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criscodisco
Feb 18, 2004

do it
I have a habit of buying cooking supplies on a whim. Recently, I did this with a giant block of Himalayan pink salt, the kind you use to cook on or chill and serve on. I bought it only because I had remembered reading on here about them years ago.

Any good ideas or resources for what to do with this thing? I think they're mainly used for seafood applications, and all I have in the fridge is some yellowfin and singer Argentine red shrimp.

Thanks for any help!

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Casu Marzu
Oct 20, 2008

Use it as a salt lick

EAT THE EGGS RICOLA
May 29, 2008

criscodisco posted:

I have a habit of buying cooking supplies on a whim. Recently, I did this with a giant block of Himalayan pink salt, the kind you use to cook on or chill and serve on. I bought it only because I had remembered reading on here about them years ago.

Any good ideas or resources for what to do with this thing? I think they're mainly used for seafood applications, and all I have in the fridge is some yellowfin and singer Argentine red shrimp.

Thanks for any help!

It's salt, use it for things that need salt I guess.

Disco Salmon
Jun 19, 2004

reflex posted:

Chicken salad with a chopped apple in it is awesome. Would chicken salad with a chopped apple and a couple chopped hard boiled eggs also be awesome? It seems like a weird combo to me and I don't know if it would work out.

I like dried cranberries or golden raisins in mine....its great!

And eggs would be good too I think :) You could just make your salad and pull a little out with some egg just to try it too. That way you don't kill the whole thing if its not what you were hoping for.

Disco Salmon fucked around with this message at 17:20 on Oct 18, 2014

Le0
Mar 18, 2009

Rotten investigator!

totalnewbie posted:

I have 1 oz of truffles. What should I do with it this weekend?

A nice risotto with some truffle over is really delicious.

Steve Yun
Aug 7, 2003
I'm a parasitic landlord that needs to get a job instead of stealing worker's money. Make sure to remind me when I post.
Soiled Meat
Cook a whole chicken with truffle slices and butter under the skin

Big Beef City
Aug 15, 2013

I saw some chinese sweet sausage links for sale at a grocer today and bought them.
They are fresh ground raw and then frozen. They are the shorter, fatter variety (think 2/3rd of a normal brat in size).

Never had them before. What to expect?
Google tells me they are generally 5 spice brats with textural differences. Confirm/Deny?

Schiavona
Oct 8, 2008

Can I substitute bacon for ham hocks in this recipe for slow cooker collard greens, and how would I do so? My local grocery store ran out of hocks and said they won't have any for another few days.

Big Beef City
Aug 15, 2013

Schiavona posted:

Can I substitute bacon for ham hocks in this recipe for slow cooker collard greens, and how would I do so? My local grocery store ran out of hocks and said they won't have any for another few days.

It won't be quite the same, since the ham hock has a lot of bone (and marrow) involved which provides collagen. The hock is also kinda less salty than pure bacon.

If you want to make it as close as possible, I'd suggest blanching the bacon in boiling water for maybe 2-3'ish minutes or less, draining the water, and chopping the bacon.

Realistically, just use the loving bacon, but maybe less of it. Especially if it's some kind of Hormel Super Smoked Maple Bacon thing, you don't want that.

edit: also - using a hock usually means there are large fatty smoked pork meat bites in there, you won't get that with bacon. You'll have, well, boiled bacon. If that doesn't bother you, go for it. If you think it will bother you, maybe put the blanched or regular bacon in cheese cloth so you can pull the whole thing out of there without boiled bacon bits being around. Personally, I like collards with just apple cider vinegar and salt in the pot when I make them but obviously ymmv.

edit II the reckoning: Does your grocer have a smoked turkey leg in stock? You can use that and it's pretty drat good.

Big Beef City fucked around with this message at 02:29 on Oct 19, 2014

CzarChasm
Mar 14, 2009

I don't like it when you're watching me eat.
A friend of mine gifted me a can of quail eggs and suggested that I pickle them. What's a good pickling brine recipe to use for eggs?

The Glumslinger
Sep 24, 2008

Coach Nagy, you want me to throw to WHAT side of the field?


Hair Elf
Since I probably hosed this up tonight, for future reference, if a dough calls for powdered milk, and I replace part of the water with real milk instead, how much extra flour should I add? Equal amount to called for powdered milk? Because I didn't add any extra, and my dough was ridiculously sticky and kind of hosed up what I was making.

Mr. Wiggles
Dec 1, 2003

We are all drinking from the highball glass of ideology.

CzarChasm posted:

A friend of mine gifted me a can of quail eggs and suggested that I pickle them. What's a good pickling brine recipe to use for eggs?

We always had tons of quail eggs growing up because the quail were bait for falconry, bit we always just scrambled them or made omelettes. Pretty good though.

SymmetryrtemmyS
Jul 13, 2013

I got super tired of seeing your avatar throwing those fuckin' glasses around in the astrology thread so I fixed it to a .jpg

The Glumslinger posted:

Since I probably hosed this up tonight, for future reference, if a dough calls for powdered milk, and I replace part of the water with real milk instead, how much extra flour should I add? Equal amount to called for powdered milk? Because I didn't add any extra, and my dough was ridiculously sticky and kind of hosed up what I was making.

It's important to scald milk before using it in any dough - to do so, heat it up over low heat until steam just starts to rise, then let it cool to room temperature. This destroys a protein in milk that prevents gluten from forming.

To substitute fresh milk for dry, calculate the amount of milk that the dry milk would make, then remove the water that you would reconstitute the dry milk with and substitute scalded for both dry milk and water. For example, if 2 tablespoons of dry milk is called for, and that amount will make 2 cups, remove 1 and 7/8 cups of water from the recipe.

totalnewbie
Nov 13, 2005

I was born and raised in China, lived in Japan, and now hold a US passport.

I am wrong in every way, all the damn time.

Ask me about my tattoos.

totalnewbie posted:

Real truffles. Not sure if they're white or black. I've no idea what I should try to make with them. I should probably at least figure out if it's white or black, eh.

Black truffles.

Le0 posted:

A nice risotto with some truffle over is really delicious.

Looks like I actually have almost 2 oz. Any other suggestions? I don't think I'd need it all for the risotto.

paraquat
Nov 25, 2006

Burp

totalnewbie posted:

Black truffles.


Looks like I actually have almost 2 oz. Any other suggestions? I don't think I'd need it all for the risotto.

Bake a white fish and serve it with a canelle of trufflebutter on top

OBAMNA PHONE
Aug 7, 2002
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/03/teriyaki-sauce-how-to-make-at-home-recipe.html

Can I substitute something like sherry or Shaoxing wine for sake?

Grizzled Patriarch
Mar 27, 2014

These dentures won't stop me from tearing out jugulars in Thunderdome.



So I have a stainless steel pan and a non-stick, but lately I find myself almost always reaching for the non-stick. Really the only time I use stainless steel is when I'm doing high-heat cooking or trying to get a really nice brown on a piece of meat. I'm curious to hear if there are any other situations where one pan is better than the other. Is there like a set of general guidelines, or are they pretty much interchangeable, for the most part?

I hate neglecting my stainless steel, but non-stick is just so much less of a hassle to clean up.

totalnewbie
Nov 13, 2005

I was born and raised in China, lived in Japan, and now hold a US passport.

I am wrong in every way, all the damn time.

Ask me about my tattoos.
Stainless should be pretty effortless to clean. What is it that you're cooking that is sticking badly?


Maybe? Sake (nihonshu) is pretty different from both sherry and Shaoxing. If you can get mirin, can't you get nihonshu? Well, I guess maybe they don't have a liquor license.

I'd try the Shaoxing and maybe cut back a touch on the soy sauce or add a little more sugar.

Grizzled Patriarch
Mar 27, 2014

These dentures won't stop me from tearing out jugulars in Thunderdome.



totalnewbie posted:

Stainless should be pretty effortless to clean. What is it that you're cooking that is sticking badly?


Maybe? Sake (nihonshu) is pretty different from both sherry and Shaoxing. If you can get mirin, can't you get nihonshu? Well, I guess maybe they don't have a liquor license.

I'd try the Shaoxing and maybe cut back a touch on the soy sauce or add a little more sugar.

Anything with a heavy sauce or any time I'm browning big chunks of meat. Especially if there's a bit of brown sugar involved. Even over moderate heat, there's always some scorching for whatever reason. I'm cooking on an electric range that heats kind of unevenly, which might have something to do with it.

It's not like it's a huge pain in the rear end to clean or anything, but it actually requires some scrubbing / sometimes a short soak whereas non-stick I could literally clean with a napkin if I'm about to use it for another ingredient in the same dish.

Nicol Bolas
Feb 13, 2009

Grizzled Patriarch posted:

So I have a stainless steel pan and a non-stick, but lately I find myself almost always reaching for the non-stick. Really the only time I use stainless steel is when I'm doing high-heat cooking or trying to get a really nice brown on a piece of meat. I'm curious to hear if there are any other situations where one pan is better than the other. Is there like a set of general guidelines, or are they pretty much interchangeable, for the most part?

I hate neglecting my stainless steel, but non-stick is just so much less of a hassle to clean up.

I think it depends a lot on what you cook. I am mostly vegetables-meat-pan sauce or curry-and-rice type of cook. I use my stainless all the time--I prefer to use metal utensils (tongs, whisk, and spatula mostly) and you can't use those in nonstick. That said, the pan I use the absolute most is my cast iron. I can use my metal utensils but it's so well seasoned that I can cook eggs in it too. Honestly, the biggest thing about cooking in stainless is that you have to use oil. You can't skimp or just use a teaspoon of oil for a pound of veggies, and even with that, I do find that meats (when dried insufficiently) definitely stick. But the stuff that sticks gives you killer fond for sauces / soups / stews and the like.

edit: Are your stainless pots and pans clad? Which is to say, do they have that big heavy bottom? That can make heating a lot more even, even if your stove sucks. If they don't, you'll be subject to all the failings of your stove.

Also, if you're having scorching issues, it might just be that you're cooking over too high of a heat.

Nicol Bolas fucked around with this message at 23:40 on Oct 19, 2014

Grizzled Patriarch
Mar 27, 2014

These dentures won't stop me from tearing out jugulars in Thunderdome.



Nicol Bolas posted:

I think it depends a lot on what you cook. I am mostly vegetables-meat-pan sauce or curry-and-rice type of cook. I use my stainless all the time--I prefer to use metal utensils (tongs, whisk, and spatula mostly) and you can't use those in nonstick. That said, the pan I use the absolute most is my cast iron. I can use my metal utensils but it's so well seasoned that I can cook eggs in it too. Honestly, the biggest thing about cooking in stainless is that you have to use oil. You can't skimp or just use a teaspoon of oil for a pound of veggies, and even with that, I do find that meats (when dried insufficiently) definitely stick. But the stuff that sticks gives you killer fond for sauces / soups / stews and the like.

edit: Are your stainless pots and pans clad? Which is to say, do they have that big heavy bottom? That can make heating a lot more even, even if your stove sucks. If they don't, you'll be subject to all the failings of your stove.

Also, if you're having scorching issues, it might just be that you're cooking over too high of a heat.

They aren't clad, and my stovetop definitely has hot / cold spots. I don't really cook anything over crazy high heat. Usually around 7 or 8 when doing a quick sear, 6 or 7 for a deep brown. I've always kind of assumed that was in the "medium high" heat range, but maybe I'm overdoing it?

I'll try adding a bit more oil next time too, see if that does anything.

Nicol Bolas
Feb 13, 2009

Grizzled Patriarch posted:

They aren't clad, and my stovetop definitely has hot / cold spots. I don't really cook anything over crazy high heat. Usually around 7 or 8 when doing a quick sear, 6 or 7 for a deep brown. I've always kind of assumed that was in the "medium high" heat range, but maybe I'm overdoing it?

I'll try adding a bit more oil next time too, see if that does anything.

Yeah, without the heavy bottom, you'll get uneven heating like whoa, so that's probably part of the problem.

You also might want to experiment with going way low on heats; there's nothing wrong with cooking things at 4 if your stove is scorching you at 8. (Obviously disregard this for steak or anything else that you are looking for caramelized outside / rare inside, but you're probably not looking for that in a lot of the stuff you cook, right?) Yes, it will take longer, but it also won't burn.

Also, if you haven't heard it everywhere in GWS already, get a cast iron pan. I honestly think you'd be really happy with a well-seasoned cast iron. You can crank the heat however you want, it's heavy and thick enough to even out any unevenness in your burners, and, if your seasoning is good, it wipes clean. It takes a little elbow grease to get a it really well seasoned, but once it is, it's truly incredible.

OBAMNA PHONE
Aug 7, 2002

totalnewbie posted:

Maybe? Sake (nihonshu) is pretty different from both sherry and Shaoxing. If you can get mirin, can't you get nihonshu? Well, I guess maybe they don't have a liquor license.

I'd try the Shaoxing and maybe cut back a touch on the soy sauce or add a little more sugar.

Thanks, I'm just being a cheapass but i'll pick up a small bottle of sake tomorrow since i'm not going to make it tonight.

totalnewbie
Nov 13, 2005

I was born and raised in China, lived in Japan, and now hold a US passport.

I am wrong in every way, all the damn time.

Ask me about my tattoos.

BraveUlysses posted:

Thanks, I'm just being a cheapass but i'll pick up a small bottle of sake tomorrow since i'm not going to make it tonight.

As a bonus, you can drink it for extra fun! Now that it's cooler, it's a great time for atsukan (熱燗)

Generally, it's made by putting the nihonshu in a ceramic bottle and heating it up in a pot of hot water. Image search for some examples. Atsukan is the best.

Robo Boogie Bot
Sep 4, 2011

Schiavona posted:

Can I substitute bacon for ham hocks in this recipe for slow cooker collard greens, and how would I do so? My local grocery store ran out of hocks and said they won't have any for another few days.

Bacon won't be quite the same, do they have any other smoked meat? Smoked pork neck bones are great, you can also used smoked turkey (though go with dark meat instead of breast).

ibntumart
Mar 18, 2007

Good, bad. I'm the one with the power of Shu, Heru, Amon, Zehuti, Aton, and Mehen.
College Slice

Nicol Bolas posted:

Also, if you haven't heard it everywhere in GWS already, get a cast iron pan. I honestly think you'd be really happy with a well-seasoned cast iron. You can crank the heat however you want, it's heavy and thick enough to even out any unevenness in your burners, and, if your seasoning is good, it wipes clean. It takes a little elbow grease to get a it really well seasoned, but once it is, it's truly incredible.

This is a perfect set-up for the question I popped in here to ask: do I need to do anything more than wipe cast iron after use? I made home fries in a cast iron skillet this evening and it only took a quick wipe to get everything off of the pan. Absolutely nothing stuck. Is it okay for me to leave it at that and use it tomorrow for breakfast? Or should I scrub it with a sponge or brush, maybe boil some water, and lightly recoat with oil?

I will say I loved cooking with it more than the stainless or ceramic cookware I normally use.

Steve Yun
Aug 7, 2003
I'm a parasitic landlord that needs to get a job instead of stealing worker's money. Make sure to remind me when I post.
Soiled Meat
You're fine

Dane
Jun 18, 2003

mmm... creamy.

SymmetryrtemmyS posted:

It's important to scald milk before using it in any dough - to do so, heat it up over low heat until steam just starts to rise, then let it cool to room temperature. This destroys a protein in milk that prevents gluten from forming.


I'd never heard about this before, so I was rather skeptical. Apparently you're right, whey can inhibit the formation of gluten. I would stress that the importance of doing this can't be that great, though - I've baked quite a bit of bread and cake with milk as the liquid, and I've never had problems with the crumb - and I've never seen a recipe that called for it.

I'm thinking maybe the (slight?) inhibiting effect of the whey has been conflated with the old scald-before-you-use-milk-more-than-a-day-old of the days before mandatory pasteurization to make it seem even more important?

Dane fucked around with this message at 12:11 on Oct 21, 2014

totalnewbie
Nov 13, 2005

I was born and raised in China, lived in Japan, and now hold a US passport.

I am wrong in every way, all the damn time.

Ask me about my tattoos.

Le0 posted:

A nice risotto with some truffle over is really delicious.

Did this. Confirmed aaaamazing.

Steve Yun posted:

Cook a whole chicken with truffle slices and butter under the skin

Did not see this. A whole chicken! That's a lot :O I've actually got minced truffles in oil (this guy: http://www.trufflehunter.co.uk/product/minced-black-truffles/ ) so maybe I can just mix the butter with the truffles.

paraquat posted:

Bake a white fish and serve it with a canelle of trufflebutter on top

I've never made white fish (I'm used to either Chinese- or Japanese-style fish. Americans do fish funny :D ) but I will give this a try, too. I think these will go a lot further than I first thought.

Nicol Bolas
Feb 13, 2009

ibntumart posted:

This is a perfect set-up for the question I popped in here to ask: do I need to do anything more than wipe cast iron after use? I made home fries in a cast iron skillet this evening and it only took a quick wipe to get everything off of the pan. Absolutely nothing stuck. Is it okay for me to leave it at that and use it tomorrow for breakfast? Or should I scrub it with a sponge or brush, maybe boil some water, and lightly recoat with oil?

I will say I loved cooking with it more than the stainless or ceramic cookware I normally use.

Honestly, I don't even wipe it out half the time if I'm just frying an egg or an english muffin. I'll just scrape out any crumbs and call it a day. When I'm searing meat or caramelizing onions, those tend to leave more residue, and I give it a quick rinse or wipe with a wet paper towel, then re-coat with oil.

EAT THE EGGS RICOLA
May 29, 2008

Nicol Bolas posted:

Honestly, I don't even wipe it out half the time if I'm just frying an egg or an english muffin. I'll just scrape out any crumbs and call it a day. When I'm searing meat or caramelizing onions, those tend to leave more residue, and I give it a quick rinse or wipe with a wet paper towel, then re-coat with oil.

You'll get significantly better fond (to later deglaze and make a sauce out of) for meat and caramelized onions if you use a stainless pan instead of something that is as well seasoned and nonstick as a cast iron pan.

paraquat
Nov 25, 2006

Burp

totalnewbie posted:

I've never made white fish (I'm used to either Chinese- or Japanese-style fish. Americans do fish funny :D ) but I will give this a try, too. I think these will go a lot further than I first thought.

ah, just in case then:
pepper, salt and flour the fish, then pan fry it in butter.

Trier
Aug 8, 2011

Stupid Newbie
I'm making dinner for about 10 people tomorrow, none of which have any diet restrictions, and I'm trying to find some inspirations for what to cook. I'm thinking something really archetypical american, except I've already done fried chicken and spare ribs so it can't be that. Any suggestions?

Comic
Feb 24, 2008

Mad Comic Stylings
Burgers.

EAT THE EGGS RICOLA
May 29, 2008

Make brined and deep fried pork chops with a good country gravy, modernist mac and cheese, and some sort of very light, crunchy salad or braised bitter greens.

KirbyJ
Oct 30, 2012
I'm considering cooking sous vide chicken breasts tomorrow and I'm wondering what exactly to do after they come out of the bag. How long should I sear the skin side, and do I sear the other side as well? First time cooking doing chicken in a dish that isn't "put chicken in baking dish, cover with sauce, bake until done" so I'm pretty unsure how I should approach this.

EAT THE EGGS RICOLA
May 29, 2008

KirbyJ posted:

I'm considering cooking sous vide chicken breasts tomorrow and I'm wondering what exactly to do after they come out of the bag. How long should I sear the skin side, and do I sear the other side as well? First time cooking doing chicken in a dish that isn't "put chicken in baking dish, cover with sauce, bake until done" so I'm pretty unsure how I should approach this.

I sear both sides in a stainless pain with quite-hot (but not too hot) neutral oil. Make sure you dry everything super well. You can kind of play it by ear with how long you do it for, you're just aiming for a really nice brown colour.

baquerd
Jul 2, 2007

by FactsAreUseless

EAT THE EGGS RICOLA posted:

I sear both sides in a stainless pain with quite-hot (but not too hot) neutral oil. Make sure you dry everything super well. You can kind of play it by ear with how long you do it for, you're just aiming for a really nice brown colour.

Do you pound them out before or after you sous vide them, or do you deal with only searing a smaller part of the breast?

EAT THE EGGS RICOLA
May 29, 2008

baquerd posted:

Do you pound them out before or after you sous vide them, or do you deal with only searing a smaller part of the breast?

Don't pound them out much, you want them to be pretty thick (otherwise why are you bothering to sous-vide?)

the side without skin should be pretty much flat already, if the side with skin is super round you can also just throw it under a broiler for a couple minutes to finish the skin.

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Proust Malone
Apr 4, 2008

I've been seeing a lot of "uncured" meat products around, but I don't really get at what they mean. Isn't curing the process that takes the raw meat and turns it into the stuff we eat? Like isn't uncured ham just a pig's leg? Isn't uncured pastrami just a brisket?

http://www.eatlikenoone.com/faq-what-is-uncured-ham.htm

This says it just means no added nitrates, but I've seen that on cured meats for a long time. What's the deal with the "uncured?'

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