Lisa Shock

Primo was an Italian carbonation system. They stopped making it, but, you can still buy new old stock. The downside is proprietary bottles need to be used and are pricey. (I do okay with 3) The upsides are: you can carbonate liquids other than water, the cartridge is the same as a paintball gun and can be recharged cheaply at a sporting goods store, you can control the amount of carbonation, and it does not use electricity at all.

1) Doesn't exist anymore. -When I was a kid, eating out at a fancy place often meant a French restaurant. Maybe it was overdone for a while, but, now, in some parts of the US anyway, it seems impossible to find any sort of real French restaurant. (ironic because so many people are just slapping the word bistro onto all types of places that aren't really bistros) Anyway, I miss the golden days of haute cuisine. As a pastry chef, I should add that my favorite place to buy candy is Despina Leos' Candy Kitchen in Pennsylvania. Mrs. Leos and the Candy Kitchen store was a huge influence on me as a teenager and my eventual decision to go to culinary school and get a pastry degree. 2) Salt, after that, acids: lemon, vinegar, wine. I like food to taste alive and acid really brightens dishes. 3) My handcrafted, end-grain cutting board. It provides the foundation for so many other tools, and winds up being the main stage for most cooking processes. 4) Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons 5) Spices and dishes from African countries like Ghana and Nigeria. 6) Putting a "twist on the classics." Most of the people doing this don't have a clue about classic cuisine from any region on Earth. (except perhaps mid-century modern American pre-packaged foods) It's time to stand up and demand proficiency and genuine credibility instead of accepting half-baked, amateurish execution of cuisine, or worse, poorly conceived 'fusion'.

Wow, I had no idea. I carbonate all kinds of things (orange juice, lemonade, wine, liqueurs, etc.) with my Primo.

Yeah, at least at some of these places, like Mario's holdings, you know that things are being done, measures being taken to see that it doesn't happen again. Today, Morgan Spurlock (Supersize Me) outed himself as an abuser and part of the problem. His apology seems sincere and thoughtful, but poorly written, and one wonders why he's having an epiphany at this moment -as he's had corrective moments in the past to inform him of wrongdoing. I won't be too surprised to see more news about others in the future. Judging by the number of incidents I myself have experienced, and my friends have experienced, perpetrators and their defenders are more common than previously discussed in polite society. Pretty much every industry has been affected by this bad behavior IMO, the news now is seeing how, or if, they change in the future.

Spoilers! Ok, I was a bit disappointed in the main challenge. Potatoes, at least certain preparations can be challenging to make if you have to re-heat them. I think it was a bit unfair to just give a couple of hours the day before and then a very brief amount of time on the day of the event. IMO, no wonder the stew tasted warmed over, it was. (scorching it did not help, but, it was the re-heating which was a real negative for the potatoes)

So, The Onion has a new cooking section with videos. Be warned, the audio is NSFW -laced with profanity.

I found out, by reading From Scratch, that iron chef Michiba assaulted female FN staffers during a US visit thus leading to the Japanese iron chefs as a group not being asked back to do any more shows.

My french rolling pin made of high grade tiger maple. (very stripey) Purchased it at Kitchen Bazaar in Annapolis for $2 from a huge bin of about 100 rolling pins. It was the only tiger one in the lot.

I purged my kitchen of glass cooking/prep containers a few months ago. It really has simplified my life. I have steel bowls and commercial cookware. The only glass left are my canning jars, which I use for general dry food storage with my vacuum sealer, and for leftovers.

If you're in pain, a fruit smoothie or milkshake can help with icing the area. Both options offer protein from various milk sources and/or nuts. Personally, I like the big fat rice noodles my local Korean market sells in individual packets. I make them with just a little broth, and some overcooked vegetables. I grew up around people who overcooked vegetables pretty regularly, so, embarrassingly enough, soft vegetables remind me of childhood. Overcooked vegetables with a little butter or brown butter are my post-dental go-to. That said, I cannot tolerate overcooked pasta, but, if you can, a well-cooked riff on pasta primavera may be an option for you. That said, I love applesauce. And, applesauce keeps in the fridge -so it can be made days in advance or your appointment, then eaten for several days afterwards. Honestly, I'd make a few things and have them chilled or frozen and ready to re-heat rather than relying on actually cooking on the day of the appointment. And, having a smooth ice cream (no mix-ins) or sorbet in the freezer is always useful. (if you like ice cream...)

Interesting group of chefs, and a new twist on LCK. Looks like an interesting season. (trying to be spoiler-free here)

Thanks! I had no idea!

Vanilla is one of the most complex foods on earth. I hate when people conflate "shipped to you discreetly in a plain manila envelope" with the fruit of the orchid. That aside, there was outbreak of botulism in California this year, covered pretty extensively here on eG. One person died and nine others were hospitalized. Botulism survivors generally don't fully recover, some paralysis will affect their muscles and organs for the rest of their lives. Garlic oil is one of the few foods mentioned specifically in the FDA food code, and in most county health department regulations. Classes like ServSafe, which help cooks get food handler cards, cover it -as do all culinary school programs. (and degree programs in sanitation, nutrition, etc.) Pretty much anyone with industry experience learns about it early on.

They sort of did. It was a video, and they clipped a bit of it and over-dubbed it to say to not keep it more than a day. But, it was the Food section, not a department with real reporters and ethics rules.

Guess what? Not all online reviews are genuine! Who'da thunk it???

If you had read the thread I linked to, you would have seen posts by MaxH outlining how difficult it is to get oil at or above temperature under regular atmospheric pressure. This is why acidulation then pressure frying are recommended. There is only one scientifically proven method for home cooks to make a safe garlic oil. HERE is a link to a page run by Clemson University's extension service. (a place where real science happens, not a suzie-hommemaker clickbait website)

Lots of sites run by non-scientists and non-food professionals have bad/incorrect information on them. Even the NYT ran an article by Bittman which was essentially a guideline for culturing botulism.

I have a twenty-slice model that has a base on a hing which allows for easier pushing when you're almost done -it gets the base through the cutter faster. I prefer thinner slices, with the wider type of cutter, I always wound up cutting the slices smaller and often found it was easier to just use a knife from the start rather than bother with it at all.

Read through this thread: "no longer raw" doesn't cut it. It has to be 250° for at least five minutes and that needs to be checked with a thermometer. Of course, all the water will be gone from the garlic long before it reaches 250°. (and a pressure fryer is recommended)

At some point, next year maybe, you could force everyone to attend a training meeting where you explain your equipment rules. Maybe even publish a small handbook, or post guidelines in the kitchen. Some people need it spelled out.

Counter-intuitive as it may seem, I always start with cold water (pretty much for the same reasons you use cold water to run a garbage disposal) so that I don't cause starches and/or proteins to cook, swell and attach themselves firmly onto the surface. I do a hot rinse once it appears to be clean. I agree with the brush on the outside pushing stuff backwards, I have a nail brush and a toothbrush I use for various strainers, chinois', etc.

Congratulations! Is it time to start prepping for next year???

I have never had luck with freezing potatoes. I know that some frozen potato applications, like potatoes o-Brien or some hashbrowns are simply raw potatoes with oils and other stuff sprayed on them. I have had someone serve me frozen vegetable medley (from a bag sold at a supermarket) which contained tiny potato cubes and they were horrible. I avoid freezing potatoes in general.

I did my current house in 2010 and my previous home in 2007 with LEDs. I purchased direct from the manufacturers via ebay. My whole house is pretty much all cool white, 7500k. With a few bulbs, like inside my clothes dryer, and inside the fridge, I had to take the only type offered. I like it brght, and cool in the kitchen. In other rooms I have multiple lighting options, some brighter than others.

Sometimes used or new accessories will show up on eBay. Go there and type something like, 'Viking 7qt whip' into search. There won't be many results, but, look around in the upper left of the search results where it tells you how many results you got. Right next to that statement is the option to save the search (it has a little heart next to it) click that and save your search. I'd save two versions, one with 'whip' and one with 'whisk' -without the quotes. This way, you will receive an email when someone lists a relevant item. Good luck, and once you do find one, treat it gently. It should not be banged around so much. You can gently snap it towards the bowl to clean it, but make sure the tines do not make contact with the bowl. Also, make sure you're using the proper attachments for the job at hand. I recently saw someone famous on TV using the whip attachment to make cookies, that was pretty cringe-worthy. The whip should be used for making whipped cream, icing, and light fillings. Use the paddle for cake batter, cookies, quick breads, etc.