scubadoo97

Can't say that I have Bruce but I would think after looking at pictures of your food for the last few years, you could have taught the Chef a thing or two.

Another product that works well is Dawn Power Dissolver.

Absolutely safe. Why would they not be safe? Just wondering.

Pawncrackers, your food is so visually appealing. The pictures look professional and your plating looks like it was done by a food stylist. I'm drooling at 10am for every dish.

That was my exact thought after watching this cast away's video. Looks cool but why?

I 2nd the use of soaking for cleaning pots and pans. For really stubborn stuff you can fill the pot with water and bring to a boil then turn off the heat and let it sit overnight. If anything remains the next day a bit of Bar Keepers Friend will take care of it then.

I bought a Weber Genesis over 10 years ago. At the time there were not a lot of high end choices. Previous to the Weber I had purchased less expensive Char Broil grills that would need to be replaced almost every 2 years due to corrosion. I still have the Weber and have replaced the flavorizor bars and the electric starter a couple of times but the burners are still fine. Now there are a lot of choices with IR burners and more options. Good luck with your search. Make sure that the burners are stainless with brass fittings. I think most of the upper end grills today are built to last.

I've made it with steelhead trout. Called it gravlax. No one could tell the difference from salmon.

Tracey your pastrami looks fabulously delicious

Can you find annatto seeds in your grocery store? You make the annatto oil by lightly frying the seeds in olive oil then discard the seeds. You could use saffron which would be more spanish. I actually like the taste of the rice made with annatto oil. Also look for Bijo, a bright orange Cuban spice that is mostly powdered annatto and cumin.

How many people psiweaver? I made some for a swedish dinner party or 15 people. I purchased a 3.5 # side of salmon and used 2/3 or the side for the gravlax. Each couple brought a Swedish dish so I was told to bring a pound of gravlax. I brought about 2.5 lbs and it barely made it around the table and I cut it paper thin. I actually prefer a thicker cut myself.

Top blade roast is where the flat iron steaks come from. Part of the shoulder. Very tender for something from the shoulder chuck area.

I've read that the minimum time for wet brining is 1 hour per 1/2 inch of fish. Since I'm often getting 3-4 lb sides the thickest part can be just over two inches. I brine longer than the minimum recommended and brine for 12 hours on average. The fish is not too salty at all and in fact often can go longer. I do refresh in cold water after brining for 15-20 min. I cold smoke for 1-2 hours which is enough to give it a nice subtle smoke flavor.

350g is just over 12 oz. My wife and I have been working through a 2 lb side of cold smoked salmon. I slice it daily as we eat it. 12 oz would be gone in a couple of days.

Chris, keep us infomred about the stability of this cooler. The model you have is a compressor type cooler. I've been running a 48 bottle wine cooler as a humidor for several years and just replaced it with a thermo-electric Haier 48 bottle dual zone cooler similar to this one http://www.homeelegancecenter.com/Haier_Liberty_BVFTB48DPABB_48_Bottle_Thermo_p/bvftb48dpabb.htm The thermo-electric unit has a cooling range of 45*f-65*f. Unlike my compressor type cooler this thermo electric is rock solid in both temp and humidity. I have my old compressor cooler outfitted with 3 computer fans to add circulation but it was never as stable as the thermo-electric cooler. Every time the compressor kicks on the humidity will fall like a stone. It does go back up when the compressor kicks off but there is significant fluctuation I've got a thermoworks hygrometer/temperature sensor http://www.thermoworks.com/products/humidity/rt819.html to monitor my coolers. My thermo-electric's digital display reads a lot cooler than the actual temperature so you need to have some way to monitor this accurately. Looks like you got that part covered

A simple low tech way to cold smoke is to use a tin can with a hole punched into side near the bottom and insert a clean soldering iron. Fill the can with wood chips or pellets and plug in the iron. You will get good smoke with little heat production. Your oven is not the place to be making smoke. I've used my grill (not turned on) as a smoke box or a card board box would work. Just do it outside. Wood smoke does pose a carbon monoxide risk so it should be done in a well ventilated area.

Is this hot or cold smoked salmon?

David is correct. I make both. I like to make Nova lox most often. It's just so darn easy to brine fish. I do a 15-18% brine with dark brown sugar tossed in the brine. This darkens the color of the flesh without really adding much sweetness. Dry it off and let it sit in the fridge to form a pellicle and cold smoke it. Wonderful results every time.

Some photos of our NYE dinner A raw tuna plate with rice,carrots, pickled ginger and edamames. The rice was mixed with some wasabi mayo and a layer place between two discs of rice. Smoked salmon salad; the salmon was broken into large flakes and folded into the dressing, flat iron steak crusted in smoked chili powder and coffee, Texas caviar with collards and gravlax.

I'ts on my menu for tomorrow. I picked up the salmon yesterday. It only needs 24-48 hrs depending. Mine will go 48 hrs but that's my limit. I have done it in 24 and it has a nice soft texture. It's cured enough for me.

It's Wed evening and I just found out I'm hosting a party of 8-12 people. 6-8 of my cousins and maybe my brother and his wife. My cousins my wife and I were going to head out to Sarasota beach for NYE and spend a couple of days on the beach. But first it was going to rain. Now it's less rain but still rain plus plunging temps with highs in the high 50s. So plans were canceled. We Floridians are such wimps. Just didn't feel it was worth the hotel rental if we weren't going to be out on the beach. "You know when you live in paradise you don't have to go out on a bad day". A saying used a lot when diving in the Keys. Menu so far, most of which got done tonight. The gravlax, salmon salad/dip and Texas caviar was going to get made anyway and taken to the beach. 1. Gravlax-done-Now do I cold smoke it tomorrow? Mmmm? 2. Hot smoked pulled salmon salad. 2lbs center cut salmon cut from a 4.5 side. The rest went into making the loxs. The salmon was hot smoked over oak at 250* until just done. Brined over night in a 15% brine with a good dose of dark brown sugar. The salmon flakes were pulled apart and lightly mixed with fine diced red and green peppers, celery+leafs, onions and capers. Dressing is a mix of cream cheese, Dukes mayo, Worcestershire, a shake of Tabasco and tapatio hot sauce, 1/2 lemon juice and zest, maple syrup, smoked chili powder, smoked paprika and s & p. I mixed up the diced veges with the dressing and then lightly tossed and mixed in the large soft flakes of smoked salmon. done I've been making a hot smoked salmon dip/salad which is mixed down to a finer texture. For this I wanted to keep the large flakes whole. Man it looked and tasted really good. Good to be the chef 3. A loin of ahi tuna lightly seared and sliced. Served with rice flavored with a wasabi/mayo cream, thin julienned carrots and daikon radish for crunch and some homemade picked ginger. to get done. Or it might turn out to be a tuna poke' with Thai Asian dressing. Just not sure which direction to go but both will be good. 4. Texas caviar. Black eyed peas, corn, fine diced red and green peppers, celery and tops and onions and thin slivers of raw collard green (gots to have black eyed peas and collards on NYE). Dressing was made from a balsamic dijon vinaigrette I had made yesterday but now flavored with smoked chili powder, garlic powder, ground cumin, big splashes of champagne vinegar and sherry vinegar. This also got high marks from the cook. Must do again. done 5. Thin sliced smoked flat iron steak. I made this yesterday and we didn't eat it. It's med rare edge to edge. I'm going to give it a quick sear tomorrow straight from the fridge to give it a thin crust but keep it med rare and thin slice, maybe serve with little dinner rolls stuffed with lettuce and thin sliced veges. Little bits. 6. A mixed leaf salad. I plan to make this a salad/vegetable course and thin slice some zucchini and yellow squash and toss it in a vinaigrette and serve over said salad. to be made Okay I've done all I'm doing tonight. Time to relax and maybe enjoy a late night cigar and wee drink. Got to pace myself ya know. Got to decide on some cool drinks to have on hand. Glad I've got tomorrow off

I mix it in mayo and coat tuna with it before searing. After coating you can also roll in panko if you want some crunch.

Your description is similar to how I appoach this hobby. I'm a home cook that often cooks on the fly with what I have on hand. I don't cook by recipe but like to research the concepts of a dish and then do my take on it. I am a lover of ethnic foods. Never getting too hung up on any one cuisine. I have a rich history of ethnic family foods. I am adventurous in that I will try just about anything once and am not afraid to tackle difficult or tedious projects. I enjoy my food more than going out and get enjoyment out of feeding others.

To me it means 8-12 hrs.

It bothered me too that they drew knives for sous chef. Agreed luck of the draw should not be a factor in the big win. Although I guess the luck of the draw can make or break you at any time in the challenge. But Preeti what a bad draw, but that was the dish he did well with. Maybe because he did most of it himself. Sorry to see Kevin have a bad day. I thought he was not only very skilled at manipulating flavors with simple ingredients and presentation but was a very balanced, humble, cool headed nice guy who I wish had won.