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I do the ice cube trays thing with chicken and turkey stock. I reduce it to the point where you can stick a knife in it and it stands straight up. Once frozen, I bag it.

That pic is the lot braising away - finely chopped carrot, onion, leeks, celery, calls for 1 BULB of garlic, (it doesn't like me so only added maybe a teaspoon) and mushrooms and of course, the oxtails.

We bought ours at a butcher shop, one I go to when I want something special. It comes packaged as 1 cut-up entire oxtail to a package and while it has some fat, it is nicely trimmed. We have a grocery here called Farm Boy and the beef they sell is all AAA. I called them to ask about oxtails and they said they'd start getting them near the end of the month and carrying them til the end of the year. I'll be curious to see how much they charge.

Thanks, everyone. That was my inclination as well. I've moved everything out of my dutch oven and into a stockpot as I decided the Dutch oven filled as it was to the top, was too full. @Senior Sea Kayaker Per the recipe after it's 7 hours on the stove it is strained, meat picked off, cooking veg discarded, pearl onions and carrot added and the lot reduced to ragu consistency. As per me, I plan to cool it on the balcony overnight (2 degrees C) and defat it first. Not much to see @rotuts But this is what it looks like right now:

I am making an oxtail ragu, from a recipe I've never made. It called for 6 1/2 pounds of oxtails and at one point it says to cover them with liquid, let it come to a very slow simmer and let it simmer for 7 hours. It does not say whether to cover the pot or not. The tails just fit in my dutch oven and the liquid covers them but just. Should this be covered? The recipe doesn't say one way or another. If I don't cover it, as the liquid evapourates, the top layer of tails will no longer be covered and I don't know what that does to the meat as far as tenderizer it goes. Thanks for any and all advice. I have $90 worth of oxtails in there and don't want to botch it up.

$179.99 in Canada, currently out of stock.

John came across this site the other day and which has a wealth of information. https://www.thepurposefulpantry.com/ She is also on Facebook.

Can you elaborate on how you cooked the pork cheeks? I have some in the freezer waiting for me to do something with them.

@Pete Fred Glad to see you posting to this topic again. I gave up trying to get all of one batch of canalès to come out the same way. I do love the things - i may have to try again. Are you making your latest recipe available?

Bean lovers might be interested in Heirloom Beans by Steve Sando and Vanessa Barrington. Currently on sale for $1.99 on Amazon. Sorry, I couldn't get the link to work.

I ordered 2 sets, the second set will go in my sister's Christmas "bag".

Thank you @MaryIsobel. I just put these in my cart. https://www.amazon.ca/Spatula-Reusable-Double-ended-Silicone-Kitchen/dp/B093SMXB91/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1AHYS35IEC1NP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FJhqCW5rqttneUfLABdD-yvQxrZRJ8CznYzH1rVU3UPn5zjKaFgGPc-Drf5-vkjjJJl8Kh1iMTYh7JPJ8F0PrXMAnpsbCfm1OiOIkkFW_BTfL0fzSr1CbKqXMGe9aurdkrD0tQ_HvuEdXSuZDVrlEZplYHCjbEZwZAyqiGGLtHKXsUvhN9mv2zwdzqeCO8VscNLsTiGGdlPpJX-pkRInWtRi06MlkGmlPUlWN2UNb2hL88Gp4z4rcH2lMPV4_NC_TB_1IoorLbi05HFxuX47_VY4YFwDW5YqT-mshJ30m9g.pQ7FzfGQt_cIOEvX7MmYneOhFSYlBckJU15TXZ-hix0&dib_tag=se&keywords=Hagbou%2Bscraper&qid=1727820631&sprefix=hagbou%2Bscraper%2Caps%2C115&sr=8-6&th=1

I'm a scraper, probably because growing up, my parents were scrapers, having lived through the depression and occupied Holland in WW2 when food was, to put it mildly, scarce. I like to get every. last. bit. out.

I did the same thing not that long ago.

I used to make it. Now I just buy Eagle Brand dulce de leche.

Where are you?

Yes, I did get it.

Our humidity right now is 56% so I guess I'd expect it to take a few hours longer?

Thank you. Can you tell me how long and at what temperature?

I am going to dehydrate some plum tomatoes. The couple of books I have suggest cutting them in wedges to dry. Should I, after cutting them, also take the seeds out? TIA. So far, I have dehydrated peaches, blueberries (not a fan), apple slices, strawberries and some red, green and orange bell peppers. Other than the blueberries, I haven't used any of the other dried products.

I sometimes thaw a frozen vac packed hunk of whatever in a bowl with cold water which also works to thaw whatever quicker. Never thought of using sous vide. I'll try it next time. I don't have a divided sink but I'll just use a suitably sized pot.

@Darienne If you feel up to replying, was there any one particular thing that sparked your interest? (Glad to see your post.)

Not sure if this should go here or in the non-culinary one. I will never again sign up to take a day course at Le Cordon Bleu and forget to show up.

We have the Breville "The Smart Grill" and are happy with it. I am a big fan of Breville products, I haven't needed to replace any of them.

We try to get to the Jean Talon market in Montreal a couple of times a year and were there a couple of weeks ago. I always go the Èpices du Cru and pick up whatever spices i might need /want, the last one being Harissa spice blend. Little did I know the real name of the place is Spicetrekkers until today.