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Absurdly, stupidly basic cooking questions (Part 2)

Pontormo

By Pontormo
in Food Traditions & Culture

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FrogPrincesse

FrogPrincesse

Posted
Posted

Here is a basic question. I read recipes where people use parmesan rind as a source of umami in recipes (for broths, soups, etc) and it's always seemed like a great idea. However, I've tasted the rind of the slices of parmigiano reggiano that I get at Trader Joe's (usually the stravecchio kind), and they taste quite moldy to me, so I toss them away. But maybe that is the normal taste of the rind when it's uncooked? Just thought I'd ask. 😄

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
Posted (edited)

ive never made much of using the rind of any cheese 

 

in stock ,broth ,soup or sauce , as something that floats around in ' it '

 

if there is something in the rind i want in what ever its said would be good

\

to float around in ,  i in , I grate the rind right into it.

 

done.

Edited by rotuts (log)
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Kerry Beal

Kerry Beal

Posted
Posted

Wasn't there something where you fried or baked the rinds of parmesan? I seem to remember handing them all over to @Anna N to do that cause she really liked them. 

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
Posted (edited)

i can see maybe baking or frying maybe

 

just not simmering.

 

the question is how hard it the rind you plan to use .

 

I grate before it gets very very hard

Edited by rotuts (log)
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blue_dolphin

blue_dolphin

Posted
Posted (edited)

I save Parm rinds and use them in soups and sometimes when cooking beans. I have to admit that I never stopped to taste the rinds but I’ve never picked up a moldy taste or smell in anything I've made with them. 
 

Edited to add that I’ve got some stashed in the freezer and will be sure to give them a good sniff before I use them. 
 

 

Edited by blue_dolphin (log)
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weinoo

weinoo

Posted
Posted
12 hours ago, TdeV said:

@weinoo would know.

 

11 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

I save Parm rinds and use them in soups and sometimes when cooking beans. I have to admit that I never stopped to taste the rinds but I’ve never picked up a moldy taste or smell in anything I've made with them. 
 

Edited to add that I’ve got some stashed in the freezer and will be sure to give them a good sniff before I use them. 
 

 

 

Yes, I always use the rinds; sometimes when making a soup or, as suggested above, in a pot of Tuscan style white beans. I, too, have never noticed an off taste - but let's not forget, old (sliced?!) (stravecchio) parmesan might just be funky in and of itself.

 

IMG_1465(2).thumb.jpeg.4d802a8abe2809a7dcdebb8c5a5e7f55.jpeg

 

There are little pieces of parm rind in the above soup; I basically cut the rinds into 1/8" dice and they add a certain meaty (okay, umami) flavor.

 

 

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weinoo

weinoo

Posted
Posted
16 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

I've been buying them for a while and blame either @weinoo or @Katie Meadow.

 

I confess (and so should Katie).  One of my favorite things to have at hand, because the make for  good gildas!

 

And since I can't find a picture of my own, here's one better styled anyway:

 

image.thumb.png.7e960c8bfc61051895314305a62a3ffe.png

 

With a recipe!  Saveur. (Does anyone really need a recipe for a gilda?)

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Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

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weinoo

weinoo

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Maison Rustique said:

You know that internet recipe for roast beef in a  crockpot that has dry ranch dressing mix and pepperonicinis along with their juice? I bet you could use the juice/brine from these in a similar way. 

 

Mississippi Roast?

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Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

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Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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Katie Meadow

Katie Meadow

Posted
Posted
22 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

I've been buying them for a while and blame either @weinoo or @Katie Meadow.  I can get them at a local import shop.  

The brine is good in a vinaigrette.  Or just toss greens with a splash of brine and drizzle of olive oil. 

Also toss your hot spuds with it prior to making a potato salad. 

I'm not a big pasta salad fan but the aforementioned vinaigrette makes a nice dressing for the sort with bits of cheese and salami. 

If you're making any recipe that uses pickled peppers, look for a way to sneak the brine in to sub for vinegar, lemon juice, etc.

Unconditional approval for use in potato salad.

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haresfur

haresfur

Posted
Posted

Do leeks caramelise? Making some cauliflower-leek soup and most of the recipes call for you to saute them, cauliflower, and the onion (if used), in the oil/butter for a few minutes then add the stock to simmer.

 

I'm wondering if they just assume no one wants to take the time to caramelise them properly, or if it's not worth the bother. 

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Kerry Beal

Kerry Beal

Posted
Posted
5 minutes ago, haresfur said:

Do leeks caramelise? Making some cauliflower-leek soup and most of the recipes call for you to saute them, cauliflower, and the onion (if used), in the oil/butter for a few minutes then add the stock to simmer.

 

I'm wondering if they just assume no one wants to take the time to caramelise them properly, or if it's not worth the bother. 

Pretty sure they do and probably add a layer of flavour that makes it worthwhile to caramelize them. 

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chromedome

chromedome

Posted
Posted
On 2/28/2024 at 10:23 PM, haresfur said:

Do leeks caramelise? Making some cauliflower-leek soup and most of the recipes call for you to saute them, cauliflower, and the onion (if used), in the oil/butter for a few minutes then add the stock to simmer.

 

I'm wondering if they just assume no one wants to take the time to caramelise them properly, or if it's not worth the bother. 

I expect that it's a color issue, as much as anything. A leek and cauliflower soup would be pretty white in the normal run of things, and caramelizing the leeks would affect that. I'm personally a flavor guy, so I'd do it, but I see a lot of recipes that emphasize not allowing the aromatics to brown at all on esthetic grounds.

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Alex

Alex

Posted
Posted
On 2/28/2024 at 9:23 PM, haresfur said:

Do leeks caramelise?

 

Yes.
  

On 2/28/2024 at 9:23 PM, haresfur said:

I'm wondering if they just assume no one wants to take the time to caramelise them properly, or if it's not worth the bother.

 

Based on personal experience, it's worth it, so I'm guessing it's the former. 

 

However, if you're short on time, you can slowly melt some store-bought caramels then gently pour them over the leeks.

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blue_dolphin

blue_dolphin

Posted
Posted

The thing with leeks, assuming they're sliced crosswise and are separating into rings, is that the thinner, outside rings can go from lightly caramelized to blackened while the meatier inside rings are still softening. 
So if caramelization is the goal, best to use thicker slices. 

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JoNorvelleWalker

JoNorvelleWalker

Posted
Posted

I never was good at word problems...

 

Jo has 420 grams of canned blueberries, at 16 Brix.  And a jar of blueberry preserves at 65 Brix.  What weight of blueberry preserves must Jo add to the 420 grams of canned blueberries to achieve a sorbet mixture of 28 Brix?

 

 

Thanks for any help.  Make fun of me if you like.

 

 

Cooking is cool.  And kitchen gear is even cooler.  -- Chad Ward

Whatever you crave, there's a dumpling for you. -- Hsiao-Ching Chou

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Alex

Alex

Posted
Posted (edited)
13 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

I never was good at word problems...

 

Jo has 420 grams of canned blueberries, at 16 Brix.  And a jar of blueberry preserves at 65 Brix.  What weight of blueberry preserves must Jo add to the 420 grams of canned blueberries to achieve a sorbet mixture of 28 Brix?

 

 

Thanks for any help.  Make fun of me if you like.

 

 

 

Yikes, a story problem. It hit me like a ton of, well, you know.

 

But seriously, folks, I believe the answer is 136 grams. The canned berries have 420 x .16 = 67.2 grams of sucrose; 136 grams of preserves contains 136 x 0.65 = 88.4 grams of sucrose. Combine them, and you get 556 grams of sorbet mixture with 155.6 grams of sucrose, or 28 Brix.

 

 

Edited by Alex
to fix a typo (log)
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"There is no sincerer love than the love of food."  -George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman, Act 1

 

"Imagine all the food you have eaten in your life and consider that you are simply some of that food, rearranged."  -Max Tegmark, physicist

 

Gene Weingarten, writing in the Washington Post about online news stories and the accompanying readers' comments: "I basically like 'comments,' though they can seem a little jarring: spit-flecked rants that are appended to a product that at least tries for a measure of objectivity and dignity. It's as though when you order a sirloin steak, it comes with a side of maggots."

 

"...in the mid-’90s when the internet was coming...there was a tendency to assume that when all the world’s knowledge comes online, everyone will flock to it. It turns out that if you give everyone access to the Library of Congress, what they do is watch videos on TikTok."  -Neil Stephenson, author, in The Atlantic

 

"In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual." -Galileo Galilei, physicist and astronomer

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JoNorvelleWalker

JoNorvelleWalker

Posted
Posted

Thank you, @Alex.

 

This afternoon, swapping caffeine for rum and rearranging the problem was a bit more clear.

 

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Cooking is cool.  And kitchen gear is even cooler.  -- Chad Ward

Whatever you crave, there's a dumpling for you. -- Hsiao-Ching Chou

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JoNorvelleWalker

JoNorvelleWalker

Posted
Posted

Where X is the weight of preserves I believe the correct equation is:

28 = (16*420 + 65*X) / (420+X)

 

I can rearrange that to:

X = 2.32*X - 180

 

Is it possible to directly solve for X?

 

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Cooking is cool.  And kitchen gear is even cooler.  -- Chad Ward

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