What's cooking? part 4

One of the things that took me a while to get the hang of when cooking a bunch of different foods is stove / dish / time management type stuff - knowing what you need to start first, knowing what can and should wait til the end, making sure you don't use a particular pan to cook X right now when another will do and you'll absolutely need it to cook Y later, not running out of burners, etc.

There were at least a couple dinner parties years ago when we'd start eating at 9 instead of 7 until I got better at this shit.

My prep is my safety blanket -- if I take the time to set everything up and have my ingredients chopped and ready I'm fine. But if I'm having to do too much on the fly I get kinda aaagh anxious. I'm kinda nerdy that way lol

And I hate dishes that require you to use more than 2 pots/pans. Like cook this thing and add it to this thing put it in the oven then add it to this thing. unless it's like a very slow, drawn out braise or casserole where you get time to wash dishes in between. I have teensy kitchen and I haaaaate having a mountain of dirty dishes in the middle of cooking

I would elaborate on the dirty dish thing but I have a crock pot that I have not scrubbed from NYE

i am a recent from-scratch tortilla convert, it's really not as much work as i thought it would be

I don't believe u

do you make corn or flour ones?

i make corn. i ended up with a giant bag of masa for something else so there was really only one thing to do.

1) make dough in advance and leave it in wrapped in a moistened towel
2) prepare tortilla fillings and leave them someplace where they'll stay warm
3) section and press tortillas, one-by-one, griddle for 30 seconds a side, and throw in tortilla warmer (tortilla warmer is secretly urgent and key)

next project is enchiladas

enchiladas are my favorite food and the only food i order in mexican restaurants, even though i want to try the other foods. i just love them so much i can't stop.

i'm going to make a jalapeño cheddar omelette

i alternate between enchiladas and fajitas but enchiladas are truly the best

joygoat otm up there - if I'm doing multiple dishes I write out a detailed timetable counting down to the time I want to serve.

WmC changed my life when he revealed the secret to stovetop rice:

1/2 c rice (2 servings)
toast a minute in a pot with a bit of oil (i usually forget this whole step, but it's a nice one)
add 1 c water
good pinch of salt
bring to boil with lid on
reduce to lowest setting for 20 mins
turn off heat and let sit for 10 mins
done

This is basically my rice recipe too! For long-grain white rice at least. One thing I find improves the texture is to place a teatowel between pot and lid during the no-heat phase - excess moisture that steams off gets absorbed by the towel rather than condensing and falling back into the rice.

imo the pan & how well it retains heat is the key element of rice cooking

i have a big thick enamel cast iron pot which i love but there are many paths to great rice

if i'm cooking jasmine rice i use WmC's method, but minus the toasting, and with wayyyy less water. i fill with water until it is ~maybe~ one knuckle over the rice. it's the only way i can keep jasmine from turning out mushy/weird, otherwise with most other rice yeah its the old 2:1 water:rice deal.

that and i rinse it in a wire colander obv

haha -- i do it old lady style: fill pan with amt of rice, fill with water ,(stirstirstirstir), drain, repeat, repeat.

Come to think of it I actually do something like 1.75:1 water:rice.

you know what has a weird water ratio: grits. i can never believe they are gonna drink up all that 1:4 water & they do every time. (i am actually more 1:3 but i think they keep going).

Yeah, I start with 4:1 for grits, add a little more during cooking and they still don't come out too thin.

I used to go with slightly less than 2:1 for rice, but the brand of basmati I use is happy to drink up a full 2:1 without being soupy or overly wet, and it's easier to measure.

I used to rinse the hell out of my rice per conventional wisdom until one time I attempted to make stickier rice to turn into rice pudding, so I didn't rinse the excess starch off. Came out just as fluffy as ever, so I dropped that extra bit of work immediately.

Can someone tell me abt cuts of beef? Chicken is so easy (thigh, breast, drumstick) but there are like 35 different kinds of beef at the supermarket! I'm simmering/stewing it for a Thai curry; I'm reading stuff that says tougher cuts w/ a lot of connective tissue work well bcz when you cook them for like an hour that tough shit breaks down into yummy noms, but someone give me like actual names of things to look for at the store plz!

chuck roast is good stewing meat

Yeah, chuck is well suited to wet cooking methods. It seems to have a looser grain and more marbling than round. It's my go-to for pot roast, and I cut up a small chuck roast when I'm making beef stew.

http://rickbakas.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/retail_beef_cuts1.jpg

what's the diff btwn all of these chucks? Should I just get the cheapest thing that is boneless and says "chuck" on the label?

boneless chuck roast is good bc you can portion it up & freeze to use in other dishes if there's too much

or maybe steak if the roasts are too spendy for yr budget

but chuck roast or steak will see you right

idk about all the other types, those are the 2 i go for when I am looking for chuck

i go for chuck steak but thats usually all rthe supermarket has in terms of stewing steak, if its marbeled, it'll do ya.

shank or short ribs would also work well

Today's soup will be broccoli-cheese along the lines of this recipe (I know Panera blech but the recipe actually looks decent; a bunch of them called for processed cheese a la Velveeta! No no no no no):

http://www.food.com/recipe/panera-broccoli-cheese-soup-150384

I ain't got no cream so we're just gonna go with milk and maybe some half-and-half

I believe this has been discussed previously, but any updates on an awesome cornbread recipe?

All I can say is:

S: Any that are more salty than sweet
D: Containing kernels of corn

find the ones that used bacon grease

back when corn still existed. the present grows ever bleaker.

i make mine with powdered sugar and vanilla in it so me and orbit might have to dance battle

I just bought a pressure cooker.

Cornbread recipe at the end of this post: http://isthatpie.wordpress.com/2008/12/04/my-favorite-pan/#more-121

Leave out the sugar. Use 1 c milk + 1/4 c melted fat of your choice (bacon grease, butter, ghee) instead of heavy cream. Chop some jalapenos into it. Mmmmm.

I will do just that! With bacon. I don't have jalapenos atm, but I do have some leftover cilantro pesto (cilantro, olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, S&P) that I will toss in. I have an 8 or 9 inch cast iron skillet, so I'll plan to use the leftover batter for some sort of corncakes for breakfast tomorrow!

I gotta say that the best part of being unemployed thus far (now on, er, day 2) is cooking a nice breakfast and lunch for myself, and getting dinner prepped without a mad after-work rush.

Anyone have a tagine type recipe they like?

Agree w your first point 100%. My two weeks off, once I got mobile again, were amazing for eating fresh foods at home and on my own schedule.

Lamb Tagine with Carrots and Celery (from Paula Wolfert's Moroccan Cuisine, my favourite cookbook of all time)

1+ kg lamb shoulder, cut into 3cm chunks
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 tsp ginger
pinch of pulverised saffron
1/4 tsp turmeric
2tbsp chopped coriander leaves (optional)
4tbsp veg oil
1 small onion, grated
450g celery
450g carrots
2 preserved lemons, rinsed
115g Kalamata olives
4tbsp lemon juice

1. Toss the lamb with the garlic, pinch of salt, spices, oil, herbs and onion in a large casserole. Cover with 225ml water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1.5 hours, turning the meat and adding water if necessary.
2. Destring the celery sticks and slice into 5cm pieces.
3. Peel the carrots and cut into strips the same size as the celery
4. When the meat is almost tender add the veg, and more water if necessary. Continue cooking until meat and veg are done.
5. Quarter the preserved lemons. Rinse the olives. Add both for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Stir in the lemon juice.
6. Remove the lamb and veg. Boil the sauce rapidly until it is reduced to a thick gravy. Serve!

That's exactly what I had in mind! Now I just have to track down some preserved lemons. .

They are fairly easy to make yourself if you're interested in doing so - I use a mix of regular and Meyer lemons. Quarter them and pack in a glass jar layered with kosher salt, put the lid on and let them sit at room temp for 3-4 weeks. Shake the jar every so often. I keep them in the fridge after that, where they last for a year or more.

I need to preserve/freeze/pickle more things! Those lemons sound like a good idea. My homemade kimchi turned out pretty well so I may pickle some vegetables.

I have made some spiced beets that turned out ok (if not somewhat unpopular among those who tried them with the exception of myself and maybe 2 other people). I made cucumber pickles once too and they were pretty good.

I've made lots of infusions type stuff -- syrups and liqueurs and vinegars but I started to feel weird buying these huge bottles of vodka (I know I could give it away, but I feel like people aren't really into "hey here's this weird alcoholic concoction I made that you didn't ask for") and I don't consume that much syrup so I put that on hold.

It's really easy -- you just need a modicum of motivation to do it, the patience to wait, and the ability to admit "ok this is gross" when it doesn't turn out so well.

and the desire to consume more than one item made with, say, rose fennel vinegar
^^ this is my challenge

The problem is that I'm lazy and couldn't come up with a complete meal plan so I ended up with some sliced steak, white rice, and smothering them both with kimchi

what's wrong with that?

Nothing, really!

I wonder if I could dry blood oranges in a method similar to the lemon method upthead. I think the ones in my fridge are on their last legs.

Yes! I've done limes the same way and they were fun. Need to do that again actually.