Aha! It seems that all our recent interest in prime rib has got you thinking. We like horseradish, too (Anthony Curtis himself is of eastern European extraction and is a particular aficionado), whether it be on our prime rib or in our Bloody Mary. And it seems we're not alone: According to the Web site horseradish.org, Americans consume around six million gallons of the stuff annually. In fact, you're not even the first person to pose that question in this forum; here's what we wrote about horseradish (with some new updates and extras), back in July, 2007:
As is our custom, here's a bit of background before we get to the nuts and bolts. Horseradish is a member of the mustard family and it's as innocent as its relatives the humble cauliflower and kale, until you grate or grind the roots. That releases a compound called allyl isothiocyanate, or mustard oil, which is the stuff responsible for setting your nose on fire. Adding vinegar stops the reaction and stabilizes the flavor of this concoction, which is your basic horseradish sauce. Sometimes other ingredients like spices, sugar, salt, cream, beets, or vegetable oil are also added. It's best fresh -- as it ages, it starts to turn brown and lose its oomph.
And one final note on this fine condiment: Horseradish has long been heralded for its medicinal qualities, with uses ranging from a cough expectorant and food-poisoning antidote in medieval Europe to more recent indications that it may help prevent/combat certain cancers.
As far as the brands used by casino eateries are concerned, there's good news and bad.
The good news is that we've tracked down two of the major brands, namely Beaver Xtra Hot Horseradish (Bellagio buffet) and Atomic Horseradish (Cortez Room and elsewhere at the Gold Coast, Binion's Ranch Steakhouse, Coronado Cafe and Primarily Prime Rib at South Point, and Lawrys, to name a few). As one of the sites that sells the latter puts it, "Head all clogged up? Nose plugged? Can't breath properly? Don't panic, don't call the doctor -- all you need is Atomic Horseradish!" and we can vouch for its potency. In fact, when we first sampled the latter during a review of the Cortez Room for LVA, it almost made our eyeballs bleed -- but in that "it hurts so good" kinda way that sent us back a couple of weeks later for more! (Not for nothing was this root formerly known as "stingnose" in parts of the U.S.)
It depends where you are in the country as to whether either brand will be available at a retail store, but they are both available online from a variety of sources, so just Google your chosen brand and find the best price. In the meantime, here's some of the feedback we received the first time around when we ran this answer (by all means feel free to contribute more this time around if you have additional info. to share):
UPDATE: 07-20-2007
"I have not had either (because I can't take spicy [hot] stuff) so I can't directly comment on them, but my family finds the Extra Good and Hot Prepared Horseradish quite potent!"
07/18/2007 Another reader story:
