Recovering from San Silvestro

Whee! San Silvestro (New Year's) was fabulous, the dancing wonderful and the bubbly flowing in rivers… It’s morning now and you stifle a groan as you rub your throbbing temples with a trembling hand: The fiddler’s come demanding payment, and he’s banging on a big bass drum.

When it comes to hangovers we firmly believe in the hair of the dog, but there are times that drinking anew is simply unfeasible. There must be a better way, we thought, and turned to tap the collective wisdom of the Internet. The first stop, Roc Jaw’s Hangover Cure Collection, suggests: Drink as much cold water or juice as you can before you go to bed and take aspirin or ibuprofen. Or: Blend a 33 CL can of tomato juice, a jalapeno pepper, several cubes of ice, and chase the mixture with lots of water. Or: Eat lots of oranges. Or: Have sex. This is all sound advice; the first three tips will rehydrate you and replace salts and minerals you may have lost along the way, while the last will (presumably) help you stay awake until you are sober enough to realize how thirsty you are. However, they all require that you plan ahead.

But what if you awaken feeling like Death’s doormat? When we were in college we used to take our chairs into the showers, but this may not be an option in a household where other family members want to use the bath. Continuing our search on the Internet we discover that the Chinese recommend drinking fresh tangerine juice or eating a dozen ripe strawberries to replace the minerals "washed out by alcohol." Don’t have tangerines and strawberries are out of season? Not to worry, there’s also Hangover Stew:

3 small red potatoes
1 small leek
1/2 onion
2 peeled tomatoes (you can use canned)
1/4 cup canned Mexican jalapeno chilies
Salt, pepper and Tabasco sauce (to taste)
3 cups water or broth

Coarsely chop the veggies and throw everything but the chilies in a pot. Bring to a simmer and add the chilies a little at a time, tasting, until you reach the desired degree of hotness – it should be hot enough to make your eyes water, but not painful. Simmer the stew until the potatoes are soft, about an hour. This will cure you, though you may have to convince a kind soul to whip it up – unless you have planned ahead.