IndyRob

February 20, 2016

Thank you bon appetit ( and, um, Hipsters, I guess :wink: )...

http://www.bonappetit.com/entertaining-style/pop-culture/article/brooklyn-is-everywhere

February 10, 2016

I've made mashed potatoes many ways, but to me, there's nothing you can do to them in the first thirty minutes that beats what you can do in those last two minutes.

Well, if you haven't undercooked them, at least.

For me, mashed potatoes are the ultimate in 'season to taste' - with 'seasoning' being meant in a very broad sense. Forget all of the potato varieties. None of it means anything if you can't make a small young russet taste as good as big old russet. I don't choose to limit myself to certain tools, or deprive myself of any. Butter, cream, salt, water, garlic, cheese, etc... it's all on the table.

I also think the perfect mash for chicken breasts is different than that meant for a beef pot roast.

January 9, 2016

I wouldn't rest it so much as let it cool a bit. In the traditional sense, a rest shouldn't be necessary. But you spent a long time a long time getting it to the perfect temp. Don't take it over the optimum temp while searing.

January 8, 2016

12 minutes ago, KennethT said:

Depending on thickness, you may HAVE to leave it in there for 3 hours!

Are you thinking pork loin instead of tenderloin? The tenderloin is generally quite small (1lb each in this case, it would appear). Pork loins can be huge (much, much larger than a beef tenderloin).

January 8, 2016

1 hour ago, Shelby said:

Can I leave it in there for 3 hours?

I don't think I would. I'm not an expert and don't know what the maximum time might be, but according to Thomas Keller (in Under Pressure), it *is* possible to overcook meat sous vide. It can still be pink and yet overcooked. I believe I've experienced this with my own beef tenderloin.

January 6, 2016

1 hour ago, cdh said:

God knows what people who live there do... maybe all the good stuff is home cooked, or served at church picnics... but if you're not local, you won't know where to go...

The good stuff is always home cooked, no?.

January 5, 2016

24 minutes ago, rotuts said:

I don't really understand the issue (s) here

are the economic ?

trying to save a bit of $$ ?

something else ?

I take it you drive .

well, id just get a SV rig and do lots of Sv at home and freeze

then re-therm at your hotel.

or look around where you go for someplace to go to try local food.

Perhaps it's a "You hadda been there..." thing. Have you ever spent a year on the road?

I've had some generous per diem deals, but after a while, dining alone in a strange (and often boring) town leaves you just wanting the creature comforts of home. Or the best semblance of it you can make there.

Of course, money does come into it (since it's why you're out there in the first place). I've negotiated away the per diems in favor of a higher rate that I can take home, rather than leaving it at the Cracker Barrel on rt. 6.

January 5, 2016

A couple of years ago I was living in hotel rooms 4 nights a week and was constantly looking for products and thinking of ways to eat, well, but inexpensively. I tended to do a lot of cooking on the weekends and traveling with the prepared food.

I have an insulated bag with a plastic box insert. On Sundays nights I would put a freezer pack bag in the bottom, then layer a bunch of bagged prepared and chilled food, and top that with another freezer pack. Then I'd freeze the whole thing overnight. Then on Monday morning I could throw the whole thing in the car and drive two hours, work for another 8 and get the food into the hotel room fridge before it lost its chill. I made sure I only stayed in rooms with both refrigerator and microwave.

This approach worked well, but I constantly found myself wanting things like a grilled cheese sandwich. Inspired by the Top Chef episode where the cooked in a Target store, I once accomplished it with the hotel room iron (I used aluminum foil between the iron and bread). It was funny, but not optimal. I thought about bringing my portable gas grill, but I'd have to cook out of the back of the SUV in the parking lot.

Sadly too late, unless I go on the road again, I bought one of these...

http://www.campchef.com/butane-one-burner-stove.html (or just search for butane burner - there are a million of them at all price points)

I love this thing. It's light and powerful and cheap. There are even two burner variations. They're safe for indoor use (by most accounts).

Another thing I found on YouTube afterwards is something I love for its sheer McGuyerishness...The Penny Can Stove. Search for this on YouTube and imagine the accolades when you are able to fashion an effective burner out of a couple of empty soda cans.

January 2, 2016

This may not be what you're looking for, but I think it fits the topic....

A while back someone on this board (I wish I could find the post) mentioned doing (pork) ribs SV for 12 hours at 165F. At the time I was playing with cooking carnitas in lard in the oven, so I decided to substitute ribs for chopped up pork shoulder. This worked quite well, but then I thought "Why not just do it sous vide with the same method?"

Just season some ribs and vacuum seal them and leave them in the refrigerator overnight. Early the next morning, place the unopened bag (bone side up) in a roasting pan and cover with hot tap water. I've found that my oven set at 220 will keep the water at 165. Check the temp after a couple of hours to see if yours will require an adjustment.

For those without a vacuum sealer, I've also done this successfully right in the cryovac package from the store. Of course, it's better with the seasoning inside the bag, but it's still quite good.. I also keep meaning to seal in some lard to restore that aspect of my previous trials.

After 10 to 12 hours (I've been backing off from 12 lately), remove the ribs and add a dry rub. Optimally, they will be finished on a grill, but a broiler or hot oven will work as well.

November 2, 2015

Lately I've been cooking a lot of pork ribs by a variety of methods (both traditional and modernist). Perhaps the one most frustrating factor I found is the variability of thickness of the meat on the individual ribs. Baby backs are much thicker, while normal spareribs (generally) are more to my liking. However, baby backs are normally pretty constant and don't present a lot of waste. Spareribs, on the other hand, are usually less expensive per pound, but come with a lot of waste (or extra meat that needs to be repurposed). St. Louis style ribs usually end up costing as much as baby backs despite having less meat.

But that brings me to my question. I think I actually prefer less meat on my ribs. Sometimes I'll slice a rib off the thick end and think that it might as well be a bone-in pork chop. When I think about the perfect rib, words like 'morsel' come to mind. But I'm not sure if my preference carries over into the general populace.

So what do you think? Do you like a lot of meat on your bones?

November 1, 2015

Recently, Eater has been the best source for videos of real chefs ironically preparing celebrity recipes.

Other than that, it's pretty much....

a) What did Anthony Bourdain say today?

b) Who's peeing in your fast food.

c) Other things their Google news searches turned up.

November 1, 2015

Two or three months ago I found myself wondering if one could make ice cream without a machine out of some sort of whipped cream variation. Eventually I did a YouTube search and found that this is indeed possible, and SCM appears to be a major element.

It almost looks like this is becoming a thing. It's made me buy multiple cans of SCM. Now I'm wondering about folding in some streaks of the caramel SCM.

September 2, 2015

While the seniors might have a preference for comfort food, I suspect that the owners might value the 'comfort revenue'. If they're making enough money to keep their heads above water, selling a change may be difficult.

However, perhaps there's a way to play both sides of the equation. Create a "Seniors' Specials" menu in addition to your new, more trendy menu. Let the two menus compete in the same space. Let the wait staff make the call to provide one, the other, or both depending on the table.

If the new menu starts bringing in more of the younger crowd, the seniors will take themselves out of the equation. If the new menu fails to bring in appreciably more business then your existing older customer base will still feel catered to.

From there, the only issue is doing both menus from the same basic inventory.

August 18, 2015

It looks like you did not crimp the edges with the end of a fork (the tines). There's one in your photo that does look like it has been crimped. It's on the right-hand side around the vertical center. The one with the point facing up. Could that be a store bought one thrown in there for comparison? Or perhaps the crimping was too lightly done?

July 19, 2015

so you recommending them as a worthwhile investment?

Well, I'd say I'm not quite done playing with them yet, but a recommendation would probably come with some caveats. And certainly not as an investment, as they are a consumable item.

If, like me, you're interested trying your hand at dry curing, but are not ready to build or acquire a curing chamber, and have no suitable cellars or caves you can use, and you already own a vacuum sealer, then I would highly recommend the bags with few reservations.

However, if you are willing to build/find a suitable curing chamber, then these things would be rendered pointless.

If your goal is to save money on dry-cured meats then it's really, probably, a dead end. By the time you factor in the price of the meat, the bags, the vacuum sealer, a deli slicer, and all the waiting time, you'd probably do nicely by spending an afternoon exploring the commercial offerings of your nearest metropolitan area for the best deals on the finished product.

I also have an increased level of skepticism for their suitability for dry aging meats. Having had a large piece of beef in one of these bags for many weeks, I wouldn't call the end result 'aged'. Rather, I'd say it was somewhat miraculously un-aged. Dried somewhat, but otherwise unaffected.

If the prices of these bags ever reach commodity levels, I really think our thinking about storing meat could change dramatically. This could result in many things that we haven't really imagined yet. But it will require a price-point that doesn't penalize failure. In my two initial experiments, the bag was almost, if not more expensive than the meat I put in them.

July 15, 2015

will it do chorizo?

Yes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eaq7UsRcDvs.

Salumi seems to be much more finicky, but I think I'd like to try pepperoni next. As a beginner to charcuterie I find it slightly humorous that we must expend so much effort in the beginning to keeping the meat mixture well chilled, only to hang it at room temp for three days. I think I know why that is, but it just seems a strange sort of the magic.

July 15, 2015

Okay, after 4 weeks and 5 days in the UMAi bags I can report a result. The Bresaola is at 68% of its original weight. While this is less than the UMAi recommended 35-40% weight loss, I reasoned that it was more than the 30% loss that is generally recommended for charcuterie. So I declared myself bored, and it done.

I was also getting a bit concerned about case hardening. The ends are really hard. The middle seems more compliant, but I was still worried about getting beef jerky.

So I took it out of the bag and smelled it. Nothing but a faint whiff of herbs. I cut it with a santoku right through the middle which revealed a lovely red center inside a case of blackened beef jerky. Again, no off smells whatsoever.

I sliced it as thin as I was capable with the santoku and tasted. A bit chewy (need a thinner slice probably - or the correct cut). Maybe a bit too much rosemary (which tasted of soap to me). Surprisingly unsalty compared to prosciutto.

A pic is here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WP_20150715_015.jpg (click pic for hi-res).

Then I vacuum packed both pieces with normal Foodsaver tech to go back into the fridge for two months as suggested by this blog: http://gatherwithme.com/review-umai-charcuterie-bags/. Hopefully this will retrieve some of the beef jerky area and even out the moisture a bit. But really, it's as much about keeping these pieces on ice until I find a more suitable slicing solution. So I really hope to get some responses to my Home Slicers thread.

The lonzino (pork loin) seems to be progressing at a decidedly slower pace. The only thing I can point to is 25% less salt in original the recipe. Both cuts were very similar in weight, size and shape. But lonzino is not showing the same case hardening as the beef. In the end, I think it's going to be the better example.

June 21, 2015

Just the other day I had an idea for a vegan sandwich which could be pretty great. This led me to think that perhaps some sort of badass image remake might be in order for some wise business somewhere. So this topic kinda' hit home.

But after looking at that menu, I'm not entirely sure that a vegan diet doesn't truly erode the creative part of your brain.

June 19, 2015

Brining single pieces of chicken can be done very quickly. As little as 20 minutes, but I'd allow an hour.

If you've got enough water, you really don't need to account for the weight of the meat. The more brine solution you use, the less the weight of the meat will count in the equation.

As I understand it, the sugar can bring two things: 1) Flavor (especially if you use something like brown sugar), and 2) As a counter-balance to all the salt in the brine. I generally don't use sugar unless I'm following a specific recipe. I just concentrate.on the percentage of salt in the brine.

However, IMHO, I think the cut you've chosen to brine and sous vide is perhaps the worst one possible. While I'm usually quick to defend modernist techniques against the traditionalists, a chicken thigh is the perfect braising package. Braising brings some things you will lose with this process.

Sous vide will help you avoid overcooking the meat. Brining will widen the window in which this occurs. However, a chicken thigh has a lot of connective tissue and we need to cook the crap out of this to break it down (within reason, of course). I think it will need a lot more than 1 hour at 65C to do this. At the same time, dark meat is less susceptible to being overcooked in the first place.

You want to sear at the end. For the sauce, this will be inferior to searing at the beginning when you can use a dusting to flour on the thighs and start a sort of integrated roux, while integrating a lot of the tasty brown bits. Flour the thighs, sear in a bit of oil (not too much) and add liquid. You can incorporate all manner of things into your braising liquid to add flavor not only to the resulting sauce, but into the meat itself. Simmer covered on low until the meat is nice and tender, remove it, and then unleash the heat to reduce the liquid. Finish with some cream.

Save some of the sauce for the next day, when you do chicken breasts exactly as you have described. Maybe without the sear (if you can't keep the skin on - otherwise, what's to sear?). Just sliced and sauced. The breasts totally benefit from brining and sous vide.

June 13, 2015

Okay, two weeks in and a milestone has been crossed. The bresaola and lonzino are out of the initial cure and into the UMAi drying bags.

After they came out of the bags there were no odors to speak of. Just a hint of herbs. Very subtle once they were rinsed off. I did decide to trim off some fat from the lonzino at this point. That invalidated my weight comparisons, but they're both at around 1.35 KG now.

After aggressively strangling the neck of the bag as recommended, and inserting the VacMouse, I started the vacuum sealing process. My FoodSaver gasket is getting a bit tired now so I had to go from the recommended 'moist' setting to 'dry' to get a satisfactory vacuum (along with some manual manipulation of the bag). I think I've got enough vacuum, but I must admit the vacuum level is less than brilliant - there is a nook and/or cranny in both bags that have a tiny bit of air in them. But hopefully. if this all works out, that could serve as some solace to a future reader with a similar problem.

I'd like to address the VacMouse further now that I've used it. It's very much like a dryer sheet that has been folded in thirds like a letter. And then heat sealed at one end. It allows air to escape the bag but pretty much disappears (along the seal) during the sealing phase. An experienced user might cut it in half lengthwise and get double the use.

Okay, well, it's just about waiting now. I'll be periodically weighing the cuts waiting for the magic 35%-40% reduction. Anecdotally, that's a process that will begin quickly and will slow significantly over time.

June 5, 2015

Deli Slicers marketed to home users for a reasonable price have historically been, well, pretty terrible. I learned that the hard way. But more current options are looking a bit more plausible. Has anyone had any experiences with this new crop of appliances? (e.g. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002SMC1ZU/ref=s9_simh_gw_p79_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=045729VAQ9J2MNXVWG1A&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=2079475242&pf_rd_i=desktop)

June 1, 2015

I Many years ago I but a cheap meat slicer

Boy, is my face red right now. Too late to change it. Bought. Bought, bought, bought. :wacko:

June 1, 2015

I have a friend who uses these bags to dry age whole ribeyes. He's been using it for a few years and is very happy with the out come. At the time I thought the product/website was just called Dry Bags. Same website as far as I can tell.

I would like to see a debate on this as there appears to be the beginnings of one online - but in disparate places (like blog comments). I think the short version is that yes, you are drying the meat, but you're also blocking the enzymatic action which results in the flavor enhancement.

June 1, 2015

Having grown up in Detroit, I am obliged to chastise you all for not embracing the Detroit Coney Dog in all of its beef heart and cumin chili glory. Just that, some chopped onion, and yellow mustard, and you are in hot dog heaven. Ketchup would be a capitol offense.

However, since I've moved away, I've discovered that there are things that aren't Coney dogs or Sicilian pizza. Perhaps most significantly, hot dogs that actually taste good in their own right. It's really a crime to cover some of these up with a rather dubious supporting cast. Just some good spicy mustard please.

But it's such an individual thing. And something that lends itself to whims of the moment. A bacon wrapped dog could be equally at home with some coleslaw or Big Mac type sauce. A nice variation I got from a hot dog cart was a Nacho Dog with jalapenos and cheese sauce (made better by roasting the jalapenos and adding to the sauce).

The hot dog is the perfect food for riffing. You can boil it, fry it, grill it, deep fry it, steam it, bake it, or microwave it. One of the things I like to do is seal a utility dog in some pizza dough and deep fry it. Then cut it open and go to town with the extras.

I think if I ever had a hot dog party there would be a big buffet table of options.

May 31, 2015

am very interested Rob, as I haven't the skills to wire a curing chamber. let m'know.

I will try to keep this thread updated, but it will involve a lot of waiting. But I am happy to say that the process is underway. I was able to find a beef bottom round roast and a pork loin for right around $2/pound. I love the idea of turning cheap cuts into expensive cuts.

So far I have made mixtures of salt, Cure #2, sugar, various herbs and spices, and rubbed the cuts and stored them in reclosable bags in the refrigerator. Both are a bit over 1400 grams. As a starting point, I am using the exact UMAi recipes to make bresaola (should be eye of round and not bottom round, but whatever) and ;lonzino. There are YouTube videos that cover what I've done so far. Here's one.

On my mind right now are two things....

1) How am I going to slice this stuff? Many years ago I but a cheap meat slicer which left me terribly disappointed and now collects dust on top of a cabinet. It's possible that I may be able to add some structural reinforcement to make it useful. I've also been searching craigslist for real slicers. But the whole exercise if buying an expensive slicer works against the idea of economical meat. I'm also looking at those sexy long slicing knives like they use on Iberico ham in Spain. But that seems slow. Loving perhaps, but slow.

2) I'd like to get a prosciutto like texture. But I suspect that I'm going to get a texture more like dry salami in the end. The recommendation is to go for 35%-40% reduction in weight.. I don't feel inclined to modify the procedure on my first attempt. I think I'll just aim for the lower end of weight reduction and see what the results are like.

So anyway, I have about two weeks to go before the next major steps. Then it will be 6-8 weeks for the final product.

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