<![CDATA[Badger & Blade - The Mess Hall]]> http://badgerandblade.com/vb/ A repository for tips and techinques, recipes and discussion: pots, pans, cutlery, countertops, equipment, etc. en Thu, 20 Jun 2013 07:06:30 GMT vBulletin 60 http://badgerandblade.com/vb/images/styles/RoyalFlush/misc/rss.png <![CDATA[Badger & Blade - The Mess Hall]]> http://badgerandblade.com/vb/ Cherries - Give me some ideas http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351736-Cherries-Give-me-some-ideas?goto=newpost Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:16:00 GMT Well folks I have two cherry trees in the backyard and it looks like they will be putting out a substantial crop this year. Since A) there will be more than we can eat and B) one of the trees is showing very blemished cherries that my family won't touch, I'm looking for something to do with them. I'm leaning towards libations, so if anyone has any recipes they can suggest, I would appreciate it. Most cherry cider recipes seem to call for apples, and I don't want to wait around until the fall to do something so I'm looking for other options. I have found a cherry wine recipe, but I'm sure there are more ideas out there.

Cheers,
Rob ]]> The Mess Hall ironfisted http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351736-Cherries-Give-me-some-ideas Capicola http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351687-Capicola?goto=newpost Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:04:36 GMT So I was at the grocery earlier and they had Boar's Head hot capicola for half off. I have always been curious about its taste, but never felt like shelling out $15 per pound just to try it, so I decided to get just a little bit to try.

Anyway, came home and tried it and I don't understand why its considered a delicate deli meat. Honestly it tasted like I was eating an extremely chewy dirty sock. Anybody else ever tried it? Wondering if it was bad or something. If not I don't know who eats this stuff. ]]> The Mess Hall jrward2 http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351687-Capicola Plans and replans http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351569-Plans-and-replans?goto=newpost Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:28:49 GMT So Father's Day was supposed to be my wife's parents and us. They are pretty easy so I found a nice prime steak and picked up 5 lobsters for surf and turf. Hoping there would be some leftovers. Well, we ended up having 18 people including a bunch of teenagers so plan "B" was dogs and burgers. I just finished picking all the bugs and have a nice lobster stock started....any thoughts on using it? The obvious answer is bisque but what else you got? ]]> The Mess Hall Jim http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351569-Plans-and-replans Cooking Challenge #2 - Pork Barbacoa http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351541-Cooking-Challenge-2-Pork-Barbacoa?goto=newpost Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:35:51 GMT There used to be a video on youtube from Rick Bayless on how to cook Lamb Barbacoa. It's down now but he has the recipe published on his website anyways.

http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=92

I would put the difficulty level of this one as easy.

The idea of this dish is to get 2 different meal in 1. The meat is above the liquid and cooked in the BBQ or in a oven (I did not manage to dig my own pit yet). All the juices from that mean will leak in the veggies below creating a soup. It's a great winter dish, I know that summer is coming but we still have some cold days according to the weather network (Around here at least). Today is not too bad but I don't mind eating a bit of soup when it's warm outside. Also, those who live in the South Hemisphere will enjoy this a lot right now!

All right, so, my recipe was changed a bit compared to Mr. Bayless. I like his but lamb is difficult to procure here and 90% of lamb meat are frozen only so it's not great. In Australia or New Zealand, different story...

It goes as follow
  • Pork shoulder with bone and skin (1.5-2.kg piece) or one whole chicken
  • 2 carrots
  • 2 celery sticks
  • 1 leek (white part only)
  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 2 birds-eye chilli (or Jalapeño)
  • 1 fistful of coriander
  • 1 glass of white wine (white, not red)
  • 1 big tin (around 1 pound) of Hominy or 2-3 potatoes (don't put both, I tried it, not great)
  • Cumin, thyme, Cinnamon, salt (1 teaspoon of each).
  • 1 x lime


I used
  • Oven at 350F (convection)
  • chef's knife
  • chopping board
  • glass container
  • Dutch Oven (The big model)


So, you would put all your ingredients (except the pork and lime) in the dutch oven. Chop the carrots, celery, potatoes (if you have some) or put the hominy directly. The texture of hominy is similar to potatoes (I find). Add the coriander too at the beginning. I will add some fresh coriander after it cooked also.

Cover with water and put the glass container upside down. Your piece of pork will sit on that. It should be above the water. Put it in the oven, mine will be in there all afternoon to cook slowly. You could serve it with tortillas if you want or simply eat some of the roast and soup.

I tried it with Lamb, pork, chicken and beef and I find that chicken is the very best result closely followed by pork. I am not a huge fan of Lamb meat. I'll eat it but find it too strong sometimes.

So, who's up for the challenge?
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]]> The Mess Hall Luc http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351541-Cooking-Challenge-2-Pork-Barbacoa Tartine Bread http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351329-Tartine-Bread?goto=newpost Mon, 17 Jun 2013 03:13:59 GMT I've been working on my own sourdough starter for about a week and today I made two loaves of bread with it. I used the recipe and techniques from Tartine Bakery.

This is about 258 grams of leaven. It's 100 grams of flour, 100 grams of water, and 58 grams of my starter.




Here is the leaven mixed with 1000 grams of AP flour and 700 grams of water. It looks like it might need more water, trust me it doesn't. This is a very hydrated dough at 75% hydration, counting the leaven it's 77.27% hydration.



After you mix the flour, water, and leaven you let it rest for 20-40 minutes and then mix in 20 grams of salt and another 50 grams of water.



You don't knead this bread dough, you use a stretch and fold technique to develop gluten. Every half hour for the first three to four hours you reach under the dough and grab the bottom of the dough and stretch it out and then fold it over the top. You start with the side of the dough facing away from you and than work your way around the dough dividing it into quarters for the stretch and fold.
This is after the first stretch and fold.



Second stretch and fold.



There are more cycles of stretching and folding and I could feel that the dough was strengthening from the stretching and folding.

Once the dough is done with the first rise you dump it out onto the counter and form it.



Getting the dough nice and taut is important because it gives the dough structure and stability. I'm not used to working with dough that has such a high hydration level, the dough was very sticky and I had to continually dip my hand and my bench scraper in flour to prevent sticking.



After the dough sits on the counter for 20-40 minutes you place it in a proofing container for two to four hours for the final rise.
The dough you are looking at is the dough that was in contact with the counter.




Preheat the oven and the Dutch oven to 500 F for 20 minutes. Be very careful when you transfer the dough to the hot Dutch oven, it would be very easy to burn yourself if you aren't careful. Once the dough is transferred to the Dutch oven, put the lid on the Dutch oven and put it back in the oven, turn the oven down to 450 F.

The dough gets transferred to a Dutch oven to bake. I had some issues with the dough sticking to the kitchen towel when I tried to transfer the dough to the dutch oven. Next time I'll either use a lot more flour or I'll use a lightly floured stainless steel bowl. The lid stays on the Dutch oven for the first 20 minutes then you take the lid off and let the bread finish cooking. This picture is right after I took the lid off my Dutch ovens. Cook for another 20 minutes or until the bread is done. The bread is done when it sounds hollow when you tap on the bottom of the loaf, it will also feel surprisingly light for it's size.



I read that while the bread is cooling you can hear the crust cracking. I've made a lot of bread and never herd any noises coming from the crust as it cooled. I was surprised to hear the occasional cracking noise coming from the bread as it cooled.





Ready to eat.



I didn't let the bread cool down for very long before we ate some sample slices. The crust was really good, hard, crunchy, and it had a ton of flavor. What really impressed me was the crumb, it had a great mouth feel, it was substantial and chewy. I was surprised at how strong the crumb was considering that I didn't do any kneading at all. The crumb on this bread was better than any bread I've made before. I would have liked to let the oval loaf bake for a little while longer but the bottom of the loaf was right on the edge of burning, so I took it out and let it cool. ]]> The Mess Hall Sullybob http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351329-Tartine-Bread <![CDATA[Father's Day BBQ]]> http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351238-Father-s-Day-BBQ?goto=newpost Sun, 16 Jun 2013 14:47:22 GMT Doing one of the things I do best...Figure some of you hard chargers may want to give it a try for yourselves. Serve with sauce of your choice (I like Gates from KC or one of my home made elixirs) and a copious quantity of a crisp (not porter or stout) ale. Sweetwater 420 or a Green Flash IPA are... Doing one of the things I do best...Figure some of you hard chargers may want to give it a try for yourselves. Serve with sauce of your choice (I like Gates from KC or one of my home made elixirs) and a copious quantity of a crisp (not porter or stout) ale. Sweetwater 420 or a Green Flash IPA are both great choices.
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A 7 lb (my favorite size) butt gets the marinade treatment overnight and then into the box for about 6.5/7 hours at 200-225.

This will have somewhat of an Asian flavor. Nice subtle flavors and worth the effort.

Happy Father's day all.........................
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]]> The Mess Hall Acmemfg http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351238-Father-s-Day-BBQ PIF Dried Shitake Mushrooms http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351149-PIF-Dried-Shitake-Mushrooms?goto=newpost Sat, 15 Jun 2013 18:37:29 GMT A friend in Hong Kong sent me two bags of absolutely gorgeous shitakes. It would take me a long time to use all of them, so I thought I would share. First ten who reply with "I'm in." One name will be chosen at random by my lovely accountant Xander. CONUS only.

Shitakes.jpg
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]]> The Mess Hall Chadao http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/351149-PIF-Dried-Shitake-Mushrooms Frogs: More Than a Great Pair of Legs! :D http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350991-Frogs-More-Than-a-Great-Pair-of-Legs!-D?goto=newpost Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:08:32 GMT I thought this was a good read and would like to share it with you.

"A Letter from Paris: Frog Legs May Be Out of Favor, but Not Flavor"!

LES ÉCHETS, France — "There was a time when frogs’ legs drowned in butter and garlic were standard fare at just about every bistro in France. Then two things happened.

First, tastes changed. With the advent of nouvelle cuisine in the 1970s, cuisses de grenouilles lost their cachet, as did country pâté, lamb kidneys in Dijon mustard
sauce, duck à l’orange and profiteroles.

Second, frogs became an endangered species worthy of protection by the state. In 1980, France banned the capture, transport and marketing of live French frogs. Most frogs that end up on dinner plates here these days have to be imported, either live from places like Poland, Albania and the former Yugoslavia, or as frozen legs from Indonesia and China.

But search hard enough and you will find a believer in just about everything edible in France. I found my frog lover in Christophe Marguin, 45, a fourth-generation proprietor-chef at the hotel and -restaurant that bear his name 10 miles outside Lyon.

His establishment, painted Chinese red, opened in 1906 as a way station for travelers on the highway between Lyon and Strasbourg. Mr. Marguin’s great-grandfather pumped gasoline from a single pump; his great-grandmother prepared hearty meals with carp, pike, crayfish and frogs fished out of the family pond.

The first member of the family to attempt upscale cuisine was Jacques Marguin, Christophe’s father, who had been first apprentice to the food legend Paul Bocuse. Jacques learned all about frogs from his mother, who gave him the task of killing, skinning and cutting off the heads of the catch every day before school.

Today, the restaurant is a temple to frogs.

Frog oil paintings adorn the walls. Frog figurines — in glass, china, metal, plastic and pottery — perch on display-case shelves. Stone frogs stand guard at the entrance. Green frogs have been painted on the custom-made china plates by Bernardaud. (Bernardaud’s first frogs weren’t very pretty, so Christophe went to the chinamaker’s office on the Rue Royale and watched as they were repainted.)

"Frogs are mythical, delicate creatures. They deserve respect". Christophe Marguin

This is not the place to come if you don’t like butter, cream and lots of drink. When Mr. Marguin poured me a glass of Champagne before noon, and I said it was a bit early for me, his eyes widened as if to say, “Who is this American puritan and what is she doing here?”

He served me frogs four different ways. First came a potato galette stuffed with shredded pieces of frogs’ legs and mushrooms on a sauce of parsley, butter, garlic, almond powder, white wine and cream. Then came scrambled eggs with black caviar, chives, slivers of frog and a touch of cream. That was followed by a crusty tart filled with mousseron mushrooms and olive-shaped pieces of frog meat in a white wine sauce.

For the finale, the classic sautéed frogs’ legs in butter [I like mine with chopped scallions, garlic, sea salt and cracked pepper], Mr. Marguin invited me into the kitchen. He heated butter in a large frying pan until it sizzled and formed bubbles an inch in diameter. “You have to watch the [butter] rise in the pan and turn nut-colored,” he said. “That’s the secret to success.”



Image: A Classic: Frog legs lightly floured before being sautéed in butter.

Then he threw in tiny frogs whose heads, feet, skin, spine and insides had been excised. As the frogs turned crispy brown, he flipped them over one by one until they were equally done. Then he showered them with raw chopped parsley and garlic and slipped them under the broiler for five seconds.

“They taste best when eaten with your fingers,” he said. Easier said than done. It’s hard to take notes with buttery fingers, and even harder to look elegant when butter is dripping down your chin. I eventually found my rhythm, popping the frog whole in my mouth, sucking out the flesh and tossing out the bones.

Each dish was paired with its own wine, all from 2008: a Beaune Clos des Mouches by Joseph Drouhin, a Meursault Clos de la Barre Domaine des Comtes Lafon, a Domaine Pierre Amiot et Fils, a Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru. Two very old Chartreuses followed coffee and dessert.

Mr. Marguin is a collector, and his collections extend far beyond frogs. He has framed and hung the monogrammed uniforms of many of France’s most famous chefs (which they have signed) on the wall leading to the main dining room. He has about 2,500 menus from meals served at the Élysée Palace by French heads of state going back to Charles de Gaulle. His wine cellar contains not only fine wines and spirits, including a 1967 Chateau d’Yquem, it also hold his collection of dozens of Champagne buckets and Coca-Cola, Perrier and Badoit bottles.

Read More: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/12/di...avor.html?_r=0

"Every morning one must start from scratch, with nothing on the stoves. That is cuisine". Chef Fernand Point ]]> The Mess Hall The Count of Merkur Cristo http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350991-Frogs-More-Than-a-Great-Pair-of-Legs!-D Your favorite meal/plate at a local restaurant http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350972-Your-favorite-meal-plate-at-a-local-restaurant?goto=newpost Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:00:33 GMT I was talking to a friend of mine who is a very picky eater. He has a new girlfriend and he seems to be broadening his horizons food-wise. He actually went to a sushi restaurant. I was telling him about a restaurant that I know he would never have gone to prior to this new girl and I told him that... I was talking to a friend of mine who is a very picky eater. He has a new girlfriend and he seems to be broadening his horizons food-wise. He actually went to a sushi restaurant. I was telling him about a restaurant that I know he would never have gone to prior to this new girl and I told him that they serve my favorite thing in the City of Baton Rouge. I thought I would start a thread regarding everybody's favorite dish in their hometown/local area.

My favorite is the Meat Moussaka Plate at Albasha Greek and Lebanese Restaurant in Baton Rouge, LA. :drool: I can't imagine that it is good for you, though. ]]> The Mess Hall dpittman70 http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350972-Your-favorite-meal-plate-at-a-local-restaurant chicken on a stick, marinades? http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350751-chicken-on-a-stick-marinades?goto=newpost Wed, 12 Jun 2013 23:10:58 GMT i like to buy chicken tenderloins and grill them on a skewer. anybody have any good marinades? so far im planning teriyaki, and honey mustard. shoot me some ideas! i like to buy chicken tenderloins and grill them on a skewer.

anybody have any good marinades?

so far im planning teriyaki, and honey mustard.

shoot me some ideas! ]]> The Mess Hall troymclure http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350751-chicken-on-a-stick-marinades <![CDATA[World's most contentious BBQ thread, part II]]> http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350687-World-s-most-contentious-BBQ-thread-part-II?goto=newpost Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:50:26 GMT Apparently, part 1 was not contentious enough. So with no further ado, part 2: Which state produces the best BBQ? Apparently, part 1 was not contentious enough.

So with no further ado, part 2:

Which state produces the best BBQ? ]]> The Mess Hall ouch http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350687-World-s-most-contentious-BBQ-thread-part-II Braunschweiger! http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350499-Braunschweiger!?goto=newpost Tue, 11 Jun 2013 14:37:28 GMT I hated... I mean HATED this stuff as a kid. And I wasn't a picky kid.

However, I like to think that as an adult I have a pretty developed palate and I love to try new foods. My wife and I went to a butchershop/restaurant here in St. Louis last week called The Block. They butcher all of their meat on site and the menu consists of all locally grown foods. I had the "Butcher's Plate," which consisted of all of their house-made meats along with different relishes and bread/crackers. I saved the braunschweiger for last (hoping it would be best), and oh man... I was not disappointed! I scarfed it down on crusty bread with just a little strong mustard and promptly bought a pound of it on the way out the door.

Anyone else like the stuff? I've got some in the refrigerator - tell me how you like to eat it and I'll finish mine off that way. ]]> The Mess Hall _MementoMori_ http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350499-Braunschweiger! <![CDATA[World's most contentious BBQ thread, part I]]> http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350498-World-s-most-contentious-BBQ-thread-part-I?goto=newpost Tue, 11 Jun 2013 14:33:38 GMT It's BBQ season. Since my high school yearbook describes me as being "most likely to start WWIII", what better than to start an intentionally contentious BBQ thread (as if it's possible to have a BBQ thread that's not contentious :tongue_sm)

I'll start off easy, then we'll move up to full nuclear war.

Part 1: Ribs

Baby back ribs
St. Louis spare ribs
Beef ribs ]]> The Mess Hall ouch http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350498-World-s-most-contentious-BBQ-thread-part-I Big green egg prices upstate New York http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350489-Big-green-egg-prices-upstate-New-York?goto=newpost Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:42:33 GMT Hey guys, In the process of getting my S#!t together for a move back to Canada (Ontarihole) and I made the mistake of pricing a large BGE... 1200 bones, is it cheaper in New York? Worth the drive from the Ottawa (about 2 hours from the border) down to Rochester or some place like that? I find a... Hey guys,

In the process of getting my S#!t together for a move back to Canada (Ontarihole) and I made the mistake of pricing a large BGE... 1200 bones, is it cheaper in New York? Worth the drive from the Ottawa (about 2 hours from the border) down to Rochester or some place like that? I find a lot of vendors are tight lipped about their prices until they can look you in the eye before F#$*% you? ]]> The Mess Hall tattewell http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350489-Big-green-egg-prices-upstate-New-York Cedar Plank Salmon http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350481-Cedar-Plank-Salmon?goto=newpost Tue, 11 Jun 2013 12:59:27 GMT I made my first salmon dish last night. It was fantastic. The fish was flakey and full of flavor. I need to improve on removing the skin, but overall, the dis was successful. here is the recipe I used. Image:... I made my first salmon dish last night. It was fantastic. The fish was flakey and full of flavor. I need to improve on removing the skin, but overall, the dis was successful.
here is the recipe I used.

]]> The Mess Hall Cajunboy2k http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/350481-Cedar-Plank-Salmon