texts: Why are stems common in packaged raisins but uncommon in breakfast cereals?

texts:
When I purchase raisins in the US, it is not uncommon that some of the raisins have bits of stem still attached to them.  However, when I purchase breakfast cereals with raisins included, I seem to never encounter stems.  Clearly there is a difference in how the raisins are processed.  But what is that difference?
What about the processing for breakfast cereals make stems so uncommon, and why is that same process not considered for raisins sold alone?  Is it the cost of some extra or different processing, or are perhaps all these raisins processed the same but then dividing into low- and high-confidence-no-stems pools, the latter used in breakfast cereals?


texts: Why does raw celery from a restaurant taste different than raw celery at home?

texts:
Say you go to a restaurant and order buffalo wings. The wings come with celery and bleu cheese. The celery tastes amazing.

At home, you cut celery and store it in water in the refrigerator, and eat it. It does not taste amazing.

What are the possible reasons why there is a difference in taste between the two?


texts: Oxtail soup - oxtail tightened up during simmering?

texts:
I've been hungry for a light oxtail soup, and managed to find some (around 1.5lb) frozen at the butcher. I'm aiming for light flavor to go alongside leeks and bulgar, so I figured I would simmer the oxtails until they fall apart, pull out the bones and simmering veggies, and then add sweated leeks and bulgar and reheat.

I let them thaw for 2 days, and then earlier today put them on a baking sheet for 10 minutes at 400 degrees, turned, and did another 10 minutes to lightly brown.

Afterwards I put them in a slow cooker with some veggies, 4 cups of water, 2 cups of beef bullion, and 1 cup of cream sherry, and set it to a low heat. to start simmering. I am planning to simmer for around 20 hours, but at about 5 hours in the oxtail chunks are still very tight - think the texture of a steak that's been cooked, put in a refrigerator and then reheated. I know I have another 15 hours to go, but still, I would have thought I'd see it breaking down a little bit more by now. I didn't try and slice off any of the meat from the bone, so maybe that is it?

Did I do something wrong, or am I jumping the gun timewise? Candid feedback is appreciated!


texts: How do I coat puffed rice with chocolate or cocoa?

texts:
How do I apply a thin chocolate coating to puffed rice?  I want to make chocolate puffed rice cereal.

Considering a coating of milk chocolate vs dusting of cocoa powder, I prefer whichever method is least messy, easier for a novice cook and has a longer shelf life.

I want the end product to be dry and crispy, ideally with no oil or salt as I want to eat it with milk as cereal.

Is the process likely to remain the same (more or less) if I replace rice with other grains like wheat or bajara (Indian grain)?


texts: Chili with bitter aftertaste and not enough kick

texts:
I cooked chili using the following ingedients:

Oil for sauteing
1.5 pounds beef, minced
1 large white onion, finely chopped
1 red bell peper, diced
1 orange bell pepper, diced
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 14 oz can of chopped tomatoes
1 12 oz bottle of beer
2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp cayenne peper
1 tsp red peper flakes
2 tsp Tabasco
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp crushed coriander seeds
2 tsp Worchestershire sauce
1 can of cooked red kidney beans (drained and rinsed)

The method was, basically:

Saute onions and pepers for approx 5 minutes
Brown beef
Add tomato paste, and mix
Add can of tomatoes and mix
Add beer
Add sugar, salt and pepper
Boil for approx 20 min
Add remaining spices
Cover and simmer for 2.5 hours
20 minutes before it's done, add the beens

Two problems:

A slight bitter aftertaste
Not enough kick

I think that the bitter aftertaste is from the cayenne pepper. I have read that cayenne pepper is quite neutral in taste (not bitter) and carries a lot of heat. Is this correct?

Then I tried this: Put a couple of spoonfuls of chili on a plate. Add 1/4 tsp (approx) of cayenne pepper and mix. Taste. Well, the heat increased, but not TERIBLY so (it was perfectly eatable). Also the bitter aftertaste became worse.

I also tried tasting a tip of a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, directly. Ok it was hot, but not unbearably so. Most of the heat was in my throat, not in my mouth (mostly as an aftertaste), and I did have that bitter aftertaste

Can something be wrong with my batch of cayenne peper? Or is this how cayenne peper realy tastes?

I could reduce the amount of cayenne in my recipe, but then I would need something to increase the heat.I could go with more tabasco (I tried this on a spoonful of chili) but this would, also, increase the acidity (tastes a bit sour) which is not terible, but not ideal either

Any sugestions?


texts: What was a black substance on the surface of cooked brown rice?

texts: We had some brown rice that we cooked in tap water, and when it was done, there was something black or dark gray with a clay-like consistency on the surface of the rice. Around the edge of the pot it was pretty dense, while at the center it was only specks, and below the surface of the rice it wasn't present at all. What was it? Was it safe to eat the rest of the rice?


texts: Can I still use my oven, even if it has melted aluminum foil stuck to the bottom?

texts: I have melted aluminum foil on the bottom of my oven.  Can I still use the oven for baking?


texts: How much temperature control does an emergency food cache need?

texts:
I just bought a massive amount of wholesale food to prepare for a winter storm this coming weekend. Since I will not use all of it, and want to keep it around for future emergencies, I'm curious about some of the items I have.

None of the items I bought were refrigerated but I am wondering how some of them would fair in the northwestern US with its cold winters and warm summers, namely jam, these milk boxes, canned tuna, soups, etc.

I wanted to keep these large bins of food in my outdoor shed but will the food spoil if it 1) freezes and thaws during the cold months or 2) gets up into the 70's and 80's during summer?

I can keep reminders for any expiration dates, but for the packages that say "no need to refrigerated until opened", I'm concerned it will go to waste.


texts: What chemical(s) gives molasses its flavor so that it is used as an ingredient?

texts: I'm curious why there isn't a zero-calorie molasses substitute. The USDA nutrient database lists a bunch of minerals, but what is it that gives it the "taste" of molasses?


texts: I have a maybe (3 lb?) block of Philadelphia Brand Cream Cheese. I just cut into it for the third time and noticed several pockets of what appear to be to be water in the middle of the cheese. I've never seen that before and wonder if anybody knows what causes it. It's well within its expected freshness time, has always been refrigerated and carefully wrapped. The pockets of clear liquid range from 1-2 square centimeters, and are right in the middle of the cheese. The cheese tastes and smells perfectly normal. Can anybody say what this is?


texts: regulating temperature in cheap offset smokers

texts:
I recently acquired a cheaply made offset smoker, and-- ahead of the big event-- did a 'dry run' to get a feel for how it behaves.  I think my biggest issue will be regulating temperature; the smoker is made out of thin-gauged metal that just doesn't have enough thermal mass to avoid quick swings out of my ideal zone.

I'm thinking about adding some thermal mass to the bottom of the cooking chamber... possibly rocks or man-made bricks.  But obviously I don't want to add anything that will out-gas toxic gases when heated.

Am I on to a good idea here?  And if so, what kinds of materials are recommended?  I've seen 'refractory fire bricks', however I think the point of those is that they don't store much heat themselves, which means they aren't really helpful for my needs.


texts: How long to defrost 11 1bs. of chicken in the fridge?

texts: We made 11 1bs. of chicken breast into kebobs and then froze it.  How long will it take to defrost in the fridge?


texts: How long can chicken stay out raw at room temperature before becoming unedible?

texts: I know chicken isn't edible raw, but how long can it stay outside the refrigerator without gaining bacteria to where you can't even cook it?


texts: Roughly how long should I cook 3.5kg pork belly ribs in electric smoker?

texts:
I know they are done when they are tender—not at a set number of hours. But we need to eat at about 6pm for logistical reasons.

Was thinking of putting them in at 4am so 13h total cook time + 1h rest.

Anyone done this before? Want to smoke at 225 degrees Fahrenheit.


texts: Do the cup cakes bake faster in a 24 hole cup cake tray rather than a 12 hole cup cake tray?

texts:
The cupcakes cook faster than the big one piece cakes, so does it make sense to assume that the cup cakes bake faster in a 24 hole cup cake tray rather than a 12 hole cup cake tray?

My oven has a convection fan.


texts: Combine skim milk and cream to substitute for whole?

texts: In what ratio would you combine skim milk and higher-fat dairy to reach an equivalent of e.g. whole milk? I ran out of whole the other day making bread, tried to add a splash of half-and-half to 2%, but it didn't come out that well - but it must be possible in the right ratio, yes?


texts: How to determine the "doneness" of salmon?

texts:
I, like most people, prefer fish to be cooked correctly. For salmon, this means soft and velvety (but warm) in the center -- what I would characterize as medium rare.

I consistently overcook for two reasons: one, fear of bad stuff and two, because I am guessing. What are good rules of thumb for telling when it's medium rare?


texts:
Today I was making a cake for which I needed whipped cream.

The local store did not have fresh cream so I bought UHT cream, I am not sure that's the correct term in English, you basically treat it with high temperatures so that it lasts longer. Said cream is specifically meant to be whipped, or at least so the packaging states.

I used a plastic bowl and 400ml of UHT cream, straight from the fridge. As usual, I used an electric mixer, something like:

Unfortunately after 20+ minutes of mixing the cream was not starting to whip at all. I somehow managed to finish the cake thanks to a food processor that can somewhat whip cream, but the question stands. What did go wrong? Is there something about UHT cream or was I generally careless?


texts: I believe that I forgot to add the sugar in my sugar cookie dough, but I'm not completely sure. If I did forget, how will the cookies turn out once baked?  Will they be edible?


texts: Help me duplicate Potbelly's fat-free vinaigrette

texts:
Can anyone help me duplicate Potbelly Sandwich Works' fat-free vinaigrette dressing? I'm NOT a cook, so I have no idea where to start. It's fairly clear, somewhat sweet, and based on the lack of "globules", it appears to have little to no oil in it.

Is it possible to make a vinaigrette with no oil?


texts: How do I avoid chunks of butter in non-homogenized milk?

texts: I bought a half-gallon of non-homogenized whole milk for something different. I gather that I need to shake it to mix the cream with the milk, but towards the end of the carton (after using it over a week or so), I'm starting to get increasingly large chunks of butter. Is that just the way it is? Am I drinking my non-homogenized milk too slowly?


texts: What is in a Jamaican Chocolate Cheesecake?

texts:
I'm interested in making a variation of this baked Jamaican Chocolate Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Shop. The description from the website is not terribly useful in identifying what the possible ingredients are:

  A smooth, baked chocolate cheesecake crowned with mouthwatering
  chocolate shavings, and lightly dusted with icing sugar.

I've searched the internet fruitlessly for a "Jamaican Chocolate Cheesecake" recipe. There are a few other Jamaican Cheesecake recipes but they mostly seem to involve ingredients that are Jamaican (e.g. "Jamaican mangos") so I'm under the impression that the chocolate is Jamaican and it isn't a style of cheesecake. (Is "Jamaican chocolate" a thing? I couldn't find that either...)

The closest I can find is recipes for "Jamaican Hot Chocolate" and "Jamaican Chocolate Tea" which involve some cinnamon and maybe nutmeg and other flavours.

Short of getting the people at the shop to give me the ingredients, which I doubt they would do, I'm at a loss as to what goes in this cake. This website has a non-promo photo of the cake, including the inside after it is cut: http://blog.stillaslife.com/food/jamaican-chocolate-cheesecake-from-the-cheesecake-shop/

Has anyone heard of this type of cake before and know what goes in it?

Unfortunately I haven't tasted the cheesecake. A choc-orange variety was requested so I'm just left guessing what else could be in it. I was mostly hoping it was a more common recipe than it is...

I ended up contacting them and it is just a normal chocolate cheesecake with a chocolate biscuit base. I inquired if it had rum or cinnamon or anything and they said no they just add cocoa to the normal vanilla cheesecake mix.

I'm going to award the answer to LoganGoesPlaces for the useful info and because their idea is very creative and sounds tasty.


texts: Most recipes call for onions when marinading steak, but...why?


texts:
There is a restaurant called Merci Mon Ami in Toronto and they had a really good salad dressing. I don't live in the area anymore, so I want to try to make it myself.

The only thing I know about it is really just the name. It was a bit sweet and tangy. I don't think it had soy sauce in it, because it was light in color (gold). So, I am guessing soy is referring to soybean oil? So, my best guess is toasted sesame seed oil, soybean oil, and some kind of vinegar and possibly honey (sugar?). I would appreciate any suggestions.


texts: How to pan sear salmon without burning the skin?

texts: I cook salmon all the time but one issue I'm having lately is burning the skin. I do most of the cooking on the skin, so I know it's going to be little crispy, but I don't want it to look burnt. Overall, the taste is good; it just looks bad and makes my apartment smell like burnt fish. Any advice?


texts: What are Japanese rice seasoning packets called?

texts:
While I lived in Japan, I would often buy little packets of seasoning that were carried in every supermarket. I believe their purpose was for seasoning things like fried rice (チャーハン) and rice balls (お握り). What are these packets called, and is there an easy way to buy them in America? Or better yet, does anyone know how to make them?

The packets were typically salty and had bits of colorful seasoning/particles in it, like nori (海苔) flakes, sesame seeds, spices, etc.


texts: How can I effectively time a short thawing and brining of a a turkey?

texts: I have a 14 lb. frozen turkey.  It has been in the refrigerator for 12 hours now but there is not enough time to thaw it completely in the fridge before cooking it in the turkey fryer.  Could I safely thaw it in cold water today, which would take about 7 hours and then brine it for 30 hours before deep frying it?


texts: Effect of xanthan gum on agar agar gels?

texts:
I just recently got into using agar agar to prepare solidified gels, and I'm wondering what effect adding xanthan gum to the mixture before gelling it would have. I'm particularly interested in trying to use the xanthan gum to replace fats in recipes like egg yolks.

Does anyone happen to know what difference one would note between a gel set with only agar(roughly 1 tsp powder per cup liquid) and a gel set with agar(same ratio) and the addition of xanthan gum before it gels (and how varying the amount of xanthan gum would provide different results)? If so I would greatly appreciate the information.

And if anyone happens to know the same information but for adding glucomannan instead of xanthan gum to an agar gel that would be helpful.


texts: How to cook grass-fed, high-fat hamburger on electric stove?

texts:
I've managed, through trial-and-error, to learn how to cook regular hamburgers on an electric stove. But recently, I've switched to grass-fed beef (with 25% fat, higher than regular hamburgers), with less-than-stellar results. So, given these conditions:

An Electric stove (Yes, although every cooking book I've seen, thinks you should be cooking with gas - my apartment has an electric stove, so that's what I use.)
U.S. Wellness Meats grass-fed, 75% lean burgers. These are pre-formed, and 25% fat, which is higher than the standard burgers I used to cook. I'm sure the fat content affects cooking - I'm just not sure how.
12" Calphalon non-stick skillet (although I'm wondering if I should replace it, that's a separate issue).
Infrared thermometer - very nice tool, I can't imagine not having one after using it.

What I want to know, is how, using only these resources, to cook a burger that is at least medium-well, if not well-done. So far, I've generally managed to get the outside too cooked, or the inside too pink.

I'd appreciate detailed, step-by-step instructions, if anyone has them. Even the so-called basic cookbooks seem to give just one-liners, for things like hamburgers.

For instance, one situation I don't know what to do about - after about a minute, the burger starts to bow up, so the underside isn't touching the skillet. It's obviously not getting cooked, so now what? I've seen posts saying you shouldn't press down grass-fed burgers. Most of the time, I'll flip it after a minute, so it's flatter. Is that a good method? I have no idea.

Or they say "cook on medium-high heat". Well, my electric stove doesn't have a medium-high setting, it has numbers 1-6. Give me a specific temperature (say, 350F), and I'll use the infrared thermometer to find it.

Update: yes, the hamburgers have thawed out in the refrigerator for a day, and I usually set them out while the stove is heating up. I also have an internal thermometer. As for using an oven - I'd prefer to use only the listed resources (with a skillet), rather than extra items (don't have a cast-iron skillet, don't want to cleanup a baking dish). If there is no other way to cook them well, I'd go with the oven, but I'd rather not.


texts: How do smaller but good restaurants keep/reheat roasted meat, particularly Prime Rib?

texts: Even if Prime Rib is a popular menu item, a smaller place may not get orders fast enough to sell the beef at the requested doneness while it is still at the appropriate temperature. So how is it handled? It's such a spendy item, you wouldn't want plates returned. Heaven forbid a large portion of roast become overcooked by keeping it warm. Is there a standard?


texts: What is the effect of using pasteurized milk in cheese making?

texts:
I am new to cheese making and I do not want to use raw milk to make cheese for health reasons. So, my next option is to use pasteurized milk. However, since pasteurization destroys some of the proteins one can say that there will be some differences considering there are going to be less proteins to coagulate.

I heard that most cheese makers are adding ingredients to help pasteurize milk coagulate. What are these ingredients? Are they natural?

What is the best approach to take for making good cheese with pasteurized milk?


texts: Even heating: skillet thickness vs. electric element size

texts:
I've recently started transitioning to stainless-clad aluminum-core skillets, and one oft-compared property of various offerings is the thickness - generally a thicker sandwich contains a thicker aluminum layer and thus has a greater ability to spread the heat evenly across the cooking surface.

But how much does this matter, if a skillet is placed on an electric coil element which is almost as large in diameter as the flat area one cooks on?

Anecdotally, I've noticed that a "relatively thin" (maybe 2.2mm) inexpensive Calphalon 10" skillet seems to perform fine on a 6" coil, even for high-heat tasks like searing meats.  Contrastingly, an 11" (3qt) All-Clad 3-layer saute pan of the recent "not the way they used to make them" 2.75mm or so thickness shows a definite cold region where it extends well beyond the coil to meet the vertical sidewalls.

I've recently upgraded to an almost 8" element, and am shopping for a 12" skillet which will have a cooking surface around 9" in diameter.  Given the poor performance of the large saute pan, I'm tempted to try to track down one of the few offerings that is still 3mm or more in thickness.  But given that the cooking area will barely extend beyond the coil, I wonder if it's worth nearly twice the price I'd have to pay for a 2.2mm thick one?  Granted, a 3mm pan would probably perform a lot better than a 2.2mm one if used on the 6" element.  Or going to another extreme, designs with thick aluminum and only a thin stainless lining like All-Clad MC2 would presumably have the best heat transfer, at some cost in durability.


texts: Can I place a vertical propane smoker on my patio? I would like to smoke fish, veggies and meat in vertical smoker. Can I place the smoker on my patio?


texts: Drying fatty meat in food dehydrator - is it okay for short time consumption?

texts: Well, I bought a food dehydrator. Every site told me to dry only lean meat, and so I did until now. However I was thinking of drying some ham in larger chunks to hopefully get sort of prosciutto substitute. I know that the fat can go rancid which is why I intend to eat it within a month and store it in a fridge and I know it won't taste as good as the original. Do you think it's safe?


texts: Do I need to put blood in a vacuum sealed bag to cook it sous vide in this type of appliance?

texts:
If I used this type of appliance...
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01N1PQTIV/
... to pasteurise blood at 60°C for 45 minutes (as per these instructions: https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/blood-sauce), would I have to put the blood in a vacuum sealed bag or could I just pour it directly into that pot?

If doing the latter is possible as well, how would it affect the blood's consistency and taste by comparison to cooking it in a bag?


texts:
I sometimes buy a brand of multi-grain salt-free bread *. After 2-3 days, it gets a very distinct smell of acetone, like paint stripper or nail polish remover. If I toast the bread, the smell goes away.

The bread is well within its sell-by date, so I don't typically put it into the fridge. This is not a one-off thing - I've noticed it many times for this type of bread.

I am confused by where acetone would come from in the typical grain/yeast mixture used for bread. What could be causing this? Is the bread still safe to eat?

* example: Trader Joe's Sprouted Multi-grain Salt-free Bread


texts: I put cheap brandy in my sauce for stew and it smells like gasoline. Can you adjust this in any way? Of course I made enough for a big group coming over tonight!


texts: Can I freeze a tomato pie? If so, is it better to do this before or after I bake it?


texts: After you bake eggplant, is it fine to not drain the water?

texts: An eggplant can be baked or grilled; then you peel it. I read that you have to drain it then (e.g. in a colander), even overnight. What if you don't drain the water-does the taste change considerably? Can you still make spread out of it?


texts: Does using dark corn syrup instead of light affect the white color I usually get making fondant?

texts: The recipe calls for light corn syrup but I couldn't find light corn syrup and would like to use dark instead. Does it affect the color I get at the end (before adding icing colors)?


texts: Do older apples contain more or less pectin in the skins/cores?

texts: In order to make apple jelly and not use pectin, just fresh (not frozen) apples skins and cores:  Do older, stored apples have more concentrated pectin in their skins and cores or does it degrade?  should I boil more? add more sugar, less water?


texts:
With the bread I bake, they become mouldy within two weeks.

With the bread I bought from the supermarket, usually whole wheat, I would have the loaf gradually consumed and by the 6th week, it would still not turn mouldy.

What did they put into the bread that makes it mould-resistant? Is it natural?

What ingredients that I could safely mix into the dough to make my bread mould resistant?


texts: What can I use to replace beet sugar syrup for cookies?

texts: I'm making cookies that call for beet sugar syrup but I don't think it's available in my country. What can I use in substitute for it?


texts: Why add vanilla extract after removal from the heat, and what about fake vanilla extract?

texts:
Recipes for pralines, for fudge, even for hot cocoa say to add vanilla extract only after removing the dish from the heat.

Why?
Does that apply to artificial vanilla extract also?


texts: Chili/Stew - Is it necessary to cook all the meat before adding to the rest of the ingredients?

texts:
I'm planning on making a big batch of chili this weekend. Usually I brown/cook all the meat before putting everything in a pot to simmer for several hours.

I just read
On Browning Ground Meat in Recipes | Serious Eats
which suggests only browning a portion of the meat before cooking the rest.

I understand about browning & flavors from the Maillard reaction.

My question is: Since I'm going to be simmering everything for several hours, do I need to cook the rest of the meat before mixing with everything else? Should I?

Update: Wish I could mark all the answers as accepted! Mouth feel is something that I hadn't considered in thinking about cooking the meat before simmering.

FYI, I'm using a combo of chopped chuck & Italian sausage. My current plans are to brown one side of the chuck, and cook/drain the sausage, reserving the fat for a roux as suggested by @CosCallis


texts: What should I be aware of while eating raw oysters?

texts:
I've never eaten a raw oyster, mainly because I am afraid of the dangers involved. I'd like to try it however, and I'm trying to find what is the best way.

I was thinking about trying first at a restaurant and then at home. So, both when eating out and buying for home, what precautions should be taken to avoid the risks from raw oysters?


texts: Substituting sugar with a liquid stevia concentrate in a cake

texts:
I have a cake recipe that consists of a dry part, a liquid oil part and eggs. Around half of the dry part consists of sugar. I would like to replace that sugar with liquid stevia concentrate at a very small fraction of the original sugar. If I do that though, then around half of the dry ingredients would be removed from the recipe.

How would I adjust such a recipe? Would I reduce the eggs and liquid oil part proportionally to how much of the dry part has been removed? Anything else that I would need to take into consideration? For example, since the sugar is not soluble in the liquid part, I'm thinking it must also bring certain physical properties to the cake.

I noticed that if I replace the sugar with an erythritol / xylitol blend, then the end result is very similar to the sugar product, so maybe there's a similar bulking agent I could use instead of the sugar? Polyols add sweetness as well, so they wouldn't work in conjunction with the stevia concentrate, it would ideally have to be something neutral.


texts: Can you cook cut potatoes in a nonstick frying pan without oil?


texts: How to fix Spanish-Style Milkfish that became Too Salty

texts: My wife made spanish-style milkfish, when I tasted it during the night it was alright, but when I tasted it next day for breakfast it has become too salty! I searched for recipes and saw that you're supposed to rinse the fish in running water after soaking it in brine for 1 hour but my wife says the recipe she found did not say that the fish should be rinsed. Is there any way to still fix this? The fish is already too soft to be rinsed and Im not sure vinegar or lemon juice would get through the olive oil. Thanks in advance.


texts:
I would like to try a few recipes which call for rosewater. I have made these in the past but it seems difficult to get rosewater here. Many places seem to sell "rose flavoured water".

To me this sounds like one of those fudge words to suggest that it's never been near a rose and is actually concocted from a mixture of isolated synthetic substances.

On the other hand, rosewater is really just the water-bit of distilling rose petals in steam, I think, so really could be described as "rose flavoured water".

Whether or not the taste and safety is is equivalent, I'd prefer something made from roses.

Nowhere online seems to give the ingredients for these things and actual shops are some miles away. Could someone who knows the market in the UK or the big international online sites help me out?

Is there a difference?


texts:
I was in the middle east for a few weeks a few months ago. Anyways, I was introduced to the following Nestle cream:

It didn't really taste like the cream I'm used to here in North America.

Have any of you tried this before?
Can I make it at home?


texts: How do I make an extract to get the flavor of a pumpkin? Should I use pumpkin seeds or fresh pumpkin or maybe even the pumpkin skin? If I use pumpkin, should I dry it out or dehydrate it?


texts: What kind of rice is used for Jamaican rice and peas?

texts: I'm about to make Jamaican rice and peas, and I'm not quite sure if I want a long, medium, or short grain rice. What is traditional in the islands?


texts: Pumpkin rotting, need to process it now - any ideas with a long shelf life?

texts:
I bought 7 huge pumpkins from a gardener two weeks ago. The idea was to store them in the basement, and eat them as soup during the winter.

However, sadly, they have started to rot. (I asked a related gardening question here, it seems to be a fungus from the field.) I need to cut them up, remove the rotting parts, and do something with the good parts right now, otherwise they will be lost. I know no pumpkin-lovers to give them away to, so I would like to continue to store them somehow.

I have the possibility of putting them into cold storage at about 7°C (ca. 44°F). However, I fear that even there, they will go stale relatively quickly if I just cut them into pieces and do nothing further. I have very little space in the freezer, not nearly enough to take them all.

Is there anything I can do with the good pieces that lasts a long time either in cold storage, or (ideally) at room temperature? I'm open to everything, any kind of processing into whatever.

One thing I thought about was pesto - I've seen some very oily pumpkin pesto recipes that actually work with the pulp itself, not only the seeds like most recipes. I'm not sure about the resulting product's shelf life, though. Would the oil make it last longer?

Suggestions would be very welcome, as it would be a shame to let these beautiful vegetables go to waste.


texts: Is it ok to use sour cream as substitute of sour yogurt?

texts:
I've seen many recipes that use sour yogurt as a main ingredient, but I've been unable to find sour yogurt where I live, and I wonder if it's ok to use sour cream instead of sour yogurt.

I know they're pretty much the same thing, but I'm not sure if it's going to change the composition/texture of the food by making this substitution.

If it's not recommendable, what would be a good substitution? For example would it be better to use plain yogurt? Like the one sold at Walmart even though is a bit sweet.

Thanks


texts: Dried garbanzo beans not expanding when soaked

texts: I recently tried soaking dried garbanzo beans for the first time. The 'quick soak' method which involved boiling them for 5 minutes and then letting them sit an hour didn't seen to change their overall size as much as I expected, and neither did leaving them to sit in water for another 12 hours. Does this mean they are bad to eat?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  How to throw a pizza dough?

When I make my pizza dough and let it rise for about two hours, I then shape the dough for the round pizza pie.  I have tried numerous times to toss it in the air and spin it on my fist to get the shape but to no avail.  My dough just rips, and its easier for me to just shape it on the counter.

Whats the trick to this??  Is the problem my actual dough?


texts: Problems heating up pans on an induction hob

texts:
I bought an induction hob to precisely control pan temperature; it’s a 2000W Hendi single hob, temperature and power can be combined independently.
I tested two De Buyer pans with it, a multilayer stainless steel and a carbon steel one; I heat them up empty and checked surface temperature with a thermometer.
I noticed that the temperature quickly jumps well over the set value and takes time to stabilize; this is especially true when I try to reach 100+ celsius and with carbon steel cookware the effect is magnified (I got a blue ring mark in the middle of the pan).
What am i doing wrong? Should I start to cook immediately?


texts:
So, I've worked with Thai curry before and reviewed the post about "When to prefer yogurt, cream, and coconut milk in an Indian vegetarian dish to make it creamy?" but these seem to be concerned with ingredients, not cooking methods.

While working with Thai curry, the best way to keep the milk from curling when it is cooked with the curry paste is to heat the separated coconut cream as you would with butter and then cook the curry paste in the cream until dark grease lines form in the mixture. I'm not sure what the process is called officially (any help here would be appreciated), but it seems to bond the curry paste to the fat of the cream and makes for a smoother dish, and it also allows the thinner part of the coconut milk to mix in smoothly without any separation.

Now that I've explained the method I'm used to, I was wondering how one might prepare traditional Indian curry in a similar fashion. I can see how cream might be prepared in the same way, but does this hold true with yogurt? I read that whole milk yogurt is usually used in Indian cuisine, and maybe that has the appropriate fat content to prepare curry with a similar consistency. Any insight would be appreciated.


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  How long can cooked food be safely stored at room/warm temperature?

I put 2 large pork roasts into my roaster oven to cook overnight for pulled pork today. I started it around 8:30 p.m. and cooked it for an hour and a half at 350 then turned it down to 250 to cook all night. Sometime in the night my roaster oven bit the dust and when I awoke at 7:00 a.m. this morning and went to check on it, the oven wasn't working, and the meat was not completely cooked and had cooled to an internal temp of 80 degrees.  I quickly put it in the regular oven to finish cooking, but will it be safe to eat?  I just don't know how long it had been off.  This was over $30.00 of meat and I hate to waste it.  I can cook it all day today, would you risk eating it?


texts: Make homemade seitan taste like commercial

texts:
There are some wonderful brands of commercial seitan. One that I particularly love it Ray's Wheat Meat, which has the consistency of pulled chicken and a savory, bready flavor. Almost all homemade seitan that I've had or made has an off-note that is completely absent in the best commercial seitans. It's hard to describe this off note--sort of a chemical harshness that arises in the back of the mouth. This note can also be detected in some commercial seitan products, such as Field Roast sausages, although it is much weaker than in the homemade versions.

When I make seitan, I start with just vital wheat gluten and water. I knead them together for several minutes, let it rest for 20-30 minutes, and then simmer in water before preparing in other ways. The seitan looks good and often has a wonderful texture, but I just hate that flavor that looms up. I have tried adding kombu, dulce, soy sauce, nutritional yeast flakes, parmesan--no dice.

As a lower priority, how does one make seitan with the consistency of pulled chicken? Basically, how do I make Ray's Wheat Meat without buying it?

PS: I did see the one other post about "horrible" seitan, but it doesn't really address this flavor issue.


texts: What are the benefits of "fuzzy logic" in a rice cooker?

texts:
I'm considering making the giant leap to a serious rice cooker -- after research, it seems like the Zojirushi is the way to go, even over the venerated Tiger -- but I'm trying to parse out the dozens of models and various benefits.

It seems like the difference in price between a 5.5-cup model that does everything I could ever want, and a 5.5-cup model that does everything I could ever want with "fuzzy logic" is about $20. I'm already thinking about spending literally 10x more than I've ever spent on a rice cooker, so an extra $20 isn't the end of the world, but I'm wondering if it is really streets ahead when it comes to rice cooking, or if this is just a fancy-sounding name that doesn't add much to the process.

This is a bit informed by the fact that I'm kind of leery of fancy electronics in my kitchen gadgets; I loved my old Salton because it had one button, one spring, and one heating element, and I could kind of understand it. I'm a little afraid of the durability of a rice cooker with an onboard computer, and wondering if "fuzzy logic" is just adding another thing that can break onto that pile.


texts: how to remove cover on risen bread dough?

texts: how does one remove the cover on the 2nd bread dough rise without disturbing the rise?  My bread tends to fall even after a beautiful rise.


texts:
I would like to bake an Italian Cream Cake. Most recipes call for sweetened flaked coconut and a few shredded coconut.

I readily have fresh grated coconut and dessicated coconut. Can either of these be used in place of sweetened flaked   without significantly altering the cake texture / moisture?

Thanks in advance


texts: How do I use this ingredient in making marshmallows? I've tried all other recipes and they just don't come out like the store bought ones. They also don't roast like them to. Instead the just melt.


texts: I have some deer bones I would like to cook into broth. All the recipes I found call for slow cooking many hours. Is it possible to fast cook it on a stove top (1-2 hrs max)?


texts: Adjusting cookie recipes for high altitude

texts:
When baking cakes, I often find that there are instructions for high altitude, which usually is just a matter of adding some extra flour.

I understand the concept of high altitudes having less atmospheric pressure, which then allows baked goods to rise more easily (too much), and thus the addition of flour.

However such alterations are not often provided with cookie recipes. What is a good way to know how to adjust cookies for high altitude, or if such an adjustment is even necessary?


texts:
I want to make thick omelettes and everywhere online I saw that you start with decent heat and then turn it down all the way after a while, until its thoroughly cooked.

While making 2 eggs, it just reaches the edges of my frying pan. So I put 3-4 eggs to make it thicker as it kinda fills up the pan. However after I turn down the heat from 500-600 to 200-300, I notice that after very long time too, it still stays mostly wet on the top. In this time the bottom is overcooked brown. I cannot flip it as it just breaks and leaks from the top.

My Induction temperature ranges from 200-1200, I think it must be Fahrenheit. I don't really have other options since I rent new rooms, and move - a little more than comfortable.

Is it possible to create that golden colored omelette but with a thicker body?

Am I failing because I'm using an Induction stove? Is such a feat possible? If so what must I do to get it done?

Thanks!


texts: small cakes/muffins not rising correctly

texts: My small cakes for example muffins are not rising correctly.  They rise lopsidedly and spill over the paper cases.  Nothing wrong with oven.  I've tried various things, eg wetter mixture, drier mixture, smaller quantity in case, larger quantity in case, it's as if the fan  is blowing the cake mixture off to once side.  Doesn't happen with all my cakes mainly the small ones.  Any ideas ?


texts: Can plastic grocery store misters be used for oil?

texts:
I’m really tired of buying oil spray cans. I know that there are relatively inexpensive misters out there, Misto currently being the most popular, it seems. But I’m seriously strapped at the moment, so even sixteen bucks is a lot!

Is there any reason two dollar supermarket plant misters won’t work with oil? Will they clog, or is the pressure not sufficient for thick fluids like oil?


texts: How do I eliminate Corn Meal "grittiness"?

texts:
I recently made some corn bread on my own from scratch for the first time. The flavour was perfect as was the general firmness/crumbliness of the bread. However, the corn meal in the recipe resulted in an extremely gritty eating experience. It was like eating uncooked steel cut oats. But it's not like you can make corn bread without corn meal...

Anyway, every other corn bread I have ever had, whether it is made from scratch or from a pre-packaged mix, has not had this gritty quality.

I used a relatively fresh purchased package of yellow stone ground corn meal. It was open for about 3 days since I used a tablespoon in another recipe, but I stored it in an airtight container in the freezer (which is apparently what one should do).

Did I purchase bad corn meal? Is there something I can do to modify the recipe and make it less gritty?

Here is the recipe I am using.


texts: I purchased a jar of tiny Korean salted shrimp to make kimchi.  Since I only use a teaspoon or so at a time for the kimchi, I wondered if there were other (Korean or otherwise) creative uses for these salted shrimp.


texts: Can putting items with high heat capacity smooth out heat changes in Sous Vide?

texts:
So was recently thinking about the beer cooler sous vide method and had a thought:

While heating the water to put in the beer cooler, if you were to place an object with a high heat capacity (e.g. a ceramic coffee cup) in the water, heat both to the desired temperature and then place them in the beer cooler, would that help keep the water at a more constant temperature?

In other words, since you are replacing some of the water with a material at a higher heat capacity at the same temperature that would in turn keep the rest of the water warmer for a longer period, correct?


texts: Do flax seeds lose their fiber if cooked?

texts:
I found a recipe on the internet in which half a cup of ground flax seeds are added to the mixture to make muffins.

Since there is flour and sugar in it I was wondering if that defeats the purpose of using flax seeds to increase your fiber intake.


texts: Which rack level of oven is suitable for baking choco lava cakes?

texts:
I've always done baking and cooking in microwave ovens but I don't have any idea of the ovens installed under the cooktops..
Today I'm trying it first time..baking choco lava cakes (funfoods bake mix).
On the pack it is mentioned-bake at 200 degrees for 15 mins.
There are four rack levels in the oven but I don't know in which one I should bake it.
Please help!
Thanks a lot!


texts: How should I store bolognese sauce prep?

texts:
I want to make a huge batch of bolognese ragu sauce, and would like to do some of the prep the night before. I'm going to finely chop these ingredients:

Beef
Pork shoulder
Carrots
Celery
Onions

...and the day after they will be fried and turned into sauce.

How should I store these chopped ingredients overnight? Will just putting them in bowls with cellophane over do? Are there any of them that probably shouldn't be prepared the day before?


texts: Is there a use for the rind after making Citrus Sugar?

texts: I have made Citrus Sugar and am now separating the lemon (and/or orange) rind from the sugar. Now I am wondering is there any use for the leftover citrus rind?


texts: How can I cook my dumplings without a bamboo steamer?

texts:
My company is having a potluck. I want to make Chinese dumplings, but the dumplings I make require a bamboo steamer and pot to cook.

I have a steamer that I use at home, but at work, I have no access to a stove top.

What other alternative ways do I have to cook my dumplings?

Should I cook them at home, freeze them and microwave them day of the potluck?


texts:
I have a rotisserie drum like this:

I would like to roast peanuts, cashew nuts, etc... in this. If I use the settings given for roasting the nuts in a baking tray, the nuts seem under-cooked consistently.

Is there a general rule for using the rotisserie drum? Like a conversion factor? Also, is it better to use the drum to roast nuts instead of the tray? I wanted to use the drum because of the uniformity in roasting that can be obtained.


texts: What is a useful search term for the sensation of flavor progression in a spoonful?

texts:
That's "progression" as in flavor changes happening over time (like the few seconds to chew). As a rough analogy, in music theory a chord is made up of different notes played simultaneously (and where the individual notes become difficult to isolate), but there is also chord progression, which has different chords played after the other, and the dynamic makes a tune that's different from simply playing all the notes in all the chords at the same time. I see in a lot of recipe discussion "melding" or flavors coming together, and here and there there's mention of specific ingredients or flavor combos popping out, but I want to focus specifically on the latter, and specifically on flavors being "phrasal", with individual "words" but also a "phrase" more than its sum parts.

I ask mainly because I once had a chili that did a great job at having a flavorful  base flavor, but with every spoonful, as I chewed, distinct flavors were "emerging" from the base one after the other (along with textural variation), and with a consistency per spoonful with how the flavors came out in order. I've also had stews with similarly stable bases, but distinct flavors "fell out" or "abruptly showed up" more in a raw way and/or with less consistent ordering. Then I've had stews that basically tasted like undifferentiated protein mush (it had a flavor, but each spoonful was as non-dynamic as the one before).

The thing is, as I try to look up tips on how to do this flavor progression, I don't seem to have a clear term to disambiguate from other aspects of cooking. This isn't a question about how to get flavor progression, but a question about a specific searchable term to assist my research.

I've tried to look up "preserving distinct flavors" as well, but I'm still getting nonspecific results. I guess similar concepts would be flavor highlights and isolation, as well as flavor contrasting. It'd be great to have an analogue to "chord progression" though.


texts: Why are there caraway seeds in rye bread?

texts: I love rye bread, so something I have always wondered about is why there are caraway seeds in it. It seems to be some kind of tradition.


texts: What might be a flavor substitution for someone with an onion allergy?

texts: I can't eat onions of any kind, from shallots, green onions, red, white, yellow, or purple. What might I use as a subtitute for flavor?


texts: King Arthur sells pizza dough flavoring on their website. I'm looking to try to homemake some since my dough is a little bland. The ingredients listed include cheese (maybe Parmesan or Romano,) garlic and spices. Any suggestions on what spices would make a good blend?


texts: How do you use the gizmo for Café Sua Da?

texts:
Vietnamese Iced Coffee or Café Sua Da is usually served with the little brew pot dripping coffee into a glass with sweetened condensed milk at the bottom. You then stir and add ice and enjoy.

But what's the little screen with the screw for? Usually in restaurants I find it just sitting loose. Is it supposed to be screwed-on or loose? Is it supposed to constrain the expansion of the grounds or just help form the initial packed puck shape? Is the lid important?

Bonus questions: How important is it to have chicory in the coffee? What's a good proportion?


texts:
I started thawing a thick cut of London Broil (maybe 1.5 lbs) in cold water and then I realized I didn’t want to start cooking it yet.  I’ve moved it to the fridge.

While thawing in cold water, I had not sealed the meat completely in a zipper bag,  but instead wrapped it in cling wrap.  It was pretty well covered (double wrapped), but some water may have gotten in and it wasn’t sealed off entirely from the air.  (Research has left me concerned that this may have been bad)

Is this a problem?

Background info:  In total it was out of the freezer in cold water for maybe 45 minutes, and the outside has begun to thaw.  I’ve put it back in the fridge after washing the container it was in with soap and hot water.
I plan to cook it in a crock pot for 8 hours after browning it on the stove top.


texts: How can I prevent my ice cream bucket from drying out?

texts:
I live in New Mexico which is a dry climate. During the winter I store my ice cream bucket in the garage. While ice cream buckets that are not in use are prone to drying out, storing it in the garage certainly isn't helping. A dried out bucket cannot prevent the salt brine solution from leaking out during the freezing process.

The dryness certainly is not a huge problem as I simply soak the ice cream bucket for a few days which causes the wood to swell up. I'd like to shorten the number of days I must soak the bucket before it is usable again. Is there something I can do to help keep my bucket from drying out over the winter?


texts: I've heard that you need to let meat cool down after cooking before you store in in refrigeration, something about bacteria building up when you do that. Any idea if that's true?


texts: What is this white, non-fuzzy, substance on my kimchi?

texts:
I have a jar of store bought kimchi that I neglected for a few months (bought around mid July). Today I opened it and noticed that a few pieces had some white stuff on it, but it doesn't look like mold. The best way to describe it is that it is similar to the white yeast concentrate that collects at the bottom of homebrew or in some unfiltered beers. I took a piece without the white stuff on it and tasted it, and it tasted fine, if a little bit stronger with an almost boozy taste.   I was just wondering what this is and if it's safe to eat, because as far as I know, kimchi doesn't have yeast in it.

Click on picture for full size.


texts: Benefits or effects of salt on fruit fruit cleanliness with regards to wax, pests, pesticides, insecticides, etc?

texts:
There's a language barrier here for context.
I have heard from a family relative that they think using salt in the preparation of some fruits to be beneficial from a cleanliness perspective, which they heard from the radio. I inquired about the mechanics of how and why this works and did not receive any sort of explanation that satisfied me (e.g. Kenji J lopez style experiments or references to any scientific models/theories of why)
I understand that not all scientific models/theories work in all cases and some become historical as more cases and knowledge is discovered. However I do enjoy/prefer theories/models with experiments and tests with reproducible and measurable results to help prove things.
In all examples the salt used is normal table salt.

Preparing an apple to be eaten raw, putting salt on it first and rubbing. Then washing off the salt and washing like normal. Something about the salt is supposed to do something about insecticides and pesticides? I'm not sure if a case could be made for the salt being used as an abrasive for removing wax?

Grapes, Berries (blueberry, raspberry, strawberry)  Rinsing them off with water like normal, then briefly soaking them in salt water, then dumping the salt water, then rinsing with water again. The salt water soak is supposed to do something for possible (insect) pests, pesticides, insecticides?

Let me know if these kinds of salt operations have any substantial effects good or bad, with regards to cleanliness, taste, nutritional etc. I have heard of brining meat, but never thought or heard of these kinds of practices.
I would be happy to see this debunked or explained.


texts: How to cook oily fish whilst minimising odour?

texts:
I like fish.  But oily fish cooking smells differ tangibly from their taste.  As such, I never cook oily fish, I'll buy smoked mackerel or a tin of sardines.  Salmon is an exception.

I was wondering if anyone who had any tips to minimise oily fish cooking odour.

Is it the skin? Does removing the skin help?


texts: How do I know if I can double, triple or quadruple a recipe for caramels?

texts: I have a really good recipe for caramels, everyone raves about them, so I am thinking about selling them to the public. But the recipe I have only makes an 8 x 8 inch pan of caramels and they take a looong time to make. Does anyone know how to know if the recipe can be doubled, tripled or quadrupled short of actually having to do that.


texts: How can I correct this Brandy Snaps disaster?

texts:
I recently got a copy of the "Be-ro book of Home Recipes". Near the beginning is a recipe for 'brandy snaps'. This is a kind of cracker that is rolled after cooking to make tubes that are then filled with cream. However, my attempt to cook them failed and I want to know where I'm going wrong.

The first set was on parchment paper but not properly greased so they stuck to the paper.

The second set was greased but still tore when trying to lift off the paper. Also they have to be rolled when hot but they are far to hot to touch until they cool but then they are too stiff to roll.

The third set again just tore and couldn't be rolled.

On the plus side, the did taste nice but how can I stop them looking like something the dog should be eating.


texts: How can I ensure food safety if my cooking utensils have touched raw meat?

texts:
Twice in the past week or so, I've wondered whether my cooking utensil was still clean enough to cook / serve with. Here were the situations:

Cooking ground sausage (no casing). While breaking the sausage up, raw sausage clearly got on the back of the spoon. Over the course of cooking the sausage and later adding veggies, all visible traces of the raw meat disappeared. I finished up cooking, used the spoon to stir in some penne, and then served.
Candying some bacon. Put some bacon in the oven with some brown sugar on it. Used a fork to flip the bacon half way through. Then used the same fork to take the cooked bacon out of the pan and on to a rack.

Is this safe? When do I need to worry about contamination on my cooking utensils? What is sufficient to make the utensil safe again?


texts: How do I keep chocolate chips from melting in cake batter?

texts: I have attempted to put chocolate chips in cake batter, but they always melt. Bakeries are able to make chocolate chip cakes and the chips are still somewhat solid. Mine come out almost diluted.


texts: How do I flavor popcorn with a minimal amount of fat?

texts:
I have a popcorn machine that produces popcorn without using fat. It basically blows hot air over the kernels, and after 2 minutes they start popping.

You're not supposed to add any flavoring agent (salt, sugar, ...) in the machines as it's not made for that. So when I want to add flavor, I spray water onto the popcorn right after it has popped, and then scatter the flavoring agent. This works relatively well.

The downside:

the popcorn can become damp (I solve this by leaving the machine on, which blows hot air over the popcorn)
you can waste some flavoring agent (not all of it sticks to the popcorn, some of it falls on the bottom of the bowl)

The upside:

no fat used, healthier and your fingers will be less "greasy"

Any other ideas how to flavor your popcorn using no fat or a minimal amount of fat?


texts: I use fresh tomato puree to make my pasta sauce, other things in my sauce are olive oil, garlic, some herbs and salt, i don't let it boil but during the simmering & thickening process the sauce always splits. What am I doing wrong?


texts: How do you disinfect various cooking items that have touched raw meat?

texts:
As a novice cook I am looking to perfect my approach to cleaning and disinfecting various things I use to handle raw meat such as cutlery, tongs, large knives, plates, bowls and cutting boards to ensure that no harmful bacteria is spread.

I clean, then disinfect. During the cleaning stage, your sponge or dishbrush can come into contact with the harmful bacteria.  Does this mean you should throw those things out after?  Or do you keep them and disinfect them as well?  How do you clean your cleaning tools?

Currently I buy large amounts of cheap sponges and chuck them out after I have used them to clean (I know this is wasteful).  Then, to disinfect, I spray everything with hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar and let sit for 10 minutes.

I am not happy with my approach so I am looking for advice on how to improve.


texts: Why don't chicken and turkey sausages typically have sodium nitrate, but other meat sausages do?

texts:
It's just something I've noticed while shopping. All of the chicken and turkey sausages I've seen (across multiple brands) do not contain sodium nitrate, but all beef- and pork-based sausage always has sodium nitrate.

I vaguely understand the role of nitrates in the food safety of cured meats, but I'm wondering what is it specifically about turkey and chicken that don't require nitrates.


texts: Can you boil milk and let it fully cool then bring it up to 100 degrees F for yogurt?

texts: I brought my milk to a boil but I don't have time to let it cool. I don't want to put in the enzymes now because they will die off. Can I let it cool in the fridge and bring it back up to 110 degrees F then add the enzymes? My understanding is that bringing the effects of the boiling will last.


texts:
I'm on campus for most of the day, and since eating on campus is expensive, I would bring leftover dinners with me. Since they would sit in my backpack for several hours before eating, I would use one of the many microwaves on campus to heat it up to kill any harmful bacteria that may be present.

I'm at a new college now, and there appears to be only one public microwave on the entire campus, which makes bringing leftover dinners inconvenient.

The Problem: The food I bring with me will sit around in the temperature danger zone for several hours before eating. Heating it back up and keeping it cool are not very feasible.

The Need: Meals that don't need to be kept cool or heated up. The only thing I can think of is sandwiches, and the only sandwiches I can think of are boring turkey slices on white bread. So, what kind of meals can I make then?


texts: Can I make French onion soup with red onions instead of white?

texts: All the white onions have been used for something else, all I have is the red onions, I would cook the red onions the same way, according to the directions, correct?


texts: I have not had good luck with this tough lean cut so far. I usually get it when I buy in on a grass-fed cow. Braising it they way I normally braise cuts of beef in wine makes a very dry unappetizing roast. Maybe try a heavier tenderizing marinade? Grind it? Jerky?


texts: What to do when I accidentally put too much salt on the meat?

texts:
I'm still learning to cook, and yesterday I put too much salt on the meat when I was cooking it. What I can I do to not waste the meat?
I still have some raw meat but I'm afraid to make it too salty if I mix both together. I heard I can put the meat in boiling water to try to get rid of salt, but I'm not sure if that Would work. Or should I make soup/stew with the meat and not use salt on it?
What else I can do to make it edible?


texts: Undoing the flavor effects of baking soda in cooking

texts:
I recently learned that if you put a bit of sodium bicarbonate on onion when frying it, the onion will literally melt away. This is absolutely amazing, and I love that trick.
But I tried it now when I was cooking some tomato sauce, and while the mouthfeel was incredibly creaming (as opposed to a bit chewy when I do without), there was a clear and ever present sensation of the baking soda at the back of my throat.
Is it just because I've put too much baking soda (about half a teaspoon for one small-medium onion, and also two and a half plum tomatoes that came in shortly thereafter), or is there something else to do to resolve this without changing the intended flavor profile too much? (I don't want to add vinegar, for example, if that causes the sauce to taste like vinegar)


texts: Will tomatoes keep for longer if you keep the stalk in?

texts: I know that avocados are supposed to keep longer with the stalks; I would like to know if it is also true for tomatoes?


texts: How to cook multiple batches in a wok without things burning

texts:
I've read in a number of places that instead of doubling a recipe in a wok, just do multiple batches.

However, whenever I try to do multiple batches, by the second batch things are starting to get smokey and by the thrid I've set off the fire alarm.

I typically cook something with an egg which seems extra difficult on multiple batches, but I feel like I have this issue even when I don't use egg.

Just scraping the sides does not seem to be enough. I tried wiping down the sides with an oiled paper towel, but it just burned. Am I supposed to completely turn off the burner and wash the wok between batches? Should I just avoid egg and other things which are difficult if doing multiple batches? Will things just get easier the more 'seasoned' my wok gets? Am I not using enough oil?

Does anyone have any tricks for cooking multiple batches in a wok?


texts: What is the brown sauce in authentic Chinese fried rice?

texts: There is a lady at work that makes the most awesome and most delicious Chicken Fried Rice on the planet. She uses white rice with some sort of brown sauce that is added when frying the rice in the wok. She won't tell anyone what that brown sauce is other than she is using soy sauce.  Not true!  It is extremely mild, and slightly brown in color.  Does anyone have any idea?


texts: electric smoking 2 pork loins, increase time and or temp?

texts:
We're using our electric smoker to do 2 pork loins close to equal size.  We did only one loin before and it was great!

Do we need to adjust the time and or temp to do it right again? We want to do them together.

We are using the "Masterbuilt" brand smoker.


texts:
When making a dish, I of course taste it through out the process of cooking until its done. I have been extra careful - Each time I taste from the dish I use a new spoon - This means that I have to have ALOT of spoons ready all the time, and have to spend a significant amount of effort to keep them clean.

Is this common practice? Or is this too harsh compared to the norm (in restaurants). Are there any "tricks" that people use to get around the possibility of introducing your own germs into the dish, or minimizing this risk?

EDIT: I'm interested in the common practice in commercial settings (I have a small home-cooking business, and I want to align myself with the norm in restaurants etc..)


texts: How can you speed up a genoise cake mixing?

texts:
I usually make a chocolate Swiss roll.

The first step is to beat 4 eggs together with 115g sugar on a double boiler with warm (tap) water. I use a hand mixer for this, and it takes a long time, plus the machine gets really hot in the end.

My question is if there's a way to speed up the process? I haven't timed it (next time). I don't put the double boiler on a stove, it's just filled with warm water. My mixing bowl is plastic.


texts: Why does slightly cooked (wilted) spinach give me dry mouth but not raw or fully cooked?

texts:
I used raw spinach in salads.  I use it well cooked in soups, pies, and sauteed by itself.  For some recipes (mostly in omelettes)  I like it flash-fried, just to the point it starts wilting.   And in those recipes, it leaves me with a dry mouth for an hour after I eat it.  Any clues?
If it is of any relevance, I only buy fresh pre-washed baby spinach so I cannot compare to other kinds, or to frozen, or to spinach I wash myself.


texts:
I've got a Meringue recipe that calls for castor sugar.

Is that different than powdered sugar?


texts: I made chocolate chip cookies and added too much brown sugar. The cookies are too sweet. I've used real butter and real chocolate chips. Does anyone have any ideas?


texts:
Most people are probably familiar with the line from James Bond, "Vodka Martini, shaken not stirred." What I have never figured out is "why would it make a difference?"

I have tried making martinis both ways and perhaps I don't appreciate the subtleties of a fine martini to notice the difference, but I don't.

What difference does it make between shaking and stirring a martini and how is that difference (if any) created?


texts: How does core temperature relate with slow cooking?

texts:
What I have understood so far:

You can slow cook to produce pulled pork/beef/lamb/chicken by applying relatively low temperature for long time so that proteins can denaturate (sous vide can help here to prevent drying out)
Before achieving the core temperature, meat is rare which is not pulled.

So is slow cooking temperature (sure different for different proteins):

same or below core temperature, just for longer time,
or somewhat beyond and is that estimated?


texts: *Roughly* how many tomatoes go into a 24oz jar of pasta sauce?

texts: Suppose I have medium-sized roma or plum tomatoes and want to make a jar of pasta sauce. Assuming I do not add mushrooms, peppers, onions or a significant amount of other fillers, roughly how many tomatoes will make 1 jar of pasta sauce?


texts:
I just made some steamed chicken breasts in a multicooker. Naturally, I still have water used for steaming in the bowl. It smells like and even looks like chicken soup. I'm not sure if it's good to eat, but wouldn't want to just throw it away.

What is usually done in this case?


texts: Why is bacon commonly baked in a cold oven?

texts: When cooking bacon on a sheet rack in the oven (for about 25 minutes at 400 ° F), it's common to put the bacon in the oven when the oven is cold, so that the oven is "pre-heating" while the bacon is inside.  What is the purpose of this? Why start the bacon in a cold oven when so many other things use a pre-heated oven?


texts: What preservative should be used for pickling vegetables like carrot, cauliflower and green chillies which are parboiled and could be used without refrigeration?


texts: Approximating dried mushroom texture without

texts:
For yet another variation on using dried/fresh mushrooms, I would like to know how to approximate the texture of dried mushrooms using fresh.

My intent is to make a leek-miso soup and I would like to add dried shiitake for their texture (flavor too, sure, but it is already a flavorful soup). Unfortunately, the market near me only has fresh mushrooms (portabella, baby bella, snow cap, and other normals). But alas, I also do not have a food dehydrator.

How can I manipulate the mushrooms to approximate the same chewy texture? My thought is that long, slow baking at a very low temp would dry them out. Is this intuition right? Should I prep the mushrooms before hand in anyway?


texts: To tell if meat has gone bad, is touch enough evidence?

texts:
I have meat in my fridge that range from a couple of days to the sell-by-date to several months. All of it is slimy on touch, but it doesn't smell bad.

Should it being slimy be enough of a reason to throw it away? I read that sliminess and smell were ways of detecting if meat has gone bad.


texts: Is there any way for me to reheat mini beef wellingtons without toughening the meat?

texts:
I've been asked to bring an appetizer to Thanksgiving dinner and my father requested that I make him my beef wellington so I'm wanting to try a bite-sized version. It's a family potlock and there won't be time to cook a dish but we'll keep the oven at 350F and use it to warm dishes as needed.

Although my mini wellingtons will be fairly small (about 1.5" cubes) I'm concerned that the `10 minutes it will take to bring them to a proper temperature will overtoughen the meat inside.

Do I have any reasonable options or should I consider a different dish?


texts:
I often use butter to cook most of my dishes. I tend to spice this butter with various things (chili seeds, herbs etc) and it will naturally absorb some of the flavours of whatever is being cooked.
Could this flavored butter mix be cooled and frozen for use at another time?
i.e. I do a bacon fry up and want to use it again for scrambled eggs another time.
If so, would it be as simple as waiting for it to cool, putting it in a container and freezing it?
Edit
This answer seems to be what I am looking to accomplish, I just would like to know if my understanding of the storage is correct.


texts: I've noticed that potatoes will discolour when they're peeled; however, if they are submerged in water, or boiled and drained, they're fine (at least for comparable periods of time).  Why is this?


texts:
The recipe for brown veal stock in Modernist Cuisine (Volume 2, page 300) lists Vodka as an ingredient. Why?

I have never seen Vodka as an ingredient before for stock, in no professional cooking literature. No alcohol other than wine. Do you think it makes a positive difference, taste-wise?

Would an author of a cookbook add ingredients to a recipe not for taste but to appear clever? (I could imagine it with this book)

Addition 1:
Very good answers so far, thank you! So far I learned that theoretically it could make a difference. But in practice? Can anyone testify to having personally, clearly tasted a positive difference in taste due to the addition of Vodka?


texts: How to make colorful marshmallow without using synthetic coloring agents?


texts: Recreating New York street vendors' "halal chicken over rice"

texts:
New York City is filled with carts selling all sorts of food, but the most common ones are the halal carts. They each have their own recipes, but all have the same basic signature dishes: chicken or lamb, over rice or in a pita, with optional "white sauce" and "hot sauce." The lamb is generally gyro meat, but the chicken is something unique... chunks of white and dark meat marinated in a rich, flavorful blend of generically middle eastern spices, sauteed and chopped up. The rice is usually either a bright yellow or an even brighter orange.

I'm wondering how I might make this at home: what spices might I put on the chicken? What's the white sauce? What's the hot sauce? What's in the rice? I'm usually good at figuring out spices, so I'd expect to find the flavor of cumin, cinnamon, coriander, and the like, but I can't make out a single distinct flavor in the delicious blends used at most of these carts! The only hint I have is the whole cardamom pods I've occasionally bitten into.

(I've tried asking, but the vendors invariably lose their understanding of the english language at precisely this moment :)


texts: Mozzarella. Obtaining buffalo milk from whole milk and heavy cream

texts:
I am trying to make mozzarella using rennet, citric acid and milk. However, having read on the Internet about this process, I've found out that the best mozzarella is produced from buffalo milk.

I only have whole (3% fat) milk available and I was wondering whether I could approximate buffalo milk by adding in heavy cream (30% fat).

Is this possible and what is the ratio of milk / cream to obtain a similar consistency? If this is not possible do you have any good tips on creating a good curd from whole 3% milk (pasteurized) available off-the-shelf?


texts: Why add yogurt to curries spoon by spoon instead of all at once?

texts:
A few recipes I have might use 5 or 6 tablespoons of yogurt but want it fully mixed spoon by spoon and cooked for 30s before adding the next spoon.

Can't I just dump the lot in and mix well?

Edit: The recipes tend to share the same order: cook spices, add onion & garlic, add browned meat, mix in yogurt, add water, simmer for an hour or more. So it's quite a dry mix when the yogurt is added.


texts: Sear pork belly before or after cooking in a pressure cooker?

texts:
I've been trying different pork belly recipes, after trying a few using a pressure cooker and a few that only call for pan-searing, I think I'd like to try a combination of both, since that works really well for beef.

Every time I've done any sort of beef in the pressure cooker, the consensus appears to be that you should sear before putting it in the pressure cooker. After all, it usually comes out too tender to sear afterwards, anyway.

However, recipes for pork belly appear to call for the opposite: to sear the pork belly after it comes out of the pressure cooker.

I know that pork belly has a lot of fat & connective tissue, so is this perhaps the reason why the recipes call for the opposite? Will searing it before pressure cooking affect how that breaks down? Or is it really bound to not make that much of a difference?


texts:
Sometimes when making a very simple cheese sauce (butter, flour, milk, cheese [cheddar, usually]), the final sauce has a sort of gritty or slightly pebbly texture (rather than smooth) - it seems like maybe the cheese hasn't totally melted, even if I continue to heat the sauce.

Why does this happen? How can I avoid it?


texts: I dont have refrigrator what are ways to keep milk without that?

texts:
What are old ways to store milk without refrigerator.
I boiled twice a day still it spoils.


texts: what to mix with milk other than sugar to give good taste

texts:
I want to drink milk without adding any sugar [ for Diet ]

is there any alternative for sugar to mix with milk which give good taste ?

I dont want honey [ more calorie ] , stevia , cocoa butter [cocoa butter is only fat].....

has anyone tried with cocoa powder, is there any other option ?


texts: Why does water always boil over when steaming shrimp?

texts:
Normally, with some typical amount of water, when steaming vegetables my steamer never boils over.

However, when I steam shrimp, it seems like no matter how low I keep the heat or how little water I use the water always boils over.

Why is this?


texts: Does steak from a supermarket cook quicker than steak from a butchers?

texts:
I've recently made the jump from buying steaks at the grocery store to buying whole cuts of steak from an online butcher and breaking them down into steaks myself.
One thing I have noticed is the steaks I've bought from the online butcher take longer to cook. For example a ribeye of medium thickness bought from the grocery store would be medium if I cooked it for 2.5 minutes either side on a cast iron skillet. In contrast, I cooked a skirt steak half the thickness for about 3 minutes either side and this came out more medium rare.
I've been using the same pan, stove and temperature however it seems like its easier to overcook a mass produced steak.
Just out of interest has anyone had similar experiences? If so, does anyone know why?


texts: What is boudin made from, and how is it made?


texts: I fancy making flavoured 'spaghetti', any tips?

texts:
I would like to experiment with flavoured 'spaghetti' by taking a juice and gelling it in spaghetti shape, so I could have beetroot strands that I could use in a pasta dish.

Anyone done this?  Got any tips on gelling agents to use and what I could make the strands with ie moulds etc?

Also any flavour ideas would be appreciated.  Lobster bisque flavour appeals for a hot clam based 'pasta' dish or maybe an apple and cinnamon with ice-cream


texts: What ingredients can be used to prevent rapid ice cream melting?

texts:
I added Guar gum and xanthane gum when I made ice cream, but 15% of it still melted before I put the ice cream in the fridge.

What ingredients can I use to prevent my ice cream from melting this fast?


texts:
We switched from an electric stove to a gas stove. The new stove doesn't seem to get hot enough to scramble eggs.

How hot should the pan surface be to scramble eggs? All the recipes I've found just say "heat until hot".

EDIT: I measured my pan with an IR thermometer, it never got above 260F, is that too cold for eggs?


texts: How to dry fruits without sunlight or a dehydrator?

texts: I need to dry amla (Indian gooseberry). I live in India so we get plenty of sunlight but I live in the city and it's very dusty outside, so I can't leave fruits out, otherwise they'll be covered in dust.  But the indoor temperatures are quite warm (around 30 degrees celsius). Can I just dry the fruits (preserved in sugar syrup) indoors or will they spoil?  thanks for your help :)


texts:
We bought a food dehydrator to make dog treats with.  Primarily we're dehydrating yams, apples and bananas.  I'm not dehydrating these to crisps because I didn't think I needed to.  The dehydrated yams that we buy as dog treats are still pliable and leathery, so I didn't think I needed to dehydrate them totally dry.

The problem I'm having is that these treats are going moldy in about 4 days.  Again, the treats we buy never go moldy.  I'm assuming they're adding something to the commercial version to stop this.

Does anyone have some hints on what I'm doing wrong or any idea what the commercial brand is putting on them to stop this.  The apples seem to be the slimiest first... Should I be drying the apples to crisps?


texts: Curious mold growth in a sealled BBQ, how does one avoid it?

texts:
When finished cooking with the BBQ and cleaning the grill, I leave it running for a bit then shut off the intake and cap the exhaust (it's a Big Green Egg).

At this point the BBQ is essentially sealed and with temperature being above 300F everywhere inside, presumably sterile.  It cools down naturally over time with practically air-tight conditions.

However, in a couple of weeks there is visible mold on the grill.  The question is:

How can this happen?
Are others experiencing this, is it 'normal'?
How do you prevent it?


texts: Substitute for refined white flour to make fried potato wedges crispy?

texts:
I used to make potato wedges using refined flour, using this recipe. Basically refined flour and corn flour is used to provide extra crisp to potato wedges. The parboiled wedges are coated in a mixture from the flour and some seasonings, then frozen and deep-fried.

But while net surfing I came across harmful effects of refined white flour. Is there a substitute for refined flour? Or are there other ways to get crispy wedges?


texts: Should peanut oil be stored in the fridge?

texts: I know walnut oil should be stored in the fridge. Is the same also true for peanut oil?


texts: Does the size of capers influence their taste?

texts:
I read in several (non scientific) sources that smaller capers have a more "refined taste". I was not able to find an explanation what this "refined taste" is supposed to be. In supermarkets the smaller ones are more expensive.

Is there really a reason to prefer the smaller ones or is it just that: Smaller carps are lighter -> lower harvest yield by weight -> higher price to compensate -> perceived higher value/taste by customer?


texts:
I needed to defrost a steak and followed the advice in this article.

In short you invert a pot, place the steak on top (bottom?), then place a pot with hot water on top of that.

To my surprise, it worked (took about 10-15 minutes though).

It does not seem intuitive to me at all. The steak was completely frozen, and 15 minutes later it was defrosted all the way through. How did this work?


texts: How heavy should a Chinese chef's knife be?

texts:
What weight should a Chinese chef's knife be and for what purpose?

All around, i.e. one knife for most cooking
Slicing
Chopping vegetables
Meat without bones
Chicken or fish with bones

Chinese chef's knife is left-most in the picture below.


texts: Topside chunks still tough after 2 hours cooking?

texts:
I've made a Massaman curry with Topside beef. I've cooked the curry for 2 hours now, the meat breaks up when pushed with a spoon but feels very tough and firm and not soft and falling apart like I hoped.
Any idea whats' wrong and if I can fix it somehow?
More details:

I seared the chunks prior to adding them to the curry.
The curry has been cooked on low-to-medium heat for 2 hours
The meat was slightly still frozen when seared (still easy to cut with a knife just a bit icy)
I've cut the meat into chunks of about 2 inches x 2 inches x 1 inches
The meat was advertised as lean top side


texts: For a while now I have been trying to reduce my intake of fried food, or food otherwise cooked with oil. However I still make a lot of things with onions, and I end up sautéeing them with vegetable oil. If I use a non-stick pan, can I sautée onions without oil? What are some techniques to cook onions without oil?


texts: Why is the milk used in latte steamed and not boiled?

texts: Does it make a big difference in the flavor of my latte if I boil the milk, versus steaming it?


texts:
I ask this knowing that it's possibly borderline off-topic, but I don't see a Botany SE site where I could ask, so...

A few days ago I stumbled (literally) upon an odd little fruit that had fallen onto the sidewalk. It fascinated me because it had three large lobes and a hard, mottled outer texture. I couldn't figure out what it was, so I brought it home and promptly forgot about it for a couple days.

When I picked it up today, one lobe had softened, and with a little pressure I was able to pop it off. The lobe contained a smooth, dark-brown nut!

Upon examination this reminded me of a chestnut. I broke off another lobe and found a second pod:

I have no idea what these are; they appear very similar to chestnuts but are missing the pointed tip and spiny shell. I don't know what to make of them.

Does anybody know what these are? More to the point for this site, are they (safely) edible? I noticed a lot more had fallen nearby, and I'm not above gathering some if they're tasty.


texts: I left my stainless steel frying pan on the hob empty for a while by mistake. It got very hot indeed, I ran it carefully under the tap to cool it down, which took a while - lots of steam. Now, there's a kind of black residue inside, that wasn't there before (it was clean while it was on the hob). I can't remove it even with the toughest of detergents and pan scourers, is it safe to cook with this pan any more?


texts: Vegetable mill versus using a food processor for vegetables

texts:
What is the advantage of using a mechanical vegetable mill (the utensil which in Italian is called "passaverdura" or "passaverdure") as opposed to using an electric food processor for vegetables?

The only thing I could think of is that a mechanical vegetable mill makes it easy to separate the tomato peels when passing the tomato through it.

Here is an example of a food processor for comparison:

I've also found the following Wikipedia link to the utensil I describe:

Food Mill

Thank you for your insight.

Note: A vegetable food processor can also be called a vegetable mixer as this link demonstrates:

Vegetable Mixer


texts: How to optimize the order of ingredients for crêpes batter?

texts:
I am French and I make every Sunday crêpes for breakfast. The crêpes are great (I am told :)) but I rarely manage to get a homogenous batter. First, the batter (NSFW :))

The clumps are not simply flour-based, my guess is that this is the butter clumping with flour, helped by the liquid (milk or milk + water, or milk + sparkling water).
I think this is the case because once I pour this liquid + white stuff on the pan, they disappear (= melt) and the resulting crêpe looks good (below the recto and verso):

The usual order I make the batter is:

egg + a bit of sugar
some flour to make a paste
melted butter
some more flour to make the paste
some milk, baking powder, liquid vanilla
some more flour
some more milk

→ the point is to keep a homogenous paste, which would then finally be diluted by the milk.
So I end up with the amount of paste (the consistency is of a very heavy cream) I believe will be good for the day and I slowly dilute it with milk.
And I end up with the white stuff.
Is there a more optimal order to get a homogenous batter? I sometimes get one but never remember what I changed in the order.
Just to clarify: the crepes are great once they are done, it is just that handling the batter is not easy when I have to somehow get some liquid and some of the white stuff each time.


texts: Does "the canned spinach taste" have a name? Other than "the canned spinach taste"?

texts:
The taste (which is nasty in my opinion) that is specific to spinach or many leafy greens and sometimes asparagus which is cooked in water, does this taste have a name?

What causes that flavor to emerge?  I suspect its something to do with chlorophyll since dried basil added to sauce doesn't produce the flavor, yet fresh basil does.  I added fresh basil to sauce to which it gave the flavor of canned spinach.


texts: I have read the boards from people who ask what they can do with a pecan pie that did not set up and all the responses are what the cook should have done from the beginning. That doesn't help.  Is there something I can do NOW to fix it?  Should I try baking it more?  Should I microwave it?  Help!!


texts: I freeze sandwiches made from homemade bread rolls at the weekend, paired in plastic bags, and get a set out at 6 am to take to work in a rucksack. They stay there until I eat them at noon, when they're still pretty cold and wet, possibly because they stay in the rucksack's dark inside. I could make them a bit closer to room temperature by defrosting them in my home's microwave before I leave, or by warming them slightly in a microwave at work, but I'm not sure how much I should use either method or on which setting. Alternatively (if it would be enough, but I think it would be socially suboptimal), I could take the bag out at work so the rolls get some light. Is there an optimum approach?


texts: Is it okay to eat fish with an isopod parasite on it?

texts:
I bought some frozen Hairtail fish (Chinese: 帶魚) and one of them had some kind of isopod on it. I already removed the bug and threw it out, but after some research it looks a lot like the image here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymothoidae
Is it still okay to cook and eat the fish?


texts: Mould in water when making preserved duck eggs

texts:
We have ducks at home and my wife has been making the Chinese delicacy 咸鸭蛋 preserved duck eggs for about 3 months now.

However in the past week the current batch of eggs has mould in the water.

The weather here is getting warmer as we have just switched to Spring. So we are guessing it might be the extra sunlight or warmth coming into our kitchen.

My wife didn't think we need to put it in the fridge, but is there a suggested temperature?


texts: How can I remove aluminum foil from a candy cane?

texts: I got a rather large candy cane, and was far from able to finish it in a single sitting. I thought I would preserve it by wrapping it (somewhat tightly) in aluminum foil. Now, a month later, I can't get it off. I have tried everything up to scraping it with a butter knife, but I can't get all of the foil off. Any advice? I would rather not throw the whole thing away.


texts: meal planning software with collaboration and sharing

texts:
Me and my wife are technophiles. We've had a fair amount of success organizing aspects of our life using RememberTheMilk for lists and google calendar for a shared calendar.

Recently we've wanted to up our cooking game (cooking more at home and trying out Primal Blueprint).

What I'm looking for is software that allows us to build a database of recopies (that we share) and meal plans we can collaborate on.

So far I've tried Pepper Plate and I've glanced at all the option in this question. It looks like there are lots of nice options for collecting recipes, a couple that let you share your library with others (not just individual recipes), some (like PepperPlate) have tools to build a meal plan, but what I really want to be able to do is collaborate on meal plans with other people.

Does anyone know of any software that makes this easy? I'd accept "non-meal plan" specific software as long as it works well.

As a bonus the software would be able to put grocery list items in an RTM list and display the meal plan in other calendar software, abut that might be hoping for too much.


texts: Why does caffeine taste bitter when added to tea?

texts:
Black tea contains about 40 mg of caffeine. When adding 80 mg of caffeine powder, the tea tastes bitter.

Why doesn't caffeine that is already in the tea or in an energy drink taste bitter and how should caffeine be added to drinkable fluids so it has no taste?

Adding more sugar is not a very healthy solution either...


texts: should my sour pickles be sealed while pickling?

texts:
I'm making sour pickles. A lot of recipes say that the lid should be loose or upside down so that the pickles have room to "breath". I keep the jars out, often coming into contact with light from outside.

Does leaving the top on loose pose an increased risk of botulism? I understood that botulism bacteria multiply rapidly in an anaerobic (no air) environment.

The brine is pretty darn salty (1tb : 1cup of water), and it contains no vinegar.


texts: Does the order of preparation steps for soy milk make a difference?

texts:
When making homemade soy milk with a blender, what is the difference between:

cooking beans -> blending --> straining
blending raw beans -> cooking --> straining
blending raw beans -> straining --> cooking

Is there any difference or advantage to using one method over another?

P.S. Since soaking the beans is always the first step, I left that part out in this question for sake of simplicity.


texts: What is the purpose of nutritional yeast?

texts:
I have several recipes for seitan which call for nutritional yeast.  I've never used it before and am curious about its purpose.

Is it for flavor, texture, nutritional value?


texts:
I have been looking for this ingredient called ko-chu Ka-roo to make kimchi. I checked in a local asian grocery and I didn't find something with that name. But I found Maesri Chilli Powder.
Is this the same thing? Can it be used?
thanks


texts: What is the term for "plain" non-flavored ice cream

texts:
Me (russian) talked to my partner (american) about ice cream flavors. In Russia and post-USSR plain flavor (creamy-milky one) is extremely popular and often called пломбир. It is the default flavor, in contrast to American default, vanilla.

In the US though, this flavor of ice cream is not a real thing. Is there a term that I can use to find and buy that type of ice cream?

It seems like a common question, and some people call it "cream flavored ice cream", and russian->english translation can be "rich creamy ice-cream".


texts: How do I open a brand-new (plug-top) oval canister?

texts:
Shockingly I can't find an answer to this anywhere I look online. I have an oval canister of cocoa that I received as a gift with no directions on how to open it. A can opener is not going to work here due to the shape.

http://mcstevens.com/elvispeanutbuttebanana.aspx

It says it is a plug top. But I can't seem to unplug it with brute force using my hands. How do you open a new plug top?


texts: My husband made and canned pickles 1 week ago. Tonight he noticed the seals were popped on all but one jar. One other time the same thing happened when he canned green beans. What would be the cause of this?


texts:
One of the tips I always get about cooking is seasoning meat before I put it in the pan for a sear, but one of the other tips I get is to keep the meat dry so it can actually brown and develop a crust. I know that salting meat draws out moisture to the surface, and that tends to prevent the sear I want. Dabbing the steak with a paper towel before I put it in the pan seems to take away the salt I added, and that seems counterproductive too.
Is there a way I can still keep meat I want to season dry so I can get a good crust?


texts: Is there a reason to not grate cheese ahead of time?

texts: Suppose I know that I'm going to eventually end up grating all of my cheese. Is there a reason to not just toss it all into a blender and store it for later? To be more concrete, I'm particularly interested in the answer as it pertains to Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino Romano, both the bonafide sorts and any variations that can be sold under the same name in the United States.


texts: When should I add cocoa powder to instant coffee?

texts:
I prepare Turkish coffee using pre-roasted coffee powder.

What is a good time to add cocoa powder to it - before heating, after heating or during heating? Does it matter?


texts: How to make a more apple-y apple cider yeast bread

texts:
I would like to figure out how to make a strongly apple-flavored yeast bread

I found a recipe for a yeast bread that I was quite happy with, which starts with the yeast in 2 cups of milk, then uses 1/3 of a cup of honey as the source of sugar.  More recently, I came across this BA video on cider donuts which starts out with essentially making mulled apple cider and reducing it to a syrupy/jelly consistency.

This inspired me to try to make an apple cider yeast bread.  I found this recipe for an apple cider yeast bread, but it says that it produces a bread with "a hint of apple and a faint sweetness".  "A hint of apple" is not enough for me, I really want to make a yeast-based bread that truly tastes of apple.

What I tried:

I substituted 4 cups of apple cider (with cinnamon, cloves, and an allspice berry), reduced to about 1/2 cup, for the honey in the original recipe (I checked, 4 cups of cider has about the same amount of sugar as 1/3 cup of honey).

Unfortunately, my bread came out tasting like a wonderful yeast bread, without the slightest trace of apple (it doesn't taste like the original recipe, I think it's actually better, but no trace of the apple cider).  I would like to make my cider bread truly contain a strong apple flavor.

Can I:

Substitute cider for the milk from the original recipe
Make a second batch of the cider reduction and fold it into the dough somehow
Some other option that will produce a stronger apple flavor


texts:
What are the best practices for scaling up Indian dishes such as chicken curry, butter chicken, palak paneer, etc. that follow these generic steps (albeit with different ingredients):
oil -> whole spices -> onions -> ginger garlic -> tomatoes -> chicken/veg
The process above yields extremely tasty & authentic dishes that serve 4-6 people and I have used various recipes with good success.
But when I double/triple/quadruple the quantity (i.e., the amount of chicken or spinach) things go awry. I increase the base curry ingredients (onions, ginger/garlic/tomatoes/spices) but not necessarily twofold, threefold, or fourfold, etc. The result is a dish that lacks flavor or balance.
The question is, should all ingredients proportionally increase?


texts: In which kind of food items can Asafoetida be used?

texts:
I have heard about the medical benefits of Asafoetida.

I used it once in Brinjals (which while cooking contained only Ginger powder, Fennel powder, salt and red chilli powder). The addition of Asafoetida resulted in the diluted flavor of the remaining spices in Brinjal curry.

In which kind of foods does it make sense to use Asafoetida?


texts: Planning to cook rice for 200 people--will be using long grain rice and slow cooking in the oven.  How many cups of rice do I need?  How many kilos of long grain rice do I need.


texts:
Does anyone know if ginger root is the same as ginger?
I have a recipe with dried ginger but can only find dried ginger root.
Hopefully someone knows the answer


texts: Is it important to warm the flour before making bread?

texts:
When I was taught to bake bread one of the tips I was given was to warm the flour first.

It's a step I often skip as I haven't really found a quick way to warm it through evenly (but gently) and I don't usually have the time.

Today, for various reasons, I had time to sit the flour by a nice log fire for 2-3 hours and ... hey presto ... the dough was a joy to work with, smooth and elastic etc.

How important do others rate warming the flour? Any tips for doing it quickly that don't involve a "low oven" since I haven't found that very successful.

Edit

For those who haven't heard of it before ... perhaps the intention is to avoid shocking/chilling the yeast when you combine the warm water (yes, of course the water has to be warmed) with the flour. Just wondering.


texts: How do convection microwaves that also broil work?  I am researching (SharpR1874 and Sharp R1881LSY) such ovens that boast a broil feature.  One clearly states it has an element in the top, the other never does say, only convection heating distributed by a fan.  So, do they both  have an element?


texts: Can I cook meat on low for half the preset time?

texts:
I have a Crockpot that has preset settings to cook on high for 4 or 6 hours or cook on low for 8 or 10 hours. The Crockpot model is "Crock-Pot® SCCPVL605-B Cook and Carry Smart Pot Slow Cooker" and the control panel looks like this:

However, I've noticed many recipes call for cooking for shorter durations on low such as this recipe that calls for cooking for 2-3 hours on high or 4-5 hours on low.

First of all, this seems odd as the official crockpot website conversion table says the equivalent of 3 hours on high is 7 hours on low (not 4-5). I'm partial to the low setting as I feel it will probably taste better. So should I just set it to 8 hours on low since it's close enough to the conversion chart's recommended 7?

Or should I follow the recipe as close as possible and use the 8 hour low preset and remove the food after 4 hours? A potential problem with this approach is that I've read that with the presets a certain amount of time is needed to reach the "simmer point" and if you remove it too early your food may not reach the desired internal temperature and therefore be unsafe to eat.

Ultimately, my question boils down to which preset should I use and for how long when the presets don't match the recipe?

Also, please note that my question is different than this question on overcooking as I'm wondering if I may be undercooking.


texts: Keeping question quite simple, I don't know much about measurings, so how many cups make 218 grams, and also when u say for example a cup what should be the size of that cup?