Shel_B

I don't understand how they work. Would you be kind enough to explain ... ?

I'm sometime plagued with painful and debilitating arthritis in my hands. By debilitating I mean that I can't use a pepper grinder, use a manual can opener, garlic press, open screw top bottles, and etc. Any suggestions for kitchen items that are easy to operate with this condition, which, BTW, comes and goes. However, I expect it may get worse as the years progress. Thanks! Oh, I already know about electric can openers and pepper mills, but what other items might there be that run on batteries or electricity?

I'm aware of that technique, but I have no coffee filters here, so, an alternative is to let the stock sit a while and just skim or pour from the top, making sure no dirt or grit thanks dropped to the bottom gets poured out of the vessel. Dishtowels? I don't have any appropriate dish towels, but what I have used in the past for some filtering jobs, with good results, is old T-shirts.

Check out http://www.panman.com/ for Griswdld, Wagner, and other cast iron products. What I saw seemed to be reasonably priced and in excellent condition.

I've never been able to get the intense mushroom flavor I was looking for from Shiitakis. Maybe I didn't use enough <shrug>

I'm aware of that technique, but I have no coffee filters here, so, an alternative is to let the stock sit a while and just skim or pour from the top, making sure no dirt or grit thanks dropped to the bottom gets poured out of the vessel.

Yesterday I discovered browning trays. There are some for sale on Amazon and also on eBay.

Another thing to try. Thanks! I did that this afternoon for the first time. It's a great technique. I had a small timing issue, however. The garlic in oil came out perfectly colored for my intended need, but I let the garlic sit in the oil a few minutes before removing it, and it got a bit too cooked and crispy. Won't make that mistake again. In any case, great tip!

Nice anecdote. Don't get me started collecting things .. I saw those shakers and started feeling the urge

That's nice ... thanks for posting.

Pulverizing dried mushrooms = good idea! Thanks. Will try that in my next veggie soup or stew.

Thanks, I needed that kick in the butt. Sometimes less is more ...

Tomorrow I'm making a large batch of vegetable stew or soup, and I want to use some mushroom stock to add a richer flavor. Of the numerous recipes I've seen, they all call for the addition of herbs, onion, garlic, and other vegetables, like carrot and celery. That's fine, but since the stock will be used for a simmered vegetable dish, is the addition of all these vegetables and herbs really necessary? This evening I made a quickish stock using three or four types of 'shrooms, half a leftover onion, a couple of garlic cloves, and a bay leaf, sautéed in a scosh of olive oil. It smells great, and the color is dark. After straining, I'm thinking this will be just fine for tomorrow's stew/ or soup. Any thoughts on this? Thanks!

Probably. The McRib is not unique in this regard. Recently there was an admission by Burger King that, in Europe at least, their patties contained horsemeat. This came after repeated denials. Does the fact that other fast food chains play fast and loose with their ingredients make the McRib more acceptable? I don't think that's what you're saying ... is it?

IMHO, one of the issues with the McRib is that consumers don't know what they're eating.

As Seen on TV: http://www.asseenontv.com/?gclid=CIPnjp-G4roCFWNxQgodbS8A3Q&ecid=PID-700000121&pa=SEM_ASOTVBrand_as%20seen%20on%20tv&s_kwcid=AL!3955!3!33125759491!e!!g!!as%20seen%20on%20tv&ef_id=Unh-AgAABCTTCA2y:20131113151215:s All the stuff from infomercials and perhaps more - and many with "star" ratings. Yikes!

I don't think so ... watch the video and maybe you can tell us. Is there something wrong with EVOO on popcorn?

This morning, to satisfy my curiosity about an aspect of making oatmeal, I discovered a series of You Tube videos under the general heading of "You're Doing it All Wrong." Here's the link to the oatmeal-making video http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pT8IaxL6jtg in which the cook demonstrates how to make oatmeal from scratch, starting by grinding your own groats. It really doesn't look too difficult, and it might be a fun thing to try. If nothing else, I may have learned a thing or two about making and eating oatmeal. When the video is over, as is often the case on You Tube, a number of other video choices appeared, including one about pan frying bacon which, to me, was very enlightening. There are videos about making fries, nachos, burgers, and more. I don't know who all the cooks are, although the bacon guy is associated with Prather Ranch, a purveyor of high quality, grass fed meats found at numerous farmers markets and quality markets in the San Francisco Bay Area, so I guess he knows what he's talking about. When done, his bacon looked great. Gordon Ramsey looked to be in another video. So, you might want to take a peek. Perhaps there's something to be enjoyed and maybe even learned.

I'm going to take a look at them. The price suggests that they are of low quality, but sometimes things like this can be a surprise. I thought I saw all the bamboo my local BBB carried, but I must have missed these. For $6.00 less a 20% coupon, it's hard to go too far wrong. I've never met bamboo that wasn't OK in the dishwasher, but that's not an issue for me as I don't have a dishwasher. And I don't beat my stuff up at all - I'm still getting excellent service from my first bamboo spoon which is 35-years old this past June. My biggest concern is if it feels cheap, too light. How an item feels in my hand is important to me. However, Toots likes her gear light weight, so, at worst, they may be fine for her. Thanks for posting the link.

Do you think McD's has tried to deceive you? I don't know what the hell that stuff in the picture is, but it sure doesn't look like any pork I've ever seen. Anyone know what it is? (time passes) I searched for ingredients and this was the first article that popped up: http://naturalsociety.com/mcdonalds-mcrib-sandwich-a-franken-creation-of-gmos-toxic-ingredients-banned-ingredients/ Truth or fiction?

I have been using my fingers for years - more than forty years, actually. I now have arthritis, and recently found it's much easier and far less messy to use a shaker.

TJ's has a grinder which, BTW, is refillable. I've used their grinder with their pink Himalayan salt. However, they also have a small glass container that holds about 3+ oz of sea salt. The container comes with a perforated cap to allow shaking the salt. I believe it's a new item as I've not seen it before yesterday.

I wonder if there's a way to get some color and roasted-like flavor with the microwave. Maybe by zapping the squash after giving it a light coat of oil as was mentioned upthread with garlic and onions.

Looks like it's worth trying. Thanks for posting the link.

Do it frequently, to different degrees of doneness. Example: Kabocha and Acorn have hard shells, so some 'waving will soften things a bit, and make for easier cutting before roasting. Sometimes I'll 'wave the squash to fully cooked, cut, scoop out the flesh and then mash and season. Works just fine. PS: Did you get the oven baked rice recipe I sent you?