jfilmm

What does boiling do? Does it reset the decomposition process or something? (Pardon my ignorance)

I mean doubling the stock by adding chicken and veggies to this stock, rather than water, to concentrate its flavor.

I have some chicken stock in my freezer and have been thinking about defrosting it, making a double stock, then re-freezing it. It it okay to freeze chicken stock twice?

Now I have piles of leftover braised lamb. Can I freeze this?

Unfortunately I don't think I can bone this thing (unless I cut it into small pieces or chops.) It seems to be the upper part of the shoulder with more than a few ribs. Am I better off roasting this as a whole or attempting to make chops out of it?

Perhaps I'll bone it after all. What a drag. Now on the something to stuff it with...

I have a nice lamb shoulder, with bone (about 5 or 6 lbs.) I was thinking of roasting it at about 325F with a spicy baste. I keep finding conflicting information about what my internal temp should be when I remove it from the oven. I have seen suggestions range from 120F - 165F for medium-rare. What gives?

I could be wrong, but I wouldn't think the amount of salt used would make a difference. It's all in the curing time. It sounds like you did everything right though. I would try this again, but this time only curing for 16-18 hrs.

I concur. I don't think you should eat it.

I must say that I once made 2 confit'd pork shoulders simultaneously--one in lard and one in olive oil, and I could not taste a difference. Am I crazy? Is canned supermarket lard really superior anyway?

Goddess, what kind of oil do you use to fry the belly strips?

Thanks for the responses, especially Domestic Goddess. I'm going to try your boil- bake-fry method. I'm going to attempt a "pork 3 ways" thing (the cracklin' being the 3rd). It's obviously not a stand alone meal centerpiece, but a couple of pieces next a little sugar-chipotle cured tenderloin and 7 hour braised belly should be fun.

I just purchased an organic 12 lb pork belly. Half of which I am curing ala Blue Hill, the other half I am curing for Chinese bacon. The butcher also gave the sheet of skin which he had removed. Is there anything I can do with this? The square of skin is quite large and must be 2' X 2'! I'd hate to waste it if there is some great culinary spell out there which might transform it into something wonderful. Any advice or recipes?

I keep attempting fried shallots (for toppings, etc) with unfortunate results. I heat some vegetable or canola oil, finely slice some shallots crosswise, and fry them. Unfortunately they over-brown right before they get crispy. The result is a few crispy rings, but most of them are dark brown (nearly black) and bitter and soggy. Should the burner be on a lower setting or higher? I have had it on medium.

Can the same boiling and roasting method be used for sweet potatoes? Will they acquire a crunchy exterior as well? If so, do cooking times need to be modified?

Thanks for all of these great ideas and advice. I'm still wondering if any of you have attempted a beef confit, whether it be shank, rib or otherwise.

Do you cut it up before confiting it or confit it as a whole? Do you use only duck fat?

I think I would need about 50 of them, no?

I am having a dinner party for 8 at the end of the month and need a little entree advice. I was thinking of preparing 3 separate (each brined with a different set of herbs and spices) confits to be plated together, with each having their own small accompaniments. The first would be a duck confit raviolo, the second perhaps a simple confit'd whole leg of chicken (over a teensy bit of risotto with braised fennel), and the third could perhaps be more poultry--maybe a pheasant confit springroll? Or has anyone heard of a beef confit? Any creative ideas out there?