Chris Amirault

You got a name for that, Sam? ETA: And Dave (or Dave), what's the recipe for Two Indies?

Which model do you mean? Can you paste in a link?

Three questions. How would one describe the Higashi-Date Stir? Do the non-Uyeda bartenders fine strain out the crystals? What's his explanation for those damned things?

I have been trying to figure out a good system for pickling stuff that doesn't require a $150 layout for ceramic crocks and weights. Lo and behold, here is the Pickl-It system, a standard canning jar set-up with adjustments for immersion and fermentation. Just ordered a couple pieces; I'll report back. This got me thinking about other pickling equipment and systems out there. What you got?

I say go for it.

Sam (or Kohai, or anyone), what determines that the shaking is "done"? Temperature? Feel? Sound? Time? Count? Great reporting so far.

Are you speaking metaphorically? Or do you really mean you think it tastes like dust and sweat socks? Can you be more specific?

Sam, do you know the recipe of that? We just got S&C, the arrack, and a bunch more Haus Alpenz stuff at work, and I'm having a grand old time. Love to know.

Not much pork back fat used in the Middle East. Too bad: the lamb burger I had last night (80% lamb, 20% pork fat) was astonishingly good -- and ecumenical.

Boy, ain't that the truth. By far, the biggest issue is pouring into the little slots. Having said that, pouring OUT of the thing isn't exactly smooth at times. I'm going to try to practice to see what's what, but the OXO cups are a lot better going in and out....

Any updates?

Linda, which Bluestar do you have?

You got me wondering about the upside-down part. Can that be traced back to tarte tatin? Or are there other origins?

Very interested to see it all, Sam. Are you happy with the decision to go induction?

Interesting, pretty small, teaches you things... Hmmmm... Tom Collichio's Think Like a Chef. Grace Young's Breath of the Wok. Fergus Henderson's Nose to Tail Eating I'll keep thinking.

Thanks, Sam. I'm interested to hear you talk more about this (emphasis mine): I'm struck by this approach to hospitality, and to the cultivation of a customer relationship that is quite different though no more or less professional than that espoused by, say, Gary Regan or Dale DeGroff. I can't quite put my finger on it; I'm tempted to say it's very Japanese but I'm not sure what that means beyond some generalization of friendly, courteous, attentive customer service. Chummy it is not.

Here's the recipe I referenced above from my fantastic MIL, Susan Castañeda, whose voice comes though in this recipe. It's been delarded; feel free to sub in lard for shortening. This recipe has been tried and true for over 30 years. Combine: 6 1/4 c AP flour 4 t baking powder 2 t salt Cut in 1/2 c plus 2 T shortening (lard). Gradually add 2-2 1/2 c buttermilk until you have a pliable but firm dough. Knead 3-5 minutes. Shape into a pile of golf-ball sized spheres and cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Rest for 15-20 minutes while you heat your comal. "Roll, roll, roll until you sweat": one at a time, roll out the tortilla and, working quickly, transport to hot comal. When tortilla is just picking up slightly tan spots on one side, turn it over (30-45 seconds depending); let it cook another 20-30 seconds on the second side and remove to a plate. Cover cooked tortillas with dry towel as you go. "Serve with peanut butter and tequila."

Interesting stuff about the visual elements, as well as about the ice. But some of it, well.... Last I checked, salt introduces salty flavor, not umami. Perhaps that blue curaçao really is special.

Have settled into a recipe that combines the insights here. It's for ~750 ml, as I'm making it for a bar. With an immersion blender, combine until smooth: 120 g gum arabic powder 150 ml hot (200F) water (Don't worry about a few lumps.) Then, with the same immersion blender, combine until smooth: 230 g cane sugar 230 g demerara sugar 230 ml hot (200F) water Combine the two syrups with a bit more immersion blending. Fine strain into a clean bottle. And now, the reward: a Sazerac.

The DCS ones have infrared broilers, yes. I've been snooping around looking at them. Dave, why does your KA work so well do you think?

And all for only $2,500!

I didn't take careful measurements, I'm afraid, so I can't tell you weight of the napa. Ginger, I think, was about a 3"x1" piece of ginger. And the kochukaru is just pepper, no salt.

I'm spending a lot of time thinking about options for replacing ovens at the house I'm moving into soon, and I realized this weekend, while hanging out in the kitchen of the restaurant where I bartend, that I'd really, really like me a salamander. Indeed, though my wife bakes and I do my share of roasting, we do a lot of broiling: cooking or browning proteins, toasting bread for croutons, melting cheese, etc. Right now, I blast the oven to 550F, turn on the "broiler," and watch the food roast with a bit of poorly dispersed high heat darkening stuff here and there. I don't think that a commercial salamander is an option, but I've started to hear about infrared broilers and have been wondering what's out there. Does anyone have any experience with such things?

It's here in RI. We are using it at Cook & Brown Public House in our Vesperasti: 1 1/2 oz Cocchi Americano 1 1/2 oz Bluecoat gin scant dash lemon juice scant dash Angostura Stir; strain; coupe. We have some wild angelica that we're using as a garnish; a small lemon twist would also work. ("Scant dash" = ten drops, if you're obsessive.) I'm so thrilled to have this to play with!

There's a tweet making the rounds: Anyone know what that means?