ratgirlny

It was this multicooker https://www.target.com/p/cuisinart-174-7-qt-electric-multi-cooker-stainless-steel-msc-800/-/A-51222521 No pressure cooker function - mainly a really good slow cooker. Its shape is far more amenable to browning than the canister shape of the Instant Pot. In fact, I don't even try to brown in the IP because it is hopeless, and if you get any scorch, its stupid program prevents it from going to pressure. Anyway, the Cuisinart slow cooked at a slightly lower temp than your standard crockpot - I tested with a thermometer a few times - preventing that overcooked problem. And to add to this - i tested the IP's slow cooker yesterday because I miss my slow cooker so much. And I can tell you: It is definitely the worst slow cooker ever. After three hours, on the highest setting, my chili was only at 155 degrees. I ended up tossing because I was concerned about food safety.

Lots of discussion here... Yes, I always reduce the liquid after if I use a slow cooker or the pressure cooker. And I always brown the meat and the aromatics first. I used to own a multicooker that let you brown everything and then turn to slow cook. It cooked at a lower temp than a traditional crockpot, which prevented the overcooking that some complain about. I loved that thing, and although I like oven braises the best, I never felt safe leaving my oven on all day while I am at work, plus 8 hours in the oven is just too much for many dishes. My multicooker broke (it was my fault, I caught the cord in something and yanked it out), and people convinced me to replace it with an Instant Pot. So I did. And while there are many things that work really well in it, especially beans, I do not like it for some of the dishes that I used to do in the slow cooker, especially things like chili where there is a lot of complex spice flavor. In the pressure cooker, the spices still taste slightly raw and unmixed by the time the meat is done. So that led me to try to understand what a pressure cooker does, exactly. It still sounds like hotter and faster to me. I read the Serious Eats article back when I was considering a pressure cooker, but it is more about taste tests than explanation. I agree with him that oven braises are best, but I think there are some dishes that just don't come out as well in a pressure cooker. I just want to know WHY so I can figure out what to cook in the pressure cooker and what to avoid, without wasting food in the process

Sorry, still not getting it. Why does braising in a hotter oven bring no advantage, but it does in a pressure cooker? There is something I am just not getting... And yes, I always brown first, and I also reduce the liquid, whether it is a pressure cooker or a slow cooker. But the results seem better in a slow cooker, and better yet in an oven braise. That is why I am trying to understand what the pressure cooker does exactly beyond simply cooking faster and hotter

First off, yes I do own a pressure cooker one of those trendy Instant Pots. But I have some really basic questions about how it really works. I understand the science - the fact that temperature at which water boils is raised, so that it cooks hotter and faster. But most of the recipes I see are for things that are traditionally cooked low n' slow: oven braises, slow cooker recipes converted over, etc. Isn't "hotter and faster" the opposite of "low n' slow"? How is this different from simply doing my oven braise at a higher temperature? That would take less time too. I am asking because I am trying to figure out which of my oven braise and slow cooker recipes to try in the pressure cooker. While it is great for beans, I haven't been very happy with dishes that I normally do in the slow cooker - the complexity of flavor just isn't there. I had always learned that you have to go low n' slow for complex flavor - maybe that is the issue? Can someone explain how a pressure cooker is different from simply braising hotter and faster?

Oh, that sounds good. I love Greek. Is it a place where one needs a reservation?

I am meeting up with my favorite college roommate, who I haven't seen since 1983. We are meeting up in the East Village on Sunday evening. She lives in FL, but works in the travel industry, so she goes out to eat often in interesting places around the world. I, on the other hand, have 3 small kids, and though they are foodie kids, we tend to eat at the ethnic, kid-friendly places. So while I might know the interesting Chinese spots in, say, Flushing, I am at a loss when it comes to a kid-free girls night out. I am looking for a place with good wine or beer, interesting but not high end food, and a relaxed quiet atmosphere where we could catch up. We need to be able to get in without a reservation because I am not sure exactly of our timeing. I am hoping that 6:30-ish on a Sunday might not be too bad. I am considering Hearth simply because I was there recently for a kiddie birthday party (the chef is a dad at my kids daycare), and it looked interesting - plus the food they fed the parents was yummy. What other options do we have?

I just got back from a banquet where Jennifer 8 Lee, the author of The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, was the featured speaker. She was hilarious. I had read her book last summer and enjoyed it. Her talk included a video of puzzled people in China trying to figure out what you do with a fortune cookie. Has anyone here read the book? What did you think?

I notice this thread has not been active for a while. We visited Spicy & Tasty for the first time on Saturday, but I was a little disappointed. I think, alas, that we got the "gringo" treatment. We are a family of 5 - including 3 kids. We've been to Grand Sichuan and Szechuan Gourmet in Manhattan, and wanted to compare. We spent time 2 years ago in Chongqing China so we are not unfamiliar with real Sichuanese food (Chongqing has a reputation for the hottest food in Sichuan, in fact). I ordered Cold Jelly Chengdu Style, cold cucumbers, lamb with scallions, dry cooked string beans, Ma Po Tofu, and double cooked pork (those last two are kind of reference dishes). We also got Yang Chow fried rice for the kids. They gave me what I think were sesame noodles instead of the cold jelly noodles - nicely done sesame noodles but not what I wanted. I should have complained but didn't because my 3 year old was slurping them up. The cucumbers were pleasant but nothing like the addictive Sichuan picked vegetables at Szechuan Gourmet. The lamb with scallions was awesome. Ma Po Tofu was pleasant but not especially spicy - my corner takeout can make it spicier if I ask them. The double cooked pork was OK, but I like the fattier kind of pork. So...did we get the toned down white-people food, or is this just what Spicy & Tasty is like these days? Incidentally, we shared a table with two Taiwanese guys who said they come regularly for the noodle soup and who were not at all familiar with the Sichuanese dishes.

I notice that they have a kids menu at the Upper West Side location. Although my kids would be fine with the regular menu, I always imagine that this means the restaurant welcomes kids. Do you think that is true? What are the waits like on a weekend evening, earlyish?

OK, I just realized that I wasn't reading closely enough. I see that Katz's does do online. Thanks! I'll go with that option. Has anyone heard of a place called Ben's Best. They seem to also do online ordering. Thanks!

We are in southern Westchester. If anyone knows of good pastrami in Westchester, let me know! I don't have time to head into the city to do this. I have 3 kids and a fulltime job. I need a place that does mailorder, the way that Murray's Cheese does.

No, Boar's Head is precisely the kind of overly lean and bland pastrami that he doesn't like. He wants the kind you get at the best deli's in NYC. Maybe I should post this on the New York board?

My husband is always complaining about the quality of the standard pastrami that we buy at the supermarket, saying it is too lean and bland. I want to get him pastrami that is really good for his birthday. Are there any mailorder companies that sell really good quality pastrami? We live just outside NYC, btw, but I don't have time to go into the city to buy anything. thanks!

In my experience, having been there about a dozen times now between lunch and dinner visits, showing up at Szechaun Gourmet without a reservation (you can make reservations no problem) during the dinner rush has always been a recipe for a 30-60 minute wait. That's not to say Bruni's review has had no effect, but the observation you're reporting isn't uniquely post-Bruni. ← We bring out of town friends here all the time, and always, always make reservations. They have tended to be crowded on weekends for months now.

We've taken our kids to Ottos a bunch of times, and even relatively late (we tend to be lateish diners). Once we took out of towners who had 2 small kids, so we had 5 kids under 7 at the table. It is a great place for kids, with tons of choices that kids will eat. They are very experienced with stashing strollers too. The only downside is that it is LOUD, so if you want to actually talk to your kids, you will have to scream.

My 5 and 7 year olds enjoyed the lo mein (which looked pretty unremarkable to me) and the scallion pancake. My 20 month old ate the lo mein too, and also all the spicy food. She was born in Chongqing so perhaps it is in her blood. My 7 year old did try the ma po tofu, which is very spicy, and pronounced it the best tofu he ever ate.

Szechuan Gourmet is really baby friendly (we took our baby) but does not have high chairs. That can be a problem with some babies.

We had those pickles too. They were really good. Very addictive. Everyone at the table was going after them.

We were in Chongqing last winter and fell in love with the cuisine, especially the Chongqing style hotpot. Now that I have had the real thing, I can't eat at the local Chinese takeout joints any more, and am on a constant quest for real Sichuan food. We've been to Grand Sichuan a number of times and have found the food there pretty good. So after I saw the buzz on this forum about this restaurant, I really wanted to give it a try. I went with my husband, a friend who travels a lot to China (married to a Chinese ancestry guy with family in Shanghai), and my 3 kids - a 7 year old, a 5 year old, and a toddler. We showed up at 6:45 on Saturday, not realizing that you really need reservations for this place. We looked so pitiful when they tried to turn us away (my kids were really looking forwards to it and also didn't want to walk another step) that they found a booth for all of us, and we crammed in. Since we were sitting up front, we saw them turn lots of parties away after us - so at least on a Saturday night, you need a reservation. I didn't carefully note the names of all our dishes, but I remember we had Dan Dan noodles and the Sichuan pickled vegetables to start. The pickled vegetables are great. Dan Dan noodles were OK. We then had ma paul tofu (never seen that spelling before), a dish with fish, fried tofu, and minced chiles, another dish with shrimp, asparagus, and minced chiles and pork. And some nice plain braised bok choy for balance, and a plate of good ol' lo mein for the little ones. The ma paul tofu was wonderful - very fragrant underneath the heat. My 7 year old pronounced it the best tofu he ever ate, even as the tears streamed down his face and he frantically grabbed for his Sprite in between bites. My toddler, who is adopted from Chongqing, enjoyed the lo mein as well as the Dan Dan noodles. The waitress and the person at the door (the owner perhaps?) were very very nice to us, and kept coming over to joke around with my 5 year old and flirt with the toddler. I think they were amused by the Westerners with the baby from Chongqing. They told us that they are getting lots of Westerners who speak Mandarin and want authentic Chinese food. We told them that our 7 year old is learning Mandarin and likes authentic Chinese food, and they all laughed. I noticed several parties in the back enjoying what was clearly Chongqing style hotpot, with the broth all dark and red from chiles and spices. It wasn't on the menu. I asked the waitress and she said that it needs to be ordered in advance. Has anyone here tried it? Overall, it was a good restaurant with friendly people.

My sister and I used to fight over the brussels sprouts when we were kids, that is how much we loved them. I prefer mine slathered in butter, and cooked long enough so they are NOT al dente. Cooked with bacon and a little balsamic vinegar comes a close second. My 7 year old likes his drenched with balsamic vinegar.

Living in the NYC area, with the tiniest, dingiest, rudest supermarkets in the country, I can think of many peeves. Here are some of my faves : - bagged lettuce with slimy leaves even before the expiration date. I never buy bagged lettuce because it is so rarely fresh. - the move to bagged and sealed produce in general. It is getting harder and harder to find loose produce. - cashiers who wad the receipt up with the change so you have to untangle the mess before you can put your money away - people in front of you in the line who put their cart behind them while they stand and pay. Our checkout converyor belts are very short, so this means I can't reach the belt to start loading my groceries. - people who shop while gabbing on cellphones. Just like in traffic, they aren't paying attention and often ram other people with their carts - everything about deli counters. Why do I have to stand and wait behind 10 other people? Why can't they take my order and let me come back later, like at the pharmacy? Stop n Shop now has these computers to let you put in an order, but they are broken 90% of the time. - the complete absence of baggers in the NYC metro area. I often am shopping with a todder in the cart. It is hard to bag, pay attention to what the cashier is doing, and keep a toddler from grabbing all the candy at the same time. - and the lament for years of all parents - candy in the checkout aisles.

We just survived a whole house renovation project (including kitchen) and I would say this quote is spot on. The kitchen still isn't completely finished after a year.

Is the ma la hotpot similar to Chongqing style hotpot? The picture above doesn't look like what we had in Chongqing. The broth of the hotpot that we had there was bright red, and had lots of what looked to be aromatics and chiles floating about in it. My kids loved it, and are hoping for more. I know of one restaurant here in NYC that does it, specifically calling it Chongqing style, but I don't know if it is any good or not.

Thanks for the responses. I am not looking for the mild kind of Chinese hotpot, although I am sure that is good too. I specifically want the Chongqing style, with the red broth which has lots of chile peppers floating about. My kids adored it, and my 7 year old specifically requested it for his birthday. I would love to surprise him on his next birthday.

Was it the chicken that is buried in chiles? I saw someone eating that at the Grand Sichuan on St Marks, and it looked just like the ones I had in Chongqing. There was a stall at a food court (yup, a mall food court) that specialized in that dish, and those things were FLYING out of there! I found it very tasty, but a bit hard to eat because we had to dig through all those chiles to find the chicken bits.