Cooking section

[transward]

Thanks Dave. How covered with broth should the fixins be?
I am lucky at soups but unlucky with pot roasts.
Gonna give yours a try.
The relatively quick cooking time and try a flank steak looks appealing for single person cooking.
My concern is that the meat is totally, 100%ily cooked. Well I guess the smaller the chucks the more the cooking.

My offering to the thread is try some Saffron Threads in almost anything. As many as you use at a time, a gram lasts for years. Like garlic, it is not a matter of tasting it, but you know it isn't there when skipped. The traditional yellowing color of traditional Jewish Chicken Soup. Try it, you'll like it.

Be very careful with saffron. The amount you need is very tiny, and you are going to think you need more. Resist the temptation. Saffron is very potent. Too much and it becomes astonishingly bitter and overpowers the dish. (Besides costing an arm and a leg) You really only need a few threads to flavor a dish. In the right amounts it's wonderful.

For your pot roast, I (and Cooks Illustrated) prefer a chuck steak or roast. And I think you would get better flavor and more tender meat cooking at a lower temp (325 or 350) for a longer time. 1 1/2 - 2 hours. You need very little liquid. The meat and vegies will put out quite a bit. When the mega-mart has chuck roasts on sale, buy a big one, cut it up into individual portions, season, and wrap in foil with a few vegies and a couple of tablespoons of liquid and stick in the freezer. Then throw an individual pack into the oven. Give it an extra 20 minutes for being frozen. Same deal works fine with boneless breasts or thighs, pork ribs, fish - even just vegies. Chicken and fish cook shorter time ribs a bit longer.

Good luck and good appetite.

Transward

[punkypink]

step 1) spend an hour trying to find all the ingredients you need

step 2) 2 hours later get half of what you need, substituting the other half you couldn't find with "reasonably close" substitutes

step 3) set the kitchen stove on fire as you realise kerosene is NOT an acceptable substitute for cooking oil

step 4) sit outside and ring up a pizza on your mobile while the fire department extinguishes what's left of your burning house

Simples!

[moi621]

Dave, normally I would use chuck and longer cooking times but, I am never happy with the results.
Slow cooking is just not my style and I like your faster recipe with all respect to transward.
I avoid frozen meat so again the flank steak is just the right size although my butcher would carve down a chuck on request. Even into stew meat. I may be lazy and let him do my flank steak.

Trader Joe's has a decent Saffron Threads bottle and so does, William Sonoma stores.
The super market is the worst place to price it. Once you purchase some, it last forever. My rule is be able to count the threads. My wife claims it sometimes adds a "woody" flavor but I just pick up flavor enhancement.

Y'think we need a Forum dedicated to Cuisine that can carry multiple threads?

Moi
Ain't It A Shame, that Home Economics cooking classes are no longer in our schools.
Another gift of feminism.

[tugon]

This thread has peaked my interest in an entry level cooking class. I would like to learn some skills and techniques. I could even benefit a list of basics to stock a kitchen. I do own pots and pans and a few knives. I have sea salt and olive oil. I always have butter in the refrigerator.

I have been Serve Safe certified and managed a hospital cafeteria for four years. When I did prepare anything it was for 100 people and I only did some of the prep. I always split and fluffed the lobster tails along with making the Greek chicken. I can follow recipes but I do not know how to substitute.

I need to learn to cook for one. I do not eat left overs. I cannot eat the same thing two days in a row. On a day off I make a nice omlette with sharp cheddar cheese, toast and French pressed coffee. I can make a killer cheesecake. Now I need more skills.

[Riverwind]

One of the hardest things in the world is to learn to cook for one. Its much easier to cook for four, or half the recipe and cook for two. I do eat leftovers but not the next day, any left over should keep for a couple days. So you have dinner Monday night and lunch with the left overs on Wednesday.

River

[Dave]

I cook for one. Most days I thaw my meal before I cook it.

I buy what I can eat in one meal portions. It takes some thought and it might not be the least expensive.
I buy only five pounds of potatoes at one time. A 3 lb bag of small onions is all I keep in the fridge.

I buy meat in 1/2 to 3/4 pound portions and freeze them all separately. It's a half hour extra work.
I buy one pack of chicken breasts (usually three), separate them and freeze them separately.
I buy one large pork chop.

My supermarket makes meatballs and I'll buy them and wrap them in twos.
The meat department also makes hamburger patties and I buy them and pack them in twos.

If I make chicken soup, then I make a large pot and use those 1 cup containers to freeze the rest as stock.

On the rare occasion that I buy a leg of lamb (usually Easter) then I get the meat department to debone it and give me the bones. I roast them and then make stock from them. I'll freeze that in one cup containers.

[WanToNoMor]

A great 'Learn to Cook' website is http://idiotskitchen.com -- lots of instruction and great recipes!

[DeaconBlues]

Does anyone have some tips about venison? You know, deer meat.

I have some in the freezer, I absolutely LOVE the taste of the stuff, for now I am just putting salt and pepper on it and grilling it on the "George Foreman" grill. So dreadfully simply, yet it tastes great. My PROBLEM is this, it is a VERY SINEWOUS (sp?) meat, preparing it takes forever pulling the muscle membranes off the meat and pulling the tendons out, and I still end up with a bunch of irregular shapes of meat that taste good enough but damn! It's like chewing tire rubber sometimes, good tasting tire rubber but still, then where there is some good and tender edible meat it is filled with increadibly tough tendons and such.

So I guess what I am asking is this: IS THERE some secret "key" to getting all the damn sinews and membranes out of the meat? If you cook the meat with the membranes covering the mucsle the salt and pepper don't penetrate and flavor the meat, and you end up with something unchewable.

I think I might try the pressure cooker, I can practiaclly liquify solid bone in the pressure cooker, but I just don't care for the taste of boiled meat... What sort of stuff would make a good stew with this sinew filled venison I have?

Well, I am off to my dreadfully simple George Foreman grill for some salt and pepper venison, but I will have to keep the dental floss handy to remove all those sinews... Damn, the stuff tasts so good but chews so bad, worse than jerky.

[moi621]

Does anyone have some tips about venison? You know, deer meat.

It starts with obtaining a clean kill.
Not a wounded animal that tenses up before passing.
I learned that from my cousin when I asked him why I don't like venison except his. He claimed he will only fire if he has a clean kill. The deer by him are in no short supply. Downright under foot. They routinely hold up golf games at his golf club. So it isn't like they stalk one animal for days, dependent on sustenance from the kill.

Moi
I like my killing done for me. Makes my meat more antiseptic.

[transward]

Does anyone have some tips about venison? You know, deer meat.

I have some in the freezer, I absolutely LOVE the taste of the stuff, for now I am just putting salt and pepper on it and grilling it on the "George Foreman" grill. So dreadfully simply, yet it tastes great. My PROBLEM is this, it is a VERY SINEWOUS (sp?) meat, preparing it takes forever pulling the muscle membranes off the meat and pulling the tendons out, and I still end up with a bunch of irregular shapes of meat that taste good enough but damn! It's like chewing tire rubber sometimes, good tasting tire rubber but still, then where there is some good and tender edible meat it is filled with increadibly tough tendons and such.

So I guess what I am asking is this: IS THERE some secret "key" to getting all the damn sinews and membranes out of the meat? If you cook the meat with the membranes covering the mucsle the salt and pepper don't penetrate and flavor the meat, and you end up with something unchewable.

I think I might try the pressure cooker, I can practiaclly liquify solid bone in the pressure cooker, but I just don't care for the taste of boiled meat... What sort of stuff would make a good stew with this sinew filled venison I have?

Well, I am off to my dreadfully simple George Foreman grill for some salt and pepper venison, but I will have to keep the dental floss handy to remove all those sinews... Damn, the stuff tasts so good but chews so bad, worse than jerky.

It sounds like you simply have the wrong cuts for grilling. Some cuts are going to be tough unless you cook them low and slow (barbeque), often with a little liquid, (braising) It usually takes 2 -4 hours to soften and gelatinize the connective tissue. With venison the grilling cuts are from the saddle (equilivalent to the rib and loin in beef) or the haunch (the round and rump in beef) See this cutting chart: http://www.recipes4us.co.uk/Venison%20Cuts.htm. From your description it sounds like you probably have a cut from the shoulder (chuck) or shank. Try braising it or grinding it for venison burgers.


Transward

[gareth19]

I would just buy the skinless and boneless breasts.

That's expensive. Even if you throw the rest away, it is cheaper to buy the whole chicken and use the breasts than pay for someone else to cut them for you.

After you bone the chicken and use the breasts, cut the carcase up, sear in a 6 quart pot, add 1 t rosemary, 1 clove garlic, one carrot, 1 stalk of celery, and 1 diced onion add, 1 T salt or bouillon and water to cover and boil. When the carcase comes apart, remove from the flame and let cool. Strain through a colander, discard veggies and pick the meat off the bones, you can either return it to the stock to make soup or reserve it for chicken salad. The longer you boil the carcase, the more gelatin is released from the bones and cartilage.

Lightly dredge thin chicken breasts in pepper and flour
In a skillet, melt 4 T butter and saute sliced mushrooms and 1 thinly sliced medium onion
when the onions are translucent and slightly golden remove them and the mushrooms and reserve
add the coated breasts and brown in butter on both sides
when golden brown return the onion and mushrooms to the skillet,
lower the heat and add half c chicken stock and half c DRY Marsala wine
stir as the browned flour thickens the stock about 3 minutes or until the stock forms a Marsala sauce
remove breasts to a plate, pour onions, mushrooms and sauce over them and serve with pasta & salad.

[Riverwind]

I don't eat out very often, I don't order take out or drop off items, I don't own a microwave, so if I want to eat it requires me to cook it, sense I don't like packaged foods I make just about everything from scratch. I am not a chef I just cook simple meals that taste good. From biscuits and gravy or pancakes in the morning to Navy bean soup with ham and cornbread for dinner, home made ice cream never store bought. I even make dog treats for my little dog. Cooking is fun and best of all you get to eat your mistakes.


River

[StefanIsMe]

You should (will) remain healthy longer than most of us, River.

I try hard to eat correctly but I eat too much packaged stuff. I do force down fresh, raw broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots daily with the help of ranch dressing and I drink the ONE decent fruit juice I've found (Ocean Spray's Blueberry/Cranberry Cocktail, which has concentrated juice first on the ingredients, water next, no *-syrup, no NOTHING added).

COOKING TIP:

FOR THOSE OF US WHO BOIL POTATOES FOR ANY REASON:

IF You want peeled, boiled potatos for mashing or whatever, STOP USING A PEELER and a lot of time to peel them.

Just plunk the things straight from the cellar into boiling water and boil as usual, unpeeled.

Then put cold water in a bowl when potatoes are done, and place them directly into the cold water for 10 seconds.

Now grab the potato in two hands, and pull your hands apart while gripping. You MIGHT need to score a line around the middle of it.

The peel will just pull clean off, with no effort. Perfectly peeled potato with no effort.

(I only just discovered this trick, so I'm all excited 'cuz it freakin' WORKS, even if I'm years behind you all!)

[nullorchis]

Dining on deep fried bull balls in the Denver Airport. True.

http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2011/06/21/...enver-airport/

[Arab Nights]

My buddy Hugo Chavez has proved that socialism cannot produce decent hamburger meat for the barbie. My lesson was to experiment. I ended up finally being able to make a decent hamburger by mixing in eggs, ground-up crackers to keep it from getting sloppy and various peppers and other spices plus mixing in pinkie fingernail-sized slices of bananas. Nothing like a bananna cheeseburger which I discovered by experimenting.

Obviously cooking touches a responsive cord. How about expanding it a little bit to like home ec where we can ask how to mend clothes, repair a lawn mower, etc. Just regular stuff that helps us get thru life.