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Aotearoa39261 Posts
My journey to find Food Perfection![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/staff/Plexa/Elf_Lunch/19.jpg) Sandwhich fillers - one of my gf's projects
My gf studies Food Technology - it isn't cooking, it is more or less Food Engineering or the study of how to mass produce food or developing things used in industrial food production. It surprises a lot of people, but in our house I actually do all the cooking (when I can be bothered). However, part of her Food tech. has rubbed off on me. I was never taught to cook by anyone, I just picked up what I could when I could, but I have a drive within me to create perfect food - or at least to my audience (aka myself and my gf).
My issue with stuff you buy at the supermarket is that a lot of the stuff is pre-prepared for you. You can buy pre-made satay sauce, you can buy pre-made pancake batter mix, pre-made pasta sauce - but all of these are more expensive than the ingredients that have gone into make them. Moreover, they aren't perfect and not all of them are to my liking. As a student, ease of preparation and price are all factors when I try to improve on what is store bought.
Thus far I have discovered/perfected a number of general recipes, in particular the following
- (a basic) Pancake
- Crepes (not the same as above!)
- Sandwhich filler, as pictured above
- Mashed potato
- Some mexican corn/zucchini dish
- Satay Sauce (for chicken, beef or beans)
- A White, Red and Rose Pasta Sauce
- Chicken noodle soup
- Lemonade syrup
I also have a few speciality recipes that I cook up when I feel like making something special - on the whole these are more expensive and more technical than the stuff listed above.
To devise these recipes I essentially cooked them 2-5 times a week until I was satisfied with the end result, and then stored in my recipe compendium (a fancy way of saying I added them to my LaTeX cookbook).
There are also things which I can't make perfect, and the one that pains me the most is roast potatoes. Now a good roast potato isn't that hard to make (just don't forget oil, proper seasoning, and knowing what about what temperature the oil needs to start 'deep-frying' things, although you won't be deep frying the potatoes haha). But perfection requires specific ingredients (or so my research tells me) specifically very floury potatoes (like maris piper). However, thus far I haven't been able to obtain very floury potatoes in NZ yet since they don't disclose which variety is on sale =/... oh well.
If you ever want to impress people with your cooking skills, or simply fake it for the sake of looking good, here is my very easy pasta sauce which tastes better than 90% of the pasta sauces that are out there. Plus, pasta is dead easy to cook (add pasta, add water, add salt and cook until it when you try a piece, it is cooked!) I have three sauces, take your pick!!
White Pasta Sauce - goes well with bacon, good for lunches!
+ Show Spoiler +Ingredients:
- 200-250ml (around 1 cup) cream (cream for cooking works better)
- 2 tbsp parmesean cheese (I like to add more, but 2tbsp is a good place to start)
- bacon (optional) as much as you like! (generally 1-2 rashes)
- Pepper (around 1 tsp, but to taste really)
- Green onion/spring onion diced (I like to use around 1-2tbsp, but again, as much as you like)
Method:
- Get a saucepan/pot, add a tiny bit of oil and cook bacon in it
- When cooked, add cream and stir it through
- Add cheese/pepper/onion and stir until melted
- Add to pasta and enjoy!
Can always substitute bacon for chicken, veges like zucchini (for vegetarians, not vegans though!), or simply take it out.
Red Pasta Sauce - goes well with meatballs or any minced beef, good for dinner!
+ Show Spoiler +Ingredients:
- 1 Can of Tomatoes (if you can afford it, get cherry tomatoes!)
- 1/2 Cup White Wine, dry if possible
- 1/2 Large Onion/1 Medium Onion
- 1 tsp of minced garlic
- 1 tbsp of chopped dried basil (dno how much fresh!)
- salt and pepper to taste
And the most important ingredient to stop it tasting like average sauce!!
- Brown Sugar!!!
Method:
- Dice (or grate if you are lazy) the onion
- Get a pot and add around 1-2tbsp of oil and cook onion in it until onion is soft
- Add tomatoes, wine, garlic, basil and simmer for about 10 minutes
- Tomatoes should be soft, bash them up with a fork/spoon so that they aren't in massive blocks
- Add salt and pepper and taste, you should be able to taste the salt and it should be a bit sour (from wine/tomatoes)
- Add 1tbsp brown sugar, taste - repeat until it no longer tastes sour or tastes as desired (I use 2 tbsp)
- Add to pasta and/or minced meat and enjoy!
![[image loading]](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3492/3966770823_d4143fae1d_o.jpg) This is a rose sauce, from premade sauces aka noob, taken from someones blog
Rose Sauce - looks orange  goes very well with shredded chicken, good for lunch, easiest of the sauces to make
+ Show Spoiler +Ingredients:
- 1 can tomatoes
- 1 Cup Cream (cream for cooking is superior if you can get it)
- 1/2 cup white wine, dry if possible
- Salt to taste
- Shredded chicken (optional)
And once again, the secret ingredient!
- Brown sugar
Method:
- Add tomatoes/wine to a pot and simmer for 10 minutes
- Add salt (taste the sauce to make sure it is sufficiently seasoned!)
- Add 1tbsp brown sugar, taste - repeat until it no longer tastes sour or tastes as desired (I use 2 tbsp)
- Add cream and stir through until combined
- (optional) add shredded chicken
- Add to pasta and enjoy!
You'll note that I use white wine instead of red in the above sauces, I find that when you're only cooking the sauce for 10minutes that white gives a better flavour than red. Red, imo, is more suited to longer cooking times (which requires advance preparation, which I can't be fucked doing - to be honest with you). Also you'll note the use of one unconventional ingredient in the red and rose sauces, this is fairly typical of my experimenting when things aren't quite right! e.g. my Satay sauce uses maple syrup =]!
Why did I make this blog!?!
I didn't make this blog to show off, rather, I am stuck.
I can't decide on what I should work on next. The red/rose pasta sauces are actually my most recent project and I was extremely happy with the results. However now I don't really know what to work on next. Basically all I need is an idea of what to cook and a starting recipe or a restaurant that makes it well (e.g. the satay sauce was inspired by a Thai place near where I live that makes amazing satay, I think mine is better now though ~!).
So TL, what should I work on next?! I was thinking curry puffs of some description, but I have no idea where to start. However, some general dinner things would be useful as well like an easy steak sauce or a good steak seasoning. I also found a recipe for crispy garlic chicken which sounded tempting, but again, I'm not sure (this would be my half-hearted attempt at something katsu like). I suppose I could do some dessert stuff, I made a pretty good rhubarb thing the other day (again with a not so secret ingredient) but maybe some dessert pie or something? With this all said, I'm very open to whatever ideas TL has for me so fire away!! (Also, if you want a recipe from the above list, lemme know and I will provide!)
 
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I'm a food noob but that looks tasty o.o
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Strawberry rhubarb pie ez.
Also, how can you list all of the recipes you have devised without posting them!!??
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Aotearoa39261 Posts
Mostly because they are all in my head, and thus would have to write them down. And I really can't be bothered writing them all down in one sitting. However, if requested I will write them!
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what do you mean "one of my gf's project" do you have multiple gfs?
also thanks for foodporn
i have the same way of cooking as you, no formal teaching i just try to pick up whatever i can from friends and relatives and the occasional show on tv or internet recipe. i wouldn't ever claim that i've perfected anything though but my bearnaisse sauce is pretty good now that you're all about sauces.
+ Show Spoiler +
-Ingredients
-2 egg yolks
-2 one tbs of white wine vinegar
-1 tbs of water
-half a red onion VERY FINELY chopped
-estragon
-fresh chervil finely chopped
-a ton of butter (like 300g will make a nice portion for 4 people)
put the butter in a pot and melt it at medium low heat, don't burn it
heat the yolks water and vinegar in a pot at medium heat (a bit lower if it's your first time) and whip like a crazy man. first it'll get foamy and then it'll get creamy and when you can see the bottom of the pot from the whipping you add the finely chopped red onion
turn the heat to low start SLOWLY adding the butter while still whipping like a crazy man. you don't want to do this too fast or the sauce will "separate" (not sure of the english word here but it will stop being delicious and instead become yucky. it's a one way road there's nothing you can do but throw it in the dump)
when all the butter has been added whip for a little more then take off heat and add the etragon and chervil
goes with fucking everything. ... but i make it with a nice steak and some potatoes and asparagus, and it all takes like 30 mins to cook. it's an impressive and fast dish, but not too too easy.
i'd like the mashed potato recipe, my sister makes a good one but i'm a real potato fan and i'd love to see what you've figured out.
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This looks delicious, i'm going to try that this week!!!! Feel free to update this blog with new recipes and i'll test em 
I usually get my recipes (if i feel like cooking) from www.foodgawker.com thats one sexy porn site.
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I think you should try using sugar in your cooking more often.
I'm a shitty cook, but my gf makes great authentic chinese foods and sauces. Sugar seems to be a key ingredient. Sugar is the key.
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Aotearoa39261 Posts
Sauces are great because they make boring food not so boring. Like, I can't raise livestock myself so I can't prepare them as I'd like so the next best thing is to dress up a piece of steak with a sauce or nice seasoning.
It's one of my gf's food tech projects I only have one gf but it was her project originally (I just took over it :p lol).
There's a ton of things you can do with mashed potato, but I find the key is quality ingredients and knowing your audience. Firstly, you can't overlook what potato you use (if you're going for perfection - I don't have the luxury). If you can, don't get floury potatoes; I find all purpose (general) potatoes the best for mashing. The dressing up of it is audience specific, I like garlic and I like butter so my recipe is obviously skewed that way. However, my gf doesn't like garlic so I avoid it when cooking for her. There's also the cream vs milk debate - the lighter the milk (i.e. less cream) the better it is for you, but the worse (imo) it tastes. Using cream gives a far superior product (same goes for scrambled eggs, lol) but milk is often more accessible and cheaper.
For me this is the best combination of stuff to add after potatoes are cooked (in salt, obviously) and you are about to mash (I usually cook 3 medium potatoes)
- 1 heaped tsp buttery (type of margarine enhanced to taste like butter, approx 1 tbsp if you like more accurate measures)
- 1 tbsp cream (or milk)
- between 1/2 - 3/4 tsp of minced garlix; with preference to liquid over the minced bits
However, some alternates are
- sour cream (1/2 tub about 100ml)
or for a spicy mashed (takes people off guard haha )
- 1tbsp cream
- 1tsp schezuan seasoning (or powderd chilli); I supposed hotsauce would work too
- 1 heaped tsp buttery/butter
But yeah, I think after the butter/milk base is added to the potatoes you can start doing more interesting things (e.g. blended onion also works) or keep things simple. They also work really well with chip dips, so if you have a favourite creamy chip dip (e.g. french onion) then you can add that instead of everything else to create unique flavours.
Your sauce has interested me, I will seriously consider trying that (and improving, if possible!)
On September 20 2011 22:10 Zorkmid wrote:Mmmmm, store bought bread and jam and burnt chicken on pasta. Looks delicious! Take a second look at the bread - the left is a bacon/tomato salsa and the other is shredded chicken with some storebought tandoori chicken sauce (T_T - failure!). The second picture isn't my own, it's merely there to illustrate what rose sauce looks like!
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Ares[Effort]
DEMACIA6550 Posts
Shouldn't have looked, so hungry now
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United States4796 Posts
Yeah, agree with Ares[EffOrt]. This is serious food porn ova hurr.
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Aotearoa39261 Posts
On September 20 2011 22:15 Galaxy_Zerg wrote:
sticky b uns
Oh god don't get me started about bread. I got a breadmaker this year and I have been trying to devise what makes a good loaf and I have been failing miserably. Bah!
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My experience as a hobby-cook:
You can make anything savoury more delicious if you add roasted onions.
No exceptions.
Except Pizza.
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I don't drink wine at all, is there a specific kind of wine to look for when purchasing the wines you talked about or some kind of qulaity of them?
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You should check out Jamie Oliver's 30min meals.
It might not be exactly what you are looking for but you can get some good ideas from chefs and their cooking shows , and they are easy to change and tailor to how you like it aswell.
I REALLY like jamies 30min meal thing cause I have never been super good at making a main kinda thing and then a side dish, and he shows you the process and how to get everything done, even a desert for the fastest time.
here is an episode
The chef at my work tells me sooo many helpful tips and gives me recipes and stuff.
I have learned to make some super easy salad dressings, this cherry tomatoe one is sooo good.
Just cherry tomatoes, olive oil, and vinegar is the basics of it, but you can add tomatoe paste, smokey paprika, garlic, salt, pepper, some sugar if the tomatoes aren't so great, put it all in a magic whizzer and then you can use it for lots of different things.
She also gave me some great ideas with butter, like not just plain old garlic butter but sundried tomato and olive butter, but basically you can add a bunch of things you think will be nice togeather whizz it up with some butter and hey you have a nice extra flavour you can add to things.
I really do like Jamie's 30 min meals though cause I can really make a plan and try new things and get tips and ideas and make something pretty fast, so when i get home from uni I can go to the gym and get back home and make something before my partner gets home from work.
I completely agree with you on stuff bought from the supermarket, Their sauces can be used as an e-z ready made base for something else you are making, but mostly they are just rubbish and so yucky compared to what you can make yourself.
I really like making pesto and a creamy pesto sauce for gnocchi, pesto is super e-z and really cheap if you grow your own basil.
I really like cooking pasta not just in water but in stock so it gets that extra hit of flavour.
Like if I cook the gnocchi in some stock and make it super spicey and I make my pesto sauce with some added chashews, and fry up some onion (or shallots but they are expensive  ), garlic, add in my pesto and some cream, let it reduce so its thicker. Then I put my sauce on my extra flavoured gnocchi and it is yummy, you get this great hit of spice.
Just go and get some recipe books from the library, find stuff you like and play around with it.
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Aotearoa39261 Posts
On September 20 2011 22:32 Dacendoran wrote:
I don't drink wine at all, is there a specific kind of wine to look for when purchasing the wines you talked about or some kind of qulaity of them?
No idea. I am a wine noob as well. The wine I am cooking with is basically the wine I was able to steal from my gfs cousins wedding, lol. I guess cheap sav. blanc is always a good way to go
@taby
My biggest inspiration is Heston - I guess the molecular gastronomy is what is appealing in that sense. However, those foods take forever to prepare - so my challenge is finding compromise between the two. But the biggest thing following his work gives me is some kind of methodology to testing things - not that I have access to everything he does, but still it provides a starting point.
Also, the butter thing is interesting. I was almost there with my dip+potato but adding in things just to butter might be useful although I don't tend to butter things in my house.
msn me sometime btw ;o
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Beef Jerky. Jerky is a great thing to make, and again, even your worst efforts will easily be better than packaged stuff. My general recipe as follows.
0.5 Kg of Beef. Make sure its extremely lean, and cut any fat you see out. Rump is good for this, but is generally a low quality meat.
Liquid Smoke, normally need 1-2 5oz bottles per half kilo of meat.
Soy Sauce, in similar quantities to the Liquid Smoke.
3-4 Chillies
2-3 cloves of Garlic
Sea Salt
Cracked Pepper
Slice the beef thin. Sticking it in the freezer for 30-45 minutes first will make this a lot easier. Crush the garlic. Slice the chillies. Grab a plastic container to store it all in, and start layering in the ingredients. First a layer of salt & pepper (two or three twists of the grinder should do it), a portion of the garlic & chillies, and then add a layer of beef on top. Add the liquid smoke and soy sauce in a 50-50 ratio, until the liquid is just above the level of the beef. Repeat until you run out of ingredients. Stick it in the fridge for 24 hours.
Layering like this will ensure a decent spread of seasoning's, instead of my first attempts which resulted in certain strips of jerky being a lethal and hilarious blend of garlic and chilli. You can be pretty generous with the chillies, as the seeds will wash off the beef when you strain the marinade off, so it won't get too hot. The garlic won't, so err on the lesser side. You will taste the difference if you pick up some really fresh chillies and garlic. A farmers market is usually your best bet.
When the beef is marinaded fully, strain it out. Its now time to dry it. You can do it one of two ways, the easiest is to stick it in the oven. Better results are achieved using a food dehydrator, which you can get at a local whitegoods store. If you're using the oven, pop the beef on oven racks covered in aluminium foil. Prop the door open, and leave the oven on its lowest heat setting with the fan on. (Same goes for the dehydrator, lowest heat setting possible). This will take anywhere from 4-6 hours. You'll need to turn it occasionally.
How long you leave the beef in will depend on personal taste. The longer its on, the crispier it will be. Shorter times will give you a more moist jerky. When the jerky has reached its proper crispiness level, leave it in for a bit longer (30-45 minutes). If you're like me and store the jerky in an plastic container, it will absorb a surprising amount of moisture, and turn out a bit more moist than when you took it out of the oven.
The marinade and seasoning's in this can be altered to suit your own tastes. I've tried teriyaki, worcestershire, oyster sauces, even nandos peri marinade. I don't recommend this last one, as the sauce is too thick, and tends not to drain off the beef, which means it doesn't really dry. Liquid smoke can be both expensive and difficult to find. Gourmet supermarkets will usually have it. Its not essential though, you can just use straight soy sauce if you want, or add in some of the others I've mentioned. You can also use a variety of spices. Onion salt, dried chillies and garlic salt for example. I've tried a few, but eventually I settled on fresh chillies and garlic, as it makes an amazing difference compared to the dried. As long as there is sufficient salt on the meat to aid the drying process, it doesn't really matter what seasoning's you use though.
Also you can change the meat you use. I usually use beef, because its pretty easy to find quality cuts of it. Venison is very good, as it has nearly no fat. It is generally pretty expensive though. Kangaroo is also pretty tasty, although it might be hard to find in your neck of the woods. Lamb can work, but generally has more fat than beef. This isn't a problem so much, but it does mean you have to put in more effort cutting it out. For the record, fat won't ruin the jerky, but it will go rancid after a while. The meat itself will pretty much never go bad. That said, my jerky has never lasted more than a few days, so this isn't a big problem.
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It really depends on the fat in it. If there is pretty much no fat, it will last years. But jerky is extremely more-ish. Don't expect it to last long.
Shopping for Liquid Smoke is hilarious. Most shop attendants have never heard of it, so expect a lot of blank looks.
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EPT
