Gravy's Cooking Thread

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T

The Master

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A dry aged steak taste the way it does because of the reduced water content, think of a watery sauce vs the luster of a reduced one, and because of a boost of activity in two enzymes.... and you can boost their activity by even more by wet aging your steak, via sous-vide. Adds two steps. Is very worth it.

Sous-vide to the next level: tenderizing beef by s Gourmet Blog

As for the drying part of dry aging, AB's fridge method is the best you're going to do at home.

I've been to some of the top steakhouses in the country and I wouldn't go back to them unless someone else was paying.
 
Borzak

Borzak

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lurkingdirk_sl said:
No way I'm starting with duck. Maybe pork tenderloin, maybe steak. But if I do a duck, it's going to be a whole duck, and it's going to be after I perfect my techniques.
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I would only do a breast or two or something similar. Not an entire duck.
 
Soygen

Soygen

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The Master_sl said:
I've been to some of the top steakhouses in the country and I wouldn't go back to them unless someone else was paying.
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I get to partake in them pretty often, but I'm fortunate enough to always have someone else paying due to my line of work. Places like Peter Luger's are better than any home-prepped steak I've had. I wouldn't pay that money for a steak unless it's a very rare special occasion. I'm way too cheap and enjoy cooking enough to not want to eat out very often on my own dime.

Ao-_sl said:
Speaking of steakhouses... I saw this on BB and was sort of shocked (but not really)...
Watch how some restaurants sneakily craft "steaks"? from lesser parts using "meat glue"? - Boing Boing
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"meat glue" sounds delicious.
 
Ao-

Ao-

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Soygen_sl said:
I get to partake in them pretty often, but I'm fortunate enough to always have someone else paying due to my line of work. Places like Peter Luger's are better than any home-prepped steak I've had. I wouldn't pay that money for a steak unless it's a very rare special occasion. I'm way too cheap and enjoy cooking enough to not want to eat out very often on my own dime.



"meat glue" sounds delicious.
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I was doubtful on it, so I decided to just do some reading:Transglutaminase, aka Meat Glue

Still reading.
 
Soygen

Soygen

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Ao-_sl said:
I was doubtful on it, so I decided to just do some reading:Transglutaminase, aka Meat Glue

Still reading.
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I laughed at this:

SVKmfod.jpg

How to test meat glue: a) Rub a lot of meat glue into a piece of raw chicken; b) if it just smells like chicken your glue is no good; c) If it smells like wet dog you're good to go!
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Lanx

Lanx

<Prior Amod>
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The Master_sl said:
A dry aged steak taste the way it does because of the reduced water content, think of a watery sauce vs the luster of a reduced one, and because of a boost of activity in two enzymes.... and you can boost their activity by even more by wet aging your steak, via sous-vide. Adds two steps. Is very worth it.

Sous-vide to the next level: tenderizing beef by s Gourmet Blog

As for the drying part of dry aging, AB's fridge method is the best you're going to do at home.

I've been to some of the top steakhouses in the country and I wouldn't go back to them unless someone else was paying.
Click to expand...
if i got the horrible instructions right, just cook at:
100 for 1hr
110 for 1hr
then 130 for 2hrs
(i'm just making up these numbers, but are probably the ones i'll use)


btw dry age AB method still availabe to watch (almost all Good Eats are pull off YT, unless you just pay for the food network subscription)
 
Lanx

Lanx

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On my third and last slow cook temp, and just threw in my compare to steak as well, for med rare, lets see in a few hours.
 
chaos

chaos

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Brisket is rubbed and vacuum packed waiting for tomorrow. Tomorrow I'm doing salmon then throwing the brisket in for 48 hrs at 130. My salmon got kind of fucked up, tried to vacuum seal it but I had too much liquid in and it didn't seal right. So it has a ton of air in the bag. No big deal, but Gordon would chew my ass out for sure.

Rather than cut my brisket in thirds, I cut in in two pieces. I was going to make corned beef but Alton is tripping the fuck out if he thinks you can just go buy saltpeter. No where around here sells that shit. So instead I'm having two briskets, one rubbed and one just salt&peppered which will probably be paired with some sort of banging ass sauce. But I just seasoned it and sealed it for freezing for now, probably won't do it for a while.
 
Lanx

Lanx

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chaos_sl said:
My salmon got kind of fucked up, tried to vacuum seal it but I had too much liquid in and it didn't seal right. So it has a ton of air in the bag. No big deal, but Gordon would chew my ass out for sure.
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Did you ever try or get the hand pump version? i only use my foodsaver for the canisters, but i use the ziplock sous vide bags cuz of the liquids (just regular juices and water), even worse if you try to marinade, but the hand pump is nice, you would pump out whatever water into the pump or near the hole and just wash it. Instead of trying to wash that weird ass moat/trough line in the foodsaver.
Amazon.com: Ziploc Vacuum Starter Kit, 3-Quart Bags, 1-Pump: Health Personal Care
 
chaos

chaos

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Yeah I tried, went to a Walmart and two Targets and couldn't find it, but the Foodsaver was on sale at Target so I just went for it.
 
Gravy

Gravy

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We've had the hand vacuum Ziploc bags for awhile now, and it's what I'm planning to use. Amazon still carries the starter kits and bags. You are right, they are very hard to find elsewhere.

I think they are a bit costly, because I'm cheap. They work out to about a dollar a bag for the gallon sized.
 
opiate82

opiate82

Bronze Squire
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chaos_sl said:
My salmon got kind of fucked up, tried to vacuum seal it but I had too much liquid in and it didn't seal right. So it has a ton of air in the bag. No big deal, but Gordon would chew my ass out for sure.
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I've read that for sous-vide you don't want to vacuum seal the fish and instead should use the displacement-ziplock method.

Although some foods benefit from very strong vacuum packing, fish does not. Because fish is so delicate and cooks for a relatively short period of time, we recommend using a zip-top bag and the water displacement method to package fish for sous vide. Adding a small amount of oil to the bag adds extra flavor, and helps coat the fish to prevent it from oxidizing in the presence of any remaining air. If you do use a vacuum sealer, we recommend sealing on the "gentle" setting, or turning the vacuum strength down. Why should you avoid pulling a strong vacuum on fish? Contrary to popular belief, it's not because the fish gets squished by the bag. Rather, it is because the boiling point of water drops dramatically at lower pressure - this is why water comes to a boil faster on top of a mountain that at sea level. So if the vacuum is strong enough, the water inside the fish boils, expands into vapor, and disrupts the delicate cell structure. As a result, your fillet ends up mushy and dry.
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How to Cook Fish Sous Vide | Sansaire
 
T

The Master

Bronze Squire
2,084
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chaos_sl said:
but Alton is tripping the fuck out if he thinks you can just go buy saltpeter. No where around here sells that shit. .
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All hardware stores have it... as a tree stump remover. Also available on Amazon. If you go to a local butcher, he'll either sell it to you or tell you where he gets it. It isn't a grocery store item, but is relatively easy to track down if you ask around.

Also sold at feed stores in 5-10lb bags (usually for horses). This is usually the cheapest way of getting it. Remember you're just looking for 100% potassium nitrate.
 
Ao-

Ao-

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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The Master_sl said:
All hardware stores have it... as a tree stump remover. Also available on Amazon. If you go to a local butcher, he'll either sell it to you or tell you where he gets it. It isn't a grocery store item, but is relatively easy to track down if you ask around.

Also sold at feed stores in 5-10lb bags (usually for horses). This is usually the cheapest way of getting it. Remember you're just looking for 100% potassium nitrate.
Click to expand...
Does this come with a side of "Surveillance by the FBI" too?
 
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