Charcuterer

Nice! I'm glad that worked out. I've been thinking about ordering one just to have a little of my mothers kitchen in mine! Jim

Steve, I have had a similar experience as you. I feel like the vp112 is a real work horse. I have used it almost daily for almost a year and once I started increasing the seal time to 8 from the preset 5 I haven't had any problems. It is a great tool for the kitchen.

Wow! spoiled and lucky! That is so cool, what's on the menu schedule for today?

I made burgers last night and they were possibly the best I've ever eaten. I used a ratio of 3 Chuck eye to 1 Hanger steak. Ground it with a coarse die then small die while almost frozen. Handled the beef very gently forming patties of 6oz each and salted and peppered just before putting them on the grill. I had a VERY hot fire on one side of my kettle grill and after a good sear moved them off heat to finish coming to mid-rare. Those were truly elevated burgers my wife said they were the best I had ever made! Thanks Paul Rapheal for the proportions. I need to try heartsurgeon's blend so I can compare.

I would use an inexpensive dry vermouth like Gallo extra dry. Cooks illustrated rated it #1 and says that in amounts up to 1/2 cup vermouth can be a 1:1 substitution for white wine. So you can keep it around, for up to 3 months in the fridge, and use it in lieu of white wine.

Here's an idea that may work for you. You could try making bread using the "Artisan bread in 5" method. I find that using that recipe it costs me right at $1 a loaf. Then you could cube the bread up and "stale" it in a 200 degree oven for 15 minutes and you are set. If actual stale bread works better for you let it sit over night. You can find the artisan bread in 5 recipe on the net with a quick search or you could check it out from your library. Good luck and great idea on the bread puddings!

I am afraid I'm about to start a war but if you are looking for a great lunch go to Al's beef. Wet, hot, no cheese. Italian beef is a religion so I know there are those that would steer you a different direction but Al's is my favorite. Mr' beef is also very good but one must have a favorite mustn't one?

I'm sad to say that this thread has ruined me. I am now on a Negroni kick. Thanks a lot. My wife and I were going out to a cocktail bar here in town, The Patterson House, and I had been reading this thread so I asked for a Negroni. I told the bartender that I had not had one before and he walked me through it. He used equal parts Gin, Campari and Vermouth (honestly, over the night there were a lot of drinks consumed and I don't recall the brands.) I was hooked. I've had them in other bars in town and they have ranged from good to excellent. This week I went out and bought Campari and some Dolin vermouth. I had a bottle of Bombay Sapphire in my bar so I just used that. What I got was a very passable version. I will probably invest in some Noilly Pratt and maybe pick up a bottle of Beefeater soon to try that combo.

I'm certainly not a great chef but my guilty pleasure is Ramen noodles. For me they are the perfect any time snack.

I have another beef with the new Pyrex measuring cups. It may be a manufacturing flaw in mine but I have the 4 cup and it does not pour well. There is always a stream that flows back along the outside of the body and onto the counter. My Anchor Hocking pours great. I am in the apparent minority but I really love the Oxo cups. I have both the old style Pyrex and Oxo and use them all. I personally think the 2 ounce Oxo is brilliant.

Thanks for all of the input. My mind is made up. BGE is it!

How about adding heat with chillies in adobo. The canned product is quite nice. I would remove most of the sauce as it might overpower the subtleties of your seasoning.

Pre-ordered! I told my wife that for my birthday I would love a copy of MCaH and she went right in and placed the pre-order. Shame that it comes out almost 2 months after my birthday. Oh, well I have it to look forward to. Thanks for the reply Nathan it's always good to hear from you.

I think the chapter on carnitas has me the most excited. All of those recipes look like something I would love to try. The item for "frozen steak" has me intrigued too.

I am currently considering buying a Big Green Egg and was wondering if anyone can give me real world feedback on their products. I have looked online and it seems that there is a cult like following for that product. If you read the forums people are making amazing and hard to blielve claims about their grills. (cook a pork butt for 16 hours at 250F and the temperature never wavers and there is still 2/3 of your charcoal left unburned...) I have an electric smoker (Bradley) and a weber one-touch now but the BGE looks so good I would love to give it a try. The price point is decidedly high but I believe in getting the best equiplent I can afford. My concern is; would it be worth the price of admission?

Thanks Shalmanese! I should have included the link.

On the Modernist Cuisine website they have a preview of the book with an index that lists all of the recipes. Now I am really excited.

I don't have the original (yet) but I will get MCaH when it comes out. The price is a bit easier to swallow and it would be a nice place to start and see if the big brother is something I want to invest in.

For me a Reuben is; Corned beef Emmental Russian dressing Sour kraut Rye bread (marbled if possible.) I like the meat and kraut heated on a griddle, the bread buttered, the sandwich assembled and then "toasted" on the griddle. Done. I agree with the posters above that more is not always better. It has to balance the cheese and toppings.

The part of the equation that hasn't been discussed is the movement of salt. Like in a brine the sodium is going to move toward equilibrium as the stew sits. This would "balance" the seasoning through the meat and veggies. That would improve the flavor. Shalmanese if it wouldn't be too much of a hassle it would be great if you could include a freshly made sample and combine the two parts as Nickrey suggested. That would give you a control and two variables. It will be a small sample but would give some starting data.

Isn't the internet wonderful? It gives uninformed people the forum to make that ignorance public! The Nomiku device looks like it would be a great product if it makes production. The form factor would be useful for smaller pots than my Sous Vide Professional. I have to admit that I'm considering pledging so I can get a second IC.

I am in the process of curing a pancetta and was wondering if Activa could be used to bind the meat while it dries? I will be rolling it as usual but it would be cool to have it hold its shape without ties. Also, If I can use it for that purpose, how long would I need to keep it compressed before it would hold together?

It was marvelous! The Llapis were wonderful! I said to my wife, "where has this annato infused oil been all my life!" The pork was excellent though you might not have recognised it as Ecuadorian roast pork. After the marinade I put a dry rub on it with the same flavors from the marinade; cumin, garlic, lime (zest), pepper and salt. Then the pork was smoked for 17 hours at 200F (93C) basted with annato infused butter for the last 3 hours. I did a (very) non-authentic BBQ sauce with the flavors of the rub in tomato sauce with some brown sugar. My pickled onions were (quote from my wife) "weird" so we did a simple salad of greens, beets and unpickled onions. I wish I had taken a picture it was a wonderful end to my quest! Thank you so much for your guidance and patience with me while I planned the whole thing out! Jim

Before my current quest I didn't either! That's one of my favorite things about cooking and eGullet; I learn so much!

I am trying to find ingredients to make roast pork in an Ecuadorian style to go along with the llapingachos and have found a plethora of things I can't get in Nashville Tennessee. Toamte de Arbol, Ahi peppers and achogcha are three of them. I'm also having a beast of a time finding achiote seeds (I have found the ground variety)