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Barilla passive cooker

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Re: Barilla passive cooker

#261

Post by ekianjo »

unpythonic wrote: post #37

The claim: reduces CO₂e emissions by up to 80%* The asterisk: water boiling phase excluded When I boil pasta, I use full heat to get the water boiling, drop in the pasta, then let it come back up to a boil, then drop the temperature as low as possible to keep a slow boil going--about medium-low. Guesstimating that the boil takes about as long as the time to cook the pasta, I'd say that the pasta cooking portion only…

The claim smelled bullshit from the get go. Boiling water takes much longer than cooking the pasta.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#262

Post by mattmaroon »

ch4s3 wrote: post #107
mattmaroon wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a mistake though from a cooking perspective. You use a lot of water because you want to have a very high ratio of thermal mass of water to thermal mass of noodles. You want the noodles to heat up as fast as possible so that the outside gets soft while the inside stays a little firm (al dente) and if you use less water, you’ll take longer to cook the noodles, allowing more even heat transfer because it’s a dif…

I've tested this a bunch and you can reliably get nice al dente pasta using a low volume of water. If you boil a small amount and add the pasta, then bring it back to a boil the whole process is faster. Kenji has a good article about it, and I assure you that it always works for me.

Interesting, I’ll check it out. I guess returning to a boil really only has to do with the thermal mass of the pasta itself.

I’m also thinking in terms of spaghetti or noodles like that since that’s what I cook most and you couldn’t submerge them in a small pot.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#263

Post by [deleted] »

kortex wrote: post #232

How much of cooking protocol is to smooth over differences in heat flux? Recipes almost always seem to call for pre-heating an oven or bringing a pot to a boil before adding pasta/noodles. But temperature is temperature (when it comes to slow cooked foods, ignoring searing / maillard reactions). Are there any reasons not to just start cooking immediately while the oven/water is still coming up to temp, if I control f…

[deleted]

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#264

Post by chillwaves »

sltkr wrote: post #156
vel0city wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Americans largely don't use electric kettles because Americans largely don't drink tea at home and thus don't use kettles as often as the rest of the world. Most households I know don't even own a kettle. Not a stovetop one, not an electric one. If you were to ask most Americans why they don't have an electric kettle at home they won't say "because I only have 120V outlets in the kitchen." They'll say it is because t…

I know it's heresy to the British, but you can heat water for tea in the microwave just fine. And at least in my European imagination, every American has a microwave in their home.

You can end up superheating the water that way and scalding yourself. I also prefer to control the temperature of my water which you cannot do in a microwave.

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/boil-on-troubled-waters/

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#265

Post by rootusrootus »

askvictor wrote: post #99
jiggawatts wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A better way to save energy is to use an electric kettle to get the water up to boiling. This is about three times as energy-efficient as a gas hob. Combined with passive cooking it could save real money… Technology Connections on YouTube has a good video about how electric kettles are the superior way to boil water: https://youtu.be/_yMMTVVJI4c

Americans don't really do electric kettles, largely on account of using 110V mains, which limits power to around 1100W, making it a lot slower than ~2000W electric kettles in the 200+V world.

I don't have a kettle because I have a hot water tap that gives me water at more than 200F. If I need it boiling, it takes a very short period of time on the range to get it there. Those are relatively common, almost every one of my friends and family have one too.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#266

Post by BenjiWiebe »

moron4hire wrote: post #195
gsk22 wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, much better to blindly believe an anecdote that contradicts known food science.

Mold can definitely grow on the surface of liquids. Have you never left a cup of coffee out on a counter for a few days?

It can grow on the surface, but won't be able to grow on submerged rice. Bacteria could still ferment the rice though.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#267

Post by BenjiWiebe »

tsol wrote: post #196
OJFord wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No mould will grow on soaking (i.e. submersed) rice.

Why would you think that? It's water and starch. Everything a growing bacteria needs.

Their point is just that the mold will only grow on the surface, not the submerged rice. Mold needs air, too.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#268

Post by bradleyjg »

nuclearnice3 wrote: post #245
piva00 wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Drip coffee is pretty good, good taste and caffeine content while being pretty simple to brew, a decent machine is cheap as well. It's just a method, the beans you use are what actually count.

Recommend any particular beans?

The time since roast matters a lot. Find a local roaster, you can get fresh roasted and it’s unlikely someone that went through the effort of setting up a local roaster is going to buy crap beans. Also, I’d recommend light roast.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#269

Post by stavros »

ErikCorry wrote: post #209
wintermutestwin wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While traveling through Europe, most AirBnBs had electric kettles and they all had gross scale deposits in them so I ended up boiling water in a pot.

It's calcium. It won't hurt you, and you can't taste it.

Will it also make my bones stronger? Where does it come from? Was it in the water to begin with?

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#270

Post by 300bps »

askvictor wrote: post #99
jiggawatts wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A better way to save energy is to use an electric kettle to get the water up to boiling. This is about three times as energy-efficient as a gas hob. Combined with passive cooking it could save real money… Technology Connections on YouTube has a good video about how electric kettles are the superior way to boil water: https://youtu.be/_yMMTVVJI4c

Americans don't really do electric kettles, largely on account of using 110V mains, which limits power to around 1100W, making it a lot slower than ~2000W electric kettles in the 200+V world.

which limits power to around 1100W

All those 1800+ watt hair dryers that are used very commonly in the U.S. are wondering where you got your wattage limit from.

https://news.energysage.com/how-many-watts-does-a-hair-dryer...

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