nickrey

After checking around all over the place, I've order some prague powder from the US via eBay. Shop is called superior kitchen gadgets, just search for "prague powder." I'll let you know if it clears customs

I just sous vide cooked some beef cheeks for a chef friend. He had vacuum sealed them in food safe plastic bags with some jus. They were cooked for 30 hours at 70 degrees celsius (158 fahrenheit). While cooking there was no leakage and the bags were definitely water tight. The cooking water, although not coloured, smelt strongly of cloves (there were some used to flavour the jus). My question is are the clove scent molecules so small that they can pass through the plastic bags? If so, does anything else do this?

One other thing about the Global knives is that they are quite a deal lighter than conventional cooks knives and can be less of a strain for long duration chopping tasks.

Hi, I'm quoting directly from Martin Lersh's book on hydrocolloids (http://khymos.org/recipe-collection.php) The most likely problem is that there are different strengths of gelatine depending on the type of sheet used. The bloom strength is the gelling strength and it works as follows. The stronger the bloom strength, the lighter the sheet (to give approximately equivalent gelling strengths) Name (Bloom Strength) [grams/sheet] Bronze (125-155) [3.3] Silver (160) [2.5] Gold (190-220) [2.0] Platimum (235-265) [1.7] So if the recipe called for 10g of gelatin, it may have been 10g of bronze and if you used platinum, it would have been around twice as set. Typically for Panna cotta, you'd use around 1% gelatin. For 500 ml of cream plus sugar, vanilla, etc you'd use around 5.6g or just over three sheets. For Bronze gelatin, this would be 3.3g x 3 ~ 10g, so that is the likely problem. With different strengths of gelatin, it is somewhat complicated, hope this helps.

For me it's bruschetta all the way. Fresh basil and home grown tomatoes are the perfect match. Try to find Ciabatta bread if you can but if not, use thick slices day-old wood-fired bread 8 slices Ciabatta or similar wood-fired bread 2 tbsp high quality extra-virgin olive oil 4 of those lovely sun-ripened tomates, diced 1 clove garlic, peeled and halved 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, shredded Use grill pan to toast both sides of bread (this give a crunchy texture and nice marks on the bread). While hot, rub 1 side of each slice with cut garlic. Drizzle each with 1 tsp oil. Spoon tomatoes onto bread. Sprinkle with basil. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

There is so much movement between the two countries, particularly in the restaurant and catering area, that it would be really hard to pin down differences between the cuisines. My suspicion is that a variance in consumer demand would drive any differences in what is eaten. But having travelled extensively through Australia, I suspect there is more difference within Australia than exists between Australia and New Zealand. I do wish we could get Bluff oysters here in Australia though.

sliced boiled egg, chopped spring onions, shredded chicken, crunchy little peanuts, those little dried fish, pickled ginger, Indonesian soy sauce (kecap manis), cilantro, asian basil, the list goes on...

The meat does throw some liquid so don't give up on it too soon. My bags tend to not be as tight after a while as when I put them in as well. I'd be tempted to leave it and see how it turns out. While there is nothing wrong with rebagging the meat, using a Foodsaver you carry the risk of some of those juices getting into the seal, which means you will wind up with a worse problem. If it has leaked and not given a good outcome with this piece, next time you do it try doing a few more seals above your original seal without vacuum just to make sure the package is nice and secure. Good luck

Just found this link: http://www.chefphanis.com/OnlineCookbooks/...neCookbooks.htm

Hi Janet, I used the link from this thread in E-Gullet and downloaded a 60 byte PDF file that was unreadable. Having visited your blog page recently, I went there and found the working link. This was the one that worked: http://www.mydatabus.com/public/TheOldFood...cCookbooks3.pdf

Having just received my Sous Vide magic from Canada a week ago, I did my first very slow cooked meal tonight. This was beef cheeks cooked for 30 hours at 70 degrees Celsius. To provide a degree of bite and texture, I baked some egg-glazed puff pastry as a base. Onto this was added a layer of mashed potato enriched with horseradish and sour cream. Next came the beef cheeks across which I laid diagonally two eschallots (scallions) that had been blanched and then fried on a griddle pan to give the nice dark marks. Used a sauce from a lamb shanks dish I did last night to which was added the juices from the Sous Vide bags. This was then boiled down to get to the right consistency and enriched with butter. Served the meal with fried oyster mushrooms as well as baby spinach cooked in butter and lemon with butter-fried pine nuts added. The meat was superbly moist and tender and the other elements added a lovely flavour and texture. Sorry there are no pictures but it disappeared quite rapidly.

Too late for BReakfast, not quite lUNCH = BRUNCH. = A merge of the best elements of the two mmmmmm. Brunch

I'd recommend "Exploring taste and flavour" by Tom Kime. The title succinctly captures where our culinary experiments and researches take us. In the book, he outlines his approach to combining the tastes of sweet, sour, salty, hot and applies it to dishes ranging from the simplicity of favorites such as a BLT through to the richness of Thai cooking. Try your BLT using sweet tomato, sourdough bread, salty bacon, and arugula [rocket] to see what he means. Chris Mirault mentioned David Thompson in an earlier post; as someone who worked with Thompson, Tom credits him with totally changing his approach to thinking about flavors and it shows in his recipes. Extend the approach of balancing flavors by adding contrasting textures and you will produce food that speaks to the soul.

Hi all, I've just bought the Ruhlman and Polcyn Charcuterie book and am eager to start on some of the recipes. The curing solutions used in a number of the recipes use sodium nitrite in combination with non-iodised salt. I was just wondering if anyone knows of an Australian-based supplier who sells quantities suitable for domestic use. While we're at it, does anyone also know of a source for natural sausage casings, also for domestic use? Thanks

There's a pretty positive review of the restaurant in the Sunday Herald at this link: http://www.smh.com.au/news/restaurant-revi...4472754072.html

My bet is that the mayonnaise is made with rice vinegar and a small amount of MSG. They've also added karashi (Japanese mustard) and soy sauce. You say they also add grated onion. If it has a bit more complexity in heat on the palate, try some wasabi as well. There is a very popular Japanese mayonnaise called Kewpie brand in a plastic squeeze bottle. They may potentially have used this and added some ingredients to it to make it their house sauce. ps. why not try the Japanese cooking and recipes section of the forum? People reading there are likely to have a deal of knowledge in this area

Having used the kits rather than relying on hearsay, they actually produce quite a nice beer. You should be aware, however, that making beer is to alcohol production is like what baking is to other types of cooking. Everything has to measured, controlled, and precisely executed. In wine and spirit making you can blend to correct mistakes and imbalances: in beer making you need to get it right the first time. It is fun and produces a good product but you need to be a bit of a perfectionist.

In Australia, we tend to use the granite ones. They are available at Asian food shops here. This link has a picture of one http://www.rockpool.com/np_meet.aspx?meet=tips&tip=72 They are very good if you can find them.

Artisan made beer, cider, wine, etc is clarified by using isinglass finings or Irish moss. Perhaps a variant on this process would work for stock?

Hot flavours such as chili benefit from a pairing with sweet flavours, which provide balance. Not too sweet but something like a Traminer or Gewurztraminer or similar spicy but floral wines should pair well. (From Wikipedia) The variety has high natural sugar and the wines are white and usually off-dry, with a flamboyant bouquet of lychees. Dry Gewürztraminers may also have aromas of roses, passion fruit and floral notes. Some Australian wineries pair traminer with Reisling grapes, which should also work. These also go very nicely with hotter Asian foods.

I have heard that the English pork is full of flavour and strong tasting. Australia, blessed though it is with much wonderful produce, has fairly bland tasting pork (apart from a few exceptions such as Bangalow pork). Having not tried it with duck, it may be the next excursion but I'll be sure to try the pork version next time I'm in the UK. Cheers

If you are interested in the history of Indian food, you can't go past Lizzie Collingham's book "Curry: A tale of Cooks and Conquerors." The bottom line of this book is that "traditional" Indian food has been modified time and again through invasion and the introduction of new food types and preparation processes. As Waaza has said, Vindaloo is a hybrid of the Portuguese liking for marinated pork with Goan spices. Collingham states that the dish is traditionally made with pork but that the British best liked it with duck. The vitality of Indian cuisine as recounted by Collingham suggests that Indian cooking "tradition" has been established only through massive change so I'd steer away from saying that there is a one true Vindaloo: you could obviously use other stewing meats such as chicken thigh meat or blade steak but this would alter both taste and texture and, consequently, the eating experience. Here is her recipe, which is one of the best I've tried: 2-4 breasts of duck (or 700g stewing pork), cubed Paste: 2 large dried red chillies 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp poppy seeds 4-6 whole cloves 10 black peppercorns 1/2 tsp turmeric 2 fresh red chillies, finely chopped (recipes vary in the use of chillies: I've seen, and eaten, ones with up to 20 chillies: your mouth goes numb and you can't taste much else of the dish but it's a matter of personal taste) 1 tbsp palm or wine vinegar (palm gives a more authentic Goan taste) 1 tbsp tamarind paste large clove of garlic, mashed 2cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated Method: In a cast-iron pan dry roast the dried chillies, cumin seeds, poppy seeds, cloves, peppercorns, and turmeric for 1-2 minutes. Grind these spices into a fine powder (some use a coffee grinder for this, but you cannot grind coffee in it ever again; or use a mortar and pestle). Put in a bowl with the fresh red chillies, wine vinegar, tamarind, ginger, and garlic and mix to a paste. Add the meat and mix again. Make sure all the pieces of duck (or pork) are coated in the marinade. Cover and leave in the fridge overnight. Sauce 4-6 tbsp vegetable oil 1 tsp black mustard seeds 2 cm (1 inch) cinnamon stick 1 large onion, finely chopped 300 ml (1/2 pint) water salt to taste pinch of jaggery (palm sugar, again for a Goan taste) or soft brown sugar a few curry leaves, crumbled Method The next day, heat the oil in a large pan and when hot add the mustard seeds and cinnamon stick. When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add the onions and fry over a medium heat until they begin to brown. Add the meat and its marinade and saute until the pieces are browned. Add the water and a pinch of salt to taste. Cover, turn down the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes for duck or 20 minutes for pork. Remove the lid, keep heat very low and simmer gently until meat is tender (about 30 minutes with duck, an hour with pork) and the sauce is thick (you may need to add a little more water to prevent burning). When the meat is tender, add the sugar (palm or soft brown) and the crumbled curry leaves and simmer for another 3 minutes. Then serve. Hope you enjoy it (and the book) Cheers from Australia

It's interesting that no-one has addressed the issue of the Tiger rice cooker that was raised in the initial post. Very expensive induction heating models aside, when I was doing my research in Australia for a good but not too expensive rice cooker, all the information I read said that the Tiger brand was the best. I bought one without fuzzy logic, etc because I am using it for sous-vide cookery with a PID controller and would have to say that the rice it produces is among the best I have tasted (although this could partially be due to using Himalayan Basmati rice). I haven't tried brown rice as yet (personal preference) but reviewing this on the Internet it seems, as Leviathan said above, that you just use more water. So if you don't want to go the full induction heating route and want to get a top quality product without excessive expense, you don't need to go past the Tiger.

Hi Ce'nedra Like others, I'd recommend The Gourmet Regional Chinese Regional Cookbook. A number of years ago I also stumbled on some smaller format cookbooks published by Lansdowne Press. The three I have are: The Cooking of Szechwan and Hunan The Cooking of Peking Shantung Anwhei The Cooking of Canton and Kwangtung All were edited by Carol Jacobson and published in 1983. I'm not sure if any others were published. They are an Australian imprint so you may be able to find them in second-hand bookstores in Sydney. Good luck finding them.

I've seen some of them. It seems to be more a "Kylie discovers her ethnic roots" and cooking travelogue that a full blown cooking show like her previous efforts. It's interesting in a travel channel/journey of personal discovery sense.