Norm Matthews

When I spoke of glass lids, I was referring to regular glass. But the Pyrex (and Silex) I picked up at antique and thrift stores and didn't get them if they were not reasonably priced and in very good condition.

I like glass lids. Heck I like glass in general. I think in 35 years I may have broken one lid. Not only glass lids but I have a Pyrex collection of a glass coffeemakers, teapot, and a double boiler. I even prefer glass for refrigerator storage.

Make sure the oil is around 325-350 degrees before you start deep frying. Try using half corn starch and half flour. A sticky batter using egg is also good. 1 egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. corn starch

Fat should float to the top of jus and be removed. By itself there is no reason for it to separate.

Before storing at room temp, put it in the freezer overnight to kill any microscopic eggs that can hatch later into those flour bugs.

I have done beer can chicken a few times. First you have to pierce the can around the top several times and pour out about half the beer otherwise the beer will foam up and spew out when you add the rub. About half the remaining beer steams out of the can by the time it is done. I roast it over indirect coals in my Weber for 50 minutes ( make a slit under the wings and thigh so the meat will cook more evenly. That is the part that takes the longest to cook. I also add a couple chunks of hickory on the edges of the charcoal so it will smolder and smoke instead of burning. After 50 minutes, I cut the chicken in half with shears to remove the can and discard it. I brush the chicken inside and out with a red BBQ sauce and finish cooking it over direct coals about 5 minutes per side. Watch closely so the sauce does not burn.

I have not measured but I know there isn't enough room to put my KA on the counter under the cabinets are. My juice squeezer that I got from a restaurant going out of business won't fit there in this small house I move to when I retired.

Ruebens are one of my favorites but instead of toasting the kraut, I squeeze dry before I put it on the bread. When my aunt was alive she made home made kraut. I remember helping her chop cabbage and it was sooo good on ruebens with my home made corned beef brisket. Good Gruyere or Emmentaler cheese makes a difference too. James Beard said to use Russian dressing in his 1958 cookbook but now days the bottled Russian dressing is a distant relative of his version. I use a mixture of Wishbone Russian dressing and Thousand island. I like to assemble it with the cheese, dressing, kraut, corned beef, more dressing then more cheese and top with another buttered slice of pumpernickle. This one is one of several I made recently for the family but alas it was store bought everything this time around. We usually have the 'real' thing after St. Pat's Day. BLT when tomatoes are just picked out of the garden is second on my list of favorite sandwiches.

Back in the early 1980's Consumer Guide published a" Favorite Brand Name Recipe Cookbook" over 350 pages long with just recipes from the top or side panel of commercial food products. It was so popular that a year later they came out with another one titled the same with MORE in front of the name. Unfortunately many of those recipes don't work any more because the ingredients and or package size changed over the years.

If these wings were from a meat processor it is quite likely that they were already brined or injected with a saline solution and brining them again would be unnecessary and possibly produce a too salty and water logged product.

I owned a successful restaurant for several years and writing the order was always done for the sake of the cooks. They had to organize them by when they came in and by table. I'd really hate to expect two or three cooks to keep all that in their heads.

One way to assure success in a slow cooker is to get the best kind of beef for crock pot cooking. This one is very good and makes a lot of au just. BRAISED (SLOW COOKED) BRISKET 3-5 lbs. FRESH BRISKET, BROWNED IN OLIVE OIL 3 CLOVES GARLIC, PEELED AND MINCED 1 ONION , PEELED, RINGED 1/2 BOTTLE SOY SAUCE 6 oz. BEER PLUS 6 oz. WATER 3 CARROTS, PEELED, CUT 1/2 INCH 2 STALKS CELERY, CUT UP 1 T. FRESH GROUND BLACK PEPPER 1 BAY LEAF 1/2 TSP THYME PLACE IN SLOW COOKER, BRING TO BOIL, SIMMER, COVERED 3-6 HOURS.

I don't use these much anymore but the two fish ones I made on the potters wheel and decorated with "chinese" cobalt. The other one is cast iron and made by Lodge.

We are in two different parts of the world and I don't have any experience with an Aga and I don't know exactly what you mean by BBQ. It is probably not the same as my understanding of the term but what I'd do if you have a two rib- standing rib roast is either cut it in half so you have two bone-in steaks and grill or pan sear/oven cook as for a couple great steaks OR pat it dry and butter the ends, stand it up on the bones ( if it is big enough to stand up) and using a probe thermometer, roast it at 450 degrees for 15 minutes, lower the oven to 325 and roast until done to your likeness. 120 is rare 135-140 is medium rare. Pull it about 5 degrees before done and lightly cover it with foil and let it rest for 5-7 minutes before slicing. It will continue cooking after out of the oven for that resting time. Another roasting theory is to cook it at regular temperature and finish on high but the above it the way I've always done it. Before cooking or roasting, season as desired. Some say don't use salt, I do, I use salt, pepper and a little rosemary.

I only have two whisks: a flat whisk very much like the one on the left in your picture and a balloon whisk similar to the next to last on the right. I find I use the flat whisk all the time, not just for whisking but also as a spatula. It is much better at whisking gravy or sauce in a square bottomed saucepan than the balloon whisk which is better designed to be used in a round bottomed skillet or saucier.

Both. Rye, whole wheat, white whole wheat, Southern AP flour, Northern AP flour, bread flour all take different amounts of water to make a dough. Shirley Corriher says humidity does NOT play a significant factor in water absorption and I believe her but some say that time of year flour is harvested and age can make a difference. I believe that the only way to make yeast bread is to not measure the flour by cups or scale, but add it a little at a time until a soft dough is formed, then knead by hand with minimal additions of flour until it 'feels' right. I look askance at people who tell you precise amounts of flour to be used in any bread recipe. You need an eye and a touch to make good bread. edit, ps most food scientists will tell you that sugar is not a dry ingredient even though it is a powder when you put it in. Don't ask me why.

It looks pretty generic. You realize that different flours require different levels or percentages of liquid to make a dough?

I don't know what kind of diet you are on but if it is to count calories, skip this one. You must cook this in a double boiler type arrangement because you want to thicken the soup, not cook the eggs. You add any cooked vegetable you want and/or chicken. You may add whole or chopped vegetables and serve then as is or puree them when the mood hits you. Warning,,, if you try this cream of soup with sauteed mushrooms and onions, it will spoil you forever. You will never want to open a cream of mushroom soup can again. BASIC CREAM SOUP 2 C. Chicken broth 1 C. finely cut vegetables (such as mushrooms) 1 onion, minced or grated 1/4 C. chopped parsley salt and pepper 1 cup cream 2 egg yolks

In my opinion, the thing about drip coffee makers is that coffee floats. When the stream of hot water hits the grounds-especially in a flat bottomed basket, the water spreads out on the filter and the grounds float above the water. Maybe a 5th of the water goes into the carafe before most of the grounds even get wet. A vacuum coffee maker do a better job no matter how good the filter is in a drip coffee maker. It has a filter but the grounds all come in contact with water before they fall into the carafe. The best thing to do with one of those is to get the grounds wet just before the water goes in and to use a cone shaped basket.

Marinades and brines may or may not add moisture. I owned a Korean restaurant along with my wife. Her mother was the head cook. I have access to recipes used in marinades and I suspect that the Korean BBQ friend was cooking short ribs. If so he probably used an enzymatic ingredient to his marinade and that can make a meat juicier. Other marinades can add flavor and some can tenderize but I suspect your Korean friend used an enzyme to break down the tough spare ribs because the grill time is so short. See this article about marinades. It is by Shirley Corrhier.

Brisket and Flank steak have long fibrous and somewhat chewy texture unless cut across the grain. It makes a nicer presentation and breaks up the texture of the meat so it is easier to chew. Stew meat needs long cooking time to break down the meat and sometimes to dissolve the collagen. Meat that is already tender does not nave thpse properties and does not need long cooking times. James Beard once said words to the effect, the better the cut of beef, the less you need to do to it. Ribeye, porterhouse and T-bones are steaks that are tender. Tenderloin is a part of a T-bone after the bone is cut away. Strip steak is the other part from a boneless T-bone. Round, chuck, flank, and brisket are cuts that can benefit from a long cook time. You could stew a primal cut steak if you want, but it is expensive and a waste of good meat when a cut made for stew is cheaper and will taste very good when done this way.

Tender and moist aren't defined by 'steak' and 'lean' I have seen chuck steaks which aren't lean and round steaks which aren't tender . I think the term steak is used by butchers to define the size of the cut, not the tenderness. Some top prime steaks are not lean. They can and should be marbled with fat. The tender cuts of meat come from the least used muscles in the cow. Those would be the cuts taken from the back of the cow, along the spine from below the shoulder blade to just before the rise of the rump. These cuts can be cut into roasts or steaks Those cuts need very little cook time. They will be tender as long as they are not over cooked. Some cuts of meat will be juicy and tender if cooked medium rare AND sliced thin and across the grain- like a London broil- AND will be juicy and tender if simmered in a braise for a long time BUT will be very dry and tough if cooked too long an a grill OR not cooked long enough in a braise. To get the best results when cooking meat, you should understand where the part comes from on the cow and prepare the meat accordingly. A good cookbook on good cooking methods for various kinds of meat for good results is- in my opinion- How To Cook Meat.

The original post said this...The taste was perfect, meat well done and falling of the bone but the ribs were a little dry. Falling off the bone and a little dry are cause and effect. They were overcooked.

I think over cooking is indeed the culprit, especially with lean meat. You can boil shrimp or poach fish completely submerged in liquid and it can be dry and over cooked. If you over- grill a steak it will be dry and chewy. However some meat is tough and fatty and needs a long slow cooking time. Temperature alone is not enough to ensure both tenderness and juiciness, like a brisket for instance. It has collagen that needs to break down either by a braise or BBQ smoking.

There are many ways to prepare any particular cut of meat but if you slather ribs with sauce and braise them in a slow cooker or seal them in foil and steam them in the oven, then finish them on the grill, you will undoubtedly produce some good tasting ribs but please do not call it barbecue.