The Cooking Thread

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  • Sandy wrote:
    Okay fellow foodies, here is a list of foods and spices beginning with the letter "A". Let me know if you can add anything I missed. We'll start with the first food tomorrow. Some of these things I've never eaten, so it will be intresting to hear from those who know about the first food on the list, "abalone". I've heard of it but I'm thinking it's not something commonly eaten, if at all, in America.

    FOODS-

    Abalone
    Acorns
    Almonds
    Anchovies
    Apples
    Apricots
    Arugula
    Artichokes
    Asparagus
    Avocado

    SPICES-

    Allspice
    Anise

    @SirHenryLeeChaChing nice list, I can't remember anything else right now.
    I don't have much time today but when I do I might add some recipes including almonds, apples, asparagus (I live in a region famous for its white asparagus) and Anise.

    Germany?

  • Posts: 6,396
    Thanks @Murdock. I missed that previously :-)

    @SirHenry. I'll probably pack it into a greased bread tin.

    Something I've always wanted to know, do you Americans ever eat roast potatoes or is it almost always mash?

    Roast potatoes, per se, are not common in America. We do, however, occasionally make scalloped potatoes, and I love chunked potatoes, carrots and onions cooked with roast beef.

    You're really missing out. There is nothing better than crispy King Edwards roasties for sunday lunch :-)
  • How do you make 'em?
  • Posts: 6,396
    You need a good floury potato. Here in the UK I find King Edwards are the best although Maris Piper and Desiree potatoes are also quite good.

    You need to peel and par boil the potatoes in salted water until they start to break up around the edges (I usually check they're done by running the back of a knife down them).

    Gently strain them in a collinder and gently shake them to rough them up. Leave them to steam dry for 15-20 mins.

    Next, get a roasting tin and pour in enough vegetable oil to coat the tin. Put it on to the hob until the oil is piping hot and gently spoon in the potatoes. Baste for 30 seconds with the hot oil and season with salt and pepper before transferring the tin to a pre heated oven (180 degrees celcius, 350 fahrenheit) for around 75mins or until the potatoes are nice and crispy.

    There are also some pretty good recipes on YouTube.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 3,494
    Me too re: the roasties.

    You might like Sir Henry's dinner tonight Khan. Chinese food fans in general, especially those who like Szechuan should. I've had 2 one pound pork tenderloins marinating overnight in General Tso's sauce. If I'd known there was two of them I'd have frozen one, next time I know better with the Smithfield brand. They were on sale for $7, you can't beat that price! When I get home, they'll go in the oven along with the marinade (I recommend the Iron Chef brand heartily) covered with foil in a roast pan at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes, then I'll baste them and cook another 15-20 or so uncovered and then check to see if they need longer. If they are no less than very faintly pink and almost white they will be perfect. I'm making some basic Asian type noodles flavored with a little bit of citrus Ponzu as a side.

    General Tso's sauce is so versatile. Obviously it's known for chicken, but it works very well with shrimp too. My late wife first discovered how awesome it works with pork, so all credit to her for inventing this one. One night I came home for dinner and she told me she didn't have sauce other than the Tso to use on the tenderloin that night so she used it. It's now my favorite meat to use with this sauce.

    @Willy- they almost sound like Brabant potatoes, a New Orleans potato side dish. The potatoes are cut into small cubes, lightly fried, then finished off in the oven with a mix of butter and spices I think, the recipe is at home.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 6,396
    This is generally how roast potatoes should look:

    Roast-potatoes-002.jpg

    Difficult to get a sense of scale in that photo but each potato should be (at least) roughly twice the size of a golf ball
  • SandySandy Somewhere in Europe
    Posts: 4,012
    @Perilagu_Khan yes, in Germany.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 2,483
    You need a good floury potato. Here in the UK I find King Edwards are the best although Maris Piper and Desiree potatoes are also quite good.

    You need to peel and par boil the potatoes in salted water until they start to break up around the edges (I usually check they're done by running the back of a knife down them).

    Gently strain them in a collinder and gently shake them to rough them up. Leave them to steam dry for 15-20 mins.

    Next, get a roasting tin and pour in enough vegetable oil to coat the tin. Put it on to the hob until the oil is piping hot and gently spoon in the potatoes. Baste for 30 seconds with the hot oil and season with salt and pepper before transferring the tin to a pre heated oven (180 degrees celcius, 350 fahrenheit) for around 75mins or until the potatoes are nice and crispy.

    There are also some pretty good recipes on YouTube.

    Sounds very good, although there's no way I can lay my mitts on any King Edwards, Maris Pipers and Desirees. Perhaps Yukon Golds would work.

    PS--Yes, Sir Henry, those tenderloins sound great. I'm a serious devotee of Szechuan food (at least its American interpretation) in general.

  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited October 2013 Posts: 12,459
    I love roasted potatoes! My mom made them often.

    I was reading some other threads ... I'll have a some split pea soup recipe up in a bit, just for SirHenry ... ;)

    An "A" Recipe:
    Bakes Apples (microwave version - almost too easy!)

    apples - firm like Granny Smith or Fuji; washed and cored
    brown sugar
    nutmeg or cinnamon
    butter (softened a bit)
    chopped nuts (optional; I like walnuts and pecans)
    caramel sauce (I just use store bought ...)

    Mix together in a small bowl the filling: brown sugar, butter, and nuts

    In a microwave safe dish, sit the cored apples upright, just touching each other
    In the hole where the the core was add the filling
    Dot apples overall with small bits of butter
    Sprinkle overall lightly with nutmeg or cinnamon
    Add one small dot of butter on top of the core filling
    Microwave for about 4 minutes, until soft
    Remove from microwave, let sit for 1 minute
    Pour caramel sauce over apples as desired and serve warm.
    Very good with vanilla ice cream, too.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited October 2013 Posts: 12,459
    dbl post; sorry, this is 2nd time I've done that.
    Hitting "quote" instead of "edit" ...
  • Posts: 6,396
    You need a good floury potato. Here in the UK I find King Edwards are the best although Maris Piper and Desiree potatoes are also quite good.

    You need to peel and par boil the potatoes in salted water until they start to break up around the edges (I usually check they're done by running the back of a knife down them).

    Gently strain them in a collinder and gently shake them to rough them up. Leave them to steam dry for 15-20 mins.

    Next, get a roasting tin and pour in enough vegetable oil to coat the tin. Put it on to the hob until the oil is piping hot and gently spoon in the potatoes. Baste for 30 seconds with the hot oil and season with salt and pepper before transferring the tin to a pre heated oven (180 degrees celcius, 350 fahrenheit) for around 75mins or until the potatoes are nice and crispy.

    There are also some pretty good recipes on YouTube.

    Sounds very good, although there's no way I can lay my mitts on any King Edwards, Maris Pipers and Desirees. Perhaps Yukon Golds would work.

    I'm reliably informed Russet potatoes are a good alternative over in the US.
  • Those roasties look terrific, WG. The Khantessa is very good with potatoes and knows a thing or two about British cookery. I might set her to work on these.

    But tonight we're having Green Chile Dawgs in Blankets with a side of Mexi-Corn. The former are merely franks that have been slit down the middle, stuffed with American cheese and diced New Mexico green chile, wrapped in crescent roll dough and then baked till done. Mustard is then applied as a condiment.

    The Mexi-Corn is just corn kernels cooked with diced peppers of various sorts.
  • Posts: 14,824
    Thanks @Murdock. I missed that previously :-)

    @SirHenry. I'll probably pack it into a greased bread tin.

    Something I've always wanted to know, do you Americans ever eat roast potatoes or is it almost always mash?

    Roast potatoes, per se, are not common in America. We do, however, occasionally make scalloped potatoes, and I love chunked potatoes, carrots and onions cooked with roast beef.

    You're really missing out. There is nothing better than crispy King Edwards roasties for sunday lunch :-)

    Oh I love a good Sunday roast! One of the things that I discovered in England, especially the roast potatoes.
  • Russets are the most common Yank spud. They are our best baking potato.
  • Posts: 6,396
    A British classic for dinner this evening. Shepherd's Pie. Comfort food at it's finest.
  • This is my recipe for Brabant Potatoes, a New Orleans staple side dish, as Emeril Lagasse would say it's "kicked up a few notches" from the usual French fry or roasted potato because of the garlic butter and Creole seasonings! The finished product should more or less look like roasted potatoes, and when I make them for a dinner party these are always gone in no time flat!

    INGREDIENTS-

    4 large white potatoes, very starchy (no green)
    2-3 cups vegetable oil (canola or peanut oil works as well)
    2 cloves garlic, minced very fine
    1 sprig parsley, minced very fine
    1 stick butter
    2 Tbs. olive oil
    2 tsp. Creole seasoning

    1. Scrub the outsides of the potatoes under cold running water, or peel if you don't like potato skins. Cut off the ends and make the potato into a rectangular shape. Dice into pieces about 1/2 inch on a side, wash again, and drain well. Allow 5-10 minutes for the potatoes to dry.

    2. Meanwhile, heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan or deep skillet to 375 degrees. Put the potatoes in and fry until they're a very light brown. Remove them from the oil with a skimmer and drain on paper towels.

    3. Arrange potatoes in one layer on a baking pan or dish. In a skillet over medium-low heat, melt the butter in the olive oil. When butter is hot, add the garlic and parsley and cook just until the garlic is fragrant.

    4. Remove butter from heat and spoon over the potatoes. Put the pan of potatoes into the oven and bake for roughly five to seven minutes or so at 375 degrees until edges becomes a crisp, medium-dark brown. Sprinkle with Creole seasoning and serve with a little extra garlic butter, if you have any left.

    Serves four.
  • We'll be having Indian hot and sour soup, and spiced basmati rice at the Khan's khastle this evening.
  • Posts: 6,396
    We'll be having Indian hot and sour soup, and spiced basmati rice at the Khan's khastle this evening.

    Do you ever make your own Mulligatawny soup? :-)
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 3,494
    I'll be doing a Creole style seafood gumbo for a small dinner party including my brother and my pal Lisa, the poor thing suddenly got dumped by her boyfriend of 5 years and needs some cheering up. Call me a cheater, I make my roux in the oven- takes longer, but it beats 25 minutes of constant stirring just to make sure it doesn't burn, once that happens it's start all over again and been there, done that ~X(
  • SandySandy Somewhere in Europe
    Posts: 4,012
    A recipe with almonds and Anise, for Christmas.

    Spice shortbreads/Broas de especiarias

    200g sugar; 1/4L good quality extra virgin olive oil; 1/8L water; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 teaspoon Anise (powder); 100g ground almonds with skins; zest of 2 lemons; 1/2kg flour

    In a saucepan put the sugar, the olive oil, water, spices, almond and lemon zest. Heat until it boils and at that moment pour the flour. Allow it to cook until it dries a bit (a bit like choux pastry, sounds more difficult than in actually is). Remove from heat and allow to cool. Make small balls and put in a baking tray previously greased and floured. Bake for 15 minutes at 190ºC. Remove from the oven and roll them in caster sugar while still hot.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 3,494
    Thanks Sandy, I'm sure that lovers of almonds and anise will really like this one. I like the nutty flavor of almond with fish, a very nice combination with such fish as catfish, salmon, and trout. I can post an "almondine" recipe for any of these fish if you or anyone is interested. I'm not one for anise though, I don't like the flavor of licorice whatsoever.

    My favorite holiday cookies are black walnut with powdered sugar, rolled into little logs and baked. I'm pretty sure these are German in origin too. Whenever my second cousin Phyllis on Mom's side would come over for a holiday visit, she'd always bring a big tin of homemade cookies and made sure I always got some extras because she knew how much I loved them since I could remember. Wonderful memories every time I eat one :) My Patty used to make me a batch, now I have to do them myself :(

    So who knows anything about abalone? I can't stand the land snails (escargot) but I hear abalone (sea snail) is quite different.

  • Posts: 6,396
    Thanks Sandy, I'm sure that lovers of almonds and anise will really like this one. I like the nutty flavor of almond with fish, a very nice combination with such fish as catfish, salmon, and trout. I can post an "almondine" recipe for any of these fish if you or anyone is interested. I'm not one for anise though, I don't like the flavor of licorice whatsoever.

    My favorite holiday cookies are black walnut with powdered sugar, rolled into little logs and baked. I'm pretty sure these are German in origin too. Whenever my second cousin Phyllis on Mom's side would come over for a holiday visit, she'd always bring a big tin of homemade cookies and made sure I always got some extras because she knew how much I loved them since I could remember. Wonderful memories every time I eat one :) My Patty used to make me a batch, now I have to do them myself :(

    So who knows anything about abalone? I can't stand the land snails (escargot) but I hear abalone (sea snail) is quite different.

    I hope you only ever serve that with a bottle of Blanc de blanc ;-)
  • CommanderRossCommanderRoss The bottom of a pitch lake in Eastern Trinidad, place called La Brea
    edited October 2013 Posts: 7,971
    I made oat-cookies for my new love last night (and ate the two remaining today)

    150 grams of oatflakes
    100 grams of grated (old) cheese
    1 onion
    1 egg
    4 table spoons of quark/the curds/soft curd cheese
    1 table spoon of sesamy seeds
    about two spoons of Kecap

    cut the onion to pieces, put the whole lot together and knead it into sough. Make four or eight flat 'cookies' out of it (should be about 2 cm in height, maybe a bit less) and bake till they're golden brown. Serve with potato's, red cabbage mixed with apple.

    Sorry @SirHenry, just wanted to add this recipe as I and the young lady enjoyed my cooking so much last night.

    Kecap is the Indonesian spelling, the Dutch version is Ketjap. You should use the 'manis' or 'sweet' version.

    Oh, and just so you know, Brabant is a region in Belgium and The Netherlands
    https://maps.google.nl/maps?q=brabant&ie=UTF-8&ei=SDJoUqXlPImd0AWYzoGICQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAgg

    edited for some clarification
    edited for spelling. what an oaf I am sometimes
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    Wow! These sound so delicious, @CommanderRoss - and I love cheese.
    I'll have to try to make these somehow.
  • What does "rasped" mean my fellow knight? I am not familiar at all with a lot of what you're talking about, Kecap, union, etc.

    Cajun/Creole is such an amalgamation of cooking styles. The Cajuns were those French expelled by the English from Acadie (Nova Scotia) who settled in Louisiana, the Creoles were born there. I would guess it would depend on your family history what a native would or wouldn't be termed. But there is no doubt that at it's the core C/C cuisine is a rustic type of French cooking, not in the grand style of Parisian and modern French cooking. Personally, I think that the different influences make C/C a better style as well. The Spanish old world and new, English, Germans, and Native Americans have all contributed very positively and made the cuisine very unique.

    Interesting about Brabant, I know of French descended people with names like deBrabant, so I would imagine maybe they originated by ethnic French living in Belgium, but who knows. I don't know the history of why these potatoes were named this, but I do know they sure are tasty and the special Creole seasonings make them stand out from different versions of potato dishes such as lyonnaise and dauphinoise.
  • We'll be having Indian hot and sour soup, and spiced basmati rice at the Khan's khastle this evening.

    Do you ever make your own Mulligatawny soup? :-)

    Never have. But I have made rasam, which is a very spicy Indian tomato soup.

  • I'll be doing a Creole style seafood gumbo for a small dinner party including my brother and my pal Lisa, the poor thing suddenly got dumped by her boyfriend of 5 years and needs some cheering up. Call me a cheater, I make my roux in the oven- takes longer, but it beats 25 minutes of constant stirring just to make sure it doesn't burn, once that happens it's start all over again and been there, done that ~X(

    You know, I make roux in the skillet all the time, and it doesn't take 25 minutes like many cook book authors say. I just crank up the heat a bit and it's done in no more than 15 minutes. And I've never burned it either. Just gotta be attentive.

  • Posts: 14,824
    A British classic for dinner this evening. Shepherd's Pie. Comfort food at it's finest.

    I like a good sheperd's pie or a cottage pie, that said I prefer the Quebec version: pâté chinois (which is a mistranslation): basically a cottage pie but with cream corn between the meat and the mash. Served with beetroots.
  • edited October 2013 Posts: 3,494
    I once worked for a Indian company and they took us to a local Indian restaurant for lunch. I had a Koskov at the Bladen safe house moment and thought the food was horrible to be quite honest.

    I know enough about roux that the color you want determines how long you cook it. Still, a few stirs every 30 minutes or so of the dutch oven beats 15 minutes of constant stirring and the splatter that comes along with it. I learned the hard way the first time about the constant stirring and got it right the second time, that nice rusty brick color that's perfect for a seafood gumbo, but I dislike hot splattering oil all over my arms and the stove and if I can't use my splatter screen (how I screwed it up the first time) I'd rather cheat.

    My food is great, but the service can be slow and for a dish like gumbo, there's no rush anyway ;) :)
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited October 2013 Posts: 12,459
    I don't know why I read this cooking thread in the morning before work.
    It makes me so hungry! ~X(
    And for food I cannot get here - arghhh! My nice raisin-nut bread and milk tea isn't cutting it now. I want Brabant potatoes and Indian tomato soup and a cottage pie! With spice shortbread for dessert later ... sigh ...
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