Tips! The thread.

[RAGER]

The cut you're talking about is either the secreto or the coppa.  Right?

[Pissy]

The coppa I believe.  But my butchery game is pretty slim. 

[Pissy]

This place calls it multifidus dorsi.  At the moment, the only reference I've seen that isn't "Money Muscle". 

https://www.foodfirefriends.com/pork-butt-money-muscle/

[RAGER]

Gonna have to read up on that. I don't think I've ever bought a whole shoulder. It's either the picnic side of the Boston butt. It may run through the whole shoulder. I've cut out cuts described like that though for sure. But not tough at all when cooked to exact doneness. Super tender. But I'm no bbq master.

[Pissy]

Right.  Some people refer to it as one end of the tenderloin, but others dispute, apparently.  I've never bought a whole shoulder either to determine how far into the picnic it may go. 

But it's opposite the bone side of the butt, and you have to poke at it a little to find it. 

[Lumpy]

If you see a "Honey Gold" pineapple at the store, buy it. They're great! Very sweet, above-average pineapples. A little expensive (cost about $4 or even up to $5 here, which is a dollar or two more than usual) but totally worth it, IMO.

One of my friends tipped me off that the way to find a sweet pineapple is to pick one with less green skin, it should be more yellow or brown, and less green. The honey gold ones have almost completely yellow/brown skin.

#piebapple

[RAGER]

Where do they come from?  We usually get the ones from Maui. The only ones we can actually bring from there are the ones at the airport which aren't as good as fresh enjoyed there

[Lumpy]

Idaho, Alaska (get it)

I'm not sure, I'll look at the label when I see one.

[RAGER]

The make tepache from the peels.

[Muffin Man]

What do I do with 3lbs of peeled garlic cloves? I've got a bag of them in the refrigerator but need a bulk program to extend the shelf life. So far I've made garlic butter which is in the refer. Can I vaccum seal and freeze them. Shoud I make purée and freeze some of that? I also eat the stuff raw but after a few days of that I have to give it a break.

[mortlock]

a cardboard box and salt is what you seek.

[RAGER]

This'll be a long post. Hang tight for the edit.

*EDIT*

Put them all in a sauce pan and cover with olive oil.  bring to a low temp over a long period of time until you like the color or the texture or both. 

Let cool slightly but do not chill.  You need a bit of the steam. 

Drain the very warm cloves into  a container and reserve the oil obviously.  It's delicious now.

Put the warm garlic into a food processor. Blend as you pour in probably a cup and a half at least of the garlic oil or more until it emulsifies.  Pour through a chinois or sieve to remove big solids.  Put in a squeeze bottle to top on 'za flatbreads toast or veggies.

[mortlock]

a good cast iron skillet is key to everything.

[RAGER]

Good thing I have pretty much all cast iron and carbon steel.

[Muffin Man]

Sounds good, I'll make some oil, just need to pick up a nipple bottle - been meaning to get a few for various oils and vinegars, this should really take my kitchen counter up a notch. I heard the garlic oil can go rancid so I'll make a small batch.

What's with the carboard box tip - I'll do a batch of that as well. I've got kosher salt and boxes. Does the kind of salt make a dif?

Was just shopping sieves at amazoo - guess how many they have and how fast they rust? Maybe the big tip here is where do you shop for chef's quality sieves and kitchen stuff like that? I'll take a look over at sur la table...

Thanks mortlock and RAGER

[RAGER]

I'm not sure about the cardboard box and salt thing either.

Another you can do that will keep for quite is mincing a bunch of garlic and slowly frying until crispy and sprinkle that over everything.  Reserving the oil again of course.

[Lumpy]

The honey gold pineapples are from Costa Rica. I saw some smaller ones yesterday labeled "honey glow".

[Muffin Man]

I will also be fermenting the garlic. What a treat to randomly find this little gem. Just to be sure I'll check with Shaft can weigh in

"However, fermenting garlic enhances its nutritional value and makes it easier for the body to digest and to assimilate the essential nutrients", "Fermented garlic seems to surpass the nutritional value of fresh garlic" :

https://probioticscenter.org/fermented-garlic/

[Muffin Man]

Garlic fermenting began. Just shy of 3lbs. The bag over the moat is just to slow the evaporation of the water moat. These are nice crock's from Poland, the moat prevents any contaminents from getting inside but ferment can gas-off. When it get's "cooking" it'll bubble out quite actively, at least cabbage does, not sure about garlic or how long it takes. Will be intersting to see if I have to move it to the garage - inside a kitchen cabinet now.



https://i.ibb.co/861Q7V6/IMG-82.jpg
https://i.ibb.co/xLfhcDP/IMG-81.jpg

[RAGER]

What a crock. heehee

[Muffin Man]

Took a whiff inside the cabinet to see if anything's happening. wow, the fragrance is gorgeous! Not overwhelming (yet) or harsh. Just a nice soft perfume of garlic. Had to inhale a couple times. 

[RAGER]

How's the garlic going? 


Here's a great tip if you live with piggy people who eat everything you're trying to savor. Re label the container with kitchen tape to something undesirable. That waffle cone ice cream you love that everybody keeps eating?  With some tape and a sharpie it becomes "pickled tripe stew 3/18/2016". No one will touch it.

[Muffin Man]

[Muffin Man]

Garlic, first time the lids been opened;
- tastes lightly pickled on two cloves I tried
- cloves have not softened much. Smooshed one with a fork to test, maybe some tendering but minimal.
- some softening of the garlic heat, less sting. Milder bloom eaten raw. More testing to do from sample I pulled
- bubbles patches of something but not stringy or anything. Looks hazy in there
- a mild irritation in the throat from raw clove, minor irritation. Possibly an anti-bacterial affect?
- the smell is obvious as if opening a container of kimchee, not so subtle but has a round distinct complexity to it, not pointy.

Thanks for the motivation to open it up after 18 days. I think I'll let it go for another 2 weeks and see again. The longer the better as far as I care. Eventually looking for a slight mushyness to spread, or stir fry or whatever. Or just eating whole like candy if they stay al dente.

[Pissy]

I've put garlic in oil on the smoker and they come out heavenly.  Oddly it doesn't take as long to roast as I thought it would.  I do a similar thing with honey and habanero, but for the honey not the pepper.