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  1. Today
  2. Many questions raised here, maybe I can weigh in: Both „freezer packaging“ and your SV bag will likely be made out of the same material, polyethylene. Both are food contact grade, so no need to worry about plasticizers or other issues. I would still recommend changing the packaging for two reasons: Primarily, a SV bag is far more sturdy and will give you more security to keep its integrity during the long cook - if you want to add an extra bag to compensate you‘ll be basically willing to add the outside of the original packaging to your cook as well (in case of rupture of the inner bag - not so advisable). Secondly, you will have a chance to flavor the content (dried garlic, rosemary, butter, salt, …) before the cook, benefitting the protein itself and your sauce made from the liquid gold left in the bag after the long cook … For a tender yet still juicy texture I use 155 oF for anything between 30-36h. @weinoos temps work as well and give you are more traditional confit texture, a bit more fall apart, slightly more stringy - but especially with a heavily cured leg pretty much the expected taste & texture for confit. These days I mostly skip the curing step and be happy with this … I think that if you are happy with a tender leg with a tasty sauce from the bag juices, served with sides, you are good as it is. For some applications (cassoulet, or when you really want that traditional French vibe) confit it fantastic. But with „everyday“ duck leg SV I feel the non-traditional texture sits better with me.
  3. liuzhou

    Breakfast 2025

    馄饨 (hún tun), pork wontons in chicken broth.
  4. Slight correction to the above. Too late to edit. Sprats (Spratus Spratus) are related to herring, being members of the Clupeidae family, but a different genus. Their native range is shown in this image. AquaMaps (2019, October). Computer generated distribution maps for Sprattus sprattus (European sprat), with modelled year 2050 native range map based on IPCC RCP8.5 emissions scenario. Retrieved from https://www.aquamaps.org.
  5. I was not actually trying for confit. Should I be?
  6. Yesterday
  7. My friend , down @ WHPS has done this , many times: https://www.seriouseats.com/sous-vide-duck-confit-recipe """ not as tender and delicious as the duck cooked using the settings that I ended up pegging as the ideal combination of temperature and time: 155°F (68°C) for 36 hours. "" he swears by this , and Ill be trying it soon. A P.S.: one thing ive learned about SV : its very forgiving , once you are in the Ball Park of the results you are looking for.
  8. Definitely in the thread on duck confit topic somewhere or other, and I believe via a Paula Wolfert book. If memory serves me, I do 185℉, for around 6 - 8 hours, depending on the size of the legs. But that involves first salting and curing the legs overnight before cooking.
  9. Original post edited to add: I should add that the reason I want to keep the original packaging is that the text describing package contents is legible. I write a lot of stuff on the outside of the s.v. bag in a fat black marker (including the date purchased, weight, the temp/time/date cooked). After vacuum sealing, the bag is usually badly wrinkled, so almost illegible. And I don't want to defrost it just to read it.
  10. Well, it came from somewhere on eGullet. Not sure whether I could find original reference. What temp/time would you suggest I try next?
  11. Sometimes there is absorbent materials added to retail packaging, to mop up any loose liquid that may weep from the meat over time and makes the packet unsightly. I would be wary of SV this material along with the meat. Since you are going to repackage for freezing, do the repackaging before SV. If the original packaging "cryovac", which is much thicker than normal packaging it may well survive in the SV, but if it is it will usually have an absorbent pad or packet as well. (an indication of whether it is "cryovac"is that the used by (or best by) date is several weeks rather than days.)
  12. Honkman

    Dinner 2025

    Pasta alla Pecorara from a Milk Street recipe - you cook zucchini, eggplant and bell peppers until soften. In parallel, you cook orecchiette and also cook pancetta, onions, carrots and garlic slow and low to get nice porky flavors. You add some crushed tomatoes, marjoram and pasta water to the pancetta mixture, reduce it a bit and add the vegetables, pasta, basil and parmesan. Served with a larger dollop of ricotta
  13. Duvel

    Dinner 2025

    Preponed pizza & movie night … „Spargel“: shaved asparagus, Hollandaise base, shrimps and some chopped salmon sprinkled over post bake … “Meatlovers“ (though most is hiding under the cheese blanket): every last leftover the fridge offered: salami, Bratwurst, ham and Spanish chorizo. Pickled onions for good measure … And a nice Riesling from the Palatinate, all enjoyed with „The boy and the heron“. No complaints, though the movie was a little bit to weird for me …
  14. Those are good. In addition to those, my dad always had these (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) in his fridge: Astor Wines and Liquor had their one-day American whiskey sale earlier this week. I restocked bourbon and rye at 15% off.
  15. I wasn't sure whether to put this in Daily Sweets or here but I finally decided on here. They are Traditional English Fruit Teacakes and they are delicious. I do think that the next time that I make them I will add more cinnamon and allspice and maybe a little cloves. And they're definitely will be a next time. I use raisins instead of currants because they are non-existent here and I will probably double the amount next time.
  16. That's a rather interesting time and temp for duck legs. What is helping you make this decision?
  17. gulfporter

    Dinner 2025

    Last meal before we leave our MEX home for a month. Grilled blackened salmon with Asian apple slaw (could have used some cilantro but our fridge is cleaned out) and raspberry chipotle sauce.
  18. You wouldn't be able to live very well in Montana. When I lived there, everywhere I went they served sweet potato salad made with sweet pickle relish and Durkee's sauce. I much preferred it over their ubiquitous sauerkraut salad.
  19. I too dislike sweet potatoes in almost every possible circumstance. That salad sounds detestable! When I was in San Diego last week Mr. BFF made a potato salad that I didn't photograph but did like very much. It had a touch of mayonnaise -- not much -- and chopped kimchi. Gave it a nice reddish color and a good kick.
  20. I fully understand you meant potato salads that are sweet. However your post reminded me of something that happened several years ago. I was visiting a Renaissance festival where I knew a lot of people. One of them offered me some potato salad but since I wasn't a participant, I declined. Afterwards I discovered that it made from sweet potatoes, which I really dislike. I'm glad I declined.
  21. Once in a blue moon Facebook shows me something good.
  22. Making the best use of the space you have can sometimes be a real dilemma. I have a drop leaf in my (teeny little) kitchen next to the sink, but the most important addition we did when we first bought the Pleasure-Way van was to put a plastic cutting board over the cooktop. We have a 2-burner cooktop, and my spouse found a cutting board that fit exactly (what are the odds of that?) and put little square blocks underneath to raise it over the actual burner. We remove it, obviously, when it's time to cook. It has greatly improved my ability to keep my temper while preparing a meal. The pull-out pantry has a finished top that I can use in a pinch. However, cooking in such a confined space requires me to "sequence" the process. What order should I use to be the most efficient? So I have to think on it for a bit before I start. Any cutting-up of vegetables or meat, preparing any starch (rice, potatoes) and starting to cook (which occupies one of my 2 burners), where to put dirty pots and prep utensils when they're not needed (the floor) should of course be done first. With luck everything gets done at the right time, and then I turn over the dishwashing tasks to my spouse. (I have to say I covet your oven, that extra space, and most of all your refrigerator.)
  23. I would. Not all plastics used in refrigerated packaging are heat safe.
  24. Am sure I've read about this question before, but my searches aren't working. Just purchased a dozen duck legs from d'Artagnan which I want to sous vide. Each package has two legs, so a perfect division. The legs will go in a 3.5 mil vacuum sealer bag for later freezing. They'll be cooked 160ºF for 28 hours. What I don't know is whether to remove the original packaging first? Edited to add: I should add that the reason I want to keep the original packaging is that the text describing package contents is legible. I write a lot of stuff on the outside of the s.v. bag in a fat black marker (including the date purchased, weight, the temp/time/date cooked). After vacuum sealing, the bag is usually badly wrinkled, so almost illegible. And I don't want to defrost it just to read it.
  25. liamsaunt

    Dinner 2025

    A couple from this week: Tacos bowls with black beans, corn, peppers and onions, cilantro lime rice, and guacamole Vegetable korma with cauliflower, carrots, and spinach. Served with garlic-cilantro naan and maharajah rice
  26. I tried several version/brands of pickled onions and THESE completely blew me away.
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