texts: Ways to make my cooking routine more efficient?

texts:
I enjoy cooking. In an ideal world, I'd spend some time messing around in the kitchen four or five nights a week. But as it stands, I'm very busy, on a very tight budget, and trying to keep up with my body's high caloric demands so I can put on some muscle.

In an effort to address these issues, I've been cooking in bulk for about a year. I set aside Sunday to do my grocery shopping and cooking, and just reheat things as needed throughout the week. Not only am I dissatisfied with the results, but I am consistently frustrated with how long things take. This week's batch cooking really stood out to me in that regard.

Cooking three large servings (1500 kcal each) of chicken fried rice took 2 hours, excluding prep for the marinade (15 minutes) and marinating time (1.5 hours). An orange ginger pork stir fry (no orange sauce, just an orange ginger marinade) took me 45 minutes to prep the marinade and vegetables, and another 30 minutes or so of cook time, just for the flavors to be weak and the texture unpleasant.

It seems I spend far too much time cleaning my cast iron pans; I've yet to cook a meal on them where something hasn't been burnt on pretty seriously and required multiple passes with salt and/or fat of some sort to get off. Today, I had to resort to the water-boiling method to get some gunk off, reseasoned both pans with a thorough coating of coconut oil and still had to take 10 to 15 minutes muscling through crud on my pans between each serving of fried rice, and to add insult to injury, I'm looking at one pan and seeing some sort of white coloration on it that I'm pretty sure isn't supposed to be there.

So, with that being said, is there anything about what I've described that suggests some clear, correctable problem? Please, no suggestions that involve 'buy this thing.' I'm on such a tight budget that let's just assume that's not an option. I have to learn to work with what I have more efficiently.

I have:

a 3 Qt. cast iron Dutch oven
a 10" cast iron skillet (serves as the lid on the Dutch oven)
a 2.5 Qt. stainless steel sauce pan
a 1.5 Qt. stainless steel sauce pan
a 1 Qt. stainless steel sauce pan
a 17.25" x 11.5" cookie sheet
an 8 Cup Rice Cooker
2 4-Qt. tupperware containers
2 2-Qt. tupperware containers
4 1-Qt. tupperware containers

My weekly food budget is $40, and I'm trying to get ~3000+ calories 3 days a week and ~2400 calories otherwise. I'm going for paleo compliance as far as I can--I permit myself the use of rice because it's cheap, has relatively low phytic acid content, and helps answer my high caloric needs. But other grains are a no-no.


texts: How do you drain Velveeta Rotini & Cheese with Broccoli, without losing the rehydrated Broccoli?

texts:
Rotini & Cheese is a variation on Kraft's shells and cheese.  It's actually kind of like an upgrade because you get small pieces of dehydrated broccoli in addition to the mac and cheese.  Halfway through the cooking process you add the broccoli to the simmering pasta so that it can rehydrate.

The only problem is that whenever I strain the pasta from the water I lose half of the rehydrated broccoli.

Does anyone know a way to keep from losing the broccoli without wasting a ton of time?


texts: What does "Massage with salt" mean in a recipe?

texts:
I want to try this recipe for Vegan Lox by Tasty.

Step 5 is

  Use a vegetable peeler to shave the carrots lengthwise into ribbons.
  Massage with salt.

I don't understand what "Massage with salt" means and I don't see anything happening in the video. Do they just mean "rub in with salt"?


texts: Best spices to use on minced quorn in spaghetti sauce and other recipes

texts:
As a vegetarian, whenever I have to use minced meat I use minced quorn.

But quorn does not add any flavour to dishes, only texture. What are the best "base spices" to add to the quorn when using it in any dish, for example spaghetti sauce?


texts:
I've tried baking so many times with this kind of oven settings but they never work. The exterior of the cake looks fine, but when cut opened, they look as if they were never cooked.
The oven doesn't come with bottom heat. I used fan settings (right top) and then turn it on to the top heat fan setting (right bottom) for the last 10mins to brown the cake.


texts:
It's somewhat well-known that applying an acidic solution to sliced apples prevents them from turning brown as quickly.  I believe that the primary motivation to prevent the "browning" is aesthetic: slightly brown apples don't appear as appetizing as bright white ones.

Is there any other reason to do this?

This page on the subject of apple-browning states:

  When an apple is cut, it releases an enzyme called polyphenol oxydase. This copper-based compound breaks down in the presence of oxygen, acting both as an antibacterial agent and as a deterrent to animals. This is what forms the brown coating on the apple.

The Wikipedia entry for food browning refers to the browning of apples as "undesirable" but is without qualification, and the entry for polyphenol oxidase says nothing about its properties other than colour, and I couldn't find any additional explanation of the "antibacterial" properties of browned apples, and what that actually means.

My question is two-fold:

Is apple-browning undesirable for any non-aesthetic reason, such as affecting taste, or any property other than colour?
When people apply a solution to apples to make them "last longer", how should I read this?  Does this simply mean "will brown slower", or is there something else to it?


texts: How to mix ingredients in bread machine?

texts:
Following the catalog instruction I simply put ingredients into bread machine. However, when I got the dough, it contained particles of yeast.

Then, I decided to dissolve the yeast into water (as an ingredient) before adding to the mixture in bread machine. In this method, I found that the dough rises less.

What is the best way to mix ingredients for bread machine recipe? Is it helpful or harmful if briefly mixing the ingredient to be sure about dough consistency or it is better to leave everything for the bread machine?


texts: Is this cooking method likely to yield a tasty pork chop?

texts:
So I'm thinking of doing three things to a piece of pork.

First salt it for a day
Then Confit it
Then Smoke it

Is this overkill or can this make some good pork?


texts: How will less flour affect molten lava cakes?

texts:
I made some molten cakes the other day, using this recipe from Betty Crocker. However, it is very "cakey." The molten cakes I've had before in restaurants have had more of a "truffle" consistency. Much denser, and smoother in consistency (I'm unsure if this is what is meant by "fudge like" or not). The molten part of the restaurant cake also seems thicker. I'm assuming this is related to the relative densities of the cakes.

Is this a simple instance of just needing to reduce the flour? Or is there more to it?

Here is a list of the ingredients the recipe calls for:

  Unsweetened baking cocoa
  6 oz semisweet baking chocolate, chopped
  1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
  3 whole eggs
  3
  egg yolks
  1 1/2
  cups powdered sugar
  1/2 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour*
  Additional powdered sugar, if desired
  Sugared kumquats, if desired

Here is a picture of the desired molten cake:

versus the Betty Crocker one:


texts: How do I  maintain a portable induction cooker?

texts: Most portable induction cooker have a cooling system (a fan below it). Do you open up the induction cooker to clean the fan? As for the rest of the parts, do you just use a cloth to wipe clean? or do you apply some cleaning agent to wash the outer surface?


texts:
I tried making alioli at home, but in the first step (turning the garlic into a fine paste), I didn't make much progress. I chopped the garlic fairly finely first, but when I tried crushing them with a wooden spoon in a wide low mug, the little pieces just ping off.

What's the trick? Is there some way of softening them up first?

Note that I'm not making it in commercial quantities, so the amount of garlic I'm using would scarcely reach up to the blade on my immersion blender.


texts: Why don't we make coffee in the same way we make tea?

texts: In tea, also there is tea powder, which we use. In coffee also, there is coffee powder. Why don't we make coffee in exactly the same way we make tea?


texts: How do I get the slimy clumps out of my bisque?

texts:
I used potato starch instead of cornstarch, as a thickener and forgot to make a slurry first.  Unfortunately, the bisque isn't a pureed bisque, it's mushroom, celery and onion.
After I realized my mistake, I then added more as a slurry and was able to properly thicken it.
But it still has the slimy clumps, very unappetizing. How do I get the slimy clumps out without pureeing the whole thing?


texts: How to store brown sugar without it becoming hard?

texts:
I put a clothes pin on my opened bags of brown sugar and keep them in a dark pantry at room temperature.  Since I don't use it very often, it becomes hardened.  My work-around is to use a grater to grate it but it would be useful to avoid the problem in the first place.

How should I store it to prevent hardening? Do I put it in the freezer? If so, does it need to come to room temperature before using it?


texts: What pepper can be substituted for a habanero when no habaneros are available?


texts: Is it a good idea to cook stew in the oven in a stainless steel pot?

texts:
If I cook stew in my oven will it come out better using a heavy enameled dutch oven than
a stainless steel covered pot?


texts: Should i oil my cast iron pan before storage?

texts: So, for our wedding someone gave my wife and a cast iron lodge pan. Its a very nice pan and cooks well, but it's started to develop a rust spot after only a few months use. This is gross. I scrub the spot off before use, which is a pain, but Better than eating rust flakes with our hamburger helper. My inner mechanic is screaming "if its rusting, oil it!". Obviously I'd prefer a veggy based oil to my traditional motor oil, but is oiling a cast iron pan before storage sop?


texts:
I'm interested in infusing pepper flavor into vodka like in Naga Chili Vodka.

Are there any peppers I should specifically avoid and how should I infuse the flavor/spiciness?  In addition, other than varying the types of peppers and number of peppers how can I control the spiciness?  Is a higher proof of vodka recommended, and does the quality of the vodka matter in this case?


texts:
It will be my first attempt to bake with yeast this weekend and I'm interested to know how you know when you have kneaded dough enough. Is it possible to over-knead dough?

If it makes a difference I'll be making croissants.

Thank you :)


texts: Since making marmalade involves cooking fruit and pectin and juices at a particular temperature for a specified amount of time, can you use sous vide to mimic this process and make and can marmalade in this way?


texts: Topping bread with poppy seeds or sesame seeds

texts:
Should the seeds be sprinkled over the dough before baking, or will they burn?

Should they be soaked first to prevent burning?

Should a wash (cornstarch?) be used to stick them to the dough?

Anything else I need to know?


texts: How well do counter top knife sharpeners sharpen knives?

texts: Are counter top knife sharpeners like the IQ knife sharpener good for sharpening knives (or cheap knives)? I have used the IQ sharpener and it is still hard to cut through big onions. I would like to know if it's problem with my technique or the product category itself just sucks.


texts: How should I deal with blood released while thawing meat in the refrigerator?

texts:
Saturday I pulled a package of venison from my freezer to thaw and hope to make stroganoff with it tonight. However, this morning I noticed that the package (in a bowl) had really released a lot of blood. I have a few questions here:

It hasn't been above 40° F (4.4° C) much, but am I going to run into a moisture or consistency problem? If so, can I do anything in the stroganoff to balance this out?
Also, assuming the meat is safe, and still worth cooking, should I attempt to utilize the blood in building up the sauce; if so how? (I will likely be preparing the sauce using [drippings/blood(?)], a pound or so of mushrooms, and cream/sour cream.)


texts:
How do I cure olives without using salt? Is oil the only option? Or salt free fermentation of some sort?

I found this one claiming to be unsalted but couldn't find any recipe/resource describing the process?


texts:
I am wondering which, if any, prepared sauces would work as a soup base. After several experiments I have found that none of the many (mostly Asian) sauces I have on hand work for this (just an experiment folks-- I am not trying to live on sauce).  Is there a general property that makes a liquid (or powder) an effective soup base?  Is it just more intensely reduced?  Hopefully, it is not just a matter of salt.

I have noticed that in packages of ramen the soup base packet is tiny but packs a lot of flavor.  Recently I have gotten some ramen where the soup base is liquid in a tiny packet and that got me thinking about this.

Update: Based on an answer below I should add that my experiments showed that even a LOT of sauce still makes for an very weak soup.  The characteristic I am wondering about is how a tiny packet of liquid (much less than a teaspoon) can provide a strong flavor where say a 2 or 3 TABLEspoons of stir-fry, or other sauces make for a horribly weak soup for the same amount of liquid.


texts: How long can a vinaigrette last if emulsified with raw egg?

texts: Started a new job and walked in to some vinaigrettes that are 2-4 weeks old, some of which contain raw egg. Obviously, I'm a little concerned. How long can a vinny last with raw egg?


texts: Is there some trick to vacuum sealing broccoli?

texts:
In Sous Vide for the Home Cook Douglas Baldwin gives a recipe for broccoli. In brief, blanch the broccoli, cool in an ice bath, then vacuum seal as a single layer in a bag with salt, pepper, and butter.

Except this does not work with an external (non-chamber) vacuum machine. Even after draining the broccoli for ten minutes, the vacuum machine sucks so much water out of the bag that it fills the entire water reservoir in the machine, and starts being sucked into the pump. Then you curse, cancel it, dump out the water, and try again, about ten times. And still, the bag refuses to seal, because it won't leave the heater on long enough to evaporate the water that's preventing the seal.

Eventually, I figured out that hitting the vacuum button again, followed immediately by the seal button, would trick the machine into turning the heater back on, even though it hadn't cooled down yet, and finally got the bag sealed. (And, amazingly, it appears it may still work, despite having sucked water through the pump)

I suspect this isn't a problem at all with a chamber vac, but it doesn't seem like a book for the Home Cook should require a $1200 vacuum machine.

So, is there some trick to seal broccoli using a $40 external vacuum machine?


texts: How to ensure that the chicken meat is not over cooked or under cooked?

texts:
I am cooking the chicken breast (together with bones and cut into 4 main pieces) in a soup.

(The soup was cooked with some other ingredients first and then the chicken was pieces was thrown after 1 hour of cooking the soup. The fire was removed after boiling the chicken for 15 minutes)

However, I notice that the chicken meat when taken out, some are rather uncooked (the outside of the meat is OK but the inside towards the bones is not. Some are rather overcooked as the meat is tough to chew (the outside layer was like plastic and the inside towards the bones are rather hard).

How do I maintain the consistency such that all the 4 pieces of meat are not under cooked and over cooked?


texts: Cutting windows into a premade gingerbread

texts: We have a gingerbread kit that we would like to add windows.  What is the best way to cut into the hard gingerbread without breaking?


texts: Is it safe to eat pumpkin seeds with peel?

texts: I dried pumpkin seeds but now don't have the patience to peel them one by one. Could I just eat them with the skin? I suppose I could but they won't taste very good. Therefore, bonus question: in which form could pumpkin seeds with peel be used? So far I would try to blend them and put some in dough for bread.


texts: How do you tell when a noodle is done cooking? I have tried throwing it at the ceiling but I don't know if that works can someone please help me find out.


texts: How to approximate the Maillard temperature (154°C) in a pan?

texts:
Are there any common (non-toxic) household substances with boiling or smoke points close to the temperature at which the Maillard reaction occurs, 154°C?

I want to be able to check that my pan is around this temperature without using a thermometer before frying a steak.


texts:
I just found an old hand cranked meat slicer which I can use to slice homemade lunch meats. It was free, but it obviously hasn't been used awhile. Inside there are two gears, and a bearing on which the blade spins. I took off the blade to give the thing a through cleaning, and in the process removed all of the grease. I am now running it through the dish washer to give it yet another washing before we use it.

Can anyone suggest a proper grease to use to lubricate the blade? There is a small chance it could come in contact with food so I was thinking a few shots of silicon grease? Any help would be appreciated.


texts: Lavender subsitute for Grilled Eggplant Nicoise

texts: Is it okay to tear open some lavender tulsi herbal tea bags?


texts: How did I screw up this rice pudding recipe?

texts:
I've never made rice pudding before so I tried this recipe, exactly (no frills like raisins or anything).

Ingredients:

  2 eggs
  1/2 cup sugar
  1/2 teaspoon salt
  2 1/4 cups milk
  1 teaspoon vanilla
  2 cups steamed rice
  1 dash nutmeg

Steps:

  Separate eggs, beat yolks.
  Add sugar, salt, milk, vanilla, and rice.
  Stiffly beat egg whites and fold into mixture.
  Turn into baking dish.
  Sprinkle with nutmeg.
  Bake in moderate oven (350 degrees F.) for 45 minutes.

What I did:

It doesn't really specify short or long grain so I made it with basmati rice (the way I make it is about 1 1/2 cups dry rice boiled in 8 cups of water for 12 minutes then drain and rinse with hot water, it's very fluffy this way).
Separate eggs, beat yolks, dump everything including rice into a bowl and mix well.
Beat egg whites then dump into bowl and mix well. I don't know what "stiffly beat egg whites" means. Pour it into a glass baking dish.
Sprinkle with nutmeg.
Put it in the oven.

I used white sugar, 2% milk, himalayan pink salt, and medium-sized (US) eggs.

But it came out pretty gross. It had a film on top like milk gets immediately after pulling it out, but I mixed that all in. Mostly it had a lot of puddles of yellow, cloudy, watery liquid in it, and the whole thing had a pretty watery texture.

It tasted like... salty eggs or something (and like like commenters, I am confused by the saltiness; it wasn't strong but it was there). Sort of like if I washed a bowl of eggs then dumped some day old rice in the dirty dishwater. Yum.

I don't understand what happened here. Does anything here scream anything out to anybody with some experience?

Was it the type of rice? The way I made it? How I mixed/beat things together? Something I don't understand about the ingredients? Incorrect cooking temperature or time? Just a bad recipe (but it got OK reviews)? Is there anything that could've been wrong with any of my steps or ingredients that would make it turn out so poorly in this way?


texts: Where to store boxes/cases of Carbonated Energy Drinks (Like Red Bull) Fridge or Room?

texts:
I hope this is the right place to ask this. And sorry for the bad english. I didn't know whether "box" is right for what I have or "case", or "pack" !

I'm a self-admitted Energy Drink junkie! So I thought I should buy boxes of them to save money, because the stores in my town sell them in a higher-than-usual price of the distributor! (Some even sell them twice the actual price!) So now I've bought Two boxes of 24packed 250ml cans (48 cans). And for several reasons I don't want to/can't store all the cans in the fridge, most important of which; don't have enought space in the fridge to store all of these in.

I keep my room chilly because basicly I just like it~! (Unlike my family! :D) I don't have a thermometer or I would have just told you the room temperature. The outside temperature is about 12C to -4C (decreases to 7C and lower and lower after 6PM, then increases again after 8AM...) And I keep my window a little bit open (Like 30%) all the time...

So based on this explanations, What would you suggest? Will they lose fizziness or go flat if they aren't kept in fridge? ... I'm sure you've understood what I mean by now :) if not, please tell me to make myself more clear. Thank you very much in advance.


texts:
So I've been wondering why whenever I cook burgers, they end up turning into a gray color, and a greasy mess. I'm restricted only to a stove top pan and oven, and I'm sure that's contributing to it, but I'm not sure what to change.

My first guess was that it wasn't high enough heat, but I've waited to heat them up pretty well, and it hasn't really impacted anything. Is it the mix I use to make the burgers? I usually take ground beef, mix it with an egg and breadcrumbs and spices, and then cook some immediately and freeze the rest.

I'm just curious of anything I can do to change the color they come out as, and hopefully improve the taste as much as possible.


texts: Can I make this caramel the "usual" way instead of using golden syrup and condensed milk

texts:
I've been following this millionaire's shortbread recipe to make as a Christmas gift.

In the second stage, the caramel recipe uses condensed milk and golden syrup instead of sugar and cream.

  For the topping
  150g/5oz butter
  1 x 379g can condensed milk
  100g/3½oz golden syrup

  For the topping, heat the butter, condensed milk and golden syrup in a
  saucepan, stirring occasionally until the butter is melted and the
  mixture is smooth.

  Increase the heat and bring the mixture to the boil, stirring
  frequently. The caramel will thicken and turn golden-brown. Set aside
  to cool slightly, then pour over the cooled shortbread. Allow to cool
  completely.

I've looked around at other recipes and it seems like the majority of them use this method. I suspect it's because this is more error-proof and beginner friendly. Using a sugar syrup that is already liquid means that it's not going to be as prone to crystallise, and it probably won't need to be cooked as long (or monitored as closely as usual candy making).

I'm quite comfortable making caramel the "usual" way with butter/sugar/cream. I usually make a "wet" caramel with water. I'd like to know if I can make it this way instead. My concerns are as follows:

Not getting the temperature/consistency correct (I'm not 100% sure which stage to aim for. Soft ball I think?)
Crystallising. I'm thinking about adding in glucose syrup as a stabiliser but I'd be concerned about crystallisation in any case.
Perhaps there's a reason why golden syrup/condensed milk are used here that I don't know about.

So in summary, how do I go about switching out this stage of the recipe for a more traditional method? Is there an advantage to following the recipe as is, or is it safe for me to switch out as a confident caramel maker?


texts: What natural ingredient besides honey and fats can I use to bind a mixture of powders together?

texts: So I need to turn super food powders into something more tangible, like a stick form. Honey seems to not be that effective and has a lot of sugar and fats melt quite easily. Water obviously not a good option. What else could I try? Thanks so much for any answers!


texts: Have come across this in quite a few recipes, that mussels need to be cleaned and de-bearded. First time cooking shellfish so just want to be sure I know what they're talking about. Thanks.


texts: How can I keep the shape of my free-form bread dough when it is rising?

texts:
I have been trying to bake my own Italian bread, French bread and Rolls. I have found many tasty recipes but I keep having the same problem so I'm guessing it's my technique somewhere.  Please advise your thoughts.

The dough always has considerable spread during the rising time. Instead of rising UP it spreads out. It's not that it rises and then falls.  It just seems not to gain much height.

Thanks.


texts: When a recipe asks to add spices to the oil, can you add the spices directly to the sauce for the same effect?

texts: Many chefs add spices to the oil because the "oil brings out the flavors". But I want to experiment with different spices and quantities (which is hard because you can't taste the oil and predict the end result). My question - when a recipe clearly asks for spices in the oil, how can you add the spices to the finished sauce for the same effect?


texts: Can I halve the Amish Friendship Bread recipe?

texts:
If you're not familiar with Amish Friendship Bread, or if it's been a while:
Basically you mush the bag of starter every day for ten days. On days 5 and 10 you add one cup of milk, one cup of flour, and one cup of sugar. On day 10 you again add one cup each of milk, flour, and sugar and then divide it into four equal parts.

Theoretically that is enough to make one loaf of Amish Friendship, share a portion of starter with two friends, and still have one portion of starter left over to keep it going. Of course, in the real world you run out of willing friends pretty quickly. Then you start making more than one loaf at a time. Then you get burned out and throw the starter away. Sounds like fun to me!

So I was thinking: Surely we could add less sugar/flour/milk and end up with only two portions of starter at the end. Then you could just make one loaf every cycle. It would be a lot less burdensome!


texts: How can I make my fried potatoes not fall apart?

texts:
I cut the potatoes up. I boil them for 7 minutes and then I fry them 15 min in some olive oil, but they fall apart quickly.

When I remove the water from the boiling pan after 7 minutes, the potatoes are already almost falling apart.

I have tried to fry potatoes without bowling them for a while, but they still weren't done.

How do I get the potatoes not to fall apart and get at least a bit crispy?


texts: Where can I find "food safe" glass marbles for sous vide cooking?

texts:
I would like to find "food safe" glass marbles for sous vide cooking.  They can be used for keeping bags from floating, to space out ingredients in a bag, or even as "filler" space in a chamber vacuum to get a higher level of vacuum sealing.  Even for bags that don't float, the extra weight can keep the bags from moving in the current generated by a immersion circulator with a strong water pump.

Here is an example of using them as a anti-floating weight.

Many "toy" glass marbles are in China or other countries.  They may have lead or cadmium or have other dangerous metals or chemicals added -- especially if the glass is colored and even clear glass may be made with chemicals that are not "food safe".

Does anyone know where to purchase glass marbles or beads that are guaranteed to be "food safe"???


texts: How do I get sausages to cook evenly in a pan?

texts:
Whenever I cook sausages in the oven, they cook evenly. The issue is that sausages take about forty minutes in the oven. However, whenever I use a pan, they do not take an age to be cooked but they never seem to be cooked thoroughly (some appear to be raw in the centre as well as not being evenly brown). So, how do I cook sausages in a pan?

EDIT: Adding water with the olive oil really does work.


texts: Telling if small pieces of meat are cooked - blind or colour blind chef

texts:
When I am cooking small pieces of meat (so a meat thermometer is not an appropriate tool - I'm thinking of things like shredded chicken being stir-fried, frying or grilling slices of bacon, or minced beef being browned in a pan) I tell whether it is cooked yet by the change in colour in the meat. Chicken goes pink -> creamy white, bacon goes pink -> a different shade of pink, beef goes reddish pink -> brown, etc.

How does a blind, or colour-blind, chef manage? If going purely by time of cooking you will surely either end up with some pieces undercooked or the whole lot overcooked to compensate for that. Also it depends so much on the exact size of the pieces of meat, in the case of a grill how close the meat is to the heat, etc.

This is not a purely theoretical question - my husband is colour blind and really struggles with this. He cannot see the relevant colour differences at all, and although there are some texture changes on the outside of the meat, that doesn't tell you that the pieces are cooked all the way through.


texts: Currently there is a question about magnetic stripes vs wood blocks, but I was wondering what the general concensus is regarding knife sheaths (like this one) They seem great if you only have a couple knives -- they don't require counter space and aren't at risk of causing accidental harm by falling off a wall. What are the pros and cons of using these instead?


texts:
My long held opinion of this was that Hunter's Chicken was chicken breast, stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon and, occasionally, with barbecue sauce over the top.  Recipes like these seem to agree with me.

However, I've just been looking around the web to see if I could get a recipe with any new ideas, and came across this.  There's a few others in the same vein, which basically have it as a chicken stew.

So, which is correct?  Or are they both?


texts:
I usually boil spinach in quite a bit of water.  The spinach becomes tiny upon boiling leaving quite a bit of water with nutrients in it.

What is the least amount of water I could say boil 100g of spinach in? If I could boil the spinach and be left with just a small layer of green water to drink that would be great but most recipes seem to require boiling any sizeable amount of spinach in a sizeable amount of water.  What are the reasons for this?

Just to add, there are reason I was asking about boiling with more or less water.  I want the spinach to become very small which I notice happens with boiling but not to the same degree with steaming or other methods.  Also I want it to leach nutrients out and go into the little liquid. From Jefromis answers I can see that the spinach will cook, however I doubt it will go small, fibers will loosen, nutrients will leech to the same extent etc.  I'm bascially asking how much water is needed to for it to become very small, maximise fiber softening and nutrients leaching. I doubt this would occur in the in a little water or can we expect it to fully wilt with time?


texts: How much does a 2 1/2 square of graham crackers weigh

texts:
I have a recipe that calls for 8 dozen 2  1/2 inch squares of graham crackers, since they no longer are 2 1/2 inches I would like to know how much this would weigh.

Oh, BTW they now measure 2 1/4 in squares.


texts: So I accidentally left my defrosting turky in sink of cold water in my cold garage for 24hrs as a work emergency came up. I am wondering if it will still be safe to cook? it feels cold. Ugh..I have nothing else for dinner today.


texts: How to make best milk chocolate at home?

texts:
I have eaten home-made chocolate before, and while it was pretty good, it could not compare with the expensive chocolate at the store.
I would like to make the best milk chocolate I can at home. From what I know, the main ingredients are: cocoa powder, some fat (such as butter, coconut oil, etc.), powdered milk, water, and sugar.
I guess my question is, do you have any advice (or recipe) for making a really good milk chocolate? Some particular questions I have are:

Which is the best fat to use? Is it cocoa butter (I have trouble finding cocoa butter at the store)?

Is the powdered milk found at the store really the best for making chocolate? Is it better to make my own powdered milk?

Are there any other ingredients that are recommended for high-quality milk chocolate? I have seen soy lecitin, should I use this?

Thank you very much.


texts:
Making homemade Oat Milk into Yogurt for the first time! Unfortunately I made an oversight and pulled a Mason Jar out of the cabinet and just washed it with soap and hot water let it mostly air dry, then added my cooled down mixture of Oat milk (boiled to 180f + tapioca starch & coconut oil), let it cool and then added probiotics. Planing on letting it go for 12-24hr.
Is this unsafe and am I talking a large risk here by letting this culture without technically sterilizing the mason jar? I assume this can't be as risky as animal derived milk, but I have no idea, and don't want to cultivate bad bacteria or something toxic.


texts: Melted butter or not for pancake batter?

texts: I was making pancakes that called for melted butter in the recipe and when I added cold milk the butter re-solidified. How did that mess up the pancakes? Was the texture more dense and less fluffy? So I presume this batter could not be made ahead of time and refrigerated?


texts: How do starches, butter and milk interact from a culinary chemistry / food technology standpoint?

texts:
I'm trying to find out how different starches behave and how they interact with other ingredients. Corn starch (Maizena), for example, will act as a thickener as soon as it reaches its gelatinization temperature. Wheat starch (wheat flour), on the other hand, only achieves the proper texture after having been mixed with butter or margarine and then with milk or cream, after which you need to reheat it to the gelatinization temperature of the mixture.

When making mashed potatoes, the boiled spuds themselves remain crumbly when mashed, in spite of the fact that the boiling, in spite of the fact that the boiling has gelatinized the potato starches, and only after mixing them with butter/margarine and milk/cream the consistency of the potatoes (i.e. the structure of the starches) changes to the desired creamy mash.

I'm also not entirely clear why, when making sauces or mash, one first adds butter and then milk, seeing as milk and cream both are a suspension of butter particles in water.

So.

Question 1: what is the difference between these various starches that makes them behave so differently?

Question 2: how do wheat and potato starch interact with butter/margarine and milk/cream (and why do these have to be added in that order) when making a sauce or mash, respectively?

All suggestions (and pointers into the right direction) are greatly appreciated!


texts: Can baking sheets continue to cook toffee?

texts: I make tons of toffee every year. And I mean tons. Never had a problem. Now this year, something so wrong. Same recipe. Same pans. Same house. Same stove. Same thermometers. I even bought new thermometers just in case. So here is the deal. Everything is fine. Cooks fine. Looks good. Smells great. Once it reaches desired temp, I pour it onto a lightly buttered baking sheet. Same as always. Cooks down. Put it in freezer. Everything is the same as I have done for YEARS!  Now when I take it out and break it up, it’s perfect around the edges but super dark and almost burnt in the middle. I can’t figure it out. So my question is this?  Could the baking sheet be “cooking” the mixture?  Can the pans go bad?  I don’t understand how only around the edges is good. I can’t stress enough how everything is the same down to the brand of ingredients. I’m about to lose my mind!  PLEASE HELP!


texts: Pork: sirloin vs tenderloin. Which one is most tender?

texts:
What is the difference between pork sirloin and port tenderloin?

I usually buy center cut pork chops and may buy one due to the sale price this week.


texts: Why does water leak from a refrigerator?

texts: My Whirlpool refrigerator is leaking water. I was using the the highest setting #5.  My landlord said I probably froze something behind the unit (it is not a freezer that ice builds up in and you have to defrost); he claimed that the temp should be 50F-55F. As I see it, this is not true; 35F-40F is a safe temperature. We are going to defrost the unit for 24 hrs, then adjust the setting so it is 40F degrees and see if water keeps leaking in the fridge. Does anyone have any advice for me? Does anyone know why water would be leaking in the fridge part?


texts: I have a yeast Roll recipe that calls for 1 cup of whole milk. I only have 1% milk. What can I do to make the 1% equivalent to whole milk.


texts: For the life of me I can't get my nougat to set hard

texts:
Recipe:

Syrup

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/8 cup water (I dont think this does anything)
Dash of salt

Egg white

1 egg white whipped
Dash of cream of tartar to stabilize the egg white
2 tbsp rose water after eggs are whipped before syrup is added
As many nuts as I want

I get the syrup up to 300F. I whip the eggs, then before I temper them with a little syrup at around 220-250F, I add the rose water. Then I slowly add the syrup to the eggs while mixing and beat the mixture until it hits the right consistency and add nuts. It seems like it's thick and it should set right, but it just ends up being softish.

What could be going wrong? I've checked my thermometer and it's correct. Do I add more sugar or decrease the egg whites (or both)? Is it something I'm doing wrong with the eggs? I beat them until they have a peak when I remove the mixing things. Am I beating it too early and it falls apart (is that even a thing)? Should I not add the rose water after I beat the eggs? What can I be doing wrong?


texts: Is cooking with fruit liqueur comparable to cooking with fruit juice?

texts: I had some cranberries and blueberries that were past their prime, so to preserve them I made them into a liqueur. However I'm not much of an alcohol drinker, so I was thinking of using this liqueur for cooking. How does one use fruit liqueur in cooking? Will there be a noticeable taste difference from using the juice of these fruits once the alcohol has evaporated?


texts:
I've got this little 30 gram container of "wasabi" powder. I'm on a little kick of trying to perfect my sushi rolling technique, so I'm likely to use it up within a month or so. It's just the typical Japanese export to the USA, mostly horseradish with a tiny bit of actual wasabi root.

It's a pain to mix up every time. Will it lose its flavor if I make it all up at once, and keep it in a tiny air-free (as close as I can get it) Ziploc for a month in the fridge?


texts: Pizza dough keeps breaking through plastic

texts: When storing freshly made pizza dough in the fridge, I use your everyday plastic wrap, two sheets, to wrap around the dough. Sometimes, when the dough expands, it breaks through the plastic and the bit exposed outside the plastic dries up. Not the end of the world, but annoying. Anyone know a better, more foolproof way to store dough in the fridge? Thanks.


texts:
I just made a few candy canes...

If I'm going to transport them tomorrow, can I bag them up after they cool or should I keep them out as long as possible?  I'm worried about them getting sticky


texts: Can I fit normal kenwood bowls in the major series

texts:
I have a Kenwood Chef Major and while it's great, I find the mixing bowl to be a bit on the large size for simple jobs. I'm wondering if there is any reason why I wouldn't be able to fit a normal chef size bowl.

Anyone have any experience in this?


texts: I looked at the history of Corn Flakes on Wikipedia but it doesn't really tell me how I could go from raw ingredients to the final product. Should I use corn flour ? What should I do to make the final product in shape of flakes ? Should I cook it in a oven or in a pan ?


texts:
I am using a recipe taken from this Recipe for Butterscotch Pie recipe. I will post a picture below as well.

The main ingredients for the pie are 2 3.4 ounce instant butterscotch pudding mixes with 12 ounces of cool whip and 2 cups of milk. After combining the ingredients, and half of the cool whip, my butterscotch filling turns into a runny mess rather than a fluffy filling. Even after putting in the fridge for a couple of days, it does not set at all.

I was wondering how I can modify this in order to get the filling to a fluffy consistency.

Ingredients:

  1 2/3 cups Graham Cracker Crumbs
  1/4 Cup Sugar
  6 Tablespoons butter melted
  2 3.4 Ounce Boxes Instant Butterscotch Pudding Mix
  2 Cups Cold Milk
  12 Ounces Cool Whip Butterscotch Sundae Topping Optional
  1/4 Cup Chopped Pecans optional


texts: How can I make this wine and bacon sauce into a thick liquid?

texts:
I followed this recipe for a red wine and bacon steak sauce.

The sauce didn't thicken at all, the result was mostly boiled in red wine bacon, which wasn't bad, but wouldn't spread on my steak at all. How can I make this into a thicker sauce? I figure that I can add some cornstarch but is there another method?


texts: Can I make shelf stable cocktail mixers by pressure canning?

texts:
I'm trying to essentially make my own cocktail kit to send a friend (sans alcohol). Rather than asking them to buy a lot of the ingredients, such as fruit juices, I'm wondering if I can basically create the mixer for them, then pressure can it so all they have to do is open, shake with ice, and pour into a glass. Has anyone ever done this? One recipe I'm looking at is here: https://smittenkitchen.com/2015/03/the-consolation-prize-a-mocktail/

Not quite sure what timing to use for this even, would likely be using 8 ounce mason jars.

Or alternatively, could I just get a bottle capper, and do it that way? Would I need to process for food safety?


texts:
I have some chicken franks (sausages). How do I properly/completely cook them to include them in spaghetti and omelettes?

Thanks.


texts: Is it safe to leave a gas oven on unattended?

texts: Is it safe to leave a gas oven on unattended the whole day (with a closed dutch oven inside it braising beef etc.), similar to crock pot cooking? It is a gas oven with pilot lights on the stove, so I am assuming the oven also has pilot lights.


texts:
I just bought 2 pounds of pecans from a friend who received them from a fresh source. I know of all kinds of regular things to do with pecans, but short of making more or bigger dishes that happen to have some pecans in them, what are good things to do with 2 lbs of pecans?

I should mention that I'm vegan, so veg-friendly suggestions particularly welcome.


texts: I would like to make granola using a completely whole grain- the oat groat. How can I make granola from oat groats? Should I half-cook them and then put them in the oven?


texts: Is it true that storing dry active yeast in the freezer helps to retain its lifting power? How long can it be stored this way?


texts: best non stick cookware sets for induction cooktop

texts: am looking for the best and cheapest nonstick cookware sets on a budget with almost 12 piece and up


texts:
I have made marshmallows before and formed them into a pan, and then cut them into squares. That works fine and they taste great.

I'd like to achieve the effect of the long marshmallow ropes that I have seen in France.
I tried using a piping bag with a big tip and piping them onto a sheet dusted liberally with powdered sugar, but mostly they just stayed stuck in the bag and made a huge mess with limited success.

I'm looking for suggestions on how to get this effect.

Is it possible that the recipes that use more egg and less gelatin would work better?


texts: Why is wine not a common ingredient in (meat) stock?

texts: My inclination is to think that red wine would go well in a beef stock and white wine in the making of a chicken stock but I rarely, if ever, see it as an ingredient. Is there a common reason why wine shouldn't be used to help add to the flavor and acid of the final stock?


texts: Is it possible to cook a meatloaf using clear glass Pyrex containers?

texts:
Still trying to restock my kitchen pans after my recent move and am on a budget, but what I do have is as set of clear pyrex, that looks about like this set: http://www.amazon.com/Pyrex-6021224-Storage-10-Piece-Clear/dp/B00005B8K5/ref=sr_1_1?s=gateway&ie=UTF8&qid=1285775513&sr=8-1

My question is can I use it to cook a meatloaf? If I cannot use it to cook a meatloaf then have you ever cooked a meatloaf on a cookie sheet without it falling to pieces and/or burning on the bottom?


texts: Are the Jacques Pépin videos worth it for a novice?

texts: I have Pépin's "Complete Techniques" book and find it interesting but a little hard to follow at times. I wonder if the DVD "The Complete Pépin" is a worthwhile addition. The reviews on Amazon are mixed, but also from the general public and not from a group of self-selected cooking knowledge exchangers.


texts: peeling black eyed peas for acaraje (fritters)

texts:
Acaraje (similar to vada or vadai etc) are fritters from a batter of soaked ground black eyed peas.

The hard part is removing the peels.
I gave up rubbing + rinsing at 75% peeled and the result was tasty just a bit gray.

Is there an easier way?

Soaking with baking soda? Parboil a minute?

AfricanBites.com offers these instructions but I don't know if it will make the job easier:

Soak them for about 15 minutes, pulse in the blender or food processor to break the peas (about 5- 10 times or about 10 to 15 seconds) you should do this in small quantities. In a large bowl soak the beans with warm water for about 2 hours or up to 24hours, cover with water until tender.
Rub the peas between your hands to take the skin off. The skins will float to the top. Pour off the skins, into a colander; you may have to do this process several times. Most of the skin will come off the peas; Sort through the remaining peas to remove all the skin.

Ottolenghi calls for soaked chickpeas to be drained and cooked 5min in a hot pan while stirring before the simmer phase to get the skins tender. That step worth a try?


texts: How do I prevent sugar from burning/sticking on cast iron grill?

texts:
I've got a Lodge reversible cast iron grill/griddle (this model). The griddle side works great, and I've had no problems with food sticking or burning. But I've had less luck with the grill side. Specifically, any time I grill meats that have been marinated in a sugary marinade, the sugar burns and sticks to the grill.

Is that to be expected? Is there some kind of technique to grilling foods with sugar on cast iron I should be using?


texts: Heating Margarine in Pan = loss of calories?

texts: Does heating up margarine in a pan makes it lose calories since more than half of it evaporates? Ex: using 1/4 of margarine and heating it up with onions. Will the dish still have 210 cals from margarine or will that number be lower?


texts: I would like to make wheat-free bread but add gluten (can't eat the high fructans content of the wheat, but can eat gluten). I can't find any recipes that do this. Anyone got any pointers? I was thinking of using standard gluten-free (and therefore wheat-free) flour, then adding wheat gluten. Would this work?


texts: Vegetable suet without the palm oil, or an equivalent?

texts:
I use Atora vegetable suet* to make Christmas pudding. I might be giving it to vegetarians, at least in a normal year, and I'd rather avoid unnecessary meat products myself. With the leftover suet this year I've made some rather good individual suet puddings**, and I think I might want to make more in the future.  But I noticed that vegetable suet is mainly palm oil, which I'd avoid if I could on environmental grounds.  Trex solid vegetable fat is also mainly palm oil; this is (I think) what Americans would call "vegetable shortening".
So is there an equivalent to suet, for use in Christmas pudding and/or suet pastry, that isn't based on palm oil?

* I see Tesco do an own brand - that also has palm oil first, followed by rice flour then sunflower oil.  It's lower fat in total but roughly calculating the saturated fat it contains about the same amount of palm oil.
** Caramelised onion, mushroom, and chestnut was one recipe, leek and strong cheese the other.  They're very easy in a slow cooker.


texts: Is there a substitute for Dijon mustard and if so, what is it?

texts: Can I substitute a small amount of say, hot english mustard for Dijon, or is there some other alternative. (Of course I will get some soon, but right now i have none, and was wondering if i can make do with something else)


texts: Store homemade kefir with paper towel on top or close the lid normally?

texts:
I made my first batch of kefir with a paper "breathable" towel over the top of a glass container. If I want to store the output in refrigerator, do I have to make it "breathable", or normally close it with solid lid?

Thanks


texts: What's the difference when smoking in a spherical grill and in a smoker?

texts: When smoking in a spherical grill like the Weber One-Touch, will the result be different then when a real smoker is used? What is the difference?


texts: What can we do if we accidentally buy tamarind puree instead of paste?

texts:
My wife was planning to make us pad thai, but accidentally bought tamarind puree instead of tamarind paste.

We would like to still use the puree if possible - is there any way we could use the puree instead?  Is the difference noticeable enough that our recipe can't be made with the puree?


texts: New cast iron skillet came out rusty after seasoning

texts:
After looking them up for a long time, I finally decided to take the plunge and buy a cast iron skillet.
After it arrived, I cleaned it in hot soapy water and scoured it, to remove the wax coating, as per the instructions. I wiped it dry, then popped it in the oven quickly to fully dry it.
After this, I took sunflower oil, and coated the entire skillet. I then let it sit in the oven for an hour, at 200ºC. When I took it out, the coating was uneven (I now know I put too much oil), and was reddish-brown!

I think I managed to get it rusty within the first day of owning it (pictures below)!

How do I resolve this, and ensure it does not happen again?


texts:
What's the difference between deglazing with an alcohol or non-alcohol?
What difference does it make when you deglaze a pan with an alcoholic liquid versus non-alcoholic? Does it change the flavor? Is using one better than the other?


texts: I just cut open Kabocha that I picked up yesterday at the farmers market and noticed some strange spots. Is this ok to cook?


texts: Effect of flour/fat/sugar/egg ratio in a sponge pudding

texts:
I thought I'd have a go at making a sponge pudding. I've Googled recipes and they all seem to be variations on creaming together fat and suger, beat in the egg then flour, then bake or steam. However different recipes vary in the ratios of flour, fat, sugar and eggs. The differences can be quite large, e.g. from one to three eggs for roughly the same amount of other ingredients.

With four ingredients there are obviously lots and lots of possible combinations, but I'm interested to know if there are any general rules for knowing what varying the amounts of ingredients will be. For example I know from experience that if you don't put in any fat you get Scotch pancakes/drop scones, which are quite elastic. Adding fat gradually changes the texture to the standard sort of Victoria sponge texture.

If this is too broad, then my main interest is that I like sponge puddings to have a coarse texture and be quite firm, so they don't turn into mush when you add the custard. I'd be interested to know how changing the amounts of the various ingredients would change the texture towards or away from this ideal.


texts: When I roast or bake chicken legs (about 10) I roast them for about 2 hours on 350 wet so they never dry out.   I am cooking today nearly 100 legs in 3 full size pans (32 legs each pan) for a buffet table.   How much longer will I need to roast them so the meat pulls back from the bone and they are tender.  I will still roast them "wet" and covered.   I also have access to commercial convection ovens.


texts: Air dehydrating ambient air temperature?

texts:
I would like to dehydrate fruits with an outdoor air drying rack in an arid climate:

What ambient air temperature is ideal for this? I've heard anything below 118°F is good for dehydrating. Is 100°F better or worse than, say, 80°F?


texts: Is my refrigerator temperature too high?

texts:
I bought a packet of ready to eat chicken legs, ate a couple, and placed the rest in fridge. Today there are icicles on top of them.
My fridge temperature is set between 3 and 4.  Is it too low?


texts: Flavourless Chocolate/Chocolate Alternative in Fudge

texts:
I've just recently gotten into making fudge and have found a recipe that works amazing for almost every flavour I want to make. I use Cocoa Powder or White Chocolate Squares depending on the desired outcome.

But I'm running into a problem when it comes to more delicate flavours (as well as some mixed flavours). The chocolate/white chocolate taste overpowers some of them. (Specifically, so far, Maple Chocolate, Vanilla, and Caramel--but I'm wanting to try fruit flavoured ones and am worried it'll be more of the same)

Is there an alternative to using them? Should I try making a batch without any chocolate of any sort? I'd like to stick with the recipe I have if possible

Thanks in advance

edit

This is the recipe I'm using:

2 cups white sugar
1 cup milk
1/2 cup pure cocoa
4 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla

or

2 cups white sugar
1 cup milk
3 oz white baker's chocolate
2 tbsp butter
1-2 tsp of other flavouring

The cocoa is mixed in with the milk and sugar and simmered, while the white chocolate is added after the milk and sugar hit 238oF/114oC--which is why I was wondering if it'd work if I just don't add any chocolate (and add the 4 tbsp of butter rather than the 2 tbsp)


texts: When I am canning jam, after filling the jars, can I process the filled jars in a boiling water bath in two batches, or must all the jars be processed immediately after filling?


texts: Are there any advantages to freshly ground salt?

texts:
Recently, I've seen salt grinders sold in stores. I understand that freshly ground pepper has a plus over pre-ground pepper in terms of freshness and strength. However, salt to me seems like a mineral, as opposed to pepper which is, well, a pepper from a plant.
So, is there any plus in terms of taste and freshness to using freshly ground salt out of a salt grinder?
(I am obviously not talking about special flavored salts which contains other spices and herbs which would benefit from being freshly ground)


texts: Water boiled away during canning - now what?

texts: I am canning in pint jars (larger than I usually do) and at the end of canning I discovered that the water had boiled down to about an inch below the tops of the jars. I'm adding water back and reprocessing, but is that ok? On the flip side, is it even necessary?


texts: What type of lavender is normally used in tea blends?

texts:
I was looking through a plant catalog, and am confused as to what type of lavender to grow this year to make tea with.

Does each species taste different?
Which ones are easier to pick?


texts: Any food safety risk eating cold refrigerated pizza?

texts: I love eating cold pizza leftovers straight from the fridge. Someone recently told me that you should always reheat leftover pizza to kill off any bad bugs that could be growing in there. Is there any scientific basic to this? I've never got sick so far.


texts: What’s the minimum sugar to egg white ratio in Swiss buttercream?

texts:
A Swiss meringue buttercream is a buttercream based on a sugar and egg white mix that is first heated and then whipped. The average recipes I could find use roughly one part egg white to two parts of sugar1, some a bit more, some less2.

I would like to reduce the sugar, but of course the sugar is not used just as sweetener, but is critical for the stability and texture of the meringue. So:

  What’s the minimum amount of sugar or lowest sugar-to-egg ratio needed for a Swiss meringue buttercream?

Two side notes:

As egg sizes definitions differ and we’re talking ratios, please either use weight or state the egg size and the locale in your answer.
This question is not about the butter to meringue ratio. I realize that the amount of butter will influence the stability of the buttercream.


texts: Is it true that generally chicken ham is not as tasty as pork ham?

texts:
Recently in my country, subway decided to turn halal. To some people, they are utterly disappointed as subway's pork product are being removed and replaced by chicken product.

Personally, i have tasted both eras of subway that have pork and chicken ham. I felt that ever since subway changes the ham to chicken, their sandwiches are not as tasty as before.

I am not the only one who thought this way. I knew several people who also have the same sentiments.

If that is the case, why is it so?


texts: Bacteria in steak from cutting with household scissors by mistake?

texts:
I cut a steak up into small strips with a pair of scissors.
Fried it in a pan with olive oil and onions.
Tasted great.
Until my wife told me I didn’t use the food scissors. I used the “house” scissors. We open packages, plastic, zip ties, etc all with the “house” scissors.
Should I be worried that I cut the steak with these? Will bacteria from the house scissors pass onto the steak? Or will the heat from frying kill it?


texts: Why is my bread dough rising this quickly?

texts:
I've been making Jim Lahey's no-knead bread pretty much since the recipe first appeared in the New York Times. In the last year or so, I've noticed a strange phenomenon: the recipe says to let the dough rise for 12-18 hrs., but the dough looks ready after 10 hrs, and sometimes as little as 8. Here's today's dough after 10 hrs:

Lahey's advice is: "Dough is ready when it's dotted with small bubbles," and there they are. And that's fine, but I'm wondering why my dough is rising so much more quickly than the recipe specifies. My kitchen isn't unusually warm, so that can't be it, and I'm not using too much yeast. I'm also using active dry yeast, not instant. Here's the recipe for reference:

420g flour
345g water
8g salt
1g yeast

Combine ingredients and mix to form a soft dough. Cover and let rise
12-18 hrs. Turn out onto a floured surface, fold over on itself, and
let rest 15 mins. Shape into ball, cover, and let rise 2 hrs. Preheat
oven to 450F/220C with cast iron Dutch oven inside. Bake dough in
Dutch oven, covered, for 30 mins, then uncover and bake another 15
mins.


texts: Creme filled doughnuts? Ok at room temp?

texts:
So this is probably more of a food-safety question but we purchased some various Krispy Kreme doughnuts yesterday and I ate some of the leftovers today. Some were creme filled and it didn't really dawn on me until now that "maybe" that wasn't a good idea?

So that leads me to ask does creme filled doughnuts need to be refrigerated? I feel like I've eaten tons of leftover doughnuts (creme filled or not) the next day and never gotten sick.

But should I be storing these in the fridge?


texts: Why do we like dessert, but not extremely salty, sour, umami, or bitter foods alone?

texts:
This is a "soft" question that's been bothering me for a while.

When cooking savory dishes, we usually try to balance out the five basic flavors (sweet, salty, sour, umami, and bitter) so that none of them dominates. None of these flavors should overwhelm the dish, but when present in the right ratios we will perceive a dish as tasting good.

On the other hand, we also enjoy dishes that are mostly sweet. In Western cultures these are eaten as dessert, usually after the savory portion of a meal, though in some other cultures (e.g. in Japan) sweet foods are traditionally eaten separately from savory meals. We do like having hints of the other four flavors in sweet dishes (e.g. salt in chocolate chip cookies, bitterness in coffee-flavored ice cream, etc.) but sweetness is certainly the dominating flavor.

My question is: why don't we have salty, sour, bitter, or umami equivalents of "dessert"? In other words, why do we not, for example, have a separate dish at meals which is overwhelmingly sour, which only a hint of the other flavors? Why is sweetness unique in this regard?


texts: Properly melting butter and sugar together for butterscotch bar recipe

texts:
I've been trying to make butterscotch bars. I'm not a new baker, but I don't have much experience in melting brown sugar and butter together.

The recipe (included at bottom of post) I'm using says that I need to melt butter and add brown sugar, and stir until sugar is melted.

When I first tried it, everything went well. Butter and brown sugar were mixed as one and it kinda looked like toffee. On my next attempts, I couldn't get the same result anymore. When the brown sugar melts, it doesn't incorporate with the butter anymore and it turns really hard like candy. So, what I get is hardened (but still grainy) brown sugar in a pool of melted butter.

Please give me some tips and techniques to properly melt butter and brown sugar together so that the result is like gooey toffee. I hope it can be done without candy thermometer. The author of the recipe didn't use one, and I think the quantity of the sugar-butter mixture is too little for me to dip a thermometer in it.

Thank you!

The recipe:

1/4 cup unsalted butter,
1/4 cup butter compound (I think it's half butter half margarine),
1 cups dark brown sugar,
1 large egg,
1/2 tsp vanilla extract,
1/2 tsp baking powder ,
1 cup flour,
1/8 tsp salt

In a small pot, melt the butter and butter compound over low heat. Add the sugar
and stir until melted. Turn off the heat. Preheat the oven to 325°F and
grease an 8" baking pan.
In a large bowl, sift the flour with the baking powder. Add the salt.
When the sugar mixture has cooled, add the egg. Mix well after addition.
Add the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Add the vanilla and mix one last time.
Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cake
is set.

P.S.: I haven't tried to actually let the mixture come to a boil because, as I said, the brown sugar becomes so hard and candy-like when it melts, and I'm afraid it gets even harder if I let the mixture boil. Please give me tips regarding boiling it. Thanks a lot for helping this newbie out. :)


texts: My family appreciated very firm New York style cheesecake. How does one make it firm, almost the consistency of fork cutting a banana? I was thinking less or no sour cream and more eggs.


texts: How long will my homemade marinade with orange juice last?

texts:
I have a question regarding a marinade that I made. It contains juice. How long will it keep in the refrigerator? I have the final marinade in a air tight glass jar.

Here are the ingredients:

6 Scotch bonnet or spicy habanero peppers (seeds and stems removed)
6 scallions (chopped)
4 cloves of garlic
1 yellow onion (chopped)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup orange juice
3 tbsp of fresh thyme leaves
3 tbsp ground allspice
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fresh ginger (chopped)
1 tbsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ground cinnamon


texts:
How can I can and preserve my fermented bean sauce so it has a long shelf life preferably one year or longer. I ferment the beans in smoke and in low heat and then stir fry them in mustard oil, garlic, sesame seeds, turmaric, salt and ginger. I am the only one in the house who eats this yummy smelly sauce. If I can't prolong its shelf life I will have to throw away a lot of it.
Thanks


texts: What is the basic technique for making tea with teabags and a mug?

texts:
I am pretty old with no culinary knowledge whatsoever, but last week I learnt to make my first cup of tea! I have been practising it over ever since and been making slight changes to technique with improving results every time.

My specific question pertains to what experts on this forum think the ideal recipe for tea would be. I have some sugar cubes, milk, a tea bag, hot water a microwave oven and I need a glass of tea. What's the ratio of milk:hot water? Should I make the decoction before adding milk? When should I add sugar? How long should I place in the oven for best mixing?

I would greatly appreciate if you could provide me with a scientific reason for the sequence you suggest (in terms of solubility, diffusion, convection, etc).


texts: Why does leftover pizza dough make terrible bread?

texts:
I like to make my own pizza dough.  Usually I end up with some leftover dough, which I stick in the fridge and then try to make into buns or something for breakfast the next morning.  It never turns out very nicely (and I am successful at making bread when that's what I set to do originally).  It doesn't seem to brown nicely, and the texture is sometimes a bit strange for what I expect from a bun.

I'm wondering if it's something inherent in the style of dough used for pizza crust or something I'm inadvertently doing with the pizza dough that I wouldn't do with regular dough (maybe using too little, not letting it warm up enough, not enough rising time)?

Here's the dough recipe that I tried this with most recently.  So, is pizza dough just too different from bread dough, or is there something I can do to make my leftover dough usable for something other than more pizzas?


texts:
The title pretty much says it: What is the difference between marinara and spaghetti sauce?

I Googled and got a bunch of hits but none of the answers left me feeling like I actually understand the difference. If anything, I'm more confused now than when I started. The one thing that a few of the answers I found had in common was the idea that marinara sauce is simpler, with fewer ingredients than other tomato-based sauces. Still, the idea does not present the full picture. I guess another way to approach this question would be to ask: What would one add to "marinara" sauce to make it "spaghetti" sauce?

Thx


texts: I just de-glazed my new All Clad pan after frying up some chicken breasts.  I was not sure how to get the pan clean so I de-glazed it with water. Should I keep that for making broth or something or just throw it out?/


texts: What are the official names for slicing an onion from pole-to-pole or cross-pole?

texts:
There must exist some french (or other culinary) term for the various ways to describe the different directions to slice an onion.

I'm looking for two terms:

Slicing across the grain, perpendicular to the poles, parallel to the equator, along the latitude.

rings?

Slicing with the grain, in the direction of pole-to-pole, along the longitude.

wedges?

What is the shortest, most concise way to describe these techniques?


texts: hardened residue after high heat cooking (carbon steel and cast iron)

texts:
Here is my one month old De Buyer pan:

I've seasoned it off and on in the last month at least 10 times, using thin layers of oil and on the stove top.  It's very dark brown to black over the entire cooking surface.  This is my first pan that requires seasoning (carbon steel or cast iron) so I'm just feeling my way in the dark here.

I had some initial traumatic experiences with bacon.  The "internets" claim that bacon is fatty and great to break-in a newly seasoned pan.  Lies.  Lies.  The sugar in bacon burnt into the pan and I had to boil water to remove the stains, which took some seasoning away.  Since then I've cooked eggs, pancakes, Kartoffelpuffer, char kway teow, and caramelized steak with great success.  I'm finally starting to feel this pan is living up to the hype.

After charring some sous vide steaks over high heat this morning, I noticed black splotches on the pan:

I've cleaned the pan (water, brush, plastic scrubby) probably more than I should already, so this is not something that can be cleaned off.  That makes sense as the high heat used to char the steaks is very similar to a seasoning session.  It's just uneven.

Is this (making the pan bottom slightly uneven) a problem?  Is this to be expected?  Is this the type of thing repeated ad infinitum that makes heirloom cast iron so valuable?


texts: Can you interchange oil and butter in emulsified sauces?

texts:
You have sauces like hollandaise and béarnaise, which are made with egg yolks and clarified butter. You also have mayonaise, that is made with an egg yolk and oil.

What would happen if you would make hollandaise/béarnaise with oil; or mayonaise with clarified butter? Is it possible?


texts: For microwave hot chocolate, why pour the hot milk into the chocolate rather than mixing the milk with chocolate then heating?

texts:
I read on the back of the unsweetened Hershey's cocoa powder box that I should first heat milk in a microwave and then pour into another cup with the powder, salt and sugar. This tasted much better than when I directly mixed in the powder with milk and heated.
What exactly is causing the taste difference? i.e: are there any scientific explanations for the above?


texts: Can frozen raw meat be defrosted and frozen again

texts:
A frozen joint of turkey was partly defrosted cut into 2 and the other half was re-frozen

Surely this is not safe


texts: How to Harvest and Prepare Prickly Pear Pads Without Getting Poked

texts:
I enjoy eating Prickly Pear Cactus pads, but I can't figure out how to harvest and prepare them without filling my fingers with tiny hairs. I have asked around and looked online and found sites such as this, among which, the common theme seems to be to burn the spines off.

I do not really have fire available to me very much, so does anyone know any other good ways to get out the flesh of the pad without getting pricked?

Please note: This question is about Prickly Pear Fruits I am asking about the Pads.


texts: What can I substitute for ragu in kosher lasgne?

texts: Most lasagne recpies ask for ragu and bechamel. Since I am cooking kosher, what can I substitute for ragu?


texts:
I am experimenting with the no Knead bread recipe and want to add herbs to the recipe. I have added fresh rosemary (great) and fresh oregano (not so) to the recipe.

What other herbs would you suggest?


texts: Why is tin loaf bread not usually scored like other forms of bread?

texts:
Here is what I already understand, Bread needs to be scored so that there a clear path out for the pockets of gas that will expand when heated up, if there is no scoring the gases will burst from a seemingly random place which could miss up the way it looks, why doesn't that happen with recipes like this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luqevMbco8Y

or this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrUdtzXquWk

I think I can see where the gases burst on the side but why don't they score it


texts: Suggestion for re-use of slightly burned caramel sauce / Lokum

texts:
I was trying to make some Lokum, a turkish gelly sweet.
You put together a sugar sauce and a mix of cornstarch and water to do it.
I realized too late that the sugar sauce almost burned, and now the whole dough has a bitter/slightly burned taste.

Do you have any suggestion about how to re-use it?


texts: Should I store my uncooked marinated chicken wings in the freezer?

texts:
Today I have marinated lots of chicken wings.  I have to store three-fourths of these in the freezer. I am wondering whether I should keep these uncooked or half cooked. I will keep these in zipper bags for two or three weeks.

I previously kept some half cooked marinated wings and found that was good to defrost.  But, I am not sure about the taste.


texts: Trouble frying an egg on a stainless steel pan

texts:
I recently purchased a stainless steel pan from AllClad, but I'm struggling to use it. Food, and in particular eggs, seem to stick readily to the pan, making it hard to use. There is a question on Seasoned Advice that pertains to cooking an omelette on a stainless steel pan, but I think the challenges of frying an egg are different and more challenging. I've been able to cook an omelette in this pan, but have yet to succeed with a fried egg.

Looking online, I learned that stainless steel pans, like cast-iron, need to be seasoned in order to be non-stick. The process that I followed to season my pan was as follows:

Pour in 1/4 cup walnut oil.
Heat pan on medium heat until the oil begins to smoke.
Turn heat off and let the pan cool completely.
Remove the oil and wipe the pan dry.

I tried this process, but when I try to fry an egg in the pan, it still sticks readily. There is some improvement, but it is still not possible to cook an egg without sticking that destroys the egg in the end.

I'm not sure what I may be doing wrong, or is a stainless steel pan just not something that one can use for frying eggs? Should I just expect that there will be some stick whenever I use this pan?

Update

After watching this short course on pay frying, I tried to pre-heat my pan, using the water-test as a guide, and adding just a bit of oil to the pan before dropping the egg in. The results were the same. The egg stuck to the pan thoroughly. So again I'm not sure what I'm doing incorrectly. Maybe the oil I'm using isn't right? I've been using ghee.

Update 2:

I've yet to succeed in frying a egg on this pan, but a few additional questions/issues have surfaced:

Some answers here have suggested that despite the presence on the web of tutorials for "seasoning" stainless steel pan this is not necessary and may not be advisable.
The trick may be to fry the egg starting at a much lower heat then you might with something like a piece of meat. For meat, you often encounter the suggestion to use the "water test", but as at least one answer has suggested here that may not work with a fried egg.

These are the possibly insights I've gleaned so far, but I've also yet to succeed, so these may turn out to be wrong as well.

Satisfying Answer (May be others)

The solution that I have settled on here -- i.e. what finally worked for me -- was to work with lower heat than I thought was needed, and not to season the pan. There is definitely a lot of conflicting information out there about stainless steel pans. There are a great number of blog posts and YouTube videos that talk about how to season a pan. Seasoning may still be a useful thing to do, but I was able to fry an egg on an unseasoned pan finally.

The method I used is more or less as follows:

Clean pan thoroughly.
Take egg out of refrigerator and let it sit in warm water for five minutes or so. (This may not be necessary.)
Put pan on stove on medium flame/heat. (I only tried this on a gas stove.)
Let pan pre-heat until it is warm when you hold your hands over the pan. Warm, not hot! This might take 20-30 seconds, maybe less.
Add the oil (1-2 tbsp), and lower the flame to low. Let the oil heat a bit, perhaps another 10-15 seconds, or less.
Crack the egg into the pan. The whites should stay clear, only slowly whitening. If the egg begins to turn white immediately, the pan is too hot. And the egg should also not stick at this point. There may be a bit of sticking, especially around the edges. You can dislodge the sticking gently by hand, but don't mess with the egg too much. Cook until done or ready to flip. Make sure heat stays low. If you see some sticking it may be (I'm not sure about this) because the pan has become too hot.

So that's the best I've been able to do with help from the selected answer.


texts: Why do Duck eggs have longer expiry than Chicken Eggs?

texts:
Duck eggs seem to get about a 6-week extension on their expiry date over chicken eggs. The latest pack I bought yesterday (Mar 19) expire May 25th, whereas the chicken eggs, at best, expire mid-April).

Why is this? Is the structure of the shell or does it have to do with the protein structure of the egg whites? I have seen the same thing with quail eggs as well they also get a long away expiry date.


texts: How to judge temperature and time for deep-fried turkeys?

texts:
I'm using an electric fryer. After pre heating the fryer to 375 F and putting the thawed bird in, the temp will drop to 275 F and stay there.

So my question is: At a constant temperature of, say, 275 deg F, what is the formula to figure out how long to deep fry a turkey?


texts: Is carnival glass safe for serving food?

texts:
My grandmother-in-law left us a very large collection of carnival glass. This has led to a mild debate over whether it is safe to use.

Are there foods that shouldn't be served on carnival glass? What are possible risks of occasionally using the dishes for (e.g.) ice cream, pie, or a salad?

(The "unsafe" vote also points out that "it's an expensive antique and needs handwashing, why not just leave it in the cupboard?" which may make the safety issue moot, anyway.)


texts: Why are my roast potatoes not coming off crunchy?

texts:
Besides the first time making them, they always come off with a soft,straight surface rather than a crunchy, craggy surface full of blisters.
Here is the recipe. The thing making the potatoes crunchy is a slurry (after parboiling the potatoes, you toss them with some oil. Their surface then gets ripped, making the slurry) that coats the surface. Here is a picture before cooking:

Here is a picture after cooking:

Its smooth and not crunchy. Any idea how to make them crunchy next time?


texts: I bought a 4 pound pork tenderloin and put it immediately in the freezer.  It was there a week or so.  Then I took it out and placed it on the counter Monday night to thaw.  I don't have central heat and my internal thermometer hasn't gotten above 40-45 in days.  I forgot about the tenderloin for about 20 hours.  I was prescribed a medication that made me rather violently ill the last two days.  When I remembered on Tuesday evening, I ran and grabbed it and threw it in the fridge.  It was cool (like it had been in the fridge) to the touch.  It was vacuum packed.  I took it out today to roast after asking for advice in a group I am in.  Everyone there said it would be fine.  I even read that the door in a fridge can get up to 59 degrees, so food stored there spoils faster.  I opened the roast and it had a slight smell.  I rinsed it and there was zero smell.  It is not slimy.  It isn't stinky.  Think it's okay to roast and eat?


texts:
I recently bought a container of what was labeled "Canadian-style sour cream" at a produce market in the Bay Area. Being from Canada, I was curious to see what it was, since all the sour cream I've had in Canada was the same as the sour cream I've had in the US.

But when I opened the container, it sure seemed to be regular sour cream. So what's the difference?


texts: Enzymatic reactions that happen when water and wheat flour is mixed?

texts: What happens when you mix water and wheat flour? A seed would start to sprout eventually. Does water start reaction inside of the flour?


texts: I had a spiral ham delivered, outside in shade for right at 2 hrs. Ham was still cool to touch. Is it still good?

texts: I just had a vacuum packed spiral ham delivered from the grocery. It was in the shade and outside temp in the '80s. It sat out there for right at 2 hours. It was still cool to chilly to the touch. Is it most likely to be good, or bad? It's killing me to throw that money away but I need know what's what here.


texts:
Can the saffron crocus flower petals be used for food/drink coloring? Are they poisonous/edible? (With reference please.)

I found a link, that states that the bulbs are edible, but there is nothing regarding the petals.


texts: I have just watched the A-Team film and B.A. seems to have an obsession with something called Curried Tapenade? My experience of Tapenade is that it's a Olive based dish and making a curried version sounds horrible. Does anyone who what Curried Tapenade actually is?


texts: Making a sausage and letting it dry out in the fridge

texts:
I got a kg of ground beef and put two tablespoons of salt with it. I also put a lot of spices, stuff like paprika, black pepper, allspice, tumeric, lots of garlic, and two tbsp vinegar. This is basically an Armenian sausage.

I mixed this all up well, stuff it into a clean stocking tied at both ends (I flatten it out for maximum air exposure) then store it in the fridge for approximately 4-5 days before freezing it. I keep it in the fridge to give it a chance to sort of dry out, after that it's ready to eat. There is definitely a great improvement doing this rather than using it on the spot the first day.

My question is, given the decent salt content and it being really heavy on the spices, that would prevent it from going bad right? When I cook it, I make sure it's very well cooked just in case so anything bad in it would die out.

Just want to know if this is a terrible idea in general. I've done it before with great success, but from what I read, I don't know if it's technically safe.


texts: How to get a smooth paste from ground chickpeas?

texts:
I make Hummus quite often, and use my food processor to chop the chickpeas. This yields a sort of coarse paste, which is a little better if I peel the chickpeas first. Adding liquid to the mixture doesn't seem to help much, but only leads to watered down Hummus.

I would like to get a much smoother paste, that resembles restaurant Hummus more closely. How can this smoother paste be achieved?


texts: Is mustard lid supposed to pop when opening?

texts: I opened a jar of English mustard with a flat plastic lid and it didn't pop. It wasn't bulging or anything and contains citric acid. Is it supposed to pop? I notice French's mustard (North American style squeezable kind) doesn't pop so I think it's the same. It's just that we are so conditioned to expect jars to pop that when they don't I wonder. Mayonnaise doesn't either which I know is okay...


texts: Repeatedly softening ice cream in the microwave

texts:
My wife is in the habit of making ice cream easier to serve up by defrosting it in the microwave for 20 seconds or so to soften it.  After serving, the ice cream goes back in the freezer until the next time.

I estimate that a 2 litre tub of ice cream may well be microwaved and then re-frozen 6-8 times.

Is it safe to do this? Is it safer, or less safe, than just letting the ice cream defrost at room temperature for half an hour?


texts: Sodastream loses carbonation when adding syrup

texts:
I have a sodastream, and for the most part it makes great carbonated water. However, any time I try to use the flavoring syrups, my drink becomes completely flat. I do follow the instructions and only carbonate water (no pumping bubbles with the syrup already mixed in).

I've tried all techniques I could think of: stirring syrup into fizzy water, pouring fizzy water over syrup, pumping syrup into fizzy water without mixing. Basically, if I don't stir, all the syrup goes to the bottom of the glass, and if I do stir, the bubbles are gone. I've tried refrigerating the syrup, room temp, warming it. The best technique I have come up with so far is to add a little bit of carbonated water, pour in the syrup, mix that up, and then add the rest of the carbonated water. I like to believe this "loosens" the syrup so it mixes into cold water a bit better. However, even with this technique, the drink is flat.

Does anyone else experience this? Anyone have suggestions?


texts: Educated ways to simplify/substitute recipes

texts:
Sometimes I do not have enough time and miss out parts either substitute ingridients.

My observation is that sometimes it's quite okay and sometimes awful because of unexpected pairings in the food design.

Is there any general rule beyond personal taste to recognize where reduction/substitution is really no way?


texts: How can one test if a vegetable is organic?

texts: If I buy some vegetables and take them home, is there any way to determine if the vegetables contain dangerous levels of pesticides?


texts:
Why are wooden sticks usually used for ice cream bars?

This seems to hold for every commercial ice cream bar I have ever had, yet I can't find the reason... Why not use plastic instead, for example?

I am not an expert, but I presume plastic can be cheaper to manufacture...


texts: Glass baking lid broke - what to substitute?

texts:
The glass lid for my pyrex 10x10 baking dish broke. What can I substitute? Tin foil doesn't work -- nothing cooks!  Ideas?

Thank you.


texts:
I've seen beautiful multi-color piping with buttercream frosting where the outer part of the flower is a different shade than the inner part. Here's an example:

How can this be achieved? Is there a way to make the colors change without using multiple piping bags?


texts:
A family member of mine passed away many years ago (15-16 years) and had a lot of cooking gadgets.  Well, recently I've been becoming more interested in cooking and have acquired a few of these tools.  This weekend I found a food processor in the box wrapped up.  I asked my parents about it and they said that after this family member passed away and the stuff was boxed up it was put away in storage (where I got it this weekend).

Anyway, this thing hasn't been used since the family member passed away.  Is it going to be OK to use?  Is there anything special I need to do to clean it and get it operational?  It looks like it's clean but sitting around that long, you never know, right?


texts:
Can I use store-bought orange juice instead of fresh squeezed?

I don't have a juicer and the recipe assumes fresh squeezed juices...
Is there a big enough reason to go through the hassle for a weeknight dinner?


texts: Recently, I have developed a taste for pike roast flavor of Starbucks. I was wondering if I can make coffee with the same taste in my home? What would be the coffee bean and an appropriate coffee maker for that?


texts: Is my Frozen solid Lamb ok to roast I am asking for food safety reasons

texts:
I  am asking for both food safety and taste reasons, and yes I do have a frost freezer.

Semi-boneless Leg of Lamb, double freezer wrapped date 12/26/14.

7.33lbs

Is it alright to roast?


texts: I want to avoid rice due to my diabetes. So can I make idli only with urad dal? Currently, I am using rice rava and urad dal in the same proportion and the idli comes out nice. Thank you


texts: Is ginger soluble In water, fat or both?

texts: Is ginger soluble/can it creates strong flavours in water, fat or both together?


texts: Food was left in Instant Pot for a month and it grew mold. Is it safe to use it after cleaning?

texts:
I have an Instant Pot. I made some rice about a month ago and haven’t used it since. Unfortunately someone in the house put the cover on the pot with the rice inside and left it there.  I just opened it and it was covered in a very think layer of green mold.

Can I use the Instant Pot again if I clean it with hot water and soap?


texts: I was wondering exactly what a perfectly cooked shrimp's texture should be.  I know the "rubbery" texture means over cooked and that if it's clear in the middle it's undercooked.  But in terms of mouth feel and texture what should I expect? There is a "crunch" to each bite, almost like I'm breaking through some sort of layer.  I just don't know if this is normal or not.  I cooked the shrimp in a non-stick skillet on medium heat for about 5-6 minutes total and flipped the shrimp every 30-45 seconds.


texts: What does North American mixed dried fruit contain?

texts:
I have a recipe for a fruit cake that uses 2lb of mixed fruit plus 11oz currants and 15oz raisins

In the UK, mixed dried fruit is usually a mixture of sultanas, raisins, currants, and chopped candied peel, with little variation. If it is the same in America then I don't understand the addition of more currants and raisins, which would work only to halve the proportion of candied peel and sultanas

Is mixed dried fruit composed differently in the US?


texts: Why are bay leaves used whole and then removed rather than crushed up like other spices?

texts:
Recently when making a 5-bean-stew "kit" my son finely crushed up the bay leaves and added them to the other spices, rather than adding them whole to be removed after cooking.

When I pointed out his error, he asked me why bay leaves were different than the other spices.

NOTE: I have read the answers to this question and they all address the risk of not removing a whole bay leaf but not why you couldn't just grind it up.)


texts: Why should I let bread cool before slicing and eating?

texts: Many recipes for bread and such suggest that bread should be fully cooled (like 2 hours or so) before eating.  It's sooooo tasty right out of the oven - why wait?  Does something important happen in the cooling time that's worth waiting for?


texts: why is there no cavity in the whole chicken I just bought?

texts:
I wanted to try a chicken-with-stuffing recipe, so I bought a "Tyson Premium Young Chicken (without neck or giblets)" from WalMart, but when I unwrapped the chicken to stuff it for the recipe, I don't see a cavity to stuff anything into. I am looking in between the legs, but the only dent there is the one I literally carve out with my knife as I try to open up the chicken.

The chicken was taken out of the freezer and into the fridge this morning (about 10 hours ago) -- in case that matters at all.

Am I just being a noob, or is there some reason why a whole chicken really would not have a cavity pre-made?


texts: Oven temperature when increase bread recipe?

texts:
I increased my bread recipe by 50% to get a larger loaf. I used the oven temp for the original (smaller) loaves I baked consistently with success in the past.After the same baking time the center bread temp was too low (i.e., it was not done on inside). Did I need to increase oven temp too?And if s, is there a formula to increase temps? (I.e., a percentage in relation to recipe/flour increase?).
Thank you.


texts: How long will a whole turkey keep in a refrigerator?

texts:
My daughter bought a fresh, organic, kosher turkey from Trader Joe's last night (her first turkey!), 8 days before she will start cooking it.

The company customer service representative as well as the store manager all reassure us that their turkeys are fine to refrigerate in the coldest part of the refrigerator for as long as 10 days.
The turkey's sell-by date is Nov. 28 - two days after Thanksgiving.  The information on their own food storage guide as well as some other info I have read say that 1 - 2 days is the proper amount of time to store a fresh turkey.
TJ's says that the manner in which they transport their turkeys - at a nearly, but not quite frozen, state extends that time.

As long as she stores it unopened in the coldest, bottom part of her fridge (and turns the temperature down as well), will the turkey survive until Thanksgiving? She plans to brine the turkey a day or two ahead of cooking it also.


texts:
How do you poach chicken?
How do you poach chicken?


texts:
When you are measuring out your flour, sugar, etc with the measuring cups, is it better to

scoop and then shake the cup to get a leveled cup, or
scoop and then use a knife to scrape off the excess.

I have been using the first method but will it make a difference?


texts: I bought a pack of oatmeal and it didn't have any instructions on how to cook it and I have no clue what I am doing and I don't want to disappoint mom.


texts: Effects of Milk vs Cream vs Condensed Milk in a no-bake cookie recipe

texts:
I'm looking at a pretty standard no-bake cookie recipe (this one uses brown sugar over white but I've seen the same recipe on at least 10 websites),

3 C oats
5 tbsp peanut butter
2 teaspoon vanilla
2 C brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter

The instructions are boil milk, sugar, butter together for one minute then mix other ingredients in, drop onto wax paper, and cool.

My question is this: How would different dairies affect a recipe like this? Like if I used cream or condensed milk (or some combination of the 3) rather than the milk?


texts: Are there any guidelines for converting cooking recipes from Regular Ovens to Convection?

texts: I was looking to buy a Convection Oven and wanted to know if there are any general differences in baking methods between the two.


texts: I find it hard to figure out how much salt to add to dishes. I'm always afraid I'll make it too salty. Recipes always call for salt to taste, but what does that mean?  Is there a good rule of thumb?


texts: How do I time slow cooking to be ready for lunch?

texts:
Slow cooker recipes often need to cook for 6 or more hours. As I mainly eat my main meals at lunchtime, that means getting up particularly early to prepare the dish.

Is it safe to delay the start of cooking dishes that use meats such as chicken/beef/etc?

If this is not safe, what process can I follow to have a safe meal ready at lunch without having to cook in the middle of the night?


texts: Is IKEA frozen salmon safe to eat raw in sushi?

texts: I was wondering if IKEA's frozen salmon was safe to be eaten raw in a home cooking environment? It's farmed which is a plus from what I've read, but I couldn't really find any data on their freezing process (except their little note about customer storing conditions that says it should be kept at -18°C or bellow).


texts: Substitution of root beer concentrate for extract

texts: I'd like to make these root beer float cupcakes. The recipe calls for root beer extract, but I haven't found any locally, and the cost plus shipping on Amazon is a little more than I'd like. I've tried googling this, but haven't come up with a definitive answer: can I substitute root beer concentrate (easily bought locally)? If so, what adjustments have to be made?


texts:
I heard in British Columbia, sometimes salmon are made into mesh-like meat product that looks like the following:

How are they made?


texts:
I have recently moved into a new home, and for now, I'm stuck with a horrible electric glass top stove.  My old place had a gas stove with a continuous grate across the cooking surface.  All my pans are carbon steel or cast iron.  (I take good care of my pans, so it's not an issue of abuse or putting cold water in a hot pan, or immediately rinsing a hot pan in cold water.  With the exception of my woks, they are bullet proof).

I am finding that most of my carbon steel pans have a slight warp to the bottom, which was never a problem on the gas range.  But is proving to be rather annoying on the new electric one.  So in theory is there a way to unwarp or to lessen the warping on the bottom of the pan?  In a way this will be academic and I am willing to sacrifice one of my cheaper pans to experiment the unwarping theories.  Thanks.


texts:
It's my understanding that once you add any herbs to Hollandaise that it is no longer Hollandaise but Bearnaise?

Is this a correct assumption?


texts: Does shaking carbonated water before use increase the carbonation?

texts: I'm trying to make the perfect Egg Cream, which requires maximum carbonation. Should I shake the bottle before opening it?


texts: Is it OK to wash other things than dishes with the same sponge scrub?

texts: My friend does it and I argued with her that the dish sponge scrub should only be used for dishes and not the sink or the counter top because it will make the sponge too dirty for future uses for the dishes.


texts:
I have had installed two new Neff top of the range ovens. My question is : if you cook cakes in a fan oven at 20 degrees less than you would in a conventional oven ie 170 instead of 190 (as instructed in recipes) does the temperature in the oven rise to 190 even though you have it set 170 fan?
Thank you
Anne Edgley


texts:
I'm learning about the spice cumin (Cuminum Cyminum) and I understand how it is naturally a golden brown color seed that tastes bitter with a hint of lemon and warmth.

I learned that black cumin (Nigella Sativa) is a different plant all together and has a black pepper and oregano taste.

What I can't figure out is the other two color cumins.

What is Green Cumin? Is this an unripe cumin seed picked early? I see it referenced in Iranian cooking but I haven't found out what plant this is. It seems like Persian cooking uses both black and green cumin frequently.

What is White Cumin? Is this a sun bleached cumin seed left out to lose its color? Does it have a milder taste than regular cumin or is this a different plant all together? I see White Cumin listed in Indian cooking.

If anyone knows what Green Cumin or White Cumin are and can cite the plants or any references to them I'd be much appreciative!


texts: What regular maintenance is best for a Japanese knife?

texts:
My amazing fiancee just got me a Nenox gyuto as a graduation present. (You can't have her, she's mine.) Until now, I've only had Western knives. I understand that I should never use a steel on this beauty. The question is, what regular maintenance can/should I be doing?

I cook every day, frequently more than once, and cutting fresh fruits and vegetables is a major part of that. So this knife will see 10-45 minutes of active use, sometimes very active, every single day.

Korin's website has little to say on the matter.  This post suggests that I should not be sharpening more than once a year. I find it hard to believe that the knife will remain as sharp as new for a year. But what else should I be doing? Is there some other honing strategy? Or perhaps a waterstone that is appropriate for frequent use? If so, how often is frequent?


texts: What is a substitute for milk when making ham balls?

texts:
I'm making ham balls (with ground pork and ham), but I need something to substitute for milk.  This is because of allergies, not just lactose intolerance: lactose-free milk still causes allergy problems.

2 lb. ham, ground
1 lb. pork, ground
2 eggs
1 c. bread  (used corn chex due to gluten allergy)
1 c. milk
1 Tbsp worchestershire sauce.

Mix and roll into balls

Sauce:
1 1/2 c brown sugar
1 Tbsp dry mustard
1/2 c. vinegar
1/2 c. water

Pour on ham balls.  Bake at 350 for about 1/2 hour.