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doronin

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Posts posted by doronin

    Best sushi restaurants in Montreal?

    in Eastern Canada: Dining

    Posted

    I don't think anybody's mentioned Tri on Laurier Est?

    So good. The best.

    And as crazy as it sounds, as a former West Islander, I very much enjoy the fare at WiSushi on des Sources in DDO. Too far for city dwellers though.

    I have to confirm that WiSushi offers definitely better maki then Maiko Sushi on de Sources, but frankly, still far-far from what I'd call "good".

    BTW, what's wrong with their rice - both put so much vinegar and sugar into the rice, so it tastes like a dessert sweet-n-sour rice ball. Fish on it tastes simply unnatural. I never noticed this problem in places like Soto few years back, or in any of my favorite Japanese places in Ottawa.

    Good fruit in Montreal

    in Eastern Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted · Edited by doronin (log)

    Montreal is known as a dumping ground for cheap produce. Most high quality fruits and vegetables don't even make it here because Montrealers have a reputation for being cheap when it comes to produce. The buyers for the big distributers never buy high-end produce because it will most likely rot on the shelves.

    I noticed that quality of fruits and vegetables in Montreal isn't close to what I was used to in Ottawa (except a couple of extremely expensive places), although, frankly, I would expect it to be opposite.

    So, where did you say the high quality stuff goes?

    Yogurt Curry problem

    in India: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    Almost every time I tried to prepared anything with yogurt, such as curry yogurt recipes, I had a problem with the yogurt - when heated, it becomes, well, a cheese - milk solids separate from water, etc. Resulting dish doesn't usually goes well :)

    What's the secret technique am I missing here, how to make yogurt to stay... yogurt when cooked?

    How do I tell if my malt syrup is diastatic?

    in Pastry & Baking

    Posted

    Bought some malt syrup to use in bread baking.  Label simply states "Malted Barley Syrup" and ingredients state:  sprouted barley.  So do you think it is diastatic malt, or was it heated past the point of no return when it was put into the jar?

    To my best knowledge diastatic malt sold as a powder (flour) only, and if it doesn't clearly state "diastatic" you're most probably left with non-diastatic malt...

    Montreal fish markets / sushi grade

    in Eastern Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    I second the idea to freeze the fish. The best omokase freeze their tuna, sometimes for months.

    I had a wonderful dinner last April at Yasuda in New York, second perhaps only to Masa, and spoke at length with Yasuda himself about this very subject. He "ages" all of his tuna this way.

    I have heard that Masa does the same.

    That, of course, a matter of taste, but anyways I'm doubt they meant to use home freezer for that purpose.

    AFAIK, tuna frozen almost instantly and kept under -40C stays as good as it gets - assuming right conditions for thawing. But I'm seriously doubt it can be reproduced at home without the proper equipment.

    Montreal fish markets / sushi grade

    in Eastern Canada: Cooking & Baking

    Posted · Edited by doronin (log)

    ...If you are looking for lobster, clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops, tuna, sea bass, swordfish, salmon (farmed or wild), trout, cod haddock, red snapper and many other types of fish, P du Marche is an excellent choice.

    Well, may be you could advise me... I enter into the store, I see large piece of tuna on the shelf. Looks beautiful. Is it the one you make sashimi of? I asked a piece of it (twice during two weeks) - and drove home right away. At home I found lots of water in there, and I couldn't slice it nicely with the very best of my knives (I use Hattori and Masahiro) - as it was falling apart. Both times I tried it happened. From the very beginning it didn't look and didn't feel like a tuna real sashimi usually made from. Did I chose wrong cut? Do they have different cuts for grilling and sushi?

    Getting tuna for cooking in tataki style

    in Cooking

    Posted

    Tonight I decided to play with some tuna to make tataki-like dish... Well, I got some sushi grade tuna, it was looking gorgeous at store.

    Now when I brought it home, I discovered that the piece... kind of falls apart - I didn't really squeezed it, just to be able to hold it. It smelled very fresh. Taste was somewhat bland.

    Due to inability to hold the shape well I couldn't slice it as thinly as expected.

    What could be wrong with tuna - is it wrong cut, or just bad quality, or anything else I should be looking before i buy?

    Thanks!!

    President's Choice Knives

    in Ontario: Cooking & Baking

    Posted

    Ah ceramic, great for tomatoes because of the sharpness, and for cutting lettuce, no browning, but they shatter or chip if dropped.

    Are they really that special with regard to sharpness? Something tells me that steel knife can always be sharper if sharpened properly...

    As for lettuce - great idea, I'll consider getting one...

    President's Choice Knives

    in Ontario: Cooking & Baking

    Posted · Edited by doronin (log)

    I would love to own good Japanese knives but I know my limitations as far as keeping them in great condition so until I learn to do that, I would prefer something much more run-of-the-mill.  I've read all the course work, studied videos, etc. etc., practiced on an old knife and I still don't get it.  So, just as I will never, ever dance with the Canadian Ballet Company, I adjust to my limitations in the knife-care department.   :smile:

    Sorry to disappoint you :)

    Japanese stainless steel knives I've got required frm me much *less* maintenance then all Henckels and Sabatier I tried. They just stay sharp much much longer. And cut better. They do require being careful - blade is thin, and chip easier then of European style knives.

    Electric sharpener will most probably ruin any good knife.

    But there are enough manual sharpening systems that do the job perfectly, with learning curve about 20 minutes, in $30 - $150 range. They just help you to hold the right angle against the wet stone - and that's all you need to resharpen knives even ten times more expensive then we're talking about.

    The only problem with Japanese knives - once you tried them, there's no way back, unless you deliberately prefer German style cutlery.

    Good example here

    President's Choice Knives

    in Ontario: Cooking & Baking

    Posted · Edited by doronin (log)

    While the purchase price of Japanese knives may fall within the $35-$50 range - I am assuming US$ - by the time you add on shipping, exchange, import/brokerage duties, and taxes, the price does not look quite so attractive.  The most expensive knife in the PC range is $25+14% in taxes, no shipping or customs duties and they can be returned locally if they prove unsatisfactory.  I think we need to recognize that there are many home cooks who would be well-served by a knife that is not too expensive, doesn't require a good knowledge of honing and sharpening skills and can stand up to the rigours of a home kitchen even if they would fall short in a professional setting.

    Well, I didn't recognize the price ranges are different that much. I absolutely agree that in our life there's always some room for simple knives.

    Regardless, for those who think the Japanese knives worth the premium (and they definitely do), shipping is $7 from Japan. When I ordered mine I wasn't charged any taxes - I lived in Ottawa, ON at that time. And when I happened to damage the blade, I was offered free repair/resharpening, I paid only one way shipping to Japan.

    You do the math.

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