R3qn65's recent activity
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
R3qn65 (edited )Link ParentTotally true that professional kitchens don't use cast iron, but the fundamental mechanics of searing completely change on a commercial range. A high end prosumer range, of the kind almost nobody...Totally true that professional kitchens don't use cast iron, but the fundamental mechanics of searing completely change on a commercial range. A high end prosumer range, of the kind almost nobody has, might put out 17,500 BTU. A commercial range starts at 30,000 and goes up from there. If thermal mass is more important when you only have 17500 (or less; your average electric range is probably something like 10k BTU equivalent on the biggest burner) to reheat the pan, conductivity (to your point) is more important when you can crank 30k or more BTU back into the pan. Plus, the weight and relative fragility and finickyness of cast iron are huge drawbacks in a restaurant but not necessarily a home.
If someone was going to get only one pan, I would also recommend stainless clad. But I think you're reaching a bit when you claim that cast iron is worse for searing!
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
R3qn65 Link ParentI will freely admit that I've never cooked with a copper pan with the same thermal mass as cast iron. However, I'm not sure that's really a relevant comparison, since at that point we're talking...I will freely admit that I've never cooked with a copper pan with the same thermal mass as cast iron. However, I'm not sure that's really a relevant comparison, since at that point we're talking about a pan that is several hundred dollars versus one that's about $20.
If the question is "what's the best pan imaginable," then I believe you. But the question in this post was about someone asking about their first cast iron. Saying that cast iron is outdated because a copper pan of equal thermal mass delivers better performance is like recommending a Ferrari to someone who is trying to choose between a Peugeot and a Renault.
...you did make me want to get one, though.
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
R3qn65 (edited )Link ParentI think you're right on the details, but wrong on what they imply :) When a cold steak hits a pan, the limiting factor for the first several seconds isn't "can the pan conduct fast enough" — both...I think you're right on the details, but wrong on what they imply :)
When a cold steak hits a pan, the limiting factor for the first several seconds isn't "can the pan conduct fast enough" — both cast iron and aluminum-core stainless conduct far faster than the steak's own internal conductivity can absorb energy. The steak surface is the bottleneck, not the pan. So pan conductivity above a fairly modest threshold doesn't buy you much. What actually differs between the two pans is what happens to the pan's surface temperature during that contact. A high-mass pan barely dips, because it has a large reservoir to draw from even with mediocre conductivity, since the energy doesn't need to travel far (cast iron is much thicker, so it's drawing from material close to the surface, not relying on rapid transfer from far away). A low-mass, high-conductivity pan recovers fast (because conductivity is high) but it also drops more initially per unit area before the burner replenishes it, because there's just less stored energy near the surface. In practice, with most home burners (which are conductivity-limited at the burner-to-pan interface, not the pan-to-food interface), cast iron's huge reservoir tends to win for sustained searing of something like a steak, because the bottleneck is burner output, not pan conductivity.
Your claim that "if the pan dumps more energy than it can receive from the heat source it will get cold" is true but irrelevant to searing performance, because the timescale of a sear (seconds to low minutes per side) is short compared to the timescale needed to deplete a cast iron pan's reservoir, even with a so-so burner. That's the whole reason cast iron is prized for searing in the first place — not despite low conductivity, but because mass compensates for it on the timescales that matter for a stovetop sear.
(Also -- most pro kitchens, even starred ones, overwhelmingly use heavy gauge aluminum pans, not copper.)
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
R3qn65 LinkI haven't seen comments yet on the primary benefit of cast iron specifically: heat retention. It's what separates cast iron from stainless steel and even carbon steel. Cast iron is very slow to...I haven't seen comments yet on the primary benefit of cast iron specifically: heat retention. It's what separates cast iron from stainless steel and even carbon steel.
Cast iron is very slow to heat (relative to other pans), because it has a lot of thermal mass and poor conductivity. For the same reasons, it's also prone to developing hot spots if heated rapidly without time for heat to disperse throughout the pan. Once hot, though, it stays hot, which is a huge benefit for things like searing, frying, baking.
Have any of you used cast iron, then returned to Teflon or stainless steel after being disappointed in the experience
It's a change, for sure. If you're into cooking, having a cast iron in addition to other, more conventional pans is the way to go. I don't think "returning" to stainless is the right framing. If you're not into cooking, I wouldn't necessarily pick a cast iron as my one and only pan, but there's no real reason you couldn't.
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
R3qn65 Link ParentTo make it a bit more explicit, regular dish soap is just fine to use on your cast iron. Don't, like, soak it in soap overnight or anything, but cleaning it and drying it is completely fine.Also, don't use dish soap containing lye, which I seriously doubt you were going to do anyway.
To make it a bit more explicit, regular dish soap is just fine to use on your cast iron. Don't, like, soak it in soap overnight or anything, but cleaning it and drying it is completely fine.
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Comment on Signs you're a dangerous terrorist: using Signal, moving zines in ~society
R3qn65 Link ParentLegally - and probably ethically too, frankly, but in any event legally - if you cause a situation, your ability to claim reasonable fear changes. A trite but common example is that if you start a...when what I've read suggests that something closer to "bad decision resulting from genuine fear for others' safety" would be a plenty believable interpretation. Is there some other factor I'm unaware of?
Legally - and probably ethically too, frankly, but in any event legally - if you cause a situation, your ability to claim reasonable fear changes. A trite but common example is that if you start a fight and the fight escalates, by statute in most states you lose the ability to claim that you needed to use lethal force to defend yourself, whereas that claim could be completely legitimate if you were attacked unprovoked in an otherwise identical situation.
Similarly, Song's group protested/rioted/attacked the ICE facility while armed and wearing body armor. Even if you think their actions were justified, they clearly incited the event and thus lose the ability (legally) to claim that they feared for their own safety.
It's worth noting that the jury - not the judge, but the jury - convicted after a 12-day trial with 46 witnesses and 200+ exhibits. Not after just watching a grainy bodycam video.
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Comment on Signs you're a dangerous terrorist: using Signal, moving zines in ~society
R3qn65 Link ParentMy friend, even if this is exactly true with no qualifiers, that is still a crime.I think it's debatable whether there even was a crime other than being leftist. ... abundant evidence that the intent was suppressive fire in defense of others.
My friend, even if this is exactly true with no qualifiers, that is still a crime.
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Comment on Re-watched the Bourne Trilogy after several years, I understand now why it was so influential in ~movies
R3qn65 Link ParentReminds me of the machete order for Star Wars! Though I will say, I showed a partner, who'd never seen Star Wars, the films in the machete order and they were kind of confused. I think it works...Reminds me of the machete order for Star Wars! Though I will say, I showed a partner, who'd never seen Star Wars, the films in the machete order and they were kind of confused. I think it works better sort of already knowing what's going on - wonder if removing the exposition in Bourne would be similar.
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Comment on Re-watched the Bourne Trilogy after several years, I understand now why it was so influential in ~movies
R3qn65 Link ParentEquilibrium rules, but yeah you're right that they're not super comparable. They're filmed totally differently. Bourne is shaky cam, rapid cuts to show the intensity and chaos of a close-in fight...Equilibrium rules, but yeah you're right that they're not super comparable. They're filmed totally differently. Bourne is shaky cam, rapid cuts to show the intensity and chaos of a close-in fight whereas equilibrium is a lot more steady focus to show off the choreography. Equilibrium is like a sci-fi take on a classic martial arts movie in that way.
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Comment on Plans for nearly 4,000 homes over Safeways divide Bay Area residents in ~finance
R3qn65 Link ParentI'm genuinely not sure that's true. This article from Brookings talks about how it's generally much more difficult and expensive to build subsidized/affordable housing. It doesn't quite apply to...More affordable housing would also lower rents even more
I'm genuinely not sure that's true. This article from Brookings talks about how it's generally much more difficult and expensive to build subsidized/affordable housing. It doesn't quite apply to the idea of just building cheap housing wholly for commercial reasons, but generally when people say affordable housing they're talking about with government intervention, so I'm assuming that's what you meant.
As @Atvelonis pointed out, the most proven way of reducing rents is to get more units in the market. And the fastest way to do that is to make it easy for companies to build. So paradoxically, it likely lowers rents more to let builders go nuts with luxury apartments than it does to make them build a smaller number of affordable units. (In theory building a large number of affordable units would be better, I suppose, but in this regulatory environment that's not actually possible.)
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Comment on How much of an echo chamber is Reddit/the internet, really? in ~tech
R3qn65 Link ParentDon't forget "mark the reply exemplary, regardless of the actual quality"!Don't forget "mark the reply exemplary, regardless of the actual quality"!
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Comment on Cuba’s Communist Party approves opening economy in unprecedented move in ~society
R3qn65 (edited )Link ParentCuba famously has an extreme housing shortage. Even pro-communist sources, after proudly (understandably) pointing out that Cubans pay little for housing, admit that much of the housing stock is...I am scared of this. I've seen what "private real estate development" and privatization do, and they're not pretty. For all of the likely faults of Cuba's politics, there's a lot of places where this could make everything worse. Housing being restricted for the sake of profit...
Cuba famously has an extreme housing shortage. Even pro-communist sources, after proudly (understandably) pointing out that Cubans pay little for housing, admit that much of the housing stock is deteriorating and that
[y]ou don’t have to meet many Cuban families to witness the sharing of one or two room homes by three or more generations.
Capitalism is imperfect, obviously. Many capitalist countries have constrained housing markets as well, of course. My point is more that things are very, very bad and privatization is a better option.
The worst system except for all the others and all that.
To address your more specific concerns about looting, it's a real risk. But it's probably not a risk like you're thinking - the embargo means that US companies are legally forbidden from buying assets, and it would take an act of Congress to change that.
Instead the risk is coming from inside the house, as it were. There's a joke in Russian about the post-Yeltsin privatization period that calls it something like "grabitization," (....works better in Russian) because the elites-who-would-become-oligarchs basically divvied up the country and that was that. That's the real risk to be concerned about, particularly given massive corruption in Cuba. The structural factors are more similar than they are different. I know you'd questioned the validity of the corruption claims, but a look at some independent sources should convince you that it's a real problem, I think.
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Comment on How much of an echo chamber is Reddit/the internet, really? in ~tech
R3qn65 Link ParentI'd be surprised if it had ever come up, but that seems a reasonable course of action if so.I'd be surprised if it had ever come up, but that seems a reasonable course of action if so.
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Comment on The room the economy can’t see in ~society
R3qn65 Link ParentIsn't it only like $1k/person/year? I generally agree with what you're saying, but I'm curious about this.No, the Permanent Fund dividend is not enough to live on, but it creates a floor that gives people the kind of flexibility this article is advocating for.
Isn't it only like $1k/person/year? I generally agree with what you're saying, but I'm curious about this.
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Comment on Why is ice cream so expensive? The rise of the $8 cone. in ~food
R3qn65 Link ParentRight on. This is a big positive, in my opinion - fast food ice cream still exists if the goal is cheap above all else. But the quality of the newer type of ice cream shop would be almost...Right on. This is a big positive, in my opinion - fast food ice cream still exists if the goal is cheap above all else. But the quality of the newer type of ice cream shop would be almost literally unimaginable 15 years ago.
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Comment on The room the economy can’t see in ~society
R3qn65 Link ParentPEPFAR is the largest disease prevention program in history and has saved tens of millions of lives in Africa. :DWed sooner cure aids in Africa.
PEPFAR is the largest disease prevention program in history and has saved tens of millions of lives in Africa.
:D
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Comment on Cuba’s Communist Party approves opening economy in unprecedented move in ~society
R3qn65 Link ParentCertainly US sanctions have hurt cuba, but the economic consensus - including economists like Pavel Vidal, formerly of the central bank of cuba, is that Cuba's woes are due to the planned economy...Why are we so eager to blame communism for Cuba's economic issues when the U.S. has had the country in a veritable headlock for decades?
Certainly US sanctions have hurt cuba, but the economic consensus - including economists like Pavel Vidal, formerly of the central bank of cuba, is that Cuba's woes are due to the planned economy first and US second.
I think this quote, from a Cuban economist teaching in America, is about the most balanced answer one is going to get:
The Cuban government blames it on the embargo. [U.S. president Donald] Trump takes power in 2016, and Cuba says: well, this is because of Trump. The far right says it is due to communism, and I think that is a very simplified answer. There is a combination of factors, but I think the most important is the economic system. Keep in mind that Raúl Castro’s reforms stalled around 2016. For me, one of the fundamental causes, which has been consistent throughout the Cuban Revolution, is that Cuba does not generate enough exports to pay for imports. This leads to a trade deficit of goods. This deficit must be paid in some way, and it is paid for with dependence on another nation. First the Soviet Union, then Venezuela. And that makes the economic system unsustainable. When the protective or subsidizing partner loses, there comes a crisis. There is a crisis in the 1990s because the USSR disappears, and in the case of Venezuela, because of the humanitarian, economic, political and social crisis, and although aid from that country continues; today it sends half of the oil it sent before.
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Comment on I almost got hit by a car in ~life
R3qn65 Link ParentAh, right. Sorry, should've put that together. I only read the first paragraph or so of the OP.Ah, right. Sorry, should've put that together. I only read the first paragraph or so of the OP.
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Comment on I almost got hit by a car in ~life
R3qn65 Link ParentNah, it all depends on how decibles work, which is not at all intuitive. Decibles are logarithmic, meaning that 18db has twice the power of 15db. A +10db increase is 10x the power but only...seems like a somewhat contradictory conclusion?
Nah, it all depends on how decibles work, which is not at all intuitive. Decibles are logarithmic, meaning that 18db has twice the power of 15db. A +10db increase is 10x the power but only perceived as about twice as loud.
The upshot is that 17db is very quiet - 25db is a whisper - but the increase from 70db to 80db is extremely significant.
100%. The weaker your burner, the more you want a large thermal mass. The stronger your burner, the less it matters. That's why for most homes cast iron is the best tool available for searing, but a commercial kitchen wants a thinner aluminum or steel pan.