The General Questions thread - for quick questions, recipe requests, help.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Goons with Spoons > The General Questions thread - for quick questions, recipe requests, help.

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coyo7e: Aug 23, 2007; by zen death robot

Thanks for the replies all, i will be hitting those up soon!

Pollyanna posted:

Really stupid question. I know that meat has an expiration date on it, but exactly how long does it keep in the fridge? I often don't get to use all the meat I buy by the time the "sell by" date comes around. How worried should I be if a piece of meat (e.g. chicken thigh, beef shank) is a few days past the sell by?

I've only ever really seen the meat get a little brown around the edges, which from what I know is just an oxygen thing.

It's entirely based on smell however there is a point where your smell is not past the point of no return based on your own finickiness.

I do not like stinky meat even if i heavily spiced it however I've had roommates who would take pieces of meat that I would have thrown away unhesitatingly, and they cooked up perfectly safe and healthy and tasty dishes with it, which I ate. I was just afraid to use it because it's too fishy or whatever for me.

Having a roommate who was willing to use those sketchy to me slices of meat and who had professional chops to back it up really increased the range of what I will keep in the fridge and still use, and also has increased my a wariness of what is in the fridge at all times.

coyo7e fucked around with this message at 04:44 on Aug 14, 2017

# ? Aug 14, 2017 04:41

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# ? May 27, 2024 14:04

vermin: Feb 28, 2017; Help, I've turned into a manifestation of mental disorders as viewed through an early 20th century lens sparked by the disparity between man and modern society and I can't get up

Will the same barbecue rub work for every meat? I heard that a rub meant for chicken would be too salty for pork.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 04:55

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

vermin posted:

Will the same barbecue rub work for every meat? I heard that a rub meant for chicken would be too salty for pork.

Depends on the rub. And the application---if you're planning on serving the meat sauced or straight, and so on.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 05:02

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

KildarX posted:

I want to start cooking with tofu and want to know if there's any pro tips with preparing it or selecting it.

One thing I've been doing lately with tofu is baking it in the oven on silicon baking mats. They don't stick (even without oil) and get a chewy texture. A little like the tofu Chipotle has. Not crispy like good fried tofu, but it has the same chewiness to it.

I've used it in tofu "chili" (diced up and simmered with chili/beans) where the texture compliments and absorbs the flavor pretty well. I've also tossed it with seasonings after cooking and made it into sandwiches. May be a bit odd, but I've been liking it!

I also got a tofu press, which squeezes out the water very well and quickly. Within a few minutes I can squeeze out a 14 oz. brick and have it ready for cooking.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 05:30

Anne Whateley: Feb 11, 2007; i like nice words

vermin posted:

Will the same barbecue rub work for every meat? I heard that a rub meant for chicken would be too salty for pork.

It's not that one meat needs more salt than another imo, but think about the volume vs. surface area. If you season the top of a chicken breast, that's going to have way more meat under it than if you season the top of a rack of ribs. I would just season more or less densely with that in mind.

There are also flavors in rubs that might traditionally be paired more with one meat than another, but if you're happy, go with it. When I do ribs, I usually split them up and do a couple different flavors of rub to compare, which is fun if you're feeding a group, too. Honestly, there are some I've liked more than others, but in all my experimenting I've never found a bad rub. It's pretty hard to gently caress up.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 05:58

wormil: Sep 12, 2002; Hulk will smoke you!

vermin posted:

Will the same barbecue rub work for every meat? I heard that a rub meant for chicken would be too salty for pork.

I use a recipe called magic dust, you can Google it, and honestly I think it tastes great on everything, very balanced. I use homemade chili powder instead of store bought and it's fantastic.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 06:51

uncle w benefits: Nov 1, 2010; hi, it's me, your uncle

value-brand cereal posted:

This is a silly question, I know. But growing up I never learned how and when to use spices. The best I can do is tossing some oregano and pepper and basil into some spaghetti.

So is there a thread on how to use spices somewhere, or is it something you pick up along the way of trying new recipes? Like, what the gently caress do I do with cumin? Please help my life is bland and tasteless. I got all these spice bottles and no clue what meat to dump them on.

What even is marjoram?

# ? Aug 14, 2017 13:22

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

Eeyo posted:

One thing I've been doing lately with tofu is baking it in the oven on silicon baking mats. They don't stick (even without oil) and get a chewy texture. A little like the tofu Chipotle has. Not crispy like good fried tofu, but it has the same chewiness to it.

I've used it in tofu "chili" (diced up and simmered with chili/beans) where the texture compliments and absorbs the flavor pretty well. I've also tossed it with seasonings after cooking and made it into sandwiches. May be a bit odd, but I've been liking it!

I also got a tofu press, which squeezes out the water very well and quickly. Within a few minutes I can squeeze out a 14 oz. brick and have it ready for cooking.

Solid advice. You can also freeze it first, thaw and then press it. This produces a VERY meaty texture that will stand up to a lot of cooking.

More generally, tofu almost always needs to be seasoned/flavored on it's own, before you add it to a sauce. You don't realize how much flavor meat really has until you start replacing it with tofu. Dry frying with salt and spices works very well, too.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 14:19

Mr. Wiggles: Dec 1, 2003; We are all drinking from the highball glass of ideology.

wormil posted:

I use a recipe called magic dust, you can Google it, and honestly I think it tastes great on everything, very balanced.

I tried this and it made me take off my clothes and jump off buildings. Now I'm in jail. Please advise.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 16:42

wormil: Sep 12, 2002; Hulk will smoke you!

Mr. Wiggles posted:

I tried this and it made me take off my clothes and jump off buildings. Now I'm in jail. Please advise.

That's not the one. You need lawyers, guns, and money!

A Mike Mills takes credit for the rub recipe. I found it on Usenet back in the 90s, rec.bbq, or one of those.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 17:13

Casu Marzu: Oct 20, 2008

Squashy Nipples posted:

Solid advice. You can also freeze it first, thaw and then press it. This produces a VERY meaty texture that will stand up to a lot of cooking.

More generally, tofu almost always needs to be seasoned/flavored on it's own, before you add it to a sauce. You don't realize how much flavor meat really has until you start replacing it with tofu. Dry frying with salt and spices works very well, too.

Replacing meat with tofu is a dumb white person thing to do. Tofu is it's own ingredient and should be treated as such when making a dish that features it. :colbert:

# ? Aug 14, 2017 18:14

Hauki: May 11, 2010

Casu Marzu posted:

Replacing meat with tofu is a dumb white person thing to do. Tofu is it's own ingredient and should be treated as such when making a dish that features it.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 18:40

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

Casu Marzu posted:

Replacing meat with tofu is a dumb white person thing to do. Tofu is it's own ingredient and should be treated as such when making a dish that features it.

Oh, I'm sorry, did I insult the foods of your Ancestors? Good. Cultural Appropriation for LIFE.

I guess vegetarians should only get a meal with protein if they are cooking tofu in an authentic manner? Narrow thinking.
Tofu is an excellent meat replacement when properly cooked, deal with it.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 19:08

GrAviTy84: Nov 25, 2004

Squashy Nipples posted:

Tofu is an excellent meat replacement when properly cooked, deal with it.

it's not though. it's great used appropriately but it's terrible as ersatz meat.

plenty of other ways for vegetarians to get protein. Narrow Thinking.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 19:15

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

Living with a creative chef who eats tofu every day has really opened my eyes as to what you can do with it.

No, it doesn't replace a steak, but to say you can only cook it in a few traditional ways is the very definition of narrow.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 19:19

uncle w benefits: Nov 1, 2010; hi, it's me, your uncle

Everyone should eat meat.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 19:19

GrAviTy84: Nov 25, 2004

Squashy Nipples posted:

Living with a creative chef who eats tofu every day has really opened my eyes as to what you can do with it.

No, it doesn't replace a steak, but to say you can only cook it in a few traditional ways is the very definition of narrow.

he never said to only use it a few traditional ways. he said never use it to replace meat.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 19:21

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang: Dec 28, 2007; Kiss this and hang

Where can I get a curry leaf plant/seeds to grow a curry leaf plant. Amazon seems pretty sketchy and I know nothing about the other sources that come up on google. Anyone have a go-to place for curious live-specimen herbs?

# ? Aug 14, 2017 22:00

Waci: May 30, 2011; A boy and his dog.

Squashy Nipples posted:

Oh, I'm sorry, did I insult the foods of your Ancestors? Good. Cultural Appropriation for LIFE.

I guess vegetarians should only get a meal with protein if they are cooking tofu in an authentic manner? Narrow thinking.
Tofu is an excellent meat replacement when properly cooked, deal with it.

What did you do to that poor meat :ohdear:

# ? Aug 14, 2017 22:10

TychoCelchuuu: Jan 2, 2012; This space for Rent.

Squashy Nipples posted:

Oh, I'm sorry, did I insult the foods of your Ancestors? Good. Cultural Appropriation for LIFE.

I guess vegetarians should only get a meal with protein if they are cooking tofu in an authentic manner? Narrow thinking.
Tofu is an excellent meat replacement when properly cooked, deal with it.

90% of the time, if you want to replace meat, seitan or tempeh is a better bet. Tofu is amazing (I literally just had some for lunch) but there's a reason most traditional cuisines don't often treat tofu like a meat, and that's because it doesn't work super well when you treat it like a meat. (And vegetarians can get their protein from plenty of places without eating tofu...)

# ? Aug 14, 2017 22:42

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

TychoCelchuuu posted:

90% of the time, if you want to replace meat, seitan or tempeh is a better bet. Tofu is amazing (I literally just had some for lunch) but there's a reason most traditional cuisines don't often treat tofu like a meat, and that's because it doesn't work super well when you treat it like a meat. (And vegetarians can get their protein from plenty of places without eating tofu...)

No argument here, we eat a lot of beans in this household.

If you are trying to make mock meat, a seitan TVP combo is the best by far. But tofu can work fine as meat replacement if you know what you are doing. And by replacement, here I mean "roughly similar protein/nutrition". This is why grilled mushroom caps are a lovely burger replacement; delicious, yes, but they have almost no protein.

# ? Aug 14, 2017 23:52

rgocs: Nov 9, 2011

Squashy Nipples posted:

tofu can work fine as meat replacement if you know what you are doing. And by replacement, here I mean "roughly similar protein/nutrition".

Using properly prepared tofu instead of chicken in a stir fry has worked fine for me so far. Then again, I am limited by the BTUs in my electric stove, so I guess it is a failed stir fry to begin with.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 00:00

Missing Name: Jan 5, 2013

I find tofu also makes a decent substitution for paneer in curries.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 02:43

Liquid Communism: Mar 9, 2004; коммунизм хранится в яичках

rgocs posted:

Using properly prepared tofu instead of chicken in a stir fry has worked fine for me so far. Then again, I am limited by the BTUs in my electric stove, so I guess it is a failed stir fry to begin with.

Tofu stir fry is a thing all on its own, though.

Honestly, pretty much anything you can chop fine enough is A-okay for stir fry.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 03:49

wormil: Sep 12, 2002; Hulk will smoke you!

Casu Marzu posted:

Replacing meat with tofu is a dumb white person thing to do. Tofu is it's own ingredient and should be treated as such when making a dish that features it.

Eating tofu is a dumb white person thing.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 03:58

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

wormil posted:

Eating tofu is a dumb white person thing.

But what about all those Asians that eat tofu?

But yeah, tofu doesn't work in everything. I'm going to defend tofu chili though, I quite like it. The texture plays pretty well if you choose to put legumes in it, and there's already plenty of precedent for a chili-heavy tofu dish (mapo) so the flavors work pretty well. I guess it's more of a tofu, legume, and chili stew but whatever.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 04:11

Xun: Apr 25, 2010

Squashy Nipples posted:

Oh, I'm sorry, did I insult the foods of your Ancestors? Good. Cultural Appropriation for LIFE.

I guess vegetarians should only get a meal with protein if they are cooking tofu in an authentic manner? Narrow thinking.
Tofu is an excellent meat replacement when properly cooked, deal with it.

What a prime example of a dumb white person goddamn

# ? Aug 15, 2017 05:48

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

Eeyo posted:

But yeah, tofu doesn't work in everything. I'm going to defend tofu chili though, I quite like it. The texture plays pretty well if you choose to put legumes in it, and there's already plenty of precedent for a chili-heavy tofu dish (mapo) so the flavors work pretty well. I guess it's more of a tofu, legume, and chili stew but whatever.

Actual food discussion content!

Yes, you absolutely can make tofu work in chili, but that's one application where I have a strong preference for TVP. For me, it's just a better texture in chili, but I suppose that depends on how chunky you like your chili.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 12:28

Liquid Communism: Mar 9, 2004; коммунизм хранится в яичках

Knock it off with the racial insults. I don't care which way they're pointed.

Squashy Nipples posted:

Actual food discussion content!

Yes, you absolutely can make tofu work in chili, but that's one application where I have a strong preference for TVP. For me, it's just a better texture in chili, but I suppose that depends on how chunky you like your chili.

I'm curious, how do you get chili right with TVP? I like a chunkier chili, but the mouthfeel would be off without some fat in there, and I can't imagine olive oil giving the same texture without messing up the flavor.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 12:34

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

Liquid Communism posted:

Knock it off with the racial insults. I don't care which way they're pointed.

I'm curious, how do you get chili right with TVP? I like a chunkier chili, but the mouthfeel would be off without some fat in there, and I can't imagine olive oil giving the same texture without messing up the flavor.

Depends on how you like your chili!

I like it with ground beef, as I think it compliments the beans better. So that's why I like TVP, it gives you a ground beef texture without having to alter the tofu texture. If you prefer chunky chili (or beanless), you are better off with firm tofu that has been subjected to the freeze/thaw/press method. Once you've done that, you can cut the chunks up to whatever size you want.

To my previous point, though, both TVP and tofu need a lot of seasoning, flavor, and yes, some fat cooked into them BEFORE they go into the chili.
When working with soy products, I feel it's best to build in layers of flavor.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 13:14

DasNeonLicht: Dec 25, 2005; "...and the light is on and burning brightly for the masses."; Fallen Rib

Mapo tofu seems pretty legit. I just need to find a good place around DC to try it

# ? Aug 15, 2017 15:50

Squashy Nipples: Aug 18, 2007

DasNeonLicht posted:

Mapo tofu seems pretty legit. I just need to find a good place around DC to try it

It is! It's super delicious, and relatively easy to make if you have access to the right ingredients. Cooks Illustrated did an article on it in the current issue.

# ? Aug 15, 2017 15:56

GrAviTy84: Nov 25, 2004

Ma po is one of my favorite foods of all time, and yeah, it's hella easy to make. biggest thing is getting some good quality doubanjiang

# ? Aug 15, 2017 16:07

Jewmanji: Dec 28, 2003

GrAviTy84 posted:

Ma po is one of my favorite foods of all time, and yeah, it's hella easy to make. biggest thing is getting some good quality doubanjiang

Is there a better kind that is more readily available than Lee Kum Kee? Their stuff seems good, but it's the only one I've tried. I know Lee Kum Kee is generally kind of "ho-hum" but I don't have the budget to swipe every brand off the shelf.

Actually same goes for soy sauce, anyone have any good recommendations?

# ? Aug 15, 2017 23:45

Human Tornada: Mar 4, 2005; I been wantin to see a honkey dance.

I'm no expert but for basic light and dark soy sauce I like Pearl River Bridge. As far as doubanjiang goes, in my experience the stuff in bags is usually better than the stuff in the jar or tub, and you want it to say "Pixian" somewhere on there.

# ? Aug 16, 2017 00:11

uncle w benefits: Nov 1, 2010; hi, it's me, your uncle

I'm at my wits end trying to make good rice. I thought a rice cooker was supposed to do this poo poo easily. Add a cup of rice, double the water, flip switch and get fluffy white rice. Instead I get a mish mash of startchy pudding even after I soaked and rinsed the rice for at least 20 minutes.

# ? Aug 16, 2017 00:48

rgocs: Nov 9, 2011

You are not using "glutinous rice", are you? Because I did that once in lieu of sushi rice and oh boy!

# ? Aug 16, 2017 00:50

uncle w benefits: Nov 1, 2010; hi, it's me, your uncle

I've never been able to find the 'sushi' rice.

Is it called sushi rice?

# ? Aug 16, 2017 00:57

Anne Whateley: Feb 11, 2007; i like nice words

Your rice is probably halfway dissolved before you even start cooking it. Does your rice cooker say to soak it and rinse it forever? You can also try 1.5:1.

# ? Aug 16, 2017 00:58

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# ? May 27, 2024 14:04

Flash Gordon Ramsay: Sep 28, 2004; Grimey Drawer

Uncle w Benefits posted:

I'm at my wits end trying to make good rice. I thought a rice cooker was supposed to do this poo poo easily. Add a cup of rice, double the water, flip switch and get fluffy white rice. Instead I get a mish mash of startchy pudding even after I soaked and rinsed the rice for at least 20 minutes.

Every rice cooker I�ve used you use the cup it comes with to measure the rice then add water to that line on the bowl. Doubling seems weird to me.

# ? Aug 16, 2017 01:03

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Goons with Spoons > The General Questions thread - for quick questions, recipe requests, help.

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