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What is the purpose of this footed glassware with a large round bowl and a decorative handle? I inherited a very large collection of glassware, most of it I recognised, some very esoteric (specific vessels for specific kinds of alcohol etc). I've been able to identify and understand the intended purpose of every piece...	When someone finesses the design of a serving vehicle, the item should be approached as a picture frame: you use to enhance or embellish some recipe that is complimented by the item's design. Something like this would be a great vehicle for a personal serving of some whimsical layered dessert more so than trying to use...
Any reason I can't use popover batter to make one huge popover without separating into little cups? Something like http://www.food.com/recipe/perfect-popovers-189284 but all in one baking pan?	You absolutely can do that. Brits call it Yorkshire Pudding, and the technique is actually fairly forgiving. You can make them muffin sized, or you can make one big popover. Just don't mess around, popovers get their "pop" from steam. A medium cast-iron skillet (9 inches or 23 cm, roughly) is perfect, you can do it in ...
Why is my avocado tough and rubbery? This is the second avocado from the same bag that is tough and rubbery. The pit won't come out without leaving a skin, and it won't peel out of it's skin without cutting the skin off. I made sure it was soft and was at room temperature before I cut it open. How can I de-rubberize t...	It's simply not ripe yet. Don't buy avocados or any other fruit and vegetable in pre-packed bags, because you cannot tell what state they are in. Buy from a local grocer whom you can trust, and therefore can get honest answers on the state of the produce. Avocados are usually sold unripe for shipping reasons. Buy ahead...
Do you need to pre-heat a gas oven? I mean it's gas - an open fire - and heats up in less than a minute. Does preheating making any difference when baking with gas?	Yes, preheating warns up the entire interior of the oven which is important for keeping the air hot such as when you open the door. It helps the oven bounce back to full heat much sooner. If you don't preheat, it will take several minutes before the oven reaches proper cooking temps, and interfere with even heating. If...
Any way to reduce the tangy taste of homemade coconut milk? I make different kinds of non dairy milks (nut, rice, etc). I rather like coconut milk, but would like to reduce the natural tangy coconutty flavor. I was looking at the following question: Homemade coconut milk in coffee compared to store bought Someone was...	Best method is simply to heat the coconut. My current method: Heat shredded coconut and water (1:4 ratio). No need to boil. Let the mixture cool. I usually forget about it and come back a few hours later Blend and strain Although someone had pointed out to me that tricalcium phosphate is used in commercial brands, to...
Shelf-stable "frosting" for a savory "gingerbread" house? My mom read a Rachel Ray magazine, and is planning a craft project with my nephews where they make a log cabin out of pretzel rods. The problem is that it likely won't be eaten on the same day. The magazine called for using spray cheese, which I would assume w...	Peanut butter might work. It is safe at room temperature and not really sweet. It is somewhat soft, but so is the canned cheese. Natural peanut butter with the oil poured off might be thicker for use as mortar. The flavor would be good with pretzels.
How do I properly breadcrumb meat? I have always breadcrumbed meat in a certain way (cordon bleus, schnitzels). But the crumbs on the food are nowhere near a standard that I would make this for guests. The crumbs always come off, whether in the pan (while turning), or when we eat it and the whole crust just comes o...	The problem that most people make when doing a breading is that they try to put on too thick of a coating of any given layer. Breading sticks because wet sticks to dry, and visa-versa. As such, you need to give the item a good shake after it leaves each dry station, and a moment or so to drip (and a little bit of shak...
Why is the handle of sauce pans tilted and not horizontal? Why is the handle of a saucepan tilted upwards now-a-days rather than the old fashioned horizontal handles?	The answer from the 'Product Manager - Cookware' of Zwilling, translated to English: [Snipped introduction] Different factors influence the design of the handle during the product creation process. At the first step there are optical reasons. This is the phase of the first design drawings. As soon as we decide intern...
Effect of metal colander on jerky meat post-marinade I make a lot of beef jerky. I always marinade in for at least a day in a Ziploc bag. After marinade, I leave it in a colander for several hours to drain and speed up drying. The colander I've always used for this is just a cheap metal one from a garage sale. I know ...	Stainless steel, ceramics, and glass are considered "non-reactive" in the kitchen, while vessels made from aluminum, copper, iron, and steel are considered "reactive". The latter category are reactive with acidic and alkaline foods (lemon and tomato, for example). The result is that these foods can take on a metallic...
What pot size for 150 servings of sauce? I am cooking spaghetti meat sauce for approximately 150 people. I can cook the sauce, but I have never cooked for such a large group before, what size pot is recommended?	I would make up a small test batch and measure the amount of sauce you think is sufficient per person. It will vary significantly on the type of sauce, how "hearty" or rich it is, and whether you'll have a lot of side dishes or whether spaghetti is the only main dish. Anyhow, once you decide on a typical portion, then...
What's this yellow plum-like fruit with a spiky stone? West Africa I recently bought a couple of these from a fruit seller in Sierra Leone. On the right is the stone after eating the fruit. They're small-ish, a similar size to a lime or a kiwi fruit. I asked the lady what it was called, but she just looked at me as i...	Best guess: June Plum, apparently underripe. Another page has pictures of june plums that match your photo quite well: All the photos above are of the same type of fruit at different stages of ripeness. Scientific name Spondias Dulcis: Spondias dulcis (syn. Spondias cytherea), known commonly as ambarella, is an equ...
How finely chopped should vegetables be when making stock? I've watched several YouTube videos now to learn how to make vegetable stock. Most of these videos show the vegetables being chopped into relatively large chunks - for example, carrots and onions being cut into four roughly equal portions. However, I've watche...	I'd say it is a "matter of taste," literally, because what comes out will change depending on how you process the vegetables. For example, despite the common use of carrots in stock, I feel like many chefs don't actually want a real "carroty" flavor in stock. Quartering or roughly chopping a carrot is enough to give ...
Do I cover a pork roast? Cooking baby potatoes and small carrots with it. It is only about 2 pounds. Hoo Honestly never cooked a pork roast beforeand there are so many different ways I am really confused.	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 fo...
Why most chocolate bars have trans fat? Most chocolate bars have trans fat, usually less than 1g per 100g of chocolate. Even dark chocolate and even expensive brands such as Lindt. Where is this trans fat coming from?	Short answer: I'd look at the ingredient list. If any sort of partially hydrogenated oil or random fats appear, they are the likely source. If not, I'd look to see if the chocolate contains cow's milk or butter (sometimes labeled "milkfat" or "butter oil" on chocolate ingredients), since that may also be a small sour...
What can I substitute for Gruyère in quiche lorràine? Gruyère cheese is too expensive here and I want make quiche lorràine. Is there some other cheese that I could substitute for the gruyère that would preserve the original flavor?	There are a couple variations that if you're lucky might be cheaper: Beaufort and Comté. (I've only actually tried Comté, but I've seen Beaufort listed along with it and Gruyère.) A bit farther away are Emmentaler and Jarlsberg. They both have the Swiss cheese flavor but aren't quite as firm nicely aged. Beyond that th...
Are there too many flavors competing in this side dish? I am going to make maple roasted Brussels sprouts for a party tomorrow with toasted almonds and cranberries. However, I wanted to add a sauce for the side and I was thinking something garlic-y, probably an aioli type of dip with mustard. Does that sound like too ...	Toasted almonds match well with hazelnuts, cumin, nutmeg, rosemary, vanilla and cinnamon. Cranberries do match well with garlic, lime, chili and onion. So from a flavor-pairing point of view, if you want a spicy dip, it would be better to make a cranberry dip in itself with cranberries, sugar, chili, pineapple and cori...
Why do light and dark roux have different effects when thickening sauces? When you are using a roux, the darker it is, the less it acts as a thickening agent in a sauce and, vice versa, if the roux is quite light, it has more of a thickening effect. Why is this?	You can visualise it like this: starch is the way that plants store energy, you can see it like long chains of glucose molecules. If you have these long chains, they lock in water at high temps (gelatinisation), and so they bind sauces. If you burn them, what you do is break those chains into glucose (or maltose), and ...
How do I thicken tomato-based pasta sauce without adding starch? I like to cook from scratch and I like to make my tomato-based pasta sauce (marinara) by cooking fresh tomatoes with herbs etc. However, the cooked tomatoes are always too runny for my taste and lacking the thickness that jarred supermarket alternatives...	Fresh tomatoes are insanely watery, so you're starting at a pretty big disadvantage here. Trying to fix it with a thickening agent alone might not be the best plan. That said, if you want a short answer: use tomato paste, whether homemade or storebought. It'll thicken and improve the flavor. Watery tomato sauce usually...
Can I store a fresh turkey in my garage for a few days? I have a 25 lb. fresh turkey and would like to store it in my garage if possible. It's 43F during the day, and 33F at night - will it be safe to do that?	As setek said in the comments, 43F is too warm. Anything above 40F and you only have a couple hours before it's unsafe (has the potential to make people sick, even if unlikely). And your garage is attached to a house that's well over 40F, so it'll probably be well above 43F in there. So you really need to keep it chill...
What biological factors affect a meat's taste? What biological factors affect a meat's taste? Does the relatedness of species affect their meat's taste? For example would the meat from two different placental mammals taste more similar to each other than meat from poultry? Does domestication affect a meat's taste? I'v...	The most significant factors are probably: Muscle function and activity Fat content and distribution Diet of animal Age Basic muscle structure in most vertebrates is somewhat similar, so taxonomic relatedness is often not paramount in matching flavors. (There appear to be some phylogenetic connections in flavor, par...
I didn't put the lid on my slow cooker(crockpot) for first hour of beef stew. Will it still be safe to eat? I didn't put the lid on the slow cooker (crockpot) properly for first hour of beef stew. It's on high now with the lid on, will it still be safe to eat?	It'll probably be fine. An hour isn't very long and I am willing to bet your food was getting hot anyway even if it wasn't getting as hot as quickly for the first hour.
How can I effectively time a short thawing and brining of a a turkey? I have a 14 lb. frozen turkey. It has been in the refrigerator for 12 hours now but there is not enough time to thaw it completely in the fridge before cooking it in the turkey fryer. Could I safely thaw it in cold water today, which would take ab...	I can't remember how many times I've remembered to take out the turkey much to late for a full proper defrost. Yes, you can probably thaw it in cold water. But I would go a step further if you're brining it anyway. Alton Brown posted a blog post yesterday with exactly the same problem as you. Apparently Professional fo...
How much minced garlic is one clove? I have a recipe that calls for 2 cloves of garlic, but all I have is minced garlic. How much minced garlic do I use per clove?	Well, it depends on the size of the clove. A heaped teaspoon will probably be about equivalent to two cloves of garlic, but it's cooking, not particle physics. Remember you can always add an ingredient, but you can't take it away - so taste your food and adjust as necessary.
Oven temperature for multiple ducks? Do I need to adjust the oven temperature in a roast duck recipe if I want to put more than one duck in the oven at a time. I suspect I should keep the same temperature but keep them in longer. Should I cover each duck in foil individually or together? Does it matter if they are ...	Let's do some physics again: All culinary aspects aside, a roast is a (more or less) solid "blob" with a certain mass and volume. To get the roast to the desired doneness, you want to reach a certain temperature at the center of the meat. The crucial properties are the thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of yo...
Difference between ground cloves and clove powder? Is there a difference between ground cloves and clove powder? Can I easily substitute one for the other?	No, spices are commonly sold as "X powder" or "ground X". As far as I can tell, they are likely the same thing. The only thing I might imagine would be different would be the size of the grind. I would imagine yes, you can substitute one for the other. eg: http://www.livestrong.com/article/497275-cinnamon-powder-vs-gro...
Is pickled herring cooked? With respect to pickled herring, is the herring cooked before being put into the pickling solution? If not, what safety measures are in place to ensure bacteria are within safe limits?	No, it is not. Traditionally it is first cured with salt to reduce the water content of the meat, then placed in a vinegar-based brine. Recipes vary a bit, but for classic Bismarckhering 14% salt and 7% acetic acid are used. Additionally, today pickeled fish is stored in refrigerators (as opposed to the 19th century), ...
What is the difference between a turkey and a chicken in terms of taste, look and preparation? I am interested in sourcing a turkey and cooking it. It's not that easy to get a turkey from where I am. I am only wondering if it would be worthwhile to do so. Having never eaten a turkey, I can't help to be curious. If the...	Essentially, it's like a giant chicken with a "deeper" and more distinctive flavor. The main reason I like them (other than the flavor) is the sheer quantity of meat you can get from one roasting session. One could roast multiple chickens for a similar effect, but with a turkey you only have one skeleton to pick meat...
can tough brisket get softer? I am cooking a brisket in a pot with water and vegetables, on a stove top. I meant to leave it on a slow simmer, so that it would get very soft. About 2 hours after I started cooking it, after having left the room for a while, I found it in a rolling boil. The meat was no longer pink or...	Well there is good news and bad news. The good news is, if you keep cooking it, the proteins will eventually break down and the meat will get softer. The bad news is, the boiling for so long may have spent the goodness of the meat. More good news however. The meaty goodness has likely been transferred to the broth. You...
How long can I store Cooked Turkey in Refrig before Freezing? How long can I store Cooked Turkey in Refrig before Freezing? I bought an Organic Turkey early for Thanksgiving and cooked it. It's been in my Refrig for a week and I'd like to trim and freeze parts and also make a soup. Is my timing on this acceptable?	I'm going to say no. We chill food in the freezer or refrigerator to slow bacterial growth. In general, the refrigerator will slow the growth enough that cooked meat can be kept safely for 3-5 days, and the freezer enough that cooked meat can be stored for 2-3 months. If you've already kept the meat in the fridge for ...
What can I substitute for the egg used to seal egg rolls? I would like to make a vegan "egg roll". In a normal egg roll, the filling is cooked and then placed in a wrapper, which is folded and sealed with egg before frying. I know how to make substitutions for the filling to make a vegan end product, but what can I su...	Flour paste. Mix flour with water and a bit of salt. Go for a thick glaze-like consistency, and use it instead of the egg. Give it at least 10 minutes to hold before frying, and try to hold the edges closed with tongs when initially frying.
What is the term for simmering something in sauce? What is the term called for when something, generally meat, is cooked in a large amount of sauce such that the meat is completely submerged. It is similar to boiling or simmering but instead of water it would be some sort of sauce. This is one of my favorite ways to ...	As Tall said, that can be referred to as braising, but generally braising is with liquid that doesn't quite submerge the meat. If the meat is fully submerged, another term is "stewing". Whatever you call it, it is best done at a simmer, not a full boil.
How much does a a cup of rice weigh? I use the cup that came with my rice cooker to measure the rice for each meal. I often eat 120ml~160ml rice (before cooking) measured in the cup at a time. How much does that amount of rice weigh? (I don't have a scale). The purpose of the question is to plan how much rice to buy ...	That depends on the rice. I have done my own measurements in the past (I hate volumetric measurements,) and found: 1 full-to-the-brim rice cooker cup of dry SunRice Brown rice (medium grain?) weighed 142g. 1 full-to-the-brim rice cooker cup of dry SunRice Calrose rice (medium grain) weighed 150g. Both were Australian...
Can I toast pecans the night before? I'm making pecan bars in the morning and I was thinking I'd get a jump on the work by toasting the nuts tonight. Is there a downside to toasting the pecans and then letting them sit overnight vs toasting them tomorrow and tossing them right into the recipe?	Nope, no problem with that at all. Toast away!
Stewing Tomatoes for a Purée(sauce) Aside from water, are there any other liquids I can use to stew tomatoes to make a purée? I was thinking maybe chicken stock or vegetable but don't know how that would taste or if it would even be worth wasting stock unless the flavor would be very significant. Has anyone tried?	If your goal is indeed a sauce or purée, you will want to reduce the total amount of liquid in your tomatoes, typically by reducing the sauce, i.e. boiling the liquid off. Any additional liquid simply extends the time required unless you add a liquid explicitly for taste, e.g. red wine, a dash of (balsamic) vinegar or...
How will the taste of black tea change when I infuse it with water colder than 90-100 degrees Celsius? I recently bought a small glass teapot. I want to use it at work. On the box there's a warning that 80 degrees Celsius is maximum for this teapot. I know that you shouldn't brew green tea in too high temperature, as...	TFD's answer is true: the most likely change is the reduction in some astringent flavors. I would just add that people have been brewing black tea for iced tea for many years at or near room temperature (e.g., the traditional "sun tea" method), or even in the refrigerator ("cold-brewed" tea). The flavor notes which co...
Is powdered sugar a dietary alternative to granulated sugar? How does powdered sugar stack up to regular sugar and artificial sweeteners in terms of sugar/carbohydrate content?	Powdered sugar is, basically, just sugar, but with the grains ground to a fine dust. To be very precise, powdered sugar sometimes contains an anti-caking agent like corn starch to prevent clumping but as far as nutritional values go, treat it like ordinary sugar. So: Powdered sugar is no sugar alternative because it i...
What's the difference between heirloom and direct-set yogurt cultures? Yogurt cultures seem to come in two varieties: heirloom and direct-set. The difference between the varieties is that one is a carefully selected mix of bacterial strains (direct-set), and the other is a "mother" that's been cultivated and sustaine...	It's simple. Heirlooms will produce expected results no matter how many times you reinoculate your culture. Direct set is a blend of species and eventually only the strongest strain will remain and it may not create anything you want to eat. I never bought cultures, I just buy plain or vanilla yogurt, eat it and use wh...
Egg wash with no yolks or reduced yolks I am making a recipe today that is basically fried mashed potato bites: Take cold mashed potatoes and mix in a whole egg. Form a little ball of potato around a little cube of cheese. Coat in an egg wash and bread crumbs to make a crust. Pan-fry the mashed potato ball until cris...	The main binding ingredient in eggs is the protein-rich albumen (the white). The yolk generally imparts flavour and richness. So you should be able to simply leave out the yolks entirely and still get pretty good results. You might add some butter at step one (if you haven't already) to substitute the fat in the egg yo...
Can a disposable aluminium pan be used to bake a cake? I want to know if an aluminium lasagna pan can be used in an oven for baking a cake?	If you're asking if you can bake a cake in that aluminum tin because you're wondering if it's safe, then the answer is yes. It says Lasagna Pan on the label, as in you're meant to bake a lasagna in it. No reason why a cake would be dangerous. I imagine you'd be baking the cake at a lower temp than a lasagna. You'd want...
Making Fudge or Candy While it is Raining or Snowing I've heard and old wives tales that when you try to make fudge or candy when it's raining or snowing outside that the fudge or candy will not set. What is the truth behind this tale? If it is true, how do you make fudge or candy on days that it is raining or snowin...	It's not an old wives tale; it's actually true to a point. I can't say it better than Exploratorium, Science of Cooking Can weather affect candy making? Oddly enough, it can. Cooking candy syrup to the desired temperature means achieving a certain ratio of sugar to moisture in the candy. On a humid day, once the candy...
Is the oily liquid from roasting a turkey worth keeping? I placed a 14 lb young Round Hill Frozen Basted Turkey in a pan, and roasted it inside an oven. After it was roasted, there was quite an amount of oily liquid left in the pan. Is this liquid worth keeping, and for what purpose?	Before you use the drippings, taste them. If they taste good on their own, they will be great for gravy. Often, the oil left in the pan after roasting turkey is used to make the roux to thicken gravy to go with that turkey. If it looks like all oil, you can use it as such. Especially since the turkey was pre-basted, th...
How does pineapple affect umami when used in vegan-fish-sauce recipes? I have seen mushroom and wakame as ingredients in fish sauce substitutes but does pineapple just take the cake? A number of recipes are simmering fresh chopped pineapple along with salty ingredients before straining: does that add umami or in any w...	Umami is the result of glutamic acid (ions) getting in touch with the tongue. Glutamic acid in fish sauce is the result of a fermentation process, which involves bacteria doing the work of breaking down fish components. Glutamic acid easily dissolves in water though. This is after all, how it was detected millennia ago...
how to coat truffles with chocolate I need help please, I have just made my first batch of truffles. I decided to coat them in chocolate (untempered) but after I had dipped about 8 the chocolate started to go too hard. I tried to melt it again but it just got more solid. What did I do wrong? I have lots of truffle mix...	Working with chocolate is so tricky! Introducing even a tiny amount of water to melted chocolate will cause it to seize. The water could come from unexpected places: steam from a double boiler, condensation on the interior of a lid, the use of a wet utensil. Seized chocolate can be returned to a smooth, melty texture,...
Can you freeze yogurt Can you freeze yogurt? It was on sale, and I am going to use it to make smoothies.	Yes, yoghurt can be frozen - according to this Canadian government agency, freezing it extends its shelf life to 1-2 months past its sell by date. Note that they do not recommend freezing an opened container of yoghurt. However, considering that it keeps for quite a while in the refridgerator as well you may not need t...
How to make butter and sugar mixture into a breadcrumb consistency? I've been following a recipe for cinnamon biscuits which states to mix butter and sugar together until it forms a breadcrumb like consistency. Every time I attempt this is makes more of a creamy like consistency. I don't have a food processor which I'...	Use chilled butter and don't touch it with your fingers unless you can be really fast about it, you don't want the butter to start to melt. Use a fork, a couple of knives or ideally a pastry cutter to cut up the butter and coat the cold little pieces of butter with the sugar. You can even use a cheese grater to grate...
Can chicken be partially deep fried to fully fry later? I own a small food truck serving fried chicken wings, fries and fish and tenders. Serving food fast is the key. I want to give customers a hot meal but, made to order is time consuming. Can I partially deep fry the meat and then finish as the orders come in?	Stephie's answer covers the main issues. I would add that you should probably check with any government regulations about food handling. I don't know where you are located, but many states have guidelines about how commercial cooking operations must handle "partially cooked" foods, often requiring documentation of yo...
Is it ok to use an enamelled Dutch oven on an electric stove top with the older ring burners? I bought my first enameled Dutch oven and I've been trying to do some research on whether or not I can use it on the older electric ring burner stove tops without it cracking on me. If anyone could give advice it would be m...	Oh sure, you can use an enameled Dutch oven on that type of stove. That type of burner (hob) is still the most common in the US; I haven't had anything but that type (in my home) in my adult life. An enameled cast iron Dutch oven will discolor when used on any stove, but it wont crack unless allowed to burn "dry" or if...
Freezing a chicken in a bag I bought a chicken that you cook in the bag. I put it in the freezer, when I took it out to thaw, I read on bag "Do not freeze". Will it be safe to eat?	As far as food safety is concerned you should be absolutely in the clear - frozen food lasts way longer than refrigerated. But I see two points why the manufacturer might advise not to freeze the chicken: Sometimes chicken is treated (aka infused) with water and spices which plumps up the meat. The excess water might ...
Is sugar necessary for the texture of homemade sherbet? I buy pure sucralose and acesulfame potassium which I mix half-and-half and use in my iced coffee. A scant 1/8 teaspoon of the sweetener sweetens an entire pot of coffee and the flavor is perfect, almost indistinguishable from sugar. I would like to try to make (...	That sounds to me like it'd come out completely rock hard once fully frozen. Immediately after churning while it's still just barely frozen it'll probably be okay, but I'm not sure if it'd make it through six hours in the freezer. You have no fat to soften it (the thickeners in fat-free half-and-half doesn't really do ...
Is it safe to boil lemon water? Is it okay for me to mix lemon juice and water, than bring to a boil on the stovetop? I want to make the house smell like lemons.	Yes, that's safe. I don't know if it'll really make the house smell that strongly, but yes, you can safely boil (or otherwise cook) any food you want, especially if you're not even going to drink or eat it. (Yes, there are exceptions like oil and alcohol, but anything you'd actually eat or drink in large quantities is ...
Canning chili with beans We're going to try canning some homemade chili with canned kidney beans. Question: Would it be best to add the beans right before canning so they don't get over cooked or do you think there would be little difference if they were cooked with the chili before canning. I'm trying to avoid mushy ...	If you are going to be canning this for long term storage you will need to be pressure canning it, and as that will mean some pretty high heat you'd be better off not cooking you beans too long before canning. I'd add them in a few minutes before the end of cooking just to get them warmed up in preparation for canning ...
How do I make restaurant-quality white wine sauce? When I have made white wine sauce at home, I have been unable to replicate the classic 'round' taste, with the 'long' aftertaste. The taste I'm looking for is typical for restaurants serving it with white fish, like cod. I have a theory that this particular quality ha...	What kind of sauce are you making ? a simple "beurre blanc" ? a gravy (with a roux) or a cream sauce ? Can you describe the recipe you are using (ingredients, technique) ? What I do (for beurre blanc): Cook down the schallots slowly in wine; add a little bit of water and white vinegar, it should not be dry. Use cold u...
Solubility of herbs and spices I am asking this question for reference mostly. My motivation comes from having a chef suggesting to place the saffron in white wine before using in a fish soup to "make the most of it". He said saffron's compounds you are after are soluble in alcohol so it's almost always worth adding i...	I know that link-only answers are discouraged here, but I don't know that there's another efficient way of answering this question. Here's a link to a document that gives basically most of the information you want, if you match it up to McGee's tables and description of chemical flavor components (e.g., pp. 389-395 in...
Is there a bread you can mix in the evening, leave overnight, and bake in morning? I'm afraid I know little about breadmaking. Is there a bread where you could: -- mix it and I guess knead it in the evening (say around 9pm), -- leaving it out overnight (perhaps to rise (?) etc.?) -- then about 8? hours later (say arou...	It seems the main thing you're trying to do is avoid any work in the morning before bake. As suggested in comments, the easiest way to do that is to get a mechanical bread-maker. Since you say you're inexperienced in bread-making, you can dump everything in the night before, program it with a time, and voila -- fresh...
What to call this utensil I'd like to know how to call this cooking utensil, great for stirring soup and sauces. Origin eastern european, this particular one is Polish. Am trying to buy more but do not know what name to look for.	I'm unsure about an English term, but in German it is a "Quirl", related to the "whorl" of twigs on a stem it was originally made of - for example from old Christmas trees: (source) Later versions mimicked this with a star-shaped wooden or porcelain "head" on a wooden handle, (source / source) the plastic head is a ...
How can I cool down cooking oil after using it in a deep fryer? I need to be able to cool down cooking oil quickly after using it in a countertop deep fryer- how can I do that safely?	You really can't. The best you can do is put some long stainless utensils in the oil to help dissipate heat, but it's still not going to be fast, just a little faster.
On heating smoked salmon I'm trying to make onigiri (Japanese rice balls) that are typically stuffed with fish and eaten warm. I'd like to "cheat" and use smoked salmon or canned tuna instead of cooking a whole fish to save time and money. Is heating uncooked cold fish like smoked salmon or tuna not recommended ? My m...	As far as food safety is concered, simply warming smoked salmon or canned tuna is uncritical (tuna casserole, anyone?). For all warm, cooked foods the two-hour rule applies: After two hours in the 40°F - 160°F (4°C - 60°C) it should be discarded. (see more here) So it is irrelevant whether you stuff your onigiri with s...
Tempered chocolate spheres in advance? I'm having a birthday party this weekend, and therefore I need to make some food for my guests. For dessert I want to make a chocolate sphere with some kind of stuff inside, and then pour it with caramel sauce. In order to make the chocolate spheres I bought some half sphere choc...	Chocolate will stay fresh for weeks or even months if stored correctly. And yes, the spheres will stay as shiny and beautiful as you made them if you store them correctly: in a cool, dark place away from sunlight but not necessarily in the fridge - taking them out will lead to condensation on the surface at rather co...
How to know the doneness for a tough cut of meat You're always hearing that a tougher cut of meat like a brisket or a shoulder be cooked low and slow to break down the tissue and be tender. I have also heard (by the experts) that a tough cut of meat like a flank steak be cooked no further than medium rare for tendern...	There are two basic cooking methods for tough cuts: Cook for a long time ("low and slow"): this is appropriate for large pieces like roasts Sear very quickly on both sides and remove while barely medium-rare: this is appropriate for thin steaks The thing is, while many people mention the second method, it's still goi...
Do I put the pot roast above or below the vegetables in my crock pot? When cooking a pot roast in a crock pot, do I put the meat above or below the vegetables? And does cooking it on hi or low have effect on this?	Either way should work, though the results might depend on your crockpot's cooking temperatures. ("High" and "low" can create different temperatures on different models.) It comes down to your personal preferences about: How well-done or "mushy" you want the vegetables to be Whether you want the vegetables to cook in...
What has a cooler got to do with sous-vide cooking? Kindly explain paragraph 3. I can't see link between this device for sous-vide cooking and coolers? What does unmatched versatility mean here? This is the Chefsteps Joule sous-vide cooker	Coolers (chilly bins) are ideal sous-vide cooking vessels as they are well insulated, and thus conserve energy and avoid temperature varying across the water bath. Most sous-vide cooking happens at less than 80°C (176°F), so the plastic will stand up fine. Many commercial clip on sous-vide cookers are only suitable for...
How was the usage of yeast for bread discovered? From where did people get the yeast for their bread??	The first yeast was "just there" - in the environment, everywhere. People discovered very early on that leaving the dough (or just a flour-water slurry) out would lead to it getting "sour" and "bubbly", thus leavening the bread: What we today call sourdough is in fact a mixture of yeasts and bacteria (lactobacillae). ...
Substitute for coconut milk in curry I would like to make Thai yellow curry or Panang curry but there is a severe coconut allergy in my family so I cannot put even a trace of coconut into it. I have the Mae Ploy curry pastes for both but they both call for coconut milk to be mixed in. Oh, and I am allergic to nuts so ...	A reasonably light cream (about 15% fat) should be fine as a substitute. It will lack the specific coconut flavour, obviously, but that's fine in this case. What's more important is the fat as a flavour carrier, and the creaminess in the texture. A soy based cream, or even oat milk should work equally well here, too. ...
Where can I find this exact spatula, with a short handle and asymmetric head? What kind of spatula is this? My boyfriend's father has this and I want to get him a new one for Christmas but cannot find it. It does not have a brand on it and he does not know where the spatula came from.	I couldn't find an exact match but the short, squat shape with a straight top edge suggests that it's for stirring and/or scraping. The flat shape (ie. that although the head is angled at the top, the whole head isn't angled) and thick, inflexible design suggest that it isn't supposed to be used for flipping; this woul...
What are the benefits and drawbacks of washing dishes in hot water? When hand-washing dishes, it seems commonplace to wash dishes in hot water. This LifeHacker article about washing your hands in hot water versus cold water points out that: It's certainly true that heat kills bacteria, but if you were going to use ho...	Before we proceed, we should note that not all dirty dishes are created equal. There are a few "groups" with different chemical and physical properties. Sugar Probably the easiest of all as it will happily dissolve in water. A bit quicker in warm or hot water than in cold water (iced tea, anyone?), but not adverse to ...
Can durian be used as a cocktail ingredient? I saw that a local Asian supermarket sells durian, so I picked one up, and was thinking that making an alcoholic drink for Christmas would be a great idea, but what kind of drinks could I make? It seems to be difficult to find recipes. For example, searching for "durian coc...	There are even a couple results talking about whether it's even safe to mix with alcohol. I think this is the interesting part of this question: you obviously can use durian in a cocktail, but should you? As you point out, there's a question of safety. There are at least two reasons to believe that mixing durian and a...
How long should I let durian ripen in a freezer bag? I recently picked up some cut up durian at an Asian supermarket, and since pre-packaged fruit normally is a little under ripe, I was wondering how long I should allow the durian to ripen in the bag before Christmas.	It's a matter of taste. Since your durian is already cut, as it continues to ripen (which it will, although much more slowly than uncut fruit) it is also rotting/fermenting (which is desired by many). You don't say where you are from, but durian season is long over in the northern hemisphere. Most durian sold in the US...
Does adding water back into an over-reduced sauce lose flavour? If I over-reduce a sauce (e.g. a tomato sauce for pasta), so that it is too thick, I'll sometimes add some water in to thin it out again & bring it back to the desired consistency. Would the resulting sauce be the same in the end as if I reduced it the co...	What we perceive as "flavor" often comes from a lot of aromatic and volatile components that we smell. We smell them because they are volatile, which means that they tend to evaporate off food (if they are small molecules) or tend to be carried off of food (for larger molecules). Aside from the basic sweet, sour, bi...
Converting Pressure Cooker recipes for cookers with lower PSI Most of the recipes I'm using (mainly Modernist; stocks, caramelized vegetables, confit) suggest cooking at 15psi. My pressure cooker has two settings 12psi and 7psi. I've always had success just using 12psi in recipes where it says 15psi. However recently ...	Here's a table that claims to give time equivalencies for cooking at different pressures. (This is from a website dedicated to pressure cooking information, so it's pretty standard.) It doesn't go down to 7 psi, declaring 8 psi to be the lowest acceptable pressure, but the time increase for 8 psi is listed as 47%. Th...
Does cinnamon "spoil"? When cinnamon (or other spices) is past its "best by" date, I know that the flavor and potency will be less strong. However, is it still safe to use it on food? (This came up because a co-worker asked me today whether he would be safe eating cinnamon that expired five years ago on a sweet potato...	Yes it will probably be safe, but it might not be very good. Keep in mind if a sweet potato is cooked properly it doesn't need any seasoning at all. Bake it until it's dark on the outer layer of flesh and the potato will be so sweet you'll wonder why you don't cook it that way all the time.
My cast iron has become flaky, did I damage it? So I am quite new to this cast iron thing. After few uses I tried to clean it with kosher salt. Now some parts of it look like it's all flaky, as if the layer will come off if I scratch it with my fingernail. The part is grayish in color. Is it the seasoning that has com...	If it's flaking, it wasn't seasoned right to begin with. However it really only matters on the cooking surface. You want seasoning to build up, but it shouldn't flake. See if it really is coming off, try with you fingernail. If it's coming off then get all of it off that you can by chipping it away. Scrape it off. If i...
How to apply transglutaminase brand "Saprona TG F" I have transglutaminase/activa powder branded "Saprona TG F". The ingredients are Salt, Gelatin, phosphate and transglutaminase. The dose is 1%. I'm making chicken roulade - should I apply it as a powder, a slurry or some other method?	Through trial and error I discovered that applying this brand as a powder is the best method.
Is there a difference between preheating temperature and baking temperature? Many cake recipes say something like: Heat oven to 350F, then bake the cake around 25 to 30 minutes. What does this mean? After preheating the oven, what temperature do I bake the cake at for those 25-30 minutes? Is it same as the 350F preh...	There is no default temperature. The recipe is telling you the temperature: 350F. You preheat the oven to 350F so that it's already fully hot when you put the cake in, and then you leave it at 350F to bake the cake. The whole point of preheating is to have the oven already at the temperature you want to bake at. If you...
Is using vinegar a viable way to reduce burning? How would it affect taste? In House, MD, in season six episode three the main character tags along to a cooking class with his best friend, Wilson. During the subsequent scene, they engage in a conversation which ends up distracting Wilson, causing him to begin burning ...	The OP's answer is correct that this theoretically should have an effect, but I have my doubts about its practicality for a few reasons: The goal is supposedly to "reduce burning," which implies carbonization. Carbonization happens most rapidly at higher temperatures (over 400F or so) compared to the ideal temperatur...
Why did my shrimp bisque turn out so broth like? I made a shrimp bisque today. But it came out extremely thin like a weak broth as opposed to thick like a decent bisque should be. I think the problem lies here: Now, the recipe calls for the melting of 2 tbs of butter and then the adding of 2 tbs of flour. Then the ad...	I believe the answer to the question lies in the last paragraph of your question. If you had close to 4 cups of broth, 1 1/2 cups of half-and-half, plus onion purée (which would be mostly water); you're pushing 6 cups of liquid, not including any wine or brandy that you may have used. For that much liquid you would nee...
Are there any differences in large or small pieces of root ginger? I find the bigger ones easier to peel, but I've heard that, for example, in potatoes all the vitamins are just below the skin, so I wonder if by a similar effect, smaller rhizomes of root ginger would be more potent in flavour or aroma or different in ...	Quite the opposite, large ginger rhizomes are more potent both in flavour and aroma, because those compounds take time in the ground to develop and accumulate... There's a Chinese proverb: "It's the older ginger that's got the punch /heat", referring to wisdom of the elders / the experienced... The younger rhizomes ha...
How to make soft popsicles Frozen juice or frozen punch freeze up as a solid block of ice. I want them to be more like a sorbet or gelato, though still solid enough to hold the shape. How might I make them softer? Either aerated, or polycrystalline without having to "do anything" while it's in the freezer? One thoug...	The main factors are a gelling agent, alcohol, sugar and air/stirring. Sugars may decrease the freezig point - add enough sugar and your ice remains soft-ish. Unfortunately this can mean your ice gets too sweet. So instead of using plain sugar, add some "inverted sugar": glucose syrup (aka corn syrup), which stays run...
what is an alternative for baking powder? I don't want to use baking powder or baking soda. Is there something else without salt I can use in cakes to make them rise.	Before chemical leavening, traditional cakes were usually made with one of three methods: (1) yeast, (2) foam created by beating eggs, (3) creaming butter and sugar together to create a fine foam. It's generally much easier to choose a style of cake from one of these methods, rather than trying to adapt an existing rec...
My gravy turned to jello overnight. How can I make it last for leftovers? I slow cooked a pork shoulder with some veggies (carrots, onions, celery). When it was finished, I strained out the solids and proceeded to make gravy with the liquids: Start separating liquids (I used a fat separator) Brown some flour Add some...	I think you probably used too much flour for the amount of liquid in your gravy — instead of gravy, you made pudding. You might be able to thin it down by whisking in some additional liquid such as milk or water before reheating it. However, next time use half (or even less) percentage of flour to liquid, and you'll ha...
Can I substitute mascarpone for ricotta? I have left over mascarpone that I don't want to waste	Although my own instinct would be to try using the mascarpone, there are undoubtedly some recipes that might not work. Consider whether the moisture content, texture, or flavor of ricotta is essential for what your recipe is trying to achieve. For many dishes, such as lasagna or other baked pasta, mascarpone should be ...
Why add flour to grilled onions? I enjoy a dirty rice recipe that has you sauté onions, celery and green peppers in sausage grease and then add a tablespoon of flour. What does the flour do?	Fat + flour form a roux, the base for creamy/starchy soups and sauces. You don't give details, but Cajun recipes often let the flour/fat mixture get rather dark, which will contribute more flavour while significantly reducing the binding properties, so I suppose this is the case here, too. Rule of thumb: Lighter for ...
Can I store dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, etc) together? I am planning on making a bunch of gingerbread this year, the recipe I use takes both baking powder and baking soda. In order to cut down on dishes and time I thought I might mix all of the dry ingredients together in multiple batches and ...	As long as they're all dry ingredients, then you should be just fine — after all, that's exactly what a box of packaged cake mix is. Again, if it's just dry ingredients, I see no need to refrigerate it. I would put it in an airtight container — preferably a glass jar*. Placed in your pantry, it should have a shelf-life...
Is it true cooked food cannot be left in room temperature for longer than 4 hours? I have only recently discovered that cooked food shouldn't be left in room temperature for longer than 2/4 hours. I lived in a tropical country which is warm and humid and I have been growing up eating left over cooked food(meat, rice, ...	The food safety guidelines are based on scientific & mathematical calculations along the lines of: Given an initial bacteria count of X they will under the given conditions mulitply to a number of Y amd have produced Z [unit] of toxins. Now what to do with these values? We use them like seat belts or helmets. Not wear...
Safely making truffle honey Since New Zealand has import restrictions on honey, I'm looking to make some truffle honey from scratch. I recall reading somewhere that incorrectly making it could cause some horrible toxin buildup (something like botulism or similar, not totally sure which). Does anyone have any advice o...	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 ...
Preventing my toast from becoming wet when I put it on the plate Since I moved to my new flat, I have a problem when heating bread in any way. What happens is that if I put it on a plate, it gets very wet on the plate side. This is so acute that drops appear on the plate. If I put paper around the bread, both get wet....	Warm your plate. The moisture in your toast is coming off the toast and then is getting condensed into the cold plate just like a glass of ice water attracts the moisture from the warm air around it. If you heat the plate, the moisture will not condense on top the plate.
Can I soak dried fruit in sweet wine instead of liqueur for use in fruitcakes? The recipes for fruitcake that I've looked at say to soak the dried fruit in brandy, rum, etc., i.e., something with a high alcohol content. I've been using liqueur which works well. I was wondering if using a sweet wine would work; has an...	A good quality ($20 or so) sweet Port, Madeira, or Sherry could be lovely, and add a delicious flavor note of its own. Make sure it's something that tastes good by itself, with a flavor that appeals to you, complimenting a piece of cake. Note that these are so-called "fortified wines" — they are distilled to a higher a...
What will happen to my Pecan tassies if I use too much butter? When I was making Pecan tassies, I read the recipe wrong and put a stick of butter in for the filling instead of 2 tablespoons. There are two eggs, 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, vanilla extract. Will it turn out with that much butter?	I'm assuming your stick of butter is 8 tablespoons, right? So you used four times as much butter as the recipe calls for, which is probably enough to make it into a buttery mess. I think your two best options are: 1) increase all other ingredients by the same amount and make a lot of tassies, or 2) start over.
What causes butter to make risotto shiny? Why does the addition of butter make risotto shiny? Is there a chemical explanation? I was taught to initially saute onions and garlic in olive oil, then risotto Arborio rice with warmed broth until the dish is almost complete, when the rice is still quite al dente. At this...	There is no special chemical reaction. Melted fats are glossy, look at any oil in a bottle. When you add the butter, it coats the rice, and this coat of fat is glossy. That's all there is to it. I don't know the exact explanation of why all oils are glossy, but it probably involves quantum physics. You could ask it o...
Is aluminum foil porous? When cooking certain items in the oven, I line the baking pan or sheet with aluminum foil. Without fail, when cleaning up, I find oil or juices from the food between the foil and the pan. I always use one piece of foil, meaning that I have not joined two pieces together, thus there is no seam....	There are two questions here: Is aluminum foil porous (particularly the types of foil sold for household cooking)? Is foil's porosity responsible for the liquid that sometimes appears on the other side in cooking/baking applications? I'd say the brief answers to these questions are (1) sometimes a bit, especially wh...
Pork shank meat yield I am trying to estimate the quantity of usable meat four pork shanks will yield. I need to feed 10 people and I have two front and two hind shanks that weigh a total of 5Kg. I am hoping to get half of that weight in cooked meat so that I am left with 250g per person. I will braise them at low for...	Well, I am in position to answer my own question now. I used 6 shanks (I got two more as I got worried they wouldn't be enough) and fed 10 adults and two children very comfortably with some leftovers. My original shank weight was 6.8Kg and I had four front and two hind pork shanks. I would guesstimate they yielded abo...
What are the consequences of infusing a tea bag longer than recommended? I'm a regular consumer of tea (since about 2 years ago), usually from commercial tea bags. They advise to infuse tea for 3 to 5 minutes, but there is some times that I have left it longer by accident. So I have been wondering what are the consequ...	The tea will be stronger than you'd like if you steep it for too long. Over-steeping sometimes gives a bitter flavor as well. (I am guilty of frequently over-steeping as I have the attention span of a goldfish. Sometimes I remember to set a timer, sometimes not.)
Will 93% lean ground beef stick in a non-stick skillet without oil? I often cook 85% lean ground beef in a non-stick pan. When I first started doing this, I always added some oil to the pan before I cooked it, but then I learned that the beef had enough fat on its own, so I started cooking it without adding any oil. ...	There isn't a way to predict this. Non stick pans are produced in different quality and can be anywhere from "water pearls off the surface" to "as bad as enamel". And all of them lose their non stick properties over time, at wildly different rates depending on quality and usage patterns. If you want to know it for you...
Could plastic or metal cans damage my oven? Is it possible to put vinyl plastic and metal cans in the oven at 200 degrees F for roughly 5-10 minutes? More specifically, I was came across DIY Vinyl Bowls where you place the vinyl record over a metal can for 5-10 minutes in the oven, it should become really flimsy and ...	You are taking me way back here. Back in my teens I used to do this as a fun project - I used Plexiglass (acrylic glass) instead of old vinyl records (people still used record players back then!), but the principle stays the same. No, your oven won't suffer if you are careful. The metal can / bowl / heat-proof object...
Substituting different types of eggs I know that it is unlikely but if I do at some point live in the country and have ducks, turkeys, and geese producing eggs as well as chickens and my chickens for some reason aren't laying eggs can I use duck eggs, turkey eggs, or goose eggs in a recipe that calls for eggs but does...	Duck, turkey and goose eggs are larger in size. One duck egg could be the equivalent of 2 chicken eggs. I would think you would need to determine the difference by weight, once out of the shell. The taste would not be discernable, except in an omelet or alone cooked for breakfast. The flavor would then be stronger. Hop...
How long should I blanch baby peas? I have a recipe which calls for a cup of blanched baby peas. Now, I know what blanching is. It concerns cooking the outer layer of green vegetables (James Peterson), but how long should I blanch baby peas? It seems that even a few seconds would cook them all the way through.	15-20 seconds seems to be all it needs for me, and then scoop them up and shock them in iced water to stop them cooking.
Kneading Bread After Rising Why should bread be kneaded before rising? If I knead bread after the first rise what difference will it make?	The purpose of kneading is to develop gluten in the dough. Gluten is made of long strands of protein — it makes the dough stretchy, so it can contain the bubbles created by the yeast or sourdough culture, enabling the dough to rise. Therefore, you need to knead before rising. If you knead the dough again after its firs...
restaurants terms Our company makes software for restaurants but we are facing a problem. we dont know the correct words in English for two things The message that goes to the kitchen, this is printed on a receipt printer in the kitchen and contains what the kitchen will start cooking. our best guess is KOT, Kitchen ...	This is a rather long answer, as terms need to be applied correctly and it is unclear what your software actually can do. In a professional setting, the customer makes an order and the wait staff creates tickets which are handed to the expediter. The expediter receives the tickets from the wait staff (or the printer) ...
Use chia seeds to help thicken a pot pie Can I put chia seeds in a pot pie filling to help thicken it? If so, how would I do it? (i.e., how much chia seeds, how much cornstarch, do I need to pre-soak, etc.) Edit: It was this recipe, and it was IMO quite runny with 2tbsp of corn starch.	If your problem is that a pie with 3 cups of liquid (750 ml) was runny with 2 tbsp of corn starch and some water sucking ingredients such as potatoes, and you say it tasted like corn starch, then you probably just didn't thicken the starch. You should try cooking the original recipe correctly before deciding whether to...
Potatoes boiled with skin on makes less gluey mash? So I have been reading and hearing a lot about Robuchon (to name one) boiling his potatoes skin on to counteract gluey mashed potatoes. When I make my mash though I think it's way easier to peel them pre boiling and simmer the potato skin in the milk that I'm later g...	I've never heard that boiling potatoes skin on makes a difference in consistency, but it's possible. The skin will act a as a barrier to moisture, letting the potatoes cook while absorbing less water. That will only work if you keep the potatoes whole though, cutting them up will negate that somewhat. While skin in ma...
Cast iron, stainless steel, or anodized non-stick: which makes the resulting product taste best? The thing with a cast iron pan and stainless steel pan is you've got to season them. Once they're seasoned, they have a non-stick (more or less) layer that's transformed olive oil, vegetable oil, or butter. I've been told ...	I give you my opinion Cast iron pans give you exceptional results when you have to cook, because they are facilitating a chemical reaction with the sugar contained naturally in food. However, I find them heavy and for my way of cooking I prefer an iron frying pan (de buyer does fantastic pans. I suggest carbone plus)...

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