Chris Amirault

The British Alice Waters?

Is Jamie Oliver considered controversial? In what way?

I buy enough in bulk now that I have a few of those cheap plastic containers. Maybe I should just stick 'em in my sack of sacks that's in the back of the car....

I fear that dried fruit gets, well, too dry in those bulk bins. True? False?

As far as I can tell, they adore her.

How is Ray Ray controversial? She makes oceans of money, is a rather typical version of the "food star" phenomenon, and admits she's no chef.

I've managed to stain my KM already, for crying out loud.

Dry goods, for one: in the bulk section I often see people with a dozen or so of those reusable plastic containers filling them back up with whatever they are supposed to contain. I've also seen people reuse produce bags.

What a great topic idea!

kitchensqueen asked a great question over here: do you bring your own containers, produce bags, etc. to the grocery store or use what's there? I admit I never, ever bring containers, but always bring grocery bags, which, when you think of it, is a bit inconsistent. You?

So who gets your vote, Honkman?

No votes for Gordon Ramsay, eh?

I'm not one to buy things in bulk, generally, but lately I'm changing my tune. The Whole Foods bulk corn flour is perfectly milled for my pancakes, grittier than any other corn flour I can find, and their beans turn over fast enough that the basics (pintos, kidney, etc.) are pretty high quality. Thank you, vegans: never thought I'd say that. Anyway, it's making me realize that there's a lot I don't buy in bulk. What am I missing out on?

I've done this with pork, beef, and chicken repeatedly, and I find that it's both tricky to get exactly right and pretty forgiving: the biggest problem is having the meat a bit cooler than you'd like, as it's hard to overcook it if you're using one of the quick sear methods we've discussed at length here. I did flank steak this way last night. I had prepared it SV a couple months ago, froze it, brought it to room temp the SVS, and then seared it in very hot grapeseed oil, and it maintained that medium rare interior I wanted. ETA: Haven't perfected it either....

Making guacamole today using the very simple, set house recipe: avocado, onions, salt & pepper, cilantro, cumin. Maybe a bit of lime juice, maybe some chipotle powder. But that's it. I considered briefly a variation on a theme. Mango? Pineapple? Jalapeños? Nah. I'm pretty adventurous with many dishes, but I don't fiddle with guacamole. What's the dish that brings out the conservative in you?

Sorry -- should have qualified: For LTLT cooking of things like chuck, I'm thinking stew, daube, that approach, so I sear first. For steaks and other items that I just bring to temp, I sear them just before service.

Lots of opinions on the browning before/after approach. I'm a before guy, for reasons of taste, relative ease (to me, anyway), and probably utterly unjustifiable habit.

Two more questions: 1. What sort of undercounter lighting are you using? 2. Can we get a shot of the stove? On and off s'il vous plait.

Any special tips for dehydrating in the oven?

That's my understanding as well. We had asbestos shingles on the previous house and had to learn the whole drill: damage, removal, disposal.

Merridith's advice is good, I think -- but you'll find a big difference between 54C and 56C chuck cooked 24 or 36 or 48 hours. In my experience, her instructions will give you meat that still has a bit of bite, not fall-apart tenderness. You may find that you like it a bit more this way or that, and can adjust if you keep notes. I dunno of that blowtorch idea is going to work very well, but that's just a guess. I always brown the meat before going into the SVS, which helps a bit with the fat I haven't trimmed.

Are you enjoying this process or is it driving you crazy or both?

Genius.

We're old hands at that, Mitch, believe me: the old house had both linoleum and lead issues. But these tiles, literally, are popping off the floor right now bc the adhesive has hardened to brittle and we've been walking on it. We know how to play it safe, but these are probably going to be pretty easy to get up. Question: marmoleum?

What avaserfi said. I didn't want to fiddle too much with the smoker, water pan, etc. so I aimed low. Correct: I had neither.