radtek

Right now it is Schlitz High Gravity V.S.L. @ 8.5%! I pour about 1-2 oz of limeade in a glass and top off with 16oz of Schlitz, making a rather sneakily potent shandy. The lager is ok on it's own but a little sweet for sustained drinking.

Looks interesting. If I see a pack might give it a whirl. However, it bothers me that there is a need to simplify making bread, when it is already straightforward. I notice that you still need to let the mix rise.

I happen to have unlimited access to 100% cotton surgical towels so haven't used or bought paper towels in 7 years. They are basically an extremely high-quality shop towel. The used towels go into a bucket in the garage until enough collect to do a load of laundry. When they get too worn a towel gets demoted to work such as cleaning automotive grease, paint drips etc- something that renders it unusable, and is then thrown away. Maybe I have too many, but luckily these towels are one use when contamination issues arise. Handle some chicken... it goes in the bucket and grab a new towel. After washing hands of course. If you have a friend that works in a hospital see if they can get you a stack- often they are thrown away without even being used. Or surgical towels can be readily found online. The same goes with surgical sponges, which unlike their misleading name are basically a doubled layer of cheese-cloth. I use them for lining strainers, making cheese, cleaning windows etc...

How about tempura vegetables? Sweet potato etc...

I have a smaller version bought at the Asian-mart for $7. After 8 years you could still shave with it and I've never had to sharpen it in any real serious way.

Was thinking I was overdue for injury but remember grabbing a hot pan out of the oven (roasted brussel sprouts); my thumb missing the folded towel and somehow planting squarely on the handle in one smooth motion. Result: despite a quick application of ice there was a nickel-sized blister on the pad of my thumb to keep me company on Christmas.

Lets see.. If one just had to really choose? Trusty 8" chef's knife and steel Double sided chromium oxide stone Superfast Thermapen Digital scale Stick blender Second string would be any pots or pans and third would be the appliances starting with the microwave. And I can cook without opening any cans but would mourn the loss of my current model!

Hah! I have two different part-time jobs with a fixed hourly rate of $23/hr. No benefits of any sort except being able contribute to a 403b which will certainly not be matched by any contributions from the employers. In fact last week at one location everyone classed as "fulltime" got a 2% raise. But I'm exempt from that. As the low man on the totem pole I can only hope for a full time position to eventually open up and be selected for it. The sooner I get out of the workforce completely the better as far as I'm concerned. You can still get screwed even at higher pay-grades. The work is not difficult but with periods of high stress- much like restaurant work- which incidentally is not really manual labor. Go work in construction or something else similar outside and learn what real manual labor is. Having read the articles from the link and taken them with a grain of salt... even so they further reinforce my stance on not letting a dime of my money go towards the likes of Papa-Johns' John Schnatter and Applebees' Zane Tankel. Also, "organic" isn't high on my list of importance. If that is one's criteria for choosing dining spots so be it. Based on my observations, people who place a supreme importance on such things usually give little thought to those that serve it. They are more concerned about the chicken.

Sure do. This place: http://www.esquiretavern-sa.com/

Downtown! Sounds like business... I'd stay and eat here if possible: http://www.thefairmo...nio.com/dining/ Believe it or not this guy used to EC at the above location many years ago over a different restaurant... http://www.biga.com/menus.html Eat there. An extremely short cab-ride or nice stroll away from the Riverwalk and the convention center is a No Reservations-grade location: http://www.liberty-bar.com/ Just a wee bit further is: http://www.foodisbliss.com/bliss.php Ultimately, if I could only hit one place it would be the Liberty Bar. If I was alone I'd eat at the bar and have a few beers. Otherwise get a table. Enjoy some bread and butter. Bottle of wine...

If I already didn't have one this would be an excellent opportunity to buy! That price is fantastic.

Wow. I have been stunned with this entire thread. And the best specialty food pron ever. I'm a process artist so the Baron's ongoing documentation strikes home with me. Keep it coming!

You could probably put a mcmuffin in a pannini-press!

The thing about canned beans in general is that one really has no idea how they were prepared. They certainly have an effect on me so my assumption is that they are inadequately soaked and/or flash cooked somehow- skins full of polysaccharides. One has to balance the convenience vs the quality. I tell you what. My hummus is badass so if S&W is available I'll give it a shot.

I tipped my broker last month. He probably didn't realize that is what I did but he has been doing a lot of work for my estate without compensation. So I felt a little commission was in order.

I think chickpeas are the fartiest of all the legumes as it is!

I drain and rinse the canned version. I do not use the soaking liquid to cook any dried beans. Always use fresh water! The cooking liquid is discarded. However, the garbanzos aren't rinsed before mashing. I prefer to use citrus and olive oil to thin the hummus. Since the dried beans take so long a bit of baking soda in the first soak really speeds up the process. Even so they might take more than 24 hours to plump up. And a pressure-cooker is invaluable...

Servers and Bartenders are sales-people. If a tip ain't a commission then what is it.

I use a 50/50 perlite and coco-coir mix and get excellent results just by hand-watering nutrients daily. With the right nutrients your plants will go like gangbusters. The drawback to soil-less hydroponics with an automated dripper system is that if it fails and you don't catch this in time your plants can die very quickly within a day or two. Especially in the summer. So it isn't hands-free. Inspect your garden daily even if you think you don't have the time! I question just layering an inch or two of coco on top of the perlite. Either will work fine by themselves with the right nutrients, ppm and pH but they should be mixed together for maximum benefit. I suspect it is cosmetic.

Hah. Even the American practice of tipping is culturally seeping its way across the globe. I wonder if this practice exists in Asia. It has struck me that all this talk of certification would be beneficial for career servers also. They are where the rubber meets the road when it comes down to tipping. As the US has transitioned to a service economy over the last couple decades it only makes sense to have required certifications to engage in service.

Incredible flavor combo. I'm just waiting for the potato-chip version.

Well I was satisfied to make the standard classics and serve them in a classy place for 7 years. Even though I could whip up a mind eraser or slippery nipple that sort of drinking pisses me off, really. But, I can't fault enthusiastic mixologists for trying to sharpen their game. Experiments however, are best perfected behind the scenes and not tested on the patrons.

I've been told that cooking for one is more challenging than cooking for 100. I've been cooking for "one" for as long as memory serves. IMO the trick to it is to have a balance of dried, canned, frozen, preserved etc foodstuffs on hand so that fresh ingredients from the store can be turned quickly into new meals. I also support going daily to the market- though that might not be practical for many. If one passes by the supplies everyday it makes sense for me to buy only what is needed such as a 1/4lb cut of salmon and a broccoli crown that'll go with rice, pasta, potatoes etc from the pantry for example. Or maybe just one pork-chop or six shrimp and a handful of green beans bought that day. No fear about the reaction from the people behind the counter except they always try to over sell. No I don't want 0.35 of a pound of fish when I asked for 0.25! Cut me another but slightly smaller please... I just scale for one to two people as there is no fear of some leftovers which are nice at work the next day. For stocks and bases I like Minor's and a teaspoon added can make a huge difference and is a real timesaver. Often I'll cook (smoke) an entire cut such as a 10lb brisket. There is no way it can all be consumed by myself in a short time period. So I slice and divide into single portions in vac-bags. I can pull one of these out, thaw and make a variety of dishes within minutes. I suspect liuzhou knows all these things already and that is the source of of his frustration at not getting any new tidbits of info. But there's not much anyone can do if another doesn't like freezing portions or eating leftovers or incorporating such into other subsequent dishes. I look at this practice as an extension of "prep". To me this is required and part of the challenge of cooking for a single person if one wants to avoid tossing food in the trash...

I like to use vinegar instead of alcohol to get rid of the mold. Just use a cheap spray bottle and spritz the meat down if you see mold-spots. I don't worry over much about white mold but signs of green and black have me using the vinegar immediately. And the vinegar flavor doesn't translate into the finished product. One should use cure #2 with the nitrate as insurance if one wants to avoid spoilage at room temps. Also one should avoid squeezing and touching the hanging product with bare fingers. At a minimum hands should be squeaky clean and I prefer to use disposable gloves. Handling and testing by palpation is a sure way to invite bad mold onto the surface of the meat. And, I've also found that if the resulting surface is a bit overdry then vacuum sealing the meat and placing in the fridge or freezer will redistribute the moisture. A 4cu fridge doesn't take up much space even in a small apt. My fridge has a 21"x21" footprint.

This is my basic method except I weigh out the portions while filling the containers. Making my own frozen meals to take to work has saved me loads of cash. Throw one in a cooler bag and pop the meal in the micro come lunch-time.