What can you expect in the Food Thread on PF?

[wolram]

Why has my chili relish gone mouldy, i am sure i cleaned every thing well.

 

[Moonbear]

I was dying laughing today at Sandra Lee as she walked backwards across her set to the refrigerator never turning or losing her fake smile. It was so unnatural it just stuck with me. Get a grip woman, just walk to the ****ing refrigerator.

And yet you keep watching. This is why they're still on the air. I wonder if anyone really watches that show to learn how to cook, or if they're all like you, just sitting with mouths agape in shock at how bad it is, yet unable to look away.

 

[turbo]

And yet you keep watching. This is why they're still on the air. I wonder if anyone really watches that show to learn how to cook, or if they're all like you, just sitting with mouths agape in shock at how bad it is, yet unable to look away.

Like a bad car wreck happening in front of you. You don't want to watch, but it's so bad you can't turn away. I'm so glad we don't have cable.

 

[Evo]

And yet you keep watching. This is why they're still on the air. I wonder if anyone really watches that show to learn how to cook, or if they're all like you, just sitting with mouths agape in shock at how bad it is, yet unable to look away.

Since I've been feeling bad, I've resorted to watching tv, and yes it's utter disbelief that these people are on tv saying these things. Where are the food police?

 

[turbo]

Why has my chili relish gone mouldy, i am sure i cleaned every thing well.

Did you follow the recipe and process the relish in the proper concentration of vinegar/water? While that not-so-low pH will not prevent spoilage, it will retard it for a good long time as long as you keep the jar refrigerated.

 

[wolram]

Did you follow the recipe and process the relish in the proper concentration of vinegar/water? While that not-so-low pH will not prevent spoilage, it will retard it for a good long time as long as you keep the jar refrigerated.

Refrigerated? I thought it could be kept like jam, oh well.

 

[Evo]

Refrigerated? I thought it could be kept like jam, oh well.

You don't refrigerate your jam?

 

[Evo]

My meat is here.

The deer killer in my office has a butcher he takes some of his deer meat to be processed and he just brought me 5 pounds of the beef, jalepeno and cheddar sausage that they make. :!)

slobber, slobber

The butcher is on the other side of the state, so it's a special thing.

 

[wolram]

You don't refrigerate your jam?

No, i have never known anyone to keep jam refrigerated, normally it will keep for years if unopened, mom has one of nans blackcurrant jams that seems unspoilt to this day, it would be a shame to open it just to test the theory though.

 

[turbo]

No, i have never known anyone to keep jam refrigerated, normally it will keep for years if unopened, mom has one of nans blackcurrant jams that seems unspoilt to this day, it would be a shame to open it just to test the theory though.

Jams and jellies are generally processed at high temperature in a water bath to kill microorganisms in the fruit and prevent spoilage. Processed jars like this can be stored at room temperature for months or years, but should be refrigerated after opening. Unprocessed foods must be refrigerated to prevent spoilage.

 

[Evo]

Ok, pictures of my sausage. You'll notice the pieces of fresh jalapeno, cheese, nice cuts of beef and coursely cracked black pepper. As soon as you lift this to your mouth, the fragrance from the fresh jalapenos hit. This isn't some wimpy "jalapeno flavored" meat, this has nice sized pieces of the pepper running through it. The light spots are cheese.

Help yourselves guys.

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/5432/sausagejaldv0.jpg

 

[Evo]

My older daughter spawn, came by Saturday with a fresh baked cheesecake. It had cream cheese, mascarpone, kalua, it was a traditional baked cheesecake, none of that uncooked stuff. The crust was crushed vanilla wafers in butter.

It was topped with piped chocolate ganache and whipped cream and sprinkled with chocolate shavings. It was the creamiest, most incredible tasting cheescake I've ever had. She's branching out into gourmet cooking.

Here are the pictures.

This was her first time ever to pipe whipped cream, I think she did rather well.

 

[Moonbear]

Ok, pictures of my sausage. You'll notice the pieces of fresh jalapeno, cheese, nice cuts of beef and coursely cracked black pepper. As soon as you lift this to your mouth, the fragrance from the fresh jalapenos hit. This isn't some wimpy "jalapeno flavored" meat, this has nice sized pieces of the pepper running through it. The light spots are cheese.

Help yourselves guys.

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/5432/sausagejaldv0.jpg

[/URL]

Ooh, that looks absolutely delicious! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Moonbear]

My older daughter spawn, came by Saturday with a fresh baked cheesecake. It had cream cheese, mascarpone, kalua, it was a traditional baked cheesecake, none of that uncooked stuff.

What kind of cheesecake is uncooked? Khalua cheesecake does sound tasty though!

It was topped with piped chocolate ganache and whipped cream and sprinkled with chocolate shavings.

It looks fantastic. She did a lovely job decorating it...makes it look very professional. She's invited for Christmas next year (and so is Tom)...on the condition both bring cheesecakes.

 

[turbo]

Ok, pictures of my sausage. You'll notice the pieces of fresh jalapeno, cheese, nice cuts of beef and coursely cracked black pepper. As soon as you lift this to your mouth, the fragrance from the fresh jalapenos hit. This isn't some wimpy "jalapeno flavored" meat, this has nice sized pieces of the pepper running through it. The light spots are cheese.

Help yourselves guys.

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/5432/sausagejaldv0.jpg

Send[/URL] me a pound of that sausage! I'll send you a jar of my green habanero relish in return or some milder (but still mighty hot) tomato-based salsa in return.

 

[Astronuc]

I think that turbo, Moonbear, Zz, and I should approach the Food Network with a new tv show concept called "Real Cooking" where we can explain to viewers how produce and meats differ, so when they go to the grocery store they can actually make an informed decision.

Actualy, that really is a novel idea for a cooking show, explaining to people what the difference is between types of squash or potatoes, or apples. It seems a lot of people don't have this basic knowledge. A show just aimed at educating people about food. Then you could cook recipes highlighting the differences.

I volunteer to do the spots on beer, wine and whiskey. OK - you can pay me.

I think we'll have to visit all the microbreweries, vineyards and whiskey distilleries around the world - just to be fair.

 

[wolram]

Ok, pictures of my sausage. You'll notice the pieces of fresh jalapeno, cheese, nice cuts of beef and coursely cracked black pepper. As soon as you lift this to your mouth, the fragrance from the fresh jalapenos hit. This isn't some wimpy "jalapeno flavored" meat, this has nice sized pieces of the pepper running through it. The light spots are cheese.

Help yourselves guys.

http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/5432/sausagejaldv0.jpg

[/URL]

I would like some too, boy it looks good.

 

[Moonbear]

I think that turbo, Moonbear, Zz, and I should approach the Food Network with a new tv show concept called "Real Cooking" where we can explain to viewers how produce and meats differ, so when they go to the grocery store they can actually make an informed decision.

Actualy, that really is a novel idea for a cooking show, explaining to people what the difference is between types of squash or potatoes, or apples. It seems a lot of people don't have this basic knowledge. A show just aimed at educating people about food. Then you could cook recipes highlighting the differences.

BACK OFF, THIS IS MY IDEA!

I think it really is a good idea! Good cooking starts with choosing good ingredients. A show that just goes through choosing fresh ingredients would be really helpful for people. For example, how many people know how to choose a ripe avocado, or can find a good ear of corn without stripping off the husk (which then let's the kernels dry out). When they head to the meat case, do they have a clue how to choose the cuts? Do they even know what different cuts mean? Explaining things like marbling of beef, what cuts are more tender for grilling/roasting/pan searing, and which are tougher but great for soups and stews, myths and facts about "corn fed" vs "grain fed" meats, does organic really make any difference, etc, would all be useful for a lot of clueless consumers (and the side effect is that if we educate the consumers, the grocery stores will be forced to meet their raised expectations and start putting better quality food on the shelves, so we can find those quality ingredients easier). You could do each show with a featured ingredient. Spend 15 min of the show explaining how to choose that food, all the varieties, what's unique about each and why you'd choose one or another for various dishes, then the remaining 45 min of the show teaching people how to cook a couple dishes with that ingredient that take advantage of the characteristics of one over another variety or cut. Heck, you could even make it so you have two dishes per episode, one which is a more gourmet dish that takes some time and skill to prepare and people could use to impress friends at a dinner party, and the other a simple dish you can prepare for every day meals that's healthy and lower in fat for the health conscious.

It's definitely a show I'd be more interested in watching, especially if it alternated between mundane and exotic ingredients (i.e., one episode would discuss selecting onions, the next talking about something like bok choy or jicama or some of those tropical fruits that few people in the US know how to choose or prepare, so there's something both for the clueless beginner and for the more advanced cook who wants to learn about more uncommon ingredients...it might work the other way around for immigrants too; they know how to use their own ethnic ingredients, but could learn about how to use the foods commonly found in American grocery stores that they are less familiar with and how to make good dishes with them).

 

[turbo]

A show that spent an appropriate amount of time each episode in food selection would be popular, I think. Alton Brown was probably the best of the Food Network "gurus" back when we had cable TV. He talked about the quality of the ingredients fairly regularly.

There are some little ins and outs that people often aren't aware of. Case in point: Maine exports a LOT of potatoes, and the quality is quite good. So if you live in Maine, should you buy Maine potatoes? Maybe not. Potatoes that are not going to cross state lines are not going to be USDA-inspected and the producers face little risk if they misbrand poor-quality potatoes as top-quality. If last year's crop was poor, or the weather conditions during harvest were not conducive to good storage life, some pretty crappy potatoes can show up in the stores, especially in the spring and early summer. If you're not a good judge of potatoes with a visual inspection and a squeeze/light tap for firmness, it's probably a safer bet to buy potatoes that were grown out-of-state and had to undergo at least some level of inspection.

 

[Moonbear]

A show that spent an appropriate amount of time each episode in food selection would be popular, I think. Alton Brown was probably the best of the Food Network "gurus" back when we had cable TV. He talked about the quality of the ingredients fairly regularly.

There are some little ins and outs that people often aren't aware of. Case in point: Maine exports a LOT of potatoes, and the quality is quite good. So if you live in Maine, should you buy Maine potatoes? Maybe not. Potatoes that are not going to cross state lines are not going to be USDA-inspected and the producers face little risk if they misbrand poor-quality potatoes as top-quality. If last year's crop was poor, or the weather conditions during harvest were not conducive to good storage life, some pretty crappy potatoes can show up in the stores, especially in the spring and early summer. If you're not a good judge of potatoes with a visual inspection and a squeeze/light tap for firmness, it's probably a safer bet to buy potatoes that were grown out-of-state and had to undergo at least some level of inspection.

That happens with other produce too, and not just in the US, and not just because of inspections. The best quality stuff gets exported because it can command a higher price, and the lower quality stays local because it's so prevalent there that they can't charge much for it anyway.

 

[wolram]

It is like the meat and fish in this country, fresh fish? i bought some muscles and half did not open, tried another store and the same thing, sea fish should smell of the sea not what ever
aromas have been wafting through the store.
Meat? i am sure it is injected with water, and some of the cheaper cuts cook like old boot leather, i only buy hung meat now, it is expensive but at least one does not have to chew it for half an hour.

 

[CaptainQuasar]

Cupcakes… I'm thinking about http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/02/04"…

⚛​

 

[wolram]

Cupcakes… I'm thinking about http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/02/04"…

[SIZE="6"
]⚛​

I am good at making cakes, i have no idea why as i never follow recipes, i just mix stuff together, the proof is that all my cakes are eaten before they have hardly cooled.

 

[CaptainQuasar]

I am good at making cakes, i have no idea why as i never follow recipes, i just mix stuff together, the proof is that all my cakes are eaten before they have hardly cooled.

That's awesome! Way to be, man. It's like you've got the Midas touch of cupcakes.

⚛​

 

[Evo]

My meat connection has come through again. Tomorrow I'm getting 10 more pounds of the cheddar jalapeno sausage and 5 lbs of the jalapeno beef snack sticks. :!)

 

[turbo]

My meat connection has come through again. Tomorrow I'm getting 10 more pounds of the cheddar jalapeno sausage and 5 lbs of the jalapeno beef snack sticks. :!)

I am jealous - cheddar jalapeno sausage sounds really good.

 

[Astronuc]

I had dinner with a close friend last Friday, and we talked about the great food we had while doing a project in Spain. There was a great recipe for cod, so I looked it up and found something that is close - Bacalao al Pil-Pil.

http://www.spain-recipes.com/bacalao-pil-pil.html

In Spain, what we remember is a cod fillet cooked on low heat in olive oil for about 3 hrs. It was seasoned with fresh garlic.

There's lots of great recipes on that site.

 

[Evo]

Queen of Meat

I have my meat! Muwahahahaha!

The meat guy gave out samples of some of his and now people are after my meat. I'm not selling, this stuff is too precious.

I was thinking that this would make an awesome jambalaya.

 

[Andre]

I was thinking that this would make an awesome jambalaya.

Ah, Paëlla, how is the supply of seafood for that, in the continentalst part of CONUS?

 

[Evo]

Ah, Paëlla, how is the supply of seafood for that, in the continentalst part of CONUS?

I love paella, haven't made it in ages, I love saffron. I'd have to go with frozen fish, but the quality of frozen fish has really improved with onboard freezing now.