donk79

You may have already looked at this and found it wanting, but for learning to improvise, Michael Ruhlman's "Ratio" come to mind. We had a discussion about the book when it was published that you can see here:

I, for one, appreciate the reporting from the North. Sometimes no news is not good news!

Personally, I have the base model and am interested in some of the accessories. I am finding a few ebay listings, more based around the "Cook it" name. Here is one with maybe just the deep pot? Not what I want. https://www.ebay.com/itm/205573591956 Here is another base kit. https://www.ebay.com/itm/364540967814

I have continued to hope for a chance to pick up the extra pans for this. But checking today, it looks like the end I feared has come. https://afourbox.com/ is now a dead site. I do not think anything more will be forthcoming.

Thanks for the recipe! I've done the bechamel before, with a cajun trinity cooked in, and it is my new favorite way to do crabcakes (add a bit more sauce for crab "imperial"). Mine were done by feel, though, so I don;t have a recipe recorded.

"Most people" would never be curious enough to try making their own! I have a sister-in-law with a culinary degree that never took. I gifted her a bottle of homemade vanilla extract, and when I found it unopened 3 years later, I reclaimed it!

Some of you may have noticed that Costco is now carrying vanilla beans at 20 for about $10. This puts the beans in a price range where I am starting to think about making my own extract again. Is anyone else doing this currently?

I have not made it, but this was a bit of a thing for a while.

Is the dough laminated?

https://youtube.com/@tastinghistory I am pretty confident he has been mentioned, but the channel is worth mentioning again!

Previous conversation Doesn't look like any of us actually tried it then, but there are more links to articles.

This may be OT, but peach powder sounds like it could be amazing! How do you use it?

I'm not sure if this belongs in the "cultured meat" thread or not. It almost sounds like the next layer of abstraction, not this one. But Bill Gates is involved in a venture to produce "butter" that never involves a cow. And how this is butter, not margarine? I cannot say. https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/butter-carbon-bill-gates-batavia-illinois

I will say that it recently seems more widely available. I have purchased pork belly from Costco and our local international foods store for years, but just recently I have noted it being sold at Food Lion, a very mid-road grocer, not noted for carrying anything unusual.

They can get fibrous, depending on when they are picked. Sometimes I have some that I will eat as they are. Other times I stick to using them as an ingredient, blended or finely chopped.

You are not wrong! I never use foil, but I am not in a competition with a time limit. Regarding smoke, I smoke all the way through, but I understand that many say most smoke is absorbed at temperatures below stall levels.

I would look to @rotuts for solid information. He is much more methodical than I am (I lack a notebook and intention to start one!) and knows your smoker better than I do. That said, if I am smoking a pork butt, I usually cut on in half to smoke 5-6 lbs. I smoke at 225-250f, and smoke until 195-200f. I give it 8 hours, but it sometimes takes less ans sometimes more.

Rotuts, on reflection, I have seen similar on beef tongue cooked for 48 hours. You are correct. But a 4 hour cook at those temps will definitely not get you there.

To clarify further, for bbq (typical smoking treatment for pork butter, you want a final temp around 90c. You are not getting close to hot enough to break down that connective tissue.

@JoNorvelleWalker In my experience, a pork shoulder wants several more hours of cooking. I smoke low and slow, but anything under 6 hours, I would consider pushing luck.

I had one (wedding present) and got rid of it because of the space it took up. We used it rarely, and I do not remember anything regarding freshness impacts.

Looks like it is owned by Hellofresh. That says nothing to me about quality/reliability, but it may to you.

Never mind. I just missed the "Cook it" name previously.

Rebranded a touch?!

And ANNIVERSARY5 still works! And the pan combo is still unavailable. But I have a cooker for the office coming to me.