I've decided to host a cooking Q+A here on the good eats channel. I've been a chef for almost ten years now, and am ready to field your cooking questions.
I'm thinking of possible starting a video how-to blog as well, but I will start with some question and answers. So have at it- do you have any cooking questions? Comments  who has this post bookmarked fdisk
- looris
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- MycroftHomlz
- smibbo
- Thylan
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Why would I want to bother, preparing stock, be it chicken, beef, of otherwise, when the CAN reads, "stock", on the label already?
Is it because, stock-enhanced water is easier???
Seriously though- I'd like to be able to chop like a pro chef. You know, like an onion in 5 secs flat.
Read a great bit on How to turn cheap "Choice" Steaks into Gucci "Prime" Steaks recently and I will give it a try tonight with a carnivorous friend.
Would be great to hear little tricks and tips like that from our own djsunchef
Karaidl
Microwaving Turkey is a pretty dubious idea to say the least. It is certainly possible, but it is not as simple as just time*weight.
According to my McGee, the dynamics for oven roasting are weight to the 2/3rds power per time, or thickness squared per time.
There are a few things you have to appreciate about microwaving- cooking things properly in the microwave is a complicated and subtle process, and misunderstood by most chefs. Firstly, microwaving is neither moist heat nor dry heat cooking. The microwaves directly excite the all the molecules in the food that are approximately the size of water molecules. This is why the microwave is so efficient at reheating already cooked food.
For cooking things from raw, on the other hand, there are a number of reasons why a microwave oven is less than ideal. Because the energy is able to penetrate a few centimetres into the flesh, it is impossible to get a nice crispy skin. By the time the skin is at a correct temperature to render the fat properly, the meat beneath it has already lost so much moisture that it is impossible to remain crispy.
If your heart is really set on trying it, I wish you luck, and my best advice is to buy a meat thermometre and check the internal temperature every few minutes. And watch out for flaming turkey. You'll want around 175 degrees fahrenheit for your turkey.
Dag
The first thing you need for pro-chef like knife skillz is a sharp chef's knife. I prefer an 8 inch Henkel for most of my chopping, but the santoku knives seem to be gaining quite a lot of popularity in the kitchens where I've worked.
There was a terrible, terrible video about sharpening knives on the sift a while back- one of my first downvotes, actually, but in my rant about how much I hated it, I linked to this article about how to sharpen knives properly.
Knife Maintenance and Sharpening By Chad Ward is an absolutely fantastic resource, and actually is the place where I learned how to sharpen my knives.
Here's a big secret though- good quality knives aren't all that expensive! You can pick up a yellow handled Henkel at a kitchen supply store for less than $20. Your knife will be wicked sharp.
I think there was a video on the cooking channel that showed how to properly cut up an onion. Ah yes- Knife Skills 101 My feelings on that video are mixed, which is why I haven't upvoted it yet, but it's handy to know the right steps. For one thing, I think I remember disagreeing with him on what exactly constitutes a "small dice", but I'll have to watch it again to remember precisely.
After that, it's just like getting to carnegie hall- Practice, baby. Practice.
maatc
ooh, I got a bunch of tips like that. that is a fun article, which I definitely have some comments on.
OK! Good first round, I'll be posting my article about Stocks in the next day or so. Keep the questions coming!
ON stock: buy the "better than boillon" brand - it's reduction in a jar. The reason canned stock is so terrible is because it's mostly FAT and very little actual flavor. Except for that lovely flavor of aluminum.
What is the best way to prepare human flesh?
Obviously the more tender cuts such as the loin will be prefered, but be sure to cook to an internal temperature of at least 150 degrees fahrenheit or medium. The larger muscles such as the glutes tend to be stringy, and can benefit from brining. These cuts are best for slow, moist heat cooking such as in a stew or a braise.
Because the federal government of most countries does not inspect human meat, be sure that your supplier is reliable and sanitary, and selects only the healthiest humans for harvest. As with all mammals, humans should be in a relaxed state when slaughtered, as adrenaline in the muscles
converts the sugars into atpdepletes the muscles lactic acid after deathwhich has a bitter tastecausing a tougher meat which spoils more readily.This year we are going to my sister's, which could be bad... Apparently, she is ordering a precooked organic Turkey(does anyone know anything about this??) and then she is going to reheat it in the oven. It sounds like a terrible idea to me, but what do I know. It has prompted my dad and my other sister to politely suggest that we should make the turkey, but my sister is a little bit of control freak.
Any thoughts?
MH
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_8389,00.html
I think the proper expression is "Man OH Man"
I.E. what is our meat called?
Just pick a word that is non-NSFW that has a sexual connotation -- like BEEF or PORK. ;-)
Long-Pig.....Human, this works fine, no contest needed.....
Here's my question - How do I make the perfect Crème brûlée? I'd like to know about the ingredients, cooking techniques and how to carmelize it just right. I've seen the little torches (butane I'm guessing) and wondering if there is a preferred brand and other uses in the kitchen for them.
Sc
>> Just pick a word that is non-NSFW that has a sexual connotation -- like BEEF or PORK. ;-)
I vote for "Plug".
Man I sure could go for a plug steak.
How are those plug chops doing?
@mycrofthomlz, We've use the same recipe for Turkey brine for 3 years and it's very very good. I've never seen turkey so juicy. We've bought a huge white bucket w/ a lid, but I've seen the guy on tv use a big football sports drink dispenser/cooler to hold the bird and brine. We might try that this year.
Yea, right, and have all the feminists ticked off that we gave human flesh a male name? I'm going with plug.
On another sub-thread, does anyone else get turned off by the term brine? It just doesn't have that sound of something tasty to me.
I am getting scared.
I would deep fry and brine if there was any justice in the world.
It truly is Teh Bestest.
a kitchen. I made a Potato soup that is okay in flavor but it lacks a richness
that I desire also it is on the bland side. This is how i prepared it.
I cooked almost a half pound of bacon. removed the bacon from the pot. I added
3 cloves of minced garlic, 1 large onion finely diced, 3 carrots shaved then chopped, 4 celery stalks almost minced. I cooked those until onions almost clear. then added 3 tablespoons fresh parsley and 3 tablespoons fresh chives.
I added 1/2 stick of butter. once melted and bubbly I added 1 cup of flour 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper. Once flour was browned i slowly added 3 cups Heavy Cream , 1/4 of a brick of cream cheese 2 large spoons of sour cream.
once all that was integrated I slowly added 6 cups of Chicken broth. Then cubed already cooked to tender potatoes. For good measure I added in some velveta cheese and the crumpled pieces of bacon. I was not happy with the richness as it seemed somewhat bland.
What could I have done to give it a nice pop. Thank you for your help as this is my father in laws favorite soup and it is hard for me to get him to eat anything at all. As his care giver I need to make things that will help him gain weight and be appealing to him.
thyme
nutmeg
shallots
leeks
Say she tops it with a hard cheese at the end and browns it in the oven. That would be very nice.