Tri2Cook

Not according to Bittman, as is the premise of my first post. That's why I included the bit about "worthy of the title". If someone says they are a chef and they truly can't cook then they are incorrect... they are not a chef. A person in charge in a professional kitchen with great leadership skills but no cooking skills would be a train wreck waiting to happen (and it wouldn't take long). I think the Bittman bit is more on the personal end of the spectrum. Maybe he's referring to chefs that don't cook up to his particular standards. That's an entirely different thing than "they can't cook" but maybe he decided to throw that blanket over it for more impact.

All chefs worthy of the title can cook... not all cooks, even among the good ones, can chef.

I'm going with no, he didn't cheat. The main reasons being that he served it as one course even if it was on two plates and, more importantly, I picked Dale to win at work after the second episode so I don't want to be wrong.

Sounds really nice. I have another bitters order for Cocktail Kingdom put together. Assuming they're going to have it, I think I'll hold off on my order until the 18th.

I wouldn't say you're missing something. I'd say it's more like you almost missed something. The "hubbub" has been and gone. Most have found or are finding ways to integrate it into their cuisine without the average person knowing it rather than looking for ways to showcase a technique for it's own sake. Basically, it has become "just cooking" and that's exactly what it will be viewed as by those who come along later when it is taught to them. It's in the toolbox with the other techniques and ingredients waiting to do it's thing instead of dancing in the spotlight. It isn't a fad, it's legitmate permutations of and advancements in the way some things are done. That's been going on since people have been cooking and will continue to happen in some form for as long as people are cooking. All that aside, it can be fun to put on a little culinary show with some of the techniques for people who've never experienced it.

Go to the Curious Blogquat blog and strike up a conversation with Rob. Tell him I sent you for information on modernist catering. He isn't doing as much of that as he was at one time, he's been more into locally foraged cooking for his restaurant and catering lately but he's still very much into the modernist stuff and used to do a lot of catering with it. I'm suffering some computer woes at the moment and doing this through a Wii. The forum's code doesn't seem to cooperate completely with it which is why I didn't provide a link to his blog but it comes up first in the results with a google search.

Sounds like a lot of fun Kerry. Looking forward to seeing what you two cook up this trip.

Spheres with the calcium source in the sphere base that are dropped into an alginate bath won't solidify but syneresis is still an issue over time. Freezing will prevent that from happening while frozen but seems to amplify the problem upon thawing with the methods I've worked with. The best result will always be from doing them the day you need them and only doing enough for that day in order to minimize waste. You can stretch it for a day or two by storing them in the same base they are made from (adding the calcium source, if used, to the storage bath isn't necessary but doesn't seem to hurt either... unless you're using calcium chloride which you really don't want to use in the base anyway) which will prevent drying and slow the effects of syneresis. There are also synergistic ingredients that can be used in the base that will help combat syneresis but eventually it always has it's moment. Of course, with some spherification methods that moment doesn't arrive until well past the timeframe that I would still want to serve the spheres to anyone. They're subject to spoilage just like any other food product. One thing you could do if you're freezing the spheres before dropping them in the gelling bath is to just keep those frozen and drop them in the bath as you need them. Drop them in a warm water bath when they come out of the gelling bath and they thaw quickly. Not really an option for pearls/caviar though. Most types of spheres/caviar are fine being made pre-service but they really don't lend well to stocking up or saving leftovers for future use.

I don't know which method/ingredients you used but they will hold for at least a couple days if you keep them from drying due to air exposure. Syneresis seems to make an appearance with most (all?) methods eventually. I usually just toss leftovers but I've kept them around just to see what happens and eventually even the solid agar/LBG-cold oil pearls turned into a pool of liquid with bits of gel floating around.

I may have to do that... although this is the first time it's happened to me so I didn't really know I needed to be prepared for it.

So that problem is solved. The cork was sticking out just enough that I could grab it with pliers and carefully work it out. I just left it sticking up higher when I put it back in. Still a bit annoying though.

I'm having bad luck with bottle caps lately. First the experience I posted above with the Broker's hat and now with a rum bottle. I picked up a replacement bottle of El Dorado 12 on friday. I tried to open it last night and the cap seperated from the cork leaving the little plastic cap in one hand and the still-corked bottle in the other. I'm not particularly happy about it. Even if I pull the cork with a corkscrew, I'm not sure I'll want to stick it back in there.

I smell my food when eating. I don't make a show of it by sticking my face in the plate or the plate in my face but I do take time to inhale the aromas coming from the food. A steady inhale through the nose as the food (or drink) approaches makes a world of difference. I've tried cocktails that I didn't think were particularly exciting until I slowed down and took the time to take in the aromas while taking a sip. With that, they suddenly came to life and made sense. The evidence has been around for a long time and doesn't require scientific study. When I'm stuffed up from a cold or something and can't smell things very well, food and drinks don't taste as good. I tend to eat far less when I have a cold, even if I'm feeling hunger and eating doesn't cause any physical discomfort, because everything seems really bland.

Eating alone isn't a problem. I have got strange looks from waitstaff when I start laughing if they ask if I'm waiting for someone to join me or if they start clearing the extra stuff from the table. Not because there's anything wrong with what they're doing, it's because that scene from The Lonely Guy always pops into my head. I don't like communal tables though, I feel obligated to talk to people even when I really would rather not. Sitting alone seems better socially than saying "could you please shut your hole, I'm trying to eat".

I still haven't managed to get my hands on any of the St Germain the LCBO brought in so I'm seriously considering giving the Chase Distillery Elderflower a shot unless someone already knows that's a bad idea. The only information I've been able to find on it is that it's apparently less sweet than the St Germain.

I found it on the Cocktail Virgin Slut blog. It's attributed to the Cocktail Collective book. I think I'll try the next one with your slight modification.

I decided to give the Broker's gin a try... and in a fine display of smoothness discovered about 2 seconds or so after removing it from the shelf at the LCBO that the little hat is NOT attached. I offered to mop it up and pay for it, they wouldn't let me. I still bought a bottle (and promptly removed the hat before putting it in my cabinet) but I'm going to hate going back in there again for a while. Felt like a complete ass.

Mine hasn't arrived but there's no reason to track it at this point. It takes a little longer when crossing the border and the postal service here inconveniently chose now to do the strike/lockout thing so nothing's moving at the moment.

I'll have to check the book again, I didn't scale off of the percentages when I did the recipe, I just did a 1/4 batch based on the ingredient weights given.

Why mix with anything but good rum? I don't want to mix with rum I don't think is good. I see no reason using a very good spirit that when mixed with other ingredients taste no better than had it been mixed with a lesser spirit. I have no problem reaching for the Appleton V/X instead of the Extra for mixing a drink but that's degrees of good, not good vs. bad... of course I don't mind using the Extra in mixed drinks either. My point is, degrees of good and good vs. bad are two different things.

That's the one Matt. I've used it many times since digging it out of my files and posting it here with no troubles. Sorry to hear things didn't go well with the recipe you used. I have a pre-hydrated spray dried gum arabic I've been using lately that is much easier to disperse in liquid and hydrate than the other stuff. I don't really make gomme syrups very often but it's nice when I decide to.

I just checked my book in case I was remembering incorrectly. The milk is definitely cooked on it's own prior to the sugar or anything else joining the party so any recipe that says otherwise is that person's own adaptation. It's a 4 ingredient recipe, the "burnt" milk, some cream, sugar and egg yolks. You cook the milk, pour it off of the burnt solids and make a traditional custard with it, the cream, the sugar and the eggs. 74.98% milk (weighed after it's been "burnt" and poured off of the solids of course), 6.96% cream, 16.02% sugar and 7.04% egg yolk. His recipe is based on a 5kg batch but it scales down easily since he gives the ratios in every recipe. It's one of the best cookbook purchases I've made in terms of how much I've actually used it and learned from it.

There's a recipe I posted in one of these threads discussing gomme for a smaller batch size that has worked well for me and I seem to remember a couple others saying it worked well for them too. Unfortunately, I don't remember which thread it was in and my laptop is suffering technical difficulties (power supply/charger kicked the bucket) so, until I order a new one, I can't access any of my recipes and stuff that I have on there. Just for fun, I'm planning on giving the "modern gomme syrup" from the willpowder site a try next time I make some. It uses LBG (in a much smaller amount) in place of arabic. Parting from tradition with food has never bothered me so I figure why not carry the same attitude with me while I delve into the world of drink.

Yessir, I understand the intent and greatly appreciate the discussion that accompanied reaching that goal. That's why I waited until the goal had been achieved before bringing my question to the table. I think what I'm trying to work out is, now that what comprises a craft cocktail has been hashed out to the general agreement of all or most involved, where do those of us lower on the learning curve in this subject go with it. Not so much in regards to personal preference but when making drinks for guests in our home or whatever situation we may be involved in that includes making drinks for others.

Good point Matt. I didn't use a very good example. I guess what I was getting at was, is it encumbant on one who appreciates the craft aspect of the cocktail world to try to steer someone (including one's self) away from what they like if it doesn't fit within certain parameters? Let's say a person does like the butterscotch schnapps in your example and decides they want to create a drink with it. If they manage through some feat of mixology to create a tasty, well balanced drink based on that ingredient, where does that place the drink? A tasty, well crafted drink based on something entirely outside of what would be considered a worthy base for a craft cocktail. By the definition of craft cocktail, it would come up short no matter how well it was done... but, if those who know their craft drinks agreed that it was well done, where would that leave it? Would if be craft by virtue of making the unlikely base work or would it remain crap due to the accepted criteria of craft?