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I just can't seem to . . . .


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Is there anything in the kitchen that you just can't seem to do right?

Me, I just can't seem to make decent fresh pasta. (Actually make it, that is, not just boil dried pasta.) I know it's supposed to be pretty straightforward, but it always comes out gummy.

I also have trouble, as I've mentioned once before, making a tomato sauce that doesn't separate.

Anyone else have strange issues they can't get over? (In the kitchen only please.)

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I have trouble with anything that requires good coordination or reflexes.

Steven A. Shaw aka "Fat Guy"
Co-founder, Society for Culinary Arts & Letters, sshaw@egstaff.org
Proud signatory to the eG Ethics code
Director, New Media Studies, International Culinary Center (take my food-blogging course)

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I have trouble with anything that requires good coordination or reflexes.

Not so. You can do the pan-flipping thingy, remember. In addition, you can survive on this board; if that isn't an indicator of some kind of good reflexes, I don't know what is. :wink:

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I can't bake.

I love to try, but I just don't have the knack for it.

I think it's because i approach it in the same way I approach savoury cooking..who knows. If I'm ever going to stuff something up, it's the cake.

How sad; a house full of condiments and no food.

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Shellfish....I am petrified to cook shellfish. :blink: I did try once but my shrimp came out tough. I know its supposed to turn opace etc.etc. but it just looks white to me. :unsure: Other than fish...I don't eat seafood and am not very familiar or comfortabel making it. I never know when the dang stuff is done. :sad: Sigh....

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I LOVE to cook, but the one thing that has always utterly frustrated my attempts to produce the perfect result ( actually even a result that is edible) is Candy.

Broad group you say.. yep.. the only one I can get right is toffee.. forget fudge or coconut ice, or anything else. I might as well just throw all the ingredients straight in the rubbish bin before I go to the trouble of trying to make something that is worth eating. That's where it usually ends up!

For those of you that have trouble baking, lets swap secrets, you tell me how to make candy I will teach you how to bake! :sad:

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Making biscuits from scratch. I think I try too hard. My sister-in-law could just whip them together every morning, no problem. Mine turn out like hockey pucks.

Biscuits are actually very easy to make. You just need to be gentle on the dough. I make biscuits with southern self-rising flour (lower gluten content), a touch of baking soda, a bit of salt. Cut in unsalted butter (I use 6 Tbsp for 2 cups of flour). I then use a combination of cream, buttermilk, and whole milk for the liquid. I can't tell you exactly how much, because it depends on the day's humidity. Bring it together gently, knead 4 or 5 times to help form the layers, roll, and cut. Bake in a fairly hot oven (425 for us Fahrenheit folks) until brown.

The biggest mistake is overworking the dough. It can get tough. The other key is to use the low gluten flour. I've never tried cake flour, as there is such a variety of self-rising flours here in North Carolina that have been milled and formulated primarily for biscuits.

Good luck!

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

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Without wishing to sound like a big headed bastard, no, I'm a fair all rounder in the kitchen. I have never tried making sushi though.

Sushi really ain't all that hard. Maybe people want you to think it is difficult, that way they can justify charging the enormous amounts of money for what is actually quite a basic dish (or is it only expensive in the UK?)

Now the thing I have trouble with is creme caramel. I tried making it once, many years ago, and it split (curdled), and I was so traumatised by the experience that I haven't tried again since :sad:

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Yes, deep fat frying strikes fear in my heart too.

Growing up my mother would light the stove on fire on a regular basis.

I was sure one of those times we were not going to make it out alive, and all for french fries.

I am thinking about getting one of those little fryers that has the basket that lowers the food down and the sides are marked so as not to add too much oil. Does anyone have one of these??

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I am thinking about getting one of those little fryers that has the basket that lowers the food down and the sides are marked so as not to add too much oil. Does anyone have one of these??

i have one by delonghi. i find it relatively useless. too small. too much of a hassle. i have better luck with a pan and oil.

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For the life of me I can't figure out how to clean the dishes. I'm even too intimidated to try it.

That's why you need a kitchen staff :raz:.

I manage fine washing by hand but by husband thinks I cannot load the dishwasher correctly -- he always reorganizes it. It used to bother me until one night when my sister-in-law saw what he was doing and blurted out: "I can't believe you're doing that! Dad used to do the same thing and it drove Ma nuts!". So now I see it as his "problem" rather than my incompetence. 'course I usually cook so he has to clean and everybody's happy.

Glad to hear someone else is terrified of deep frying. I made my confession on the fried chicken thread.

re:Fear of shellfish, here's a tip: start out small, by broiling or grilling shrimp on skewers. When the grey parts turn pink, flip until the othr side just turns pink. They'll be perfect. It's way too easy to overcook shellfish.

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I don't cook either but my conceptual contributions to our daily meals are of such substance I was able to get out of cleaning  :cool:.

Well, the way I stay happy is to only rarely allow conceptual contributions :wink:

These little smileys are fun. Do you wear those sunglasses at night?

tommy -- of course, of course.

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I have trouble with anything that requires good coordination or reflexes.

You can use chewing gum as a birth-control device, huh?

-- Jeff

"I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as members." -- Groucho Marx

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