DON'T:  Cheese sauce with Mozzerela. - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 31, 2024, 03:44:17 pm
content: Just don't. That is all.Okay, so I tried it. Maybe put too much in. No matter how much milk I added and no matter how much I heating and "folded it together" it still ended up a large blob of .... basically kids slime.It "was" moderately tastey, but I didn't go back for seconds.

author: jpanhalt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 31, 2024, 03:50:35 pm
content: That's why creditcard snot* is not used to lubricate ball bearings.Try parmesan, cotija, or virtually any other cheese.*https://www.amazon.com/Removable-Marketing-Application-Requiring-Removable/dp/B007GA3S74

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 31, 2024, 06:55:04 pm
content: Maybe try cream instead of milkI think there is some recpies I saw for welsh rarebit that made a mozzerella sauce some where

author: rhodges
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2024, 12:29:34 am
content: I think Jack cheese is the only one that makes a good sauce without help. But if you use a small amount of sodium citrate, you can use other cheese as a sauce. Just mix citric acid and baking soda in the correct proportions (in water) to get sodium citrate.

author: tszaboo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2024, 09:36:30 am
content: Also not from Camembert.

author: T3sl4co1l
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2024, 10:22:40 am
content: Yeah, mozz is a cooking not a melting cheese. It's already kinda melted and stretched, so there's a much bigger hurdle to get it to loosen up.Milk helps, but starch is critical; you can't have a stable cheese sauce without milk and starch -- or citrate (and related bits, hexametaphosphate etc.) to make the proteins unlink and get a nacho or process-cheese texture.Avoid excess heat, too; heat almost inevitably "breaks" sauces. It's tricky, because you need to simmer but you need to stay below boiling. Boiling is easy, it's self regulating, but you need juuust enough heat otherwise, and perhaps enough stirring to encourage evaporation (cooling), without getting away from it too long and it starts bubbling.Cheese you can usually get away with overheating as long as it stirs in and starches block it from glopping together, but it might still end up grainy or something. Or you might need the heat to get it to melt, not entirely sure, but it can be hard to melt some cheeses -- hard ones like coarsely shredded parmesan, or cooking ones like mozzarella.Tim

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2024, 12:26:42 pm
content: For me a cheese sauce is a white sauce I added some cheese too. Almost always served with seared chicken strips, sweetcorn, broccoli or peas... on a bed of pasta.Instead of the 2nds going to waste I added another 1/4 pint of milk to the left overs, brought it up to the boil for a few seconds to repasturize and added a bunch of mature chedar.Worth doing it was grand.In the past I have found, if you are after "cheese zest" taste, just drop a table spoon of cheese into a frying pan and turn it into hard brown gloop. Then put that into the normal cheese sauce. You can fish the "bits" out before serviing.

author: Psi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2024, 01:25:56 pm
content: Quote from: rhodges on August 01, 2024, 12:29:34 amyep,Here's a video on it

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2024, 01:40:08 pm
content: I prefer Nile'sThe only cheese I buy is Cheddar, a few Edam like mild cheeses and mozz usually for adding to frozen pizza. I do have a tub of "unnamed" Italian Hard cheese for garnish.I do occasionally purchse the slices of orange "processed cheese", just because I still love opening each slice and eating it from when I was a child.

author: TimNJ
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 19, 2024, 11:42:35 pm
content: Quote from: T3sl4co1l on August 01, 2024, 10:22:40 amWhat are you from Wisconsin or something?

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2024, 12:22:02 am
content: Quote from: paulca on July 31, 2024, 03:44:17 pmWhen you realize that mozzarella is made by kneading the curds in hot liquid to make them stringy, it becomes obvious why it resists dissolving into hot liquid.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2024, 12:37:07 am
content: what if you blend it?

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2024, 12:52:47 am
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on August 20, 2024, 12:37:07 amHow about if you slice it with sliced ripe tomato, drizzle it with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and eat it as a salad?Or how about if you grate it and put it on pizza?This thread is hilarious.

author: T3sl4co1l
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2024, 02:06:31 am
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on August 20, 2024, 12:37:07 amWill It Blend?Quote from: TimNJ on August 19, 2024, 11:42:35 pmBig if true!Tim

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2024, 02:25:54 pm
content: Quote from: IanB on August 20, 2024, 12:52:47 amI'm with Michael on this. Tomatoes are disgusting berries.

author: TimNJ
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2024, 02:39:53 pm
content: Quote from: paulca on August 20, 2024, 02:25:54 pmStore bought tomatoes are generally an abomination. Sounds like your mind is set, but if you can get your hands on a Cherokee Purple or Mortgage Lifter, I *think* you'd change your mind.

author: ohren
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2025, 11:35:21 pm
content: I saw this thread literally minutes after throwing a lasagna topped with a mozzarella white sauce into the oven and sitting down to rest, and I didn't even know there was a cooking section here 😅I tried it for the first time ever because it was just a lasagna made of leftovers and I didn't have any cheese with actual taste at home, but a freezer full of mozzarella (rubber balls) that are used occasionally as pizza topping. It's been in the oven for 15 minutes now, and I'm sorry to disappoint but it worked just fine to make the sauce (photo proof provided). It didn't taste much of anything but that was easily alleviated with nutmeg.Yes, it's a cake form. Nothing else was available.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 06:18:31 am
content: that looks like a prop from alienI think it might be considered good if there was 85% less char on it

author: Analog Kid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 06:31:59 am
content: Quote from: jpanhalt on July 31, 2024, 03:50:35 pmStop right there. That's right, at that cheese:cotija.You have instantly reminded me of one of my all-time favorite places to eat, one which may be known to others who have any familiarity with the part of Silicon Valley located in south Palo Alto*, on Middlefield Road:La Costena. World's greatest taqueria. With cotija as one of their many burrito options.*Apparently they've moved down south to Mountain View.

author: ohren
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 06:56:14 am
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on January 20, 2025, 06:18:31 amIt's not that difficult to spot the difference between charring and caramelization I think. Then again some people throw away the top half of their leeks, and some put their garlic in the trash can after a couple weeks 😉The amount of pickiness varies I suppose. This is fine to eat.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 07:30:25 am
content: I think that is way too dark. I think you wanna carefully do that with a torch, within moderation, or extreme care with the broiler (move it around frequently)I think its unappetizing when its a giant blobI thought of a aluminum sheet with holes in it, to get a checkerboard surface, but I think it should be way less black anyway. Alot of people won't eat that for health reasons when it looks like thatthis is what it should look like, and its on the really heavy side IMOthis one looks betterhttps://www.greencook-intl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/header-caramelization.jpgthis is what I think is good (light)It tastes good when its lightly browned and it won't give you a stomach ache. Sometimes its very hard to avoid dark spots, but its kind of like brazing, it means your going too heavy with the heater. Patience, it reminds me of doing a silver on heavy copper braze, where you wanna get it just the dullest of dull reds so the silver flows without starting some crazy over temperature reactions.

author: ohren
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 10:02:10 pm
content: I tried looking up "broiler" but couldn't pin down exactly what tool you're referring to. I don't know about you, but I don't usually go over a lasagna with a blow torch just to make it look pretty 😄 Even less so a leftover lasagna that I'll be eating on my own.Quote from: coppercone2 on January 20, 2025, 07:30:25 amMy point was that it isn't black. It's not charcoal you're looking at there, but a deep brown.It's not that I prefer it to look like that, but that this just happens when you put lasagna in an oven unless you're meticulously monitoring the temperature/radiation and setting the timer just right so that you catch it before it starts forming bubbles (I usually put an aluminum sheet on top when it's had enough color). That said, I've seen lasagna from brick oven restaurants a lot more "severely burned" — and I'm not even selling this one! Though the problem is compounded when using actual lasagna sheets unless you shatter the top layer (I used cooked spaghetti in this one).Regarding those pictures they look like crème brûlée, which is a bit of a stretch comparison since I'm not going to be sprinkling sugar on top of a lasagna.Maybe I'm wrong about the caramelization as the only source of the brown color — my main point was that it was brown, not blackCaramelization of the lactose is the one thing I know will give that color, but I could be proven wrong, and that it's actually the flour going brown. I just looked it up: the other reasonable candidate would then be "Maillard browning".Seems like a bit of a stretch to view that 0.2 mm layer as particularly unhealthy though if this same process happens whenever you're baking an ordinary loaf of bread 🤷‍♂️I fully admit to being lazy and imprecise when cooking lasagna now after having done it a hundred times 😩

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 10:21:37 pm
content: the problem with broilers is that they have really crappy uniformity. you need to move that stuff around, its way harder then BBQ IMO

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 20, 2025, 11:38:51 pm
content: Quote from: ohren on January 20, 2025, 10:02:10 pmIt's a bit complicated, because it depends which country you are living in. There are different words in different places.In America, a broiler is a part of an oven that provides direct radiant heat from above the food. In Britain and other parts of the world, this is called a grill. A restaurant version of this is called a salamander.In America, a grill typically provides heat and flames to cook food from underneath, often using charcoal. In Britain and other parts of the world this is called a barbeque.Therefore, if you want to brown the top of a dish at the end of cooking, then in America you use a broiler, and in other parts of the world you use a grill.

author: ohren
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 21, 2025, 12:03:39 am
content: Thanks for the rundown. I've always had trouble with those. It becomes especially problematic on the internet, and on mobileI can't even see the little flags.So it was the dish that was supposed to move around. Got it. Why not, I could try that next time.I usually want it to brown in the beginning though, to preserve moisture. Haven't thought about that much. Any cooking theories to the contrary?

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 21, 2025, 12:53:11 am
content: I don't think browning preserves moisture. You need to cover it with a lid or foil to do that. Then uncover it at the end to brown the top under the grill or broiler.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 21, 2025, 01:21:50 am
content: for this one you need to clean the oven and look through the window while you are cooking

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 21, 2025, 01:32:15 am
content: I'm used to seeing many topics starting with or containing the word "Chinese". But then it didn't seem to have anything to do with Chinesium.Mozzarella dissolve fine into sauces. But as with many cheeses, the sauce in question must be a source of friction for the cheese to dissolve and not too warm. Something like spaghetti sauce with vegetables for example works well.How about some Roquefort sauce? Or Mascarpone mixed with in white wine extinguished grilled pine nuts with some fine dry ham on top?

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 21, 2025, 05:18:36 pm
content: Just to highlight how much of a philistine I am regarding food on some nights.Last night I had chicken and cheese sauce with pasta.The pasta came out of a bag and the chicken and "white sauce" came out of a tin. The cheese I added as "undescript" "Grated Italian hard cheese" from a sprinkler.It was lovely. Now in fairness, the "Chicken in White sauce" tins are like £3.60 which is probably why it doesn't taste like garbage and is actually at least 40% chicken.

author: ohren
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 21, 2025, 08:57:14 pm
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on January 21, 2025, 01:21:50 amIt is not necessary. It is not poisonous.

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 22, 2025, 12:38:50 pm
content: Another tip on cheese.We all know that "roasted" cheese is gorgeous. It has such a powerful "zest".As such, if I am making something which starts with frying the meat etc. I add a few grates of cheese in at that point. That cheese gets fried to a crisp by the end, but it releases that roast cheese zest/kick.

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 22, 2025, 12:43:01 pm
content: On "browning" to seal in moisture.I too have this in my catering tool kit. Particularly with "sealing meat" first before cooking as an aim to seal juices in.However, I have come across quite the debate as to whether this does anything worthwhile or not.I know I have thrown a kilo of beef into tinfoil, put it in the oven with nothing else done to it. In 4 hours it was gorgeous. No sealing, no seasoning, no stock nothing. Honestly the tinfoil was full of juice at the end, the meat about half the size it started out. The only change I would make is to season it before next time. Just salt.

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 22, 2025, 02:03:07 pm
content: QuoteChuck some mushrooms onion and garlic in there and it gets even better.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 22, 2025, 03:51:45 pm
content: cafeteria beef

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 22, 2025, 03:57:21 pm
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on January 22, 2025, 03:51:45 pmMonday slop / school dinners. Although that's usually just beef mince and gravy on mashed spuds.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 12:05:54 am
content: baking it is the defacto way to make large amounts of ground beef for cafeteria food, no one is gonna be pan frying thatI think it gives catering food a unique taste that sometimes is craved6 trays of that in the oven can do many pounds of good tasting beef with minimal effortat the end you can even throw it under a broiler individually too.they always use paper too, for easy cleanupbut if it was the end all, people would not be making fun of bake-only meat balls.

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 12:30:56 pm
content: It's an interesting discussion. It usually comes up at Christmas dinner in my family.My mother was taught to cook by her mother. The style of cooking there in is one suited to that VERY busy 1950s mother. Always 100% flat out especially around dinner time. Not least that they seem to think that multi-tasking is efficient.So the cooking matches that "load management" with the multitasking and "prep".Veg is where the battle ground lies. My mothers "classic" cooking tells her to pre-prepare the veg and put it into pans with cold water. Then later at the "right time" they get turned on.This means that all veg, not just potatoes are soaked in cold water, then slowly raised to boiling and allowed to boil for many minutes. Even for things like peas, brocilli etc. "Delicate veg". Sometimes they are then turned off and left to cool until serving.Honestly. If you want the micro-nutrients at all, you would be better off drinking the water. Any and all texture in the veg is destroyed.However. My mother has also cooked in homeless kitchens for 50 people per meal. That is exactly where her style of cooking shines. Quick, bulk, slop.When she remembers, she will set my brocoli aside and "blanch" it for 2 minutes tops. Bless her.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 03:57:38 pm
content: Quote from: paulca on January 23, 2025, 12:30:56 pmPreparing in advance ("mise en place") is actually a good thing. There is nothing worse than trying to prepare food while other things are on the stove and needing attention.However, only potatoes need to be kept in cold water to stop them going brown. Other vegetables can be just placed in an empty pan with the lid on and cooked just before needed.Only when you try to cook a meal does it really become apparent how important timing is for everything to come together at the right time, neither under cooked nor over cooked (or worse, burned).I have to say though, I am quite familiar with food being overcooked. I grew up in a home where meat was not allowed to be pink. So beef and lamb always had to be roasted until they were brown right through to the middle. Nothing I could ever say would change that view.

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 05:13:45 pm
content: Pre-prep in the sense of having things chopped and ready yea.For "delicate" veg like brocoli I chop it to remove most thick stalk and microwave it with butter, salt, pepper for 1 minute (for a single portion).When you open the microwave, the butter has disappeared (so it's healthy right?) and the brocili is steaming. It's soft, but has "bite" and tastes lovely."Sweet, non-starchy veg" like peas, carrots, turnip... I often prefer them raw.Probably the most delicate veg to cook is "baby spinach". Larger harder spinach is easier, but baby spinach leaves... I put an inch of boiling water into my large pan. I put the "frozen" spinach into the bottom of my draining colander, place that inside the pan and put the lid on. 1 to 2 minutes and it's out and on the plate. I don't own a steamer, nor do I need oneIf you over cook it, it basically disintigrates into slime dark green slop that sticks to everything it touches.You touched on one of the things I find most fun about cooking actual meals of many parts. When I did "Quantative Analysis" in software courses when I was 18, I started using techniques from it for cooking. "Task networking" leading to "critical path analysis" facilitating parallelism.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 05:48:04 pm
content: Quote from: paulca on January 23, 2025, 05:13:45 pmBroccoli stalks are also very tasty: just peel the skin off them with a potato peeler and cook them with the florets.QuoteAnd asparagus. You only have to slightly overcook that and it also turns to mush.

author: westfw
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 30, 2025, 02:15:59 am
content: QuoteA thing I discovered is that if you don't want to buy/make sodium citrate, you can sometimes get by with adding some "American cheese" instead. AC is more-or-less an emulsified cheese-and-milk product, so it already contains similar emulsifying agents - enough to smooth out some cheese sauces that are otherwise "difficult."(and AC doesn't have much flavor of its own to ruin the sauce.)

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 30, 2025, 03:44:34 am
content: I noticed I hear more about people getting sick from spinache then most other leafy greens. that one might be better cooked