Dave the Cook

While any of these suggestions will work, none of them will replace the flavor of ouzo, for which Hazan must have chosen it specifically. If you want to replicate the intended anise accent (well, way closer than brandy, triple sec or rum, anyway), buy a miniature of Pernod or Sambuca. Two-thirds of it will be used for the recipe, and the remaining tablespoon can be sipped or otherwise disposed of pretty easily.

You say you can get 1800 silver. I think that's a pass in its usual incarnation -- it's ordinary. But if the 100-proof version is available, that's a different story. It's maybe US$4 more (per 750) here, but well worth it.

No. It's not like the scale isn't weighing your empty bowl; it's just subtracting its weight from the total measurement.

Are we talking links or patties?

Slow-roasting is an appealing option -- all the more since probably 98% of the world's short ribs are braised (or these days, s-v'd). For the 2005 Pig Pickin', we rubbed them with salt, ancho, garlic, onion, cumin and a little brown sugar, then cooked them at the edge of the fire that was being readied for the pig. Photo of rubbed ribs here. Almost done here (not their best angle, but w/e). . . . and a diner's unsolicited review here.

. . . and dishwasher-safe. Being able to put a pan in the dishwasher is a non-issue, FWIW. It's an issue for me, and no doubt many others who might be considering the purchase of a popover pan.

. . . and dishwasher-safe.

Conventional wisdom says that you must start with a hot pan and hot fat. But I just read this in McGee's Keys to Good Cooking (p 450): So "hot and hot" isn't essential -- helpful and reassuring to know, if you're trying to work out other parts of a recipe first.

Maybe check out the pain perdu recipes in Keller's Under Pressure? It's two layers of custard-soaked brioche with a savory layer in between. He does one with tomato marmalade (part of a lobster-centric dish) and another with beef tongue, but you can put almost anything in that savory layer. For example, we've done it with deviled ham, and we're working on a version with caramelized onions and roasted red peppers for a sous vide class we're teaching in February The first we topped with a poached egg and Creole Hollandaise -- kind of a turn on Eggs Benedict. The nice thing about it as a Christmas breakfast dish is that it's assembled and baked ahead of time (it's also fun to put together), then portioned and quickly fried to finish whenever you want it.

We do more or less what HungryC does. JAZ (disclosure: we are partners) posted a step-by-step tutorial over here.

Anything new in consumer-level deep fryers in the last two years? We've been using the cast-iron pot/thermometer arrangement, but would love a dedicated appliance, if there's one that's consistently capable of 350° - 375°F and has decent recovery.

A Bron for thirty bucks is a great deal! And I agree that for occasional use, the MIU is probably fine -- and probably worth about $45. But if you want a serious tool for frequent use, and you aren't lucky enough to be hanging out by the right clearance bin at the right time, you should expect to pay more.

This looks like an MIU product. I've used it two or three times -- which is not a lot of experience -- but my impression was that it wasn't very sturdy, despite what appears to be a decent design. IIRC, the frame is too narrow to provide a lot of stability, and when you get up to speed, it starts to rock from side to side. If you want a "true" mandoline -- as opposed to a V-slicer or ceramic slicer (nothing wrong with those, but they're not the same thing), I think you're going to have to spend a bit more money. And yeah, get at least one glove for your slicing hand.

http://www.usfoodsculinaryequipmentandsupplies.com/search.do?query=turbo+pot

I suggest reading through Kenji's turkey-breast "porchetta" recipe on Serious Eats. He removes the tenderloins and butterflies the breast halves to facilitate the rolling. I can tell you from my own experience that getting the breast halves into a workable shape is going to be very difficult without these two steps (you can create a separate, smaller roll with the tenderloins by pounding them thin). He cooks his roll (appears to be about 3 inches, as described in earlier posts) at 140°F for 4 to 5 hours,

Do they grow those kind of avocados in California? Around here, the large, smooth-skinned type pictured is often known as a Florida avocado.

$195 for the Finex; $280 for the Borough Furnace, with Lodge at $30? These are solutions in search of problems -- problems with deep and ignorant pockets.

The most effective tool I've found for levering open a reluctant pistachio is another pistachio shell.

Ceramics are a broad category of materials that includes porcelain. LeCreuset is porcelain enamel (see this).

I think you're going to have to be a lot more specific. Ceramic-lined cookware has been around for decades. Some of it -- Le Creuset and Staub, for example -- is excellent for a certain type of cooking. Other stuff -- like the ceramic-lined steel pans my mom loved because of their light weight (she had severe arthritis) -- was crap by any other standard.

We're very sorry to announce the passing of long-time member Dave Hatfield. We received this email from his wife Linda this morning: Dave not only impressed the membership with his thoughtfulness, experience, and palate, he shared them with us through his three eG Foodblogs: the first in 2007, La France Profonde in 2012, and his last, A Food Adventure, just a few weeks ago. We'll miss you, Dave. + + + Please note: this topic is in a forum that requires posts to be approved before they will appear. For reasons too complicated to get into here, we can't change that. So if you post and it doesn't show up immediately, please be patient and don't repost. A staff member will come along and hit the button to make your post appear, though it might take a little while. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Totally possible. Since you usually cook for one or two, a lowish saucepan (with a lid) would be most versatile, but even a foil pouch on a cookie sheet will work.

That looks great. What cut of beef was it, and how did you arrange it in the fryer?

About once a month, we teach a date-night class on making a steak dinner. It's based around classic steakhouse dishes (creamed spinach, Caesar salad, honking-big Porterhouse, etc.), but we add a few twists. One of those is cooking tenderloin steaks sous-vide and finishing them in a deep fryer. The first few times we did this, it was mildly interesting for our students, but in the last three months or so, we've been getting more and more questions about sous-vide techniques and what's required to get started in it. It used to be easy to give advice: 1) if you're the do-it-yourself type, get a controller (or build one), a simple slow cooker, and a FoodSaver; 2) if you're not into DIY, buy a Sous Vide Supreme package. (Either suggestion is accompanied by a pitch for eG Forums, of course.) Now it's not so simple. Between Anova, Nomiku, Sansaire, Underground (which is also working on a $900 chamber vacuum), and the Polyscience offerings, there are -- all of a sudden -- lots of choices. Which makes me wonder what's going to happen in the consumer market. I suppose Sous Vide Supreme can continue to sell their units at premium prices for a while, because it's got a certain appeal for those who like neat counters and simple solutions. Meanwhile, Polyscience can maintain pricing for only so long, based on their reputation in professional circles. It seems unlikely to me, though, that things will stay the way they are, or even that all of these companies will survive. For example, a while back, we were contacted by a startup who asked for advice on how to create a presence in eG Forums. They had a very attractive product -- something like Dork, but with the looks of the Anova. Six months ago, their projected price of 200 euros didn't seem too far out of line, considering its ergonomics and stylish appearance. Then the Anova and Sansaire showed up, and we never heard from those folks again -- most likely because they realized that the market had fallen out from beneath them. If you could advise SVS or Polyscience -- or any of these companies -- what would you tell them?

As someone who's lived in the south for 45 years -- which, I should warn you, anyone actually born here will tell you does not qualify me as a southerner -- I not only see no problem with peeled peppers, I think it makes for a better product. Rather than gfweb's horseradish, I'd provide heat with cayenne or pepper sauce. Here's an excellent recipe from a genuine native: Linton Hopkins' Pimiento Cheese. (In this case, using jarred roasted peppers is a very acceptable substitute for home roasting.)