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piracer

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Everything posted by piracer

  1. Yeah im sure most people get star struck but the macarons at Bouchon were just plain all wrong. It wasn't like it wasn't as good as the ones from say Laudree, they were just plain bad macarons - hard tough shell, thin filling which wasn't even good anyway. I ended up getting some from Miette in the Ferry building terminal, a little more 'proper' in terms of texture (wasn't tough or hard like Bouchon's) but neither were they fantastic. I dunno, im not saying im that great of a baker but i've made my own macarons which i think were better. Also it felt like they used some kind of whole wheat flour in them, i know proper macarons are supposed to be almond but it had the texture and look that reminds you of whole wheat bread. Strange.
  2. The vanilla wasn't that old but i guess if that was the layer it would explain the nasty taste. The milk wasn't exactly the freshest but i tasted it before cooking and it tasted fine. Also the pot was stainless steel, and im pretty sure the whisk was too. Finally i dont think i deviated that much from the usual proportions, i think maybe half a yolk more then the recipe counted for (since it was halved and the it was like 5 yolks and i used 3). I think the thing i did do different was adding the yolks sugar and starch at the same time. I think you were supposed to beat the yolks with sugar first, a little milk THEN starch, but how does that change things since when tempering the yolks it came to a consistency that seemed normal.
  3. Whose got the best? I was in napa and went to the bouchon bakery to get a couple since their supposed to be so good. I've never had such a disappointing macaron before. The shells were tough and the fillings were somewhat stingy and not very flavorful. Anyone else feel the same way about the bouchon macarons? I really don't know what the hypes about. But anyway, im in SF right now and i'm hoping theres stuff out here better then bouchon.
  4. So i made another batch of pastry cream and something strange and bad happened: after tempering the yolks and pouring it back into a stainless steel pot, i began whisking it over heat to cook the cream. It a.) never got thick b.) created a 'foam' on top with a liquid below (clearly the fat just separated out) c.) when i tasted it, it had a nasty metallic flavor to it. Now the recipe wasn't exactly what I've made before but the proportions weren't that much off and the general technique is the same. In to a bowl: yolks, sugar, cornflour, mixed and then heated milk flavored with vanilla added in. So why the separation of fat (i did however use a little cream mixed into my milk as it wasn't whole milk but i've done this before to compensate for the fat content and it was fine) But more importantly, where did that nasty metallic flavor come from?
  5. Agreed! Actually I'm in Pullman, WA right now (i study at Washington State University) so being a little homesick, some really good dim sum would be great! I have an aunt who lives there and I did offer i would cook for her since shes hosting my visit - steamed crab seems like a great idea! Are they seasonal or year round? I don't think i've ever had dungeneese crab actually. With regards to Swan's oyster depot, i believe that was featured on The Layover, looks damn good. Salumi and all that good porky stuff is very much in my heart, and it'll be great to try. My friend and I are actually driving down to SF and we were thinking of visiting Napa or Sonoma either on the way, or to be cheap by not paying for accommodation (we are college students), we were thinking of doing day trips (though being a 2 hour drive, would gas then negate that?). Regardless, I'm trying to get recommendations into wineries to visit in Napa or Sonoma and also trying to figure out who has cheaper tasting fees. I would very much like to visit Stag's Leap, Duckhorn etc but those places are kinda out of the budget I believe. Also Bouchon by T. Keller - worth it? I looked at the prices online and they are NOT cheap (in comparison i guess to what im used to paying these days). Thanks for all the suggestions!
  6. Ooooo they all look good. Annachan, I guess our maximum budget would be not more then $20 (hopefully), if lets say we had a meal over $30 im sure that would be fine, but the bulk of it should be below the $15-20 range. Seafood wise, i think oysters is definitely something im looking for. Sushi/sashimi would be great though that's usually a tad pricier. Fish and chips by the wharf - worth it or just another tourist trap? I'm quite intrigued about the food trucks - are there ones that are better then others? Oh also, I really want to buy a thing of sourdough starter, are there specialty bakeries that i can get a starter dough from?
  7. Ill be in SF in the middle of march and was wondering what there is on budget food there? I hear (from The Layover) that SF trumphs NY in having more decent mid-range prices. Unfortunately i dont know if I can afford that either (back packing). So are there are cheap places that are worth going too? Im hoping for some seafood options since where i havent had it in a while.
  8. I can't even find non-instant couscous. I feel like you just need to be not to eager with water and you'll be fine.
  9. So i made the cream yesterday: 250g milk 100g sugar 2 yolks 40g AP flour So i decided to substitute the AP flour for 25g cornflour instead. The cream did firm up quite nicely but i noticed a slight grainy texture which i feel was from the AP flour - my cream could have been slightly overcooked though. But if thats the case, doesn't 40g of AP flour seem too much? And why wouldn't you just use cornflour when making pastry cream?
  10. piracer

    Red Clam Sauce

    ^ was gonna say, finishing with butter is always a nice rich touch.
  11. piracer

    Consommé

    Do a sort of fine cabbage roll, served with a little mash and consomme as the 'sauce' - just reduced, and salsa verde.
  12. So I would like to make some creme patissiere to fill in a strawberry tart (thats the weekend plan anyway), but i was thinking if i can make it ahead and freeze it, why not right? So, can i freeze creme patissiere and whats the best way to bring it back to life? Also ive read that using corn flour instead of AP flour produces a more 'bouncy' gelatinous creme patissiere that is used more for tart fillings as opposed to being used for a compound creme patissiere. Is this true? And if thats the case, would you substitute it with a 1:1 ratio of corn flour to AP flour? If im not wrong, corn flour is also gluten free right? thanks
  13. So i was trying to figure out a way to use iceberg lettuce in a salad aside from those nasty shreds with misc amounts of other random vegetables. The only salad i know dedicated to iceberg is of course the wedge with a blue cheese dressing and as nice as that is, its boring after a while. But either wise, what else would you do with iceberg?
  14. why the corn starch? that's the first time I've seen it used. Also, whats the difference between using fresh eggs whites and that from a pack? If it's easier to just buy whites i might have to start doing so... Oh also, for the video, a little easier on the techno music, felt like i was in a club
  15. i would say more of the muddiness that is associated with fresh water fish. though if you clean them well theres no reason why you couldn't. Roasting the bones and adding wine would probably do the trick.
  16. piracer

    Pig Ears

    I once bought an entire Pigs head (no brain though ) for a measly $2!! Couldn't believe the bargin. Aside from the cheeks, the ears are awesome. The best thing I've made with ears was a slow long braise, semi-chinese style with cinnamon, star anise, dark and light soy, bay, kaffir lime (i like the citrus notes), oyster sauce and water until super tender. At this point i either deploy as needed in whatever be it rice or a snack, but even better, is a quick dip in flour, then egg whites, then deep fried. Since its been braising for ages, the ear is crispy on the outside, soft and gooey on the inside and the braising liquid just permeates through out. I would say that if you cook ears this way, its quite hard to resist. Just dont tell them what it is, say its fried pork or something and smile.
  17. It's funny because I read somewhere that another person had problems making his IMBC using the whisk, and only after changing to the paddle did it come right. How interesting... On the other hand of syrup pouring, i should have simply turned the KA onto the lowest speed! Duh!(i think i kept it at 6 or something) But duely noted on the syrup temp, will report back when I have an excuse for another crack.
  18. One thing that happened when I kept on whipping it after it got to that stage of what i thought resembled IMBC was that it broke apart (though i think its because it was cold enough so that the butter just broke and all you got was water and fat), but also the color turned to a really nasty greyish white color. One thing im wondering is my ratios of ingredeints: 3 egg whites 62.5 ml water 160g sugar 2 sticks of butter (hlf pound) salt Does this seem about right? Again with discussion on to butter, i was being cheap and i used the walmart great value butter. Obviously it was the cheapest i could fine but i didn't think it would make a difference though people have commented that higher fat european style butters are better. The ones i can find are Darigold and Land O Lakes
  19. Hmmm i wonder if it was my syrup temp. I was reading another recipe where it was like 215 i think, so i pulled it out at about 230 (since i thought it wouldnt make too much of a difference). The problem is making an IMBC is that there is so much invested into it that i need a damn good reason to do it again. Also when i was pouring the syrup into the meringue, i noticed quite a bit of wasted syrup by the whisk beating it to the side. If you were to pour the syrup with the beater off, would that work? Or would you just make more syrup to compensate for a percentage of it being splattered around? I also hear that it freezes well, does it? Cause then i wouldnt feel so bad if I made another batch.
  20. So RWood, your saying that it's not a good idea to subject it to temperature changes, and then re-whip it? Chris, i definitely was whipping the hell out of it, left it on for at least 5 mins on speed 6 on my kitchen aid.
  21. So I made a batch of IMBC to frost a cake, very simple recipe: 3 egg whites 62.5 ml water 160g sugar 2 sticks of butter (hlf pound) salt So i made the syrup cooked until 230F, and then poured it into the whites which was whipped with a little salt to about stiff peaks (as stiff as they would go without any sugar). The meringue was fine so far, it looks glossy, tasted good. Then i added the butter and it went down hill. I put on my paddle attachment and added in my butter in chunks (room temp), and i know its suppose to go through this stage where it looks kinda nasty and curdly. And it did, coming back to a kinda smooth consistency - except it wasn't really smooth. So i put it in the fridge for about 10 mins, then back to beating it and this is when everything just separated and goodbye IMBC. So i guess the question is, what should the IMBC really look like? Perhaps i had it at the stage it was supposed to be but it just flew over my head. Or maybe im beating it at too high of a speed (the butter that is)? It taste fine, but it looks like hell and texture is all wrong.
  22. piracer

    Savory meringues

    I think on top chef canada, one of the contestants made a savory 'macaron' (it came out like what macarons do when they dont turn out right...), but it did raise thoughts of a savory meringue. I guess there's no reason why you can't - doesn't adding cream of tartar help stabilize meringue? So if you bumped that up, lowered your sugar and added more salt (which im told also strengthens it), you get a somewhat salty meringue. Though i wouldnt really know how to flavor it, but im guessing some kind of extract, liquid smoke perhaps or something like that?
  23. Hi everyone, so im thinking of going down to Napa and/or Sonoma for a couple of days in March. Im driving down from WA state so couple questions - would it make more sense to drive all the way down to San Francisco (which is where we're spending 5 days)and do you know of any places that are cheap to stay at? I'm still in college and im going with a buddy of mine, so we're not exactly able to sleep at the Hilton or whatever it is. I can't exactly imagine Napa or Sonoma for having cheap accomodation (didn't they stay in a motel in Sideways?), but since that's the case, which is cheaper - Napa or Sonoma? Also looking at the tasting fees for some of the more upscale places, they can be pretty expensive (up to like $50). Any thoughts on cheaper places? From what I've read so far, whats on my mind anyway is this: Smith Madrone Schug Winery B Cellars Madonna Estates Duckhorn (i know, probably wont be cheap, but hey its an icon) Stags Leap (same) Ch. Montelena (same) thanks for any suggestions!
  24. i dont know if this would work, but would adding cocoa powder into whatever dish you made somehow mask the 'milkyness' of it? If i were to make a proper hot chocolate, i would just do that.
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