Twyst

We get it, you don't care for New Orleans and think it's a dirty city full of drunks, but it doesn't change the fact that tourism in NOLA is a $6 billion per year industry, and most of it is because of the food and beverage scene. It was inevitable that New Orleans was going to get a season of top chef before other cites in the south that don't generate the same numers. If you asked a lot of people to name the 5 best food cities in the country, most of them are going to name New Orleans as one of them. No other southern city can make that claim.

My personal favorite potato salad is potato salad made with spuds from a cajun crawfish/crab/shrimp boil. They are highly seasoned with onion/cayenne/salt/lemon and whatever happens to be in whatever crab boil seasoning you are using.

Haha, well the shot was actually taken by my neighbor who I sometimes feed when I cook at home, hence the annoying instagram filter as well. I usually can't be bothered to photograph food at home, get enough of that at work

I made the Khao soi a couple of months ago and it was really really good. Highly recommended!

Being from Louisiana I find them quite embarrassing. You can have them for all most of the people I know care. One good thing from this whole twitter dustup is Cafe Reconcile getting some recognition, and hopefuly some donations will come rolling in. I've gone and done some demos there and they are a very worthy charity.

I really like to pickle it and serve a little with really fatty proteins

Unfortunately, in the restaurant industry unless you are vomiting or are so sick you need to go to the hospital you are expected to work. It's really nothing like most other professions in that regard. If someone calls in sick in a kitchen there's a really good chance the kitchen is going to go down in flames that night. Ive seen people cut themselves so bad they DEFINITELY need stitches, but they just superglue that thing closed, throw a bandage on, a glove on top of that, an go back o work. Working sick/injured is a badge of honor in a kitchen.

Its never been in New Orleans. They shot the finale episode of top chef NY in New Orleans, but it's never had a season. Not sure why you feel cheated. If another city had offered more money it would have gone there. Its a travesty it took this long for NOLA to get a season IMO.

That said, I don't use it more than the recommended amount so I can't speak to that issue There is a recommended amount of time for use? I dont really read directions very often so I guess I missed that part!

Thanks for that tip! I looked up Vichy Carrots and was surprised at how many variations there are for what seems to so simple a recipe. People were using lemon-lime soda, adding molasses, par cooking the vegetables then sauteing in butter ... my, oh my. I think what I'll try is cooking sliced carrots in sparkling water (Vichy, if I can find it, otherwise Perrier or San Pellegrino), adding a knob of good butter, maybe a teaspoon of sugar, and just simmer until the liquid evaporates and the carrots are nicely glazed, maybe let 'em brown a scosh, and then sprinkle over some fresh chopped parsely. I should be able to get some nice, fresh, sweet carrots, so the sugar may not even be neccessary. Does that sound like a way to go? What you describe is the "right way" to do a classic carrots vichy. Would definitely add a little sugar as it makes a better glaze. I'm not sure the mineral water really adds all that much, but even if it doesnt you'll still have delicious carrots!

Carrots Vichy is a recipe I think everyone is forced to learn in culinary school. Its pretty much just a standard glace, but you cook the carrots in bottled sparkling water. (vichy water if its around, perrier if not) I honestly don't know that it nakes that big a difference, but its a pretty traditional recipe.

Another vote for the benriner. I bought a fancy mandoline for home but it never gets used, I always just end up using the benriner I keep in my knife kit for work.

Roll it with Activa (it wont look like a bacon pinwheel, you wont even be able to tell its been glued if you wrap it up tight), and cook sous vide just long enough to bring it up to temp, then slice and sear. We do this with both hangar and ribeye cap where I work with beautiful results, although we generally only bring the log up to 127 before searing.

Ive been saying I need to buy a good pizza stone. I think I have just discovered what Ill be getting instead thanks to HungryC's post!

Is there a humidifier in it so you can control your wet bulb temperature? That thing is awesome!

The first thing you should do is tell the expediter/chef. They will usually tell you what to do from there.

The food truck scene in austin is very healthy and you could easily eat at a different truck every day for a month and still have fantastic food every day. You should definitely make it a point to hit all the Eat Side King locations, chilantro and the peached tortilla as Baselerd said. As far as brick and mortar places to try while here, if you want trendy you should hit Ramen Tatsuya for a bowl of ramen, and you should make the wait one day at franklins BBQ for some brisket.

I just got this today and must say it's the most stunningly beautiful cookbook I have seen. I think quay was my previous favorite, but this definitely tops it from a beauty standpoint. It also appears to be pretty detailed and gives precise measurements in grams for most things. I ordered directly from the publisher in the UK and received it in the US 2 days later. There was only one shipping option and it was like $40

Bamix is pretty much the "go to" for a high end hand mixer. We use the 200 watt bamix pros at work and they are awesome. Lots of power and relatively quiet. Good build quality.

Yet another vote for the oxo good grips peeler. Its silly sharp, stays that way for a long time, and the blades can be replaced.

Ive only had the creative for about a month, but it feels as solid and well built as the professional series to me. I think they need to be on the market for a little longer before we know for sure about the durability of them. The professional series has proven itself to be pretty durable.

I have both units and have been satisfied with both. The chef series is made in the USA and the creative series is made in China if that sort of thing matters to you.

Before I go ahead and pull the trigger on the VP 215 Id just like to make sure that it produces good results when it comes to compression and flash marinating. Does it pull a strong enough vacuum to do those well?

Not widely used at all. Its extremely time consuming and produces a ton of scrap. The only places I really still see it are places that strive to be really classic french. It's strictly for visual appeal, an even dice will do just as good a job of assuring even cooking.

It sounds as though you may just want to stick to braising when it comes to short ribs. The allure of sous vide shortribs is the steak like consistency. If you want melt in your mouth, shred with your fork texture a simple braise is the best way to accomplish that.