PastryChef x

A lot of talk in the pro community right now about Cobh, near Cork, Ireland, as *the* emerging culinary travel destination. ----- Chris

Talked to a guy who works on restaurant stoves and he said I was crazy to recommend a pro range to any homeowner. Said no amateur cook is safe on a 24-30k btu and even pros use the fake ranges at home on account of the safety and heat issues. Not sure I agree (couple of folks here lived 20 years wihtout mishap) but here is his source. ----- Chris

An inoven broiler is a joke compared to an upright restaurant broiler. You will never be able to accomplish the same things. Your BTUs no matter what will be about 6000 less than the restaurant model of your same stove. If you care enough about your BTUs why don't you just get the right insulation installed and get a restaruant stove? It will be a thousand cheaper than the home model and will give you 24,000 BTU. Get an overhead salamander while you're at it and you will be the envy of all your weekend warrior cook friends. ----- Chris

Agree 100%. Add lots of salt. Your water for boiling should taste like the sea. ----- Chris

Hey, the question was how to make the best. There are plenty of things you can make with potatoes that you can enjoy, serve to guests, even have them ask for thirds. Potatoes are resilient. You can cook them for an hour and make perfectly tasty mashed potatoes anyway. Then there is the next level: Is this something I'd pay good money for and be happy with if it was served to me at a restaurant. For that there is no shortcut, no substitution, no addition that can save you if you don't use butter and cream in sufficient quantity. Butter and cream have calories and fat it's true but they also are satisfying in smaller portions. I oppose health substitutions. I tell people if they don't want to use cream in their cooking then cook dishes that don't call for cream. Don't leave it out of dishes that need it to be their best. ----- Chris

Can't see any way you could improve your boiling and pureeing technique. Food mill or even better ricer are the best tools for the job. Probably no reason to start in cold water. Just throwing into boiling should work and gives better timing control. You might want to "undercook" a little by the standard you've set. Your description sounds a bit over. Also don't see why need to put lid on at all. Steam in jacket is bs. Cuisinart will totally ruin activates too much starch. KitchenAid will work if very careful. Masher isn't effective at all. Better to use a fork than a masher if you want the crushed look. But here's my question: You're treating cream like it's optional? It's totally the key to great mashed/pureed potatoes. The whole idea is to force as much cream and butter as humanly possible into each empty space between the potato molecules. Milk has too much liquid not enough fat. It is equivalent to adding cream and water. I promise use only cream and you will be very happy. ----- Chris

Jason, imagine a knife made out of a cast iron skillet and you'll begin to get the idea. ----- Chris

Just visited the knifemaker's Web site at http://www.wildfirecutlery.com where he says he's so swamped with orders from New York Times readers that he's in deep doo doo. Poor schmuck. When these amateur cook Park Avenue types realize what a bitch it is to deal with carbon steel knives he's going to get so many whiny complaining phone calls that he'll lose his mind. The New York Times TOTALLY understates the difficulty of maintaining these knives. Aside from a few sushi chefs who engage in lengthy knife maintenance rituals every day I don't know of any professional cook using carbon steel any more. ----- Chris

Vinums are clunkers compared to Spiegelaus. Most wine pros I know uses Spiegelau for home use. Know a few with Sommeliers but none with Vinums. INAO tasting glasses are more versatile than you think, Shaw. Work well for all whites, desserts, spirits, and some reds. Only thing they really torture is Burgundy. Great for everyday use, picnic use, dishwasher, small enough to store lots of them, only about Ū.50 each if you get them in the right place. ----- Chris