Is it safe to roast marshmallows over a sterno flame?

Question

It's become common practice around my apartment to use a sterno to roast marshmallows because it's easy, cheap and (primarily) because we can't have a campfire in my living room.

Is this dangerous?

Asked by stevvve

Answer

Sterno is (roughly) alcohol mixed with gel. The same type of alcohol (ethanol mixed with enough methanol to make it poisonous) is commonly used in marine stoves because it's considered to be quite safe: it doesn't explode and it can be extinguished with water.

Alcohol also burns cleanly and quite completely, so there are essentially no methanol molecules in the flame that could land on your marshmallows and harm you.

Answered by Ward

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Is it necessary to rinse Chinese or other tea before first brew / steep / infusion?

Question

I've been told that I should be rinsing Chinese tea with the boiled water before the first full infusion intended for drinking.

I make the occasional very-expensive tea from Taiwan and I feel it is a waste to throw away a first pot simply for "rinsing". However, my mother-in-law insists it is correct to rinse the tea first :-)

Is this practice of rinsing always advisable, or are there specific cases or kinds of tea where rinsing is necessary? What are we trying to rinse away? Is the practice only for Chinese tea, or for other kinds of tea as well?

Looking for some enlightenment from some tea experts. Thank you!

---

Update:

Since I asked the question, my mother-in-law came across a newspaper article, in Chinese, describing pesticides found on some teas from China, and so it is advisable to rinse before consuming.

Here's a scan I made of the article:

Something in English...

Essentially, the article references a 2012 report by Greenpeace. You can read a press release about the report, and here's a link to the report itself: Pesticides: Hidden Ingredients in Chinese Tea Report (PDF). Press release summary:

A Greenpeace investigation has found pesticides banned for use on tea in the products marketed by some of China's top tea companies. Some of the firms, which include China Tea, Tenfu Tea and China Tea King, export tea products to Japan, the US and Europe.

For that reason, I accepted the answer below which suggests rinsing for reduction of pesticides.

Of course, I don't think I'd want to drink a tea with 17 kinds of pesticides present, even if rinsed! Caveat emptor ... I plan to ask more questions when I buy my tea.

Asked by Chris W. Rea

Answer

Usually the first infusion is to remove pesticides and some tea dust accumulates through aging of the tea; another reason is to let the dry leaves "breath" so to bring out their taste in subsequent infusions. You suppose to drain out the water in seconds; so it shouldn't take away the taste.

Answered by KMC

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When I'm separating egg whites, how much does it matter if a little yolk gets in?

Question

I was separating egg whites today and one of the yolks broke and contaminated my bowl of whites. I started from scratch, but I'm wondering if I really needed to; would a tiny bit of yolk (say, 1/8 tspn in 4 egg whites) mixed in with the whites make a big difference?

To provide some context, I was about to whip the whites with castor sugar to make almond macaroons.

Asked by Highly Irregular

Answer

Yes, it matters a lot. When you are separating egg whites, it is for whipping them into a foam. This foam is a protein-based foam, relying on protein ends hooking into each other. Even small traces of fat will prevent the foam from forming. Egg yolks contain high amounts of fat. Once an egg yolk breaks in your whites, you have to start the separation anew, because it can prevent your foam from forming. Also, don't use plastic bowls for whipping egg whites (their surface retains some fat molecules even after washing, giving you a less stable foam) and only whip with a cleanly washed whisk or mixer attachment (not one you have just used for something else, not even if you wiped it clean).

To prevent big mishaps, just separate each new egg in a teacup and only add the new white to the old whites after it has separated cleanly. Else you are in big trouble if you are separating a lot and the last egg contaminates the whole whites with yolk. And a single contaminated egg is easily reused for a quick egg-and-feta sandwich or something else.

Contamination the other way round isn't so worrisome. You still want to work as precisely as possible, as yolk-only recipes will often have somewhat worse texture if eggwhite is included, but small contaminating amounts are usually not noticeable in the finished product, even in foams (zabaglione, mayonnaise). This is because yolk foams are fat-based, and small amounts of protein don't prevent a fat foam from forming.

Answered by rumtscho

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How to quickly make refried beans (or thereabouts) using Kidney beans?

Question

I've been trying for awhile now to make a bean-like paste for burritos/nachos/etc. akin to Refried Beans I so enjoyed while living in North America. What I've got so far isn't half bad, but I'd really like to improve on this, if possible.

Here's how I do it now:

1. Empty beans into strainer; wash with cold water.
2. Put beans into pan slightly under water and bring to boil.
3. Lightly simmer until beans come out of their shells.
4. Turn heat down to min; Drain off 3/4 of the water.
5. Mash mash mash away.
6. Add spices and mix; let water burn evaporate until consistency is to my liking.

NOTE: I only recently added steps 2-4 in an attempt at mashing the shells better. It has not helped. If I remove those steps, the entire process takes maybe 10 minutes (= happy stomachs :)

No matter how much or long I cook and/or mash the beans (while adding water), the skin never quite "liquidizes" so there are these annoying strainy-blobs that everyone complains about.

I usually use Red and White Kidney Beans or some kind of baked beans in tomato sauce, simply because I don't have to cook them at all i.e. I can eat them out of the can and they taste good :) Perhaps that logic is bad and I should be using other beans (assuming I can find them here) ?

Asked by glenneroo

Answer

This isn't the "quick" nor the healthy answer, but I personally do a twice-cooked system. I leave the juice from the can in the mix, and boil it down, which takes 15 minutes or so. Retaining the flavor of the canned fluid is essential, in my opinion.

Then I "fry" the dry-ish mixture which is beginning to separate in maybe 1 tbsp preheated lard per can of beans, stirring a lot at first. Lastly, very slightly simmer this on low heat for 1 hour or so, stirring occasionally. Flavor is awesome. Any kinds of beans can be prepared in this way, and it is similar (varying on oil and legume variety) to other paste concoctions created elsewhere.. such as in the middle east.

Note that this method negates the need for lots of "mashing". So, if you're more looking for less effort, than necessarily for "quick".. this could be your answer :)

Answered by zanlok

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How long can I store mole?

Question

I'd like to have a go at making some kind of mole, but all the recipes I have seem to make big batches. How long can I keep mole for, either in the fridge or freezer?

Asked by ElendilTheTall

Answer

In the freezer, more-or-less indefinitely, depending on how good your freezer is. Certainly months to years.

In the fridge, it depends on the kind of mole. Quick moles (like various green moles) don't keep very long, maybe a week at most. A long-cooked mole should keep a bit longer -- up to 2 weeks -- since all of the ingredients are completely cooked.

If you're not planning to use it within a week, though, why not freeze it? The texture won't take any harm from freezing and thawing.

Answered by FuzzyChef

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Is there an alternative wrapping for tamales?

Question

I'd like to have a go at making tamales, but the corn husk wrappers are hard to come by here. Is there anything I can use as a substitute wrapper?

Asked by ElendilTheTall

Answer

I've had the same problem once. The first substitute is banana leaves. But they're not easy to find either.

The second one is using big leaves of chard. Tamales will be done in the same time and you could eat the leaf if you want. I've tried it once and it came out great.

Here it's a recipe for tamales from Michoacan made with chard. Here it is a graphic step by step recipe for tamales with chard. They are written in Spanish, let me know if you need a translator ;)

PS. My mexican mother in law used to do it with chard.

Answered by doctoraw

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How can I stop my eggs from cooking when I make lemon/lime curd?

Question

I used this recipe http://allrecipes.com/recipe/fresh-lime-curd/. I added a lot of the hot liquid to temper the eggs and they looked good and then I added the mixture to the pot and whisked but the egg whites still cooked and I had to strain the curd to get it all out.

Is there a better way to avoid this from happening?

Asked by Luz_Ramirez

Answer

To prevent this from happening, apart from what Jefromi says, check the temperature with a thermometer. Eggs start coagulating around 60ºC. If you keep the temperature around 55ºC you are pasteurizing the eggs at the same time.

Answered by BaffledCook

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Tempering chocolate: ± 2 °C too much?

Question

I am planning to buy a laser thermometer to measure the temperature of melted chocolate for tempering it. As I have found out, the thermometer I want to buy has a measuring tolerance of ± 2 °C. That means even if it shows the correct temperature on the display, the chocolate can be 2 °C too hot or 2 °C too cold. Will this cause any trouble? Do I really need a thermometer that has a smaller measuring tolerance?

FYI: 2 °C are about 36 °F

Edit: 2 °C are about 3.6 °F, thanks msh210!

Asked by Sven

Answer

Yes, it is too much. Chocolate has very tight working intervals. Dark chocolate must be used at 32°C. Below 30°C, it is too thick for use, and at 35°C, the cocoa butter separates from the chocolate. An error interval of 4°C when your complete workable interval is 5°C wide is simply unacceptable. You want a thermometer with a much higher precision, actually one which shows you tenths of degrees centigrade.

You also want a thermometer which reacts quickly enough. If you are working with small quantities, a ten seconds delay in measuring can give you errors of over half a degree centigrade, which is also a lot, given your tight working interval. Try finding a thermometer with a 4 sec response time or less.

Also, you don't want a laser thermometer at all! The difference in temperature between the surface of the chocolate and the mass of it near the bottom can be substantial, I once measured 4°C difference in something in a bowl with about a litter of stuff (it can't have been chocolate, probably it was custard, I forgot exactly). You need a candy thermometer for chocolate. Buy a laser thermometer separately for measuring the surfaces of pans, if you need it.

As a last note a 2°C interval is not 36°F, it is just below 4°F. The formula is 32 + 5/9, so your converter probably meant that when there are 2°C outside, a Fahrenheit thermometer shows 36°F. This is obviously incorrect for calculating intervals.

Answered by rumtscho

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In how much water do I need to put ramekins when cooking au bain marie in the oven?

Question

I have been given four ramekins and a cooking book with 30 recipes for eggs in a ramekin as a present.

Everything is explained very clearly:

• Preheat the water for the bain marie dish in the oven at (I think) 180°C
• Put the eggs in a ramekin
• Add other ingredients
• Place the ramekin in the bain marie dish in the oven
• Get the ramekins out when you see the egg white is starting to coagulate

I have never used ramekins and I have never cooked au bain marie in the oven, but I believe the amount of water you use is pretty important. Unfortunately the book doesn't mention this.

So how high should the water level be for the ramekins?

Asked by Kristof Claes

Answer

Ideally, the water level should be just as, or a bit above, the egg level. So, you fill the ramekin to maybe 1.5 cm below the rim, place it in the dish, and fill the dish until it is 1 cm below the ramekin rim. You can deviate a bit, if you must - if you had a bit too much custard and filled the ramekins more, you shouldn't get the water too high, because you don't want to get water splashed onto the custard if it should start boiling (actually, you want to avoid a roiling boil in your bain marie, but it can happen). Even if the egg is slightly higher than the water, it will still be OK. If you have the water level too low, you risk to overheat the upper portions of your custards.

This assumes the souffle-cup-like ramekins usually sold to home bakers. If you have very flat ones, like crema catalana dishes, it gets more complicated. You have to have the water close to the rim, and bake at lower settings. It can help to put them high in the bain marie, e.g. on a cake cooling rack, so that they are cooled from below rather than the sides.

Answered by rumtscho

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Is it normal for the Chickpeas to develop white froth after being soaked for 12 hours?

Question

Yesterday at 08:00 I had soaked white Chickpeas in water and left the container in the kitchen. Daytime temperature here is 44C.

At 20:00 the same day I saw the container covered by white froth. Is it normal for the Chickpeas to develop white froth or was it caused by the heat?

Not sure if that's edible.

Asked by Anisha Kaul

Answer

Yes, it is normal for pulses to develop froth when soaked. I've seen it at lower temperatures and shorter soaking times. They can feel slimy too. This isn't a sign of bacteria development in itself, I think it is caused by the oligosaccharides slowly dissolving in water (but don't remember where I read this, so not 100% sure).

On the other hand, these conditions are also risky. Your chickpeas can have developed bacteria independently of the froth. In temperate regions, soakers aren't a problem, because bacteria growth in them is not especially quick (the 2 hours rule is made tight enough to cover things like meat, and a soaker doesn't even have enough hydrated bacteria food initially). But I have noticed that food I would have had no problem with at 22°C goes bad in short time at 28°C. The relationship between bacteria growth and temperature is not linear, and with growing heat, bacteria growth can speed up a lot. So I don't know if I would eat the peas - not because of the froth, but because of the conditions you had them in. I would recommend that you soak in the fridge next time - you don't need any fermentation to take place, so the low temperatures aren't a problem.

Answered by rumtscho

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How do I keep dough moist while rising?

Question

If I'm rising dough for a really long time (at home), what techniques are there for keeping the surface moist? What I'm finding is that the crumb comes out as I'd like (very aerated, mature), but that the top forms a skin, causing the side to burst despite scoring on the top with a razor.

Asked by Mick Sear

Answer

The best recommendation I have seen is plain plastic wrap. If you have an oil mister, mist the wrap before using it. If you don't, pour oil into a bowl, enough to form a puddle, and toss your ball of dough in the oil. Then transfer your dough to the rising container (if you use the same bowl you used for oiling, take the dough out, pour out the superfluous oil, return the dough into the bowl). In the best case, the bowl will be deep enough for the dough to rise without the middle touching the wrap, but if it rises more (even with the dough pressing against the wrap), dough with enough gluten development will peel off the oiled wrap with minimal losses, even if it is wet.

The wrap will keep your dough surface moist in both the fridge and outside. It doesn't allow breathing, but this shouldn't be a concern in most cases. If you overyeast the dough, the collection of fermentation byproducts in the bowl will probably make for worse taste than if they are allowed to dissipate, but the correct solution for this problem is to not produce them in the first place. With your "very long times", this is probably not a problem in your case.

You can also use this method for the secondary fermentation. But in the final proofing stage, you have to make sure that your dough never rises enough to touch the wrap, or else the loaf will deform while you are removing the wrap. Also, if you are proofing in banettons, don't oil them, use flour combinations to prevent sticking.

If you are out of plastic wrap, substituting alu wrap is a bad idea, because yeast is very sensitive to metallic ions. Today's non-reactive metal utensils are safe enough for use with yeast dough, but untreated aluminium can be problematic. Try baking paper instead (you may have to tape it to the outer bowl walls).

Answered by rumtscho

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chestnut puree quantity

Question

My recipe called for 250g of chestnuts, blended with 125ml of cream and 125ml of milk that you then blended together to make a puree. When i went to the supermarket I discovered they had tinned "Chestnut puree" so I grabbed that instead I am now wondering how much of that I should add ?

Asked by scottishpink

Answer

Assuming the chestnut puree is just chestnuts, well, use 250g of it.

If it has other ingredients... I guess you'll have to try to figure out how much of them. You might be able to deduce it from the nutrition facts and the nutritional content of the chestnuts themselves, especially it's just chestnuts and water.

Edit: To be clear, I'm telling you how to replace the chestnuts. You still need the rest.

Given that it's chestnuts and water, it's trivial to figure out how much of it is chestnuts. (It would be difficult if there were other ingredients providing nutritional content.) Just use enough paste to account for 250g of chestnuts, then remove a mL of milk for every extra gram of paste you've added. If it's a substantial amount, replace some of the remaining milk with cream to keep it as rich as the original, if you like.

For example, according to the data I linked to, chestnuts are about 10% sugar, so you want enough paste to provide the 25g of sugar your 250g of chestnuts would've provided. So if the paste contains only 8g of sugar per 100g of paste, then you'll want about 300g of paste, and you can remove 50 mL of milk to balance the extra water you'll have added as part of the paste. (At that point it probably wouldn't be worth bothering to rebalance the milk and cream, since it's such a tiny difference.)

Answered by Jefromi

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What styles of barbeque exist in American cuisine?

Question

I'm originally from the Michigan thus i don't know much about barbeque due to the lack of barbeque establishments.

From my understanding (correct me if i'm wrong), there are several regional variations or styles of BBQ in the US. Each of type is defined by a BBQ technique or method: Texas (Brisket style), St. Louis, etc.

Thus my question; what other types of BBQ currently exist and what defines it?

Asked by chrisjlee

Answer

There's a great YouTube video by Rhett & Link called the The BBQ Song (A Review of BBQ in the Southern United States) that is actually a really good starting point for answering this question.

Here are the lyrics to the song:

In the mountains of Tennessee, they like a smoky sauce.
But over there in ole Memphis, a dry rubbed rib is boss.

The folks down in Georgia can't make up their mind,
You can give it to 'em sweet or spicy, and they'll say "that tastes alright."

You might think that South Carolinians are just a little bit off,
Would you believe their BBQ's yellow--with a mustard sauce?

Pork shoulder is the cut of choice in Mississippi
And they pride themselves on BBQ that's totally vinegary.

And Louisiana, them Cajuns,
they like to spice it up. They like to spice it up.

This is our review of BBQ,
in the southern United States.
And when my life is through,
bury me in BBQ,
But make sure it's vinegar based,
cause you know that slows decay,
and it's the style from our home state, North Carolina! Solo!

Mutton is big in west Kentucky, that's a fancy name for sheep,
But in the rest of the state, sliced pork butt is what they eat.

Arkansas is kinda like Georgia, a BBQ meltin' pot,
and when you ain't looking, them good ole boys'll make that BBQ hot!

Alabama's got the strangest thing I've seen in my BBQ days,
Cause their BBQ sauce is white, made out of mayonnaise.

Down in Texas, where the long horn steer roam free,
They love to smoke their brisket, that's a big ol' slab of beef.

And down in Florida...
Is Florida a southern state? No it ain't.

This is our review of BBQ,
in the southern United States.
And when my life is through,
bury me in BBQ. . .

People not from the south
think BBQ means "cookout"
and that's something they're wrong about.

(Spoken outro:)
BBQ is not a verb, BBQ is not a grill
BBQ is meat prepared in a very special way
Which varies depending on where you go

Answered by Callithumpian

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Turning a cast-iron grill into a smoker

Question

I have a Char-broil gas cast iron grill. This is one of the style where the flame is under cast iron pans filled with lava rocks rather than cooking the food directly. Works great for when you don't want to bother with charcoal. But I digress.

My question is: I think this type of grill would make an excellent smoker, and has anyone tried doing so before?

• were you able to keep it at the right temperature? How?
• how much wood chips did you use? Did you soak them?
• did you try to seal it to keep the smoke in? again, how?

Asked by FuzzyChef

Answer

You can use a gas grill for smoking and indirect cooking. Run the burner on one side of the grill, and place the food on the other. Wrap wood chips in foil, poke a few holes in it, and place the foil pack over the active burner. You can soak the chips if you like. I've never seen much point in that, myself. The water evaporates rather quickly, and you're back with dry chips. Better to limit the oxygen supply to the wood so it will smolder, and place the smoke pack somewhere so that it does not have too much heat applied to it.

It absolutely does matter what kind of wood you use. Avoid soft and sap-laden woods like pine. Stick with hardwoods or fruit woods. Hickory is often paired with pork. Apple and cherry are used ubiquitously. Oak is strong, but imparts an interesting flavor. Mesquite can be too powerful for some people -- I personally use it for grilling, but never for smoking.

Finally, be aware that you are going to have some limitations with your gas grill. It neither holds nor convects heat in the same manner that purpose-built smokers and some charcoal grills do. You are more likely to have hot and cold spots on your grill, so you will need to examine what you are cooking each hour and adjust accordingly if necessary. You will also not get nearly as much smoke to your food, so you will also have to adjust how much wood you use accordingly (though many people make the mistake of too much smoke in their barbecue, so a gas grill's limitation in this regard can be a benefit).

Answered by Sean Hart

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Bagels not rising

Question

I recently made bagels following this recipe, but they didn't pass the "float test" (see step 10). I took them out of the fridge for an hour, put one in a bowl of cold water, and it sunk. I repeated the test a couple times during the next hour, but they still sunk, and they hadn't noticeably increased in size.

Eventually I just went ahead with the boiling and baking. They came out edible, but pretty dense and small.

What are some things that might have gone wrong?

I bought the (instant) yeast within the last couple of weeks, so it should be good. In fact, I used the same package of yeast when making this other bagel recipe, which worked very well.

I did have to add a little extra water to the dough, since it was very dry. Could that be part of the problem?

Asked by JW.

Answer

Yes, a very dense dough will not be able to rise. The gases will not have the strength to push the hard dough apart. There are types of bagels which are supposed to be quite dense, but American bagels are seldom made this way. This recipe is quite low hydrated at 52%, so even small errors can push it into problematic territory.

Individually packaged instant yeast keeps for a very long time. Big packs keep well if refrigerated after opening. Your yeast is not likely to be the problem. There are three possible problems you may have encountered:

• You measured your dry ingredients by volume, not weight
• You used the wrong type of flour
• The recipe gives an insufficient amount of time

Measuring Ingredients

I suspect that you probably measured by volume. This is the most common mistake which leads to a wrong dough consistency. You should measure by weight because measuring by volume is not precise enough: depending on your technique and on the humidity in your pantry, you can have up to 50% measuring error. The recipe gives you a weight; use it. If you find a recipe which doesn't give you a weight, consider changing the recipe - the best sources always use weight. If you insist on using a recipe specified in volume units, use a converter and measure everything in weight. This ensures that you use the ratio given in the recipe and eliminates technique errors on your part. If the recipe author didn't make technique errors while creating the recipe, you will get the right output. (For example, Corriher calculates her recipes by weight ratio, but she lists them in volume because her readers prefer it that way. If you convert back by the factor she gives, you will never be wrong). If you absolutely must measure by volume, then pour your flour into the measuring cup and level it by shaking. Never scoop flour. Still, prepare for botched doughs from time to time, even with pouring.

Flour Type

The second likely reason is the wrong type of flour. Or maybe not "wrong" per se, but different from what the author had in mind. In different regions, flour labeled as "bread flour" has different amounts of gluten. If in doubt, look at your nutrition label; it should be around 12% for bread flour. If it's not, adjust the amount of water slightly (you have to go by feel here).

Timing

The time given in the recipe is also shady. At 4.5 g dry yeast and 453g flour, it is equivalent to 3% fresh yeast (even less if you overmeasured the flour). This is a good percentage for a slow, long rise. But saying to ferment it in the fridge "for at least one hour" is nonsense. This amount of yeast needs more than an hour at room temperature, or something like 6 hours in the fridge, even for a rich wet dough - probably more for the lean dense one. If you only kept it for an hour before shaping, you didn't have any primary rise. Next time, just go by volume. Primary fermentation should double the dough volume. The change in volume in secondary fermentation depends on the process, and I don't remember the correct one for bagels.

Bottom line: your diagnosis sounds very likely - not enough fermentation for the amount of flour. Measure correctly, and allow enough time for fermentation, to get your bread right.

Answered by rumtscho

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Safe to eat mac 'n' cheese the next day? [closed]

Question

Possible Duplicate:
How long can I store a food in the pantry, refrigerator, or freezer?

I've made mac and cheese. If I put it in the fridge (not freezer) in the original baking dish, covered with aluminum foil, will it be safe to eat the next day?

Is there a better way to store it for a day (better than covering with foil)?

Asked by Krzysztof Kowalczyk

Answer

Make sure your fridge is cold enough You need to make sure your fridge is cold enough otherwise food poisoning bacteria will still be able to grow. Your fridge should be between 0ºC and 5ºC.

If you’re not sure how the temperature setting or dial works on your fridge, you could use a fridge thermometer to check it’s the right temperature.

Here are a few other fridge tips that you might find useful:

keep the fridge door closed as much as possible
wait for food to cool down before you put it in the fridge
if your fridge is full, turn the temperature down to help keep it cold enough

Cool leftovers as quickly as possible (ideally within one to two hours) and then store them in the fridge. Eat any leftovers within two days, except for cooked rice, which you should eat within one day to help avoid food poisoning.

Answered by scottishpink

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My tea bags are expired, can I still use them?

Question

What do you think?

Asked by TheX

Answer

Tea bags will be fine for at least a year in the pantry, but even long after that, they're still safe to consume. They just might change colour or flavour.

If your tea has an expiration date then it's just for best quality, not safety. I've personally found tea bags sitting at the back of the pantry that were more than 3 years old, the packaging had even started to fade, and the tea was still fine. I just had to steep it for a little longer.

Answered by Aaronut

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What should I do if power goes out while I am baking cake/cookies?

Question

If I am baking cake or cookies in the oven and I lose power, what should I do?

Does it make to sense to leave the cake/cookies in the oven until the power comes back on, or should I take them out?

When/why would I need to leave them in the oven vs. take them out?

Asked by Anisha Kaul

Answer

Removing things from the oven halfway through is not very friendly to baked goods. In general, they'll collapse as they cool off since the structure isn't cooked and set, and the leavening (baking soda/powder in these cases) will be spent, so there's no way to get what you originally wanted. It might be something like what'd happen if you forgot the leavening in the first place.

The exception is if they'd only just started - not bubbling much yet, just warm. In that case, you could probably get away with yanking them out quickly, and waiting to bake later.

Cookies could probably survive this by leaving them in, though. They don't have very long baking times - somewhere in the 5-15 minute range. Your oven won't cool off all that much in that time without power. So if you leave them in for a little bit longer than the original baking time, they'll probably be fine. If your oven has a window, look in with a flashlight to check on them - you don't want to open it to check them.

A cake is iffier. If it's 15 minutes into a 45 minute baking time, you may just be out of luck. I think I'd still leave it in, hoping that the power comes back within 5-10 minutes, in which case it'd probably make it. As I mentioned earlier, if you lose power early and for long enough, the cake will have spent its leavening and collapsed. You could finish baking it, but it'll still be collapsed - it probably won't have a terribly palatable texture (definitely dense, maybe chewy).

The only time this has actually happened to me was with some cornbread muffins, around 2/3 of the way through their baking time, and the oven didn't have a window. I wildly guessed how much extra time to add, pulled them out then, and they were great. So there is hope!

Answered by Jefromi

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Can I freeze Parmesan?

Question

I am thinking about buying a larger amount of Parmesan and freeze it for later use. Is this possible? How long can I keep it for? How is the taste/texture affected?

Asked by Sven

Answer

Yes, you can freeze parmesan cheese. Even without freezing, Parmesan is very durable since the low water and high salt content prevents mould from growing. The younger varieties may be more prone to mould growth (having a higher water content), but I've kept ripe Parmesan (30-36 months) for at least a year in the fridge without problems (and it would probably have stayed good much longer). Just remember to keep it e.g. wrapped in paper and not in a sealed plastic container to prevent a buildup of condensed water.

Answered by Tor-Einar Jarnbjo

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How to keep my (deep frying) oil usable as long as possible?

Question

I have a new deep fryer. I am pleased with its results so far. I am not a 'heavy user' though - say once every 2-3 weeks. I want to re-use the oil a couple of times. The deep fryer is covered but not airtight, however.

The new deep fryer has a cold zone, which means the oil won't become dirty due to particles over-frying. I don't overheat the oil either. So, in principle, I'm frying correctly, I think.

So, how long can my oil safely sit in the deep fryer, if I ensure it's thouroughly heated next time I fry? Should I be allowing the oil to cool and store the fat in (sealed) containers instead, if there's going to be this long a gap between uses?

Edit: yes, I've seen this question and answers: http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/3014/frying-oil-reuse

Asked by Tobias Op Den Brouw

Answer

First thing, a cold zone doesn't prevent particulate build up, it just cuts down on the amount that will remain suspended in the oil. You should still filter if you want to keep your oil as long as possible. You can detect bad oil (meaning rancid) by a few ways, like smoke point or smell.
You should store your oil someplace dark and cool, which could be the inside of your fryer as long as you filter and clean the sides before you stick the oil back in. Another thing you can do to extend the life of your oil is switch to tallow (beef fat) or rended pigs fat (lard) as saturated fats do last a lot longer than the poly-unsaturated.

Once again, you should lose the oil when the smoke point drops, or if it is to dark, or if it develops any foul odor. And as I said before, once you use the oil once, you should NOT use it past six months under any circumstances, if you do, you are taking your gastro-intestinal tract into your own hands.

Answered by sarge_smith

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How do I avoid hot fudge turning my ice cream into a soupy mess?

Question

My pregnant wife's cravings have recently turned towards sweets, and this week it is banana splits, with a very specific formula: chocolate ice cream, banana, whipped cream, and hot fudge.

It's not such an extraordinary recipe, I suppose, but the hot fudge is simply not a topping we keep in our house or really have a lot of experience with. So after picking up a jar of hot fudge topping, and zapping it in the microwave, per the instructions, I experienced the obvious result that has presumably been experienced by millions before: hot fudge melts cold ice cream.

Rather quickly, the sundae disintegrated into a soupy mess at the bottom of the bowl, with a rapidly decreasing scoop of ice cream bathing in the pool, and banana bits swimming about. It was not a pretty sight.

What means could I take to mitigate the fudge's effect on the ice cream, or are my wife's hopes and expectations just a dream in the shadow of this bleak reality?

Asked by Ray

Answer

I think isolating the fudge could be a good way to fix this. It might complicate your dish, but it might add both to the presentation as well as to the texture of the ice cream.

Try getting hold of or make your own biscuit rolls (I don't know the name). Fill these up with hot fudge. The biscuit will act as isolation keep the texture of both the ice cream and the fudge. In this way the only time the two will get in contact with each other is when one breaks up the biscuit to eat it.

If biscuits doesn't cut it, chocolate tubes or similar could do the same trick.

Answered by daramarak

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domestic bread steaming -> will my stone be okay?

Question

Trying to maximise the oven rise of my loaf, and think I will try the steaming method, but what is the best way to do this in a domestic electric oven, and will could it damage my bread stone?

Asked by Mild Fuzz

Answer

I would not go ahead and just toss water on the oven floor as this can both damage your oven, as well as lower its temperature.

Instead, I would use a baking pan with some boiling water, put it on the lowest rack. The temperature of the oven will keep the water boiling, and thus releasing steam throughout the baking.

Answered by Magnus Nordlander

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Refrigerate Cod After Cooking

Question

Is it okay to refrigerate Cod (and other kinds of fish) once cooked and eat the next day?

If so, can you reheat it before eating?

Asked by Chris Diver

Answer

Yes, it's fine to refrigerate cooked fish. Many types of fish are excellent (better, even) served cold -- shrimp and salmon are good examples. If you can eat it cold, it's hard to see how reheating would pose any additional risk.

There are some other considerations, though. It's easy to overcook fish, which leaves it dry and less than tender, and that goes double if you're reheating. Use low heat (or low power in a microwave) and be careful not to cook too long. Some sauce will help keep the fish reheat, but avoid storing the fish in a strongly acidic sauce (like lemon juice) as acid will change the fish over time even in the fridge. And avoid reheating fishy things in the microwave at work if you value your relationship with your coworkers -- the smell often lingers.

Answered by Caleb

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Is there a preferred tequila age for Strawberries Por Mi Amante?

Question

I'd like to soak strawberries in tequila for a Por Mi Amante. I'm not concerned about the brand, but I'm curious if there is a flavor difference as a result of soaking in blanco vs reposado vs añejo.

Asked by Ron

Answer

The Cocktailians recommend Reposado: "use the 100% agave stuff, and definitely go for the reposado -- you want something with a little age and character". Paul Clarke quotes cocktail luminary Charles H Baker's recipe from 1939, which is non-specific, but Paul also uses Reposado.

Blanco is likely to be a little too light and easily dominated by the strawberries, a good Añejo is probably overkill, so a decent Reposado fits the bill.

Answered by Paul Wheatley

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My salmon burgers are bland

Question

I just tried to fry a salmon fillet and eat it as a I would a hamburger patty: with bread, cucumber and tomato. No matter my seasoning, I keep finding the taste bland.

What could I do to enhance the taste when it comes to spices and other ingredients?

Asked by Tim N

Answer

I would squeeze a lemon over the fish when it was done, and then make a sauce for it. You can do like an Aioli or flavored mayonnaise, using ingredients such as capers, dill, lemon etc.. whatever you would normally like on regular cooked salmon.

Also, you will find a difference in taste between a farm raised and wild-caught salmon. Wild caught salmon have redder flesh (although some places have started dyeing farmed salmon), and have a much stronger salmon flavor than farm raised salmon.

Answered by Manako

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Where do I buy food additives (not in bulk)?

Question

I occasionally want a pure food additive for various reasons (pure potassium chloride for sports drinks, pure MSG for everything), but I can't find any decent places to get them except amazon.com. Now I'm looking for disodium inosinate, and even Amazon doesn't have that. I expect I'll be looking for weird things like this in the future, so I'm wondering where people buy food additives (besides bulk suppliers).

Asked by Brendan Long

Answer

I'm not sure how helpful I can be but, at least coming from a chemistry lab background, I can say you might run into issues trying to buy food additives in such amount. Things like potassium chloride are easy to get because they have many uses outside of food and aren't really harmful unless you swallow the whole bottle. Many compounds are either obscure, hard to make, or toxic in larger amounts. You can find that many additives are used in very small amounts and if you try and buy them from ie. a chemical supplier they get rather expensive. For example the compound you link to as sold by sigma aldrich (one such supplier) I found here at $32.40 for a lousy 5 grams, and they do not sell to individuals as most chemical suppliers don't.

You will naturally have better luck the more common a given compound is. With that said you might have success on eBay (though naturally be skeptical of anything you buy, especially stuff you're ingesting!). I know I have seen quite a few things on there including food-related such as benzoate salts (preservative), saccharin sodium (artifical sweetener), or food dyes. Don't forget to make sure anything you buy is USP grade (meaning it is certified specifically for food), as I believe that this imposes certain restrictions such as heavy metal content that might not be as restrictive even in "pure" amounts if it's meant for lab use as opposed to general consumption.

Also, you might have success looking up the uses for the additive in question and looking for stores that cater to them. As a rushed example, I found sodium EDTA available from a photography supplier, which I have seen the mixed sodium/calcium salt listed as an ingredient in some items. This really depends on how useful the additive is of course!

Maybe someone else can help you from a different perspective.

Answered by Kryptic

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Can cashews go bad? If so, how do you tell?

Question

We have a tub of cashews that seems "off:" they smell a little different and taste a little different than we're used to.

They don't smell or taste rancid (to us, I don't think I've ever tried cashews that were old enough to possibly be rancid) but I'm wondering if there can be any other type of degredation in them. e.g. I've read that peanuts can get a sort of mold growing on them that's not good for you.

Asked by Ward

Answer

It is possible for mold to form on cashews - or any other nuts - but only if there has been moisture penetration into the container. If the moisture is at a safe (low) level, then mold won't grow.

See for example, Mycology and spoilage of retail cashew nuts, which refers to the maximum acceptable moisture content of 5.8% for retail storage/shipping, although if you look at their data table, it appears that you may still end up with non-trivial amounts of mold in the low 5% range (which is why you are supposed to store nuts sealed and in a cool, dry place).

Honestly, cashews are hard enough such that you would almost certainly see mold on the surface if it were present in harmful quantities. Most likely what you're smelling/tasting is simply oxidation of the fats (the process which causes rancidity) without actual full-blown rancidity. Mold requires moisture but all oxidation requires is light and maybe a little air exposure.

If you really want to be on the safe side - e.g. if your home is particularly hot or humid - then store your nuts in the refrigerator or freezer (sealed, to prevent contamination or off-odours). Although most (all?) nuts are considered shelf-stable, they do keep longer in the fridge or freezer.

Answered by Aaronut

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Whipped cream without a mixer?

Question

Is it possible to make whipped cream without a power mixer? How? Can it be made with a stick blender?

Asked by SarahVV

Answer

Whipped cream was made for centuries before the mixer was invented. :)

You can do it with simply a balloon whisk. Things that may help though:

• Very cold cream (not freezing)
• Very cold bowl and whisk (put them in the freezer for 20 minutes prior to using)
• Copper bowl

The process is simply to start slow until you see bubbles form, then speed up until you see the whisk begin to leave trails in the cream, then go full speed ahead until just before it starts to look soft and billowy. At this point you can add your sugar and continue whipping until thickens and firms up to form soft peaks.

Advice: Buy a hand-mixer at least! :)

Update - Yes you can whip it with a stick blender. I would be careful to avoid over- whipping with this method though. It might be easy to over-do it, and you'll start to make butter.

Answered by hobodave

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What is the purpose of tempering chocolate?

Question

What is the purpose of tempering chocolate? If I'm dipping something in chocolate, can I get by with just melting the chocolate?

Asked by KatieK

Answer

Chocolate is an odd substance when it comes to melting and hardening. When chocolate hardens, its melting point will end up being just a few degrees higher than the hardening temperature.

When chocolate crystallizes at high temperatures, it forms a strong, dense crystalline structure that, texture-wise, is quite brittle. Most bought chocolate (baker's chocolate and chips) is already tempered, but when you melt it, you break down that crystalline structure, and if you harden it at room temperature then it ends up forming very weak crystals that will melt in your hand.

If you use a special coating chocolate (couverture or the lower-quality compound chocolate) then you don't need to worry so much about tempering (although it's still a good idea), but if you use ordinary chocolate and don't temper it then your coating will end up being messy and wet and rub off on your hands while you eat it. It might even melt while stored.

Tempering is the key to making a room-temperature-stable chocolate coating. If you don't do this, you'll need to keep your pastries refrigerated until they're ready to consume.

Answered by Aaronut

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What variety of squash produces “flor de calabaza”?

Question

In Mexico, flor de calabaza is sometimes served on quesadillas, in soups, or in other dishes. The literal translation of flor de calabaza is "flower of pumpkin/zucchini/squash". As calabaza is a rather broad term in Spanish, I don't really know specifically what kind of flower(s) are used for this.

I'm interested in cooking with some of this myself, and am happy to grow the squash plants in my yard, but which type of squash plants shall I grow? Or are various varieties of squash equally suitable for the harvesting of their flowers?

Asked by Flimzy

Answer

They're commonly called squash blossoms in English - as you might guess, this is because it doesn't matter too much what kind of squash they're from. They'll most commonly be from smaller summer squash plants (e.g. zucchini) though, since they produce many small squash instead of a few large squash (like pumpkins), so you can get more blossoms for your trouble.

Answered by Jefromi

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What flavors work well within a splenda-sweetened strawberry-rhubarb cobbler?

Question

Cobbler filling is simple - strawberries, rhubarb, splenda (sucralose) and some orange zest. Are there any other spices or ingredients that would work well with the artificial sweetener and amplify or compliment the flavors?

Asked by RI Swamp Yankee

Answer

The classic flavour pairing with rhubarb is vanilla: rhubarb and vanilla custard is a British staple. Fresh custard (Creme Anglaise, as the French call it) is easy to make and delicious.

Almond also pairs well with rhubarb. You could incorporate ground almonds into the cobbler mix, or perhaps fold some amaretto liqueur into lightly whipped cream to serve with the cobbler.

As Splenda has no real flavour, just a sweet taste, both of these will work with it easily.

Answered by ElendilTheTall

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How much rice should I cook per person?

Question

Prefferably in some "fast" measurements - like cups, spoons, etc. And also how much water should I add to the rice-cooker.

Asked by Tomáš Fejfar

Answer

I usually use 1/4 cup per person for a smallish portion, and 1/3 cup per person if you're a bit hungrier. You'll probably want to check the instructions for your rice cooker to check exactly how much water you should add as different manufacturers vary. I believe the one I used in the past needed an equal quantity of water to rice.

Answered by 1796foods

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how to make indian chilly chicken

Question

how to prepare Chilly Chicken. Its basically an indian recepie. Its my favourite dishes too. Please help me to make chilly chicken.

I ever prefer home based food. So please tell the masala preparation too. Thanks in advance.

Asked by Srivathsan

Answer

chicken 500gram(prefer boneless chicken)
Gram flour 100 gram
corn flour 50gram
garlic ginger paste 1 tbsp
salt
water
curd 1/2cup
lemon 1 tbsp
turmeric powder 1/2 tbsp

combine altogether as above mentioned and make paste apply in the chicken. Make wet for half an hour. Heat the oil in tawa and make a deep fry then chilly chicken is ready serve with sliced onion.

Answered by Nashtav

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How do I prevent smoked brisket from being chewy?

Question

Last night I smoked my first brisket. I used a charcoal smoker which was given to me. I followed the advice given to me by the previous owner coupled with some quick reading from the manual and internet. While my brisket was full of flavor it was a bit chewy, though not dried out. I'm wondering if it is the way I prepared the meat. Here's an outline of the process I used:

• About 5 lbs. of brisket
• No marinade on brisket
• 1 gallon of Apple juice in pan
• Started smoking when about 1/3 of coals were white with ash
• Added soaked alder chips wrapped in tin foil
• Placed brisket on top rack of smoker
• Kept temperature to the left of ideal (advice from previous owner)
• Added more soaked alder chips and charcoal 2 1/2 hrs in
• Cooked for a little over 4 hrs
• Smoker was in sun for first hour

Photo to illustrate what I mean by left of ideal:

Which leads me to my questions:

1. Is brisket generally chewy when smoked?
2. Would a good marinade prevent chewiness?
3. Is there something else wrong in my preparation (cook time, temperature, etc.)?

Asked by ahsteele

Answer

Chewy means undercooked. Most of your standard "barbecue cuts" of meat contain a lot of connective tissue. This must be rendered to achieve tenderness. This goes for brisket, pork butt, and ribs, to name a few. If you are using the words "chewy" or "tough" to describe the texture of your meat, in nearly all cases it has not been cooked enough. Your time/temperature pretty much confirms it.

The best thing you can do is deemphasize time and temperature as your measure of "done." Rather, use a skewer to probe your meat when you think you are getting close. It should slide in and out of the brisket with VERY little resistance. Some people like to wrap in foil a few hours in. This will finish the brisket faster, as you will mitigate the evaporative cooling effect that causes your cooking process to stall. Plus, you can add some liquids and spices to the foil, which adds to the flavor profile of your meat. This is better known as the "Texas Crutch," and there is no shame in using it. Plenty of competitions have been won employing these tactics.

Brisket is a little intimidating because of the small window between "too chewy" and "dry and falling apart." But you should probably err more on the side of the latter, as that can be more easily compensated. The real takeaway here is have patience, and look to the meat itself for clues as to whether or not it is done, rather than using a timer and thermometer.

Answered by Sean Hart

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what's the smoke point of a hybrid oil?

Question

I saw at the store there's a new cooking oil composed of 80% canola oil and 20% olive oil. They offer it for frying and seasoning. What would be the smoke point for such an oil?

Asked by Dan

Answer

It would be the smoking point of the lower of the two oils.

There is a persistent myth among cooks that mixing two fats somehow makes for a better smoke point (usually oil+butter). But the molecules which will burn at 150°C will always burn at 150°C, no matter what other molecules they are mixed with. So, if you mix two oils, and oil X has the lower smoke point wlog, it will smoke at the smoke point of oil X. It will smoke less than pure oil X, but only because you have diluted it and you have less low-temperature-burning molecules in the pan.

This doesn't mean that the smoke point of your mixed oil is too low for frying. The smoke point of cold extracted oils is always low. But it is possible to refine olive oil, even though nobody sells it pure (the advantages of olive oil are removed by refining). If both oils in your hybrid oil are refined, it will have a high smoke point, suitable for frying. But marketing doesn't always care about such details, so, if they don't say anything more specific on the label, you can't know what kind of olive oil (or canola, for that matter) they used. From a cynical point of view, this is a perfect way to get low-quality olive oil, refine it, and sell it for frying hoping that the customer will choose the frying oil advertising "olive oil" among its ingredients, but there is no proof that this is what the producer is doing.

Answered by rumtscho

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Why is my sushi rice too sticky?

Question

I'm on a quest of learning how to prepare a more than edible sushi. I figured that with enough practice I can achieve the goal of being able to make sushi. The most important part of sushi as I see it is the rice, and that's where I'm not really sure what I am doing wrong.

Although I'm making progress with the rice, it still comes out wrong, too sticky - ie not brittle enough - after it sticks it very hard to break, becomes a sort of Plasticine.

My question is, what variables should I try to change in order to make it less Plasticine? Cook it less, put less oil, boil it less time, let it steam on low fire more etc... Or more generally put, which parameters influence the texture of the rice and how?

Asked by MeLight

Answer

In general, the stickiness of rice can be reduced by removing some of the starch by pre-soaking and/or washing the rice. For sushi rice, chewiness can be increased by reducing the amount of cooking water.

For what do you use oil? I don't believe that is a traditional ingredient in sushi rice.

Answered by ESultanik

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Salmon patties with cream cheese?

Question

So, I have this jarred salmon here, caught up in Montana in 2010 I believe, cooked (not sure how) and sealed in a mason jar since. I opened the jar yesterday and tried a bit of the salmon on saltines. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it smelled and looked good upon opening the jar, nothing like the canned salmon you find in stores.

Anyway, there's a bunch of salmon left, and I'm not sure how long it will keep, and I don't want to eat it all on crackers. So, I figured I'd make either salmon patties or salmon dip, and, not being completely decided, I picked up ingredients for both.

When I returned home, I realized I only have one egg, not enough to make salmon patties; but now I'm leaning toward the patties, as I'm starting to get pretty hungry and the dip seems like more of a snack.

I'm wondering if there's any chance I could use the cream cheese as a substitute for the eggs, and make the patties that way, but lots of recipe searching has lead nowhere.

Will the cream cheese work as a substitute for eggs as far as doing the work of holding the patties together? Will it cook right? More importantly, will it taste good? Or should I put this idea out of my head and either go buy some more eggs or just make the dip?

Asked by Autophil

Answer

The only thing which can hold patties together is raw protein. Other things can thicken them, but they don't glue them. Egg is the easiest source of raw protein. In theory, you can also use the gluten in flour, but in practice, you will have to make a dough with just a little salmon mixed in it, not lots of salmon with a little flour sprinkled, and this would taste very weird. Cream cheese won't help at all, because all the protein in it (which isn't much) has been cooked/curdled during the process of turning milk to cheese.

But if you say that the only difference between the dip and the patties is cream cheese instead of eggs, why do you say that the dip is a snack and the patties are a full meal? The dip is likely to have more calories, by the way.

Answered by rumtscho

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What is the difference between crepes and Swedish pancakes?

Question

We just made the Swedish recipe this morning, and it seems like crepes...

Asked by Trey Jackson

Answer

I'd say the difference, at least to Swedish people, is that crepes is more of a non-sweet main dish. If it's rolled up and filled with meat/vegetables/fish/mushrooms, and possibly with the addition of cheese on top of the rolls; the "Swedish pancake" turns into a crepe.

To Swedes, "pancakes" are exclusively had with sweet toppings such as jam, sugar, cream, ice-cream etc. Thus, it is often had as a dessert, or as a side-dish traditionally accompanied with yellow pea and pork soup.

So where the French would put any kind of toppings on their crepes, having it as a main dish or a snack, Swedes would traditionally put sweet toppings on their pancakes, calling it "crepe" only if it is prepared as a main dish and filled with non-sweet stuff;

Answered by Lars Andren

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What is the secret to baking bread with a very fine crumb?

Question

I've noticed bread purchased from the local baker always has a very fine crumb. How is this achieved??

Asked by Jachin

Answer

A couple of things will help give you smaller holes:

1. Keep the hydration reasonably low (say, 60% with American-style bread flour).
2. Use some oil or butter. Try 10% (baker's ratio).
3. Knead very well, something like 10–15 minutes in a stand mixer.
4. After the first rise, normally you try to be gentle, and not press out all the air. Don't. Instead, press it out.
5. Bake in a moderate (say, 350°F) oven. You don't particularly want much oven spring here.

For even finer texture, part way through the second rise, you can press it out again, and let it start a third rise (but not to double).

Also, adding some whole wheat or rye flour will give a denser crumb. With different flavor, too, of course.

Answered by derobert

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Vermouth for use in Drinks - can I freeze it?

Question

I have a well stocked bar at home so from time to time I mix some drinks. Many popular drinks list Vermouth (e.g. Noilly Prat) as an ingredient. Basically, Vermouth can be compared to a special kind of wine as it also produced from wine. This is where the trouble starts: As soon as you open a bottle Vermouth for the first time, you have to store it in a fridge and after 2-3 weeks have to throw the bottle away because you can't use it anymore. So to really empty the bottle, you have to drink a lot.

This is a common problem for many people and there are many ideas for solutions (spraying some protective gas into the bottle, filling many smaller bottles, sucking the air out of the bottle, writing to companies and asking for miniature bottles...) but none of them really works. Now I just had another idea: Can I just fill an ice cube form with Vermouth and put it in the freezer and then just take out the amount I need? Or will it loose it's flavor due to the freezing process?

Asked by Sven

Answer

Water freezes at 0° C (or 32° F), but ethanol freezes at -114° C, so you can guess your vermouth with freeze somewhere in between those two temperatures.

Noilly Prat is 18% ABV, or 15% alcohol by weight, which means it would freeze at around -6° C to -7° C, or 19-21° F. Your freezer may or may not be tuned to be that cold, but if not, you should be able to crank it a bit and get your Noilly Prat just frozen.

That said, I would not really recommend leaving an ice cube tray full of vermouth hanging out in your freezer. You may notice that old ice tastes funny. Even though you may not notice your freezer smelling, that's partly because the cold blocks smells. Just because you don't notice them doesn't mean the odors aren't there to ruin your Noilly Prat. I would recommend leaving them for a day until just frozen (covered if you like), and then moving them to a ziplock for long term storage.

Answered by Ray

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Homemade Golden Ginger Ale

Question

I recently made some homemade ginger ale. It was good, but it really tasted more like ginger beer. I was hoping for a flavor that tasted a bit more like golden ginger ale, sort of like Red Rock. It has a strong ginger flavor and a bite. What could I add (or how much more ginger should I add) to or what should I change in homemade ginger ale to get this "bite" and stronger ginger flavor?

Asked by jandjorgensen

Answer

If you want a stronger flavor, and more bite, add more ginger. I make a dark, spicy ginger beer. I do not use yeast, but rather force carbonate. I don't know the exact quantities of ingredients used, I just make to taste each time.

Below is my ingredient list:

• Fresh grated ginger
• Peppercorns
• Molasses
• Cane sugar
• Fresh squeezed lemon (added after the mixture has cooled)

Molasses: Give the brew a thicker taste and darker caramel color, leave it out if you want it milder.

Ginger: Fresh ginger is key, don't use the powdered stuff. The more ginger you add, the spicier and more bitter it will be. You may need to increase the sugar content a bit too.

Lemon: This adds a nice zing.

Peppercorns: It may sound a little bit odd, but the peppercorns go very nicely with the ginger and lemon. Just add these to taste when you throw in the ginger.

I've also experimented with different types of sugars like Maple Syrup and Palm Sugar. Those each impart different flavors and may be worth trying too.

Answered by rhooligan

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How do I cook beetroot

Question

I've just pulled some beetroot out of my garden.

I've never cooked beetroot before so would love a few suggestions.

Asked by Stacey Richards

Answer

Basically you boil them or roast them until tender, then let them cool and peel them. It is better not to cut or peel them before cooking, they will bleed lots of color and flavor. Some classic things to do with them: puree into a soup called borscht, slice them in a salad (particularly nice with goat cheese), serve as a roasted vegetable like you would a potato or turnip. They especially love dairy products with a little tang such as sour cream, feta cheese, yogurt and so forth.

Answered by Michael at Herbivoracious

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Should I delay adding barley when making vegetable barley soup?

Question

When adding barley to a soup (usually with some combination of vegetables), should I add the barley later than the rest of the ingredients?

Asked by clueless

Answer

It depends on how long the soup cooks for and whether you soak the barley or not. If the soup is going to cook for a couple of hours, you can just add unsoaked barley with everything else. Or you can soak the barley and add it towards the end of cooking.

If the soup is going to be cooked relatively quickly, you should soak the barley and add it with everything else. Soaked barley (soaked for a couple of hours) needs to be cooked for about 30 minutes.

It also depends on how soft you like the barley to be. Some people like it to near-disintegrate, some prefer it a little al dente.

Answered by ElendilTheTall

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Are strawberries really dyed?

Question

I stopped by a farm stand last weekend, and found the strawberries were rather pale looking. I commented on this, and the farmer assured me that this was no worry, and that furthermore I should be wary of bright red strawberries. His claim was that bright red strawberries at the supermarket are in fact dyed that color.

Is it common practice to dye berries? Is it even legal? Is this something one would normally expect to find at a grocery store, or is a technique used elsewhere (say, commercially, or in restaurants?) Or is this guy just trying to convince me to buy his product?

Asked by Ray

Answer

Strawberries turn a natural red color in their ripening process. This is usually a very strong, ruby-red color. Rest assured, strawberries in the US are not dyed. FDA clearly lists all adulteration done to fruits (oranges can be dyed), but strawberries only has a regulation of when the product is considered moldy, etc. Note that even though dyed strawberries may not be sold in US, they may be exported in countries that permit it ( fruit intended for export is exempt).

Rest of the world is a different story. It wouldn't be uncommon for you to find strawberries that are picked too early in the process, or are just grown in poor conditions that are dyed red to give it the luscious red appearance. There have been anecdotal reports of this in China - this color comes right off when washed, showing a white strawberry. Strawberries do leech a red fluid when washed, but that shouldn't result in a white strawberry.

Answered by Swati

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Is it safe to store hot tea in PET bottles?

Question

Every morning I bring with me a small PETE (from some searches it seems to be the same as PET plastic) bottle (an ex coke bottle) containing hot tea.

1. Is it safe to store hot liquids, especially, tea in this type of container?
2. Is possible, under these conditions, that the bottle releases some harmful substances?

Thanks in advance.

Asked by iRubens

Answer

Live and learn, I was writing about PET causing cancer, but that's a hoax, apparently.

Some plastics can stand heat better than others, so try to be on the safe side, and let the liquid cool to 50°C (122°F) before storing it.

No, it won't release any harmful substances.

Answered by BaffledCook

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How to prevent watery spaghetti squash

Question

I've tried using spaghetti squash as a substitute for pasta a few times, but every time I do the dish ends up really watery.

I've been roasting the split squash for about 45 min in the oven, then scraping out the flesh and then mixing it with my sauce. When I first shred the flesh it's definitely moist and steamy, but it doesn't seem to be overly wet. A few minutes after I've added it to the pan with my sauce however, it renders off what seems like a cup or two of water.

Most recently I've even tried wringing out the strands in a clean towel over the sink before mixing it. That did seem to help, but it still watered down the sauce way too much for my taste.

Has anyone else encountered this issue? Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to prevent it?

Asked by Mike Deck

Answer

One simple change you could make is to simply not mix the squash with the sauce, instead, plate the squash and then pour sauce over the top, the sauce will cool quicker which will reduce the amount that the squash cooks past the point you decided that it was ready.

If the squash still cooks too much on the plate, try starting your sauce earlier and letting it cool so it's warm but not scalding when served.

I wouldn't recommend just taking the squash out before it's done and letting it finish in the sauce, since as it's cooking, it releases water, which would be lost in the oven, but would thin the sauce if it's cooking in the sauce pan.

If you need mix it with the sauce before serving, let the sauce cool to the point where it won't cook the squash further before doing so.

Answered by Theodore Murdock

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What mammals' milks are drunk by humans?

Question

I'd like to make an exhaustive list of the various animals whose milk humans drink. Here's the ones I can think of:

• human
• cow
• goat
• sheep
• camel
• yak
• buffalo

Any others? If so, where?

Asked by n/a

Answer

Add to this answer... Who and where, what it tastes like, how it differs, how it's used in cooking...

Human

Where: Worldwide
Uses: Nursing

Cow

Where: Most popular in the western world, used worldwide.
Uses: All dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt, etc.)

Goat

Where: Particularly popular in France, common across Europe, used worldwide today.
Uses: Primarily cheese

Sheep

Where: Across Europe
Uses: Primarily cheese

Camel

Where: Middle East

Yak

Where: South East Asia
Uses: Cheese and butter; localized dairy products such as dahi, paneer

Buffalo

Where: Primarily Europe, esp. Italy
Uses: Primarily cheese (mozzarella)

Horse

Where: Mongolia

Answered by n/a

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Is curry ketchup just ketchup with curry powder?

Question

We use both tomato ketchup and curry ketchup as condiments in Belgium. On the curry ketchup label, amongst other ingredients is "curry (1%)".

So I tried adding curry powder to regular ketchup to see whether I could end up with curry ketchup, but I think the taste was off. The colour was close though.

I know "curry powder" is a spice mix that can differ, but is curry ketchup really just ketchup with curry powder added? Or do they mean a bit of a real curry (the dish)? Or are there other differences? Is it possible to make curry ketchup with regular ketchup?

Asked by Mien

Answer

I suppose the Belgian "curry ketchup" is similar to the German varieties and no, they are usually not only seasoned with curry powder, but also other spices. There is no standard seasoning mix for curry ketchup, but common additional spices are ginger, black pepper, paprika, cayenne or other chili powders. I also think that some brands contain onions.

The brownisher colour of curry ketchup is mostly because of the turmeric in the curry powder, so just adding the powder to regular ketchup will get you a colour match even without the additional spices or ingredients.

Answered by Tor-Einar Jarnbjo

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How do tomatillos differ in taste from under-ripe tomatoes?

Question

I can't get access to tomatillos, but I would like to know what they taste like.

This helped me a bit, but it's not entirely clear to me what would be different between tomatillos and under-ripe tomatoes.

Or are tomatillos closer to something else?

Asked by Mien

Answer

Under-ripe tomatoes definitely seem to me like they weren't exactly meant to be eaten like that. There are certainly still things one can do with them, but the flavor isn't always what you'd like (see tastefive's comment); they were selected for their characteristics when ripe. Tomatillos, on the other hand, have always been used like this. They're supposed to be tart and bright green (unless they're a differently-colored variety). I think tastefive was pretty on-target with the mention of lemon juice; they have a nice bright tartness to them but definitely no bitterness. They're quite pleasant to eat fresh, if you're the kind of person who likes tomatoes and fruit. (I just ate one to make sure I wasn't lying to you.)

A much bigger difference, though, isn't taste: tomatillos aren't really juicy. You can slice and dice all you want and your cutting board will still be dry. This is pretty clear from pictures - here's one I found with Google image search:

This makes them very well-suited for the kinds of Mexican sauces they're traditionally used in, more so than a green tomato would be.

Answered by Jefromi

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What's the difference between fajitas, enchiladas and tacos?

Question

I'm not familiar with Mexican cuisine, but I enjoyed the things I've eaten so far. To me, they are all quite similar. Is there a real difference between fajitas, enchiladas and tacos?

The taco is perhaps most distinguishable, because of the hard shell, but I've seen pictures of soft tortillas as well. But fajitas and enchiladas are both rolled up meat + veggies + sauce in tortillas, no?

I've checked some websites and pictures, but I can't find a good criterion.

Is there a real difference? If so, what is it?

Asked by Mien

Answer

Enchiladas are normally shredded meat and/or cheese rolled in corn tortillas, covered in red (or green) enchilada sauce and cheese, and then baked.

Fajitas are normally strips of meat either grilled or sauteed (often with onions and peppers). They can be used in tacos, burritos, or served on their own or with tortillas on the side (corn or flour depending on preference).

Tacos can be either hard or soft shelled and are usually meat (shredded, ground, grilled etc) with some sort of cold veggies (like lettuce, raw onions, pico de gallo, etc) and perhaps cheese etc.

Answered by djmadscribbler

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Is it possible to have a good crust without prebaking a quiche?

Question

I'm planning on making a quiche (Lorraine with leek to be exact) and I was looking up recipes for quiches. Most recipes call for blind-baking the crust in advance (or at least partly), but some skip this step and pour the filling in the raw dough and bake it like that.

I think blind-baking would prevent the dough from getting soggy since the filling is quite liquid. The other recipes look nice (judging on the picture), but won't the dough be soggy? Or should you put the temperature lower and the time higher so the liquid can evaporate?

Does it matter whether you blind-bake your crust for a quiche? Or does it mainly depend on the type of dough (puff, shortcrust...)? Or on the amount of liquid or type of veggie/meat (precooked)? Any other factors that I don't think of?

Asked by Mien

Answer

In the normal cooking time of a quiche (20 to 30 minutes), the crust doesn't really get soggy from the filling, even if it is quite liquid, as is expected for quiche Lorraine. So, you can without problem cook your quiche without first blind-baking the crust. The difference will be in the crispness of the crust: if you try to get it crispy, you should prebake, if you don't mind it being rather, well, “plain”, you don't.

The only real reason for me to blind-bake a crust is when you put something on it that won't be cooked (tartelettes), that will only get grilled or that will be baked less that it would require to bake the crust (meringue tart). Most of these examples are fruit tarts, however.

Answered by F'x

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