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Jan Virtanen

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    The best fat for the job

    in Cooking

    Posted

    Purely going on flavor, not health, here are my preferences for cooking fats:

    MANTECA (Mexican lard) - essential for Mexican cooking. It is brown from all the pork bits left in it and has a deeply porky, satisfying flavor.

    SUET - for chili

    GHEE - for most Northern Indian dishes and all Persian dishes - a good brand is essential, e.g. Vindavran. Note that ghee is not the same as clarified butter!

    COCONUT OIL - for some Thai dishes and many southern Indian ones

    RENDERED PORK FAT - for many Northern Thai dishes

    CRACKED COCONUT CREAM - for many Southern and Central Thai dishes

    BUTTER for most northern European dishes

    OLIVE OIL for the south and for sauteeing fatty cuts like pork chops that will shortly give up their own fat... plus...

    "VEGETABLE OIL" - I guess it's usually canola, I have no idea whether it's healthy, but often it's exactly what you want when you don't wish the fat to contribute a certain flavor to a dish. I use it for most of my southern Indian dishes and some northern ones (even ones that may later have a second part fried in ghee). It's also great for deep-frying.

    Also... LAMB TAIL FAT is considered a necessity for many Persian dishes. It's almost impossible to source in the US, unfortunately - the food processors discard the tail - my partner was invited to come slaughter his own at one farm that raises the breed, so that the tail could be saved. He hasn't taken them up on that opportunity.

    P.S. - I highly recommend Jennifer McLagan's book "Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient." Beautiful, informative & packed with interesting information from recipes to advice on rendering different fats, as well as health info.

    Does the lamb tail fat taste different than fat from lamb marrow bones? Sounds interesting, have to ask from my local farm when they clip the tails, i would buy them. :) I already ordered whole lamb head so they are used to my strange requests :D

    The best fat for the job

    in Cooking

    Posted · Edited by Jan Virtanen (log)

    ...Canola oil seems to be little too clean of everything and i dont feel like thats a such great idea. Finnish industry push rapeseed oil like crazy but i rather use a good Cretan olive oil instead of those "motor oils".

    Can you please explain a bit more what olive oil you like ? For me, sauteeing (sparkling fresh fish, just floured to reduce spattering) in ordinary-grade olive oil is one of the joys of Italian family-style cooking. What makes Canola an industril "motor oil" where such oilve oil isn't ? Or did I mis-read you ?

    For maintaining my cutting board, I like edible mineral oil, which *is* getting close to motor oil...

    and patrickamory, do you have more detail on

    Note that ghee is not the same as clarified butter
    ? (I meah other than the fact that many commercial ghee brands contain ingredients that don't come from butter - or cows - in the first place and so to me are less authentically ghee than what's traditional ?)

    I just use the best tasting Cretan olive oil from local supermarket. Its http://www.gaea.gr/en/our-products/extra-virgin-olive-oils/?&EntityID=050607bd-af43-44ff-826d-e5ca56a3d945 this, we dont have gourmet olive oils, but i like the flavour this one.

    I make sure its as fresh as possible, or i dont buy it, i check the date. I am not so experienced with flavours so this might

    be crappy to real chefs :)

    I am not a scientific person and not much a cook either, but theres growing number of biochemist etc thinking that canola oil, during extraction is already oxidized, and due to its poor unnatural omega 3/6 ratio isnt healthy. Its not as bad as soybean oil but it aint no olive oil either. It is perhaps due to high level of phytonutrients in olive oil makes it safer to use heated than any of the high PUFA seed oils. Especially when cooking something that is easily oxidised, like fish. Herbs like rosemarin, dill, thyme, curcumin, citrus fruits and perhaps even red wine inhibits oxidation of fats and are a good idea, and ofcourse they just happen to taste good :)

    I just rather use olive oil due to fact that it doesnt remind me like the rancid fats at local Mcdonalds. I dont deep fry anything tho, so i dont know much about that. But if i did, i would deep fry with duckfat or perhaps tallow. You would want the fat to be saturated to stand up oxidation. I think they used to use these fats before, it was propably the last time fries very actually not so bad for the health :D

    The best fat for the job

    in Cooking

    Posted

    I think its smart to use EVOO instead of canola oil. I am sure the nutrition in EVOO make it more healthy choice when heated.

    It has many antioxidants which are protective and not well known. Atleast its been used for along time and its benefits are known.

    Canola oil seems to be little too clean of everything and i dont feel like thats a such great idea. Finnish industry push rapeseed oil like crazy but i rather use a good Cretan olive oil instead of those "motor oils".

    The best fat for the job

    in Cooking

    Posted · Edited by Jan Virtanen (log)

    Are you concerned of cooking oils with high Pufa content? I heard saturated fat is more healthy for cooking and best to reserve olive oil for salads or very low temperature uses. I started to use high quality coconut oil due to this. It makes great tasting vegetable curries, o use it together with organic coconut milk or cream.

    What do you think? Also the omega 3/6 ratio worries me, its terrible in soybean oil atleast, propably better never to eat that one.

    Marrow fat must be quite nutritious (especially wild game marrow bones), but its quite rarely used these days. Hard to find information about it. French seem to like it in borderlaise sauce. I have been using it lately, even with vegetables, seems to give interesting depth of flavor. Perhaps it would be smart to sous vide cook marrow, since its mufa fat and better to heated gently i guess?

    I use these fats currently:

    organic virgin coconut oil (using it when cooking vegetables, which is for 90% of uses)

    duck fat: using it for searing offal, roasting potatoes, sauteing mushrooms or browning onions. I dont cook these so often.

    home made tallow: using it randomly

    organic avocado oil: using it when searing something at very high heat. Perhaps once or twice a month.

    rendered marrow fat: quite rarely since its so precious, its my guilty pleasure. :)

    I dont eat pork or chicken so i am not using those fats at all.

    I use organic artisan butter rarely. I wish i could use it more often due to its high vitamin content (vitamin k2) and good flavour but i cant for health reasons and slight allergies.

    I use EVOO for salads and sometimes when making a herb "paste" filling for fish. I never use industrial oils like rapeseed oils or such, their smell reminds me too much like local fast food restaurants, and i dont like to be thinking of those when making good old home food.

    Food ideas for friends after major surgery?

    in Cooking

    Posted · Edited by Jan Virtanen (log)

    I would avoid sugar, cancer cells feed on fructose. Perhaps a fish soup?

    High in Vitamin D, minerals (if you cook fish stock and use kombu etc) anticancer vitamin.

    Thick bone broths are great too, if theres problem digesting vegetables.

    Omega 3s are anti-inflamatory. So fatty wild salmon is good.

    Whereas Omega-6s increase inflammation. So make sure not

    to use any low quality vegetable oils like canola or worse soybean oil.

    Cauliflower and broccoli are high in anti-cancer compounds:

    http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050326114810.htm

    but maybe first smart to avoid it due to possible digestion issues.

    Good desert would be some blended fresh wild blueberries, sea buckthorn, etc

    much higher nutrition density than any industrial grown sugar laden

    fruits.

    Consider avoiding wheat and replacing them with with rice or potatoes.

    Many grains inhibit absorbion of minerals and vitamins. But tubers and rice

    do not.

    When my father had a major brain operation i cooked fish for him everyday and

    some good berries, vegetables, and went to a walk in the park. He completely

    recovered. I avoided all factory food. Only homemade stuff, the best you know :)

    Worcestershire sauce

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted

    I have a UK bottle and the ingredients are

    Malt Vinegar (from Barley), Spirit vinegar, Molasses, Sugar, Salt, Anchovies, Tamarind extract, Onions, Garlic, Spice, Flavouring

    Interesting. It has no wheat. I have been looking for gluten free Worcestershire Sauce. I can only find Heinz here but it has wheat :(

    Beef Cheeks

    in Cooking

    Posted

    I love cheeks, cant decide which are better cheeks or tail. Both are damn fine,

    i dont even bother with any other meats for braises. They are more expencive around here.

    Tail has so much flavor. Must try sous vide cheeks sometime.

    Sous vide offal

    in Cooking

    Posted

    indeed, i would also like to know, some tips for liver, kidney, sweetbread etc.

    (i love the taste of liver more muscle meats). I once triend some

    temps/times recommended by "Under Pressure" but i felt liver was cooked way too hot.

    I also like lamb hearts and kidneys.

    But those work so well on the grill so never bothered with sous vide.

    And bone marrow, i use it to flavor many things, even vegetable casserolles. :)

    Do you snack?

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    Snacking constantly keeps your insulin level chronically elevated, which is not so healthy. Very hard to loose fat this way. I like to eat two large meals a day, no need to snack. I dont eat grains anymore, strange as it sounds, they made me more hungry. I rather eat fresh vegetables and some fruit now.

    Dinner! 2011

    in Cooking

    Posted

    I made French Laundry ratatouille. I actually put some soffritto to the piperade. Realising it wasnt needed for piperade in Kellers ratatoille. But it didnt hurt :)

    I like this recepy. Whats yours favorite ratatouille receipt?_MG_8286.jpg

    Breakfast! The most important meal of the day (2004-2011)

    in Cooking

    Posted

    Usually i buy my herrings whole :) But not this time. I like to have the roe, so i buy them whole. Another nice little fish is smelt. Its local fish here, but somehow very underappriciated here. Whenever i see it, i buy many kiloes, and make rollmops out of them, and panfry. Its truly great little fish :) And the roe is beautiful.

    Breakfast! The most important meal of the day (2004-2011)

    in Cooking

    Posted

    I just made some coconut milk base with some spices, cumin, curcumin, urfa pepper, ginger root, garlic etc. Then i gently simmered it until fragrant, and put the fish on pan and poached 2-3mins more and put it under a broiler for a minute. I kept the spices very mild, so the creamy coconut milk still tastes like what it is :)

    I took the picture before broiling. Fish was fresh, i just seasoned it S&P and some lemon. I rolled it becouse i figured that way it wouldnt cook too fast.

    Vegetarian for a week

    in Food Traditions & Culture

    Posted

    Yes perhaps my food choices are little bit primal. I like to cook this way too. I tend to eat what has been eaten in my country before agriculture and that kind of business. Finnish agriculture is only like 200years old. So finns before ate alot of fish, berries, tubers, mushrooms, meat (especially elk and deer) and some seal). Many of these are my favorite food, so not a hard decicion ;) Wild berries, mushrooms and game are the best finland can offer.

    Now its almost sick how much theree is processed food in our grocery store and how little there is actual food (like veggies and fish). 70% is almost just some sort of juices, candy, bread and pastries. But i guess it makes a great business. Plane old broccoli isnt so sexy and high in profits ;)

    Before i used to be hungry and snack allday long, now i eat just two meals a day and are never hungry. And still my blood sugar is very stable due to vegetables and fish. (they do not rise it very much or drop).

    I try to eat fresh fish everyday because it makes me feel better, must be the omega 3s or something :)

    I have had a history of depression so i make sure i get as much seafood as possible. So that i dont have to

    take any medds... Seafood, what a delicious medicine! :)

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