What’s New This Week
Posted on | March 8, 2010 | No Comments
What’s new by me? Funny you should ask:
8th Entry (but who’s counting?) 03/08/10
Looking forward to Saint Patrick’s Day? I know I am. Here are a couple of recipes to start the week out.
Irish Soda Bread: Plus ca change, plus c’es la meme chose (the more things change, the more they stay the same). At least that’s the old saying. The history of this bread is a good illustration of the opposite. Because of differences in ingredients the closer you stay to the traditional Irish recipe, the less like the traditional soda bread. This recipe makes a few adjustments. It also includes directions for making farls. If you want to know more, take a look.
Corned Beef and Cabbage: This is actually one of the first recipes posted to this site. It’s not only one of the best versions of this dish you’ll ever try it includes some important technical concepts. One is balance: In this case, balancing the saltiness of the corned beef with bitter beer and sweet molasses. Another is the idea of cooking in parts: Here, the corned beef comes out of the broth when it’s almost done and is returned when the vegetables and broth are ready. It makes timing so much easier. Both are valuable lessons.
Dammit!: Pardon the long break between entries. I’ll try not to let it happen again — at least not without notice. Speaking of which, it looks as though we’ll be selling our house and moving to an apartment. The upheval is going to make regular writing and posting more challenging. On the other hand, I’ve decided to prioritize this site somewhat higher than it has been in my live — and may be able to create enough content to make additions on a regular basis.
Coming Attractions: I’ve been thinking a lot about knife content; and while I don’t have anything to add today especially as my ideas to relate to a few of the wikis on Chef Talk, a recent post there, and a very interesting thread in “Fred’s,” the knife section of Foodie Forum, so… I’ll be posting some new knife content as well as some thoughts about how best to organize a subject complicated by multiple contingencies. Excited?
In addition, I’ll be posting a couple of other recipes; some suggestions about putting together a water stone sharpening kit; and initiating a “tips” cooking section. I owe you.
So, what’s new by you? Don’t be coy. There are a lot of other things to ask and comment about. For God’s sake, ask and comment. Your feedback not only validates my inflated ego it helps provide sorely needed direction.
Love you madly,
BDL
Irish soda bread
Posted on | March 8, 2010 | No Comments
This is an authentically Irish version of soda bread. There are a few twists here, but they’re more for conforming American ingredients than for altering taste or texture.
Soda bread’s texture and loft depends on the interaction of buttermilk and baking soda and on the strength (percentage of glutens) of the flour. Irish buttermilk is both richer and tangier, while Irish flour runs softer than American. Consequently, traditional Irish recipes come out too dense and tough. The recent trend in modern American “Irish” soda bread recipes is to cut butter into the flour in order to lighten the texture – but the result is a little too much like a scone or biscuit for my taste.
This recipe deviates from American and Irish standards by replacing some of the AP flour with cake flour to take down the protein content, mixing sour cream with the buttermilk to enrich it; adding cream of tartar to enhance the acidity and fully utilize the baking powder, and using a typically Irish amount of baking powder. The result, as I said earlier, is a soda bread which is more typically Irish.
Note 1: There are three alternatives offered in the Ingredient section. The purpose of each alternative is explained there.
Note 2: This bread may be baked in the oven as loaves or on the griddle (or in a skillet) as farls. Farls are (a) very Irish; and (b) rock. Do try them.
IRISH SODA BREAD
Quantity: 2 round loaves, or 8 farls
Difficulty: Not at all.
Ingredients:
• 2 cups AP flour
• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp (table) salt
• 2 tsp cream of tartar
• 2 tsp baking soda:
• 1-1/3 cup buttermilk
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• Alternative 1: Omit the cake flour, substituting 1 cup of AP flour for it. This will result in a chewier crumb.
• Alternative 2: Omit the whole wheat flour, substituting 1 cup of AP flour for it. This will result in a lighter bread with a more delicate flavor.
• Alternative 3: Omit both cake and wheat flours, and use 4 cups total AP flour. Makes it easy.
Technique:
Put the sour cream in a bowl. Shake the buttermilk well before measuring it. Use a dinner fork to whisk the buttermilk into the sour cream a little at a time in order to make a smooth mixture. Set it aside for a moment.
Rinse and dry the fork.
Measure the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Use the fork to thoroughly mix.
Use the famous fork to swirl the dry ingredients to the sides of the bowl, making a well in the center.
Pour the buttermilk mixture into the well. Mix lightly with the fork just until the flour holds together. Work the flour quickly and gently with care taken not to over-mix.
Turn the contents out onto a floured board and knead with a light hand, exactly four times. If all of the flour is not incorporated – fine. Let it be that way.
Form the dough into a rough ball, and cut it in half. Form each half into rough balls.
Clean your board, and dust it again.
Loaf Method:
Preheat the oven to 375F.
Pat a ball into a flat, level disk, about 7" in diameter. Transfer it to greased 8" or 9" pie plate. Use a knife to score a cross – from edge to edge – on top of the disk.
Repeat with the second ball.
Place the pans in the oven – as near the center as you can get them. Close the door and reduce the oven heat to 350F. Bake for about 35 minutes, until brown. Test for doneness with the thump test (should sound hollow) and/or the toothpick test (should come out clean).
Farl Method:
Preheat a griddle or very heavy skillet to medium-low. Grease it well.
Pat a ball into a flat, level disk, about 7" in diameter. Cut it into four roughly equal triangles. Repeat with the second ball.
Crumple up a paper towels, grab it with tongs, and wipe any excess grease from the griddle.
Place the farls on the griddle and bake for about ten minutes, until nicely browned. Turn and bake the other side. Be careful not to let the farls get too dark. As long as the griddle is not too hot, their color will tell you far more than the clock can.
What’s New This Week?
Posted on | February 28, 2010 | 1 Comment
What’s new by me? Funny you should ask:
7th Entry (but who’s counting?) 02/28/10
We hit a sort of milestone early this morning — 1000 page loads.
Challah To Die For: I actually posted this a few days, but what with one thing and another never got around to doing a “What’s New?” Good egg bread recipe if you’re a loaf pan type of baker. Perhaps the best French Toast bread ever.
What You Need to Know About Kitchen Knives – Introduction: The title says it all. First entry in a series I’ve been trying to start for a long time. Inspired by some really awful writing “wikis” on another site.
Mashed Potatoes: Seems like the world’s simplest thing to make. But there’s a fair amount of technique to making them wonderful. This recipe takes a look at a few very good ways.
Horseradish – Green Peppercorn Sauce: Very, very simple. Good with darn near everything that isn’t dessert. And if it isn’t, there’s a simple variation which is. Take a look.
Rib Smoking Recipe and Guide: This recipe covers the 3,2.1 and 2,2,1 methods for spares and baby backs respectively. Plenty of information specific to ribs, and plenty of general ‘Q knowledge as well. Plus, a couple of good swine dry rubs to bood.
So, what’s new by you? Don’t be coy. The Overview should raise a lot of questions. There are a lot of other things to ask and comment about. For God’s sake, ask and comment. Your feedback not only validates my inflated ego it helps provide sorely needed direction.
Love you madly,
BDL
PS. Since posting this, I’ve made the editorial change to “What’s New This Week” from What’s New Today. This should make the process of checking for new content for returning visitors easier. The schedule for adding new content will remain (roughly) twice a week — on Wednesday or Thursday, and Sunday.
mashed potatoes
Posted on | February 28, 2010 | No Comments
WONDERFULLY LIGHT and FLUFFY
MASHED POTATOES
Not to let the cat out of the bag or anything, but this is more by way of a very brief, technical primer than a recipe.
Know your friends:
• Butter, butter and more butter.
• Dairy – Milk, 1/2 and 1/2, and cream, whether singly or in combination. Also, you may replace some of the preceding with sour cream.
• You need one of three pieces to make good mashed potatoes. Each of them makes for a different texture. Anyway: Ricer; Food Mill; or, Masher. Ricers make the smoothest, lightest, most elegant mashed potatoes. Masher leave some lumps, and the finished product is more substantial and “home style.” Food mills kind of split the difference, tending towards ricers for smoothness, and mashers in weight.
Know your enemies:
• Keep your food processor, your blender, your electric beater and your stand mixer away from dem spuds. Overworked mashed potatoes are starchy-gummy. They are to be eschewed (gesundheit!).
• Dry. Dry is bad. Use plenty of dairy.
MASHED POTATOES – The (sort of) Recipe
Ingredients:
• 2 lbs Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1/2 cup milk, or 1/2 cup half and half. Alternatively, mix them; or, use heavy cream; or, replace a couple of tbs with milk or cream with sour cream or yogurt
• 1/2 stick (4 tbs, 1/4 cup) butter
• salt
• freshly ground white or black pepper
• (Optional) A little freshly grated nutmeg
• (Optional) Minced chives; scallion tops; or garlic scape, aka “garlic chives,” aka “Chinese chives”
• (Optional) A little truffle oil or salt
Technique:
Peel the potatoes. Cut small potatoes into four roughly equal pieces, medium potatoes into six pieces, and large potatoes into eight pieces.
Note 1: The purpose of cutting the spuds, rather than cooking whole is to cook everything evenly.
Cover the potatoes with cold water. Let them soak for a minute or two, the water will become cloudy. Drain the water and replace it with fresh. If the water clouds again after another minute, repeat one more time.
Drain the potatoes, and put them in a pot large enough to hold about twice the amount. Add enough fresh water to cover by an inch. Salt the water so that it’s roughly the same salinity as sea-water.
Note 2: You can use whatever salt you like. However, be aware that for boiling and steaming salt is salt. Anything other than ordinary table salt is needless expense.
Note 3: As a general rule, a level of saltiness similar to sea-water is correct for boiling and/or steaming any vegetable; and also correct for boiling pasta.
Put the potatoes over a medium-high flame and bring them to a boil. Reduce the heat to either a low boil or hot simmer and cover. Cook the potatoes until they’re easily pierced and/or broken with a fork – about 10 minutes.
Remove the pan from the stove. Drain the potatoes.
If ricing, rice. If using a food mill, mill. If mashing, don’t mash.
Return the pot to the stove over a low fire. If the potatoes remain unprocessed allow them to steam for a minute or two to get the excess water off the spuds and out of the pan.
Add the milk and/or cream (hold off on the sourcream, if using), and allow the milk to heat. For this purpose, you want potatoes that are not soupy but are just stiff enough to hold their shape, and this recipe should get you right to that point or at least very close. Remember, you can always add more milk later, if you feel the potatoes are too stiff.
Add the butter, in pieces no larger than a tbs and allow to soften.
Reduce the heat to very low. Add the yogurt or sour cream if using.
If the potatoes weren’t riced or milled, mash them now. Mash a few times, then use your masher to stir to incorporate. Work the masher around the pan, alternately mashing and stirring. You want an ultimate texture that floats between lumpy and grainy. You definitely do not want to mash the potatoes to smoothness, because they will be overworked and pasty.
If the potatoes were riced or milled, you need only mix them well enough to fully incorporate the dairy and butter.
Once the potatoes are mashed and/or the butter and milk are completely mixed in, add a few turns from the pepper mill, and a little salt and mix them in with a fork. Taste and adjust for salt and consistency. Mashed potatoes can take a lot of salt. If the potatoes are stiff and/or heavy, add a little more milk or cream.
Note 4: If using truffle salt, be careful not to overuse it. Plan on using regular salt as well.
If using, add the chopped chives or scallion top, any herbs, and the truffle oil.
Before plating, do a final and “taste and adjust.”
Note 5: The whole “taste and adjust” thing is one of the biggest separating good cooks from… well…
Tags: chives > food miill > garlic scape > mashed potatoes > potatoes > ricer > scallion tops > truffle oil
HORSERADISH – GREEN PEPPERCORN SAUCE
Posted on | February 28, 2010 | No Comments
This is incredibly easy. It’s incredibly simple. It’s an incredibly good accompaniment to just about any protein. If there’s a catch, no one’s discovered it yet.
It is infinitely variable, allowing scope for whimsical improvisation. Vary it by taking out the mayonnaise and using all sour cream, or vice versa. Or, replacing the mayonnaise with whipped cream. Or, using all whipped cream. Or, you could leave out any one of the three flavor components – green pepper corns, mustard and horseradish – and just go with two. Or, even just one. Or, using different mustards. Or, pink peppercorns. Or, adding hot pepper. Or adding hot sauce – Sriracha, Habanero, Chipotle, you name it. Or exchanging the parsley for herbes de Provence for chicken, or tarragon for fish. Or, …
You get the idea.
Note: The sauce feels like something you can throw together while the meat is resting. And, indeed you can. But the doing the “do-ahead” aspects ahead really does make things better.
HORSERADISH – GREEN PEPPERCORN SAUCE
Quantity: More Than Enough for 2 – the recipe is easily multiplied
Difficulty: Not very
Time: Seconds only, but best if you can give it an hour for the flavors to coalesce
Ingredients:
• 1 tbs green peppercorns, or to taste
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbs sour cream
• 1 tbs Dijon, or 1 or 2 tsp hot mustard, or to taste
• 1 or 2 tsp fresh, grated horseradish, or to taste
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tsp minced parsley (omit for beef and lamb)
Shopping Note: Green peppercorns are sold two ways – dry or in a liquid brine. Brined pepper will help you make this recipe more quickly and easily, but most stores don’t give you the choice. Don’t make yourself nuts shopping around for peppercorns packed in brine, as will be explained, you can brine the dried ones yourself.
Brine (if necessary):
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 tsp (optional) distilled vinegar
• 2 tsp table salt
Technique:
Note: There are some “do ahead” aspects to this sauce which can
If you’re using dry green peppercorns (see, I told you), measure 3/4 cup hot tap water into a measuring cup, and mix in the vinegar and salt. Place the peppercorns in a small bowl, and cover them with the brine. Soak long enough to soften the peppercorns. 1 hour is more than enough.
Meanwhile, mix the remaining ingredients – excepting the herbs – in a small bowl. If using horseradish (you should, you should!), you’ll want to give the sauce a few minutes for the horseradish and salt to marry with the other ingredients. So, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.
Taste the sauce, and adjust for horseradish by either adding more or by adding more mayonnaise. Drain the green peppers, and mix them in. If using, mix in the herbs. Taste again. You don’t want this salty, but if necessary, adjust for salt.
RIB SMOKING RECIPE AND GUIDE
Posted on | February 28, 2010 | 6 Comments
This was originally written in 2007, in a slightly different format than the one I usually currently use. Although there are substantial changes since the first time I posted it on the interwebs, I decided to keep it in (mostly) the old format. For one thing, there are so many contingencies it would have been difficult to organize it much differently. Also, I like its lack of extreme linearity.
BARBECUING RIBS
(A GUIDE FOR THE BEGINNING GENIUS)
Presented One Step at a Time
Quantity: 2 slabs o’ ribs
Difficulty: Not very
Ingredients:
• 2 slabs of baby backs, St. Louis style trimmed spare ribs, or untrimmed spare ribs
Slather 1:
• 1/4 cup yellow “baseball” mustard
Slather 2:
• 2 tbs mayonnaise
• 2 tbs dijon or other hot mustard
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp chipotle hot sauce
Rub 1:
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup kosher salt
• 5 tbs sweet paprika
• 2 tbs coarse, freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbs garlic powder
• 1 tbs onion powder
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1tsp dry thyme
• 1/2 tsp dry sage
Rub 2:
• Full recipe amount Rub 1
• 1/3 cup ground, freshly toasted fennel seeds
• 1/3 cup ground, freshly toasted coriander seeds
• 2 tsp Chinese “five spice” powder
Mop 1
• 1/2 cup beer
Mop 2
• 1/2 cup apple juice
Mop 3
• 1/2 cup peach nectar
Mop 4
• You get the idea
Things to Think About + Technique:
I. CONSIDERATIONS and PREP
Spares or Baby Backs?
There are two basic kinds of pork ribs: spare ribs and “baby backs.” They come from different parts of the animal. Spare ribs come from the belly side of the animal. Baby back ribs (a k a BBs) come from the – wait for it – back. BBs are also known as loin backs and loin ribs. It may ease some worries to know that BBs do not come from baby pigs.
Baby backs have a higher percentage of meat to bone, are easier to prepare and easier to eat. Spare ribs involve a lot more. Human perversity being both innate and perverse, the more you know about ribs, and the better you learn to prepare them, the more you’ll prefer spares. Naturally, your guests, rogue and peasant knaves all, will prefer BBs. Go figure.
Purchasing the Ribs:
If you know something about ribs in general, and know how a particular slab is trimmed, the type of animal from which it was taken, etc., etc., you can tell a lot by size and weight. However, you never know those things, so they’re not going to help much, are they?
This means there isn’t that much I can tell you without going into so many contingencies I’d pass out from self-boredom. So… With spares, look for slabs which don’t carry too much fat and which seem to show plenty of meat between the bones. Avoid slabs which seem absurdly large or small. Baby backs are from a part of the pig which doesn’t carry much fat anyway, so large fat deposits aren’t a concern. Again, look for meat between the bones.
Removing the Membrane:
Removing the membrane allows you to season both sides of the ribs, and removes tissue that is tasteless, tough, and has a tendency to get caught between diners’ teeth. Full-service butcher shops with butchers who know what they’re doing are becoming as rare as hen’s teeth. If you’re lucky enough to buy your ribs from one, ask her to remove the membrane for you. If, like most, you’re unlucky in butchers, here’s how:
There are two membranes on the back of the ribs. The top membrane, is thin and transparent, and for most preparations, should be removed during the trimming. If you do no other trimming, pull it off before seasoning. The other “membrane” is heavy, thick, fatty and is actually not a membrane but the bone pockets. Leave it alone.
Taking off the membrane is usually the last part of the trimming process. To remove it, lift a corner with a butter knife, the handle of the spoon, any dull tool or a finger; then grab that corner with a dry paper towel and peel back the membrane. The paper towel will give you an excellent grip on the otherwise slippery membrane.
Another way to remove the membrane is by finishing the slabs of ribs over direct heat on a grill, and charring it off. This is very useful for catering situations; but a pit of a pain at home. Despite the extra trouble, eventually you should try a grill finish to see if you think it’s worth the extra trouble.
The Beginner’s Best Strategy:
Experienced pitmasters get the “falling off the bone” question a lot from newbies. Very few experienced barbecuers like their rib meat that tender. Once we’ve bowed to the pressure from our Significant Others, and met the challenge of getting it that soft, we find the exercise was in vain and we prefer a little “pull” to our ribs
3,2,1 and 2,1,1:
The best spare rib preparation for beginners is 3, 2, 1. For baby backs, it’s 2, 1, 1. What do these numbers mean? The first number is time in the chamber at 225 – 235, unfoiled. The second number is time in the chamber at the same temperature, wrapped in a foil packet with a little moisture. The third number is time in the chamber at the same temperature, with the foil opened, and occasional basting.
The result is a fairly tender (bordering on too tender) rib. The method is fairly certain, works well with less than excellent meat, is largely based on time cues (easier for beginners than touch and appearance); and is emotionally easier on most beginners than keeping the door closed for 6 hour or so.
The more experience you have with smoking in general and ribs in particular, the more likely you are to prefer your ribs cooked without foiling.
Trimming Spares:
Depending on where and when you bought your spares, some or all of the trimming may already have been done. Lay your slab flat, back up. That is, with the curve of the bones facing so the top of the cup is up (U).
• The meat may extend beyond the bones and onto a complex system of cartilage. The cartilaginous part is called the “rib tip.” Tips are messy eating and somewhat fatty. Naturally, some folks think they’re the best part of the slab. They are usually removed for restaurant service and competitions. When they are removed, the remaining ribs are usually referred to as “St. Louis,” or “Kansas City” style.
• On the end with the longer ribs, there may be a spongy bone separated from the ribs by cartilage. The bone is part of the sternum and called the “chine.” (Chine, by the way is a generic term for a straight bone attached to a number of ribs. It can be chest or back.)
• Running more or less the length of the back may be a flap of meat. Happily, it’s called the flap.
• On the end with the shorter-length ribs may be a triangular flap of meat. It’s sometimes called the brisket (although the same term is sometimes used to refer to meat at the chine). Also, the very shortest ribs may not run straight, and appear tangled.
• The chine, flap, brisket, and splayed ribs are, more or less, undesirable. Remove the chine bone completely by cutting through the cartilage near the top or the ribs with a heavy knife or cleaver. Rest your free hand on the knife’s spine and rock it through. Remove the brisket up to where the bones are not tangled. Remove the flap by bending it back and cutting parallel to the slab. Try and leave a little bit, about 1/2″ of flap attached. It presents a great appearance, and it’s a nice, contrasting texture on the finished rib. Reserve any piece with meat on it.
• I prefer tips on, to tips off. But if you want to trim to “St Louis,” hold the rib ends with one hand, grab the tip ends with the other and flex the slab back and forth until you get an idea of where the bones end and the cartilage ends. Then lay the ribs flat on your board and lightly score the line you think you’ll want to cut along. Test again to make sure you’re close to the top of the bone by flexing, then cut through the cartilage with a heavy knife or cleaver.
• If you’re leaving the ribs whole, there’s a finishing cut you may want to make. There’s a cartilage system in the tips which runs perpendicular to the ribs themselves. If the ribs are served as pairs or partial slabs, this cartilage will be difficult for the diner to cut through. Cutting through this, between the cartilaginous tips is not easy because the tips run at an angle off the bone-end. To make the trim, turn the ribs so the tips face you. Put your index finger between the tops of the two longest bones and press slightly as you draw your finger towards your body, angling the line slightly towards the small ends. Now try and run a knife point between the tips. Once you’ve got the idea of how the cartilage runs, try and make a short cut from the end of the top to the top of the bone. These cuts will make the top of the slab look something like toes.
If this sounds too technical, forget it. Instead, after the ribs are cooked, cut the slab into individual ribs for service. What’s difficult to do on a plate, is easy on your board.
Slather:
Remove the ribs from the fridge. Use a “slather” to create a base for the dry rub. Most people use plain yellow aka ballpark mustard (You won’t taste it on the final product, it’s mostly vinegar and turmeric). I prefer a slather with a little taste. Consider: 1/2 mayo, 1/2 Dijon plus a tbs or two or Worcestershire and a little chipotle hot sauce. Or, follow your fancy.
If you’re using a slather containing several ingredients – just mix them with a fork.
When you have you slather, rub it over the meat – not too generously – with a brush or your finger tips.
Rub:
Rubs are all about balancing salt, heat, herbals and sweetness. Depending on the meat or the particular profile you want to create, the balance can be pushed in one direction or another.
Pork rubs usually involve a fair amount of sweetness – usually from brown sugar. Rubs “1” and “2” are certainly typical in that respect. A fair bit of paprika, mostly for color is also common. NO PEEKING.
You can certainly use a store bought rub if you have a favorite.
If, you’ve got a favorite homemade rub, or are following this recipe, make the rub by mixing the dry ingredients with a fork so they’re distributed equally. A lot of pit masters like to run the rub through a spice grinder or blender to get everything the same size and keep the mix homogenized. It’s a good idea.
Season the slathered ribs well (along with the tips and flap if you have them) with the dry rub on both sides.
You can cook immediately, or return the ribs to the fridge for a little marination. A few years ago, a long dry marinade was very popular. Now, not so much. It’s generally agreed that dry (and slathered) spices get maximum penetration within half an hour.
II. THE COOK
Allow the ribs to come to room temperature, about 45 minutes. Prep the smoker to run at 225 – 235. Use a water pan!
The single most important thing to remember about smoking is not to open the pit unnecessarily. That is, NO PEEKING.
Place the ribs on the grate, bone side down. Lay on the trimmings as well. If your smoker runs evenly from side to side, walk away for three hours. If not, rotate the ribs at the one and a half hour point (1 hour for BBs). Stay out of the cook chamber. Other than rotation there is no need to mop the ribs or otherwise check on them. Do only what you have to do to keep the temperature steady. NO PEEKING.
At the three hour point (2 hours for BBs) remove the ribs from the cook chamber and close the chamber door. Wrap the slabs in foil packets (you can put two whole slabs in a packet — bone to bone — if you’ve got a space problem, and add a little liquid before you seal the packet up. Beer is an excellent choice. So are juices, wines, barbecue sauce, bourbon, fruit drinks, you name it. Don’t feel like you have to be tethered by suggestions. Follow your fancy.
Return the packets to the cook chamber, and lay them bone side up if one slab to the pack, and close the chamber. You don’t need a water pan for this part of the process. Nor do you need to burn chip or chunk for smoke. At the one hour point (1/2 hour for BBs), rotate the meat if your smoker runs unevenly. Otherwise, keep the chamber door closed. Tend the fire when you must, but keep the firebox door(s) closed as much as possible too. NO PEEKING.
After two hours (1 hour for BBs) in foil, turn the slabs bone side down and open the foil so the meat is exposed. You do not have to remove the foil from the chamber, you can fold the edges to make little pans, but you can remove it if you want. Sauce the ribs with a thin coat of your finishing sauce. Close the chamber, and cook for half an hour, and apply more sauce. After fifteen minutes more, begin testing for doneness and applying sauce every fifteen minutes.
To test for doneness: A clock does not test for doneness in barbecue. Pick up a slab of ribs with a pair of tongs, by holding the slab at one of the middle ribs. If the ends of the slab point straight down (an upside down U) the ribs are tender. Serve, or (better) remove them, wrap them and hold them for as long as several hours and reheat just before serving in a hot smoker, medium home oven (300), or (best) directly over a low fire on the grill .
There’s such a thing as too tender. Ribs should have enough bite to them that the bones don’t fall out of the slab when it’s being moved, and so that the diner can take a bite without getting all the meat off the rib. Ideally, a bite should take a bite’s worth and leave a bite sized cutout on the rib.
Ideal shmideal. A lot of people like “fall off the bone,” and I’m not going to tell them they’re wrong. If “fall off the bone,” is what must be, cook 3 hours out of foil and 3 hours in (or 2, 2 for baby backs), and allow only 15 minutes or so to finish the ribs un-foiled. The longer “braising” period will tenderize the meat to where even your outlaws are happy.
Tags: baby back ribs > baby backs > Barbecue > BBs > pork rub > rib rub > ribs > slather > smoking > spare ribs > spares > tips > trimming ribs
what you need to know About kitchen knives – introduction
Posted on | February 28, 2010 | No Comments
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT KITCHEN KNIVES
Introduction
Whether you’re interested in buying a new knife or just know more about the knives you already have, this is the first post in a series that will help you understand what makes some knives better – or at least different – for any given task.
Most but not all of the series will be centered around the chef’s knife aka gyuto.* More specifically to what I like to call “the go-to gyuto.” Usually, a cook has one knife which she uses for the majority of prep. And for most of us, that is (or should be) a chef’s.
My essay on knives may be a bit different than what you’re used to. I believe strongly that the four aspects of knife skills, knife choice, sharpening skills and sharpening kit, are so inter-dynamic, that in order to meaningfully consider one, it must be within the context of the other three. (Sorry that sounds so academic.)
Remember these two things: All knives dull eventually. Once dull, all knives are created equal. If you can’t maintain sharpness, it doesn’t make sense (at least not as a practical matter) to buy expensive knives. More, a dull knife will limit your prep ability to coarse and uneven cuts. That not only impacts appearance, but the ways in which ingredients incorporate and flavors marry.
Sometimes, because so many people cannot sharpen the choice is dictated by which knife is seemingly sharpest. This often means a steak knife, which is actually more of a saw than a knife and has many of the same limitations in terms of making fine cuts as dies a dull knife.
This all leads to my first…
Knife Buying Recommendation 1: If you don’t know how to sharpen, don’t want to learn, and won’t or can’t invest in one of the choices which don’t require much learning – my suggestion is to stick with very cheap knives. Anything expensive is just a waste of money.
* You may infer from the term gyuto that there will be some discussion of Japanese manufactured knives. Good inference. However, I will largely avoid traditional Japanese, chisel and hamaguri edge geometries and stick with western style “V” edges, western profiles, and western (yo) handles. If you now infer that there’s going to be a lot of discussion of Japanese manufactured knives, you’ve made another good inference.
Tags: gyuto > Kitchen knives > knife skills > Knives > santoku > sharpening
Challah to Die for
Posted on | February 23, 2010 | No Comments
You’ll love this soft, sweet bread that already has so much butter in it. It’s practically cake. Challah recipes may be classified as either regular or sweet. This one just shades into the sweet side.
If, instead of forming challahs, you make sandwich loaves, the bread makes best-ever pain perdu (aka French toast), and bread pudding.
Traditionally a milchig challah is different from a fleishig challah. If you keep kosher, you already know the appropriate substitutions. If not, go with the full on milk and butter version.
CHALLAH
Amount: 2 round loaves; 2 bread pan loaves with some left over for four or five rolls.
Difficulty: As a loaf pan bread, it’s easy; as a hand formed, braided bread, you need at least a little “touch” or you’ll crush the life out of it while braiding.
Ingredients:
Dough:
• 7 cups, unbleached AP flour
• 2 tbs instant yeast
• 1 tbs sea salt or kosher salt, or 2 tsp table salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 sticks melted butter (or 1 cup neutral oil, such as corn or safflower, or 3/4 cup neutral oil and 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil)
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup warm water, divided in halves
• 1 cup milk (or an additional 1 cup water)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup bench flour
• 1 to 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
Egg Wash and Topping:
• 1 egg
• 1 tbs water
• 2 – 3 tbs poppy or sesame seeds (optional)
Technique:
In a large mixing bowl, combine the bread’s dry ingredients (except for the bench flour) together with a fork.
Melt the butter over a low flame, or in the microwave. Whisk the 3 eggs, the milk, and 1/2 cup of warm water together until the eggs are blended. Add the honey, and melted butter, and whisk until just combined.
Combine the liquid and dry ingredients. Mix by hand or in a large, strong stand mixer, until the dough cleans the bowl. If dough requires more water used the reserved warm water a couple of tablespoons at a time.
If kneading by machine, change the paddle for the dough hook and knead for approximately 10 minutes, adding bench flour only as needed to keep dough from sticking to bowl. Dough should be shiny and elastic.
If kneading by hand, remove the dough from the bowl and knead for at least ten minutes. Add bench flour only as as needed to keep dough from sticking to the board. Knead dough until shiny and elastic – well into the “window pane stage.” The changes are quite pronounced shortly after it enters the window pane stage – about another two minutes of kneading. Pull the dough into a ball. Note: The combination of honey and so much butter give this dough a unique feel – slick and sticky at the same time. Sounds paradoxical, no? You’ll just have to try it.
Wash your mixing bowl with hot water, then dry it immediately and thoroughly. While the bowl is still warm, add a generous tbs ofextra virgin olive oil to it. Put the ball of dough in the oil and shmush it around so all surfaces of the dough are well covered. Then use the oily ball of dough to oil the sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and allow the dough to rise until it doubles in volume.
When the dough has risen, punch down, cover, and allow to double again. You don’t have to be particularly rough or gentle. It won’t matter one way or the other, because the loaf forming process is brutal.
Remove the dough from the bowl, and use your board knife to cut it in half. It’s traditional to make a blessing when dividing the dough this way. Return one half to the bowl to form the second loaf.
Braiding Round Challahs:
Divide the remaining dough into four or five (I prefer five, but if you’ve never done this before start with four) even pieces, and form each of them into a snakes about 8" long. Lay them next to one another in parallel lines and begin to braid. Tip: Here’s an old Jewish trick, from a tricky, old Jew. Start braiding in the center. As you braid you’ll stretch the snakes – because you’re working towards the ends, both will be symmetrical. Don’t worry about making the very ends perfect. When you’ve braided nearly all the way to one end, turn your board (or your half formed loaf) and braid nearly all the way to the other end.
Remove the dough as gently as possible to a floured baking pan. Coil the braided dough into a circle, and lay one unfinished, skinny end on top of the other. Flatten the overlapping ends with your hand, and cut the four, evenly spaced, parallel gashes so the look like the spaces between the fingers of a hand. Trim the “thumb” and “pinky” to make it look even more like a hand. Cover with cling wrap and allow to rise until doubled.
Repeat the entire process with the second half of the dough.
Loaf Pan Alternative:
Forget the braiding and use 3/4 of the dough to form 2 bread pan loaves. Cut the remainder into 6 even pieces, roll them into balls, and put them in a greased muffin or cupcake tin to make rolls.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Note: Why so low? 350F is appropriate both for a soft crust and an egg wash.
When the dough has risen, check the “hands” and make fresh slashes if necessary. Beat the egg with the tbs of water. Use a soft brush to gently and generously paint the loaves with the egg wash, then sprinkle the tops generously with poppy or sesame seeds if desired.
Bake the loaves for 45 minutes to 1 hour; use the “thump” test to check for doneness. Get the loaves off their baking sheets and onto a rack to cool as soon as possible.
What’s New Here 02/21/10
Posted on | February 21, 2010 | No Comments
What’s new by me? Funny you should ask:
6th Entry (but who’s counting?) 02/21/10
Forming Batards: This is my first, pure technique post here at CFG. Batards are the “artisanal,” hand-shaped loaves which look like actual loaves.
Fettucine Alfredo – The Real Way: No cream, no eggs. The same dish Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks ate. Very simple, but takes a fair bit of work and attention to detail. Speaking of first times at CFG, I use the word “luscious” in a recipe. Rightly so.
CARROT CAKE with (Optional) MAPLE FROSTING: I saw another recipe while lurking around a food site. Mine is better.
Crostata Riccotta: Rich, creamy and yet not too heavy. This Italian cheesecake defines “rustic elegance.” Serve it with green grapes and espresso..
More old CT blog posts: Still talking about hopes and dreams, and still mostly archiving. If you’re interested enough to follow the evolution of CFG thinking you should check in. There are some useful technique tidbits, but you’ll have to dig.
So, what’s new by you? Don’t be coy. The Overview should raise a lot of questions. There are a lot of other things to ask and comment about. For God’s sake, ask and comment. Your feedback not only validates my inflated ego it helps provide sorely needed direction.
Love you madly,
BDL
Forming Batards
Posted on | February 21, 2010 | No Comments
You may well ask, “What’s a batard?” It’s French for the hand formed loaf of bread that looks like a loaf of bread. It’s a lot more useful than the round shapes, boule and miche, we usually see home bakers use for “artisanal” loaves. Useful if you like things like slices, sandwiches, toast and those sorts of things.
At some point I’ll have to talk about the boule and miche forms, as well as how to use bannetons and baguette pans. In fact, any book oriented towards new bread bakers should cover forming for bread pans. There’s more to it than just sticking the dough in a pan – or at least there should be.
But, since I’ve got a couple of recipes up that scream “batard,” I thought it might be useful to start near the end.
FORMING BATARDS
Quantity: While this is all about technique and not a recipe per se, it envisions a standard “double recipe.” Adapting the technique to any number of loaves (“n” in math speak) won’t phase you.
Difficulty: It would be a very good thing if you already had enough technique to handle dough without crushing the life out of it. Sounds harsh, but it does take experience. Probably a good idea if you were at least confident with using bread pans. That said, I’m not your mom.
Ingredients:
Dough for two “1 pound” loaves, already proofed at least once and preferably twice; and ready to form.
Technique:
Empty the dough onto the board. Cut into two even pieces. Pull each piece into a ball with a perfectly smooth surface, deflating as little as possible. Put one ball back in the bowl.
Take the ball on the board, and pinch any seams to seal them as well as you can. With any visible seams on the top of the ball, stretch and press it into as even a square as possible, roughly 8″ x 8″, deflating the dough as little as possible. The top side of the square may show some bubbling and seams, but the bottom of the dough should be tight and smooth. If it is not, pull the dough back down into a ball and start over.
When you’ve formed the square, determine which side is straightest, and turn the square so that side faces away from you. Beginning at the side closest to you, roll the square into a cylinder, jelly-roll style towards the straight side. When the cylinder is formed, pinch the seam to seal it. Leave the seam side up.
Pat the cylinder so it is even. Fold one end over on to the seam side. The fold should use as little as possible but fully seal the open end. The seams will look like three sides of a rectangle. Pinch them, then repeat the folding and pinching process to close the other end.
Now fold a triangular section from one side of the end over to the top of the cylinder, then another triangular section to form a point. Pinch the seams. Repeat the folding and pinching process to form a point at the other end. Make sure the seams are all pinched closed, then flatten them out to make them as smooth and as invisible as possible.
Turn the cylinder seam side down. The surface of the loaf should be smooth, stretched and tight. This “surface tension” will hold the loaf up, so it will “spring” tall, instead of just spreading out like a ciabatta.
If the loaf is asymmetrical, pat it to make it to even it out and make it as attractive as possible. Flour a baking pan or scatter some coarse corn meal or polenta. As gently as possible, transfer the loaf from the board to the pan.
Allow the batards to rise until slightly less than doubled. Ideally you want to save one third of the rise for “oven spring.”
Tags: batards > bread > formation > loaf formation > loaves
WHO IS BDL, Boar D. Laze, or whatever the hell his name is?
A Brief Biography:
Ex-Navy Seal; Ex-Victoria’s Secret model; Turned down a three-way with Sophia Loren and the young Marlene Dietrich (as in the Blue Angel) because had other plans; Knows who killed everyone in The Big Sleep, and why; Chaired the work-group which invented Time, Space, Gravity, Fire and Holiday Sweaters; Prefers Dickel to Jack.
What is Cook Food Good?
What’s this site about? It’s about a lot of thingsForcing myself to work out issues relating to writing a cookbook: COOK FOOD GOOD: American Cooking and Technique for Beginners and Intermediates.
Getting feedback on my work from you.
Discussions on basic and not-so-basic techniques. The recipes here are very technique driven. Similarly, the idea behind the book is to be far more about the how than the what – with the goal of teaching you to create your own recipes and tweak other people’s, confidently and successfully.
How to cook better, as it relates to you (and me too). That is, taking a beginner or advanced beginner to good, restaurant quality. Mostly this will be (more or less) French technique and (more or less) American food. But only mostly, more or less.
Recipes for this, that and the other.
Knives and all about sharpening them (which have somehow become a subject on which I frequently get asked for advice): How to choose and how to use.
The first Cook Food Good Blog was hosted by the website, Chef Talk. However, CT, removed its blog section. If you’re interested in bad writing, poor punctuation and ancient history, you’ll find the old CT posts archived here. One thing about posting on CT, was that it acted as a sort of language and attitude super-ego. Don’t count on it here. This is naked id.
