I just can't seem to . . . .

[oraklet]

i'm so terribly relieved to see that rice is a common problem. i always thought it was supposed to be easy, and it made me feel absolutely stupid.

[Jenny]

Soft cookies, can't do it.

I have tried using 1/2 butter, 1/2 shortening but to no avail ten minutes after I take them out of the oven they are hard.

Someone I work with always brings in these fluffy, soft cookies so I asked her, she said she uses margerine!!!!!

I don't want to seem like I am above using margarine (I love Brummel and Brown) but I never thought it had a place in baking, am I wrong?

[bushey]

Jenny -- Our local paper just had an article about the cookie-cooking dilemma a few weeks ago. The bottom line is you have to play around with the proportions of butter to shortening to get the consistency you want, but in general butter lends itself to crisper cookies, and shortening to fluffier ones. Have you tried using all shortening? The butter flavored kind might be a good option.

[rich]

Rich,

    What is the brand name on that?

The brand name is Ultra. I'm not sure where else it's available.

[mamster]

Soft cookies, can't do it.

Hmm...I seem to be trying to solve other people's problems instead of confession my own, which are legion.

That said, the chocolate chip cookie recipe from Cook's Illustrated (January 1996) turns out a soft cookie that stays soft, and they explain that this was the hardest thing to figure out. (Which makes sense--I mean, if it's not chocolaty enough, you know what do to.) It came down to two things: (1) Add an extra egg yolk--this recipe calls for 1 white and 2 yolks for 11 oz of flour, and (2) cool the cookies on the sheet, not on a rack.

I have no idea why either of these things work, and I haven't tried using these techniques with another type of cookie, but give it a try.

[MsRamsey]

I cant seem to get that really nice crust on a piece of fish when you pan fry it in butter.  I have tried mahi mahi and halibut.

Any thoughts?

Do you use a nonstick pan? From what I've read recently in Cook's Illustrated, this may be a cause of your problem.

Kathy

[Schielke]

I cant seem to get that really nice crust on a piece of fish when you pan fry it in butter.  I have tried mahi mahi and halibut.

Any thoughts?

Do you use a nonstick pan? From what I've read recently in Cook's Illustrated, this may be a cause of your problem.

Kathy

Nope, I have a metal pan. I wonder if a cast iron would help? I still need to get one.

I will try cooking some fish this weekend.

Thanks

Ben

[ShawtyCat]

Could you be using too much butter Schielke??

Shouldn't you get a good crust with a hot pan, a little clarified butter and without moving the fish much on the presentation side???

[Stone]

Soft cookies, can't do it.

Alton Brown did a show explaining how to create the range from soft and chewy to hard and crunchy. I'm sure you can find the transcript on the show's website.

[Schielke]

I have not used clarified butter for this task before. Could this be the problem?

How does one make clarified butter again?

[ShawtyCat]

This is much better:

Clarified Butter by way of FoodTV.com

[oraklet]

why clarified?

and cast iron... i love it, but only for meat, as anything else will leave a distinct flavour for a long time. so, no fish. any advice on cleaning it properly?

[Andy Lynes]

Mayonnaise.  Shameful, isn't it?

Yes.

Whats the problem exactly?

I can't make it.

It goes all grainy. I suppose that means it separates, technically speaking.

If you are still interested, can you tell me what recipe/method you are using. If you can do the much more temperamental and delicate warm butter versions then mayo should pose no problem to you at all in theory.

[Wilfrid]

Oh you remembered.

I can't remember which recipe I last tried. It all starts to go wrong at the stage where you slowly drip in the oil. But I expect you guessed that.

[Suzanne F]

Clarified butter is only the butterfat, without the milk solids that burn and get nasty at high heat. And high heat (to start) is what you need to get a good crusty sear on a piece of fish -- along with having the piece completely dry (the Thomas Keller trick is great). I prefer to sear the presentation side over high heat, then finish it in the oven.

As for cleaning cast iron: I am somewhat heretical in that I soak my grill pan after use to loosen the stuck-on stuff and have even been known to take a steel-wool pad to it But my cast iron pan is very well-seasoned; I ususally coat it with Crisco before I put it away, and I re-season it occasionally.

As for the original question: it's not what I CAN'T do, but what I won't make the effort to do properly as I know it should be done (regular old flaky pie crust and biscuits are high on that list.)

[Schielke]

Clarified butter is only the butterfat, without the milk solids that burn and get nasty at high heat.  And high heat (to start) is what you need to get a good crusty sear on a piece of fish -- along with having the piece completely dry (the Thomas Keller trick is great).  I prefer to sear the presentation side over high heat, then finish it in the oven.

I am not sure if I have heard this trick. Do you mind elaborating?

Thanks!

Ben

[Marlene]

Pastry. Mine never comes out right.

I too have a fear of deep frying. And I won't light the bbq. I'll cook on the bbq, but only if someone starts it for me!

[Shermar]

I have trouble re-tying boneless legs of lamb or large roasts. I'll bring 'em home untie them, season them wonderfully and then my kitchen turns into a wrestling ring. Eventually they get re-tied but both of us are exhausted and the roast never, ever looks as nice as it did when the butcher handed it to me.

[Stone]

And I won't light the bbq.  I'll cook on the bbq, but only if someone starts it for me!

Use more lighter fluid. lot's more.

[nightscotsman]

And I won't light the bbq.  I'll cook on the bbq, but only if someone starts it for me!

Use more lighter fluid. lot's more.

Or maybe just a different type of fuel...

http://ghg.ecn.purdue.edu/~ghg/

Scroll down for lighting the grill with LIQUID OXYGEN. With video. Classic.

[Suzanne F]

Schielke: Jinmyo mentioned it earlier in the thread. Scroll up for her description of the technique. Basically, you run the edge of the knife blade flat across the skin of the fish -- it scrapes off the last bits of moisture, so that the skin is absolutely dry. That's what you need for a good sear.

Question for BBQers: have you tried using parafin cubes instead of lighter fluid? They impart no off-taste, and work quite well if distributed well under the coals. You place them around the bottom layer of coals as you build it up, and then light the wax with your matches or lighter-thingy. AND you can't possibly singe off your facial hair. I think the ones I use are put out by Weber.

[Marlene]

Rich,

   What is the brand name on that?

The brand name is Ultra. I'm not sure where else it's available.

Rich:

Ultra or Ultrex? I can't find Ultra on the Home Shooping Network.

thx

[oraklet]

suzanne,

thanks for answer on clar. butter!

[Dana]

Try rolling your fish in Wondra flour and patting off all the excess before you fry. I've gotten a nice crust with this method - it's not thick and Long John Silver-y. No floury taste, either.

[sladeums]

Question for BBQers: have you tried using parafin cubes instead of lighter fluid?

When my wife was a Girl Scout leader they made firestarters out of dryer lint...they would use either paraffin or wax paper to prolong the burning.

She came to my rescue with one of these earlier this summer when I was having trouble getting some lump charcoal to start.

Worked surprisingly well...and a great way to recycle any extra dryer lint you haven't found a use for yet.