/ck/ - Food & Cooking

Oops, forgot the picture.

Best plate of food I've made to date, for a big grill-centric cookout. Grilled corn, garlic and horseradish mashed potatoes with au jus, a seared lamb chop, grilled shrimp skewer (marinated with garlic, lime, tomato, sriracha, and flat leaf parsley), grilled pork tenderloin (marinated in lemon juice, orange juice, garlic, sugar, and various fresh herbs), and and beer simmered then grilled fresh made bratwurst sausage.

Not pictured are the grilled ribeye steaks that were my second helping.

Tuna in water. The stuff in the pouch is tastier than canned. Get all the water out by taking it in your hands and squeezing it over the sink, like you're Superman making a diamond.

Add a bit of good mayo, some finely diced celery, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, a few grinds of black pepper, and a bit of garlic powder. Some minced capers, green onions, or hot sauce are all also nice for variation (but not all of them).

Very tasty.

Part Two: The Method

So here's where people go wrong. They use too high of a heat. If you use a very hot pan your exterior will be uneven and have charred spots, the interior not gooey and melty enough. Use MEDIUM-LOW to MEDIUM heat depending on your stovetop. And use a nice heavy nonstick pan . . . cast iron is good, let it preheat for a bit first. Heavy copper-core also good. It'll take a few extra minutes, but worth it.

Cook BOTH sides of the bread. That crispy golden crust is the best part, so double it! Just coat both sides of the bread, toss both slices in the pan, and when they're golden brown and delicious flip them over and THEN add your fillings. It not only doubles up the crispness and flavor but also gives the fillings a head start on melting.

Add a pinch of salt. Since I use olive oil instead of butter (or ditto for unsalted butter) it just doesn't have the right taste for a grilled cheese. A small sprinkle of kosher salt fixes this. Skip if you have salted cured meat or a salty cheese.

Enjoy.

My personal favorite, broken down.

Bread: Nice whole wheat bread, preferably with some coarse ground grain to give it a bit of texture. Nothing expensive or fancy, just the normal pre-sliced but slightly higher shelf. I like this for most sandwiches.

Fat: A few sprays of olive oil from an "oil mister". Not extra virgin, fruity stuff just regular old olive oil. High smoke point, and the thin but uniform coat gives you the perfect golden crispy exterior.

Cheese: Here There Be Dragons. Really use whatever good cheese you have, but my personal favorites are gruyère, provolone, or sharp cheddar. Have some brie or goat cheese? Also tasty, but mix them with something else. Don't be that guy and put Kraft Singles on.

Extra: THIN SLICED CURED MEAT. Seriously. This is what makes a regular grilled cheese fantastic. Prosciutto, salami, in a pinch even ham or turkey deli slices. This is what takes a normal grilled cheese and makes it "special".

Optional: Fresh, whole basil is amazing on a grilled cheese. AMAZING. But if you don't have a basil plant in a pot outside like me (you should though, its easy and cheap), a bit of dried works too. Very thin slices of tomato are also nice, as is a thin layer of tangy mustard on the inside of one slice (beer mustard is best, horseradish if you want some spice, go for tangy but never sweet).

My BRO. I get these (or very similar) from the "Jerusalem Bakery and Grocery" next to my store at least once a day. They just call them "meat pies" . . . fresh ground meat from the butcher two doors down mixed with herbs, spices, and olive oil on top of a fresh baked (as in that morning) pita. Then its put under their huge gas salamander to get golden brown and delicious.

And yeah, served with garlic yoghurt is the BEST. I spoon on a bit of that and then eat them like tacos.

>>4982653
You don't usually eat ham hocks as a dish . . . . you can, but they're more for seasoning things.

Your low ranked foods are probably because you've never had the good shit.

9997. Cranberry sauce: Try making your own. It tastes 100x better and is a great tangy and sweet accompaniment to the savory parts of the plate.

9998. Green Beans: What, only ever eaten them boiled or slopped in soup mix? This year I did mine in boiling water for 4 min, shocked them in ice water, then sauteed them in a very hot pan with olive oil/butter, grated ginger, pepper, and freshly minced garlic. They were one of the few things that there were no leftovers of.

9999. Yams: Also usually cooked wrong. Try braising them . . . . peel, slice thinly and cook for 40 min or so in a dutch oven with some half and half and butter. If you boil them they soak up a ton of water. Then mash with some brown sugar and cinnamon.

Stuffing there are a million different kinds and recipes, ranging from crap to awesome. And when cooked outside the bird (which you should, because its better) its called dressing. My personal favorite is oyster dressing.

I made:
16lb turkey, deep fried (brined 16 hours with salt and brown sugar)
Oyster dressing (fuck yeah Southern style)
Kabucha squash casserole (boiled then food processor with heavy cream and cinnamon, brown sugar and butter on top)
Roasted cauliflower
Sauteed green beans with garlic
Homemade cranberry sauce
Marinated mushrooms

We also had baked Mac and Cheese brought by my brother, and Syrian-style stuffed grape leaves and kibbeh made by my business partner's wife. For finger food giant platters of veggies and crackers with my homemade hummus and tzatziki sauce, fig-stuffed brie, and an olive medley.

Best Thanksgiving I've ever had, and the only one where I cooked almost all the food. After trying the kabucha squash casserole (one guest couldn't eat potatoes, rice, white bread, etc due to diabetes, so I wanted something he could eat) I don't think I'll ever go back to sweet potatoes. The kabucha was sweeter, creamier, and more flavorful.

>>4933617
Seriously? Cheese and chili is probably one of the most classic food combinations there is. Right up there with baked potatoes and sour cream or fish and wasabi.

Sheesh, typical /ck/ elitism.

Chili is like Pho . . . . you serve it with garnishes and let people use whatever they like. When I make up a big pot of chili I invite friends over, give everyone a bowl and a small plate, and put out bowls of various add-ons so everyone can have it the way they want and mess with combinations. That's part of the fun of eating chili. I put out:

Slices of cornbread (My personal fav for dipping)
Fresh grated extra-sharp aged Cheddar (mmmm, that flavor!)
Fresh grated Mozarella (for melty gooey texture)
Sliced jalapeno peppers (for extra kick)
Finely diced onion (for some bite and texture)
Sour cream (for those who want to cool it down)
Saltines (For dipping and combining stuff and crunch)

Not a fan of the raw onions or jalapenos (my chili is plenty spicy) myself, but everyone eats it the way they like, and they all leave happy.

This is actually . . . . pretty fucking awesome. For my dog (a Husky) I put peanut butter and a bit of bacon grease inside a rubber ball then freeze it. During the summer that and ice cubes in the water bowl are his favorite things in the world.

Well the big question is what are you trying to DO with the oil? Do you want to make a dressing/emulsion, sautee, searing/browning, stir fry, deep fry, etc? Different oils have different flavor profiles and smoke points.

There are many "neutral" oils that impart little flavor but are excellent for high heat. Since you're talking about olive oil and its flavor profile I'm assuming you're wanting to sautee/stir fry/sear things? If so try tea seed, pecan, or macadamia nut oils. They have unique flavors, are forgiving of high heat, and are more healthy than olive oil.

Mequite burns hot and fast and has a very strong flavor, its a bad choice for long cook times or delicately flavored meats like pork and poultry. Keep it for steaks and chops that cook in a short time. You want the smoke to enhance the flavor, not overwhelm it.

For low and slow BBQ pork shoulders, briskets, or ribs I prefer a mix of Applewood, Maple, and a small bit of Hickory or Ash to give that distinct smoky flavor. For everything else, a mix of Cherry and Mesquite.

Play with it a bit and get to know the different flavors. Especially when you're smoking for 12+ hours it makes a HUGE difference.

Entirely safe. Vodka is nothing but grain alcohol and water, and in your case 80 proof (40% alcohol by volume). Nothing nasty (bacteria/etc) can grow in those conditions.

Drink away. Its as good as it was the day it was bottled.

>>4592255

On the same thread, also watch out for microplane graters. Only other thing in the kitchen I've hurt myself with (while grating nutmeg).

At least I seem to be healing well. Damned thing finally stopped bleeding through dressings.

>>4591957

What brand did you get, and how do you like it?

>>4591495

I use mine for cucumbers, zucchini, squash, and potatoes most often.

>>4591257

A good idea.

>>4591251

I dunno, I lost a LOT of blood. Band-aids and even tightly wrapped gauze were useless to stem the flow, I had to keep constant pressure on the whole 20 minute drive to the only Urgent Care open in the next town over with a towel underneath (no way I was paying a $1k+ ER bill). Damned good thing I hadn't been drinking.

I didn't really get the TIP of the thumb so much as a crosscut (remember, always cut tough meat across the grain).

This is while changing the bandage tonight, right before it started spurting again. All the goop is the stuff they put on it at the doctors with some soaked-through gauze for good measure. Makes it hard to see just how much of a chunk is missing, but its pretty significant. Also realized I won't have a thumbprint any more, heh.

Too bad there isn't a spoiler image option for /ck/

>>4591192

It had been 11 years since my last one, so it was a good idea either way even though the mandoline was perfectly clean (I would never prepare food with a rusty or dirty blade of any kind).

>>4591193

Typing is actually not bad at all, I can just hit the spacebar with my other thumb. Putting on socks, tying my shoes, etc is difficult. And I can't wash dishes, hold a knife, or really do much of anything in the kitchen without being able to grip with my right hand. I'm nearly useless with my left. I'm opening an electronics store in less than a month and this is going to seriously put a kink in my plans . . . . might even have to delay the opening. Not like I can repair anything or use a soldering iron now.

Again, the whole point of this thread. REMEMBER SAFETY IN THE KITCHEN. Shit can happen no matter how good you are and it can really fuck up your day/week/month.

>>4591188

Well said. This is the only notable injury I've ever had cooking. I take risks I shouldn't far too often with my work (moving large and heavy server racks without help or backup, high voltage, line voltage, etc etc) And the worst injury I've had in years happened in the kitchen of all places.

>>4591190

Who on earth would buy a commercial slicing device for a home kitchen? Not to mention those are FAR more dangerous given the spinning blades. Also I'd say using an automated device is far MORE lazy than doing it by hand, but you're obviously trolling either way.

Oops, forgot picture.

And this is what I had to do to take a shower, after which I got to pull off the soaked-through and hardened gauze from yesterday and replace it with a fresh dressing (which hurt worse than the original injury, ugh)

>>4591162

Only takes literally a second of distraction, especially when you work very fast. It wouldn't have been nearly as bad if I weren't using the thickest slice setting the thing had. Usually I'd just do potatoes with a knife but I was hungry and in a hurry to get dinner on (since it takes an hour to cook).

>>4591155

I'm not going to bother with that now, but here's a picture of the severed part of my thumb (which I took with me to the doctor). They said it wasn't worth stitching it back on. They said it couldn't be stitched back on, and as it was they had a lot of difficulty dressing the wound (it was bleeding EVERYWHERE). Cruddy picture, but I wasn't in terribly good shape at the time.

>>4591153

Nope, I didn't eat it. The blood and pain oddly enough killed my appetite.