Absurdly, stupidly basic cooking questions (Part 2)

[Twyst]

If I cook chicken thighs sous vide for a few hours are the bones still suitable for stockmaking or has most of the good stuff been cooked out of them?

[Kerry Beal]

If I cook chicken thighs sous vide for a few hours are the bones still suitable for stockmaking or has most of the good stuff been cooked out of them?

Still very much suitable! Made a great lamb stock from the shoulder bones left after a 48 hour cook.

[andiesenji]

Sorry if this question is residing someplace, I don't know where to find the answer.

How long, after a small jar of caviar is opened, can it reside in refrigerator? Hate spending all that money, and then not be able to use it! Even the market people can't seem to come up with a straight answer.

Many thanks.

Sorry that I did not see this question earlier.

Caviar should be consumed as soon as possible after opening - if you must store it in the fridge, it has to be used within three days at the most. It is extremely perishable and even more so if it is allowed to sit on a table for a couple of hours, which is why it is usually served in a dish nestled in a bed of crushed ice.

[Twyst]

Can you freeze cream soups? I never freeze anything but my parents just purchased a home out of state for their retirement and although my mother will be working a couple more years, my father will be spending significant amounts of time there soon and its 30 minutes away from a real town etc so I want to make a bunch of food I can freeze for him since he doesn't really cook all that often. He loves cream of broccoli soup so if it freezes well Im going to make him some to go with all the other stuff Im cooking and packaging.

Thanks!

Edited July 23, 2011 by Twyst (log)

[Norm Matthews]

Here's one: Why skim the foam off the top of stock? What is the foam, anyway? And does anyone have a good way of doing this, since it always is hard to do with onions, celery tops, and parsley floating around the top.

The foam is coagulated gunky bits of protein. If you don't skim it, your are likely to have cloudy stock as the clumps of foam break up into tiny particles dispersed throughout the liquid. I have a tiny (about 2-inch diameter), flat strainer on a long handle that is great for skimming -- I can gently push the solid stuff out of the way and scoop out the crud. (It looks like a miniature version of a strainer for cleaning out a deep-fryer.) Before I got that, I used a very fine small strainer; the only problem with it was having to keep my hand directly over the steaming liquid to dip it in.

I don't put parsley or other small particles of stuff in the stock (or salt) until after I have skimmed the foam. I use a fat separator to scoop up the foam then pour the broth back in the pot and discard the foam. Then I add the other "floaty" ingredients and seasonings.

[Genkinaonna]

Could you just freeze the soup creamless and have him add the cream as he reheats it? Kind of like your version of condensed soup: Just add cream, heat and serve!

[nikkib]

Yes you can freeze creamed soups, I would make them thicker than usual and then adjust on defrosting as the consistency can change.

[Twyst]

Could you just freeze the soup creamless and have him add the cream as he reheats it? Kind of like your version of condensed soup: Just add cream, heat and serve!

Going to go this route, thanks!

[judiu]

bump...

My question is this: if I use rice in a tin of mixed seasoning to keep it from clumping, will it affect the flavor of the blend? I have some Old Bay lemon and herb blend in my cabinet; it is going to be one big lump of spice soon. (I live it dear old soggy south Florida, without a/c [it's a financial thing...]). Will the rice absorb the flavor from the spices, leaving me with a tasteless powder, or will it help with the clumping issue? I don't mind running the clump over the grater to re-powder, but it's so much easier to just shake it out of the tin! TIA!

[Broken English]

I thought rice only absorbed moisture, which would leave the powder as is. A definitive answer on this would be good though.

[Dakki]

Okay, I have one...

My simple syrup (using refined sugar and boiling hot, plain tap water) is a sort of golden color. It also smells like sugarcane for a bit while it's still quite hot, although the smell goes away. Am I overheating it or something?

[dcarch]

I thought rice only absorbed moisture, which would leave the powder as is. A definitive answer on this would be good though.

I know it is a common belief, but I am not sure if rice actually dehumidifies.

dcarch

[Shalmanese]

I've noticed a phase where simple syrup looks amber before it looks clear. My hypothesis is that there's still tiny grains of sugar left and that they cause a refraction of the light which causes a tint. Sugar syrup that's been well boiled looks crystal clear.

[Dakki]

I'll try boiling it until it clears. Thanks.

[andiesenji]

bump...

My question is this: if I use rice in a tin of mixed seasoning to keep it from clumping, will it affect the flavor of the blend? I have some Old Bay lemon and herb blend in my cabinet; it is going to be one big lump of spice soon. (I live it dear old soggy south Florida, without a/c [it's a financial thing...]). Will the rice absorb the flavor from the spices, leaving me with a tasteless powder, or will it help with the clumping issue? I don't mind running the clump over the grater to re-powder, but it's so much easier to just shake it out of the tin! TIA!

No, the rice will not absorb all of the flavor of the spices, nor will it absorb flavor from dried herbs.

I have a friend who lives on her boat in a marina and has rice in all of her spice and dried herb containers to absorb the ambient moisture. No problems.

If you use open salt containers, an old trick that originated in the south - Charleston I think - was to put a layer of rice in the bottom of the salt box so the salt would not clump.

My grandparent's cook, a Gullah woman from the lowcountry, always did this and also put a layer of rice in the bottom of every sugar bowl.

[judiu]

Oddly enough, my salt does not clump! I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, and any clumps that form are easily 'regranulated' with a shake of the salt dispenser, or a simple finger stir of the dish of salt by the stove. (It is a covered dish, but not with a seal or any moisture proof fixtures.) Thanks for the help!

[andiesenji]

I don't have much of a problem with Diamond Crystal salt clumping, but I use a lot of the "Real Salt" the pinkish stuff that is mined in Utah, and even here in the desert, it clumps like it wants to its rocky structure as it was mined.

Sea salts don't clump as much and some are actually wet.

I buy the Velvet de Guerande, which is super fine and it doesn't clump at all. It is the salt I use in my homemade butter - when I don't want the crunch of larger crystals.

Regular table salt clumps easily, in spite of the additives that are supposed to keep it loose.

The coarse salt I use for pickling also clumps or gathers into rough rocky pebbles that require some pounding to break apart.

This may require more research!

Edited August 21, 2011 by andiesenji (log)

[Dakki]

Again with the tan syrup thing. I tried a rolling boil for a good 15 minutes and it didn't clear.

The sugar is refined bulk from the restaurant supply market (very cheap). Is it possible they're selling something that's not quite completely refined?

Using tap water from the cold tap (local water is hard), hard anodized aluminum pot, stainless steel tools.

[Mjx]

Could a little of the sugar at the bottom be caramelizing? I could imagine this happening, particularly if the bottom of the pot is on the thin side. I've noticed some odd reactions with aluminium pots when acids are involved, no idea of whether the pH of sugar syrup is low enough for that to be an issue (although it seems unlikely).

[Dakki]

Would it taste like caramel if that was the issue? I'll taste it when I get home and report.

[Dakki]

And it is (slightly) caramel.

You guys are going to think this is weird but this could work with a dark rum.

[Dakki]

And, getting the same results from blending the sugar with hot water and heating it very slowly to a boil and allowing to simmer.

I'm almost sure it's something in the sugar now.

[Twyst]

Don't really know where to put this so I'll do it here! Does anyone know the french term for putting butter under the skin of a chicken that is too be roasted? My current instructor has offered extra credit if anyone can come back to him with the answer, but a quick survey of Google did not return the answer as I had hoped it would!

[Panaderia Canadiense]

Poulet farcie au beurre sous la peau. I'm not sure that there's an exact term for it, but Glissée du beurre might come close (slipped with butter, literally).

[Toliver]

A Panko Problem:

I was going to oven-bake some thick pork chops. I wanted them to have a crispy crust so I lightly oiled them up and then dipped them in seasoned panko crumbs. After 30 minutes at 350°F, the pork chops were done but the panko coating was still as white as when the chops were put into the oven.

Without resorting to pan frying, how could I achieved a browning of the panko crumb coating? Should I have added some oil to the crumbs before coating the chops?

Thanks in advance for your input.

edited to add spacing.

Edited January 15, 2013 by Toliver (log)