Are Chives and Green Onions the same thing? Is it OK to substitute one for the other?

They're not the same thing, as they're a different plant, but they're part of the same family. You might be able to substitute the tops of green onions (scallion, spring onion) in place of chives in small quanities.

Chives tend to be smaller and more tender, typically used raw, and only the green portion is used.  Green onions often use both the whites and the green part, has a more pronounced flavor, and is used both cooked and raw.

So, if you're going to substitute chives for green onion -- use the greens only, and reduce the amount.

If you're going to go the other way, you'll want to look to see what parts are being used.  If it's the whites of the green onion you need, use regular white onion, if it's the greens, then you can try chives, but add them as late as you can in the cooking process, and if it was to be used raw, you might need to increase the amount.


Pressure canning stock I used egg whites to clarify chicken stock. I filtered the stock through cheese cloth and fine mesh colander two times.

After I pressure canned them I noticed that there was egg white on the bottom of the jars. Is this still safe to keep or should I open, restrain and then pressure can again?

In any food safety situation you really must ultimately ask yourself 3 questions to determine relative safety:

How High of a temperature am I sure I achieved?

How long did I hold this temperature?

How well sealed is the container?

If you are pressure canning, there are reasonably good chances you kept VERY high pressure and temperature. As for time, I cannot say.

For years my grandparents, my parents and myself have canned vegetables, soups, stocks, etc. and only rarely did we have errors because of some content of food. Most of our spoilage came from broken seals.

If you're confident in your canning technique, I see no reason why some egg white would hurt your stock. It's an animal protein just like any other.


Can I "re-caramelize" meat after a failed braising attempt? I am cooking a meat stew with a delicious, fatty bunch of oxtails. Initially when browning the meat, I didn't get a sufficient amount of caramelized glaze around the oxtails and none of the fat melted into the stew.

Is it possible to pull out the meat for a second sear, browning it thoroughly then reducing with the stew? Are there better ways to "save" the stew?

I gave it a shot! I took the oxtails out and seared them in a cast iron pan underneath the broiler in my oven. Once they were pretty much blackened on all sides, I dropped in a bit of the stew and simmered it down very briefly using residual heat from the cast iron. It was a surprise how quickly it infused with the caramel flavor from the meat. I added the reduction and meat back to the original stew and it has a decent, robust flavor like I'd hoped. Not ideal, but a good way to compensate for expenses in "cutting corners".

The one downside is that my "fast braise" in the cast iron seemed to have diminished the seasoning slightly. I rinsed and wiped the pan dry then coated with some oil and put it back under the broiler briefly.


Belgian chocolate milk I've tried a lovely chocolate milk (cold, not to be confused with hot chocolate) from Marks and Spencer (a supermarket in the UK) and I'm trying to emulate it's rich Belgian chocolate taste.

My recipe so far looks like this:

-Mixture of dark (bittersweet) and milk chocolate

-Whole fat milk and Condensed milk

-Espresso powder

-Cane sugar (or honey)

My questions:

I'm thinking of using a mixture of condensed and whole milk because the chocolate milk I tasted seems thicker than whole fat milk, but not TOO thick or cloying. The consistency I'm going for is the same as milk with a 6% or so fat content. Is this recommended or should I go with whole fat milk with a little cream?
I've decided to use espresso powder because I'm hoping a tiny bit of this will give the chocolate a teeny weeny hint of roasted coffee/espresso notes that I seem to detect from the drink. Is there any other way I can enhance the flavour of the chocolates in the drink?
I'm thinking of using a cane sugar or honey, as hopefully this may give the chocolate a slight caramel-ly taste, is this the best way of doing this?
The main part i'm stuck on is this: I'm not sure whether or not to go for a milk chocolate/dark chocolate combo (35% milk chocolate and 65% bittersweet chocolate) or just use a high quality cocoa powder like Valrhona? The aim is to go for a Belgian chocolate taste here.

Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

Chocolate and cocoa powder are two different things

For drinks go with cocoa powder (Dutch process). Emulsifying the fat in chocolate is pointless and not particularly tasty. Chocolate is about 40% to 60% fat, cocoa powder is 10% to 20% fat

For the chocolate milk taste you generally want the milk fat favours, not the cocoa fat

If your cocoa powder is not bright enough, adding a little coffee will help, as will a little more roasting of the cocoa powder, but be careful, it burns quickly. I think many commercial chocolate milks use a little salt (Sodium or Ammonium) as a brightener**

In some countries you can buy "extra" or "premium dutch process" cocoa powder, it is very dark in colour, and has a lot more of that dark chocolate style flavour

**  The "that tastes nice and different" reaction


Doubling the ingredient of Japanese cheesecake: more time to cook? I've done a fair share of cheesecake in the past. Now I would like to try this Japanese cheesecake for an upcoming birthday. We'll be around 20 persons, but the recipe is for an 8" round pan, which is not enough. Can-I double the ingredient and put it in a 10" square springform pan? Do-I need to cook it longer?

It's really hard to say, there are many factors to consider: oven size and power, the recipe ingredients, pan size and shape, etc. The recipe calls for an 8" or 9" round pan, I will use an 8" pan in calculations. The main question is area, an 8" pan's area is 50 square inches (that's pi times the radius squared), while the area of a 10 x 10 springform pan is 100 square inches, double that of the 8" pan. Your cheesecake will actually be the same thickness as the pan the recipe calls for, so the the baking time is not going to be dramatically different. It will be a bit longer because the cake area is bigger, that could be just a few extra minutes. Keep in mind that recipes can often be way off in baking times. Other Japanese Cheesecake recipes call for baking an hour, not 30 minutes, for example.

The recipe does not say how to check your cake is done, which is not good. Baking times vary according to many factors, and you should always bake for a result using time as a guideline. Most recipes say to bake until it's a golden brown as your first guideline, given it's actually a souffle I'd use the touch test, ie push it down with a finger, if it springs back up it's done.

My advice would be to make this recipe smaller scale before doubling it, make sure you get the ins and outs right before you make it for dinner guests.


White areas in egg yolk I cracked open three eggs in a pan and in one of them the yolk looked mottled and it looked like swirly white areas inside the yolk. (I am not referring to the chalaza stringy bit or the germinal disk). I cooked one of them and the yolk started to look a little pink as it cooked. I floated another one before cracking and it sank but slightly stood up but was also mottled when cracked. Does this sound like bacterial growth?

Your instinct to avoid eating them was spot on. As you probably already know, any type of float, even slight, and you're better off chucking them in the bin.

As for the chalaza, it certainly can be more prominent in some eggs but if you see mottled discolouration inside the yolk that's not attached to it, that can indicate:

  Worming drugs and compounds piperazine, dibutyltin dilaurate and citrate;
  The anticoccidial drug Nicarbazin;
  Certain antioxidants such as gallic acid and tannic acid;
  Feeding hens raw soybean meal;
  Calcium deficiency in the hens' diet;
  Thin egg shells;
  Can be hereditary.

source: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/common-egg-quality-problems.65923/

As for the pink discolouration:

  "Pink or iridescent egg white (albumen) indicates spoilage due to Pseudomonas bacteria. Some of these microorganisms—which produce a greenish, fluorescent, water-soluble pigment—are harmful to humans."
  source: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/egg-products-preparation/shell-eggs-from-farm-to-table/ct_index


What causes curding in this case: heating milk with large quantities of sugar Yesterday I decided to try to make dulce de leche or caramel. I did not follow a recipe: I was as curious to see what would happen as I was hungry for sweet, caramelised, milky sugar.

I mixed semi-skimmed milk with a large quantity of white sugar in a saucepan and heated gently. The ratio was roughly 1:1 by volume.

Within minutes (and long before the mixture was at all hot) smooth, silky shapes began to form in the mixture, which at this point was still roughly half milk and half undissolved sugar.

The silky shapes soon coagulated and grew harder and chewier over time. The milk had obviously curdled.

I haven't come across any other references to sugar curdling milk in this way. I have only seen it referenced as a 'stabiliser'.

I assume that the curdling was made more likely by my milk's low fat content. I was not stirring constantly. But I'm not looking for a fix, just for understanding. I didn't really want to get it 'right'.

So, could someone please explain what most likely happened here? Is it simply that milk heated with a high enough proportion of anything that dissolves in water will separate and curdle within minutes? Or is is something specifically to do with sugar?

Specifically, what was it about the sugar that I added that caused the milk to curdle (the amount? something else?), and what is the nature of the curdling process? (The second question has been answered elsewhere, but it may be relevant in answering the first, which has not been asked elsewhere).

Thank you for any advice. I know that next time, when I follow a recipe and want to get it absolutely right, I'll have a better understanding of what's going on, thanks to your answers.

P.S. In the end I strained the mixtures, reserving the very sweet solids, and continued to reduce the sugar/milk liquid mixture until I ended up with something very similar in taste, colour and consistency to condensed milk.

It's not the sugar that caused the milk to curdle, it's the milk itself. Dulce de leche and caramel are both usually made with either cream, condensed, or evaporated milk. The issue with regular milk (especially skim), is that it has such a high water content and low fat content. The fat in cream buffers the protein, helping to prevent curdling, and the canned milks have already had most of the water removed, making them less likely to curdle.

The sugar could also have a buffering effect on the milk protein, unfortunately you have a catch 22. In order to buffer the milk form curdling, the sugar would have to be dissolved in the milk. In order to dissolve sugar in the milk at a 1:1 ratio, the milk would have to be heated past the point where it would curdle.

You might be able to prevent this by using a double boiler until the milk has reduced a lot. Making a caramel requires almost all of the water to be cooked out of your syrup, so this will take a really long time and isn't advisable.


Is 440° F too hot for an oven temperature? I recently purchased a pre made casserole and the instructions stated that it should be placed in a 440* oven for 55 minutes. This seems like a very hot cooking temperature to me - am I mistaken?
Thanks.

Assuming the packaging means 440°F, no, that's not that insane. Casseroles are heavy, with a lot of liquid, so it takes a lot of heat to heat them up, especially if this is a frozen premade casserole. It is on the high side, so you might want to make sure it's not browning too much on the top (cover with foil to shield if necessary) or burning on the bottom. You can always reduce the heat partway through if you have to; it'll just take longer.


Measuring glucose syrup without wasting it Glucose syrup is a liquid sweetener used in a lot of candy making. Unfortunately, it is incredibly thick which makes it difficult to measure. Imagine corn syrup except about three times thicker. When I measure it, a lot tends to get stuck on the spoon (or more often spoons) and then even more gets lost in the bowl I use to measure it. Are there any tricks to measuring thick syrups and other difficult ingredients?

Put the bowl on a scale and put the difficult ingredients directly from their packaging into the bowl. That way, you don't have to clean up any measuring utilities and waste no ingredients.


How do I get the ground spices to mix into my curry? Here is how I made my curry. In my frying pan I did this:

Added olive oil (maybe one and a half teaspoon)
Added garlic (minced from a jar)
Added about one teaspoon of ground turmeric, ground coriander, and ground cumin
Added veggies

I stirred and after a while I noticed there was something odd. The ground spices on top of the veggies wouldn't go away, no matter how much I tried to stir and how much more olive oil I added.

What did I do wrong?

I like to add unground spices (cumin seeds, mustard seeds, fennel, star anise etc. and of course garlic and chili depending what curry I am making) at the beginning, gives a better flavour to the oil.
Then I would add meat and/or veggies, stir fry them a little bit, and finally add the ground spices and water. Water will dissolve the spices and will make it easies to have them cover the veggies uniformly. This is very important especially for turmeric which, if added in oil, only results in a mess. I find ground cumin or coriander are less problematic.

If the ground spices sticked to the veggies you should have just added some water, not oil, which has probably made things worst.

Also, as I generally use fairly high temperatures with the spices at the beginning, I would use vegetable oil (I use sunflower oil) or ghee (clarified butter) rather than olive oil.

PS: no need to be depressed for a meal that did not come out OK. That is how you learn cooking!


How to make matcha tea without matcha whisk? How do I make a nice cup of matcha tea without the whisk?

I hear the recipe including the use of a whisk is a traditional way of making ceremonial matcha drink, but I'd like to know how to make a drink from matcha without a whisk.

Here's a photo of the tea whisk along with a bamboo spoon:

I can't get a whisk right now, but if it turns out it's really worth making matcha drink according to the ceremonial recipe, I'll be sure to get it.

See also: What to use for a matcha whisk?

I have had a lot of success getting matcha whipped into a nice froth (and getting rid of the little tea lumps) using a small blender, like a Magic Bullet. I just put the warm water and matcha powder into the blender, pulse it a few times, then blend it continuously for about 20 seconds.

If you don't mind putting in more elbow grease, a balloon whisk can work just as well for doing it by hand.


Fix for Greasy Pulled Pork? The Problem: Recently, I've been on a pulled pork kick. My go-to method has quickly become pressure cooking, since it's relatively quick and it allows me to set the timer and forget about cooking for a while. The problem is that my meat frequently ends up being greasy, occasionally up to the point that it's nearly inedible.

The Info: I'm using bone-in boston butt roasts, between 3 and 5 pounds. I typically cut it into three or four pieces, and brown them before cooking. I pressure cook (using an 8 quart InstantPot) for 110 minutes, then let the pressure release naturally for about 20 minutes before opening the pot and shredding the meat. I shred it in the juices at the bottom of the pot (usually just a few tablespoons of broth/liquid smoke is left after cooking, along with a bit of rendered fat).

The meat is always super tender and shreds easily, and I have no complaints as far as taste or texture. It's just so damn greasy! I can't eat more than a few bites before feeling sick.

I'm looking for;

1.) How do I correct this BEFORE cooking? Different cut of meat? Should I trim it more? Cook it with some other ingredient?

2.) How do I correct this AFTER cooking? Is there something I can add to either remove, or mask the greasy flavor?

So far I've been liberally using a vinegar-based bbq sauce to cut the greasiness, and keeping my dryest red wine handy to wash the flavor out of my mouth. Can you think of any better options?

I doubt that your meat is really greasy. If it is really overly fat, you will notice it when buying it, your meat will be marbled through and through. But it is difficult to get such meat nowadays at all, since it is rather expensive to produce.

The mouthfeel you describe is more likely to come from the gelatine. When you make pulled pork in the pressure cooker, you are converting the connective tissue to gelatine, leaving the overcooked muscle fibers swimming in it. When warm, it is really slippery, and the meat slides around in it - this is exacthly what makes for proper pulled pork that shreds. And making gelatine from collagen is not that easy. Traditionally people tried to convert as much as possible by very long cooking times, but using high pressure is much more efficient. So it is likely that you are ending up with more gelatine, or better hydrated gelatine, than with traditional cooking.

The first thing you can try to do is to just learn to like it. There is nothing inherent in greasiness which makes people sick eating it, that's a learned aversive reaction, which can be unlearned. With the knowledge that it isn't actual fat, that reaction can subside or disappear. You can try some mindfulness meditation on some bites of the meat to get accustomed to the mouthfeel too.

If you insist on reducing the sliperiness, you might have to make your process less efficient. This means going to a more traditional stovetop recipe without pressure. I don't know if your exact InstantPot model can cook in slowcooker mode without pressure, but if it can, you can keep the convenience of set-and-forget. You will probably have to live with other changes in texture though, not getting such a nice separation.

Gelatine loses its gelling strength with low pH. So you are on the right way with sour sauces. You can try to marinate it with them, and keep a sour sauce in the pot while cooking it, not just adding it at the end. But then you will end with more of a braised meat, which you might not like.

In general, it is difficult to give more advice, because this is exactly what makes your pulled pork good pulled pork. Anything you do to disrupt it will lower the quality of the texture you get.


How do green jackfruit and hearts of palm compare for vegan pulled pork/carnitas/barbecue? I have been reading a lot about the latest vegan meat substitute choices, but I'm having trouble deciding between green jackfruit and hearts of palm. I am wondering what the advantages and disadvantages of each are. Why I might prefer each?

As a veg/vegan for 24 years, I've used both and prefer jackfruit. Hearts of palm typically come canned and quickly turn to mush if you do anything but slice them up. Whereas jackfruit has a much better, meatier consistency. I've done BBQ pulled "pork" sliders with jackfruit and they were awesome. You can buy it canned at Trader Joe's and elsewhere. Some places, like Whole Foods, sell it pre-marinated in BBQ sauce and other flavors. DELISH.


Is there an application for soft cheese rinds? When I melt soft cheese into something, I don't use the eatable rinds, because they ruin the whole texture. But sometimes the cheese is expensive (like DOC rawmilk camembert, or handmade gorgonzola), and there is still lots of cheese sticking to the rinds, so I don't want to throw them away. On the other hand, they are too dry and unpleasant to eat them on bread or similar. I don't think they'll do well in a soup like parmesan rinds.

Does anybody know a good use for the rinds? Or should I just continue throwing 40% of the cheese weight away?

They are fantastic in veggie soups, for instance pumpkin soup.

Blend the whole thing, put back on the fire and add the cheese rinds, until molten (some pieces may remain, but it adds to the texture), very yummy!!!

It definitely works with Camembert and blue cheese, I have never tried with other cheeses but I don't see why it would not work.

Of course the amount you use it's entirely up to your taste, in general do not put the same weight of rinds that you would put in cheese, as they taste stronger.


How does a coffee bean get its smokey flavor? I've tasted on a number of occasions coffee that has smokey flavor. Is this a natural flavor of the beans or was it acquired in other means (e.g. during the roasting process)?

It's all about the roasting process.  The beans themselves have a much subtler flavor, a bit closer to tea really.

Try tasting a light roast coffee compared to a medium roast or dark roast at your local coffee house.  The differences are readily apparent.  The coffee you describe was most likely a dark roast which generally has a quite smoky and even burnt character.


What is the dish shown in the "Sunset Limited" In the movie, "The Sunset Limited" Tommy Lee Jones and Samuel L. Jackson eat a dish which I'm dying to know what it is.
They say it has molasses, rutabaga, bananas and mangoes in it, and it's sort of liquid.
Can anyone try and say what that is, and where I can find a complete recipe to make such a recipe? (If you are up for the challenge, maybe you can create one yourselves to include the ingredients above.)

This is the bit I am talking about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfH9SclYNVg&t=13m20s.

Also including a readable text link to the novel transcript.

I vote the dish is a hot dish, not a dessert. Samual L Jackson's character gives soul food to the man who is empty. I can't see soul food being cold, or a dessert. That shit is hot for your belly. This is amusing because I was looking for the same recipe after I saw the film. It seems that if the fruits and vegetables were all in chunks, and the molasses mixed with other chili like ingredients sort of provided the in between sauce you might be on the right track. Invent it. My friend once made chocolate soup on a Sunday afternoon.


Is using vegetable oil on a flat-top grill a valid method for reducing cook-time? I recently got into a discusion with the owner of my restaurant about using vegetable oil on the flat-top grill. We cook marinated chicken breast on the flat-top and I use oil because I believe that it reduces cook-time and adds flavor to the meat. Have I been taught wrong?

Yes, oil will reduce cooking time as it increases the surface area in contact with the grill.  The oil fills in irregularites in the chicken's surface.

Some people like the taste of more oil, some do not.  Some people don't want the oil for health reasons.


Can I freeze pasta sauce which is made with fresh cream? Im making pasta sauce with fresh cream. Is it safe to deep freeze the sauce in a tupperware container for later use.

Yes, it is safe to freeze cream-based sauces, provided you thoroughly reheat it before consuming. The sauce might be a little less appealing than when freshly made, but it won't harm you.

As a side note, I would definitely recommend only freezing the sauce, and cooking pasta 'to order' (if you were not planning on this already). Cooked, frozen, then reheated pasta is very difficult not to overcook.


Vegetable stock for a vegan gravy I am vegan. I want to make a vegan gravy sauce but I want to make my own vegetable broth without too much salt.  I don't want to use a ready to use vegetable stock and nutritional yeast. How can I add a rich flavor specifically suited to a gravy, with as much umami as possible?

A gravy tastes like gravy because it has salt and glutamates, which is what yeast extract has been formulated to deliver. There is no vegan replacement. The only good way to produce glutamates in your kitchen is to sear meat.

You can certainly make a veloute sauce instead of a gravy. It is made from stock and roux. Roux is a combination of fat and starch - the standard is flour with butter, but any fat and any starch works. A veloute sauce has great texture, but the taste is quite bland. You can strengthen the taste by using mushroom stock instead of vegetable stock, use flavored oils (e.g. macadamia nut oil), and herbs and spices. It will develop a complex aromatic profile, but it will stay very far from the rich umami of a gravy. The aromatic oils and fresh herbs also tend to be somewhat expensive.

If you are set on making a gravy, you could use pure MSG instead of the yeast extract. This will give you a very good taste, but I don't know if it will improve your situation. First, MSG is not so easily available, and I don't know if they also offer it in guaranteed animal-free versions. It isn't usually derived from animal products, but as a vegan you are probably sensitive for the possibility of contaminations. Second, if you don't add the salt by yourself, you will still be missing out on taste. This is not that bad by itself, because maybe you are OK with a product which has a higher glutamate to salt ratio than what you can get with yeast extract or bouillon cubes - personal preferences for salt vary. But, if you are avoiding salt, chances are that you are on a low-sodium diet. And MSG is a sodium compound by itself, so you'd have to restrict it too. If that's the case, you're better off using small amounts of yeast extract and living with less taste than combining MSG and salt by yourself.

You could finally try to get umami from plant sources, but this is not so easy. The only two plants in question are tomatoes and mushrooms. Concentrated tomato puree makes great sauces, but they taste like tomato, not like gravy, and there is no way to remove the tomato taste from them. So you're left with mushrooms only, preferably shiitake and relatives. They're OK, but they are mostly water. You'd have to get dehydrated mushroom powder and use it in copious amounts. Because dehydrated mushrooms aren't that smooth, you'll never get a perfectly smooth texture. Your sauce will also be quite expensive. On the upside, the compound in shiitake which gives them their umami taste is not sodium based.

Your last options would be seaweed and wheat-based fake beef flavoring agents. I don't know where you could get hold of seaweed or how you'd have to prepare it, and also whether you can make a gravy with it without a fishy smell. The fake beef flavoring agents are an industrial food additive, I've never heard of it being available for consumers.


What the advantage of a 'bakers couche' for proofing bread and is it safe? A bakers couch is just floured fabric, whats the advantage to using it?  King Arthur's site says that it promotes chewy, crunchy crust -  how's that?  If I'm just keeping it floured and not washed all the time, isn't there a risk of some kind of bacteria, or should it just be too dry?

The bakers couche is not just floured fabric, it is usually a hard wearing canvas

It is used to allow the dough to breath, and hold it's shape while your actual bread moulds are being used in the oven. The all over air gap allow the crust to dry slightly. A dry crust  makes it easier to handle and bakes slightly more crispy

The flour is there to stop the soft dough from sticking to the canvas, but a with careful handling and a well worn in couche this should not happen

If you keep the couche dry it should not develop mold or mildew. Even if it does, leave it out in the sunshine, so that the UV light can deal to it. I can't imagine that the occasional normal household mold is going to form dangerous toxins that can survive the oven!

After use, give the couche a good brush down with a clean fine bristled brush, and store somewhere dry

If you have plenty of the fine perforated steel moulds, you wont need to use a couche, just use the pans


What is 00 flour and when should I use? I've made pasta before using 00 flour. I was about to use the same thing to make gnocci but I've noticed that none of the gnocci recipes mention the "00". Does it make a difference? Is one better then the other?

00 is extra-fine flour, the most refined grade. Here's a useful page for more about the old flour grading system. Other than pasta I use it for thickening sauces, and I sometimes make pizza dough with it, although I can't tell the difference between using 00 and good quality bread flour. I'd use 00 for Gnocci certainly as the chefs do, but most home cooks just use plain flour and seem to get good results.

Basically, if you have it or can get it use it, if not plain flour is fine.


What are the culinary differences between Chinese Mitten Crabs and Blue Crabs? I wonder why Chinese mitten crabs are a delicacy in Chinese food,
while most people in Europe and US don't eat them even though there are
many of them now in these two places? For example, in Germany, mitten crabs are only caught for exporting to China.
In US, why are blue crabs popular and valued while Chinese mitten
crabs are not? On the food safety side, are the two species both
safe to eat?

Thanks!

As a Chinese, who have had many mitten crabs in my life, I think I can provide 2 insights:

In Chinese culinary culture, it's not only meat that's the most appreciated, but rather the  taste, texture and the freshness especially with seafood.
Mitten crabs during the autumn season contains a lot of eggs under the shell. The flavour of the eggs are what's appreciated as well.

Mitten crabs (not sure in the US) are safe to be consumed from food safety perspective as long as it's being cooked properly like any other seafood.


Is it really that easy to make safe cured salmon with a 3 min sugar/salt brine? The reason for this question is that I live in a landlocked part of the US, thus; the salmon I have access to isn't "fresh off the boat", and there aren't really any places I have access to sushi grade sushi (which I would just eat raw without curing). The recipe originates from this YoutTube video (written recipe here).

In which the process it takes to make raw salmon edible is simply to dunk 1/4 inch thick slabs of salmon into:

2 1/2 cups cold water
1/2 cup Kosher salt – I used Diamond Crystal brand
1/3 cup sugar

The author Chef John claims:

  This technique works great with frozen salmon, which apparently kills potential parasites, so that’s one option. Anecdotally, I can tell you I’ve done this, and similar procedures, countless dozens of times with fresh salmon ("sushi grade" from a reputable, local purveyor), and have lived to tell the tale. Good luck.

Do you think it would be safe to do this with average store bought Salmon?

I'm not all that scared of parasites in the salmon, b/c the process in which the salmon is cut into strips would make it very easy to see if there are little "worms" in the fish. I'm more concerned with the actual bacteria that might be on the fish and whether this 3 minute brine would be sufficient.

There are lots of ways to "cure" salmon. Salt, acid, smoke, etc. Max's comment on going for a longer curing time makes sense. Keeping salmon out of the bacteria temp range, keeping it dry (salt and sugar absorb water, but only salt kills) and verifying it cured properly or cooking thoroughly is your best bet from getting botulism.

http://www.fao.org/wairdocs/tan/x5902e/x5902e01.htm
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/12/how-not-to-die-of-botulism/281649/


Can I freeze hot soup? Can I put hot soup  straight  in to the freezer or should I let it cool?  With my old frig I used to divide it into meal size portions and seal in freezer bags inside tupper ware containers.  Now I have a new frig I am wondering whether this would upset the automatic functions.

It is better to let it cool down a little, because the hot items put into the refrigerator can raise the temperature inside.

If your refrigerator gets warm, it can cause harmful bacteria to grow on your food.

This can result in food poisoning, and the damage of the dairy products mainly (then you will have to get rid of them). It's better to be safe and wait for the food to cool first.

To cool them quickly, you can place them in a cold bath containing some ice cubes.


What kind of foods react with aluminium pressure cookers? While researching about pressure cookers, I found a comment in a review that says:

  As with all aluminum pressure cookers, the metal will react with some foods and can overheat if you are not careful [...]

This is news to me. Further research seems to mention only a couple of salient points:

Aluminium is very reactive in general
Acidic foods may react in a pressure cooker

Since I don't see myself puting lemons or tomatoes in a pressure cooker, I'm really at a loss as to why this could be an issue.

What foods commonly react in an aluminium pressure cooker, and what do I do about it?

Aluminum isn't exactly toxic or harmful to the same degree as lead, but it's not exactly good for you either.  And as you've identified, aluminum is fairly reactive.  Higher acidity, salinity, and cooking time will all contribute to further reaction and absorption in any aluminum cooking vessel (or utensils for that matter).

This is an issue for three primary reasons:

Absorption of aluminum is, as noted above, not necessarily healthy.
Absorption of aluminum can result in a metallic flavor in your food, which is generally unpleasant.
Absorption of aluminum into your food also corrodes the cooking vessel.

That third is probably of the most concern here, since you're talking about a vessel that's under pressure when in use.  Sufficient corrosion and the resulting structural weakness could (in very rare cases) cause a rupture and sudden pressure release, i.e. hot stew explosion.  This would take a long while to occur, and you'd almost certainly notice the corrosion on the inside of your vessel before it became truly dangerous, but this type of problem is exactly why modern pressure cookers have such fancy pressure-sensitive locks and come with warnings all over them.  They can pop if abused, and they do this in your kitchen, possibly while you're nearby.

So, extended cooking of certain acidic items (what if you wanted to make, say, tomato sauce in your pressure cooker?) could be dangerous with long-term use, hence the warning.  Such foods will also contain more aluminum than they would otherwise, and taste like it as a result.  Here's a thread with information on the general pH levels of common foods, which may help you identify specific items of concern.

Another good way to avoid this is to select a stainless steel model instead of aluminum.  Stainless is more expensive and doesn't heat up as quickly, but it's not as reactive as aluminum either, so there's less concern when cooking acidic ingredients over a long period.  Here is a decent buying guide with comparison of features and some more specific recommendations.


Ought I refrigerate an Inner Pot with stew inside? If I can't finish stew in the inner pot beneath, can I place the pot (with the lid on)  into the refrigerator. After 2 hours in the thermal cooker, it usually will have cooled enough. Being lazy, I'm aiming to shirk transferring the stew to a container (e.g. Glasstock). Can this refrigeration damage the pot, or spoil the stew?

Another picture:

No, refrigeration will not damage your inner pot. Some materials (such as ceramic) can be damaged by rapid temperature changes but the one you picture appears to be stainless steel or similar alloy and will handle temperature changes very well. Note: refrigeration is not bad for ceramic but rather going from one extreme to the other.

Please Don't leave it to sit on your counter to cool. You need to bring the temperature down for safe storage. See this answer on more about safe cooling and storage practices.

I will add a note based on the comment thread. You should not put the pot directly into the fridge immediately after removing it from the heat. This is bad for all the items in the fridge (not the pot) as pointed out by @Chris H in the comments. The solution to this is NOT to let it sit but rather to cool it off. Traditional methods are either an ice-bath or an ice wand.


Slimy inside of green onions I've never had a problem when they are out of season, but sometimes when I buy big, beautiful, local green onions, inside the green part is VERY slimy! I have asked the produce guys about it on different occasions and they all look at me like a deer in headlights!  Any answers?

Yes?

That is, I'm not entirely sure what your question is... but if you're asking if they are, than yes, insides of green onions can be slimy.

Since you're seeing the problem in in-season, fresh, local, big green onions, I suspect the slime you're seeing is simply - sap.  The green onions may be fresh enough to still contain living sap, and large enough to keep their moisture.  Out of season and non-local, shipping and storage then you're probably not getting onions with quite so much life in them.  If this is the case, I would expect the sliminess to also correlate with really bright, fresh flavor.

If your question is what can you do about it, if you don't want the sliminess?  You might let the onions sit in your fridge for a few days - that should give the plant time to dry out a bit.  You might buy slightly older, drier onions.  you might chop them to size, then let dry (or rinse and then let dry) before using in other preparations.  If the issue is the freshness of the sap, there's nothing else to be done.


My tea bags are expired, can I still use them? This box of tea has an expiration date which has passed but I would like to know if I can still use it. What do you think?

Tea bags will be fine for at least a year in the pantry, but even long after that, they're still safe to consume.  They just might change colour or flavour.

If your tea has an expiration date then it's just for best quality, not safety.  I've personally found tea bags sitting at the back of the pantry that were more than 3 years old, the packaging had even started to fade, and the tea was still fine.  I just had to steep it for a little longer.


What is the purpose of proofing dough in several stages I've seen several recipes for various doughs that have several (usually 2) stages of proofing.

Start by just letting the dough to rise in a bowl.
Separating the dough into the desired number of pieces, set the requested form/shape, and let the dough rise again.
Bake.

I've even seen a recipe for pizza dough where you are supposed to just hit the dough after the first stage of rising and leave it in the same bowl. Then, after a second stage of rising, form the dough into pizza form.

What is the purpose of separating the proofing into several steps, and what would be the difference between this and just one longer rise period, where the portions are separated and shaped before or after the longer rise time?

There are three steps in bread making commonly referred to as "Proofing"
The first step is also called fermenting (or proofing the yeast, which, I believe, is not what you are asking about).

The first rise (also called proofing or bulk fermentation) is about increasing the volume. This is the primary breeding period for the yeasts once they are incorporated into the dry goods.

  It's during our bulk fermentation that the yeast does the majority of
  its work, helping our dough gain flavor as ethanol and other
  byproducts are produced, and gain structure as CO2 inflates our gluten
  network.

The second rise, or final proof, of the dough is maturing the flavor and texture. Having risen in volume and then being shaped much of the gas created in the first raise is released, but the gluten 'matrix' is preserved. How much (or how vigorously) we 'punch down' the dough will create a bread of more fine air pockets while a dough that is barely worked will preserve some of those original air pockets and will create a bread with a more course interior. Additionally the final proof can be used to allow the loaf to take it's final form. Sometimes this is because it is in some container (loaf pan, dutch oven, etc.). It is simply easier to allow the dough to fill the pan by expanding into it. If time permits it is often beneficial to 'retard' the final rise, slowing the rate of expansion, by placing the dough in a refrigerator. This will, obviously, take more time, but the reward in flavor is (IMHO) worth it.

  Proofing our loaves in the fridge (also called retarding) will slow
  down their final rise, giving our loaves more flavor. Also, retarding
  loaves during their final proof makes them easier to handle and score
  before baking, which will improve the crumb, crust, and appearance of
  our baked loaves.

There are a variety of more detailed explanations available online. This article from 'Serious Eats' is a good starting place.


Brown Rice vs White Rice in Stuffed Pepper I often make a stuffed pepper in my crock pot stuffed with a ground meat and rice mixture. For liquid, I pour some tomato juice into the pepper. I used to make it with white rice, and it worked perfectly every time.

I recently switched to using brown rice, but it keeps coming out cruchy with the rice almost completely raw. I tried adding more liquid this time, but it didn't help.

I'm not sure what else to try and am ready to go back to using white rice. Any ideas?

Thanks!

Brown rice takes considerably longer to cook than white rice, and requires a higher ratio of liquid to rice.

It may be somewhat helpful to pre-soak the brown rice, but that may not completely compensate for the longer cooking time.

The main issue is going to be getting the rice fully hydrated and cooked through without badly overcooking the peppers.

Your best bet is probably to start with cooked brown rice, which my survey having googled "brown rice stuffed pepper recipe" indicates is the most common method, although they don't generally employ a crock pot.

For a one-step fully crock-pot based recipe, white rice may be indicated.


What is the procedure to dry out Fenugreek leaves? It is winter here. I wish to purchase lots of fresh Fenugreek leaves and then dry them out for later use.

Questions:

What procedure should be followed to dry them out in winter as fast as possible without letting them catch fungus?
How much drying out time is expected in winter (daytime temperature 21 C)?
Can I use a fan to dry them out? Will that have some adverse effects?

P.S. I do NOT wish to purchase any special machines/tools for drying out herbs.

The biggest cause of mould or fungus is humidity (moisure, dampness, water in the air) and the leaves by nature will produce this as they dry. After all, the drying process is removing water from the plant.

As long as you dry the herbs in an area with plenty of air circulation (to avoid humidity build up and take away any moisture as the leaves dry) you should be fine.

Make sure the herbs aren't bunched together, spread them out on a tray so the air can circulate around them. Turn them over regularly - every day or every 6 hours or so so they can dry evenly.

Remove any damaged/crushed/torn leaves or stems where mould can get a hold and spread.

Also remember just because the outside leaves stems may feel dry, the insides may not be, so give them longer to dry out than you think.


Compensating for extra moisture from cold flour I've been baking Hallah of late from a high-precision recipe: weights and percentages provided for all ingredients. I store flour in the freezer. Typically, the dough comes out considerably stickier than intended. End result is OK, but process is messy. So, based on other reading, I assume that my chilly flour is busily absorbing atmospheric moisture. I'm wondering if anyone can offer a rule of thumb for how much water to subtract or flour to add to compensate for this effect over 795 grams of flour?

No, it has nothing to do with atmospheric moisture. It is the temperature itself. You get much more gluten with cold dough, and it is also very sticky and inelastic. If this is the effect you want, continue doing it. In fact, some authors (e.g. Corriher) recommend making very high hydration doughs with substituting some of the water for crushed ice, to make them more manageable.

If you don't want this (and most recipes are developed for room temperature ingredients), then you can't get the standard condition of your dough except by using room temperature flour. If you don't mind the different gluten texture in the baked product, but want to make the dough less sticky so you can handle it better, you should be adding water, not removing it. This will dilute the dough, so it doesn't end up so tightly cramped. I can't give you a rule of thumb for how much, you'll have to decide for yourself what feels comfortable to you.


How long do uncut, fresh strawberries last in the refrigerator? How long do uncut organic strawberries last in the refrigerator when stored in the original packaging?

It's very variable. I've had them last well over a week especially the best of the small ones I grow (if they're a little overripe they get eaten immediately, if slightly damaged they get frozen to make jam when I have enough). On the other hand one soft one in the bottom of the pack can reduce it to a couple of days, and this can be due to damage in packing or transit. If you spot the soft ones straight away you can still eat them and the rest will keep, but left too long they'll go mouldy.

I haven't noticed a difference between the keeping properties of organic or cheap berries in the same type of packaging.


How is sushi supposed to be eaten? Yesterday I was at a banquet that was serving sushi rolls. Some had rice on the outside and others had seaweed on the outside. I wasn't able to find chopsticks. In terms of etiquette is it alright to eat sushi by hand? If relevant I'm in North America.

Also, I heard it's a North American thing to mix the wasabi with the soy sauce before dipping the sushi in. How is the soy sauce and wasabi intended to be used?

It's my understanding the ginger is to reset the taste pallet so you should eat a little before switching to a different roll.

EDIT: but if you're provided with chopsticks, you should use them, right?

Clean your hands before you eat. Often, you will be given a hot towel for the purpose. Return the towel to the server neatly folded.

It is fine to eat sushi with your hand, as long as there is rice with each piece of fish. Sashimi (sliced fish not prepared with rice) should only be eaten with chopsticks.

If you sit at the sushi bar, feel free to converse with the itamae (sushi chef) if he's not too busy, and to order sushi from him. Do not order anything but sushi from him, order non-sushi items from your server. It is classy to ask the itamae to recommend a sushi item or even to ask him to surprise you. If there is something you know you don't like (uni is mine), let him know because it is very rude to not clean your plate. By that I mean don't even leave a grain of rice.

Mixing wasabi with the soy sauce is so common that you can get away with it, but it is considered kind of tacky, at least in a fine restaurant. So is eating ginger with a bite of sushi. You're correct that it is intended as a palate cleanser between sushi 'courses'. Again, if you want to, you're not going to get kicked out for it. In fine sushi restaurants, sushi is often not served with wasabi on the side. After all, the chef is an expert, he knows more about sushi than you! And presumably he knows how much wasabi should go on each piece of sushi. If you really want more, go ahead and add it if it's there, or let the itamae know your preferences in the matter.

Regarding dipping into the soy, try not to soak the rice of nigiri-zushi (shaped rice with a slice of fish on top). Just lightly dip the fish. Ideally, place the bite into your mouth fish down. Try to eat the whole piece in one bite. If you must, bite it in half but don't put the second half back on the plate. It's funny, but the video in @Mel's comment to the question shows tossing a big piece of sushi down pretty well :) Just know that the dunking it in soy sauce is a joke!

If you are in a part of the word where tipping is expected, tip the server and itamae separately. Often there will be a jar on the bar for tipping the chef. He would rather not touch money while he is working.

You can offer the itamae a sake if you're so inclined.

Finally, leave your chopsticks laying across the soya bowl between uses, or on the holder if there is one. Never leave them on your plate or (heaven forbid) sticking out of your rice.

Regarding your edit, not necessarily. It is completely optional to use chopsticks to eat rolls or nigiri. It is entirely up to you. It's like using the provided spoon to eat the usually provided miso soup. Drinking it from the bowl is totally acceptable.


What is the best way to shred celery? Shredded celery is a tasty replacement for high-carb staples such as potatoes, pasta, and rice, and it has fewer calories than other foods that that is also true of, such as spaghettified courgette and celeriac.

But it doesn't shred well in a spiraliser, not being as hard as celeriac or as well-behaved as courgette. And a grater will turn it almost to pulp. The best way I have found so far is to use a julienne mill, but that tends to shred not hugely more than half of the celery I put in, leaving the rest in large soggy lumps.

I would like to make "celeretti" with long strands similar to "courgetti". But I would like to do it with celery sticks, not with celeriac. Whereas celeriac has about two and half times more calories per 100g than courgette, celery has about the same amount.

Suggestions?

I'd use a mandoline with the julienne attachment and cut them lenghtwise.

Or try do it manually with your knife.

Personally, I think that celery is a hard vegetable to make into spaghetti.


Will ground sealed pepper have lost it freshness? From other answers I can see that fine grounded pepper looses its freshness and flavors so freshly ground is better.

Does this apply as much to coarse ground, I imagine when you bite it more parts of the pepper is newly exposed and the flavour will be better?
With some containers of fine ground i notice, after removing the lid there is a seal with foil paper.  I imagine the fine grounded it and immediately sealed with foil paper to keep freshness and non exposure to air.  Would the foil paper actually make a difference or should I consider finely ground in a bottle with foil paper still to have lost most of its flavour like those in packets?

Ground pepper begins to lose it's flavors very quickly.  You can try this yourself by grinding your own, then tasting over the course of a couple of days.  I find it is always best right after I grind it.  Sealing a container of ground pepper might help, but who knows how long between grinding and sealing? Then, once you remove the seal, flavor is degrading further. Again, just compare this pepper to some you have freshly ground.  There really is no comparison.  If you are a black pepper lover, buy whole and grind in small amounts.


Is there a way to neutralize or override coconut flavour in a vegan dish? I made a simple vegan cheesecake: coconut fat from coconut milk blended with pre-soaked raw cashews. Turned out real nice but the only thing is a strong coconut flavour.

Is there a way to neutralize it somehow?

Definitely not if you're getting the fat from coconut milk. Using refined coconut oil would definitely help, but getting it to blend and stay emulsified might be a challenge. Lecithin from a soy product might keep things together– I use it in place of egg to make vegan mayonnaise. All of that saturated fat is pretty tough to emulsify though. Maybe a combination of your coconut milk fat and refined coconut oil? Good luck!


What to use instead of John Dory fish? I was looking to make Marco Pierre White's Dory a la Nicoise, but John Dory fish is quite a high-end, pricey fish which you will find in many fancy and high-end restaurants – while I am happy to give the recipe a try, I'd like to use a more common/affordable alternative, as I am no professional chef who is looking to risk wasting the high cost.

Having looked around in different forums (e.g. flyertalk), I have seen it compared to Dover sole, but there isn't much else to go on, so I turn to the folks at cooking SE.

In terms of flavour and texture, what is a good alternative to John Dory fish? A cheaper, more common fish suggestion would be preferred.

Special consideration to the recipe and complimentary flavours involved will be thoroughly appreciated, but is not necessary, as I intend to respect the site's ethos for general Q&A rather than highly-specific and only relevant to me Q&A.

Looks like what you read was correct.  From Fine Seafood Co here is a description of the John Dory fish. (As many in the US will not be familiar.)

  John Dory
  Often named St Peter’s fish (St Pierre in France, Janitore in Spain), as he is alleged to be the origin of the distinctive dark ‘thumbprint’ (or spot) on its side as a thank you for some help with his tax! The English name John Dory arrived from the French ‘jaune doré’ meaning ‘golden yellow’ – a good description for this unusual looking fish, which varies in size from smaller 230-450g fish up to 2kg. Because of the large head (like Monkfish, this accounts for half its weight), John Dory is best filleted, but beware the low yield (around 35%) and some sharp nasty spines, which require extra care when filleting. The flesh is creamy-white, with a dense texture similar to Dover Sole, which holds up well during cooking. Ideal pan-fried or grilled John Dory works well with Mediterranean flavours, salsas, and peppery sauces. It may be an expensive fish with a low yield – but it’s worth it!

(Emphasis mine.)

Per my research, Dover Sole seems to be the first choice to use as a substitute for John Dory. Another that I found mentioned quite often was Turbot. But that seems to be even more expensive than John Dory.

Others listed as possible substitutes on Cookipedia are: Bass, Grouper, Snapper, Emperor, and Halibut.

Here's a link to the Guide on Fine Seafood Co with descriptions of many other fish. (No endorsement intended - just good information.)


Water content of salted butter It seems to be common knowledge among bakers that salted butter has a higher water content than unsalted*. How much higher?

And if there's a different amount of water, why does this nutritional data say there's the same amount of fat in salted and unsalted butter? (I'm fairly sure I've seen the same on butter in the store, and I'll try to remember to confirm that next time I'm there.)

*I'm pretty sure I remember seeing the claim several places online, but the one I was able to quickly find is from Cook's Illustrated (click to expand the second-to-last question) via an answer here, saying that "salted butter almost always contains more water than unsalted butter". (It's possible that a lot of other people's knowledge ultimately came from there.) The nutritional information I've found, along with my own baking experience, does not back this up, but Cook's Illustrated is generally pretty trustworthy, hence the question.

The FDA definition for butter specifies only that it be made exclusively from cream or milk, contain a minimum of 80% butter fat by weight, and may include salt and coloring.

FDA Butter Definition

USDA Butter Standards

If you assume the butter in question is at the low end of the spectrum with exactly 80% fat and equal amounts of milk solids, then unsalted would have less water than salted.  Since there is no standard that says milk solids must also be a specific percentage, or that fat content can only be 80% and no more, there is really no way to accurately make the claim that salted butter always contains more water than unsalted.


Add spices/herbs early or late to a chili or stew in a crockpot slow-cooker? Should spices and herbs be added early to a chili/stew in a crockpot slow-cooker to maximize their flavors? Or do the spices/herbs cook-out over a long time, effectively disappearing, and should instead be added late in the cooking process?

Or does the timing vary by particular herb/spice? I'm thinking of items such as bay leaves, oregano, cinnamon, chili powder, clove, and such.

As a general rule they should go in early for a couple of reasons:

Flavours don't really cook out, they get distributed within the dish. So adding spices etc. early allows the flavours to combine. If they did cook out you could just add a touch more.

Opening a slow cooker during the cooking time lets write a lot of heat out, at best extending the cooking time. Repeatedly opening it from early in the cook (worst case) would bring the temperature down too far. So you either add things at the beginning or at the end (when the food is already cooked and hot enough all the way through that it will stay at a sensible temperature). This allows final fine adjustment at the end, but you may need to be choosy about the form in which you add the heat - some things could be hard or gritty if they haven't cooked. Fresh herbs can be added just before serving as they don't need to cook and may lose some of the fresh components of their flavour.


Ascorbic Acid (Vit C powder) with Baking Soda = Single Acting Baking Powder? For my gluten free baking, I "have to"* make my own single acting baking powder. I use 2 parts cream of tartar and 1 part baking soda (bicarbonate of soda). It's been fairly successful.

I would like to know if ascorbic acid powder (pure - just vitamin C - nothing else) could be used in place of the cream of tartar. If so, is the Ascorbic acid stronger? Do I need to change ratio to baking soda?

(EDITED TO LEAVE OUT UNNECESSARY RAMBLING)

*Why I "have to":
Baking POWDER - I react to something in commercial baking powder. Maybe the sodium acid pyrophosphate or monocalcium phosphate. So I make my own single acting powder to avoid this problem - and have had no health issues so far with that.

Thanks for your help on this baking powder question!

This answer suggests that you can substitute ascorbic acid for cream of tartar at a 0.75:1 ratio.  However, the answer does not cite how it arrived at that ratio.  It's not an unreasonable idea though, since the pH of ascorbic acid is much lower than that of tartaric acid -- that is, it's more acidic.  I lack the chemistry math to say if the 75% substitution is the right number, though, so you may need to just test it out.


Canning tomato sauce problem, jar broken in boiling method It was my first try to canning tomato sauce but I failed.

I prepared a tomato pizza sauce.
I boiled a jar and lid then removed it
I filled the jar with sauce and left one inch empty space and closed with the lid.
Then I put it in the boiling water and what happened:

As soon as I put the jar in the hot boiling water, some air bubbles appeared.
Then after few seconds, the jar broke from its bottom

And I failed in my first experiment.

What should I be doing differently for this not to happen next time?

Jars burst either because of internal pressure or thermal shock.

There are a couple things you can do to reduce the risk of bursting.

use actual canning jars.
Some people like to reuse regular jars that aren't as strong. This will often work fine but increases the risk of bursting.
make sure the jar is hot.
A cold jar into hot water or a hot jar into cold water will burst almost every time.
bring water to a boil after adding jars
don't overtighten lids.
Rings should be tightened just enough to firmly hold the lid on. Too much and pressure won't be able to escape during boiling. Remember the bottle is sealed by pressure-not by the ring.

Based on your description, if you had any of these problems I would suspect the last.
However, sometimes bottles just burst because of manufacturing defects. This doesn't happen often but it is sad when it does.


Which sugar for brining? I've come across various brining solutions that include sugars: white sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, etc. Are these sugars interchangeable? Is one sugar more desirable for a certain kind of meat over the other?

For a brine, no it doesn't really matter, except that granulated sugar will dissolve more nicely than raw sugar.  The sugar is for flavor more than anything else, though it does help the brine some. It also promotes browning of the meat.  If you change one kind of sugar for another, I'd use a 1:1 swap by weight rather than volume so you don't have to worry about crystal sizes.

Though the sugar does help the brining action some, the salt is the important component.

From Cook's Illustrated:

  How does brining work? Brining promotes a change in the structure of
  the proteins in the muscle. The salt causes protein strands to become
  denatured, or unwound. This is the same process that occurs when
  proteins are exposed to heat, acid, or alcohol. When protein strands
  unwind, they get tangled up with one another, forming a matrix that
  traps water. Salt is commonly used to give processed meats a better
  texture. For example, hot dogs made without salt would be limp.

  In most cases, we add sugar to the brine. Sugar has little if any
  effect on the texture of the meat, but it does add flavor and promotes
  better browning of the skin.


Too much heavy cream in my pumpkin pie? I followed the recipe below but I'm concerned that it seems like a lot of cream - it's very runny. I've already mixed it up, poured one pie, and have a ton of mixture left - probably enough for 6 more pies. I only have 1 more cup of pumpkin puree - should I add it to the remaining mix? Should I add anything else? I also have another pumpkin that I could roast tomorrow and add if I have to. What should I do to save the rest of the mix?

2 your favorite pie crust
6 cups pumpkin puree, from a real pumpkin (see below)
2 cups sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons clove
2 teaspoons allspice
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon mace or 1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
8 large eggs
4 1/2 cups heavy cream or 4 1/2 cups evaporated milk

Roast the pumpkin and puree its flesh. Whip pumpkin with all other ingredients for about 3 minutes. Pour mixture into pie crust and bake at 425 ° F for 15 minutes. Turn oven 350 & and bake for 40 to 60 minutes until knife or toothpick comes out clean. Store in refrigerator.

Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/real-pumpkin-pie-from-scratch-easy-490668

To understand the Food.com recipe you referenced, I compared it to the Libby's recipe which sets the benchmark for pumpkin pies.

              Food.com     Libby's

Raw measurements

Pumpkin       6 c          2 c
Sugar         2 c          0.75 c
Eggs          8            2
Dairy         4.5 c        1.5 c

Pseudo-bakers percentages (eggs as ratio of cups pumpkin to eggs)

Pumpkin       100%         100%
Sugar         33%          38%
Eggs          1 : 1.33     1 : 1
Dairy         75%          75%

As you can see, other than creating a huge volume of filling per shell, the Food.com recipe you used is quite similar.  The main difference is that it adds a lot more egg, so should set up more firmly.

It does seem to produce far, far too much filling for the number of shells specified, even if they are deep-dish.

I would suggest baking the extra filling in ramekins or baking dishes as pumpkin custard for any surplus after you have filled your shells.

Don't add more ingredients to the filling, though; they are approximately balanced already.  Remember, pumpkin pie is a custard, and the filling will be quite liquid before it is baked.


Making Mayo by hand , using whisk , emulsion breaks down I'm trying to make homemade mayonaise and it's not really working out well.

I got a glass bowl that's fairly deep and use the following ingredients:

*  1 egg yolk*
* 1/2 teaspoon salt (not kosher)
* 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
* 2 pinches sugar
* 2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
* 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
* 1 cup oil

I put the oil into a squeeze bottle, basically like a ketchup bottle so I can squeeze the oil out a few drops at a time in the beginning.

Well about 1/3rd of the way through I lose my emulsion and I'm left with egg and oil on top.  Should I be using a whisk?  The one I have I feel that the spacings are too far apart but I'm not sure.

How long should it take from start to finish to get this thing made?  I don't know if I'm whisking too long or not...can you even whisk too long?

EDIT 1:  I get an egg and separate the yolk out in a bowl and once i know it's all good I put it into my glass bowl.  After this is done I add the sugar, dry mustard, salt, the vinegar and 1stp of the lemon juice.

I then start to whisk the crap out of this thing until it looks like it's been beat up.  I then start to slowly add the oil.  Just a drop or two at first, then slowly add more.  I'm not sure if I'm adding the oil too fast or put the ingredients in wrong or what the deal is.  At about the 50% mark I want to add the rest of the lemon juice.

It's important to determine whether your emulsion actually broke immediately or was just creaming.

I'm going to trot out this diagram again from yesterday:

(source: Cube Cola)

Creaming occurs when the oil drops, which are less dense than the water, float to the top.  As long as the droplets don't coalesce, you can still fix this with agitation (whisk, blend, or shake vigorously).

Emulsions with coarse particles (of oil) are much more prone to creaming, because their increased buoyancy makes them more able to push up past the water molecules.  You want to have a very fine "mist" of oil suspended in the water; if you were using a squeeze bottle, perhaps the individual drops were simply too large.  A ketchup bottle in particular would not be appropriate for this sort of thing, you'd want to use something closer to a syringe (or just get an actual syringe).

Now if you keep adding oil to a creamed emulsion or let it sit too long then it will also start to coalesce, and coalescence and creaming together are what cause an emulsion to break completely.  This, you really can't recover from, except to let it separate completely, skim off the fat, and start over.

So, to recap:

Your oil drops may have been too large;
You may not have been agitating enough, especially when it started to cream;
You may have added too much oil after creaming had already started.

I also agree with commenter Henrik that the amount of oil sounds a little high; 3/4 cup would be more reasonable for 1 egg yolk.  But since you say you only got 1/3 of the way through, that's clearly not your problem here.


Catering event for BBQ for 30 people. Looking for suggestions on how much to serve on meat.  They would like pulled pork, ribs, and brisket

When you visit your local BBQ places you normally see a few standard options.

For the pulled pork and brisket, it is usually sold by weight. I believe a 1/2 Pound portion is the most common from my experience of eating BBQ with friends.

For ribs, they are normally sold by half rack or full rack.  A full rack is a lot of food so I would not think anyone would expect to eat that at a BBQ. You would probably be good with 5 or 6 ribs per guest.

These amounts of meat per person along with some popular BBQ side dishes in your area should provide plenty of food for your guests.

The big part is figuring out who wants what meat.  If you already know then you can easily plan for that.  If you don't know you can do enough for 10 of each and let your guests fight over who gets what.  If it was me, I would probably make enough of each meat for 15 people.  That should assure nobody goes home hungry and you will probably have enough left overs for a few days.


How do I get something sticky like honey or Golden Syrup off measuring spoons or measuring cups? Is there a better way? When I put honey in a spoon or measuring cup, the residue stays and it’s hard to get all of it out. How do I make it all come out? Is there a way to measure honey without leaving honey on a spoon?

It's possible to get specialized equipment for this: a plunger measuring cup. The base is adjusted to the level you need to measure, the sticky honey or syrup is poured in, and then the cup is upended and as the base is pushed in, it scrapes the sides as it travels.

I'd only invest in this if you very frequently measure sticky ingredients -- it's not strictly necessary, but it can be a timesaver for some recipes. It's available from many different brands.


Can I cook my apple butter on high when it suggests low? I am cooking apple butter in a slow cooker and the recipe calls for 1 hr on high and then 9 hours on low. My slow cooker only cooks on high.. Can I cook it on high for a shorter amount of time without compromising the flavor, etc?  Thanks

While different cookers have different opinions about how hot "high" and "low" actually are, I still wouldn't gloss over such a large discrepancy, unless I knew enough to make the call.

However, you can easily lower the temp of your crockpot on it's high setting. Try putting a terrycloth rag between the metal case and ceramic pot. This will reduce the heat transfer from the coils to the food, resulting in a stable but lower temp. Use a thermometer to check before/after temps and adjust the amount of "insulation" to get the temp you want. Low on my cheap consumer crockpots is around 120-140F.


How do you finely dice an onion without crying? This question addresses onion crying

But no one seems to say what should you do when you finely chop an onion. See, not cutting the onion core, using the Gordon Ramsay technique and generally pivoting away from the onion helped so far. But now I have upped my dicing skills. I can chop finer, but alas I am a victim of my own success where the smell of the fine onion is almost like the obscenity of grated onion (horrible).

Sharp knife, not cutting to the core, pivoting away etc all stop working when you are good enough to fine dice an onion. Short of goggles, what do you do?

Breathe through your mouth.

The tear-causing chemicals in onions are absorbed through the nasal mucous membrane. By breathing through your mouth, they don't get much contact with the fumes and won't absorb nearly as much.


Can a sous-vide circulator fully replace a crockpot? The idea is, to put a regular pot in a larger pot full of water and heat the larger pot with a sous-vide stick.

Would this accurately simulate a crockpot?

The only downside I can see, is that typical sous-vide sticks can not reach the temperature of the highest setting on a crockpot.

Are there any other important differences?

Would this accurately simulate a crockpot?

No.  Most crockpots operate on the principle of having a relatively low-powered heating element that very slowly raises the temperature of food over several hours.  In many slow-cooking dishes, that additional time spent at lower temperatures is useful in breaking things down, allowing enzymes to work (before they are destroyed at higher temperatures), allowing flavors to marry, etc.  Partly for this reason, most crockpots also have a heavy-duty ceramic insert that does not transmit heat quickly.  Some dishes for crockpots even depend on this -- placing ingredients closer to the bottom which need more time at higher temp to cook properly, while having ingredients that need less high-temp cooking time on top.

A typical pot placed inside a vat of water with a circulator will absorb the heat from the water much more quickly.  The duration of the "transient" (i.e., the time it takes the water to warm up, and then the food inside the pot to warm with it, until they reach a constant temperature) will vary a lot depending on temperature, comparative sizes of the pot and water, etc.

But in general, I'd say it's likely the sous vide circulator will get the water up to a high temperature much quicker than a crockpot typically would.  And depending on the material of the pot, the pot could then transfer heat to the food much more quickly than a typical crockpot would.

Whether this difference is relevant to a particular application or not depends on the situation.  In general, the common replacement for a slow cooker is usually a low oven, as that can transfer heat relatively slowly and gradually heat up a dish like a typical crockpot.  Sous vide is designed to usually raise the temperature of the food to a target as quickly as possible (hence the water bath -- the water transfers heat much more efficiently and quickly than air in an oven or a coil or whatever element under a ceramic crockpot) and then maintain it there.

In sum: crockpot goal = long transient duration; sous vide goal = transient duration usually as short as possible.


What is a mild detergent? I recently obtained a dehydrator, and the instructions say for cleaning you have to:

  "Simply soak the trays in warm water with a mild detergent for several
  minutes"

Can someone please define the term "mild detergent"?

I'd presume they just mean dish soap and not some more powerful cleanser.  With regard to additives, etc. I guess whatever you are okay with normally should be okay.  Obviously you have to rinse the trays thoroughly to get the soap off.

I've had a few dehydrators and there is nothing special about the plastic trays.  I doubt they are dishwasher safe but I've never put that to the test (I suspect it would not work that well anyway).  The trays can be pesky to clean if you've used a marinade. The best thing I've found for this is a small, soft circular brush.


How do I prevent mini cheesecakes from stick in muffin pan I am going to be making some cheesecake in a square muffin pan (pictured).

I am planning to make crustless cheesecake. Just eggs, cream cheese, and sugar.

How do I ensure the mini cheesecake come out easily?

Should I use some sort of paper liner? Or maybe butter, or margarine, or vegetable or canola oil.

I don't want to break them, when I take them out, but I don't want to impart undesirable qualities to them either.

My first choice would be to get a bunch of small spring molds for round cakes. That probably would be my first choice if you really didn't want to use cup cake liners.

If you really want squares, then I think your best bet is to use parchment paper. Cut the parchment paper to fit the full cup, then carefully fold it at the corners just so, so that the uncooked cheese cake will fill the cup without wrinkles. It will take some trial and error, but once you figure out the correct angles, it should be easily to duplicate. You would then need to carefully remove the cakes from the parchment cups you made, but that should be much easier than trying to get them out of the pan if they've stuck.

Alternatively, you could try silicone moulds, but I don't know whether the cheese cake would be too sticky or too soft for that or not.


How to prevent bursting from cheese stuffed beef patties? I am trying to perfect the cheese burger, and an important part for me is the cheese stuffed patty.

I am trying to find a way to prevent the cheese from bursting out? Is there a type of cheese I can use, or a method of compacting the beef? Should I be encasing the cheese in another layer first?

Most cheeses are going to want to melt and ooze out unless they are very hard and stringy cheeses. A hard mozzarella sliced along the strings may work, but I'd try halloumi above all. You can fry halloumi on a pan and it will brown and form a crust, so it is perfect to stuff in a burger patty.


What is this slimy coloured stuff growing in my plates? Recently, I observed that there is some brown slimy stuff on the underside of my plates. I don't know what they are or how they form. I tried removing it with a tooth pick, but was too hard to come off. Does anyone know what this is? How can it be cleaned?

My first guess is oil deposits that have hardened through oxidation. Especially the highly unsaturated oils are prone to oxidation, which will after a while lead to insoluble deposits (like in the original oil paints, where the linseed oil polymerises after prolonged contact with air). It's hard to remove as it's not brittle, and deforms rather than breaking, like an oil varnish.

(are those items you show plates, or pan covers/lids?)

It doesn't look like any kind of mold.


Baking a Brie with the outer rind broken How can I fix it when the Brie is cracked on one spot? I am planning to bake it and I do not have a receipt to return it. I know last time I baked a Brie with crack, the inside just gooey spread-out.

You cannot really repair a piece of cheese, so your original plan will not work as-is.

One option would be to make a crusty baked cheese. For that, you make bread dough, roll out two discs like small pizza crusts, and pack the cheese in them, crimping the seam on the upper side. When you bake, any cheese getting out through a crack will stay packaged within the dough. It will still be gooey when you cut the dough, but by this point, you will be already eating it :) and the cheese inside won't get out in the oven where it dries out unpleasantly. Other crusts will probably work too (pie crust dough for example), I just said bread because this is what I am accustomed to. Only pick doughs which you can seal well, dry phylo sheets won't help, the cheese will come out if your seal is not perfect.

If you don't want to, or can't do it with dough, you have to buy another piece of cheese for baking and use this one in a recipe without baking, for example cut up into a salad or melted into a cream soup.


How long to cook dry brined turkey? I have a thawed, dry brined 22 lb turkey.  Does anyone know how long it'll take to cook it and what temp? Thank you!

According to a highly rated recipe from Food Network for dry brined turkey:

  Put the oven rack in the lowest position; preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Put the turkey breast-side up on a rack in a large roasting pan, tucking the wing tips under. Tie the drumsticks together with twine. Roast until the skin is golden brown and a thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 165 degrees F, about 15 minutes per pound. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 30 minutes before carving.

Keep in mind that there are a lot of variables. Your thermometer is your friend. If the turkey is stuffed, it could take as long as 7.5 hours.


How to avoid flour lumps in the sponge cake? I have a sponge cake recipe which has been in our family for a long time:

  6 eggs
  1.5 cups icing sugar
  2.5 cups flour
  1 cup milk
     1 cup oil
    1 tsp baking powder
    cardamom and saffron

  Separate the eggs. beat egg whites until soft peak and set aside.
  beat yolks and add sugar then mix well until creamy. add cardamom
  while mixing. Add oil and continue mixing. add lukewarm milk and mix
  for a few minutes until thoroughly mixed. Add yolk mixture to the egg
  whites and mix quickly for one or two minutes. then fold in the
  (flour+baking powder +saffron) mixture which is sifted into the egg
  mixture.

I was wondering how do we actually fold during the process of making the sponge cake. Do we fold it very lightly or fold until all the flour is fully incorporated? whenever I fold it to fully incorporate it, the texture does not get too airy and the volume decreases. or do I fold it lightly to ensure maximum air volume but whenever I pour the batter into the mould, I see remnants of unincorporated flour.
Also is it correct to use electric mixer to mix egg white mixture and egg yolk mixture, or do I need to fold one into the other?

Always fold, gently, by hand.  The more delicate the ingredient, the more critical it is; few culinary ingredients are as delicate as beaten egg whites.

The flour (you're using bleached cake flour, aren't you?) should be added in stages (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup at a time), preferably via a sifter.  Incorporate just to the point where the flour is mostly evenly dispersed and is wetted.  When transferring to the baking dish, keep an eye out for any unwetted or clumps and gently mix them in.

In addition, I always fold in all ingredients to beaten egg whites and would recommend you do the same when adding the yolk mixture.  You need fold just until it's mostly dispersed as you will be further folding when you add the flour.

If you are still having problems, you could try adding cream of tartar to the whites when beating to help stabilize them.  I don't use it generally myself, but 1/4 tsp should do the trick.


Why does Lasagna need to be baked? Aside from the cheese, isn't everything in a lasagna already cooked?
If so, why do recipes still call for 30-40 minutes of baking?

And how does the baking affect it? (e.g. makes it chewier?)

Besides cooking some of the components (if you roll your own pasta or use some dry pasta sheets that don't have to be pre-cooked and can be assembled directly as long as they're submerged in sauce or they'll burn) the point of baking is to enhance flavor by forming a crust on top and to melt any cheese that you put between the layers (e.g. grated parmesan, some put mozzarella or provolone cubes). But mostly crust and flavor.

Personal opinion: as Italian, I could not think of a crustless lasagna.


What is the rind of Brie cheese made of? We were eating brie cheese last night, and someone asked if the rind was edible.

I was tempted to say "yes, it's not plastic". But then I realized that while it doesn't look like plastic or wax, I really have no idea what it's made of.

Is it chemical? Is it organic? Maybe fungus or bacteria? In that case, what kind (and would eating too much of it be unhealthy)?

I've seen the question Are you supposed to eat the rind of Brie cheese?, but none of the answers mention what the rind is made of.

The rind of Brie is Penicillium Camemberti it's a completely harmless fungus which gives brie its taste. You can eat it, or not, up to you: you are supposed to.

If it smells very strongly of ammonia the cheese is just a bit too ripe but it won't do you any harm.


Homemade cream cheese I like to make no bake cheese cake when I checked few blogs and I got to know that cream cheese is important for this but I don't have cream cheese in the nearby shops. When I further started searching I saw one more blog where they used yogurt and crumbled paneer which is easy for me to use. I just wanted to know is that both together is cream cheese or it's something different.

Cream cheese is a distinct product, with a flavour and texture of its own.

I don't think you'd get the right texture by crumbling paneer into yoghurt, but if you can make paneer you can make cream cheese - or rather [an easy form of ricotta] (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/nov/14/homemade-ricotta-recipe-anna-jones-modern-cook) , which is a type of acid set cream cheese. It's essentially the same as making paneer but you stop short of boiling the milk before adding the lemon juice, and you don't press it after straining. If you can make or get unpressed paneer that might work.

Mascarpone is thicker and richer, made from fresh double (heavy) cream and lemon juice.


How long will whole coffee beans last in the freezer? I was gifted several bags of great coffee beans, which I won't be able to use all at once. If I store them in the freezer, how long will they last without losing flavor?

I know some have noted that they can last months in the freezer, but I seem to notice a difference in taste after just a few weeks.

They will technically last a long time in the freezer - up to many months - but this is not the best way to store them as they lose flavor quickly (as little as 5-6 uses).  Even though the beans will last, storing them in the freezer is not ideal.  It affects flavor for a number of reasons. (See below)

If you haven't opened the bag, store the bag in the cupboard, away from sunlight, heat, and  excess humidity.

The best way to store coffee beans after being opened is in an opaque, airtight container at room temperature (unless you have a resealable bag with a degassing valve designed for storing coffee).  After being opened, the beans are considered fresh for 2-3 weeks, although if you are strict about the storage you may be able to get up to 5 out of them. (When I say fresh, I mean with minimal flavor change/loss)

Why the freezer is bad:

Freezing beans severely lowers the humidity in the bag or container.  This causes the beans to become stale very quickly.  In effect, you are slowly freeze drying them.  Also using cold beans in a grinder can mess with grind due to the oil on the beans being in a more solid state, which in turn affects the brewing.

If you do decide to store them in the freezer, put them in an airtight container and when you go to use the beans let the container warm up to room temperature before opening.  This way you do not mess with the overall humidity content of the container too much.  Especially let them warm up to room temperature before grinding.

Sources:

I am a Barista in a cafe and a lover of coffee at home.  I have tried both methods of coffee storage and have dealt with many customers who have tried both.

In my store we follow these regulations:

Beans that go into an opaque container that is not totally airtight are fresh for two weeks max.
Packaged beans with a degassing valve are fresh for six months or longer in the bag.
Beans, once ground, cannot be used after two hours (that being said, ground coffee starts losing flavor immediately).

Obviously, the sooner you use everything the better, but we follow those guidelines.


using a square tin in a small oven I have a family size convection microwave oven instead of a full size oven.  I make fruit cakes and have to change the tin for next year's competition.  I've always used a round tin and now I have to use a square tin.  How do I stop it from burning at the corners before the middle is cooked?  I set it at 130 dgeress Centigrade and bake for 3-4 hours

First off, I personally love the hard edges of the brownie.
But to your question:
    There are a few things that you can try to keep the edges from burning.

Use a lighter ( both color and heaviness ) pan, as this does affect the heating rate as well as the distribution of the heat throughout the pan.
Try keeping your ingredients at a relative room temperature so there isn't a large transition from cold to hot in this oven ( the same reason you thaw some things before cooking ).
Try changing the temperature and cooking time. The recipes I usually stick with for brownies are cooking for about 30m at about 350 degrees F (175 c).

One last thing that might work that I have had to do with pie is wrapping foil around the edges until the last 10-15minutes of cooking.


What is the internal temperature a steak should be cooked to for Rare/Medium Rare/Medium/Well? I'd like to know when to take my steaks off the grill and please everybody.

Extra-Rare: 125F (52C)

  Rare: 135F (57C)

  Medium-Rare: 145F (63C)

  Medium: 160F (71C)

  Well-Done: 170F (77C)

Note: Extra-Rare and Rare are not recommended by USDA


Black tea water: Does boiling water first make a difference? When I make black tea, I usually put the leaves (or tea bags) into cold or room-temperature water before I start boiling it. I've noticed that certain cultures always insist on first boiling the water, and only putting in tea leaves once it reaches a full, rolling boil.

Does boiling the water before putting in the leaves make a difference? I tried both ways and couldn't find a difference in taste. It seems like boiling for more than a few minutes means both would have similar levels of oxygen (not sure why that would make a difference).

To clarify: I personally *boil my tea leaves (or bag) for several minutes, as in 10-20 minutes or more. It seems like the other popular way to make tea is to steep in boiling water for several minutes.

I would like clarity on whether putting the leaves/bags in cold water makes a difference, especially given the time-scale of boiling (should it be shortened).

As you're heating the temperature of the water will rise at different rates, depending on the amount of heat, on the quantity of water, and on whether the pan is covered or not. With the tea in the pan, this would create an infusion gradient, as the temperature rose over a varying number of minutes.

If you boil the water first, then infuse, you've fewer variables: the quantity of tea and the quantity of water. So you'll have less to adjust to get the brew perfect.

I don't see how you could brew even the finest black tea for 10-20 minutes without over-extracting it, producing a stewed, bitter flavour that dries the tongue.


Storing oil coated and unrefrigerated egg Is there any truth to coating eggs with oil, placing them in the cartons upside down and then not storing them in the refrigerator - will make them last a few months???

Conceivably, as the oil would block the pores in the egg shell and prevent evaporation/contamination. However, the oil would also eventually absorb in through the shell, so I would certainly avoid using mineral oil as some sites suggest, as it's toxic.

Having said that, I'm not sure of the logic behind storing them upside down.


Cooking sirloin steaks with Anova sous vide gave me leather tough steaks I'm new to the Anova sous vide machine and have successfully cooked tenderloin steaks beautifully with the device.
The other day I saw nice thick sirloin steaks in the supermarket which I then cooked at the same temperature as the tenderloins but for 15 minutes more (This was all using the temperature and time guide in the Anova app so from 45 mins for tenderloin to 60 minutes for strip as there are only guides for porterhouse/ribeye/stri/tenderloin)
The one thing I did differently is I forgot to season the tenderloins before I sealed the bag.
Seasoned before I seared and sat down to enjoy my tender juicy steak and it was like eating a piece of leather. As in it was totally uneatable. The temperature was spot on but the chewiness was horrible.
One bag did end up getting pushed around in the pot and was touching the Anova for most of the sous vide time but boh turned out the same.
Any helpful advice on why the steaks turned out so tough?
Thanks in advance!

If you think of tenderness on a scale, sirloin and tenderloin are nearly on opposite ends of the scale. Sirloin, in general is not a tender cut of meat.  Your result has little to do with seasoning or location in the water bath...or even cooking method. Sirloin is a lean and tough cut.  Often sous vide can be used to make tough cuts of meat more tender, but sirloin doesn't really have the collagen or connective tissue that will break down like, say, a short rib.  If you like the tenderness of a tenderloin, you will never match it with a sirloin.  Don't blame your circulator, it is akin to blaming your stove when things don't go well there.


UHT cream storage - temperature extremes I buy canned Anchor brand butter, which is sent by road unrefrigerated where afternoon temperatures are around 29C, sometimes higher. On one occasion I received a can that had melted and was no longer usable as butter (though fine for ghee or whatever). I understand butter melts around 32C.
The local supermarkets, which I guess are air conditioned to around 22C sell unrefrigerated canned butter, and refrigerated UHT cream.
According to Anchor
https://www.anchorfoodprofessionals.com/us/en/products/cream/anchor-chefs-heavy-cream.html
For best results:

The product can either be stored ambient between 68°F and 77° or refrigerated between 36°F and 39°F.
Keep out of direct sunlight.
Rotate the stock regularly.
Anchor™ Chef’s Heavy Cream has a 9-month shelf life.
For optimal results, once stored in either refrigeration or ambient the product is to remain in that environment pre- and post usage.

That's 25C, which is definitely cooler than I'd expect to receive good sent by road, which might be 28-29C. That's for the US.
For SE Asia however
the carton seems to say
keep refrigerated

whereas the website says
https://www.anchorfoodprofessionals.com/sg/en/products/cream/whipping-cream/anchor-whipping-cream.html

Store unopened packs out of direct sunlight. Once opened, keep chilled at 2°C to 4°C and serve within 3 days. Check and rotate stock regularly.
Anchor UHT Whipping Cream is stored at 2°C to 4°C after manufacture and during international transport.

which kinda suggests it doesn't need to be refrigerated.
Some references say that UHT cream should be refrigerated for 24 hours before usage, which is fine. The question is at what ambient temperature will the product be permanently damaged? Most sellers seem slightly happier about sending canned butter than UHT cream, but I'm not sure if that is anything fundamental about the product, in that it would make more sense to have a lower melting point about butter, which is solid, compared to cream, which is already liquid

I couldn't find any recent scientific literature on UHT cream, but I did find a bit on UHT milk.  And at least what's said about milk indicates that it should be fine being stored up to 37C.  This study says that shelf life is shortened above 30C, but that "shortened" still means 4-5 months.  And this one(pdf), from Sudan, found that a "room temperature" of 33C for UHT milk didn't hurt quality at all within 90 days.
However, that's milk.  What do we know about cream?
This old study suggests that UHT Cream has a significantly shorter shelf life than UHT Milk, and that it's a lot more affected by temperature.  In that study, you can see that flavor declines a lot faster at 18C than at 4C, and that separation of the cream happens at 18C in as little as 4 weeks.  While there's no data on storage at 30C, one would expect it to separate even sooner, maybe in as little as a week.  If you can get access to the Journal of Dairy Science, they may have more updated articles on UHT Cream shelf life.


Homemade taffy turned out too thick and hard I had found a recipe to make homemade Tootsie Rolls which was essentially just chocolate taffy.  I've tried it a few times with the same result; it turns into basically a somewhat chewy hard candy.

I'm not a candy making expert, but I think the problem might lie in either the heating of the mixture (ie- getting it to the right temp for the type of candy it is) or in the pulling.

Does that sound about right?  Are there other things that I can check when making taffy that would turn it into a soft rock?

Temperature is certainly important. If you start out with a hard candy straight from the pot you're gonna be largely out of luck regardless.

But really, the signature taffy texture comes from the continual pulling, folding, pulling that happens after you remove it from the heat. Pulling taffy works lots of air into it and stretches out the strands of sugar crystals into thinner, chewier shapes. So be sure you really work that taffy once you take it off the heat (and before cutting it).


How long would a no-bake cheesecake last? I have an excellent recipe for a no-bake cheesecake that my family has made hundreds of times over many decades. For the first time today I was asked how long it would keep in the fridge. It's never lasted long enough for it to be a question, so I didn't have an answer.

Main ingredients are cream cheese, eggs, whipping cream, butter, sugar, milk, and gelatin. The egg yolks, some sugar and milk are heated. The rest is not.

Any thoughts on how long it would last? Would freezing affect it in any way?

I wouldn't keep it more than 3 days, 5 at the most if I was desperate for some cheesecake. I agree with your statement though I have never had a no-bake cheesecake last more than a day in my family.

You could freeze it and I have tried with a piece, not a whole pie before and mine turned into cheesecake soup when I thawed it and tasted terrible. I am by no means an expert freezer of food though.


Uses for brewers/nutritional yeast? I grew up putting this stuff on my popcorn and absolutely love it.  I recently found out that you can also put it on salads that have a vinaigrette dressing and it's also delicious.  Are there other common applications that I am not aware of?

FYI - Brewers/nutritional yeast != baking yeast

It's a great addition in just about any clear stock soup (non-cream-based) such as chicken, beef and even vegetable. (It's actually great for vegetarians and vegans who may have difficulty getting enough of their b-complex due to a meatless diet.) It enriches and deepens the flavor while providing a bunch of minerals. It's also an easy way to "rescue" a soup whose depth of flavor and savoriness (umami) fell short.

Couple of caveats:

It might make your stock cloudy if
you add too much
It doesn't seem to
stay in solution in stock too well. Needs frequent stirring in the bowl
to keep a consistent flavor


Baking wheat and dairy-free bread with only dry yeast I am going to try and cook my own wheat and dairy free bread. It says use dry and fresh yeast.

Can I use only dry yeast, and if so how much more do I have to use?

Yes, you can use dry yeast.  Fresh or cake yeast, active dry yeast, and instant dry yeast are all interchangeable, although differing amounts may be required, and they have different requirements for proofing or activation.

If you are using traditional active dry yeast you will want to proof it.

According to the Fresh Loaf, you can substitute dry yeast for fresh yeast at a ratio of 1:3 by weight:

  Professional bakers often use fresh yeast. If you encounter a recipe
  that uses fresh yeast, divide the weight by 3 to calculate the proper
  amount of instant yeast to use.


How do I control the temperature of water for an extended period of time? When making the "perfect" mash, Heston Blumenthal recommends cooking waxy spuds in hot water for half an hour at the temperature of 72 degrees Celsius, exactly. At 75 degrees stuff starts breaking down.

I would like to try this out but am unsure how I can keep the temperature constant.

What kitchen tools and process can I follow to measure the temperature throughout the process? Are there any tricks?

You can try to set up my at-home on-the-cheap monkey-at-the-controls sous-vide machine.  I take a nearly full 22 quart stock pot with an analog instant read thermometer to monitor the temperature and watch the temperature and adjust the dial accordingly.

With this only needing 30 minutes you probably just want to get the water to exactly 72 degrees C and then immerse the potatoes without adding any heat.  The amount of energy in 20 quarts of water is phenomenal and you won't lose a lot of heat to the air.

Alternatively you could get 72 degree water and a beer cooler and try that way for the extra insulation.