The food and drink forum blog thread.

[deleted account]

my cats know exactly when feeding time is (7am- however long it takes them to wake me up, and as soon as I return from work) and are never lazy about making sure that I am aware of this as well, everyday

[RAGER]

This idea works well for humans too.

[RAGER]

Y'all wanna lighten up and talk aboot cookin. Lets talk. Forget about your schizo med shiz and cook something to eat.

[RAGER]

After a couple cockiepoos at my favorite drinkn' joint today I went over to one of my favorite oyster joints and had a couple Trumer's and a half dozen Tillamook sweets and some Kumamotos.  There was a Netarts thrown in there as well.

[RacerX]

^
Too school for school.

[black]

Here's a rookie question (from me, a rookie);

When browning meat (in particular bison or beef) to add to pasta, tacos, whatever, I like to add onions and garlic and peppers and other vegetables. What is the best method to maximize flavor?

-Grill/saute vegetables separately and then add to meat?

-Add the vegetables to the meat while browning it?

-It doesn't matter?

Thanks in advance for any and all answers and reasons!

[Lumpy]

You talking about ground meat? I would start out browning the onions and peppers first by themselves (I start with onions alone, then add peppers, and garlic last) then remove from pan and brown the meat alone, then combine at the last minute. Reasoning: It's really hard to brown food when your pan is really full. And it's hard to brown meat if it's wet (and veggies give off water).

[black]

Makes sense.
Thanks Lumpy!

I have been doing more or less that.
Just in a smaller, separate pan than the meat (yes, ground).
Wasn't sure if I was generating more mess than necessary or if I was robbing the meat of maximum veg flavors.

Anyone else have a preference/style?

[RAGER]

All in the same pan. Meat first. Remove. Then veg the. Add meat back in with veg, deglaze then finish with seasonings to taste.

[black]

Isn't deglaze leaving some of the meat debris in the pan after draining the fat?

[mortlock]

I always do the meat first then add the onions/peppers. if they go in right away, I find I tend to over cook them..

[RAGER]

Deglazing is adding a bit of liquid at the end of browsing to incorporate all the browned bits.

[Lumpy]

Anything stuck to the bottom of the pan. If you don't have brown bits stuck on your pan, don't worry about deglazing.

[mortlock]

Deglazing is adding a bit of liquid at the end of browsing to incorporate all the browned bits.

that's where ive been fucking up this whole time..

[black]

Another rookie question;

Is the liquid added water, or oil?
Is there a certain amount of liquid or is it one of those "wing it" deals?

(o.k., that was three rookie questions)

[RAGER]

Liquid, be it white wine, stock, water, or beer.  How much is dependent upon how you want your results.  A little more if you want a pan sauce a little less if yiou just want to get the crusty bits off the pan and into the finished dish.

[black]

Appreciate it fellas.
Once again, this thread/forum delivers!

[deleted account]

tell a friend!

[Lumpy]

I made pot roast the other day - you're supposed to brown the meat on all sides, before adding liquid and covering the pot. Which I did. Now every surface in my apartment is covered in a fine mist of beef tallow.

[mortlock]

that's sounds kinda sexy..in a weird sort of way..

[neighbor664]

I have realized that I have got really lazy about cooking at home after my years of work travel and living out of a hotel room and the conundrum of an empty fridge upon return/prior to departure. I've always enjoyed cooking for more than just the eating part, I've just fell out of the habit.

I order in, eat24 is my friend, and get take out way more often than I ever have before. I am lucky enough to have places like this http://www.fare-pdq.com as alternitive to garbage fast food though.
I need to get back in the habit of cooking at home more. I could probably stand to save a few dollars too.

I'm sure the solutions are obvious enough, but please help. I need inspiration. Some tips?

[RAGER]

Are you still traveling a lot?

[neighbor664]

I'm traveling far less frequently. Every few months, instead of a few times in a month.

[RAGER]

What you're ordering for delivery or take out probably reflects what you like to eat right?  What are those things?

[neighbor664]

What you're ordering for delivery or take out probably reflects what you like to eat right?  What are those things?

Sometimes, but mostly just what is convenient.
I'll get something from a taqueria or taco truck a couple times a week. Chinese, usually order enough for another meal. There is a sushi/Japanese place a few blocks from me that delivers for free.
Some BBQ of some sort. Hawaiian, Korean or Southern. I hit that Fare PDQ place for a few meals. Since it just me, no one else to cook for or to judge, I may just graze on trail-mix and cereal and call it dinner.

When I'm traveling I tend to try to strike a balance between enjoying some local dishes and pocketing my perdiem by loading the mini fridge with sandwich meat, string cheese and vegi/fruit drinks.

When I do get around to cooking from (mostly) scratch it is usually something I can have over a few meals. Not always by design, it just happens when you live alone.
A big pot of chili, pasta or stew are most common. I might do a rib-eye and some Brussels spouts or greens and maybe some potato or root vegi if I had a chance to stop at the farmers market.

I suppose I used to be much, much more ambitious and creative about cooking when I had people to share it with and less money to spend on convenient solutions. Even when I do have the time I often don't bother probably because of that.

Bottom line: I'm a lazy hermit! I need to work on adopting habits that address both issues.