chriscook

Made the chocolate custard yesterday for a chocolate pie. I didn't read the recipe real closely before I put the egg yolks in the sous vide, so was a little surprised when I pulled them out and they were fully set. But I went ahead and blended them up with the chocolate sauce and cream. I didn't really care for the flavor at first -- it was very eggy. So I stuck in the the fridge and tasted it a couple hours later. It's really really good. So good that I ate too much of it and don't have enough filling for the pie now.

The reboot thing only happened once. Well, twice in a row. It came up to temperature, then shut down and restarted. Then shut down again and restarted. I pressed start and it began circulating again. It hasn't happened again in the 4 or 5 hours it's run since then. I have no idea what caused it. Perhaps it was just the power cord wasn't in tight or something. I'll post back if I see it again.

I received an emailing explaining the delay. Perhaps you opted out of updates on kickstarter? I also have the Anova, but I'm thinking/hoping the Sansaire is going to be a more stable product. I don't see any certification stickers on the Anova, so I'm doubting they went through as thorough a process as Sansaire seems to be doing. I've only had the Anova for about a week. It works well enough, but it's a bit quirky (touch screen is finicky, random reboots, etc.).

I'm doing the turkey sous vide again this year. I did it that way last year and it turned out great. Plus I can cook it a day ahead of time so it makes things a lot easier on Thanksgiving day. I broke down the turkey and brined the pieces over night, then cooked the white and dark meat separately. On Thanksgiving day I just warmed them up, then took them out of the bag and deep fried them for 4 or 5 minutes to crisp up the skin.

Cascade ActionPacs gel packs from Amazon are about 17 cents per load.

One on lower bottom right is a Takeda, possibly the gyuto: http://www.chefknivestogo.com/takeda-knives.html

It sort of looks like a Kramer handle, but I don't recognize that steel pattern. Can't really tell from the photo if the logo quite matches though: http://kramerknives.com/k%20Handle%20Meiji.htm

I've never used it, or even heard of it, but might give it a try. The Reynolds site doesn't say what it is, other than a "special, safe" coating. But, they seem to have a patent on the process, which you can find online. It looks like it's a combination of polydimethylsiloxane combined with a phenol of some sort. So basically a silcone-based coating. One patent link I found: http://tinyurl.com/3dyw8uw

De Buyer Grohe Le Creuset

I would recommend it. There's nothing really complicated about making the ice creams, and she has some interesting flavor combination ideas. Plus, assuming that the recipes in it are similar to what she sells at a retail level, the book will pay for itself in once batch of ice cream. The local market down the road street sells Jeni's ice cream for $10 a pint.

I've made several flavors as well, though not any of the more unusual ones yet. I made the base vanilla first and found it to be a bit too sweet for my taste. I brought the sugar levels down in subsequent attempts and have been really happy with them since then. Adding the starch (I'm using tapioca starch) really gives it smooth texture. I also appreciated the way she describes the ingredients in the base (starch, cream cheese, syrup, etc.) and why each one is used.

I noticed the bacon error, mainly because the numbers differ from the maple sugar bacon. I'm not sure the other is an error. I've made thr breakfast sausage with close to 30g of sage and really liked it. Chris...

I've made SV scrambled eggs twice this week. Once at 75C, which was a bit too loose, or custard-y, for our tastes. They tasted good, but the texture was not what we wanted for breakfast. I tried again yesterday at 77C and they seemed a bit too firm/overcooked. So I guess the next attempt will be at 76C and see what happens. I read the article from nathanm linked above. It says he cooks his at 164F/74C. This may be one of those things where you just need to find the temp that works for the texture you like best.

Linda, Yes, Tower Grove market is my local farmers market. I live right across from the park. I like your idea of comparing the prices to Whole Foods. I may have to do an investigative run out to Whole Foods later and make note of the prices there. Chris...

This is a good point. I was previously quoting prices from my local farmer's market which requires that the food be grown at the actual farm, so it's all local enough that they can transport it on the morning of the market. However, there is another St. Louis market, the Soulard Market, which has been around since before the Civil War, and actively touts the fact that its produce is up to 50% cheaper than what you can get in the supermarket. Which for many things it actually is. If I need a whole lot of lemons or limes, I'll drive down there to pick them up. But of course, no one is growing lemons or limes locally in Missouri. So it's less of a farmer's market than just a vegetable wholesaler discount outdoor warehouse. The Atlantic article didn't specify the criteria they were using to define "farmer's market," so it's possible that if you took samples from a mix of various types of markets you could find the overall prices cheaper than supermarkets.

Our first local farmer's market was last Saturday. A few things I bought that I recall and know relative prices at the local grocery store: Kale: $3.99/lb at market vs. $1.99 a pound at supermarket Eggs: $2.99/dozen market, $1.50 supermarket Pork roast, $3.99/lb market, ~$1.50/lb supermarket Radish: $2.00/bunch market, ~0.79/bunch supermarket So yeah, I can't think of anything I would buy at the market that would be cheaper than the supermarket a mile farther down the road. Low prices is definitely not why I go to the local farmer's market. Edit-- Remembered one other item- Cucumbers: $0.79 each at farmer's market, also $0.79 each at supermarket

Is this referencing the curry recipe or something else?

I found some beef cheeks in the freezer so I'm making the pastrami, too. It's in the brine right now. Just as an experiment I used the Rancho Gordo piloncillo in the brine instead of brown sugar. Hoping to smoke it this weekend.

Nice kitchen! Ijust finished my own kitchen renovation and couldn't figure out where to put a pot rack. I didn't consider in front of the window though. Do you feel yours is blocking too much of the view or light from the window?

I've had a couple jars of this sitting for about 4 weeks. It has a slight acidic bite and mild maple sweetness. Similar to the Rancho Gordo banana vinegar I could a couple weeks ago, although the maple vinegar doesn't have quite the acidic bite of the banana. If I make it again I might add more rum to see if that would increase the acidity a bit.

St. Louis, MO. Amateur home cook.

Low acyl gellan gum products form firm, non-elastic, brittle gels, whereas high acyl gellan gum forms soft, very elastic, non-brittle gels. Varying the ratios of the two forms of gellan produces a wide variety of textures. Found on this web page: http://www.cpkelco.com/products-gellan-gum.html Sine you have a low acyl, you could make equivalent gels from. each sample and compare textures.

I made a sauce from it for some profiteroles last week. A sort of banana vinaigrette. I mixed the vinegar and piloncillo together then whisked in some softened butter, a little vanilla and a bit of salt. Really tasty.

Glazing when braising -- how much extra time does this take? I've never done this at home, but I assume it's a matter of removing most of the cooking liquid, basting and then putting back in the oven? I might have to give this a try.

I've seen San Marzano tomatoes around here for $7 a can. Way over twice as much as good quakity domestic canned. I read there was a 100% tariff on Italian tomatoes, but that some importers got around it partially by packing tomatoes in puree, so it becomes a sauce and not a vegetable and lowers the tariff. The puree packed ones are still usually over $5 a can, though.