The Tastefully Tasteful Cooking Thread

[ManBearSquid]

I couldn't see a thread based around food and figured that there must be others on here who enjoy a good session at the stove.

Basically, let's have a nice wee place to dump recipe ideas, cooking techniques, game changing equipment etc. All food types welcome, be it carnivorous, vegan, gluten free, or even something a bit shite that's just worth a good laugh. Let's include successes and failures alike!

I'll start. This week, for my first time ever, I decided to roast a whole chicken and boy was it worth it. My method:

- stuffed the cavity with sprigs of fresh rosemary and a whole, pierced lemon
- rough chopped some carrots, cut an onion in half, used some whole garlic cloves (all with skin left on)
- into an oven dish with oil, some seasoning, and placed the chicken on top after rubbing it with oil and seasoning
- when there was around 50 mins to go I added some potatoes and made sure everything was covered in juices along with basting the bird.

It was fantastic.

Last night, I used the leftover carcass and contents from the oven dish and made my fist ever chicken stock. For this, I added two more crushed garlic cloves, a rough chopped leek, anothr chopped carrot, and a spring onion, along with the rosemary that was removed from the chicken after cooking and some fresh seasoning. I simmered this for close to 4 hours.

Oh man, game changer. I was making turkey burritos for dinner and using the chicken stock as the basis for the sauce was immense.

For that dish, I used:

- chopped onion sautéed in oil and some salt
- plenty garlic
- turkey mince
- once the mince was added and seared, I added some sriracha and smoked paprika, and then I started slowly adding some stock
- lastly, I added a red pepper and some tomato puree to slightly thicken the sauce

Serve however you like.

Anyway, homemade stock, totally worth it and satisfyingly resourceful.

What you got?

[Snowy]

There was a thread a while back iirc, no doubt vanished to the ether.

As some here know, I am a BBQ nut, with a well equipped setup including the 57cm Webber GBS charcoal BBQ and also a Smokey Mountain smoker. I have a load of extra gubbins for it, pizza stone, rotisserie etc, but for this post I will strip all that back and just tell you what I think is the best way to cook a steak, using the reverse sear method.

To use this method, you will need:
(at least) 1 steak, ideally a well-marbled rib-eye 1.5-2 inches in thickness.
A cast iron pan - other pans work too, but cast iron is the way to go in my view.
A meat thermometer - you can cook by touch if you feel confident, but a thermometer really helps. I use a Meater+ but other models are available and are cheaper, you don't need to spend a fortune. If you are serious about cooking meat well, a probe thermometer of some description is a must imo.
A beer.

Oh, and as I cook loads of BBQ, I am used to using fahrenheit. Sorry about that, blame the fact that almost all my recipes originate in the US - for this one I will give you the celcius temps too but can't promise on future instalments

This approach takes longer than the 'lob it in the pan/griddle/coals' methods but is totally worth it.

How to cook - this is for medium rare, the sweet spot for me with any steak:
- Remove the steak from the fridge at least an hour before cooking, let it come up to room temperature.

- Pat the steak dry using kitchen roll - moisture is the enemy of a good sear.

- Pre-heat your oven to 250°f/120°c - this is really low heat, as you want to gently bring the steak up to temperature.

- Season with salt only - you will be using a hot pan later and pepper will burn and become unpleasant, pepper comes at the end of the cook.

- Pop the steak in the oven and slowly bring it up to around 100°f/38°c. This will allow the internal fats to start to render down, infusing your steak with flavour. This can take up to an hour depending on the thickness and starting temperature of the steak.

- Take the steak out of the oven and rest it for 10-15 minutes - the internal temparature will continue to rise even though you have taken it out of the oven. This is the point I start cooking anything else I am having with the steak - for me that usually means fried peppers and onions and some form of starch, usually chips/frites.

- Open a nice can/bottle of beer, and have a drink while you are cooking. Don't neck it all though.

- About 5-10 minutes into the resting time, start heating your griddle pan, you want it absolutely screaming hot. Opinons vary here, some people like to use vegetable oil, others olive oil, or butter, or nothing at all. Personally I like a splash of olive oil but go with what you like.

- After around 15 minutes resting the internal temperature will have evened out. The advantage here is that your steak is now rested and you can serve it straight out of the pan without all the juices leaching out as soon as it is cut and the steak getting dry (while your dish swims with blood, which is never very appealing). Also being able to serve straight out of the pan means you enjoy your steak hotter than if you rest at the end.

- Put the steak into the pan and leave it, let the Maillard reaction take place (that nice browned outer edge that is so flavourful). Let it cook for around 1 minute then flip it. If you have a ridged griddle pan, you will get griddle marks, but a flat pan will get you a more even sear on the whole outer edge.

- Your target temperatures are 120°F (49°C) for rare, 130°F (54°C) for medium rare, 140°F (60°C) for medium and if you want more cooking than that I am not sure we can be friends

- Once the internal temp reaches 130°f, take the steak off the heat and using some tongs, roll the outside edge of the steak around the pan to complete the sear all round the steak. Season with lots of freshly ground black pepper and put the steak on a plate.

- Take your beer and pour some into the pan rubbing the area where the cooking has taken place with a spatula or similar to help lift the fond off the pan. The alcohol in the beer will 'de-glaze' the pan, lifting off all the goodness that is on the iron which is pure flavour. The heat of the pan will very quickly boil off most of the liquid, leaving you with a very dark brown residue which you pour over the steak (it makes a fine addition to your fried onions too, which will be finishing about now).

Serve and enjoy.

Here's one I made earlier, in true Blue Peter style:

[Solitaire]

I may be the only resident vegetarian, not so sure but in any case I'll be happy to contribute. I love to cook, and especially to bake. I post lots of stuff on my IG account so I'll pull over images and add the actual recipes. Thanks, should be fun

[Mantis]

I think there's at least two or three of us veggies around. Alan might be full vegan actually if I recall correctly.

Tasty veggie dishes would be very much appreciated on here. Though Ian's BBQ steaks do look so good they almost make me miss the meaty option.

[Snowy]

You gents bring up the vegetarian/vegan side of things, I will cover the carnivores - between us we have all bases covered!

[ManBearSquid]

That steak does look amazing, Snowy!

I opted for a Vegetarian diet for 4 years at one point - it really expanded my cooking skills - and I'm definitely up for some good veggie recipes.

Love a good lentil curry or a creamy mushroom pasta.

Edit: stupid phone typos.

[Snowy]

So with a work Xmas party on Friday and an extremely boozy drinks session with my mates yesterday, am feeling very delicate today so thought another recipe and an espresso might help.

Today is smash burgers. These have been very popular on BBQ forums and discussions for a while, and recently have started to appear on gourmet pub menus and pop-up food stalls, but I have yet to see anyone do them right, which considering how easy they are is a bit daft.

The whole point of smash-burgers is making as much of the caramelised outer edge of the burger as possible, as that is the tastiest element. Big thick burgers are mostly steamed, the meat inside never touching the hot cooking surface.

You will need:
Minced beef (ideally a 50-50 chuck/brisket mix)
Something flat and heavy - I have a cast iron burger press but the flat of a pan works just fine (I have seen a brick wrapped in tinfoil used too).
A nice flat metal spatula, the kind of thing you get in any bbq toolkit, for lifting and flipping.
A flat cooking area - a large frying pan will work but I always do burgers on the BBQ where I have a plancha.
The rest - burger buns, iceburg lettuce, the absolute cheapest burger cheese you can find (it tastes the best), onions, tomatos, pickles etc.

- First off, let the minced beef come up to room temperature. Take it and roll it into 2 oz balls, each of which will be one burger.

At the same time get your cooking surface good and hot. If you are using a pan/plancha on a hob this is easy enough, if using a BBQ I recommend indirect heat - position the coals on one side of the BBQ and have your cooking surface away from where the coals are. Close the lid on the BBQ and bring the cooking surface up to about 200C.

- I like a bit of bacon on my burgers, and using it provides tasty cooking grease too. I use streaky bacon for burgers but you can use whatever you like, or skip this step altogether. Let the cooking surface get good and hot and lay the bacon down on it, then put your burger press/pan base/foil wrapped brick on it so that it cooks nice and flat and doesn't just shrivel up. Put it somewhere to one side for later, you want it just less than crispy.

- Take your balls of minced beef one at a time, pop them onto the cooking surface and press them as flat as you can, you want them ideally about 3-5mm thickness. Keep the press/pan/brick on them for 1 minute, then take your spatula and carefully flip the burger - it may try to stick so a spatula with a nice sharp edge is good. Flip the burger which will be nice and caramelised on the side that has been cooking and pop your press/pan/brick onto it - no need to push down on it now though, just let it cook for another minute.

- Add a slice of burger cheese, and put the burger somewhere to keep warm.

- Rinse and repeat, I recommend 3 smash burgers per bun

- At some point while cooking, toast the buns on the cooking surface - they will soak up the various meaty goodness as well as toasting. This doesn't take long, so be careful not to burn them

- Assemble the burgers - if I am BBQing I tend to rope in a mate here to make the burgers up as I hammer them off like a production line.

- Get stuck in.

I promise you, done right these are absolute game-changers, you get 3 times the flavour and texture that a standard 6oz burger gives you without a soggy mushy centre to it.

Here's one I made earlier...

[ManBearSquid]

I do personally prefer some pink in my burger, not sure if these turn out that way?

I only found out recently that restaurants in Scotland are not allowed to serve burgers pink anymore, a rule that came into place in 2017. I didn't eat meat during that time, so it was news to me when my French partner tried to order a pink burger and was declined.

There's a great Tuscan chicken recipe that I've made a few times that I'll share:

[Snowy]

That looks good, quick and easy, will be trying that.

I do personally prefer some pink in my burger, not sure if these turn out that way?

They don't, they are all about the caramelised crust. Don't walk past them just for that though, they are well worth trying.

I only found out recently that restaurants in Scotland are not allowed to serve burgers pink anymore, a rule that came into place in 2017. I didn't eat meat during that time, so it was news to me when my French partner tried to order a pink burger and was declined.

Seriously? Unhealthy food capital of the world (though Tonga comes close) and you aren't allowed to serve burgers pink? That's nuts.

[Snowy]

That steak does look amazing, Snowy!

El Gaucho saw a pic of one of my steaks, could have been that one, and gave it the seal of approval. From a Uruguayan I reckon that's high praise, South Americans know how to cook beef

[Raid]

Quick question; where do you get steaks of that size? Are they special butchers requests? I never see them thicker than about 1cm because I think retailers assume that they're just going to be pan-fried rather than any of the other superior methods.

[Snowy]

There's a few options. Waitrose sells those particular ones, calling them a cote de boeuf. They aren't cheap, clocking in £18-£28 depending on weight, but they easily serve two and are sensational steaks. Another option is to go direct to the butchers counter and have them cut you a steak to your specification, I often do that and it is cheaper than the Waitrose ones. I am a big fan of rib-eye but reverse sear works with any steak, and sirloin and rump are also tasty.

I tend to use supermarkets for steaks as butchers can be really pricey, but I do use a specialist local butcher for special smoked cooks - they do amazing whole Packer cut briskets which are common in the US but definitely not here, plus the best bone-in pork butts (actually shoulder, but I use American recipes so kinda have to use the terms as well ) that I have found.

Not done a brisket in a while (I live with my wife and dog and a brisket is 6-8kg of beef), may have to do one and post the cook on here. It is rightly the holy grail of bbq.

[ManBearSquid]

That looks good, quick and easy, will be trying that.

I do personally prefer some pink in my burger, not sure if these turn out that way?

They don't, they are all about the caramelised crust. Don't walk past them just for that though, they are well worth trying.

I only found out recently that restaurants in Scotland are not allowed to serve burgers pink anymore, a rule that came into place in 2017. I didn't eat meat during that time, so it was news to me when my French partner tried to order a pink burger and was declined.

Seriously? Unhealthy food capital of the world (though Tonga comes close) and you aren't allowed to serve burgers pink? That's nuts.

Yup, pretty daft, in my opinion.

https://www.cateringscotland.com/food-s ... -the-menu/

I'm sure I'd still enjoy it, but my other half would likely turn her nose up at it. Maybe one day I'll cook them and just say nothing.

[Raid]

reverse sear works with any steak

Not if the steak is so thin that by the time you get a decent sear on the outside, the inside is already past medium rare. I used to have that problem when I did steaks sous vide (the idea being to cook them to the perfect temperature in the water bath before removing and searing the outside), but in fairness I never investigated much beyond the supermarket.

[Snowy]

reverse sear works with any steak

Not if the steak is so thin that by the time you get a decent sear on the outside, the inside is already past medium rare. I used to have that problem when I did steaks sous vide (the idea being to cook them to the perfect temperature in the water bath before removing and searing the outside), but in fairness I never investigated much beyond the supermarket.

Sorry that is absolutely correct, reverse sear will work on any cut of steak of sufficient thickness I should have said. Sous vide works as well for the first step of a reverse sear, but I prefer the oven personally, helps prepare the outside of the steak better for the pan.