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Mexican Spiced Mocha Minus Chili Powder I like Mexican Spiced Mocha and want to make it at home. But every recipe that I go through has chili powder as an ingredient. I am quite apprehensive abt. it. Can I make this particular coffee leaving chili pwdr and substituting something else in its place?	If you like spiced mocha made elsewhere then you are already having chili powder, so chances are you will like the recipes you would make at home. Substituting something else will change the flavor of the result you get, instead I would modify the amount and type of chili powder you use to get the amount of heat you ge...
Cleaning a commercial-grade grill surface Here is a griddle. Most weeks, it's used to cook for a community dinner where I live. And, most of those weeks, I'm the volunteer who cleans it. Based on instructions I inherited, I've got, for tools, a 4-inch paint scraper and a supply of blades, and then a stack of micro-f...	If you have dinged or scratched grill that is a problem. I am used to used to starting with something like this: a grill stone / block / brick. (Skip the paint scrapper - especially if it is scratching the grill.) If you are using something like this: Those are also use used but I like a brick. Then a green scratc...
Storing dried peppers I've got about 20 red thai peppers from my garden this year that I air dried. I currently have them in a mason jar with the lid and ring on (not sealed though). Is this a sufficient storage method, or is there a better way? The peppers are whole.	That's how I store the bird's eye chili that I get from my small balcony garden. I truss them up so they're hanging from their stems and hang that from a baker's rack, let them dry naturally, and just store them in a glass jar with a lid or cork. I produce way more than I use, so I use small (pint) size glass jars to ...
What can I substitute for Cointreau I want to make cocktails that call for Cointreau (Orange Liquor), but it's rather expensive for a college student as myself. What can I substitute Cointreau for that wont break the bank? Options should be obtainable at SAQ (in Quebec, Canada) Note: I heard of Meaghers triple sec, i...	Cointreau is just one particular brand. You can substitute any other triple sec/orange liquor. Some may suit your tastes better than others, but there's really no reason to insist on the fanciest most well-known brands, especially since you're mixing it into cocktails. So sure, try the Meaghers, or anything else that l...
23 Year old, looking for first cookware set with longevity, suggestions? I am ready to start cooking in my new apartment and I am looking for a cookware set that users on SA have purchased and would recommend to a beginner chef. My main goal is buying a set that will last a long time. There was this set I was interest...	Buying piece by piece is generally a better option than buying a set, because you can get higher quality individual pieces versus spending money on things you need. Nonstick doesn't last forever, so spending a lot of money on nonstick doesn't make a lot of sense. The Food Lab and America's Test Kitchen both have lists ...
Can you make tortillas/pitas on stainless steel? Most tortilla and pita bread recipes I see specifically call for cooking the dough in a cast iron skillet. At the moment, I only have stainless steel. My only attempt at making pita bread in a stainless steel skillet failed miserably. For the first batch I used a thin l...	Tweaking your technique, rather than pan choice, may help a bit - people often use whatever is to hand to make recipes, and what you have is what you have as far as pans go. I've used the same techniques on a a cast iron thaava and stainless steel griddle, and it was workable on each of them, for what it's worth. I us...
Is beef ever brined? I quite often will brine poultry and sometimes pork but I have never (or ever heard of anyone) brining beef? Does anyone know why it doesn't seem to be as popular with beef or has anyone tried it? If so, how are the results?	People often marinate beef cuts like flank steak or skirt steak. Dry brining (pre-salting) beef is pretty common, such as for prepping many steaks. Wet brining is also pretty common -- corned beef is brined. Beef tongue is often pickled and brined as well.
Can I fill my sous vide container completely full? I am cooking a brisket in a 12l container right now. It is packed absolutely full right now. Water covers everything, but pieces are pressed against the sides and against each other. Is this ok?	No, that doesn't sound good. The circulating water is what transfers heat efficiently to everything, making sure the water is the same temperature everywhere. If the flow is obstructed that can't happen. And if the food isn't all surrounded by water that's held at the desired temperature, it won't get heated as desired...
Need translation of dish into English I am trying to find for a descent equivalent for the Spanish "sartén de la abuela" or "sartén de los montes". That is, I want to know the name of the dish, how you order it from a menu, not the utensil (the pan itself). Don't worry if you don't understand Spanish. The pictures a...	It would appear similar to what in the US is commonly called a "breakfast skillet", such as this recipe for one. The 'skillet' comes from the pan that it's usually served in at restaurants (cast iron or some equivalent), and it generally consists of a meat such as bacon or sausage, usually a form of potato ('home frie...
Seasoning refuses to stick to carbon steel pan. Tried various techniques Please before you mark this as a dupe, I did refer to this stackexchange question. I have a Matfer carbon steel that won't hold seasoning at all. I first attempted the Cooks Illustrated flaxseed oil technique. I was very careful to follow the ins...	Before you go scouring your pan with steel wool. When you said you followed the instructions, did you follow the manufacturer's instructions, or some other website? Because although random websites might have good advice on building up the seasoning, they don't know how the pan was treated by the manufacturer, and what...
Can someone identify this herb? I found this herb in an Asian supermarket. The label didn't actually say what it was, and the clerks at the store didn't speak English well enough to ask them. My first thought was mint, but I would expect mint leaves to be more wrinkly than that. My second thought was holy basil, whic...	I don't think it's shiso, as that tends to have a more jagged edge. I suspect it's the botanically related Korean kkaennip (aka 'sesame leaf', which is also of the family Perilla): http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/07/seriously-asian-perilla-leaves.html http://www.maangchi.com/ingredient/perilla-leaves (but I can't di...
Will pizza dough stick on steel platform in conventional oven? I'm trying to avoid cornmeal, although it used to be the ideal choice since the dough tasted too much like flour when I used corn flour. But now I've moved on to using a steel surface to bake. Should I worry about adding semolina, flour, or cornmeal to th...	I ended up skipping the parchment paper. I had 6 small-medium pizza worth of dough, and padded all pizza-dough with semolina, as well as padded peel with semolina prior to each slide-in-to-oven. Prior to first pizza I put some semolina on the steel in the oven (though it might've been unnecessary... yet to confirm) All...
How do I reconstitute vacuum sealed Tibetan Barley Wine? Last month I stayed in a homestay in Sichuan Province that was owned and run by a Tibetan family. At dinner they served an amazing barley wine made from Tibetan barley that they called "qingke" barley. Though it wasn't as syrupy, it tasted a lot like port or she...	I wonder whether something was lost in translation, as @Echerwal points out and also suggests that your packet may be yeast. From a Tibetan friend in the US, here's how he makes dru-chhaang, the barley wine. Briefly wash the barley before putting it in a large pot and adding twice the volume of water as you have barley...
Can I cut chili powder with Paprika? I live in Africa, but cook with US recipes often. I have found that the locally available chili powder is MUCH more intense than it is in the US. So much so that making a custom taco seasoning yielded some near-inedible heat. For the moment I have solved this by bringing in chili p...	This recipe list chili powder as: 2 tablespoons paprika 2 teaspoons oregano 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder 3/4 teaspoon onion powder 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste (optional) There are other mixtures, but this one seem basic enough. The "heat" comes from the cayenne pepper. The other sp...
How to know what temperature cling film is safe to heat to I've been looking up how to make donner kebab at home, and the instructions I found suggests to wrap the meat in cling film and boil it - I guess similar to a home made bain-marie. I didn't realise you could boil/cook with cling film and so have researched mo...	It depends on the country since what is classed as safe differs although there are lots of common points. My own summary from the below English, Irish and American food standards are Unless a cling film is specifically marked as not safe for microwave use, it must be suitable for use in the microwave under EU law. In...
Sushi rice does it have expiry date ? I have some sushi rice, In the packet the expiry date is given as Jan 2016, But the rice seems fine. Is it alright for me to use it to make sushi with it ?	That is almost certainly a "best by" date, not an expiration date. Still Tasty calls the shelf life of uncooked white rice "indefinite". Yes, you can cook and serve your rice assuming that it is free of contaminants.
What type of flour is "wheat flour" in the UK? I want to replicate an American recipe of Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins. It requires 1 cup of wheat flour. What type of flour would that be in the UK shops?	What you are looking for is called wholemeal flour. Here's a quick US to UK baking translation guide. US on the left, UK on the right: All-purpose flour = plain flour bread flour = strong flour (both have extra gluten) whole wheat flour = wholemeal flour 1 stick of butter is 113g (get a scale, trust me) 1 large...
Baking bread/cake yields different results than expected I am trying to bake bread/cake without flour (gluten free). The friend who gave me the recipe gets a fluffy, light weight loaf, while mine tastes the same, but it is more condensed and hard even when I follow the recipe to the letter. What do I do? This is the r...	Assuming this is actually a recipe that worked for your friend (it does seem pretty weird - see rumtscho's answer)... We are both using a soup spoon, not a measured one, Yet we get different results. That's exactly why you got different results. Your soup spoons aren't necessarily the same size. You need to use some ...
Cooking meat directly above the flame of a gas stove What's the easiest way of cooking meat holding it over the flame of a gas stove burner? Is there any device to help with it? How I am doing it right now is holding a skewer a couple of inches over the flame. What annoys me more is the oil dripping on the stove and h...	Stoves aren't grills. They're not meant to have food in contact with them. If you're doing something like warming a tortilla above it that's fine, but as soon as you mention things dripping into the flame that's a red flag, especially if it's fat. You really don't want to start a grease fire, especially one that's down...
Is there anything but yeast in a packet of baker's yeast? So hopefully this does not seem like too silly a question...but is there anything in a typical small packet of baker's yeast aside from actual yeast organisms (S. cerevisiae)? I guess that I always assumed that there was some kind of filler agent such as corn...	Since you mention grains, I assume you're talking about active dry or instant yeast. The short answer is that either way, you're seeing granules of yeast plus dead yeast cells and dried growth medium, with the ratio of each depending on the type. The Wikipedia page on Baker's yeast has plenty of detail about the variou...
Is it safe that my medium-rare steak is cold in the middle? I do my steak in a heavy-bottomed pan on the stovetop for a couple of minutes a side on high heat and it comes out just as I like it - medium rare. Before cooking, I usually remove the steak from the fridge and let it come up to room temperature. Yesterday I...	Solid meat (such as a roast or steak) can be quite rare on the inside and still be considered safe by conservative government or academic standards. Solid meat is different from ground meat because bacteria (Salmonella and E. coli are of particular concern) get mixed into the meat from the surface when the meat is grou...
Are there common culinary uses for the addition of stearic acid? I was doing some research into flavorless (or flavor-neutral) acids that could be used to create certain things without altering the flavor of the outcome (say, an emulsion). Stearic acid immediately came to mind because it's known to be associated with ...	Its main "culinary" use is as a binder or texture agent in "processed" foods. You'll tend to find it in stuff like chewing gum, edible wax, and various candy elements like coatings. Aside from its natural occurrence (which, as noted in comments, comes in sorts of foods, but especially animal and vegetable oils and f...
Can I freeze beef stew? I've made too much beef stew, and I'd love to be able to freeze it instead of letting it go bad. It's a stew with cooked vegetables and chunks of beef. Will this freeze and defrost well? (If it matters, I bought the beef frozen, not fresh -- but I think the "don't refreeze" guideline is before ...	Yes, you can freeze stew. You may find that the vegetables are a bit softer or broken into smaller pieces after thawing. If you used a thickening agent (flour, cornstarch), it may separate as it thaws in the refrigerator overnight. To remedy that, remove a bit of the liquid, simmer with a bit more thickener and whisk s...
Rust in salt, is it safe? I bought a small tin of Jacobsen Sea Salt which is all the rage in Portland, Oregon. I left it in my back pack for a few weeks and when I took it out and opened it up I am noticing some rust from the tin on the top of the salt flakes around the edges. Is it still safe? It's not that much but...	Rust is iron oxide. The body needs some iron. We all drink some rust from pipes. To be toxic the only number I found is 200 milligrams per kilogram is lethal. But I have a degree in chemical engineering and I am not sure what they mean by that. As for iron the lethal dose is about 45 mg / day. Just saw the pictu...
Raw Eggs in Hot Black Te	Common in Ukraine? Correct Preparation? I just heard an account from someone who studied in the Soviet Union in the late 1950's, early 1960's. She said when she was served given a glass with a raw egg in it, and then very hot black tea was added. Then, a pat of butter was put on top. Is this true? Is this something c...
Air bubbles in sausage Are air bubbles/pockets/loose casing in raw sausages okay food safety-wise? I don't know if it's just because they didn't fill them as full or if they formed from gases/bacteria. They are five days before the best before date Merguez sausages. Thanks!	It is most likely just a void. It is hard to pack a casing 100%. There will be voids. Could it be (toxic) bacterial gas? Maybe but not likely.
Why do some green gram seeds float on water while some don't? I wanted to make sprouted green grams. I put a handful of them in a bowl and added water. Some of them floated on water while some remained suberged. Is this normal? Is there a difference in quality between those green grams which floated and those that did...	Which could mean one thing for sure . The density and weight of the grams which float is way too lower than the ones that sink. Which means, there is a possibility that it is hollow inside , because of some bug infestation or small worms/bugs gotten inside them, eaten them making it hollow. Else the natural weight if t...
Can one be "taste blind" to the sweetness of stevia? I bought some stevia powder today and tried to make waffles with it, replacing the sugar. However, no matter how much stevia I poured into the dough (carefully adding tea spoon by tea spoon, tasting it each time), I couldn't really taste any sweetness. Other family ...	There's some variation in how people respond to Stevi
What is the difference between bread dough and pizza dough? Our local supermarket sells bread dough, and I was wondering whether I could use it for a pizza base, or whether it would rise too much. At present we've been using frozen pizza bases, but something fresh would really be nice, -I just don't always have a chan...	You can use frozen bread dough, just fine. You'll often see it suggested in recipes. Pizza dough sometimes is made from higher gluten flour, or goes through a slower rise to make it more chewey and stretchy, but bread dough is definitely a major upgrade over pre-cooked crusts. Another option is call around to some lo...
How to eat raw brown rice, yellow peas, black beans The USDA nutrition data says these foods have much better nutrition raw than cooked. Can I make them safe to eat without cooking? Expand them and soften with water so they don't grow after being eaten Remove anti-nutrients and indigestible parts. Can they be sprout...	Assuming you don't cook in excess water then drain it away, there's not a difference in nutritional value here, you're just not comparing the same amount of rice. Raw, uncooked rice and beans are dry. When you cook them you add water. So if say you start with 100g of raw brown rice, you might end up with 330g of cooked...
Making my first big batch of Kefir, the milk went bad. Why? I ordered some Kefir grains online and they arrived looking healthy, at least to my untrained eye. I put them in milk and changed the milk every day for three days. By the last change, they were making a very thick kefir in 24 hours. I decided it was time ...	I've made kefir many times. When you first start using kefir grains, they take time to recover from not being in milk for a while (ie, if they were sent to you by courier or post) and to adjust to the conditions in your kitchen. It's normal for the first few batches of kefir to smell and taste like the milk went bad. I...
What happens to raw honey after the expiry date? Will it be edible? I have got a 3 kg pack of raw wild unheated honey. Expiry date is 18 months from packaging. What is expected to happen to it after the expiry date? Will it be edible?	It is probably a best-before date (possibly regarding crystallization of the honey or other cosmetic changes), and should still be edible afterwards. Most honey has historically been stored raw, it is still sold in the comb in places, and has still been known for having a long shelf life if left in a closed container....
How to make dry bulgur wheat? I am fond of bulgur wheat and often cook it with lots of veggies and season it with fresh herbs. What turns me off is the stickiness. It turns out to be too sticky when completely cooked. I want to cook bulgur wheat but at the same time keep it moist and dry. Someone please guide.	When you refer to cooking Bulgur wheat, do you boil it in a pot of water? Admittedly the only thing I have ever done with Bulgur wheat was Tabbouleh, where you just reconstitute the dry Bulgur wheat by pouring boiling water on it and letting it soak that way until it softens and fluffs up real nice & golden with every ...
Accidentally killed my mussels I bought some live mussels from the fish counter and I had been reading about 'flushing' them so I put them in a bowl of fresh water for a while and carried on perusing the internet. I then read here and here that leaving them in freshwater will quickly kill them. So I quickly rescued th...	In order: No. It's possible, though not especially common, for a dead mussel to be stuck closed; they'll likely open with very little resistance. Most likely yes. The main issue with eating dead mussels is that it's an indication they've been poorly cared for; you can't know how long they've been dead or how fresh the...
What do you call eggs prepared with a broken yolk, in a skillet, with no char? What do you call eggs prepared with a broken yolk, in a skillet, with no char? I crack 2 eggs into a saute skillet & break both yolks, cover with a lid & wait a couple minutes with medium heat, then flip them over & turn off heat for 1 more...	Where I come from, that would be called 'over hard.' As a reference, the others would be over-easy (runny yolk), over-medium (soft, slightly runny), and the over-hard would be cooked solid. Chefs will often break the yolk on an over-hard order, before flipping the egg, if it's not already broken.
What are the signs that indicate that raw honey has spoilt? If the raw honey goes bad, how would I know? What should I keep on looking for? Floating fungus?	Honey might go bad in two ways - one involves stuff growing on the surface of the honey, the other involves the honey itself fermenting. In both cases, the spoilage is connected to exceedingly poor storage - as other answers mentioned, honey is difficult to spoil... but difficult is not the same thing as impossible, r...
How to make olives to be used in salad? Hey i was trying something different, and want to serve olives as salad but don't know how to make that salty thing to be included in salad.	Generally, any salty/pickled ingredient becomes part of the overall salt (and acid) balance of a salad - since olives are salty but not INEDIBLY salty, you can decide to taste how much you want to include, and how fine you want to cut them - you could do everything between including them whole (maybe pitted) and cuttin...
Can one preserve cooked fish with salt? I am attempting to replicate a Thai delicacy called 'Pla Tuu'. It is a small fish that is salted, cooked in water, and then reheated periodically to preserve it. My question is: Should the initial salting be done before the fish is cooked for the first time, or afterwards? My wo...	Disclaimer - I'm not familiar with the recipe, and I also couldn't find much on it when I looked, so I just had some thoughts to possibly offer in the absence of anything more offical. If the salting is done before cooking, it wouldn't depend on the presence of salt "not being washed away" while cooking, but on the cha...
How to make adjust a recipe for red velvet cake when increasing the quantity? If I'm quadrupling the recipe for a red velvet cake do I still add four times the baking soda and powder?	I know some disagree, but I always have learned that recipes can start breaking down if more than doubling or halving. Ratios can start changing and need adjusted, and then there is the cooking time components. If I have a recipe I am happy with, and I want to greatly increase it, I normally will instead make multipl...
Making green tea I want to know the exact method of preparation and consumption of green tea. How much sugar can be used if recommended? Can I opt for honey instead? If so how much? How many cups can be consumed per day?	In many countries where tea is grown, such as Japan, it is not proper to add any sweetener! However that being said, the best way to prepare tea is however you like it! The proper way to prepare, present, and consume tea depends on the culture you wish to emulate (England, China, Turkey, etc.). What is important is th...
Should indoor ripened tomatoes be used for sauce? I was talking with a person about getting all my green tomatoes in and ripening them for one last batch of sauce. She told me as a matter of safety that you shouldn't use tomatoes that were picked green for any sauce but couldn't explain why. It was just something she ...	I've never heard that. I have picked end of season tomatoes when they were green and let them ripen and used them for any purpose that I would normally use ripe tomatoes. And I know others who do also. It's much better than losing them to a frost or to animals. If there is any downside, it would be that they might not ...
Food safety of sauerkraut whose brine evaporated below surface? We started a batch of sauerkraut about a month ago. We used the outer leaves of the cabbage to cover the shredded cabbage below. The cabbage was brined with adequate salt (about 2 tsp per pound). The brine level was well above the surface of the cabbage, ...	Unfortunately nobody can give you a definitive answer about your batch without testing. But I can give you more information to help you make a more informed decision. As you are, I'm concerned about botulism. You mention that "botulism can't survive with that amount of salt". I'm not sure whether that's true. If an env...
Blade of Mace Quantity When a recipe calls for a blade of mace, what is the expected quantity? The pieces of mace in the bag I have literally come in every size, from the entire husk, down to tiny fragments. The thickness is pretty uniform, so two-dimensions would be enough to define it. Alternatively, I could concept...	Personally, I conceptualize an average blade-of-mace size, and use that to determine if I should tear a bit of or not. The outcome will sometimes be a bit more macey, sometimes a bit less macey. For me, it's part of the charm of a curry, and also helps finding out personal preference of dosage for mace. The same proble...
How does "That's It" makes fruit bars with no preservatives "That's It" is a company that makes fruit bars, stating: "That’s it. fruit bars are made with literally two ingredients: fruit and fruit and that’s it! You can’t get any simpler than that!" The bars are also NonGMO. How would it be possible to combine two f...	A couple things - first, fruits that are dried for storage are not always dried hard - they can contain a fair bit of moisture, softness, flexibility while still being dry enough to be shelf-stable, especially if stored in a well sealed bag or container. Also, the fruit puree or paste might have been heated in the proc...
Cooking rib roast for a large group with minimal time We're having a decent sized party, and hoping to serve rib roasts (we're looking at 3 7-rib roasts). The problem is, we only have access to the ovens on site 2 hours before we want to eat. This doesn't give us enough time to do the full cooking on site. What's t...	This is a perfect application for sous vide cooking. I would pre-sear, bag, sous vide @ 58C (136.5 F) for 5 to 10 hours, then chill. All that can be done ahead of time. Bring to the site, re-therm for a couple of hours, crank the oven, and finish in a hot oven to develop outer crust.
What nutritional changes occur to vegetables when you roast them? Quite often I can't 'stomach' veggies because I find them rather dull, but if I roast them (huge variety of types used) in oil and a pinch or three of sea salt, I can quite easily eat a very large portion of them. But how for instance does potassium (ve...	1. The main nutrients destroyed by heating are vitamins from B complex and vitamin C (possible loss 50-70%). (NutritionDat
Does adding olive oil in pasta while boiling make it sticky? I am planning to make a pasta dish and would like to know if adding 1Tb spoon of olive oil while boiling 500 gram of pasta make it sticky. What are the other advantages and disadvantages of this approach?	Some people think adding olive oil to pasta water will keep the pasta from sticking, but in reality it does absolutely nothing. Adding a tablespoon of oil to pasta water won't affect the outcome in the slightest, doing that is a waste of a good ingredient. Adding olive oil to pasta after it has been drained on the oth...
How to collect slime pass through rice cooker cover when cover on? I have often the following situation when boiling rice and meat in rice cooker. However, I do not like it because the meat cannot then reach the high temperature. I know that I could boil rice and meat (chicken) separately to minimise the problem. F...	I will bump this up to an answer as the only time this should not work for you is if you have a rice cooker that requires a minimum weight to activate the heating element. You usually should be able to use your rice cooker itself to sear/brown your protein. Cut into small pieces and toss into the cooker. Also, garlic...
How to prevent eggplant having a tough or rubbery texture I'm planning on cooking an Asian style eggplant with garlic sauce soon. However, I am concerned (perhaps even paranoid) about getting the texture right. My goal is for the eggplant to be very soft ("melt in your mouth"). In the past, I've had eggplant turn toug...	Make sure your initial cooking is reasonably fast and hot, and from there just cook it until it's soft enough for your tastes. Many vegetables firm up when cooked at lower temperatures, especially in the presence of salt. From On Food and Cooking: It turns out that in certain vegetables and fruits - including potatoes...
How do I clean a vintage carbon steel pastry cutter? How do I remove old rusty spots from a 70-year-old pastry blender & make "food safe"? Prefer not to use polishes or other volatile, caustic products.	Look up what has been written on restoring carbon steel knives, similar techniques apply. To clean up loose rust, steel wool, sandpaper and wire brushes will help; afterwards, you might want to try and build a patina by treating it with a food-safe acid (vinegar, lemon...).
Substitute for Cornichons I know that cornichons are a type of pickled gherkin. None of the grocery stores in my area carry them. Would the best substitute be miniature dill pickles, miniature sweet pickles, or something else? Or would it be something akin to miniature dill pickles with a certain spice added?	Sweet pickles, miniature if you're not dicing them, it doesn't matter if you are dicing them. Look for a bit of crunch; cornichons provide texture as well as flavor.
What can cause honey to crystalize quickly? Yesterday I opened a sealed jar of raw honey (blackberry). Over the course of a not-very-long meal (at which the honey was being used as a condiment) I watched it go from liquid to crystalized. I've had honey crystalize after having been opened for weeks or months, but I'v...	Crystallization involves two stages: nucleation (the formation of the crystals, either spontaneously, influenced by solids like the walls of the container or a foreign substance, or influenced by existing crystals) and growth (where the size of crystals increases from microscopic). Nucleation is most likely to occur wh...
Can you cook quince whole? All the instructions I've read for cooking quince talk about how much of a pain it is to peel and quarter them before cooking them till they are soft. Am I missing something, or could I cook them till soft and then cut and core them?	No, this should work. But you need to get that precise point between too hard and too soft to cut. And during cooking the fruit will soften from the outside inwards: You might find yourself handling the fruit during cooking, so either you have to touch hot fruit or interrupt the cooking, let cool, peel, cook again.......
What am I doing wrong with my rice cooker? I have a Breville rice cooker and follow the instructions exactly (for 2 cups of rice). There are two settings - on or off (keep warm). The manual says: But no matter what type of (white) rice I use, there is always a layer of hard (overcooked) rice at the bottom. I've tried...	Does your rice cooker have a scale up the inside of the bowl? With mine, you add a number of scoops of rice, then fill with water up to the correct number on the side of the bowl. Maybe it is just that the manual is badly worded, and this isn't clear? It's a long shot, I know, but just thought I'd mention it in case yo...
Saffron and coloration - is there a way to know why it gave the wrong color? What would make saffron (or something) color pink, instead of the more usual yellows and oranges that saffron is known for? I had, a while ago, picked up a container of saffron from an ethnic store. On reflection, it didn't look like it was ...	So, my question is, is there any reasonable guess as to why the threads gave off a pink color? Yes. It's fake. I've had family bring over the exact same thing from Turkey a few years ago: entire bags of "saffron threads" that turned everything they touched pink. It's a known fake product in the Middle East region. Th...
When you wet or dry cure fish does all of the fat come out with the water? When you dry cure fish a lot of water comes out. Does the water include all the fat from the fish or does that remain inside?	It should be mostly just water, very little fat. Water is released pretty easily, fat not so much, especially without grinding things up. Most fish isn't that fatty to begin with, anyway. In any case, fat and water don't mix without help, so just look at the liquid. If there's fat there you'll see it floating on top. I...
Issues with salt loss and dry curing I want to cure fish so that the maximum amount of salt penetrates into all parts of the fishs' tissue. I know that with beef or chicken it is impossible to make the wet or dry brine go all the way into the meat. It only penetrates the surface a few milimeters from my experience. ...	I'm not sure about the possibility of getting the salt all the way into the center of a fish, but I can perhaps address some of your other questions. First, if you do manage it with a simple salt cure - I expect your food will be inedibly salty. You can look at simple salt curing as it was used as a historical preserv...
Which cooking methods do not cause meat to fry in oil\their own oil? It seems to me besides boiling/simmering everything requires oil or causes a food to fry in their own oil. Deep frying obviously doesn't work however I have noticed that when grilling, baking etc the oil comes out of the meat and although it may even...	I think you're misrepresenting this as frying. Frying requires sustained contact with oil, and little to no contact with water. If meat ends up cooking in its own juices, sure, there's oil in there, but there's water too, so it's not really frying. Sure, if you cook something long enough you'll cook off the water, and ...
Does the definition of "cooking" imply heat? Through comments posted in this question, I'd like to expand the commentary on the definition of cooking. Specifically, is heat an essential stipulation? According to the wiki article on cooking: Cooking can also occur through chemical reactions without the presence of h...	Neither "yes" nor "no" is a suitable answer to that question. First, there is no "the definition" of cooking. I am sure you can turn up several formal definitions, and my best guess is that some will require heat and others won't. Second, and probably more important, humans don't think in definitions. You are asking ...
Why is soba not entirely buckwheat flour? I thought that soba was completely made of buckwheat flour, but I learned that it's actually around 80% buckwheat and 20% wheat flour. Is there a reason for this mixture ? Is it for flavour or ease of preparation or cost ?	It isn't only that buckwheat flour doesn't have gluten (though that is true), but that it needs a binder, and using wheat flour is an easy methods of introducing one. In traditional (wheat) breads, the binder is gluten, which is formed as the dough is being worked - it is that formation which makes the mixture a dough...
Slow oven brown rice Is there a slow method of cooking brown rice in the oven? Next week, I'm cooking for a group of friends. I'd like to start the rice, go to a meeting (~3 hours) and come back to finished rice. I'm using long-grain (not Basmati) brown rice. I have an old oven, so no on/off timer available. Could I ...	Slow cooker If you have a slow cooker as Catija suggested, you can totally do exactly what you want. Search for slow cooker rice pilaf if you need a starting point. I know you don't want new appliances, but slow cookers are a bit more general purpose, so maybe you have one or would be okay buying one, and future reader...
Handles on pots loosen over time - can I loctite them? The handles on my pots loosen over time and I have to occasionally tighten the screw that attaches them. Is there any reason why I can't or shouldn't use Loctite (screw locking compound) on them to secure them? And if that's the case, why not send them from the fa...	You could use Loctite 2046 which is food safe. They list deep fryers as a possible application, so it should also work on a cooking pot.
Are screwed on pot handles an indication of quality? Is the use of screwed on handles any indication of the quality of a pot? What determines the choice of screws versus rivets or welds?	Briefly, no. Screwed on handles usually are found on cheaper cookware, but it doesn't necessarily mean the pan overall is of poor quality. There used to be a contention that riveted handles were the strongest and an indicator of quality cookware. Also, welding and various screw attachments (which frequently also cont...
Chef at restaurant seemed to be using really flimsy pans I was at a restaurant and sat at the chef's table where I could see the chef making the entrees. He seemed to be using thin pans that were battered and dented. I couldn't tell what material they were (either alu or steel; they weren't copper), but they were thi...	Are thin-pans totally usable and it's just all in the chef? Yes, and no. As usual, skill matters more than tool choice. A bad cook won't turn out good food with a great pan. A great cook with a bad pan will usually outcook an intermediate cook with a great pan. But the same intermediate cook will turn out better food...
Effect of liquified hazelnuts on chocolate tempering? I would like to ask if roasted and liquified hazelnuts will negatively affect the tempering of milk chocolate? I have hazelnuts that I have roasted and liquifed by using a high-quality blender. Subsequently, the hazelnuts were passed through a strainer to filter o...	You are making Gianduja - and if you make chocolates out of it, they're Giandujotti - singular form Giandujotto; The name might help you find sources of information. The tempering process will be basically the same (I've seen sources suggest 2°C below temperatures for white chocolate temperatures at all times), but kee...
What are the pros and cons when microwaving food in microwave-safe bone china, glass, or silicone? All of them can be used in microwave, as far as I know. But the question is which one should be preferred? What are the pros and cons on the basis of which we can decide which one to prefer? Out of microwave safe bone ...	As Shalryn hinted to, not all glass is the same. Although I would recommend glass also, I wouldn't recommend something like a thin colored glass cup, as they can't typically take the thermal shock of heating. What happens is that the glass absorbs microwaves differently than the food being heated; if you're heating a l...
Sponge cake - Why mix milk and butter instead of folding? From what I understand, after whisking the eggs and sugar you fold in the flour to prevent flattening the air bubbles in the mixture you just incorporated. So why then do some recipes say you should stir or whisk melted butter and milk mix afterwards to the egg...	I can't say why you'd want to do this in general for other types of sponge cakes. But in the linked recipe it's very clear. The reason is because the milk/butter mixture is heated "to just under a boil" and according to the instructions should still be at least "hot (about 150F)" when added. In this case, you take ou...
What is a good substitute for Kecap Manis Several Indonesian dishes that I've been thinking about making call for Kecap Manis, a sweat somewhat viscous soy sauce. I've seen several potential substitutes online involving normal soy sauce, but I'm not convinced that they would actually make a decent tasting substitute c...	Kecap Manis is not simply sugar & soy sauce, as there are spices, too. (typically galangal (related to ginger) is one of them, which I've only found in the US in larger asian/international markets). The Dutch spelling of Kecap Manis is Ketjap Manis and you can regularly find it available online (Through Amazon, you c...
bread machine loaf size buttons My sunbeam 5891 does not give specifics on the knead/rise/bake times of each cycle, or what happens when you change the loaf size. Time slightly increases if I click the button to raise from 1.5 lbs to 2 lb loaf. Does proofing time, baking time, or both increase when the 2 lb button i...	I doubt it'd increase the proofing time, since that doesn't generally vary with the quantity of dough; the yeast is working in all the dough at the same rate. It would definitely need to increase baking time, though, since it takes longer for heat to transfer all the way into a larger loaf. Sounds like with that machin...
What to do with left over rejuvelac grains I have been making rejuvelac from wheat berries in order to make vegan cheese. After I am through with the rejuvelac, I have been throwing away the wheat berries. I tried to find something else I could do with them. The only things I saw were to grow wheat grass or dehydrate ...	I love croutons in my salad, but I don't want to use refined flour products. I mix sprouted grains with a cashew cream blend, add some miso, kimchi, veggie mix left from my juicer, nutritional yeast flakes and herbs, mix it all together and dehydrate at under 104 degrees for a day, flip it over to dh another day and th...
Is it different to add seasoning at the beginning, in the middle or at the end of cooking? I think the question doesn't need more explanation, just if you have to add any seasoning, from pepper to any other kind, specially if you have a variety of them, do you decide an order for them?	Yes it does make a difference when you add the seasoning. The taste varies depending on when the seasoning ingredients are added. As for as stir fries or any dry fries are concerned, it doesn't make much difference. But in water based dishes like sauces, curries, gravies, and soups it could impact a great deal. The wat...
The chocolate chips in my chocolate chip cookies dont rise to the top Why does my chocolate chip cookies look "ugly"? The chocolate chips stay insdie the cookies, unlike other chocolate chip cookies, the choco chips go are on top of the cookies and look so good. I just followed the recipe. What am I doing wrong?	I don't think they are supposed to rise to the top. If you are looking at a picture in a recipe or book, the chips were probably placed in that position for appeal. You can do the same before cooking by placing a few chips on top. Advertising is a deceptive busines!
More dense cookie I am trying to recreate a cookie my grandmother made. She helped me with the ingredients. I have the taste right, but the texture is wrong. I need a dense, smooth top, crunchy cookie. One that browns well and is good for dunking. What I end up with is a crisp to crunchy cookie with a crackle top. I...	A crackly top is indicative of plentiful sugar, as is brittle crispiness. If you want to diminish those qualities, try backing off on the sugar. It sounds to me like you want a cookie with a more "shortbready" character. Perusing shortbread cookie recipes on the internet I see their butter-to-sugar ratio somewhat large...
How do I fry potatoes for curry? I have been failing, for six years, to make the amazing fried potato curry I grew up eating at home in India. I honestly don't know what I'm doing wrong. I have tried literally every single variety of potatoes I can get my hands on at my Trader Joe's: Russett, Golden, Red, White, you n...	There are two easy ways to prepare dry potato fry/curry. First one which I always use is first boil the potatoes till tender (not mushy though), peel and cube them. It is important that they are firm and hold their shape . Then proceed with frying. Add oil, temper spices, add the potatoes, do the seasoning, let the ou...
How to sweeten bread without sugar I know that sugar molecules are large and too many of them can prevent a proper gluten network from forming when making bread. What other things can be used to sweeten bread instead of sugar? I'm thinking about trying to make some sort of dessert bread.	Ok, sweetening bread without changing the texture overmuch. Most natural sweeteners - including honey, maple or agave or corn syrup, or raw, palm, date, or coconut sugars, all of that - will tend to change the texture of bread in ways similar to (even if not identical to) white sugar. Even if the texture changes aren'...
How is bean pasta so protein-rich? I've seen a number of bean pastas that have pretty close to a 1:1 protein/carb ratio. For example, this black bean pasta has 23g carbs and 25g protein per serving. On their own, black beans have a much lower protein/carb ratio (less than 1:2). Considering black beans are the only ing...	I can see three possibilities, though I don't know which is the actual case. First, it is simply possible that the beans they source are, for some reason, very high in protein. The general nutrition numbers are averages, and can cover some pretty broad ranges - a potentially significant difference might come from t...
Chocolate Twang Aftertaste I was sampling several brands of dark chocolate bars. Here are two of them. Lindt 90% Supreme Dark Ghirardelli 86% Intense Dark This bar of Ghirardelli chocolate (as well as other Ghirardelli chocolates) I tried have a twang aftertaste to them. The closest I can describe it is a citric aci...	At a guess, you're tasting the chocolate. Plain chocolate can actually have a lot of different flavor notes, depending on the bean type, origin, batch, and year. A fruity taste is quite likely the result of working with a single-origin batch of beans that had that characteristic. Other tastes can be mellow or sharp, ...
Why did apple filling in the pie turn to mush? I'm not talking about the crusts. Those came out fine. But the fruit of my apple pie came out dark brown without any crunch at all. They turned to mush, like a thick pudding or sauce. I used 2 pounds of Granny Smith apples sliced thinly, 3 teaspoons of lemon juice, 1 tea...	Hold back a bit on the lemon, or toss 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in the filling. I don't see any other cause for the apples to have completely macerated in your recipe other than the acid content to cooking time. 90 minutes is a rather long time, but I'd expect them to hold up quite a bit better than 'mush'. You could...
Why is acidic cooking problematic for cast iron pans but not BBQ plates? I've recently discovered cast iron cookware and I'm a little bit in love! I have a couple of questions for experienced cast iron users. I've done lots of reading and it looks like acidic cooking isn't great for cast iron. You can do a bit in a w...	Iron is a very reactive metal, responding to many different influences. Heat, acidity, moisture, even the oxygen content of its environs cause reactions. Barbecue plates are manufactured with enough other metals (zinc, aluminium, etc.) and via a tempering process that keeps the metal chemically stable in reactive envi...
How to prevent liquid-y marinara sauce I made marinara sauce using NYT Marinara Sauce Recipe, which recommends the 28oz of DOP certified San Marzano tomatoes for pizza sauce. It tasted great, but unfortunately it had more liquid than I was hoping. So I was wondering where I went wrong.. Should I not have squeezed as...	You could cook it longer, in a shallow pan, to evaporate some of the water.
Microwaving wine to remove alcohol? Does microwaving wine have the potential to remove the alcohol? If so, how long might be required? (I'm specifically interested in the microwaving aspect, which is why the existing questions on cooking away article aren't exactly sufficient)	Cooking is not as effective at removing alcohol as many people think; the alcohol and water evaporate or boil together. At a simmer, it might only take 10-15 minutes to get rid of half of the alcohol, but getting rid of 90% of it takes more like two hours. See this previous question on cooking away alcohol for more det...
What was the mysterious ingredient in making of Japanese sweet bean paste (an or あん) from the movie? The Japanese movie Sweet Bean (あん) shows the process of making red bean paste in one of the scenes. The cook uses a clear gelatinous substance which presumably is the sweetener for this paste. What is it exactly?	The ingredient is Mizuame (水飴), a Japanese sweetener. It adds sweetness and gives a luster. When they need large amount, professional cooks usually scoops it with their bare hands, as she does in the movie. I'm not sure of the reason, but Mizuame is very sticky and it is troublesome to handle with tools. And this beha...
Eden damast knives I recently did some research for a couple of knives I'd like to buy to replace the one I have at home, and I've almost decided for the Wusthof classic. I also found those very affordable knives here: http://www.knivesandtools.co.uk/en/pt/-eden-classic-damast-3-piece-knife-set.htm#tabbutton3 They loo...	VG10 based knives (damascus or not), if correctly made and correctly sharpened, can indeed have better edge retention than classic German or French stainless knives, which usually are made of variants of 1.4116 steel (there are exceptions, Henckels marked as 1731, MC63/MC66/MD67, CMV60 are made of more modern steels). ...
Steelhead Salmon's Mercury content How does Steelhead salmon compare with Atlantic farm raised salmon when it comes to mercury content?	Sorry, I know that this is old, but I wanted to follow up with some related data. Caveat: I'm not a scientist, but my dad was a biochemist who worked in the aquatic biology field for more than 50 years, and I picked up a few things. In 2001, a multi-species study was done on several species of fish including two types ...
Iron cast cookware: rust-ish or black coat even on new cookware, is it safe? Some time ago I got iron cast dutch oven, alomost right away I noticed that when I wash it (just water, no soap) when I wipe it with white paper towel I get something black on it (see pictures). Today I got a new cast iron fry pan (same manuf...	Lodge is an ideal choice because it comes pre-seasoned. While I expect to wash a bit of muck out of them after bringing one home, it should only be stuff the pan has accumulated after it was seasoned in the factory. And I don't mind that, because they're pans after all and designed to accumulate things. If you're still...
Kneading dough with long nails; latex gloves? Is it possible/recommended to knead dough with disposable latex gloves on? I'm asking because I have quite long nails and don't find it a very hygienic idea to knead dough with long nails. Not to mention the amount of dough I'd have to pick out from under my nails later on...	Long nails will puncture smooth thin latex gloves (the surgical type) very quickly, especially during something like kneading where the gloves slide against your fingers all the time. Thick latex gloves, like the one for washing dishes, will be more durable, but they are also grippy and a lot of dough will stick. Also,...
Halving cassoulet recipe cooking time I have a recipe for cassoulet which takes 45mins plus 30 mins extra when you put the beans in. How long would it take when recipe is halved?	As several comments have said already: halving a recipe generally doesn't affect the cooking time very much. Depending on the recipe you may have to keep an eye to ensure that the increased surface area (relative to volume) doesn't cause it to evaporate too quickly or develop too much crust, but for the most part the t...
How to know when food grade plastic has melted? I just received a super hot delivery of soup in a polypropylene container (the plastic symbol on the bottom is a 5). I noticed the lid was very pliable in comparison to the rest of the container to the point I could easily bend it and cause the surface to warp by poking ...	Plastic is an amorphous solid. This means that it doesn't have a sharp melting point like water, but it goes through a state where it is softer and softer, until it turns liquid. So yes, the plastic was in this state when you touched it. If you want to call this transitional state "melted", then it was melted. Unless ...
How can I make my (American style) pancakes light and spongy? I will be participating at a charity event at the end of this month and I am still not sure about my recipe. I am using a mini pancake griddle to cook the pancakes. My pancakes are ok, but I think they can be better. They weren't very soft--a bit chewy and ...	I can't say for sure what is wrong, but here's a few possibilities: Your mix is too runny: if you have a batter that's too thin then it will spread out too far on the pan, if it's too thin you will get a rubbery pancake. It doesn't take much liquid to get too thin, a couple of tablespoons of milk make make the differe...
Chewy, Moist & Bit Uncooked Bread I used a pre ferment of yeast flour & water kept for 3 hours to ferment. Later kneaded this into whole wheat dough I had kneaded earlier. Then rising, rolling it , rising again over 2 hours. Till here all was going well with dough puffing , rising etc. For last proofing, I shaped the ...	I think you over-kneaded and over-proofed your dough. When using a pre-ferment you are supposed to use it as an ingredient in your dough, mixing it in before kneading. Kneading is not a great way of combining a ferment into a dough, you'd have to work it so much to get it mixed you are likely to end up with too much gl...
if you fry nuts in vegetable shortening is there still nut allergy risk? Nut allergies present in vegetable shortening from Frying pecans or does it dissipate?	Depends on exactly how sensitive the allergic person is, but there is some protein/allergen transfer. So there is an allergy risk. (Depends on the particular person whether it'll cause harm or not—but there are reported cases where it has). To avoid transfer, you need to thoroughly clean out the fryer/pan/etc. and use ...
Is there a name for fried evaporated milk? I have heard of a food that is made by heating milk until most of the water is boiled off (or alternatively the top of the milk is skimmed off) and then is fried until lightly browned. My Turkish friend makes it and uses it as a dipping sauce for bread. Does anyone know what ...	It sounds kinda similar to dulce de leche, but that is usually made with extra sweeteners added to the milk as it is cooked down. You might look at baked milk, which is a Russian food, although it looks like the cooking down is usually less than you describe - that is, it may produce a brown crust, but the bulk of the ...
How to Tell if Beef Steak Has Been Dry-Aged I am about to purchase my first dry-aged beef steak. How do I know the steak has been properly dry-aged? How do I know if the vendor is not trying to sell me spoiled meat? From some photos dry-aged steak seem like meat left in the freezer for too long.	While there's some similarity in looks between aged steak and rotten meat (both usually have a dark color) it's easy to tell the difference. Spoiled meat will smell rotten and very unpleasant, and will probably have a slimy feel to it. I've found that dry aged meat has an intense, rich smell to it. Spoiled meat, or mea...
Using an electric deep fryer does the food need to be totally immersed? *Edit** So there seems to be much confusion about the way I worded the question and how I described the situation. So I will try to clarify. The max fill line is about halfway down the fryer. The minimum fill line is very near the bottom. I am...	Based on the comments, it sounds like your fryer has a fill line for just the oil, calibrated so that if you use that much oil then add a reasonably-sized turkey, you'll end up with the oil still safely below the top of the fryer. You'd never actually use 22 quarts of oil; then it'd be completely full of oil, on the ve...
Does chilli get milder with cooking? I have made a tomato, onion and cannelini bean curry. I put a lot of chilli spice in it, perhaps too much. If I keep simmering it, will it get milder? I'm hoping it will cook into the (bland) beans.	You'll sometimes hear television cooking show hosts describe what they're doing as "cooking out" the paste. What they're actually doing is altering the flavor of the chili itself, not manipulating the level of capsaicin that was introduced. If you take a typical chili paste which has been combined with garlic and other...
Using whole uncored apples in chutney? I got an apple chutney recipe from a friend. It's an old family recipe and it specifically says to chop the apples but to NOT core or peel them. The recipe is basically just apples and pears, red onions, raisins, brown sugar, cider vinegar and various spices which you simmer ge...	Apple cores contain more pectin than the rest of the apple, so including the cores will likely get you a thicker, more gelled chutney. With enough cooking they'll indeed soften, as long as it's an apple variety that softens when cooked (as opposed to baking varieties that hold their shape) so it's really just the seed...
How to toughen cookies I have a problem with my cookies becoming crumbly as they hang-out in room/warm afternoon temperatures. I bake cookies -- a lot for fundraisers. Normally these cookies are stored in display cases within main halls and sold by students. What happens whenever I test them in the middle of the day, ...	I'd imagine these are being stored in a simple glass / plastic display similar to what you'd see at a sari-sari store. Shalryn's suggestion is good, but it compromises the quality of the cookie a bit. I'd look at using some sort of desiccant first, and a simple electric fan behind the display to move the air around in...
How do I safely use an aruvamanai The aruvamanai is an indian kitchen multitool used by my grandmother's generation consisting of a fixed curved blade on a roughly boat shaped block. Its typically used by placing it on the floor, somehow holding down the block and pushing the thing to be cut against the blade. It se...	Let me tell and admit that usage of Aruvamanai is a bit tricky. It is not mostly used by younger generations. But my mother and my mother in law still use them and they wont switch to board and knife. I have seen watching them use it skillfully, hence I can tell the ways to hold it down and use it properly. First sit o...
How to make Chinese-style cornstarch coating stick The other day I prepared General Tso's Tofu. It tasted good, but the result was not quite what I wanted. Like with many other Chinese dishes, the tofu cubes in General Tso's Tofu are coated in a thin jelly-like layer consisting of cornstarch, liquid and seasoning. The...	The key in a stir-fry is that the ingedients can at all times move about freely. A spatula shouldn't really be needed, the way it is in sautéing, rather you use a spoon/ladle to just, well, stir the loose mixture. In fact even that isn't ideal: arguably, it should rather be called toss-fry, because vigorously moving th...
Do Morrocan-stye pickled lemons really need 5 to 10% salt? I want to make Morrocan-stye pickled lemons, but I was only able to find one site with an explicit ratio, and it says: In On Food and Cooking, Harold McGee suggests that a solution of five to 10% salt is needed to achieve a good North African-style preserved ...	As I understand it, you may be seeing some confusion between two very different processes. When making sauerkraut, you are fermenting cabbage in brine, and the fermentation gives sauerkraut its characteristics. I believe this means you need to have or introduce the right microbes, and give them time and space and the...

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