[Creaming butter or cutting-in butter]

shortbread

cut in butter to flour 
add seasoning bring in to ball and re-fridge

cream butter and sugar in mixer 
add flour and seasoning 
ball and re-fridge 


also pate sucree often comes in the same two varieties.

[Creaming butter or cutting-in butter]

sorry not what i want 

i will re write it

I think the Answer is very obvious when considering what you expect from a cake and what you expect from a pie crust

My query comes to when you see so many biscuit (uk), shortbread and cookie recipes differentiating between the two mixing methods ?
sometimes from the same chef you see two recipes for the same product with different mixing methods.

[Creaming butter or cutting-in butter]

I think the Answer is very obvious when conidering what you expect from a cake and what you expect from a pie crust

My query comes to when you see so many biscuit (uk), shortbread and cookie recipes differentiating between the two mixing methods ?

Which is ideal ?
Is one right and one wrong 

sometimes from the same chef you see two recipes with different mixing methods.

[Cooking a potato]

What exactly is happening then what is reacting with the acidity in the potato to do this

i was left with essentially a "skin" are you saying that i could keep boiling and it would develop no further as that would be based on amount of acid as opposed to time in the solution ?

[Cooking a potato]

do you mean the acidity will stop it from going darker ?

i had narrowed it down to the acidity but its great to know you have it spot on

would love to know what is going on ?

i may try simmering for much longer and see how firm it can stay and how soft the center can get

[Cooking a potato]

Sorry for vague title but not sure what to put

Whilst taking inspiration

I wanted to have a potato that was simmered in a sauce until it took on its flavor and colour

and whilst having this idea found a blog about using pectin and calcium to form a structured skin

with out taking that into account i started off with simmering my potatoes in a stock and wine mixture

what i got was good but not perfect and also left me with a few questions which i am struggling to answer

First of the potato wasn't as dark as i would like it which i am assuming i change by reducing the sauce it is simmering in

The main one is that the potato had seemed to form an outside that had a much "firmer" texture than the centre which is perfect and completely accidental but i am wondering why this is ?

[Dinner! 2012]

Sorry i posted that after a long day

The salmon is smoked with shavings of an oak whiskey barrel then lined and rolled with a goats cheese mixture of a few too many things to list but will be generally the typical smoked salmon accompaniments

The flowers are violas which i stole from someones front garden after 3 hours in the woods and nothing to show for it

It is infact a crust of lightly toasted sesame seeds and alight dusting on top of cumin and coriander powder which I am not totally sold on, i must admit you may have just given me a great idea with the puffed rice

not yet bought or gathered my own plate collection so not really served on plates that i would like them to be served on

The Pigeon was also plated like this but the dish is too under developed to really sit in this type of plating

[Dinner! 2012]

Salmon Roulade

&

Roasted Wood Pigeon with Autumn Squash

[Add vegetables at the end or beginning of an 8+ hour stock?]

BANG exactly what i was looking for

i think this is possibly my last batch without using a pressure cooker

and i guess if using the standard method it would be best to add vegetables an hour or so to go the answer to my question

will have to crack open MC and look at that part

[Add vegetables at the end or beginning of an 8+ hour stock?]

yeah read that last night actually

it is a good read but doesn't really answer my question

[Add vegetables at the end or beginning of an 8+ hour stock?]

wow 1 hour to make a veal stock not even in a pressure cooker

that is pretty crazy are you sure about that

you cook a stock not for flavor ?

yeah sorry for the misunderstanding i mean cook the bones for the 7 hours or whatever then put the vegetables in for the last 1 hour or so as i was under the impression vegetables don't need 8 hours considering a veggie stock needs about 1 hour and would only cloud the stock

that is my thinking and why i asked the question maybe that puts it a bit better

but also i would love to know your thinking behind a 1 hour simmered stock

when tasting my stock at around 1 hour it definatly tastes of water in comparison to my 12 hour (veal bone stock)

[Add vegetables at the end or beginning of an 8+ hour stock?]

seems like i cant find much on this as i know apart from in theory i would of thought adding at the end makes more sense

yet so many books and famous recipes a la the veal stock in the french laundry add it at the beginning

[Cooking beef, questions]

yeah sorry about that but maybe i have incorrectly picked up a bad smell from parts of this forum which i have smelt far to often in and out of kitchens as it is if that is wrong and i am incorrect then i can only be sorry

but i have meant no offense to you personally

ah yeah i meant behind not preferring to leave something to rest as opposed to why one would do it

aka

- 2. He also prefers not to rest and reheat (fresh baked cookie analogy) -

[Cooking beef, questions]

WOW that is awesome Renn, really great answer

definitely what i was looking for i love how through this forum you may not instantly get what you are hoping for but at some point an absolute superstar will prevail

is there any science behind the leaving and reheating ? or is it just down to his preference

will take tonight to think through your bit of brain juice

[Cooking beef, questions]

Scientific research back to 1979 (Buck, Hickey and Rosenau, Journal of Food Science) reported that meat cooked in water (ie sous vide) is more uniformly coloured, more tender, and gives greater cooking yields. This is due to the conductivity of the cooking medium making it very relevant for a discussion on cooking methods.

The sous vide thread is long and comprehensive, McGee contains extremely relevant information for those who can understand it. Perhaps the questions can be refined after these sources have been consulted so we do not waste our time stating what is apparently obvious.

Think you are missing the point

you are simply repeating your self in recycled words about the difference in conductivity between different heat source which is all fair and well for stroking yourself but pretty irrelevant to what i am asking for

Infact i have looked over it again and you have completely misunderstood what was being asked but i will give you an A* for your description of the difference in direct and moist heat well done clap clap

[Cooking beef, questions]

The answers to all these questions are in the original sous vide thread, but to answer one of your questions, you can braise meat very effectively in a pressure cooker, which brings the liquid to temperatures greater than boiling. The reason for using liquid as a medium either in braises or in sous vide cookery is that transmits heat much more effectively than air. You can easily put your hand in a 100C oven, I'd never do the same with boiling water.

Heat acts on meat to break down its various components which is real rather than faux tenderness. It also causes the fibers to shrink, pushing out liquid. This will resilt in dry meat. Cutting the fibers with a jaccard tenderizer reduces this effect.

Cooking meat is the application of heat to transform the raw product into something more appealing. It is a combination of source, time, and technique as well as a function of the type of meat used. This is why you see some meats that are recommended for braises and othes for grilling (and vice versa). Sous vide is a technique that can cook meats in a way that is different from other techniques, which is hy many of us use it. We also cook, chill, and reheat the meat over a very high heat. This gives a Maillard effect on the meat that is very tasty. Typically we would reheat sous vide before doing so to ensure that the centre is up to an appropriate temperature. The idea is to brown the outside without overcooking the perfectly cooked meat.

Yes i understand all this obviously

but a braise is often said to not be cooked at boiling point i guess that is just one of those handy down recipes myths that really don't make much of a diffrence

@The reason for using liquid as a medium either in braises or in sous vide cookery is that transmits heat much more effectively than air.@

if you are cooking your beef in the oven at 200c or in boiling water at 100c i don't really see that conductivity is going to matter

which is why im wondering why braising is ever used is it just to get the sauce or is it specifically with the moist heat breaking down certain fibres

would love to know if anyone has more info behind favikens direct heat method

[Cooking beef, questions]

when ordering a bit of sous vide meat i have never had to wait 48 hours although im sure that would make for a funny sketch

yeah of course but i mean braising at a higher as opposed to oven cooking at a temperature which is kind of linked in to my question about braising and why is that technique really used

[Cooking beef, questions]

i have browsed these forums for those answers but before i was a member maybe being a member gives access to more i will search now and see what i can fidn but i did dump these heard because of finding nothing in books or the internet

[Cooking beef, questions]

i have read Harold McGee and the analysis of food compounds

[Cooking beef, questions]

Does a roast sear give a different taste to a pan sear and if so is there any information on this to back that up other than opinion ?

I have come to the opinion that cooking a steak on a grill will give sub standard results is the grill pointless ?

is there any reason beyond searing that using an oven at high temperature is necessary to cook beef ?

How does braising actually effect the moisture of meat or is it just so that the sauce can be infused with the meat juices ?

when connective tissues break down to a point where the meat gives a faux type of tenderness where it is literally fall apart mostly common with slow braising or stewing is it possible to get this same effect by cooking the beef at a high temperature ?

why is that texture rarely if ever found in high dining restaurants ?

when considering sous vide is there any real reason to be using an oven to try and achieve premium quality cooked beef ?

assuming imperfection with temperature control would low and slow in an oven be better or on par than sous vide

is sous vide the best and end of, i know at FAVIKEN he only uses direct heat and never uses low temp water baths and swear by direct heat cooking but i have been unable to find any info to back him up on this so i cant really understand where he is coming from

or if he is using romantic license so to speak

can you cook your steak to the 'done-ness/texture' you want then let it cool down to room temperature or lower and then sear and raise its internal temperature to below what it was already cooked at and still have a perfect steak or does something happen in that process to dry it out or etc ?

i would hate for everything to become sous vide i guess this comes down the monopoly on trend of favored texture that runs through out fine dining

Really sorry if some of the questions don't make sense just wondering if someone can chime into a few of them and get a conversation going

[How to become a cook?]

yeah of course i understand that totally for sure

i have done a few months before and it is about 2 months i have been working now to be more accurate but i can understand for sure how people drop in and out of it all the time

all i know for now is that i have done quite a few thing over the past 4 years and none of them have been as pleasurable and given me as much passion as being in a kitchen

unfortunately all i know for now is that which could all change so i think you are right if i am still game 2 years from now then maybe i should look into college but for now i will continue to get my head down and work with a fire under my ass get around and meet people learning as much as possible !

[How to become a cook?]

Sorry

i think you were mistaken i am not writing currently it was a job offered to me whilst i was doing a bit of travel writing

although thank you for the nice warm welcome to the forum

i feel a bit deflated now

i was probably just asking for re-assurance that not going down the path of college is appropriate and is just as valid

that and a friendly conversation

ow well

sorry for interrupting *your* forum

[How to become a cook?]

I am working in a restaurant of decent quality they try the right things and are using local produce

Head and sous chef just came from a Michelin establishment

By meeting i mean networking

I have a large library of cook books and chemical analysis books i have spent a lot of time with food and in a domestic kitchen i have previously been offered a few writing jobs and did a bit of prep and station work a year ago

i understand that but i feel and trust the guys when they say they will try to throw some more things my way and get me more hours which they have kept to so far

my goal is to be cooking have a role of reasonable responsibly in a desirable establishment

sorry about lack of punctuation my keyboard has broke well the coma and full stop buttons to be precise

[How to become a cook?]

i guess im looking for people to encourage and tell me why not to in all fairness

[How to become a cook?]

An expanded answer would be more appreciated.