Jump to content

Qwerty

participating member
  • Posts

    509
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by Qwerty

  1. Qwerty

    Farro

    You should also look into Freekeh or "green wheat" which is another ancient grain. Freekeh is cracked and toasted with fire to remove the chaff so it takes on a toasty aroma and flavor. It (usually) has an irregular shape (some whole grains about the size of rice, some are cracked and broken) so it gives it a nice mix of textures. Slightly chewy (though not as much as farro or spelt) and IMO better flavor. Check it out.
  2. The "slimy" white as you call it is just the watery part of the egg white. If you look closely at an egg (say, crack one onto a plate) you'll notice a "firm" bit of white, and you'll notice a runny, watery bit of white that easily separates itself from the rest of the egg. This is the part (in an otherwise normal egg) that "feathers" in a traditional poach...in other words, its the bit that clouds and collects in your poaching pot. Anyone who has ever poached more than a couple eggs at a time knows what I'm talking about. The best thing to do is to use a large perforated spoon to drain this part of the egg off. I crack my sous vide eggs directly onto a slotted or perforated spoon, usually set over a paper towel, and let that watery egg bit slip off. You may need to tilt the spoon a bit. I assure you it is fully cooked it just looks weird. It is 100% normal and, unless you go to full hard boil stage, unlikely to go away completely.
  3. I have mixed feelings about this. Of course Freidman is a pig and shouldn't be in business. But the reality is he is still in business, and unlikely to go anywhere--who better to right the ship and re-think and instill a more progressive culture than Gabrielle Hamilton? They might have a chance to be at the forefront of a kitchen culture revolution and to spread it from the inside out. Where is the outrage thread against April Bloomfield? As far as I'm concerned, she's (almost) just as guilty. She worked along side him for 15+ years, never once reported or called the authorities (as far as I can tell). At best she's complicit in all the wrongdoings that went on...why does she get to continue to own/operate restaurants on the West Coast and in the city? Why all the hate for GH (who, at least, seems to be trying to actively change things)?
  4. No, I disagree. The statement clearly said "hope there's no truth to it" not "I wish it wasn't true." The difference is: "Wow, I wish this wasn't the case because up until now I had respect for John Besh." vs "I hope these 25 women aren't telling the truth so I can continue to respect John Besh" ' The sympathy lies with JB, not the women. IMO that is a huge difference. And also, I might add, indicative of the overall problem we are talking about here.
  5. Yeah, it sure is sad when men get caught repeatedly sexually harassing women. Sure do feel bad for those guys. /s Do you really think and/or hope there is no truth to it? You think those 25+ women are lying about a culture of harassment? Did you read the article? How about some sympathy for the women who had to put up with that sh*t?
  6. I'm not sure of you all are aware but you're still doing it...
  7. All right everyone, I'm calling it. eGullet has officially run out of ideas. Everyone go home, nothing to see here. The site had a good run, really. There has to be a self destruct button under a "Break in case of intense PB&J discussion." You've exhausted everything else there is to talk about.
  8. I agree with all the follow up advice. Retherm in the bag slightly below cooking temp, then take out, sear, etc. I will also add: It looks like to me, from the amount of juice that is left on your cutting board , that you neglected to properly rest your steak. Resting after the sear if you've sous vided something is less important than, say, when you roast or pan roast something (gentler cooking, not as hot, etc), but since you admitted you overcooked your meat when you went to sear it, it probably got too hot and needed to rest. What color is all that juice on your board...? Red...lol, that is where your color went. Also, if you are using previously frozen meat, that can lead to a lot of water/juice leeching during cooking and/or reheating. Also also, if you have a huge piece of meat like a tri tip or something, don't be afraid to warm and sear in smaller pieces. You could easily have cut that sucker in half and cut down on the time it takes to heat it back up, thereby possibly preventing you from overcooking it. Just a thought.
  9. This thread pisses me off. You sound like a toxic chef, burned out and grouchy. I mean, are you such an "artiste" that subbing out spinach for carrots (or whatever) is somehow going to ruin the intricate nature of the flavors you have composed for your guests enjoyment? Is it too difficult to execute or something? Is pouring sauce into a small pot really harder than pouring it over the meat? Lol, the steamed spinach "isn't suitable" for the beef? You're making mashed potatoes and steaming spinach, not chiseling David out of marble. Customer SERVICE. Get over yourself. There are so many variables that dictate when people arrive in a place for a meal...you seem to lack perspective. You never know who will be coming through your door to custom your place. A couple that has been traveling all day and finally needs a break at 9pm to grab a nice meal. Maybe the movie got out late, or the concert went long. Maybe there was traffic. If the restaurant doesn't want to accept orders past 9pm, the restaurant should close at 9pm. Why stay open until 9:30? Why work in a place where this happens? Go work in a place that closes at 8 if that is what you want. There is a favorite story of mine where, in the early days of the French Laundry, the maitre'd informed the kitchen that a 4 top had been seated late (they had been waiting sometime at that point.) A cook let out an audible groan, and TK fired him on the spot. Clean out your locker and GTFO. Because it is a bullshit attitude. And attitudes like that are infectious, and need to be weeded out. Sooo, you were upset because you had to cook lunch for 8 people? I dunno about you, but I can do that in my sleep. Yeah, working on Christmas Eve sucks...go find another career. Having a slightly oblivious owner? I call that Monday. Sounds like you were unprepared for lunch and got caught with your pants down. Mise en place, chef. Plan for it. I mean, good on you? That's a pretty low bar to set for yourself. "I'm mad I have to cook lunch for 8 people, but at least I didn't spit in their food."
  10. I also don't understand the "sharing" thing. Seems simple enough to cook 2 steaks...but whatever. My solutions is that you should stop wasting money on steaks. You'd most likely find much more pleasure in braising a short rib or pot roast or something than spending money on Filet that you are going to cook to well done. A properly cooked braise will be tender, juicy and well cooked. I'm not trying to be snarky but I think that you'll find much more pleasure in eating a braise than a well done steak. I mean...well done steak...what's the point? The things that make a steak delicious are long gone at the well done stage.
  11. Qwerty

    Sous vide halibut

    I got some advice for you, as someone who does sous vide in my pro kitchen, and yes, I sous vide fish all the time. It can be wonderful. Number one thing: Make sure you are sourcing quality seafood. You may have gotten previously frozen halibut, which can lead to a mushy texture and a greater chance of flaking apart. That is probably your #1 thing to do, source better fish. We "cure" out fish for about 30-45 minutes before we bag it. I say "cure" because we don't do a traditional, heavy-ish cure on it, like if we were going to smoke it or dry it, for example. We make a pretty basic salt/sugar mix (I use 2 parts salt to 1 part sugar) and whatever herbs and spices you'd like. Dill is great, thyme is great, sometimes I use a black pepper/coriander/fennel seed mixture. I usually blend this with the salt/sugar mix and then sprinkle it on the fish. We generally eyeball it, but we season the fish as if we were seasoning it for immediate cooking, if that makes sense. So it is not as heavy as a salt cure (again, for smoking/making lox/etc) but it is probably more cure mix than a "normal" home cook might put on it. I wish I had a better description, but basically we sprinkle it on pretty heavy like we were going to go straight into the pan. I hope I make sense. There are a few reasons why we do this. First, it seasons the fish and makes it taste better, obvi. It also pulls out some protein rich liquid, which helps prevent a lot of the albumin protein from coagulating on the fish as it cooks. Basically, when ever you cook fish sous vide (or any other way, really) you get a egg white looking protein leech out of the fish. This is totally normal--most people notice it the most on salmon but it happens a lot on halibut too--but leeching out some of that protein rich liquid by salting ahead of time prevents this. You will still most likely get SOME albumin, but it really cuts down on it and makes the final appearance easier to clean up and look nicer. It also firms up the flesh of the fish, making it less prone to flaking apart after it is cooked--which is a big deal when cooking fish sous vide. We then bag it with whatever fat and aromatics we are using for the dish. Duck fat, pork fat, butter, EVOO, are all options. Dill and thyme are my favorite herbs. I generally don't sear my sous vide halibut (I do for salmon on the skin side only), but curing the fish should help quite a bit. Just make sure your oil is hot and try not to move the fish in the pan until it releases. I usually like to add texture to the plate in other ways other than searing, but again, this should help. A hot cast iron pan (well seasoned) should work just fine. You might try gently patting the fish dry before you sear, as moisture on the outside of the fish could cause it to stick. Good luck.
  12. One thing that might be noted is that, at least here in the states, our food contains so much animal protein (in general) that we don't need umami to enrich a lot of stuff. A bowl of rice and vegetables would benefit more from fish sauce or soy than a bowl of Texas red, for example. The fish sauce or soy would fill that "gap" in the dish, making the flavor more rounded and hit more areas of the palate. "We" also use a lot more dairy in our cooking, where there isn't that tradition in Eastern food (and yes, obviously I'm generalizing) But since so much of our "traditional" cooking is meat-centric, and indeed the way we eat is meat centric--things that bring umami aren't really the necessity that they might be in other, specifically Eastern, cuisines. It might go a small way to explain why there isn't a tradition of "umami" as a flavoring ingredient.
  13. Ah yes, the inevitable tear down after the build up. Took longer than expected. Que the "I knew it was going downhill last 3 times I ate there" and the "Thomas Keller must be slipping" comments from the Can't Do and Never Was brigades. I'm sure I already missed some. The world LOVES this kind of stuff. There's nothing snobby eaters like more than a good take down piece--except maybe claiming that they knew it all along.
  14. Qwerty

    Sancho

    Lol, Sancho. To the unitiated, a "sancho" is mexican/spanish slang for the guy who your wife/GF is cheating on you with. The reason people call out "sancho" when you sneeze is because when you come home from work (say a couple hours early) the Sancho runs and hides in your closet or whatever, but when he sneezes he gives himself away. So when you sneeze and all the Hisapnics call out "sancho" its because that is how you know a sancho is in your house. Pretty funny stuff. A sancho can also be a kind of slang (what is that called? Slangier?) for someone who is nice to your face but talks or acts differently behind your back. Like, a sancho might shake your hand at church or at a party, but as soon as you go to work he sneaks in the back way, eats your food and bangs your wife.
  15. Maybe you could try thinking about what would be a fair yearly wage you would earn as their Exec. Chef, figure out how long you will consult, and then extrapolate a price. Maybe add a bit more. Like, if you would make 50k for a year, and you would work for them for 4 months, then it would be something like 16k. Maybe charge them an even 20k for example. I dunno, but it seems a place to start. You would expect, at the minimum, to get paid what they would pay a non-consulting exec. chef I would assume. You obviously don't want to take advantage of their situation (they wouldn't ask if they didn't desperately need help) but you should get value for your time.
  16. I'm confused as to why you would want this restaurant to stick around? Seems like there is good reason the crowds thinned so quickly. No one ever went back. There is a difference between getting one or two small things wrong and being a complete train wreck from start to finish. While I agree with Chris Amirault that 6-9 months isn't always sufficient time to work out ALL the kinks of a place, I don't think 2 years is required to hone on systems to cook burgers, eggs, and hash browns. 6 months should be plenty of time to start humming along in most restaurants. One year tops. Hell, most places don't even make it to two years. Being in the business, I have some measure of sympathy and empathy for restaurant owners, especially "mom and pop" type places. But someplace that can't get the basics right, or even close, probably wouldn't benefit much from criticism from you, no matter how polite or well intention it was. You could try leaving this at their entrance: http://www.amazon.com/Running-Restaurant-Dummies-Michael-Garvey/dp/0764537172/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1334485783&sr=8-2
  17. Hey no problem. You did solicit opinions, did you not? Sorry I couldn't provide you with validation for your actions. Again, how you run your chocolate and pastry shop (with coffee) is your own choice. You seem intent on being defensive and trying to justify your behavior instead of taking some advice (that you asked for, again) and maybe gleaning some insight into how you could improve your customer relations. The fact that your snark and rudeness is probably effecting your business more that letting people use the restroom seems to fall on deaf ears. I hope, for your sake, that you make really good chocolates and pastries. It's easy to be nice to people who are nice to you. Being nice to the ones who aren't...that's customer service. I'm tired of beating this horse...I've said all I can. Good luck man.
  18. You say you aren't upset, yet still called the parking enforcement/towing company in an effort to get revenge on a guy who just wanted to take a pee in your bathroom? Doesn't add up. I somehow doubt you were doing some sort of civic duty, otherwise your parking surveillance would be a full time job. You keep an eye on all cars parked outside your door? Or just the ones from people who pissed you off? Honestly, I think that says more about you and your state of mind about the issue than anything else. Like I said, I think you should change your thinking on this issue. Just look at everyone who walks through the door as a potential customer, whether or not they intend to buy or not. I don't think that most places that sell goods would mind more foot traffic. I doubt car dealerships are chasing people off their lot because they are just browsing with no intent to buy--because they know that someday in the future those people will most likely need to buy a car. Obviously its up to you to decide how to run your business. If you feel that being rude to customers and getting their cars towed is good for business, more power to you. Me, I wouldn't want the potential bad juju...the less people you have out there bad mouthing your establishment, the better. If the price is to let the occasional customer pee for free, I'd see that as an even trade. You could even think of it as advertising...I assume they have to walk through your store, past all the pastries and chocolates, to get to the restroom. That is just more people who get a look at your display case. How did he know that? Did you tell him? if you told him, doesn't that mean he asked? Didn't you say earlier that you never refuse someone who asks? Again, I don't understand why you seem unable to let it go. Well, it's a question I can't answer. Who knows--my crystal ball is cloudy today. Maybe he wouldn't come back, but at the very least, he's probably not venting to the neighbors and everyone else he knows what a jerk the owner of that little coffee shop is. Don't know what to say here. If you are using the old "other people do it" line to justify why you feel the need to get back at this person, I can't help you. Seems petty to me.
  19. So, let me get this straight. A guy came into your store to use the bathroom, pretended to be interested in a coffee, but then just left without buying one. And you somehow thought it was, what...funny? cool? your civic duty? revenge? to call and have this guy's car ticketed and towed? This guy, who obviously does business in your building. Sounds like he sells real estate to people that live ABOVE your business. He is in a position to recommend it to people who are literally within a minute or two walk of your front door, on a daily basis, will walk by your store probably twice a day, and you do that to him. Sounds like a smart business move. Bet that felt good, get that A-hole who had the audacity to use your bathroom. You certainly aren't over-reacting. Thumbs up, sir. IMO, you might want to take a look at why this bothers you. Seriously. If you are so pissed off at people for using your bathroom that you somehow feel good about "getting back" at them then I feel sorry for you. If I were you, I would re-prioritize my thinking about it, and look at every person who walks in your door as a potential customer, and stop worrying about if they use the bathroom or not. Even if they don't buy something right then, they might remember you next time they are in the neighborhood and stop by for something. Especially if your store is nice, the display's look yummy, and yeah, even the bathroom is clean. Maybe in a week or two they want/need to buy a box of chocolates for a friend, and they remember how delicious looking yours looked in the display. I mean, I'm assuming your business isn't doing so well that you can afford to alienate a bunch of potential customers. How can food traffic be bad?
  20. Remember too, that the menu price doesn't just reflect food. It reflects everything else the owner/operator has to pay, like overhead, labor, etc.
  21. While I have never personally installed a commercial dishwasher, I can't imagine the two would be the same. There are so many more parts in a commercial dishwasher, different chemicals, pumps, boosters, disposals, etc. Not to mention that you have to have proper disposal of the waste water as well. Just make sure to talk thoroughly with the installer and make sure he explains to you in plain english what he is doing and why. It's good for not only keeping an eye on him, but for future reference so if (when) the dishwasher breaks down you have some working knowledge of what the system is made of.
  22. I'm not really sure what you are trying to say...? Classic, as in Escoffier, starts his demi-glace with espagnole sauce. IIRC, it was equal parts espagnole sauce and veal stock, reduced together to nappe. But I personally have never worked in a kitchen that utilized that method, and in fact, am only familiar with it through culinary school. Even today, most things like a quick turkey gravy at thanksgiving are thickened using pure starches like cornstarch or arrowroot. And I don't technically think you COULD make a bechemel without roux, as roux is a key part of the bechecmel sauce...no more than you could make a true espagnole without roux. I would also think that a bechemel sauce for a gratin would be too thick, and if properly made, the potato starch that leeches into the cream while cooking should be enough to hold a gratin together.
  23. Roux thicken sauces are dinosaurs and are almost never used in high end restaurant kitchens. There may be a FEW exceptions, but I honestly can't think if any off the top of my head. Some places may still use roux for things like mac and cheese, souffle bases, some soups (chowders), gumbo, etc. But if you are talking about true fine dining, destination type restaurants I would say roux is probably never used, unless someone is making family meal or something.
  24. You want the potatoes, in respect to the soup, to have some thickening power, yes? Would retrograding the starch remove the ability for the potatoes to properly thicken the soup? I'm at a loss too...what would the point be? What was wrong with potato soup 10 years ago before anyone ever heard of starch retrograding.
×
×
  • Create New...