texts: What type of bowl is best for a fruit salad?

texts:
I am planning on making a fruit salad for coworkers and want to make sure that none of the fruit start to go bad because of the contact with the bowl.

I am planning on using apples, oranges, grapes, pine apple, and possibly bananas.

What would be the best type of bowl to transport and serve this in: metal, glass, plastic, etc?


texts: Found a kind of worm in my rice bag, what should I do?

texts:
I poured some rice from a bag into a glass and noticed there was a worm(which looked like the rice) moving around in the rice.

How did it get there, would it have been packed in or would it have moved in since I opened the bag?
Can I remove the insect and still cook the rice, is it safe to eat?
Should I buy this brand anymore?

I was lucky enough to notice today since I poured it into a see through glass today but normally I've never been checking.  Assuming I've been eating this insect on previous occasions will it harm me?


texts: How do baking supply companies blanch their hazelnuts?

texts:
A friend of ours used to own a chocolate factory, and she would get blanched hazelnuts in big boxes. These were only lightly toasted, if at all, but they were perfectly cleaned - not a single recalcitrant paper skin in the bunch.

I've used both the roast & rub method and the baking-soda method (boil water with a couple tablespoons of baking soda, dump in the nuts and boil for a minute or so, rinse & rub) for blanching hazelnuts. While the latter is vastly preferable, it's hard to get the timing & baking soda quantity exactly right, so either you end up with perfectly clean nuts that are a little cooked (not to mention dyed) looking, or you get nuts that are only mostly clean. So whatever the big suppliers do, it doesn't seem to be either of these methods.

Does anybody have actual experience with blanching hazelnuts on a large scale? What method do they use to get those perfect results?

(Failing that, I'll accept pointers on the baking soda method, i.e. how do I tread that line between dye-bath and ineffective?)


texts: How to harden a chocolate made from Regular (unsalted) butter?

texts:
I am trying to make chocolate in following steps-

Take cocoa powder (unsweetened) and powdered sugar. Grind them. Add Regular (unsalted) melted butter, mix them for long. And pour them in moulds.

But the chocolate does not settle, even after keeping it in a refrigerator. Tempering will not help, as it works only for chocolate made with cocoa butter.

What steps I must do to get a chocolate that settles?

Thanks.


texts: What are the pros and cons of various woods used in wooden utensils?

texts:
Looking up wooden utensils on amazon, I've found bamboo, maple, olive wood and birch wood spoons/kitchen utensils.

Is there any clear benefit to one wood over another for cooking utensils? Is one wood clearly a superior choice? Is one wood more maintainable or sturdy? Does one wood spread heat to the handle less quickly?


texts: I have no baking oven. How can I cook frozen fish in a microwave oven, and how long will it take to be ready?


texts: Biscuits with Egg and Butter - how long will they keep?

texts:
I have a biscuit/cookie recipe that involves egg and butter - after I bake the cookies how long will they keep, at room temperature in an air-tight container?

(edit: In the USA cookies are (sometimes?) made with egg, is that right? In which case I'm just asking how long cookies keep)

edit: If context helps: my daughter has epilepsy and is on a medically supervised ketogenic diet. What she eats has to be carefully made and carefully rationed. I'm making her a batch of biscuits based on this recipe and so I'm wondering how big a batch I can make in one go based on how long they will keep. I imagine all the ingredients are pretty long lasting except for the eggs and butter.


texts:
So I've been having issues with this GF tapioca pizza crust. I like the crust a lot because it's allergy friendly (no yeast/soy/gluten/nuts/anything really) and actually doesn't taste like rocks. Problem is, I can't tell why the crust is coming out undercooked every time.
The box recommends 450F in a 14" circular pan for 15-18 mins or 7 mins to cook the crust, 7 minutes to cook with toppings. (Note: it's not a premade crust, it's essentially just flavored tapioca flour; I add eggs, milk and oil to it).
The first time I made it, I put the crust in for 7 mins on a metal sheet at 450F, and then cooked it until the desire time. Upon seeing it unfinished, I put the combined crust and toppings in for 13 extra minutes (so ~20 minutes totally). The results were the same and I would have kept it in longer, but the cheese was starting to burn.
So I said okay, let me change it up. Today, I used a glass pie pan (I think a 12" one), cooked the crust for a full 10 minutes at 425*, and then cooked it with toppings for another 10 minutes at 450. Exact same results. I figured this could be my fault, it's hard to guess the time difference of 25 degrees, so I said screw it.
I put it in the oven for a whole 16 minutes at full 450 degrees, no luck.
My question is then:

Is this actually undercooked? I assume it is, but I've never had actual tapioca bread before, so I don't really know.  But in the first image, you can see how the bottom looks clearly done (aerated and structured), but the middle is slightly mushy, translucent, and (hard to tell from the lighting) significantly darker than the rest of the crust.

To best describe it, it's a thin, shiny line that looks like the texture of a gummy bear.

Since I assume it is undercooked, where am I going wrong? Do I just need to stretch the dough out that much more? It was already tearing both times, so I figured it shouldn't be any thinner than it was.  I don't think it's an oven issue - we did have some uneven cooking year and a half ago, but cleaning it out seemed much better now.

Do I just need to ignore the box and just stick it in the oven longer, maybe at 400 degrees?


texts: Can yogurt be used as a substitute for yeast in pizza dough?

texts: I am making some pizza dough, but I don't have the yeast, is there a way to substitute it with yogurt? If so what proportions would I use, to keep the dough at the same consistency.


texts: At what temperature will the fats on meat render?

texts:
I am expectantly awaiting the arrival of a sous vide circulator. I saw a clip where someone cooked a duck breast sous vide, finishing it off in a frying pan to crisp the skin. That simply makes no sense to me; as I would have thought that the (rather thick) layer of fat between the skin and the meat would remain, and make the breast nigh on inedible.

Extrapolating from that, I got to think about what temperatures are needed to render fat in genereal.


texts: Fan oven temperature conversion and biology/chemistry

texts:
Many recipes call for a lower temperature in a fan oven (usually by 20°C), which makes sense as these ovens transfer heat more effectively.  However there would appear to be exceptions:

When the conventional oven temperature is only just high enough for browning – the Maillard reaction needs ⪆ 140°C while caramelisation of most pure sugars needs ⪆ 160°C.  A recipe reducing from 160°C to 140°C would therefore seem to result in much less browning when equally cooked through.  But keeping the non-fan temperature would result in overcooking.
Sterilising jam jars in the oven (common/official advice for hot-packing jams, chutneys etc.) relies on the surface getting hot enough to kill anything that could be living on them.

I'm sure there are others.

How can we identify and deal with such cases?  Is there a good rule of thumb for when to lower the temperature and when not to?


texts: Chicken and Dumplings soaked up all the broth

texts: My dumplings soaked up all of the broth. What can I add to my chicken and dumplings without ruining the flavor?


texts: When curing sausage, which is more important temperature or humidity?

texts:
I am curing sausages, pork salami in hog casing to be precise.  I am having a hard time maintaining both the temperature and the humidity necessary.  I have no trouble controlling temperature 60F/15C. (I have a small wine refrigerator) however the relative humidity in it is getting up to the 85-89% range. (As measured by an admittedly uncalibrated hygrometer but which reads 67% when set in the room containing the refrigerator)

The relative humidity elsewhere is somewhere in the 50-70% range depending on the room and time of day.  However the temperature varies between 67F/19C and 76F/24C.

The recommended target range is 60F/15C for temperature and 70% for relative humidity.

So far I am not having bad mold problems, just a few tiny flecks of white(acceptable/good) mold. The smallest of the sheep casing test sausages in fact lost it's 30% in weight and seems done.  The hog casing sausages are losing weight, but at a much slower rate than expected (presumably due to higher humidity).

Everywhere I look there is a TON of information on raising the humidity in your curing chamber, not so much on lowering it.  Suggestions for lowering the humidity of the chamber would also be helpful.

Should I put the sausages in another hanging container with lower humidity and higher, uncontrolled/ambient temperatures?  Should I let them continue to poke along at the higher humidity and dry very slowly, and possibly not at all?

EDITED TO ADD:
Silica Gel, at least in the quantity I placed in the cooler had no measurable effect on the humidity. Possibly more silica gel would have done more.


texts: What ingredients should be avoided in stock?

texts:
The common wisdom is to store all of your vegetable trimmings (cleaned) in the freezer, and then chuck everything into the stock pot when it's time to make stock.  For a meat stock, it's common to throw the bones, giblets, neck and any other left-over bits into the stock pot as well.

There must be some things which are undesirable or ill-advised for stock.  What should one avoid as an ingredient for making stock, and why?


texts: I've recently moved into a home with a gas oven, but I've never used a gas oven before. What general differences might I expect compared to cooking in an electric oven? Humidity? Cook times? What rack setting to use? What temperature to use? Different cooking characteristics? Etc.


texts: Why does the temperature of resting turkey increase for a while?

texts: I have seen many references to the temperature of turkey increasing for a while when resting.  This would seem to contradict the first law of thermodynamics.


texts:
I love pasta salads, tuna salad, sandwiches, and sauces; but I don't really like the texture of mayonnaise or the feeling I get after eating mayonnaise.

What mayonnaise substitutes have you found work well? For what dishes do you believe your substitute to be appropriate?


texts: spanish rice ran out of liquid and is getting sticky

texts: help! My rice is still hard and I have a party coming over. I ran out of liquid and stirred it. Tastes great but center is hard. What can I do?


texts: Is there a Pyrex baking dish that can fit a packaged dry lasagna noodle?

texts:
Pyrex baking dishes all seem to be 9-inch by 13-inch, and many sites recommend that as the ideal size for lasagne.
As a result, the most tiresome and messy part of making lasagne is getting the standard sized 10-inch ready-to-cook dry noodles to fit into the 9-inch baking dish.
(I'll refrain from asking why "they" make things this way.)
Is there a 10.5" Pyrex baking dish available anywhere?
(I'm in Ontario Canada, but suspect this problem is not specific to here.)


texts: How do you know if your starter is powered mainly by yeast or bacteria?

texts:
One quick follow-up question to this postMy sourdough starter is bubbling but not rising, suggestions?: How do you know if your starter is bubbling because of yeast (and not bacteria)?

I've been feeding my starter at 100% hydration (35g spring water + 23g all-purpose unbleached + 12g whole wheat) as recommended by In Search of the Perfect Loaf for 17 days now. It bubbles nicely, but doesn't rise. A spoon full of it sinks in warm water, while flecks rise to the top (though all of them fizz).

Based on the popular answer here, I changed the hydration in an offshoot to make a stiffer mix (20g non-rising starter + 35g water + 30g flour). It rose by nearly double in a 28 celsius room in 8 hours. How do I know that this isn't because of bacteria?

Thanks!


texts: What are other uses for Vegemite or Marmite besides as a spread?

texts:
My Australian friend introduced toast with butter and vegemite to me.  Recently I saw an episode of "Chopped" on the food network and one of the ingredients in the basket was Marmite.  One of the chefs used it to flavor ground beef to make a burger or meatloaf.

I want to know what have you guys used Vegemite or Marmite for...other than as a spread.  :)


texts: Does salt do anything more for baked products than just add flavor?

texts:
From a chemical scientific stand point... What roles does salt play in food besides the usual afterthought of sprinkling some on top of your food item to increase/enhance the flavor.  I know this is vague so lets just say bread.  Why all these years have chefs/food scientist bothered adding salt to almost every bread recipe?

Does salt control moisture?  Does salt control yeast activity? does salt control sugar regulation between the yeast through osmosis?

(Side not: Sorry if some of this is worded oddly.  There thoughts straight off the brain.)


texts:
I´m a huge fan of good meat marinades. However, marinades usually include a lot of oil and adding it to a high fat meat, e.g. lamb or pork is adding more calories in my food than I care for.

Do you know of a good replacement for oil in marinades?

I was thinking of using a mixture of water and mustard...


texts: How many different varieties of 'pancake' are there?

texts:
I'm not talking about ingredient differences like adding blueberries or chocolate chips, or even buttermilk or cooked pumpkin to the batter ...

How many fundamentally different regional types of 'pancake' are there?  Either stuff called a 'pancake' or 'pan cake' in English, or where the literal translation to English is 'pan cake', even if it's qualified in some way (eg, a 'potato pancake')

(I'm not interested solely in wheat batter based pancakes ... I'm actually interested in finding items that are the furthest away from American pancakes, but that some group would still call a 'pancake')

update : oddly enough, this is indirectly a followup to my question on overpressurizing whipped cream.  It was for a contest at my place of work called "Your Science as Food", and well, I won, so I'm trying to come up with a follow-up for next year.  I've done the heliophysics theme for the last two years, by "my science" is actually information science, so I was thinking about having an exhibit with lots of 'pancake' items, and having a little survey of 'is it a pancake?' similar to this But Is It a Sandwich? survey, and want to find things that people will have to think about for a while if it's a 'pancake' or not.


texts: What does this chart mean when it says "lbs per round" or "lbs per sqare/rectangle"?

texts:
From http://howtocakeit.com/blogs/cakes/48185153-how-to-make-ice-and-decorate-yo-yo-s-chocolate-cake-like-a-pro:

What do the different columns mean?


texts:
Once a week I gather with friends for an evening of gaming; trying to cut back on fast-food, I'm looking for a recipe I can make ahead and heat up in their oven while we play. I found a pot pie recipe that looks tasty and can be frozen here; however, it bakes for an hour. Can I do anything to reduce this time? Or would a different type of meat pie work better: pasties, shepherd's/cottage pies, et cetera?

This question is similar but seems to be dealing specifically with fruit pies, whereas I'm looking at meat pies.


texts: How can i convert all purpose flour to bread flour?

texts: Sometime I want to cook something that requires bread flour, but bread flour is unavailable. I have all purpose flour. How can I convert it to bread flour?


texts: I found a tamarind that was mostly powder, how do I avoid buying these?

texts: As someone new to tamarind I'm learning new things about the fruit, and discovered something off in one (it was hallow with some black powder inside). Why did this happen, and how can I avoid purchasing a bad one again?


texts: How is baking bread in a ceramic pan different from using a metal one?

texts:
I just used my ceramic bread pans for the first time.  The top crust was just like it used to be when I baked with those cheap metal pans with the stick-free surface that I'm wanting to avoid now to avoid toxicity.  However, the sides and bottom of the loaf were very light colored and the loaf itself was a wee bit doughy towards the center.

Any tips for how to get an evenly cooked loaf?  Change the temp up or down?  Extend the baking time?  Thanks for any help you can offer!


texts: What is a good pine nut substitute for pesto?

texts: I'm allergic to pine nuts, is there another nut I can use to make pesto?


texts: Rather than pan-searing chicken thighs after sous vide cooking, is broiling in the oven an option to crisp the skin?


texts: What are the differences between candy thermometers and meat thermometers?

texts:
I know that meat thermometers generally won't handle as high a temperature range as candy, but I'm only planning to make caramels and fudge (so soft ball and firm ball) and that's within the range of the meat thermometer that I already own.

Also, meat thermometers are often labelled "medium well" etc., rather than "soft ball". Since I have access to the temps required, that's not an issue.

I'm definitely a noob to candy, so is there some magical reason I can't use a meat thermometer for my candy? Is it a huge no-no? Does it contain leprechauns that will destroy my caramels?


texts:
I tried to make a homemade chocolate by mixing

coco powder (5 teaspoon)
milk powder (3/4 cup)
butter (1/4 cup)
sugar syrap (1/4 cup sugar) [to completely dissolve the sugar particles]

the resulting chocolate was quite good but too elastic. I am curious what in the ingredients (or the procedure) controls the chocolate structure to become elastic or fragile?

How to play with the ingredients and process to prepare different types of (simple and basic) chocolate?


texts:
There is a lot of material on TV, magazines and on the web recently about molecular gastronomy. Techniques like sous-vide and spherification seem to be popular. But what makes a cooking style "molecular gastronomy" and not "regular cooking"?

Is there a list of techiques or ingredients are a hallmark of molecular gastronomy?

Or maybe it's a philosophical distinction.

Regardless, how do I know if I'm serving "modernist cuisine"?


texts: Why do different pasta shapes taste different?

texts: I've noticed that even when I buy two different pasta shapes of the same brand (and so presumably the exact same recipe), they still taste subtly different, to the point that I consistently prefer the tastes of certain shapes of pasta. Is there any basis for this, or am I experiencing some form of synesthesia?


texts: How to make shelf-stable gummie candy in a home kitchen?

texts:
I made this recipe for sour gummies:

Gummies

2 C / 473ml fruit juice (I used apple)
2.5 C / 600ml water, divided
4.5 tsp citric acid
6.6 oz / 187g gelatin
22.4 oz / 625g sugar

Coating

6 T sugar
3.5 tsp citric acid

The instructions say that they will keep on the counter for four days or in the fridge for three weeks. That's fine, but I would love to make shelf-stable candies if possible. How, if at all, can I do that without industrial chemicals and equipment?


texts: What are those black fibers in my mango?

texts:
I was cutting up a mango, when I noticed some black threads inside.

What are those?

They are quite tough, brown-black, about an inch long (2.5 cm):


texts: will soup beans go bad during soaking period at room temp?48 + hours

texts:
I soaked some great northern soup beans for 48 + hours,I started cooking them and they smell  bad,what happened
?


texts: To finely spray a thin layer of warm liquid Coconut Oil?

texts:
Online, I've been seeing these metal, glass, poly/ plastic bottles that are said to keep & spray cooking/ edible oils.

Let's assume the oil is warm & liquid, not cold & frozen, which happens at times.

Does anyone here have any actual experience with using them? Are they able to create a Fine Spray of small droplets and hence ability to leave a well spread layer on incident surface.

If so, would it work well long term for using unrefined all natural cold pressed Coconut Oil, given its consistency, viscosity and stickiness.

Also, at times I use a warm/ hot water bath, in a larger vessel to warm the oil in its container for liquid usage. Any other ideas/ techniques so that I can do a warm liquid spray of it.

And what would / is its cleaning & maintenance routine be like?


texts: Why did my Zwilling Aluminium pan cookware surface corrode just after 1 month?

texts:
On March 3 2021, I bought this Zwilling 33 cm / 13 inch Aluminium deep saute pan with lid. Please review pictures below, inside my red circle. The coating on the surface appears to have corroded! Why? What went wrong?
I was careful not to scratch or corrode the coating! I used sponges to clean. I used plastic heat resistant Turners.


texts: Why does making instant coffee in the microwave taste burnt?

texts:
First off, I did see this question about reheating the coffee in a microwave oven, but the answer merely suggested that stale coffee tastes bad irrespective of the microwave.

I make instant coffee a lot, and whenever I use the stove to boil my milk and add coffee, it turns out fine. But if I am lazy and use the microwave to boil the milk and then mix the coffee, more often than not, the coffee tastes burnt. So burnt that I've had to throw it away.

This isn't specific to one particular brand of instant coffee, I have tried 3 brands.

I've noticed that it seems less burnt if I put it in the microwave for lesser time, but I like my coffee piping hot in the morning and it doesn't turn out well.

So what is it about microwaving instant coffee that makes it taste so revoltingly burnt and what can I do to avoid it?

EDIT: I do microwave the milk in short bursts so as to avoid burning the milk. And also, if I just microwave the milk for the same amount of time, the milk doesn't taste burnt.


texts: How long can a virus (e.g. SARS-COV2) survive in food?

texts:
I was wondering how long a coronavirus (or viruses in general, because there's probably not that info available on coronavirus in food yet) inside food?
When Googling this question I find a lot of answers stating "There's no evidence that a coronavirus can survive on food containers an packaging" or "The ordinary precautions suffice: simply wash your vegetables and you're safe".
However... I'm interested about having the virus INSIDE food.
Let's say I have covid-19 (but am asymptomatic). I'm making something that requires contact with my hands (so possible contamination), and does NOT require baking. For example: marzipan.
The virus particles might end up inside the marzipan.
How long will it last in there? I'm assuming the high sugar content will kill the virus cells rather quickly, but I'd rather be safe than sorry...


texts: Which is better to use baking soda or baking powder for making cakes?

texts: I'm confused. I would like to know which is better to use: baking powder or baking soda for making cake. Or which is best for what recipes.


texts:
I have noticed some foods, such as quick-prepare ravioli, specifically state not to cover the pot when warming them. Why should the pot not be covered?

I am especially interested in knowing when I can break this rule. Specifically, we heat food on an underpowered electric stove. Covering the pot of water seems likely to raise the temperature of the water, which the directions for the ravioli state should be boiling. Should I leave the pot uncovered as the directions state, or should I cover the pot to raise the temperature of the water that extra little bit closer towards boiling?


texts: Equivalent tomato products: paste, sauce, puree, diced, whole

texts:
Doctor says low sodium so now I have to make my own tomato sauces ( pizza, spaghetti etc ).
So I look up a bunch of recipes online to decide what to add and in what proportions ( using no salt added tomato products of course ).

The problem is that one recipe calls for whole tomatoes, another calls for diced, another puree and paste.

What are equivalent amounts ( in terms of "tomatoness" ) of each so I can compare these recipes?

To clarify as asked by Jefromi.
I'm basically trying to compare ingredients and instructions

For example (made up off course ):

Recipe 1 calls for
15 ounces Tomato sauce
8 ounces Tomato paste
1 lb ground beef
3 cloves of garlic
1 large onion
...

Recipe 2 calls for
32 oz Diced Tomato
1-1/2 lb ground beef
5 gloves of garlic
3 medium onions
...

I want to "normalize" each recipe so that they contain the "same" amount of tomato product, then see which contains proportionally more beef, more garlic, more onions etc.

So in these recipe, if the 32 ounces of Diced Tomato is the same as 1-1/2 times 15 oz sauce +8 oz paste  then they contain proportionally the same amount of beef, Recipe 2 calls for slighty more garlic ( about 10% more ) etc.


texts: I am making cream pull candy. Recipe is usually made in a 4 Qt. pan. Can I use a 8 qt. pan as long as  candy thermometer is submerged enough or will the different size--e.g. more surface area  especially width-- interfere with the candy formation?


texts:
I hope this question is not too vague but let me try anyway. I followed a NK recipe for a pizza with the following baker's percentages

100% flour with 13% protein and W300/320 according to the manufacturer's website

75% water

0.2% dry yeast

2% salt

then some SF folds, 1hr at room temp, then 18h fridge and the last 4.5h again at room temp. The volume did increase compared to the day before, not too much but enough to make me decide to go forth and not tossing everything.

When I tried to stretch it on a surface dusted with semolina flour (see below), the structure seemed quite loose and, although I could move it from the working surface to the baking dish, I obtained some thin spots and a "mattress" effect in other points.

If this were a kneaded dough, one could say that the lack of structure is due to lack of mechanical work, but what can be said in the NK case?

Perhaps this flour couldn't make the whole water in a NK recipe, although I find online stories of people who make 80% hydration with it with no problem.

During the mixing,  I noticed was that the first 80% of the water could be mixed all right and when I finally added the remaining, the dough started to become suspiciously wet. But also I thought: it's a NK, it is supposed to be wet, right?

Moreover I wonder about the stretching technique itself. Many "roman style pan pizza" are about 80% hydration and are stretched out on a board dusted with semolina flour, then flipped to lose the excess flour and then moved to the sheet. It is exactly during this flip that I noticed how loose my dough was.
This technique is used for kneaded doughs, though.

In other NK recipe I execute, the dough is stretched directly on the baking sheet greased with oil. On one hand, in this way I have no clue how loose my gluten structure is, on the other, I don't make a mess and I can obtain a uniformly stretched pizza/focaccia. Comparing these techniques, does it make sense to say that the former is more indicated for kneaded doughs and the latter for NK?


texts: How to use a pressure cooker for frozen chicken?

texts:
I would like to cook frozen chicken breasts in a pressure cooker for shredding and making chicken mole.  I do not want to add anything except water, but I'm having a hard time finding specific guidelines on the time to cook frozen meats with no added ingredients or steps.

In my case, I have 3 pounds of frozen chicken breasts to cook.  What are the general rules to follow for frozen meats and, in my case, how long and at what heat should I cook this for?


texts:
I'd like to do an unscored loaf of bread where instead of scoring you let it burst along the seams. The examples I've seen say you proof it seam down. The problem is that I tried this and the seams closed up completely. I baked it anyway and got a brick out of it. The loaf did burst at places on top but not at the seams.

What is the trick to actually getting this to work? I proofed for a couple of hours and then retarded in the fridge for about 12 hours.

Does this style only work if you do not retard?


texts: Does fruitcake made with alcohol stay alcoholic after aging?

texts:
I'm trying to keep up a tradition of sending fruitcake out to families, only I know some families are more averse to alcohol in general than others.
The recipe I have uses 170 grams of brandy as well as regular basting/brushing for the aging process. Will this make the end result alcoholic or a concern for people with a difficult relationship to alcohol? Should I make a non-alcoholic alternative?


texts: Rabbit that looks and tastes like chicken?

texts:
OK, I know saying such & such a type of meat tastes like chicken is a total stereotype, but bear with me.

I am not a frequent eater of rabbit but I'd say have it 1-2 times a year, so I feel like I have a rough idea of the taste and appearance. All the rabbit I've ever eaten prior to last night I would describe as dark in appearance, somewhat tough, and slightly gamy.

Last night I went to supper at one of my favorite restaurants and ordered a dish that was "Rabbit five ways." The dish consisted of a total of a half rabbit done in the following ways:  leg confit, saddle done sous vide porchetta style, cabbage rolls stuffed with rabbit, a liver mousse, and head cheese. The cabbage rolls and head cheese contained meat I would say was very rabbit like: dark, a little gamy, and a bit tough.

Now, I know that there's the (IMO, philosophical) opinion that all rabbit meat is white meat due to its leanness. However, the leg confit and sous vide saddle were unusual to me in that they looked, smelled, and tasted like chicken. To be clear, I mean the meat was very white, like almost the color of a sheet of paper, like a chicken breast on the whiter end of the spectrum would be. And, as I mentioned, it also tasted a surprising amount like chicken.

Anyway, I guess I'm wondering is this restaurant trying to pass off poultry as rabbit? That seems unlikely since it's a mid-sized, non-chain, mid-high end place with a good reputation. The small monetary savings don't seem worth the risk that a restaurant reviewer spots what you're up to and trashes you in a review.

However, if it really was rabbit, then I'm curious under what conditions rabbit would come out being indistinguishable from chicken? Are certain breeds and/or cuts more like white poultry meat? Or is it some combination of cut and cooking method that would give this result?

Thanks.


texts: Can I substitute cocoa for semisweet chocolate?

texts: If I have a recipe that calls for semi-sweet chocolate (melted), what could I use along with unsweetened cocoa powder as a substitution? In other words, what quantities of sugar and cocoa powder would I need to use, and since it is more dry, should I add butter or milk? (This would be for something like a chocolate cake or brownies)


texts: What are the differences between gumbo, jambalaya, and etoufee?

texts:
From what I can tell it has something to do with the type of roux and vegetables used and maybe whether it should be considered more of a soup or a main course.

Are these hard and fast definitions or more a matter of interpretation? Does whether it is more Cajun vs Creole influenced make a difference?


texts: Cored tomatoes measured before or after coring?

texts: If a recipe calls for 3 pounds of tomatoes, cored, should you start with three pounds of tomatoes and core them, or should you have 3 pounds after coring? I would have thought that you start with 3 pounds of tomatoes, but the gazpacho recipe I made tonight seemed light on tomatoes when I followed that logic.


texts: How to ensure a fried egg's yolk doesn't break?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  How do I flip an egg when preparing it “over easy”?
  Perfect Fried Egg

I wanna to cook a medium fried egg, but every time I try to turn the egg over, I just break the egg's yolk. Is there any technique I can use to keep the yolk intact when I flip it?


texts:
I tried making fresh egg pasta for the first time today, and generally I think the dough came out alright, except that, as I don't have a roller (and also because I just underestimated the thickness) my pasta was quite thick. I used 100g of 00 flour per large egg, that's all.

I essentially made what resemble tagliatelle but really think - I cut this by rolling out the dough into a rectangular sheet, folding inwards from both sides and then cutting through the rolls - quite a common technique I gained from watching videos.

My pasta came out a little hard, probably from the thickness, but I am unsure as to whether this means I should cook for more time or less time - I cooked for around 10 minutes.
Does hard pasta, given the thickness of my hand-rolled pasta mean undercooked or overcooked? Just trying to understand whether, other than rolling thinner, I need to cook for more or less time, next time.


texts:
I've seen recipes for braising (sorry no sources available) that instruct you to deglaze with wine then let it reduce by about half. After the wine has reduced, the next steps are to add in stock, more wine and aromatics, let it come to a simmer on the stove then pop it in the oven to braise.

I'm curious why let the wine you deglaze with reduce if you are going to be adding more wine in before putting it in the oven? This makes no sense to me.


texts:
As an example, I made eggs using Gordon Ramsay's Perfect Scrambled Eggs, at the end the pan ends up having a layer of eggs attached to the bottom and sides that is very difficult to wash (not a nonstick pan).

I found some recommendations online, but none of them have worked very well.  Maybe there is no good way?

Baking soda
Run under cold water instead of hot


texts: Do I need to let red wine breathe each time I uncork the same bottle?

texts:
I have always allowed my red wines to breathe for at least 45 minutes prior to pouring.

Often I don't drink the whole bottle, but instead cork what is left.  When I go to serve on a different day, does breathing the wine provide the same benefit?  Is it recommended each time I uncork the same bottle?


texts: Resources for determining cooking substitutions

texts:
Judging from the number of questions tagged substitutions, this is a common thing to ask.

Are there any resources to find substitutions, and what circumstances those work under?  For example, applesauce can partially substitute for oil in muffins (because the oil is for moisture content), but can't substitute for oil when cooking an omelet (because the oil prevents the egg from sticking).


texts: Why hot pack when raw pack is just as fast?

texts: To pick an example, this green bean canning recipe gives the same processing times for both hot and raw pack. Presumably even with raw pack, the 20-25 minute processing time is enough to thoroughly cook the beans. Why would you cook them additionally first? Is it just for people who like very well-cooked vegetables?


texts: How to know when pickles are pickled correctly

texts:
I've made a small batch of pickled Japanese Turnip (the small white ones) based on this recipe.

1 cup vinegar, such as white, apple cider, or rice
1 cup water
1 tablespoon kosher salt or 2 teaspoons pickling salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar (optional)

I did not add other aromatic ingredients but I added a teaspoon or so of pepper flakes.

I boiled the mixture and pour it over the sliced turnips; covered and put in the fridge for a couple of days; in that case I did not intend to keep them longer, so no bottling or canning.

They were good, but overwhelmingly vinegary (at least compared to commercial pickles)

Question:

How can I know if the pickles were pickled correctly; I only tasted the vinegar, a little bit of the pepper flakes, but not much of the turnip.


texts: What size of jar, proportionally, should I keep my poolish in to prevent overflow?

texts:
This morning my ongoing poolish lived up to its troublemaking name. Over half of it (by weight) ran out over the counter overnight, through the screwed-down lid. This is after I saw it hitting the top last night and stirred it down before bed. In the photo below, the "after" photo is stirred down, but still pretty bubbly, so that's not even a completely fallen volume. I never fill the jar more than 1/3 full (at flat volume).

So, overnight, it at least sextupled in size.

Details: Commercial yeast 100% hydration bread flour poolish, maintained for about a month. Kitchen was probably 68F last night. I've let it rise and fall on the counter before, but the last two rest periods have been mostly in the fridge, if that matters.

So, primary question, what size jar, proportional to flat volume, should I use to be safe from overruns like this? I'd been going with 1/3 max, but then... this.

Secondary "why" questions to understand the answer:

Is this level of expansion normal, or at least somewhat frequent, or was this a bizarre fluke?
Did a counter rest after a couple fridge rests contribute to this explosion?
If the "Blob that ate Cincinnati" effect is expected now and then, would a biga be more predictable due to its stiffer consistency?


texts: Cause of watermelon rind rotting (at room temperature)

texts:
I bought a large seedless watermelon 2 days ago, and I made sure to check for the following:

Yellow underbelly
Hollow sound
Solid rind

When I got home I left on the kitchen table. The room temperature was around 25-27 degrees C. Today, I touched the rind and it felt soft! I cut it open and I saw that the white pith had rotted.

Can anyone explain what the possible cause of this is?

(I've left watermelon out on the dining table for days at room temperature before, and nothing like this has ever happened. I should also mention that:

The watermelon was whole and unblemished.
There were no fruits around it and it wasn't in a bag, so the ethylene explanation is out.


texts: Is expired instant dry yeast dangerous to eat in breads,cakes etc.? Is it safe to eat? I have 2-1 lb. pkgs. unopened has 10/30/2010 on it,doesn't say best if or sell by, just has date. Does anyone know if it is harmful to eat? Thanks!


texts: Would it be advisable to partially pre-grill hamburgers and freeze so that they can be pan fried when a customer orders?

texts: I have a small restaurant and we serve hamburgers. But we are trying to speed up service and thinking of ways to do that. We don't have a commercial grill, so heating up a grill takes too much time. I thought that it might give our hamburgers the benefits of a grill (marks, smokey flavor) if we grilled both sides of the patty for a minute each and then freeze them. Then, when a customer orders a burger, just grab one patty from the freezer and pan fry it the rest of the way. Could that possibly turn out well? If so, any tips or tricks?


texts: Food Safety: Do I have to boil pork and then fry it?

texts:
I know that I should cook pork at 63 °C and without rinsing to avoid cross-contamination. My question is the following; I want to fry pork chops: Does this means I have to boil the pork in water until that temperature and then fry or just toss it into the oil and wait until it reaches that temp? And if I don't rinse it, does it mean the pork just goes with the blood to the boiler or frying pan?

Sorry for the stupid question, but I'm really a noob at cooking and everyone adviced me to just rinse it with vinegar.


texts:
I saw a video of a street vendor making dragon's beard candy in Korea and at the beginning he started with what he described as a block of "fermented honey two weeks" and a bowl of corn starch:

The honey is quite solid, like a lump of plastic (he knocked it against the walls of the display stand).

How is it that he obtained solid honey?

I have read that honey will rapidly crystallize if it is unpasteurized. Is that what this is? Raw, unpasteurized honey, that has been allowed to sit for two weeks?


texts: Why does my chicken get dry skin in the freezer?

texts:
Sorry guys, but I suspect I have a bit of a newbie question here.

When I buy raw chicken breast, I like to open up the package immediately and separate it out into 3 portions because that's roughly the amount I use each time I cook it.  If I freeze immediately, it looks a bit like this after I defrost it:

... which is fine.  But if I open the packet, then freeze, it looks like this when defrosted:

Clearly the skin is drying out badly.  :-)  Is there a way I can stop this?  I'm thinking of immediately covering the chicken again with clingfilm before refrosting but will that work?  Or do I just have to keep it sealed in the packet?  If covering it will work, why is that?  Is the freezing process sucking moisture out of the skin?


texts: Reducing fragility in cocoa thin biscotti

texts:
I have a great recipe for a very thinly sliced biscotti type cookie and want to replace some of the AP flour with cocoa powder. When I do that, the cookie becomes really brittle.
What can I do to reduce the brittle texture? How about adding vital wheat gluten since the cocoa doesn’t have gluten?


texts: Large quantities of sushi rice in a rice cooker?

texts:
I'm looking to cook large quantities of sushi rice (short grained) in a rice cooker. Any tips? I have a commercial cooker but it only has a cook and warm setting. Should I go with the usual rice to water ratio?

Any help would be appreciated

K.


texts: Should I be suspicious of meat/seafood on sale?

texts:
Recently a local grocery store had a sale where Fresh Salmon Fillets, apparently normally $6.99/lb, were dropped down to $1.99/lb.  My parents were all too eager to load the car with 20lb of salmon fillet, but I was much more hesitant. I was slightly suspicious, because what reason would they have to discount salmon fillet so heavily?

So that's my question.  Should I be suspicious of meat/seafood that is on sale?  Especially if it's heavily discounted?  Is there something wrong with the meat? Like is it low quality or something? Why else would stores heavily discount these things then?


texts: Can you make popcorn in a pressure cooker?

texts:
Will the temperature become too high and will the popcorn burn? Can anything bad happen?

Edit: Picture tells the tale.

On the left, 5 minutes under pressure. On the right 3,5 minutes without pressure. The pressurized popcorn was less fluffy and a bit burned (I just didn't hear them pop).


texts:
I seem to have the basic ingredients. Mint (from the garden), sugar, vinegar. However I seem to end up with vinegary mint, or minty vinegar depending on the relative quantities.

From a jar, it seems a lot richer in flavour and more sauce like. Any idea what I am doing wrong?


texts: having problem with chicken pot pie crust

texts:
I made two chicken pot pies last night, and the crust turned out like a giant cracker.  Not soft and flaky at all like the store bought ones.

I think I have identified two probable reasons:

1)  I skipped the egg was at the end.  So the top layer was just really dry.

2)  I probably overworked the dough.  I used the pizza dough setting on my breadmaker which takes 90 minutes.

I used butter that was almost frozen.  And I chilled my water in the freezer for 10 minutes before mixing.  I think I did those parts right.

Next time I will try just working the dough by hand and handling it as little as possible.  And I definitely won't skip the egg wash.

My question is:  Next time I do this, how can I know if I've done it right without just simply cooking the pie directly.  This was a TONNE of work.  It would be nice if I could focus on mastering the crust before I make another pie.  Can you just cook a crust by itself in the oven to see what happens?

Edit: After reading some related topics, there seems to be a technique called "blind baking" which may be what I'm looking for.

Should I just omit the filling and keep baking crusts until they start turning out the way i want?


texts: I've got a "sanguino moro" (blood/red) orange, but it appears to be only half-bloody, as in the photo below. However all figures I've found on the internet show oranges that are purely red inside, for instance the ones on Wikipedia. Is this normal? Should I be worried about it? I'm mostly concerned whether it's a sign of the orange being "sick" or health-threatening in any sense.


texts: Are Yukon Gold Potatoes available throughout the year

texts:
Is the Yukon Gold Potato a seasonal potato offering?
It seems like up to a month ago I could find them anywhere but now POOF, nowhere has them, and when asking in stores they keep telling me they have them because they have yellow or golden potatoes which is seriously not the same thing when wanting specific qualities in a finished product.  The YG is royalty in my cookbook and now they've all been kidnapped.  Please advise.


texts: Why is water added to the egg wash of challah bread?

texts:
This recipe for challah bread calls for an egg wash composed of 1 egg and 1 tsp of water (see the final item in the ingredient list).

What is the effect of this small amount of water?  It seems like most other challah recipes use egg alone.


texts:
One of my recipe tell me to add 25cl of cream. I only have a weighing scale to measure it. How many grams should I add?

If it was water it would be 250g and cream is quite heavier isn't it?


texts:
Home-cooked Phở is my white whale. Anyway, before I can cook Phở, I need to be able to make beef broth, and so far I've failed completely.

My broth is greenish-gray in color, mostly flavorless, and smells like a swamp.

Here is what I did. Keep in mind, this happened TWICE:

I purchased a few pounds of beef knuckles from the store.
I placed them in a stock pot, and covered them with water.
I boiled them for a half hour or so.
I emptied the pot, along with all of the scum.
I did my best to scrub all of the scum away from the knuckles (very difficult).
I re-filled the pot with water.
I brought it to a boil.
I added some chunks of beef.
I skimmed the top frequently.

3 hours later: disgusting pond water.

Since this process is so time-consuming, I am not keen on experimenting with it again until I have a pretty good idea of what went wrong. I've asked around for some advice. Some told me I should roast the knuckles first. Some told me I should start with cold water. Ok, this sounds like good advice, but these seem like small potatoes. They certainly don't seem like the sort of thing that could turn a pot of beautiful, delicious beef brother into pond water. I must be doing something horribly, horribly, horribly wrong.

I'm hoping to find someone who has had a similar experience, and has a pretty good idea of why this is happening to me. =(


texts: After boiling a chicken for soup and straining with a fat separator, how much fat is left in the chicken? Does it depend on how long I boil the chicken for?


texts:
I have been making kouign-aman (my favorite recipe:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxwgzzErW1w) for several years, playing with different recipes, making minor modifications, but can not seem to prevent the dough from "sweating" when I add the sugar.  The latest thought was maybe when I put it n the refrigerator to rest, the temperature of the metal cookie sheet was the culprit, so I put the wrapped dough on a towel - no change.

This happens whether it is 66 in the winter or 72 in the summer with max humidity of around 35%.

Then, whenI cut it into pieces the layers separate, it sweats even more, sometimes giving the impression the butter is melting - which it may be.

The end result is a pastry that is more bready than layered (like a good croissant).

Any ideas why this is happening?  Or how to prevent it?


texts: How do I reduce kitchen temperature during cooking?

texts:
My kitchen gets too hot during the summer while I am cooking. I have exhaust fans installed in the kitchen, but it's not really helping. I have four questions:

Is there any other way I can reduce the kitchen temperature?
Does the kitchen chimney help reduce kitchen temperature? I read one ducting kitchen chimney is as powerful as 15 exhaust fans. But I also read that kitchen chimney mainly help to fight with odors, oil, etc, but not temperature. My friend said using kitchen chimney will definitely give some relief. I really want some expert/experienced advice, will it really help to reduce kitchen temperature by at least some degrees?
Are there other appliances like air purifier, humidity controller that can solve this issue?
Should I stop trying to reduce kitchen temperature, as it's essential for cooking? (But, I really want food getting cooked, not myself :'(  )


texts: How can I reduce the salt taste in a dish

texts: Can a dish prepared with too much salt be overcome without changing the water or ingredient content? Or least in a drastic way.


texts: how long can you keep uncooked lentils - red and brown

texts: how long  can I keep uncooked lentils in my pantry?


texts:
I made a dip with basil pesto covering cream cheese with grated parmesan cheese over it all.

Can I keep the dip (tightly covered) for 4 days without the pesto interacting with the cheese?

The pesto was purchased in a jar. It was not opened until yesterday when the dip was made.  I only worry about the chemical reaction between the two and rancidity (sp). There was enough left over to use again.

Thanks.


texts: Flavour combinations - structural analysis

texts:
Without neccesarily going into molecular cooking (although we could): does any literature / website / theory provide information on flavor / flavour combinations that go well together?

(ignoring texture at this time: I'm sure it's a contributing factor)

The palate 'likes' certain combinations of sweet, salty, fatty, etc., sure. And certain complex flavours are found in many different recipes - a result of tradition and empirical succes.

Examples:

tomatoes, mozzarella, basil (generally: tomatoes and green herbs)
soy / ginger
carrots / celery (baked, often with bacon or a meat)
strawberries / cream

etc. etc. etc.

The dream answer to this question would be some sort of map, visually grouping things, but that may not be possible in 2d.


texts: When should one ice christmas fruit cakes

texts:
It's that time of year again, where Christmas fruit cake have been baked and are being topped up with your favourite dark spirit. My favourite (and most successful) recipe suggested topping up with brandy weekly (without getting the cake too moist).

However, no suggestions were provided as to when is the right time to stop adding your spirits, and therefore to ice the cake.

I usually marzipan and ice the cake a few days before I want to gift it (and/or eat it), but I was wondering if there is an optimal time in this process to do so, and if so, why?


texts: Vegetable lasagna a bit too wet. How to adjust baking temp/time?

texts:
I’ve just assembled a vegetable lasagna, and the filling and sauce have both come out erring a bit on the watery side — not dreadfully so, but noticeably wetter than when I’ve previously made this recipe.
Usually I cook it 35–40mins at about 180ºC (in a fan oven). How should I adjust the cooking temperature and time to correct for the extra wetness — i.e. to cook off a bit more water, without affecting other aspects too much?  Slightly higher temperature?  Slightly longer time?
Edit: To be clear, I’m not asking “how do I avoid this problem next time?” (which I know well enough), I’m asking “when this sort of mistake happens, how should one adjust to compensate as far as possible?”


texts: I defrosted ground beef in cold water for burgers for dinner, but dinner is delayed..I don't need it for another 2 hours.  But instructions say "use immediately" what exactly does that mean? Is there any wiggle room?


texts: Are substitutions for vodka allowed when making a vodka cream sauce

texts: If I am making a vodka cream sauce and I realize that there is no vodka (or not enough) to make the recipe, what would an acceptable substitute be?


texts: Oranges that are not sweet can they ripen at home after buying them at a store?

texts: if I leave my sour tasting oranges in the refrigerator will they ripen and turn sweet?


texts: I read here and here that cocoa powder could be "brewed" like coffee for a cocoa-flavored coffee-like hot drink.  Today I bought some cocoa powder and a reusable coffee filter cup, and I tried it out myself with a single-cup coffee maker.  I got a drink that seems quite promising, but it brewed very weak and watery.  How can I get a stronger cocoa powder brew?


texts: Foil over cookie sheet over broiling pan?

texts: My wife was cooking a recipe and was confused by instructions to put foil over a cookie sheet which should sit on a broiling pan. Foil is pretty standard in recipes, but why have the sheet on top of the broiling pan? She was cooking shrimp.


texts:
I have a recipe for bread bowls that are made from scratch and seem to be lacking cornmeal.

From the recipe:

  Place loaves on lightly greased baking sheets sprinkled with cornmeal.

Is cornmeal necessary?
If it is, is there a substitute?

This will be my first time making bread properly, and I don't want to mess up anything crucial.


texts: Soaked red split lentils overnight for tadka dal. Proportion water to boil them in by weight? Any way to prevent the foam-up?

texts:
(Ya know, these guys.)

So I rinsed 1 kg of them and soaked them overnight.

Haven't made them in a while,
and I've had some trouble in the past
with not adding enough water and having them stick quickly and cook slowly,
or adding too much water and having to cook them down for ages.

I'd just like a general "for ever 1 kg of lentils, start with 2 kg of water" or 2.5, or 3, or 4, or whatever it is.

(And like... time? heat? just a normal tall stove pot here.)

The other thing is, in the past, I've always had a problem with a mass of foam building up on top and boiling over.
Is there any way to prevent that? I've already rinsed them very thoroughly...


texts:
A local restaurateur and friend of mine is making black puddings, and I am trading him a christmas pudding for one of his black puddings. I was considering saving it for a month or two.

Can I freeze it? Is it shelf stable like a hard sausage or bologna would be?


texts: I have used an old German dill pickle receipe forever that doesn't use a water bath. I make brine and boil, pour over prepared jars, put on heated lids and leave them to seal on their own. These are yummy and SO crisp (because of no water bath). I have 2 that didn't seal this time. I did the usual 'push down' on the lids after they set overnight, and one of them stayed down and the other came up after several hours. Are they OK? If not, can they be kept in the refidge? How long are they good for?


texts: I've tried many different brownie recipes and most of mine bake to a cake-like consistency. The brownie holy grail for me is crusty top chewy brownies. What can I add/remove/do that will make my brownies chewier?


texts: At what point should carrots be thrown away?

texts:
We tend to buy a big bag of carrots from the supermarket (mainly because it's cheaper than a small bag), but usually these are starting to go soft halfway through the week.  My current rule of thumb is that I'll cook them until they are so soft that I just can't peel them, and won't eat them raw after they have started to go soft.

Given that this is entirely based on my guesswork, can anyone tell me at what point they are actually inedible?


texts: The shelf life of custard apple is very short and also it is very delicate. How can I keep it fresh for a longer time? Till now I have tried freezing it and also keeping it in a air tight box but they didn't work. Any better ideas?


texts:
I was organizing and labeling my spices cabinet when I run into those two spices that I cannot recognize. I'm assuming one of them is fenugreek. I'm quite sure I bought them when I had 'Indian cuisine' phase.
Cropped & sharpened

Original - click for full size.

The left item seems looks and feels like a chopped peanuts or bark. However it has a onion-like/garlic-like smell with some earth or bark component.


texts: Can crumbled feta cheese last almost a year?

texts:
This question talks about feta cheese in a brine or milk bath lasting up to three months.  What about crumbled feta?

I was looking through the fridge, and found a 1/2 pound open container of crumbled feta.  I have only used about an ounce of it.  There is no sign of mold on it, and it smells like feta cheese.  A small sample tasted okay.  The amazing thing is that I bought it in October or November: 8-10 months ago!

I have a recipe that calls for almost a 1/2 pound of feta, and I will be the only one eating it (so I'm not trying to impress anybody!).

I dislike wasting food, but I dislike being sick even more!

Is it safe to use dry crumbled feta that is so old?


texts: Going out to bulk buy tomorrow and stock up on a few things Butter being one of many. How long can butter be stored in the refrigerator? We want to maximize our stock but not waste anything.


texts: What are best practices for using Yoghurt as a Marinade?

texts:
I'm cooking for 30, Lamb Chops are on the menu and I want to do them in a Yogurt Marinade. I've done Yogurt Marinades with mixed results and I wonder if there are some best practices? specifically:

How long should I marinade? With vinegar based marinades you don't want to marinate for longer than 2 hours. Is this also true with Yoghurt Marinades? If not, what is the idea amount of time to Marinate.
I heard somewhere that you shouldn't add salt when Marinading with Yohurt until after the meat is Marinated. Is this true and if so why?
lemon is an important flavour to this kind of dish. Can I add lemon to the yoghurt, or will that make it curdle or do something else negative to the dish?
Is there anything else important to consider when using Yogurt as a Marinade?

If additionally you could break it down in terms of chemical processes, that would be sweet. I'm a bit of a food science nerd.
thank you very much


texts: Can I rescue honey that is crystallised in the container? (with water or otherwise)

texts:
I've got a container of honey at home that has gone 'crystalised' and has caked up. When I turn the container upside down, the entire mass has fractured in half, and half sticks to the bottom and the other half slides in the direction of gravity.

Can this be rescued? (ie is it simply dehydated?) Can I add water to it to fix it?


texts:
In my childhood I have memory of a clockwork crepe maker using an alcohol burner. It was quite compact, and sat on a small side table

The glow of the burner and the whir of the clockwork mechanism was somewhat "romantic", and of course there was endless discussion of whom got the next one, and what they where going to put on it (golden syrup, currants, and lemon juice!)

It looked something like this

The large drum had a circle of steel wrapped around it, and the clockwork motor rotated it against the pickup roller in the batter tray, which transfered batter only to the circle, not the whole drum. The alcohol burner heated the drum so by the time it got to the other side it was cooked and slid into the left hand tray. The crepes were nearly transparent, and just beautiful

The machine is very similar to how I understand commercial tortillas are made?

Can you still buy these, if so where?

If not, are there modern automatic crepe makers for domestic use? Looking for something way under a grand!

I can make a perfectly good crepe on the comal, but this is not fun for a whole party load!


texts: If only two executives know the secret recipe of Coca Cola at any one time, and it is so well guarded, then how do they manufacture Coca Cola in plants without giving away this secret to the workers?


texts: What is the best way to reheat meat with fried rice?

texts: How should i reheat my chicken with fried rice so the meat remains moist and the rice is not rubbery??


texts: Combining chicken and vegetables in sous vide

texts: Any suggestions to offer as I attempt to sous vide chicken in one bag, while, at the same time, cook vegetables in another? The chicken cooks at 150F while the veggies cook at 185F.


texts: Teflon-coated pans: are they ever dishwasher-safe?

texts:
I've had my T-Fal teflon fry pan for a year and a half, and have used it every morning. I treated it well, but since they said it was dishwasher-safe I did put it in the dishwasher from time to time. Now it's worn out.

Some non-stick teflon pans say they are dishwasher-safe, others don't. Is this a difference in the coating, or just a difference in the marketing? Should I always keep my teflon-coated pans out of the dishwasher?


texts:
Recently I became interested in making some boiled peanuts for myself, as I have gathered that it is a very cheap, tasty (I like peanuts) and healthy food. However, every recipe that I find involves peanuts in shells. And in my local stores I can only find the raw peanuts without the shell , I will have to spend more effort to get the plain uncooked peanuts with shell.

So, the question is - what is the recipe for boiling peanuts without the shell? (if this is even meaningful to cook them this way).

UPDATE Sorry english is not my native language, so I reworded the question to be clearer.


texts: When breading and frying, to which ingredient do I add spices?

texts:
I'm breading and frying tofu, and the recipe calls for adding spices. Do I add the spices to the flour, the egg, or the (panko) breadcrumbs?

The recipe calls for the spices to be added to the panko coating, but I'm uncertain that the spices are going to get distributed evenly that way.


texts: Why is my muslin (cheesecloth) sticking to my seitan? I've cooked it in broth for two hours (flipping once), and now I'm trying to remove the cheesecloth, but it's all stuck to the outer layer. Did I leave it too long? Is there anything that can be done to salvage the outer layer?


texts: Shredded steak for south east asian dish

texts:
I have a recipe for Nasi Goreng, which calls for 1/2 lb of shredded raw rump steak.

I'm not sure how one goes about shredding steak - any suggestions?


texts: I have read recipes that says mix half cup butter and 1.5 times the icing sugar and beat, add some milk, not more than 2-3 spoons. I have been beating it for last 30 minutes and tasted it, the sugar is still not dissolved in the cream, am I doing some thing wrong?


texts: Will searing meat before braising it improve the flavor?

texts:
I have been making this simple brisket recipe for years and it usually comes out great.
Marinate with lemon juice, mustard, salt and pepper.  Then cover with water and cook slowly for a couple of hours (not fully cooked at this stage).  Cool.  Slice.  Place in oven-proof serving dish and cover with a BBQ type sauce.  Cover the dish and finish cooking in a moderate oven.
My questions are:
Would searing the meat before cooking in water improve the flavor of the meat?
Does one take the meat out of the cooking water before OR after chilling for the best meat flavor?


texts: How do professional bakers handle rotating trays while mass producing cookies/muffins/cakes/etc.?

texts:
A widely-suggested tip is that one should (swap and) rotate their baking tray(s) half-way through a bake (to promote even cooking).

I was wondering how professional bakeries (read: not factories, actual bakeries) handle this operation when mass producing things like muffins, cookies, etc.? I'm under the impression a real bakery won't be using 1, but maybe 4+ trays of goods in one particular bake. That seems like a lot of tray (swapping and) rotating...

Or am I missing something?


texts: How do I get seasoning to stick to home-popped popcorn?

texts: I've been popping my own corn and I want to season it with salt, but when I sprinkle it over the popcorn it just ends up at the bottom of the bowl without taking to the popcorn. How could I get the seasoning to stick to the popcorn?


texts: What is the purpose of heavy cream in a mushroom duxelle?

texts:
I'm planning on preparing a beef wellington for the holidays and am following a recipe whose duxelle recipe is defined:

  In a food processor, pulse the mushrooms until finely chopped. Then, finely chop thyme.
  Over medium heat, melt butter in skillet. Add mushrooms and combine with butter. Add thyme. Using a garlic crusher, crush garlic and add
  to mushroom mixture. Continue to combine over medium heat for about
  10-15 minutes or until the mushrooms are caramelized.
  Once the mushrooms are caramelized, add a generous splash of Cognac and stir to deglaze the pan. Add heavy cream and cook for several
  minutes or until all the moisture is gone. You should be left with a
  paté-like mixture.

Most of the ingredients make sense to me in their contribution to flavor and/or texture but I can't seem to figure out why heavy cream would be added to the duxelle. I thought the mushroom pâté would be thick enough alone, so I can't imagine the heavy cream contributing to the duxelle in that respect.


texts:
I am having trouble separating the pit, or seed like thing, in a Rambutan.  It easily comes out, but leaves a sticky layer of "bark" on the white part of the fruit.  This bark-like substance is really hard to separate from the fruit without wasting a lot of it.

Are there any special techniques I can use?

Below is a picture for reference:


texts: What are the key differences between lemons and meyer lemons?

texts:
"Meyer lemons" are advertised as a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange. The flavor is basically what you'd expect from that cross.

Is it reasonable to use them as direct substitutes? What are the important differences to keep in mind when substituting one for the other? How will those differences affect the recipe?


texts:
I'm trying to make a regular circular cake with cream in the middle and top. A lot of recipe online will just tell you to whip the cream from a mix if sugar and heavy cream.

I did that, it works but the whip cream done this way is yellowish. Well the heavy cream is yellowish to begin with and I tried a couple of brands same thing.

This is different from white cream that you would buy out of a spray can. Pure white.

Is there a way to make pure white whip cream at home?


texts: Beating Egg Whites with Granulated Sugar Added for Tapioca Pudding

texts:
I've been making tapioca pudding from a recipe that calls for 2 egg whites to be beaten with 1/2c of sugar until soft peaks form.  Out of quite a few tries for many minutes, the eggs will never get beyond a thick creamy stage (around the consistency of a soft yogurt).

Is it possible to get to the soft peaks stage with that much granulated sugar mixed with the eggs?  Is there some trick I should try to make it work properly?

If not, might it work to replace the sugar with a corresponding amount of powdered sugar? - presumably this would give it more structure (corn starch) and less weight to support (smaller sugar granules).

The recipe I'm using is here: http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes_detail.php?rid=858


texts: Can I cook pasta without heating it up... ever?

texts:
More of a survival question than anything.

I have a bag of dried pasta, a plastic container, a can of tomato sauce, and some salt, and I find myself out in the wilderness with no heat to speak of.

Is there some way I can get that pasta decently edible by just leaving it in the plastic container with either salt water, or the tomato sauce, or a combination of both for an extended period of time?

Thanks.


texts: Blow torching meat after sous vide - add fat or not?

texts: After I pull the meat out of the sous vide and then use a blow torch to sear it, should I use a fat on it or not?  Will that get a better crust on it?


texts: Why is a pig-skin like substance floating on top of my vinegar?

texts:
Apologies if this is off-topic.
Every year, I make about 25 litres of cider vinegar. I wash the apples in a bucket of tap water, press them, add a sachet of yeast and leave the fermenting vessel in the garage. The juice is very acidic so not very pleasant to drink. It does however make tasty vinegar.
I have several fermenting buckets in the garage each with a different vintage of vinegar. Floating in each is a jelly-like mother of vinegar. Today I discovered that the yeast in one of the vessels (18 month vintage) has gone a bit wonky. The mother is about an inch thick. It's mostly jelly-like but the very top has the texture of pig skin, is very tough, and smells like cheese. The vinegar has lost its acidic taste and also has a hint of cheese.
Can anyone tell me what might have happened? Why has the mother become so tough? Why does it smell like cheese? Is it safe to eat?


texts: A way to prepare suet dumplings ahead of time?

texts:
An English-style beef stew is a great dish to prepare/freeze ahead of time, and heat when it's needed. But one of its delights is suet dumplings, which are normally cooked floating in the stew while it heats in an oven, for about 10-15 minutes covered, to steam, and then uncovered for about the last 10 minutes of cooking time, to brown on top. This does not make for quick service.

Is there a way to prepare them ahead of time, and achieve something like the quality they have when cooked by this slower method?


texts: How do you freeze blueberries so that there are ice crystals inside?

texts: I eat frozen blueberries straight out of the freezer multiple times a day, and sometimes I buy a bag and the blueberries inside are frozen perfectly so that the core of the blueberry has crunchy ice crystals, and the outside doesn't, resulting in a massive burst of blueberry flavor. Can someone tell me how to freeze blueberries this way myself? I'm pretty sure this isn't a common question so please don't be afraid to post an answer that you aren't sure is correct, because this is top of the line blueberry science that is very experimental, and i'm willing to try multiple freezing techniques to get the perfect result.


texts: My green scallions go dehydrated and become no longer fresh after they are placed in the fridge for a few days. The white part usually stays good for longer, but the green leaves go dry easily. Is there any good way to keep scallions, especially the green leafy part, fresh, for a longer time?


texts:
A local grocer is selling cooked, frozen King Crab Legs.  I'd like to buy them a week in advance of Christmas and keep them frozen until it's time to eat them.

If they sit in my freezer for 7 days, will that be too much time?  (will they go bad in any way?)  And assuming they aren't fully frozen, do I have to thaw them first before putting them in the freezer?  (like you would for raw meat)


texts: Umbrella term for the 'ingredients' and 'utensils' of a recipe?

texts:
So every (good) recipe enumerates several lists of things:

Ingredients: a list of all the foods/seasonings/etc. that you'll use when following the recipe
Utensils: a list of all the tools, utensils and appliances that you'll use when following the recipe

My question: Is there an umbrella term for both ingredients and utensils? Meaning, some term that implies both of them?

In other words, instead of maintaining two lists, 1 for ingredients, and 1 for utensils, I'd like to make 1 master list of everything you'd need for a recipe. What would I call that master list?!?

(Not-so-pro-tip: it can't be "recipe" because the recipe is the algorithm you follow to produce some final dish.)


texts: I want to know whether there is any need to peel the skin of turmeric from a palatability, taste, food safety or hygiene standpoint? Is there any relevant nutrient content, above that of the turmeric flesh, in what is discarded after peeling?


texts: Why does my onion have very few, very thick layers, and a hollow center?

texts:
My girlfriend sliced into an onion this evening to find this,

…this is weird to me. There are very few layers, the innermost layer was exceedingly thick, and it's hollow. For reference, I'm used to an onion looking like this:

(apologies on the quality) Not hollow, many layers (probably like 10-12 as opposed to the weird onions 5), normal layer thicknesses.

What caused my "weird" onion to look the way it does? Is it safe to eat?

(Both onions looked about the same with the skin on. Not mushy, not too much damage to the outer layers, nothing to tip us off as to what we'd find…)


texts: I have a large chunk of beef liver, too much to eat in one sitting. I would prefer to cook it all up at once, but would it be palatable reheated? Would it be ok cold?


texts: How to make homemade pinto beans taste like canned refried beans?

texts:
I see plenty of advice out there on how to make canned pinto beans taste delicious, but does anyone know how to recreate that cheapo refrito taste? I've tried countless combinations of freshly cooked pinto beans, salt, garlic, chili powder, onions...

They always seem to be missing some crucial element, and I don't mean the sitting-in-a-can-forever-flavor!


texts: What caused my meringue to fall after adding cocoa?

texts:
I made a very nice stiff batch of meringue for meringue cookies. I piped half of the batch on the cookie sheet and they looked wonderful (or at least they were nicely stiff, and I need to practice my piping). For the second half, I wanted chocolate, so I added Hershey's (dark) cocoa powder. I didn't measure the cocoa powder. As I whisked it in, the batch ( that had been wonderful) turned very runny. I tried adding more sugar in hopes of reviving it, but to no avail. So from the same batch I had nice white curly kisses and flat chocolate blobs.

Was it the amount of cocoa powder?

Was it the fact that it was dark cocoa?

Was it the timing -- don't try to add something after it had been sitting about 10 minutes?

Something else?

I thought I finally got the consistency just right with the first half of the batch. --If only I had been satisfied with just vanilla...
Help?


texts: Difference between different brands of same oil

texts:
I was at the supermarket just now, and there were 2 types of refined canola oil, with very different pricing. Is there any reason to believe that the cheaper one is of different quality? I mean both are oils refined from canola seeds, so I'm wondering if the pricing is only as a result of different brands.

I'm aware that for non-refined oils which are valued for taste, such as olive oil, then the answer is obvious - different olive oils give very different taste, and usually the higher the price the better the quality. As canola oil should (theoretically) be more or less tasteless, I'm wondering if this is still the case.


texts:
I live in Madrid and am about to run out of hazelnut-flavored coffee beans brought over as contraband from the last time we visited the States. I am desperate for my hazelnut-flavored morning fix, but am unwilling to pay $20/pd. to import beans from the UK or risk having a shipment get caught in customs in the next care package from the States.

I would love to know if and how (1) I can roast coffee beans in my apartment and (2) how to make them hazelnut-flavored.

I am not interested in flavored syrup as an alternative.

Thank you!


texts: I'm a bit confused with how much saffron to use in a paella recipe. I've seen numerous recipes that state to use 1gram. However I have a 1gram jar and that seems like a lot of saffron to me. I've spotted some recipes that say to use 1/2 a teaspoon and they state that this is about equal to 1gram. But my jar of saffron is a lot more than 1/2 a teaspoon.


texts:
Dry-heat recipes have a variety of options for low-slow vs. high-fast cooking. Techniques like searing, caramelization, smoking, etc. all contribute special characteristics to the end result.

For wet-heat recipes (steaming, poaching, boiling), would there be any such differences? As long as the food is properly controlled for internal and external temperature, does the process used affect texture, taste or appearance?

I can think of a few differences for delicate foods, where vigorous boiling would destroy the texture. But that seems to be more of a control and timing issue.


texts: Using Chicken Broth bones for chicken stock?

texts:
I am planning on using a whole chicken to make a batch of chicken broth, which as I understand is made using the meat as well as bones and vegetables and various seasonings. After that, I will take the meat off the bones.  Could I then use those bones to make a chicken stock? Should I roast the bones first? I just worry that all the flavour will already be gone from bones as they were used in the broth.

Thanks to anyone who answers!


texts: Are egg whites generally available at the store?

texts:
Can you buy egg whites at the store, or must I take the yolk out my own? I assume if so they would be sold in some sort of carton.

My plan is to just use them for scrambled egg whites in the morning.  It just helps speed up the process this way for work days.


texts: Ruined balsamic salad dressing, how to recover?

texts:
My favorite balsamic salad dressing seems to have been discontinued, so I decided to make my own. In doing so I added far, far too much xanthan gum and am now left with 350ml of oily herbed balsamic gel. I tried adding oil to thin it out, but of course had no luck. I have not yet tried an immersion blender (it's too late at night here to run it).

How can I recover from this, either moving ahead with the salad dressing or finding an alternate use for the gel, or should I just cut my losses and start over?


texts: My Sourdough Starter has a brown layer at the top?

texts: So my sourdough starter is about two weeks old, but it suddenly stopped growing three days ago (after a couple days of very active growth)and developed a brown layer on top.The layer is mostly brown with about 15 percent of it being normal starter. Most of what I researched is that it is hooch, but the brown layer is more solid (the same thickness as my starter) and isn’t separate from the top layer of the normal starter. I have been keeping my starter in the oven with just the light on. As for my feeding schedule, I feed it 1 cup of AP Flour and 1/2 cup of water every day. If anyone has an answer, please let me know; it would very helpful.


texts: Every time I have tried to make caramel sauce (with the wet method) it has been going fine during carmelization, but then everything just seizes up into a rock when I try add in the cream and butter. This makes sense, since carmelization happens above the hard crack stage, but no recipe ever mentions it, just crystallization of the syrup during carmelization. Is it something I am doing wrong, or do they just never mention that for some reason?


texts: Could Agave syrup be used as a substitute for Golden Syrup?

texts: I found a UK recipe calling for "Golden Syrup" and have read thru what is posted already. I'm wondering if Agave Syrup might be used. I do use it for many things because of it's low glycemic index and have had good luck with it in most cases. Like honey, it does have it's own flavor and doesn't work with everything.


texts: Can I substitute "green beans" for "string beans"?

texts:
The famous Thai salad "Som Tam" uses raw, crushed string beans in small amounts, and I have seen recipes that suggest raw normal green beans as a substitution. How will the subsitution affect the dish?

How safe is the original and the substitution of green beans when it comes to phasin/lectin levels present in the raw vegetable? Googling gets you a lot of conflicting and anecdotal evidence...


texts:
TL;DR: Usual pancake (French-style crepe) mixture causes separation of mixture in the blender and fizzes when fried resulting in very poor quality pancakes which burn easily.

The last couple of weeks I made flat (not fluffy) pancakes with this recipe:

500ml semi-skimmed milk (green top for those in the UK)
approx 200ml gluten-free flour (it was tipped in without measuring, but that's how I always do it) - by volume this would be about 1/3 of the milk measure
2 fresh medium eggs (bought the day before, stored in fridge)
1/2 tbl spoon of vanilla essence, aka a 'splash'

The method?.. Stick it all in a blender, run for 10 seconds, scrape/scoop any unmixed flour from the sides, run for another 5 seconds, fry (no oil.)

Last week I got a really nice, thin, medium-golden set of pancakes. Literally every single one cooked beautifully in seconds, curled at the edges just so I could flip and were thin, tasty and perfect.

This week the mixture fizzed (yes, 'fizzed') as it hit the pan. The holes appearing as it fried were huge and at the edges it seemed to stick straight to the pan and just burn straight away. It did not curl and I had to get the spatula (thin, metal) forced under the edges to be able to peel them and flip. The underside burnt and until the mixture cook firm the liquid mixture continued to make the disturbing fizzing. Just before flipping I could see a sort of mottling on the top, completely unlike any pattern a regular pancake would have. After flipping the second side would not brown at all - just go from white to burnt. They tasted OK, but not like last weeks'.

This is how I always make pancakes, but every-so-often they come out with this irritating 'fizz' sort of sound and it's at that moment I know they are going to be a pain to fry.

The one other indicator I get is that when I finish blending the mixture together, the top is bubbly and clearly separate from the regular part of the mixture. I just can't figure out why it would separate like this - what is the cause of the low quality mixture? The ingredients are always bought within a couple of days of making and I've had great success with relatively older ingredients. I have had limited success by removing the frothy mixture from the top of the blender, but even the better mixture at the bottom does not produce great pancakes.

PS: Yes, I wish I'd taken a photo or two but I was so stressed by it happening again I just didn't. Sorry.


texts: For the non-specialist, what is the difference between various knife qualities?

texts:
Trying to buy a knife recently there are some that are $10, some $50 and all the way up to $300+. I understand that there are differences in the quality of the steel and its hardness and how long it holds its edge for. However there isn't a clear difference in features at the different price points apart from I assume more expensive works better somehow.
For the non-specialist, by which I mean someone like me who cooks daily and would like a good tool but doesn't care about the marginal gains, what is the right level to buy?

I'm assuming like a lot of things there's an 80/20 principle where you get 80% of the benefits after a certain expenditure and then next few hundred bucks are squeezing out the last few percent


texts: Substitute for annatto seeds in Achiote Paste

texts: I am making Achiote Paste and need a substitute for the annatto seeds.  Recipe calls for 1/4 cup of annatto seeds.  Can I substitute tumeric, saffron or paprika and if so how much should I use?


texts: Smoking a pig at 225 F vs barbecuing one at 250F?

texts: I have seen many posts that say smoking a pork shoulder at 225F to an internal temperature of 195F  will take 15 hours. I have also seen many posts that say you can barbecue a 90 pound whole hog at 250F in an above ground pit in 6-7 hours. How can this be possible? Both shoulders are whole, not cut up. Can 25F really make that much of a difference in cooking times?


texts:
I am trying to boil egg white. It's around 500gr. How to boil it properly?

In previous attempt, I boil it using a stainless steel container with no lid and put it in a pan filled with water. I screw up since the water is able to reach the egg. This method also time consuming because the container is not hot enough. It also hard to clean after I do this.

Are there better method for me to do this? The method should ensure the egg safe to eat (no salmonella). I dont want to use plastic to boil it.


texts:
I'm a little confused with what resting actually means.

I've typically seen this term being used where you move food (typically meat) from the oven/grill/heat and then keep it warm for "some time" (maybe 10's of minutes depending on the size).

What has confused me is Gordon Ramsay's burger video, where he is cooking burgers on a BBQ. He then moves the burgers to the "resting" rack (if that is the right term) within the BBQ. This rack is still above the heat. To me, this is not resting, this is cooking at a lower heat.

https://youtu.be/v191Y8AUk6w - He says this at 4:43 where also says "they'll continue cooking". AT 5:50, he closes the lid!

I'm assuming resting does not mean "left alone" because many recipes, such as a roast, call for us to put meat in the oven and leave it alone until cooked.

So my question, which may be a double question is: Is there a definition of what resting means and if so, what is it?


texts: I came across this video on Facebook, which allegedly demonstrates some sort of "Egyptian Coffee" making technique. What exactly is the video showing? Where can I read more about this coffee making technique, and the associated equipment, etc?


texts: Toning down lamb with mustard powder: universal tool?

texts:
Recently I tried the technique of rubbing lamb with mustard powder over night, in order to tone down the "gaminess". The end result was great and tasted nothing like mustard.

Is it a good idea, to use mustard for this reason, as a sort of universal tool, like salt?

Are there parts of the lamb, where this would be unnecessary or even counterproductive? Are there ingredients or recipes, where it would be a bad idea to use the mustard rub?


texts:
What can I use if my family does not like Buffalo wing sauce or any hot sauce for that matter?
I found a recipe for wings and potato casserole that sounds good but not if it's hot.


texts:
For enriched dough products, I really enjoy a more doughy, moister, stickier texture. I like hot cross buns which are fluffy and not too springy.
I've been baking my buns from this BBC good food recipe https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/chelsea-buns. I've tried increasing the milk content by 5% and then by 10% and whilst its a little closer to what I want, the texture is still a bit dry and crumbly.
I was thinking about reducing the baking time or temperature, but I'm not sure.


texts: Does leaving the lid on make a difference to whether the meat in a soup softens/cook properly?

texts:
I've been coooking soup with a pot lid off and notice the meat is still tough when cooking.  It could be the due to the lid or some other factor.

I put a thermometer in the soup water and it seems to be at a good temp for simmering meat(90-95c) and I can see the bubbles appearing every seconds or so.  However the meat is still tough.

I put the lid back on and cook then it seems to soften ok.  Considering I can see the simmering bubbles and the thermometer shows a simmer can you explain why and if putting the lid on is making a difference?

Thanks


texts: What do you call it and where to buy some

texts: What do you call these in English, before the frying process, and where can they be purchased?


texts: Can i make ice cream with artificial sweetener

texts: I wonder if an artificial sweetener like sucralose or erythritol could be used to make a reasonably soft ice cream.


texts: how to maintain a healthy, neat and clean kitchen in an apartment without smell as apartment is too small, there is no direct sunlight, no window only exhaust fan, rest of apartment have wide window and good air passage but kitchen is closed. I try to clean it daily but the bad smell remain there.


texts: I'm wanting to make a layer cake for a birthday WITHOUT food coloring. Specifically, I'm wanting to make red and blue. Could I add raspberry juice or puree to a basic white cake recipe or would that turn out pink? For the blue, would blueberry work? How would the recipe need to be adjusted to accommodate the extra liquid?


texts: Is there anything but yeast in a packet of baker's yeast?

texts:
So hopefully this does not seem like too silly a question...but is there anything in a typical small packet of baker's yeast aside from actual yeast organisms (S. cerevisiae)?

I guess that I always assumed that there was some kind of filler agent such as cornstarch mixed in with the yeast in order to give it some "substance".  However, when looking at the ingredient list for baker's yeast on multiple manufacturers' websites, yeast is listed as the only ingredient.

I researched further to find that a single yeast organism of the species S. cerevisiae is only approximately 6 microns wide.  For comparison, a grain of table salt is something on the order of 500 microns wide.  So I am at a loss to understand how I am able to see individual "grains" of yeast.

So one or more of these possibilities seems to be true:

1) There is some kind of filler in the yeast packages that is simply not listed.

2) There is actually nothing but yeast organisms in the package.  Even though individual grains seem discernible, this may simply be an optical illusion of sorts or a large number of yeast cells sticking together which appear to be a single grain/cell.

3) ???

All evidence seems to point to number 2 being true, but I am just trying to determine if I am correct about this.  It seems counter-intuitive to me, though, that each packet contains a lump of single-celled organisms with no filler or any kind.

Please enlighten me or point out what I am missing!

Much appreciated.


texts: Is there a substitute for tartar sauce? It is difficult to find in India. I need an alternative that can be obtained in Indian markets.


texts:
I have a cutlery set that came with 7 teaspoons. Six of them are the same, but one is different. In the following image I have three of the six on the left side of the picture and the different one on the right.

Unfortunately I don't have the box the set came in, but on the back of all the cutlery it says "justinus edelstahl 18-10". I was unable to find information online about what teaspoon that is.

What is the one on the right used for? Why does it have a flat tip? And why was there only one in the set?

The set was for 6 people, so I have 6 spoons, 6 knifes, 6 forks, 6 little forks, 6 (normal) teaspoons, a few other things, and this strange teaspoon. It had its own special place in the set, so it is not a defect. And it doesn't look cut or chopped or smoothed. It was created like that. It definitely had its purpose.


texts: How should fully cooked refrigerator stored chicken be reheated to retain moisture?

texts:
Why do instructions to reheat already properly cooked and stored chicken say to check internal temperature to 165 if you want to warm it up? The logic escapes me here, does anyone have a clue they can share with me?
The chicken has been already cooked. And is loveingly know as "leftovers". Good in the fridge for 4-5 days and in the freezer much longer. I was looking for a way to keep it moist while wanting to heat it and did not expect this other issue to develop in the process. All the directions on the internet say to check internal temperature for 165 degrees for an already cooked chicken. My logic tells me I don't have to heat it at all, it's already cooked I can just as easily make a cold chicken sandwhich with it. According to google if I choose to have it warm instead of cold then all of a sudden it decides to grow bacteria. Maybe take google with a grain of salt?


texts: Why does rinsing lentils create foam? Is this natural?

texts:
I ran out of organic brown rice today, and I happened to have some lentils, but when I went to rinse them with the spray nozzle on my sink (set to warm) they started to create a bubbly foam. The lentils were in a bowl not a strainer. I'm not used to this, so I'm wondering if it's natural. But I'm also recalling how when I made homemade potato chips and when I rinsed thin slices of potatoes I got a similar foaminess.

What's causing this foam? Is it natural with lentils?


texts: Making espresso correctly - rerunning hot water several times through an espresso puck to fill an Americano

texts:
I just bought a Delonghi espresso machine from Target.  It came with a "single-shot" filter and a "double-shot" filter.  The double-shot filter holds 11 grams of tampered grounds.

I read somewhere that coffee shops typically use 20 grams of grounds for a single shot - how accurate is this?
Last question - when I make a Caffe Americano (a Starbucks drink - where you take 2, 3, or 4 espresso shots, pour them into a cup and fill the remaining difference with hot water), sometimes when I make my espresso shots, I just keep running the hot water through the grounds (instead of using plain, hot water to fill the difference in my cup).  I find when I do this, my drink tastes stronger (obviously, right?) rather than making a "true" Americano drink, where it tastes a little watered down.  Is it okay that I reuse the coffee grounds like I've been doing when I'm making my espresso shots, even though subsequent shots are obviously a lot clearer (but darker than plain old water)?  Or will I get maybe unwanted flavor if I reuse my grounds a few times instead of using just water to fill the rest of my cup?


texts: Why is my Mango Pickle foaming with Gas after 3 days, it is beginning to overflow, even though I left 2" from the cap

texts:
We made a mango pickle with green mangoes. Below is the typical recipe that was used:

20 small tender green mangoes
200g salt
2tsp. turmeric powder
2” asafoetida (rock type)
1 tbsp. peppercorns
3 tbsps. Mustard seeds
¼ tsp. fenutgreekseeds
2 tbsps. Mustard dal
100g red chilli powder
1 sp. Turmeric powder
500ml sesame seed oil

Preparation :
Wash and wipe the mangoes thoroughly. Slit them into fours. Chop 4 or 5 mangoes into cubes.
Sprinkle the salt and turmeric powder on all the mangoes, mix them well ands place in a plastic or wooden vessel. Keep heavy weight over the mangoes and leave them for 4 days.
Daily, turn the mangoes gently, upside down to ensure that the natural green colour of the mangoes has changed. Drain out the grime and salt if any into a pan and boil it. Cool.
Meanwhile remove the soft seeds from each of the mangoes carefully. Remove the black skin too if any. Should there be any hard seed, do not remove it. Next, heat a tablespoon of oil in a small pan, keep the flame low and toss in the asafoetida. Remove it after a minute. Repeat with peppercorns, mustard and fenugreek seeds. Cool the spices and grind fine. Do not use nay water. Heat the remaining oil in another pan and cool thoroughly. Now mix the chilli powder with mustard dal, turmeric powder and the ground spice, add salt (the mixture should be slightly salty). Mix some cooled oil into spice mixture. Stuff each mango with a small lump of the spice paste. Place all the stuffed mangoes in a wide mouthed jar. Pour the grime and the remaining heated and cooled oil.

Now 3 days later this pickle is foaming with gas.  How can I prevent this from happening.  What am I doing wrong.  I have seen some of your posts and you seem to have a lot of experience in this area.


texts: Veg Burger Advice, Am i missing something?

texts:
I used to eat burger at home rather than buying from MCDonalds. But i feels the taste can be improved. I am mentioning my method now. Please help me improve it as the Burgers are not crunchy.

I used to buy Empty Burgers Buns from Market (Have seeds on top)
Buy Ready made Patty from Reliance Fresh store
Buy Amul Cheese Slice from Store.

Chop onions in slices
Chop Cucumbers in slices
Chop Tomoato in slices

Now Cut the burger in half. Add a tomato ketchup sauce layer, Mayonaise, Salt, Sometimes (Pudina/Mint Ready Made sauce) and patty and slice, onions, tomato, etc

Then put in on Frying PAN, add some oil, put the burger and try to press it. The change the burger side and done.

I tried putting in Microwave also (But the burgers become so soft and start to break while eating)

Question:
Is my cooking method wrong, or i am setting microwave setting wrong (what will be the temp, microwave/grill) etc

I prefer to avoid long tasks.


texts:
I've been trying, on-and-off when I have time, to make tomato sauce from a 5 1/2 oz can of tomato paste, but haven't figured out the right proportions of ingredients.

I've been combining a can of tomato paste with about 16 oz of water and some sugar to cut the acidity, and reducing it a little, but all I end up with is watery tomato paste.

It's more likely that I am missing a key ingredient (like a can of diced tomatoes) than a critical preparation step, but I'm curious about other people's experience.

Edit

By "tomato sauce", I mean something functionally equivalent to a store-bought jar of pasta sauce.

Why would anyone want to do this? I honestly have no good reason. It is mere curiosity on my part. Is it possible to get edible results? Or is it guaranteed to be a complete waste of time, not worth even experimenting with?