everything you always wanted to know about cooking but were afraid to ask

DigsHome | Help Digs Help You: Take our survey

Topic Closed

DigsBoards

nourish

everything you always wanted to know about cooking but were afraid to ask (Page 3)

profile | register | preferences | faq | search

UBBFriend: Email This Page to Someone!
This topic is 21 pages long: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

next newest topic | next oldest topic

Author	Topic: everything you always wanted to know about cooking but were afraid to ask
Andree Housemate	posted 01-01-2003 10:17 AM Peri-peri is a spicy sauce from Africa. I found the following description on an African web site: "The words Pili-Pili, Piri-Piri, and Peri-Peri all are used to refer to hot chile peppers, sauces and marinades made from them, and foods cooked with those sauces and marinades. This spicy hot marinade can be used on any meat you grill or broil: chicken, beef, fish, seafood, etc. In Africa, spicy meatbrochettes are often-seen street food." You can usually get bottled peri-peri sauces at ethnic food markets, or in convenience stores in African neighbourhoods. Or you can make your own with the following recipe: * two or three fresh hot chile peppers (hot red peppers are typical; jalapeno peppers and poblano peppers are also good), chopped * four tablespoons lemon juice or lime juice (or cider vinegar) * four tablespoons oil * one tablespoon cayenne pepper or red pepper, or one tablespoon dried red pepper flakes (optional) * one teaspoon minced garlic * one tablespoon paprika * one teaspoon salt * dried or fresh oregano to taste What you do * Combine all ingredients. Grind and mix the ingredients into a smooth paste. Adjust the ratio of cayenne pepper and paprika to taste. Rub marinade onto meat and allow to marinate in a glass bowl for at least thirty minutes (or overnight if possible) before cooking. This marinade works well on chicken, beef, or any other grilled meat. Some cooks briefly cook the mixture before storing it. "Aging" the marinade by storing it in a refrigerator for a few days allows the flavor to develop. IP: Logged
DPD Subletter	posted 01-05-2003 04:24 PM Hi SeptemberGirl from reading this post, a lot of your questions haven't been answered!! Anyway here is an English kosher-keeper's take on things: 1) Different wines do different jobs - two weeks' ago's friday night dinner of chicken pieces with tarragon and white wine was AMAZING and i am planning a boeuf bourginon with red wine for next week. I use sweet wines a lot as flavour enhancers - some Marsala or kiddush wine in tomato sauce for pasta or gazpacho for instance, or with lamb... 2) sometimes sun dried tomatos can be an ok-ish bacon replacement eg. in pasta sauce again or with pate when you need to enrich something... but i'm not keen on that whole substitute thing, i just leave things out and adjust to the result! Alternatively, nice anchovies can also work if you are looking for the saltiness in a recipe. 3. Chilli is lots of things! chilli powder i guess is ground seends and chlli peppers. paste is similar but maybe in an oily base. chilli oil is olive or similar oil with chili flakes or seeds in as flavouring. and is really really hot as a general rule. 4. If you ever have been/ will be coming to London, go to a restaurant called Chutney's. It's Indian vegetarian and does about ten kinds of chutney every day. Chutney originates from India I think where they had to preserve their fruits and vegetables so did so with vinegar and their spices. You eat them with poppadums for starters or with the hot currys and bread. A GREAT recipe someone gave my mum was to take a boned turkey joint and totally smear the whole thing in mango chutney and cook wrapped in silver foil for a while and then unwrap to caramelise the coating. 5. as far as the grapefruit goes - sorry, no assistance!! think it's just down to the kind of grapefruit though. good luck!! IP: Logged
septembergirl Housemate	posted 01-06-2003 10:00 AM quote: Originally posted by DPD: Hi SeptemberGirl from reading this post, a lot of your questions haven't been answered!! Thanks DPD! A lot of them got partial answers, but the red/white wine question was the main one that didn't (sidetracked by people horrified at my cooking with spoiled wine! ahem ) , so thank you for addressing that. I think I've figured out why I don't care what kind of wine I cook with - I'm just not a fan of dishes made with wine. So far nothing I've tasted has made me want to have it again. Coq au vin: eh. Beef stew with red wine: eh. Not just when I make them, either. So I'm just not going to worry about it. Don't worry about the grapefruit question - see above; that was the only one I figured out by myself! [This message has been edited by septembergirl (edited 01-06-2003).] IP: Logged
lduds Housemate	posted 01-07-2003 04:22 PM My friend gave me four mangos because she's going on vacation. I know they're pretty gross when they're not ripe, but how do I know when they are and how do I eat them? Do I take the skin off? IP: Logged
bali Housemate	posted 01-07-2003 05:17 PM mangos are ripe when they are more golden/red than green, give slightly to the touch and have a nice fruity smell. I peel them two different ways. First, there is a pit that is long and flat, kinda like a kayak in the middle of the fruit, so you have to cut around it. What I do for Cut type #1 is cut throught the fruit about a 1/3 of the way across width wise. So you are cutting off a large hunk of the length. Than score the fruit and cut it off the peel. #2 - Score the skin (cutting only through skin) so the fruit is in quadrants. Pull off the skin, easy when it is ripe. And than slice the fruit away from the pit. I hope that made sense. IP: Logged
jessicazee Housemate	posted 01-07-2003 05:18 PM This is how I eat mangoes: Hold one in your palm and determine how to cut it by finding the "wide" side. The pit takes up most of the inside, and lies flat, so make the "pit" lay flat to your palm.. With a sharp knife, cut the mango so that you have two big slices, with the pit and a layer of fruit and peel left. Take one of your slices, and slice on the diagonal not quite all the way through, then make a crosshatch cut on the other diagonal. Pop it inside out. It will kind of look like a mango porcupine. Repeat with other slice. Sprinkle with lime juice and/or chili powder. Peel the skin off of the pit piece and suck the fruit off the pit. It's messy and kind of sexy. This may sound like a bunch of bull, but it's the only way I can describe it. Maybe someone else has better terminology? IP: Logged
ng-la Housemate	posted 01-08-2003 11:33 AM Look- instructions with PICTURES on how to slice and cube mangoes.... http://www.cafe-express.com/www/html/ITKArchive2/tvkitchenmango.htm IP: Logged
jessicazee Housemate	posted 01-09-2003 09:08 PM Now I know why I could never be a successful technical writer. It's so cute that the mango halves are called "cheeks." IP: Logged
ronica Housemate	posted 01-13-2003 09:40 AM I grew up in a tropical country and we ate mango only during the mango season. I remember the fruits as much bigger than what we can get in the U.S., with golden skin and smaller seed. We called the big halves cheeks also. My mom would slice one cheek for each kid to eat with a spoon and eat what left around the seed. We also loved the green variety that is crunchy and sour, we sliced them up in bite size and dipped them in this sauce made of fish sauce, sugar and fresh crushed chili peppers. IP: Logged
sassyllama Housemate	posted 02-11-2003 06:40 PM So, I made this pretty good chicken/wild rice/mushroom soup yesterday. The recipe called for 3 tbsp "cooking sherry", so I picked some up. Now... what do I do with it? I assume I don't have to treat it like wine and finish it today, but how long will it keep? Should I refrigerate it? The label gives me no clue. IP: Logged
BionicGirl Housemate	posted 02-12-2003 08:08 AM Stick it in the pantry with all the vinegars and such. It should be fine for quite a while. If you need another use for it and don't have any other recipes that call for it, you can always use it in a marinade. Or mix it with a little bit of lemon juice, veggie broth, dill, and salt & pepper and pan-fry some chicken breast in this. Then you could throw in a little cornstarch to thicken it up and make an easy sauce. IP: Logged
ronica Housemate	posted 02-12-2003 03:30 PM I'd keep it in the cupboard and use it in stir fry dishes, or sometime use it in place of white wine (for cooking, not drinking). IP: Logged
sassyllama Housemate	posted 02-12-2003 06:01 PM Ah, so it's more in the "vinegar" category than the "wine" category. Thanks! IP: Logged
circlek Subletter	posted 02-12-2003 08:16 PM Really late to the party, but here are my thoughts on onions and kimchee. Onions: I've heard that if you wipe your hands on anything steel after you cut onions it takes away the smell. So wipe them on the knife (don't cut yourself!) or the kitchen sink or faucet. Kimchee: so so so so so good. That's all I have to say about that. and the mango thing was very helpful. Now does anyone know the best way to cut a pear? (edited to add the pear question) [This message has been edited by circlek (edited 02-12-2003).] IP: Logged
PB&J Housemate	posted 02-13-2003 08:23 AM quote: Originally posted by ralphyr: How do you avoid getting the onion/garlic smell on your fingers? I can really pick up these flavours when I handle apples or bananas after. It sounds strange, but if you wash your hands under cool running water while rubbing a piece of stainless steel over your hands, the odours will disappear. You can actually buy lumps of stainless steel for this purpose, but unless you only use sterling silver utensils, I'll bet you have a drawer full of stainless steel in your kitchen already!! IP: Logged
LittleRed Housemate	posted 02-13-2003 09:03 AM Lemon juice works too. IP: Logged
ralphyr Housemate	posted 02-13-2003 02:45 PM quote: Originally posted by PB&J: ...wash your hands under cool running water while rubbing a piece of stainless steel over your hands... I did see these in the kitchen shop and wonder what they are made of. I'll give that a try. I'll try the lemon juice too. [This message has been edited by ralphyr (edited 02-13-2003).] IP: Logged
crowjoy Housemate	posted 02-13-2003 03:09 PM Anyone know what I can do to prevent my powdered sugar from lumping up? My Martha Stewart sifter sucks and I would give my kingdom for my old crank sifter but alas it is gone gone gone. [This message has been edited by crowjoy (edited 02-13-2003).] IP: Logged
Trouble Subletter	posted 02-14-2003 03:58 PM What's Okra? IP: Logged
crowjoy Housemate	posted 02-14-2003 04:07 PM Okra is a weird vegetable that's yummy in gumbo or soups or pickled. People like em fried too but they get slimey pretty easily. IP: Logged
Epicurus Housemate	posted 02-14-2003 04:10 PM quote: Originally posted by Trouble: What's Okra? http://www.foodtv.com/terms/tt-r2/0,4474,4165,00.html IP: Logged
mamichan Housemate	posted 02-21-2003 08:00 AM i have a baking question -- when a recipe calls for eggs, does it matter what size eggs you use? IP: Logged
ragazzina Housemate	posted 02-21-2003 09:38 AM Some recipes tell you large eggs or whatever. I always use medium, ALWAYS, and have never had any trouble. IP: Logged
becca11 Housesitter	posted 02-21-2003 09:40 AM baking is very finicky - more science than art. depending on the recipe it might throw you out. edited for spelling [This message has been edited by becca11 (edited 02-21-2003).] IP: Logged
ecochica Housemate	posted 02-21-2003 11:29 AM quote: Originally posted by ronica: I grew up in a tropical country and we ate mango only during the mango season. I remember the fruits as much bigger than what we can get in the U.S., with golden skin and smaller seed. We called the big halves cheeks also. My mom would slice one cheek for each kid to eat with a spoon and eat what left around the seed. We also loved the green variety that is crunchy and sour, we sliced them up in bite size and dipped them in this sauce made of fish sauce, sugar and fresh crushed chili peppers. ronica, i love green mangos too. i recently went to the philippines, where green mango shakes are common. best thing ever IP: Logged
Merimoo Housemate	posted 02-21-2003 01:13 PM What's a "dry rub"? for meat, I think. I've seen it referenced here but have no clue. IP: Logged
Princessjeanne Housemate	posted 02-21-2003 01:20 PM I think it's just rubbing spices etc. into meat, ie dry, not marinating, ie wet. IP: Logged
Beep Housemate	posted 02-21-2003 06:01 PM Yeah... dry rubs are just dry spices rubbed onto the meat. A lot of people insist that brisket isn't made correctly unless you use a dry rub on it. You can make your own, or buy a commercially prepared rub. Mmm... IP: Logged
Andree Housemate	posted 02-23-2003 07:31 AM Has anyone read the "s.a.d. no more" article? In it, there's a recipe for borshch that calls for "sour salt." Does anyone know what the heck this is? I know a little about Russian cooking, but I've never heard of sour salt. IP: Logged
Merimoo Housemate	posted 02-23-2003 11:39 AM iirc, it's citrus acid (but I could easily be totally wrong). IP: Logged
EmmaNadine Housemate	posted 02-23-2003 12:00 PM When I use a garlic press to mince garlic, I also get a thin layer left in the press. Is there a way to make the whole clove go through the press, or do I just throw that little layer away or chop it by hand, or what? IP: Logged
Princessjeanne Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 05:26 AM Usually I just toss it, because I hate chopping garlic and it makes your hands all sticky if you touch it. But I guess you could pick it out and chop it by hand if you want to.... Ok, I'm an idiot and I can't believe I am even asking this: How do you hard boil an egg? I can make a ton of complicated stuff and discovered yesterday that I don't know how to hardboil an egg. Please help me. P.S. EmmaNadine, how've you been? We missed you... IP: Logged
crowjoy Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 06:27 AM quote: Originally posted by Princessjeanne: P.S. EmmaNadine, how've you been? We missed you... Yes! So glad to see your name! Hard boiled eggs.. don't know if this is the "correct" way, but it was the way I was taught in one of those cooking classes I took in HS. Start with cold water, put eggs in, heat until boiling. Boil for 2 or 3 minutes and then turn off heat and let eggs hang out in the hot water for 10 minutes or so. Run under cold water. Should have hard eggs that are still responsive, like not too hard, no green in the yolk and peel easily. I'm about to go make some devilled eggs so I'll edit if I'm totally blowing smoke. IP: Logged
yeefan Head of the House	posted 02-24-2003 08:46 AM Yup, sour salt is citric acid/citric salt: http://www.internationalrecipesonline.com/recipes/dictionary.pl?1630 IP: Logged
luckieracergirl Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 08:46 AM My Dad loved hard boiled eggs, and had them down to a science. Place them in cold water in a pan, just enough so the water covers the eggs. Let them boil 10 minutes, then place the pan in the sink. After a few minutes, start running cold water into the water thats still in the pan. Once all the water in the pan has been replaced by cold, let the eggs sit for about two to three minutes. Take out eggs and peel. Ta-da! Hope this helps IP: Logged
BionicGirl Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 09:02 AM quote: Originally posted by luckieracergirl: My Dad loved hard boiled eggs, and had them down to a science. Place them in cold water in a pan, just enough so the water covers the eggs. Let them boil 10 minutes, then place the pan in the sink. After a few minutes, start running cold water into the water thats still in the pan. Once all the water in the pan has been replaced by cold, let the eggs sit for about two to three minutes. Take out eggs and peel. Ta-da! Hope this helps That's what I do except after 10 minutes in the boiling water, I just fish them out and let them cool on a rack or towel. Never had a problem with that method. Mmmm, deviled eggs. Crowjoy, why'd you jave to say that? Now I MUST make some tonight. IP: Logged
giamaria Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 09:06 AM How do you know when bleu cheese goes bad? IP: Logged
LittleRed Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 10:10 AM It's kind of hard to tell, but it gets a bit TOO blue. IP: Logged
Princessjeanne Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 10:20 AM Thanks guys! I've been trying to find protein heavy breakfast items that are portable and that's how I discovered I don't know how to boil eggs. Gia, blue cheese lasts for a long, LONG time... how long have you had it? My friend had a chunk in his fridge for a month and then made dip with it and it was fine. Very tasty, actually. IP: Logged
septembergirl Housemate	posted 02-24-2003 10:56 AM Okay, I'm glad someone here could help you out, because all I had to offer was that Far Side where the guy opens his refrigerator to find a bowl of potato salad pointing guns at the ketchup and mustard bottles. It's called "When Potato Salad Goes Bad." IP: Logged

This topic is 21 pages long: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 All times are PT (US)	next newest topic \| next oldest topic
Administrative Options: Open Topic \| Archive/Move \| Delete Topic
	Hop to:

Contact Us | DigsMagazine

Ultimate Bulletin Board 5.47d