Learning to Cook: My Winter Break Experiences with Walter Staib

[CaptainQuasar]

I really like the English custom of having mustard on sausage.

One German dish I have enjoyed at restaurants is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rouladen" .

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[Cyrus]

You can eat saurkraut right out of the bag/jar/can without further cooking.

That's good to know......:shy:

Is it ok to put it in the same pan that I cooked the sausage with? I know your not supposed to touch things that have touched raw chicken.

 

[turbo]

'Kraut is preserved by brining. It's essentially shredded cabbage packed in salt, so it's fine to eat as-bought. Ain't nothin' bad going to grow in an environment with that much salt in it.

Still, you've got to learn to cook some stuff, Cy! Buying stuff and frying it or warming it up is very expensive and it gets old after a short time. Get some salt pork (or even better, a meaty bone from a ham-hock) and boil it with lentils, onions, celery, and some pepper and a little salt (not necessary if you use either salt pork or really salty ham) and see what you think. Carrots are very inexpensive and they keep well in the fridge, and they are also a nice addition to lentil soup.

 

[Cyrus]

'Kraut is preserved by brining. It's essentially shredded cabbage packed in salt, so it's fine to eat as-bought. Ain't nothin' bad going to grow in an environment with that much salt in it.

Still, you've got to learn to cook some stuff, Cy! Buying stuff and frying it or warming it up is very expensive and it gets old after a short time. Get some salt pork (or even better, a meaty bone from a ham-hock) and boil it with lentils, onions, celery, and some pepper and a little salt (not necessary if you use either salt pork or really salty ham) and see what you think. Carrots are very inexpensive and they keep well in the fridge, and they are also a nice addition to lentil soup.

You're telling me. The grocery bill was 100 bucks for this and some other stuff. Yikes.

 

[turbo]

You're telling me. The grocery bill was 100 bucks for this and some other stuff. Yikes.

When I was in college, I ate a LOT of lentils, peas, beans, rice, etc. You can make some very tasty stuff for cheap, but you've got to get beyond the "heat and eat" model and get creative. You MUST have oregano, basil, some decent curry powder, and onion and garlic (in one form or another - dried or fresh) to have any hope of success, but the results can thrill you when you get it right.

I'd love to start a cooking school. My sensitivities to fragrance chemicals prevent that (can't be around the general public most of the time) but I think it would be a hit. I never cook from recipes (the big money-maker for TV cooks that can't cook) - just go in commando-style and work with what I've got. Last Sunday, my wife tried to follow a family recipe for French Soup (rice-and-potato soup with canned tomatoes and frozen/salted leeks, though she also added garlic scapes) and it came out crappy. Better than most restaurant fare or any canned soup, but still not up to par. The next day, I got some ground turkey out of the freezer, and we sauteed that with some Bell's poultry seasoning and some onions and mushrooms and added that to the soup. Ding, ding, ding!

 

[Evo]

That's good to know......:shy:

Is it ok to put it in the same pan that I cooked the sausage with? I know your not supposed to touch things that have touched raw chicken.

Chicken sausage? Sure, once it's been cooked, no problem. Usually the meat is cooked with the saukraut, but I like the idea of cooking them separately also. My mother cooked spareribs with saurkraut at least twice a month.

Alton Brown showed how to mkae homemeade saurkraut, but with my luck, I am not attempting it.

Turbo, I would think Cyrus could probably teach us both about lentils.

 

[Cyrus]

Chicken sausage? Sure, once it's been cooked, no problem. Usually the meat is cooked with the saukraut, but I like the idea of cooking them separately also. My mother cooked spareribs with saurkraut at least twice a month.

Alton Brown showed how to mkae homemeade saurkraut, but with my luck, I am not attempting it.

Turbo, I would think Cyrus could probably teach us both about lentils.

No its pork sausage. But I know if you cook raw chicken, you're not supposed to let anything come into contact with the raw chicken or you can get sick.

So I got a cast iron frying pan. I put the sausage in it. Then I dumped the sauerkraut into it and cooked them both at once. Can I do that?

 

[turbo]

Turbo, I would think Cyrus could probably teach us both about lentils.

Maybe so. I lived within walking distance of a supermarket that was part of a very large regional franchise, and they had stuff like lentils that might have sold well in Boston, NY, etc but were dirt-cheap up here. Dirt-cheap > in my diet during college as long as it was healthy. I made casseroles with a base of lentils - once they soaked up water and got bulky they were better than pasta ($/yield) in lots of dishes. I'd boil them with garlic and onion, drain them, and combine them with other vegetables and herbs with a *thin* topping of stinky cheese to make a baked vegetable loaf. Slice like meatloaf, and serve with a tipping of tomato sauce with basil.

I was a skinny student, but I was not ill-fed.

 

[CaptainQuasar]

Vegetarian love song: ♪ Teach me 'bout lentils, baaaaaaby... ♫

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[turbo]

No its pork sausage. But I know if you cook raw chicken, you're not supposed to let anything come into contact with the raw chicken or you can get sick.

So I got a cast iron frying pan. I put the sausage in it. Then I dumped the sauerkraut into it and cooked them both at once. Can I do that?

You can do that, Cy. The best bet is to get some salt pork and sear that in the pan to release fats, then brown the sausage in those fats, then reduce the heat and dump in the 'kraut to heat it.

 

[CaptainQuasar]

You can do that, Cy. The best bet is to get some salt pork and sear that in the pan to release fats, then brown the sausage in those fats, then reduce the heat and dump in the 'kraut to heat it.

That would be the healthiness equivalent of cooking them with lard, wouldn't it? Not that there's anything wrong with that. The lard has feelings too.

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[turbo]

BTW, for those without dietary restrictions concerning pork, salt pork is THE secret to high-temp pan-frying. Pork fat has a very high smoke-temperature and does not break down when searing like many vegetable oils. Many of my mother's culinary creations started with a heavy Revere-ware pot and salt pork. Most times, the pork ended up in the final product. She rarely steamed vegetables like fiddleheads or other greens, but the finely-cubed salt pork would end up getting spooned into your bowl with the boiled greens. That was a Depression-era mind-set, but it got our family through some hard times and I appreciate her example.

 

[Cyrus]

That would be the healthiness equivalent of cooking them with lard, wouldn't it? Not that there's anything wrong with that. The lard has feelings too.

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huh?

 

[Cyrus]

BTW, for those without dietary restrictions concerning pork, salt pork is THE secret to high-temp pan-frying. Pork fat has a very high smoke-temperature and does not break down when searing like many vegetable oils. Many of my mother's culinary creations started with a heavy Revere-ware pot and salt pork. Most times, the pork ended up in the final product. She rarely steamed vegetables like fiddleheads or other greens, but the finely-cubed salt pork would end up getting spooned into your bowl with the boiled greens. That was a Depression-era mind-set, but it got our family through some hard times and I appreciate her example.

Do they sell salt pork at the local gorcery store or do I have to go to a butcher? Basically, just use the salt pork like you would normally use butter?

 

[turbo]

That would be the healthiness equivalent of cooking them with lard, wouldn't it? Not that there's anything wrong with that. The lard has feelings too.

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When you cook with lard or pork fat, you can use MUCH higher temps, sear the food, and prevent further penetration of fat into the food. Food deep-fried in lard at proper temps sear very quickly, and ends up with less fat than those fried in vegetable oils. Plus, the nature of the fats involved favor lard over vegetable oils for heart health.

 

[Evo]

You can do that, Cy. The best bet is to get some salt pork and sear that in the pan to release fats, then brown the sausage in those fats, then reduce the heat and dump in the 'kraut to heat it.

I've never heard of putting salt pork in sauerkraut. The traditional German dish is made with pork spare ribs or sausages.

Although I love the flavoring of salt pork.

My mother used salt pork for black eyed peas and ham hocks for large white limas. OMG, large white limas cooked until they disintegrate, then add a bit of butter. My kids would suck that down like there is no tomorrow and they have asked me to teach them how to make it, now that they are on their own.

 

[turbo]

Do they sell salt pork at the local gorcery store or do I have to go to a butcher? Basically, just use the salt pork like you would normally use butter?

Salt pork is pork-fat (often streaked with some meat that you might consider bacon) that is brined in salt. You should be able to get real salt pork from any butcher worth his salt, but the stuff in the stores might be fat that was soaked in a brine solution. Real salt pork is firm and solid-feeling, and is not wiggly-feeling when you want to cut it up. The salt used in the brining process pulls a lot of fluids out of the pork fat and that condenses and firms the fat.

When I was a kid, we would buy salt pork in quantity (we used a lot in cooking) and it always came out of small unrefrigerated wooden casks. Great stuff.

 

[Cyrus]

I bought a can of campbells clam chowder soup. I also bought some snow crabs that came packaged (pretty expensive though ) and cooked the two together. The crabs were sold unfrozen. Then I smashed some crackers and put them on the bottom of the bowl and then poured the soup on top and mixed it all up. Putting the fresh crab meat made the flavor of the soup pop out a LOT.

It was two big things of soup for $5. The crab was $7 and I used half of it. The crackers were probably like $4 for a big box of them.

Thats like $8 each meal. And you get two big meals out of it. It was a rather large can.

 

[turbo]

I bought a can of campbells clam chowder soup. I also bought some snow crabs that came packaged (pretty expensive though ) and cooked the two together. The crabs were sold unfrozen. Then I smashed some crackers and put them on the bottom of the bowl and then poured the soup on top and mixed it all up. Putting the fresh crab meat made the flavor of the soup pop out a LOT.

Man! If I could have afforded to eat like you are eating, I never would have had the discipline to learn how to cook!

 

[CaptainQuasar]

When you cook with lard or pork fat, you can use MUCH higher temps, sear the food, and prevent further penetration of fat into the food. Food deep-fried in lard at proper temps sear very quickly, and ends up with less fat than those fried in vegetable oils. Plus, the nature of the fats involved favor lard over vegetable oils for heart health.

Mmmm, I need more lard in my life.

huh?

Lard is rendered pork fat the way tallow is rendered beef fat. So melting the fat in a piece of salt pork, or cooking something in bacon grease, is basically the same thing as cooking with lard.

I guess that there were industrial processes in the U.S. beginning early in the last century that consumed those parts of the pigs for other purposes, which sort of weaned the general populace off of using lard for the same things it might be used in Europe for today.

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[Cyrus]

Man! If I could have afforded to eat like you are eating, I never would have had the discipline to learn how to cook!

When you sum it up, it costs about the same as going to a place like Quiznos or Subway and getting a large sandwich.

The whole thing of soup was only $8.00

Plus I want something that cooks FAST.

 

[Evo]

Cyrus, Legal Seafoods has a location in DC and they are known for their clam chowder, have you tired it?

They had some great mussels last time I was there, and the best wine I'd had in ages, but can't remember the name of it.

 

[turbo]

When you sum it up, it costs about the same as going to a place like Quiznos or Subway and getting a large sandwich.

The whole thing of soup was only $8.00

I couldn't have afforded to eat at a sub place in college on any regular basis. I'd have to save my money from frat-party gigs, etc, to be able to treat a lady to such a low-cost date. Once in a while, I'd sell a guitar or amp that made me flush for a bit - still I wouldn't change my overall diet/cooking strategy. I'd go to school every year with insufficient money to get me through the year, and I'd claw my way through, somehow. (want to buy a guitar?)

 

[Cyrus]

Cyrus, Legal Seafoods has a location in DC and they are known for their clam chowder, have you tired it?

They had some great mussels last time I was there, and the best wine I'd had in ages, but can't remember the name of it.

If you want good mussels, I'll take you to a small spanish resturant next time your in town.

 

[Cyrus]

I couldn't have afforded to eat at a sub place in college on any regular basis. I'd have to save my money from frat-party gigs, etc, to be able to treat a lady to such a low-cost date. Once in a while, I'd sell a guitar or amp that made me flush for a bit - still I wouldn't change my overall diet/cooking strategy. I'd go to school every year with insufficient money to get me through the year, and I'd claw my way through, somehow. (want to buy a guitar?)

I can believe that. You guys have such a different lifestyle up north. When I visited Mass. it was quite different from being in DC. The people really seemed to be beaten down by life and generally unhappy. No one I talked to had any pride about where they lived. The food was MUCH better though. In general though the people seemed pretty...miserable.

I donno, just an observation I had.

 

[Evo]

If you want good mussels, I'll take you to a small spanish resturant next time your in town.

:!)

 

[turbo]

I can believe that. You guys have such a different lifestyle up north. When I visited Mass. it was quite different from being in DC. The people really seemed to be beaten down by life and generally unhappy. No one I talked to had any pride about where they lived. The food was MUCH better though. In general though the people seemed pretty...miserable.

I donno, just an observation I had.

I am proud of my family, friends, and was hopeful of my prospects when I was a kid. New Englanders (at least us in the northern reaches) are conservative, self-reliant and resistant to exuberance about small up-turns. Your limited experience in Mass gave you a very slanted look at us. I grew up with people whose families established farms and businesses no more than miles away, and who are proud of their heritage, and they can be trusted with your life. In a place that is as thinly-populated as Maine, your reputation is everything. You might be able to get away with pulling slimy crap elsewhere, but you wouldn't last long here if you were unethical.

BTW, my cousin is heading up the upcoming HST servicing mission and I grew a division of an auction company from $4.5M to over $15M in about 3 years. Neither of us has a 4-year degree.

 

[CaptainQuasar]

I can believe that. You guys have such a different lifestyle up north. When I visited Mass. it was quite different from being in DC. The people really seemed to be beaten down by life and generally unhappy. No one I talked to had any pride about where they lived. The food was MUCH better though. In general though the people seemed pretty...miserable.

That's it, the old dour Yankee. It's a New England tradition, being miserable. If there isn't something to complain about life has no meaning. http://www.runemasterstudios.com/graemlins/images/lol.gif

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[Cyrus]

That's it, the old dour Yankee. It's a New England tradition, being miserable. If there isn't something to complain about life has no meaning. http://www.runemasterstudios.com/graemlins/images/lol.gif

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I thought you guys grow beards and fix houses like new yankee workshop and do fishing like gordons fisherman (also has a beard).

 

[turbo]

I thought you guys grow beards and fix houses like new yankee workshop and do fishing like gordons fisherman (also has a beard).

I spent a whole fall and winter crawling around a barn, leveling the sills, and rebuilding the foundations.

A year later, I spent every day after work and every hour I had on the weekends helping a friend build a stone house. The farm was loaded with stone walls, and mortar was cheaper than plywood.

We're not all backward-looking - only the smart ones have figured that out.

 

[CaptainQuasar]

I thought you guys grow beards and fix houses like new yankee workshop and do fishing like gordons fisherman (also has a beard).

Oh yes. Except for the Yankee computer guys, we have goatees and ponytails.

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[Cyrus]

Oh yes. Except for the Yankee computer guys, we have goatees and ponytails.

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Damn, I knew it. Your abundance of beards is going to take over the world...

 

[Cyrus]

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/4729/pict0341wr0.jpg

1 Can of tuna fish
1/2 lime (juice & zest)
chives
mayo
crushed crackers (as many as you want)


Tastes pretty good!

The magic is using lime. It makes the flavor pop.

 

[Evo]

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/4729/pict0341wr0.jpg

1 Can of tuna fish
1/2 lime (juice & zest)
chives
mayo
crushed crackers (as many as you want)


Tastes pretty good!

The magic is using lime. It makes the flavor pop.

Lime is a wonderful substitute for lemon. I can tell you like mayonaise.

 

[Moonbear]

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/4729/pict0341wr0.jpg

1 Can of tuna fish
1/2 lime (juice & zest)
chives
mayo
crushed crackers (as many as you want)


Tastes pretty good!

The magic is using lime. It makes the flavor pop.

What did it look like before the cat vomited it up? Sorry Cyrus, it might taste good, but you need to work on presentation and photography...it looks like a bowl of vomit.

 

[Cyrus]

What did it look like before the cat vomited it up? Sorry Cyrus, it might taste good, but you need to work on presentation and photography...it looks like a bowl of vomit.

HAHAHAHA It does look like cat vomit!

 

[lisab]

It does look like cat vomit!

I think the basic recipe sounds pretty good, but I'd add a lot of celery (and maybe peas) and serve it on egg noodles rather than crackers.

But granted, crackers are easier!

 

[Evo]

I think the basic recipe sounds pretty good, but I'd add a lot of celery (and maybe peas) and serve it on egg noodles rather than crackers.

Isn't that tuna casserole?

My favorite tuna spread is tuna, mayonaise and chopped green olives. I ate my last can of tuna 2 nights ago and now I'm craving it.

 

[turbo]

Cy, you've got to come to Maine. You can camp out in my garage, and I will teach you to cook actual meals made out of actual food. Opening cans and heating stuff up doesn't cut it! Today, I put a large roasting chicken in the oven around 1:30 at 450 deg. (F, for the smart-assed Euros who will make jokes) I put the bird in a large pan with about 1/2" of water in it, along with a large quartered yellow onion. I rubbed the bird with peanut oil, and dusted it with powdered sage, paprika, salt and black pepper. After about 45 min of browning, I tented the bird with aluminum foil and continued cooking at 350 deg F for another couple of hours. Add side dishes of steamed green beans, mashed potatoes made with fresh garlic and onion, and you've got a meal that is killer.

Secret: There is no secret. Good cooking is simplicity, a bit of planning, minimum prep, and a lot of waiting around (if you are roasting large critters). You can learn to cook - you just need motivation and some inventiveness.

Have chicken parts? Wet them in raw scrambled eggs, and roll them in crushed Panko bread crumbs with sage, pepper and salt added. Place the chicken parts in a roasting pan lubricated with peanut oil, garnish them with a bit of lemon zest (shredded peels) and drizzle a bit of lemon juice over them. Bake in a hot oven until done. One of the quickest, tastiest entrees you will ever taste.

BTW, all the juice from the roasting pan, and all the juice from the potato/garlic/onion mash-up, and from the steamed beans is now in a large revere-ware pot along with all the bones, giblets, and other parts that didn't get eaten tonight. I'll boil that tomorrow to make chicken stock for stews or soups.

 

[Cyrus]

I think the basic recipe sounds pretty good, but I'd add a lot of celery (and maybe peas) and serve it on egg noodles rather than crackers.

But granted, crackers are easier!

Damn...peas. Genius. That's a good idea.

 

[Cyrus]

Cy, you've got to come to Maine. You can camp out in my garage, and I will teach you to cook actual meals made out of actual food. Opening cans and heating stuff up doesn't cut it! Today, I put a large roasting chicken in the oven around 1:30 at 450 deg. (F, for the smart-assed Euros who will make jokes) I put the bird in a large pan with about 1/2" of water in it, along with a large quartered yellow onion. I rubbed the bird with peanut oil, and dusted it with powdered sage, paprika, salt and black pepper. After about 45 min of browning, I tented the bird with aluminum foil and continued cooking at 350 deg F for another couple of hours. Add side dishes of steamed green beans, mashed potatoes made with fresh garlic and onion, and you've got a meal that is killer.

Secret: There is no secret. Good cooking is simplicity, a bit of planning, minimum prep, and a lot of waiting around (if you are roasting large critters). You can learn to cook - you just need motivation and some inventiveness.

Have chicken parts? Wet them in raw scrambled eggs, and roll them in crushed Panko bread crumbs with sage, pepper and salt added. Place the chicken parts in a roasting pan lubricated with peanut oil, garnish them with a bit of lemon zest (shredded peels) and drizzle a bit of lemon juice over them. Bake in a hot oven until done. One of the quickest, tastiest entrees you will ever taste.

BTW, all the juice from the roasting pan, and all the juice from the potato/garlic/onion mash-up, and from the steamed beans is now in a large revere-ware pot along with all the bones, giblets, and other parts that didn't get eaten tonight. I'll boil that tomorrow to make chicken stock for stews or soups.

The problem is that I don't have hours to cook. I have under an hour. I'm working my way up there to real cooking though......some day.

 

[lisab]

Isn't that tuna casserole?

Exactly!

*lisab LOVES tuna casserole :!) *

 

[Evo]

Exactly!

*lisab LOVES tuna casserole :!) *

Come here, I have enough leftover tuna casserole in my fridge to kill 50 people.

 

[turbo]

Come here, I have enough leftover tuna casserole in my fridge to kill 50 people.

She's not kidding! Listeria, Salmonella, whatever... it's in her fridge.

 

[Proton Soup]

'Kraut is preserved by brining. It's essentially shredded cabbage packed in salt, so it's fine to eat as-bought. Ain't nothin' bad going to grow in an environment with that much salt in it.

Still, you've got to learn to cook some stuff, Cy! Buying stuff and frying it or warming it up is very expensive and it gets old after a short time. Get some salt pork (or even better, a meaty bone from a ham-hock) and boil it with lentils, onions, celery, and some pepper and a little salt (not necessary if you use either salt pork or really salty ham) and see what you think. Carrots are very inexpensive and they keep well in the fridge, and they are also a nice addition to lentil soup.

the nice thing about lentils is they're quick.

for something less quick, but still cheap and not a whole lot of actual work, soak dried pintos overnight. rinse and put in a crock pot with the above trinity of onion/celery/bell pepper, black pepper and salt, maybe some garlic. instead of the salt pork, get some of that sage breakfast sausage that you slice up, and brown it in a skillet like hamburger. toss the sausage in the pot and let it cook all day on low. serve over rice. cubed and pan-sauteed potatoes makes a good side, imo.

 

[dyosa]

What did it look like before the cat vomited it up? Sorry Cyrus, it might taste good, but you need to work on presentation and photography...it looks like a bowl of vomit.

i agree. it looks so bland. make it more attractive and put more color to contrast the white.

 

[vincentm]

Cyrus, cookbooks are OK as far as they go, but the real fun in cooking is creating your own meals. Think of things that might go well together and give them a whirl. My wife and I are always tossing things together and many of our favorite dishes were born that way. Recently we sauteed peppers, onions and mushrooms until they were browned, stirred in a can of black beans and some of our jalapeno salsa and served that over a bed of Basmati rice. It was delicious. We made a similar dish recently by mixing all those ingredients (including the steamed rice) putting them in a casserole dish topped with shredded cheeses, and baked it until the cheese melted in and browned on top.

I applaud your efforts and wish you well as you learn, but don't be too constrained by recipes. The best meal you've never had (yet) is probably riding around in your imagination right now. My wife took a course in gourmet French provincial cooking, yet she never makes a single dish that she made in that course. The practical things that she learned, like how to make a good soup stock, how to debone chickens, how to handle chef's knives, etc, were worth the tuition, but our best dishes still come from imagination and a creative treatment of whatever is available in our freezers or was on sale at the market. This morning we had a great breakfast of pan-fried potatoes and sea scallops sauteed in butter. Fresh scallops were on sale yesterday.

Yup, the key to learning to cook, is experimenting. Learn to know your cooking temps and measurements, as time goes on and yo master your own dishes, these factors will come naturally. I don't even use a measuring cup anymore.