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Cooking for Founders

tylertringas.com

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Re: Cooking for Founders

#61

Post by jelliclesfarm »

sk5t wrote: post #52
iamacyborg wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What you’re likely meaning is cast iron. Carbon steel cookware is good, too. Neither is good for cooking acidic sauces for long periods of time, use stainless steel if you need to make a tomato or pan sauce.

I'm perplexed by your reply; I definitely mean (black|carbon) steel and note it is lighter than cast iron. Never a problem making a pan sauce in a black steel pan. Stainless steel or enameled cast iron is my choice for long cooking tomato sauces, although even plain aluminum won't be an issue for a few minutes contact.

You are giving the exact opposite of the right cooking advice in this case.

Acidic liquids will strip the seasoning of the pan.

Re: Cooking for Founders

#63

Post by de_nied »

As another post has stated, this isn't a very helpful post on learning to cook, and is more Amazon affiliate links than anything else. If people are genuinely interested in cooking and Culinary Arts, below is a book suggestion list, which should have free online PDF versions of them. This list is meant for people who wish to cook professionally, but for themselves, at home, for friends, so on. The list circles around recipes, theory, history, technique, so forth. More generally put, "kitchen knowledge."

Note, these books are meant for dedicated inquisitive cooks who are eager to learn. If they're gonna sit on a coffee table or be used for average homemade meals, then these aren't for you. These books are the starting point and foundation of some of the most important chefs in history. It's up to you to Google the book and figure out what it's about and why it's so important (most should have Wiki pages). This is list is only meant to serve as a starting point for what to Google in the first place.

All the books (should) have English translations, however they vary. Some translations leave things out, or give literal translations rather than the meaning, etc. The original title is used so you can have a source point to choose your own translations based on reviews/descriptions.

Listed by order of importance (per my opinion). Mostly focused on haute cuisine and Italian, but another list for Japanese at the bottom. Note, I am biased against nouvelle cuisine, so you'll have to Google that for yourselves.

[Haute Cuisine] Le Guide Culinaire - Auguste Escoffier

[American/Haute] The Professional Chef - The Culinary Institute of America (As well as the Bakery/Pastry version)

[Haute Cuisine] Le Répertoire de la Cuisine - Louis Saulnier

[French/Haute Cuisine] Larousse Gastronomique - Prosper Montagné

[Haute Cuisine] L'Art de la cuisine française au dix-neuvième siècle - Marie-Antoine Carême (Completed only 3/5 volumes before death)

[Italian] La scienza in cucina e l'arte di mangiar bene - Pellegrino Artusi

[Italian] Il cucchiaio d'argento - Domus

[Haute Cuisine] Ma Gastronomie - Fernand Point

[Italian] Ecco il tuo libro di cucina - Pellegrino Artusi (Still looking for a copy, much less a translated one)

[Technique] La Technique [OR/AND] New Complete Techniques - Jacques Pepin

[Why ___?] On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen - Harlod McGee

[Pairing] The Flavor Bible - Andrew Dornenburg

---[Japanese]---:

Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art

Sushi: Jiro Gastronomy

*[Next 3 are "maybes", haven't had time to read/research them fully.]

Ivan Orkin (Chef focused on Ramen)

Cooking with Kimiko-san

Kimiko's World: Cooking, culture, and festivals of Japan

---[Additional]---:

Ruhlman Twenty - Michael Ruhlman

White Heat - Marco Pierre White

Sauces - James Peterson

Cookwise/Bakewise

Re: Cooking for Founders

#65

Post by awillen »

tylertringas wrote: post #45
awillen wrote: post #36

This is not good advice, it's just an attempt to cash in on Amazon affiliate links. If you have someone who needs to learn how to quickly, you don't teach them theory, like the different kinds of heat transfer (which this says you should learn, and then names them, and then does not teach you about them). You teach them how to make some basic, healthy things that work with a bunch of ingredients. It's really easy to…

>If you have someone who needs to learn how to quickly, you don't teach them theory Elon would disagree: "One bit of advice: it is important to view knowledge as sort of a semantic tree — make sure you understand the fundamental principles, ie the trunk and big branches, before you get into the leaves/details or there is nothing for them to hang on to." https://lifehacker.com/elon-musk-on-learning-new-things-view...

Elon is talking about literal rocket science, not making a stir fry.

Re: Cooking for Founders

#66

Post by sk5t »

jelliclesfarm wrote: post #59
sk5t wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> searing to seal the juices inside Searing does not seal anything inside. It does provide a pleasing texture and usually flavor, though. Cooking chicken legs starting in a cold pan produces wonderful results.

Maillard reaction seals in flavor and texture. That’s the purpose of searing meat as the first step. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maillard_reaction But you should feel free to enjoy chicken legs cooked in a cold pan. It’s not a food safety issue. Just a texture and flavor process.

Yes, I know all about the Maillard reaction--been baking and cooking for decades. My point is that searing as a means for "locking in juices" is an old wives' tale. The reverse-sear approach is superior for steaks and roasts, although the sear-first technique is fine for braised dishes.

As for chicken legs, an approach like this one works very, very well and and is an interesting counterpoint to the common wisdom that the pan and oil must be preheated: https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-lemon-thyme-chicken-thighs-...

Re: Cooking for Founders

#67

Post by jelliclesfarm »

sk5t wrote: post #66
jelliclesfarm wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maillard reaction seals in flavor and texture. That’s the purpose of searing meat as the first step. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maillard_reaction But you should feel free to enjoy chicken legs cooked in a cold pan. It’s not a food safety issue. Just a texture and flavor process.

Yes, I know all about the Maillard reaction--been baking and cooking for decades. My point is that searing as a means for "locking in juices" is an old wives' tale. The reverse-sear approach is superior for steaks and roasts, although the sear-first technique is fine for braised dishes. As for chicken legs, an approach like this one works very, very well and and is an interesting counterpoint to the common wisdom tha…

ok. fine.

[..] The key to cooking chicken thighs is to start them in a cold cast iron skillet. Yep, you read that right. Cold. Season them well with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and then put them skin-side down in the skillet over medium heat.

Then just don’t touch them for 14 to 15 minutes. As the pan heats up, the skin will slowly get crispy. It might pop and hiss, but all is good. As long as you watch your heat, it’s almost impossible to burn or overcook these. [..]

i suppose the above is your understanding of NOT searing? english is not my first language.

Re: Cooking for Founders

#68

Post by sk5t »

jelliclesfarm wrote: post #67
sk5t wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, I know all about the Maillard reaction--been baking and cooking for decades. My point is that searing as a means for "locking in juices" is an old wives' tale. The reverse-sear approach is superior for steaks and roasts, although the sear-first technique is fine for braised dishes. As for chicken legs, an approach like this one works very, very well and and is an interesting counterpoint to the common wisdom tha…

ok. fine. [..] The key to cooking chicken thighs is to start them in a cold cast iron skillet. Yep, you read that right. Cold. Season them well with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and then put them skin-side down in the skillet over medium heat. Then just don’t touch them for 14 to 15 minutes. As the pan heats up, the skin will slowly get crispy. It might pop and hiss, but all is good. As long as you watch your heat, i…

Yes. Searing means fairly high/intense dry heat to produce browning/crusty texture in seconds or minutes. Such as putting a steak on a grill or very hot cast iron pan.

On the other hand, bacon cooked in a 300F oven or on low stovetop heat for half an hour may become crispy, but is not seared. Breads become brown via Maillard reaction but are not seared.

I really didn't set out to hound you about this whole searing thing...

Re: Cooking for Founders

#69

Post by mindentropy »

hardwaregeek wrote: post #25

I've been teaching my friends how to cook. Here's what I've learned: Follow the recipe, then don't follow it. As a beginner, follow the damn recipe. Read the ingredients list, buy the ingredients, and follow the instructions to the word. I know too many beginners who get lazy, don't follow the recipe and then the food doesn't taste good. Then, once you've gotten it down, start to tweak and experiment. Try adding a ne…

Your advise is very good and I have gone through the exact steps before I could cook decently. I am a hardware enthusiast and working with my hands was a big outlet from my day job as as software engineer.

Being Indian and Doing Indian cooking I learned a lot by going through the basics of Spices and blends. I have a list of recipes from my mother and grandmother and understanding why they were blending the way they were was very helpful.

Also I learnt to meal prep for the weekday on the weekend. Most of the foods is more of preparation (creating batter, dough etc) and the cooking on actual heat is simpler.

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