Mjx

I've toyed with the idea of trying beer-can chicken, and if you're thinking, 'Woman, why not just DO it?!', I'll have to come clean: the rotisserie attachment in the oven is my boyfriend's baby, and one of the reasons he specifically wanted our particular model of oven (he stands and gazes happily at the rotating chicken... for a few minutes, anyway). I'm... less enchanted by the device (a rotisserie makes perfect sense if your heat source for roasting a chicken is an open fire, but when you have a more or less state-of-the-art electronic oven, I don't quite get it). I can't complain of the results I'm getting now, which are gorgeous (if identical to those I get using the old pan and rack approach), but I would love to nail down the correct way to distribute a chicken's weight on a spit, if only because getting it right continues to elude me.

Our oven doesn't have a direct drive, but one like that you describe in the Smeg, which may be part of the problem. Still, the lag isn't too bad, and I'm hoping that firm trussing will solve the problem. Overall the Gaggenau has been a great oven, so I'm hoping this'll work out, too. A vertical rotisserie is appealing, but we've pretty much run out of room in our kitchen...

The complexity of an environment is definitely going to make a difference, but the Department of Health does work with the businesses; my sister mentioned that she was recently discussing the subject with the owner of the coffee shop where she gets her numerous daily caffeine fixes, and she (the owner) said they worked like demons to get their A grade. More than one visit is involved, so apparently there's an opportunity to fix things, which makes sense, since the idea is to get the places reasonably sanitary, not to penalize them for not meeting the guidelines/warn the public of an unadjusted status quo. Since there are still so many restaurants waiting to be graded, the percentage of A grades is certainly going to drop ('If there is an apparent preponderance of A’s, it is not because the city is trying to be generous, said Daniel Kass, a deputy health commissioner. “There are more A’s at this point,” he said, “because the A’s get issued immediately.”'). I'm a bit sceptical of the described recommendations form some of the A graded places, however, even though the rating is supposed to be for hygiene, nothing else (e.g. “Steaks have to be well done”; I've never heard of even carpaccio being an automatic violation, in and of itself). I think they're just pulling that stuff out of their air.

How are the flavour and texture of haggis (I read the description at the end of the step-by-step, but I'd love to hear more views)? This is something I've been curious about making/trying, but I've never even had an opportunity to try haggis; I briefly toyed with the idea of trying out a tinned one I saw at Meyers's of Keswick, then rejected the idea, since this is not likely the sort of thing that improves with tinning (they have a vegetarian version, too). I'm surmising that it must be like a cross between meatloaf and a coarsely-textured sausage. Please describe! If it's tasty I'd like to give it a go, and if there is enough whiskey going around, I could probably get this past my boyfriend without too many questions about the ingredients.

I'm definitely going to take this advice next time I break out the rotisserie; as I said, I've avoided doing this, since I was concerned that it would make for uneven roasting (and several sources say it doesn't matter whether or not the chicken is trussed), but actually, I've never seen this mentioned as a problem. Thanks Paul; that's actually one of the places I looked in the beginning. Part of the problem is that it (and most of the advice out there) seems to apply to rotisseries that are separate units intended for use over a grill, which (I think) have more powerful motors than the oven rotisserie in our kitchen (I think this particularly applies to the indication that trussing is optional; I'm also questioning the accuracy of 'Chickens are heavier of the back than on the breast side', since the bulk of the meat is at the front). Our rotisserie has no counterweight (perhaps they're not usual with oven models?), although it should be possible to rig one up, if I can't get the hang of arranging the chicken evenly on the spit. Tweaks to the motor would be tricky, since it would mean completely dismantling the oven to get at it, and I think I'd rather not go there, since the rotisserie isn't used that often (I actually like pan-roasting better, since you can deglaze the pan when you're done).

For a couple of years I lived in a part of the city where the tap water tasted like it was piped in from a swimming pool, so I first used a Brita pitcher, then switched to a Pur faucet attachment. Both brands and models (I found the faucet-mounted model more convenient) did a fine job of removing the chlorine taste from the water: the difference was very pronounced. The only reason for the brand switch was that I was in an 'I want it NOW' mood when I went shopping for the faucet-mounted model, and and Bed Bath & Beyond only carried the Pur models of these.

There are definitely brands and products that I avoid because I dislike some aspect of their policy/production/marketing, but I tend to research very carefully before making this sort of decision. Not naming any, however, because one person's opinion is... just that .

I have a hunch that most sweets that are assertively spiced tend to improve with time (the exact amount of time depending on various other factors). For example, spice cookies always seem to taste a bit raw when they're fresh out of the oven, and don't really hit their stride until the next day. I don't know how long they'd continue to improve, since I never have them around longer than two days.

I'm just rigorous about not having anything in the kitchen that isn't strictly necessary, and have managed to politely convince friends and family to not give 'because you love to cook' presents. Our kitchen is smallish and I'd dearly love to hang things on the walls, but because the kitchen is narrow (I think this is the reason), anytime I saute or fry something, the entire middle third of the kitchen and a bit beyond tends to be hit by oil vapour, even if I use a spaltter screen, and the idea of having to wipe down half the kitchen utensils on a daily basis makes me wilt.

If not less, then certainly not more, unless they're simply insane/compulsive conspicuous consumers... but those are the sorts of people who'll light up a cigarette with a $5 note to impress others, and I cannot imagine anyone focusing their sales/marketing efforts on trying to keep such from using dangerous quantities of a fundamental ingredient and component of the human body. But then again, I also think the current fuss about salt is misdirected.

I'm... confused. I think it's meant as satire..? I had to look this up on youtube, since I don't have TV access, and I realize that on youtube, things may be decontextualized. Satire/comedy or not, my immediate reaction was writhing embarrassment (at being female, at being even part Italian-American, at being alive...), but I kept watching, to try to figure out whther or not it's a joke. And I think it is. And I think whatsername is fully in on it, and enjoying it.

For a reasonable price, there's Les Halles. I've only had breakfasts at the downtown location (in the financial district), but have had lunch and dinner several times at the uptown location, and that's been fine (if rather crowded and noisy), and it seems reasonable to believe that the quality should be roughly equal at the two locations.

That may be the problem; it's an oven rotisserie, so the feature isn't its primary one (I can't find the spec.s on the motor in the manual). I have to admit that the 'bump' isn't a severe one (a momentary lag), but I'm plagued by the idea that I'm screwing something up, and should be doing whatever I can to get it right. Do the legs roast properly when they're trussed tight up against the sides of the chicken? The legs seem to be the problem: I've tried leaving them free (this causes the most uneven turning), and trussing them loosely (not much better), but have avoided trussing the legs tight against the body of the chicken, because I worry that they'd take forever to cook properly, and the breasts would dry out (but now I'm thinking that having the prongs sticking into the thighs would raise their internal temperature, and perhaps accelarate their cooking). The space between the prongs seems too wide to secure the front end of the bird (chickens are almost all 1200 or 1300 grams here [about 2 lb 10oz, and just short of 3 lbs], just a little too large for more than one to fit on the spit): I've been thinking about shoving a potato or something on the spit inside the front opening, to help anchor the front of the bird.

Anyone have practical suggestions for correctly positioning a chicken on a rotisserie spit, so that the weight is evenly distributed, and it turns smoothly, rather than doing a slow half turn, hesitating, then heaving the heavier side over? I've tried different arrangements based on various advice, but I cannot seem to find a protocol that works, and I'm a bit concerned that having to compensate for the imbalance is going to damage the motor. The rotisserie arrangement involves a spit, and two staple-shaped, pronged clamps that hold the bird in place; the clamps hold the bird securely, but since the prongs are about 5cm apart, it does restrict points of insertion, especially on smaller birds. Any suggestions on the logistics behind getting this right would be tremendously appreciated (I searched the site and didn't find a discussion of this, but if I missed something, please point me to it!).

I do press the meat out of the tail end, but don't eat the shell; I don't know whether the shrimp I've eaten have simply had remarkably robust shells or something, but a tentative nibble has always made it quite clear that my teeth are just not going to break down the chitin well enough for it to be pleasant to swallow... so I pass on that.

Hm. Anything else have a similar texture? I don't think mushy/pasty would put me off, in and of itself (unless it was in something that wasn't supposed to be mushy and pasty, e.g. a cut of meat). But I'm not great with the sort of scent I've heard attributed to jackfruit (I can't even deal with that of ripe bananas, and have to either breathe through my mouth or leave the room if someone is eating one nearby), so I've avoided trying it, although I've also heard the texture described more flatteringly as 'custardy'.

Texture reactions seem like they're far more individual than cultural. For example, I have no problem with things like rice pudding, which I never encountered growing up, although my boyfriend abhors the stuff, even though it is a traditional Danish dessert. Although I (Slavic and Italian background) can't think of any specific texture I dislike (although I had some salmon jerky once that had a weird, tannic effect in my mouth that I wouldn't care to re-experience), there are definitely certain textures that I cannot eat if they're associated with certain tastes. Specifically, a creamy texture in savoury dishes is nauseating to me, although I have no problem with the identical texture in a sweet.

Yes: I subbed in chestnut flour for 33% (by weight) of the AP flour I was using (made up the flour blend, then mixed in as much of the blend as the egg would take up). I found that it acts increasingly brittle yet floppy if you exceed that percentage of chestnut flour (I don't think there are any standards for chestnut flour, so if you have some that is coarser or finer, it is likely to behave differently). I've only tried this in an egg-based pasta dough, by the way.

Chestnut flour makes a great addtion to pasta doughs; I particularly like chestnut-flour pasta with game and winter squash. I usually make pappardelle or ravioli with it, the latter having been inspired by some chestnut pasta and venison ravioli I had in Bolzano. I also like castagnaccio, but I think it is an acquired taste, so if you make it, try making half recipe first. To me, it tastes of November. I also sometimes mix chestnut flour into soups and risotto; it adds a very subtle, earthy sweetness.

I think growing up around good food, and people who genuinely care about it helps, but isn't enough; inborn perceptual and character traits almost certainly have as much to do with the capacity to appreciate and create good food as environment, and can can definitely compensate for a childhood of boiled everything/fast food. I grew up in Italy, and food is a big deal there, which contributed to the way I feel about food and prepare it, but my boyfriend grew up in Denmark with the sort of cooking that makes you hate vegetables and fruit. A few trips to Italy, and his appreciation of food expanded dramatically; evidently, his tastebuds were just waiting for something they liked. And this isn't a passing vacation, mode, either, since he's completely responsible for the professional slicer in our kitchen, and the fact that we usually have something good to use it on (he's the guy who has to sample all the available prosciutti before making his selection). It hasn't had much effect on his cooking (he makes all the pasta, but that's pretty much it), but I doubt his lack of patience with recipes can be attributed to years of boiled cauliflower and spinach in cream sauce.

Unless you have a problem with alcohol, or just want to give yourself a bit of a break from the extra calories, this won't make a huge difference physically, since it doesn't build up in your system the way some foods can, if you overeat. On the other hand, it can be good to step back and look at things you normlly take for granted, like what you eat and drink. I've done a few fasting cleanses, which make me feel great physically, but unfortunately also make me practically homicidal, so I seldom do one more frequently than every couple of years; over the long term, I don't think they change much, unless you've really been rough on your body, although they do give you chance to consider what, if anything, you'll change about how you eat, once you resume.

When dealing with this kind of situation, the best bet is to look at the information provided for the species presented as 'sustainable'; if the chain of evidence, so to speak, is continuous, transparent, and confirmable, then I think it's fine to eat these things (with today's resources, this is simple and easy to determine). This does raise the question of a slippery slope, since many people are unlikely to care whether or not their food is raised sustainably: being able to say that it is is merely useful as a defence, should they get into an argument about their dinner, rather then being a matter of continuing to enjoy certain species in future (passenger pigeons, anyone?).

I used to poke holes in potatoes--two shallowish stabs with a fork--but then fell out of the habit; I was never given a reason for doing it in the first place. I've never had a potato explode, but this doesn't surprise me (despite the poke-or-explode warning), because when I was still poking holes, they always sealed up quite quickly. Slits and cut surfaces close up quickly too, so my question is, 'Has anyone had a potato that has been poked, slit, or sliced explode?'

That looks amazing, and sounds tasty too (unlike the liquorice sauce that I momentarily mistook it for, and that I once encountered in a Danish restaurant--in a savoury dish, no less--that prided itself on being innovative :sigh: )

Check out read McGee's essay on the 'windroot' in The Curious Cook The newest ingredient I've been playing with is citric acid. I know this stuff is used by the bucketload for all sorts of commercial applications, but I decided to get a packet of the granules when I wanted an actual flavour to echo the citrus aroma provided by the lime zest in some lime and clove truffles I was making. I didn't want to use citrus juice, since I've been less than thrilled by the results when I've tried this (the mixing of the flavours seemed murky and harsh), and felt that working a little citric acid into the cooled ganache had possibilities. I sprinkled the citric acid sparingly over the ganache once it had cooled (citric acid is not particularly soluable in cold fat), then sliced and rolled it so that it was incorporated into the truffles. The end result was tiny, tart 'sparks' in the ganache, which worked with, while remaining distinct from the chocolate phase. Now I'm considering how else this approach could be used.