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[bkw]

The Original is $30 cheaper than the New Model in case you missed one of those or for other's sakes. I own the new model in red and so do a few others in here. I really like it. The app is finally out on both IOS and Android. If you care they are coming out with a Wifi model in the near-ish future. The current one is Bluetooth so the app only works from ~30 feet away.

I'd go with the bluetooth model if you can swing the extra $30 but the original is respectable if money is tight. If starting dinner from work or anything like that is important to you, I'd wait.

If you have any specific questions I'd be happy to answer any I can. I actually just vacuum sealed 5 pounds of chicken breast to sous vide. I used THIS. It works a lot better than I thought it would.

The thing is, I don't know enough about sous vide to know what an app would be used for. Is it just for reference temperatures? Or does it open up more settings than the interface on the device itself? It seems bizarre to whip out a phone/app to control a kitchen appliance. =)

I've read that the older one has a more powerful heater and circulates water better, while the newer one has a better clamp and that app. Do I really need a bigger heater and that extra gallon of water? Is there really benefit in having an app? I suppose I won't notice any of these differences if it's going to be my first try at sous vide.

 

[Yes Boss!]

Made a new batch of Kimchi. Korean cucumber and chives. Gonna ferment it for three days at room temp then jar it up to age in the fridge a bit.

 

[Zyzyxxz]

2015-05-13 11.17.57 1 by johnlee104@gmail.com, on Flickr

Mapo tofu and tan tan men...where was this from? Going to Tokyo in a few months, love me some tan tan men...just starting to figure out where I should eat.

How was the karaage place you went to? How about the ramen places you went to?

The karaage place I went to was pretty bomb but it was some random hole in the wall place called Kara Age High Ball.

The mapo tofu was part of the chain of Iron Chef Chen Kenichi, being an Iron Chef nerd I had to try it and I being Chinese I thought it was a great classical iteration of mapo tofu but nothing worth going out of your way for.

Ramen wise the only place I liked was Ichiran, great ramen. Overhyped for Tokyo? Yes. But if comparing to US quality it would be rated top ranking ramen in this country.

 

[zbarron]

The thing is, I don't know enough about sous vide to know what an app would be used for. Is it just for reference temperatures? Or does it open up more settings than the interface on the device itself? It seems bizarre to whip out a phone/app to control a kitchen appliance. =)

I've read that the older one has a more powerful heater and circulates water better, while the newer one has a better clamp and that app. Do I really need a bigger heater and that extra gallon of water? Is there really benefit in having an app? I suppose I won't notice any of these differences if it's going to be my first try at sous vide.

The app is far more of a luxury than a necessity in my opinion. It contains a bunch of recipes on it so instead of researching what temperature to cook chicken breast and for how long you just put chicken breast in the app and it sets the temperature and the timer. There are enough recipes in it that it can almost be used as a recipe book if you want some inspiration on what you can cook sous vide.

The older one does technically have a more powerful heater but I haven't felt felt the need for more than 4-5 gallons to cook in. I am not sure on the accuracy but I heard more advancements in the code made the less watts almost a wash in how fast the water heats up. Then again we are a family of 3 and I haven't thrown a party with it or anything. I think the new one also has a larger range in the depth it can be immersed in which is helpful.

Another thing. What are you planning on using this for? I've used it for several things such as making Greek yogurt, hard boiling eggs, garlic confit, tempering chocolate, and sweet potato curry. I will be honest, it's best use in my opinion really is for cooking meats slowly, and accurately so they come out consistent and perfect. If you don't plan on using it a lot for meats I am not sure I'd recommend it.

Do you know what container you will be using?

 

[zbarron]

I made Korean Fried Chicken Fingers using the Serious Eats recipe. The sauce was a mix of Huy Fong chili sauce, Sriracha, soy sauce, minced garlic, and sesame dressing.

That was half of the breast. The other half I battered, fried and tossed in BBQ sauce to make boneless BBQ wings. Sadly no pictures of that one.

I've noticed that while I am doing great cooking less healthy food I am neglecting more healthy recipes. Lately I've been cooking wings, burgers, pizza and fries. Sadly those are summer foods for me. In the winter I am good at making healthy soups.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I don't have a picture, but I just made this homemade "ice cream", and I thought I'd share the recipe with y'all because it's so simple and fast and tasty.

Get 2-3 ripe bananas and slice 'em up. Put them in a baggy and freeze them. Once frozen, transfer to a food processor and pulse. Add in some vanilla, a tablespoon of cocoa powder, and some honey for sweetness. If it's crumbly and dry then add in a dash of liquid (like coconut milk) until it reaches your desired consistency.

That's it!

The texture is smooth and creamy and the flavor is fantastic too. How did I not come across this recipe sooner? I can see this being a warm weather staple for me from now on.

Spoiler

I'm really excited about this for some reason, but no one in my family seems to care

 

[kgtrep]

Finally have something worthy to show, heh. Made risotto for the first time and it turned out pretty well.

Yes Boss!, your kimchis look really good.

 

[Yes Boss!]

Yes Boss!, your kimchis look really good.

Thanks! Yeah, I'm living in korea for a couple years and no real kitchen so it is what I settled on...trying to do a new one every two weeks! Here is the one I made on sunday heavily fermenting and bubly and kinda magical:

Finished kimchi after a little more than two days:

 

[Deleted member 10571]

I just threw in a pan

- onions
- potatoes
- ground meat
- paprika
- mushrooms
- and a bunch of spice

It turned out okay and I'm still here! Is that enough cooking skill to join this thread from time to time?

 

[peteykirch]

Smoked some ribs today.

2 hours unwrapped
2 hours wrapped
45 minutes unwrapped with sauce to caramelize the glaze

 

[zbarron]

Finally have something worthy to show, heh. Made risotto for the first time and it turned out pretty well.

My wife and I have been watching a lot of Hell's Kitchen this week, I decided that I too am going to try making risotto for the first time next week.

Thanks! Yeah, I'm living in korea for a couple years and no real kitchen so it is what I settled on...trying to do a new one every two weeks! Here is the one I made on sunday heavily fermenting and bubly and kinda magical:

Embarrassingly I have never tasted Kimchi. That looks amazing though and I would love to try to make some without any seafood ingredients since I sadly never had a taste for that.

It turned out okay and I'm still here! Is that enough cooking skill to join this thread from time to time?

Of course. OnkelC welcomes all here. I was intimidated by the old thread before I joined in. There are some amazing chefs here but everyone is nice and if you ever need any advice or help every person here seems really helpful.

Smoked some ribs today.
2 hours unwrapped
2 hours wrapped
45 minutes unwrapped with sauce to caramelize the glaze

Damn. What smoker did you use? Also what kind of wood? I wanted to get into smoking this summer but with how high the price of beef has gotten I realized it wasn't for me and my small family.

Does anyone know how long raw chicken breast would keep in the fridge? I bought it from a local butcher who gets his meat from in state, so I would assume it was quite fresh. When I got home I vacuum sealed it almost immediately and it's been in there since. I've read 2 days online but that seems really conservative and for places that aren't nearly as fresh.

 

[HiResDes]

Do y'all put eggs in your Mac and cheese or nay?

 

[zbarron]

Do y'all put eggs in your Mac and cheese or nay?

I've seen recipes that call for eggs, corn starch and evaporated milk for the sauce base. I've personally never tried them. When I made this:

I made a Bechamel Sauce, cooked some noodles, added the sauce and grated cheddar cheese and mixed in some cubed ham and some seasoning.

For my wife, Mac and Cheese will always be of the Kraft variety. She makes the box and just adds copious amounts of butter. I have to agree that it makes it better.

If you are making mac n cheese, please post a picture. I'd love to see how it turns out.

 

[HiResDes]

I've seen recipes that call for eggs, corn starch and evaporated milk for the sauce base. I've personally never tried them. When I made this:

I made a Bechamel Sauce, cooked some noodles, added the sauce and grated cheddar cheese and mixed in some cubed ham and some seasoning.

For my wife, Mac and Cheese will always be of the Kraft variety. She makes the box and just adds copious amounts of butter. I have to agree that it makes it better.

If you are making mac n cheese, please post a picture. I'd love to see how it turns out.

It's gonna be very interesting considering I'm using a Crockpot and decided to combine two very different recipes to try and form my own. I'm also making my own cheese soup as the recipe calls for Campbell's and I don't like their's. Thanks man I was debating on using corn meal or flour to thicken the soup.

 

[Funky Papa]

Did somebody say Mac 'n' Cheese?

 

[HiResDes]

Bro I have Cheetos and a food processor gonna do it.

 

[zbarron]

It's gonna be very interesting considering I'm using a Crockpot and decided to combine two very different recipes to try and form my own. I'm also making my own cheese soup as the recipe calls for Campbell's and I don't like their's. Thanks man I was debating on using corn meal or flour to thicken the soup.

That sounds exciting. Experimenting with recipes is always fun.

I made a ton of soups this past winter. By far the easiest way to thicken it is just to let it cook uncovered for a while. Evaporation will do the job for you given enough time. Other options are a corn starch slurry or a roux.

Did somebody say Mac 'n' Cheese?

Cheat meal?

 

[Funky Papa]

That sounds exciting. Experimenting with recipes is always fun.

I made a ton of soups this past winter. By far the easiest way to thicken it is just to let it cook uncovered for a while. Evaporation will do the job for you given enough time. Other options are a corn starch slurry or a roux.



Cheat meal?

I don't think I have the stomach for that, cheat or not. It's too hot already for that kind of food.

Spoiler

Maybe in a couple of weeks.

 

[ElectricThunder]

Finally, new things are slowly emerging.

Cheese: 3 Month Famoso Azores Island Cheese I do believe this is the first I've ever seen from this part of the world! It eventually melts, herby salt aspect without either managing to become overpowering, good smell, nice in the end overall.

 

[peteykirch]

Damn. What smoker did you use? Also what kind of wood? I wanted to get into smoking this summer but with how high the price of beef has gotten I realized it wasn't for me and my small family.

I use a Masterbuilt Electric Smoker. I used a combination of apple and hickory wood chips. I bought this on a splurge impulse, plus it was clearance on QVC for only 220 bucks marked down from nearly 500.

I'm going to attempt to do a brisket for my Mother on Monday. Hopefully that goes well enough.

 

[Silkworm]

Does anyone know how long raw chicken breast would keep in the fridge? I bought it from a local butcher who gets his meat from in state, so I would assume it was quite fresh. When I got home I vacuum sealed it almost immediately and it's been in there since. I've read 2 days online but that seems really conservative and for places that aren't nearly as fresh.

Why not stick it in the freezer? I often times have the same dilemma though due to thawing the chicken and then not having the time to deal with it. I think I've gone up to 4 days without any noticeable problems

 

[zbarron]

Why not stick it in the freezer? I often times have the same dilemma though due to thawing the chicken and then not having the time to deal with it. I think I've gone up to 4 days without any noticeable problems

I bought five pounds of chicken breast. I used one immediately, froze two, and was planning on using two that I kept in the fridge soon after. A few change of dinner plans later and I still had it in my fridge 5 days later.

 

[Silkworm]

I bought five pounds of chicken breast. I used one immediately, froze two, and was planning on using two that I kept in the fridge soon after. A few change of dinner plans later and I still had it in my fridge 5 days later.

Ah! Well, I think 5 days is okay, especially given your situation (freshness of the chicken, immediate vacuum sealing). Of course, give it good sniff to make sure it hasn't gone off, but baring anything obviously wrong I'd just go ahead and use it. I said 4 days in my prior post but it might have been 5 days that I had a roast chicken sitting in my refrigerator (but I know it wasn't longer than that). I do think once it has been cooked it may not keep as long as if it had been prepared within a day of purchasing, so if you have leftovers try to finish them within a few days, if possible. Just my two cents

 

[HiResDes]

Slow cooker Mac is done, couldn't really stir it after adding it to the slow cooker, so hopefully it's okay. Added the Cheetos on top at the halfway mark.

 

[zbarron]

Slow cooker Mac is done, couldn't really stir it after adding it to the slow cooker, so hopefully it's okay. Added the Cheetos on top at the halfway mark.

Looking good. How was it?

I bought a slab of bacon at my butcher today. I haven't decided if I am just going to make lardons with it for a carbonara, try a million dollar bacon recipe with it or just makin' bacon pancakes. Anyone here have a good recipe?

 

[LocknessMobster]

Been on a cast iron crusade lately,my latest pickup a Griswold #9 from around the 1930's. Its in pristine condition, not sure if Im gonna use it or display it in my kitchen...

 

[Zyzyxxz]

Been on a cast iron crusade lately,my latest pickup a Griswold #9 from around the 1930's. Its in pristine condition, not sure if Im gonna use it or display it in my kitchen...

nice, how much did you get it for?

 

[LocknessMobster]

nice, how much did you get it for?

Thanks was kinda expensive, $78.

 

[OnkelC]

Looking good. How was it?

I bought a slab of bacon at my butcher today. I haven't decided if I am just going to make lardons with it for a carbonara, try a million dollar bacon recipe with it or just makin' bacon pancakes. Anyone here have a good recipe?

Carbonara is always a good answer to that

Tried my hands at another Bolognese variant yesterday, celery root instead of stalks:



Tonighst dish will be a Foccaccia filled with Mozzarella.

 

[OnkelC]

I've seen recipes that call for eggs, corn starch and evaporated milk for the sauce base. I've personally never tried them. When I made this:

I made a Bechamel Sauce, cooked some noodles, added the sauce and grated cheddar cheese and mixed in some cubed ham and some seasoning.

For my wife, Mac and Cheese will always be of the Kraft variety. She makes the box and just adds copious amounts of butter. I have to agree that it makes it better.

If you are making mac n cheese, please post a picture. I'd love to see how it turns out.

haven't made them in quite a while, but here's my recipe:
http://m.neogaf.com/showpost.php?p= 4600742&postcount=74

 

[HiResDes]

Looking good. How was it?

I bought a slab of bacon at my butcher today. I haven't decided if I am just going to make lardons with it for a carbonara, try a million dollar bacon recipe with it or just makin' bacon pancakes. Anyone here have a good recipe?

It was a little too solid and not creamy, also should have added more cayenne or paprika and some salt because it wasn't as flavorful as the cheese sauce was beforehand.


Damn wish I saw this before.

 

[pelicansurf]

I love cooking, but I stopped doing so since I moved by myself. There is no amount of food small enough that won't go bad with my schedule. I also don't have a microwave, so all meals must be consumed on the spot. Kind of sucks.

Last thing I cooked here:

Prime Ribeye with some Double-Baked Romanoff Potatoes. All of the leftover potatoes (a tray) were tossed a week later. Sigh.

Before that, when I was in Texas with my family:

Stuffed Mofongo.

I need cooking for 1 cookbook, since I have a fancy for gourmet and can already cook for 2+ people.

 

[OnkelC]

change of plans, the wife and I had dinner out tonight.
Starters were a mixed salad and tuna carpaccio/vitello tonnato combo:



Main courses were a Pizza and Saltimbocca with a rather odd plating:



for reference: homemade Saltimbocca.

 

[ElectricThunder]

Portugal strikes again!

Cheese: 4 Month Sao Jorge Compared to the prior---MUCH better relatively smooth melt, less on the salty/herby front, nothing much on the oil front much the same. The big takeaway here is this strikes me as one that somehow really seems apt for some grilled cheese sandwich action, which very few cheeses thus far have managed for whatever reason...

Sauce: Rico Picante Smoky http://www.ricopicante.co.uk/Products.html First I've ever had of Chilis from this region/any sort of Peruvian oriented sauce at all, and with this one at least as it turns out, heating it through instead of just adding it after the fact TREMENDOUSLY improves the flavour, mouth feel, literally every conceivable attribute. Highly recommended!

 

[GoldenEye 007]

So I was in an Asian mood tonight. Did pan seared salmon marinated in soy/garlic/citrus with rice noodles and stirfry. Just threw it all in a bowl and drizzled some white sauce on top.

I've realized I need a new knife set. Chopping the veggies were a nightmare. (You can see the different styles of carrot chops!) This was a free set that's like 3 years old. So its had a good run.

Any recommendations for an affordable core 3-4 piece knife set? Preferably available on Amazon Prime in the US.

Edit: Ended up going with the Victorinox 8" Chef's Knife. Got universally good reviews and was relatively cheap. Realized the paring and serrated knife was already sufficient. But the chef knife has to go.

 

[Keen]

Playing catch up with some stuff I've cooked recently.

Sous-vide pork belly.

Vacuumed

I tried to follow Kenji's sous vide all-belly porchetta recipe, so I deep fried it skin side down to crisp it.

Kinda screwed it up though, the skin got stuck to the bottom of the pot.

Made a damn tasty sandwich, and the crispy skin worked anyway.

Sous vide chicken breast with rice, salad and pan sauce.

Carnitas

Salsa prep

Roasted veg

Pork

Pork draining

Pork done

Carnitas with roasted salsa, black beans and sour cream

Done

 

[Zyzyxxz]

If I can make a suggestion next time you want crispy skin from sous vide pork belly, fry it skin side up and continually baste it with a ladle with the hot oil in the pot.

 

[Keen]

If I can make a suggestion next time you want crispy skin from sous vide pork belly, fry it skin side up and continually baste it with a ladle with the hot oil in the pot.

Thanks, I'll try that next time!

 

[peteykirch]

Tried a different mac and cheese recipe on the smoker this time.

This one used a mixture of cream cheese, cheddar, gouda, and gruyere.

 

[Yes Boss!]

Made a new batch of kimchi. All western style onions (white/red/yellow). Gonna let it rioen for five days then cold store it.

Ingredients:

Prepped:

 

[GiJoccin]

Tried a different mac and cheese recipe on the smoker this time.


This one used a mixture of cream cheese, cheddar, gouda, and gruyere.

mac and cheese on the smoker?!?!?!? how did it turn out? recipe?

 

[OnkelC]

you make me proud, folks! Thanks for sharing.

slow week here, just returned from a mediocre yugoslawian restaurant. The wife had Pola Pola (Cevapcici and a pork neck skewer, didn't like it), I went with a "funny Dalmatian" (Rump steak filled with ham and cheese). Notice the "Beilagensalat" as a side dish, a true german tradition:

 

[luoapp]

you make me proud, folks! Thanks for sharing.

slow week here, just returned from a mediocre yugoslawian restaurant. The wife had Pola Pola (Cevapcici and a pork neck skewer, didn't like it), I went with a "funny Dalmatian" (Rump steak filled with ham and cheese). Notice the "Beilagensalat" as a side dish, a true german tradition:
[/URL]

What are the beers you had?

 

[OnkelC]

wife had a Kölsch, I had a non-alcoholic "Spezi", half cola, half orange lemonade.

 

[Coriolanus]

Weekend's project: baguette a la tradition française.

In which i found out that my ovens can't get even REMOTELY close to 230ºc, despite what they say. Electric oven sez it goes all the way to 300ºc. Electric oven is a filthy fucking liar. Pretty sure that my gas oven can't even manage 175ºc

Also found out that i had no proper means of moisturizing the damn things while they baked.

Also found out that i'm terrible at finely rolling dough.

Taste was terrific, tho. #itssomething.

Decent go, as far as making bread for the first time in my life was concerned.

 

[LocknessMobster]

Wow another delicious page everyone. Got myself one more cast iron skillet a Griswold #10 in excellent condition. Gonna cook some steaks in this baby this week

[IMG]http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/HGwAAOSwv0tVb4wv/$_57.JPG?rt=nc[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/l28AAOSwBahVb5CA/$_57.JPG?rt=nc[/IMG]

 

[Funky Papa]

Who likes legumes?

This weekend I made some garbanzo stew for my cheat meal. It's nearly impossible to make a good looking chickpea stew, so don't be put off by its appearance.

Garbanzo stews are quite probably one of the tastiest, easiest and most filling recipes you can find. Just basically put a bunch of chickpeas and some meat cuts in a pressure cooker, add water and let it rip for 30 minutes. Done.

I used around 500 grams of dry chickpeas (rehydrated through the night, so make that 1 to 1.2 kg of chickpeas), one small chicken carcass, one entire chicken breast, one cut of pork belly (panceta works fine, I wouldn't recommend bacon), one blood sausage, one chorizo sausage, a thick cut of ham bone, one carrot and two bay leaves. Add some salt and pour water until it's fully covered and cook it in the pressure cooker for about 30 minutes for an incredibly tasty stew that will make you drowsy for the rest of the day. This is perfect Sunday food.

Chickpeas are not supposed to be served drowned, so the remaining liquid can be used as soup; just add some noodles and you are set. There's also plenty of meat. Tradition pretty much mandates to turn all that extra chicken and pork into small bits for croquettes. The beauty about this dish is that there's never any leftovers to speak of, other than some bones.

 

[zbarron]

Wow another delicious page everyone. Got myself one more cast iron skillet a Griswold #10 in excellent condition. Gonna cook some steaks in this baby this week

[IMG]http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/HGwAAOSwv0tVb4wv/$_57.JPG?rt=nc[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/l28AAOSwBahVb5CA/$_57.JPG?rt=nc[/IMG]

Shiny. Do you mind posting another picture of it after you season it? I would love to see the difference.

Who likes legumes?

Awesome. I love making white chilis with chickpeas.

I haven't cooked much of anything this week. A 101.5 fever and no air conditioning in June makes the kitchen an unappealing place. I want to cook something again. It's become such a part of me that when I don't cook I don't feel right.

 

[LocknessMobster]

Shiny. Do you mind posting another picture of it after you season it? I would love to see the difference.
.

Sure no problem!

 

[HiResDes]

I just want to thank Onkel for the amazingly easy and delicious Bolognese recipe from the last thread because I just made it with a slight variation and it came out amazing. I followed the recipe pretty precisely except the local grocery said they'd be out of celery root until Wednesday so I chopped carrots, parsnip, white onion, and a little bit of garlic together instead. I also couldn't find triple concentrated puree, so I had to cook it down a bit longer. I mixed just a tiny bit of cream cheese to lend it a slightly lighter color and help thicken it up a bit and it just turned out phenomenal. I think it was one of the best dishes I ever made.

Here are a couple of low res pics:

and a bottle of the accompanying wine, which had this buttery flavor that pretty much made the sauce so good I believe