Cuisinart Combo Steam/Convection Oven (Part 1)

[rotuts]

Im wondering if they ask you to cover the rice so extra water does  not precipitate in the RiceBowl from the steam generator in the oven

[Unpopular Poet]

Looks very nice! Did you use Steam Bake function? What temperature? Sometimes I finish things off with a short Broil, do you think that might have finished the skin better? 

I did Steam Bake at 425 for about 35 minutes and then broiled to try and crisp the skin a bit more...the problem was that I needed to flip it over, because there was skin on both sides...one side gets crispy, then it is flipped, then it isn't crispy...etc etc...

[weinoo]

What proportions of rice:water did you use, if you don't mind me asking? 

 

I noticed in the manual that they recommend cooking rice with less water than usual. For example, I have a long grain white rice which usually would be cooked on the stovetop with about twice as much water as rice, so 2 cups of rice and about 3.5 to 4 cups water.

 

I did use a lot less water than I usually do, as I almost followed the instruction manual.  I made 1/2 cup organic long-grain brown rice, rinsed well, and brought to the boil with 1.25 cups of water, a little salt, and a teaspoon or two of olive oil.

 

I did Steam Bake at 425 for about 35 minutes and then broiled to try and crisp the skin a bit more...the problem was that I needed to flip it over, because there was skin on both sides...one side gets crispy, then it is flipped, then it isn't crispy...etc etc...

 

Wonder if you could torch it at the end to get the crispness, but once you flip the bird, all bets are off.  I wanna try the spatchcock method.

Edited June 12, 2014 by weinoo (log)

[rotuts]

excellent thinking W.  

 

if this works for you, consider the size of the drip pan.

 

once you perfect the Spatch, you might be able to Spatch 2, say cornish game hens 

 

just thinking small.  

 

probably 4 squirrels , spatched if you nips the tails off.

[FauxPas]

Here is some rice cooked without a lid. Small casserole dish and plain long-grained white rice, 1 cup rice and a touch over 1 cup water. Cooked at 300F on SuperSteam for 30 mins and left to sit in closed oven for just about 10 mins more. Came out quite lovely, actually. 

 

 

Last night's salmon, cooked on Steam Broil @ 500F for about 12 mins and then another 6 mins Broil @ 500F. Perhaps a tad overcooked although it still had a moistness and nice texture. I did marinate the salmon first. It looked nicer than this pic would suggest. Served it with the Cook's Illustrated Grapefruit & Basil Relish (with some diced sweet onion added).

 

I'd like to tweak the relish recipe a bit. I love grapefruit and it's nice with salmon but the final relish seemed lacking somehow. 

 

[rotuts]

FP

 

please consider a note book to keep track of your observation.

 

i like the Composition note books at Staples.   they have 'engineering' grids on the paper, little squares.

 

good for line drawing etc

 

but perhaps you are not like me

 

and forget nothing.

 

My Way ultra fresh fish is difficult to find, and fantastically 'over priced'

 

back in the day when I was in CA where I grew up 

 

Cook's in menlo park had to die for salmon very fairly priced

 

would have loved to put the StreamBoy through it paces with that salmon .,.

[weinoo]

Here is some rice cooked without a lid. Small casserole dish and plain long-grained white rice, 1 cup rice and a touch over 1 cup water. Cooked at 300F on SuperSteam for 30 mins and left to sit in closed oven for just about 10 mins more. Came out quite lovely, actually. 

 

I'd like to tweak the relish recipe a bit. I love grapefruit and it's nice with salmon but the final relish seemed lacking somehow. 

Rice looks great.

 

I'd add a minced, spicy pepper to that relish.  Or perhaps a little bit of diced orange.  Some capers? 

[rotuts]

Yesterday I thought Id learn a bit about the steam function: it allows you to set the oven temp between 100 F and 210 F using just steam for thermal energy.  Increments are 10 degrees.  This initially disappointed me as im looking for a ‘146’ egg.  See below. No radiant energy from the electrically controlled heating elements.  They do not come on.  This seems to be a useful function as my current gas oven ( HomeDepot mid-range gas - on the disabled list BTW ) only goes down to 170 F.   The previous gas range, much older went down to 140 )

 

I thought Id look at Eggs.  The rack over the tray can hold 12 eggs if the oven is level and you are careful placing the eggs on the rack.  This interests me as my favorite 

‘soft’ egg is SV 146 x 45 min.  If you don’t do SV eggs, you might think that 1 degree added to the 145 is meaningless.  Its not.  SV eggs are about a yolk that is ‘just right’ where you define the just right.

 

Polyscience has a nice picture of eggs SV vs temp. DL here :

 

https://www.cuisinetechnology.com/_pdf/SousVide%20Temperature%20Reference%20Guide.pdf

 

I temper the eggs from the refrigerator in hot tap water  ( 125 my house ) as this, for me, has eliminated cracking when placing in a SV bath at 146.

 

 

This is one egg, SB 140 steam 30 min.  Note the white has just begun to de-nature and the cooking is not in anyway uniform.  The egg has not had enough time to get to thermal equilibrium.  

 

(  This makes a lot of sense.  The specific heat of the steam environment in the SB is a lot less than the specific heat of water at the same temp.  That just means for us that water is denser than steam and thus ‘pushes’ more heat downhill into the cooler item.  Thats the one you are hoping to cook, some time in your life time. That’s why SV eggs, in my experience takes 45 minutes to reach equilibrium.

 

The SB at steam-only ( lower temps ) can be considered end-point cooking just like SV. It can be considered end-point cooking at 350 full steam also, but im not cooking anything to the end point of 350.  Maybe doing a little welding, but thats a different forum.

 

Your oven / grill / etc is Delta cooking, meaning you deliberately over heat the oven, so energy flows into your food, so you get something to eat, cooked, before you starve to death. The food will have a gradient through out:  hotter at the surface, coolest in the middle.  SV is uniform end-point cooking.

 

 

This egg is 150 steam 45 min. Still not too uniform.

 

 

This egg is steam 150 60 min Im beginning to get to a place that interests me.

 

 

Same egg cut open.  Nice runny yolk  no firmness to it.

 

 

This egg is steam 150 75 min.

 

 

This is the above egg cut.  Its hard to see in the pic, but the egg is a bit custard like.  A soft custard but you notice it and this is fairly close to what Im looking for in a 146 SV egg.

 

Note also that there is a little bit of water around the very loose whites.

 

I had hoped that, if the CuisiSB was sitting around on the counter wanting something to do, Id be able to put a dozen eggs in there and come back at the appropriate time and get a doz. “ SV equivalent 146 eggs “ with no fuss. Why not just SV them for 45 mins ? I do up to 2 doz. at a time this way with results that please me.

 

Im just as lazy as anyone else if not more so some times.  Why get the SV rig up an running if I might do it this way.   The 115 min really doesn't bother me, as I don't have to hover over the SD during this time and can be doing something else.  I only get 45 min w the SV rig to goof off a bit.

 

Note the water in the pyrex containers.  Ive noted w SV as the eggs warm, with tempering and probably in the SV bath ( ive used a bubbler so it would be hard to see )  little bubbles come out all over the egg as it heats.  This must be air being released thorough the porous shell.  Therefore when the eggs are cooled to relax in the refrigerator prior to use, water might be trickling back into the eggs.  Ive suspected this w SV, it indeed happens w low temp steam.

 

My conclusions ;  steam, at less than 210 is a very interesting technique . Its also much a much slower way to cook  than the denser water bath w SV to " heat to end point "

 

Its worth looking into further.  Probably not with eggs in their shells.  At least the way Ive looked at thm today.

 

Bon Appetite

Edited June 14, 2014 by rotuts (log)

[weinoo]

Steam Girl got a bit of a workout yesterday. Some veg from the green market...

 

 

First, I made an (ill-adivsed) turkey loaf. Ill-advised because I used Empire ground turkey, which is kind of gross.  I was able to make it tasty, and I imagine I could make a nice turkey loaf if I bought some turkey and ground it myself.  This was cooked at Steam Bake 400°F for 40 minutes...

 

 

Then I Steam Broiled the vegetables at 500°, on the 2nd highest broil shelf. 8 minutes, turned for another 8 minutes. These 3 vegetables are tough to do at the same time, as the asparagus was slightly overcooked while the carrots and potatoes were perfect...

 

 

Dinner...

 

 

Fortunately, I was only feeding myself.  But, the damn oven works great.

[rotuts]

excellent.  noted.

 

I prefer turkey meat loaf, and mine is excellent really suits me and all who have had it.

 

clearly the SteamBoy  ( you got a girl did ya ? ) needs a compartment to make gravy.  a little spigot on the side.  etc.

[gfweb]

We need to get the steam boy and girl together and breed up a larger model.

[rotuts]

I already thought of that.  we could do a little genetic engineering  (   )

 

add some 4 burner Weber genes.

 

this one :

 

http://www.weber.com/grills/series/summit-grill-center

[weinoo]

I already thought of that.  we could do a little genetic engineering  (   )

 

add some 4 burner Weber genes.

 

this one :

 

http://www.weber.com/grills/series/summit-grill-center

One of my friends called me last Friday - she wanted to buy her husband a grill for father's day. Ended up with a Weber Summit. Not that specific model, but one that cost more than my range.  He loves it - I told him to be prepared as I will send him links to various necessary attachments!

[rotuts]

I had a rotisserie attachment to mine:  and antique 3 burner that's about 20 years old

 

it did rotisserie chicken ( whole ) superbly as it did whole turkey breasts.

 

BTW  hope your friend got a 'Summit grill Center'

 

wonder if they have steam injection as an option or add on .

 

Edited June 16, 2014 by rotuts (log)

[Unpopular Poet]

I have a Summit...I couldn't be happier with it...except for the part where Weber doesn't sell a LP to NG conversion kit.  Boo.  

 

I need to take a picture the next time I do my breakfast "bowl" with the steamboy --  basically, I take frozen hashbrowns, cheese, some nice bacon or sausage and some uncooked eggs and steambake in a ramekin....awesome.

[rotuts]

Oooooooooooo

 

looking forward to that pic and your Methode.

 

Soo  your Summit is the 'Center'  ?

[Anna N]

Rumour has it that one of these (ultrasound failed to reveal sex) will be hitching a ride to Manitoulin in the very near future.

[rotuts]

looking forward to it.  hope for help w ( outdoor ) bread !

[rotuts]

Ive finished up my chicken thigh studies.

 

I had a ‘tray’ and 1/4 of the 88cent CkTh’s in the coldest part of my refrigerator.  The chicken passed the sniff test, and more importantly, Earthquake  (he’s seen on the upper L of the post)  did a little dance and sang a few songs while he devoured some mince.

 

Remember I cant stand chicken fat.  This is probably why I rarely if ever get chicken thighs, even though the meat is tasty and useful for various chicken productions in the future. See below.

 

Here are the trimmed thighs :

 

 

Note the blob middle second column.  Chicken thighs seem to have two kinds of fat :  soft blobs on the underside, and much firmer fat under the skin.  I removed what I easily could.  Thats the blob. After all, I have Knife Skills.

 

I was intrigued that the second ‘steamboy thighs’ I made were not nearly as good as the first set.  It became clear to me that this was the Chef’s fault for not using the appropriate sized thighs for the oven settings the Chef used.  So I went back to using smaller thighs:

 

 

4 thighs in the CSB.  Seasoning was Sauers Chicken Rub, as I had a fresh jar. This time the settings were 425 steam, about 40 minutes.

 

The rest went on the Weber, same seasonings.  Temp at the dial thermometer on the Weber was about 350.  This translates to about 425 center grill.  About the same amount of time.

 

 

 

This is what I do w all the ‘leftover’ chicken.  Its pulled off the bone, and chilled in the refrigerator overnight then bagged and vacuumed w 3.5 MIL bags.  Never any freezer burn w these bags.  It gets used in the future for Chicken “####”  very handy.

 

 

The CSB thighs this time had that crispy cracker skin.

 

Thighs done from the CSB.

 

 

The CSB thighs this time had that crispy cracker skin.

Note the drippings.  If this pan were studier, they might have been de-glazed.

 

 

Weber Chicken Thighs. A similar type of skin, just none of those bubbles.

 

 

All the thighs lined up.  The CSB thighs are the top row.  They were a bit more ‘blonde’, and juicier.  You really cant see the difference in this photo.  The Weber’d ones were fine enough, a bit of smoke, etc.  What you would expect from a gas grill. Very very good. Not quite as juicy, which is a CSB characteristic when the Chef is paying attention.

 

 

The skin :  crispy all around.  The top R 2 were from the CSB.  Note there is some fat still attached to the skin, but not too much.  I thought I could handle this, but wisely scrapped it off w a spoon while still hot.  Always work w hot chicken, the fat doesn’t congeal into cold cement.  I got 3 - 4 T off these skins.  Chose not to take a pic.  Might be lunch or dinner time Your Area.

 

 

The chicken turned over.  Note Ive started to remove the bones, which go to Earthquake for evening treats.  The thigh bones are too thick to be completely devoured, so I leave plenty of meat on them for him.

 

Note the top row.  The blondes from the CSB.  These were cooked on the rack over the drip pan.  They might have better brown bottoms if I had cooked them directly on the pan. The rest are Weber’s.

 

What did I learn ? 

 

Ill be putting CkTh’s  ( 88cents / lb. ) on a regular rotation, freezer space permitting.

 

The CSB thighs are more ‘dinner-party’ thighs, might enjoy an excellent Sauce to go with them. A nice Chablis ?

 

The Weber’s are more OutDoor Eating.  Not white wine, but ice cold beer.

 

 The CSB is an excellent way to cook lots of things, it seems differently, w very good results: if you pay attention to detail and learn how to use it by keeping track of each experiment,  the Weber is not going into mothballs any time soon.

 

What the CSB is not , it’s not a plug in, electric Chef-in-a-Box.  You’re still the Chef.

 

And last, but not least, I thought Id do a ‘detailed examination’

 

 

My Cuisi-Steamer is definitely a boy.

 

Bon Appetite.

Edited June 17, 2014 by rotuts (log)

[gfweb]

Impressive!

[Anna N]

The hitch hiker has arrived!

[rotuts]

the Lunch Ladies are going to Enjoy This.

 

I Sooooooooo look forward to their Observations.

[rotuts]

I thought Id take a look at some mixed root veg. In both the BVXL and the CSB.  I got them at the same time at the regular market, ‘loose’

 

Russet potato, red new P’s, and yellow P’s they claimed were Yukon Gold.  I think they were just yellow ‘new’ potatoes.  Some Sweet Potatoes, and some loose red beets.

 

Potatoes you say are not ‘root’ veg. ?  Fair enough   

 

I washed, dried, cut up the roots into similar size.  The beets I also cut off the ‘beard‘  i.e. root fibers, and the bits at the top.  These beets did not have green tops. If you looked the bin over, were many that were firm, and all of them cheap.  I love beets, never cook them.

 

I prefer to leave the skin on most veg. As I did w all of these.   The beets got their own bowl, and the rest went into another large bowl and both were lightly doused w TJ’s Kalamata olive oil and some Sauers  Canadian Steak Seasoning w 25 % less salt.  Why ? I had it and it was unopened.

 

I did not pre-microwave the veg until warm, something i usually do to speed up the cooking.

 

 

Can’t say I know what’s Canadian about it, eh ?

 

Did the BVXL  first :  on a tray on the mat :

 

 

The tray for the CSB:  parchment paper :

 

 

This gives you an idea of the different capacities.

 

BV:

 

 

This is BV veg cooked at 425, ( turbo fan on )  stopped at 37 min as the veg tested done w my testing knife

 

 

Decided to add a few minutes of BV Broil, above pic.  Did not turn the veg, nor change the rack’s position.  About 5 min broil.  The BV shuts off at 500 if you forget to leave the door open a bit.

 

Flipped over the BV  veg to see the underside:

 

 

The sweet potatoes were over cooked, very soft and watery.  I still ate them.

 

The three white potatoes were excellent. Liked the seasoning as its very much on the coarser side w a fair bit of black pepper.

 

The beets were a revelation.  Still firm, but nicely cooked.  I loved them this way.  The skin was not noticeable.  Beets are back on the menu at my house. I can see these beets cooled and diced into something else tomorrow.  Whoops.  I ate them all.

 

Now the CSB:

 

You saw the pan, above. Oven set at 425 steam bake.

 

 

Here are the veg after 27 minutes:  passed the same knife test.

 

BTW one has to remember the steam is released as you open the oven, and you might get a nice burn.  I forgot this in my eagerness to test the veg, and yanked my had away and got a small 1^st degree burn on my R palm, and in the yanking touched the oven top inside and got a very small 2'd degree burn.

 

Some red whine will fix that soon.

 

Keep the CSB away from children, and dumb adults.

 

Added some steam broil:

 

 

Veg flipped :

 

 

How did these veg compare ?

 

They were done to similar standards 10 minutes earlier.  They might have gotten a bit browner.

 

The white potatoes were noticeably creamer.  I did not triple blind test this.  The sweet potatoes still need a lot of work, but I ate them anyway.

 

The beets needed about 1 more minute to be identical to the BVXL’s  they might have gotten a bit more browning, can’t be sure.

 

What did I learn ?  The SB might give you a bit more browning, w/o any dryness.

 

It cooks faster.  You can do the math for yourself.

 

Sweet Potatoes are still a mystery.  But Beets are Back !

Edited June 22, 2014 by rotuts (log)

[Kerry Beal]

Canadian because it looks like Montreal Steak Spice I suspect!

[rotuts]

can't for the life of me figure out why that last pic is there under

 

'attached images'

 

sorry

 

now there are two !

Edited June 22, 2014 by rotuts (log)