I wouldn't eat it.

The usual guideline is that food shouldn't spend more than 2 hours in the "danger zone," i.e. the temperature range in which bacteria can grow -- 40-140°F. It sounds like your pork may have spent a lot more than 2 hours in this range, so you should toss it.

It may hurt to toss $30 worth of meat, and it's possible that nobody will get sick from eating this pork. But if someone does get sick, you (and they) will certainly wish that you had thrown the pork away. And if they get very sick, they may require a trip to the doctor or even the hospital, and that'll cost a whole lot more than $30.


Is this a true? You should use garlic with pork and ginger with beef and never vice versa?

Whether or not it's a good idea is subjective, but the Chinese seem to break that rule a lot!  For example, Northeastern Chinese sweet and sour pork (guō bāo ròu) is characterized by an intense ginger flavor.  The Sichuan classic twice cooked pork (huí guō ròu) calls for boiling the pork with ginger.  A common condiment for beef dishes/sauces is black bean garlic paste (蒜蓉豆豉酱).  Perhaps this saying is associated with a specific Chinese regional cuisine?


What is the shelf-life for Homemade Jams?

All home-canned food should be used within a year. This assumes you follow the strict sterilization regimen required by jarring/canning at home. You should also store them in a cool, dark, dry place between 50-70°F.

Over time changes in color, flavor, and texture is inevitable. This will result in a degradation of quality in the product, but as long as the seal is in tact and there are no visible signs of mold or yeast the jam should be safe to eat.

Another thing to note is that lighter colored jams tend to darken faster than others and thus may not look appealing over the course of a full year. They are still "safe" though.

Source:

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/questions/FAQ_jellied.html#7


Do you have to drain all the sugar water from water kefir regularly?

Technically, you can.

The advantage of cleaning is that you can start with the right amounts of kefir, water, sugar and whatever you add. If you are aiming for a certain taste, starting from scratch makes it easier to match again.

If you don't, there won't be a problem (at first), but as time goes by the chances of contaminations in the residual water will grow. Those contaminations can affect the grains.


I agree the original instructions are unclear, but "return the beef and bacon to [the casserole]" implies that the "beef and bacon" includes the other ingredients cooked in the casserole - the onion and carrot. Sometimes recipes refer to mixtures by their predominant ingredients, and this recipe seems to do this, albeit a little vaguely.

Looking at similar techniques, while onion could be used to impart flavor and then removed, there isn't really a good reason to add carrot if it will be removed later. Unless browned, carrots don't tend to add much flavor after removed.

The instructions also say, "Pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan." This would include the sliced carrots and onions, and sliced vegetables should be large enough so as to not pass through a sieve, so it shouldn't be much of a hassle to separate them from the sauce.

Here is where I found the recipe online.


How to substitute canned Apricots with fresh when cooking

If the apricots are just a topping or mix-in, you might actually like it better with fresh than with canned, no need to change anything. Won't be the same, but that's not a bad thing! If they were supposed to have been canned with syrup, you'd want to add sugar to compensate.

If it seems like it's important for them to be a little softened, then you could cook them briefly in water, to do basically what canning does to them. (There's no need to actually can them in order to get that effect.) Something like 30 seconds to a couple minutes in boiling water, depending how soft you want them, and you can always add sugar afterwards to get them to the sweetness you want.

As an in-between option, you could also macerate them: toss them with sugar and let them sit for a while. That'll soften them and draw a lot of the juices out.


How do I stabilize a lecithin-based foam?

I'd look into:

contaminants
the container you use
lecithin ratio
(air) moisture
inert gas use (which implies a different technique.

This link on foams to the food science pages at edinformatics looks good. Perhaps it can help you out further.


How do you saute anchovies in a flavor base?

You can both chop or not chop the anchovies.

I do not: I just crush them in the pan, and thus do not have to clean up anchovy oil from my cutting board.

I usually use anchovies like that in combination with garlic or onion, so the heat is never high enough to burn anything.  If your anchovies get burnt, lower the heat.


How do I know if water in supermarket's seafood tank is salty enough?

There are several ways to measure water salinity (water salt content), most are impractical for that situation. A very effective and quick way to measure salinity to use a salinity meter, these are small electronic devices which measure the conductivity of the water. You just dip it in the water and take a reading. More salt = more conductivity.

These can be bought at many pet stores that sell salt water aquarium equipment and fish. Good ones aren't super cheap, expect to pay about 100USD. There are super cheap ones on the market but they generally don't work very well.

Keep in mind salinity is only one factor, there's the purity of the water, oxygen content, temperature and other factors you need to consider as well. Before they are put into the tanks how were the shellfish collected and treated during transport?

The fact is even if you check the salinity and it is good (I'd be surprised if it wasn't) the other factors make it impossible for you to know how good the shellfish is. This is why tax money goes into food safety inspectors - so you can shop with confidence. Look at the food safety rating of the store or chain, see if there's any reputation based ratings from customers and base your choice on that.


Lovage is used like parsley, not like bay leaf. Just season with the fresh leaves, minced or roughly chopped, towards the end of cooking.

As for an amount, I can't give you that much guidance. It is a strong-smelling herb, so use it more sparingly than parsley or mint. You can always add more if you don't find it enough.


How long should I bake a whole sweet potato for?

There is no real difference in the timing - a good hour, hour and a quarter in a hot oven does the trick.


Absolutely!

"Regular" or springform pans is in my experience partly a cultural difference: In Germany you might have trouble to find a non-springform pan.

As long as the diameter is the same, you can freely substitute one for the other.

There is one exception, though: Most springform pans aren't watertight, so for a cheesecake in a water bath, you should either choose a regular pan (and face the trouble with unmolding) or see here for how to tighten them.


Look around in the areas with the South Asian community (Pakistani/Indian/Bangladeshi) to find ethnic stores for specialty spices.

Whatever recipe you use, reduce the ingredients proportionately like you would for any other recipe.

The only reason for a large pot is to make it easier to mix the rice and gravy after it's cooked. If you don't have a large pot available, you can use a wide pan (of adequate height) with a lid. Avoid using narrow stock pots. It will be difficult to mix the rice up in a small pot without breaking the rice.

--- Edit:

You can even find boxed spice mixes in the ethnic stores to save the pain of buying individual spices. You can find these on Amazon as well.


Ok, this is going to be a long post, so patience, please.

Ratios and gluten
Your dough has a pretty mainstream ingredient list, meaning average hydration and a rather high yeast content. Whith the whole wheat you could go a notch wetter, but that is a question for another day.
As you are not using any slow-raise / stretch-and-fold method, you need to develop your gluten by mechanical kneading. A few minutes in a machine sounds like the minimum of time, not like overkneading. Go by the appearance of the dough: It should go from lumpy to homogenous to very smooth, or at least mostly so if your whole wheat is very coarse. (How to handle this would be another question.) Only after that stage would you get to "overknead" and the dough tears. An overkneaded dough would have serious trouble rising at all, because the glutem strands are torn and can't hold the CO2.
Timing
I'm actually surprised that your dough is even willing and able to rise after a six hour first raise. My gut feeling, reading your ratios and with regard to the fact that you put the bowl in warm water, would be one hour maximum for the first rise. Whether such a fast rise is desirable is again another question. The general rule with yeast is to use visual clues, not a timer. Unless your recipe states otherwise, go for

first raise = double volume.

As I am currently baking, let me share a few photos:

(Please ignore the bad quality, I had originally snapped the first photo only as visual reminder for me...)

This is also true for the second rise:

Ideally you want to bake your bread when it's slightly underproofed to maximize oven spring. Oven spring is not only a funny show to watch, but it means a light and fluffy loaf.

If you greatly exceed raising times, two things will happen: First, your yeast will be "spent", loosing the ability to "lift" your dough, second, the gluten structure that you created while kneading, can weaken, causing the dough to fall flat.
Tension
When shaping your loaf, you want to keep the gas bubbles mainly intact. This does not mean that you can't touch the dough, just that you shouldn't knead in the sense of "mixing thoroughly" (there are exceptions).
What you do want, though, is a taut surface of your loaf: Just like with a balloon, this will help your loaf to expand in all directions instead of flowing outwards. You are not destroing gluten here, but actually using it.

There are many techniques, most are either based on a round "ball" which can then be pushed into a longish loaf, if desired, or start with a "roulade" of dough. The latter is typically used for baguette.

For a boule (round loaf):

First fold the dough towards the middle or slightly off-center (above: after three folds) until the surface (= the underside) of the loaf is taut. Then turn it over and rotate the loaf a few times on a non-floured surface, pressing the edges "down and under" with the edge of your hand.

For a baguette:

First gently flatten the dough in a somewhat rectangular shape. Pull the far end up and push hard with all ten fingers down to seal. Repeat until all dough is rolled up. Hold your thumb parallel to the long axis and pull the dough over your thumb towards you. Work your way along the loaf, creating mainly crosswise tension. Roll gently to smooth out and shape the edges.

Normally I use this only for real baguette, which is way thinner than the loaf here, but for the sake of a better explanation, I used the "baguette technique".
Tools
Note that I am using two different bannetons here - basically because I have them and because I can maneuver the loaves easily. If you look at the photos of the second proofing, you will notice that the loaves are quite "stable" per se. For (softer) baguette, a couche or, in a pinch, a floured linnen towel helps keeping them in shape. Place the baguettes between raised folds like I did with these breakfast buns:


From the image, they look like jelly beans (or in Serbian, dželi bins) to me, based on the size, colour (including the slightly mottled pattern which tends to indicate better-quality jelly beans) and shine. The comment 'inside is a mystery' sounds to me like a clear reference to the fact that jelly beans often come in a variety of flavours, and it's not always easy to tell from the colour what the flavour will be.
The more general culinary term (although it's not a common one) for confectionery with a hard decorative outer shell is a dragée. The 'stones' in the video could be sugared almonds, although they look too small in my opinion, or something like coated raisins or other nuts.


Why are there no recipes combining both yeast and baking powder?

The existing answers already explain why yeast and baking powder won't work together. But even if they did, you wouldn't have a reason to use them.

You seem to think that fluffiness depends on the amount of gas produced by the leaveners. In fact, it depends on both the gas and the ability of the dough to trap that gas. If you produce too much gas (no matter whether through yeast or through baking powder), then the fluffiness will be less than when using the optimal amount of leavener. This happens because your dough cannot hold the gas and the bubbles break, resulting in the dough deflating like a punctured tire. So even if combining two leaveners would have resulted in more "blowing big" action (which it doesn't, see the other answers), you would not end up with a fluffier end product. If you want fluffy muffins, you have to use a recipe and a technique which is best capable of retaining the gas produced by the baking powder. The amount of gas production is not a bottleneck.


Why do yolks break so easily (sometimes)?

Yes, the freshness is the factor. In the US eggs are sold in three grades: AA, A, and B (rare). The grading is based primarily on age. AA are the freshest, and B the oldest.

Here is a diagram depicting the internals of an egg:

The characteristics of the freshest eggs are:

A large thick albumen (white)
A small thin albumen
A sturdy thick chalaze
A small air space
A sturdy round yolk when lying flat

As the egg ages the following things happen:

Thick albumen breaks down, getting smaller
Thin albumen gets larger
Chalazae degrades getting thinner and weaker
Air space increases
Yolk membrane weakens, when cracked it lies flatter
Embryo may become visible as a red speck

As a result of the weakening membrane the yolk is indeed easier to break. Michael's suggestion to use your fingers to separate the eggs is spot on. The edge of an egg shell is a little too risky for reliable separation of eggs.


Dude you said you have cast iron. Cast iron rules. And it performs very well in the oven. No contest against glass and you can make pan sauce on the stove-top after the roasting is finished. My favorite pan to make roast chicken with is my 12" Lodge cast iron skillet. Glass is probably better at roasting than cheap cookie style sheets, because it keeps the heat distribution fairly smooth. But glass will not hold up well to heavy roasting use and will eventually ruin your dinner when it cracks or shatters. All Clad makes a great roasting pan with wire rack. But for most roasting a simple cast iron skillet works well and is indestructible.


Why did my banana catch fire in the microwave?

It's caused by the high amount of potassium in the banana. Microwaves react with metals, bouncing off and cause arcing. You can even create a cool light show by putting a raw peeled banana in the microwave. Don't worry, it won't explode, but it will make a mess, it's also harmless.

This can also happen in some frozen vegetables depending on the soil conditions they grew in. As noted in the linked article, other high concentrations of metals such as magnesium, iron, and zinc can be the responsible mineral.

Momentary brief sparking is harmless and won't harm your microwave, but the USDA recommends turning off your microwave if you see sparks nonetheless. If it does start a fire, unless it's a very small fire, do not open your microwave door. The safest thing is to turn off the microwave and let the fire burn itself out by consuming all the oxygen. Opening the door could create a dangerous backdraft induced fireball.

See Also:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/1697458/USDA-Microwave-Ovens-and-Food-Safety
http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/specif/veglegmicroe.shtml


Adjusting yeast and rise times in recipes

It is definitely possible. However, there are many, many factors that are going to guide yeast activity: sugar levels, water temperature, gluten development, etc. If I can, I normally cut back the yeast and just keep an eye on my dough, the less yeast, the more the flavor can develop.


What kind of flour keeps bread dough from sticking in a proofing basket?

Regular old flour works -bread or all-purose or even cake- but the dough had best be proofed away from too much moisture, ie no steam. Use an overly generous amount sifted onto the basket and with each success reduce a bit til you find a happy place.

Even spongy rye masses have come out in one piece with a jiggle-jiggle here and a hop hop tip. Think of that as walking the dough out instead of inverting.

Bits may stick but only minor flesh-wounds. Let basket dry and scrape clean.

If the problem is related to brand-new basket, may need to search for some 'seasoning' tips first.


When should I press garlic and when should I chop it?

That is actually quite controversial in its own way. If you are going to use a garlic press, you should cut the root end off the clove (you can do that a bulb at a time if desired) and give the individual cloves a bit of a crush with the side of a big knife before you press them. If you do that and you have a good garlic press, you can then just pluck the paper from the press to be ready for the next clove. That's fine, if pressed garlic is actually what you want.

Garlic is funny this way. It all depends upon how fussy you want to be. Pressing is about the least "perfect" way to prepare garlic for anything, but it pretty much works for everything. Many people find pressing to be the most convenient way to deal with garlic. If you press garlic you get fresh garlic juice and smudged garlic paste. For almost anything that is adequate.

If you desire for more than adequate, the kind of superlative awesomeness that Michelin Star judges look for and your little brother would never notice, then you need to break out the knife skills. Slicing, mincing, smearing, crushing, and even pressing give different results, even if those differences are barely apparent to us mere mortals.

I don't think ginger should ever be pressed, and I would not say that pressing is an always adequate technique like I would say for garlic. The best methods for ginger are to grate with a microplane or a ginger grater, to finely dice, to do it in volume with a food processor and then keep in the fridge or freeze in single use aliquots, or to roast and use in big chunks. You might find it helpful to know that you can freeze the whole hand of ginger. Frozen, you can use a microplane and the paper will just drift out of your way.

I'm not aware of anything else for which a press of the garlic press type could be of any use.


It seems that everything went well and your chocolate is tempered after all.

High quality chocolate has no other fat but cocoa butter, and couverture has much more cocoa butter than a chocolate bar. This is what it gives it the "snappy" feeling when bitten, and what makes it melt in the mouth (and in your fingers) instantly. The cocoa butter in tempered chocolate has a melting point of about 32 Celsius, 5 degrees lower than the human body, and you can't hold it in your fingers for long.

If you don't want this to happen, you will have to use something else. Cheap baking chocolate should be a good substitute - it also has a very high fat content, but it uses vegetable fat, not cocoa butter, and it is harder and less melty. Bar chocolate can work as well, but depending on which one you choose it will either have too much non-fat solids, or added fat of the wrong (soft) type. Depending on where you live, it can also be waxy - that is common for example in the USA.

Distempered chocolate is grainy, sandy, and has bloom (a dirty white powdery covering). As long as you don't have them, your chocolate is fine, no matter which kind you took.


How can I make low sodium (140mg or less per serving) pancakes / waffles?

Reduce or leave out the salt.  It is not essential to the chemistry of the recipe.  I will not speculate on salt substitutes, as that is a health and medical issue, off topic for this site.

The pancakes will then not taste as good, but that is unavoidable.  Perhaps you can serve them with a highly flavorful accompaniment, like a reduced peach chutney or similar, to make the entire dish more interesting.

Not sure what kind of advice you expected.

Edit:  Based on the discussion of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) usually used in pancakes:   as Kate Gregory points out, there may be alternate chemical leaveners.

Another possibility is to use mechanical leavening, by beating the eggs, fat, and any sugar well until they reach the ribbon stage (probably more than necessary, per Harold McGee, but still a clear indication); at this point they will have the maximum amount of air incorporated.   This batter cannot be held, but it should rise reasonably well, even without baking powder.

There are also recipes that use whipped egg whites to leaven pancakes, but they produce a different, fluffier product that may be called Fluffy Pancakes or Swedish Pancakes depending on the recipe.


Fork left in microwave, hole in microwave wall

First off, what is the hole in? Is it just a hole in the plastic interior, or is a hole clean through the metal shielding? If you're confident it's just the plastic, that should be fine - that's not part of what's keeping it safe.

If it's actually a hole through the metal, then the power transmitted is roughly proportional to (d/λ)^4, that is, the fourth power of the ratio of diameter to wavelength. (See this question on physics, with more details found on another question there. That proportionality is from a simplified version of the problem, but it should be an okay approximation.)

With a 12.2cm microwave wavelength, using a 12.2cm hole as the baseline, 0.01% as much leaks through a 1.2cm hole, 0.1% through a 2.1cm hole, 1% through a 3.8cm hole, and 10% though a 6.7cm hole. And the full power of the microwave is 750-1500W, so the absolute worst case power leaked through those holes is .15W, 1.5W, 15W, and 150W. So for holes less than 1cm (leaking at most .15W) you should not have to worry. A 2cm hole (leaking at most 1.5W) also would likely be safe, since the energy shouldn't be too focused, but that's the range where I'd start getting nervous.


What does the egg white do in peppermint creams?

Well, the sugar and lemon can act as stabilizers to the egg whites. It would help stiffen up the cream and allow it to be more spreadable. So to answer your question, the egg white is actually what's making the creamy texture, with the help of some other things. You could also substitute cream of tartar which is the acidic bi-product from wine making instead of the lemon.


Why is chorizo spice-mix rarely sold in stores?

There are multiple brands of chorizo spice mix available commercially: Spice House, Savory Spice, sausage maker supply, etc.  Google a little.

Further, if you go to a grocery store with a good selection of Mexican food, you'll probably find some mixes there from Latin suppliers who don't have web sites.  Maybe not, though; all of those spices are standard staples for Mexican cooks, so they wouldn't see the need for a mix.

My recommendation, though, is that you make your own spice mix so that you can balance out the heat/garlic/sweet spices the way you like it.


What is this paste I got from boiling down coconut "whey"?

"Coconut Sugar" is actually made from the sap of the plant, not the nut. Basically, you made a type of "coconut whey paste".  Since it lacked the fiber and most of the oils it was viscous and sticky.  Also, since it included "milk" from the "testa" (Peel of the coconut) it was sour.

So you reduced the whey down to its: solids + sugar + some testa.  As I said sugar is made from the sap of the tree so I don't know of anyone who has found a use for what you have created.  I would be very curious what you end up with if you peel the coconut before the process.  I would bet it wouldn't be as sour.

With a little more work you are well on your way to a "Coconut Protein Bar" recipe! lol

References:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11746-014-2447-9
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272590676_Composition_of_Coconut_Testa_Coconut_Kernel_and_its_Oil
https://foodcomas.com/2013/03/20/kerisik-coconut-paste/
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/coconut-sugar


Drying fruits with a household dehydrator

It is possible to dry fruit with a household machine.

How long it takes will depend on the relative humidity. When I lived in Texas, drying would take 24 hours- sometimes more. Now that I'm in a high altitude desert drying is sometimes done in less than 6 hours.

At very high humidity fruit may get moldy or just too oxidized before it is able to dry. A unit with a heater will help a lot with this.
After the fruit is dried, keep it in an air tight container to keep it from absorbing water from the air and molding.

If you find your unit just isn't able to move enough air you can try Alton Brown's method and bungee cord an AC filter to a box fan and put it in your window. That will move a lot of air and dry things relatively quickly.

Keep in mind that home dried fruit can be dissimilar to purchased dried fruit. For example, apricots are treated with sulphur to preserve their orange color but it affects the flavor. Home dried apricots are darker and not as soft but have better flavor.

It's also possible that your bananas are too ripe.
Bananas are dried when they are only barely ripe- or slightly under ripe. Ripe bananas have so much sugar that they stay chewy and sticky for a long time. On the plus side they have a lot more flavor than commercial banana chips.
Recipes for banana chips will sometimes call for just ripe bananas and toss them in acid to keep them from browning.

If your bananas are still sticky they are definitely not done and will mold if you store them very long. Try giving it a good 24 hours. If that still isn't enough then either your machine isn't moving enough air or the air is too humid.


To make a long answer short, if you are using it once a week, then don't bother storing the egg mixture. The egg wash is definitely not safe after a week even if you store it in an air type container in the refrigerator.

If however you are using just egg whites, you can lightly beat half of it and use that and freeze the other unbeaten half in the freezer.

But to be honest... There are worse things to waste than half an egg a week. I think this is a case of not being worth the effort.


What is the shelf life of unground coffee beans?

Coffee beans will retain their essential oils and flavor compounds longest if stored in a dry, dark, airtight container.  Refrigeration and freezing are therefore not desirable options since they will almost always cause moisture to form on the surface of the beans.

Note that for the first couple weeks after the coffee has been roasted it will naturally release a lot of carbon dioxide, so the airtight container must have some sort of one-way vent valve to let the gas out.  Therefore, the pre-sealed coffee bags that are now ubiquitous in stores are ideal since they have a built-in one-way valve.  There are also some vacuum container devices specifically designed for storing coffee beans that have a small pump to pump out the air once or twice a day.

Once the beans are roasted, their essential flavor compounds immediately start to degrade.  Therefore, do not buy beans unless you know their roasting date.  If stored in ideal conditions, the beans should remain in peak condition for at most one month.


Which is a better option for making dosa batter. Indian mixie or US blender?

You can buy Indian style
Mixie's in the USA. What I found was Preethi brand. They sell for what looks like between $150-$250USD. From the description of the appliance, they are spice grinders in addition to being mixers, so a blender may not be quite a proper substitute, however we do have a lot of blenders, food processors and standup mixers to choose from, so you may eventually have a full set of Kitchen appliances up to the task, but I think you will either want to bring your mixie or buy a new mixie when you get here if you want an appliance that does exactly what the mixie does.

I may even have to buy one now.


Trick to getting a sauce to stick to chicken?

There are essentially two methods to get what you want, and you can use them separately or together:

Saturated Fat

Butter and other saturated fats (i.e. bacon fat or even chicken fat) will do wonders to "bind" sauces to chicken.  Among other reasons, it's partly because saturated fat is solid at room temperature and still fairly viscous at moderately higher temperatures.

In fact, traditional "wing sauce" is invariably some combination of hot sauce and butter.  The butter helps cut the spiciness and also helps keep the sauce attached to the meat.

Dry Heat

I use this technique for ribs far more often than chicken, but the idea here is to make the sauce into a glaze by reducing it.

Set your oven to broil and apply a thin coat of sauce to the meat; make sure you cover it completely but don't glob it on.  Now put the meat on a rack beneath the broiler and wait until you see the sauce starting to bubble (should be no more than 1-2 minutes if you've applied enough sauce and your oven is hot enough).  Then take it out of the oven.  Repeat several times until you've got a thick, sticky coat of sauce (usually around 5 times for me).

Note that if the sauce is very thick (i.e. a store-bought BBQ sauce) then you'll actually want to water it down a bit first.

For chicken I honestly prefer to just throw in some butter, but you can use either technique as long as the meat isn't too lean.


As a fermented bean paste, it should last for weeks in an airtight container in the fridge. For best results, make sure to leave as little head room (for air) as possible in the container.

To be honest, when I store Miso (for example), I just squeeze the air out and put a clip on the bag it came in, and then leave it in the fridge.

If you need longer storage than several weeks, you can probably freeze it, though at that point you might want to consider buying smaller packages.


Gluten-free alternatives to beurre manie/roux for thickening sauce?

Oh, have I got the answer for you. Xanthan gum. Here is an excellent article by two of my favorite bloggers on how to get started using it. Xanthan gum is easy to find at health food stores because gluten-free bakers use it extensively.


Is the scum skimming really necessary in pho broth?

It is not necessary in the sense that if you like the finished product then why do the extra work? That said, the scum that you get from boiling bones/meat isn't really the good stuff. The good stuff is soluble flavor compounds that wind up incorporated into the (liquid) broth.

Recipes from test kitchen folks (Cook Illustrated and Serious Eats) usually call for ONE skim. These usually go

Add meat/bones and boil for 15-30 minutes.
Skim.
Add spices and carry on with rest of recipe.

I can't vouch for how pho restaurants do it but in my experience one skim after the initial boil does the trick (and isn't too fussy).


Looking fine isnt enough to tell you that it is safe.
The bare minimum process time in the pressure canner for pints is 20 minutes (25 minutes for quarts). if you only processed for 10 minutes that you timed and an unknown length of time before that then I'm not sure if anyone can reliably tell you if it is safe or not.

To be perfectly safe as well as confident in your assumption of safety then it would probably be best to just reprocess according to the times in the tables from the link below.
http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_04/beans_snap_italian.html

edit: I noticed that you said pressure cook and not pressure can at the end of your question. There is a difference between pressure cookers and pressure canners and a cooker is usually not sufficient as a canner. Make sure that what you are using is actually a canner - some manufacturers incorrectly label their cookers as cooker/canners.
There is more detailed information at the links below:

Why pressure cookers are not sufficient for canning: http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/nchfp/factsheets/pressurecookers.html

More information on using pressure canners:
http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/general/recomm_canners.html

(links are okay here... right?)


Is it normal for collard greens to be red?

No, that is not normal for collards. Enlarging the picture, the discoloration looks to be a brownish-red. Those leaves look to be very old and quite possibly have been frozen (while still in the field), especially the one on the right. I would be tossing those.


Under ideal circumstances, how easily should raw chicken cut when using a sharp knife?

If you're picking up a pre-packed chicken in a supermarket, there will be information you cannot access or use - the variety of bird, its age, its diet etc, so what you are left with is a simple rule-set.

The bigger it is, the tougher it is.

Take chicken breast...
A single chicken breast of 150g should be tender. One at 300g won't be. So, avoid the bulk packs that appear to be better value; also check the breast is whole & hasn't been trimmed to look like a smaller one than the bird it came from.

Also avoid the supermarket's sneaky trick - "Mini-fillets"
These look like very small whole breast pieces so your first impression would be that they ought to be tender. In actual fact they have been torn out of the centre of much larger breasts & are often tough as old boots.


Why use 2 types of flour in this Hooters Hot Wings copycat recipe?

This recipe is dusting the wings, so the structure of the coating is formed from starch in the flour.  There is little gluten formation.

In this case, one of the two flours is whole wheat flour, which would be very non-traditional in a deep-fry coating.  I can only conclude that the recipe author desires the whole wheat flavor, or that they feel there is some nutritional or other benefit to using whole wheat flour.

It would be far more normal to use 100% all purpose flour, and that is likely to work in the recipe just as well, if not better.  For example, Food.com has a similar imitation recipe which uses only regular flour.

The reverse, 100% whole wheat flour might work, but would have even more whole wheat flavor.     There is some risk that the bran in the whole wheat flour will also add a strange texture to the coating, but I suspect this is less likely to be a contributing factor.  I infer that the recipe author balanced the ratio to his or her taste.

In the end, I would go with a traditional recipe that uses only regular flour if I wanted a coated wing, but that is just me.


That was bad advice. If you're not par-boiling the potatoes they will need at least 40 minutes, but to be honest you are much better off par-boiling.

Pre-heat the oven as before and place a roasting tin in to pre-heat as well.

Cut the potatoes as before, then place them in a large pan of salted water, bring it to the boil, and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain the pan and place it back on the heat for a little while to drive off the moisture in the pan and on the potatoes.

Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and drizzle generously with oil. Season well (you can add spices, smoked paprika is great), mix through, then place in the hot roasting tray and roast for 30-35 minutes.

The boiling process begins to cook and soften the potatoes, and then the dry heat of the oven carries on cooking them while also crisping the outside.


Scalloped potatoes and oven fried pork copsihave scl

Potatoes are forgiving; they can bake longer.

the temperature difference between 425 and 450 is not big, i would expect them to take about the same time.

To be on the safe side, I would put the potatoes 15 minutes before the pork and bake them up nicely and take them out when they are ready.

curious what is "ocean fried pork chops" ? I assume it's a typo for "oven fried pork chops" ?


Simulating the discontinued Lawry's Roasted Garlic Salt?

We know that:

1.1g contains 13% of the daily value of sodium which according to the FDA is < 2400mg/day so 320 mg checks out correctly.
The total weight of the entire container is 201 g and the amount of servings is 183, so that checks out as well. (183 * 1.1)
The ingredients are in order of weight:

salt
sugar
modified corn starch
roasted garlic
spices (including oregano and basil)
natural flavor
extractives  [sic] of carrots

and that means the content of salt is highest, then sugar, then starch, ... until the carrot extract.
Salt is NaCl and 1 teaspoon weighs 10.7g so 1/4 teaspoon weighs 2.7g, not the 1.1g that the container displays, so the other ingredients must be lighter to come to a weight of 1.1g for the overall mixture
1 teaspoon of sugar weighs 3.95g
1 teaspoon of corn starch weighs 2.77g
1ml of garlic flakes weighs 0.35g, so 1 teaspoon weighs 0.07g
1ml of BBQ spices weighs 0.48g, so 1 teaspoon weighs 0.1g

"Natural flavor" and "carrot extract"  are really hard to find and are the ingredients with the least amount of weight in this recipe so I'll leave them out of this for the moment.

If we would mix 5 teaspoons of the above ingredients we'd come to a total of 0.8795g, which is too low so let's increase the cheapest and heaviest ingredient:

1.4 teaspoons of salt + 1 teaspoon sugar + 1 teaspoon of corn starch + 1 teaspoon of garlic +1 of spices is 1.09 g

That leaves you to play with 0.01g of natural flavor and carrot extract to get it just right, but the above should be 99% correct.


What is the difference between St Louis ribs, Memphis ribs, and Kansas City ribs?

There may be some local namings, but normally a St. Louis trim rib is a spare rib with the flap removed (tougher meat) and trimmed to a more uniform size to get a more even cook, especially over a long slow cook.

KC and Memphis ribs, along with Carolina and other regions, normally would not refer to a trim, rather they would tend to refer to cooking and spicing styles.  KC, Memphis, Carolina, Texas, etc. tend to all be known for regional preferences in preparing the ribs.  This tends to include things like:

Do the ribs tend to be smoked, and if yes, how strong?
Do the ribs tend to be wet (with a sauce) or dry (just a spice rub)?
Does any sauce tend to use brown sugar, molasses, or vinegar?
Does spicing tend more to the hot or sweet side?

You will find variations of all of these in every region, but the tendency towards favoring one style or another tends to be associated with a region.  Those style differences tend to also apply to more than just ribs and will include what meats tend to be more common and how they are served.

For instance, for me at least, Memphis BBQ will tend to mean pork.  Ribs yes, but especially pulled pork.  Typically it would be cooked dry with sauce served on the side or added after cooking.  The sauce would tend to be on the thin side, often with at least some vinegar, though less than Carolina, and with some heat.  KC BBQ would include a lot more chicken and beef, especially brisket, but lots of ribs.  It would use a sweeter, thicker sauce with either brown sugar or molasses, and usually the meat would be at least finished wet.


Flourless cookies form "skin" that seals in moisture

Unless you are salting (or sugaring) your cabbage first then draining and patting dry, baking will release more liquid than the egg whites can bind.

Recipe could use something absorbent


How to get a brown/burned texture on cornbread?

Most likely you just need to turn up the heat a bit. Moving the rack higher might help too.

It's a little hard to say without actually measuring your oven, but that kind of thing can happen if your oven's just a bit cooler than it claims to be. So it'll take a little longer than the recipe says to bake, but the lower temperature means it won't brown as nicely. Turning up the heat will get more browning done by the time the center's done.


How do I remove turmeric stains from metal/plastic cookware?

For hard, chemical-resistant surfaces such as marble, bleach or peroxide cleaners will help.  On things like counters, pots and pans, a Magic Eraser will often take off the stain.  Sometimes a harsher abrasive like Comet or Barkeep's Friend will be needed.

Softer or porous materials, including cloth and many plastics often CANNOT BE UNSTAINED.  In my kitchen we treat turmeric like a dangerous chemical -- isolate, contain, and plan ahead to limit exposure.  It's just that destructive.

You might as well tie-dye or bleach white any clothing you get turmeric on; it India it is used as a dye for saris because it will semi-permanently tint cloth.  You can brush off the dry powder harmessly, but when it is moistened and allowed to sit for a moment, the color is pretty much permanent.

Edit: UV+peroxide: I saw a patent for removing turmeric stains from upholstery using UV light and hydrogen peroxide.  You might try soaking fabrics in peroxide or Oxyclean (which uses peroxide) and leaving then out in the sun. Can't hurt right?

Edit: strategies to manage turmeric without making a mess

Plan ahead where you'll use it, and which utensils and vessels will hold it, so you don't mess up anything you don't need to.
Re-use already turmeric-stained items so you don't wreck anything new
Mortars and pestles, tupperware, wooden and soft plastic utensils are a lost cause.  At least the stain is purely cosmetic?
ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS wear an apron.
Keep spilt powder dry (it won't stain) and brush it off with a paper towel into the garbage.  Brushing away promptly keeps you from inadvertently spilling liquid on it, or wiping it with a wet towel during cleanup.  That is, unless you want a neon-green counter and towel?
Whenever you spill something containing turmeric, promptly wipe it off, to reduce staining.
Hard ceramic and porcelain are immune to staining unless the surface is rough. Try to use these for storage.  Glass will stain. Stainless steel is resistant but not immune.

With these strategies, I find I can use turmeric regularly without problems.


Will adding lemon juice to non-wheat pastas make them starchier?

I'm not a chemist but I'm pretty sure it has to do with the things that happen to starches in general. In particular, the chemistry isn't about the wheat gluten, it's about starch. Thus, if you feel your quinoa pasta is coming out too gummy or mushy on the outside, you might try it. (If your pasta is already mushy or gummy, how much worse could it get?)

I use vinegar in pasta water with Barilla Plus, which has a lot of wheat but also other stuff, and it causes no problems. I will also say that with really good pasta like that it's a little hard to tell the difference. I have a box of fancy Italian super-starchy pasta that I should try it on.

edit — whoa I just re-read the last line of your question, and now I'm confused. "Keep it starchy"?  No, that's not what acid does. The intent is to keep the pasta "pasta-like" in the water; to make sure that the outer layers of the pasta don't get "waterlogged" before they firm up from the heat. Is that what you mean by "keep it starchy"?


The question though is how cold? And you've missed the chance to measure that. If it felt cold then the chances of it having spent significant amounts of time above a safe temperature are low (given your description).

In a commercial situation you'd have to discard it (in any set of rules I've come across), but at home you can make a judgement call which may not be the same.


Every recipe I looked up said pretty much the same thing. You have to make sure that the melted chocolate does not touch any water or steam, otherwise the chocolate will seize up.

Recipe: "Melt white chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, in the microwave by heating on high for 1 minute, stir with a metal spoon then heat for bursts of 30 seconds stirring in between bursts until melted. Make sure that anything that touches the chocolate (bowl, spoon etc) is really dry otherwise the chocolate will seize up (so don't use a wooden spoon coz the wood may have moisture in it!)"

Recipe: "Melt the chocolate in a bowl placed over a pot of gently simmering water. Don’t let water or steam come into contact with the chocolate as the chocolate will seize. Stir until melted."

I found this recipe (with butter and syrup) and it uses chips instead of the normal chocolate: "Before you make your shopping list, please note that there are three measures of white chocolate - I used white chocolate melts for the top because they are whiter and easier to melt than normal white chocolate, which can seize up if you don't treat if very gently"

There are many more similar recipes and all of them mention the water not touching chocolate bit to avoid seizing.


Flavour matching with espresso in baking

Diane,

You may want to consider flavors that are existing compliments to coffee.  Think of the many syrups that are available at your local coffeehouse.  Things that easily come to mind are chopped hazelnuts or almonds, caramel frosting/icing, cinnamon and nutmeg as spices, chocolate chips or cherries.


It depends what you mean by "on their way out". If they are just starting to develop a slimy sheen, cook them as soon as possible - much more than that and you'll want to throw them away.

In this state they should be OK to slice into sauces like bolognese.

You could cut them into a very fine dice and gently fry in butter. The resulting delicious black mush is a good omelette filling, or you can refrigerate/freeze it to use later as an umami additive for sauces.


What is a reasonable temperature for slow cooked beef spareribs?

I wasn't intending to answer my own question, but there were no replies and so I went ahead with 24 hours at oven set to 80˚C (internal temperature is 74˚C which is lower than what I was expecting.

There is a little bit of water in the pan and the ribs are snugly wrapped in foil. They were rubbed in sugar, salt, smoked paprika, allspice and oregano/rosemary.


When boiling water without any other ingredients in it, why start from cold?

There have been plumbing systems in which the hot water was likely to have dissolved more [toxic|unsightly|unpleasant-tasting] material from the pipe walls or joints than the cold. In particular any system that uses lead-based solder, can leach minute{*}, but detectable amounts of lead into the drinking water, and the hot water is more efficient at this.

In this case that advice amounts to "use the clean water".

{*} Really minute. Like "Use this water all you life and not suffer any ill-effects" minute. But it can be detected, and who wants to chug down a glass of lead solution...


Milk is mostly water.  Instant coffee will dissolve just fine in milk or even cream.

Of course, flavour-wise it's going to be more like a weak latte than coffee.  That's essentially what a latte is - coffee and milk.


What do I have to worry about when using a stainless steel pan as opposed to nonstick?

Food will easily stick if you're not careful.

That seems a little obvious and facetious, but it is a separate concern than cast iron vs. nonstick. With cast iron, a good seasoning reduces sticking; you just have to be careful to maintain it. There's no comparable treatment for a stainless pan (the closest thing is, well, a non-stick coating) and so you are almost inevitably going to get some adhesion, especially when cooking proteins.

This is not always a bad thing. A pan sauce, for example, requires some degree of sticking so that you can deglaze the pan and utilize the good stuff in the fond. Many proteins will also "release" once the outer layer is well-seared, and be easier to remove without sticking, assuming you can let them go that long without overcooking as a whole. You must generally take care to use enough fat, and you'll likely have trouble no matter what with delicate fish, eggs, and thinner cuts of meat (keep your non-stick pan around for those). I also recommend finding a decently thick pan with good heft, as a very thin bottom layer won't diffuse the heat of the burner as well and produce hotter/colder spots on the cooking surface; this can cause problems with inconsistent sticking and release.

Stainless can also develop a sort of "haze" on the bottom of the pan pretty quickly, which seems to be a mineral buildup of some kind. It doesn't really affect the performance of the pan, and it's easily cleaned off, but it can mar the shiny beauty of nice stainless.


What chemical processes occur in tea that spoil it after some time?

A rainbowy layer is almost certainly oil. (This is called thin-film diffraction.) Earl Grey uses oil of bergamot for flavoring, and likely cheap teas you've used have oil-based flavorings as well. It's not surprising that the oil eventually separates, and there's not really any way to avoid that without significantly modifying the tea, or using tea that doesn't have quite so much oil.

I would definitely expect the flavor to be stale after it's left for a while - aromatic compounds are by nature volatile, and they'll slowly escape. You might be able to prevent some loss of flavor by putting the tea in something airtight (preferably a completely full container, so there's not even air on the surface) and chilling it, but it's going to be a losing battle. You said the color was stale as well; I don't know exactly what processes would cause that, but in general, the only way you're going to be able to slow down any chemical processes is by chilling the tea.

In the end, the real answer is simply that it's best to drink fresh tea. Your time would probably be better spent getting to where you can make it quickly - for example, get an electric kettle that can rapidly boil a single cup worth of water.


The purpose of covering anything is to retain moisture as steam in the pan, instead of letting it evaporate away. So, using a pan that has a tight cover allows you to control the amount of moisture in the resulting cooked food.

Because you're cooking vegetables along with your pork roast, being able to cover the pan for at least part of the cooking time, can be helpful because it will allow the vegetables to steam, so they won't get dried out.

If you leave the cover on for the entire period, you'll steam the meat — it will cook, but it won't be as appealing. Start out with the oven preheated to a high temperature (at least 450F or so), and with just the roast in the pan, uncovered, just until the outside begins to brown. For a small or medium roast, this should be no more than about 15 to 25 minutes, and you may wish to turn the roast once or twice during this period.

Now add your vegetables, cover the pan, and turn the oven down to a slow temperature (285-315F). In addition to your potatoes and carrots, you may wish to add some chopped onion, celery, and/or green pepper. Those vegetables will release lots of moisture (especially if you add salt), and along with the meat, create a nice broth so your other vegetables won't dry out.

Cooked slowly along with the vegetables, the roast will be very tender and flavorful. It may take an hour or more, depending of course, on the size and shape of the roast. A meat thermometer is the best way to determine when the roast is cooked. For pork, the coolest temperature in the center should be 170F (77C), but take it out a couple degrees lower because it will still cook a bit after coming out of the oven.


Whats the cooking method called where you bury the raw food in hot charcoal ashes?

This is just traditional fire cooking, now called camp-fire cooking, or (US) cowboy cooking

Any Scout should know how to do this :-)

It works best using food with tough outer skins, or wrapped in a sacrificial coverings, or more modernly using aluminium foil, or a cast iron pot (dutch oven)

Some common foods examples:

Potato and other Tubers

You lose about 5 mm (including unpeeled skin) to the fire. If you wrap in Aluminium foil the loss is often nil. Wash and soak tuber well before cooking, but do not cut into the skin, even to remove imperfections or 'eyes'. Takes about 30 to 60 minutes to cook depending on coal heat. If not eating immediately, do not leave potatoes in foil wrapping. Unwrap and let surface dry

Corn

Do not remove husk. Soak corn before cooking. It takes about 10 to 20 minutes to cook depending on coal heat

Cabbage

Wash and soak cabbage. Drain excess water. Do not remove any dead leaves etc. Poke a knife halfway into the core from the top and pour in a little water (and meat fat for extra go). Can take up to 1 hour to fully cook

Meat

Large slabs work best. Reduce flesh loss by wrapping in edible leaves. If you don't like the charred bits, you can use Aluminium foil, or better yet a dutch oven. Time depends on mass and done-ness desired

Small goods like sausage (real meat and fat, not sawdust please) will have up to 5 mm of flesh loss, but are still fun to do.

Fish

Gut fish, but otherwise leave intact. Fish cooks relatively fast, time depends on mass. Pull sides apart and eat flesh directly off the skin and bone. If using a foil pouch you can add aromatics, raw sugar, and spices to make some amazing meals

Fruit

Keep bananas in skin, make a couple of small cuts to let steam escape. Cooks in 10 to 15 minutes

Unpeeled and un-cored apples cook in 15 to 20 minutes (you can eat the core, it's good for you)


It appears that you made some type of lemon extract, as opposed to a lemon oil. Probably good, but not lemon oil.   There are two ways I know of to infuse flavor into oil.  Both involve starting with oil...either a neutral oil or an olive oil.  First is to heat the oil with the desired flavor product, thus extracting the flavor into the oil.  The other, does not require heat and, therefore, protects the quality of the oil (such as with an olive oil that my be destroyed by heat).  That is to use an isi-type whipping canister.  Here is the process: http://www.starchefs.com/product_education/iSi/whipper/html/recipe-lemon-infused-extra-virgin-olive-oil-dave-arnold.shtml


What causes the green ring between yolk and white when hardboiling an egg?

This is caused by overcooking the egg. The green color is a result of overheating causing the iron and sulfur compounds in the egg to express. You can prevent it by gently boiling the egg, and plunging it into an ice bath when it is done. This stops the carry-over heat from continuing to cook the egg.


Can you preserve canned kidney beans so that they still have their shape?

Beans freeze marvelously. I put mine in freezer bags and lay them flat so they freeze quickly and are easier to thaw.

They are very sturdy little nuggets of joy and hold up well to canning or freezing without getting mushy.

Different beans behave differently. Pintos soften quickly and don't have much of a skin. Black beans keep their shape and skin a lot longer. Kidney beans are in the middle- if you boil them too long they will mash but they are a lot sturdier than pintos.


What is the ratio of baking soda to water for lentils?

None. I have recently discovered that lentils do not require to be soaked prior cooking - and nor baking soda. I have already detailed this in an answer but I am not sure how to find it and link to it. I try and I will edit this.

Another point is that the producers recipes were all clear about this : they recommend a minimal amount of salt in the cooking water, the rest to be added /adjusted afterwards. If there is an unwanted effect related to sodium, it might apply to baking soda as well.


Pretzel sticks sound promising! The normal sized ones aren't quite 10-15cm, but there are longer ones out there. You could also look for Pocky or some other kind of cookie stick - sometimes things like that are sold as edible coffee stirrers (maybe coated with chocolate).

If you can't find any of that, it should all be easy enough to make yourself; pretty much any crispy cracker or cookie, rolled out into thin sticks instead of its normal shape, should get you started.


Can cheap vodka be used for cooking (with good results)?

Cheaper spirits can certainly be used in culinary applications. The results won't be identical, but inexpensive liquors are a lot more cost-effective since the subtle differences in flavor between middling and quality spirits tend to get masked by other flavors. This is especially true when you're applying heat, which will burn off much of the alcohol (though not all) and change some of the volatile flavor compounds in the spirit. For things like a tomato sauce made with wine, a pan sauce deglazed with brandy, or a dessert flambeed with rum, the difference between bottom-shelf and high-end product will be evident only in the cost.

Poor-quality vodka will have some "rough" flavors if you're drinking it straight, and those might carry over into the liqueur in particular. Chilling will help, so you probably won't notice much difference in your borscht, and once you bake the liqueur into something I doubt any flavor difference will be noticeable in the final product. As a rule of thumb, the more you manipulate the spirit, the less you'll notice its provenance.

I can say confidently that using free, leftover plonk in a culinary application will be a much better use than drinking it!


Yes.  The Cooks Thesaurus.

Some entries are more extensive than others -- for instance, the eggs entry gives different substitutions depending on what you're using the eggs for.

They're great for the 'I'm out of (x)' or 'I can't find (x) in my area'.

Where they're more likely to fail is the case of restrictive diets -- like if you're specifically looking for a gluten free or vegan alternative to something.  But in those cases, it's often better to do a recipe search for "gluten free" + (name of dish) as the substitution may involve a change in technique or other dramatic modification of the recipe.


The cookingforengineers site has a nice ingredient plus method layout. I use a similar format for my personal recipes


Does chopping vegetables remove vitamins?

This phenomenon affects fruits much worse than vegetables actually. The FDA published a report that cut or peeled fruits will lose half their vitamin C content in 1-2 weeks. Over 10-25% of this loss will occur in fruits in only 5 days.

For vegetables there exists a similar, albeit less pronounced effect. When cut the flesh inside of the vegetable is exposed to oxygen and the protection provided by the peel or covering is lost.

That being said, the process of these vegetables losing nutrients is not an immediate one. Realistically the loss that occurs between you cutting the vegetables and placing them in a salad is probably distinctly minimal. I wouldn't worry too much about the nutrient loss as long as you aren't cutting the vegetables and then storing them for a long period of time.

See: http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/cutveg.htm


What is the maximum temperature at which cream will still whip successfully?

The ideal temperature for whipping cream is between 35 degrees F and 50 degrees F (1 2/3 degrees C to 10 degrees C).  In order to maintain this temperature, you may want to chill your bowl and beaters in your fridge until cold, but you should be able to whip cream just fine as long as you do not let it rest once you remove it from the fridge.

Above 50 degrees F (10 degrees C) you won't be able to whip your cream.


which mixer should I use to grind idli batter in USA?

If you really want smooth idly batter, you need to use a Wet Grinder, like an Elgi.  The rotary grinding stone action of these produces a much smoother, stickier batter than any blender can.  They're also good for making chocolate.


Can swamp eels be used for unagi like American or Japanese eels?

Despite the name, swamp eels are not true eels, and hence they are unrelated to the Japanese eel (unagi).  As far as I can tell they are also unknown in Japan and not used for food there.

That said, the Japanese kabayaki style of cooking most commonly associated with eels is also applied to any number of long, skinny, fishy creatures.  So I'd say give it a shot, and tell us how it went!


Try discarding one cup of liquid, and add one cup of water; reduce until desired. Taste the result, and if it is still too lemony, repeat the process until it is to your liking.

Some unsalted butter after the reduction may also help.


What will the coriander, cumin and paradise add to the lentil soup and can I do without the paradise?

Coriander, toasted cumin and grains of paradise all are spices.

Grains of paradise being the more uncommon spice is similar to black peppercorn and was historically used as a substitute.

They play the role of what spices commonly do which is flavor your lentil soup. Without it, it will just taste different than the recipe intended.

If you cannot easily get a hold of grains of paradise then just use ground black pepper as a substitute.


Commercial thawing cabinets alternate between gentle heat and refrigeration. The operating manual for the Williams OT1 lists the heating cycle being +2°C/36°F and cooling cycle -1°C/30°F.


Depending on exactly the recipe you are using it in, I'd either go for a meaty white fish such as Cod, haddock, or the cheaper fish like pollock.

You may also be able to get away with something like mackerel, which isn't as white and chunky but is much cheaper.

You should be able to get all of these in a UK supermarket.

You could also try a fishmonger (either in the Supermarket or independent) - ask them what you could use instead.


I never thought anyone would have me going out and looking up the ingredients in Dole Whip! Anyway, here goes.. Dole whip looks to be a mixture of sugar, coconut oil (the fat content), maltodextrin (for mouth feel, thickness), the fruit flavorings, and gum stabilizers, which will help keep the fat in suspension, preventing the cream from splitting as it melts.

If made according to instructions, it will be as creamy as they want it to be. The trouble is, if you make adjustments to make it as creamy as you want it to be, you may wind up compensating for the other ways in which you have thrown the flavor, feel, freezing point, stability. By the time you've done that, you may as well be starting from scratch.

So why not start from scratch? You'll find recipes out there for anything from sorbets, which have virtually no fat, and are not really creamy at all, through gelati, which are less cream-based, more fruit/nut based, to Cornish dairy, made with clotted cream!


The pouring of water over the tea adds oxygen, which stirs up tannic acid in the tea and causes it to foam. Stirring vigorously also adds air, leading to foam from the tannic acid.


How do I cook and hold pasta for 200 people?

The common method would be to cook the pasta in advance, then shock it in cold water to stop the cooking before draining and refrigerating it.  You would then heat it up in boiling water for about 20 seconds just to heat it through.

You would just need a portable burner to keep a pot of water boiling for service.

On the other hand, 20 pounds of pasta for 200 people is a portion size of only about 1.5 ounces per person.   That is a very, very small portion, less than side-dish sized.

For side dishes, 2 ounces of pasta is more typical.   If you are serving it as a main dish, 4-5 ounces would be more typical.

(Weights are for dry pasta.)


Can a good cast iron seasoning really be built from butter?

As long as you use clarified butter (ghee), ie; with the solids removed, there's no obvious reason it shouldn't work as well as any other fat.


Webshop to buy vegetarian/vegan products online delivering in Canada?

Go Dairy Free's list of online food retailers is a good start.

Have a google of Indian/Asian/Baking supplies too. Doesn't have to be an all Vegan online source, eh?

I relied on a middle-eastern import company for pulses years ago before they were available locally. Had to order 10K sacks! Learned to share the bargain with friends.


What is the use of UV LEDs in my fridge?

Yes, the UV light will make your fruit and vegetables last longer.  Really it depends on the wavelength of UV. 275nm is used for killing bacteria and will burn your retinas, 385nm is less harsh to the skin or eyes and will still kill bacteria to a degree.

I just read a study in which they used 285nm in a controlled refrigerator setting against a static test with no UV on strawberries and how long they would stay fresh.  The UV irradiated strawberries lasted 9 days without growing mold.  The non uv, started growing mold all over them by 9 days. They tested the nutritional content of each and the UV treated had a higher content of nutrition then the non uv.


Why does my lime peel-alcohol infusion become cloudy when mixed with water?

This is a kind of emulsion called the Ouzo Effect (ouzo and other aniseed drinks also do this). I won't pretend to know enough to explain it, but it's essentially down to how oils (like those in fruit skin), water, and alcohol interact when stirred or otherwise agitated.

Wikipedia has an article that explains it fully.


It seems that you've already done some research on the subject, as you mention that it doesn't dry well.  Searching for 'papalo' using an internet search engine found http://www.appalachianfeet.com/2010/05/07/how-to-grow-and-use-papalo-wrecipes/ :

  It doesn’t dry well, but it can be frozen if it is pureed with water or oil and put into ice cube trays.

This method is mentioned in one of the answers to a related question.


It depends on whether the temperature stayed under 40 F / 4 C the whole time, and even if it did, how long was it above 32 F / 0 C.

If:

Yes, the temperature never rose above refrigerator levels of 40 F / 4C, and
The duration that it was above 32 F / 0 C (above freezing) was not more than the length of time you would normally refrigerate an item (2-3 days meat) then
Yes you can refreeze but the life will be shortened upon being thawed by however long it was above freezing; furthermore, you will probably suffer a loss of quality (especially in texture) from the refreezing cycle.

According the Ohio State University extension, this is likely to only be 24 hours id safety margin assuming you don't open the door.  If you don't know the temperatures, you probably want to be conservative in your estimations.

After a week, you may wish to lean towards discarding the contents, as sad as that may be.


Butter and milk will add fat and water which will definitely change the consistency of the dough. You will have to adjust the ratios if you add them (surely more flour if you add milk).

If you want sweet noodles my best bet would be to add sugar, although I wouldn't do sweet egg noodles... maybe sweet rice noodles?

Why don't you just do plain noodles and then make a sweet condiment instead?


Coffee Biscuit doesn't come out in Knock Box

IF this is the machine you have, we're using the same.

Overdosing is the most likely cause. Please try to adjust the weight of your coffee dose.
We've found that 20-21 grams is still OK for the double-shot.


How to get cracks in my ginger molasses cookies

Chris hinted at it -- to get the cracks, you need to have the top set early, so it's not going to expand while the middle's still trying to rise, and there's still enough leavening left to break through the crust that formed.

You have a few things that can go wrong:

The oven isn't hot enough. (it needs to set the top before the middle's fully risen)
Not enough leavening (it needs to be strong enough to crack the top once it's set)
Using a single-acting baking powder (double acting gives extra rise when it gets heated)
Not creaming the fat long enough (creaming cuts little air pockets into the fat, which means the leavening has to do less work)
Making too thin of cookies (you need enough mass in the middle so it finishes cooking after the top's set).
Mixing the dough too much (you don't want to develop gluten; it needs to be tender enough to crack easily)

As Jennifer mentioned -- old baking soda can be a problem.  I'd also consider investing in an oven thermometer to make sure that it's really providing the temperature the dial claims, as those are the two things that are going to be the most difficult to judge if they're a problem or not.

You'll also want to make sure the oven is properly pre-heated (so it doesn't loose all its heat when you open the door to put the cookies in), and avoid opening the door again 'til it's time to pull them.  If you have to rotate them (as the oven cooks unevenly), do it as quickly as possible so the oven's not open for very long.


How long is canned ham good for left out of the fridge?

It depends on if it was shelf stable or marked “keep refrigerated”.

From Arizona Cooperative Extension

  Canned hams labeled “keep refrigerated” require refrigeration and, unopened, will keep 6 to 9 months in the refrigerator. Once canned hams are opened, keep them refrigerated and use within 3 to 5 days. Make sure the can isn’t showing any bulges, cracks, dents or rust, or leaking any liquid. A canned ham should not be frozen. Shelf-stable canned hams do not require refrigeration and may be stored in a cool, dry place for 2 to 5 years.

From USDA

  Refrigerated - May be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 to 9 months. Its weight can be up to 8% more than original uncured weight due to the uptake of water during curing. It need not be labeled "Added water" except for "In Natural Juices." Net Weight is the weight of the actual ham excluding the container. Processed at a cook time and temperature sufficient to kill infectious organisms (including trichinae); however, the ham is not sterilized so spoilage bacteria may grow eventually.


I would just heat the oven with broil. Then switch if off, wait until  temperature drop to around 110-120C and put meringue in. Then just wait until oven cool off.
Tat way the inside would be chewy, if you want more chrunch burn it with torch before putting in oven.


Suggestion:

Make a batch of popcorn, weighing all ingredients used.
Fill one bag.
Weigh the bag.
Calculate price per serving and total amount of ingredients required based on the weight of your initial batch.

In short, decide what kind of bags you have / want to use and calculate from there.

(Hint: We often instinctively think of popcorn as a volume, not as a weight based quantity.)

If you don't have the bags yet, meassure what you consider a one-person serving. I suggest making servings of plain popcorn larger and those with lots of sugar or similar smaller - e.g. 2 generous handfulls for caramel corn vs. 4 for plain salted.
Put it in a meassuring jug, read the volume scale, buy matching bags. If you need to calculate ingredients, weigh your serving and proceed as above.


What type of mint are mint leaves from supermarkets?

It is whatever they had on hand. There seems to be a statistically higher chance to get spearmint, but they sell other mints too. From the point of view of the supermarket, the ambiguity is not a bug, it's a feature. They just sell whatever gets delivered.


Probably, two considerations; Depending on how much you cooked it and how you drain it it may mess-up the salt balance. And, I started my kruat with a little bakers yeast and sugar so did not rely on natural yeast , because you have killed the natural yeast you may need something to start it. I understand that the yeast produce lactic acid in homemade while commercial kraut has added acetic acid.


How to maintain oil temperature when deep frying at home?

My meat thermometer can bear temperatures above deep frying ones so I just use that and I keep the tip "suspended" in the oil with the help of the pot's handle and the thermometer's own cable.
An alarm at 170 Celsius helped me last time to keep the temp under control. For the record, I was frying this
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Struffoli

Since I don't deep fry more often than once a year, I can totally live with this solution.


What temperature to cook a pork tenderloin at?

Despite the currently accepted answer, there is no single best method to cook pork tenderloin.  The main issue is getting it to a final internal temperature of about 145 F to 155 F (63 C to 68 C) depending on your preferences.  If cooked to well done (above about 165 F, 74 C), it will be tough and rubbery as it has very little internal fat or collagen.

The actual temperature you cook it at can vary considerably depending on the method.  In all cases, you want to check the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer.

In all cases, a resting period (which empirically allows more of the juices to be retained) of about 5-10 minutes is a good idea before serving or slicing.

The method advised in the current accepted answer is certainly effective, and can be delicious, but any method which gets the pork to the desired internal temperature without overcooking it will also work.

This can be accomplished in a variety of ways, including:

Pan roasting. Pan searing and then finishing in a moderate oven (about 350 F, 175 C although there is flexibility here if you have other dishes to finish) is certainly one very effective method for cooking a pork tenderloin, but any method that brings it to the desired temperature will work.
Roasting then searing.  The reverse technique, which may give more tender results, would be to cook it in a slow oven (95 C) until it reaches the desired internal temperature, and then pan sear it for browning and deliciousness—the initial cooking dries the surface and allows the sear to develop flavor rapidly with minimal over cooking of the exterior.
Grilling, first searing then indirect.  While more difficult to control, this idea can be applied on the grill:  sear the tenderloin over the hot part of the coals until it has a nice golden crust, then move it to indirect heat to cook through to the desired temperature.  On a grill, controlling the absolute temperature is more difficult so I am not mentioning them, although you can take the oven method temperatures as a guide.
Sous-vide. Some modernists might suggest putting it in a sous-vide water bath at 145 F (63 C)  or even 135 F (57 C) for 2 1/2 to three hours (or until convenient to serve, although Yossarian recommends no more than 4 hours for lean meats like pork tenderloin to prevent it becoming mushy), and then finishing it with a torch or by pan searing.  This allows complete control of the final internal temperature, but makes the final sear more difficult as the exterior is not dried.
Sauteed medallions. Pork tenderloin is also often cut into medallions and then sauteed, which promotes considerable fond, allows a nice pan sauce, and makes for a nice presentation.  Medallions are thin, and so more difficult to measure the temperature of directly with an instant read thermometer, but with experience (to avoid overcooking), this is another extremely effective technique.


What is a substitute for milk when making ham balls?

As ChrisH said in the comments, probably all that matters is that the milk is a liquid. If the end result is supposed to be something solid, there can't possibly be that much milk in there, and the fat and flavor of the milk are pretty small compared to the meat.

So, just use another liquid. If you're not worried about flavor, water would work. Stock/broth might be a nice small step up. Or if you want to tweak the recipe, you could take the opportunity to add other flavors. There are plenty of flavorful but mostly water things you could try - think of things like worcestershire sauce or soy sauce (though I'm not sure what'd go with your recipe).

If the recipe calls for the milk to be mixed with bread or something else starchy (like this recipe, for example), that's called a panade, and it indeed works with all kinds of liquids.


Usually a cheese tasting would have more variety in terms of texture and flavour and you'd progress from the mild to the stronger.  However, if your goal is to compare a lot of similar cheeses to contrast with each other, you'll need to have more palate cleansing and balancing in between each cheese.

A lot of the cheeses that you're considering are aged ones, which tend to be quite sharp and salty. For the harder/saltier cheeses, acidic accompaniments will be important.  Things like granny smith apples and tomatoes would be ideal.  Something juicy and thirst quenching like melon (or the tomato) would also be important to include.  Proscuitto, while yummy, would probably just add more sharp saltiness to an already overwhelmed palate.

As for dried fruits, another classic for cheese courses is dates since the sweetness makes a nice contrast.  You might want to consider including something like a raisin bread as well as crackers for serving the cheeses.  Chutney is delicious on crackers with cheese and could help balance the fact that most hard cheeses are eaten as a garnish more than on their own (e.g. on a salad, on pasta, etc).  However, this might interfere with the "tasting" atmosphere you're aiming for.

If you want to pair with something non-alcoholic, a sparkling water is probably a good place to start since the fizz will be refreshing and the water won't introduce any other flavours to the palate.


Botulism is spot on - not only can botulism spores survive in honey (hence the "no honey for babies under 1 year" rule), the truffles have grown in soil, which is a typical source of Clostridium botulinum spores.

There are well- known reports of botulism caused by garlic in oil and truffles in oil (albeit rarer due to the way smaller total amount of truffles used), honey is in that respect very similar to oil: anaerobic and low-accidic. So although I found no explicitly mentioned case of botulism caused by truffle honey, the general safety rules for preventing botulism should be applied. While honey has certain antibacterial properties, they do not affect botulism spores.

With C. botulinum you have to keep three temperatures in mind:

85°C / 185°F
At this temperature, live cells die.
100°C / 212°F
A few minutes at this temperature destroy the toxins.
121°C / 250°F
A few minutes kills C. botulinum spores.

Now a short evaluation of some recipes I found during a cursory Internet search:

Most recommend adding the shaved or chopped truffles to the honey and heating the mixture in a water bath or similar to 85C for a few minutes (5-15).

Keeping in mind that neither truffles nor honey are substances C. botulinum can feast and grow on in abundance - and hence are not exactly ladden with toxins - and that the truffles neither grew in nor typically were stored in anaerobic conditions, this step will be safe enough for immediate consumption of the truffle honey and short-term storage.

However, this will not kill the C. botulinum spores, which can germinate and grow in your non-sour, anaerobic environement in your honey jar, especially if stored at room temperature. (Storing your honey in a refrigerator will extend the time until you reach a critical mass considerably, but I can't give you a precise formula. One source mentioned one month in a refrigerator for home-made truffle oil prepared by this method, but as I couldn't verify this claim I can not comment on the correctness of this claim.)

If you want to play it really safe, you need to either

lower the ph to below 4.5, (which is not feasible for truffle honey) or
seal the jars and heat the mixture to at least 121 C / 250F for at least three minutes (which is usually not possible in home environement unless you have pressure canning equipment) or
heat the sealed jars to 100C / 212F (boiling water) for at least five minutes and repeat this after a day or two to kill leftover spores that have germinated in the mean time. This is known as Botulinum Cook and is safe even for very susceptible products like meat. This leaves your jars safe for long-term storage at room temperature.

Find a paper on these guidelines and thresholds for example here (issued by the NZ governement).


Why does my asparagus turn out too chewy?

I think you are over cooking them. Asparagus is a very delicate shoot, and it goes from nice and crispy to flat and soggy pretty quickly. Some people like it that way, but not me. I like mine hot, but still crisp.

The way I prepare asparagus with water is in a frying pan. Lay the asparagus out in the pan and just cover with cold water. Bring the water to a boil and immediately pull the asparagus out. It's ready to serve right then.

Sometimes I like to grill it, but that takes a little practice to get the timing just right and also not dropping them through the grill. :-\


Are there advantages of soaking rice overnight as opposed to only for 30 minutes?

In my experiments with steamed rice and broken steamed rice so far, I haven't found any disadvantage to soaking rice overnight. The rice can be kept on the kitchen counter-top (no need for refrigeration). The rice absorbs a bit of water, but that didn't seem to make any difference in the cooking. It absorbed the usual amount of water (4 cups water for 1 cup rice) when cooked in a pressure cooker.
Given what Jean says about arsenic, it's probably better to soak rice overnight, especially if it is being steamed, rather than boiled.


How important are ingredient ratios in pasta-making (as compared to baking)?

Proper hydration of flours is important in pasta making, so ingredient ratios are critical.  How critical depends on the type of pasta (egg based fresh pasta is probably more forgiving than water based pasta that is intended to be extruded and dried).  So, it sort of depends on why you are asking the question.  For a restaurant or pasta company looking for the best quality and consistency, it is essential to have the proper ratio.


Chili powder is typically a blend of ground chilies and other spices (and maybe even herbs).

I'd go with a blend of:

paprika (smoked if you can find it)
cayenne
cumin
oregano
garlic powder

You can also try mixing in onion powder, other chilie powders, and black pepper.  Some pre-mixed blends also include salt.  If you have access to other dried chilie powders, you might consider using ancho or new mexico chilies for a 'dark' chili powder, as opposed to the more red powder you'll get from the cayenne.  (but cayenne's more available)

Search online for recipes -- you'll find lots of variation out there.


There is actually no way to keep fruit salads fresh for days, but at least you can make fruit salad and eat it the the next day.

At times I also make fruit salad at keep some for the next day. The biggest problem is that some fruits like apples and bananas oxidizes and turn black very quickly, while fruits like pawpaw and watermelon goes mushy when left to long. To counteract that, add a little lemon or lime juice to your fruit salad to stop fruits from oxidizing, and keep your fruit salad in the refrigerator to keep it from going mushy. This should keep your salad "fresh" for at least the following day

On your question which fruits are the best, there really is no exact answer to that. Freshly cut fruit don't last long, either refrigerated or covered with fresh lime/lemon juice. It still stays the best to make fruit salad and consuming it as soon as possible. And why compromise and leaving out your favorite fruits because they won't last a day or two in your salad. And making fruit salad is always a pleasure


One reason is to remove some of the indigestible complex sugars that cause gas.

Another reason is that beans are dirty, so you're just cleaning them with the soaking. If the recipe wants the beans to be cooked in the water used for soaking, the washing needs to be done before the soaking.

On top of that the soaking can reduce cooking time considerably, which might be the biggest advantage.


Kombu in beans -- granules or powder OK?

I don't know that there are studies on using different kinds of kelp with beans, but I have used both kombu strips and kelp granules interchangeably when cooking beans. The results seem to be the same either way.


Is it possible to bake a cake without an oven?

Microwave + Coffee Cup = Awesome

A few years ago I was looking for a project for some cub scouts when I came across this recipe to make chocolate cake in a microwave.  It's delicious and easy. Best of all you can make it in the office.

Check out this link: http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Make_Cake_in_a_Mug


The most accurate substitution would simply be rum extract. It is concentrated rum with a huge kick of flavor, and much less alcohol. A little goes a long way.

If you're going to stick with a strong liquor my first choice would be a bourbon, it's a similarly "sweet" liquor that tastes good in baking. Another good option would be cachaça.

If you're avoiding liquor, then you may be able to use vanilla extract. Non-alcoholic varieties are available. According to Ochef you can also use molasses thinned with pineapple juice.

The rum is used simply for flavor.


He brushes soy sauce on it, because he knows how much is sufficient to season each nigiri. Actually not just any soy sauce, but nikiri:

  A good sushi chef adds all the flavors the sushi needs before he hands it to the customer. He mixes his own sauce and uses it behind the sushi bar. This sauce is called nikiri.

you can see him brushing it here:

According to this other site,

  Nikiri is typically made using a mixture of soy sauce, dashi, mirin and sake. The sauce has a subtle complimentary umami sweetness that is designed to enliven and enhance the flavour of the fish with which it is being served.


Is making guacamole a way to "save" almost-gone avocadoes?

First, you have to distinguish between food safety issues and other ways of food "going bad". The likely thing is that your avocadoes were safe to eat (= not full of pathogenous bacteria) on the day you threw them out.

However, people cannot tell when food is full of bacteria, and tend to throw it out when it is too changed from its original state. Or they dislike the taste and texture of the changed state. This is common with fruit and vegetables. They are still alive after being picked, their metabolism goes on, but many of the necessary nutrients and water aren't delivered by the roots and stems any longer. So they change their color, taste and texture, and become mushy, wilted, or black,or change in other ways which people dislike, so they proclaim the produce "spoiled" and throw it away.

If this is what happened to the avocadoes, there is a good chance that making it into guacamole would have let you enjoy the avocadoes a day later. A pureed avocado doesn't metabolize the way a whole avocado does, and the changed pH and other ion concentration (salt) changes the chemical reactions going on in the cells. It is now no longer a living fruit, but prepared food. The pH and cold storage also inhibit mold from growing, which can happen on ripe fruit held at room temperature.

This is something specific to avocadoes and guacamole and not a generic statement about mixing random ingredients, you cannot make such generalizations in principle.


Black pudding freezes very well and should keep for a couple of months easily. It is not cured like salamis or other hard sausages, it's just boiled in the skin, so it does not keep as well at ambient temperatures.

When you do cook it, try it with pork tenderloin, mashed potato and fresh apple sauce. Just fry half-inch slices. Fantastic.


Should I press the chicken breast against the pan when I grill it?

The only method I have personally found to be reliable for grilling/pan-frying chicken breasts to a relatively uniform doneness is to pound them very, very thin with a mallet or rolling pin. Thin, as in scaloppine-thin, so that it cooks almost instantly in the pan.

Every other stovetop-only method is almost certainly going to produce a bland, tough cut, regardless of whether you press it down or not. As noted in my comment, my usual (lazier) method that does not involve pounding is to get a nice sear in the pan, then jam in a temperature probe and bake it in the oven until it's done (the USDA recommends 165° F, I usually don't go quite that high).

If pressing the meat actually accomplishes anything at all, it would most likely be to just squeeze out whatever tiny amount of precious juices the breast does have, and possibly give you slightly more even cooking on the exterior only; it will not help to cook the interior much faster unless, as stated above, the cut has been pounded extremely thin and flat, at which point it doesn't really matter.

P.S. Salt and olive oil is a terrible "marinade" for any cut of meat, especially a chicken breast. The salt is just going to get suspended in the oil and never reach the meat at all, and the oil itself won't have much of an effect on such a lean cut. You really need to change your marinade as well, preferably to something water-based (or at least not 100% oil).


Can I halve the Amish Friendship Bread recipe?

Okay, I usually don't answer my own questions but by the time I got done writing up my question the answer came to me:

On day 1 take your one portion of starter and divide it in half. The other half can either be shared with a friend or thrown away. (I promise I won't tell!)
On day 5, instead of adding 1 cup of milk/flour/sugar just add 1/2 a cup of each.
On day 10, instead of adding 1 cup of milk/flour/sugar just add 1/2 a cup of each.
Don't forget to mush/mix the bag each day.

Now on day 10 you'll have two regular sized portions of starter. You could use it to make two loaves of bread. Or you could use one portion to make one loaf, take the other portion and start again with step 1 above.


Butter is the opposite of acidic/sour so adding butter can help balance the dish and remove the taste of sour.


One factor you may not be considering is the quality of the egg itself. The highest-grade eggs have firm whites and more regular shapes when cracked onto a flat surface. The fresher the egg, generally, the higher the grade. If you've ever cracked a grocery store egg next to a fresh-laid egg, the difference is clear. The hen's diet makes a big difference, too.

But judging by the pictures, I'd say your biggest problem is cooking with too much heat. Notice how much your whites have bubbled and that the edges are already browning while the inner albumen (the thick part of the white that surrounds the yolk) is still raw. In comparison, the albumen of the "prettier" egg has a visibly consistent cook on the whites.

Getting the right temperature

To get that consistent cook on a sunny side up egg you need to use less heat than you'd use for other fried eggs. The inner albumen cooks slower because it's sitting up higher than the outer albumen, farther from the heat. And you're not going to flip this egg, so it's a very uneven heat that you have to work with.

Imagine trying to cook a hamburger, entirely on one side! That's the challenge you have here, except with an egg, which is thinner than a hamburger but also less evenly-shaped and much more delicate. Some people like to loosely cover the pan for part of the cooking time, which reflects some heat and traps some steam to help cook the inner albumen from above. The risk there is that you're also cooking the yolk faster; if you cover the pan tightly, you can end up steaming the egg instead of frying it. You can use a plate, a lid of the wrong size, or another pan if you like.

Assuming you can get the temperature right, though, you don't need to cover the pan. To practice, start with the heat around medium-low and try to find the right balance of heat and time through trial and error. Crispy, brown edges means either too much time or too much heat. If you're practicing, try not to adjust the heat too much in the middle of cooking an egg. Cook one egg through, then assess the result and adjust your heat if necessary on the next one.

Getting the egg into the pan

Once you get the temperature right, assuming your eggs are decent quality, your only other challenge is getting it into and out of the pan gently. If you're rough with the egg, not only will it spread out unevenly, but you can break the membrane that separates the inner and outer albumen. This makes the white cook faster but it definitely doesn't lead to an attractive sunny side up egg.

Cracking the egg into a ramekin or small prep bowl rather than directly into the pan or pot makes it much easier to get a regular, attractive shape on your fried or poached egg. As far as centering the yolk, I suspect that's all about the grade of the egg; high-quality fresh eggs are just firmer and tend not to wander so much. I wouldn't recommend separating the yolk and adding it after the white -- I think that would do more harm than good. You want to keep that nested membrane structure, but separating the yolk requires breaking the inner albumen's membrane. What you get is a yolk that's just going to slide around on the raw surface of the white, instead of being held by the membrane in one place.

Other tips

Use oil rather than butter. Butter will brown the bottom and edges of your egg more quickly, and give it that browned butter flavor. A classic sunny side up egg is supposed to be evenly white and taste like egg. (Of course, if you like that flavor, go for it!)
Whether you're using oil or butter, only use enough to keep the egg from sticking. Too much butter can foam up around the edges and not look very nice. Too much oil can result in little splashes of oil on top of the egg and an unpleasant residue on the plate (and palate).

It takes some practice but cooking an egg every which way is a very basic technical skill that will stay with you forever once learned. As you get better you may start to notice how much of a difference the freshness of the egg makes, or how the color of the yolk indicates the quality of the hen's diet (and the flavor and nutrition in the egg as a result).

You don't have to go buy the fanciest eggs on the shelf -- plenty of restaurants get good results with whatever they order from their supplier -- but there's definitely a difference between brands. Hard to tell the gimmick from the real deal without cracking one open; I remember a story on the radio a couple years ago about a woman who resold grocery store eggs at a farmer's market when her hens weren't laying well, passing them off as fresh-laid. Best thing is to keep your own hens, but that's obviously not possible (or desirable) for everyone. Next best source is likely a CSA or farm stand.

Oh and by the way -- I never ate egg breakfast growing up. Couldn't stand them, especially the runny yolks! Tastes change; now I keep my own hens and I love a good runny poached egg. I don't claim to be any sort of professional in the kitchen; it's all about quality ingredients and practice, practice, practice.


It is going to depend greatly on what you cook and where you are. Long braises can be shortened by hours. It is nearly impossible to cook beans in Bogota Colombia without a pressure cooker. cite

Lentils on the other hand. The recommended times in the IP manual and on the bag for not in a pressure cooking are the same. And as you say, with the IP natural release is not included in the time given.

Another time savings is not having to manage the cooking in the middle. Thanksgiving evening dumped turkey carcass, mirepoix and water. Set for 2 hours of high pressure. Ignore for three hours. Cool and refrigerate one gallon of turkey stock. No checking to see if it is simmering, adjusting the heat up, checking again, adjusting the heat down.


I'm not finding an exact duplicate of this question, but you should read these related questions:

Cleaning Cast Iron
Scouring pads vs. Chainmail

So, the answer to the first part of your question is yes, a Brillo pad can damage your cast iron skillet.  If you scrub it for a short time, then it can remove the seasoning from the pan.  If you scrub it really hard, it can also scratch the iron underneath, since cast iron is softer than the steel and abrasives in the Brillo pad.

In response to the second part of your question, yes, you can recover it.  How difficult this is depends on how much scouring you did.  If you just removed seasoning, you'll need to do either a light seasoning or completely reseason the pan.  If you scrubbed through the seasoning and scratched the iron itself, then you'd need to sand the bottom of the pan before completely reseasoning it.

I recommend watching Kent Rollins' video series on caring for cast iron to avoid problems in the future.


Does the strength of the barrier between egg yolk and white indicate freshness?

It can be a sign of lack of freshness, as yes, the membranes will break down the older the eggs are, but it can also be a sign of another type of age or the general health of the bird producing the eggs.


How can I keep my waffle iron relatively clean when making waffles?

Replace your ladle with an ice cream scoop.

You will be able to control the amount of dough for each waffle much easier.
For my waffle iron and scoop I use two scoops.

An additional advantage over a ladle, is that the dough releases much easier
from a scoop, which reduces the probability of making a mess.


It varies by material. A tablespoon (or millilitre) is a unit of volume; a gram of weight. The ratio between the two is called the density, and that varies a lot.

So, you have to look it up, or weight it yourself. Or, if you're lucky, it's on the side of the package.

You can access some of the measurement conversions in the USDA NDB data files I posted a link to via the much-more-friendly web interface. Cocoa powder gives you weight per tablespoon, exactly what you want. Unbleached AP flour gives 125g/cup, and you can convert that to tbsp (since cup is also a measure of volume; Google will happily tell you there are 16 tbsp per cup. (In general, they try to give useful measurements. E.g., "small" and "large" for onions, "stick" for butter, etc.)

From just those two examples, you can see one is 5.4g/T and one is 7.8g/T, so you can't just use one number for all fine dry powders.


Wrap it in foil, loosely, and roast in your oven at 250°F (121°C) until an internal temperature of 185°F (85°C), this should be about 1 1/2 hours per pound (but CHECK the internal temp with an instant read thermometer).

Note: an internal temp of 160°F (71°C) is "done" but for a tender slow cook brisket you want to let it go to 185°F (85°C)