Oreganought

That's a tough one....................I'd say stay away from fish.You may want to try very fresh fish just slow oven roasted until med-rare to med and a splash of lemon,or another juice if lemon is not up your alley,most work. Do you eat fish and chips?

Mmmmmm Carbonara....now I have to make some,soon. Guanciale or pancetta large dice sauteed in a little olive oil and I let it brown enough that when I take a ladle of the spagetti water and add it to the pan it looses a little colour and doing this also deeply flavours the water.When added to the finished dish it adds a depth of flavour I prefer. And I would like to think that might have been done to extract all the possible flavour considering the origin of the dish.Whole eggs and a combo of parm/pecorino and lots of large cracked black pepper....nothing else otherwise it morphs into other villages cuisines......just look what Rome did to the dish. Anyway,I like to heat up a large serving bowl,and at this point I would add the pasta water to the renderings giving some ceremony with the steam rising to the ceiling as I add it to the bowl,then the spagetti,a few tosses,then the egg/cheese combo,pepper a few more tosses.......a little more cheese.....craving satisfied.

Sums up this thread perfectly.

I believe the intention was not to use the commercial wines with salt added.Any other wine will do.....from the very cheap to the most expensive,depends on the individual.Personally I use the wine that I would normally serve with that particular dish.

What are your expectations? Someone with no experience in a professional upscale kitchen will be relegated to peeling potatoes and onions for a year working on a part-time basis.....maybe not,but close.

I've made it this way for 35 years. I have been known to use some tobasco. I'm on my 2nd wooden bowl,but my original fork and spoon that is curved past the factory specs,by me,on purpose still survives. I take 2 large garlic clove,2 anchovi fillets and a few pinches of sea salt and grind to a paste with my fork and spoon....one handed operation....one crushes the other cuts, works well.Add an egg yolk,dry mustard and work into the mass.Equal parts lemon and red wine vinegar,some worchestershire and drizzle in the olive oil and grated parm.Tumble in some romaine hearts,homemade croutons,more parm......for 2 people.

Sounds like a temperature/cooking time problem.....too low a heat and too long cooking.The meat is steaming and causing the coating to release. Try frying under a high heat in enough oil,this should remedy that problem.

When the mother has converted all the alcohol to vinegar,and that time can vary, remove about 3/4 and bottle it for consumption.Replace with more wine. You need not add wine at various times for the first batch. A crock with a spigot really is ideal for long term vinegar making,and the glass container should really be covered up not to allow any light.

It takes all kinds,doesn't it? A friend of ours will never try mashed potatoes again....ever.But loves scotch....go figure.It's all in the mind,not the mouth.

Most of the bases have been covered here.I'm a bit of a collector when it comes to pots and pans but I don't think anyone mention any steel fry pans......I have ones just for crepes another just for eggs and I couldn't saute mushrooms in anything else.

THAI STICKS basically a forcemeat of ground pork and chicken with minced garlic, softened vermicelli noodles cut to 2" lengths,fish sauce,nam pla,spring onion.Par cook shrimp and skewer lenghtwise take the forcemeat and wrap around the shrimp,caot in a batter of coconut milk and cornstarch....deepfry. I serve with a chilli dipping sauce,everyone devours these.

That's basically my point carswell. One might conclude that wonton wrappers are far too chewy/rubbery for that application,certainly not mushy.Is it possible the filling was intended to be of a mousse consistancy?If the sauce tasted like 10 ingredients,sublime as it might have been,a few of the ingredients should have been fairly obvious.How much more foie % wise would have made the dish even more delicious,or would too much foie and less cream take away from the "brulee" mouthfeel,and actually be a deterent.Just a couple of points I liked to make,is all.

I agree with carswell,a one time good/bad opinion must be digested with a little sodium chloride. As a chef I would need to ask Helen a few more questions to find some clarity in her meaning.

exactamundo

Heavy cream is in the 35% range.Also called whipping cream in the dairy.

How do I say this without sounding condescending...If I had to tip toe around a co-worker because they couldn't talk and cook without screwing something up and then get blamed for it..... On a more positive note.....I would initiate conversation to help overcome that initial hiccup that apparently is the cause of the problem.

Very interesting. Can you elaborate, please? Do you mean this happens when you let it ferment for a long time with the mother in the vinegar/wine? Or does it only happen if you cork it and store it with no mohter in it? Elie People will use different methods,but it pretty much universal that the container be open to the air. I use a large crock style pot with the spigot at the bottom so I can remove some vinegar when I want and feed with more wine at the top.The mother will grow and you can cut some off and start a new batch,or just give to friends. If you leave some vinegar out exposed to the air...like a wine vinegar,not the white stuff it's more than likely it will start to develop a scum and develop into a mother...not every time though.You might try a few different brands at a time. Bad vinegar has an acetaldehyde taste, smelling like thinner. This is not wanted for good and high quality vinegar products. The occurrence of acetaldehyde shows, that the vinegar is not yet ready. It is also an reliable method to determine, if the conversion from alcohol to vinegar was done.

That's probably just sediment if it's small specks just floating around.If the mother is dark and feels stiffer to the touch,that is a sign of failing health and should be discarded.

No lid FoodMan,it's a living organism and needs oxygen to thrive. Keep it in a dark place....in a cupboard or pantry,and it's really not going to smell too bad,you would need to get up close and personal to really smell vinegar....unless it's in a very small space.I keep mine out in the open.It doesn't need to be a mason jar the opening can be smaller at the neck.Have some fun with it

You got it. You can also add to a puree of fruit like raspberries and turn out some amazing vinegar as well.

Because vinegar is sterilized before being offered for sale, the appearance of a mother is a rare and chance event, most likely due to chance "contamination" of an open bottle of vinegar with a helpful acetic acid bacterium that was floating around in your kitchen at an opportune moment.

It's a natural thing called the mother.You can strain the mother out and put into another container and add some more wine or any alcohol and you'll end up with a pretty good vinegar.

Sounds like your using too high of a heat.Even though it's difficult to overcook catfish 6 minutes sounds about 2 minutes too long.

I'm doing a dinner and using a little culinary licence here,but was certainly influenced by the original. Pan-Seared Quebec Foie Gras with Fig Tarte Tatin Icewine gelée The gelee being the pastry,of course.

Anytime someone does something out of the ordinary and gets good results through experience and works for them,doesn"t mean that it will work for everyone. Experiment with different techniques.The general consensus on cooking anything will give expected results only,subpar for some.Everytime I hear "this is the only way something is to be prepared"....it's generally from a cookbook or a googled answer. 10 cooks 10 different results,that will never change,thank God.