Jump to content

chefrodrigo

participating member
  • Posts

    184
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by chefrodrigo

  1. One of you Indian food experts should get over there. We just had lunch there and I thought it was very good. The owner describes it as east Indian and most others in town are north or south.

    The cook has worked in London, New York, and Boston and if I remember right has been cooking about 25 years.

    I had beef curry, cauliflower/ potato curry, rice, salad, and desert for $7

    The beef curry was my favorite. The spices were balanced nicely and the beef was tender and plentiful.

    Rodney

  2. I think you are really pushing the limits on the life of a Cdp. I think the northern rhones are going to stand up better for that age but would be quite a bit more than $100.

    I've never heard of those Cdp's either. Any clue on there storage conditions?

    Rodney

  3. I would love to see it. I would keep it around mostly for cooking. I hate opening, or buying, wine for particular recipes. If I had one box of red and one white they would last for as long as needed with no spoilage.

    I guess I'd also have a couple of glasses while I'm cooking.

    Rodney

  4. how important do you find the quality of the chicken? i once bought two chickens for $5 on sale from the supermarket and they were very stringy. not sure if that was because of my cooking or because the chicken was crap. usually i buy 'smart' chickens (which i think are grain fed?) or free-range chickens and they don't have that problem.

    Same here. I quit buying supermarket chickens. I either get free range from better food stores or buy at our farmers market. There is a real difference.

    I'm also a firm believer in brining.

    Rodney

  5. I think one of the tricks to crisp skin is to stop basting for the last 20 minutes. I usually don't put vegetables around the bird either, except for garlic, because of the steam they create.

    I use a vertical stand also.

    Rodney

  6. Make sure the skin is as dry as possible when it goes in the pan. That will help with the sticking.

    Have you seasoned the pan? The more you use it the better it will work so don't get distressed if it sticks a little.

    Rodney

  7. You can do a pan roast chicken with the parts. Cook the parts skin side down in an oven safe pan. Get it started on the stovetop in a heavy pan with a light coat of oil. You can start the legs and thighs first and add the breasts later so they don't overcook.

    Be careful with the seasonings. They will burn easier in the pan. When I do it I just salt and pepper the pieces(I dry them in paper towels first to prevent sticking)

    I put them in a pan over medium heat until I hear some sizzle and then throw them in a pre-heated oven at about 375.

    I cook it mostly on the skin side and watch the heat so it doesn't burn. When I think there is about 20 minutes left I throw in some chopped garlic, a lump of butter, and whatever herbs are handy. Roll all the pieces around in the oil and seasonings and finish it skin side up.

    Sounds like you are onto something good. Roast chicken is one of the greatest meals when its done right.

    rodney

  8. There are parallels to this concept if I understand their description. There are PTFE "composites" out there where, if you think at the microscopic level, a tougher polymer or ceramic type matrix holds finely divided PTFE in order to provide a structural framework for the relatively fragile PTFE. Xylan polyamide/PTFE coatings for fasteners that are inserted with power tools comes to mind, developed for the automotive industry. Also, bearings and such where there is a mocosite of ceramic or graphite. I can see how an anodizing coating structure, basically a type of ceramic, could be developed to include PTFE. If that is what it is. How durable would that actually be? Who knows. Would it really allow for development of fond? Who knows.

    Yeah,

    What fifi said. :blink:

    rodney

  9. OK... This extraordinary turn of events is going to require an expedition to the great Pacific Northwest to investigate. Um... Irwin, When is morel season? :laugh:

    fifi

    come to the pacific northwest for morels but don't count on an authentic hot link. I grew up in Texas and I know of what you speak. I live in Portland now and there are plenty of authentic bbq spots but they are only authentic to the people who grew up here. If you are from the south you would be disappointed.

    However, there is not much better than a morel omelette with an obsene amount of morels that you can buy for about $10/lb in season.

    Rodney

  10. I like to take whatever scraps I have left and poach them in stock, for about 45 seconds, just enough to soften it. Then I put it in the food processor with about 1/3 as much butter. They both need to be at room temp before pulsing it in the processor. It makes a great spread on toast with some grainy salt on top.

    Rodney

  11. I used to travel alot in Texas and it is hard to beat their Q.

    I've done brisket at home in my New Braunfel's smoker - bummer is getting up before 5:00 am to get it going as I agree it takes at least 10 hours - 14 is better.

    Saw in the paper today a woman I worked with last year is opening up a place to be called Tucci's Q American Bar-B-Que on Russell in the old Doris' Cafe spot. Dinners starting 1-5-04 with lunches to follow. Probably worth checking out.

    We tried last summer to find a New Braunfels Bandera smoker but everyone in Portland stopped carrying them. We finally ended up buying a 6' long 24" diameter steel pipe and started building our own. Its almost done now.

    Thanks for the tip on the new spot. Can't wait to try it.

    Rodney

  12. Texas BBQ, though, especially the Lockart/Luling places you mention, means beef. I haven't had good brisket yet, just mediocre stuff. For me, though, it's all about pork ribs, especially fatty spareribs. And I think on that, Portland does pretty decent. Then again, I rarely try beef unless someone else gets it.

    I haven't had a rib in Portland that wasn't boiled first. Brisket may be the specialty but there are plenty of spareribs in central Texas.

    Rodney

  13. I lived in Texas for 30 years and I have never had bbq in Portland that is as good as good Texas bbq. There is plenty of mediocre bbq in Texas and Portland might be on par with some of that.

    As for the great places in Texas like Kreuz, Smitty's, Coopers, and Muellers, Portland does not even come close. No comparison.

    The problem is nobody is patient enough to do it right. It takes about 10 hrs to cook a brisket and about 5 hrs to cook ribs and there are no acceptable shortcuts.

    Just my opinion

    Rodney

×
×
  • Create New...