Fresh veggies are expensive up north in the winter so we eat alot of frozen. Over 4 bucks for asparagus, cauliflower 3 bucks etc. Low quality too.
They do have some better quality frozen now, I often just microwave them in a covered bowl, a little butter and fresh ground pep and sea salt when they are done.
This is pretty well spot on how my MIL makes spaetzle. She does not use a spaetzle device, just a knife as shown in the video. And she makes them small too, never large.
And this recipe is pretty well spot on for the ingredients she uses as well. Sometimes she uses some milk instead of all water, mainly if she uses the spaetzle as dessert with a sauce.
Spaetzle
2-1/2 cups bread flour
2 large eggs
2 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup water
1 tsp salt
Dash of pepper
1 Add flour, salt and pepper to a large mixing bowl. 2 Add eggs, and melted butter. Slowly add water and mix ingredients until lumps are gone and it is like a batter. 3 Prepare a pot of water with salt and bring to a boil. 4 Spoon a portion of the batter onto a flat plate. 5 With a spoon or knife, begin cutting about a spoonful of batter at a time from the edge of the plate into the boiling water. Because of the small size of the spaetzle, they will rise quickly to the surface. They only need a few minutes to cook in the boiling water once they have risen. Alternately you could use a spaezle maker. 6 Remove the cooked spaetzle to a colander to drain. 7 Put in a serving dish and add a bit of butter. The butter prevents the spaetzle from sticking together.
Spaetzle is a great base for recipes such as chicken paprikash, goulash and the like.
And this is her recipe for Chicken Paprikash. She makes it quite similar to my MIL's recipe as to the ingredients. But at the end, my MIL sort of sautes a few more finely diced onions and mushrooms, adds some heavy cream or sour cream to make a sauce and then she adds that sauce to the chicken paprikash and simmers the sauce and cooked chicken together a bit at the end.
What do you guys put on your vegetables to give them flavor?
I'm a huge fan of the simple is always better theory to cooking.
Get some good root vegetables like carrots, turnips, celeriac, etc. cut them into equal sizes. put them in a pan and add enough liquid (chicken stock, vegetable stock or water) just enough to cover and turn the heat to medium. Let the liquid reduce about 2/3. if your veg isn't fully cooked just add some more liquid and reduce. Once your vegetables are cooked and the liquid is almost gone add some butter, chopped herbs (tarragon, italian parsley, thyme) and season with salt and black pepper. This process is called glazing and always gives you a nice, clean result.
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OK... I think myself as a good cook, but for the life of me I can't seem to make chocolate mousse without royally messing it up. All I ask for is some nice fluffy creamy chocolate mousse that can be dipped with strawberries.
What's the proper technique?
This recipe is very simple and unlike most traditional mousse recipes, does not require gelatin to set. It's a three ingredient recipe that is smooth and delicious.
This will give you about 900g of chocolate mousse. If you want more or less, the conversion is easy. Take your desired yield and divide it by your given yield, then take that number and multiply by the amounts in the recipe.
430g good quality dark chocolate
430ml heavy cream
41ml egg whites
1. melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pot of hot water (make sure it's well melted before you incorporate it into the next part)
* when melting chocolate this way, make sure that the bowl doesn't have any water in it. the tiniest amount of water will harden your chocolate and give you a grainy consistency.
2. whip the heavy cream to hard peaks and place in a bowl.
3. whip the egg whites to hard peaks and combine with the cream.
4. using a stand up mixer, slowly pour the chocolate into the cream/egg mixture while whipping at high speed. If doing this by hand, make sure you have a second person to help you pour the chocolate while you whip.
*It's important when doing this to whip at high speed to prevent the chocolate from cooling down and forming chips since what you're looking for is a smooth finished product.
5. place the mixture in a wide container and place in the fridge to set for at least 2 hours. I like to make this the day before I'm gonna use it.
(the consistency might be a little soft after you finish pouring the chocolate in but it will set in the fridge)
Here's a few restaurant tips when it comes to marinating. First, if you plan to marinade any type of meat for a period longer than 6-8 hours DO NOT use any type of sodium product. Using salt/sodium in your marinade will have the affect of curing or drying out your meats. You should seriously only salt your meat right before you cook it. When it comes to pepper, use it at the end because pepper can easily burn and give your meat a bit of a bitter taste.
Salting meat actually can help a lot. It certainly doesn't cook it - it's the acids in marinade that cooks it (and actually, a good marinade should have very little to no acid in it).
Roasts of any type that are either brined or salted on the surface and left for a couple of hours will turn out very juicy when cooked.
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Not all blade steaks are created equal either, some have that nasty shoulder bone in them and others look more like a rib steak kinda, those are the ones I buy and you can cut a nice center piece out that is very tender and save the other parts for chili or whatever.
Is the color of the meat grey before cooking? If so, then the marinade was acidic enough to denature the proteins a bit.
No. I've never noticed a color change.
Just to clarify, I just used a mixture of spices, Balsamic vinnegar and EVOO and sometimes a bit of lemon or lime juice, time in marinade was usually around 8 to 10 hours.
Could it be the olive oil that's combatting the effect of the acid in the vinnegar?
I don't know enough to be in this thread really, I just love cooking and sort od stumbled upon this simple marinade.
Just to clarify, I just used a mixture of spices, Balsamic vinnegar and EVOO and sometimes a bit of lemon or lime juice, time in marinade was usually around 8 to 10 hours.
Could it be the olive oil that's combatting the effect of the acid in the vinnegar?
I don't know enough to be in this thread really, I just love cooking and sort od stumbled upon this simple marinade.
It's not acidic enough to affect the meat in any negative way.
You know how people take a bottle of Kraft Italian dressing and plop a steak into it? That's too acidic.
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Because I've had great success with acidic marinades turning a cheap cut like a Blade Steak, into a very tender and flavourful piece of beef.
Things that are acidic, or certain fruits or juices, for example, pineapple, contain tenderizers. They break down the muscle tissue in the meat that is being marinated. So while the meat is not cooked by the acidic ingredients, it is tenderized and ends up much more pleasant to eat.
Cheap meats contain less fat and more muscle. In order to cook cheap cuts of meat so that they end up tender and pallatable, one of two cooking methods is required.....marinating before hand or long slow simmering or braising.
Salt on the other hand acts as a curing agent. It just processes the meat so that it will last or keep without refrigeration. So prior to refrigeration, salt was one of the main agents to cure meats. Hence salt pork, salt cod, etc...
On this same note, salad dressings that contain acidic ingredients, like vinegars or citrus juices, should be tossed just prior to eating. Take the example of a nice spinach salad. If you toss this too early, the acidic ingredients will break down the structure of the spinach almost immediately since the spinach is so tender to start with and you will end up with wilted salad. For salads with cream dressings, this problem will not be as pronounced. The salad of course will still get soggy over time, but not immediately as with acidic type dressings.
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What is a good reason to explain the redness of a properly cooked Prime Rib Roast?... Some people are turned off by the reddish meat.
And why is it the Prime Rib holds the colour, Top Sirloin also when I cook it on the BBQ.
I cooked a PERFECT Top Sirloin roast on the BBQ, super tender with that Sirloin flavor... She didn't think it was cooked enough....
I have the same problem in my house. My husband likes his meat cooked a lot longer than I do. You can not explain the nice red look to someone like this any more than you can explain that ugly brown overcooked look to me, it is just personal preference.
So cooking steaks is easy, just do individual orders. And if someone is very fussy about their meat being cooked enough, I let them cook their own.
For cooking roasts, just buy a roast that is somewhat narrower at one end. Even "prime" rib roasts are like that. By "prime", I mean the first five ribs, where the meat is not as large in diameter and does not have that big piece of fat through the middle.
Roast tenderloin is easy as well since it is naturally tapered at one end. So then by the time the part of the roast that you like rare or medium rare is cooked, that narrower piece should be cooked medium to well done.
If you cant find such a roast or are still worried you might not be able to please everyone you are entertaining, then just buy 2 roasts. Cook one medium to well done, the other rare to medium rare.
This is from Cook's Illustrated - I have a pay subscription there.
Quote:
Over the years, we've encountered numerous marinade myths. Here are some of them—and why they're untrue. MYTH: Marinades Penetrate Meat Deeply FACT: Most Impact is Superficial
Contrary to popular belief, marinades do most of their work on the surface of meat or just below. Some ingredients in a marinade do penetrate the meat—but only by a few millimeters (and oil-soluble herbs and spices in the mix merely add flavor to the exterior). To prove the point, we soaked beef short ribs in red wine for intervals from one hour to 18, then measured the band of purple created by the wine. Our finding? Even after 18 hours of soaking, the wine penetrated less than 1 millimeter. Additional testing with marinated boneless chicken breasts confirmed that the flavors of other kinds of soaking liquids do not penetrate to the center of the meat.
MYTH: Acids Tenderize Meat FACT: Acids Turn Meat Mushy
To tenderize meat, you have to break down muscle fiber and collagen, the connective tissue that makes meat tough, thus increasing the meat's ability to retain moisture. While acidic ingredients like citrus juice, vinegar, yogurt, buttermilk, and wine do weaken collagen, their impact is confined to the meat's surface. We find that if left too long, acids turn the outermost layer of meat mushy, not tender. To minimize mushiness, we use acidic components sparingly (or cut them out entirely) and only for short marinating times.
MYTH: The Longer the Soak, the Better FACT: A Long Soak is Pointless—Even Detrimental
Because marinades don't penetrate deeply, a lengthy soak is pointless. Furthermore, too long a soak in an acidic (or enzymatic) marinade can weaken the protein bonds near the surface so that they turn mushy—or worse, can no longer hold moisture and dry out.
MYTH: Marinades Add Flavor to Any Meat FACT: Marinades Are Best for Thin Cuts
With their influence limited mostly to the surface of the meat, we reserve marinades for relatively thin cuts like chicken breasts, pork chops, steaks, cutlets and meat cut into chunks or slices for kebabs and stir fries. A large roast or turkey breast is never a good bet; a spice paste that will adhere to the meat is a better option.
MYTH: Enzymes Tenderize Meat FACT: Enzymes Make Meat Mushy
The enzyme in many plants—such as papain in papaya and bromelain in pineapple, to name two—can break down collagen in meat. But as with acids, their impact is limited to the meat's surface, where we find they likewise turn the meat mushy, not tender.
MYTH: Bottled Dressing Is a Great Time-Saver FACT: Bottled Dressing Makes Mediocre Marinade
Due to high levels of acidity, salad dressings don't add complex flavor and only make meat mushy. Plus, they are laden with sweeteners, stabilizers, and gums, which add a gelatinous consistency and unnatural flavor.
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Thanks,
I was hoping for a clever scientific reason why my guests should eat the damn meat the way I cook it, like I would eat theirs !
Imagine my horror years ago when I lived in Kimberley, I bought a very nice dry aged Prime Rib Roast from my buddy Cliff the very good butcher...
Cooked to perfection, rested, sliced, and waiting, I slipped into the living room for a minute returning to the kitchen hearing the microwave beeping and my Mother In-law pulling my roast out... Choked would be the word.
I still think some roasts hold the red colour more than others. Like Prime Rib.
Thanks,
I was hoping for a clever scientific reason why my guests should eat the damn meat the way I cook it, like I would eat theirs !
Imagine my horror years ago when I lived in Kimberley, I bought a very nice dry aged Prime Rib Roast from my buddy Cliff the very good butcher...
Cooked to perfection, rested, sliced, and waiting, I slipped into the living room for a minute returning to the kitchen hearing the microwave beeping and my Mother In-law pulling my roast out... Choked would be the word.
I still think some roasts hold the red colour more than others. Like Prime Rib.
Choked would be a big understatement in my house if I was the hostess and someone did that to the food I was preparing. That is rude beyond belief. I don't care who the person was, MIL or not, I would have words with that person.
On the other hand, you can not expect everyone to like what you like or like the manner in which you cook and eat your food. For instance, I will not eat lamb. I have allergies to a lot of scents and lamb is simply too strong smelling for me to attempt to eat it. If the hostess happened to prepare lamb when I was a guest, I would simply fill up on everything else and would not feel hard done by because that is what the hostess prepared.
I also think as a host or hostess, it is wise, as a common courtesy, to be aware of certain food allergies, or food idiosyncrocies your friends might have regarding food. For instance, one of our very close friends can not eat milk products. So then I would never prepare a salad with a cream base sauce as the dressing, nor would I serve cheesecake as dessert if that friend is a guest.
