Idle Food - Cooking!

[Badfinger]

We have threads dedicated to many things, but somehow lacked one about cooking and eating. That issue is now resolved.

 

The title says cooking, but feel free to talk about anything kitchen related or food related. If there's something fun to discuss about a restaurant visit, go wild.

 

 

 

The thing that inspired me to post a cooking thread is spatchcock roasted chicken. It is almost impossibly easy, and the cooked results are phenomenal. Spatchcocking (or butterflying), is removing the backbone from a bird, and flattening it. You get a large amount of surface area for crispy skin, even cooking, and fast cooking time.

 

I first got the urge to try this when a friend was faced with a dilemma - trying to fit a tiny turkey into their on-counter convection oven for Thanksgiving dinner. At 8.5 pounds it was the smallest turkey I've ever heard of, but the height was too much and it wouldn't fit. She was considering just slicing off an inch or two of the top of the turkey breast just to get the thing in there. I did some searching, found the link below, and convinced her to try spatchcocking it. With the bird flattened out, it fit on the roasting pan and had plenty of clearance, and she reported tremendous success. Since I don't buy a lot of turkeys, I transferred the same basic cooking instructions to chicken.

 

http://www.seriouseats.com/2012/11/how-to-spatchcock-cook-turkey-thanksgiving-fast-easy-way-spatchcocked.html

 

The quick and dirty so I'm not just putting a link to someone else explaining

 

- (1) 4-5 pound whole chicken, neck and organs removed. (fryer or roaster, chicken's chicken)

- ~2 Tbsp canola, vegetable, or olive oil

-   1 Tbsp salt

-   1 tsp black pepper

 

Preheat the oven to 450.

 

Put your chicken on a cutting board with room to work. Imagine a Rockwell painting. Now stop imagining and flip it over. There's the backbone. Grab a set of kitchen shears, and cut down the length of the bird as close to the backbone as possible. You should get some resistance but if the chicken is thawed this shouldn't be too tough. If you're really having a hard time, you may be cutting into the backbone. Move a bit further out and keep going. When one side is free, swap to the other side. Reserve the backbone for stock if you'd like. It is a great addition.

 

Flip the bird over so all the skin is facing up. Find the middle of the breastbone, and press down. You want to flatten out the chicken breasts as much as possible. There may be a small pop or crack, there might not.

 

Transfer your chicken to a rack, on a cooking pan lined with aluminum foil. The recipe above says to line the pan with chopped veggies. I don't have any racks high enough to do this. Although I'm missing out on roasted vegetables the chicken hasn't suffered.

 

Take your tablespoon of oil, and cover all the visible surfaces of the chicken. Coat the chicken liberally (LIBERALLY) with salt (I use kosher for cooking), and then follow with black pepper. The turkey recipe has a nice picture of the wings folded neatly under the breast. Chicken wings are just too small to do this, so do the best you can.

 

If you have a fancy temperature-taking device, set it for 165 and insert it as deep into one of the thighs as you can. If you have a non-fancy thermometer, set your timer for 45 minutes. Insert the chicken into the middle of the oven, and anticipate.

 

At 45 minutes, check the chicken. If the thickest part of the thigh registers 165, you're done. This cooking method has roasted a chicken in 45-55 minutes for me, but time may vary. If you're not at 165, set the timer for 3 or 5 more minutes and check it again. If you're not even CLOSE to 165, go up to step 1 and turn the oven on.

 

When the chicken hits temperature, remove from the oven and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board, preferably one with a reservoir (most of the juices will have redistributed, that's why you wait, but this is still an incredibly juicy bird). The absolute best thing about cooking a chicken this way is how easy it is to carve it. The thigh and leg are attached by basically skin, and a quick knife through gets you a perfect quarter. If you pull the wing back, you should be able to find the joint and easily pop it out. To cut the breast, I like to cut right down the breastbone and then off the ribs to take it all the way off, and then carve it as a standing piece.

 

Here's a picture of the last one I cooked. Not actually my best effort and I took the picture for reasons unrelated to the chicken, but still came out well.

 

 

 

This first post was way too long, sorry! Food, eating, yeah!

[SecretAsianMan]

I'm gonna be the guy who points out that there was a thread called Idle Tongues that was about food

[Badfinger]

Just like there was a thread for sports that no one posted in. We begin anew.

 

(I also asked and briefly checked if there was a food/cooking thread and got no response)

[Dewar]

The problem at the moment is some of the funny thread names make things hard to search.

 

On the actual subject, I know, after five years, have my own kitchen. It's shown me that I'm missing quite a few kitchen type items that I was sharing with my previous house-mates. I wanted to get peoples' opinions on things such as toaster ovens, vaccuum sealers, sous vide machines, and any other cool gadgets that I might have missed in the last 5 years.

[Badfinger]

The first questions I'd probably ask are how much do you cook? What do you like to cook and eat at home?

[Dewar]

Now that I've got my own kitchen, I'd like to cook more, but before I was wipping something quick up about 3-4 times a week, with a full meal deal maybe once or twice a month. I eat a lot of beef and seafood (thus the Sous Vide machine desire) quite a few vegies, and try to stray away from bread as much as possible (though fail a lot of the time.) There's only two of us, which is why the toaster oven was handy in the last place for warming leftovers without firing up the whole oven.

[Ucantalas]

Food? I love food!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn-aQ4qokDs

 

But in all seriousness, I do enjoy cooking when I have the time. One of my favorite things to make is a good fresh Borscht. Mmm. In fact, I made some this past weekend, a nice big potful, with some for dinner and then some for lunch the next day, and plenty to freeze and reheat later on.

[Bjorn]

#foodporn (video is NSFW, but hilarious)

[Badfinger]

Now that I've got my own kitchen, I'd like to cook more, but before I was wipping something quick up about 3-4 times a week, with a full meal deal maybe once or twice a month. I eat a lot of beef and seafood (thus the Sous Vide machine desire) quite a few vegies, and try to stray away from bread as much as possible (though fail a lot of the time.) There's only two of us, which is why the toaster oven was handy in the last place for warming leftovers without firing up the whole oven.

 

I am pretty lustful for a sous vide machine, but I'm not going to pretend it's a practical dream. I have never had a toaster oven in my domicile, but I like them. I don't think you can go too wrong on a toaster oven? At the absolute worst you can heat and toast things!

[SecretAsianMan]

I also want a sous vide machine but that's just a little too impractical at the moment.  One of my favorite things about my new house is my kitchen.  I finally have a gas stove and I love it so much.  I'm kind of a sucker for kitchen gadgets that I sadly don't use enough.  I currently have a toaster oven, deep fryer, slow cooker, stick blender, a freezer chest, electric kettle, double boiler/steamer, and rice cooker (which I do use all the time cause I make rice with everything).  What I really need at the moment is a good chef's knife, my current one is old and has chips in the blade.

[BobbyBesar]

Immersion circulators are more attainable than ever, in that you can get one for a couple hundred bucks, as opposed to $500+, which is what they cost just a few years ago. You can even hack one together for under a hundred bucks, if you're a real DIY type.The problem is that using them is a necessarily elaborate process, for meat at least (since it requires an additional cooking step to sear).

 

I'm more interested in one for degree-perfect runny boiled eggs, but I really can't justify $200 for soft boiled eggs.

 

It probably isn't the sexy kind of gadget you're thinking of, but get a good meat thermometer and kitchen scale. I rarely use a thermometer for familiar things, but for trying out new dishes and ingredients, it's vital.

 

A stick blender is a fun gadget, although I admit I pretty much only use mine for making mayonnaise.

 

In my experience toasters/toaster ovens are disposable goods: buy the cheapest one you can find that does the job, and expect to replace it every couple years. Expensive ones seem to break just as often as cheap ones, you just spend more for the privilege, and for features you won't use. Get one with a clean-able (removable) crumb tray.

[Dewar]

I was indeed looking at the immersion circulator, either the one recommended by SweetHome or the Sansaire that tested.com has been raving about. I like the idea of being able to teach my wife to turn it on and leave it, and there's almost steak ready for dinner when I get home. Same goes with getting a good slow cooker.

 

I have a nice meat thermometer (also recommended by SweetHome) but I've never found myself needing a scale before. What do you generally use it for?

 

I had a stick blender, but like you I ended up only ever using it for tzatziki sause anyway so I don't think I'll buy another.

 

Thanks for the advice on the toaster oven. I'm always the sucker that pays for the $100 gadget when a $30 one would do.

[BobbyBesar]

I have a nice meat thermometer (also recommended by SweetHome) but I've never found myself needing a scale before. What do you generally use it for?

 

Some baking, and also general portioning. You can eyeball it, but it's nice to know your burgers are evenly weighted once in a while. Also, makes it easier to buy things in bulk, use what you need and freeze the rest. If you buy larger cuts, or a whole primal, you need it to portion to human sized. Mine doesn't stay on the counter, but I keep it in a convenient cabinet, and pull it out every so often. It's not essential, but it's nice to have.

 

I try not to covet shiny kitchen gadgets so much anymore, since they're expensive and often don't get much use. The only really decadent uni-tasker in my kitchen is a Whirley-Pop stovetop popcorn maker, because specialty popcorn is really much, much better than the microwave stuff.

[dibs]

I was indeed looking at the immersion circulator, either the one recommended by SweetHome or the Sansaire that tested.com has been raving about. I like the idea of being able to teach my wife to turn it on and leave it, and there's almost steak ready for dinner when I get home. Same goes with getting a good slow cooker.

 

But steak takes around 6 minutes to fry up anyway...

I think souvide cooked meat looks like fetuses. I've never actually had any, and i'm sure it is delicious, but i'm not tempted to get one. I'll stick to having a good knife, board and a good non stick pan!

[Dewar]

Steak doesn't take 6 minutes for me. Low and slow is the way to a good steak. When I had a BBQ readily available I'd routinely leave it on the grill on the cooler area for at least an hour.

[Badfinger]

Steak doesn't take 6 minutes for me. Low and slow is the way to a good steak. When I had a BBQ readily available I'd routinely leave it on the grill on the cooler area for at least an hour.

 

Steaks are almost exclusively about the application of high heat! You're not going to get a good maillard reaction crust from cooking slowly. Are you talking like an entire cow shoulder or something? Even the coolest part of my grill would turn any sirloin to dust in less than 20 minutes.

 

The thing about the sous vide steak is you are supposed to sear the outsides after they hit temperature so it looks and tastes like "real" steak.

 

Oven steak:

Set oven to 500 degrees, with cast iron skillet inside

Season 1-1.5" thick steak with salt and pepper, after coating with cooking oil (steak should be room temperature)

Turn your range up to as high as it will go, put the skillet on your burner for another 2-3 minutes after the oven hits temperature

 

Steak into the pan, don't move it for 1 minute.

Move directly to the oven for 2 minutes

Flip, cook 2 more minutes

 

Remove and rest for 3-5 minutes.

 

That should be about medium rare. Add an additional minute per turn per level of doneness.

If making well done steak, transfer from skillet directly to garbage

 

I'm pretty sure I got this from Alton Brown? A lot of my cooking methods I think of as just the way I do them came from him.

 

______

 

I have a small scale I got for measuring food in conjunction with portioning to lose weight and I really like it. I heartily recommend. I don't bake much, but baking by weight is so much less of a guessing game in a discipline where you need a lot of precision.

[SecretAsianMan]

Steaks are almost exclusively about the application of high heat! You're not going to get a good maillard reaction crust from cooking slowly. Are you talking like an entire cow shoulder or something? Even the coolest part of my grill would turn any sirloin to dust in less than 20 minutes.

 

The thing about the sous vide steak is you are supposed to sear the outsides after they hit temperature so it looks and tastes like "real" steak.

 

Oven steak:

Set oven to 500 degrees, with cast iron skillet inside

Season 1-1.5" thick steak with salt and pepper, after coating with cooking oil (steak should be room temperature)

Turn your range up to as high as it will go, put the skillet on your burner for another 2-3 minutes after the oven hits temperature

 

Steak into the pan, don't move it for 1 minute.

Move directly to the oven for 2 minutes

Flip, cook 2 more minutes

 

Remove and rest for 3-5 minutes.

 

That should be about medium rare. Add an additional minute per turn per level of doneness.

If making well done steak, transfer from skillet directly to garbage

 

I'm pretty sure I got this from Alton Brown? A lot of my cooking methods I think of as just the way I do them came from him.

 

Yup.  Totally agree.  I also cook steak the same way and I believe that I got it from Alton Brown too.  Getting a cast iron skillet was worth it for steak alone.

 

As for the stick blender, I mostly use it to make smoothies with frozen fruit on warm days and the occasional other thing.

[Ucantalas]

Since the discussion has turned to steaks, what is everyone's opinion on seasoning? A simple salt and pepper is good, but I quite enjoy rubbing on some Montreal Steak Spice. Anyone else?


Also, does anyone have any suggestions for what to do with a half a head of red cabbage?

[SecretAsianMan]

I used to use premade seasoning (I liked Omaha Steak seasoning in particular) but right now I'm working on coming up with my own blend.  It's an ongoing experiment.

[Badfinger]

This is not a steak seasoning (I wouldn't use it on a steak), but 2 parts brown sugar, 2 parts paprika, 1 part salt, and pepper to taste (black, red, cayenne) makes food taste EXACTLY like barbecue potato chips. It's pretty uncanny. Especially baked chicken thighs.

 

I generally stay really simple with seasoning, but I do sometimes make sauces to put on steaks.

[dibs]

I use only pepper on steak before cooking, and the slightest pinch of salt after. I cook it from room temp in a really hot pan to sear the outsides, then down the heat untill it is to my liking inside (bearly warm).

[Dewar]

Steaks are almost exclusively about the application of high heat! You're not going to get a good maillard reaction crust from cooking slowly. Are you talking like an entire cow shoulder or something? Even the coolest part of my grill would turn any sirloin to dust in less than 20 minutes.

 

The thing about the sous vide steak is you are supposed to sear the outsides after they hit temperature so it looks and tastes like "real" steak.

 

Oven steak:

Set oven to 500 degrees, with cast iron skillet inside

Season 1-1.5" thick steak with salt and pepper, after coating with cooking oil (steak should be room temperature)

Turn your range up to as high as it will go, put the skillet on your burner for another 2-3 minutes after the oven hits temperature

 

Steak into the pan, don't move it for 1 minute.

Move directly to the oven for 2 minutes

Flip, cook 2 more minutes

 

Remove and rest for 3-5 minutes.

 

That should be about medium rare. Add an additional minute per turn per level of doneness.

If making well done steak, transfer from skillet directly to garbage

 

I'm pretty sure I got this from Alton Brown? A lot of my cooking methods I think of as just the way I do them came from him.

 

______

 

I have a small scale I got for measuring food in conjunction with portioning to lose weight and I really like it. I heartily recommend. I don't bake much, but baking by weight is so much less of a guessing game in a discipline where you need a lot of precision.

 

I'm not saying I don't throw the steak on the hot part of the grill right at the end to get a good seer, but I do the majority of the cooking slow. These aren't exactly expensive steaks, so the extra time helps break down the collagen.

 

Edit: For seasoning, I try a lot of different things. Right now I'm into a local place's blend called Fox Point Seasoning. It's a mix of shallots, chives, scallions, and a few other things. It's normally intended for poultry, but I find it adds a bit of a different taste without overwhelming the actual taste of the meat.

[Badfinger]

I have been making these all week. They are really, really good.

 

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/03/ultra-smashed-cheeseburger-recipe-food-lab.html

 

It's a crazy combo of incredibly fast and easy with delicious. I am like a medium/medium rare steak and burger guy and it doesn't even matter that these are basically cooked through because they're so juicy still. I've never had a "smashed" burger before, but they're great. They drip like crazy even if you rest them, and your house will smell like burger for hours (forever) but SO good.

[Badfinger]

http://blogs.buffalonews.com/hungryformore/2013/04/recipe-beet-cured-salmon-gravlax-from-the-new-jewish-table.html

 

 

I am branching out and trying something I've never made before. In fact, I've never even used beets in any capacity before. I have had this kind of lox, and it's incredible, so I have high hopes.

[Badfinger]

I know I'm the only one posting in this thread now and I don't care.  Final result of the experiment:

 

 

 

Less salty than commercial lox, and very slightly more fishy. Same glossy sort of texture, really happy with the result. I might skip the beets if I ever do it again. It looks amazing but beets are a pain in the ass. Stained my cutting board because I had the food processor sitting on it for like 2 minutes.