Mussina

We are treating a couple to dinner in LA and would love some recommendations. We would like a nice place -- great food but also fun. Many thanks.

I bought an immersion circulator on ebay that worked perfectly. The seller had a ten day return policy. Unfortuately, the wire that attached to the temp. probe shorted out (I didn't know it shouldn't get wet) and the repair costs exceed the price I paid on ebay. I just bought another immersion heater (after getting confirmation from the seller that I could send it back if it didn't hold its temp.). Hopefully it will work as well as the first one -- and last longer than a few weeks!

Blackbird looks great -- not being familiar with Chicago any idea where it is located in relation to the W Hotel Lakeside? Also - what are the thoughts on the Green Zebra & Spring? (Custom House doesn't have a menu posted but both of those looked very interesting!)

We will be in Chicago for a couple of days and have reservations at Charlie Trotter's and Tru for dinner. I am looking for good lunch spots. Interesting food (looking to be inspired here) but recognize that we will be eating at Charlie Trotter's one night and Tru the other night so I do not want to completely over do it. Any and all recommendations are appreciated.

I second the help out in a soup kitchen or at a local shelter suggestion.

Thanks! What did you think of it visually when it was finished? Did you pan sear it or serve as is? Also, do you prefer it served as a whole breast or sliced? Did you let the breast rest before serving? Thanks again.

I want to add my vote for No. 9 Park as well. I have generally been disappointed by my dining experiences in Boston but No. 9 Park was sensational. They also have a $25 prie fixe lunch which is a great value.

Thanks for the response. I rinsed the duck throughly this time and cooked the legs at 180 degrees for 11 hours and they were sensational! My only issue is that it appears that the temperature probe on my immersion circulator shorted out. Any thoughts on the difficultly of replacing this sort of thing? (it is an old analog model that I purchased on Ebay) Great tip on the artichokes. I'll try that next time. Many thanks!

Blue Hill in NYC is well known for its butter poached duck breast. Does anyone know how this is prepared? Poached in Buerre monte? Cooked sous vide with butter in the vacuum pouch? How is it finished? Temps and time would be greatly appreciated!

What about the Framingham, MA area (and west). Any butchers worth the drive?

Hi all - I have been lurking on this board and this thread in particular for quite some time. The wealth of information is simply sensational. I have entered the world of sous vide with a few experiments and have had some successes and some disappointments. I have sous vide duck confit question. Has anyone else experienced excessive saltiness when cooking the confit sous vide? The last couple of batches I've made have been very salty and I have a batch in right now that I salted for 24 hours and rinsed THROUGHLY (the traditional method I used said to scrape off the salt so I thought I would try it fully rinsed). I'll know better this evening -- the legs are cooking at 180 degrees (using an immersion circulator) and I will check them after 10 hours but I was wondering if others had experienced this? Also - question regarding artichokes. I saw a stunning picture in the Sous Vide book of artichokes cooked this way. They had none of the discoloration that you typically see. I tried a batch and although the discoloration was less then with braising it still wasn't great. I used a lemon/water path when peeling them and trimmed them down to the esssence of the heart. I am thinking that perhaps leaving more of the choke intact before cooking and trimming after they are completed might help. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Many thanks again for such a great source of information.