I like to think of the beanery as the most important room in the firehouse, that place where firehouse life happens. Everyone could be off doing stuff around the station but when we call “all hands” for a meeting or to pass on some information everyone needs to know about, the beanery is where we gather! It is also the place where most of our down time is spent. Hanging out around the beanery table after a meal, telling jokes and stories, sharing about family issues, “significant other” issues, giving advice, going over the last CPR we had or the last fire… all of this in the beanery.
There is another important room in the firehouse that not too many people may know about. It is the business and information center of the fire station. In Seattle we call it the “Watch Office.” It is where our station alerting system is located (station radio and printer that prints out alarm information). The front door and public entrance to the station leads to the watch office. At the start of each shift the incoming crew is assigned “watches.” We evenly split the time up during the day.
At night one person is assigned to sleep in the watch office on a “murphy bed” that is hidden in a closet. The person on watch is responsible for answering the phone, answering the door, and listening to the radio. Being assigned the watch is not always an isolated activity. You can often find several crew members gathered in the watch office playing a game of cards, chess, or dominos, or watching a game on T.V. The watch office is that other place of social interaction in the fire house. The only time we run out of there is for an alarm or when I call for dinner! Speaking of dinner….
Suey’s Carne Asada Tacos with Jalapeno Slaw
By Michael “Suey” Sulak, Seattle Fire Department, Station 8, Ladder 6
Resources:
For Meat
¼ cup vegetable oil
½ cup tequila
⅛ cup triple sec
⅓ cup lime juice
⅓ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons fresh garlic, minced
1 tablespoon white pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 jalapeno pepper, seeds included, minced
1 orange, sliced
½ cup cilantro leaves, chopped
6 lbs. skirt steak cut into thin strips
24 corn or flour tortillas
For Slaw
2 jalapeno peppers, seeds and veins removed
(leave veins in for hotter slaw)
1 small head green cabbage, shredded
7 red cabbage leaves, shredded, stem removed
2 cups sweet onion, chopped
1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
2 cucumbers peeled and chopped
1 cup yellow bell pepper, chopped
3 large tomatillos, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and julienned
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 cup fresh mango margarita mix
2 tablespoons lime juice
Johnny’s Seasoning Salt to taste
Tactics:
For Meat:
Combine all the ingredients except the meat into a large mixing bowl. Place the meat into large Ziploc freezer bags and pour the marinade over the meat. Remove the air from the bag and sea. Marinate the meat for at least 1 hour and up to overnight before grilling. Briefly fry the corn tortillas in oil or wrap the flour tortillas in foil and heat them in a 350°F oven for 30 minutes.
Makes 8-10 servings.
For Slaw:
Combine all the ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Mix well and refrigerate until ready to serve on top of the Carne Asada Tacos.
