Adventures in Gastronomy

Cap'n Squirrgle · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:01 pm

f4df Wrote:

*but* more than anything, knowing how to sharpen a knife is more important than buying a 'good' knife. Most people use dull knives no matter how much they might have spent on the knife when purchased. Japanese knives take more knowledge in general due to the hardness of the steel as well as the type of edge they generally use.

Truer words.

I still have my chisel sharpening stones, japanese water stones in 1000 and 6000 grit, and with patience and really careful attention they will put a fantastic single-sided edge on those shuns. I get better at it every time, and I've been using them for years now, since I lived in Athens. Takes a lot of practice to do it freehand.

Yail Bloor · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:01 pm

Cap'n Squirrgle Wrote:

Yail Bloor Wrote:

Cap'n Squirrgle Wrote:

More to the point, we brined and roasted a turkey for the first time this past weekend, and holy fuck it came out juicy and delicious. Soaked it in unbelievably salty water for 24 hours, then rinsed it 4 or 5 times in cold water and baked it as per normal. No residual saltiness, but a helluva lot of moisture stays in. It was *almost* flakey.

I did a buttermilk brined (free range organic) turkey for thanksgiving this year and it was fucking divine. a whole new level of moistness.

oh damn. Buttermilk, you say. Fuck that sounds good.

Here's the recipe

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

Father TimeToze Wrote:

I'm fittin' to do up a citrus/jerk-inspired marinade that a pork loin is going to bathe in overnight for the grill tomorrow.

pics.

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

Yail Bloor Wrote:

Cap'n Squirrgle Wrote:

Yail Bloor Wrote:

Cap'n Squirrgle Wrote:

More to the point, we brined and roasted a turkey for the first time this past weekend, and holy fuck it came out juicy and delicious. Soaked it in unbelievably salty water for 24 hours, then rinsed it 4 or 5 times in cold water and baked it as per normal. No residual saltiness, but a helluva lot of moisture stays in. It was *almost* flakey.

I did a buttermilk brined (free range organic) turkey for thanksgiving this year and it was fucking divine. a whole new level of moistness.

oh damn. Buttermilk, you say. Fuck that sounds good.

Here's the recipe

awesome. I use buttermilk in my fried chicken batter. thanks for the recipe.

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

Cap'n Squirrgle Wrote:

f4df Wrote:

*but* more than anything, knowing how to sharpen a knife is more important than buying a 'good' knife. Most people use dull knives no matter how much they might have spent on the knife when purchased. Japanese knives take more knowledge in general due to the hardness of the steel as well as the type of edge they generally use.

Truer words.

I still have my chisel sharpening stones, japanese water stones in 1000 and 6000 grit, and with patience and really careful attention they will put a fantastic single-sided edge on those shuns. I get better at it every time, and I've been using them for years now, since I lived in Athens. Takes a lot of practice to do it freehand.

any advice will be used. links are great too.

that's a hell of a knife paul.

mutty · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:10 pm

I don't cook much, but my chili is top notch.

Phil, your cooking and recipes always set my mouth a'watering... but I wish you'd invest in a better camera!

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

mutty Wrote:

I don't cook much, but my chili is top notch.

Phil, your cooking and recipes always set my mouth a'watering... but I wish you'd invest in a better camera!

sorry, cell phone only.

we ought to just have a chili thread, just to get some variety in our lives.

Chili is like bbq, a million delicious ways to skin a cat.

wenchlette · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:14 pm

mutty Wrote:

I don't cook much, but my chili is top notch.

I just made a big pot of chili. Since I'm the only one I cook for I figure I'll be eating it for the next 5.7 months.

I have a picture of one of my pizzas somewhere, but eh.

f4df · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:24 pm

Prince of Darkness Wrote:

Cap'n Squirrgle Wrote:

f4df Wrote:

*but* more than anything, knowing how to sharpen a knife is more important than buying a 'good' knife. Most people use dull knives no matter how much they might have spent on the knife when purchased. Japanese knives take more knowledge in general due to the hardness of the steel as well as the type of edge they generally use.

Truer words.

I still have my chisel sharpening stones, japanese water stones in 1000 and 6000 grit, and with patience and really careful attention they will put a fantastic single-sided edge on those shuns. I get better at it every time, and I've been using them for years now, since I lived in Athens. Takes a lot of practice to do it freehand.

any advice will be used. links are great too.

that's a hell of a knife paul.

For the record, I dont own that knife which costs $1000 but it is a beautiful work of art.

For sharpening give me a bit of time, and Ill throw a post together that includes a link to a good tutorial. But Id suggest you also get a cheap knife if you dont have one, to practice on - Im not sure what type of edge that Shun has, but a lot of Japanese knives have a 'chisel' edge or single sided edge like Capt said. And like he alluded to, you will need some stones but I think you can hobble together a little contraption to make it easier to keep the correct angle.

DumpJack · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:29 pm

I'm making garlic meatball po'boys tonight.

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:29 pm

Prince of Darkness Wrote:

Father TimeToze Wrote:

I'm fittin' to do up a citrus/jerk-inspired marinade that a pork loin is going to bathe in overnight for the grill tomorrow.

pics.

In-process.

f4df · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:31 pm

and fyi, that salmon dish I had posted previously...

http://www.obner.org/bb/viewtopic.php?t=18804

I should make that again.. and will still upload that breakfast .. hmm maybe I will make it this weekend.

f4df · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:58 pm

Ok so here is my quick reply before the kids are put to bed.

First, I suggest you read this sharpening tutorial by Chad Ward and then if you really get into, buy his book

Concerning your knife, this info below also comes from Chad (which will make sense once you read the tutorial):

Quote:

Shun knives come with factory edge angles of 16 degrees per side. The factory edge is reasonably well applied -- and is certainly better than the crappy factory edges that most German knives come with -- but isn't anything special.
...

The core is VG10, one of the best kitchen steels available. It's not as high tech as some of the new exotic supersteels, but it strikes a great balance between hardness, sharpenability and stain resistance. I'd have to check my notes from my interview with the Shun designer to be sure, but I believe Kai/Kershaw/Shun hardens their kitchen knives to 58-59Rc. You can take the edge down farther if you'd like. I've taken 60Rc VG10 down to 10 degrees per side without requiring undue maintenance, but I also sharpen my knives every couple of months to keep them at peak performance.

The factory edge should last approximately a year with light use, 6 months if you use the Shun as your main knife. These knives respond well to steeling with a high grit ceramic rod like this one from Epicurean Edge. Just touch it up lightly once a week or so. That will extend the life of the edge and keep the knife cutting well.
...
DO NOT, under any circumstances, allow a standard grooved steel anywhere near the edge.

For links, there is also this tutorial on sharpening Japanese knives from http://www.japanesechefsknife.com (the description is bad however) which is the best place to order japanese knives from, imo.

Start there and see if that helps. (Oh and if you are cutting yourself, I suggest you read the knife skills tutorial too LOL)

Senator LooGAR · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:20 pm

Kyle - I wouldn't put it in unbelievably salty water - more like a cup/2 gallons. Throw in a few handfuls of peppercorns, a bunch of bay leaves and like 10 whol garlic cloves. Same principle, different flavors, not as much rinsing.

I am doing Salmon Chowder for New Years Day, plus, obv. some black eyed peas and collards.

That plus P'Aja Bloody Maries with Guinness and I will be the most popular hangover remedy in town.

Will post pix and recipe later.

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:38 pm

Okay- marinated pork:

To start, I mixed the following in a bowl:

1 1/2 tbs parsley
1 tbs oregano
1 1/2 tsp marjoram
1 1/2 tsp thyme
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbs Hawaiian red sea salt (because I had some)
1 tsp ras-el-hanout (I was out of allspice or mace, and this excellent Moroccan blend has allspice, among about 10 other things that don't offend me in the least)
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Pinch of black pepper
Pinch of saffron

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:41 pm

Pork Step 2:

Then I added:

1 bunch (8) green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 serrano chiles (market had no habaneros, and I don't mind- I like serranos)

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

i like where this pork is going.

i love serranos. great in salsa too.

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:45 pm

Pork Step 3:

Then I added:

1 cup Orange Juice
Juice of 3 limes

and mixed. Then, I decided I would break out the immersion blender to add the extra virgin olive oil to create the emulsion. I usually just stir this together, leaving it chunkier, but it's all good. The finished marinade:

[img][650:488]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/tentoze/pork%20pics/Step3.jpg[/img]

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:48 pm

Then I got out the pork loion- it was about 6 3/4 ppounds, and I don't like the people I'm taking this to tomorrow enough to take them all 6 lbs, so after wrestling it out of the cryo like Marlin Perkins on dat anaconda...

[img][650:488]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/tentoze/pork%20pics/Step4.jpg[/img]

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:50 pm

I cut it in 1/2, then cut criss-crosses in the presentation side and slathered on the marinade. Note that the glass dish is just for pic- the loin is in a 2 gallon ziploc bag sleeping overnight in the fridge. I'll grill it tomorrow afternoon.

[img][650:488]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/tentoze/pork%20pics/Step5.jpg[/img]

tentoze · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 8:51 pm

Oops- forgot to mention that after blending the marinade, I tasted and adjusted several seasonings- I like big flavor.

d · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 9:09 pm

Sen. Loog Years GAR Wrote:

plus, obv. some black eyed peas and collards.

Ha, I was explaining this Southern tradition just over Christmas. I'll go with the black eyed peas, but collards make me retch.

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

nicely done, can't wait for the pics tomorrow.

Prince of Darkness · **Joined:** Mon Oct 25, 2004 11:41 am **Posts:** 11048

also, when is beachy hopping into this thread to school us all?

beachy · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 9:13 pm

awesome, so glad to be back on here! Now all I got to do is catch up on the music i have been missing

off to the market for dinner, alas, no camera

NP: KEXP

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