texts: How can I keep tomatillos submerged in water during boiling?

texts:
I like making enchiladas verdes, but I have an annoying time keeping tomatillos submerged when I boil them. The top part of them remain out of surface.

I try to keep them held down with a long wooden spoon. But I can't just stand there holding them for 5 to 10 minutes.

Any suggestions.


texts: If I Grill 1.5” pork chop on Monday and stored it in the fridge wrapped in tinfoil...will it still be good for me to eat it five days later on Saturday or has it gone bad in that time??


texts: Sombra Pumpkin: Is it known by other names?

texts:
I bought pumpkin from German Supermarket and its name is Sombra.

But I can't find any information about it in internet. Is it known by some other name? I want to know so that I can look for recipes.

Upon searching I found may be its called as Winter sweet Pumpkin, but I can't find any information about that either!


texts: For how long can you let dough sit there to rise without yeast?

texts:
I read that you can make a dough without yeast and have it sit at room temperature for 12 hours and it will rise due to bacteria found in the air.

It didn't rise after 12 hrs, so I was wondering if I could let it sit for another 12 hrs to see if it eventually rises? Would 24 hrs be ok or that's too long?


texts:
Besides cutting the hair or applying conditioner or oils, what else can be done to remove hardened dough from hair?

Would vinegar dissolve hardened flour?

Update: The lump is an odd consistency: between a live dough (super gluey) and tough and with a slight give, very slight. I feel like the gluten is being released and water is both releasing it and releasing a few hairs. Any strands of hair that can be freed seem to have live dough on them which, if not cleaned, contaminate other clean stands. Pushing/ scrubbing with the nails is the only, and very hard, way to get that tiny sticky amount out of the individual hairs. A shampoo with sodium lauryl sulfate helps, but it is still very hard.

I am wondering if there is an enzyme that dissolves gluten. A quick online search recommended tablets for people with who cannot tolerate gluten, not I am not sure if I open the pill tablet and apply it to the hair, it will work.


texts: Questions about making hard kefir cheese

texts:
I am attempting to make hard kefir cheese in a cheese press.  Unfortunately the cheese press I purchased did not come with specific instructions.  I was able to find an article (http://www.culturesforhealth.com/hard-kefir-cheese-recipe/) but it is vague in certain respects.  Therefore I have two questions about the process.

How much PSI should be outputted onto the kefir to make hard cheese?

By the time the milk has been turned into kefir, it has already been sitting out for perhaps 24-48 hours.  Is it necessary to refrigerate the kefir while draining it and while pressing it into cheese, or can it sit at room temperature during this process?


texts: Do breads always have to be baked in some vessels in an oven? If yes, then what shaped vessels would those be?

texts:
Is it even necessary to use a vessel for baking breads (assuming I don't care about the shape of the bread)?

In this link for (example) French bread I saw that the dough is not in liquid form, so it won't spread away if I put it straightaway in the oven wrapped in a tin foil?
http://steamykitchen.com/75-baking-the-perfect-loaf-of-french-bread.html

Can breads be baked without any vessel?
If not, then what shaped vessel should be preferred for baking breads?
If yes, then what is the appropriate method for baking it directly in oven?


texts: I'm planning on making a pasta dish tonight that uses the pasta cooking water in the sauce. Something like cacio e pepe.  The pasta I've got is the high protein pasta that they make out of lentils or chickpeas. Since it's not normal pasta, will my pasta water still be usable in this way?


texts: How do I stop fresh fish from falling apart while cooking?

texts:
We sometimes buy trout from a local breeder who'll get them fresh out of the water for us, and then cook them a few hours later. They taste great, but the flesh tends to fall apart in a way that doesn't happen with fish from the super market. It's often barely even possible to get them out of the pot without them completely coming apart. We tried leaving them in the fridge for a day so they wouldn't be quite as just-killed-an-hour-ago-fresh, but that didn't help.

We usually prepare them by cooking them in simmering (not boiling) water.

Is there some way to prevent this?


texts: Is it safe to par-boil chicken legs, (unthawed), then finish cooking them later?

texts: I boiled four chicken legs for 25 mins, put them in the fridge then took them back out to finish boiling them four hours later, is this safe?


texts: difference between glucose syrup and sugar syrup?

texts: I am not talking about the chemical difference (sugar is chemically a molecule formed by two monosaccarides: glucose and fructose). I am wondering about the difference from the cooking point of view in using pure glucose syrup vs. a syrup made of simple kitchen sugar dissolved in water.


texts: I live in Europe but use many US recipes. These often call for onion powder which is hard to find here. Diced or minced onion is often not a good alternative and whilst garlic powder is easier to obtain, I find it complements rather than replaces onion powder. What could I use as (an easy to obtain) substitute for onion powder?


texts: How to cook tubular ground beef using only disposable items?

texts:
How do I cook ground beef (in those 1 pound tubes) using only
disposable items? Details:

I can cook pizzas in my oven by putting them directly on the rack.
I can cook chicken and toast bread by putting down a sheet of
aluminum foil, and setting the chicken/toast on top of that.
I tried doing the aluminum foil trick w/ beef, but it gave off a
lot of fat, which hit the metal at the bottom of my gas oven,
filling the house with smoke.
I tried making a little "tray" with the aluminum foil, but the
beef didn't seem to cook well internally, plus there was a lot of
fat left in the "tray" (from the outer layer of beef, which cooked
fine). That's bad because the beef was cooking it its own fat, plus
getting rid of the fat wasn't that easy (I drained it into a coffee
can, but that doesn't get all of it).
I've tried using lower-fat beef, but it tastes different, and it
just reduces the problem and doesn't cure it.

I'm willing to buy ground beef in a different (non-tubular) form, but
wasn't sure it would help.

Thoughts?

EDIT: Thanks to everyone who helped. I think sarge_smith's idea of
using aluminum foil (homemade or a pie pan) to raise the beef and let
the fat drip into a broiling pan (which I don't have to clean, since
the fat is disposable) is what I'll try. Some random notes:

I store beef in the freezer, so skewering or crumbling it wouldn't
work unless I thawed it first, which would take time.
I normally cook 45-50 minutes at 450F. This works fine for beef on
flat aluminum foil, but if I make an aluminum tray or pouch, 45-50
minutes doesn't seem to be enough.
Having said that, I haven't tried the tray/pouch trick w/ my new
oven. The old oven was 30+ years old and eventually broke down, so
maybe foil pouch cooking will work w/ the new one.


texts: How can I cook trout without generating horror stories?

texts:
I bought some frozen trout filets, pre-seasoned.  As instructed on the box, I left one in the fridge yesterday to thaw overnight.  Today -- also as instructed on the box -- I put the stove on medium-high (7) and heated up the frying pan, and then put the fish in.

This was a horrible mistake.

I was smart enough to use canola oil instead of olive oil (which the box suggested), since olive oil will burn easily at that temperature.  I probably should have realized the temperature was too high regardless.  The oil exploded when the fish went in the pan, giving me a nasty burn on the finger.  The fish also began burning immediately, which I didn't notice as I tended to my finger.

The skin turned to charcoal, but fortunately I salvaged the rest of it and it was, fortunately, delicious.  (It tasted like bacon. Is that normal?)  But I would like to avoid all the burning and smoke-filled kitchen and all that.  How should I properly fry my trout?  I could turn the heat stupid low, but then I'd be worried about not cooking it well enough.

Teach a man to (cook a) fish!


texts:
I made a vegetable soup with peas, onion, garlic, potatoes, celery, cubed chicken stock, salt, and olive oil. I put it in two containers, one open and the other airtight, and in the fridge. After 6 days, the soup in the open container had turned sour and had a vinegar taste, while the one in the airtight container had a normal taste. So I presume that oxidation plays a role in the vinegar taste.

Why does a vegetable soup turn sour?


texts:
I'm making salsa. Do I really need to peel the tomatoes? I've canned salsa and stewed tomatoes for years. Peeling is such a messy process. If I chop the tomatoes in my food processor do I really need to peel them?

Also my salsa is quite runny. Is that why I should core and seed them? Just what is the core?


texts:
I tried for the first time to bake scone. I used a stand mixer to mix the ingredients based on a recipe. But I have some questions:

Is it ok to use a stand mixer to mix them? I used the beater to mix them as it did it very quick.
The dough was very runny and I was not able to shape it at all. I added more flour (I used self-raising) but it did not help.
After I baked it, the smell and taste were good but they were not crumbly. They were more bread than scone as they were stiff. Did I mix for too long?


texts: I am having trouble at the moment with my new mincer because bits of connective tissue keep getting caught in the works and clogging it up, stopping the mince coming out. However I'm not quite sure how to prevent it. I try to take obvious bits off, but a lot of it is in very thin sheets which are challenging to remove, especially when the meat is cubed.


texts: How to minimize salt taste from biryani?

texts:
I've tried Veg Biryani dish yesterday but I was failed to know the amount of salt to be added.
Its tasting little bit salty. I've to cook it again today night. Can somebody tell me how to reduce the salty taste in case Veg Biryani or any dish?

For person who don't know Veg Biryani:
http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/hyderabad-veg-biryani-hyderabadi-vegetable-dum-biryani-recipe/


texts: Is yogurt plus milk considered buttermilk?

texts: I've read somewhere (it was a vanilla cake recipe, IIRC) that 3/4 cup yogurt plus 1/4 milk is buttermilk. A recipe (buttermilk biscuits) calls for buttermilk and I'd like to know if I can use this formula to make buttermilk.


texts:
So, I have this jarred salmon here, caught up in Montana in 2010 I believe, cooked (not sure how) and sealed in a mason jar since. I opened the jar yesterday and tried a bit of the salmon on saltines. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it smelled and looked good upon opening the jar, nothing like the canned salmon you find in stores.

Anyway, there's a bunch of salmon left, and I'm not sure how long it will keep, and I don't want to eat it all on crackers. So, I figured I'd make either salmon patties or salmon dip, and, not being completely decided, I picked up ingredients for both.

When I returned home, I realized I only have one egg, not enough to make salmon patties; but now I'm leaning toward the patties, as I'm starting to get pretty hungry and the dip seems like more of a snack.

I'm wondering if there's any chance I could use the cream cheese as a substitute for the eggs, and make the patties that way, but lots of recipe searching has lead nowhere.

Will the cream cheese work as a substitute for eggs as far as doing the work of holding the patties together? Will it cook right? More importantly, will it taste good? Or should I put this idea out of my head and either go buy some more eggs or just make the dip?


texts: Can one keep chocolate uncovered in the freezer?

texts: I bought a chocolate bar and only hate half of it. I want to store it in the freezer, but part of it will be uncovered. Is this a safe way to store it in the freezer ?


texts: Can you tell how ripe a banana is by the actual fruit not the peel?

texts: Hi I am doing a research project on banana ripeness and cannot find a way to tell the ripeness of a banana from the inside of it. I cannot use taste to measure the ripeness but I would really like to have a chart of some kind and if possible a url where you found the chart. Thank you!


texts: Is it correct and safe to assume that "use by" dates are less precise the longer in future they are?

texts:
When there is some food (like cheese or ham) that has roughly a week "use by" date, I assume that it's safe to eat it a day after it's "use by" date.

For other food that has approx. half year "use by" date (like olives in glass or pesto) I think it's safe to eat it for anything up to a month or so.

And for canned foods having years it should be safe to eat few months after "use by" date.

My thinking is that it's harder to pinpoint the exact date the further the date is in the future. I would even expect that "use by" dates are something around the half time the food is still actually edible.

Am I correct in this line of thinking? Do you know of any reliable resources on this? I couldn't find anything.


texts: Will MSG improve taste of a food for someone who dislikes the food itself or will it make it worse?

texts: Let's consider a situation where someone dislikes a taste of, let's say, broccoli (or some other food), and MSG is added to that product during the cooking process to improve the taste. Will the taste actually become more pleasant for the person who dislikes broccoli, or will it make the taste even more unbearable (by making it more pronounced)?


texts: What other Italian cheese(s) could be substituted for parmesan in most recipes?

texts: I seem to be unable to tolerate Parmesan cheese (not the processed "parmesan-flavored" cheese, but the real Italian Parmesan) - as a topping it makes me gag, and if included in a recipe either nauseates me or gives me a stomach ache.  I have no trouble with Romano, Asiago, Auribella, etc.  Just the Parmesan.  What cheese (or combination of cheeses) could I substitute for Parmesan in most recipes and still get a good result?  thanx much!


texts: I'm trying to make cheddar sticks from scratch

texts:
What are common commercial food additives that keep the cheese 'melty', but not runny?

I have tried making fried cheddar sticks but the cheese just oozes out, like thick water...

Freezing first?  Freeze the breading too?


texts: Made a great soup with wild mushrooms . to thicken before serving I tried 2 tablespoons of corn starch mixed in water stirred it in slowly and cooked while  stirring for 5 minutes - no thickening! What do I do now?


texts: Difference between chicken and duck eggs?

texts: Our local Korean grocery store carries duck eggs in addition to chicken and quail eggs (both of which I've eaten). What differences should I expect if I buy the duck eggs and use them in egg dishes such as scrambled eggs?


texts: How to make and keep long grain organic brown rice tender

texts:
I am trying to meal prep brown rice. The brand I have bought, with no particular thought other than calories/carb amounts is this Long Grain Brown Rice 365 Whole Foods brand. The way I cook the rice is put in about 2 cups of rice and 2.5 cups water/broth mixture into my instant pot. I then pressure cook for 15 minutes. Occasionally I have also added spices to the rice/water mixture before cooking. I then immediately transfer to a container and store it in the fridge. To reheat, I just put in the microwave for 2 minutes.

The problem is that the reheated brown rice is firm and unpleasant. I feel like I am eating pebbles. I know brown rice will be naturally firmer than white rice but there should be a way to make it palatable. I read somewhere that long grain brown rice contains more of something that when refrigerated causes it to crystallize, so short-grain/medium-grain rice is better. In addition to that, what else can I do to make the rice come out as soft as possible and maintain that even when reheated?

I know that most people here probably cook rice on the stovetop but I would really prefer to use the instant pot because it's extremely convenient and I don't have much time to cook other than a few hours on Sunday.


texts: Substitute for demerara sugar in cookie recipe

texts:
I have a recipe for oatmeal cookies that uses demerara sugar. While I do have some demerara sugar, the quantity remaining is approximately 1/3 of what is needed for the recipe. (In normal circumstances I'd just go buy more but...)

What I do have is plenty of several other sugars: white caster sugar, golden caster sugar, light muscovado and dark muscovado.  (The best substitutes suggested by google are granulated brown sugars which unfortunately I don't have.)

Is there any one or combination of these that could be used to make up the remaining 2/3 weight of sugar while limiting the effect on the end result? (The recipe has the sugar creamed into butter, if this makes a difference.)


texts: How to decide between a French or a German pattern chef's knife?

texts: I'm getting ready to buy (or commission) a nice 10" chef's knife.  I need to decide between a French or a German pattern.  What are the pros and cons of each?


texts: Why do my teriyaki steaks come out hard and dry?

texts:
I have tried to make Teriyaki steaks (beef) and they come out dry and hard. They have been marinated with the Teriyaki sauce as instructed by various recipes but in the end the steak has taste but no juicy texture and they are hard to chew. I have tasted in a restaurant a Temaki corn/cone that had sliced Teriyaki beef steak in it which was splendid. I am trying to achieve that.  I have tried frying and grilling but both come out hard. Marinating for 2-3hours each time.

What could I be doing wrong?


texts: What does the phrase "B/E- inch slices" refer to in a recipe? I'm working on a recipe that calls for chicken breasts and that statement is used when telling how to slice the meat.


texts: What are good instructional cooking TV shows?

texts:
In the spirit of Aaronut's comment on my answer to TV Programs like Good Eats, what are good shows for people to really learn about cooking (the science behind cooking; the history and cultural significance between dishes), rather than just watching a chef prepare their favorite recipes?

(web videos and animations count, too)

This is community wiki, so please edit the main answer instead of posting a new one.  Please also make sure to include a description of the show and, if possible, a link.


texts: How long does it take garlic to germinate in the fridge?

texts:
If left in the fridge, how long does garlic take to germinate? I have experienced the green sprouts in the past, and was able to chop them off and eat the remaining garlic. I am curious add to how long that takes as I cannot remember.

This way I will know how much garlic to keep in the fridge at my friend's house, based on how much is used per week, since my friend insists that it must be kept in the fridge.

If I plant the garlic that has germinated in a pot, will it grow? How do you grow it?


texts:
I made a wine reduction sauce using a great merlot and some low sodium broth (onions and fond too!). I started by making a roux and then reduced the sauce. It has great consistency and tastes great but I'm afraid its a little too rich. Is there a way to brighten it up? I was thinking red-wine vinegar but I'm not sure.

TIA


texts: Is "quick brining" as effective as an overnight soak?

texts: I recently came across this article, Quickly Brine Chicken When You Don't Have Much Time, which suggests 2-3 hours in a 10% brine, followed by a 1-hour rest. Does this work? If so, are there any trade-offs over compared to using a longer, weaker brine?


texts:
I usually cook meat in a steamer or multicooker, and it gets very soft. This time I've decided to experiment and baked a big chunk of veal stuffed with garlic in the oven.

Not that result was dissapointing, but it is definitely far from what I've expected. It tastes more like, well, cold boiled pork. So its very dry.

My question is - can I "save" the situation and convert already baked chunk of meat to something that tastes let it put this way more soft?


texts:
I would find it very useful to have a list of empirical data on temperature-stability of spices.

Are there any systematical studies available?
Which spices can easily bear long durations of broiling, hot oven or barbecue?
Which lose flavor or deteriorate quickly?
Which develop displeasing flavors?
Which become unhealthy or even poisonous?
What can be done to preserve sensitive spices during hot cooking?

This topic comes close to my question. Can someone elaborate somewhat deeper on the matter?

UPDATE: I understand that my question may be too open-ended. I don't expect an exhaustive answer here, just hints and starting points for further study.


texts: What preparation is done to banana peppers?

texts:
I only recently moved to an area (Northeast Ohio) where banana peppers are a common topping on pizza and sandwiches, and have discovered I quite like them. When used as a topping, if I were to grow them in my garden next summer, what preparations would I have to do before putting them on a sandwich to get the same flavor? My suspicion is that they are pickled -- is that true?

In addition, I enjoy them because they are relatively mild. Is this natural or does something have to be done to make them milder?


texts: Gas burner is "clicking" - how can I stop this?

texts:
The ignition is clicking on my burner even though I turned it off. How do I stop this?

I unplugged the cooktop, but I don't know if it is safe to leave it this way. What should I look for? Can I keep it unplugged safely for any length of time?


texts: Do smokeless grills have an advantage over gas grills?

texts:
On my quest to balcony charcoal grilling, without bothering my neighbours, I have researched many solutions.

I am now, pretty sure, that I can limit the smoke of the actual burning by using the right coal (like cocos coal) and lighting it the right way.

However, the main problem appears to be the fat on coal dripping, which results in a lot of smoke, no matter the coal type.

I have stumbled upon a "smokeless charcoal grill", which is specifically designed to be smokeless and it looks like this:

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmVlfXxh-x0

From what I can tell, this grill hides the coal and works by indirectly heating the food, preventing fat dripping on the coal.

While this makes sense, this also limits the flavors, which develop by the dripping.

I wonder if there is no fat on coal dripping, does this even have an advantage over using a gas or electric grill?

Would the food still get some smokey flavour from the coal? Or is this actually the same as gas or electric flavorwise?


texts: Is it necessary to only boil vegetables (or chicken) or can they be pressure cooked and later be boiled for the flavour to seep in?

texts:
I was following this recipe (I've pasted it at the bottom of the question) for which the cooking time mentioned is 30 min. Although for me, it took around 45 min for the vegetables to get cooked.
Three questions:

Instead of waiting 45 min for the vegetables to get cooked, would it have been better to fry the onions in the cooking pot and meanwhile put the vegetables and some water into a cooker, wait until the first whistle, then take out the vegetables and add it to the onions in the cooking pot? I'm assuming that this would reduce the cooking time a lot, and hence save a lot of LPG gas too.

As asked above, would it be advisable to first cook chicken in a cooker before shifting it into a cooking pot for further boiling? It took me an hour to make chicken curry, starting from the onion frying, until the meat getting properly cooked.

After cooking, I noticed that the vegetable curry tasted bland. There was none of the spicy or tasty feel to it. Perhaps I added too less salt, but how exactly does one make the gravy (tomato puree was the gravy in this case) tasty? Is the salt added in-between meant to seep into the vegetables and give it a better taste or is the gravy supposed to form a greasy layer on the vegetables and give it a good taste?

The recipe
Mix Veg Recipe: Indian Mix Vegetables Recipe
AUTHOR: dassana
RECIPE TYPE: side
CUISINE: indian
PREP TIME:  20 mins
COOK TIME:  30 mins
TOTAL TIME:  50 mins
SERVES: 3
Simple and tasty recipe of mix vegetables made in indian style
INGREDIENTS
(measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)

2 cups of mix chopped veggies – cauliflower, carrots, potatoes, french beans, capsicum, peas.
1 onion chopped finely
2 tomatoes chopped finely
1 green chili chopped finely
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
2 tsp coriander powder/dhania powder
½ tsp turmeric powder/haldi
¼ tsp chilli powder (use more if you want it to be spicy)
½ tsp garam masala powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
8-10 paneer cubes (optional)
2 cups water
2 tbsp cream or malai
2 tbsp oil
a few sprigs of cilantro/coriander leaves chopped
salt as per taste

INSTRUCTIONS

In a kadhai or thick bottomed pan, heat oil.
Add cumin seeds. Once they splutter, add the chopped onions.
Fry the onions till they become transparent.
Add the ginger-garlic paste. Fry for a minute or till the raw smell disappears.
Add the tomatoes. Keep on stirring till the tomatoes become soft and pulpy. When the mixture becomes smooth and one, then add all the spice powders mentioned above.
The process of frying the tomatoes takes a little longer. If you want to quicken the process, add some salt to the onion-tomato mixture. Fry the tomatoes on a low flame as you don’t want the tomatoes to get burnt.
Now add all the spice powders one by one.
Stir the spice powders with the onion-tomato mixture. Add the green chili.
Mix in the chopped veggies, salt and water.
Cover and let the veggies cook.
Once the veggies are semi cooked…… that is they are half cooked. Add the cream. Give a stir.
Cover again and simmer the veggies till they are done.
Don’t forget to check the veggies after occasionally.
Add more water if the water dries up and if the veggies are still to be cooked.
If using paneer, then add the paneer once the veggies are cooked. Simmer without the lid for 2 minutes.
You can also garnish mix vegetable dish with fried paneer cubes.   Otherwise simply garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
Serve mix vegetables dish hot with pooris, parathas, kulcha or chapatis.


texts:
I made some refried beans in a slow cooker, loosely following the recipe from my cookbook. The recipe says to cook the beans with ½ teaspoon of salt. Is this necessary to properly cook the beans? I am starting from dry beans.

I actually used ½ tbsp of soy sauce instead of plain salt and the beans tasted fine, but I would rather add no salt or soy sauce.

I see from this question that salt can affect the softness of the beans, but it seems like the beans should soften eventually either way. Since I am making refried beans, I only need the beans to soften enough for me to break them apart with a hand mixer, and then I can continue cooking them until they’re ready.

This post at the New York Times only discusses using salt to add flavor to the beans, but I am not worried about that. If I make a salt-free batch of beans and don’t like the taste, I can always go back to adding salt next time.

So will the beans cook properly in a slow cooker without adding salt?


texts: Lump Charcoal vs Briquettes and variations in brands

texts:
I've been experimenting with BBQ on a variety of smokers for the past few years.

Originally I tried some Kingsford Briquettes and had a hard time managing the temperature.  There was an excessive amount of ash generated that seemed to choke out the fire.  I did a little research and found that clay is added to briquettes to give them their shape, and this was likely the cause of all the ash.

Since then (until recently), I've used lump charcoal and have been fairly happy with the results.

This summer I mistakenly purchased another bag of briquettes - Stubbs brand - and I've been using that ever since.  This charcoal seems to burn hotter and longer than the lump and without the excessive amount of ash I found when using the Kingsford.

Have others experienced this as well?

Do briquetes burn hotter and longer (in general) than lump?
Is Kingford a very "ashy" charcoal or maybe did I just get a bad bag?


texts: Is it a known technique to serve hot crispy-crust sandwiches on edge?

texts:
So, I'm not a chef and there are few foods I'm good at cooking. Grilled sandwiches, however, I would say are one of these few. Of course, for such sandwiches, with grilled or toasted bread, the crispness of the bread from toasting or grilling is a major component of the food experience. However, I have found that serving a sandwich the standard way, with on bread slice down, often results in a severe reduction in crispness, especially if the sandwich contains meat or other juicy items. Even if the sandwich insides are not so juicy, like for a grilled cheese, the release of water vapor due to the fact that the sandwich is hot, and having it trapped there between the sandwich and the plate, is enough to completely nullify the crispness of that piece of bread.

My personal solution to this is to cut the sandwich, typically diagonally, and plate it with the cut side down, so as to allow the release of water vapor to the air, and to mitigate juices going straight to the bread. I have found this to work quite well, as long as the sandwich is one that basically holds itself together decently well. (a toothpick can help.)

My question is whether this is a known plating technique for sandwiches, where the purpose of such plating is to maintain bread texture properties.


texts:
So these are stains that I tried to get off with everything this board has adviced. Still no end in sight.  I tried baking soda, citric acid, white vinegar, bar keeper's friend etc.

Does anyone know what these are? First time I'm getting these in 5 years of cooking, hard as hell to get off. I even tried to scratch it off but it doesn't work.


texts: I want to cook chicken legs, but will be out of house for 2.5 hours at what temp do I need to cook it at so it's not over or under cooked? I have just a basic oven, so I can't set a timer.


texts: How to substitute beetroot for other ingredients into a cake recipe?

texts:
Me and my roommate want to make a batch of brownies, however each of us has their heart set on a different recipe: I want to use one from Serious Eats because it's loaded with cocoa and I have a lot of faith in that site; he wants to use one that uses beetroot because he thinks it's healthier and someone gave him a few that we need to use up. (I thoroughly despise beets but I'm hoping that enough cocoa will cover them up here.)

Is there a way to get the best of both worlds? I've done cakes with shredded carrot and/or apples, and I assume the vegetables mostly contribute liquid and some structure. Is there some general rule I can use to replace some of the ingredients in a cake batter recipe for shredded beetroot other than trial and error?


texts: Can any liquid food be beaten into a mousse?

texts:
Hervé This discovered that one can make chocolate mousse with chocolate and water only.
This recipe is shown in this MasterChef video, and also detailed here.
Essentially, one melts chocolate with water, then whisks it over an ice bath to incorporate air bubbles, and after a while the mousse is formed.

Is this property unique to chocolate? Would this be possible, with, say, a strawberry purée?


texts: How to stick oreo biscuits together to make a tower?

texts:
I am attempting a castle cake with a dragon on it. I also want to make a tower to stick and stand up on the castle. The general idea to create the tower is to stick Oreo biscuits together and then to fondant the outside to make it look like a stone wall tower.

Can someone please help me figure out how to stick the biscuits together? I tried to Google but couldn't find much.


texts: I bought a PC stuffed turkey roll. It said keep frozen but I accidently left it in the fridge for two days. Is it still safe to cook from its defrosted state? It is small and stuffed.


texts:
My toaster is smoking and activating the fire alarm. I tried to clean the tray and the dust from the inside. I shook it pretty much and many black "things" came out. Although, it's still smoking.
I believe that the butter melted inside it and has gone to particulars places that I can't clean by shaking or taking the tray off.

Does anyone have a suggestion on how to clean it?


texts: I was cooking and I saw flames shoot up from under the oven element ... why might this be, and what can I do to prevent this? I wasn't too concerned because it wasn't the food that was on fire but rather just something under the element, and fortunately the stove is metal, so there shouldn't be a huge fire hazard ... correct?


texts: Why tandoori chicken does not dry out despite the high heat

texts: Indian tandoori chicken is cooked in a tandoor oven, with heat reaching 900F. How come the chicken does not dry out? Because of the yogurt marinade?


texts: Should I sear sous-vide chicken breasts?

texts: I'm planning on cooking some boneless skinless chicken breasts tonight sous-vide.  Should I finish them with a quick pan sear like I do with my steaks or should I just season and slice?


texts: What does "set aside for x hours" imply?

texts:
I'm following a recipe for making chutney and one of the steps is "Set aside for 24 hours". Does this mean in the fridge? If not, then does it just not matter?

I was going to leave it in the fridge overnight, since the recipe doesn't specify.


texts:
I tried making sourdough bread for the first time this week and it didn't work. I don't think it was a complete disaster but I didn't end up with anything that was eatable.

I followed Paul Hollywood's recipe for a starter over the course of the week, dividing and feeding it every couple of evenings. I'm pretty sure that it worked as I had plenty of bubbles in the first 24 hours after the last feed.

I made his basic recipe for a loaf and started straight after I got home from work. I left it to rise for a good 5 hours before knocking it back. At this stage the dough was silky smooth and felt like a good dough when I was working with it. I then shaped it into two balls and left it overnight in glass bowls covered with cling film (not a proving basket). By the morning the dough had clearly grown but it had also become loose and had lost its ball shape.

I decided to go ahead with the bake but I ended up with two flying saucers. When I cut into then bread it was very dense and hadn't risen at all in the oven. I tasted it and it definitely had the sourdough taste but it isn't bread...

Can anyone give me any suggestions for my next attempt? I've still got the starter but I haven't fed it again yet.

Thanks,
Alan


texts: Amount (percentage of sodium in meat being cooked) of sodium left in water (broth) after cooking meat

texts: On a low sodium diet (AFib and Congestive Heart Failure)- cooking stew- want to use the stock as a broth substitute- how do I figure the amount of sodium from the meat left in the broth?


texts: I've seen that macadamia nuts can be used as a substitute for candlenuts in Malaysian cooking. Is it a 1:1 substitution or do you need more macadamias. I'm not familiar with candlenuts, but pictures suggest they are larger than macadamias.


texts: What regular product can replace Philadelphia cooking creme in a chicken pie recipe?

texts:
This is the recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/220694/philly-chicken-pot-pie/

It's perfect because it's so simple, except I don't like the "cooking creme", which is an unappetizing concoction of strange ingredients and too much salt.

What regular food (or combination thereof) can be used in this recipe instead?


texts: Where can I find a pie pan with heavily slanted sides?

texts:
I'm trying to duplicate a Portuguese Sweet Bread that appears to be baked in a pan that's 2" deep, with slanted sides such that the inside diameter goes from 6 1/2" at the bottom to 7 3/4" at the top.

The bread looks something like this:

Portuguese Sweetbread

Anyone know where I can find a pan like this?


texts: White sauce with a deliberate raw-flour taste

texts:
A local Chinese restaurant serves what they call Portuguese Chicken: a small casserole dish with a bed of rice, pieces of crispy-fried chicken, sauce, and a sprinkling of (Parmesan?) cheese, lightly browned in a hot oven or broiler.

The sauce is like a basic white-sauce, but yellow colored (I suspect turmeric), but rather than the usual creamy flour/butter taste, while it is still smooth and creamy, it has a noticeable raw flour flavour.

That raw flour taste actually goes quite well with this dish.

Is it simply under-cooked, or is there a special technique or name for this kind of sauce?


texts: Without having a gas burner or a grill, is there still a way I can char vegetables such as a red pepper or corn on the cob? I have a glass-ceramic range and an oven - would I have to do it under the broiler?


texts: Can you freeze whole pomegranates to save them?

texts: I recently purchased a whole case of pomegranates, and it's getting hard to stand after doing 10 in a day, so can I safely freeze them whole to preserve the quality of the fruit?


texts: Thick layer of egg formed at the bottom of sponge cake

texts:
I've made several attempts on this recipe (the ingredients are on the video Description) and... I get the fluffiness of the cake and a great taste out of it once I throw in a bit of lemon or vanilla (whatever is available) to get rid of the egg smell but no matter what I do there's always a thin layer of eggs formed at the bottom.

I've added more flour (20 grams more to the 60 grams, a total of 80grams) but it didn't really do much to it.

I've whisked it the best I could, folded it as many times (10-15 folds)... I'm out of ideas sadly. I'm by no means experienced either so I just want to "perfect this" fluffy delight so I can finally make it properly.

The ingredients are: 5 egg yolks and one egg, 60g butter, 100ml milk, 60g plain flour, 20g corn flour and 5 egg whites, 1/4 tsp salt, 80g sugar.

The butter and milk are heated over a double boiler and mixed, the, off the heat, the flour stirred in, then the five eggs are stirred in. The eggs whites are whisked with the sugar and salt to stiff peaks and the batter folded in. The cake is then baked in a water bath at 150C for 90 minutes.


texts: Is a pizza like this unheard of in the USA?

texts:
My idea of a pizza, bought from a pizzeria in Sweden (at least growing up and when I last did, which was a few years ago now), is as follows:

A standard pizza dough is grabbed and turned into a flat circle. It's very thin.
Some tomato sauce is put in the middle and circled around to just cover the dough.
Small shreds (or flat, thin squares) of ham are sprinkled over this, in a reasonable amount which doesn't add significant height.
Cut pieces of standard "champion" (Agaricus) mushrooms are added, complementing the ham pieces but not "taking over" them in quantity nor taste.
Standard pizza cheese shreds are added on top, causing the entire thing to still look very thin and absolutely not anywhere near a "pan" pizza.
It's put into the pizza oven for a few minutes. (I don't remember exactly how long.)
The finished pizza has some oregano sprinkled on top from a jar.

It could also be that the cheese is put on before the other "toppings". I'm foggy on that detail.
The pizza described above is called "Capricciosa". If you remove step 4, it instead becomes what is known as a "Vesuvio". These two pizzas are what I consider "real pizzas". I have tried many other versions, but (almost) none of them taste good at all to me; it seems like this is the "gold standard" for what a pizza is.
However, Americans (and probably Italians) seem to have a completely different idea of what makes a pizza. At least judging by countless movies, TV series, live streams, videos, cartoons and photos I've seen. Most notably, the USA pizzas seem to be much thicker, what I'd call a "pan" pizza, with both way more bread part and fillings/toppings, and seem to never, ever contain the ingredients I mentioned above. It seems like "Pepperoni" is by far the most common. That is, little round slices of Pepperoni sausage. While that can be good for sure, it really gives the pizza a very different taste compared to the ham or ham + mushroom kind which I like.
I tried to locate a good photo, but sadly didn't find any. These two pizzas (which don't look very appealing on these photos) at least give an idea of what I'm talking about, I suppose:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Pizza_bella_vista.jpg (also includes pineapple and shrimps, so please ignore that)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Italian_pizza_from_stockholm.jpg (Vesuvio)

Is this "thin" kind of pizza, with specifically ham and mushrooms (or ham only), entirely nonexistent in the USA? Is that just something that nobody makes over there? Would perhaps nobody even want such a pizza? The typical American pizzas do look tasty, but it seems like they would be just "too much" with such enormous amounts of toppings.


texts: How to stop mint flavor dying when cooking?

texts:
I notice albondigas recipes involve adding chopped mint leaves to the meatballs. Whenever I do this the minty smell is amazing coming from the freshly rolled uncooked balls however after cooking I cant taste the mint at all, I have used a LOT of mint but even so I still cant taste it. Having read that the mint flavor fades when exposed to heat, how would the meatballs be cooked whilst retaining the flavor?
At the moment I brown them in the pan with a bit of oil then add them to the sauce and cook them for about 20 minutes.
Thanks


texts: What to look for when buying a rice cooker?

texts:
I think I can best explain the question by using a computer analogy. When buying a laptop there are specific qualities that a person looks for like

Processor speed
Screen size
Amount of memory

What are the qualities to look for with a rice cooker?


texts: Often when cooking rice a lot of it ends up sticking to the bottom of the pan and gets wasted. I'm using a frying pan with a non-stick surface. Is there a way to get all the rice out of the pan easily?


texts:
I have deep grooves in my back teeth, and regular toffee would get stuck in there easily, so I am looking to cook toffee that would turn out soft rather than hard.

Explanation; about ten years ago my mother cooked up such toffee by mistake. While I do not know for certain, I believe it was the following recipe the was botched:

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp. salt

Heat to boiling, until 285°F

My mother and I figured that perhaps everything was doubled except sugar (by mistake), so I attempted to recreate it like so. After letting it settle, the butter was starting to separate a little bit (it wasn't that bad). While the toffee was at room temperature or above, it was really hard and sticky, like caramel, and it was melting into the other pieces of toffee. After cooling it in the fridge it was surprisingly softer but not quite what I was hoping for. The texture of the original toffee from a decade ago was compared to peanut brittle by several people, however I don't remember it vividly enough to confirm.

I don't want to vainly waste ingredients so I'd appreciate any ideas on how to get my toffee as described.


texts: What's the difference between a flauta and a taquito?

texts:
At one of my favourite local Mexican haunts they list Flautas and Taquitos as separate meals.
One day, they were out of flautas and the waiter suggested I get taquitos as they are "the same".

They definitely tasted similar, but why are they listed as separate entities if they are the same?

Can anyone shed some light on this?

The flauta I'm refering to is a deep fried corn tortilla filled with chicken approximately the same size as a spring roll.


texts: What is this leafy green with a sharp taste, and how do I safely use/cook it?

texts:
I recently purchased this vegetable at a farmers' market without getting its name. It was marketed as organic/fresh/local in the Northeastern United States in late September.

The leaves are thin and non-waxy, but a little moist (when I try to slide my fingers across the leaves they stick a little).
When I tasted a small portion of a leaf raw, I immediately felt moderate burning in the mouth which I (mistakenly) believed to be oxalic acid at first. In reality, it was a mustardy spicy/sharp taste (which I didn't expect from greens). Because I don't know the name of this plant, I'm not sure if this is the case. In light of that concern, does it require any special preparation to be safe for healthy individuals?


texts: Aside from saving gas or electricity, why cover the pot?

texts:
There are some recipes that insist that you have to cover the pot when cooking. For example, in this video recipe for Bolognese sauce (at 7:36).
I understand that this might save gas or electricity by reducing heat loss. But does it serve any other purpose?
I do not consider it to be essential for the food not drying up, since you can leave the pot uncovered and just add a bit more water at the beginning, or add water at the end if you notice that too much has evaporated.
The only thing I can think about is that this might increase the humidity inside the pot, and perhaps the steam will help cook the food or change the flavor somehow. If this is true, what types of food would benefit from cooking with the lid on in terms of flavor?

PS: This is related to Why not cover the pot? but not the same.


texts: Is Italian style gelato achievable with standard home ice cream makers and home freezers?

texts:
I've not had much success trying to make Italian style gelato at home though French style ice cream works very well.

I'm using the Cuisinart ICE-100 which comes with both an ice cream and a gelato paddle. The gelato paddle definitely does produce more dense results with less air though the Cuisinart doesn't allow you to control the churning speed (like most home ice cream makers).

My main problem is that if I make a litre of ice cream and store it in the home freezer it will freeze so solidly that it can't be scooped at all - it can just about be cut with some effort.

Any recommendations, tips, recipe books? I don't mind put in some more effort at the cooking stage and allowing some time in the fridge at the serving stage for the gelato to come up to the right serving temperature.


texts: I have a recipe requesting pasta #2 as an ingredient.  What is pasta #2?  I searched in several places but found nothing useful.


texts: Why is the salt washed off the cabbage in kimchi but not on sauerkraut?

texts: All the videos I have seen always wash the salt off the Napa cabbage in kimchi but they never do in sauerkraut?  How come?  Is the brine necessary for fermentation?


texts: How do I cook frozen Goya Empanadas in the microwave?

texts: How do I cook frozen Goya Pizza Empanadas in the microwave?


texts:
I'm making Chicken and Dumplings for dinner tonight but I had forgotten that I loaned out my usual Dutch oven, I won't be able to get it back in time. That leaves me with two choices, I can use my back up Dutch oven, but it's a bit small for the massive batch I'd like to make (I'm in the mood to share). It does have a tight fitting lid though. My other option is a nice big pot, perfect size, but it doesn't have a lid. I have a skillet lid that almost fits, but it leaves a gap of about 1/4 inch by 3 inches. How important is a snug lid to fluffy dumplings?

My dumplings will be flour, baking powder, salt, milk, schmaltz and thyme. They'll be dropped on thickened stew.


texts: Has anyone tried to cook spaghetti or other pasta in a skillet?

texts:
I was watching Sara Moulton's TV show last night. She did a segment on breakfast for dinner. Part of the one recipe involves browning the pasta in a skillet first. Later on, it is cooked with some chicken stock and water.

http://saramoulton.com/2016/01/spaghetti-with-bacon-eggs-and-toasted-crumbs/

Has anyone tried cooking this way? Does the pasta take on a different flavor or texture?


texts: Chemically speaking, why do you have to add chilli pwder earlier rather than at the end?

texts:
From other answers on this site I can see that people seem to agree that adding curry powder later or at the end will lead to a bitter, grainy and perhaps unpalatable product.  I'm assuming this applies to chilli powder too since I've been adding at the end and have what seems bitter and grainy.  Therefore I guess you should add it earlier on.

I would like to know, chemically speaking, why is this?  Is it because the water level maybe low and water is required to bring out the powders flavors, is it because the powder dissolves more with time etc?  I've been adding chilli powder at the end and not too happy with the results. I want to make sure I get it at the right time and understanding the chemistry of it helps you cook better and add it just at the right time.


texts: How to make soft-boiled eggs without breaking them?

texts:
Here's the difficulty:

If I put the eggs in a pot with cold water, then I can't reliably control how they cook. There are too many factors: amount of water, pot size, heat setting, etc.

If I put them in already boiling water, then I can get good results by controlling only the timing. The problem is that too often the eggs will crack from the heat shock.

I tried placing the eggs in warm water (from the tap) for 5 minutes so they wouldn't be fridge cold, and also laying them gently in the pot with a spoon, but sometimes they still crack. Is there a way to avoid this?


texts: What is the difference between malai paneer and paneer?

texts: What is the difference between paneer and malai paneer? My wife asked me to buy paneer. In the shop I saw malai paneer and bought it. Are they the same?


texts: I want to know what is this fruit called in English


texts:
I made marinara sauce using NYT Marinara Sauce Recipe, which recommends the  28oz of DOP certified San Marzano tomatoes for pizza sauce.

It tasted great, but unfortunately it had more liquid than I was hoping. So I was wondering where I went wrong..

Should I not have squeezed as much as I did?
Should I have used pan larger than 11 inch diameter? (it felt like the sauce wasn't that low).
Should I have pre-processed the squashed tomatoes through a strainer?


texts:
Which factors influence the moment of soft-into-hard egg during the boiling?

size of the egg
putting egg to cold/hot water
colour of the egg
atmospheric pressure (water boiling temperature)

How to accurately find the point when egg turns hard?


texts:
I have a lovely rhubarb plant in the backyard.  It grows like a weed, as rhubarb is wont to do.

On occasion, I like to slice off some stalks and bake myself up a nice rhubarb crisp, or a rhubarb cobbler, or some rhubarb turnovers.  Delicious.

Inevitably, when I eat these, I end up with the gritty "rhubarb teeth" effect.  I'm not sure if it's just me, or if my rhubarb weed plant just produces an unusually high concentration of oxalic acid, but it's annoying.

I understand that drinking milk can exacerbate the effect, but the only milk I tend to consume along with my rhubarb is in the recipe itself (usually in the form of butter).  I quite strongly dislike using margarine in any of my recipes so I would prefer not to make that replacement if I can avoid it.

Are there any (other) methods or tricks I can use while cooking my rhubarb which will reduce the gritty teeth effect?


texts:
My husband is constantly storing opened blocks of cheese in the same container as his summer sausage, also opened. He insists that they don't need to be separated and that I am being paranoid. I say he needs to dump his bachelor habits before we all get sick.

Who is right?


texts:
Recently made butter in my stand mixer.  Squeezed it dry and rinsed it before kneading in sea salt.  However, when left out the butter is not softening as store bought butter would to make it spreadable.

So I'm wondering which part of the process might affect this.  Did I over-drain it? Or is the salt keeping it solid at warmer temps? Or something else?


texts: Is there a kind of food like bread that I can use to absorb sauce but that doesn't dry out so fast?

texts:
This is more related to eating than cooking: is there a kind of food that I can use to absorb sauce but that doesn't dry out as fast as bread?

I was thinking in the context of using bread to get the remaining sauce from a plate. And rice of pasta are par meals whereas this would be complementary to a meal.

  when you say "dry out fast" do you mean over the course of the meal, or that the loaf dries out over a few days before you can eat it all?

I mean over 1 or 2 days, which for me is a pretty short period of time, too short for it to be worth buying fresh bread ever.

  Depending on the meal, would thick cut chips be a suitable substitute? (UK chips FYI)

Yes I guess it could work, although not as well because chips don't absorb as well as bread, but it does take more effort and time to prepare. I had something easier in mind but I realize that what I'm looking for might not exist.

I was thinking of something like indian naan bread but I'm not sure that it is much better at staying fresh...


texts: I have a recipe that calls for 3/4 tsp of "Italian seasoning" plus 1/2 tsp sage. My Italian seasoning already has sage in it although I am aware that some do not. My question is do I still add the 1/2 tsp sage as it may be overpowering in sage, or do I just increase the Italian seasoning from 3/4 tsp to 1 tsp or 1 1/4 tsp? My gut tells me up the Italian seasoning to 1 tsp or 1 1/4 tsp and don't add more sage. As I am not much of a cook, I could use some experienced help. Btw, I have McCormick Brand Italian seasoning.


texts: Why does some cookie recipes both put sugar and brown sugar? Also can we use sweetener like stevia instead of sugar in recipes?

texts:
Why does some cookie recipes both put sugar and brown sugar? What is sweeter regular sugar or brown sugar? Also can we use sweetener like stevia instead of sugar in recipes? Will it give a sweeter taste? If it works what amount would you put in if the recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar?

Thank you :)


texts: When is MSG suitable and when is it not?

texts: Does adding msg to any recipe or dish always make it taste better? It doesn't seem to have much of a taste on its own. EDIT I'm not asking HOW it makes things taste better, I'm asking which dishes it would work well with, and which dishes it won't. Apologies for the misunderstanding.


texts: How to make cookies without using greaseproof paper or a baking tin?

texts: I don't have greaseproof paper nor a baking tin and I'm baking cookies. What should I do?


texts: Does soaking in saltwater for 20 mins help cleanse mussels?

texts:
After reading both sides of the debate (cp. beneath), I can't make up my mind!

I live in Toronto, Canada. I buy my mussels from Diana's Seafood or Loblaws.

Evidence for soaking in salt water for 20 mins

Try This Simple Tip for Plump Steamed Mussels and Clams | Kitchn

  Just before cooking, soak mussels or clams in a bowl filled with cold water, salt and about 1/4 cup of flour for about an hour. Why do this? The benefits are twofold: 1. Removing debris [...] 2. Plumping up mussels & clams [...]

How to Clean Mussels | Saveur

  3. Using your hands, agitate mussels gently to remove any debris clinging to the shells. Let mussels soak for 15 minutes. During submersion, mussels filter water in and out of their shells as they breathe. Soaking encourages them to expel any sand or debris remaining inside.

YouTube — Bart Van Olphen at 0:09, Just Eat Life at 0:23 soak them.

Evidence against
Don't fear the mussels - Chicago Tribune by James P. DeWan, Special to the Tribune. DeWan is an instructor at the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago. Mar 15 2006.

  2. Just before cooking, rinse the mussels under cold running water. If they're gritty, scrub them with a brush (photo 1). Discard any with broken or cracked shells. Mussels that feel unusually heavy are probably filled with mud and should be tossed. Tap any whose shells are open with a knife. If the shell closes, the mussel is alive and therefore good. Discard any that won't close.

  Now, many cookbooks and chefs alike advocate soaking mussels in tap water for an hour or so before cooking. The idea is that they'll take in the clean water and eject any sand or grit that's hiding inside their shells. Some sources suggest adding flour, cornstarch or cornmeal to the water to encourage the purging. Others suggest these additions will fatten the mussels or whiten their flesh in the process.

  However, knowing that mussels are ocean creatures, and me being generally suspicious anyway, I decided to consult three experts: two marine biologists and one "seafood technology specialist." All three agreed that tap water is the mussel's enemy. At best, the mussel will simply shut its shell, precluding any purging; at worst, it will drown.

  While one expert said that mussels soaked in fresh sea water (hard to come by here in the Midwest) will purge themselves of some grit, the other two agreed that farm-raised mussels (and commercially available mussels are nearly all farm-raised) are relatively clean to begin with and don't need purging.

  My conclusion: Don't soak. Just rinse, and hope for the best.

Seafood Safety: What Consumers Need to Know

  Store live shellfish, such as oysters and mussels in the shell, in a shallow dish covered with damp towels or moistened paper towels. Never put live shellfish in water or in an airtight container. Scrub shells with a stiff brush just prior to shucking or cooking.

Mussels: How To Clean Mussels

  To clean the shells put them under running water and rub against each other for a few minutes. Run under the water until the mussels feel smooth with no visible gritty residue. Never put mussels in standing water (i.e., in a bowl of water): they will open to breathe, releasing the salt water and absorbing the tap water. That's exactly what we want to avoid.

YouTube — Chefs Becky Salengut, Franck Dangereux, Thomas Joseph don`t.


texts: Drawback of Kullenschliff (Granton) knives

texts:
For many knifes are available with or without Kullenschliff while the price differs just a few $ (or few EUR).

The positive effect is that soft and sticky food such as cucumber sticks less on the blade due to air pockets.

For example these two identical knifes with and without Kullenschliff:

WÜSTHOF CLASSIC Cook´s knife No. 4572 / 20 cm (8")
WÜSTHOF CLASSIC Cook´s knife No. 4582 / 20 cm (8")

You can find similar examples for other manufacturers too.

What are the drawbacks of the air pockets?

When is the knife without air pockets the better solution?

(beside the very little higher price)


texts: Why mix wet and dry ingredients separately?

texts: Often in baking, instructions say to mix wet and dry separately, then add wet to dry. Chemically, shouldnt mixing it all into one single mushy lump produce the same mixture of ingredients as mixing dry and wet separately and then combining? Why bother separating the two (and dirtying more bowls along the way)?


texts: Can I make my dough for dinner rolls ahead in bread maker and refrigerate overnight?

texts: I want to make my dough for dinner rolls tonight in my bread maker and bake in the morning. Will this work? Also do I cut and shape before putting in the fridge for the night or do I do this in the morning before baking?  Thank you.


texts: My newer pans scratch really easily but I noticed that my mother's older, (bought in the 70s I think) heavier stainless pans don't scratch easily at all. The inside of hers looks a bit like the bottom (exterior) of my newer pan, sort of like a stainless steel sink, heavy duty. Hers are super easy to clean, mine always need baking soda to clean. I have a bottom of the line Henckels pan and a reasonably good Denby pan, both 18/10 stainless I think but they are very thin on the sides. They also look like they have a bit of a finish to make them look shiny. I'm wondering if the older pans are a lot better than what is available now. I hope I haven't repeated any questions answered before. Thanks!


texts:
I've read a bunch of threads on botulism risks in various foods, but had a specific question about a recipe I sometimes use.

This is for a pizza sauce. The recipe calls for:

1 can (28 oz) of crushed tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1.5 teaspoons of salt
2 tablespoons of olive oil

One just mixes everything together.  No cooking.  The recipe says you can leave it in the fridge covered for up to a week.  But I was wondering: if I put this in a plastic bowl, filled halfway, cover it tightly with Saran-wrap and then leave it in the fridge for a week, can it grow botulism because of the mixture of garlic and a small amount of olive oil?  Is a half filled bowl considered anaerobic because the garlic would be completely submersed in the tomato / oil mixture?  I've read that tomatoes may not have a low-enough pH to inhibit botulism growth.  Even though it would get cooked at a high temperature in the oven later on, I still wouldn't want to take any chances, so am curious if there's any risk with this.

I appreciate any advice you may have!
Many thanks.


texts: I came across one of my mother's cookbooks from 1954.  A lot of the baked goods call for "1 cake of yeast".  What would be the equivalent of this in today's supermarket?


texts: I have beans cooking in the crock pot and I'm at work. Just realized there is no water. I forgot the water!! What should I expect to come home to?


texts: What are these crispy bits on top of rice?

texts:
What are these crispy bits on top of rice that look something like this, but are perhaps a bit smaller:

(Picture taken from this blog post.)


texts: Can any bones (but specifically Beef Shortribs) be used to make bone broth AFTER they've done a stint in the crockpot?

texts: Today, I have beef shortribs in the crockpot for Caribbean Beef Ribs for hubby's birthday.  After we're done feasting, are the bones still usable for making bone broth?


texts: Why add vodka to batter for frying fish?

texts:
At 4:46 in this video, Heston Blumenthal adds vodka to the batter for fried fish. This article in Robb Report also describes the process:

The star chef begins his experiment in an elevated way. He’s not using cod or halibut. No, no, no. This is a three-Michelin-star chef, so he’s going right for the whole turbot that he butchers himself to ensure maximum freshness and the correct portion size.
For the batter he mixes flour, rice flour, honey, vodka, and a beer. That’s all pretty standard, until he puts them in a CO2 cannister to make the batter even airier. Once the fish is dredged in flour and coated in batter from the soda cannister, he fries it. For one last step to make the batter crispy and thick, he drizzles more of it onto the fish while it’s in the frying oil.

What’s the purpose of the vodka?


texts: I have been thawing my uncooked chicken in my sink for years, and my family never got sick from eating it. Why can't you thaw uncooked chicken or any type of meat in your sink or on your countertop?


texts: Will lowfat cream cheese keep filling from setting?

texts: I made a cream pie filling out of 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1 block cream cheese and 1 large cool whip. While it tasted fantastic, it did not set. I did use lowfat cream cheese and wonder if that is the culprit?


texts: Can I reprocess jars of salsa that didn't seal

texts:
I made salsa last night and this morning all jars didn't seal.
Can I just put new lids on them and put them back in hot water bath?


texts: How to lower freezing temperature of butterscotch?

texts:
My current butterscotch recipe is a simple brown sugar, butter, and cream. When attempting to use it as a topping for ice-cream, I have to heat it up to warm/hot to get it to be a liquid. After pouring it on some ice-cream, and in the time it takes to walk 20 feet from kitchen to living room, the butterscotch has already come back to cold and has become a sticky, solid texture.

What can I add to my butterscotch to lower its freezing/solidifying point so that it remains a viscous liquid when added to ice cream (like a consistency between maple syrup and molasses)?


texts: Is there a significant difference in flavor between black and white truffles?

texts: I've tried both black and white truffles on separate occasions, but never side by side.  Is there a meaningful difference between the two as far as flavor is concerned?


texts: Which other spices besides cloves will react with plastic?

texts:
I am reading that cloves can cloud the plastic in my grinder at Cooking for engineers

Does this happen with any other spices?


texts: Spots in Stainless Pots after cleaning in self cleaning oven

texts: Is there anyway to restore the Stainless finish to a pot that has been cleaned in a self cleaning oven.  I burned it so badly it was the only way to salvage the pan. Still works great and didn't warp but it has a bad stained finish on the inside.  Anything I can do to restore the nice finish??


texts: Do I need two filters to strain cold brew coffee?

texts: I have a Filtron cold brew system that uses both a paper filter and a wool filter to strain the coffee after it has brewed. However, in the last batch, I forgot to insert the wool filter! Is it okay to strain the coffee through the paper filter alone before drinking it, or is the wool filter doing something that the paper filter does not?


texts: How do I make Fresh Asian Noodle (similar to Egg Noodle)? What are the ingredients and the steps to make them? I am asking about noodles, not a dish.


texts: How to butter and flour the chimney of a bundt form

texts:
I recently baked a rather sticky cake which called for a bundt pan. When I use a standard cake pan, I first put on the fat (either pouring oil and swishing it, or smearing butter with my fingertips) and then add some flour. Then I stand the pan in the position of a wheel and start turning. The flour gradually falls onto new, unfloured parts of the inner circumference and sticks to the fat.

When I tried it with a chimnied pan (actually a Frankfurter Kranz pan, but should go the same way with a bundt), no flour fell onto the chimney. No matter how I tried powdering the chimney, I found no way to move the pan so that the flour would distribute itself evenly. I then tried smearing the flour, but it stick to my fingers and the parts which stayed on the pan got overfattened instead of building a floury barrier.

What is a good technique to ensure that I have a nice fat-and-flour covering on the bundt? I am not asking about any kind of nonstick sprays, etc., just fat (solid or liquid) plus flour.


texts: What temperature are dark beers (stouts and nut browns) supposed to be consumed at?

texts: I remember reading somewhere that certain beers are supposed to be drunk much closer to room temperature than most people drink them for optimal flavor.  Specifically stout beers and nut brown ales are only supposed to be "slightly chilled".  I think I read that the temperature for optimal flavor is around 55 ℉ (13 ℃).  However, most people I've met are shocked when I tell them this and swear by a nice cold one.  My own personal experience does seem to confirm the "slightly chilled".  Am I crazy?


texts: I would like to prepare a dish with fennel (foeniculum vulgare) as it has blossomed recently. Should I cultivate the leaves, fruits and afterwards the bulb or should I leave the bulb since it is a perennial. Further, how am I to cook and include these or can they be eaten raw?


texts: How do I separate two fish fillets that have been frozen together?

texts:
Sometimes when I get frozen fish, it comes with several pieces frozen together (specifically, Trader Joe's does this with all of their frozen fish).

Is there any good way of separating them without fully thawing?

This could also apply to other frozen things, but I'm mainly interested in fish.


texts: Is it normal if ceramic pan looks like that after the first use?

texts: Is it ok that it looks like that after I roasted with no oil (first use)? I tried to rub it off really good it with a soft tissue and a dish soap. Except whatever left on the surface (what you see on the photo) food wasn't sticking to it.


texts:
So I am cooking chorizo+squid pasta/stew and I think a little spoon of red pesto will be great addition to it.

I wonder should I put pesto while it's cooking or when sauce is ready?


texts: Alternative thickener for soups and stews

texts:
What thickener will add least calories to soups and stews, producing effects similar to "regular" thickeners? All the ones I know are either pretty high-calorie, or produce results that are quite off "regular".

roux - lots of fat and carbs
flour + sour cream - same.
potato starch / mashed potatoes / instant potato puree - lots of carbs.
mashed beans - high protein content
xanthan gum - weird texture (shear-thinning liquid).
gelatin - very temperature dependent, almost no thickening effect on hot meals.

What are my other options?


texts: Whenever I need to heat up water for a French press or hot chocolate, I do it in the microwave. Is there a good reason to use a kettle instead of the microwave to heat water?


texts: Could I use chili powder in a homemade hot sauce recipe?

texts:
My boyfriend is allergic to the skins of chilies, peppers and tomatoes, which he's found means he can have chili powder (and variants), but not dried pepper/chili flakes or fresh versions of the aforementioned.

So could I use chili powder/paprika/maybe cayenne pepper in a hot sauce recipe instead of true chilies?

Thanks


texts: When multiplying in baking, should I follow directions all-at-once or batches?

texts:
If I am making pie dough, for instance, is there a reason to prefer doing things in batches, besides it being more manageable for my tools/hands? This would help answer this question (two good answers which differ on this point). Obviously, you want to divide the bulk into portions at the end, i.e. for the pies. But why sooner?

I always figured that following the directions all-at-once until the end ensured that the final product, by whatever multiplier, is consistent throughout.

I'm assuming that when baking in large quantities, we are measuring by weight, not volume, so accuracy shouldn't be an issue.


texts: Does ingredient order matter when making Yorkshire Puddings?

texts:
With a mother-in-law who hails from the North of England I am well aware that when I make Yorkshire puddings my method is scrutinized.  Luckily I have been assured by the master of such delights that my method is correct.  First put in the flour, then the egg then the milk - any other way (as in putting the milk before the egg) just does not work!  OK, it may sound silly, but I would never consider doing it any other way.

Can other methods work, or is this the only one which will give good results?


texts: Which alternative fats, not butter or avocado, are good to make chocolate frosting

texts:
This (Allrecipes Chocolate Avocado Pudding) is a great recipe for Chocolate Avocado pudding, which I use as a frosting for cakes. So, sticking away from normal basics for frostings such as butter, what could I substitute for the avocado in this recipe?

  Ingredients

  2 large avocados - peeled, pitted, and cubed
  1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  1/2 cup brown sugar

  1/3 cup coconut milk
  2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  1 pinch ground cinnamon

  Directions

  Blend avocados, cocoa powder, brown sugar, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and cinnamon in a blender until smooth. Refrigerate pudding until chilled, about 30 minutes.


texts:
This question is about the plastic "Oven Bags" used to roast various kinds of meat or poultry in. I have some of these made by Reynolds Co., and in the Cooking Guide that came along in the package, it says: "Add 1 TBSP flour to bag. Shake! This helps prevent bag from bursting." This was before you put the rest of the food into the bag. Well, it didn't burst, so I guess that means it worked, but they also had me cut six slits into the bag to let steam escape.

My question is how would the 1 TBSP flour prevent the bag from bursting, and why would it burst anyway, with six slits in it?


texts: Flavour matching with espresso in baking

texts: I am trying to create a few new recipes and I am stuck on what other ingredients (flavours) would go well with espresso in a baked item.


texts:
Back many moons ago I used MSG all the time. When a lot of controversy cropped up I gradually went away from using it as I was concerned about the high sodium content it was purported to have.

Now, after doing more reading, I found that MSG has only approximately 1/3 of the sodium content found in table salt. So, my trusty Accent is back in my spice cabinet.

My question is how does it enhance the flavor of foods?


texts:
So I'm an expatriate at a totally new place, and all bread sold in here got 2~4 days expiry and I usually don't finish it in that short period of time, I always store all kinds of breads and pastry/bakery in the freezer, and get them out before using by few hours, then get the rest back to the freezer.
So I was wondering is it safe to eat an expired bread? The color and smell of the bread never changed at all.

If it might make any difference, the type of bread I'm referring to is pita bread.


texts:
Each day, you're supposed to get a certain number of servings of grains, vegetables, fats, etc. You know, the food pyramid.

However, instead of going to all the trouble to prepare three meals with several courses each and every day, I'd like to just have the same thing to eat, all the time. I'm hoping this isn't considered sacrilege for this site!

What I'm describing is an Überfood, as it has a near-perfect balance of all of the daily intake requirements. They make it for cats, dogs, and other mammals, so I'm sure it's possible for us primates. Like cats and dogs, I'd of course have the occasional treat, but it would always be above-and-beyond and not part of my daily nutrients.

What considerations should I put into making an Überfood?  Ideally, it would be shelf-stable and not need refridgeration. Texture and taste are less important.

Clearly, I don't know much about cooking or food preparation... But I think there's a better way than just buying an industrial blender, throwing a bunch of vitamins, vegetables, protien, etc., and seeing what turns up.


texts: Do I need baking powder/baking soda for my flourless corn bread?

texts:
So I completely forgot to add the flour into this corn bread recipe:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted

Fold wet ingredients into dry until just moistened,
bake in an 8x8 pan at 400F for 20-25 minutes

Everyone liked it and wants me to make it exactly the same way going forward.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

My questions is: Do I still need the baking powder and baking soda?


texts: It seems like there are a few broad categories of fish, and I can easily substitute any fish of a given category for any other most of the time. The one I'm most familiar with is whitefish: a recipe for cod comes out just as well with halibut or tilapia. Are there other such categories? What are they?


texts: In cookie making, Does creaming time change with the amount of butter used?

texts: i cream 40  grams  of  butter  with  50 grams  of  sugar    for  2  min. i get  good  results. if  a cream  double  these  amounts,   would  the  creaming  time  change?  thank  you


texts: Is it ok to Brine a turkey ahead of roasting time

texts: I would like to brine my turkey on Tuesday. Take it out of the brine Wednesday, rinse it and keep it in the refrigerator until I roast it on Thursday. Is this ok?


texts: How to heat up already baked french bread in oven to get a crispy crust

texts: Where I live I do not have access to great quality bakery breads. Is there a way to heat up an already baked french sandwich baguette in oven to get a crispy outer texture? Water mist on top before baking, egg wash etc?


texts: Which parts of fresh Fenugreek am I supposed to throw off before attempting to dry them out completely?

texts:
The fresh Fenugreek which I bought contains:
- long stems
- green leaves
- yellow leaves

I wish to know what parts of fresh Fenugreek am I supposed to throw off before attempting to place them drying out completely?


texts:
My ice cream doesn't feel creamy enough. I got the recipe from Good Eats, and I can't tell if it's just the recipe or that I'm just not getting my "batter" cold enough before I try to make it. I let it chill overnight in the refrigerator, but it doesn't always come out of the machine looking like "soft serve" as he said on the show - it's usually a little thinner.

Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/serious-vanilla-ice-cream-recipe/index.html


texts: How to save failed pie crust dough (warm butter)?

texts: OK, I've accidentally used warm butter in a common pie crust recipe (250 g flour + 205 g butter + salt + cold water). The dough formed before I could even add some water at it does not look like the dough you could form a normal pie crust from - it is barely rollable at all. What can I do to turn it into a more or less usable pie crust or anything else usable at all?


texts: I have an unopened vacuum packed ball of Mozzarella.  How long can I keep it refrigerated before it goes bad? I'm getting mixed answers.


texts: Making "french fries" out of Cassava/Yuca root

texts:
I'm surprised this question isn't already on here, maybe I missed it...

To start, had my first taste of yucca cooked as a sort of alternative french fry at a Bolivian restaurant, and it was delicious. Reminded me of a tastier, sweeter french fry.
So inspired by this, I bought some myself and attempted to replicate it, but utterly failed.

What is the best way to replicate the recipe? After watching a video on youtube of how to prepare it, I deep fried it in oil, but it overcooked much too quickly.

UPDATE:

I tried out the selected answer's recipe yesterday, and it worked fantastic. I did a few things differently though, mainly due to time constraints. Full recipe:

Cut off brown skin.
Slice into steak fry slices
Boil for 10mn (I would suggest less, some thinner slices became too soft)
Place in freezer (I only had time for 20-30 mn, but I'd go with the full hr as suggested by the selected answer if you have the time)
Heat Peanut oil (Med-High) in deep cooking pot (can get messy) and cook until brown.
Sprinkle with salt

Note: The answered recipe suggests frying until golden/golden brown, but I found a darker fry to be much tastier!


texts:
At my job we bake 3oz chocolate chip, peanut butter and oatmeal raisin cookies from scratch. I've been baking them to be soft on the inside and crispier on the outer edges but these cookies end up being pretty fragile. The way they display the cookies might be part of the issue (they stack them on top of each other so the top cookies end up collapsing on top of the bottom cookies) but even still when you go to grab them they easily fall apart. Mostly the oatmeal and the peanut butter ones. I was wondering what might be the cause of this and if anyone has any tips on preventing this! Thank you so much!

~Rianne


texts: Can I substitute two percent milk for low fat milk and bourbon in a cake recipe?

texts: I'm making Banana-Nut Pound Cake and the recipe calls for low-fat milk or bourbon. I don't have these two ingredients. Can I substitute 2% milk instead?


texts:
I LOVE stirfrying (I probably do it 4 times a week) and I want to take it to the next level (or 2). I am going to get this burner to cook my stirfry's out on the patio.

I am wondering if I should also get a cast iron wok, or should I just stick with the carbon steel that I have been using?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  How can I make a silky smooth, rich mash?

My mash potatoes are usually not very tasty.

I sometimes add some cheese or butter (together with milk) but I never manage to make a good one! Probably the quantities are wrong.

Could you give me some help ?
Thanks


texts: What's the best way to defrost ice-cream/sorbet quickly?

texts:
I made some sorbet at the weekend, and realised just when we were due to serve that I had forgot to take it out of the freezer to soften, and so it was rock hard.

What is the best way to bring it to a usable temperature quickly?  We chucked it in the microwave and then hacked it with a spatula, but ended up with a lumpy texture as many parts were still very frozen.  Any ideas to avoid a repeat in the future would be appreciated.


texts:
A month ago I made a mango/lime/cilantro sorbet that is delicious.  The problem is I put the sorbet into a quart sized container and it's frozen solid (I keep my freezer very cold).  Can I safely thaw (or partially thaw) the sorbet and put it into popsicle molds and then refreeze the popsicles?  The ingredients are mango, lime juice, cilantro, sugar, and possibly a little water (I can't remember).

The recipe I used was from http://low-cholesterol.food.com/recipe/very-basic-mango-lime-sorbet-224706.  The only thing I changed was I added one bunch of cilantro chopped in the food processor with the mango.  And I used my ice cream maker.

Ingredients

2  lbs mangoes, chopped (frozen is fine)

1⁄2 cup lime juice (fresh is best)

2⁄3 cup sugar (super-fine is recommended)

1  cup water

Directions

Make simple syrup: Add sugar to water in small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar is fully dissolved. Raise heat and bring syrup to a boil; boil one minute, then remove from heat and allow to cool completely.

Puree thawed mango and lime juice in a food processor.

Stir simple syrup into mango puree. Refrigerate a few hours to be certain puree is cool.

Follow the manufacturer's instructions for your ice cream maker at this point. If you don't have one, pour into a pan and put in freezer; pull out every hour and stir (for 3-4 hours).


texts: How to substitute flour with nutritional yeast

texts:
I am planning on making a pretty standard (read: whichever pops up first in Google) recipe for Broccoli Cheddar soup; i.e. brocolli, cheddar, chicken stock, and about 1/2 cup flour per 4 bowls of soup.

To try to reduce using that much bleached flour, I would like to substitute nutritional yeast. Obviously the flavor will be sufficiently similar without taking away from the flavor of broccoli and cheddar (and the stock is pretty potent so I'm also not worried about that) so I am not worried about using too much nutritional yeast.

To achieve the effect of 1/2 cup flour thickening, what is an approximate ratio for the same effect with nutritional yeast? Also, I have noticed with other dishes that, unlikely the grainy/clotty results of flour, nutritional yeast can be added after the fact without whisking. But in a case like this, am I still better off whisking it in at the beginning?


texts:
I am in the process of creating my sour-dough starter.

I've been mixing in water and "strong bread flour" around a 1:1 ratio (100g of each, slightly more water to make the mixture wetter).

The mixture sits on the side between feeds (approximately every 24-36hrs), and has bubbled up, as can be seen on the side of its home (a cleaned out old 1ltr ice cream tub).

However in the last couple of days, I've noticed a distinct vinegar smell coming from it, and it seems to slightly separate: brown-ish water layer and a thick dough layer.

Do I need to worry? I could have contaminated it, as the kitchen is always all over the place. And the feeds are supposed to be every 24hrs or more often according to online sources, so I may not have fed it often enough.

I'm in the UK, so 15-20C in the kitchen.

TL:DR - vinegar smell from sour dough, is that a problem?


texts: How long does cooked garlic keep in fridge?

texts: I was wondering how long cooked garlic (in this case with pasta and a tiny bit of olive oil) keeps in the fridge. I always wonder about garlic (or onion) with oil but it was only a little oil. Still Tasty says that cooked onions last 3-5 days but nothing for cooked garlic. Would they be the same?  http://stilltasty.com/fooditems/index/17825 Thank you.


texts: Why did my Turkey Stock turn into gelatin?

texts:
We took our left-over turkey carcass and parts and simmered them for a few hours with water in a pot with some herbs and veggies.  After removing the solids, and separating the fat, we placed it in the fridge to be frozen the next day.  When we pulled it out, the entire bowl - not just the top - was completely gelatinous.  It is truly like Jello.

Is this OK?  Why did this happen?

We plan to vacuum seal and freeze it if safe.


texts: forgot to turn on crock pot for less than 2 hours

texts: I left a pork roast in my crock pot for a little less than 2 hours, but forgot to turn crock pot on.  It still felt cool to the touch.  Is it safe to eat?


texts: What is the difference in taste between San Marzano and 6 in 1 ground tomatoes?

texts:
I've been looking at some recipes for Chicago style pizza recently, and the consensus seems to be to use 6 in 1 ground tomatoes for the sauce.

Generally, when I make sauce, I use San Marzano tomatoes. How would that affect the taste of the sauce?


texts: Best way to impart rum flavor in caramel candies?

texts:
I have a caramel candy recipe that uses spiced honey instead of corn syrup that I really love. I also have a caramel syrup recipe that uses rum and it was a huge hit with the family. I am hoping to merge the two and make a spiced caramel candy that has rum flavor.

I saw a recipe that called for 1/4 cup of Rum in its recipe, but I was afraid to add too much moisture to a recipe with honey in it (especially since the reviews for this particular recipe complained a lot about the caramels not setting properly), so I tried adding 2-3 tablespoons of rum during the initial heating of the sugar and honey. They turned out well as far as firmness goes but the rum seemed to evaporate and leave no flavor behind.

Second attempt I tried adding a teaspoon of strong, dark spiced rum at the end after taking the whole batch off the heat, much like you would vanilla extract, but yet again there was no flavor left. This time they also turned out a bit soft.

I guess I'm wondering... is there a better way to do this, or should I just use a rum extract instead? Do you have any experience adding rum or other alcohol flavors to candy?

Thanks so much for your time!


texts: Baking in gas oven does not brown the top

texts:
I need advice from those who bake in gas oven without fan. I bake on the middle rack and have an oven thermometer(my oven is -20 deg off). My cakes get baked darker on bottom and paler on top. Cookies can get burnt at bottom if I wait for them to change color on top. The result is that the cookies, puff pastry are not crisp, the sheet cakes are sticky on touch when they cool down.
Really need advice from those who had faced and overcome this. Many thanks!

Edit: What I really want to know is how to increase the top heat? The cake or pastry is getting baked faster at bottom but since top heat is less though the cake rises fine it does not get browned on top. If I wait longer for it to brown it starts getting burned at bottom.


texts: What sauce can I just to de-sweeten a cheesecake?

texts:
Just made a cherry and raspberry cheesecake with a digestive biscuit base but it's too sweet and I need a sauce to go with it to take that sweetness away

Can anyone help?


texts: What emulsifier will help my (nearly carb free) Milk Chocolate?

texts:
I'm a Type 2 diabetic and maintain ~ 20g carbs per day. This is great on my numbers, but hard on my sweet tooth :)

One of my favorite treats to make is a simple mix of Virgin Coconut oil, unsweetened coco powder, and Splenda. This combines into a surprisingly smooth thick chocolate sauce that in the fridge hardens into the consistency of a chocolate bar. Yummy!

Recently, I tried to up this to "milk chocolate", simply by adding a bit of whipping cream to the mix. This actually tasted quite amazing, BUT the oil and milk separated like crazy.

I believe I need an Emulsifier to resolve this. Can anyone suggest an Emulsifiers that I can buy in a store and use for this blend? Ideally it should be carb free and mostly flavorless. It can't be egg yolks because this isn't cooked. I read that in real Chocolate making, Lecithin is used, but I also read that Lecithin isn't actually an emulsifier...

Anyways, if anyone knows the chemistry of what I should do here, I'd really appreciate it. Also if you can guess at an amount of Emulsifier (to Roughly 3 to 4 tablespoons of chocolate "goo") to start with, that would be awesome as well.


texts:
I need to preserve some fruits (raisins, figs, pomegranates, and dates), in tiny bottles, so they last for years.
I don't mind ruining the food, as it will anyway not be used for eating.
I can fill the bottles with liquid if required, as long as the original color is preserved.

How and what can I fill these bottles with to avoid the fruit's spoilage and decay?


texts:
I have a fairly typical Mexican-made tortilla press, and I've had it for a while. It works of course, but there's a persistent problem of the part of the tortilla at the hinge end of the press ending up much thinner than the part where the lever is.

That makes sense of course; this particular press has almost no "play" at all at the hinge, and when the plates are fully closed they're touching with basically no wiggle.

I'm not asking for a recommendation for another brand so much as asking whether there may be certain patterns of hinge design that allow for a little bit of play in the hinge so that that end of the tortilla doesn't get pinched down to nothing.

I also wonder if the real problem may be that mine is a little 6" or so press instead of a larger 8" press.

I probably should just go fool around with presses at a local market and check to see; I hadn't used mine in a while but I did over the weekend and I got somewhat frustrated.

edit — for those not familiar with what a "tortilla press" looks like, it's a simple pair of flat round iron plates connected by a hinge.  Opposite the hinge is a lever that allows the plates to be forced together.

If you hold your hands in front of you with the heels of your hands together and your fingers out in a big "V" shape, that's basically what the press looks like when open.  As the press closes, the distance between the plates gets smaller, but it gets smaller more quickly at the hinge side than the other side. That issue is my problem.

The tl;dr of my question is whether there exist some presses that have enough looseness in the hinge mechanism to keep that part of the press from squeezing the tortilla dough too thin.


texts:
We grilled a bunch of meats for a large party. Now I have leftover hamburgers, hotdogs, and bratwursts. Note these are still “bare” meat items, not assembled hamburgers etc.

What’s the best way to re-heat a hamburger patty and still have it taste good, not overcooked, and not separated from its juices?

Any advice for the other items would be good too, especially if they can be done together. But the ground beef patty has always been less than successful for me in warming the leftovers.


texts: Is there a way to make bacon a decent substitute for pancetta in Italian dishes?

texts: I live in a place where Pancetta is really hard to find, and when I do, it's completely overpriced. When I make some Carbonara or Gricia, both recipes from where I come from, I have to improvise it with good old bacon, but it never ends up the same as nonna did. So I ask, how can I make bacon a better substitute for pancetta?


texts: Frozen pizza has been in fridge for 2 days, is it still safe to eat?


texts:
I bought a cast iron skillet and after washing it and then heating it I got a color like rust from fire side

After washing by  Dishwashing soap I dry it by tissues, then heat it over a high temperature

Now I season it

Is healthy using it with this color ??!!

I have no experience dealing with this type of fryer

Now I season it but is healthy using it with this color


texts: In what kinds of dishes is asafoetida traditionally used?

texts: A friend recently gave me a small jar of asafoetida without telling me how to use it (or that it smelled horrible). In my googling, all I've been able to find out so far is that it's the dried sap of a Middle Eastern herb, used as a natural remedy, should be stored in a tightly sealed container due to its strong scent, and should be used "sparingly." I'm interested in knowing more specifically how I might use it in cooking (and if its flavor is better than its scent).


texts: Where did the apples in Japanese Curry come from?

texts:
Japanese curry (カレー, karē) is its own distinct style, made with a roux base, mild curry powder, and grated apples or apple puree.
It also has a well-documented origin, having been introduced by British/Indian sailors during the period of British-Japanese naval alliance.  This also includes an explanation for why Japanese curry uses a roux base (the navy wanted to add vitamin B1-bearing wheat to the sailor's diet).  What it doesn't include is an explanation for when, how, and why the apples became a key ingredient.
Per Chopstick Chronicles:

The ultimate Japanese curry rice secret ingredients “kakushi Aji”, which literally translates to “hidden taste”, are Apple and Honey. These are well-known Japanese curry rice ingredients among Japanese people so it’s not much of a secret anymore. Adding grated apple and honey gives the Japanese curry rice the signature sweeter flavour and is a staple for any Japanese mother’s home-cooked curry.

Apples are not used in Anglo-Indian curries that I've seen or been able to find online.  So this leads to several related questions:

Were apples added to standard Japanese curry when it was introduced to the 19th century navy?
If so, were they added for nutritional reasons?  Or were apples common in British curries of the time (the book "Curry" does not mention this, nor are apples mentioned in Mrs Beeton's)
If the apples were added later, how did that come about?  Was the Vermont Curry company responsible for it?

Thanks for any leads or ideas.


texts: Is it really necessary to wipe the powder off of dried kombu?

texts: I looking not to waste time and product experimenting. What are the consequences of leaving the salt / glutimate / etc mixture on kombu when, say, making dashi?


texts: What specific sugars are found in apple cider, apple juice, and apple cider vinegar?

texts:
My wife has a chronic, not-very-well-understood GI condition that includes hyper-sensitivity to certain foods.

We're looking to more information about the chemical composition of various foods for both healthcare and home-cooking purposes.

In particular, she has observed that:

She can consume both apples and apple cider (hard or regular) about as well as a typically healthy adult.
Apple juice causes her significant intestinal distress.
Even a tiny whiff of apple cider vinegar sets off her gastric symptoms immediately. (She can, however, safely consume other vinegars, such as white, red wine, balsamic, or rice wine vinegar.)

Are there chemical differences between apple cider, apple juice, and apple cider vinegar – such as transformations of the sugars due to fermentation of heating – that could explain this?


texts: How do you funnel food off a cutting board?

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After I cut or chop something up on a cutting board I have the problem of funneling the pieces into a bowl or other container and it typically makes a mess.

Normally what I try to do is scrape the pieces with a knife into the bowl or whatever, but inevitably some of the pieces miss and go flying off onto the counter or floor.

Is there a reliable method of funneling food off a cutting board into a bowl, cup or other smaller container?


texts: pork went over internal temperature, can I make it tender by putting the oven in a lower temperature for a couple of hours?

texts: I cooked a piece of pork shoulder and i put it at 250 celcius for 30 min and 130 celcius for 1 hours. Now the internal temperature is well above the 71 celcius mark and the meat looks tough. If i put the oven at a lower temperature can the meat soften up and make it tender?


texts: How safe is it to combine flavor extracts?

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I experiment a lot with food combinations, and I know enough about their chemistry to avoid the particularly terrible ones. However, I know too little about flavor extracts to apply the same logic.

Just as an example, I've noticed that orange and almond extracts used together give a strong unpleasant taste to the food.

In general, is this just unpleasant tasting or actually harmful? Are there particular combinations of extracts, with food or with other extracts, that I should avoid?


texts: How should I decorate a Spanish Epiphany cake?

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I live in Spain, however, being a Brit, Jan 6th really isn't high on my list of holidays - but what the heck!

Tonight I have a few Spanish friends coming over, so I have made a bit of a buffet, laid down quite a bit of alcohol and want to make the cake that they all seem to think is obligatory for Epiphany - help!

I have a whole raft of ideas in front of me, the basic cake is not the issue, it's the decoration and any significance to the decoration - I really don't want to offend anyone...


texts: Baked sweet potato french fries (chips) too soft, how to crispen?

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My first ever stab at french fries, and 20 minutes with olive oil and seasonings in the oven preheated at 450*F was not enough to make them crisp. They were cut thick.

Could I simply cook them longer to dry them up? They have the texture and consistency of a baked potato.... except the skins are crisp


texts:
I've recently started making homemade ice-cream and have found most recipes require you to make a custard using egg yolks, however the Ben and Jerry's recipe book asks for whole raw eggs to be used instead.
I understand cooking the egg yolks removes the risk of salmonella however in the UK most UK sourced eggs are safe to eat raw.

This leaves the question that I am struggling to find the answer to:

Aside from removing the health risks of eating raw eggs is there any benefit to texture and/or taste by making a custard instead of using raw eggs or egg yolks in ice cream?