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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Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

My Lovely Horse posted:

My rice cooker has a scale in the pot that tells you where to fill it to if you put in X cups of rice. Seems to work out to ~1.2 cups water to a cup of rice, but also to vary by total amount and I never made more than 3 cups at a time (why did I buy a 10 cup cooker, why).

Yeah, for rice cookers that's the best option. Regardless of washing or not, the lines in the pot should get you close to the right amount. Add rice, then fill as much water as necessary to get to the correct line. You may need to adjust depending on different rices (based on cooking time for one), but the pot on a good rice cooker should be a good start.

# ¿ Mar 14, 2019 19:47

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# ¿ May 12, 2024 13:02

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

C-Euro posted:

Our basil plant is going buck wild so I'm thinking of trimming it and making pesto. Anyone have a pesto recipe that's more exciting than the standard basil + pine nuts + garlic + parmesan + olive oil combo?

You can use garlic scapes instead of bulb garlic, but I guess that's a) not too much different than regular pesto and b) you've got to catch the scapes in season (late spring so like June-ish +/- a month in the Northern Hemisphere depending on how warm your area is). Maybe something to keep in mind for later in the season, they'll often pop up at farmers markets for not too much since farmers typically remove the flowering stalks (the scapes) to help promote growth of the bulb in hard-neck garlic.

Eeyo fucked around with this message at 23:27 on Mar 24, 2019

# ¿ Mar 24, 2019 23:25

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Sjs00 posted:

So I need some advice about nutrition in general.
I do basic meal prep nothing too fancy; just a carb usually potatoes, plus a veggie usually steamed carrots or broccoli, and then a meat, usually steak or chicken cut into strips, or maybe a meatloaf. Just whatever I feel like taking from the kitchen at work LOL. (Hospital cafeteria) And then there's just a pile of fruit apples bananas oranges etc. I've cut just about all processed foods (junk food, soda, etc) and drink just water and sweet tea (at work)
My question is just how big should the meal preps be? I'm a small person but I can easily eat 2 of the med size containers (plus a piece of fruit )for dinner, and usually get hungry again late at night. How do I stretch this food out? Or do I just go to sleep hungry? I don't usually eat breakfast, eat lunch around 11am.

If I understand your question correctly, it's a bit hard to say. The amount of food you should eat depends on your body, weight, height, age, and the amount of physical activity you do. If you're maintaining a healthy weight then you're doing it right!

That being said, some foods may tend to leave you more satiated than others, like foods high in fiber (fruits, veggies, and legumes). That and foods you tend to eat more slowly are good (like in-shell pistachios vs. shelled nuts).

There's also diet and nutrition threads in the fitness subforum

# ¿ Mar 26, 2019 23:21

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

I take that to mean that they roasted them, so they'd be cooked (and then left out). If they're cooked then it's more suspect. Personally I'd pitch them, since they're fairly liquid.

# ¿ Apr 13, 2019 18:33

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

LongSack posted:

Am I the only person who didn�t know you could get cherry trees that put out different kinds of cherries? Hell, I have a (non-dwarf) Yoshino cherry tree and I�m not even sure it produces any fruit at all. How does the multiple thing work? Grafting?

Pretty much all fruit trees are grafted. Even if it's a single variety, the fruiting part will be grafted on to a rootstock, since the rootstock gives a strong plant with disease resistance and then you're guaranteed fruit that is true to type since it's a clone.

# ¿ Apr 19, 2019 04:18

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

I don't know about quinoa (never cooked it), but you should definitely pick through legumes pretty well. I would estimate I find a rock in a bag of legumes maybe every year or so. Pick through and pitch bad looking beans and any other non-legume matter (I get wheat berries occasionally and one time I found a weird donut-shaped seed). I usually just mix the beans around, take out a tablespoon or two in my hands, place it back if it looks good, and repeat until I'm satisfied. Eventually you find the weird stuff, so maybe that method would work for quinoa too. If it's obviously a rock you'll find it relatively quickly, your brain is pretty good at that kind of pattern recognition.

# ¿ Apr 29, 2019 03:58

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

BraveUlysses posted:

i want to make some fries the next time we have burger night.

i have two quarts of beef fat that i rendered out of brisket trimmings.

I dont really want to do a double fry (one fry is enough hassle). should i hand cut them myself or can i do pretty well frying frozen fries?

There was also that cold start method Cook's Illustrated came up with a decade ago (reproduction here). Basically, you're supposed to use Yukon Golds (the medium starch content of Yukons compared to russets or others works better apparently), then you just heat the batons starting in cold oil until they're done, with some appropriate stirring at the right time as the recipe describes. As I recall it made reasonable fries, but that was like a decade ago during my wild college days so I'm not sure if I could tell up from down back then. If your burger night is a guest thing then test it out first, but if it's just you/your family/your SO then it'll probably do fine even if it's not perfect fries.

# ¿ Apr 30, 2019 05:12

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Annath posted:

Do you have a good recipe for Adai?

E: interesting. I just got home, and one of my fermentation jars has suddenly got less pressure in it. Previously, both air locks were sitting right at the edge of pushing bubbles out, and periodically they'd do so. Now, one jar is suddenly at normal pressure, with both sides of the airlock even.

Also, that jar is, according to my infra-red thermometer, about 2 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than the other one (71.7F vs 70F)

Possibly temperature fluctuations? When the ferment doesn't put out a huge amount of gas, sometimes just ambient fluctuations can reverse the airlock balance. You'd expect cooling down to have this effect though. If it's the smaller jar, then maybe it cooled down less than the other one, but there's just less gas generation because of the smaller mass and so you've noticed it?

Either way, I wouldn't worry until it starts pulling a lot into the fermenter. It's fermenting and it probably won't stop, unless something really crazy happens (freezing or boiling etc).

# ¿ Jul 8, 2019 00:31

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Bagheera posted:

2 questions, 1 about fermentation and 1 about the book.

1) Does the book give good advice? Like, "Flour, Water Salt, Yeast" is to "Bread" as "Art Of Fermentation" is to "Pickles"? I downloaded a sample from Amazon and read the foreword, introduction, and first chapter. It was just unfocused rambling about how terrible modern food is and how lactobacillus will bring about world peace. I was hoping for a practical guide to making fermented foods. What I read was like the comments section of Food Babe.

2) Are there any reliable studies linking fermented foods to better nutrition? Is sauerkraut more nutritious than boiled cabbage? Are pickles better for me than raw cucumbers? Every health and diet site on the web says yes, but I've never seen a science journal that says anything one way or the other.

It's been a while since I've opened it, so this is just from memory. I definitely found it a bit rambly. It doesn't really have a huge number of 'recipes' as in lists of ingredients and instructions. It is fairly comprehensive on fermented foods however. He discusses vegetables as well as things like tempeh, other soy ferments, and a lot of things I never heard of before. I feel like it's more of an encyclopedia of fermented foods. If you wanted to do something specific like tempeh, or koji then other sources may be more in-depth. But Katz probably talks about the ferment if you're thinking of doing it.

No idea on the second. There's a lot of bullshit out there, but IMO the best reason to eat fermented foods is they taste good. They may or may not affect your microbiome, I have no idea.

# ¿ Jul 8, 2019 00:35

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Bluedeanie posted:

Something Awful user Mongoose wearing a purple top hat and singing an extremely off key rendition of Pure Imagination while he shits directly into a pot of mung beans boiling in heavy cream

Strangely enough, sweetened boiled mung beans is a Vietnamese dessert.

# ¿ Jul 11, 2019 19:15

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

TheCog posted:

As part of the CSA I'm a member of I'm getting so much zucchini and summer squash. We've had it on pizza, we've saut�ed it with balsamic vinegar, we've put it on pizza and served it with pasta, we've made zucchini bread, and put it in red curry... what are some interesting things I could do with zucchini that I haven't tried yet?

Grilled is good if you have the means.

Zucchini fritters is also good. Kind of like zucchini pancakes.

Mixed in bibimbap is also a good choice (as it would be for most vegetables)

Soup is also good to get rid of excess vegetables, but you may feel it too hot for that.

# ¿ Jul 11, 2019 19:43

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

effika posted:

Calabacitas burritos (my favorite way to use up a bunch of it, recipe is very flexible)

Good call. Also good with roasted green chile as well (as they do in New Mexico).

# ¿ Jul 12, 2019 02:17

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Casu Marzu posted:

This person needs a handful of valium

Edit: What the ever living gently caress. This has to be a satire piece. I refuse to believe this person exists.

Well soylent is a company that still exists and still sells, so anti cooking people do exist somehow.

# ¿ Jul 27, 2019 02:32

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Weltlich posted:

I think you�ve got two routes, one is adding pasta/grains that soak things up, the other is adding a dried vegetable or fruit.

If you add pasta, use something high surface area like a radiatore. Couscous, quinoa, and bulgur are also options.

You might also want to consider adding in something like dried blueberries, cranberries, or raisins. Let them soak and plump and they�ll draw in liquid.

Broccoli heads may also draw up some liquid (but may also contribute some if it's salty enough).

# ¿ Aug 14, 2019 00:42

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Sandtrout Catsuit posted:

I'm going to Hawaii and staying in a condo with a kitchen. What should I cook?

Obviously you need to cook some poi (it�s a starchy dish made with root vegetables). I only know that it�s a traditional Hawaiian food, no idea if it�s any good :shrug:

They might have some good fruit too, there�s some fruit production on some of the islands. When I visited it was rambutans and papaya.

Spam musubi is also a stereotypical Hawaiian food. More or less like spam sushi, so it should be easy enough to cook.

Then maybe like fish? You�ll have to do some research about what�s good, where to get it, and (most importantly) what�s sustainable.

# ¿ Aug 17, 2019 15:14

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

big dyke energy posted:

I do like a slightly chewy rice, so I'm going to try 1.5 cups of water to 1 cup rice this time.

I will never use the pasta method for rice, that's insane. I have no trouble getting white rices down, it's just the brown rice has been foiling me lately.

e: success!! A bit of it stuck to the bottom, but whatever, most of it is great.

Getting the ratio right for rice is nontrivial IMO, so you weren't doing anything wrong. The right ratio will change based on the cooking vessel and heat level that the rice is cooked with. You just want to get enough water for the rice to absorb, plus the amount of water that will evaporate during cooking. Then you have to get the heat level right, if it's too hot it will burn and scorch on the bottom, and if it's too cold the rice won't cook in time.

For white rice, my method (before receiving a rice cooker as a gift) was 1) measure the evaporation rate of the pot I was using and 2) use a 1:1 rice to water ratio, plus enough water to cancel out evaporation losses. This seemed to work across several different stoves and pots, but I never tried it with brown rice.

# ¿ Aug 24, 2019 04:07

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Anyone have a good guide to curing/fermenting olives? The marketplace near my apartment is selling bags of fresh green olives and I�m intrigued.

# ¿ Oct 21, 2019 00:37

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

DildenAnders posted:

I let the rice sit for like 15 minutes after the last batch and while it helped it was still crunchy. Is a crock pot a better rice cooking implement?

In my experience, crunchy rice can be an indication of too low of a heat. You need it hot enough to cook in the right length of time, otherwise it will be undercooked at the end. You don't want it really going, too fast and it will be more likely to burn on the bottom. I usually aim for a slightly visible stream of steam coming out of the side of the lid or the round hole in the lid.

If you got the right amount of water for the cooking time, you'll have to add a bit more if you bump up the heat, the higher heat will evaporate the water faster.

# ¿ Nov 4, 2019 01:12

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

Tres Burritos posted:

So you're saying that tempering does change the flavor or characteristics of chocolate in a significant way?

This is ages ago, but I felt compelled to elaborate a little bit. Chocolate is actually fairly complex from a condensed matter perspective. There are 6 crystal phases that cocoa butter can condense into. For high-quality eating chocolate, chocolatiers temper the chocolate to produce more chocolate in phase-V in the bar. That crystal phase has the magical properties that make chocolate so satisfying to eat: the nice snap of the bar when you break off a piece, the glossy surface, and the melting point just below body temperature.

Personally I've never tempered chocolate myself, because it has a reputation as a difficult process. The typical way a home-cook would go about it is to melt some chocolate, then introduce some amount of seed chocolate to the mixture, then let it cool after the seed has been incorporated. The idea is that the seed crystals initiate freezing of the melted chocolate into the phase-V of the introduced chocolate. The hard way (but fool-proof if you do it right) is a controlled melting, then cooling and heating to specific temperatures with agitation to remove the wrong phase crystals in the chocolate.

This isn't to say that you shouldn't learn to temper chocolate, just that it will take some failed attempts and learning before you get it right. I'd say the tempering is important in judging quality chocolate since it affects the texture and is important in the overall experience of eating chocolate. If the tempering is not done right then chocolate may not have the snap, gloss, and melting that I'm looking for in chocolate.

# ¿ Nov 4, 2019 02:03

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

captkirk posted:

I impulse acquired a kabocha from the organic grocery today. I'm thinking of just tossing it in the instant pot to make it into a soup like I would a butternut squash. For soups with cream in them do you want to set aside some to freeze before adding the cream?

I'd just put it in the freezer after the cream. Worst case scenario you'd have to blend it some more, but I bet it will be fine.

# ¿ Nov 11, 2019 04:42

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

BrianBoitano posted:

Doesn't the UK use gas dial numbers for the oven? Not that it's an insurmountable confusion, just another reason people tend to stick to recipe sources that are comfortable.

OP also mentioned sourcing, which is fair.

Then there are competing terms. Coriander means cilantro (the herb) in the UK and the seed in the US. I like the sound of the words aubergine and courgette, but someone who hasn't ever learned those terms will think "well, I can't do that here, skip!"

At least it's not whistles in Indian pressure cooker recipes. My pressure cooker doesn't even whistle!

# ¿ Nov 13, 2019 02:28

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

What kind of cheese works well for goug�res? Are more pungent cheeses a good choice, or is it best to stick with milder and nutty/sweet varieties like the typical gruy�re?

# ¿ Dec 1, 2019 20:59

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

TofuDiva posted:

Spinach ideas, anyone?

A wonderful family member brought fresh spinach - lots and lots and lots of fresh spinach. We enjoyed salads, smoothies, sauteed it with garlic, put some in soups and ramen, made pesto, stuffed squash with it, and just ate handfuls of it rolled up with a bit of lemon and tahini.

He's now gone back to his island and I still have a couple of generous quarts of the spinach. It's probably past its prime for salads, but would still serve well with light cooking. Anybody have an offbeat favorite that you'd be willing to share?

Two things which come to mind: spanakopita (spinach puff pastries; basically a mixture of spinach and feta inside puff pastries), and saag paneer (creamy spinach and spices with fresh indian farmer's cheese cubes (paneer)).

That or some bibimbap? Wilted spinach works well for that IMO. Not really the "star" of the dish, but it definitely brings something to the bibimbap table.

# ¿ Dec 1, 2019 21:32

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

EmmyOk posted:

Okay I will try that after this one! Ty ty

My question is really just that I�d like to start baking this year and was wondering about a suitable baking book for a beginner. I figure I could just google but imo it�s better to ask seasoned goons rather than just try figure out which website has the best top ten list!

The Joy of Cooking is a classic text and maybe a bit dated, but it does have sections on technique which is valuable. It'll have a lot of classic recipes, but nothing particularly fancy.

The pro-tier move is to get a good scale and then find recipes that weigh ingredients. These days I've been pulling recipes from https://www.kingarthurflour.com which have weights for the ingredients. This doesn't help with old recipes (unless you record the weights you used to get a good result), but is definitely the easiest way to get good results.

# ¿ Jan 3, 2020 03:08

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# ¿ May 12, 2024 13:02

Eeyo: Aug 29, 2004

taqueso posted:

Something like Joy of Cooking should be really cheap used, I learned a lot from it as a kid.

Yeah I should have said this, it's more of a pick up at the used book store kind of book since there are a lot of copies out there.

# ¿ Jan 3, 2020 04:57

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

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