JoNorvelleWalker
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Posts posted by JoNorvelleWalker
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Vanilla seeds (from what I've read) are about 500 microns (two hundredths of an inch). In any event they are smaller than any strainer I have seen for a home kitchen. From the pictures it appears the iSi strainer would not be able to remove particles that small?
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Thanks. I see from the instructions that the unit can be cooled lying down, though I would much rather store it in the refrigerator standing up.
Another question: are small particles, such as vanillla seeds, a problem?
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Since posting above earlier this month I have made two more batches of 300g semolina with three large eggs. After I reduced the cooking time I could not ask for better. I store the cut and floured pasta in plastic bags in the refrigerator.
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Not only saving on chargers but I was thinking that for home use the 0.5 liter would fit in the refrigerator more easily. However I checked on Amazon and from the specifications the pint unit (which I assume is the same as the 0.5 liter model) is 14 inches high, which is too big for my refrigerator.
I can't help but believe 14 inches must be incorrect. Does anyone have a pint/0.5 liter iSi that would be kind enough to measure it for me?
Edit: another vendor of the same unit on Amazon says it is 11.5 inches high, which is more reasonable.
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Warm oven works for me.
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I am interested in an an iSi whip. I am still unclear after reading whether the devices have to be fully filled to work properly, or if smaller recipes can be made in larger whips. I intend only to buy one size, probably 0.5 liter. Does anyone have information about this?
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Since no one has commented on the ICE-100 I can now report. I'm sitting here eating my first batch! The results are better than expected. My last ice cream maker was a very large, very expensive Kitchenaid that was only good for churning icy butter. Years ago I had a Simac that made good ice cream but was a pain to clean. And before that I used an ice and salt bucket machine in the 1960's (which also made good ice cream when operated in a freezer room).
At the moment I cannot say enough good things about the Cuisinart. The operating noise is quite reasonable. I did hear the squeak that an Amazon reviewer had noticed, though that should be fixed with a little lubrication. The removable bowl made cleanup a few moments' job. Nothing spilled anywhere except on the cutting board where I poured out the mixture into freezer containers. The unit includes two dashers: one for gelato and one for ice cream. So far I have only tried the ice cream dasher, but I assume the gelato dasher is designed to produce less overrun.
And now I think I shall have a slice of cake to cleanse my palate.
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I was quite happy with the Cuisinart but they don't make replacement gaskets. Something to keep in mind when shopping for a pressure cooker.
Cuisinart replacement gasket...
http://www.cuisinart...es/cpc-600.html
Ciao,
L
Sadly those parts are all for the Cuisinart electric models, not for the stovetop ones like my C86-24. Thanks for trying however.
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Another reason I like the All American pressure canner/cookers. No gasket.
How do they make their seal?
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What size is the gasket? A lot of asian appliance places sell various sized silicone gaskets and you could probably find one for just about any size.
The diameter is 10". But I'd be a bit afraid to use a non-standard part in a pressure cooker. Is this a realistic fear?
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I noticed today that Cook's Illustrated rated Fissler their favorite, and the only tested model to reach the US standard of 15 PSI. I am not sure exactly which Fissler. From the picture I think perhaps the Vitaquick 8.5 quart.
Since I just purchased an ice cream maker I am not likely to be replacing my broken Cuisinart pressure cooker any time soon. I was quite happy with the Cuisinart but they don't make replacement gaskets. Something to keep in mind when shopping for a pressure cooker.
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Does anyone have experience with the Cuisinart ICE-100?
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By happenstance I made fresh egg pasta last night for the first time in about fifteen years. I dug out my Cuisinart extrusion pasta maker (same unit as sold as Simac). The hard part was locating all the pieces, and then cleaning them. I used 300g semolina and three large eggs. Worked perfectly. I slightly over cooked the pasta though, but I still have more in the refrigerator.
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I have had two wonderful braises since my last update. I cooked some beef chuck well browned in pork fat in my smallest Le Creuset with carrots, fennel, onions, garlic. The last of it I served over fettuccine (not home made, though, I confess) with much fresh parsley.
The second was another batch of Wolfert's chicken with apricots and pine nuts, even better than the first time I prepared it. I have acquired a SimmerMat that I use in conjunction with my ILSA heat diffuser. Both of them together allow me to maintain very low braising temperatures as Paula Wolfert suggests. But with temperatures between 170-175 degrees F, cooking times are many hours. The food can cook all day. Not having to do with braising, but I am pleased that I was able to make some quite good pseudo Moroccan stone baked flatbread on my first attempt.
I have another small piece of chuck and I am wondering what to do with it.
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I realize this is a bit late, but no one mentioned Nigel Slater's Tender, A cook and his vegetable patch.
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jrshaul not sure if you are interested in a ganache for cake or for chocolates but one of these two books should be very useful:
"The Cake Bible" by Rose Levy Beranbaum
"Chocolates and Confections: Formula, Theory, and Technique for the Artisan Confectioner" by Peter Greweling
You should be able to get both from the library and there are discussion threads about these on eGullet too.
The Cake Bible technique is what I use. Not that I've made ganache in a while.
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The polenta I made for the ribs was plain with butter on it, which is how I like my polenta. I don't think the ribs were bad, just that I don't have the right combination of time and temperature yet.
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I did a major double-take at the amount of liquid you used. That's your problem, plain and simple.
If the liquid reply was to me, for the lamb shank I used a level of about an inch in my smallest Dutch oven. For the other recipes that I mentioned I followed the authors' instructions as exactly as I could. Were you thinking I should use less liquid or more liquid?
My latest experiment was pork spareribs braised in balsamic vinegar and red wine. I got the idea from someone named Nemmie in a blog I found from google:
http://scottnemmiefa...onzola-polenta/
I started with a full rack of ribs, parboiled then browned them. After seven hours on the stovetop the ribs were tasty but not tender, After five more hours in the oven at 225F the next day, they were tender but a bit stringy. Good, but not perfect. By education (decades ago) I was a protein chemist, and this is very frustrating. Now I'm wondering if I cook the ribs further if they will just get tougher.
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Here is what I use:
Though it only goes up to 300 degrees F. This probe is a thermistor, not a thermocouple.
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My braising experiments were interrupted by hurricane Sandy. As an update, I received my Le Creuset tagine, and I now have two tagines: the Le Creuset and the unglazed Moroccan one from bramcookware. I have braised in each of them. The lids are the same diameter, and I can use the unglazed earthenware lid on the Le Creuset bottom!
The first recipe I made was the Lamb Tagine with Medjoul Dates that I mentioned above. I braised in the Moroccan tagine, but then I transferred to the Le Creuset bottom as I did not have the courage to place the unglazed earthenware in the very hot oven.
The dish was quite good, however I am still having a problem with braising times and temperatures. In the 2005 tagine thread http://forums.egulle...g/page__st__150 Paula Wolfert suggests 170F for a tagine braising temperature. However, at least in my hands, that low a temperature just does not work for the cooking times given in her recipes.
I next made Spicy Shrimp Tagine, from page 156 of Jeff Koehler's book Morocco. Indeed I have now made it twice. I used the iron Le Creuset as I did not want shrimp flavors in the earthenware. Results were perfect. The finished dish looks better than the pictures and it was easy. The shrimp braises for only 12 minutes however. Leftovers from the second batch should be my dinner tonight, possibly with pasta.
The next experiment was Chicken with Dried Apricots and Pine Nuts, Wolfert's The Food of Morocco page 282. Wonderfully delicious, but again I had to cook way longer than the recipe calls for.
As was suggested I've now read Molly Stevens' All About Braising. There are a couple of recipes that interest me, including Neapolitan Beef Ragu, which sounds similar to a Bolognese but with a whole piece of meat. Now that stores are starting to open after the hurricane, tomorrow I hope to be able to find something to braise, or at least something to eat.
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...made from cubes of veal and pork.
I just noticed "cubes". Do you not grind or mince the meats in this version? That sounds like it could be really good.
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There has been some progress.
First, thanks for the additional comments. Yes, I realize now that my cooking temperature was way too low. I did use a cartouche (not that I knew what it was called) and I had essentially no liquid loss from my braise.
I have not tried making it in years, but I used to cook a Bolognese sauce recipe from The Romagnolis' Table. This was back in the 1970's before I had Le Creuset. I might be tempted to try again this winter. And now I am hungry for lasagne.
Last night I degreased the broth and used it to make risotto Milanese, with which I served the lamb shank reheated in a splash of wine, on a bed of cilantro. The result was something I would have been pleased to be served in a restaurant.
This afternoon I received my unglazed earthenware tagine and was planning to cook in it tonight. However the seasoning process is long and I ran out of time. It's cooling in the oven now. What I did have for dinner was the rest of the lamb shank. Nothing was left but three pieces of dry bone.
What I plan to fix for the first dish in my new tagine is "lamb tagine with medjoul dates" from page 387 of Wolfert's the Food of Morocco. I have been drooling over this recipe for weeks. I am undecided whether to make it straight or to add a pinch or two of Zamouri's ras el hanout. I wonder whether the tagine will be able to take the heat of a 400 deg F oven, even though the company I purchased the tagine from assured me it would be OK, as long as the tagine was already hot when it was placed in the oven. We shall see.
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Thanks! Molly Stevens All About Braising is now on its way to me from the library. To join the following, which have been living on my dining table:
Ghillie Basan, Tagines & Couscous
Madame Guinaudeau, Traditional Moroccan Cooking
Meera Freeman, A Season in Morocco
Jeff Koehler, Morocco
Mourad Lahlou, Mourad New Moroccan
Paula Wolfert, Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco
Paula Wolfert, The Food of Morocco
Koehler and Wolfert's books are the ones I would cook from. The other works were interesting, but the recipes are impractical (i.e. a Guinaudeau recipe calls for six pints of honey) or don't particularly speak to me.
Also on my dining table is Molly Stevens, All About Roasting, which I just realized (duh) is by the same author.
As to my poor lamb shank, last night I removed the meat from the pot and strained the broth. I reheated the beans for my dinner. Not sure yet what I want to do with the lamb and broth.
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I think Mjx is right.
Do everything as you did, but submerge the lamb shank or at least nearly so.
From reading the braising seminar, the participants concluded (I think) that braising with less liquid turned out better.
http://forums.egullet.org/topic/61979-braising-lab-%232-discussion/
iSi whipper: which one?
in Kitchen Consumer
Posted
Thanks for the information! I guess I will go through with it. I am an immoderate fan of holandaise and bearnaise, and I understand such sauces can be foamed? Can they be foamed without additional stabilizers (as long as the sauce is smooth)?
Oh, and whipped cream too...