What did you cook today?

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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Chappychap wrote: Mon Nov 30, 2020 8:25 pm The star of the show tonight? My new $4 Japanese peeler. Can thoroughly recommend peeling asparagus before steaming or blanching, the texture is so much better. Who knew!
That all looks really good, especially the unagi. Got a picture of your new peeler? My restaurant friends always peel the bottoms of the asparagus stalks, as it keeps the customers happy. I try to emulate them whenever possible, though I don't anticipate any of my 'customers' taking their business elsewhere. ;)

Hoping to be back in the kitchen on Wednesday. Big D&D session coming up later tonight, so dinner will be some of the leftover braised pork belly and cabbage that I made on Sunday. I did sharpen a couple of my brother's knives earlier today, though. That seemed to quell some of the jitters I was experiencing. :lol:
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

Technically it's was $0 as it came as a random branded freebie in a recent knife purchase:
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I've obscured the brand out of respect for this being Mark's forum but I do think it's quite a smart idea for reminding people to think of your brand during your everyday mealtime preps.

I'm going to offer to sharpen a couple friends knives at the weekend to quell my itch to improve that skill. I put a wicked edge on my 150 Koishi petty that changed how I feel about the knife dramatically recently. Starting to really love petties, initially didn't really see the point of them but now have ended up buying another via a fantastic deal I find on a Yoshikane 150 during Cyber Monday. Love them for the garlic I forgot to prep, the single pepper I need to cut, or the super thin shallot slices I randomly decide to put in a salad.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by mauichef »

Chappychap wrote: Tue Dec 01, 2020 5:20 pm Technically it's was $0 as it came as a random branded freebie in a recent knife purchase:
AD7ECC20-B636-4B6E-87B3-1E6C14527092.jpeg

I've obscured the brand out of respect for this being Mark's forum but I do think it's quite a smart idea for reminding people to think of your brand during your everyday mealtime preps.

I'm going to offer to sharpen a couple friends knives at the weekend to quell my itch to improve that skill. I put a wicked edge on my 150 Koishi petty that changed how I feel about the knife dramatically recently. Starting to really love petties, initially didn't really see the point of them but now have ended up buying another via a fantastic deal I find on a Yoshikane 150 during Cyber Monday. Love them for the garlic I forgot to prep, the single pepper I need to cut, or the super thin shallot slices I randomly decide to put in a salad.
I have a few ;-)
They are Kuhn Rikon peelers.
Love 'em!
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

Healthy puttanesca pasta tonight, with 50% pasta and 50% kale. Cutting the pasta with a vegetable like this is a useful way to reduce the caloric footprint of a weeknight pasta meal, and increase nutrient density at the same time. But after my meetings ran over and I was on the backfoot to get food ready, this was one of those meals I really appreciated the length of a 240. The extra length helped process the bunches of kale in one batch instead of two, saving a bunch of time (pun not intended :lol:).
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by TheLegalRazor »

After several days of leftover turkey, it was time for a change. Grilled lamb loin chops. Ittetsu White #1.

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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Chappychap wrote: Mon Nov 30, 2020 8:25 pm The star of the show tonight? My new $4 Japanese peeler. Can thoroughly recommend peeling asparagus before steaming or blanching, the texture is so much better. Who knew!
mauichef wrote: Tue Dec 01, 2020 8:36 pm I have a few ;-)
They are Kuhn Rikon peelers.
Love 'em!
Ah, okay. When I read "Japanese," I didn't figure Kuhn Rikon. I thought they were a Swiss company. Yes, I have a few of those, too and ironically, one of them is responsible for the deepest, nastiest cut I've given myself in a long time. :x

After a couple of nights of leftovers, it was back to the old routine . . . charcoal-grilled chicken thighs! :P I did mix it up a bit by using some pre-made rub from a friend's company. I normally shy away from pre-made rubs but this one was pretty good.

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Romanesco & Sukenari Aogami Super Kiritsuke, 210mm
Old romanesco (but still in decent enough shape) and a new knife, my first kiritsuke. Not pictured here are a couple of tiny cauliflowers. I chopped and Mrs. Suburban roasted it all in her own inimitable fashion.


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Chicken Thighs Grilling
Hit the end of a 20-pound bag of Nature-Glo and there was very little dust, even at the bottom. 21 minutes covered and indirect. Bird was juicy and fob. I do miss the days when no headlamp was needed for grilling dinner at 6 pm. :(

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Plated Up
Charcoal-grilled chicken thighs with roasted romanesco/cauliflower medley and leftover Thanksgiving dressing & gravy.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Jeff B »

ronnie_suburban wrote: Wed Dec 02, 2020 7:36 pm ...it was back to the old routine . . . charcoal-grilled chicken thighs! :P...
We would never have guessed... :P Looks great plated up. I need to cook cauliflower more often, we get to hung up on Brussel spouts too often.
We have thighs quite often ourselves, one of my wife's favorites. Whenever we see them at the store now I tell my wife to grab them before "Ronnie" get's them! :D
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

ronnie_suburban wrote: Wed Dec 02, 2020 7:36 pm
Ah, okay. When I read "Japanese," I didn't figure Kuhn Rikon. I thought they were a Swiss company. Yes, I have a few of those, too and ironically, one of them is responsible for the deepest, nastiest cut I've given myself in a long time. :x
Ahh good shout, hadn't noticed they were Swiss. Seemed to be on Jknife shops everywhere so assumed Japanese. Yeah I can imagine they'd give a nasty cut. Still never forgot what another peeler did to my knuckle 15 years ago...
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

Quick lunch today, challenge being to use up things and to come up with three 'main' ingredients to put a random dish together. Ended up with lemon, thyme and sardine with pasta. Put together with my 150 Koishi petty, which despite being initially skeptical about the value of petties, I now have a full on bromance with. Will be interesting to see what happens with the Koishi bromance when I receive my new Yoshikane hammered petty I found on Cyber Monday.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by d_rap »

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Just getting started here making borscht. Been thinking about my grandmother after a post the other day, and, well, here's to her!

I browned some meaty short ribs, now simmering with aromatics, and meanwhile I'm sauteing onions, carrots, tomatoes, garlic, and cabbage--beets too naturally, and then combining it all, broth, meat and saute, finishing with some diced yukon golds and then dill and green onion at the end.

The tomatoes and red onions are still from our garden, and the beets are from our friend's garden. Southern California has its downsides, but the climate just keeps on giving for the gardeners among us.

I know we all love the B2 hammered Anryu line, but this 240 AS is no slouch.

Btw, Chappy, you've got me shopping pettys.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

d_rap wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 7:29 pm I know we all love the B2 hammered Anryu line, but this 240 AS is no slouch.
That's a beautiful knife. Looks a lot like a Kono I just picked up. The Anryu knives are such great value, honestly I think if I had bought more than just the nakiri in his lines I would have had a hard time justifying about 70% of my purchases since. The performance is just so great for the price, in my opinion. I used his B#2 nakiri for my Penang curry tonight.
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d_rap wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 7:29 pm Btw, Chappy, you've got me shopping pettys.
Will be fascinated to hear if you end up pressing the button on any... was trying to get a sense of what the hall of famer petties out there were but it seems much harder to research than gyutos.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Jeff B wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 12:45 am I need to cook cauliflower more often, we get to hung up on Brussel spouts too often.
We have thighs quite often ourselves, one of my wife's favorites. Whenever we see them at the store now I tell my wife to grab them before "Ronnie" get's them! :D
LOL - and we need to cook brussels sprouts more often. We just always default to cauliflower because, at least around here, the quality is more consistent. And yes, I will cross state lines to buy chicken thighs! :P
Chappychap wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 9:11 am Ahh good shout, hadn't noticed they were Swiss. Seemed to be on Jknife shops everywhere so assumed Japanese. Yeah I can imagine they'd give a nasty cut. Still never forgot what another peeler did to my knuckle 15 years ago...
I was trying to imagine what a $4 Japanese peeler looked like and wondering why we'd never crossed paths. :lol: In my case, the peeler somehow mistook my finger for a carrot! Go figure. :x
Chappychap wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 4:17 pm . . . Ended up with lemon, thyme and sardine with pasta.
Sounds delicious . . . and nicely resourceful.
d_rap wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 7:29 pm Just getting started here making borscht. Been thinking about my grandmother after a post the other day, and, well, here's to her!

I browned some meaty short ribs, now simmering with aromatics, and meanwhile I'm sauteing onions, carrots, tomatoes, garlic, and cabbage--beets too naturally, and then combining it all, broth, meat and saute, finishing with some diced yukon golds and then dill and green onion at the end.

The tomatoes and red onions are still from our garden, and the beets are from our friend's garden. Southern California has its downsides, but the climate just keeps on giving for the gardeners among us.

I know we all love the B2 hammered Anryu line, but this 240 AS is no slouch.

Btw, Chappy, you've got me shopping pettys.
Always the best inspiration and the dish sounds great. Have to agree with you on the pettys, too. I have a few I really like and I definitely need to use them more often.

Going back to the Thai curry pastes that Chappy first mentioned upthread, a big shout out for the Maesri red curry paste. First time using it tonight. It's a very nice product and was the foundation of a great dinner, Thai-style red curry chicken . . .

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Mise En Place & Sukenari Aogami Super Kiritsuke, 210mm
Palm sugar, Maesri red curry paste (barely visible), serranos & kaffir lime leaves, peanut oil, zucchini, fish sauce, bamboo shoots, coconut milk, chicken thigh meat and gelatinous chicken stock (leftover from Thanksgiving). Not pictured but definitely included later were fresh basil leaves. At least I didn't forget them! 8-)

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Stir Fried Bok Choy
Side dish with garlic, ginger and oyster sauce.

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Plated Up
Thai-style red curry chicken with jasmine rice.

This one's a real keeper. We just loved the intensity and depth of flavor.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

ronnie_suburban wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 8:59 pm Going back to the Thai curry pastes that Chappy first mentioned upthread, a big shout out for the Maesri red curry paste. First time using it tonight. It's a very nice product and was the foundation of a great dinner, Thai-style red curry chicken . . .
That looks seriously delicious. I've managed to track down the Maesi green, yellow and panang, but red only in Mae Plom brand. Sounds like I might need to get on Amazon!

Beaufort kiritsuke too. Have always wondered what the Sukenaris are like.

P.s. this stuff is really great when you're working with a Thai curry base and adding extra vegetables etc that will need to be brought up to the same level of seasoning, in case you haven't seen it yet...

https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/ ... ng-article
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

Breakfast with a steamed egg before work this morning. The Anryu B#2 nakiri was the perfect partner for some fine spring onion slicing (especially whilst I was a bit groggy and not wanting to look after a knife with a tip)
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Having a knife collection that helps me to find the motivation to dip into the kitchen and learn/try something new - whatever my mood, energy levels or preferences in that moment - is the best thing all this to me. Today is a perfect example of how the result of that was that started my day off way better than if I'd just had a bowl of cereal.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Chappychap wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 9:26 pm I've managed to track down the Maesi green, yellow and panang, but red only in Mae Plom brand. Sounds like I might need to get on Amazon!

Beaufort kiritsuke too. Have always wondered what the Sukenaris are like.

P.s. this stuff is really great when you're working with a Thai curry base and adding extra vegetables etc that will need to be brought up to the same level of seasoning, in case you haven't seen it yet...

https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/ ... ng-article
Yeah especially for us right now, we've been leaning hard on the internet for a lot of things that used to be easy pick-ups. Living in a metropolitan area like Chicago, ingredients from all over the globe are usually pretty easy to find. But we're really trying to limit the number and length of our in-person shopping trips these days. As for the kiritsuke, it is certainly beautiful and I plan to get accustomed to how it works for me in the next few days.
Chappychap wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 11:12 am Breakfast with a steamed egg before work this morning . . .

Having a knife collection that helps me to find the motivation to dip into the kitchen and learn/try something new - whatever my mood, energy levels or preferences in that moment - is the best thing all this to me. Today is a perfect example of how the result of that was that started my day off way better than if I'd just had a bowl of cereal.
I can't say it necessarily applied to my cooking day on Friday but yes, I completely agree. Having the right tools for any job always makes doing the job more satisfying. There are so many kitchen tasks -- probably considered drudgery by many others -- that I absolutely love because I'm well outfitted. And the constantly swirling matrix of tools, ingredients, cooking methods and schedule, etc. is an ongoing puzzle, perpetually in need of solving.

That was a big lead-up for a day on which all I cooked was as lowly omelet. Dinner tonight was Week 3 of 4 of a Supper Club-style meal series prepared by local restaurant group we really like. So, with nothing more than a pick-up and reheat needed for that, the only thing left to cook was lunch . . .

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Ham, Cheddar, Scallion and Shallot Omelet
With buttered and toasted, 'seedy square' bread from Bungalow By Middlebrow.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

ronnie_suburban wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 12:44 am As for the kiritsuke, it is certainly beautiful and I plan to get accustomed to how it works for me in the next few days.
Curious how your thoughts develop. I dipped into ktips early on in my collection with a Shibata. Great knife but given the early stage of my collection at that point I ended up going back to non ktips, given the wider variety of choice (and well known high performers) in standard gyutos. I also think I learned to adjust my push cut technique to rely less on the flat profile of a kiritsuke. At some point I can see adding more ktips but I'm currently less knowledgeable on the great ktips to try.
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Chappychap wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 1:26 pm
ronnie_suburban wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 12:44 am As for the kiritsuke, it is certainly beautiful and I plan to get accustomed to how it works for me in the next few days.
Curious how your thoughts develop. I dipped into ktips early on in my collection with a Shibata. Great knife but given the early stage of my collection at that point I ended up going back to non ktips, given the wider variety of choice (and well known high performers) in standard gyutos. I also think I learned to adjust my push cut technique to rely less on the flat profile of a kiritsuke. At some point I can see adding more ktips but I'm currently less knowledgeable on the great ktips to try.
Yeah, my first thought is that it's going to require some significant adjustment in my primary style for it to ever become a daily driver. But I bought it knowing that there'd be some instances when that style of tip would be perfect. So, we shall see. First day out, lots of accordion cuts on the away edges of what I was cutting (or trying to cut).

Btw, thanks for the link to the piece on Red Boat salt. I ordered up a small package of it and I'm excited to check it out.

I guess it's going to be a cleaning-out-the-fridge omelet weekend around here . . .

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Sauteed Mushrooms, Swiss, Shallot and Chive Omelet

I'm pretty sure the mushrooms were extras that didn't find their way into our Thanksgiving dressing. I also peeled a bunch of shallots for that meal, some of which I didn't use, so I've been trying to work them in.

I know that when it comes to omelets, mushroom & swiss is kind of a cliche but hey, it's endured for a reason! 8-)
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Got ahold of some dry-aged (30-45 day) NY Strips from Slagel Farms via Publican Quality Meats (a couple of local outfits) and decided to give it a go on the Weber. To accompany, we went with brussels sprouts, using a method I saw on Babish/youtube that I'd never tried before . . .

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Brussels Sprouts
Trimmed, oiled and seasoned with salt and pepper, these are supposed to go flat-side-down the baking sheet but our sprouts were so big, we had to quarter them, thus only one of the two flat sides is down. And, of course, there's shrapnel corner, too. :)

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Bacon
Lay strips of bacon over the sprouts. And into the oven at 425F for about 40 minutes. The method was good but not without its issues. After 40 minutes, the sprouts were done but the bacon was still flaccid. And the sprouts were swimming in an excessive pool of rendered bacon fat. I took them out and drained/blotted them, while returning the bacon to the oven for another few minutes, until it was crispy.

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Dry-Aged, Bone-In NY Strips
They smelled great, really mineraly and funky, just as I'd expect of dry-aged beef. I guess, from the description on PQM's website, these can be aged anywhere from 30-45 days.

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Bacony Brussels Sprouts
In the end, with some on-the-fly adjustments, these turned out pretty good. The sprouts were tender and tasty and with some extra time in the oven, the bacon did eventually get crispy.

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Plated Up
NY strip, brussels sprouts and leftover sauteed mushrooms. The steaks had nice flavor but surprisingly, were somewhat tough and sinewy. This isn't what I typically expect from dry-aged beef. These certainly had good flavor throughout the chew but the chew lasted way too long! :lol:
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by Chappychap »

ronnie_suburban wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:06 pm
Yeah, my first thought is that it's going to require some significant adjustment in my primary style for it to ever become a daily driver. But I bought it knowing that there'd be some instances when that style of tip would be perfect. So, we shall see. First day out, lots of accordion cuts on the away edges of what I was cutting (or trying to cut).

Btw, thanks for the link to the piece on Red Boat salt. I ordered up a small package of it and I'm excited to check it out.
Yeah I hear ya on the accordian cuts. I take each as a humble reminder that I need to focus on my technique. I still get a lot of humble reminders :lol:

Hope you enjoy experimenting with the anchovy salt. I've started also using it for some stir fry vegetables to accompany a Thai curry - shallots, cauliflower, pepper, bit of freshly ground white pepper makes a great side.
ronnie_suburban wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:06 pm ...too much chew
The steak looks great, although I can hear you also on the chew factor. I think season and sear->sous vide->pat dry and sear is the best I've found for thick cuts so far, although I've been meaning to try Serious Eat's reverse sear (low oven->sear) too. Is the reverse sear how you cooked it tonight?
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Re: What did you cook today?

Post by ronnie_suburban »

Chappychap wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:22 pm
ronnie_suburban wrote: Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:06 pm ...too much chew
The steak looks great, although I can hear you also on the chew factor. I think season and sear->sous vide->pat dry and sear is the best I've found for thick cuts so far, although I've been meaning to try Serious Eat's reverse sear (low oven->sear) too. Is the reverse sear how you cooked it tonight?
I've tried just about every method out there but the one that has served me well -- and almost flawlessly for 30+ years -- is starting the cook directly over lump charcoal, marking/turning the steaks on both sides and then going indirect, with the grill covered, for the remainder of the cook. I've cooked so many successful steaks this way -- of all shapes, thicknesses and cuts (and in all conditions) -- that I can usually guess (just by looking) how long they'll take, without even busting out my thermapen. Tonight's experience really was an outlier. I'd never encountered that kind of end to end, non-exterior sinew in a strip steak before. I mean, to paraphrase Rodney Dangerfield, these steaks "still had marks where the jockey was hitting them." :lol: Some might say it was karma catching up with me for not buying these at my regular butcher. :roll: Dave, if you're reading this, I'm sorry! :oops:

I'm not normally one to eschew (see what I did there?) any method of cooking anything but I'm not a fan of cooking steaks en sous vide, mainly because it just shouldn't be necessary. Yes, I know there are exceptions but in most circumstances, when cooking at home, it's an extra step that, in my experience, doesn't typically move the needle on the result. If I were in a professional or high-volume environment, I'd probably look it it quite differently.
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