dcarch

Very nice dishes everyone, very impressive. Very nice composition for the pictures also. For those of you who are interested in having better (and easy) control of light reflections of your photos, check out my recent post on the "The Food Photography Topic" Thread. dcarch

I have said that there are simple things you can do which doesn't entail a great deal of time and money to give you more options to achieve disirable photo effects. One of the annoying thing with picture taking is unwanted reflections. You can buy a polarizing filter for your lens and significantly eliminate them. The filter is not expensive from $5.00 to $20. just find one that fits your lens screw mount. The following side-by-side photos show identical lighting, exposure, and angle of shot for the pictures. By changing the rotation of the filter, you can cut out a significant amount of unwanted reflections. This can give you better saturation of colors and sharper definition of you subject. dcarch

For me, I depend a lot on seasoning and marinating to give turkey flavor. I don't want the meat to be over flavored and too salty. I also mostly sous vide turkey. The whole long cooking time of the turkey is kind of like brining and marinating at the same time. Given the fact that I think turkey meat taste good by itself, extra good with good gravy and fantastic with nice stuffing. I feel the single most important issue with cooking turkey is to achieve good meat texture, and with sous vide, it can be done with some degree of assurance. dcarch

Actually the vise will make it much more difficult. I have seen a device similar to this: http://www.sifc.co.za/images/squash_cutter.jpg but bigger for chopping squashes or watermelons. The method I detailed above has worked for me very well. I enjoy cooking carrots cores and the "bark" separate for smoothies. dcarch

Certain aspect of religious based recipes, it is a good idea to be very close to the recipes. And don't be too creative with special recipes (vegetarian, vegan, etc) and health related recipes (no peanuts, gluten free, etc). dcarch

If you follow recipes exactly, you will end up with a pantry with more spices than a spice store, and leftover ingredients in your refrigerator to feed an army. There are many recipes, by the nature of the science, must be exact, like how many grams of baking soda, and what temperature for chocolate, otherwise, have fun with substitutions. dcarch

This are the two way I have done successfully, without digital injuries: Center cutting the carrot - Use a Chinese cleaver to cut just a little into the carrot lengthwise, then while holding the cleaver which secures the carrot, use your other hand to hammer down on the cleaver's spine to split the carrot in half. If your hand is very tender, then put a folded towel on the cleaver. Cutting around the carrot's core - First use a peeler to flatten one side so it will not rotate, then do the above. dcarch 13" long carrots cut lengthwise, with lobster

I am keeping an eye on this thread. Very interesting topic. dcarch

"-----but I definitely think there is a difference between sea salts from different regions. -------" Not to disagree with your point, I am just curious. Isn't it true that all oceans are connected and water moves from one sea to the other (sea current) non-stop? We even find stuff from Japan (tsunami) drift to our (USA) shores. dcarch

Chef Central in NY, 50,000 sq. ft. of shopping. dcarch

Seems like we need another funnies.* dcarch *Again, Moderators, cartoons are my work. No copyright issues.

LOL! dcarch

I may be wrong on this, I thought that the process of crystallization actually purifies the substance. It is kind of like "Zone Refining" in computer chip making to get ultra pure silicone. dcarch

Great for a Halloween dish. dcarch

Would sea salt near Japan be radioactive? dcarch

Actually, it is very difficult to sharpen ceramic knife using silicone carbide (Carborundum) sand paper. However, I have seen diamond sandpaper. Not cheap. I do sharpen my ceramic knife on diamond stones, but the edge, under microscope, look very saw-tooth like. dcarch

Thank you very much for finding the videos, especially the second one. A picture is worth 1,000 words, a video? 10,000 words? It shows in close up detail, exactly what I have said and been trying to say, "By curving the edge drastically, a good part of the Vmatter knife never touches the cutting board, just slicing food." Also, in the video, the English subtitle says” ------ the tip of the knife is used to finish the cut-----” The curved part of the blade's edge does almost all the slicing, and the main edge does not touch the board. Thank you again. And BTW, I am almost finished in making the same knife he is using, with a 13" blade, Tough working with D-2 steel, hardened and cryo tempered. dcarch

It does not matter what kind of oven or what kind of cooking vessel (no plastic) you use. They all work. Steel, cast iron, ceramic, aluminum, silicone rubber, even (some) glass. It means timing will be different and some of them you may have to turn the food over more often to roast the other side. dcarch

To answer OP's questions: I think the Vmatter knife can be a very good knife, not as good as they claim. I will not be surprised they use some technologies as in the manufacturing of jet engine turbine blades, which can take incredible stress without failing. Titanium is extremely difficult to machine. The application of vacuum induction casting, single crystal structure and one directional cooling can give exotic alloys great deal more durability. I think this will be a better knife than ceramic knives that cracking and chipping are less of concern, however the Vmatter may be the same as ceramic knives that you will not be able to sharpen it at home. I am not concerned about the fact that normal stainless steel and high carbon steel can harbor germs. Many knives come with a mirror polish, and most germs are bigger than the possible holes on the steel. besides, your cutting board is about 10,000 times germier. dcarch

Theoretically, the point of contact between a curve and a flat surface is infinitely small. In reality obviously not. The slicing action is what sushi chefs practice to keep their knives always truly razor sharp. As I said, there are many videos you can find on youtube. dcarch

If you go to youtube, and search sushi cutting knife skills, and watch very closely, you may be able to see that the way they cut, the edge does not touch the board. dcarch

Agree. You will be boycotting 95% of all companies, including Disney and the entire Disney empire. dcarch

The curved edge is a key "trick" of this "forever" knife. Unless you cut into a bone, or a hard cutting board, there are very few food that can actually dull a knife. Most good steel can last almost forever if you are careful with good slicing action and not chopping action. That is the reason for "forever" sharp serrated knives, a good part of the edge never touches anything other than food. By curving the edge drastically, a good part of the Vmatter knife never touches the cutting board, just slicing food. dcarch

Having mice infest your home will change your mind about Mickey. I can tell you that. Are you talking about Helen Gurley Brown's mouseburger dcarch

A trap with a little peanut butter will get you fresh ones easily. I catch about 30 to 40 every year, just so that I can have some of my tomatoes. dcarch