mkayahara

Tri2Cook, is this the recipe you were thinking of? In any case, you can definitely use egg white in an iSi whipper. Adria uses them to make hot foams, like his hot/cold gin fizz. I don't know enough about marshmallow making to go further than that, but I'd love to hear what you come up!

There's also a video on YouTube of Ramsay puking while attempting to eat hakarl, which would seem to support the "dubious seafood" theory.

If you can copy out or photograph the French label, I can tell you what is says.

According to this post on Chatto's blog, Susur is being closed, but Lee will remain open and he'll cook there when he's in Toronto. I, too, thought (and hoped) it was an April Fool's joke. This is a real loss for Toronto.

Have you tried blasting them with the steam wand of your espresso machine? (You do have an espresso machine, right?) I've heard it works for hazelnuts, so it might be worth a shot!

Only it's no more a Cocktail than it is a Martini, right? So shouldn't it be a Knockhill Sour?

I'd think pretty much any bulk food store would carry the blanched ones, but if not you can blanch them pretty easily: just take whole, shelled almonds, toss them into boiling water for a minute, drain them and cool them in an ice bath or under cold running water. Then peel off the skins.

I assume you mean passion fruit syrups? I have a bottle of the Fee Brothers one, and it's alright. I don't really have anything to compare it to and don't use it that often. In Sippin' Safari, Berry recommends Finest Call, and explicitly advises against Fee Brothers, Monin and Torani. He also suggests getting frozen passion fruit pulp (from "Latino [or] gourmet markets") and mixing it in equal parts with simple syrup.

I assume this opinion applies only to the full-strength Tanqueray? I've only ever tasted it at 40% abv, and I find it pretty bland, especially when compared to products like Plymouth or Broker's. The same goes for Beefeater. One of these days, I'd love to find out what I'm missing...

Kaatje, let me be the first to welcome you to eGullet! If you're having trouble getting 6% nitrite, I imagine it'll be tough to do some of the recipes in the book. Any chance a local charcutier could get you some pink salt with a higher concentration of nitrite? In the meantime, I heartily recommend trying some of the fresh sausages in the book. The meat grinder can be a bit of an investment, but well worth it! And they don't need any nitrite. As for the duck ham, I've wanted to try it for a while, but the temperature/humidity balance in my basement isn't right and I haven't had time to set up a dedicated curing chamber. Plus I wouldn't want to spoil an expensive piece of duck when pork is so much cheaper here!

Interesting thread; I'm glad to see it bumped back up. I can't speak to this one first-hand, but Victoria Abbott Riccardi's depiction of mochi-making in her book Untangling My Chopsticks seems to fit the pattern. Maybe someone with more direct experience of Japanese food culture could confirm this.

Any sources for isomalt in retail quantities? I see that Qzina carries it, but it looks like they have it only in 25 kg bags, which is a lot more than I'd need. Thanks!

What concentration would you use for a basic stock?

I'm really not sure, but this comment made me think of sriracha sauce. Is that a possibility? As for the texture of the rice, I recently bought some Jasmine rice from a local Vietnamese grocery store, and it's got a texture that's stickier than long-grain, but more separate than short-grain. It also has a slightly floral aroma and a pearlescent appearance. Then again, it may just be Camargue red rice!

I'm with the others: I don't process them in any way, I just toss 'em in. I'm sure my butcher does all the hard work before they ever make their way into my hands. They certainly look clean! The last time I made duck stock (using 3 duck carcasses), I added about 6 chicken feet, and the stock came out with a beautiful gel. I'm sure one or two more or less wouldn't hurt.

Given where you're located, I'd definitely check out the restaurants at the Brookstreet hotel (www.brookstreet.ca). I haven't been there myself, but I've heard good reports. (Plus, I have a friend who works there, though not in the kitchen.)

Yeah, I thought of olive oil right after I posted. And I suppose there are lots of nut oils that might also be interesting.

So what applications of fat-washing are there beyond animal fats? If most fat-soluble flavour compounds are also soluble in alcohol, why not just infuse them directly into the alcohol? Of course, now I'm wondering what it would be like to infuse a spirit with roasted sesame oil...

How about the PEI International Shellfish Festival? Edit: Also, there's the Shediac Lobster Festival.

How so? I find the biggest difference when using a french press versus a drip/perc/etc. is the ability to heat the water to over 200 degrees, and to let it steep for four minutes. I haven't noticed a taste difference since I started filtering, except with the dregs. ← To be honest, I was half-recalling a comment I heard about the French press emulsifying some of the extracted oils, which adds to the body of the beverage, but I can't find any source to confirm that now. Perhaps some experimentation is in order! Do you use a paper or metal screen filter?

Doesn't it cancel out the benefits of using a French press in the first place if you then run the coffee through a filter? In any case, I'd think that using a better grinder, to minimize fine particles, would help reduce the sludge content. I typically end up dumping the last bit of coffee in my cup, but it's nowhere near an inch.

I have the Good Grips food mill, and like it just fine. Then again, I don't have anything to compare it to! I use it mostly for mashed potatoes, because I like mine smooth and was never happy with the hand-held masher. I figured a food mill would be more versatile than a potato ricer. I've also used it for applesauce and such.

When you say "not a shaken drink," I assume you mean not exclusively shaken? What about something like an El Diablo where you would shake the tequila, lime juice and creme de cassis and strain them into a highball glass, and then top up with ginger ale?

Uh, no. That's a Gibson.

While we're on the topic of pesto, can I add "tapenade" and "aioli"? Tapenade must be made with olives, and aioli must have garlic.