Any serious cooks here ???

senior chef said:
Liberty,
I read through the entire article , but it does not say how Sous Vide works in a restaurant.
If, for example, you have just started up a steak house. Your 1st Saturday night is coming tomorrow. You don't know how many customers you might have. Nor do you know what they will order.
So, if your menu has, say, a 1" thick Filet Mignon how do you proceed to get ready ? What time do you plunge the filets in the water bath ? How many do you prep ?
You see the problem ? I'd have absolutely no idea of how to proceed.
I don't mean to be dense, but it seems like it would take many hours in that water bath to make a thick filet mignon cooked medium .
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Senior Chef,

Have you ever visited the Cheftalk.com site? Lots of professionals there, I'm sure someone could give the information you're looking for.
 

Does anyone besides me cook larger amounts of certain dishes and then freeze the leftovers ?
Yesterday, I made a 4 portion of baked Swiss Steak and then after I'd eaten my fill, I froze 3 individual portions.
My typical freezer contains: Chicken Tetrazzini, Beef Burgundy, meatloaf , Chili con carne, and pizza slices
 
senior chef said:
Does anyone besides me cook larger amounts of certain dishes and then freeze the leftovers ?
Yesterday, I made a 4 portion of baked Swiss Steak and then after I'd eaten my fill, I froze 3 individual portions.
My typical freezer contains: Chicken Tetrazzini, Beef Burgundy, meatloaf , Chili con carne, and pizza slices
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I do that often. Right now my frozen cooked food is: meat loaf, pasta fagioli (without the pasta) chicken parm, Italian beef. All frozen in individual portions.
 

Kika said:
I do that often. Right now my frozen cooked food is: meat loaf, pasta fagioli (without the pasta) chicken parm, Italian beef. All frozen in individual portions.
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Good for you. :)
When going shopping or to the Dr., I often come home too tired to cook. It's nice to have frozen meals ready to heat and eat.
 
senior chef said:
Good for you. :)
When going shopping or to the Dr., I often come home too tired to cook. It's nice to have frozen meals ready to heat and eat.
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I do it basically because it is difficult to cook for one. When I cook, I intentionally make a lot to freeze and to share pints of soup with an elderly neighbor. (She really is elderly compared to me. I'm 75 and she is 20 yrs older and in great shape)
 
Recipe: Chicken Tetrazzini
easy and fast to make :)

This is my own variation on the classic Italian dish.
Needed: oval shaped Au Gratin dishes. AND a toaster oven. set to both bake and broil.
Serves 2-3 persons, depending upon amounts used.

2 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Cut into pieces aprox the size of the last joint of your thumb.
2/3 cup of cubed ham. Cut into pieces aprox a tad larger than dice. (I use "Cook's Ham steak")
1 small can of sliced mushrooms
2 cans of Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup.
1 can of milk , use soup can from above. (if not on a diet, 1/2 and 1/2 is optional). adds extra richness.
1 Extra large bay leaf
3 TBLSP of grated parmesan cheese.
a very, very light sprinkling of ground WHITE pepper.
salt to taste
2 TBLSP dry sherry (optional)
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Spaghetti pasta for the number of people you are serving.
Grated Mozzarella cheese

Heat a lg frying pan on med-low. When up to temp, add a splash of veg oil.
Toss in chicken. Do NOT brown but cook them through.
Add ham steak cubes.
Add sliced, drained mushrooms.
Add 2 cans of Mushroom soup and 1 can of milk.
Turn heat down very low.
Add large Bay leaf.
Add grated parmesan cheese.
Stir well.
When mixture is slightly bubbling, taste for salt . Add, if you like a tad more salt.
Very, very lightly sprinkle on WHITE pepper. Taste as you add. You'll want a very slight "heat" to the sauce.
At a very low simmer, cook for 20 minutes.
Cover and let rest 1 hour to blend in the flavors.
REMOVE BAY LEAF.
At suppertime, add 2 TBLSP dry sherry.
Stir well and keep a very low heat. As some of the liquid evaporates , add more milk.
**************************************************************************
cook your spaghetti pasta. I recommend cooking it al dente.
Drain pasta well.
Place pasta in au gratin dishes.
Spoon sauce and chicken over the pasta. Around the edges, spoon extra sauce.
Sprinkle on the grated Mozzarella cheese and run under the HOT broiler until cheese STARTS to slightly brown. ("kinda like cheese on a pizza) KEEP A SHARP EYE ON THE CHEESE. IF YOU WALK AWAY, CHEESE WILL BURN.
Put finished dish on a dinner plate and serve immediately.
 
caroln said:
Thank you! I'll follow your advise the next time I fry and let you know how it turned out!
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senior chef said:
Certainly, I would be ok with people asking advise.

RE: breading that STICKS.
1st, use paper towels to dry the meat.
If you are breading, say, a culet, dip it in an EGG WHITE wash. NO YOLKS. Rub it in a tad.
THEN, press in the bread crumbs. Let the cutlet rest for10 min or so, before frying.

Strictly following these steps will result in a breading/coating that sticks every time. NEVER , EVER DRAIN ON PAPER TOWELS. THAT CAUSE THE MEAT TO STEAM AND IT WILL PUSH THE BREADING OFF.

Happy frying. :)
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@senior chef, Here's an update on my last attempt on breaded pork chops: I followed the directions you gave, and also rested the chops on a wire rack before plating them. They looked beautiful, but as soon as I cut into one, the breading started falling off as usual. But at least the breading didn't fall off in the pan this time. I'm making progress!
 
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I am not exactly a serious cook, but I do enjoy cooking. I now just cook for myself and that is a lot more difficult preparing a meal. I do find I have a lot of leftovers.
 
Lee said:
Guess I am the type of cook/baker that likes recipes that do not require exotic ingredients that you pay extra $$$ and then never use again or they go bad. I consider myself good, not excellent in the kitchen. I'll give myself a 7 out of 10

Ricardo is one chef I like to follow. Most stuff I have in the pantry. The one from New York, Ina something or other I pass over.

But I will keep an eye on this thread
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Taste Of Home usually has recipes with ingredients that are in the pantry.
 
caroln said:
@senior chef, Here's an update on my last attempt on breaded pork chops: I followed the directions you gave, and also rested the chops on a wire rack before plating them. They looked beautiful, but as soon as I cut into one, the breading started falling off as usual. But at least the breading didn't fall off in the pan this time. I'm making progress!
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Are you pressing the bread crumbs FIRMLY into the pork chops? If that does not work for you, try POUNDING the bread crumbs into the pork chops with a kitchen mallet. No mallet ? Use a rolling pin. Also, try drying the egg white for awhile AFTER you have dipped/kneaded the egg white into the pork. ONLY THEN, pound the bread crumbs in.
 
senior chef said:
Are you pressing the bread crumbs FIRMLY into the pork chops? If that does not work for you, try POUNDING the bread crumbs into the pork chops with a kitchen mallet. No mallet ? Use a rolling pin. Also, try drying the egg white for awhile AFTER you have dipped/kneaded the egg white into the pork. ONLY THEN, pound the bread crumbs in.
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I thought I pressed firmly, but not as vigorously as that! I'll try, try, again. Thank you, Chef.
 
senior chef said:
I used to do a lot of baking, especially breads, but now that I have no one to cook for, I've cut waaay back.
These days , I still do a nice crusty Italian bread. Occasionally, a few baguettes. But , as you know, making baguettes at home is a tad tricky because a good baguette requires a steam injected oven.
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Here’s an incredibly simple bread recipe that I make anytime we have soup.
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon yeast
1 tablespoon salt (or to taste)
Approx 2 cups very hot (not boiling) water

Mix dry ingredients. Add water until the
Mixture is sloppy, not stiff at all. Cover with plastic wrap and a towel. Let it rise for 5 hours

Transfer to a small iron pot that has a well fitting lid. It should just flop out of the bowl…not exactly pour, but it needs little to no help to transfer.

Sprinkle liberally with everything bagel seasoning. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes in 450 degree oven. Remove lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

Cool on wire rack.

I use a Lodge 8” diameter iron pot, not a frypan it’s too shallow

you can add various herbs to make an herb bread. Omit the everything and sprinkle the herbs on top instead. My favorite is the original version.

Here’s a pic showing the pan and bread.

A45F4621-44F2-47BB-8EC4-8B61C49D79BA.jpeg
 


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