One of the YT channels I follow is "Alex French Guy Cooking". It's kind of a modern spin on Alton Brown, done by a French Guy, who isn't afraid to figure out new ways of doing things... very experimental. Anyway, he just posted a video on his "Thanksgiving Planning", and thought I'd share it here for those of you that are having your ThanksGiving soon...
Just got back from Tokyo. What a blast. 2 major high-points of the trip: Michelin star Ramen: And an amazing knife shop. Took me an hour out of the way to get there on my way back to the airport before coming home, but it was so worth it. Apparently this is one of 2 main chef knife supply shops... just a little hole in the wall, but holy shit the craftsmanship of the knives were amazing. Totally worth the hassle of getting there.
I am actively jealous of your visits to both of those places! Glad it was a good trip, man. You know, I took Japanese in college, but it has been long enough now that I would be out of luck with anything but English speakers. Pleasingly, there are many. Even so, it would take a lot of sumimasens.
Gahh now I'll be queuing up all the cooking travel shows for SE Asia. Drooling over here. Looks like a serious blast!
The days of me crushing it at Fogo de Chao or Bones are behind me. I was recently diagnosed with high blood pressure and I sure as hell aren’t going to stay that way. One of the big changes I’m making is severely cutting back on my red meat. Aside from the fact I always feel bloated afterwards, I’m just not as fulfilled with a ribeye as I used to. Fish had always alluded me. Granted I’ve had Chilean Sea Bass, and it’s amazing, but at $20+ a pound it’s not an option for regular dining. What are you favorite fish recipes? I could take or leave salmon. It’s definitely the fishiest in taste. Trout was ok, not very impressed. To date, Grouper might be my favorite with the most mild flavor and firm enough for my taste.
I was never a big salmon fan and was always afraid to cook it until I figured out it was pretty simple. I just pour on a little soy sauce (probably low sodium in your case) and then sprinkle on some longhorn steakhouse seasoning (could be whatever you want but that was about as good as I have done so far) and then either grill/smoke it on foil or bake it at 350 till it's flaky. Be careful not to over cook it. Turns out really good, pairs well with a small sirloin and a salad. I haven't tried a lot of other fish but I'm willing to bet similar cooking style could be applied to most. Agreed on the sea bass, I love that but it's hard to find in Indiana.
An easy salmon recipe I do and seems to be well liked even by non fish eaters is to slather on some pesto, throw it skin side down on the Egg and cook until done. No flipping needed. I've done it in the oven and on the gas grill and while still tasty, not near as good as done on the Egg. But then again, what is?
Salmon is my easy to get favorite. When I lived on the Gulf a family friend gifted us with some fresh caught red snapper. That shit is to die for. Got any friends with a boat? An easy to get option that is very mild and that usually pleases is tilapia. Most of the cheap stuff is farm raised in Asia somewhere, so know what you're getting. It's mild and flaky. I use that to make fried fish tacos and some other dishes. Fresh caught fish I've been given from rivers tasted like shit. Overwhelmingly fishey tasting.
This looks like it could be pretty good... Same crew that did Chef's Table which was amazing, so here's hoping.
Had my most expensive meal ever at a French Restaurant this past week. A few take always- French food sucks. The texture of everything had the consistency of baby food. I’ve had wagyu a few times. It’s good but not that good. Foie gras is fucking disgusting. I can appreciate most all foods, even if it’s not a personal preference. However, Foie Gras is all kinds of nasty.
Ever have a dinner roll that’s fluffy as a pillow? Billowy even? I’m trying my hardest to find online how to make rolls that are that airy and fluffy but I’m coming up short. Any ideas?
Mayonnaise gets a bad wrap. Yeah, I was one of those that gags thinking of a mayonnaise and baloney sandwiches but it’s extremely versatile when you add heat to it. I regularly use Duke’s mayo for corn on the grill and most fish.
I see a lot of people slathering meat with mayo before searing it on the sousvide subreddit. I’ve always been curious if anyone else does it that way? It looks good, but for some reason I’m nervous to try it. I really don’t want to ruin a great piece of meat to find out.
Little confused- sous vide is the opposite of searing. Mayo is just congealed fat. When melted it has little taste.
You sear after the sous vide. Basically, cook it, then put a fat on the exterior and then sear it. The oil helps build up the crusty exterior much faster than just searing it “dry”. Pan searing calls for oil, with butter introduced near the end (as it produces a darker, more substantial crust). I generally put butter or olive oil or avocado oil or spray on canola oil before searing on the high temp bbq for the same reason. Mayonnaise is just a slightly different oil that may adhere better than olive oil and probably produces a darker crust similar to using butter. Never tried it myself, but I can see the logic behind it.
Yeah my dad always slathered Thanksgiving turkeys in mayo and I gagged at the sight of it. Turned out awesome though. Personally, I think it got a bad rep from everyone slathering it on different things and calling it “salad”. How the hell did we go from a salad being a healthy bowl of greens to an all encompassing word for “something tossed in mayo.” Potato salad? Meh. Egg salad? Hell to the no.
Yep. Mint is EVERYWHERE around here, so between that and basil, a few fun cocktails were had last night. And it’s good for cooking, too.