IndyRob
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Posts posted by IndyRob
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As I mentioned up thread, my main gripe with him in regards to vegetarianism is his inconsistency. He seems to indicate that he wouldn't mind if a vegetarian turned down meat because they were hindu, that would be ok, but not for any other reason. If religious belief is enough for him, why not non-religious (but equally important to the person's life) belief? I don't get it.
I'll take a stab at this. If one believes that God does not want us to eat meat, then Anthony Bourdain will respect that belief (but not to the point of his own adherence). However, if one believes that no one should eat meat based on their own thought processes, then that claim is possibly sanctimonious and is open to peer challenge.
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I'm not really looking for a smokey flavor. I guess that's part of my non-traditional approach. And I really don't think I detected much smokeyness in the 'real thing'. Most BBQ rubs have a lot of ingredients. But few of those affect texture. For me, flavor seems relatively easy to work on.
Breaking down the collagen can be done in a variety of ways. Different times and temperatures. But brining can fundamentally change the texture. I discovered this when I brined our first Thanksgiving turkey. The breast meat was phenomenal. But the next day I went for the traditional turkey sandwich with mayo on white bread and found that the meat was not up to the task. It was somehow too refined and aristocratic. Not dry enough to get married mayo and soft bread.
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I really don't have a lot of experience eating really good barbecued ribs. So when I was imagining my own personal perfect rib, I was not trying to recreate a style or make any attempt at being authentic. I figured that a combination of brining and sous vide (with a twist or two) would produce what I imagined. Initial tests were promising and I was starting to fine tune things....
Then I had an opportunity to visit a place that Bon Appetit hailed as the having best ribs in the US. As a non-traditionalist, I didn't really care for the blackened shoe leather 'bark', but the moist, pink, fibrous-but-tender meat underneath was a revelation. I realized I was on the wrong track.
So I did a test, still using sous vide, but eliminating the brining (or any seasoning until just before finishing them under the broiler). I got very close to the texture I was looking for, but the flavor in the meat just wasn't there. So I think, "Well, I'll just season the meat prior to cryovac-ing". But then I thought "If I put salt on the meat and sous vide it for six hours, have I not created a brining situation again?"
So my question is, is there some technical crossover point between seasoning with salt and brining? Is the amount of salt in a rub significantly less than one would end up with in a brine?
Or, what about marinading after cooking? My final plans have always included a final broil/grill of some sort.
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Yes it's not all that hard to beat Pizza Hut at home. It's more complicated to compete with a wood-fired stone oven.
Again, depending on the type of pizza you're going for. I know NYC style charred crusts are loved by many, but they don't necessarily play well elsewhere . There are Sicilian, Neopolitan, Californian, Midwestern, Chicago, cracker, etc., style pizzas. Most of these do not require (or even desire) a blast furnace. I'm not trying to disrespect NYC style pizza, just not relegating everything else to Pizza Hut status.
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I watched it on Hulu.com after reading this topic so my expectations were very low. But I didn't find it so bad and I think it may show some promise after it gets out of the initial stage. Blissfully absent (or at least held firmly on a leash) was the overly dramatic Fox narration found on Fox's Kitchen Nightmares or Hell's Kitchen. I'm not a big fan of the head-fakes in the evaluations (c'mon, do I really think you're going to eviscerate a potential master chef in front of his wife and small child?).
I think there's potential here. I hope that as the herd gets thinned, the general tone will become a little more sober and honest. A little more like Top Chef.
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I was thinking about pizza. The importance of a pizza oven varies wildly depending on the type of pizza you're making (extremely important for a NY style, to almost irrelevant for a Chicago style). Much more important for most styles is the control you have in your dough handling. A chain pizza store is making and balling a lot of dough well beforehand (often stopping and resuming after interruptions) and can't always control exactly when the dough is made, proofed or used - whereas at home we can control it precisely.
But I guess the more general point is being able to control the timing. At home we generally know well in advance what will be served when.
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Purloined pea puree? It may be one thing to 'misplace' a component of a competitor's dish. But to put it on your plate? That would be pretty brazen.
At least the judging procedure was free of irregularities this time.
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I just discovered this on several YouTube videos. It appears to have been around for over a year (for all I know it has been known for 200 years), but from searching I don't see that it has been discussed here.
If this works, it's the sort of thing that could earn one instant hero status...
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I just got all new appliances for a house. The installers were able to do all the wiring for not very much extra. Normally I'm willing to do 110 volt wiring myself, but won't touch 220.
Also, if you need to change any plumbing check out Sharkbite adapters (at Lowes they're called Gatorbite). I was dealing with a little plumbing issue and as I wandered the plumbing isle at Lowes trying to fit together different pieces the plumbing guy there suggested these. When he explained how to use them, I was dumbfounded. It's snap-together plumbing. It works with copper, PEX, CPVC (two kinds of plastic pipe) and can be used to transition to/from any of these. To use, push it onto the pipe. That's it. There's a cheap little tool you need to remove it and reuse it if you make a mistake (which I did). I don't know about local codes, but supposedly it's approved for use inside closed walls.
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He also sears the outside of the meat, then cuts the seared piece off. I don't quite understand that.
I didn't understand that either. Then I remembered he said it was dry aged. So the outside was probably dried up.
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Hmmm, several thoughts...
I don't mind anyone selling out if they can. But it does affect the brand, so I hope it was a big check - I think this could prove to be Emeril's shark jump.
But I guess Ettore Boiardi didn't do so bad for himself.
Holy crap! One can of Chef Boy-ar-dee ravioli has 96% of one's daily sodium needs. A can of Emeril's only has 56%.
I'm now waiting to see Emeril's guest judge appearance on Top Chef's canned food elimination challenge.
Oh yeah, and for me, the image associated with "BAM!" now includes an inverted can of ravioli.
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I used to work at a pizza place where we got our dough pre-made and pressed (I never saw a dough ball the whole time I worked there). They were kept in large plastic bags with about 10-15 dough-discs stacked with cardboard (like pizza box cardboard) between each and stored in a walk-in cooler. They were allowed to proof at some point. Then I think they went into the reefer under the prep table. My recollection is that the dough seemed pretty normal (the hydration level may have been on the low end of the scale).
So it seems to me that this should be doable. But I'd sure like to test it before showing up somewhere with ingredients for 15 pies.
[edit]After reflection, I seem to recall white blotches on the dough. So I think the cardboard was floured.
Also, I searched the pizzamaking.com forums and Monical's pizza appears to do something similar as well. Except they use rounds of cardboard which are also used as templates to trim the sheeted dough. But they go into the reefer on the cardboard (don't know if they were stacked). Dough made Monday A.M. is for Tuesday afternoon/evening.
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Asparagus with hollandaise....
Actually, here's a full menu.... http://www.ruthschris.com/Menu
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I thought last night's elimination was ridiculous: what is this, Survivor: Top Chef Edition? Now we're voting people off the island...
I agree completely. I can't know if the two worst dishes voted were actually the two worst, because I can't taste the food. That's why the integrity of the judging process is important. You couldn't make up a judging process with more built-in bias than this one. I really don't even care if Collichio says that the correct calls were made (gonna go look for his blog just tosee). This has me seriously wondering if I want to follow the rest of the season.
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I was in the car today and was listening to a radio voice opining on the growing of tomatoes and how to get a great yield. This immediately had me thinking how to use this yield. Tomato Sauce, of course.
Then I thought "Why do tomatoes seem to be the only fruit/veg that are used as a proper sauce? The immediate answers - Texture, moisture, tradition, taste - seemed somehow insufficient.
Of all the fruits and vegetables in the world, the tomato seems to be the only one worthy of taking the starring role in a mother sauce. Can this be?
Okay, there's applesauce, all sorts of fruit dessert sauces (but I'm thinking savory), hot pepper sauce (normally used as an ingredient, not a sauce).
I searched for "eggplant sauce" and found recipes with more tomato than eggplant. Surely there's at least one fruit/veg on the planet that is as worthy as the tomato.
Anyone? Is the tomato that unique? I'm not well traveled so I may be way off base and may benefit from your experiences.
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Half of my ancestors are Scandinavians who are notorious for white foods. Spicy foods were really a challenge for me as a youth. But I think sour cream was a big discovery. Whether it's chili or nachos or anything else, I think putting spicy in sour cream is a safe way to introduce the flavors without the full-on assault. Now I can handle stuff spicier than my adventurous son can.
But I still don't get spicy for the sake of spicy.
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The only thing remotely unfair about that is that they were eliminating a team, rather than a single person: it could easily have happened that a real loser dragged a contender out with them. But a) that didn't happen, and b) if the person were REALLY a contender for "Top Chef" shouldn't they have been able to deal with having a loser on their team?
The fact that at the end there were only three teams competing is not relevant if you view the contest as a whole unit.
I agree with you in that eliminating a team is unfair. But I think that a) did happen. Arnold was an elimination challenge winner. He got sent packing for undercooked pasta that he he didn't do and was clearly fighting against (during the cooking, not the judging). As for b) are you you really expected to dispatch your teammate in order to win?
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I am almost angry about the elimination challenge. Without even going into how it turned out, a very strong contender with a weak partner would have a very good chance of going home (unless they hit him/her over the head with a frying pan and lock them in the cooler).
And I wish they'd stop running teasers that telegraph what's going to happen.
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I was a little taken aback when I briefly thought someone could go home for a pie. Then I realized it was a quick fire - and a good one.
It was also one of the few where, after seeing what was produced, I thought that there would be no way I could've been in the bottom three and might've even been near the top. Three hours for a quick fire? Sweet. Immediately I thought of a couple of ways to cheat on the crust if I could make it up elsewhere (like the ganache pie that didn't seem to have a traditional crust).
But the challenge left me with a question. I'm pretty sure I've seen someone whipping out a recipe on paper before. Are they allowed *any* access to recipes they've brought with them, or basic cookbooks? I've made many successful traditional pie crusts before, but couldn't for the life of me recall the proportions of the ingredients. I'd just need 20 seconds with a standard recipe. It that available to them?
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I'll give a sentimental fictional vote for Ragueneau from Cyrano de Bergerac. Feeder of poets and warriors (and a poet/warrior). Cyrano was actually based on a real person (sans the famous love tragedy). I wonder if a Ragueneau could have also existed....
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I've only been to Culver's twice (it's a two hour round trip from where I live) but I was impressed with the freshness, quality and variety of ingredients as well as the taste. I don't recall if they had a drive-thru, I went inside both times. You order at a counter but your food is brought to your table and it's not particularly fast so maybe it doesn't qualify even if they have a drive-thru.
My son took my wife and I out today for Father's Day and I, inspired by this thread, chose Culver's (bonus - relatively cheap for him). As far as the burger goes, I'd rank it tops among those we have in the midwest. The patties are Wendy's-like, but IMHO a touch better, and all the other elements of the burger are better.
The sides were a little disappointing. Not bad, but not much better than acceptable either. I was excited by the cheese curds, but knew I would be ordering a burger with cheese so I chose the Onion Rings. Luckily, my wife ordered the cheese curds. My son went for the crinkle fries. One cheese curd was enough for me. Almost more batter than cheese it seemed. They went unfinished. My onion rings were unremarkable. They went unfinished. I think my son's fries were finished with the help of his runner's appetite - and ketchup.
My chocolate malt was not bad, but decidedly not very malty. Still, their menu is impressively vast for this sort of place. It would be hard for anyone not to find something to their liking.
And as to whether it qualifies as fast food, I'd say it ekes in under the wire. There is a drive-thru, but you order at the window and then park with a number on your car. We ate in, and as has already been noted, the food was delivered to the table. But it was only 5-7 minutes. I've had worse waits while standing in (or in a car outside of) a busy true fast food joint.
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My current favorite is Boar's Head hot dogs - with the natural casing. Nathan's with the natural casing are also good but I can no longer find these locally. Soft white bun with Gulden's mustard (important point) between the top of the bun and the dog (not on top of the dog as it sits in the bun)
But I also long for proper Detroit Coney Island dogs.
Since posting this I've tried the Boar's Head Pork & Beef dogs. IMHO, the All Beef one are much better.
Also, to expand on the Detroit Coney's, the dog is a natural casing dog that's a little bland in and of itself. But the flavors come from the sauce which is a sort of greek inspired chili (a good amount of cumin, I think). This is topped with a line of yellow mustard and then some chopped yellow onions go on. This creates a layering of flavors that nears perfection.
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The first episode can be seen here...
http://realitytvfan.org/2009/12/19/top-chef-usa-1-episode-1/
I was wrong about a them having a home cook, but there is a culinary student/model. One executive chef, but otherwise, the term 'restaurant chef' seems to be used loosely. Harold is described as one, but later says "As a sous chef,..."
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This makes sense to me. I want to watch the best talent I can, not to have amateurs thrown into the deep end so that I can watch them screw up.
This, I think, goes to my point. I do want to see a skillful amateur in the mix. It puts the whole thing in context. When, as in the first season (IIRC), when a professional chef (a particularly annoying one) went before the amateur, it has meaning.
I can't taste the food. I need something I can relate to. There are thousands of people that can put up better fare, with more soul, but generally in more limited quantities. In the early stages I want to see chefs beat those first on their way to the prize.
I don't want it to become a professional inner circle thing.
Sous Vide: Recipes, Techniques & Equipment (Part 7)
in Cooking
Posted
I've just watched the chicken one so far, but thought that it was quite well done. The only problem I had was that the sound level was quite low. With both my computer and video player's volume controls set to the max, I had still had some problems hearing it until I silenced everything in the room.
You might end your videos with a closeup of your book cover. I see it there on the counter, but wouldn't know what it was - if I didn't know what it was.
By all means make more. The possibilities are endless. But don't give away the store. Occasionally utter the phrase "I go a little more deeply into this in my book..."