EatingBen

Going backwards a bit from your reply. I've found browning before to be problematic especially with Australian lamb, depending on where you get it you get different types and ages. I had assumed the lamb I had gotten was older and tougher, but it wasn't. I tried cooking a new portion at the same temp but for only 6 hours and it had the texture I wanted, it was much less dry and much closer to what I was wanting. When I say dry as well I do not mean that clawing unpalatable dryness that is common with overcooked meat more I missed the mark with time and temp in sous vide and the average person would think that meat was excellent but I would consider it sub par to what I'm used too. I will however give a lower temp a go, for lamb I love the braised texture especially in stews and pies so I'll keep trying for that but the lamb is younger then I wanted so it hopefully will work and I have a lot of it in my freezer. Overall I'm happy with a but, so I'll keep working on that!

So this worked well. Actually surprisingly well for a first attempt. Things that went well, the spices which where fried off in a pan first was absolutely spot on and had a fantastic balance, The almonds end up fantastically but are nicely poached with a nice soft crunch. The lamb had the perfect texture which is exactly what I wanted, same with the carrots and onions. Things that didn’t go as planned. The lamb was a little dry, next time I’ll cook for less time. Needed more liquids, more chicken stock for next time. The potatoes are texturally ruining the dish so I’m picking them out they weren’t cooked enough next time I’ll either leave them out or get them nicely cooked. Needed more sweetness more dates next time. Since there is about 6 meals the first time I had it as it, the second time I added more stock and removed the potatoes. Adding stock reduced the thickness of the sauce but I’ll add ultra tex 4 to hopefully give it more mouth coating without affecting the flavours too much. All in all this is a success that I’m going to build on.

Years ago I picked up a tip to fry spices in a fry pan with some oil before using them in anything like slow cooker, or for long slow cooks makes the spices taste better and gives the chance for the flavours to combine a bit. For Sous Vide I rarely ever use anything more then salt and occasionally BBQ sauce for pork and chicken. So we will see how it turns out, I fried the spices first before adding it and they smelt amazing but I don’t know if I used to much or not enough. I am looking forward to tomorrow nights dinner though and already have the cous cous planned

I’ll have a detailed answer for you tomorrow night, its in the fridge chilling but I can’t try it today because I’ve a wedding to go too. It looks appropriate to tagine I’ve had in the past the lamb feels tender when pressed and I’m hoping it’s taken on a lovely braised texture. The vegetables aren’t mushy which I was concerned about and there is some liquid in the bag but not large amounts of it. I am quietly excited about it but I know full well it could end up being a disaster!

Fully covered cambro container except where the poly science water circulator cutout is but I’ve done three day cooks and haven’t had to top it up.

I’m attempting to make a Moroccan dish normally cooked in a targine. I browned the lamb, I Sous Vide potatoes, carrots and onions at 85c for 90 minutes, added dates, blanched almonds and chicken stock and then into a hoist frying pan with a touch of oil I threw in a bunch of spices. It all went into a bag and into the water bath at 75c I’ve never done a long cook at higher temps with vegetables so I’m wondering if they will hold up for the 18 hours I intended on cooking it for. But it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while so how’s the time to fine out and then refine!

I've a breville button one, like the version suggested above but the buttons are on top no on the side. Best damned toaster I've ever had! Can even do crumpets (just the one element on to toast the top but not the bottom) And it's quiet, it doesn't pop and I've had it almost 2 years now and been happy with it. It just aint the cheapest but its not a million bucks

I am liking your idea of moving to South of France, I'll move there for a new kitchen or food or the weather the wine. I'd just move there if I had the chance! your a good ideas man! I'm more perplexed on the mountain of assumptions he makes, my induction cook top is stunningly good and not a POS or that I hate my gas cooktop and replacing it would be the solution or that if I reconfigured my kitchen I'd somehow be happy with a new fixed layout. Arguments reliant upon assumptions and all that. Now I am off to boil my 10L stock pot for some ridiculous reason, I'll be back in 15 minutes when it's at a rolling boil on my POS induction cook top!

I've two thoughts on this that conflict with each other. Live and let live, it is after all a world filled with opportunities. The other is we don't need freakin ice cream pods being made in single use plastic. Maybe the general population should attempt to learn how to make ice cream OR just buy it in the cardboard containers.

As a blender/processor how does it go with say making a nut butters? (puree) My sister has one but getting her to try out stuff like that and reporting back would be tantamount trying to surgically graft teats to a bull. I definitely like the idea of them and would probably use it enough to justify if it does the things I want which the new version is looking promising.

But that is the point. I use a portable induction cook top thats powerful enough to burn the seasoning off my cast iron cookware (having done it I was somewhat unhappy) but it is right next to where I prep everything which is in front of my sous vide setup and the whole thing is right next to my sink with all my needed tools and equipment infront of my which is infront of an enormous window. The stove top build into the kitchen is in the most irritating location with no real useful prep space next to the stove, everything has cramped and I find it annoying to use and only use it for mostly boiling water and things I leave unattended. But when I need more space I slide the portable induction plate further along and use it in a less convenient but still more useful location. My stove top is fixed, inflexible and immovable. As to the the resale, things change we used to build houses that would last 100 years, most wont last 50 anymore. As soon as we start to build things with longevity and quality I think most arguments will end up moot.

Used to use watered down PVA glue and plaster of paris to reinforce plastic moulds. The PVA helps the plaster handle knocks without cracking. Can also add fibers like fibreglass (itchy) or other super thing fibrous materials that helps bind everything. Pour it into the back of the mould. You can't thump it but vibrating it to remove bubbles will be fine and tapping it as well.

I'm all for it, I've gas at home with a 4 burner top and I use it occasionally. Mostly I use my electric induction cook top that sits right next to my chopping board and work space. I'd love that space back for more useful things like storage or even just empty space to permanently put my pressure cooker and sous vide bath. We need functional "stuff space" you do stuff in it and it adapts to you not you having to work around it. Left handed people like things differently to me, kids need a different layout, elderly need something different as well. Kitchens as they are currently organised aren't designed for space adaptability. I just want the cook tops to have enough grunt in 1 or 2 plates to burn down a planet or two.

Ratio changes depending on how much water is used to hydrate the xanthan gum. I do a 1:1 water:xanthan gum so one part water to one parts xanthan in a beaker mixed using a stick blender since i don't care about bubbles. a whisk will also do it. So if a formula asks for 2g worth of xanthan gum I add 4 grams. I use weight measurements for using gums and other additives like this rather then volume

Cant really help with the green fluid. But the xanthan gum hydration I can. I use the same technique unless I'm using a blender of some kind but even then I'll use prehydrated. But when using it, use a small rubber (or silicon) spatula and a small amount of what ever liquid you want to mix it in in a small bowl to help soften the gel and make it easier to work into the larger batch. Very much like corn flour and you beat/mush it together to great a thinner mix that is far far easier to add to whatever else your wanting and it avoids a lot of bubbles. Otherwise using a stick blender or I also use a small blender with a wavy disk that is battery powered and that works well for about a cup of liquid and works fast too.

It's you, it's also me and it's everyone else. I can do subtle flavours, I can pick up all kinds of things in food but even I find most supermarket foods bland and boring no matter how well cooked and I think it's intentional to appeal to the masses of people this is for who can't cook and "fear foods" that are different, interesting or unique to some people.

erm, no cream or milks in any I make. Ever since Chefsteps posted the easiest tomato soup I've been sort of following that and just adding and subtracting where ever I feel like. https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/easiest-ever-tomato-soup Xanthin gum as a thickener and I use fresh tomatoes and tomato paste and just use what ever herbs I have and that will taste good. Sometimes I roast everything down when I use onions, capsicums and carrots and I caramelise it all. Other time I put it all in the blender raw (I've a high speed blender) and the last one I made I tenderised all the vegetables in a water bath at 80c for two hours which was enough to kill off the rawness of the onions but still leave them a little biting and make the soup nice and smooth when I blended. Plus I didn't need to add much stock to it.

https://www.amazon.com/Benriner-Vegetable-Slicer-with-Tray/dp/B000BI4DOA/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1485755675&sr=8-9&keywords=benriner that one

Benriner, I've had a few different ones over the years but this one is the one I use more then I've ever used any other mandolin. It cleans with just a spray down with water, a violent shake and all the water comes off and it hangs to dry on its home on the rack. Sure it is a basic mandolin in that is doesn't do a while bunch of different styles of cuts but it's fast to set up, use and clean. Its also apparently dishwasher safe but I'e never had to put it through the dishwasher

More often then not I'll cook from scratch and make enough to last a few days. I hate fast food but I do love my Japanese from the local restaurant. I always feel guilt cooking with most pre-prepared foods, like pasta because I can make it and so easily and because it tastes substantially better then anything I can buy I"ll typically make it over buying it in a box (Ive frozen portions on occasion) I hate a lot of tinned beans they taste weird but fresh cooked have a better texture. I do buy tomato sauce for pasta but I'm always adding to it to make it better, I've done the whole making my own and while I love it and want to do more of it getting a supply of tomatoes and everything else I need in Sydney isn't as easy as you would think without a weekend trip somewhere.

I've been making my stocks sous vide, chicken wings with a carrot and stick of celery and half a white onion no salt. sous vide at 90 for 2 hours then dropped to 65 overnight. The stock is turning into jelly in the fridge. I have reduced this further but the taste actually becomes to intense if thats possible. I do similar with brown stocks it all gets roasted gently in the oven, beef bones and off cuts get coated in a little tomato paste then into the sous vide bath same deal 90c for 2 hours then 65 overnight I use the higher temp to cook the carrots onions and celery then leave it on lower to extract all the flavours out but not turn everything to mush. Its all become gelled on it's own and doesn't require much in the way of reduction.

I am a chronic recipe abuser. Everything starts off great and the next thing you know I'm just winging the spices, liquids, meats and vegetables. The recipe just generally kinda resigns its self to the corner as a base. I modify or use the same ingredients but go with ratios I know work to my tastes. I tend to follow the recipe when I haven't made something before and it's starkly different from anything I've ever made, a lot of Japanese dishes for example I follow those closely when it comes to the quantities or when I'm baking. I don't think there are inherently bad recipes, there are some truly terrible writers of recipes though. Like that Lobster dish above mmmmm I've always wanted to urinate on a lobster

Kenji seems a bit lost as to what the point of this thing is. Especially near the end haha

Sounds like a stellar way to keep people away from you! I can only imagine what that would be like to eat

Just spent the afternoon reading every post in part 1 and 2. I ordered the MC books (not the At Home version) Can't wait for it to arrive!