HKDave

Thunderbird is a Canadian company that has 2 factories in China. The industry standard for attachments (and common attachment parts, like grinder plates and blades) isn't perfect. A couple of times in the last year I've had to fit attachments with different brands of mixers, and each time filing was required to make it work. But in the end they all were made to work, sort-of.

It's more likely a metal ion issue. Fava beans contain anthocyanin and possibly anthoxanthins, both of which are water-soluble, so after cooking they end up in the water. And both react with metal. From McGee 2nd edition page 281: "And traces of metals in the cooking liquid can generate some very peculiar colors: some anthocyanins and anthoxanthins form grayish, green, blue, red, or brown complexes with iron, aluminum, and tin." Even though your pot was stainless, it still could have leached some metal into the water over the time it was sitting on the stove. Or the metal could have come from a stirring spoon, strainer or ladle. This is different than what happens to asparagus or okra... the pigment in those is chlorophyll, which as Kerry Beal noted, can change colour in the presence of acid. But with anthocyanin, a bit of acid does the opposite; it prevents the colour from changing.

The Hamlyns were the UK editions. The first Hamlyn edition was 1961, and as far as I can tell, it's the same text as the American 1961 Crown edition. The "Introduction to the English Language Edition" in my 1961 Crown describes the translation as an "Anglo-American venture" and describes how they included both US and UK measures and terminology. Yes, the 1988 Hamlyn was a new edition, and I suspect it parallels the US 1988 edition. There was also a 2001 Hamlyn; ditto. And Hamlyn is releasing a new edition in October this year, which matches Random House in the US. For those looking for a 1st (1961) edition, they've easy to find. They were both 'book club' books and were reprinted many times; my Crown 1st edition was printed in 1968 and it was already in its 28th printing! There are several copies on eBay at any given time, some with rather optimistic prices, but a quick check today shows you can get a 1st edition in either the US or UK for a 'Buy it now' price of US$30. I wouldn't pay more than that unless you want a pretty dust jacket (the 1st ed. Crown dust jackets are usually in bad shape).

Oliver, assuming your copy is in English, you've got the 2nd American edition. There have been 3 'American' (=English language) editions: 1961, 1988 and 2001. They're quite different; I don't know about 'better'. The book grew from 1000 to 1200 to 1350 pages over the 3 editions and certainly became more up to date. For one thing there's now more than a passing mention of 'foreign' (non-French) foods. But if you use it as a French culinary history reference book - which is what I think it's best at - the 1961 edition is the closest to a translation of the 1938 French original. There was also a concise edition published in 2003, and the Random House website suggests we may see a new edition in Oct 2009: http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display...0307464910.html Lamington, if your edition is 1088 pages, I think you've got the 1st edition text but with some additional plates. The original 1938 1st edition had 1088 pages (sometimes described by sellers as 1087, just depends if you count the last page) plus 16 half-tone colour plates. But at some point, later printings - still described as 1st edition - came out with 36 plates. The original plates sound like the black text / serif font ones you mention. If the later-date wines you mention are only on the blue font plates, those would be the later additions, and that would explain this mystery. This may help: http://www.vialibri.net/cgi-bin/book_searc...earchAll=Search

Ducks in HK come from China, and I can't imagine a good restaurant using a frozen US duck over a less-expensive fresh China one. Probably best not to disagree with your father-in-law, however. Going by your photos, "Luang Haung" is Lin Heung, an old-style dim sum place on Wellington St.

Here's a somewhat late reply... according to the Vinegar Institute (yes, there apparently is such an entity): "How Long Does Vinegar Last? The Vinegar Institute conducted studies to find out and confirmed that vinegar’s shelf life is almost indefinite. Because of its acid nature, vinegar is self-preserving and does not need refrigeration. White distilled vinegar will remain virtually unchanged over an extended period of time. And, while some changes can be observed in other types of vinegars, such as color changes or the development of a haze or sediment, this is only an aesthetic change. The product can still be used and enjoyed with confidence." From http://www.versatilevinegar.org/faqs.html Now we don't know if they tested Chinese rice vinegars, which are somewhat less acidic than typical western vinegar. But check this: "Zhenjiang Vinegar The best vinegar is in Zhejiang, located in Jiangsu province. Zhenjiang vinegar is unique for its color, fragrance, acid, pure and dense material among other kinds of vinegar in China. Taste it, you will feel acid and delicious, fragrant and sweet. The longer you keep it, the better it tastes. This is one of the ¡°three strange things¡±, which will never deteriorate." From: http://www.visitzhenjiang.com/pages/en/activities/food.html Just to straighten out the terminology... Chingkiang vinegar should be black rice vinegar that's made in Zhenjiang; Chingkiang (often mis-spelled Chinkiang or Chenkiang on vinegar labels) was the pre-revolution transliteration of the city's name. If it doesn't say it's from Zhenjiang on the label, it should just be called black rice vinegar, not Chingkiang vinegar.

For controlling mold, there are several approaches which usually have to be used together: - Lower humidity and/or lower temp during curing means less mold. I keep it closer to 50f at about 70% humidity. - Check more frequently... bad surface mold is often curable with a vinegar or brine wipe if caught very early. - Dip before hanging with a good surface mold, like this stuff: http://www.butcher-packer.com/index.php?ma...143b38b4be095e9 or in Canada, "Mondodip" from stuffers.com (not on their website, but they do have it) - Some people also like to soak casings in a vinegar solution before stuffing. Re the duck, I've made prosciutto from frozen duck breasts without problems.

It means 22-24mm diameter, which means they're sheep casings, not hog (the smallest hog casings are about 30mm). The use of sheep casings, with links about 75mm long, and the distinct marjoram flavour are the signatures of Nuremburg bratwurst. They sometimes have caraway as well. Because they're so small, in Germany they're usually grilled and plated 6 or 12 per serving. Re the question about skin: you can't just grind in raw skin; it'll give you an inedible product. But there are a couple of specific sausages that use pre-cooked skin - traditional cotechino comes to mind, and Bertolli uses some in his lucanica recipe. I'd avoid just randomly adding it to any recipe, as it changes the texture quite a bit. Here's a link to Bertolli's recipe: http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo...ack=1&cset=true

Tak Lung Restaurant in Sum Po Gong is one of their biggest misses (bib)...smoked chapon; "mille feuille" of chicken liver, cha siu, sweetened pork and candied ginger; deep fried oysters in port sauce....it was $100 per person for 10 courses... ← Tak Lung is an amazing value... and I have to thank Sher for introducing me to it. One of the best meals I've had in a long time. I'm not sure Michelin would like the bathrooms, though ;-) PCL, I disagree with your position as well, for reasons stated very well by aprilmei, Sher and Robert upthread. The Michelin HK guide is mediocre, but it's just not as important as it might have been at one time because now it's just another drop in a ocean of mediocre print guides that have already been replaced by blogs and forums - such as this one - as sources of more up-to-date and in-depth information. I certainly didn't feel or sense outrage about it; personally, I would have been more surprised if they had done a good job. Some of your more sarcastic and deliberately misinterpretative responses to those upthread (all of whom I respect as chefs, HK food professionals and dinner companions) that criticized your posts border on flaming, which isn't helping your credibility in this discussion.

Most US beef is 'aged' only in the time it takes the truck to drive from the packer to the store. Very little US supermarket beef has any aging beyond the 4 days it takes rigor mortis to dissipate, and sometimes not even that. If you froze them before the rigor was gone, that might be the problem. But assuming the rigor was gone, further aging would be unlikely to redeem a very tough cut of meat. Wet or dry aging can't add marbling to poorly marbled beef and can't break down connective tissue. Aging is a technique for making good steak, better.

Something that greatly reduces brining times (important if you are under pressure to relinquish refrigerator space!) is a brine injector, aka brine pump. A basic one will only set you back about $30 http://www.butcher-packer.com/index.php?ma...&products_id=25 F. Dick, as usual, has a much nicer unit for about $170. Use one of these and you won't have to wonder if brine has penetrated to the thick parts. Injecting brine is a very common practice in commercial charcuterie. A good source of info about brining times, concentrations etc is the Marianski's book http://www.amazon.com/Smoking-Smokehouse-D...i/dp/159800302X

Well, the books say don't do it, the health inspector (if one was involved) would say don't do it, people in the thread say don't do it. Did people brine without refrigeration in the past? Sure, because they didn't have a choice. The incidence of death from botulism poisoning was higher in the past, too. Standards have changed. Brining your ham at room temp may or may not be dangerous. I'm not qualified to say if the concentration of salt and nitrite in your particular brine is sufficient to overcome the expected pathogen load at your room temperature. But given that you're not living in a refrigerator-free French country farmhouse 50 years ago, wouldn't you agree that it's a completely unnecessary risk when the alternative is simply to drive to the supermarket and buy a bunch of party ice?

It wouldn't be considered safe. I only brine in the fridge. But I usually have a walk-in to play with when I'm doing this sort of thing. Polcyn and Ruhlman agree. Page 60 (at least in my edition) of "Charcuterie" says, in bold: "Always brine meat in the refrigerator." If you're adding ice, do so in sealed bags so it doesn't dilute your brine. Or... freeze some of your brine before you start.

It's very similar, but with both Argentinian and Uruguayan beef there's variety... it used to be 100% grass-fed, but these days it's increasingly likely to be grass-fed to start and then grain-finished in a feedlot, same as North American beef. 100% grass-fed is less marbled (= chewier) but is considered to be more flavourful. Usually, the 100% grass-fed product will have yellowish fat, so if you see snowy-white fat, it's grain-finished. I suspect the export stuff is mostly grain-finished. Intercity Packers is importing the Uruguayan beef (at least I saw tons of it in their plant last time I was there), so you could give them a call and see what kind it is and who else has it at retail: 604-291-7791

It was 182 last year, so no significant change in the number. It'll be the same as usual. Many - too many - restaurants use DOV to pack the house at a slow time of the year. They squeeze in extra tables and serve steam-table slop they wouldn't put out any other time of year, trying to make a buck from the inevitable crowd of tightfisted lemon-water-sippers that won't be there at any other time of year. But a few places don't compromise, and use DOV as originally intended, as an opportunity to showcase their food and service to a group of prospective new guests. As reported upthread, Parkside excels at this; my first meal there was during DOV years ago, and I've been back many times since. If I try to eat anywhere during DOV 2009, it'll be Parkside. And a few don't do DOV at all, making it the best time of year to visit. Last year during DOV was a great time to dine at Fuel.

Chill. You're cooking a chicken, not handing toxic waste. Brine is somewhat anti-bacterial, but that doesn't mean it is sterile, so as a rule it should be handled and cleaned up same as whatever uncooked product was in it.

My method is very similar to 6ppc's. I 1/2 the squash, and before roasting, I stuff a whole head of garlic, top sliced off, in the cavity where the seeds were (I may not use all the garlic in the soup), and I lay several sprigs of thyme on the face-down cut surface. Other than that, we're pretty much the same. I finish with cream and adjust with lemon juice rather than vinegar. Re baby food consistency, as everyone has said, that's either because it's not blended enough and/or not run through a fine strainer, or else - most likely - it just needs more stock. This is a fairly common beginner's blended soup mistake. You probably need more liquid than you think, and you may need to add a little more if you later re-heat it because these soups seem to thicken up in the fridge. Your soup should be... soupy, not gloopy.

If I'm in North America and it's snowing, I like to go out for some nice warming Thai food. On a beach. In Thailand.

A Maderia sauce would be traditional with Beef Wellington: saute shallots, deglaze with red wine, add Madeira, pepper, spring of thyme (some also like bay), reduce, season, add demi, remove herbs, season, monter. Add truffles to make it a Perigord sauce if you're feeling flush; that's a really classic pairing for Beef Wellington.

Downtown weekend brunch? Chambar's sister, Medina: http://www.medinacafe.com/

I roast whole shoulders for big parties fairly often. I debone and butterfly (leaving as much fat on as possible) a day ahead, season the inside heavily as for porchetta (fennel, garlic, s+p and maybe some other stuff), roll and tie. This gets you a long, fairly even tube shape that's good for slicing, and the day in the fridge allows the seasoning to penetrate. Remove from fridge an hour before cooking. Cook in a very slow oven until about 140F internal, then pull and rest, tied, for at least 1/2 hour.

Back from another Macau quicky. Just one night. Day 1 lunch was at Fernando's, and since the meal lasted 4 hours, we can call it dinner as well. Salad, chorizo, garlic prawns, drunken steak, roast pork, feijoada, cheese, pudding and quite a bit of various kinds of alcohol. Very good as always. Day 2 breakfast was at the Long (aka Lung) Wa Tea House, which is on the 2nd floor of the 3-story yellow building just north of the Red Market. This place is... very old school. It's been there since the '60s and they haven't ever renovated, other than to remove the spitoons a few years ago. It's like a cross between a movie set and an art gallery and an old relative's living room. You order tea, of course; if you know your tea they have some really good stuff. You pick what you want from the small selection of dim sum in the steamer, and if you can communicate in Cantonese, maybe order one of the few things on the menu. They are known for their chicken rice and beef chow fun (which we tried; greasy but good). I loved the place. No English, but they're remarkably friendly to gweilo visitors, probably because they don't get many. Open 7am - 2pm. And afterward, if you like checking out food markets, the Red Market is is a good one. Day 2 lunch was going to be O Manel but they're closed Wednesday so it was Club Militar again. Nothing new to report that hasn't been said upthread on that. Cheapest place to drink in Macau at the moment is the 3pm - 8pm happy 'hour' at the Educational Restaurant at IFT Mong-Ha. Cocktails are MOP15 - that's US$2! If you're heading there for dinner, come early and help with the hospitality program students' education by ordering a couple of government-subsidized cocktails. Edit: spelling.

Minor correction - Tojiro DP series are honwarikomi construction; they have a Swedish carbon core, stainless on the outside. Agreed that they are good value. mexigaf, I'm not sure that using a sujihiki will give you "more control" in general use than your 8" chef's knife. For one thing, sujihiki usually start at 9.5", so it's going to be longer. For another, the blade is going to be thinner and more flexy than your chef's knife; great for slicing, but not nearly as durable for general use. If you're buying it for slicing, great, but I wouldn't recommend a sujihiki as a substitute for a chef's knife.

No, I don't think so, but I could be wrong. There was so much pork in October that between the cutting and bagging and labeling, one gets anatomically disoriented. The greatest example is from the thick chops along the back, more anterior than posterior. I'll dig one out later this week and post the before and after cooking photos. ← Did it look anything like the photos at the bottom of this page? http://www.sapork.com/58colour.html

It's definitely not corrupted; opens fine for me. But it's a .pdf (adobe acrobat) file. Try downloading it and opening with Adobe Reader if it won't open in your browser. I didn't wrap in cheesecloth, just hung it loosely tented with parchment paper to keep dust etc off. I did the entire drying in the walk-in fridge because the restaurant was too warm for drying in the back room. Worked fine.