infernooo

The pellicle? Yes overnight will suffice !

I made Miang of Pomelo with Prawns from David Thompson's "Thai Food". I first tried this dish in his Sydney restaurant Sailors Thai, and that was the moment I really opened my eyes into the _real_ thai food culture and how amazing the combination of sweet, hot, sour and salty can be when balanced properly. It also showed me how many other thai foods there are than green/red/yellow curries and simple stir fries. It is an An utterly outstanding appetizer with an amazing explosion of flavours and textures when you put it into you mouth. The fresh betel leaves make or break this dish, so don't try any substitutes. Here is most of the recipe (the ingredients at least): http://books.google.com.au/books?id=Bm4WbF..._search_s&cad=0 Here for an abridged version of it :-): http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/mess...sageID=15016100 Or you can try a slight variation in restaurant sized portions: http://www.miettas.com.au/food_wine_recipe...thompson95.html Martin Boetz, another Thai food god in Australia has a few different versions which are also nationally adored: Smoked trout with thai herbs: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=STbpRK..._search_s&cad=0 Grilled Scallops with crispy sweet pork and herbs: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=STbpRK..._search_s&cad=0 First and foremost, try David Thompson's version, he really knows how to balance flavours. Following though are some other versions for those interested: http://www.realthairecipes.com/recipes/leaf-wrapped-snack/ http://gourmettraveller.com.au/hotsmoked_r...omelo_miang.htm http://www.abc.net.au/tv/cookandchef/txt/s1640662.htm

Thanks for the pointers! It is only the second time I have used SV so I am quite happy with the results. Might try a shorter smoking next time and see how it differs. The rub was quite high in salt and sugar so I would imagine it wouldn't be any more risky than cold smoked salmon ? Thanks again!

Short and sweet: Smoked, sous vide flank steak. Flank steak here is always tough and chewy when grilled and served rare - even after marinating. Smoked it for 4 hours (temperature didn't raise above 110f in my home made stove top smoker unlike my Weber Smokey Mountain which runs much hotter) with a basic brisket rub, vacuum sealed it, put it in a 133f water bath for 48 hours. LIKE BUTTA

Hi Hiroyuki! I will check my notes and let you know which one I liked the taste of best :-). As for the knife, I did indeed ! I ordered a custom made Yanagiba from Shinichi Watanabe (http://www.watanabeblade.com). It is a 300mm blue Kintarou ame steel Yanagi.

Thanks prasantrin + Hiroyuki! The salt is actually _very_ nice, much better than the average sea salt I usually buy !

Maybe it means for use with grilled food - like yakitori...

Hi everyone! OK so during my visit to Tokyo, I purchased some very nice looking Soy Sauce (and also a bottle of what I thought was salt for use when eating in the hotel room!)... I have uploaded some photos of them and would appreciate if someone could let me know some more information about the Soy Sauces (I have my favourite of the 3, but am curious as to their quality or differences). Also whether the bottle of salt is indeed just salt :-).

Could you please provide some details on how to do this? Thanks! :-)

The 2 paragraphs talk about 2 cooking ranges... 131 (which several people have done, including the beef ribs) and the higher temps to melt saturated fat. Since my personal trainer would normally want me to stay away from beef DUE TO saturated fat, I thought this test would see what happens if this PALMITIC and STEARIC was removed from the meat. Only problem is to determine IF IN FACT saturated fat was indeed removed. And from close up pictures of the flat slices, you can see there's plenty of connective tissue still in the meat. Any most telling to me is that this morning in my home kitchen was a 1/2 pan with all the au jus from the last bag of brisket. I fully expected it to be congealed fat (75-78 deg room temp) but it was almost yummy enough to drink. There was just a tiny thin scum layer on the top but nothing that resembled cold grease. If it (the fat?) wasn't in the bag, then was it still in the meat? We cook an already awesome smoked brisket AND beef short rib on our smoker, so I don't see much value in using sous vide for these meats. I'd like to try more brisket flat at a lower temp just to experience that. It would be nice to hear from anyone who has an idea as to the fat issues. More pics available directly from my gallery section: http://www.jaymer-que.com/gallery/?Qwd=./B...umbs&Qis=M#qdig jaymer... ← Anyone ever give you any answers to your questions/findings Jaymer?

I would try getting the internal temp to 185-190f (85-90c) slowly - this has produced the best corned beef for me!

When I cook my pea and ham soup, I firstly make a REALLY rich ham/bacon stock by boiling ham hocks and bacon bones all day until they fall apart. Refrigerate the stock overnight and remove the fat the next day. There is so much gelatin from the bones that it is practically solid :-). Then I make the soup with split peas, (small amount) carrots, onions, salt and pepper - that's it! Cook it until it purees itself pretty much (the split peas disintegrate) and it is THICK - I love mine in a stick-to-your-ribs thick kind of way.

http://nzpotatoes.co.nz/industry_profile/varieties.html http://www.vegetables.co.nz/potatoes/about/varieties.php

I know it's not an air popper, but this one seems to have universally good reviews on cooking.com, amazon.com and was a top pick on the popcorn popper testing done on America's Test Kitchen: http://www.cooking.com/products/shprodde.asp?SKU=129205 Edit: This air popper seems to have rave reviews too: http://www.amazon.com/Presto-04820-PopLite...22482726&sr=1-1

Some years ago, a friend brought me back a jar of Ya Kun Kaya from Singapore, and I got absolutely addicted! Ever since then, I have been scouring the local shops trying to find some, but they only sell other brands, none of which are even close in terms of taste and texture. I know I can buy Kaya from asian grocery shops or make it myself (and yes I'm sure it would be better made myself), but this stuff makes every other type of Kaya I have tried pale in comparison. So, is anyone else addicted? I have read through the Kaya thread, but have found that Kaya isn't too well known around the world ! According to their website, they have locations in the following countries: Singapore, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, The Philippines, & Vietnam. So there could be Egulleters from any of these countries who are also addicted :-) ( a BIG Picture of the product can be seen here: http://www.yakun.com/images/KayaJarPoster%20(Eng).gif ) Are there other major Kaya shops who rival Ya Kun in popularity or product quality ?

IMO - do it as low as your oven will go. The best dried fruit is dried, not COOKED, and I feel that 60c is much too high.... think of some of the best dried fruit in the world, from the Middle East, Europe and California - layed out in the sun it would get quite hot, but certainly not 60c hot. I prop my oven door open with a rolling pin, and if you oven stops when the door is open, perhaps you can wedge something in to make the oven think the door is closed ? I think if all else fails and you have to leave the door closed, leave it at a low temperature and the evaporated water from the fruit shouldn't be a problem... the circulating air and fans inside the oven should take care of that. If you are just grinding them, don't bother making it too thick - it will just make them harder to grind. Just be careful not to over dry them. In regards to the humidity, I don't think it really matters. Unless you are leaving them out for a long time, it should be pretty safe. Once the water has gone, the tendency to go off/rancid/mold is much less likely. Just store them in an airtight container and they will be fine !

Thanks for the info! :-) I've been making whole milk (no whey) "ricotta" lately using citric acid as the coagulant (heating the milk, citric acid and salt together until about 175-185 until it curds separate, then straining and if I want it smooth, blending it). p.s. your pics look great, keep up the good work! :-)

For the ricotta, did you just bring up the whey to ~ 200F ? Did you add any acid (acetic, lactic, citric, vinegar, lemon juice)? Did you add extra milk for increased yield?

I think most people dislike brown rice because they have only had it cooked badly and it has left a bad impression. Cooked properly, it is wonderful in a warm (or cool) salad with a slightly piquant dressing, parsley, proper greek feta, sweet grape tomatoes, red onion, etc. Nutty, separate grains with a slight bite/chew to it - it is a great combination.

I have found Ming Tsai knows his French food, and he made something similar on one of this shows... perhaps try converting this hollandaise to a bearnaise ? http://www.ming.com/simplyming/showrecipes.../Holandaise.htm

Hiya Joesan :-) I ended up getting the Smeg SCP112X (Pyrolytic Function, Pizza Function, Bakers Steam function, Bakers Proving function, Defrost Function). It absolutely rocks... It holds the temperature quite steady too: I set it to 80c to make some homemade cheese (more like cream cheese) and monitored it for 8 hours with the USB temp datalogger, and it fluctuated between 78 and 83 the entire time. I would computer control it, but it already does everything I need ! :-) The only down side is you have to be VEEEEERY careful when cooking using the pyrolytic cycle. Oven mitts melt if they touch the inside of the glass door (yes that is from experience) and just like a tandoor oven, you could very easily burn yourself putting in or removing naan breads (or any other food being cooked for that matter - luckily this piece of advice is NOT from experience).

I purchased a Salton Just Nutty peanut butter maker on ebay a while ago, and it appears to be very similar to the one on sale at Amazon (except the Just Nutty one is quite old and no longer made: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-In-Box-Salton-Pean...QQcmdZViewItem) However, these machines have a strong tendency to break. The one I bought was from an antique collector and it was brand new in the box. However, using it you get the feeling it won't have a very long life ! The texture can be selected from course to smooth, but to be honest you won't get perfectly smooth peanut butter... the machine just can't do it and it has to work VERY hard to get it almost smooth.

I believe kewpie uses soybean oil - considering that the mayonnaise consists mainly of oil, I think this would also be a major contributor to flavour (the oil type and vinegar type).

I found this recipe in a free tourism/Japanese travel magazine - the chef is from the Ocean Room in Circular Quay in Sydney, Australia (Raita Noda). Pan-seared Tofu Steak with Soy & Butter Sauce Ingredients: 400g (2pcs x 200g) tofu (silken or soft) 1 pc alinghi mushroom 1/4 bunch broccolini 6 pcs semi-dried tomatoes Garnish-herbs: a little dill or bulls red baby shiso a little fried garlic salt, white pepper/black pepper to taste a little rice flour or corn starch Soy & Butter Sauce: 30g unsalted butter 1 pc French shallots (chopped) 1 tsp (or more to your liking) soy sauce 50ml water 1/4 lemon 1/2 ts garlic (minced) 1/2 ts parsley (chopped finely) 1 ts capers 1. Cut 200g of the tofu into a rectangular piece and sprinkle with salt and white pepper. 2. Dust the tofu in the rice flour and fry in an oiled and heated pan until golden. Be aware that even at this stage the tofu may still be soft and easy to break apart. 3. Heat the oven to 180c and grill the fried tofu in an oven-proof tray for around five minutes. 4. Prepare the vegetables. Cut off the top end of the broccolini and lightly boil in a pot of water with a dash of olive oil and salt. Slice the alinghi mushrooms down to about 3mm and then brush them with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill the mushrooms till golden. Cut the semi-dried tomatoes into bite-sized pieces. 5. Now prepare the sauce. On medium heat, melt the butter in a pan. Add the chopped shallots, garlic and capers. Thoroughly cook until almost over-done, then add the soy sauce. Bring down to low heat and slowly add water (mixing with a whisk) to emulsify the sauce. To avoid burning the parsley, sprinkle it on towards the end. 6. Place the grilled tofu on a plate and pour the sauce over it. Arrange the prepared vegetables around the tofu. Add a dash of herbs or garlic chips to complete. Cooking Tip: Before sprinkling herbs or garlic chips, lightly pour some olive oil and some salt on the tofu.

I only have a few thoughts... 1.) Traditional restaurant tandoors have VERY thick walls and are often surrounded by stainless steel to further retain heat. The one I purchased weighed an absolute ton! (I just checked the specifications from when I bought it, and for a "small" sized one, it weighed 300kg = 660lb !) This would make a HUGE difference in being able to retain heat once food is added. They also use a LOT of charcoal to keep the overall thermal mass high. 2.) The lid should be fairly tight fitting even with the skewers protruding from the top. 3.) The restaurant tandoors also have air vents in the bottom like charcoal grills which allow you to increase or decrease the airflow underneath the coals to get things even hotter.