What is the best western/cheap substitute for banana leaf? Southeast Asian recipes such as Amok are sometimes steamed in banana leaf containers. Since these are fairly expensive (and presumably not indefinitely reusable), is it possible to use, say, parchment paper instead?

What is a good low-cost and easy to find substitute for banana leaf in these recipes? (and for Amok in particular) If obvious candidates like parchment paper aren't suitable, why not?

If you can find a local Asian or Mexican specialty food store, you'll be more likely to find them, though they may be in the frozen section. Part of the uniqueness of these leaves is that they impart a slight flavor to the food cooked in them.

  People in the tropics use these huge leaves to line cooking pits and to wrap everything from pigs to rice.  The leaves impart a subtle anise fragrance to food and protect it while it's cooking.  Frozen leaves--once thawed--work just fine.  Boil the leaves before using them to keep them from cracking.  Look for banana leaves among the frozen foods in Asian, Hispanic, or specialty markets.

If you absolutely can't find them there are several substitution options:

  aluminum foil (as food wrapper) OR parchment paper (as food wrapper) OR corn husks (as food wrapper or to cover imus) OR hoja santa leaves (as a food wrapper, also imparts an interesting anise flavor)

Personally, I'd go for other leaves before foil or parchment. Particularly with steaming, I find that parchment can get soggy and may collapse if you're making it into boats, so you might want to test it before going crazy. Foil can be problematic because it can be very easy to puncture unless you get super heavy-duty foil and then you'd potentially lose all of the sauce.

It looks like you can easily make this using small bowls like ramekins, rice bowls or small souffle molds or hollowed out coconut halves. See the video here. The host mentions using the coconut halves due to not being able to find many banana leaves. They may be more expensive to start but you can likely use them many times before needing to exchange them.

I have heard collard greens work good too


If I can't find baking soda or baking powder, what should I do? Suppose I'm somewhere where stores don't seem to stock baking soda or baking powder. Are there other names either of those might be sold under? Or are there things I could substitute?

Related:

How to make baking soda (but apparently you can't really do it)
Substitution for baking soda (but mostly just suggests baking powder)
Making baking powder substitute with baking soda and powdered citric acid (but then you need baking soda)

1. Chemical leaveners

There are two "oldfashioned" chemical leaveners, both still used today in traditional German and Scandinavian gingerbread recipes:

Potassium carbonate (potash or pearl ash) and
Ammonium bicarbonate (salt of heartshorn)

They do have their own quirks and pitfalls, but if nothing else is available...

If you can get baking soda, mix with cream of tartar to make baking powder.
If your store does not stock it, you pharmacy most likely will carry "sodium hydrogen carbonate" (which is another name for baking soda) either as treatment for heartburn, it's an antacid (because it reacts with acid, neutralzing it and making these nice bubbles, as we know from baking...) or as topical treatment for allergic reactions of the skin (poison ivy and others).

2. Biological leaveners

This boils down to Saccharomyces cerevisiae, aka. baker's yeast or brewer's yeast. Of course you get very different results and have to follow a different procedure. But here are some recipes where they are used somewhat interchangeably, e.g. some types of pancakes or waffles and, obviously, bread (vs. sodabread).
The charming thing about yeast is, that if your are really, really far from a store, you can still get your hands on yeast: Start a sourdough using the yeasts naturally occuring on fruits or the air around you.
Probably not the kind of substitution you had in mind, though.

3. No leaveners

With good technique, you can incorporate a lot of air (because that's what all leaveners are supposed to do) in your baking goods by whipping your eggs well. There are various approaches:

You can whip the whole eggs.
Whip the yolks (with hot water or over a water bath to stabilize them) to Zabaione-like consistency.
Whip the whites and fold into your batter.

You will want to bake these batters right away before the bubbles get a chance to burst. The air will expand during baking and the hardening egg/flour-mixture will trap them in the baked goods. Contrary to many recipes out there there is no real need to bake a pound cake or even sponge cake with baking powder if it's done right.

Other recipes without leavener (or rather with the egg trapping steam generated by a rather high water content) are the members of the popover family (Yorkshire pudding in the UK, Pfitzauf in Swabia, some dutch pancakes) and pâté a choux.

Puff pastry relies on thin layers of butter separating the layers of floury dough and trapping steam between them.

Depending on your cookies, cake or funnel cake, you could use self rising flour.


Can I use an induction cooker to restore silica gel's water absorbency? It was mentioned in an answer to my previous question that silica gel can be heated in the oven to restore its water absorbent properties.  I only have access to an induction cooker, so it possible to use that instead?

If you heat silica gel, you will drive out the water from it. What actually happens depends on how you heat it, and how hot it gets.

If you have a thick layer, you may not be able to effectively dehydrate the crystals in a reasonable time.

If you try to use a gas oven, you're on a loser because burning gas makes water and carbon dioxide - it takes ages trying to do the job with moist heat.

You might be able to do a thin layer in the bottom of a pan on an induction cooker, but remember that you cannot achieve temperature control very easily. The optimum range to regenerate the silica gel is 120 degC to 140 degC, and you really want a gradual temperature rise to do the job effectively - better to hold the stuff at 80 to 90 deg C for half an hour before you go to 120 deg C.

If you try to dehydrate too quickly, the crystals will crack and break up, so you may end up with a fine powder, rather than crystals.

Wow that's a tricky one!  If I had to, not saying that you should (had to CYA) I would use a cast iron pot.  Cast iron is the only material that I know, that can heat empty without any ill effects.  I would make a rack from crumpled foil (aluminum) since it doesn’t conduct the heat from the induction cooker and will prevent contact with the bottom.  Also keep the lid slightly cracked for venting and to prevent the heat from building to high.  There are different melting points to various plastics, so I would keep the temperate under 200 degrees since plastic food wrap melts at approx. 220 deg.  An oven thermometer would be a wise investment.  This may take longer to dry out the Silica Gel but if an induction cooker is the only method available to me, this would be the safer choice.


Can I still eat this fish? I just found a couple of salmon fillets in my freezer that seem to have been there for about two years. Are they still edible, or should I bin them?

I agree with yossarian, if I question it, I chuck it.  Although in this case, the salmon probably will not harm you, it might just taste bad.  Loss of moisture (freezer burn), taking on of flavours, etc.  I wouldn't eat it because it wouldn't taste great.   My father-in-law would eat it, because you don't throw out food (his rule).  Bottom line, if it has been in the freezer for those two years straight, it won't give you food poisoning or harm you.  It's just a matter of palate.  But rest assured, it won't taste great.

I see no-one has bothered to listen to the posting guidelines in terms of answering the question.
No don't eat it. It is way past food safety recommendations. If you were a restaurant, cafe or any food outlet the maximum "use by" for all products that are frozen is 6 months. There are reasons for this, the cell walls get damaged and freezer burn sets in where a certain dryness affects the quality of the food so even though it may not kill you the quality would probably have deteriorated. Bacteria lays dormant in a freezer so they wouldn't spoil like in a fridge or at room temperature but still be active once defrosted.

I hope this helps people. You should really stick a label on your frozen things to help keep track of the date


How is "nacho sliced" jalapeño different from regular sliced? I noticed that my grocery store sells jalapeño that is "nacho sliced". How is this different (if at all) than just normal "sliced"?

I do understand that the product on the right is labeled "no heat", and that is a significant difference between these products. I am not asking what the difference between these products is in general: I am asking specifically about nacho-sliced-ness. How is a "nacho sliced jalapeño" different from an ordinary "sliced jalapeño"?

Bonus question: why are nachos pictured on the jalapeño that is not "nacho sliced"?

As near as I can determine, "nacho sliced" is simply a marketing term for such pre-sliced, pickled jalapeno peppers.  A quick Google for the term brings up several brands which appear identical to one another.  There are also similar combinations of the words such as "nacho jalapenos, sliced".  The bottle on the right is the only one labelled as such, but they're basically the exact same thing.

So, the only difference?  The "no heat" on the right-hand bottle, and some other subtle changes to the packaging.  It's marketing fluff, not a real distinction.

Bonus answer: they probably decided that the picture on the right bottle looked healthier, or lighter, or more colorful, or some dang thing.

They were two different items (one had heat and one didn't), but they discontinued the no heat one.


What is the best/easiest way to juice a watermelon? Last year, I had a lot of leftover watermelon from a full-size melon and I pressed it in a strainer to get out the seeds and pulp, but it took forever.

(I then froze the juice in ice trays and stored them in ziploc bags in the freezer - it makes a great margarita in the blender.)

Now that we are getting great local watermelon again, I thought it would be a good use (I've got a huge half a melon taking up space in the fridge)

Are powered juicers any good for this?  Would they work with watermelon (obviously cut up with the rind removed)  Would I have to remove the seeds manually first?

(I found this ridiculous video of Rener Gracie, BTW: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClIepBc7z6s)

Apparently, they claim that the $20 Gracie Juice Bag (http://www.gracieacademy.com/storeitem.asp?r=74903) is more efficient to use on watermelon than the juicer they sell on the site.

The way that i found to juice mine is leave the rind on, mash the melon to bits inside of it, cut a spout in the rind for easy pouring, line my stock pot with chese cloth (although i'm sure a lot of other things would form a great strainer), then just pour the whole thing into the stock pot. I then wrap the cheese cloth up and tie it off with a rubber band. Then you place a plate on top of the cloth and weight it down with a book. Check back every one or two hours to tighten the cheese cloth up and you end up with a lot of juice and none of the nasty bits.  I also tend let the contraption sit in the fridge while it does it's work but it will work just fine on a counter top.  The set up takes me about ten minutes.

The Gracie juice bag is a great option to juice watermelon. I have one and it works great; as fare as the price its only $10.


How to make a non-salty cheesecake? There are lots of American cheese cake recipes which call for cream cheese. And I don't know about cream cheese in the USA, but in Europe, cream cheese is salted. It may be not as salty as, say, feta, but the salt is definitely noticeable. As a result, my cheesecake's taste is a combination of sweet and salty.

Do you have any ideas how to solve the problem? Of course, it would be perfect if you can tell me a brand of cream cheese without salt which I can get in Germany. But if not, I would like to hear ideas about how to make the salt less noticeable. Adding more sugar or using a different kind of cheese (e.g. mascarpone) are not an option. Or if it is normal for a cheesecake to taste that way (I have never eaten a genuine American cheesecake), please tell me so I can stop worrying about my cakes.

Also, I have observed that a cheesecake tastes less salty after a day or two. Is this real, or just my imagination (or me getting accustomed to the taste)? If true, what causes this to happen?

I would 'cut' a standard cream cheese like Philadelphia with mascarpone, which is essentially triple cream with a cream cheese-like texture.

You'll have to make your own cream cheese from scratch. It's a hassle to make, but you get to control what goes into your cheesecake.


Can ricotta be made with UHT milk? I live in an area where ricotta cheese is non existent, and all the dairy products I have access to are high temp pasteurized. Will that work?  Are there any herbs in ricotta? I'm trying to make my lasagna without it, and it would just would not be the same.

AFAIK, there are not herbs in ricotta, but there's nothing preventing you to add herb to it, I do it all the time when using it on toasts; and would be acceptable for a lasagna.


How to pan sear a thin steak? I'm doing something really simple right now, sprinkling pepper over one side of a half-inch thick steak and throwing it in a pan of butter.

But by the time it's cooked through (I want medium rare), the outside is just a sickly grey.

How can I get the steak to look good?

Edit:

They're actually even thinner, maybe less than half an inch. And they keep cooking through to well done and grey on the inside almost immediately!

I would actually recommend the opposite of what was said above. Since the meat is so thin you may have much better results pan searing it in an extremely hot pan from slightly frozen. This way the outermost layer will start to undergo the maillard reaction long before the inside of the steak reaches a medium-rare temp and will give you a better chance of preventing it from overcooking.

This link provides an overview of the process for a much larger piece of meat then your using but the searing process is what your concerned most with since your steaks are so thin. You will likely have to play with the timing a little bit with regards to how frozen the steak needs to start out but I figure erring on the side of too frozen is best since you can then heat them in the oven to the internal temp your looking for.

http://www.thekitchn.com/for-the-perfect-steak-first-freeze-it-solid-then-cook-for-an-hour-165793

I cooked my thin rib eye steaks on a porcelain pan. I added butter and I cooked the steaks for 1 minute and 15 seconds per side over a medium flame. Adding salt and pepper were my only spices. My steaks tasted fantastic!


What percentage of my chicken legs are bone I usually buy chicken legs in a pack of four from the supermarket and the packet comes at 1000grams.

This would mean that each leg should be 250 grams.

I am trying to calculate how many calories are in each leg after I cook them. (I cook them on the bone without the skin in the oven)

I usually eat my chicken legs on the go so weighing them before and after I eat the meat is not an option.

I am not sure if my chicken legs would be considered small, medium or large and am trying to calculate the amount of calories I eat when I eat each chicken leg.

If anybody has any idea this would be of great help

27% is the percentage of raw bone in a chicken leg.

Source: Bone Percentage in Raw Meaty Bones

Nutrition Facts

Calories in Church's Chicken: Original Chicken Leg (with Skin)

Serving Size: 1 serving

Amount Per Serving
Calories 140.0


How long will a shooter's sandwich keep? A shooter's sandwich is intended to be eaten a long time after it is made. I understand that it originated, pre-refrigeration, as a meal that could be prepared the night before and taken on a hunt the next day. This recipe recommends keeping it in a cool place for at least 6 hours, or preferably overnight.

I am wondering how safe it is.

Could I prepare it late on Dec 30th, refrigerate it overnight, and then take on a camping trip for New Year's Eve, and still enjoy it (as a hangover cure) on New Year's Day, 36 hours after cooking it, without risking my stomach (as well as my liver)?

Or is that just looking for trouble?

The shooter's sandwich you linked involves cooked mushrooms and fried steaks. In contemporary food safety practice, this is not shelf-stable at all. It can be held 3-5 days in the fridge, or up to 2 hours at room temperature.

I can imagine that hunters did take it on longer trips historically. They lived in a time when mild food poisoning (symptoms limited to bloating and light diarrhoe) was commonplace, and the average person experienced it as often as the common cold, if not a bit more frequently. More serious types of foodborne illness were less frequent, but still appeared with some regularity in a given population.

There are two reasons we don't eat this way today. First, our standard of living is higher. We have the possibility to drastically reduce our risk of food-borne illness by choosing nutritious shelf-stable food for situations we need it, and we have much higher expectations of our own quality of life, including the expectation that the chance of getting bloating from a sandwich should be close to zero, not close to 10%. Second, our meat today well may have much more pathogen contamination than in the past. If you slaughter one healthy animal in your small farm, the worst you get spread over the meat are some E. coli from inside its own guts, and normal E. coli don't cause too bad symptoms (mutations can be very dangerous, but they are also exceedingly rare). Today, animals are penned together by the thousands, exchanging exotic pathogens while still alive, and then are slaughtered and eviscerated in efficient conveyor-like manner, so that if one cow had some unpleasant bacteria from somewhere, they will probably cross-contaminate the steaks from hundreds of other cows slaughtered in the same shift.

Bottom line: It is absolutely not safe. You are free to decide to take the risk and eat it, but by the usual standards in the food industry, this is an unacceptably high risk, and it is foolish to take it.

First let me point out that most of these ingredients that people would consider "dangerous" if left out, have all been cooked in this recipe.
The most likely place that any bacterium would be introduced is using unwashed hands to pluck the bread from the loaf.
I have made this myself, let the sandwich flatten overnight, refrigerated for 24 hours, then taken out on a hiking trip, where it provided me lunch for the following week stored in a zip=lock bag in my back-pack.


How to prepare dried tortellini? I bought some tortellini with meat at a local mall.

The problem is I didn't buy prepackaged, but just some 200g out of a big bin, at a stand where you just load as much as you need, and get the barcode with the right weight printed - so the simple "follow directions on the package" (as advised by all recipes involving such tortellini when searching for the answer online) doesn't really help.

How do I prepare such tortellini for eating - boiling time? Drop into hot water or bring to boil with water? Add salt to water or salt later? Anything else to remember?

Unfortunately, the above answers would probably be good for fresh tortellini, or frozen or something like that. Following the advice, I had the dried tortellini floating on the surface within a minute or two, puffed a little too. I fished one out, and it was definitely hard. I let them boil for another five minutes and they were barely edible, some even a little crunchy in places.

Last week I managed to hunt down the bulk package at the market (used to fill the bin), and there were directions on it: Boiling time: 15-18 minutes. And yes, since the boiling water cooled down to simmer as I added them. In 15 minutes they were still a little al dente but after another 4 minutes they were entirely soft, and just right.

We found dried tortellini  on sale for .50 a bag.. so of course took them all... however .. even after cooking for 30 min still crunchy inside and had a fishy taste... soooooooo .. I was determined to use these.. I cooked in stock... let cool a bit.. and stuck entire pot in fridge... next day... drained   brought fresh pot of water to boil and re-thermalized... ta daaaaaa  .. perfect!.. made a lovely antipasto dish... ( not bad for .50 cents a bag  lol)


Can cheese be sculpted? Could anyone offer some tips on how to sculpt or mold a large piece of cheddar into a knight of the realm. I have tried on a smaller piece but the cheese tends to crumple and doesn't seem sculpt in the way I expect.

Firm cheeses like cheddar can make excellent material for sculpting, which sounds like what you're after. If you really mean sharpening, well... you'll need a very hard cheese, like an aged Parmagianno Reggiano or Romano to get a good sharp edge, and even then it'll require frequent honing to keep the edge in good condition.

Unfortunately, I've never had success with Knights of the Realm, have you tried starting off with Viscounts or something simple like that?  If you are struggling with room temperature it may be prudent to carve outside in the back garden on a workbench in Scotland.


Help in identifying Scandinavian dessert recipe Background -- I made this recipe as part of a group project (in college) that was preparing different foods from around the world. My group had Scandinavia, but as I didn't find this recipe (one of the girls in the group did), I don't know which country the recipe originates from.

I recall it being a simple recipe, but I'd like to see if I can find the full recipe. From what I remember, it required:

2-3 egg whites, which were whipped into a froth
melting a mixture of dark and milk chocolate morsels together

Both of these were poured onto a cake/cookie layer that had been rolled out in a sheet like way, and then left to freeze overnight. This layer of the dessert was almost wafer like, but was very crumbly (but not very crunchy).

It may or may not contain nuts.

Maybe it was a variant of chokladbiskvier, a Swedish macaroon?

Well, sounds more like German printen typical in Aachen area..


Is white cabbage that has turned rose-colored still safe to eat? We sliced and grated some white cabbage three days ago and left it salted and completely covered in a plastic container. It has since then turned rose-colored. The top layer was pretty dry when I opened it tonight. We had it on our journey and the weather has been pretty cold these days.

The big question: is it bad now? I mean, it didn't taste differently, there was no fermentation... Anybody have a clue if it's still safe to eat? We like to travel around and want to eat some of the cabbage mixed with salad cream in the next few days... So it's only salted and cut right now and completely airtight covered in a plastic container.

Are you trying to make Sauerkraut?

Either way for the pink colour you have a non-desirable bacteria growing. While most Sauerkraut has some of this, it is not always safe to eat. Time to throw it away?

If you salt cabbage, you need to ensure not too much salt is used (1% to 2% max), and make sure it is packed down very firmly, so only anaerobic bacteria will grow in any numbers

It doesn't need to be in a closed container, but it should have a firm fitting lid, without an air gap on the top

Also, once it goes past 20°C (70°F) you run the risk of getting other undesirable bacteria and yeasts, and general food rot

I think the pink is from the salt...
Otherwise, the cabbage would turn brown. The salt acts as a preservative, but the acidity could be reacting to the juices in the cabbage, turning them pink...
Similar chemical reactions also have something to do with why red cabbage is red.


Food was left in Instant Pot for a month and it grew mold. Is it safe to use it after cleaning? I have an Instant Pot. I made some rice about a month ago and haven’t used it since. Unfortunately someone in the house put the cover on the pot with the rice inside and left it there.  I just opened it and it was covered in a very think layer of green mold.

Can I use the Instant Pot again if I clean it with hot water and soap?

Honestly? I would scrub the pot, and then toss it in the dishwasher and be done with it. So long as the smooth surface (notice I did not say scratched up) is clean meaning no visible soil, then running it through the dishwasher with its hot water, detergent and possibly drying cycle will be more than enough. It's not like you have some biochemical experiment you need to avoid doping. Just practice good hygeine with your cooking equipment and you'll be fine.

Don't get so anxious about mold, mold is not necessarily as frightening as people seem to think. To generalize, the truly dangerous mold comes from rotten meat, the mold from rice, bread and vegetables is gross, but much less dangerous.
You do not need to take any extraordinary precautions. Wipe and wash out your pot, use dish soap, and smell it. If it no longer smells like mold, your job is done. If it still smells like mold, use a cleanser, and wash the cleanser off thoroughly. You can also simply boil water in the pot, and that kills all mold as well. Dishwasher shouldn't be necessary at all.

Your nose is the tool you are endowed with to detect dangerous mold, if it doesn't smell awful to you, then it's fine.


What's the best way to grate chocolate? What's the best way to grate chocolate without getting it messy and melting  all over one's fingers? I've been using a fine cheese grater, and while it does the trick, the chocolate melts in my hand as I hold it... How can I improve this process?

I would recommend staying away from a grater and either using a knife or a chocolate chipper (http://www.amazon.com/Lee-43198-Chocolate-Chipper/dp/B00005NUVX). The less friction and the more you keep your hands off it (because your hand will melt it as you have discovered) the better.


How efficient is stock for protein extraction? Proteins from collagen and tissues thicken stock. Fat is rendered too. Since fat settles to the surface after refrigeration, I assume that you can extract most or all of the fat through skimming chilled stock or with a gravy separator. That means that stock can be mostly a liquid protein, like a low calorie protein shake substitute.

My question is how efficient this extraction should be. If I made stock from 2kg of chicken thighs which have Xg protein and Xg fat, what fraction of that protein actually winds up in the stock if cooked in an optimal fashion? (and what is such an optimal fashion?) Are certain fats emulsified in the stock which cannot be skimmed? I have consulted online guides to stock nutrition facts and looked at supermarket varieties, but as we all know, those are thin soupy broths that don't congeal.

From Harlod McGee's "On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen":

  The muscles that make up meat are mainly water and the protein fibers
  that do the work of contraction, which are not dispersable in water.
  The soluble and dispersable materials in muscle include about 1% by
  weight of collagen, 5% other cell proteins, 2% amino acids and other
  savory molecules, 1% sugars and other carbohydates, and 1% minerals,
  mainly phosphorus and potassium. Bones are around 20% collagen, pig
  skin around 30%, and cartilaginous veal knuckles up to 40%. Bones and
  skin are thus much better sources of gelatin and thickening power than
  meat. However, they carry only a small fraction of the other soluble
  molecules that provide flavor. (pg 598)

Accordingly, that 7% (5% + 2%) may be considered the upper bound for protein extraction, which will obviously depend on the specifics of the meat and cooking process. McGee then goes on to discuss the proper process for extraction, starting with cold water gradually heated:

  The cold start and slow heating allow the soluble proteins to escape
  the solids and coagulate slowly, forming large aggregates that either
  rise to the surface and are easily skimmed off, or settle onto the
  sides and bottom. A hot start produces many separate and tiny protein
  particles that reamin suspended and cloud the stock; and a boil churns
  particles and fat droplets into a cloudy suspension and emulsion. (pg 599)

This also indicates that the the amount of emulsified fat will depend greatly on on the cooking process in addition to the fat content of the original ingredients. (I haven't been able to find much on differences in the extraction process for different animal fats.)

Soup, stocks etc. do contain surprising large amounts of fat trapped within the collagen and other dissolved products

Boned chicken at best is 25% protein (15% for chicken with bone). At the very best case, by the time you have added water etc. to make a stock, you will be down to about 5% protein. For pure stocks this will unlikely to be even 1%

Good quality milk is 5% protein


How do I remove turmeric stains from metal/plastic cookware? As much as I value tumeric for its rumoured cancer-battling qualities, I find its tendency to stain anything it comes into contact with (including 'stainless' steel) discouraging to the point that I use it much less than I would like.

In a previous question regarding a tumeric-stained marble mortar and pestle, it was recommended that bleach be used to remove the stain. Is this recommendation applicable across the board? Pots? Pans? Plastic colanders?

I hope there is some other way to remove these stains because I am starting to accrue tumeric stained clothing that I can't bleach, as recommended.

For hard, chemical-resistant surfaces such as marble, bleach or peroxide cleaners will help.  On things like counters, pots and pans, a Magic Eraser will often take off the stain.  Sometimes a harsher abrasive like Comet or Barkeep's Friend will be needed.

Softer or porous materials, including cloth and many plastics often CANNOT BE UNSTAINED.  In my kitchen we treat turmeric like a dangerous chemical -- isolate, contain, and plan ahead to limit exposure.  It's just that destructive.

You might as well tie-dye or bleach white any clothing you get turmeric on; it India it is used as a dye for saris because it will semi-permanently tint cloth.  You can brush off the dry powder harmessly, but when it is moistened and allowed to sit for a moment, the color is pretty much permanent.

Edit: UV+peroxide: I saw a patent for removing turmeric stains from upholstery using UV light and hydrogen peroxide.  You might try soaking fabrics in peroxide or Oxyclean (which uses peroxide) and leaving then out in the sun. Can't hurt right?

Edit: strategies to manage turmeric without making a mess

Plan ahead where you'll use it, and which utensils and vessels will hold it, so you don't mess up anything you don't need to.
Re-use already turmeric-stained items so you don't wreck anything new
Mortars and pestles, tupperware, wooden and soft plastic utensils are a lost cause.  At least the stain is purely cosmetic?
ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS wear an apron.
Keep spilt powder dry (it won't stain) and brush it off with a paper towel into the garbage.  Brushing away promptly keeps you from inadvertently spilling liquid on it, or wiping it with a wet towel during cleanup.  That is, unless you want a neon-green counter and towel?
Whenever you spill something containing turmeric, promptly wipe it off, to reduce staining.
Hard ceramic and porcelain are immune to staining unless the surface is rough. Try to use these for storage.  Glass will stain. Stainless steel is resistant but not immune.

With these strategies, I find I can use turmeric regularly without problems.

who told you that set in tumeric cant be removed? Just use tide to go!


What exactly is "Sushi Grade" fish? What exactly makes some fish "Sushi Grade"?

"Sushi grade" means that it is safe to prepare and eat raw.  In order to do that, it must be frozen to kill any parasites.  That means it either has to be:

Frozen at -20° C (-4° F) for 7 days; or
Frozen at -35° C (-31° F - "flash frozen") for 15 hours.

There aren't any official regulations about the fish itself or its quality, and most sushi/sashimi distributors have much more stringent rules of their own beyond the freezing guarantee.

sushi grade fish is typically salt water fish that has been frozen under very low temperatures to ensure that any harmful bacteria and parasites are killed off. Fresh water fish is not used in sushi because it is considered to be more polluted by the human environment then the saltwater fish.

Source: http://osmsushi.com/sushi-near-me/


Mystery "organ" on the underside of chicken thighs? There is a small, round, black "organ" under chicken thighs, and some people like to eat it.  Identifying this seems to be quite the lingering Internet mystery.

They are there on prepared fried chicken--specifically Popeye's, but I'm sure it's there on any prepared bone-in chicken thigh.  I've read various claims that it's the "oyster", liver, kidney, or a blood vessel.  By "under" the thigh, I mean that it's found on the bony side opposite the meat.

See these pages: 1,  2, 3.  There are tons more if you search.

Photos follow: Chicken thigh with gizzard thing exposed, then removed, then cross section.

As discussed in the comments under the question, I believe the organ in question is a kidney, from the pocket in the pelvis of a thigh butchered in a fairly unusual manner, with that part of the pelvis still attached.

See page 3.21 in the University of Kentucky's PDF of Chapter 3 of Chicken Anatomy and Physiology.   It shows where the kidney's are in the chicken (moderately graphic), and the shape looks quite similar to the mystery item in the original question's photographs, allowing for shrinkage from cooking.

From the looks of the photos what you're seeing is part of the "oyster".  It can sometimes be darker in colour. It's the muscle found near the base of the back where the thigh meets the body.

The texture is slightly different than other parts of the bird.  When cooking a whole bird you pop that bit of meat it's concave bone area and it resembles an oyster in shape.

I provided a link to a webpage that has some nice pics of a bird being cut up.  You'll see about 3/4 down tha page they have the body split down the breast bone showing the inside along the back bone without legs attached.  Notice no organs attached anywhere.  I've NEVER seen any organs still attached inside the body of a comercially cleaned chicken and I've seen more than a truck load of birds in my 15+ years of cooking professionally.

Pics of cleaned chicken

Here's another good pic for you.  It's the concave bone of the pelvis that holds the oyster.  When they cut the bird up for fried chicken they cut the bird in two, down the spine then make three cuts per side and seperate the dumb stick.  One half way up the pelvis, the next one splits the upper body into a wing section and a breat section.  This way you'll end up with 4 fairly equal sized pieces that should cook at about the same time.


Drying fish before cooking - Is it okay to leave it uncovered in the fridge? I found an article where a restaurant chef shared a trick to prevent fish from sticking to the pan : leave it on a plate, uncovered for about an hour in the fridge to dry it out.

When I tried it, my housemate complained that it was "unhygienic" and insisted that I cover it with foil...which kind of defeats the purpose of drying it out in the fridge. I tried to explain that I was drying it out, but she just kept saying "please...its unhygienic..."

(Her food was not even on the same shelf by the way)

Do you think it is okay to leave it uncovered in the fridge? Any alternatives?

Totally safe to have uncovered

Bacteria can't jump off the fish and fly through the air. They can't crawl, swim, walk or ride bikes between items in the fridge by themselves. If you carefully place it in a clean container it is safe. The aroma may carry, but if the fish is fresh it should have little aroma and this will dissipate anyway.

Better Yet, dry it on the counter at room temp

You can also just have the fish out on the counter. This will bring it closer to room temp, and much of cooking and creating good texture is about temperature differences. Starting the fish at a warmer temperature will also help to create good texture and not stick. Do not worry about the safety of this. If the fish is fresh, any bacteria growth that might begin will be immediately killed in the cooking process. You can blot the fish gently right before cooking with paper towels for maximum drying. If the fish is still cold it will have condensation continually forming.

USDA guidelines show the time that food can be in the danger zone. Don't be alarmed by the 'doubling every 20 minutes.' Everything we touch, eat, see, taste, smell has bacteria on it or in it. It takes many doublings and the bacteria have to emit the toxins for something to become dangerous. If you hold food at room temp, it is coming out of refrigeration and into the danger zone, then will be cooked, ending the cycle. If the fish is poor quality to start with AND you have immune system deficiencies, then extra caution is required. Aged, infirm, or otherwise compromised immune systems should be treated with more caution.

To my knowledge is better to cover the food when it goes into the fridge, you can poke holes thru the plastic wrap so there is no moisture. Also you can have it outside at room temperature for up to two hours till it starts growing bacteria (thats only if it was frozen) after the fish reach the temperature of 135 degrees it starts growing bacteria. If you want to dry it use a napkin towel to dry off the excess water before putting it to cook. I'm also a food manager for 3 years now.


What can I substitute for eggs in a pancake recipe? I'd like to make pancakes. I have all the other ingredients that I'd normally use (flour, canola oil, sugar, salt, and corn starch) in a pancake mix, but I don't have any eggs.

Can I substitute milk, or more of one of the other ingredients, in lieu of the eggs?

What you need to substitute is the binding ability of the eggs. There are a few ways to do this...

There are a variety of seeds that produce mucilage when soaked in water. This sticky substance can work very well to bind baked goods together. To use, you soak the seeds or seed meal in water until the water becomes thick. If whole seeds are used, the water may be heated to speed up the process. Some of the most common seeds that have this characteristic are flax, chia, and buckwheat.

An alternate method that will change the characteristic of your pancakes a bit is to incorporate something that contains pectin. This includes many fruits: canned pumpkin, mashed banana, apple sauce, many jams and preserves, etc. The pectin will serve as your binder.

Some eggless pancake recipes also call for small amounts of corn starch (which has some mild binding abilities) or cider vinegar (which aids leavening and helps to tighten dough, but doesn't really bind on it's own).

Mayo didn’t work for me, oil didn’t work for me, but custard powder which is basically cornflour worked beautifully!


Appropriate way to thaw mushrooms I've put a package of sliced mushrooms in the freezer for few days. I plan to use in a vegetable stir fry. What is the appropriate way to thaw the mushrooms?

Leave them out in a cool place (or even the fridge) for 6 or 7 hours to defrost thoroughly. Nothing special required.

Mushroom lose a lot of moisture when frozen. For a stir fry I would treat them as dried mushrooms and soak them first in water, or better yet soak in your prepared cooking sauces and/or stocks

It's best not to use hot water or you end 'cooking' them to long, and they may not taste nice when finished (flavourless or sour)

The solution used to defrost/rehydrate them should be used in the cooking process as it will be nice and mushroomy


Should I fry the chicken first or should I pressure cook it first? I fried the chicken breast in the oil till its surface was brown and then I pressure cooked it.
The result was hard chicken. I found it quite difficult to chew.

What should I do next time to make it utterly soft?

Frying the chicken tends to set the muscle fibers by drawing moisture out. An example of this would be taking a thin (1cm) cutlet and frying it until both sides start to turn golden. It will be pretty dry and hard.

Pressure cooking it on the other hand tends to soften the muscle fibers without drawing moisture in (if anything, its putting moisture in).

So, ideally, you should boil/pressure cook your chicken prior to frying in oil (though do make sure to drain the chicken first to prevent splatters!). Additionally, you should undercook the chicken slightly in the pressure cooker since you'll be finishing it in the fryer.

If you are broasting the chicken, then you are going about the recipe incorrectly by frying then pressure cooking it. When broasting, you should pressure fry - if that makes sense.

Pressure cook first until 'almost' done.  Let it cool.  Pat dry well.  Then batter and fry.


Omiting salt in baking recipes that use chemical leaveners? I'm trying to reduce my salt intake.  I've noticed in baking recipes where baking powder is used they add salt.  Can I omit the salt or would the recipe fail?

I completely agree with Cascabel's answer. I do want to add a bit.

Salt is an amazing flavor enhancer and most (sweet) baked goods use very little (1/4 to 1 tsp) considering that most of the recipes make 12-24 servings (more for cupcakes/cookies etc)  but it does make a difference. Most baked desserts gain quite a bit from having the added salt... and they don't even have to be baked.

Even in things like buttercream frosting, adding a little salt greatly helps to balance the overwhelming sweetness of the frosting and makes it more palatable to adults. All of my favorite buttercream recipes have a small amount of salt.

Anyway, removing the salt won't cause the recipe to fail... I'm sure I've accidentally omitted it several times in the past when I'm in a rush to get stuff in the oven... it can just make the flavors not as strong or remove some of the flavor contrast, so things can taste a bit flatter.

Salt is generally used for flavor in cooking, but when it comes to baking it plays more of an important role. In baking, salt is used to activate the leavening agent in the product-like baking powder or baking soda. This means that if you omit salt all together your product won't rise as much or at all. You should be able to reduce the amount of salt you use and still get your product to rise, but I would not recommend omitting it all together.


Frying Steak - disappointing gray crust, not pink inside Ok so I'm a teenager and I'm starting to get interested in this cooking thing, and in particular, steak.

So anyway, this past week I decided to try my luck at preparing a steak. My family's grill is broken, so I tried to cook it in a pan (after reading and watching plenty of articles and videos on how to cook steak).

So I used some sort of heavy metal pan (I'm not sure what material), and let it heat up on high heat for about 5 minutes. After letting my 3 thin flank steaks sit out for around 30 minutes, I put salt, pepper, and olive oil on them. Next, I put them in the pan and immediately the room filled with smoke.

I opened up windows, doors, and used the vent above the pan but to no avail. Despite all the smoke, the steaks would only seem to turn a bland grey. After a while I had to take them off because I didn't want them to get overdone.

I put the steaks on a plate and covered them with tin foil. After around 10 minutes, I cut into them and they only had a little pink in them. Not the medium rare I was hoping for. Plus, there was the disappointing gray crust.

What did I do wrong? Any help is appreciated.

It sounds to me like you've made a good start and almost got there. You picked a heavy pan and got it hot, and you had in mind the outcome you want. You also recognized that you needed to get your steaks off the pan before they overcooked, showing you have the theory and practice down.
Here's the tweaks I would make to get the result you want:

Oil: Olive oil is a great cooking oil for low temperature but it is not a good choice for high temperature as it will 1) smoke, 2) set on fire in some cases (it's flare-up city on the barbecue) and 3) produce off flavors (as in taste bad). Canola (rapeseed), peanut, sunflower, safflower, ie most vegetable oils will work fine for this. You only need a small amount ensure good heat contact with the pan, not a liberal coating
Seasoning: salt is fine to put on your steak, pepper will burn and turn bitter, I suggest you pepper it just after cooking
Steak choice: Even on a hot pan there won't be enough time to get enough crust on a flank steak (or any thin steak) before the meat inside is done, if you want a crust then you're better off with a thicker steak. A grey outside without any crust is typical with a thin steak. When buying a steak remember that you're better off getting quality over quantity, a small piece of good quality filet or ribeye is better than a slab of a tough old rubber. Personally I have no problem with flank steak, I suggest you marinade it first and get your barbecue working again as a searing hot flame is the way to go for flank

If you're looking for crust on a steak you may want to just flour it a little or use egg and cracker or something like that before you fry it. Cast iron is great idea...good luck in future cooking....oh fried steak is good but grilled is the bomb.


Is it important to warm the flour before making bread? When I was taught to bake bread one of the tips I was given was to warm the flour first.

It's a step I often skip as I haven't really found a quick way to warm it through evenly (but gently) and I don't usually have the time.

Today, for various reasons, I had time to sit the flour by a nice log fire for 2-3 hours and ... hey presto ... the dough was a joy to work with, smooth and elastic etc.

How important do others rate warming the flour? Any tips for doing it quickly that don't involve a "low oven" since I haven't found that very successful.

Edit

For those who haven't heard of it before ... perhaps the intention is to avoid shocking/chilling the yeast when you combine the warm water (yes, of course the water has to be warmed) with the flour. Just wondering.

I beleive this to have some historical base (no citation just me) as historically, storage of flour in underheated homes was in cooler areas, or in a dark/cool place such as a cellar (in quantity) and adding enough heat (via water source) is insufficient to obtain a nice even yeast growth from a starter (also cool).

I say this as my great grandmother used to move her flour and she said this gave a more even texture (less holes) while having fluffy bread as it was stored in an unheated room - which also helped protect it from insects during long storage terms - this was a LONG time ago when I was a kid so I don't remember the exact way she said it.

EDIT: Just a thought: I wonder if kneeding on a warmed surface such as a granite block would do the same thing?  Now I have a reason to install high-end counter tops? :)

A recipe for Whole wheat bread from Lehman's in Kidron, Ohio (a store that sells a lot to the Amish and does things in an old-fashioned way) calls for warming the flour...but doesn't say how, exactly, to do that.


How do I choose frozen fish so that it doesn't release so much water? I bought a package of frozen, individually wrapped, vacuum-sealed pacific cod fillets (about 150-200 grams each) from what I thought was a reputable brand (and not the lowest price) in my nearest supermarket, and attempted to pan-fry it. I defrosted it by running cold water in the sink as advised in this answer (it took about 15 minutes). When I opened the package, a large amount of water had separated from the fish. I carefully dried the fillet with towel paper, coated it with flour and put it in a hot pan over maximal heat as explained in this other question. Despite my efforts and the hot pan, the fish immediately started releasing even more water, dissolving the flour and turning into a small 75-100 grams of boiled, chewy fish fillet instead of a nice fried, tender one.

So I am looking for advice on how to properly choose frozen fish in the first place. I know that it should be properly vacuum-sealed and from a reputable source (whatever that means). But even then, some frozen fishes will loose a lot of water (it was obviously the case here). What qualities should I look for when buying it? Can I tell by the fish aspect or something else if it's good or not? Are some species better than others?

As far as I am aware, you cannot recognize this in advance.

What you describe is due to very damaged cell structure in the fish. The "water" are the fluids contained in and around the fish cells, which make the filets juicy. They flow out when the cell walls in the fish rupture.

The reason for rupturing is that the fluids are water-based, and water expands in the 0 to -4 Celsius range. When meat or fish is flash-frozen, it goes very quickly to under -4, and in the small time it spends in the problem range, the cell walls withstand the pressure from the expanding ice crystals. When it is frozen in a "slow" process, the cell walls rupture. Or, if it was flash-frozen, but sometime during storage it spend long periods above -4, it will also have this problem.

There is no way for you to recognize whether a piece of frozen fish or meat in the supermarket was flash-frozen or not. So sorry, but you have to rely on luck, and maybe try to find if there is a correlation between certain brands and quality by buying them repeatedly.

Fish fillets steaks or whole fish should NOT contain ANY water at all. I have caught, filleted and processed hundreds of pounds of fish of a variety of species, Halibut, salmon, mah mahi, yelowfiun tuna, bonito, mackerel, blue fish, stripers, calico bass, trout and many more and fish flesh is not water logged. The flesh of fish is not water logged like what you unfortunately are forced to get from the supermarket if you can't catch your own. The fish you are buying is filleted and then soaked in water to absorb the water and add weight to the purchase. You and everyone else buying fish like this are being cheated.
All you can do is try and let it drip dry in a collander slowly for a few hours and then put the fillets between paper towels until the water is absorbed.


Are eggs left in car trunk for 3 days safe to eat? I had purchased eggs at the supermarket and i forgot them in the trunk of my car for for 3 days are they still okay to eat?

Would you risk getting sick for ~ $4.  It's not like you left a tin of Beluga caviar in the trunk for 3 days.  Toss them!

Test eggs by submerging them in water. If they float, they are bad and filled with gasses. If they remain on bottom, they're fine. Dry and refrigerate.


Can I dissolve mint in water and drink it? I like mint and sometimes put some in a cup of water. My question is can I grind the mint into a fine powder and dissolve it? Maybe if the water is warm? Usually mint like in this pic

just settles on top of the water and the flavor slowly seeps into the water. If I grind it up even finer will it dissolve? What should I use to grind it?

No, mint won't dissolve in water (leaves are mostly cellulose), but it does make excellent tea.
Boiling water, steep 5-6 minutes.
For best results, I recommending purchasing whole leaf mint intended for use as a tea. That way you can experiment and determine which kind of mint you feel makes the best tea (or make your own blend, I like spearmint tea with a single peppermint leaf thrown in).

Yes, you can, the water wil taste kind of minty then because the flavor of the mint is strained into the water.


Bagels - Baking Soda or Sugar in the Water? I'm looking at highly rated bagel recipes. I'm surprised that many (if not most) of the recipes call for sugar in the water the bagels are boiled in instead of baking soda. That has me a bit puzzled. I always thought that the water is supposed to be alkaline, like lye in the water in old-fashioned pretzel recipes, that it is the alkalinity of the water that give bagels (and soft pretzels) their distinctive chewy texture. What am I missing? Will sugar really create that texture?

The main purpose of adding things to the boil are to promote browning and flavor. The texture of the crust is more a product of gelatinizing the starches by boiling, using a high oven temp, and using a good amount of steam during baking.

You can increase browning two main ways, by promoting the Maillard reaction and/or promoting caramelization.  Baking soda, lye, or sodium carbonate baths increase the Maillard reaction, and increase surface gelatinization by breaking down some starch, but also give the bagels a "pretzely" taste.  You can also promote the Maillard reaction by adding protein to the surface by using an egg or milk wash.  Sugar (white or dark), honey, and malt added either to the boil and/or the dough increase surface caramelization and also lend a subtle glaze.

Personally, I always use malt incorporated both into the dough and into the boil.  It adds a subtle sweetness and cereal flavor that complements the bagels. I find the pretzel taste from an alkaline bath off-putting.  When I don't have malt I use honey, molasses, or brown sugar. I don't use an egg wash either, if you want to add toppings just place the bagel into the topping right out of the boil... they'll stick without anything else.

I think that maybe the sugar is what gives the bagels their delightful glaze once they are baked. I don't know, have never used anything but sugar when dunking my bagel dough! Haven't made them in awhile though.... do you brush on some beaten egg before sprinkling them with your toppings or not? Hmm.... anyway, my bagels always turned out good with sugar in the water.


Can yeast leaven cornmeal? Can yeast leaven cornmeal? If not, why? The lack of gluten?

Most bread recipes that have cornmeal usually use a combination of cornmeal and wheat flour.  I have made pizza crusts with cornmeal leavened with yeast, but they are about 1/3 to 1/2 cornmeal.  Any more than that and they have a texture more like polenta or grits than bread.  Short answer, yes, if you mix the cornmeal with wheat flour.


Is it safe to eat moldy cheese if you slice off the edges? Whenever my cheese gets too old and has a bit of blue/white mold on the side, I'm not sure whether I should throw it completely out or not. Is it safe to eat if I cut off the edge? Should I cut a bit off of all the sides just to be safe?

I'm particularly interested in the answer for cheddar cheese, but answers about other cheese are welcome.

I think it would depend on the cheese.

For a reasonably hard cheese, like cheddar, I have done it, and never gotten sick (your results may vary).
If it's pre-grated, then I would not touch it anymore.
For a softer cheese, like a brie, I would not risk it.

Eat the mold if you want, I do, and have never been sick from it.  Some cheeses such as blue cheese come moldy.  I don't eat cheese if it smells like ammonia.


Does handling a lot of flour cause fingernails to break? I recently started baking bread, including every day for the last month. (I give it away.) Since I began baking so much bread, I've had severe issues with my finger nails. They've have been peeling, and breaking, even all the way until they're super short. It's very uncomfortable.

I'm trying to understand what's happening. Is it possible that handling a lot of flour can cause my nails to break?

If this has never happened before and only seems to be an issue with your fingernails (versus excessive dryness in other skin or areas) I'd say it's either:

a. Flour will absorb moisture from your hands if you're spending a lot of time handmixing or kneading.

b. You're probably washing your hands a lot to remove the flour (and other food particles) and excessive washing with hot water and soap will also dry out your hands.

There are moisturizers that you can purchase specifically to help with your nails. Might not hurt to apply those after you're done with your baking for the day. Also try wearing a thin glove that will allow you to manipulate the dough but keep your hands from being directly in the flour and food. If neither of these things help, you'll want to see a doctor.

Flour absorbs moisture. Dab oil on your nails after you work with flour. The world-record holder for longest nails (Lee Redmond) soaks(-ed) her nails in warm olive oil once a week.


How to help my vegetable beef soup that I added too much tomato to? I was making my homemade vegetable beef soup and put too many cans of tomato sauce and paste in it. My husband says it is a tomato soup instead of a vegetable beef soup. What can I do to improve it?

Like all essentially liquid recipes, once you put two much of something in, its in.  You cannot get it out.

So you have only two choices:

Find a way to mitigate the excess ingredient, or in this case, repurpose it so it seems intentional
Create an additional batch of the soup with reduced or eliminated tomato, and combine them so the proportion is essentially the intended one.

For the first approach, you might embrace the tomato-y-ness of the batch, and add spices or flavors like chilis that compliment that.   Enjoy it for what it is.

The second approach can also be effective, but you will end up with much more soup.  That is great if you are happy soup lovers, or if you can freeze it for later, but may not be practical for everyone.

Add unsweetened condensed milk to dilute the tomato paste


What are the most effective wheat flour substitutes? While not something I'm overly dogmatic about I try to keep my carbohydrate intake relatively low, especially during the day so as to not become tired.

I've found that in some recipes, particularly for pancakes or breading (for frying) I can substitute almond meal or a combination of almond meal and fine parmesan and usually come out okay. In fact almond meal pancakes turn out great.

I'm interested to hear of any other flour substitutes others have used, even if they aren't low carb as it might serve for inspiration to find further subs.

Cheers.

Wheat Flours at Cook's Thesaurus discusses varieties of wheat flours and their substitutions in general baking, yeast breads, and as breading agents.

And here's a reference discussing "the carbohydrate-content, dietary fiber content and 'net carbs' in all types of flour": Carbohydrates in Flour and Baking Foods.

I consult these pages as jumping off points when I'm altering my baking recipes. I'm a big fan of mixing flours to come up with lower-carbohydrate and more nutritionally sound baked goods (white flour isn't the most nutritional option out there, no matter that it's one of the most common options in baking). Oat, spelt, and soy flours figure in a lot of my recipes (note that using soy flour calls reducing the baking temperature called for in a recipe by 25°F, and that soy has a very pronounced flavor that not everyone likes).

The more you learn about the various flour options, the easier it is to make substitutions with confidence, so I encourage you to do a bit of reading. Of course, if you're rushed, baking sites (ones that sell high-quality flour, such as Bob's Red Mill) tend to tell you right on the page how much of their flour to substitute for wheat flour.

As a general rule, the more whole grain flours you use the better because of their higher fiber contents. If you subtract the fiber from the carbohydrate count, you find the net carbohydrate of the flour in question, and it's the net carbohydrate that tells you how your sugar levels will be affected. One carbohydrate serving is 15 grams of carbohydrate total.

One cup of all-purpose flour has 95 grams of carbohydrate and 3 grams of dietary fiber, which gives each cup a net carbohydrate amount of 92 grams (which is 6.13 carb. servings). One cup of whole wheat flour, on the other hand, has 87 grams of carbohydrate and 15 grams of dietary fiber, which gives each cup a net carbohydrate amount of 72 grams (which is 4.8 carb. servings). Even if you're baking a bread that isn't particularly low in carbohydrate, getting the benefit of the increased nutrition and fiber from a whole grain flour will benefit you.

Easy cooked milled oats that is steeped in water for a few hours dissolve. This mix can be used to make an good waffle recipe.


Is it safe to store raw meat alongside pre-cooked produce (ie. ready-made pies) in the fridge? Simply, as the title says I’d like to know if it is safe to store raw meat alongside pre-cooked produce (ie. ready-made pies) in the fridge. Given the ready-made pies still need to be cooked to a high temperature – would this be considered safe?

Ideally, you'd store all meat tightly wrapped and/or in air-tight containers. Further, you'd store the meat on the bottom shelf of the fridge, and the ready-to-eat food above it—just in case the meat leaks juices out, it won't be able to drip onto the ready-to-eat foods. That's perfectly safe, and indeed is what's required in a commercial fridge.

The idea is to avoid any chance of cross-contamination. You don't want juice from the meat dripping or splashing (when you move it, for example) onto anything else.

You also want your pies tightly wrapped, to avoid them drying out or picking up off flavors.

Now, if cross-contamination were to occur, you'd want to use that pie quickly, and when reheating it, you need to make sure to bring its internal temperature—measured with a food thermometer in a few spots—up to 165°F/74°C (just like if you were cooking chicken). I suspect your normal pie reheating doesn't do that.

That's a no no.  Unless any item next to the meat is not cooked to 165-172 prior to eating you may end up with a belly ache.  That is why they invented Tupperware. Never store meats above produce and always make sure they are in a sealed container if you do not have that option.


How do I bake chocolate chip cookies like Subway? I want a chocolate chip cookie like the ones Subway has. Those cookies have a smooth top and chewy texture.

I have a recipe for 3/4 cup fat, 0.5 cup sugar 0,5 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup flour, 1 egg, 2 tsp extract. I get a semi stiff dough, but also an airy cookie, not as dense like Subway. I use room temperature margarine.

I have tried to bake cookies with 2 eggs and with 1 egg, but they always come out wrinkly on top, not as stiff. Is it possible that using an egg and a yolk would work? (But wouldn't that waste a lot of whites if that's how they do it?)

I think as part of this I want a stiff dough, that'll leave the bowl clean, to minimize spread and keep the tops from getting wrinkly as stiffness will keep the the cookies from expanding and contracting. Is that true? If so, I'm afraid that if I add more flour to stiffen the dough will make the cookies cakey - is that the case? How would I avoid that?

It would help if you could supply a complete list of ingredients (including the type of flour you used) and the temperature you are using to bake your cookies and even what shelf in the oven you are baking on.  Were the cookies wrinkled when they came out of the oven or did they wrinkle as they cooled?

A lot of different factors determine how CCC's behave in the oven.  Wrinkly cookies usually mean that the cookies expanded during their bake time then contracted either inside or outside of the oven.  What causes that behavior could involve how much fat is in your cookie dough or how much egg white vs. egg yolk you used or how much leavening you use (more leavening doesn't necessarily mean more rise - sometimes if you have too much leavening your cookies can over-expand then collapse leaving a wrinkly top).  There are other possibilities, but it's hard to make a useful recommendation without knowing the rest of your cookie equation.

You actually would want your cookie dough to be less firm, that way when they are baking they spread out. Whenever they are done baking, you can hit the pan (carefully) against a counter top and it will give them a more wrinkled look.


Why does my roast beef smell wonderful but tastes bland? My crockpot roast beef has the best aroma ever but the flavor of the finished product is only average. I had a 4 pound tri-tip roast and seasoned it with the usual onion, garlic, worcestershire sauce, cumin, basil, beef gravy packet, and enough beef broth to just cover roast in the crockpot. We walked in the door and the delicious aroma filled the whole house. But, when eating the roast, it was just okay. Lots of delicious aroma but very little flavor in the roast beef.

Why is this?

If we're talking about a solid, four pound cut of beef - the only flavor you're ever really going to get is on the exterior and just a little bit into the interior of the meat.

That said, cooking in the spices/components you list still may provide liquid gold.  I would simply take some of the liquid that's leftover in the slow cooker after the roast has cooked and make a gravy out of it.  You'll get the flavors you put in and have something to sauce the interior of the meat - that have been flavored with the juices of the meat as well.

Otherwise, if you're looking to 'infuse' more flavor into the beef itself, you'll need to consider something like a stew rather than a whole cut.

I golden brown the roasts after seasoning with steak or roast seasoning.
put in oven or crockpot.  add a little water, cover and cook until about half way.  then I remove while the roast is still firm to cut through, making about 3/4 in slices.  lay them back in the broth after tasting the broth and see if it needs more of something.  by cutting, the juices will permeate the meat and when you serve, you'll have nice lovely slices.
Finish cooking/baking until they are fork tender..oh my!  delish :)


Is it practical to boil drinking water in a pressure cooker? At my home and relative's homes I've never seen anyone using a pressure cooker to boil water (to make it safe for drinking). They just take an ordinary steel vessel, fill it with tap water, add some salt and jeera seeds, cover the vessel top partially with a lid and let the water reach boiling point.

I just realized that it might be far more efficient to boil water in a pressure cooker until the first whistle sounds, since it's a closed environment that would lose less energy to the environment. It may boil the water faster (less cooking gas consumption), boil it to a higher temperature (greater variety of bacteria dead) and perhaps lose less water to evaporation. Is this practical or are there downsides to this technique because of which people dont use it?

Overall it will make little if any difference.

The pressure cooker won't reach 100&degC; noticeably quicker than a normal pan with a close fitting lid, and the pressure cooker is made of thicker metal which will take more energy to heat. Simply closing the lid would help quite a bit.

If you want to hold it at a boil the sealed lid of a pressure cooker would help, except you can't really monitor the temperature. Waiting until it whistles will mean it has been boiling for long enough to produce enough pressure for a whistle, but that's still a measure of pressure, not time.

There are a few species killed by the temperatures achieved in a pressure cooker, and not at 100&degC; but my understanding is that these aren't the pathogens that tend to contaminate drinking water.

As you're flavouring the water as well, you may have to adapt the quantities of seeds if you use a pressure cooker, because the flavour will extract faster.

never ever boil water in a pressure cooker, because, that may result in serious burn injuries... especially your facial area...


Why does some cake make your tongue thick, and how to prevent it? I'll be baking a cheese-ham cake shortly and I remember that sometimes it makes your tongue 'thick' (for lack of a better word).

The symptoms are the feeling that the tongue/mouth is covered with the cake, like it's sticking to the skin. I'm not sure how to describe it accurately. I've just eaten a commercial grade muffin like cake with the same effect. It makes the mouth dry, maybe.

So, is there information about which flours are more prone to produce this effect? Is this somehow related to the flour? Can it be the butter/grease? The oven temp or the undercooking or overcooking? Maybe a reaction of the leavening agent?

Is there a way to prevent this from happening?

Edit:
Ham-Cheese Cake

150g Cheese (Gouda or Emmental)
200g Ham
2  Chives
100g Butter or Margarine
3  Eggs
100g Flour
1  Tablespoon baking powder
Salt & Pepper

Cut the cheese, ham and chives.

Cream the butter and add the eggs one at a time. Sieve the flour together with the baking powder and the salt, and mix into the butter.

Add the ingredients to the batter and put in the oven at 180ºC for 30'

Meat fat/suet does cause similar effect on tongue and some “acidics”(e.g.lemon, vinegar, wine)  helps to balance it.
If that’s the situation this Q/A may give some ideas for the solution.

Why do fatty foods go with sour ones?

This has baffled me too, for a long time. I just had a delicious muffin for lunch and now have the furry tongue. I get a similar effect from wine with a high level of tannin in it. A good cook told me it has something to do with the ratio of baking powder to flour. Since baking powder is a combo of creme of tartar and bicarbonate, it might be one or the other that is the culprit.

Again, not a good answer, but maybe it adds to the thinking.


Oven temps for cooking in enameled dutch oven What is the temperature needed to bake 1.5 lb boneless pork chops with 2 potatoes and mushrooms in an enameled dutch oven and for how long?

I would suggest an oven at 425 degrees Fahrenheit (218 degrees Celsius) and to use a meat thermometer for an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit (63 degrees Celsius). It would probably take about 20-25 minutes if you sear the meat before putting it in the oven.


Flour vs cornstarch for keeping fresh uncooked pasta from sticking together I am planning on making my first batch of fresh pasta soon and have been researching all of the steps.

One of these steps is to dust a bit of flour on fresh pasta dough to make it easier to work with and to stop freshly cut noodles from sticking together when handling. In some cases I have seen people mention using cornstarch to dust their pasta instead.

What is the difference in using cornstarch vs flour to prevent fresh uncooked noodles and dough from sticking to each other? Is one better than the other?

Use bench (AP) flour for working with your dough. I will sometimes toss the freshly cut pasta with a bit of flour to keep it from sticking together, if my dough is too tacky.  I typically use semolina to keep the freshly cut pasta from sticking to the plate that I place it on. I never use cornstarch for pasta.  Your best bet is to roll into sheets.  Dust those sheets with a bit of flour.  Depending on the humidity level, I let them hang out on the counter for a bit to dry.  Flip over once, you'll get the sense of how much flour is necessary to keep the sheets from sticking to your counter or board. Try to use as little as possible.  The correct dough hydration is a bit tricky and will take some practice. After they air dry for about 10 minutes or so (this could be much shorter if it is very dry), cut your pasta.  Toss with a bit of flour, and place on semolina sprinkled plate or tray.  Once you fill the tray, freeze your fresh pasta (unless cooking immediately).  Then cook from frozen.  Go for it.  Even if you make mistakes, it is edible!  You will get better.

I never dust it. Make dough that's pliable but not sticky, then either dry it on a rack or par-cook it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgbrEOG_imw&t=8m41s


What natural ingredient besides honey and fats can I use to bind a mixture of powders together? So I need to turn super food powders into something more tangible, like a stick form. Honey seems to not be that effective and has a lot of sugar and fats melt quite easily. Water obviously not a good option. What else could I try? Thanks so much for any answers!

You could use nut butter, caramelized sugar, marshmellows or gelatin to bind things together, but it really depends on what is in the powder you are trying to solidify.

I know that vegans and vegetarians use apple sauce instead of eggs.  There are articles out there explaining how to do the maths, and I'm sure you'll find your happiness there...
Hope this helps


What is the difference between granulated cane sugar and granulated sugar? I see two types of sugar in the baking aisle that I can't differentiate: "granulated sugar" and "granulated cane sugar". The latter is considerably more expensive. So, what is the difference between granulated cane sugar and this (unspecified) granulated sugar, and why would I want to choose one over the other?

As I understand it, cane sugar is extracted exclusively from sugar cane, while the other kind (the one that is not labeled as cane) can be a mixture of sucrose from several sources. Is this difference enough to make one a better candidate when cooking? baking? sweetening tea/coffee?

There is no real difference between types of granulated, white sugar. The options you are likely to see are cane sugar and beet sugar. Granulated sugar from sugarcane is often considered "superior" to beet sugar by Americans, but the idea that cane sugar is in any way superior to beet sugar has no basis. Granulated beet sugar and granulated cane sugar are completely interchangeable and indistinguishable. Swapping them will cause no issue.

By the way - this is sugarcane:

These are sugar beets:

I'd post a picture of the granulated sugar made from each, but it seems kind of pointless as they look the same.

On this question (almost an exact duplicate), some posters see a small difference. I never have. The difference between beet sugar and cane sugar

Yes BUT i do not believe that beet sugar has the same setting property when it comes to jam making.


How is boiled rice different from steamed? I recently got into a friendly argument with a coworker about how rice should be prepared.

I insisted that the goal was to steam the rice- too much water and it would boil into a soupy pudding.

She claimed that her uncle's family in a little village in India boils their rice with a lot of water and pours off the excess. She says that the rice is "fine". I don't believe her.

Is it possible to make rice that isn't a sodden mess by boiling it? If so, how does it differ from steamed rice?

It depends a great deal on the kind of rice you use. My father always steamed rice in a closed pot with a measured amount of water using American long grain rice. The ratio was one cup rice to two cups of water.

When I got my own place I used the boiling method but chose Basmati rice, as is commonly used in india. This rice has a longer grain and holds its shape after cooking. I tried the boiling method with American long grain rice and found it also worked well. There is no need to measure the water as you cook by timer and taste the rice before draining. It's something similar to how you might cook pasta.

Contrary to what ElendilTheTall said in his answer, when boiling rice you do not have to make careful measurements of rice an water. You put in enough rice for how ever many people and an excess of water. Too much water. You cook the rice in an open pan, so you can see it. When the rice has cooked long enough, you pick out a few grains on your fork and taste them. If they are just soft enough, not too soft, then you quickly drain the water in a sieve or colander and serve. Timing is crucial.

Now, when I move to China, I found a very different kind on rice. It was shorter grained and required several washes before could be cooked. This rice didn't boil well. The unless really well washed, the rice powder in the water turns in into something reassembling wall paper paste. Instead the steaming method must be used. To steam you need to carefully measure the rice and water to get the correct ration. You put on the heat and cover. When the rice has boiled almost dry, you take it off the heat and serve.

Steamed rice refers to the appearance of the rice as it cooks, (based on the selected temperature) because no bubbles are seen to break the water surface, yet steam is seen escaping from the surface of the water. The water temperature is too high if the water bubbles, and this causes starch to migrate from the interior, to the exterior surface of the rice grains, resulting in soggy, sticky rice.
The rice begins emersed in water, add one tsp of butter, and as the heated water evaporates during the preparation, the final product is essentially "steamed" rather than boiled. With this slow technique, you only need 1-1.5 cups of water/ 1 cup of rice.
Initially select a high temperature until the steam is seen, then immediately lower the heat to a low-medium temperature, before bubbles are seen.
I use parboiled rice because it has been steamed before being packaged, also contributing to a less sticky final-product. Eat well my friends!


Can gelatin change color of butterfly pea tea? I can't find the answer for this question anywhere on the internet. My friend and I made butterfly pea jelly with gelatin and we used the same recipe. Mine came out fine with blue color of butterfly pea flowers but my friend's changed its color to dark purple after adding gelatin.
My friend lives in Asia and me in Europe, so I think our source of ingredients (gelatin, water, flowers) is different. Plus, our method is slightly different. My friend heated the tea to melt gelatin while I stired gelatin over hot water to melt it and then mixed it up with the tea.
My friend is pretty sure it was because of gelatin because she didn't have this problem when trying with agar agar. Although I know butterfly pea tea is very sensitive to pH, I just can't find a good explanation for this. Is it really because of gelatin?

From the Gelatin Manufacturer's Institute of America "Gelatin Handbook": https://nitta-gelatin.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/GMIA_Gelatin-Handbook.pdf

Gelatin in solution is amphoteric, capable of acting either as an acid or as a base. In acidic solutions gelatin is positively charged and migrates as a cation in an electric field.  In alkaline solutions gelatin is negatively charged and migrates as an anion.  The pH of the intermediate point, where the net charge is zero and no movement occurs, is known as the Isoelectric Point (IEP) (28).  Type A gelatin has a broad isoelectric range between pH 7 and 9. Type B has a narrower isoelectric range between pH 4.7 and 5.4 (29-32)

Emphasis mine.
So it does not seem impossible that your various brands of gelatin were produced by different processes and that one would be more acidic than the other. If you had a Type A gelatin and your friend a low-pH Type B, that would explain what you were seeing.
I do not think your method of heating had any effect.

TIL about butterfly pea tea
In general, different ingredients (even same ingredients from different part of the world)  will result in slightly different end product.
As far as I understand, the ph of the water will change the colour of the resulting tea from blue to purple; you should experiment by adding a little bit of acid (lemon juice) to change the acidity of the water.
See https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/what-is-butterfly-pea-flower-tea-hint-it-changes-color


Why does my caramel sauce fail? Every now and then I make caramel sauce for this recipe by caramelizing sugar, but sometimes it either:

Hardens
Burns
Doesn't have that nice caramel colour

What are some tips to avoid the above situations?

The recipe states to:

  Add the sugar to a hot pan over medium heat and caramelize. Slice bananas add to pan, and coat them in the caramel. Add butter and allow to melt. Add the finely sliced chili if you like it hot, and stir. Pour in the rum, and flambe (set it on fire – carefully). Add coconut milk and twirl.

It sounds like you may be having temperature control issues.  If it's not dark enough, keep it over low heat for a bit longer.  If it's hardening/burning, it's probably caused by one of the following:

1) your stovetop (if burner isn't turned low enough or burner is too large and overheats sides of pan)

2) your pan (easy to burn things if your pan isn't sufficiently thick-bottomed)

3) lack of attention during the carmelization process (you need to move the sugar towards the center once carmelization begins to prevent burning at the edges, but not stir it too much).

You might find these extremely detailed directions helpful for troubleshooting.


Can I substitute almond meal for breadcrumbs in meatballs? I am gluten-free and want to make some turkey meatballs. I was thinking about putting almond meal in the mixture. Would that be okay instead of breadcrumbs? If not what would be a good substitute?  I don't really want to buy breadcrumbs or bread for one thing of meatballs. This is not something I make very often.

Go right ahead and use the almond meal.

In its list of uses for almond meal, this source says:

  Use almond meal in place of breadcrumbs in meatballs.

In fact one of the recipes on the site is for Meatballs Parmesan. It calls for ground meat without specifying a type, so I assume your turkey would be fine.

In addition, the description of this
almond meal product states the following:

  Use almond meal in place of bread crumbs in meatballs, or as a coating for chicken and fish.

There is no need whatsoever for breadcrumbs in meatballs, they are there only as a filler (to make more servings)

They are mistakenly labelled as binders (to make everything stick together), but they do not have that property

Most meats when finely ground are themselves good binders

Using eggs or milk is usually sufficient to hold a mixture of ground meat and herbs together

Adding ground nuts will add interesting tastes and textures, but they are just another filler that your binder will have to hold together


Are fungal toxins a significant problem in coffee, and if so, can they be avoided? I stumbled across this blogpost which claims that coffee is awesome for our bodies but only if it doesn't have mycotoxins (toxins generated by fungi).

To quote them:

  One study showed that 91.7% of green coffee beans were contaminated with mold.  This is before they were processed, which allows even more mold to grow.  Another study showed 52% of green coffee beans and almost 50 percent of brewed coffees are moldy.  Coffee is easily one of the largest sources of mycotoxins in the food supply.

They conveniently sell coffee beans that underwent a different process and don't have mycotoxins, so I have to wonder if this is a real problem and if there are ways to avoid it besides buying from them.

Perhaps buying green beans and processing them somehow so the fungi are washed away?

Time to apply a bit of healthy skepticism here:

The blog post:

Is (so far) the first and only one I've ever seen stating mold to be a practical problem in coffee - in the sense of being present in a high enough quantity to matter (mold grows everywhere).
Uses all kinds of weasel words to describe symptoms ("edgy", "cranky", "useless mentally").
Describes symptoms that are well in line with plain old caffeine withdrawal.
Frequently links to other blog posts on the same site, most of which are "top 10 ways" and "top 5 reasons" fluff pieces.
Manages to cite and thoroughly misuse two studies: one from 1995, and another from 2003. Both are about Ochratoxin A (OA), which isn't even the biggest risk; Aflatoxin is. (More on these later).
Advertises a fairly expensive product, sold by the same author.

The author:

Is, according to his LinkedIn profile (which I refuse to link here), the VP of Cloud Security at Trend Micro - a Silicon Valley tech company. I could not find any evidence that he or his his employer has any experience in human biology or nutrition.
Makes all sorts of unusual claims about himself: "He upgraded his brain by >20 IQ points, lowered his biological age, and lost 100 lbs without using calories or exercise."
Has an entire page of testimonials, which he frequently cites as "evidence".
Has an entire site dedicated to product-peddling, including the ubiquitous six-second abs (yes, that's hyperbole) and a $60 "earthing mat".
Has the following disclaimers on the product site (all in tiny print at the bottom):

  The statements made on this website have not been evaluated by the FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Administration).  Our products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

  The information provided by this website or this company is not a substitute for a face-to-face consultation with your physician, and should not be construed as individual medical advice.  The testimonials on this website are individual cases and do not guarantee that you will get the same results.
  In short, he employs tactics which are commonplace among con artists selling magnetic bracelets. In my opinion, all his claims are technobabble, and I think they are not trustworthy.

  The facts and studies:

The largest sample tested was just 60 samples of beans, and was tested from only one source (Brazil). This is fine for individual studies, but in the real world there are hundreds (thousands?) of sources from many different countries. It's safe to say that the current studies don't even come close to testing all of the coffee from around the world.
Both OA studies found an incidence rate of approximately 50% for the OA-producing mold, at wildly different concentrations (minimum 0.2 ppb in one study, maximum 7.8 ppb in another). If this tells me anything at all, it's that you should probably vary your source if you want to minimize your risk.
Neither the FDA nor the EFSA actually have a legal limit for OA, but the EFSA "suggests" a limit of 8 µg/kg, which means that even the worst samples are below the very conservative legal limit.
One study actually tested the incidence of OA in brewed coffee, not just the beans, and found a maximum of 7.8 ppb in the brew (that's 7.8 µg per 1 kg of ground coffee).

For reference, there's an EFSA directive recommending an intake of no more than 120 ng/kg (body weight) per week, which comes out to 8.4 µg/week for a 150 lb/70 kg individual, or 1.2 µg/day.
Based on the worst contamination of brewed coffee (7.8 µg/kg), doing the math, you'd have to consume the brew from 150 g of ground coffee per day. That's about half a standard-sized tin of coffee. Per day. If you drink that much coffee, shame on you.

The 3rd study (the one rumtscho linked to, not cited by the blogger/con artist) looked at Aflatoxin, not Ochratoxin, which actually is regulated by the FDA at a maximum of 20 ppb. This study also showed approximately a 50% incidence rate after roasting, with the highest concentration of AT being 16 µg/kg for decaf (less with caffeine). So that means with any random cup of coffee you have up to a 50% chance of consuming an amount of AT that's still well below the FDA limit - that's very nearly zero risk.
None of the studies test the rate of mold growth on beans while in storage under various conditions (temperature, humidity, etc.), so we can't comment on what happens in storage. So I guess if you want to really be on the safe side, only buy as much coffee as you think you can use in a week or two.

Conclusion:

Don't believe everything that people tell you - especially people with something to sell. Unless you're drinking gallons of coffee a day, brewed coffee is perfectly safe.

I'm the guy who made this coffee. In my opinion, yes, alfatoxins are dangerous for you, and you should drink coffee which doesn't have them. Most coffee gives me awful symptoms, ones so bad I quit coffee for 5 years before I figured it out. Now I only drink this coffee, because it gives me no symptoms, and I am selling it because I believe it is better for others too. My opinion is that

  There are toxins (specifically biogenic amines and mycotoxins) present in coffee at levels high enough to affect how you feel.

Am I saying coffee will kill you? Nope. But bad coffee slows you down - a lot - and low toxin coffee speeds you up - a lot.

To back this opinion, I am currently conducting an IRB-approved study, with Stanford University's assistance, to test the mental performance of people on my Upgraded Coffee vs Starbuck's dark roast. I can also invite you to test the toxin-free coffee for yourself, by purchasing it from me or from other sources (I wrote a blog post "How to find high performance coffee in your city", google it).

My other sources for my opinion are

This study. It shows detectable aflatoxin in 85 of 127 samples. Some (many) were below the legal limit, but the problem is that the legal limit is not the safe limit, it's the economically feasible one.
This conference talk. It says that coffee can contribute up to 25% of your daily "safe" (not by my standards) dose of the OTA toxin.
If you google "coffee mycotoxin" you can find many other studies which have shown the presence of mycotoxin in coffee.

Aaronut's answer suggests that I am not qualified to judge whether coffee with alfatoxins is dangerous. I feel that his "The author section" is an example of "attacking the messenger", which is a poor tactic. Here are my credentials:

I'm a very successful Silicon Valley exec with enough money that I don't need to con people at all.
I run an anti-aging group that brings world-class experts in every month.
My wife is an MD and co-author of my book on nutrition for pregnant women (currently in publishing)
I've lectured internationally on human performance
100 000 people a month read my blog


Can anyone identify this Chinese candy? We just grabbed our customary mint on our way out of the Asian Bistro by our house but when we opened it, it wasn't a mint and the wrapper was almost all in Chinese (I think).  It was an Asian bistro, but most of the food was Chinese, so I'm guessing that it's Chinese.

So the candy was green and definitely fruit flavored, but didn't taste like anything discernable. The fruit on the picture kind of looks like a pear, but not really any of our western pears. (Sorry for the fuzzy image, my phone would not focus and the wrapper was so small, so small)

That is Classic Series Guava Candy made by HongYuan. You can buy a 14oz bag on Amazon, here.

It is called Guava flavored Chinese candy.


What is the way to make a powder of red chilies? I purchase green chilies and in some days many of them turn red.

Can I use my mixer-grinder to grind them into a powder, or is there some other way?  Do I have to roast the peppers before grinding?  Do the seeds have to be removed?

Chilies are dried before grinding.  There are several ways to dry them:

Leave them in an exposed part of the fridge for several weeks. There should be a lot of open air around it, to allow moisture to escape.
String them up outside.  To do this, poke holes and run strings through them and tie the strings up so they're spread out.  For best results, you should do this during hot, dry weather, and ensure they get plenty of sunlight.  Expect it to take several weeks.
Oven-dry them at low temperatures.  You want temperatures to be under 150°F/65°C so as not to cook them, and it will take several hours to a day or two.  Reduce the temperature if you see the peppers darkening or turning black.  Rotate the peppers regularly to allow even drying, and leave the oven door slightly open to allow moisture to escape.  If you wish to have a little more roasted flavor, increase the temperature.
Use a freeze-drying machine or dehydrator.

Discard any peppers with rotten spots, both before and after drying.  Before grinding, remove stems and seeds.

Grinding:
I've successfully used a blade-type coffee grinder to grind dried peppers into flakes. A blender or food processor should also work, assuming you are handling larger quantities.
I must confess puzzlement about what exactly a "mixer-grinder" is, even after consulting the link.  I believe the appliance may not have an exact equivalent in Europe or the United States.  However, if it is suitable for blending or grinding it should work fine for dried peppers.

I should add that you ought to wear gloves when handling the peppers, and beware of the fumes from the dehydrator or oven, as they may be very pungent. In extreme causes, protective goggles may be a good idea.

Many blenders are described as grinders, but they do not grind: they just smash with their whirling blades. However, if you really want to turn the chilli seeds to powder you will have to wait a long time. I think you need a real grinder with a proper grinding wheel. This is often called a mill. Maybe your pepper mill would do this.


How do I ripen a Mango? I've bought a fresh mango for a recipe, I've not used mango fresh before and it's currently pretty green (there didn't seem to be any that were more ripe at the shop) and came with a sticker on informatively saying just "Ripen at home".

So, what's the best environment to help it ripen?
Should it be refrigerated during ripening and/or when ripe?
And how do I reliably tell when it's 'ready'?

You can let it ripe at room temperature.

If you want to slow down the ripening process, put it in the fridge, although this will affect the mango negatively. If you want to speed up the process, put it in a bag with a banana.

When the mango is ready to eat, it will be slightly soft if you press it and you can smell the mango flesh through the peel. The green colour will not totally disappear.

Store them in a warm place along with Hay.


Is raw honey safe to consume? I recently purchased a jar of Very Raw Honey from my local market. I purchased it because it was on sale, but eventually I looked up whether it was safe or not to eat and came across articles such as this and this one. The label on the jar says its 100% unfiltered. Also, I don't know if the articles means truly raw (as in straight from the honey comb) and whether or not the jar of honey I purchased is the same as raw honey that comes straight from the honey comb.

Is it safe to consume? Is the Madhava honey the same stuff that I would get straight from a honey comb?

Upate: So from the post, honey is safe to eat, which I was aware of, but what about raw honey (at least raw honey purchased in stores)? It's still unclear to me.

If the honey has always had a water content below ~18% and is continuously stored in a sealed container (for instance a glass jar), it is perfectly safe to eat as long as you are over 1 year old. In fact, pasteurized honey is inferior in quality. The pollen and spores will remain in there either way, even if they're dead and can only be removed by (expensive) filtering. So if you got an allergy to that, don't eat honey. But they (pollen, yeasts) are not generally harmful. Botulism is not a concern unless you take medication that reduces the amount of acid your stomach produces.

Acid inhibits the growth in the stomach, your (good) bacteria in the gut (after the acid has been neutralized) will then continue to protect you. Since infants don't have sufficient/stable composition of bacteria yet, they are in (higher) danger of getting botulism. But even then, they rarely get infected. No point in taking the risk, tho.

Honey is hygroscopic, meaning it will draw moisture from it's surroundings (hence the sealed container). This effectively prevents pathogens to grow, preserving the honey as long as the water content of the honey remains at or below 18%.

In fact, here in germany, honey may not be subjected to temperatures higher than 40°C, it may contain no additives at all and the only thing you can do to it is filter the pollen out. We still don't have waves of botulism from honey here. In fact, I have never once heard of one.

We buy our honey from boys coming down the street with a 5 Gal. bucket & a honey comb in it. Bring your own bottle. The comb is mashed over a funnel with a rag filter. Into your bottle or jar.  Raw as you can get. Never heard of any one getting sick yet from it. Dip your finger in the honey first & taste it. It comes in many flavors & colors.