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Real Life Cooking Mama: Share Your Cooking Projects!

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  • edited June 2013
    Nah, I'm pretty sure that's just either a raised section of countertop, or a black granite cutting board.
    Post edited by Churba on
  • Yes, I have a pizza stone in my oven. I was talking about the stone he was rolling the dough on on his counter.
    Yeah, that's just a granite board. Not sure you would want to use a knife to cut on it though...

  • edited June 2013
    Yes, I have a pizza stone in my oven. I was talking about the stone he was rolling the dough on on his counter.
    Yeah, that's just a granite board. Not sure you would want to use a knife to cut on it though...

    Oh, well then. I think I might actually have everything he uses in that video except a scale and the little stick he puts the razor blade on. Also, where can I get a fresh yeast as opposed to the active dry yeast they sell in the grocery store?

    I should probably get into baking breads since I've pretty much maxed out on cookies and such.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • Oh, well then. I think I might actually have everything he uses in that video except a scale and the little stick he puts the razor blade on.
    Eh, the stick itself is probably unimportant. You can likely get away with any sufficiently stiff object that fits into the razor, like a chopstick or something.

  • What's the deal with flour? I have recently been hearing that I should not be using basic white flour when I bake because it is either bad, less good, or can cause problems for some people.
    If you are baking, you will want a proper baking flour that has a higher protein count. This helps develop gluten strands during your kneading process.

    Regardless of the type of flour you are using, I really like the Kind Arthur Flour brand. They always produce high quality products at a reasonable price.
  • What's the deal with flour? I have recently been hearing that I should not be using basic white flour when I bake because it is either bad, less good, or can cause problems for some people.
    If you are baking, you will want a proper baking flour that has a higher protein count. This helps develop gluten strands during your kneading process.

    Regardless of the type of flour you are using, I really like the Kind Arthur Flour brand. They always produce high quality products at a reasonable price.
    I also buy that. I like it because it has King Arthur on the package.
  • edited June 2013
    Yes, I have a pizza stone in my oven. I was talking about the stone he was rolling the dough on on his counter.
    Yeah, that's just a granite board. Not sure you would want to use a knife to cut on it though...

    Oh, well then. I think I might actually have everything he uses in that video except a scale and the little stick he puts the razor blade on. Also, where can I get a fresh yeast as opposed to the active dry yeast they sell in the grocery store?

    I should probably get into baking breads since I've pretty much maxed out on cookies and such.
    You can get a good digital scale for very little money. They're usually only accurate to the whole gram, but you can get pricier ones that go to 0.1 or 0.01 gram accuracy.

    I can usually find fresh yeast in my grocery stores - it's in the refrigerated section, in like a little foil cube. Honestly, I rarely notice a difference between fresh and active dry yeast.

    If you really want to go crazy, get an ale yeast and make a starter in a 2-quart mason jar. Use some of that as your leavening liquid. Ale yeast makes kickass bread.

    EDIT: King Arthur flour is pretty damn excellent.

    Also, if you think your bread mix is lacking in protein, add in a couple of tablespoons of vital wheat gluten. Excellent stuff. I've used it when making spent grain bread, and the result is a very springy loaf.

    Post edited by TheWhaleShark on
  • You can get a good digital scale for very little money. They're usually only accurate to the whole gram, but you can get pricier ones that go to 0.1 or 0.01 gram accuracy.
    If you want a good deal on really accurate digital scales, check out your local head shop. They usually stock a few.
  • I'm thinking of getting some Brett or Lactobacillus for a sourdough starter.

    Oooh, I still have some beer in primary sitting on the yeast cake. I think I'll use that for my baking today!
  • edited June 2013
    Just use some active culture yogurt - no need for a pure lacto strain. Mix it into the sourdough starter. Delicious.
    Post edited by TheWhaleShark on
  • edited June 2013
    Just use some active culture yogurt - no need for a pure lacto strain. Mix it into the sourdough starter. Delicious.
    For some reason, I remember that one of Scrooge Mcduck's most prized possessions is his Sourdough Starter, which he calls "Pete", and got from Sourdough Sam during his time in the Klondike.
    Post edited by Churba on
  • Just use some active culture yogurt - no need for a pure lacto strain. Mix it into the sourdough starter. Delicious.
    For some reason, I remember that one of Scrooge Mcduck's most prized possessions is his Sourdough Starter, which he calls "Pete", and got from Sourdough Sam during his time in the Klondike.
    I remember that comic. I thought it was a pancake starter specifically.

  • Just use some active culture yogurt - no need for a pure lacto strain. Mix it into the sourdough starter. Delicious.
    For some reason, I remember that one of Scrooge Mcduck's most prized possessions is his Sourdough Starter, which he calls "Pete", and got from Sourdough Sam during his time in the Klondike.
    I remember that comic. I thought it was a pancake starter specifically.
    They use it for pancakes, but I remember very specifically that they call it sourdough starter more than once. I might be wrong though, memory being what it is.
  • Girlfriend and I are making flan tonight. ^_^

  • edited June 2013
    Bison Burgers, with Farmer's Market Mozzarella and Lettuce. Between pretzel buns and served with buttermilk onion rings.

    image
    Post edited by Nukerjsr on
  • I have recently begun cooking chicken with maple syrup. It has gone over much better than my previous cooking chicken with cinnamon recipes.
  • Pics or it didn't happen! :P
  • I have this incredibly crazy idea to combine Gumbo and Curry. Lately I've been enjoying Burmese Chicken Curry, which is a mild, flavorful curry that's enhanced with coconut milk, cinnamon, bay leaves and chickpea flour for thickening. With all of these elements, it makes me think you could potentially make a proper fusion.

    Make a roux out of oil and chickpea flour, cook until brown, then add onions. Follow with ginger, garlic and spices. Then add chicken until fully seared, cover in stock, bay leaves, and cinnamon and simmer for 2-3 hours. Skim the oil off, then add the coconut milk and mix.

    Am I crazy, or does this sound like it'll work? Also, I'm really hankering for Tamago kake gohan. (Curse you Silver Spoon)
  • edited August 2013
    So a coworker of mine brings me articles from the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry from time to time, primarily concerning research into various food preservation methods - I don't know if he's leaving me tribute as some kind of food-processing god or what, but I don't question it too much. He's a bit weird.

    Anyway, he just dropped off an article about something called "sugar-smoking," which is not a technique I know. This is evidently a thing that is practiced in Taiwanese cuisine. The article is concerned with methods that reduce the formation of potentially carcinogenic compounds during conventional wood-fired meat smoking.

    The "sugar-smoking" process sounds really interesting. You start by "premarinating" the meat in a solution of "juice" (I assume tropical fruit juice of some sort, but the study does not specify) with 10% soy sauce and 1% sugar. Use 3 times the weight of the meat in volume of solution (that is, 300 g of meat is marinated in 900 mL of solution, composed of ~800 mL of juice, 90 mL soy sauce, and 9 g of sugar), and heat-treat the meat. I'm not exactly sure what this premarinating process entails, but the study implies that it's a low-temperature wet cooking process. Or perhaps it's thorough cooking after a short marinade. The article gives several different time-temperature combinations for different matrices, but fails to detail the exact cooking process.

    Once it's been premarinated, you move on to the smoking process. Pour 4 oz of sugar into a smoking pot (as in, super fucking hot), put your food on a metal screen over the pot, cover, and smoke for ~6 minutes.

    Any ideas as to how to make this work? It's possible that the method is a sous vide - seal the meat into a marinade and process at a certain temperature for a certain time - but I'm not entirely sure.

    EDIT: Hm. Upon re-reading, I'm beginning to think that it's actually a poaching method. Poach in the solution at a specified temperature for a specified time. That would make more sense.
    Post edited by TheWhaleShark on
  • I went and smoked a brisket.
    image
  • So I'm now seasoning my new 8" cast iron skillet based on these instructions. I'll let you guys know how it goes, then it will be burger time. ^_^
  • A fellow grad student just gave me two fresh Ghost Peppers from his dad's farm. What should I do with them?
  • A fellow grad student just gave me two fresh Ghost Peppers from his dad's farm. What should I do with them?
    Use one for chili. Use the other for GHOST PEPPER CHALLENGE YouTube video.
  • A fellow grad student just gave me two fresh Ghost Peppers from his dad's farm. What should I do with them?
    Andrew, really?

    You brew a fucking IPA - Intense Pepper Ale.

  • A fellow grad student just gave me two fresh Ghost Peppers from his dad's farm. What should I do with them?
    Andrew, really?

    You brew a fucking IPA - Intense Pepper Ale.

    Name of Brew: "So you like it hot huh?"
  • edited August 2013
    Andrew, really?

    You brew a fucking IPA - Intense Pepper Ale.
    My god, you truly are a mad scientist.

    Post edited by Andrew on
  • Won't the ghost pepper's power kill the little yeasties?
  • edited August 2013
    Won't the ghost pepper's power kill the little yeasties?
    You remember how I isolated viable yeast from canned chocolate syrup that was 3 years expired?

    Yeast are hardy motherfuckers.
    Andrew, really?

    You brew a fucking IPA - Intense Pepper Ale.
    My god, you truly are a mad scientist.

    You know in your heart that I'm right.
    Post edited by TheWhaleShark on
  • Do research, look for Founders Mango Magnifico to really get an idea of awesome chili beer. (Uses mango and habanero)
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