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‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

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Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#81

Post by doublepg23 »

Waterluvian wrote: post #5

Kind of related to this is the concept of "Brunswick Stew." Look it up if you want a more accurate description, but as I recall, the idea from Colonial times in America is that there'd be a tavern/inn with a fire, constantly running, and a big cauldron of stew always topped off and ready for weary travelers. The idea is that they never "finished" a batch. They just perpetually added leftovers and foods that were at r…

I just had my first cup of Brunswick Stew the other day. Extremely delicious and was as cozy as you said.

Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#83

Post by n1b0m »

jrochkind1 wrote: post #80

TWO profiled broths were destroyed by bombs in war. Apparently a leading cause of broth destruction. > an even older pot, in Perpignan [France], had been bubbling since the 1400s until it finally met its demise in 1945 during World War II bombing raids. > The broth [in Tokyo’s historic Asakusa quarter] would be going on 100 today, but the previous batch was lost in 1945 during World War II bombing. 1945 was not a goo…

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Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#84

Post by mbg721 »

twiddling wrote: post #77
mbg721 wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Traditionally, the first step is making stock from a bowling-ball.

Stirring with the number 7 pin of course

My parents were too well-off for Brunswick Stew, so we had Titleist Bisque instead.

Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#85

Post by EarthLaunch »

drakonka wrote: post #76
jedberg wrote: post #54

My wife is Cantonese and while we don't have any family heirloom broths, there are definitely weeks, especially in winter, where we just have a constant broth going for a couple of weeks. All the leftover veggie bits and bones and such get thrown in there as we go. The flavor is always different, usually good, sometimes a little odd, but then we just purposely put new food in to balance it out (an apple for some swee…

Does it take a lot of electricity to keep your stove going 24/7 for weeks? Trying to get an idea of how much impact this could have on an electricity bill.

I was thinking to do this in a non-pressurized Instant Pot. Between the cover and the insulation, it might not use much power.

Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#87

Post by notfromhere »

jasonwatkinspdx wrote: post #73
Waterluvian wrote: post #5

Kind of related to this is the concept of "Brunswick Stew." Look it up if you want a more accurate description, but as I recall, the idea from Colonial times in America is that there'd be a tavern/inn with a fire, constantly running, and a big cauldron of stew always topped off and ready for weary travelers. The idea is that they never "finished" a batch. They just perpetually added leftovers and foods that were at r…

I haven't had it personally, but one of my SO's tried a famous "perpetual stew" when in France and we talked about it at one point. Her description kinda matched what I'd expect from braises that I've let go to long: you end up with bland mush. I think there's a reason very few restaurants serve this style of dish, and it's not because of health codes. We live in an era of insane abundance compared to the medeivil an…

It's a romantic notion but if you simmer anything for too long it'll just be generic food water at some point

Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#88

Post by jrochkind1 »

jasonwatkinspdx wrote: post #73
Waterluvian wrote: post #5

Kind of related to this is the concept of "Brunswick Stew." Look it up if you want a more accurate description, but as I recall, the idea from Colonial times in America is that there'd be a tavern/inn with a fire, constantly running, and a big cauldron of stew always topped off and ready for weary travelers. The idea is that they never "finished" a batch. They just perpetually added leftovers and foods that were at r…

I haven't had it personally, but one of my SO's tried a famous "perpetual stew" when in France and we talked about it at one point. Her description kinda matched what I'd expect from braises that I've let go to long: you end up with bland mush. I think there's a reason very few restaurants serve this style of dish, and it's not because of health codes. We live in an era of insane abundance compared to the medeivil an…

> I think there's a reason very few restaurants serve this style of dish

It is in fact quite common in some parts of China, as the OP mentions. But it's just a stock, used in other dishes, not a dish of it's own.

> more specifically in the cuisines of Canton and Fujian, where there’s a rich tradition of making lou mei, or master stock, which is used to braise and poach meats.

I had read about this before, I recall an article about maybe a US restaurant where the chef had brought the lou mei over from China, and the sous chefs who were tasked with keeping it going. I can't seem to track down the article now. But my understanding is that in fact very many restuarants in China do this, it's standard.

Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#89

Post by jedberg »

drakonka wrote: post #76
jedberg wrote: post #54

My wife is Cantonese and while we don't have any family heirloom broths, there are definitely weeks, especially in winter, where we just have a constant broth going for a couple of weeks. All the leftover veggie bits and bones and such get thrown in there as we go. The flavor is always different, usually good, sometimes a little odd, but then we just purposely put new food in to balance it out (an apple for some swee…

Does it take a lot of electricity to keep your stove going 24/7 for weeks? Trying to get an idea of how much impact this could have on an electricity bill.

We do it in the Instant Pot, so it stays pretty hot. When we need to turn it off for a while we put it in jars, drop the jars into ice, then put them in the fridge. Then we just heat one jar a a time and add stuff to that.

So it's actually not all that energy intensive.

Re: ‘Perpetual broths’ that simmer for decades

#90

Post by notfromhere »

NegativeLatency wrote: post #27
eternityforest wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the fact that there's no bacteria remaining is the point, since food preservation was a real issue then. Aren't there autocatalytic oxidation reactions? There might be flavor effects from always having a pool of those ready to oxidize new ingredients.

Also the perceptual flavor effects of the associated story on the broth being old.

at least for soups, it always tastes better on the second day.
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