gfweb

Just had a 2 yr old Cuisinart die. Bottom rusted out. Shite. Checking Amazon isn't encouraging. Every unit has a significant number of terrible reviews. The Cuisinart model I'm scrapping apparently has a habit of catching fire (now I can see how that happens). Others just die young. And these aren't cheapo units. I hate the K-cup type brewers. Too pricey/cup, can't make a pot for a dinner party, too slow for impatient me. Any suggestions (other than drinking tea)?

Forgive me. I assumed wrongly that they were the basis for your position.

Didn't you provide a string of references upthread regarding the dangers of irradiated food?

Of course they are defensible. They just have nothing to do with whether irradiation is safe. You can choose not to eat irradiated food, but we aren't discussing your choice.

I agree with you there! It's already happening in the case of pasteurization, folks are much less careful about how food is handled because they know that pasteurization should take care of the problem. ~Martin So pasteurization is a new-fangled thing that folks are beginning to abuse?

Browsing the SV forum, I see 76C as the temp at which fat reliably renders quoted by some. There's also the issue of browning the sausage and the flavors it adds. Perhaps precook the sausage?

Weighing the purely philosophical distaste for electronically sterilized food vs. the real risks of food poisoning, it would seem that there would be no rational argument to be made against it. People die from food poisoning. Recall the spinach debacle of a few years ago. Or the never-ending stories of contaminated ground beef and kids and old folks dying needlessly. Would you like a rare burger to be served in a restaurant? Make the meat safe. But we live in a time when science is distrusted reflexively by some (eg lifesaving vaccines are blamed for all sorts of ills with not a shred of evidence) The people who know the least, shout the loudest and unfortunately are heard by legislators who are just as dumb and are motivated by self-interest.

Is 64C enough heat to satisfyingly cook sausage?

I do that with turkey breast and don't have a problem with doneness of the breast after frying skin down in oil. Comes out great. But that's a much bigger piece of meat than a duck which might well overcook while frying. Experimentation is called-for. One might intentionally undercook during the SV phase...

and that fraud, Oz.

Lots of papers presented above. Many from the dark ages. Some not relevant. Some maybe relevant...hard to judge without looking up the whole reference. I'm sure plenty of studies also exist that fail to show dangers from irradiated food. Whatever the case with irradiation one needs to see it in context with other things we do to food...like grilling it or baking it..and what potentially toxic stuff is generated the old fashioned way.

Googling the "taste of irradiated food" doesn't turn up any authoritative reports. There's lots of posturing by groups on either side of the issue, but not one actual study that I could find. Do you know of any?

What's wrong with irradiated food? It isn't radioactive.

Fish never looks good at 7am. Except that.

Thanks, Scotty! There is confusion on google re bavette. Multiple cuts of beef and a pasta are listed. What is your bavette? Is it a fibrous cut?

Scotty, beautiful stuff! Tell me about the Brussels sprout sauerkraut! How'd you ferment it?

I ate at Colicchio's Riverpark a while ago. It was just average at best. Undercooked ravioli. Uninspired seasoning of the entree. Didn't respect the protein. Pack your knives... and all that.

Even then a resistant strain, while bad in principle, isn't more likely to contaminate meat than a sensitive one.

I feel a Kung Fu moment. John Carradine initially would have told the two customers (grasshoppers) that the server had disgraced herself, not them. But then they went and acted badly themselves. Disgrace all around!

We live in a time where people long to take offense. These women should be ashamed for saying that they were scarred. Oh Please! Next a lawsuit? If they hadn't made a fuss about it there would have been three people who knew they were fat, now the whole world knows.

Its just a kid doing something she felt was important. Nobody but the restaurant was injured.

Contamination and antibiotic use are two separate and essentially unrelated issues. Antibiotics are given as "growth enhancers" ...the swine do better on antibiotics. Antibiotic use would not change the rate of contamination which is the result of butchering/handling procedures.

Sounds like BS to me. She got sick and it wasn't likely the food.

I'd have used pickle juice t o flavor a cole slaw to serve with pulled pork that had pickle bits in it. RE Truffled anything: way over done to my taste. Truffle oil is an abuse waiting to happen.

Boy those ingredients were pretty lame. Rose water? Pickles? Come on. Fine dining doesn't see that stuff used... ever. Top Chef needs to be careful of the foolish tests if it wants to stay interesting.