Merkinz

The index is at the back of Vol 5. I'm with jfrater on this, busting out Vol 5 just to find a page in the kitchen manual is annoying. The index should also exist in the kitchen manual itself. Even better there should be an app just for the index... They could even include that feature the website used to have where you could select an ingredient or piece of equipment and it would suggest some recipes ... That was a neat feature for deciding on which modernist ingredients to invest in and which would probably never get used.

Right, thats it! I'm moving back to wellington next year! You just made the decision final jfrater! I already missed ontrays before they started stocking all these ingredients

Where did you get the isomalt from? Looks good

I haven't really worked with alot of these ingredients so I'm not the most qualified to answer but I am interested in making the sause you are wanting to attemp and I would also be interested in substitutes. I wonder if there is any 'everyday ingredient' that could be substituted in as opposed to another modernist ingredient?

I believe they are different things. Texturas Metil is basically Low Viscosity Methylcellulose found here : http://www.modernistpantry.com/methylcellulose-lv.html Where as you are after Microsrystalline Cellulose found here: http://www.modernistpantry.com/microcrystalline-cellulose.html Modernist pantry states: "Microcrystalline Cellulose is insoluble in water and does not gel like methylcellulose" ... Wether you could use one as a substitute for the other? I don't know but I would assume now.

john, the texture was crisp, lacey with quite a fine matrix. Very few to no larger bubbles. I happened to take some photos during my early attempts, it'd be fair to say that my technique and results have improved quite a bit with a little practice. In the first photo you can see the batter being extruded from the siphon - notice the bubbles are very fine and it has an airy foam texture not a bubbly texture. Also note that the bigger bubbles you see there are a user error and aren't usually there. The second photo is of my early results, I hesitate in posting this photo cause my results really have improved. How does it compare to traditional techniques and results? I'm really not qualified to answer this as although I often eat out at and love Japanese restaurants I'm a little dubious of the quality of these places we have here in New Zealand. Plan to travel to Japan next year and hope to experience the genuine article! I hope this helps.

I use a mixture of cornflour, regular flour, baking powder and trisol for the dry ingredients and water with vodka for the wet ingredients. I run this through a syphon but using nitrous rather than CO2. syphon it into a bowl that in spall quantities to keep it fresh when dunking the vegies in. Comes out wonderfully crispy and light. I actually did this on the weekend for guests.

I'm interested in what smoker you are using jfrater ... cheers

Wow, I knew nothing about this until now. I'm not living in Wellington at the moment but am moving back next year. this is definitely something I'll be interested in attending.

Looks good! Hanging out for a Sous Vide now.

Thanks jfrater. Look forward to seeing your results! I was tempted to throw some crumbs on top as well as that is how we had Mac & Cheese growing up. But I resisted for the fist go at it. I did serve it with a side of home made tomato sauce (basically Heston Blumenthal's pizza sauce recipe from the in search of perfection video... with the addition of onions and a dash of sherry vinegar) and some roasted broccoli with lemon and garlic. Hoegarden is the right sort of beer but there are plenty of other wheat beers in our supermarkets over here. Look for: - "Wheat Beer" (obviously) - "Weissbier" - "Hefeweizen" of "Hefe Weizen" - "Witbier" or even just "Wit" Most of our local brands have a wheat beer, to name a few (and as you can see they all have a different name!): - Mac's: Great White - Tuatara: Hefe - Harrington's: Weissbier - Three Boys: Wheat Beer Good luck and take a photo!

Hey ChrisZ, you know I actually spent alot of time researching the Family Meals book from Adria, and I probably spent an hour in total with the book at a local book store but concluded that it simply wasn't 'up to par'. I've read several reviews online about the large number of errors and sloppy writing in this book (eg. listing an ingredient and stating nowhere to use it) with no errata page by the publisher. I have a relatively healty cookbook collection at home and don't mind spending money on good books but I just couldn't bring myself to buy this one. The quality just didn't live up to what it should have. How was the pork belly? It depends what you want out of a book, but if it's simply recipes and you're on a limited budget then you could be better. I have both 'perfection' books and also his 'feasts' books. They're a good read and I'm glad I have them, but they're not recipe books like HB at Home. I think there's only 8 recipes in each book, and in some cases they use such specialised ingredients and techniques that it's unlike you'd ever make them. It's a shame that the perfection series isn't available on DVD, but you can watch lots of bits on youtube, if you have the patience to piece the sections together in order. I'd suggest that you put the funds towards a different book and watch the show online. If you like HB at Home, then maybe something like the Family Meals book from Ferran Adria... I am not sure if you are so inclined, but I believe that torrents are available for all of Heston's shows which is a lifesaver for those of us who don't live in the UK and don't have them broadcast in our own countries. Also, another book which is worth considering by Heston is "Family Food" - it covers lots of traditional home cooked meals that are easily done by most home cooks - the difference being the little additions he makes to the food to improve it - such as cooking onions with anise first to get a richer meat flavor when combined with beef. It is here: http://www.bookdepos...l/9780140295399 I am lucky enough to have a signed copy which I got at the Fat Duck. Thanks for the recommendations guys, I found a few of the HB in search of perfection videos (full length) on Vimeo for free viewing. I also had never heard of "Family Food" until now so I'll definitely be checking that out!

Hey jfrater, thanks for the extra information on the recipe. I look forward to making it some time soon. Do you think that the "In Search of Perfection" cookbook is worth the money? I really enjoy the recipes I've made from HB At Home. I live in Nelson at the moment but hope to return to Wellington sometime next year. I'm hoping to get a Sous Vide for xmas for all the recipes in Modernist Cuisine (and I imagine 'Modernist Cuising At Home' which I have on pre-order). If you are ever interested in getting some of the more exotic (read: expensive) ingredients from MC and want to go halves just let me know, I'd probably be keen! Cheers.

Hi Merkinz, Sydney's not too different - there are only a handful of places to go to for specialist ingredients and they charge a ludicrously high price. The price difference between Australia and overseas irritated me so much I decided to do something about it. I ordered 21 different ingredients from overseas, mostly in 2kg lots, bought some food-grade bottles from a local supplier and made my own kits. 2kg works out as 20 x 50g portions, although I was a bit generous when weighing so I ended up with 18 kits and some leftovers. I kept one kit for myself and sold the other 17 on Ebay. It was encouraging to see how quickly they sold, and I made a small profit which essentially covered the cost of my own kit and some of Modernist Cuisine. If you think there's demand in New Zealand and you have the time, you could do the same thing. Do your homework, take the risk of outlaying some initial money, and the result will be a well-stocked pantry that has paid for itself, and potentially enough profit to buy a few more cookbooks. Prices and availability have changed since I did it, but to give you an idea - one local supplier sells 10g of gellan for $20. Ignoring postage, you can get 200g of gellan for $30 in the UK. The postage costs more than the product, but if you buy in bulk and minimise your suppliers - or if you have friends overseas who can post you stuff - you can definitely feed a small market niche. -Chris Hey Chris, This is a great idea and I had actually contemplated it quite seriously shortly after making my first post here. However I have doubts about the market for this kind of thing in NZ. I was in a high quality, well stocked, independent cooking supplies store the other day and I mentioned the Modernist Cuisine and they had no idea what I was talking about. I've also never seen the book on the shelf in NZ. I'll definitely revisit this idea when MCAH is released. Thanks though, nice to hear someone has successfully done this! Yep! I've ordered a couple of things from them already including a massive tub of Trisol! So I had a crack at the much talked about Mac & Cheese today and thoroughly enjoyed it. However there was no way that the reconstructed cheese was ever going to grate! I ended up cutting it into slices and it worked fine. The results were delicious, and sooooooooooooo smoothe! This is a keeper (though maybe a little less salt next time).

Thanks Keith, appreciate that! Looks like quite a task but I'm always up for a challenge. Might skip the homemade tandoor oven and just grill the chicken over some coals for a bit. Watch this space ...

I'm really keen on trying this Tikka Masala but its not from HB at Home. Can anyone who has the book it is from confirm if it is identical to the recipe listed here: http://www.dominicsayers.com/documents/ChickenTikkaMasala.pdf Thanks. Also going to try that casserole, looks very tasty!

jfrater: Nice work! ... What book is the Masala from? I only have HB at Home. PS: Nice to see other NZ'ers about on here

Is this not caused by not lifting the knife high enough after the cutting stroke? i.e. the uncut vegetable is sticking to the knife and the knife isn't rising far enough for it to pull off, fall back down and get cut on the next stroke. The longer they become the less likely they are to pull off on the following stroke making it self perpetuating once it starts.. I am making this assumption because it happens to me and like you it happens at the top of the cutting board - the heel of the knife always rises further than the point. Maybe try cutting closer to the heel of your knife but still performaning the same height stroke ... if you catch my drift. ... maybe I'm wrong

Hi everyone, Thanks for the great response! Exactly the information I was after. Good to hear what people are using. I'll do some more reading but I think I'll place an order sometime soon. I'll be sure to post my progress as I start cooking.

Hey all, I've had the Modernist Cuisine for a few months now and just love it. I haven't cooked alot out of it yet ... apart from the odd BBQ sauce and technique here and there. I've just been reading and enjoying the marvel that it is. I know the following question has been asked already but I have yet to see a useful response (mainly because it was asked when the book first came out). I'm just a regular self taught home cook (with limited disposable income) that is wondering: What "Modernist" ingredients should I buy that would get me through a variety of recipes. I emphasize 'variety' because I don't want to spend a heap of money on a kit that will only allow me to do something like, for example: spherication - I imagine that the spherication novelty will wear off for me in my every day cooking. Down here in New Zealand we have limited access to alot of ingredients but I have noticed a few local stores are starting to stock the Texturas range. I have enough to buy 3 or 4 of their cans and at the moment I was considering: - Iota (for mac n cheese & other cheese preparations) - Citras (for mac n cheese & other cheese preparations) - Trisol (for crispy batters) ... does this seem like a good idea or are other people finding that they are using something else more often? I also have MCAH on pre-order ... maybe I should wait until that arrives? Your thoughts please

Hey All, Long time listener first time caller Here is as good a place as any to start I guess. I've had this book for a while and although I don't cook out of it often (fiance is a vego ) there are a couple of thing I couldn't live without from this book - mainly the pickles! (and the shiitake pickles to be precise). However the other week I was home alone so I decided to crack out the ghetto sous vide (chilli bin and digital thermometer, too broke to buy the real thing) and have a crack at the marinated hanger steak ssam ... although I couldn't find myself a hangersteak in the land down under Turned out great! I'm still warming to Kimchi ... but I'll warm to anything tho after a few tries Grabbed the biggest cast iron pan I had and got it slightly hotter than the surface of the sun... The results: EXACTLY how I like my steak...