blue_dolphin

I agree. I find the broiler to require the most constant attention of any cooking method in my kitchen. My broiler heats up pretty quickly and there would surely be flames if I left any combustible material 8” away for the length of time they did.

They were good. Now I wish I’d headed over there today to get some!

This place is Valley Marketplace, previously Valley Produce. It’s a small, family-owned business with just 3 locations in Reseda, Simi Valley and Valencia. Not really worth the drive from anywhere unless you need a lot of something that happens to be on special. There's a Vallarta (SoCal Mexican grocery chain with 55 locations) right next door to the Simi location but I haven’t seen ox tails there. Maybe ya gotta ask?

I believe that it is indeed possible to measure volumes of salt with sufficient precision to determine whether the two samples differ enough to impact cooking results. If you weigh 10 separate 1T (or 1 tsp or 1 cup, depending on your scale) measurements of the two salts, taking reasonable care, and if there is no difference, I’d contend they are interchangeable. You may prefer one texture to another when used for finishing but that’s a different question.

Yes, they're kind of a pan-ethnic market. Persian and Mexican are most highly represented but they have other cuisines as well. Fun place to wander around.

Per this week’s ad from a local market, oxtails and short ribs are both $6.99/lb. Those are “specials,” regular prices are a buck or two/lb higher. This market does not have any pre-packaged meats, except frozen items like rabbits. Everything else is cut and packaged to order with 3-5 butchers usually on duty. Edited to add a photo from a post from 2022 when the tails were $4.99/lb so they have gone up in price. They were still frozen when they sliced them for me.

Thanks for the reminder! I just put it on my “hold” list at the library. I've got plenty of pasta cookbooks and don’t need another one but would like to get a look at it. I’m 18th in line for 10 copies so I should get it in ~ a month.

Ditto what @liuzhou said! I love visiting markets when I travel - even if they're not as amazing as these. And how nice that your hotel procured the cobek for you, @KennethT, and explained their quality concerns. I'd say their price was worth it. Lovely piece.

It’s a sign - you’re meant to have cheesecake for breakfast!

I just started watching Omnivore, René Redzepi’s new TV series on Apple TV+. It appears the first three of eight episodes are available for screening. It's quite lovely to watch. Here's a WSJ review: ‘Omnivore’ Review: René Redzepi’s Tasty Travels on Apple TV+ (supposedly a gift link) Eater thinks it should have been a different show: In René Redzepi’s ‘Omnivore,’ Noma Is the Center of the Culinary Universe And that’s not a good thing Hollywood Reporter review: ‘Omnivore’ Review: Noma’s René Redzepi Hosts an Apple TV+ Food Docuseries That’s as Thought-Provoking as It Is Hunger-Inducing LATimes: Q&A: Noma chef René Redzepi wants to make insects delicious. In ‘Omnivore,’ he explains why (paywall likely) Anyone else watching?

Stock 💯

Remove skin and bones then cook the heck out of them so they are dried out with the texture of cotton balls. That describes chicken breasts to me! More seriously, are they just drumsticks or leg quarters with leg and thigh? If the former, I agree with @btbyrd, though I prefer an unroasted stock.

Thank you for sharing, @KennethT! Your hotel looked like a pretty good spot to chill and recover but I know that wasn’t the plan and I've got my fingers crossed that you felt better for the rest of the trip!

Yes, you can, although it works better with some things than others as the blades not only mix but also chop things to smithereens!

I think you will like it. It has chapters for custard ice cream, Philadelphia-style, sherbet and frozen yogurt. I haven’t used too many of her mix-ins, some would get too pulverized by the Creami, but her method of melting chocolate with a little coconut oil makes a great melt-in-your mouth chocolate chip addition.