KennethT

Eric Ripert had a recipe for "lemon confit" in "A Return to Cooking" - his first book. In that recipe, it's just salt - no sugar. I've made mine based on that recipe for years now with some minor variations and they come out great... I basically take a big jar, sterilize it and then take lemons and cut them into pieces - maybe 8-10 pieces per lemon - I cut all the way through as opposed to the originial which just slices lengthwise almost all the way down. I usually only use a little at a time, so I figure why not start with smaller pieces? Anyway, I never measure the salt anymore - I just line the bottom of the jar with some salt, then throw in 1 layer of lemon pieces, then cover with salt and repeat. Once in a while, I'll take a muddler or something and press down to make more space so I can really pack them in there. Then I just make sure I leave some space at the top of the jar to cover with salt. In the refrigerator for roughly 3-4 weeks, shaking around every week or so... As time goes on, you'll have more space in the jar, so I add more salt to keep everything covered. After that time, I take it out of the refrigerator and leave it in the cupboard, ready to use. It keeps basically forever unrefrigerated and indeed gets better over time.

mig - I agree with WillinTO - the NYC jamon iberico de bellota pales by comparison to 99% of the stuff we had in Spain... what we get here is the supermarket equivalent to an artisanally made product that isn't really exported to the US - similar to our experience here with imported cheese - we never get the really small production stuff you get in Europe. I don't know if they're still open, but do a search for Jamonisimo - which specializes in artisinally produced jamon - their product is incredible and was one of the highlights of our trip. I keep thinking about bringing a cello case so I can smuggle a whole jamon back to NYC... haha...

Peter - thanks for the testing and effort. I'm sure others are also, but I, for one, am listening! Your results concur with my much less controlled studies - I find that SV first and then smoking is better than smoking than SV. Do you have any ideas as to why your tasters had their preferences? Was it smoke flavor, texture, combination of them, etc? A big problem I have with smoking prior to SV is that I lose quite a bit of smoke flavor during the SV step - like lots of us have experienced smoky smelling bath water with perfectly intact seals. Especially during long SV or using hot temps...

The typical application of the microwave sponge is to tear it into chunks after unmolding from the cup. You can get a very "organic" look to it this way. You can do a whole modernist chocolate dessert by making a chocolate sponge, make chocolate twigs using tempered chocolate, chocolate hazelnut sand by mixing nutella with N-Zorbit tapioca maltodextrin. You can then add components with white chocolate for visual contrast, or add some chocolate mint (a specific strain of mint that smells like a combination of mint and chocolate) in chiffonade, etc etc... Also with the El Bulli theme is to do a chocolate version of their recent coconut puff - which was a microwave sponge chunk flavored with coconut with finely grated coconut covering the entire outside. So you could take your chocolate chunk, enrobe in tempered chocolate then cover in cocoa powder while still wet for an interesting matte look...

We ate at Din Tai Fung in Hong Kong... it was one of my favorites...

Nothing wrong with failing... it's the best way to learn! Chances are everyone has failed at least a little bit, so don't feel bad if you do, and don't let it stop you from progressing - learn from the mistakes and be better for it!

I agree it would be difficult - but if you were handy with welding, not impossible... rather than using such a thick piece of metal, you could use say 1/2" thick stainless, and weld 2" x 1/2" ribs in a crossed pattern which would significantly increase the moment and stiffness without all the mass... The real trick is welding stainless which typically requires a lot of experience. If a weld fails at some point, consider the jet of high pressure extremely hot steam that would emerge from the void!

I have the same "plancha"... after coming home from the Med. coast of Spain, I was Plancha-Crazy and plancha'd practically everything... I made my own "seawater" by making a roughly 14% sea salt solution and kept it in a squeeze bottle... seawater + olive oil plus seafood or whole fish = awesome... but it makes a lot of smoke!!!

There is a HUGE amount of discussion and info about doing this in the old sous vide thread... the thread was so big, they made an index for it - go through the index and find the stuff about DIY rigs... there's more info in the new SV thread as well...

You might want to contact Ajinomoto about samples of TG - the reps are very good at giving pointers to help with initial success (and shorten the learning curve) - and they give out 100g samples (or at least they did). The 100g samples come in vacuum sealed foil bags. I have had success in keeping an open pack still good for about 2 years now. What I do is cut a corner of the bag and take out whatever I need at one time. I squeeze all the air out and then heat seal the corner, then put that whole thing into another vacuum bag, vacuum and seal and then immediately into the freezer. I have a non-defrosting chest freezer, so it stays about -10C without a freeze/defrost cycle. The key are the foil bags - since normal vacuum bags are slightly permeable to gases (like oxygen) so even if it's vacuum sealed, after a while, you'll get some o2 getting in. The other advantage is that there is an o2 absorber in the foil pouch. You can buy o2 absorbers pretty easily on Ebay or amazon - so if you buy a 1KG bag, immediately divide it into smaller portions, and vacuum seal it in foil bags with a bunch of 02 absorbers and put in the freezer... should last a long time.

There's a lot of info on HK here depending on what you're looking for. It's a long thread, but the last few pages are up to date and have lots of recent info on regional chinese/dim sum...

I use a 16Qt stockpot for my SV rig, uninsulated. If the pot is covered (no evaporative heat loss), then my steady state power consumption at 60C (140F) is less than that of a lightbulb, and I have no problems with PID overshoot. If I'm cooking at 85C, it's probably about 150-200W. Radiated heat emanating from the sides of the pot are very small - I can tell because you can stand right next to the pot and only feel a slight warmth if you put your hand very close - otherwise, very little heat comes off the side of the pot.

Creating good tasting, shelf stable bottled sauces are quite tricky, I would think - hence why most of them are born from food scientists rather than cooks. The question is just because the fat itself is shelf stable, does that mean the end product is? What is the water activity of the final product? Acidity level? Are you just adding powdered flavorings to the fat, or other stuff like vinegar, water, juices/tomato product, etc? Other than the plastic taste, you could use the shelf stable margarines and emulsify it with lecithin, citric acid, or a different emulsifier. For other shelf stable fats, what about oils or even crisco or lard? If texture is a problem when using oil, you could always add a tiny bit of xanthan to thicken/for mouthfeel, and xanthan/locust bean gum have great synergistic properties so you can use less of them with great results. Also, you can use any fat you want, if you were to properly can the sauce in a pressure canner. The heat will destroy any bacteria/spores, and will result in a shelf stable package, at least until it's been opened.

I usually like to go to Hsin Wong, around the corner from PDH. It's a typical Cantonese roast meat place/hole, but I like that they use fluffy buns rather than the pancakes, and after they slice the prime parts for the buns, they take the rest of the duck and turn it into a stir fry. Plus, it's really cheap - a whole duck (including the stir-fry second course) runs about $30 if memory serves.

So, an update on West Villa. The restaurant in Tai Koo is definitely different than the one in Central. Both under the West Villa Group umbrella, but distinct and separate restaurants. Over the last week, the concierge at our hotel became quite friendly with us as they were constantly impressed by our restaurant selections (thanks everyone!). When I was talking to them about West Villa in Tai Koo - they recommended that they make a reservation for us for lunch (even though we were going straight there) as they said it was mostly locals, and tourists without a reservation are usually turned away. So, we hop on the MTR and head to Tai Koo - easy enough, and we are inside the mall - but the problem is, WHERE IS WEST VILLA!?!?! I have never seen such a large mall with no directory! And asking several shopkeepers didn't help because no one had heard of it! We wandered around the mall for a half hour before I got fed up and called our concierge for help. So, if anyone wants the specific info, it's on the 2nd floor, shop #208. It's upstairs and around the corner from the indoor ice-skating rink. Surely enough, when we got there (now a little after 1PM), we saw quite a few people being turned away, even though there were a couple empty tables by that time. But even though we were a half hour late for our reservation, they took us with no problems. They also seated a few other tables with reservations, and a couple of groups that were obviously regulars. With all that said, wow, am I glad we went there! By the time we got there, they were out of a few things (the baked cha siu buns for instance), but our waitress made a couple of excellent suggestions - one being the small fried fish fillets, and the other being the fried rib pieces. Both excellent. As stated above, the cha siu bao here were the best we had all week. Not to say others weren't close 2nds, but this one was definitely tops. Their har gau were amazing also. And, we thought their glutinous rice balls with black sesame filling were the best we had anywhere. Too many others to mention.... I will restate that while the West Villa in Central doesnt' serve dim sum - they're Cantonese, with a specialty of seafood, it was a fantastic meal and I would place it near the top of our list for another revisit. While expensive, they did a lobster dish that I've been thinking about for days. Just the texture of it would have made it worthwhile. But they also did a fantastic cha siu and steamed fish. We also had a vegetable dish of nettles in a clay pot that was great - I think they put some fermented shrimp or something in there. And they had excellent service to boot. Also wanted to comment on the Cheung Chau details. W.K - you are completely right. We went to one of the guys with the tanks, and we ordered by pointing out what we wanted - but even still, we were very disappointed with it. I ordered the mantis shrimp because we hadn't had an opportunity to try it yet, but they were so small - they had very little flavor, and were definitely overcooked. (Maybe it's not mantis shrimp season? Is there a mantis shrimp season?) We also ordered a pretty big crab, (not Singapore chili crab size, but still not tiny) but there was such little crab meat for the effort required, it hardly seemed worth it. And our steamed fish was ok, but definitely not even close to what we had at Yum Kee or West Villa (Central). Here it was slightly overcooked, and had a rather unpleasant "dirty" flavor, for lack of a better word. I don't know what that fish had been eating, but it wasn't tasty. We left unsatisfied, and by the time we got back to the hotel, we were hot, sweaty and hungry - but it was already almost 9PM. So, we decided to go the Thai restaurant in the hotel (Island Shangri-La) located on the pool deck. Well - what a serendipitous moment that was! This was the best Thai food we have had outside of Thailand - heads and tails better than anywhere in NYC - even the supposed "best places" like Sripriphai. Then again, we have'nt been to any other Thai places outside of Thailand and NYC, and a lackluster example in Reims a long time ago, so that's not really saying that much. But it had a very pleasant atmosphere sitting outside in the shadow of the great HK architecture, in a nice tropical garden with a cooling breeze that definitely resurrected what was surely a disappointing evening. Of course, it goes without saying that the Thai restaurant had hotel prices, but we felt it was worth it for the quality. We didn't order that much - a Som Tum (freshly made - still crunchy), spring roll - not greasy at all, and chicken green curry - thick with coconut cream and great flavor. And of course, a mango with sticky rice. Thanks so much for all the suggestions. This thread made our trip one of the best I can remember, and that's saying a lot!

OK, update on the last couple of days. Sichuan Da Ping Huo was a little disappointing. The couple that runs it are lovely, but we were underwhlmed with the flavor of the dishes. Maybe this is authentic Sichuan, but we enjoy Szechuan Gourmet in NYC a lot more, and according to a friend from Sichuan province, it's authentic. Who knows. Nonetheless, it was an enjoyable and memorable experince, and not expensive as it's HKD280 per person for many courses. Next day we went to Stanley, and had dim sum at a place around the corner from the waterfront. Nothing special (translation not that great) but it was interesting to see the contrast between notsogreat dim sum and some of the top. I forget the name of the place. While walking around, we saw that the Australian restaurant was having a special for 6 pcs Australian oysters,with 2 glasses of wine. 2 pcs each of3 types of oysters. All excellent - briny, sweet and lots of flavor. The wine not so much, but what can you expect for free. Last night we met an acquaintance of my wife who wound up booking a table at Yung Kee not knowing we had just been there 2 days before. We agreed though, as it allowed us to try a bunch of other stuff. We got a whole goose, roasted pigeon, suckling pig, steamed fish, spinach and bok choi. Suckling pig was great - you'd think the skin was like a sugartuile. So crisp. Pigeon had great flavor, but the meat was a bit dry, except for the legs. Steamed fish was fantastic as were the veggies.... And the goose..... Well, I could have it every day and not tire of it. Glad we went back. Lunch today at West Villa in Central. To our surprise, no dim sum, but they did do Cha Siu, which was great, and a stir fried lobster dish that was out of control crazy good. Also a veggie clay pot with dried shrimp or something. Tasty. Seems like they do a lot of seafood, as they have a big tank in the front with lobsters, a large garupa etc. I had wanted some mantis shrimp, but they were out. Dinner at Luk Yu as per a recommendation from above acquaintance. I would not recommend so fast. Greens were mushy - the first bad greens of the entire trip! Roasted pigeon was ok, but Yung Kee much better. Fried noodle with shrimp was ok - sauce was a little gloppy. But the shrimp were perfectly cooked. Don't know if I'd bother trying for dim sum as I'm a bit scared off by dinner.... Plus so many other places to try, Tomorrow, off to Tim Ho Wan for lunch, then to Cheung Chau and seafood for early dinner. Possibly a drink at the ritz Carlton before heading back to our hotel. Lantau the day after during the day, and then at night? Any suggestions?

We didn't get the beggars chicken as it was only two of us,and in our exhausted state, definitely not up tod true form. Last night went to YungKee which was incredible. We shared a half goose and Sauteed water spinach. I could have rolled around in the sauce of goose drippings/fat - but that's what the rice is for. Tonight we have a res. At Da Ping Huo sichan private kitchen. Very excited! And we'll definitely have a drink at ozone when we canstayup past 9:30. Sooner the better!

so far, went to Maxim's Palace, Peking Garden and Din Tai Fung. Palace was a great experience - excellent service, and good dim sum, for the most part. xiaolinbao ok, char Siu boa just ok, nothing special. Shrimp in rice dough roll was awesome, as were the chicken feet and pork ribs, and steamed chinesebroccoli. Har gau was good Last night we were exhausted (I had been up for about 24 hours at that point, with a failed nap attempt. But we had to eat, so we went to Peking Garden in the Pacific Place mall. Oddly enough, I figured it would be all tourists since it was in the mall, but it was the opposite - all local families out after shopping, I guess. Almost everyone had a reservation, except us, so we had to wait a few minutes. The shredded chicken/noodle appetizer was very good. I think there was some Szechuan peppercorn or something. The pekingduck was excellent. Almost no fat underneath the skin, which was very tender,bit as crisp as I hadhoped. The meat was not dry as usual though, which was amazing. And the pancakes seems like they were made about 10 minutes ago. Lunch today at Din Tai Fung. Awesome! Xiaolinbao were so good, we had to get a second round at the end. Also had the version with shrimp which I loved, but my wife not so much. Dan dan noodles were very good, as was the fried rice - which we got with shrimp. The Sauteed Indian greens were amazing, tender yet crisp, full of flavor. We also really enjoyed thesesamebun for dessert, but were getting pretty full.

It depends on whether you want the foam to be warm or cold, but if you want a warm foam, I think agar is your best bet, as pastrygirl said. Make an agar fluid gel with (if I remember correctly) 1% agar, then bring up to temp (just don't go over 85C or the agar will melt) and add to ISI whipper - I think I used to charge twice, with the first time done with the handle depressed to get all the air out of the canister. You can keep it warm for a few hours with no problems.

Just an update to this list - I emailed Maxim's Group, and they responded that out of their group (Maxim's Palace, Serenade, 8 Happiness), only Serenade and 8 Happiness accept reservations, and only for lunch (W Square and Kai Tin locations)

To me, it seems that the biggest problem for a chamber sealer is the fact that everything has to be cold before being sealed. So, for me right now, using a ziplock, I can sear a piece of meat, put a little liquid in the bag (or rendered fat) and seal it right away. If using a chamber sealer, I'd have to chill it in the fridge for a while until it's cold - which would probably take a couple of hours.

Larry, did you incorporate the mustard soaking vinegar, or did you drain it?

BTW - do I need a reservation for any of the above recommended places?

Thank you thank you thank you!!!!!! This is perfect!!!!!

I've found that the issue with grass-fed is not really in the cooking, but in how the animal was raised, and its condition at slaughter time. It's rare to find (especially in the US) but you can actually get some grass fed beef that has some marbling. I read a whole article once that was interviewing a grass fed farmer well known for the quality/flavor of his beef, and he went on a whole diatribe about how most grass fed farmers will slaughter the cows when they're not mature enough, and haven't accumulated enough meat/fat. This beef winds up dry and tough. He showed pictures of two cows the same age - one ready for slaughter, the other in his opinion required at least 6 more months. He pointed to specific spots on the animal as to where to check for "meatiness". But, he said, most farmers just go by age, and not by development. Plus, it's more expensive to wait longer for the cow to mature. Unfortunately, this doesn't answer your question. Personally, I'd cook it in a 130/131 bath straight from frozen - it'll defrost much quicker than in the fridge, unless you wanted to jaccard it. McGee recently put out an article where he compared defrosting techniques, and found that defrosting in circulating warm water was best (by far) both from time and quality standpoint. While some people may talk about the bacterial safety of defrosting in 110F water, he said that it defrosts so fast (20-30 minutes) that it doesn't leave much time for multiplication, especially if you'll be cooking it right away. Since you're cooking in a 131 (pasteurizing) bath, you'll kill anything that multiplying if you leave it there long enough. According to Modernist Cuisine, using a 131 bath (which cooks to a core temp of 129), you need to hold for 2h17m once core temp is reached to pasteurize. I don't know how much longer I'd hold it than that, since sirloin is pretty lean (especially grass fed), and I think it would dry out if held too long... so maybe 4 hours at the most? A great thing to do would be to portion the meat into several portions, and cook in separate bags for different amounts of time. Then you can report your findings!!!