Gravy's Cooking Thread

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BrutulTM

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amazingribs.com

Meathead's World Famous Memphis Dust Rub Recipe

This popular Memphis dust bbq dry rub recipe is the only seasoning blend you'll ever need for pork, chicken, fish, beef, and veggies. The rub is based on Memphis style BBQ, where ribs are served "dry," letting the seasoning and smoked shine by skipping the sauce.
amazingribs.com

This is the one I use. Nice thing about it is there's no salt in it so you can salt the ribs in advance and then just apply the rub right before you put them in the smoker.
 
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kegkilla

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I'm looking at getting some new cookware. I was considering a cast iron skillet but I'm hearing they're a pain in the ass to clean and maintain? Can't use normal soap and brushes on them? Is this accurate?
 
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BrutulTM said:
amazingribs.com

Meathead's World Famous Memphis Dust Rub Recipe

This popular Memphis dust bbq dry rub recipe is the only seasoning blend you'll ever need for pork, chicken, fish, beef, and veggies. The rub is based on Memphis style BBQ, where ribs are served "dry," letting the seasoning and smoked shine by skipping the sauce.
amazingribs.com

This is the one I use. Nice thing about it is there's no salt in it so you can salt the ribs in advance and then just apply the rub right before you put them in the smoker.
Click to expand...
Have you tried the recipes on that site? The carolina gold sauce looks great, and I'm hoping to use their rubs.
I'd just fucking buy them if they sold them.
 
Burren

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China Bat Soup said:
I'm looking at getting some new cookware. I was considering a cast iron skillet but I'm hearing they're a pain in the ass to clean and maintain? Can't use normal soap and brushes on them? Is this accurate?
Click to expand...

Whenever we use ours, here is the post-cook routine:
- let cool
- put in sink and rinse then wipe down with non-metal tool (just a sponge)
- wipe dry
- put on stove top over low heat until all water evaporates
- get 1/2 teaspoon (or approx.) of olive oil and put into warm cast iron, use paper towel to coat the entire pan (the inside)
- let cool down

If it gets really nasty with tons of stuff stuck onto it, then follow steps one and two above, but after that pour a few table spoons of course salt into the cast iron and use a paper towel and wipe it all over. The salt will scrape/grind off the crusty or burnt food and not damage like some soaps can (not all soaps hurt it though).
 
Lanx

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China Bat Soup said:
I'm looking at getting some new cookware. I was considering a cast iron skillet but I'm hearing they're a pain in the ass to clean and maintain? Can't use normal soap and brushes on them? Is this accurate?
Click to expand...
Burren Burren s routine is most normal, if you can't handle that, maybe don't

in addition to that, i have a 316 Premium Stainless Steel Cast Iron Cleaner, Chainmail Scrubber for Cast Iron Pan Pre-Seasoned Pan Dutch Ovens Waffle Iron Pans Scraper Cast Iron Grill Scraper Skillet Scraper Round (7 Inch)

i use it for my castiron and carbon steel wok.

what you'll learn is that you can't be "lazy" and do the usual, put in sink, pour water on it, and clean in the morning/next day, it'll rust.

i've given a few seasoned cast iron pans as gifts b4, and i've had to rescue these pans... why? rust, ppl just leave em in the sink and you have to scour out the rust, or worse, you have to use vinegar and you gotta reseason the pan again.

btw if youre wondering why you can't use "normal soap" on it, is b/c soap destroys oil and it would destroy the seasoning on the cast iron pan, when we say seasoning on a pan, we mean the thin coat of oil (it's not really like a coat of oil, its like hardened, but we just call it that)

martha stewart has a nice quick video of seasoning initial cleaning


just buy a 20$ lodge and have fun
 
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mkopec

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Meh this isnt some rocket surgery here. If your cast iron rusts for some reason, just wipe it out with a towel dipped in oil. Keep oil on it and treat it just like any other shit that rusts. Best way to season one I found is perfect in summer, heat up your grill outside to 400F or more, put some oil on it and let it bake. Wipe and do it again, wipe and even do it a 3rd time.

People treat this shit like some black art or some shit, its simple, just keep oil on it and your shit will be fine. If it rusts, clean it with oil, its what we used to do with restaurant grilles when they were thoroughly cleaned and de-greased, they would start to rust overnight, just simply wipe them with oil. And if a bit of rust is left behind, it wont kill you lol.
 
chaos

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^ that's basically what I do. I don't use soap, but tbh I think it would be ok if I did. I just use a handled scrub brush to scrub it out after each use, with a scraper for stuck on bits, then dry it and wipe it down with oil. That's pretty much the internet standard, there are a few places that get super fancy with their recommendations but you can ignore all that shit.

Did the babish pastrami today. It is fucking crazy how good that is. The only drawback is that I don't have a deli slicer so I can't get the super thin slices you want. The kids liked it ok, I think they would have liked it better if I could slice it thinner. If I had a deli slicer this would be something I would make regularly. For the short period preceding my death from heart disease.
 
Ninen

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Harbor Freight Tools – Quality Tools at Discount Prices Since 1977

Harbor Freight buys their top quality tools from the same factories that supply our competitors. We cut out the middleman and pass the savings to you!
www.harborfreight.com www.harborfreight.com
image_21658.jpg


I've also seen some of the good quality ones show up in good will once in a while (pre-plague of course).
 
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kegkilla

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Lanx said:
Burren Burren s routine is most normal, if you can't handle that, maybe don't

in addition to that, i have a 316 Premium Stainless Steel Cast Iron Cleaner, Chainmail Scrubber for Cast Iron Pan Pre-Seasoned Pan Dutch Ovens Waffle Iron Pans Scraper Cast Iron Grill Scraper Skillet Scraper Round (7 Inch)

i use it for my castiron and carbon steel wok.

what you'll learn is that you can't be "lazy" and do the usual, put in sink, pour water on it, and clean in the morning/next day, it'll rust.

i've given a few seasoned cast iron pans as gifts b4, and i've had to rescue these pans... why? rust, ppl just leave em in the sink and you have to scour out the rust, or worse, you have to use vinegar and you gotta reseason the pan again.

btw if youre wondering why you can't use "normal soap" on it, is b/c soap destroys oil and it would destroy the seasoning on the cast iron pan, when we say seasoning on a pan, we mean the thin coat of oil (it's not really like a coat of oil, its like hardened, but we just call it that)

martha stewart has a nice quick video of seasoning initial cleaning


just buy a 20$ lodge and have fun
Click to expand...

Damn son. Looks like I'm getting a ceramic instead.
 
Lanx

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chaos said:
^ that's basically what I do. I don't use soap, but tbh I think it would be ok if I did. I just use a handled scrub brush to scrub it out after each use, with a scraper for stuck on bits, then dry it and wipe it down with oil. That's pretty much the internet standard, there are a few places that get super fancy with their recommendations but you can ignore all that shit.

Did the babish pastrami today. It is fucking crazy how good that is. The only drawback is that I don't have a deli slicer so I can't get the super thin slices you want. The kids liked it ok, I think they would have liked it better if I could slice it thinner. If I had a deli slicer this would be something I would make regularly. For the short period preceding my death from heart disease.
Click to expand...
yea, i named a deli slicer a while back, i only use it occasionally when i make gyudon and need thin sliced meat...

i watched that babish eps, and it was DISGUSTING

why? fucking thick chunks of pastrami? wth

the deli slice is what makes it grand, i can't link you the cuisinart i got, looks like it got discontinued, but i like it b/c for clean up theres no "hidden" areas where meat can slip into and i have to sherlock my way into cleaning it, i'd recommend if you do get one, see the reviews and see which one cleans up the best.
 
chaos

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Yeah, I got it as thin as I could, way thinner than he did, but I'm not a samurai and did not deli slice that shit by hand. idk if I can justify another appliance in the kitchen, but I think that homemade pastrami might be a game changer, enough to justify having to store that shit in the garage.
 
Lanx

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chaos said:
Yeah, I got it as thin as I could, way thinner than he did, but I'm not a samurai and did not deli slice that shit by hand. idk if I can justify another appliance in the kitchen, but I think that homemade pastrami might be a game changer, enough to justify having to store that shit in the garage.
Click to expand...
dude, if you spent 10days brining and then carefully smoking a thick slab of pastrami... you might as well just go for the full experience and get a deli slicer. this is coming from a guy that always hones the knife and sharpens them once a week, even then i sucked it up and bought a "knife gadget" in order to get the proper experience.

i mean, don't get me wrong, the delislicer i got was "ok" but thats cuz i've used an actual store deli slicer, you can't slice it fast and thin, just thin, and slow heh.
 
Lanx

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Denaut said:
It is a lot like bread, you can mix flours to get slightly different results that suit your tastes better.

For example, semolina is harder, has more gluten and is usually coarser. So if you were making an extruded pasta you'd need mostly/all semolina so that the pasta would hold its shape properly while being roughed up. With none you'd probably just end up with a pile of mush. There is a lot more leeway with sheets of pasta, here you can mix in as little or as much semolina as you like. More Semolina will give a slightly more pronounced "wheaty" flavor, and more texture to the dough. Less (or none) will producer a milder flavor and silkier dough. It is really preference.

To start I would recommend just making some with that Caputo flour since you have it already (not 100% sure which kind it is but both classica and pizzaria are fine). That will give you the smoothest pasta and then you can start adding in semolina to taste later. Keep in mind however that the semolina you dust with and the kind you'd really want for pasta are ground differently, you still want the semolina very finely ground. I have a cheap bag of coarse semolina that I dust with, but when I make pasta with it I use more specialized finely ground duram called semolato. However, it is very expensive and I already have 32487 kinds of flour in my cabinet, so I don't bother anymore. If, after you find you really like the semolina taste but the super silky texture of just 00, it may be worth using instead of regular semolina.
Click to expand...
i got 2 packs of this
0e4640ebe353111619a80b9d0e669ddd.png


(i actually got it for 13bucks, go deal hunting!)

with this and the 00flour and bread flour, you think i have enough "flour" shit for everything?

(i also have rice flour and tapioca and shit but thats asian stuff)
 
Denaut

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Lanx said:
i got 2 packs of this

(i actually got it for 13bucks, go deal hunting!)

with this and the 00flour and bread flour, you think i have enough "flour" shit for everything?

(i also have rice flour and tapioca and shit but thats asian stuff)
Click to expand...

Let me know how much you like using it and if you think it is worth adding another type to the cupboard :) What you need it depends on what you want to make, but you have what you need to make most things. From there it is just about what you like.

I am definitely extreme when it comes to the types of flour I have hanging around. I keep bread flour, AP flour, 00 flour, rye flour, spelt flour, and rice flour. Of the rye and AP, I have two types. One bag each of cheap supermarket stuff and one of the fancy local stone-ground stuff. I use the stone-ground ones (about 3x more expensive) to feed starters. I am happy with the results and have extremely vigorous starters that nearly have the power of commercial yeast, which is likely due to the extra nutrients from stone grinding.

I use about 1/3 rye in my normal sourdough loaves, so I go through a decent amount of that. They don't have quite the spring of an all bread-flour loaf, but I like the color and taste more. The spelt I use in to fluff up my Rugbrød (Scandinavian style rye bread) a little, it isn't necessary, I just like the way it comes out better. The AP is for the usual other kinds of stuff like cookies, hamburger buns, gnocchi and so on (I also use a little in my focaccia and sfincione). The 00 I use is actually pastry flour, but I mostly use it for fresh pasta since I rarely make sweets. The rice flour is just for dusting the bannetons so they don't stick.

What I do is way overkill though, it is very much a hobby for me and I give a good bit of it away.

Edit: Nearly forgot the Maseca that I use to make corn tortillas. It is crazy expensive here but worth it, fresh corn tortillas taste amazing.
 
Lanx

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Denaut said:
Let me know how much you like using it and if you think it is worth adding another type to the cupboard :) What you need it depends on what you want to make, but you have what you need to make most things. From there it is just about what you like.

I am definitely extreme when it comes to the types of flour I have hanging around. I keep bread flour, AP flour, 00 flour, rye flour, spelt flour, and rice flour. Of the rye and AP, I have two types. One bag each of cheap supermarket stuff and one of the fancy local stone-ground stuff. I use the stone-ground ones (about 3x more expensive) to feed starters. I am happy with the results and have extremely vigorous starters that nearly have the power of commercial yeast, which is likely due to the extra nutrients from stone grinding.

I use about 1/3 rye in my normal sourdough loaves, so I go through a decent amount of that. They don't have quite the spring of an all bread-flour loaf, but I like the color and taste more. The spelt I use in to fluff up my Rugbrød (Scandinavian style rye bread) a little, it isn't necessary, I just like the way it comes out better. The AP is for the usual other kinds of stuff like cookies, hamburger buns, gnocchi and so on (I also use a little in my focaccia and sfincione). The 00 I use is actually pastry flour, but I mostly use it for fresh pasta since I rarely make sweets. The rice flour is just for dusting the bannetons so they don't stick.

What I do is way overkill though, it is very much a hobby for me and I give a good bit of it away.

Edit: Nearly forgot the Maseca that I use to make corn tortillas. It is crazy expensive here but worth it, fresh corn tortillas taste amazing.
Click to expand...
i bought a breadmaker too, i haven't looked at recipes,

you ever aadd vital wheat gluten to Ap or 00 flour to get more gluten? i have a bag around cuz i did a few bakes for carb free? gluten free? (that doesn't make sense) you know one of those annoying ppl, anyway i have a bag of it.

oh if you have rice flour, you ever cook with it? i use it for fried chicken or pork, most asians do, along w/ potato starch.
 
Denaut

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Lanx said:
i bought a breadmaker too, i haven't looked at recipes,

you ever aadd vital wheat gluten to Ap or 00 flour to get more gluten? i have a bag around cuz i did a few bakes for carb free? gluten free? (that doesn't make sense) you know one of those annoying ppl, anyway i have a bag of it.

oh if you have rice flour, you ever cook with it? i use it for fried chicken or pork, most asians do, along w/ potato starch.
Click to expand...

I've never used vital wheat gluten and I don't know much about it. I imagine it isn't much different than just using a flour with a higher protein content, but honestly have no idea. If you want to use up that gluten free flour then making gnocchi is a good candidate, unlike most breads and pastas you want as little gluten development as possible in the dough so that they are tender. The downside is that it doesn't use much and they may not come out the same, worth a try though.

It makes sense that rice flour would be used as a starch coating, I will have to try that. I rarely fry, but I've used corn starch for similar applications so I will try the rice flour as well since I have a ton of it and use so little anyway. Thanks for the tip.
 
chaos

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I thought about buying a breadmaker. My loaves are so fucking inconsistent, it is driving me nuts. A couple of weeks ago I got it down, made two beautiful plain, white loaves. This weekend I had a couple of failures and they were the exact same ingredients, process, and times. idk, maybe temp and humidity are fucking me up, the second set of loaves I baked came out usable but too dense, not airy, close textured. Making bread is fun but revisiting process over and over isn't.
 
Ninen

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chaos said:
I thought about buying a breadmaker. My loaves are so fucking inconsistent, it is driving me nuts. A couple of weeks ago I got it down, made two beautiful plain, white loaves. This weekend I had a couple of failures and they were the exact same ingredients, process, and times. idk, maybe temp and humidity are fucking me up, the second set of loaves I baked came out usable but too dense, not airy, close textured. Making bread is fun but revisiting process over and over isn't.
Click to expand...

There's a reason for the saying "cooking is an Art, but Baking is a Science". All those same factors you mentioned, and many more all play outsized parts in the process. A bread maker will add consistency to certain parts of the workflow, but you'll still have variations due to humidity and temperature (of environment, of ingredients), age and vitality of yeast, this batch or that one of the same brand of flour, etc etc etc.

I'm more inclined to say that the longer a process you use (such as a 24hr warm rise or a 7 day cold rise), the more some of the environmental factors average out. Rainy spring bread will still be different from zero humidity mid-winter bread, but week to week it seems better.

Also, be sure you can fit in the 3-5 hour cycle time and the noise of a bread machine. Mine's not loud, but loud enough. And finding 3-5 hr slots midweek ended up crimping my use of it quite a bit till I got comfortable with it, and found it a home enough doors away to not bother me.
 
Denaut

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chaos said:
I thought about buying a breadmaker. My loaves are so fucking inconsistent, it is driving me nuts. A couple of weeks ago I got it down, made two beautiful plain, white loaves. This weekend I had a couple of failures and they were the exact same ingredients, process, and times. idk, maybe temp and humidity are fucking me up, the second set of loaves I baked came out usable but too dense, not airy, close textured. Making bread is fun but revisiting process over and over isn't.
Click to expand...

I don't begrudge anyone for buying a bread machine, but I think it is too limited for the variety of breads I make. I am very consistent at this point, all it took was some practice.

There are a few key factors that really helped me. I measure everything by weight, including liquids. Water temperature matters a lot, more than air temperature, water has an incredibly high heat capacity. I'll put out a pitcher of water beforehand to let any chlorine off-gas (although we have very little in our water) and come up to temperature. You can heat the water with a kettle or on the stove if you forget to do this.

I also use a "proofing cabinet" which for me is just the lower shelf of one of my kitchen cabinets that has a counter light attached to its underside. The light puts enough heat into the cabinet for it to easily hit 26-27C, which is optimal proofing temperature. With the aforementioned pitcher of water acting as ballast the temperature is pretty stable, I keep a cheap thermometer in there and depending on the air temperature I might crack the door a little so it doesn't heat up too much. I've only ever had a little trouble when it is very warm out (air temperature is above 27C) in which case I use cold tap water as ballast to pull some heat out of the space which works great.

You could also buy or build a proper proofing cabinet, but I am lucky enough to not need one.
 
Lanx

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chaos said:
I thought about buying a breadmaker. My loaves are so fucking inconsistent, it is driving me nuts. A couple of weeks ago I got it down, made two beautiful plain, white loaves. This weekend I had a couple of failures and they were the exact same ingredients, process, and times. idk, maybe temp and humidity are fucking me up, the second set of loaves I baked came out usable but too dense, not airy, close textured. Making bread is fun but revisiting process over and over isn't.
Click to expand...
maybe your oven sucks, no really

Denaut said:
I also use a "proofing cabinet" which for me is just the lower shelf of one of my kitchen cabinets that has a counter light attached to its underside.
Click to expand...
gyffq.jpg
 
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