Latest Cooking Answers

How to marinate tofu for my mint & lemon juice couscous salad?

How could I marinate my tofu such that it fits well with my couscous salad which is seasoned with mint and lemon juice, and also contains cucumber, tomato and b

How to separate salt from chocolate?

For the cake we needed melted chocolate with some extra sugar. However, instead of sugar we have added salt. Is there a viable way to separate the salt? The

What will happen if you bake seized chocolate into a batter?

Melted chocolate is known to seize badly if it comes into contact with small amounts of water. Ideally, when wetted more and mixed, it should get better again,

Started thawing but can't finish cooking meat: Time Sensitive

I took a large pack of ground beef out of the freezer and it has been in the fridge for no more than 10 hours. There are still ice crystals on the meat. I'm on

How do I get paper-skin duck breast?

I want to make Cantonese-style roasted duck but a whole-duck is too much for me and I have only a small oven so I want to try using the thigh or breast only. M

100% Whole wheat sourdough bread method

I've recently started making 100% whole wheat sourdough breads and have experienced trouble that the dough wouldn't rise much. I have discovered that this is be

What kind of tea do you boil for 45minutes?

In her autobiographic graphic novel Embroideries Marjane Satrapi casually mentions how she used to prepare tea with a samowar during her childhood by properly b

Thickening old mushroom soup

Made a great soup with wild mushrooms . to thicken before serving I tried 2 tablespoons of corn starch mixed in water stirred it in slowly and cooked while sti

Why does my LN2 evaporate so quickly?

Just made my first attempt at cooking using liquid nitrogen. Decided to start easy, and make a 0.5L batch of ice cream, along with some powdered peanut-butter

Coffee Soluability/Concentration

I need to know: 5 pounds ground coffee soaked in 3.5 gallons of water for 18 hours, unheated. Resulting coffee liquid extracted is x. How do I cut in half the

Freezing fresh juices

I'm currently into fresh-juicing fruits using my auger juicer and, soon, hydraulic press. After a while I've realized that it's ridiculous to bring the equipm

Smoking chicken breasts with and without skin

UGH! I'm so stressed. I Have a new electric smoker and I Have listened to every Tom, Dick and Harry for "The best way" to smoke chicken breasts, yet I have ser

How much pepper sauce could you get out of a Carolina Reaper?

If you can get one pepper and let's say for arguments sake assume that this pepper is 1 500 000 SHU. How much sauce could you actually make from one such pepper

Fully cooked, but requires a minimum internal temperature?

I'm making a box of packaged chicken burgers. On the front of the box, it says "Fully Cooked", but then on the back of the box, in the cooking directions, it sa

Frozen fresh figs to make jellies

Can I freeze fresh figs and make the jelly later with the frozen figs. I only get a few at the time and need to freeze until I get enough to make jelly.

Looking for the name of an orange crunchy snack

The snack I'm talking about has an exterior similar to Chinese sweet and sour pork. However, its shape is long and spindly. There is no meat in it. It is just

How to to prepare red deer haunch without using high temperature, so that its not dry?

I am trying to perfect the method of preparing red deer haunch, and so far I was unsuccessful to make a really good one. I already learned to tenderize it with

Why does steamed potatoes sometimes have a smooth, banana-like texture?

Sometimes when I steam potatoes, they have a lovely dry, fluffy, crystaline texture. Other times, they're the complete opposite, looking dull with a texture lik

Ideal temperature and stabilizer for chewy ice cream?

I've been a huge fan of homemade ice cream ever since I went to Herrell's ice cream in Northampton Massachusetts: http://www.herrells.com The owner, Steve Herr

Will skim milk powder go bad when mixed with peanut butter?

I love to make those peanut butter energy balls to take with me on camping trips, or even a day fishing or after a long run. If I add skim milk powder to them i

How can I easily get water to a desired temperature?

I have a number of teas, some of which require a lower temperature for steeping than others (for instance, I have a particular Green Tea which asks for steeping

Smoking dried peppers?

I have a load of dried jalepeno so wish I'd made into chipotle peppers instead - is it possible to rewind time? I was thinking of soaking them then doing a lo

What kind of wok do I have?

Just bought a cheap wok that has 2 little handles and the inside looks like a bad paint job (black in Color)that looks like swirls. on the bottom it has Chine

What is this green cake with plastic-y texture, found at an Asian store?

While shopping at the local Asian store, I found a funny, green cake that looked interesting, so I bought a piece. It looks like this: I discovered that it h

How to reduce the time and cost for making a cheesecake?

I have tried making cheese cakes a couple times before. And each time, it ends with discouragement and exasperation. After spending on even the cheapest cream

How to prevent watery dippy eggs

I cook dippy eggs as follows: Bring a pan of water to the boil (enough water to just cover the eggs) Gently lower the medium-sized eggs (usually just one or tw

Why did James Bond heat up the knife for his foie gras?

I was reading Fleming's Casino Royale and ran into the following curious detail, when describing James Bond's meal: Later, as Bond was finishing his first s

Is cloudy-looking used peanut oil safe?

I have already stored used peanut oil in the refrigerator for one week. I had strained it through coffee filters, and it had looked very clean and clear. Now it

Are these grocery store oyster mushrooms OK to eat?

I bought these at the grocery two days ago. They have been in the fridge. They are firm. The white fungus in the gills is firm too. No bad smell. Can I cook and

Will agar filtration remove proteases from fruits such as fig, ginger root, guava, kiwi fruit, mango, papaya or pineapple?

I'd like to make a fresh fig gelatin, but of course the proteases in fig make this difficult. If I make an agar clarification of the fresh fig puree, will the