Chris Amirault

OK, so I'm in a last-minute pickle. I've made cranberry sauce (two bags, ginger, orange, cinnamon, cloves, sugar to taste), strained it, and now I have a delicious sauce that won't gel. The only thing I have in the house is gelatin. Do I just need to experiment with amounts of gelatin? Or can someone give this gelling novice a guide to rough amounts with cranberries? I was thinking 1-2 packages.... Thanks in advance.

I thought I'd post a bit about my expectations for this tasting. I'm a tea neophyte with an interest in having quality tea at work. I'll be using the this 16 oz ingenuiTEA system to brew it. Not ideal, I know, but I'm sure I'm not the only person interested in tea who has logistical limitations but wants a swell cup. I'm also finding that I really like oolong teas and will enjoy having my palate stretched toward quality. The oolongs I've enjoyed are a bit roastier (my favorite thus far is the roasted twig oolong from Teance), so a lighter style will be intriguing. Thanks, Richard, for getting this exciting project rolling!

Due to this recommendation and a cool video, I bought the 16 oz ingenuiTEA system on Amazon. I love it -- and finally get the "Agony of the Leaves" concept. (I also made a no-cost contribution to the eGullet Society by starting my Amazon search here!)

Robert, fess up. Is this a claim you're making about current NYC restaurants? Or just a historical reference?

In Providence you can find chicken feet at Asian markets that have butchers (many, not all) and they tend to have been frozen and defrosted. They typically run $1/lb, max.

I have been thinking about the difference in approach between Mr. Shaw and me (so civil, this popping of corn), and I thought that, as with most things, Mr. McGee could help us out: From this all I glean: You need basically any refined oil, as all get above 380F without a problem. If you use the oil first then corn method I espouse, you want to approach the smoke point (for peanut oil it's 450F) before adding the kernels as they'll reduce the temperature. If you use the method Mr. Shaw espouses, with corn and oil starting cold, this doesn't apply. I can't get a read on whether cold or hot start has an effect on puff. The protein-starch mixture needs to soften for the steam pressure to build to the limit needed, but it doesn't seem clear that length of time affects that softening. The loosely fitting lid is crucial, as suspected.

How thick and fatty is it? Can you give photos? Very interesting questions.

Heat too high or too low, is my guess. ← Or not enough oil.

I just want to say that The Marguerita -- -- is one of the greatest sours ever invented. Each time I make it I am in awe, sir.

Rancho Gordo makes great popping corn if you don't mind the smaller size. For whoppers go with Orville. A decent balance available in stores is the Paul Newman brand. I agree, Chappie. I make popcorn at night once a week at the least, and whenever anyone outside of the family tries it, they ask for my "secret." "I pop it on the stove and add butter and salt," I say. "Wow. That's dedication!" say the microwavers. "How long does it take?" "About four minutes, start to finish," I say. You can finish the rest. ETA: Here's the method (cuz someone asked): Put on your beaten-up aluminum popcorn pan and turn the heat to high. While you're letting it warm up, get your ingredients ready (corn, peanut oil, salt, butter). When the pan seems terrifically hot, about a minute, add two or three tablespoons of oil. It should become watery immediately and smoke soon. Dump in enough kernels to cover the bottom of the pan; more is ok, but remember you want contact with the bottom of the pan. They should immediately sizzle. Shake a few times, then get your big bowl. If popcorn starts to push up the lid, dump it into the bowl. (The popped kernels rise, so you'll be left with kernels.) When you go three or four seconds between pops, you're done. Dump it all into the bowl. Put your butter in immediately and start cutting into bits with a butter knife. It's good if it turns brown so don't fret. Melt it over that high heat while shaking; if you're melting unsalted butter, add your salt to the butter directly. When it's all melted, pour it carefully across the entire bowl. Add more salt to taste, and toss the bowl in the air like you toss your ingredients in a skillet. Eat it like there's no tomorrow.

I've seen it too, but the price and packaging make me very wary.

Is this just an aged-rum daiquiri?

I put the salmon up to cure Saturday night, and yesterday I wanted to overhaul it to see how it was doing. Here it was just after I rearranged it in the hotel pan a bit: I then layered the white pine needles on the top of the salmon: Finally, some plastic wrap, another pan, and the weight: I'm afraid that the needles are not quite imparting the flavor I'd like, so I'm going to take a taste later today and see if I need to roughly chop them up.

They'll last for how long once they cool and have been bagged?

Questions, questions, questions. How thick are the slices? What temp for the oil? 350F? 375F? Seasoning ideas? Oh, and: what about taro? ETA the taro question.

Decided to go with some pancetta stresa. I'm also hoping to do a better job of tracking what I do and how it goes. I trust my senses more than I did in the past, too. These two slabs were firm enough whereas the others need a few more days. Here's one getting weighed: And the other hanging in the basement with the tag: I'm very curious about the specifics of weight loss, which Ruhlman doesn't mention very often but which Bertolli uses as his guide.

And that I did: I started by frying a ginger, onion, garlic paste as a base, added the spices, stock, and peanut butter, and letting that cook for a while. The vegetables were onions, green beans, butternut squash, sweet potato, and kale. I kept it pretty tame because it was for chile-fearing guests, but as I'm defrosting the leftovers now for lunch this week, I think I'll be spicing it up quite a bit.

In any classic sense a vinaigrette should be an emulsion for sure, and with smug Stephan pushing his Europeaner-than-thou holiness on the prole Yanks, it was a stupid (and it would appear drunken) thing to say. I expect more smug, stupid, and drunken from Stephan, but if he saves that behavior for the apartment and doesn't try to shave anyone's head, he contends. Like a lot of people, my money is on him, Fabio, and Gene: those three clearly have the chops and appear so far to have ice in their veins in the kitchen. Is anyone else noticing that quite a few people already seem to be cracking and shaking at judge's table?

OK, I'm committed to trying a gravlax with white pine, salt, sugar, and white pepper, with a sprinkle of some green Chartreuse.

We talked a bit about the "smoke ring" over here. HKDave, I'm liking your explanation. ETA: It still doesn't really explain McGee's comment exactly.

Though he's talking about bark and not needles, Euell Gibbons comes to the rescue: White pine it is. A warning, however:

Oh, I've definitely done both, and pellicle wins over non-pellicle in terms of smoke flavoring. I don't think that the received wisdom is wrong. I just can't square it entirely with McGee. I'm increasingly thinking that low-level humidity with a dried pellicle is the key here. Though I can't explain why.

I was reading McGee today trying to get to the bottom of this lox/gravlax thing, and noticed something interesting. Turns out a Society member had noticed it too: My books and the internet reveal no additional information. I'm thinking about making this as part of the appetizer tray for Thanksgiving. If no one has insights, I'll explore and document it here; if you do, please contribute them, and I'll see what happens in my kitchen. First up: researching pine needles.

And how thick is a "surface" exactly?

I'm like Dave. I have followed the pellicle brief diligently. I pick up McGee for fun. I'm confused too. What is this pellicle, anyway? How deep is it exactly? Perhaps part of what happens is that the dry surface becomes moisturized by the ambient water -- which is impregnated with the water-soluble compounds in smoke. So as the flesh rehydrates, the compounds are transmitted into the meat. Since all air has some humidity, maybe we never thought of it as sufficiently humid and were only focusing on the pellicle.... I mean, what about misting shoulders and butts while in the smoker? Does this contribute to or prevent smoke adherence? If the latter, why do people do it? ETA to write more about humidity.... CA