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    • Showing only topics with the tag "cooking". Back to normal view

    3. What cooking techniques need more evidence?

      ~food Ask (advice)
      There are many tips or techniques that are strongly recommended for cooking, but it's hard to know which are evidence based and which are just passed along because that's what people always do....

      There are many tips or techniques that are strongly recommended for cooking, but it's hard to know which are evidence based and which are just passed along because that's what people always do.

      Which are the tips that need more evidence?

      Here are two that I struggle with, about stainless steel pans:

      1. Water drop test / leidenfrost

      People say that if you get your pan hot enough to get the leidenfrost effect and then add the oil you'll have less problems with sticking. My problem with this is that it means the pan gets very very hot - much hotter than it needs to be for most uses. My other problem is they all say "Look, I'll cook eggs and they won't stick" and those videos either have a ton of cuts, or the eggs stick and you can see the person pushing with a spatula to get rid of the stick, or their "scrambled eggs" is really a chopped omelette.

      1. Heat the pan before adding oil. I don't understand this. Again, people say it helps prevent sticking, but they use some argument about "pores" which just feels hokey. I add cold oil to a cold pan and bring it up to temperature before adding food so the pan and oil are both at the right temperature, and food sticks and then releases, because that's how stainless pans work.

      I'm aware I could be completely wrong here and that there may be a good evidence base for these, but they don't seem to work based on how I cook.

      37 votes

    14. What are your cooking experiments that haven't turned out well?

      ~food Ask (survey)
      When I first joined Tildes I posted about weird food combos, with mine being a cheese and tuna omelette (try it! It's protein rich and it works!). Lately I've really been getting into tinned...

      When I first joined Tildes I posted about weird food combos, with mine being a cheese and tuna omelette (try it! It's protein rich and it works!). Lately I've really been getting into tinned salmon so I thought I'd throw some of that into an omelette along with some chives, wilted spinach and a bit of soft cheese. I figured it'd have an eggs royale vibe to it.

      It was... fine? I guess? Not inedible, but not great. Normally I love the soft, chalky bones in tinned salmon because I'm a horrid little goblin but here they were just an unpleasant distraction. 4/10, won't try again. Whether it's something pretty tame and low stakes like mine or a total, unsalvageable disaster, I'd love to hear what didn't work out for you!

      32 votes

    25. My 2024 theme - Expanding recipe repertoire

      ~food Ask (recommendations)
      My theme for 2024 is to work on creative avenues, one of which is cooking. I want to expand my recipe book to include more show-off-y meals from a variety of regions. Are there any recommendations...

      My theme for 2024 is to work on creative avenues, one of which is cooking. I want to expand my recipe book to include more show-off-y meals from a variety of regions. Are there any recommendations for recipes to try out?

      25 votes

    29. Christmas dinner recommendations for beef cuts

      ~food Ask (recommendations)
      I've offered to cook Christmas Dinner for my husband's side of the family, but have one problem. While my husband and I aren't the biggest beef eaters nor big fans of steak, my in-laws are. I...

      I've offered to cook Christmas Dinner for my husband's side of the family, but have one problem. While my husband and I aren't the biggest beef eaters nor big fans of steak, my in-laws are. I don't mind cooking for their requests and find it a fun challenge to cook a different type of meat, but here's the concern: due to not regularly cooking it, I'm not as well versed in the methods or approaches.

      They would prefer either a prime rib roast or beef tenderloin; both cuts I have never worked with. While there are a number of recipes out there, I would like see if anyone on Tildes has a recommendation on how to cook either cut or another of similar quality. My mother-in-law does not like a lot of pink appearing in her steaks as well, so I'm having to consider how to handle that while also not over cooking the meat. I was already considering dry brining it overnight, but after that I'm unsure what direction i would go.

      Any tips and advice would be greatly appreciated!

      13 votes

    31. I got a 2.5 lbs roast beef I need to do something with prior to this Thursday

      ~food Ask (recommendations)
      So usually every couple weeks I make a pot roast on the weekend, however my crock pot broke I discovered, just prior to making it. My girlfriend and I need to eat it prior to leaving town this...

      So usually every couple weeks I make a pot roast on the weekend, however my crock pot broke I discovered, just prior to making it. My girlfriend and I need to eat it prior to leaving town this Thursday after work. As I have work all week, I don't have time to make an 8 hour pot roast, so I need an idea of what I can do with this thing.

      12 votes