Carlovski

Darn, beat me to it! Funny that the French don't eat dog though - they eat everything else.....

May I be cynical, and pose the question Carrot Air, Why?

The new series (Return to Jamie's Kitchen) is out in the UK now. First episode was quite entertaining - Despite being booked up months in advance, he isn't making any money, loads of the chefs have left, and one of them can't tell the difference between basil and celery. They did get to make lunch at 10 Downing street for the PM though.

If you can get access to decent steak, and you have either a decent grill, or nice hot burners and a good griddle pan, then you can probably match any steakhouse. If you are cooking for one or two. What if you are in a group of 4 or 6? Getting all the steaks out, cooked perfectly at the same time, with sides is quite tricky in a domestic kitchen, plus you will probably smoke out the entire house. Plus the fact by the time you have bought your top quality dry aged beef, and all the trimmings, you probably haven't saved that much over eating out (It may even be more expensive) If you have a nice outdoor grill, and you like cooking steak (And who doesn't like cooking bits of cow outside?), and are happy having it with salad (you don't want to be messing about with anything complicated) then doing it at home can be great fun. Otherwise, I'd go out.

All sounds a bit at odds with the ethos of the place - they try and market it as somewhere to drop in for seed cake and madeira, or a bit of lunchtime offal, but it sounds like it is turning into just another restaurant. A victim of it's own success?

Interesting menu - fairly brave on the starters, I bet there are quite a few people who wouldn't fancy any of them (The mains sound a bit more crowd pleasing).

Wow, I'm impressed. The only time I have ever seen it done is on TV cookery programs, normally accompanied by voiceovers saying that it takes yars of skill and about 4 hours to do - which is why evryone uses the instant stuff! Whats next on your 'From Scratch' agenda then? Something involving rendering your own lard, or getting your own suet could be good!

When people hear boiled, they instantly think, soggy, overcooked, flavourless. What they get confused with is either overboiled, or things being boiled which shouldn't be. Funny how it sounds better in Italian though, why is Bollito Misto ok, but Boiled Beef and carrots a no-no? Anyone else got a pretentious new joint near them which covers windows and menus with words like 'Roasted seared succulent pan-fried aroma taste gooey' (Ok maybe not gooey - but you get the picture). They never say Boiled do they (Or microwaved, which I am sure is closer to the truth).

Sorry, it was a bad joke! Seriously though, I don't know how it will affect the keeping qualities of the oil - the extra virgin designation is all about the acidity of the oil, and is supposed to affect the keeping qualities - and surely lemons will up the acidity.

In general, recipes LIE. My favourite sticking point is the onion softening/browning. Nearly every cookery book has something like 'soften the onions without browning on a low heat - about 3-mins' - NO NO NO , who are they trying to kid? And when they need browning, and they say it is going to take 5 minutes? Some books are good, and tell the truth. I would like to know why they do it though. Do they think people will not cook any recipe that says it will take over 20 minutes?

You'd need or lot of lemons , or just very heavy ones. Or have I just misunderstood

No, it was some student bastardized style coq au vin variant I think. The garlic probably helped the cheap wine and economy supermarket chicken. I can't remember the exact quantity - probably 2 bulbs instead of 2 cloves.

I agree with Fat Guy. For most recipes your experience will tell you when something is 'wrong'. But you dare not stray from the prescribed path with the mysterious alchemy that is baking. Maybe that is why the reliable baking book is the most cherished possession of any keen cook. I tend to find that most good cookbooks give a little warning or explanation ahead of an unusual quantity, ingredient or technique (Like quantities of dried chillies in some szechuan dishes - surely a misprint!). The danger mainly comes if you are trying to follow an old recipe or a translation. I was once cooked something by someone who had a garlic clove/bulb confusion. Not the recipes fault though. I didn't actually think it was too bad, but then again, I do love garlic!

Yep, eggs, pasta, noodles - the saviour of the hungry in a hurry! Some of my 'quick fixes' are Spaghetti with garlic, chilli (Lots for me!) and olive oil. Sometimes I add a little grated lemon zest, and a bit of juice. Spaghetti Carbonara Sort of indian scrambled eggs - Not sure on the authenticity, but start by caramelizing some onion (The long winded bit!), adding coriander, cumin, touch of chilli, some garam masala, and then quickly scrambing the eggs. I pretty much change it every time I cook it, change the spicing, add some bell peppers, some coriander leaf etc. Nice served with the flatbread of your choice. Simple green salad, with frazzled bits of bacon/pancetta, and some shavings of hard cheese. Make the dressing from the bacon juices, splash of sherry/red wine vinegar and a dash of mustard. And my ultimate quick supper? Cheese on Toast! Or A proper Welsh Rarebit if I can be bothered.

Great thread! What was your family food culture when you were growing up? My parents worked funny hours (They ran a pub) so we didn't always eat together. I was of the era of semi convenience - Mum would often make something, but use packets, jars etc and often had frozen veggies. But not full on zapped in the microwave meals. We did love eating out, mainly for Indian and Chinese food (Which I was exposed to at an early age). I was always the most adventurous eater in the family though. Was meal time important? Lunch tended to be something quick, sandwiches, something on toast etc. Dinner was the main meal, but we didn't always eat at the same time. On sundays when I was younger I usually ate at my Grandparents, where we sat down for a roast dinner. Was cooking important? Mum saw cooking as a chore, and any labour saving device (Gadgets, frozen foods, jars of sauce) was seen as a great idea. My dad saw it as a more enjoyable activity, mainly because he didn't have the pressure of putting food on the table every day. What were the penalties for putting elbows on the table? None really. We were quite relaxed! Who cooked in the family? My mum mainly. Dad used to cook one of his 'specials' occasionaly, and once had to cook for two weeks while my mum was laid up with a bad back (We got some 'interesting' meals!). When I got older, dad started cooking more, he used to cook most Thursdays, and other times too. Were restaurant meals common, or for special occassions? My parents used to eat out a fair amount, and I went too. We had regular holidays, and ate out every night there. We never went anywhere my Dad would consider too 'Posh' though. Did children have a "kiddy table" when guests were over? Didn't really do much entertaining in the house, but when we did we all sat together. When did you get that first sip of wine? We never used to have booze in the house (Consequence of running a pub!) and my parents aren't really wine drinkers. I had my first experience at my first formal meal at university! Was there a pre-meal prayer? No way! Was there a rotating menu (e.g., meatloaf every Thursday)? Dad's cooking night featured variations on the same theme (Normally chicken and a fairly heavy cream sauce, with a few additions!). It was always a traditional sunday roast on Sundays. How much of your family culture is being replicated in your present-day family life? Well, I live on my own (Well with flatmates, but we look after ourselves!) I think I have developed my own path foodwise, I am definitely the 'foodiest' member of my family. I remember my Nan arguing with me because she wouldn't believe I actually cooked. Explaining to here that I like pasta, yes but don't often make bolognese sauce because it is fairly time consuming to make prompted the response "Don't be silly, all you need is to boil up some mince and a jar of sauce" I think a lot of the meals I had wouldn't be considered as such by some mebers of my family - no potatoes! sometimes no meat!

You can tell the difference, but it's more of a texture thing I find. Always best to give 'em a good wash though (One exception, I often only briefly drain cannelini beans if I am adding to a braise or stew, the thick mixture of the canning liqour, and semi mushed beans at the bottom is a great thickener!) Fresh is best, but Canned(y) is Dandy!

Some frozen vegetables are fine (IMHO). They go from ground to freezer quicker than you can do it, and get frozen faster too. On saying that, the varieties are often dull and tasteless, so there may be something to say for freezing your own vegetables. Frozen peas are the perfect solo diner emergency standby. Although I do not often eat them as a straight vegetable, they are great for putting into risottos (Frozen broad beans are handy here too), keema dishes, pasta sauces and you can whip up a quick 'Petit pois a la francais'. Frozen spinach, while not being much good for serving as a vegetable (tends to go to sludge!) is fine for adding to a lamb sag for instance. Tinned pulses are my other essential. Chick peas, especially if you can get a decent brand are almost as good as dried, and a lot quicker! Also, a tinful is a handy amount, who can be bothered soaking and boiling up a handful of pulses(Ok, me if I am making chickpea and pasta soup!) They are great for adding to couscous, making a quick hummous, veggie currys and are surprisingly good mashed with a bit of lemon juice, olive oil and an optional bit of spice as a change from potatoes. You can do a similar thing with tinned cannelini beans as well. Some people swear by the french tins of petit pois, but I still prefer frozen.

I'm pretty sure the dangers of non cremated pork are less of an issue nowadays, in the same way that pork didn't used to be safe to eat in the summer. I still would go for the 'low and slow' cooking for pork though.

You must be pretty confident in the freshness and providence of your ingredients! I'm with you on some things, some vegetables need the briefest of treatments, but most do improve from a 'proper' cooking (not till mushy - even though I am English but still cooked). Roasted beef and steaks yes, but I also love slow braised bits of cow. Undercooked chicken turns my stomach, the cuts of pork I like benefit from a long cooking (especially belly pork) and I like my Lamb with a hint of pink - not rare. It depends with fish - On the bone, I like it until it is just flaking off the bone (Maybe so it is easier to eat!) but steaks and fillets of some fish I like to be undercooked (especially tuna and salmon)

Here are my personnal views - A bit of a UK slant for you. Like Nigella Lawsons writing Nigel Slaters writing Hugh Fearnley Whitingstall - Absolutely brilliant Rick Stein - Infectious enthusiasm for all things fishy, and food in general. Keith Floyd - Of course (Although some of his later shows have been poor) Simon Hopkinson - Forthright, witty and great recipes. Don' t like Nigella Lawson on TV (I think she tries a bit too hard) Nigel Slater on TV (It just didn't work!) Ainsley Harriott AA Gill (If he even counts, 3 lines on the food in a two page restaurant review?) Delia Smith Not sure Gary Rhodes - Fascinating, informative and sometimes incredibly annoying Jamie Oliver - Good in small doses.....

I think Appetite is great, the one slightly annoying thing about Nigels books is you do get a bit of repetition, but it does have good 'recipes' (My quotes, as they are more approaches to dishes) and is an enjoyable read in itself. His fast cooking books (Real fast food, 30 minute something and another one) are more traditional recipe books, but full of good stuff. Not got his real fast puddings one though - although my personal food tastes align very closely with Nigel's (Although I prefer a bit more chilli, and don't think a salad is the ideal accompaniment to as many things), puddings aren't one of them.

I'm a big fan of Nigel Slater too. I think he may be referring to Neck fillet in the recipe - That is what I would normally get (And is readily available in British supermarkets - sometimes just called 'fillet' which may be the reason for the confusion). Boned out shoulder of lamb is good too though. And don't forget, although I normally like lamb just warm, or room temperature, this is one recipe where you should really eat it when it is still far too hot

At least if for some strange reason you want it well done you won't necessarily get the skankiest piece of steak, 'cos they won't know what you are going to do with it!

Not Kimchi?

I started a similar discussion in the UK forum Here Durham was fairly unusual in still having 3 meal a day catering and little choice. The colleges varied in quality though (Even though everyone payed the same - same with rooms, a Historic room in Durham castle - yep, you could live in the Castle!, a nice big brand new en-suite in one of the newer colleges or a skanky shared double room, all the same rent) some prided themselves on offering better food, like Collingwood, and had got various health eating and catering awards. There was a scheme where you could swap a meal at your college with one at another - if someone else did vice-versa, but not many people did, although getting breakfast at other colleges was quite easy to get away with. Some of the colleges did have quite nice dining rooms though - Here is Mine (Ok, the furniture is a bit naff!) And if you have a look at that thread, yes the Fish finger in puff pastry was real!