-speaking population which did not hasten to leave it.[74][75]
The languages used in the Republic are Chechen and Russian. Chechen belongs to the Vaynakh or North-central Caucasian language family, which also includes Ingush and Batsb. Some scholars place it in a wider Iberian-Caucasian super-family.
Chechnya has one of the youngest populations in the generally aging Russian Federation; in the early 1990s, it was among the few regions experiencing natural population growth. Since 2002, Chechnya has experienced a classic post-conflict baby-boom.[16] Chechen demographers in 2008 termed highly implausible the reported overall population growth as infant mortality in Chechnya was said to be 60 percent higher than the Russian average in 2007 and to have risen by 3.9 percent compared with 2006.[16] Many experts have expressed doubts about the increase from 1.1 million in the 1990 to an estimated nearly 1.3 million in 2010 following two devastating wars that displaced hundreds of thousands people and virtually eliminated the large ethnic Russian minority in the republic.[17] According to Russian demographer Dmitry Bogoyavlensky, the 2002 census results were clearly manipulated in the North Caucasus: an estimated 800,000 to 1 million non-existent people were added to the actual population of the region.[17] Another Russian demographer, Anatoly Vishnevsky, pointed out that according to the 2002 census, some age groups, like those born in 1950, appeared to be larger in 2002 than in 1989.[17] With the 2002 census, Moscow wanted to show there were not too many casualties and that the refugees had returned to Chechnya, while the local authorities wanted to receive more funds and thus needed a higher population to justify their demands.[17] Also, in the multiethnic republics of North Caucasus normally unlike in other parts of Russia, government positions are distributed among the ethnicities according to their ratio in the general population.[17] So ethnicities are zealously guarding their numbers in order not to be outnumbered by others and thereby left with less representation in the government and the local economy.[17] Some 40 percent of newborns had some kind of genetic defect.[16]
Average population (x 1000) | Live births | Deaths | Natural change | Crude birth rate (per 1000) | Crude death rate (per 1000) | Natural change (per 1000) | Total fertility rate | |
2003 | 1,117 | 27,774 | 7,194 | 20 580 | 24.9 | 6.4 | 18.4 | |
2004 | 1,133 | 28,496 | 6,347 | 22,149 | 25.2 | 5.6 | 19.5 | |
2005 | 1,150 | 28,652 | 5,857 | 22,795 | 24.9 | 5.1 | 19.8 | |
2006 | 1,167 | 27,989 | 5,889 | 22,100 | 24.0 | 5.0 | 18.9 | |
2007 | 1,187 | 32,449 | 5,630 | 26,819 | 27.3 | 4.7 | 22.6 | |
2008 | 1,210 | 35,897 | 5,447 | 30,450 | 29.7 | 4.5 | 25.2 | |
2009 | 1,235 | 36,523 | 6,620 | 29,903 | 29.6 | 5.4 | 24.2 | 3.43 |
2010 | 1,260 | 37,753 | 7,042 | 30,711 | 30.0 | 5.6 | 24.4 | 3.45 |
2011 | 1,289 | 37,335 | 6,810 | 30,525 | 28.9 | 5.3 | 23.6 | 3.36 |
2012 | 1,314 | 34,385 | 7,192 | 27,193 | 26.2 | 5.5 | 20.7 | 3.08 |
2013 | 1,336 | 32,963 | 6,581 | 26,382 | 24.7 | 4.9 | 19.8 | 2.93 |
2014 | 1,358 | 32,894 | 6,815 | 26,079 | 24.2 | 5.0 | 19.2 | 2.89(e) |
Note: TFR 2009-12 source.[76]
(in the territory of modern Chechnya)[77][unreliable source?]
Ethnic group |
1926 Census | 1939 Census | 1959 Census | 1970 Census | 1979 Census | 1989 Census | 2002 Census | 2010 Census1 | ||||||||
Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
Chechens | 293,298 | 67.3% | 360,889 | 58.0% | 238,331 | 39.7% | 499,962 | 54.7% | 602,223 | 60.1% | 715,306 | 66.0% | 1,031,647 | 93.5% | 1,206,551 | 95.3% |
Russians | 103,271 | 23.5% | 213,354 | 34.3% | 296,794 | 49.4% | 327,701 | 35.8% | 307,079 | 30.6% | 269,130 | 24.8% | 40,645 | 3.7% | 24,382 | 1.9% |
Kumyks | 2,217 | 0.5% | 3,575 | 0,6% | 6,865 | 0.8% | 7,808 | 0.8% | 9,591 | 0.9% | 8,883 | 0.8% | 12,221 | 1.0% | ||
Avars | 830 | 0.2% | 2,906 | 0.5% | 4,196 | 0.5% | 4,793 | 0.5% | 6,035 | 0.6% | 4,133 | 0.4% | 4,864 | 0.4% | ||
Nogays | 162 | 0.0% | 1,302 | 0.2% | 5,503 | 0.6% | 6,079 | 0.6% | 6,885 | 0.6% | 3,572 | 0.3% | 3,444 | 0.3% | ||
Ingushes | 798 | 0.2% | 4,338 | 0.7% | 3,639 | 0.6% | 14,543 | 1.6% | 20,855 | 2.1% | 25,136 | 2.3% | 2,914 | 0.3% | 1,296 | 0.1% |
Ukrainians | 11,474 | 2.6% | 8,614 | 1.4% | 11,947 | 2.0% | 11,608 | 1.3% | 11,334 | 1.1% | 11,884 | 1.1% | 829 | 0.1% | 13,716 | 1.1% |
Armenians | 5,978 | 1.4% | 8,396 | 1.3% | 12,136 | 2.0% | 13,948 | 1.5% | 14,438 | 1.4% | 14,666 | 1.4% | 424 | 0.0% | ||
Others | 18,840 | 4.13% | 18,646 | 3.0% | 37,550 | 6.3% | 30,057 | 3.3% | 27,621 | 2.8% | 25,800 | 2.4% | 10,639 | 1.0% | ||
1 2,515 people were registered from administrative databases, and could not declare an ethnicity. It is estimated that the proportion of ethnicities in this group is the same as that of the declared group.[78] |
Islam is the predominant religion in Chechnya. Chechens are overwhelmingly adherents to the Shafi'i Madhhab of Sunni Islam,[79] the republic having converted to Islam between the 16th and the 19th centuries. Due to historical importance, many Chechens are Sufis, of either the Qadiri or Naqshbandi orders. Most of the population follows either the Shafi'i or the Hanafi,[80] schools of jurisprudence, fiqh. The Shafi'i school of jurisprudence has a long tradition among the Chechens,[81] and thus it remains the most practiced.[82]
The once-strong Russian minority in Chechnya, mostly Terek Cossacks and estimated as numbering approximately 25,000 in 2012, are predominately Russian Orthodox, although presently only one church exists in Grozny. In August 2011, Archbishop Zosima of Vladikavkaz and Makhachkala performed the first mass baptism ceremony in the history of Chechen republic in the Terek River of Naursky District in which 35 citizens of Naursky and Shelkovsky districts were converted to Orthodoxy.[83]
On 19 January 2015 a march took place in Grozny against the publication of caricatures of the prophet Mohammed[84] Chechen Ministry of Interior reported that more than a million people participated, while according to the sources of Caucasian Knot the number was between 350 and 500 thousand.[85]
Since 1990, the Chechen Republic has had many legal, military, and civil conflicts involving separatist movements and pro-Russian authorities. Today, Chechnya is a relatively stable federal republic, although there is still some separatist movement activity. Its regional constitution entered into effect on April 2, 2003 after an all-Chechen referendum was held on March 23, 2003. Some Chechens were controlled by regional teips, or clans, despite the existence of pro- and anti-Russian political structures.
The former separatist religious leader (mufti) Akhmad Kadyrov, looked upon as a traitor by many separatists, was elected president with 83% of the vote in an internationally monitored election on October 5, 2003. Incidents of ballot stuffing and voter intimidation by Russian soldiers and the exclusion of separatist parties from the polls were subsequently reported by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) monitors. On May 9, 2004, Kadyrov was assassinated in Grozny football stadium by a landmine explosion that was planted beneath a VIP stage and detonated during a parade, and Sergey Abramov was appointed to the position of acting prime minister after the incident. However, since 2005 Ramzan Kadyrov (son of Akhmad Kadyrov) has been caretaker prime minister, and in 2007 was appointed a new president. Many allege he is the wealthiest and most powerful man in the republic, with control over a large private militia referred to as the Kadyrovtsy. The militia, which began as his father's security force, has been accused of killings and kidnappings by human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch.
In 2009, the American organization Freedom House included Chechnya in the "Worst of the Worst" list of most repressive societies in the world, together with Burma, North Korea, Tibet, and others.[86]
In addition to the Russian regional government, there was a separatist Ichkeria government that was not recognized by any state (although members have been given political asylum in European and Arab countries, as well as the United States).
Ichkeria is/was a member of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization. Former president of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia deposed in a military coup of 1991 and a participant of the Georgian Civil War, recognised the independence of Chechen Republic of Ichkeria in 1993.[87] Diplomatic relations with Ichkeria were also established by the partially recognized Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan under the Taliban government on January 16, 2000. This recognition ceased with the fall of the Taliban in 2001.[88] However, despite Taliban recognition, there were no friendly relations between the Taliban and Ichkeria—Maskhadov rejected their recognition, stating that the Taliban were illegitimate.[89] Ichkeria also received vocal support from the Baltic countries, a group of Ukrainian nationalists and Poland; Estonia once voted to recognize, but the act never was followed through due to pressure applied by both Russia and the EU.[89][90][91]
The president of this government was Aslan Maskhadov, the Foreign Minister was Ilyas Akhmadov, who was the spokesman for Maskhadov. Aslan Maskhadov had been elected in an internationally monitored election in 1997 for 4 years, which took place after signing a peace agreement with Russia. In 2001 he issued a decree prolonging his office for one additional year; he was unable to participate in the 2003 presidential election, since separatist parties were barred by the Russian government, and Maskhadov faced accusations of terrorist offences in Russia. Maskhadov left Grozny and moved to the separatist-controlled areas of the south at the onset of the Second Chechen War. Maskhadov was unable to influence a number of warlords who retain effective control over Chechen territory, and his power was diminished as a result. Russian forces killed Maskhadov on March 8, 2005, and the assassination of Maskhadov was widely criticized since it left no legitimate Chechen separatist leader with whom to conduct peace talks. Akhmed Zakayev, Deputy Prime Minister and a Foreign Minister under Maskhadov, was appointed shortly after the 1997 election and is currently living under asylum in England. He and others chose Abdul Khalim Saidullayev, a relatively unknown Islamic judge who was previously the host of an Islamic program on Chechen television, to replace Maskhadov following his death. On June 17, 2006, it was reported that Russian special forces killed Abdul Khalim Saidullayev in a raid in a Chechen town Argun.
The successor of Saidullayev became Doku Umarov. On October 31, 2007 Umarov abolished the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria and its presidency and in its place proclaimed the Caucasian Emirate with himself as its Emir.[92] This change of status has been rejected by many Chechen politicians and military leaders who continue to support the existence of the republic.
In 2006 Human Rights Watch reported that pro-Moscow Chechen forces under the command, in effect, of chapter of republic Ramzan Kadyrov, as well as federal police personnel, used torture to get information about separatist forces. "If you are detained in Chechnya, you face a real and immediate risk of torture. And there is little chance that your torturer will be held accountable", said Holly Cartner, Director Europe and Central Asia division of HRW.[93]
Human rights groups criticized the conduct of the 2005 parliamentary elections as unfairly influenced by the central Russian government and military.[94]
The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre reports that after hundreds of thousands of ethnic Russians and Chechens fled their homes following inter-ethnic and separatist conflicts in Chechnya in 1994 and 1999, more than 150,000 people still remain displaced in Russia today.[95]
On September 1, 1997, Criminal Code reportedly being implemented in the Chechen Republic-Ichkeriya, Article 148 punishes "anal sexual intercourse between a man and a woman or a man and a man". For first- and second-time offenders, the punishment is caning. A third conviction leads to the death penalty, which can be carried out in a number of ways including stoning or beheading.[96]
On February 1, 2009, the New York Times released extensive evidence to support allegations of consistent torture and executions under the Kadyrov government. The accusations were sparked by the assassination in Austria of a former Chechen rebel who had gained access to Kadyrov's inner circle, 27-year-old Umar Israilov.[97]
On July 1, 2009, Amnesty International released a detailed report covering the human rights violations committed by the Russian Federation against Chechen citizens. Among the most prominent features was that those abused had no method of redress against assaults, ranging from kidnapping to torture, while those responsible were never held accountable. This led to the conclusion that Chechnya was being ruled without law, being run into further devastating destabilization.[98]
On March 10, 2011, Human Rights Watch reported that since Chechenization, the government has pushed for enforced Islamic dress code and other traditions which violently repress women.[99] The president Ramzan Kadyrov is quoted as saying "I have the right to criticize my wife. She doesn't. With us [in Chechen society], a wife is a housewife. A woman should know her place. A woman should give her love to us [men]... She would be [man's] property. And the man is the owner. Here, if a woman does not behave properly, her husband, father, and brother are responsible. According to our tradition, if a woman fools around, her family members kill her... That's how it happens, a brother kills his sister or a husband kills his wife... As a president, I cannot allow for them to kill. So, let women not wear shorts...".[100] He has also openly defended honour killings on several occasions.[101]
During the war, the Chechen economy fell apart. Gross domestic product, if reliably calculable, would be only a fraction of the prewar level.[citation needed] In 1994, the separatists planned to introduce a new currency, but that did not happen due to Russian troops re-taking Chechnya in the Second Chechen War.[citation needed] As an effect of the war, approximately 80% of the economic potential of Chechnya was destroyed.[citation needed]
The economic situation in Chechnya has improved considerably since 2000. According to the New York Times, major efforts to rebuild Grozny have been made, and improvements in the political situation have led some officials to consider setting up a tourism industry, though there are claims that construction workers are being irregularly paid and that poor people have been displaced.[102]
According to estimates, the number of Chechnya's unemployed will fall to 170,000 people by January 1, 2013, while the number in 2008 was 298,500.[103]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chechnya. |


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Surf and Turf Kebabs & American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA
Monday, May 13th marks the start of the 7th Annual American Craft Beer Week, and with that comes the release of our annual American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA. Brewed each year at the end of April, this draught-only offering combines the piquant spice of malted rye with the zesty citrus hop character of American-grown Cascade and Ahtanum hops. The result is a more full-bodied San Diego-style India Pale Ale with a depth of flavor that pairs especially well with spicier fare. And with grilling season already upon us, we figured we'd share our recipe for Tōgarashi Surf & Turf Kebabs to pair with our limited release American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA.
Tōgarashi seasoning is a staple condiment in Japanese cuisine that combines an array of savory and aromatic ingredients, ranging from dried orange peel to nori to Szechuan peppercorns. There are many different preparations but the key ingredients are listed in the DIY recipe below. Of course, if you're short on time, you can always pick-up pre-made tōgarashi at your local gourmet food store or Japanese grocer.
Tōgarashi Seasoning
2 tbsp. Szechuan Peppercorns
1 tbsp. Dried Orange or Tangerine Peel
1 tbsp. Shredded Nori
1 tbsp. Dried Red Chilies
1 tsp. White Sesame Seeds
1 tsp. Black Sesame Seeds
1 tsp. Poppy Seeds
1 tsp. Powdered Ginger
Step 1: Gently toast peppercorns and sesame seeds in a small sauce pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
Step 2: Using a clean coffee grinder or small food processor, grind peppercorns, citrus peel, nori, chili pepper, and sesame seeds until well-ground but not powdered.
Step 3: Combine ground spices with poppy seeds and ginger and store until ready to use.
Tōgarashi Surf & Turf Kebabs
1 lb Beef Tenderloin, cut into 1 ½' cubes
10-12 Large Sea Scallops
Pearl Onions
Sweet Peppers
Japanese Eggplant
Wooden Skewers, soaked in Red Trolley Ale
Steak Marinade
2 tbsp. Vegetable Oil
1 tbsp. Tōgarashi Seasoning
½ tsp. Sea Salt
Preparation: Combine oil, tōgarashi, salt, and steak in a small mixing bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to skewer and grill.
Tōgarashi Beer Butter
½ c. Butter, softened
2 tbsp. Red Trolley Ale, warm
1 tbsp. Tōgarashi Seasoning
Preparation: Using a small food processor or whisk, combine butter, Red Trolley Ale, and tōgarashi and blend until smooth. Do not refrigerate.
Grilling Instructions:
Steak Kebabs: Using your beer-soaked wooden skewers, build your steak kebabs alternating between meat and pearl onions. 1lb of tenderloin should yield about three full steak kebabs. Grill over hot coals until medium rare. Cooking times will vary depending on your grill.
Scallop Kebabs: Pat scallops dry and carefully skewer 5 or 6 per stick. Generously coat both sides in tōgarashi beer butter and grill over high heat for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes per side. Baste scallops in beer butter once after turning and once before removing from the grill.
Veggie Kebabs: Skewer Japanese eggplant, onions, and sweet peppers to your liking. They'll cook much faster than the steak and a little slower than the scallops, so it's best to keep them separate. Grill over high heat until peppers are lightly charred on both sides.
Beer Pairing: The combination of dried citrus peel and Szechuan peppercorns in the tōgarashi seasoning will really punctuate the citrus and floral hop flavors in an American IPA or Pale Ale, while the beer's hop bitterness is assertive enough to stand up to the complex spiciness. We suggest trying this recipe with either our American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA or Tower 10 IPA.
Beer Cheese Soup
If you're a Wisconsin native or a regular at San Diego's Hamilton's Tavern, odds are you're familiar with beer cheese soup. And while this awe-inspiring comfort food may throw a wrench in your quest to be the biggest loser, we think you'll agree that beer cheese soup is worth a few extra minutes on the treadmill. So, if you're looking to add another beer-centric recipe to your repertoire, celebrate this Super Bowl Sunday with Red Trolley Beer Cheese Soup.
Red Trolley Beer Cheese Soup
8 Strips Bacon
½ Cup Yellow Onion, chopped
½ Cup Celery, chopped
½ Cup Carrots, chopped
1 Jalapeno, seeded and minced
2 Cloves Fresh Garlic, minced
12oz Red Trolley Ale
1 ½ Cup Chicken Stock
1 Cup Half and Half
¼ Cup Flour
8 Ounces Sharp Cheddar, shredded
4 Ounces Extra Sharp Cheddar, shredded
Salt and Pepper to taste
Parsley, chopped
Fruitcake Donuts with Fruitcake Ale
Brewing a fruitcake ale as our 2012 holiday release was a crazy undertaking, so our sharing an off-the-wall recipe for fruitcake donuts shouldn't come as a surprise. When considering how to include Mouette á Trois in our "Cooking with KARL" series, our first thought was to use the beer in an actual fruitcake, but that felt too easy. Instead, we took a page from the Voodoo Doughnut playbook and created fruitcake donuts. So, if you're an adventurous type that wants to have fruitcake donuts with your fruitcake ale, try this holiday-inspired beer for breakfast recipe.
Fruitcake Donuts:
1 Cup Sugar
4 tsp Baking Powder
1 ½ tsp Salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Ground Nutmeg
¼ tsp Ground Cloves
½ tsp Orange Zest
¼ cup Dried Cherries, finely chopped
¼ cup Dried Apricots, finely chopped
2 eggs
½ tsp Vanilla Extract
1/3 Cup Unsalted Butter, melted
1 Cup Whole Milk
4 Cups All-purpose Flour
Vegetable Oil
Mouette á Trois Glaze:
½ Cup Unsalted Butter, melted
2 ½ Cups Powdered Sugar
¼ Cup Mouette á Trois, warm
Thanksgiving Beer Bacon Stuffing
What sounds better for Thanksgiving than beer bacon stuffing? It's not a tough question; if we didn't have you at beer, we definitely had you at bacon. So, rather than search the web for the latest vegan or paleo-friendly alternative to Thanksgiving's most important side, commit to diet-busting tradition and try this recipe for beer bacon stuffing. Remember, we all go back to the gym in January when exercise goes back in style. Heck, why not make a practice batch of beer seasoned bacon just for fun? Seriously, make a practice batch.
Beer Seasoned Bacon
What You'll Need:
½lb (6-7 Slices) Think-cut Applewood Smoked Bacon
1tbs Honey
2tbs Red Trolley Ale
Black Pepper
Basting Brush
Broiler Pan
What to do:
Position oven rack about 6" from heat source and preheat to broil. Separate uncooked bacon strips and place 6 or 7 across broiler pan. Combine honey and beer in a small mixing bowl and microwave for 15-20 seconds. Remove mixture from microwave, stir, and use basting brush to generously coat both sides of each bacon strip. Dust bacon with black pepper and cook on Broil for 8-10 minutes, turning every few minutes to avoid burning. Once bacon is crispy, remove from oven set aside to cool. After bacon has cooled, finely chop and reserve in a bowl for later use.
Beer Bacon Stuffing
What you'll need:
½lb Thick-cut Applewood Smoked Bacon, Chopped
1/4lb Salted Butter
2c Yellow Onion, Chopped
2c Celery, Chopped
2c Crimini Mushrooms, Chopped (Optional)
1c Leeks, Chopped
1tbs Fresh Sage, Minced
1tbs Fresh Thyme, Minced
*Pre-prepared Chopped Beer Seasoned Bacon
2c Chicken or Turkey Stock
1c Red Trolley Ale
12c Unseasoned White Bread Stuffing Mix
Salt to taste
5 Quart Oven-safe Sauté Pan or Stock Pot
What to do:
Preheat oven to 350. Add butter and chopped bacon to a large sauté pan or stock pot and cook over high heat until edges begin to brown. Add onions, celery, mushrooms, leeks, sage, thyme, and pepper and sauté for 5 minutes, or until onions are translucent. Reduce heat to medium, add beer seasoned bacon, and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes. Once beer seasoned bacon is incorporated, add beer and stock to the pot, and bring mixture back to a boil. Once you've reached a simmer, reduce heat to low and gradually add in stuffing mix. Once all ingredients are well incorporated, taste stuffing and add salt if needed. Cover pot and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove lid and continue baking for an addition 5 minutes. If you're successful, and you will be, the photo below is what you'll have on Thanksgiving.
Need help with your Turkey? Try our beer-brine recipe.
San Diego Beer Week Peanut Butter Cup Porter
When San Diego Beer Week kicked-off for the first time in 2009, we brewed a special release Imperial Pale Ale to commemorate what has become an annual celebration of San Diego's vibrant brewing community. The following year we made our SDBW special release an annual event with a small batch of SDBW Licorice Stout, and in 2011 we kept the tradition going with the release of our SDBW Double IPA. For this year's beer week release, we chose a more experimental recipe conceived by our very own brewer John Hunter. Inspired by curiosity, Halloween candy, and a borderline obsession with peanut butter and chocolate, John convinced Brewmaster Paul and the rest of the Karl Strauss team to brew this year's special release – SDBW Peanut Butter Cup Porter.
San Diego Beer Week Peanut Butter Cup Porter – An English-style Brown Porter brewed with organic peanut powder, cocoa nibs, and vanilla beans. The resulting brew is a beer's answer to the peanut butter cup – a medium-bodied porter with smooth layers of peanut butter and milk chocolate.
Stats: 5.6% ABV – 56 SRM – 30 IBU
FAQ: I have a peanut allergy, will this beer make me ill?
Answer: YES!
SDBW Peanut Butter Cup Porter Float
1 16oz Pint Glass
2 Large scoops Vanilla Ice Cream
8oz SDBW Peanut Butter Cup Porter
1 Peanut Butter Cup
If you've made a root beer float, this should be a no-brainer. Add two scoops of vanilla ice cream to an empty pint glass, pour chilled beer over the top, and garnish with a peanut butter cup. Growler fills of our SDBW Peanut Butter Cup Porter will be available 11/2 – 11/11 at each of our San Diego Brewery Restaurants. Mention San Diego Beer Week on Friday 11/2 or Friday 11/9 for an $8 ½ gallon fill.
Beer for Breakfast: Part IV
If you've ever donned lederhosen and headed off to your local Oktoberfest celebration, you know the importance of eating before knocking back liter-sized steins of beer. And while Oktoberfest offers many a beer fan the opportunity to rekindle their fondness for day-drinking, nobody wants to go in unprepared. So before you end up buying a pretzel necklace out of desperation, consider trying this pork-filled beer for breakfast recipe. Prost!
Oktoberfest Pork Benedict
Oktoberfest Pulled Pork
Don't stress, this part is easy and can be done overnight in the crock pot.
What you'll need:
1 6-7 Quart Crock Pot
2lb Pork Rump Roast
3 12oz bottles of Karl Strauss Oktoberfest. room temperature
4 Medium White Onion, peeled whole
4 Cloves Garlic, Crushed
8-10 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
What to do:
1. Rinse pork roast, pat dry, rub generously with salt and pepper, and place in the bottom of your crock pot.
2. Add onion, garlic, and thyme to the crock pot, surrounding the pork roast.
3. Carefully pour room temperature Oktoberfest into your crock pot.
4. Set the timer for 10hrs on low and walk away.
5. In the morning, remove your pork roast and pull meat.
6. Keep pulled pork warm in a covered dish.
Oktoberfest Bratwurst Gravy
Who needs hollandaise when you can have sausage gravy instead?
What you'll need:
1 lb Bratwurst, uncooked & uncased
1/4 cup White Onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup Karl Strauss Oktoberfest, room temp
4 tbs Butter
1/4 cup Flour
2 cups Whole Milk
What to do:
1. Brown uncased bratwurst and onion in a medium saucepan until nearly cooked through and crumbling.
2. Add Oktoberfest and simmer on low heat for 3 minutes. This will lend the flavor of a Wisconsin-style beer-braised bratwurst.
3. Add butter and return medium-high heat. Once butter has melted, stir in flour.
4. Slowly stir in milk, continuously stirring over medium-high heat until thick.
Other Ingredients:
If you've never poached an egg, here's a link to Alton Brown's method.
No need to bake biscuits from scratch, store-bought oven-bake buttermilk biscuits will work perfectly.
Pulling everything together:
Pull biscuits apart, top with a poached egg, Oktoberfest pulled porked, and bratwurst gravy. Fattening? You betcha!
Beer Battered Fish Tacos
Whether your first experience came on a trip to Ensenada or on a lunch run to Ralph Rubio's namesake eatery, few street foods define our region better than the fish taco. No, we're not talking about that fancy-pants smoked trout and goat cheese version served by your local pop-up gastro tent; we're referring to the beer-battered, fried goodness of the Baja-style fish taco. And while the jury is still out on who makes the very best, we think the recipe below is pretty darn good – especially since it calls for Karl Strauss Amber.
Oh, and if you haven't heard, Karl Strauss Amber has a new look. In honor of the 100th Anniversary of Karl's birth, we're celebrating the original "Godfather" of beer with new packaging. You can see the new label below.
Karl Strauss Beer Battered Fish Tacos
1lb firm white meat fish filets- Rockfish, White Seabass, Kelp Bass, Halibut, or even Tilapia will work. Cut filets lengthwise to a width of about 1.5".
1 12oz bottle Karl Strauss Amber
1 Medium Onion, sliced
2 Red Jalapeno Peppers, sliced
½ cup Fresh Cilantro, chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
Combine marinade ingredients and fish in a large, covered container or zip-lock bag, and refrigerate for 2-3hrs.
Baja Fish Taco Sauce:
½ cup Sour Cream
½ cup Light Mayonnaise
2 tbsp Fresh Lime Juice
2 tsp Sriracha Chili Sauce
While your fish is marinating, make your Baja sauce by mixing the ingredients above in a small bowl. Refrigerate sauce until ready to use.
Beer Batter:
1 cup McCormick's Tempura Mix
¾ cup Karl Strauss Amber, cold
1 tsp Chili Powder
½ tsp Black Pepper
McCormick's frying instruction adjusted to fit this recipe:
POUR vegetable oil into a large heavy skillet or saucepan, filling no more than 1/3 full. Heat oil to 375°F on medium heat.
STIR Batter mix, beer, and spices in medium bowl until mixed. Batter will be lumpy.
DIP Fish strips into batter. Shake off excess. Carefully add several pieces at a time to hot oil.
FRY 3-5 minutes or until golden brown, turning once. Drain on paper towels.
SERVE on corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, baja sauce, and fresh lime.
PAIR with Karl Strauss Amber, of course!
Windansea Shrimp Ceviche
In case you missed the memo, Windansea Wheat is now available in bottles year-round. That's right, six-packs and twelve-packs of our refreshingly smooth Bavarian-style Hefe hit store shelves just in time for summer. So, to celebrate the bottle release of our favorite warm weather wheat beer, we're sharing this fresh summertime ceviche recipe and pairing.
Traditional ceviche is a cold dish consisting of fresh fish, shrimp, or shellfish, cooked in citrus juice. Its origins are believed to date back to the Inca, but rather than compromise the brevity of this post with a culinary history lesson, we'll just say that ceviche has been around long enough to vary from region to region. In SoCal, ceviche is typically prepared Baja-style, using fresh caught shrimp, or rockfish and lime juice. The recipe below is based on the Baja-style, with a few ingredients added to match Windansea Wheat's bright fruity flavors.
Windansea Shrimp Ceviche
1.5 lbs fresh shrimp – peeled, deveined, and diced in ½" pieces
1.5 cups fresh-squeezed lime juice (8-10 limes)
8oz Windansea Wheat
5 large Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 medium red onion, diced
1 medium hothouse cucumber, diced
1 large mango, peeled and diced
1 cup watermelon, diced
1-2 red jalapenos, seeded and minced
2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
Sea salt to taste
Step 1: Combine fresh chopped shrimp and lime juice in a medium-sized bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 3 hours. The acidic lime juice will cook the shrimp, causing their color to change from blue/gray to pink.
Step 2: Remove lime marinated shrimp and drain off 2/3 of the lime juice. Add 8oz of Windansea Wheat, cover, and return to the refrigerator for an hour. Adding the beer will not only cut the acidity of the lime, but its sweet, fruity flavors will complement the watermelon and mango.
Step 3: Remove shrimp from refrigerator, drain off liquid, and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Add tomato, red onion, cucumber, mango, watermelon, jalapeno, and cilantro. Mix ingredients well, add salt to taste, and return to the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Step 4: Serve with tortilla chips and a Windansea Wheat.
Wreck Alley Imperial Stout Crème Brûlée
Beer-infused Crème Brûlée? Yes, well, it's more like crem-brew-lay, but you get the gist. What started out as an off-the-wall idea three years ago has since turned into one of our favorite desserts. Brewed with cocoa nibs and locally roasted Ethiopian coffee beans, Wreck Alley adds rich layers of dark chocolate and an espresso-like roast to this classic dessert.
Our Chefs Gunther and Corey, the masterminds behind this recipe, have earned a solid reputation with their drink beer/think food approach to cooking. Continually pushing the craft beer and culinary envelope with their innovative methods, these two were recently selected to share their expertise at this year's Craft Brewers Conference in San Diego.
If you're looking for something to pair with your after dinner Wreck Alley, give this recipe a try. Also, look for this and other great beer-centric recipes in an upcoming craft beer cookbook by Chef's Press, the publishers behind San Diego's Top Brewers.
Wreck Alley Crème Brûlée
2 cups Wreck Alley Imperial Stout
4 cups heavy cream
1 cup granulated sugar
12 egg yolks
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
6 shallow, oven-proof ramekins
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Place stout in pan, bring to a slow boil and reduce to a ¼ cup. Place cream in a non reactive pan. Split vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the cream. The pod can be used as an additional flavor enhancer by adding it to the cream while heating, remove and discard before whisking. Heat cream and vanilla slowly until steaming. When cream starts to steam remove from heat. Do not boil the cream. While the cream heats through, whisk together egg yolks and sugar with wire whisk until pale in color and sugar is dissolved, about 1 to 2 minutes. Pour about ½ cup of the hot cream into the egg yolk mixture whisking quickly to temper the mixture. In a slow stream, add the remaining hot cream to the egg mixture while continuing to mix with the whisk. Add the reduced stout to the brûlée mixture and mix well. Divide the mixture evenly into six ramekins, placed in a deep baking dish. Fill the baking pan with hot water about half way up the sides of the ramekins and place in a pre-heated oven to cook for 40 minutes or until just set. Check for doneness by gently shaking the ramekins; the brûlée is finished baking when the edges are set/firm but the middle still jiggles a little. Place the ramekins in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours to cool before serving.
Sprinkle the top of each brûlée with a thin layer of granulated sugar. With a kitchen propane torch (available at most household supply retailers) point the flame onto the sugar and heat until it begins to melt and is deep golden brown color.
Use the broiler setting of your oven to brown the sugar by placing the brûlée about an inch away under the broiler flame/heat source for 20 to 30 seconds. Check frequently to ensure even browning.
For an additional twist on this classic, add your favorite fruit like strawberries, raspberries or banana slices to brûlée. Gently insert fruit pieces by pressing them into the cold brûlée and follow the same finishing instructios above.
Windansea Wheat Vinaigrette
The Holidays are over and, like most years, overindulgence may have played a part in your annual waistline expansion. Now, we're not card-carrying dietitians but we do know that there's still room for beer in any healthy diet – it's purely a matter of prioritizing. Rather than sip on soda water with your cheese fries, why not make room for a beer by having a salad? Even better, why not use beer to make a flavorful dressing with all natural ingredients? Try this recipe for Windansea Wheat Raspberry Vinaigrette and think twice before giving up beer. Remember, nobody likes a quitter.
Windansea Wheat Raspberry Vinaigrette:
1/4 Cup Windansea Wheat
1/4 Cup Honey
1 Cup Fresh Raspberries
1 Tbs Italian Seasoning
2/3 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
Directions: Combine raspberries, honey and Windansea Wheat in a blender and blend until emulsified. You want this mixture to be a little on the sweet side, as the vinegar will balance it. Next, add seasoning, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil and blend on high. Congrats, you're done!
Salad Featured Below:
Organic Spring Mix
Persian Cucumbers
Cherry Tomatoes
Fresh Raspberries
Red Pear
Goat Cheese
Candied Walnuts
The Pairing: Windansea Wheat is an unfiltered Bavarian-style Hefeweizen with a slightly sweet and fruity flavor profile. The beer's fruity flavors are a natural compliment to the raspberry and pear, while its subtle sweetness is a nice contrast to the tangy goat cheese. Also, it doesn't hurt that the yeast in suspension is rich in complex B vitamins.
Two Tortugas Spiced Bread Pudding
To the uninitiated, bread has no business meddling with pudding. They both have their places and the thought of a tapioca sandwich is about as appetizing as pouring barleywine on your fruit loops. However, once you've tried the real thing, you won't care what it's called. Truth be told, there's no better way to make use of stale bread, unless of course you're one for feeding the birds.
There are many different recipes for bread pudding, using different breads, fruits, nuts, and spices but this recipe truly captures the flavors of the Holidays. If you're looking for the perfect dessert pairing to enjoy along-side a glass of Two Tortugas Belgian Quad, give this a try. If you're a bread pudding aficionado, check out this recipe by our Chefs Gunther & Corey in December's West Coaster Magazine.
Two Tortugas Spiced Bread Pudding
1 16oz Loaf Challah Egg Bread
3 Cups Straus Family Organic Whole Milk
2 Cups White Baking Sugar
1/2 Cup Light Brown Sugar
8 Large Eggs
1 Tbs Pure Vanilla Extract
1 Tbs Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp Nutmeg
1/2 Tsp Powdered Ginger
1/4 Tsp Ground Cloves
1/4 Tsp Cayenne
1/2 Cup Dried Cherries
1/2 Cup Dried Black Currants
1/2 Cup Raisins
10 oz Two Tortugas Belgian Quad- for cooking
12 oz Two Tortugas Belgian Quad – for drinking
Day/Night Before: Place cubed bread in a large mixing bowl and leave out to stale overnight. In a medium-sized mixing bowl soak dried raisins, currants, and cherries in 10 ounces of Two Tortugas, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Pour the remaining 12oz of Two Torugas into a glass, sit down, put your feet up, and enjoy.
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease a 13″ x 9″ x 2" baking dish, and strain excess beer from beer-soaked fruit.
Step 2: Whisk milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and spices until well blended. Pour liquid over cubed bread, add beer-soaked fruit, gently mix by hand until well combined, and let rest for 25 minutes.
Step 3: Pour mixture into 13″ x 9″ x 2′ baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown.
Step 4: Remove from oven and allow to cool. Serve with fresh whipped cream and candied walnuts or frost with vanilla butter cream.
Turkey Beer Brine Recipe
If you've ever made a Clark Griswold-style turkey, perhaps it's time to give brining a try. A good beer brine will add flavor like a marinade, while sealing in the turkey's natural juices. The chemistry behind brining is simple, but we'll leave the osmosis and denatured protein talk for next time. All we need to know is that a beer-brined turkey is more flavorful and tender than a non beer-brined turkey. We've found the recipe below works particularly well with Off The Rails , Red Trolley Ale, or Fullsuit Belgian Brown . If cooking isn't in the cards, we're serving a full Thanksgiving dinner at our Carlsbad Brewery Restaurant.
Turkey Beer Brine:
8 Cups Beer (1 64oz growler)
8 Cups Water
1 Cup Kosher Salt
¾ Cup Brown Sugar
½ Cup Honey
2 Bay Leaves
3 Cloves Garlic (Smashed)
1 Large Yellow Onion (Sliced)
1 Tbs Black Peppercorns
1 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/2 Tsp Clove
2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
1/2 Stick Cinnamon
Directions: Bring water to a boil and remove from heat. Add salt, sugar, honey, garlic, onion, and spices. Stir until salt, sugar, and honey are dissolved and cool to room temperature. This should take around 30 minutes and will allow the spices to lend their flavors to the brine. Once your brine has cooled, add beer and refrigerate until cold. Once your brine is cold, submerge your turkey and return to the refrigerator for 12hrs. This will yield 1 gallon of brine; scale the recipe up or down to accommodate the size of your turkey.
Tips: Be sure to THOROUGHLY RINSE your turkey in cold water after removing it from the brine to wash away excess salt. If you're brining an extra large turkey, a plastic cooler makes a fine brining container.
Beer for Breakfast: Part III
Rather than dazzle you with fun facts about Prince Ludwig of Bavaria, Gabriel Sedlmayr, or the origins of Märzenbier, we'll leave the historical relevance of Oktoberfest to Wikipedia. What began as a Royal Bavarian marital celebration in 1810 has since evolved into the world's largest celebration of beer drinking. So, before you strap on your lederhosen and head off to your local Oktoberfest biergarten for an afternoon of responsible consumption, consider priming your tank with a solid breakfast.
Below are a few breakfast options that will keep you going until you buy a pretzel necklace from a stranger. If you're in the mood for something else, check out our previous Beer for Breakfast posts. And if you wake up on Sunday and don't feel like cooking, we do a Beer Brunch at Brewery Gardens.
Oktoberfest Bacon & Potato Fritters
1 lb Potatoes, skinned & shredded
1 Small Yellow Onion, grated
½ Cup Karl Strauss Oktoberfest
2 Eggs, lightly beaten
½ Cup Pre-fried Black Forest Bacon (Finely Chopped)
½ Cup All Purpose Flour
1 Tbs Baking Powder
½ Tsp Salt
½ Tsp Pepper
Reserved Bacon Fat or Vegetable Oil (for frying)
Step 1: Using a box grater, grate potatoes and onions and combine in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add Oktoberfest, mix together, and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Step 2: Remove potato mixture from the refrigerator and drain off excess liquid. Transfer to a towel or cheese cloth, form a pouch, and ring out as much liquid as possible.
Step 3: In a large mixing bowl, combine potato-onion mixture, eggs, bacon, flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper. Mix until you've achieved a consistency that's somewhere between a batter and a dough.
Step 4: Form mixture into small patties that fit in the palm of your hand. Reserve on a cookie sheet until you're ready to begin frying.
Step 5: Heat bacon fat or vegetable oil in large skillet on medium-high heat until hot. Fry 3-4 fritters at a time for 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel and serve hot.
Oktoberfest Braised Bratwurst
4 German-style Bratwursts, uncooked
2 12oz Karl Strauss Oktoberfests
1 Medium Yellow Onion (sliced)
2 Springs Fresh Thyme
1 Bay Leaf
1 Garlic Clove, (Crushed)
1 Tbs Butter
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Pepper
Step 1: In a large saucepan, combine sliced onions, thyme, bay leaf, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add brats, beer, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes.
Step 2: Remove brats and set aside for the grill. Remove thyme sprigs, garlic clove, and bay leaf from the braising liquid and discard.
Step 3: Strain onions from braising liquid and place in a small saute pan with 1 tbs butter. Season with salt and pepper and saute over medium-high heat until golden brown.
Step 3: Finish your brats on the BBQ or George Foreman grill, just long enough to give them nice grill marks. Top with beer onions and serve with German mustard.
Karl Strauss Oktoberfest 5.0% ABV – A traditional German Oktoberfest Lager brewed in honor of the world's largest beer festival. Vienna, Munich and Carahell malts provide crisp toasted malt flavors, while Bavarian Hallertau hops lend a delicate noble hop character.
Special Brownies from Oregon
Remember that one time in college when you split a brownie with your roommate and then ate an entire box of cereal? These aren't those brownies but that's not to say they're not special. Until two weeks ago, I had never heard of a hop brownie. In fact, the thought of cooking, let alone baking, with hops left a bitter taste in my mouth. That all changed the day I visited the Goschie Hop Farm in Oregon and experienced Gayle Goschie's special hop brownies. The interplay between hop character and chocolate was assertive yet delicately balanced – I was a fan.
Back in San Diego, I couldn't help but wonder how well a hop brownie would pair with Boardwalk Black Rye. I decided to find out– and after several failed attempts in the unofficial Karl Strauss R&D kitchen (my house), I struck gold. In hindsight, I should have asked Gayle for her recipe but I think we can all agree that experimenting is fun.
Cascade Hop Brownies:
Preparing hop butter/oil:
¾ Cup Vegetable Oil or Melted Butter
1/2 tablespoon ground Cascade hop pellets
* Use a food processor or clean coffee grinder to grind hop pellets
Heat butter or oil in small saucepan over low heat until warm (too hot and you'll extract too much bitterness from your hops). Remove from heat and stir in ground hops. Let stand for 5 minutes and strain through a coffee filter. Yields a little over ½ a cup of green hop infused oil/butter.
Method #1: From the Box
Step #1: Go to the grocery store and purchase a box of Ghirardelli Ultimate Fudge Brownie Mix.
Step #2: Substitute 1/3 cup veggie oil with 1/3 cup of hop infused oil.
Step #3: Follow the instructions on the box.
Method #2: From Scratch
1/2 Cup hop infused vegetable oil or butter
1 Cup Sugar
2 Large eggs
1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 Cup All Purpose Flour
1/3 Cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 Cup semisweet chocolate chips
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
* Vanilla Bean Frosting (recipe below)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8×8 nonstick metal baking pan.
2. In a small bowl, combine dry ingredients and sift together. Set aside. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk hop-infused oil, sugar and vanilla extract. Next, add the egg and beat in well.
3. Gradually mix in dry ingredients until batter is well blended. Fold in chocolate chips before spreading evenly in your 8×8″ baking pan.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, rotating the pan in the oven half way through the cooking time for even baking. The brownies are done when a stick inserted into the center has a few moist crumbs but no batter.
Vanilla Bean Frosting
1/2 Cup butter (softened)
2 Cups powdered sugar ( sifted)
1 Vanilla bean (seeded)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Using a paring knife, scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean. Add butter, sugar and 1/2 vanilla bean to a mixing bowl. Gently whisk until well blended. Whisk vigorously for 3 minutes, until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and continue to whisk for 1 minute.
Beer for Breakfast: Part II
If you're over 21, hopefully you're aware that arts and crafts are no longer appropriate gifts for Dad. While he may not admit it in front of Mom, Dad probably wants to do Dad things on Father's Day – and while we won't delve too deeply into "Dad things", rest assured that beer and breakfast are a great start. If you're in the market for a few good options you've clicked on the right link and if Dad needs some beer, our Brewery Restaurants are celebrating Father's Day with 64oz growlers to-go for $8 bucks – including the glass.
Below is a DIY recipe for our beer-brined pork chops, along with a hearty side, and a morning cocktail. If you're in the mood for more variety, check out our previous Beer for Breakfast post. If you're too lazy to cook, you can always take the old man to our Sunday Brunch at Brewery Gardens.
Breakfast Cocktail: The Berlini
Based on the Bellini, a sparking wine cocktail, the Berlini combines our Berliner Weisse with fresh fruit puree. There's a reason Napoleon called Berliner Weisse the Champagne of Germany but this isn't a history lesson and we're not going into that.
11 oz Berliner Weisse
1 oz Fresh Strawberry, Raspberry, Peach Puree
Add puree to the bottom of a stemmed glass and pour beer.
Beer-Brined Pork Chops
2 Cups Red Trolley Ale
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Honey
1/4 Cup Kosher Salt
2 (8-ounce) Center-cut Pork Chops
Step 1. Brine the pork chops: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, honey, salt,and Red Trolley Ale. Mix until sugar and salt are dissolved. Add the pork chops, submerging them completely, and refrigerate for 4-6 hours. Turn the chops ever couple of hours.
Step 2. Grill pork chops: Removed chops from brine, rinse with water, and pat dry with a paper towel. Grill chops on hot grill for 12 minutes, rotating a quarter turn on each side after three minutes.
Beer Bacon Hash
2 Large Russet Potatoes (pre-baked & chopped)
1/2 Cup Yellow Onion (Finely Chopped)
6 Strips Thick-cut Bacon
1/4 Cup Honey
1/2 Cup Red Trolley Ale
2 Tbs Italian Seasoning
Prep 1. Chop uncooked bacon into 1″ pieces. Combine bacon, honey, and Red Trolley in small mixing bowl and refrigerate for 4-6 hours.
Prep 2. Scrub potatoes, bake on 375 for 1 hour, cool to room temperature, and chop into cubes.
Cooking Step 1: Drain bacon, pat-dry, and add to hot skillet. Cook bacon until edges turn golden brown and drain 1/2 the grease from the pan.
Cooking Step 2: Add chopped onion and Italian seasoning and saute until onions are translucent. Add chopped potatoes and cook on med/high heat until potatoes are golden brown. Serve with Beer-brined chops, eggs, and a Whistler Imperial Pils.
Pintail Pale Ale 5.3% ABV – An American Pale Ale brewed with Cascade and Amarillo hops for a vibrant floral aroma and citrus hoppiness. Caramel malts provide balance, rounding out its dry refreshing finish.
Whistler Imperial Pils 7.5% ABV – A bold Imperial Pilsner brewed with floor-malted Moravian barley and Noble Saaz hops for toasted malt flavors and a dry grassy finish.
Berliner Weisse 3.4 % ABV – A refreshingly tart take on a classic German style. Our version undergoes a special lactic fermentation in the brew kettle that produces its trademark tartness.
Scott's Big India Pale Lager 8.0 % ABV – The winner of our American Homebrewers Association Pro-Am Competition, this hoppy offering will be on tap starting June 10th until it's gone.
Whistler Imperial Pils & Shrimp Street Tacos
Shrimp Street Tacos: Crispy shrimp, shredded lettuce, Asian and cactus pear, cotija, radish, cilantro, corn tortillas, and smoky tomatillo salsa.
The Pairing:This fresh and flavorful appetizer pairing is a tasty way to welcome summer. Whistler's rich toasted malt flavors provide a crisp complement to the tender shrimp and corn tortilla, while its clean hop profile and dry finish temper the spicy tomatillo salsa between bites.
American Craft Beer Week: Rye Not?
Just when every week was starting to feel like craft beer week, the Brewers Association went and made it official. We kicked-off this year's ACBW with a beer we brewed especially for the occasion. Our ACBW Rye IPA is a robust India Pale ale with spicy rye malt flavors, a vibrant floral aroma, and a clean citrus hop bitterness. It's currently on tap in our Brewery Restaurants and in honor of ACBW, 64oz growlers to-go are $9 bucks – including the glass.
Below is a recipe I came up with, ironically on Meatless Monday, which highlights multiple layers of this hoppy special release. I've got no beef with the herbivores; this was purely by chance, so be on the lookout for a Meatless Monday installment next month. Ya dig?
Spicy Rye IPA Skirt Steak
1 Growler of American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA
1 lb Skirt Steak
1 Meyer Lemon
1/2 Cup White Onion (sliced)
2 Garlic Cloves (minced)
1 Jalapeno Pepper (coarsely chopped)
1/3 Cup Fresh Cilantro (bruised)
¼ Cup Clover Honey
1 Tbs Kosher Salt
1 Tbs Course Ground Black Pepper
Step 1: Pour one 16oz pint of Rye IPA into a glass mixing bowl and reserve the rest for drinking.
Step 2: Halve lemon, squeeze juice into beer, and add both halves to the bowl. Add salt and honey and whisk until dissolved. Add remaining ingredients and transfer to a 5 gallon freezer bag.
Step 3: Add steak, seal bag, and refrigerate for 3-4 hours.
Step 4: Cook steak in a grill pan on high heat for 3 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and let rest for an additional 3-5 minutes.
Fire-Roasted Habanero Aioli
4 Vine-Ripened Tomatoes
1 Medium White Onion
3 Garlic Cloves
2 Habanero Peppers
1 Tbs Powdered Chicken Bouillon
¼ Cup ACBW Rye IPA
¼ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Cup Mayonnaise
Step 1: Adjust oven rack to top position (about 6 inches below flame) and preheat to broil.
Step 2: Peel and quarter onion, quarter tomatoes, peel garlic, and remove stems from habaneros.
Step 3: Place above ingredients in a baking dish and broil for 15-20 minutes or until skins begin to char.
Step 4: Transfer cooked ingredients to a blender or food processor and emulsify. Slowly add in beer, olive oil, and bouillon.
Step 5: Allow emulsion to cool to room temperature before mixing in mayonnaise.
*Tip: Omit mayonnaise for a killer hot sauce.
Pintail Pale Ale 5.3% ABV – An American Pale Ale brewed with Cascade and Amarillo hops for a vibrant floral aroma and citrus hoppiness. Caramel malts provide balance, rounding out its dry refreshing finish.
American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA 7.6% ABV –Our American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA is a celebration of craft beer culture in America. This robust India Pale Ale combines the zesty spice of malted rye with the citrus and floral hop character of American Ahtanum hops. Finishing crisp and dry, it's the perfect way to celebrate ACBW on the West Coast.
Minden Maibock 7.5 % ABV – A traditional German springtime lager with crisp toasted malt flavors, balanced by the soft bitterness of noble Tettnanger hops.
American Craft Beer Week Rye IPA & Crispy Cheese Stack
Crispy Cheese Stack: Rye breadcrumb-crusted sharp cheddar and provolone sticks, crispy pastrami bacon, and jalapeno honey.
The Pairing: This dynamic and flavorful appetizer pairing puts tired cheese sticks to bed. Spicy rye flavors in the beer provide a delicate complement top the savory melted cheese and crispy breadcrumb crust, while its assertive hop flavors balance the richness and jalapeno spice between bites.
Blackball Belgian IPA Mussels
Every so often a small but dedicated group of our employees gather to talk beer and food. The group includes our Executive and R&D Chefs, our Brewmaster, and a few other foodies lucky enough to make the guest list. During these discussions we chat about great beers we've tried, restaurants we've visited, and even dishes we've prepared at home. By taking ourselves out of "work" mode, we're able to get great work done. Our Chefs Gunther and Corey use these gatherings as an opportunity to prepare and share their latest beer and food pairings. Over the years these guys have done some truly remarkable things with beer in the kitchen – and this month's post is a homage to their passion for beer and food. Below is a recipe inspired by their Belgian IPA Mussels, created especially for April's menu. This version uses ingredients available at local farmers markets, including the Carlsbad Aquafarm mussels we use in our brewery restaurants. I picked up the mussels, produce, and bread at Sunday's Hillcrest Farmers Market.
Ingredients: Prep Time – 25 Minutes
2 lbs Carlsbad Black Mussels (cleaned and de-bearded)
6 Slices Bacon Chopped (pre-cook and pat dry before chopping)
½ Cup Finely Chopped Yellow Onion
½ Cup Finely Chopped Fennel
1 Shallot Finely Chopped
3 Garlic Cloves Crushed
4 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
2 Tbs Clover Honey
2 Tbs Butter
½ Cup Heavy Cream
1 ½ Cup Blackball Belgian IPA (room temperature)
Salt & Pepper (to taste)
French Bread
Step 1: Scrub mussels with a coarse brush under cold running water. Remove any beards and discard any mussels that are broken or open. Reserve cleaned mussels in a large bowl of ice water until ready to steam.
Step 2: Melt butter in large saucepan. Add bacon, fennel, onions, shallots, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Sauté on medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes or until onions are translucent.
Step 3: Add Blackball Belgian IPA and bring to a boil. Add mussels, cover, and steam until mussels have opened (4-5 Minutes). Remove from heat and discard any mussels that have not opened.
Step 4: Transfer mussels to serving dish, reserving the broth in the saucepan. Return broth to medium heat and stir in honey and cream. Ladle broth over mussels and serve with grilled French bread.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
WPF Sample in IronRuby talking via C# to Wesabe July 23, '07 Comments [12] Posted in eFinance | Programming | Ruby | Web Services | XML | XmlSerializer Sponsored By John Lam and team have released their first drop the IronRubySource code. It's super-pre-alpha so don't hate, but it's looking pretty sweet, if you're a burgeoning Ruby-head like myself. There's incomplete support for some of the cooler Ruby syntax things, but I have full confidence that it's only going to get better. All the underpinnings are there. John also announce that the team will host IronRuby source on Rubyforge (which is quite the coup, actually) and that they'll be taking external contributions very soon (this being the open part of open source.) Not every sample (initially) will look and feel and smell good like Ruby, and this one is no exception. You might remember that last week I did a quicky Wesabe client in C# and put it up on Google Code. We've got four folks up there improving the code, which is cool. Today, Shady the intern and I decided to do a sample in IronRuby that would call the C# Wesabe client API and display some account data via WPF. This is part of my new plan to take over Money and Quicken's business and you can tell from the hours of intense UI design that Shady and I did, that my plan is inevitable. We started from ScottGu's HelloWorld sample, and slogged creatively coded our way forward. Here's how it went. First, get the IronRuby source and upzip. Open on Visual Studio 2005 command prompt and compile the DLR and IronRuby by running build.cmd. All the interesting stuff will show up in bin/release, including the IronRuby equivalent of IRB, the interactive Ruby Interpreter. You can run this from the command line and try things out interactively if you like. We used Notepad2 with Ruby Support for our editor, although I'm deeply digging "e" the TextMate for Windows and will likely move over to it for my text editor of choice when I start at Microsoft in September. Next, we tried to add a require statement to bring in the Wesabe library. You run a IronRuby app (today, in this build) by running rbx.exe YourApp.rb. We put our .rb text file in one folder and had rbx.exe in another, so when we added our wesabelib.dll we had to add it to the same folder that rbx.exe was in, otherwise the Assembly load would fail. You can also put things in the GAC and get to them there. Just remember that Fusion will load from the same folder rbx.exe is in, not the folder that your program is in. For debugging, we used the classic "got here" debugging of old, via the standard MessageBox, so we added a requre for Windows Forms also and a constant as a alias for the MessageBox class:require 'System.Windows.Forms, Version=18.104.22.168, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b77a5c561934e089' require 'wesabelib, Version=220.127.116.11' MessageBox = System::Windows::Forms::MessageBox As this build is a pre-Alpha, likely created in the dark of the night just hours ago, there's all sorts of weirdness and stuff that didn't "just work." The naming integration with .NET is persnickety at best. The C# Wesabe client had a lowercase class called "wesaberest" that IronRuby just couldn't see, so I changed it to uppercase and aliased it with a constant.#this build of IronRuby doesn't like Class Names that are lowercase, # so I made mine Uppercase Wesabe = Wesaberest As I said, The Wesabe client API that we created is written in C#, and returns a array of Account objects. In the click event of a button, we pass in the username and password from our TextBox and PasswordBox respectively and store our Account object. Our goal is to spin through the list of Account objects in the Array, but there's a few gotchas, again because of the pre-alphaness. First, we can't use for because in Ruby for is a sugar syntax on top of "each" that assumes an each method exists. Each isn't implemented yet, but the plan is to have for syntax just work over IEnumerable things. Second, we can't index into arrays because the [] operator isn't implemented yet, but we can call GetValue(), which is the same thing.#in the future we'll be able to index into CLR arrays... #oneAccount = myAccounts[i] oneAccount = myAccounts.GetValue(i) Thirdly, in IronRuby there's FixNum, which is a DLR extension of Integer and there's MutableStrings, that have private StringBuilder. A lot of this will be hidden in the future, but in this build I had to be aware of some of the impedance mismatches as I tried to coerce my numbers into strings for output. For example, none of these worked, but I expect they will one day. Lastly, currentBalance is a float (System.Single) and IronRuby wouldn't respect it's ToString method, so I changed the value to a System.Double and all was fine. Here's some failed attempts at String Concatenation. Notice the "secret" call to to_clr_string. Those should all go away and the Ruby types should marshal cleanly in most cases. Note that I'm assuming a lot, and in some cases basing these assumptions on my chats with John, but also as educated guesses as to how it ought to work.#Ruby string concatenation works fine... my_message.content = "scott" + " hanselman" #Attempt0 my_message.content = oneAccount.name + oneAccount.currentBalance.to_string("C").to_clr_string #Attempt1 my_message.content = oneAccount.name + "$" + oneAccount.currentBalance.to_s.to_clr_string #Attempt2 my_message.content = System::String.Concat("$" + oneAccount.currentBalance.to_s.to_clr_string) #Attempt3 #There's a name conflict when trying to use the StringBuilder: # System.MemberAccessException: uninitialized constant ScriptModule::Text s = System::Text::StringBuilder.new s.Append(oneAccount.name) s.Append("$") s.Append(oneAccount.currentBalance.to_s.to_clr_string) my_message.content = s.to_string At this point, I just added a new property called "DisplayString" in the Wesabe Account class and moved on. As for the loop we used a while. It's not clean, but it's clean enough:my_button.click do |sender, args| a = Wesabe.getAccounts(text_user.text,text_password.password) myAccounts = a.Items i = 0 accounts_listbox.items.clear while (i < a.Items.Length) oneAccount = myAccounts.GetValue(i) #GetValue is on System.Array i+=1 #needed for the while # Create new label my_message = Label.new my_message.font_size = 36 my_message.content = oneAccount.DisplayString #Add the Label to the ListBox accounts_listbox.items.add(my_message) end end There's a couple of ways to make this even more clean, and those ways will come. I'll update this sample as the new features roll into IronRuby. I think it'd be nice to add some charts and graphs, make the whole thing a ClickOnce app, etc. Probably, for now, it'll be easier in C#, but it was fun to hack it together in today's drop of IronRuby and the interns learned something. You can get my source for this Ruby App, along with a custom build of the Wesabe client (with my changes) here. Remember to get the IronRuby source, compile it, then copy the Wesabe client to the bin\release folder (or move the .rb files into there along with the Wesabe dll). I've left all the comments in the source for fun. Download Wesabe IronRuby WPF Client Sample Technorati Tags: Ruby, WPF, Sample, Wesabe, IronRuby About Scott Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author. About Newsletter Sponsored By Hosting By
Wesabe makes Financial Data available programmatically July 13, '07 Comments [20] Posted in eFinance | Programming Sponsored By Wesabe has just done what I've been trying to convince banks to do for years. They're making financial data available via a simple POX (Plain Old XML) API. A year ago I did a POX API for Corillian products that Patrick and I presented at TechEd 2006, but it only for whatever single financial institutions chose to install it. How does Wesabe do it? Your bank probably uses a funky SGML format (that I've talked about before; I was the OFX Vendor Committee Chair for a bit) called OFX that is not only obscure, but difficult and no fun. Microsoft Money and Quicken, as well as some others, download OFX from your bank into their local storage. Unfortunately, neither Money nor Quicken makes the downloaded data available programmatically, which is one of the reasons I've stopped using both of them them. You can upload your transaction details to Wesabe on your own, but you can also install their Account Uploader. It's Wesabe's small OFX Client of their own that runs in the background on your computer. It downloads OFX and uploads to their servers. Then they make the aggregated data available (as of today) via a POX (they say REST) XML API. Kind of like the quickie diagram at right (Thanks Paint.NET!) So, over lunch I did a quick C# library (with my two high-school interns, Eric and Shady) to access their API. It's up here at Google Code if you want start expanding it. If anyone wants to take over, be a member, whatever, put your Google Code username in the comments and I'll add you. What I added just does the account download and is separated into a lib and a command line client. I did add a couple of things like a check to make sure that when you talk to them via SSL that you are actually talking to them and not a man in the middle:public class wesabe_rest { static wesabe_rest() { ServicePointManager.ServerCertificateValidationCallback = ValidateServerCertificate; } // The following method is invoked by the RemoteCertificateValidationDelegate. public static bool ValidateServerCertificate( object sender, X509Certificate certificate, X509Chain chain, SslPolicyErrors sslPolicyErrors) { if (sslPolicyErrors == SslPolicyErrors.None && certificate.Subject == @"CN=www.wesabe.com, OU=Thawte SSL123 certificate, OU=Go to https://www.thawte.com/repository/index.html, OU=Domain Validated, O=www.wesabe.com") return true; Console.WriteLine("Certificate error: {0}", sslPolicyErrors); // Do not allow this client to communicate with unauthenticated servers. return false; } I also did the XML work via XmlSerializer, because I'm still a fan. The Wesabe guys didn't include a schema, but I suggested it strongly. You can too over in the Wesabe API Developer's Group (Free Wesabe login needed, with no obligation to upload anything financial). For those of you who commented on my post on Quicken and Money, I noticed that a lot of you use Excel and other tools to get at your data. The Wesabe API will let you get transaction data in 5 formats, one of which being XLS. For example: This resource is also available in OFX, OFX2, QIF, CSV, and XLS formats:GET /accounts/show/<account id>.ofx GET /accounts/show/<account id>.ofx2 GET /accounts/show/<account id>.qif GET /accounts/show/<account id>.csv GET /accounts/show/<account id>.xls By changing the extension you get a different file. Apparently all this Wesabeness works in 30 countries, so it's not specific to US Dollars or US institutions. It's early, sure, but it's a slick idea and it can potentially help you unlock your financial lock and allow you do any number of cool things with it. One of the things that has impressed me so far with Wesabe is their openness to feedback. You can even call their CEO directly. He's got phone hours and a number published on their site and you can call and talk to him personally, seven days a week. That's so cool. I like it when people dig their jobs. Technorati Tags: Wesabe, Banking, REST, OFX, Finance, API About Scott Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author. About Newsletter Sponsored By Hosting By
Why I don't use Intuit's Quicken or Microsoft Money July 3, '07 Comments [61] Posted in eFinance Sponsored By I've been banking online as long as I've been online. I've always avoided checks, preferring to do as much as I can electronically. I used QuickBooks under DOS, and ComputerServe Finance under OS/2. Even though I took "Home Economics" in school - we were all required to learn how to balance a checkbook - it never made sense to me why I should have to reconcile how much I THINK I have with how much the Bank knows I have. I used QuickBooks, then OFX (Open Financial eXchange - arguably the first public "Web Service," even though it's SGML and bailing-wire - and moved forward as new, better personal finance managers (PFM) came out. I diligently have exported and imported, massaged and cajoled over 20 years (yes, twenty) of financial data from my first sole-proprietorship at 15 until today moving accounts and account data from bank to bank and from PFM to PFM. To this day, I'm convinced that Microsoft Money 95 was brilliant, wonderful and before its time. It had a forward/backward browser like metaphor and was unapologetic about it. It wasn't trying to be like the MDI (Multiple Document Interface) "peer applications" of time. It focused on one thing and one thing only - to be a local register for all your money. Then came the fancy stuff, and the advertising and upselling. I upgraded like clockwork. Oh! A new version of money! It must be 365 days better! I paid my $49.95, then got the Deluxe the next year for $79.95, then the super Deluxe Business Edition. It got slower and slower. Remember I've got Money files with data going back decades, plural. I tried culling the data, to include just the last 10, then 5, then 2 years. Still slow. Painting slow. Accounts open and closed, banks changed account numbers, banks changed OFX servers, things broke. I got downloaded transaction data like "JITB#45,21312323423,$%@#$@ - $4.95" and wondered why my bank was swearing at me, rather than telling me I spent $4.95 at Jack In the Box on the corner of Walker and Jenkins then plotting it on a map. Of course, this isn't all Money's fault, it's the banks, it's the data consortiums like OFX and IFX (disclosure, I was the OFX Vendor Committee Chairman for 2 years and I suck too. I could have done a LOT more.) and it's the back end systems. Data's not pretty, and Money and Quicken are forced to create local rules to parse out the data they get from bank and the bill payment clearing house and built lists of rules of regular expressions to convert JITB#45 into "Jack In The Box." Plus, if you don't log into your Money or Quicken for a few months, just try catching up and reconciling, especially if your bank only holds 90 days or less of account history. I switched this year from Money 2006 to Quicken. Sadly, it's even worse. It paints unspeakably slowly, and in the 5 months I've been using it, it's updated itself at least three times, presumably in order to play well with Vista. Regardless, it's the same old story. Chasing data feeds in order to get my small mind around my smaller money. Even more, these OFX feeds that bring this data into Microsoft Money and Quicken may starting costing extra. So, I stopped. I log into my bank's websites directly. I use their online tools, and they continue to get better, adding Ajaxy goodness, some powered by Corillian/CheckFree (my employer). (By the way that's not a screenshot of my account...whoever that is did a lousy blurring job.) I never thought I'd say it and I know Chris "Mr. Desktop App" Sells will disagree vehemently, but if I can get an application online, I'm more likely to use it, and use it often. Sure, a lot, if not all, of the cool features of a site like Wesabe could be had via a connected local desktop application, but then there's all the updating and what not. Maybe there's a space in the world for a Personal Finance Manager - a MoneyKiller or QuickenKiller - written in Adobe Apollo, Flash or Silverlight. Maybe online apps that manage money will get smarter with new Browser Plugins like Google Gears (once there's a security story). Either way, I don't think the future of my money involves a 350 megabyte CD-based installer. Do you use Quicken, QuickBooks or Microsoft Money? Do you connect to your bank from inside those apps? About Scott Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author. About Newsletter Sponsored By Hosting By
Are you Banking Online? Why not? March 5, '07 Comments [60] Posted in Corillian | eFinance Sponsored By Banking analyst house Celent has published a new Retail Banking report called "Retail Internet Banking Vendors: Luring the Laggards." I thought it was funny they didn't say "Luring the Luddites." I bet there was a meeting about that. The company I work for, Corillian, is the big maroon dot in the upper right corner of the chart at right. Our arch nemesis (nemesi? Just kidding, they're lovely people), Digital Insight, is the smaller dot nipping at our dot. This is a multi-dimensional chart, with the size of the dot representing the size of our customer base, although I'm unclear if it's number of users, number of banks, or dollars the bank manages. Across all four categories, Corillian stands out as the clear leader, followed by Digital Insight. Metavante, a low performer in Celent's 2005 report, has significantly revamped its retail platform and has performed exceedingly well registering third overall. Online Resources, Fiserv, and S1 Personal Banking also received relatively strong grades. As we often ask ourselves around here at Cori, who is not banking online and why? Do you, Dear Reader, access your banking information online? If not, why not? (Especially considering that you're reading this blog!) Is it a hassle? Concerns about security? Where do you bank online and why? If you don't bank online, what would it take to get you banking and paying bills online? Do you want to pay bills from your phone? Discuss... Follow up question: I personally haven't written a paper check in at least 5 years, possibly 10. If I could turn off checking all together (like ING Direct's Electric Checking) I'd do it. Who are these older ladies with their checkbooks slowing me down at the Grocery Store, and are you one of these ladies? ;) Seriously, do you write checks, and why? About Scott Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author. About Newsletter Sponsored By Hosting By
Webinar: Online Banking 2.0 March 1, '07 Comments [7] Posted in Corillian | eFinance Sponsored By UPDATE: A recorded REPLAY of this Webcast is available now. If you're interested in what Corillian does, or just in Banking and eFinance in general, there's a free Web Seminar tomorrow on Online Banking 2.0, March 1st, at 11AM PT/2PM ET. It's presented by one of Corillian's Product Managers, Max Janasik, and it's going to be pretty interesting. I worked a little on the PPT deck, but what's really interesting is the influence of Social Networking and the general "Common Sense and Good Feelings" around Web 2.0 that we're trying to start spreading around the Banking Community. Starting conversations with your customers, gaining their trust and general business transparency are more and more an issue in the emerging web. Also, if you're interested because of Corillian's recent announcement about being acquired by CheckFree, you'll see some interesting UI things that both Corillian and CheckFree are working on, and maybe get a glimpse of what a Next Generation Banking experience might look like. Be sure to register ahead of time. About Scott Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author. About Newsletter Sponsored By Hosting By