Absurdly, stupidly basic cooking questions (Part 2)

[Margaret Pilgrim]

 I only use buttermilk for breakfast breads (biscuits, pancakes or waffles) and find that setting the milk/lemon juice to molder overnight results in a thick product in the morning.

[weinoo]

20 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

Stella Parks did a nice write up on Serious Eats: Do Buttermilk Substitutes Work In Baking?

 

Sure seems like her tests proved that lemon juice + milk is an awful failure, while kefir works almost exactly the same as buttermilk...

 

Quote

Kefir may be new enough to American markets that it's not a common grocery store item nationwide, but that also means it's likely to be found in trendy metro areas where people aren't interested in fuddy-duddy buttermilk. In cakes and soda bread and every other recipe I tried, kefir performed flawlessly as a 1:1 swap for buttermilk. Grade: A+.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I'd like to learn more about sausages and that funny French word I can't pronounce.  I like Spanish chorizo and Genoa salami.  What other similar sausages might I enjoy?

 

[rotuts]

@JoNorvelleWalker 

 

how do you spell that Fr. word can't pronounce

 

[Tropicalsenior]

Is it possibly this?

Charcuterie (/ʃɑːrˈkuːtəri/ (listen) shar-KOO-tər-ee, also US: /ʃɑːrˌkuːtəˈriː/ (listen) -⁠EE; French: [ʃaʁkyt(ə)ʁi] (listen); from chair, 'flesh', and cuit, 'cooked') is a French term for a branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, galantines, ballotines, pâtés, and confit, primarily from pork.^[1]

[JoNorvelleWalker]

5 hours ago, rotuts said:

@JoNorvelleWalker 

 

how do you spell that Fr. word can't pronounce

 

 

I doubt there is a single French word I can properly pronounce.

 

[lindag]

20 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

 

I doubt there is a single French word I can properly pronounce.

 

OUI?

[TdeV]

22 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

 

I doubt there is a single French word I can properly pronounce.

 

 

Shouldn't that be NON?

[ElsieD]

Or if you're not sure, peut être.

[MokaPot]

10 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

I'd like to learn more about sausages and that funny French word I can't pronounce.  I like Spanish chorizo and Genoa salami.  What other similar sausages might I enjoy?

 

 

Andouille (sausage)? (I pronounce it on-dewey.)

 

What about Polish sausages?

 

[kayb]

Sweet (mild) sopressata. Summer sausage. And I'm fond of Lebanon bologna, which appears to me to be neither Lebanese nor bologna, but I sure do enjoy it in a sandwich.

 

One of my very favorite cured meat products is Lomo, cured and smoked pork loin. Sort of like Canadian bacon, but different.

[Orbit]

Stupid question: Can you put a hot pan on a granite counter? Will it crack it?

[heidih]

28 minutes ago, Orbit said:

Stupid question: Can you put a hot pan on a granite counter? Will it crack it?

Well unless it is just a veil of granite - no the stuff is tough. Usually a good inch thick.  I had a granite insert (18" x 18") in one kitchen counter that was tile so I could pour nuclear hot candy on the slab. The ex went through a peanut brittle phase.

 

PS: your avatar is so joyful

Edited June 8, 2021 by heidih (log)

[blue_dolphin]

1 hour ago, Orbit said:

Stupid question: Can you put a hot pan on a granite counter? Will it crack it?

 

Will what crack - the pan or the counter?  

My understanding is that granite can generally handle the heat from hot pans.  Sealants and adhesives joining slabs may be less resistant. I do put hot pans on my granite counter from time to time and have not had a crack yet.  

When baking in glass or ceramic pans, I put them on a rack, or a dry, folded kitchen towel more for the sake of the pan than the granite counter. 

Edited June 8, 2021 by blue_dolphin
typo (log)

[pastrygirl]

15 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

I'd like to learn more about sausages and that French word I can't pronounce.  I like Spanish chorizo and Genoa salami.  What other similar sausages might I enjoy?

 

 

saucisson?

[pastrygirl]

3 hours ago, Orbit said:

Stupid question: Can you put a hot pan on a granite counter? Will it crack it?

 

3 hours ago, heidih said:

Well unless it is just a veil of granite - no the stuff is tough. Usually a good inch thick.  I had a granite insert (18" x 18") in one kitchen counter that was tile so I could pour nuclear hot candy on the slab. The ex went through a peanut brittle phase.

 

How hot is the pan? 

 

I agree with Heidi that the typical 1.5" thick stone slab can take a lot of heat.  Hard candy or peanut brittle is in the 300-325F range and cools fairly quickly once poured out.  I did an art project with big slabs of cooked sugar last summer, my thicker slab of marble survived (thank goodness) but my thinner piece of quartz developed cracks. 

 

To be safe, I'd avoid putting anything unusually hot on your stone.  A sheet of cookies out of the oven or the pot you just dumped pasta water out of should be fine, but something like a pot of caramel sauce that's been on high heat for half an hour or a pot of hot oil from deep frying might be too much heat in one spot.

[Smithy]

When we installed granite counters in our kitchen we were warned that hot pots might affect the high polish by producing very small surface cracks. I've never been interested in testing it, so I always use a trivet or towel under heavy, hot pots. I would not hesitate to pour fudge on it for chilling and tempering, though, if I did that sort of thing. 

[heidih]

My Italian stone guy - yes from Genoa - assured me it was ok - but I can't vouch for all applications so yes - a bit of caution in order if uncertain. I've put hot pans on my various ones over time without thought - maybe I should have thought. When you see the slabs in the yard they are significant. I guess I just think they are up to anything. My recent supplier  https://paramountmarble.com/

Edited June 9, 2021 by heidih (log)

[SLB]

Why would a recipe for candied ginger call for sugar (lots), AND light corn syrup?  The concept involves multiple rounds of boiling in sugar, followed by long soaks.  The second round, however, specifies light corn syrup.   

 

This is from the Time Life Good Cook series, which never really misses a landing.  And I know that corn syrup makes for a different texture.  But I'm not sure why that would be meaningful here.   What on earth  is the purpose of the corn syrup round???  

Edited June 10, 2021 by SLB (log)

[heidih]

6 minutes ago, SLB said:

Why would a recipe for candied ginger call for sugar (lots), AND light corn syrup?  The concept involves multiple rounds of boiling in sugar, followed by long soaks.  The second round, however, specifies light corn syrup.   

 

This is from the Time Life Good Cook series, which is never really missed a landing.  And I know that corn syrup makes for a different texture.  But I'm not sure why that would be meaningful here.   What on earth  is the purpose of the corn syrup round???  

I thought it helped with crystals not forming, For a recipe i trust our @David Lebovitz  https://www.davidlebovitz.com/candied-ginger/

Edited June 9, 2021 by heidih (log)

[Anna N]

Or you might like to try our very own @andiesenjimethod:

Here.

No corn syrup required. 

[SLB]

Thank you!

 

[kayb]

1 hour ago, SLB said:

Why would a recipe for candied ginger call for sugar (lots), AND light corn syrup?  The concept involves multiple rounds of boiling in sugar, followed by long soaks.  The second round, however, specifies light corn syrup.   

 

This is from the Time Life Good Cook series, which never really misses a landing.  And I know that corn syrup makes for a different texture.  But I'm not sure why that would be meaningful here.   What on earth  is the purpose of the corn syrup round???  

 

Don't know, but I know my peanut butter recipe is the same way, as is my sauce for candied sweet potatoes.

 

[Tropicalsenior]

16 minutes ago, SLB said:

Thank you!

I don't know your reason for wanting to make candied ginger, but I stopped making it several years ago and started making stem Ginger instead. It keeps well in the refrigerator and freezer and it is great in baked goods and in Savory dishes. What's more, it is a heck of a lot easier to make. My recipe is very similar to this one.

[SLB]

Thank you.  I am wanting to make it as a backpacking snack, so I'm not sure the stem stuff would work.  I can get nauseous when backpacking with a large pack, I'm not really sure why.  But I'm thinking, ginger is what they give you for that in helicopters . . . .

 

Anyway.  I have a killer trail mix -- candied dried rhubarb; dried strawberries (this year I'm trying to candy these too; strangely strawberries dehydrate to kinda bland although it's not a bad bland); and cashews.  Or pecans, but something about the cashews works out well (I don't actually like cashews anywhere else. 

 

Or anything all sweetened up like this, anywhere else.  Outside of strenuous physical activity I can't really tolerate sugary-sweet anything.  This could be related to the nausea, possibly, the fact that I am suddenly wolfing down straight sugar garnished with a little fruit and fat . . . .)

 

Anyway -- sometimes m&ms also go in, for tradition's sake (preferably dark, let's not get carried away on this hyper-sweetness).

 

Anyway.  I was thinking of sticking little candied ginger sticks in that.  

 

Although I do like bits of candied citrus peel in cookies and cakes, my only other routine use of candied anything is cocktails.  I think candied citrus peel is just divine in my likka.  And I suspect that candied ginger is going to perform very well there, if it turns out that I can't take it on the trail.  Or if I, uh, have some extra.  

Edited June 10, 2021 by SLB (log)