Sauces are my thing. Compound butters are fine. I like steak just fine but if the chef/cook is a talented saucier I’m all in. But it’s all a matter of different folks with different palates. There is no disputing taste.
I like using braising liquid but you need to get all the fat out of there. I typically reduce it, cool it and freeze it. The fat separates and you can slice it off and discard the fat and then you’ve got pure meaty goodness ready to go next time you want to make a ragu or something along those lines.
Personally I don’t use corn starch for my sauces. Don’t like the sheen. I prefer natural reduction (though expensive and you have to be mindful of the salt factor), arrowroot or rouxs.
The red wine sounds good too! Now, I’ve never been one to back down from a challenge (even if I screw it up!) I do agree with you, I like the meat to speak for itself. My favorite way to do steaks is just put some salt and pepper rubbed on and then put on the cast iron and throw on some butter when I flip them.
I will definitely be trying both the red wine you suggested and @CuriousHusker suggestions!
I tried to follow this recipe for braising ribs involving a dutch oven. I even bought a special blanket and put a mat down on the bed when I did it. Now my ribs just taste like ass. Thoughts?
Now, when I got my cast iron skillet a couple years ago that kind of opened up a whole new world for me. When it’s seasoned well I feel like i can do just about anything on it.
I’m not a huge dessert/sweets person (maybe why I’m the only person in my family still with a gallbladder) but I will eventually try to make a blueberry pie from scratch and bake in the cast iron.
You don’t need to freeze the rib jus for the fat cap to separate. It’ll do that naturally in the fridge. Then you just pull it off. I’ve saved it before to make a roux for some sauces and gravy’s.
I understand being a good saucier I’d also be inclined to make a killer sauce for my dishes. We’re talking about home cooks though. Not people like us who are classically trained with a decade or more in the industry.
I agree completely with you on the natural reduction. If he’s only cooking for his family though I don’t think he’ll have enough jus leftover for a really great reduction. An amount that small could also have a try Tendency to become too salty when reduced.
Yep. Though I do so I generally find residual fat leftover when I do it that way. As you are obviously aware there are a myriad ways of separating fat with different methods being suited for different situations.
Personally I’m not fond of the resulting mouthfeel from residual fat especially the top of the mouth. Nor the look of a sauce with anything more than residual fat. That’s why I prefer my technique. But as always different stokes for different folks.
As far as home cooks I encourage them to challenge themselves. There is no shame in messing up a meal and no limits to the heights a home cook can reach with repetition and ambition.
Amen! I feel when you get to a certain amount of confidence and try things out a time or two it never necessarily turns out bad, it just become a “how do I make this better?”
And always challenges. It’s good to have go to’s but I love a good challenge and outside the box type of stuff, or at least stuff I wouldn’t think of otherwise
Reverse sear is the absolutely best way to cook up a nice thick steak! There’s some science about the enzymes in the meat making it more tender until you hit like 122 degrees (I can’t find the website now of course). I put my oven way down to 150 I think, put a temperature probe in there, and let them sit for hours.
I’ve tried steak in the sous vide as well and I feel it doesn’t come out quite as tender as the oven. It’s usually quicker in the sous vide, so those enzymes might not have the time to do their thing.
Here’s a variation if you like quinoa salad; I make it all the time. Roasted sweet potatoes, cilantro, a little cayenne and chili powder… It’s healthy and delicious!
I share this recipe all over the internet, as a way of honoring my mom who passed. Mom made these for every family function, once she found the recipe. Se got it from a friend who was a culinarily trained chef. This recipe is friggin’ fantastic. Every year around Christmas and Thanksgiving time, people send me pictures of the cupcakes with thank you messages. LOL. Fun for me - perpetuating mom’s love into the world years after her passing. You guys will love these things, and your family will massacre them.
Connie’s Cupcakes
Batter
3cups flour
2 teaspoons soda
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups sugar
½ cup cocoa
Mix all dry ingredients
2 teaspoons vanilla
2/3 cups vegetable oil
2 cups water
2 teaspoons vinegar
Mix liquids and add to dry ingredients
Filling
1 8oz. Pack cream cheese
1 egg
½ cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 12 oz. Bag chocolate chips
Mix all together
Fill cupcake holder half full with batter and teaspoon of filling in center bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes
1st, I smoke on a Grilla Grills Silverbac. If you’re interested in buying a smoker, that’s where I’d look first. It has replaced my gas grille, my weber kettle and my cabinet smoker. I only mention that because it’s going to lead to my first ingredient… Pecan wood. When I smoked on my propane smoker, I added Pecan chunks for the smoke. When fueling the Silverbac, I use Pecan strictly.
More recipes… Here’s my rub recipe for brisket:
1/2 cup kosher salt
2 TBSP Black Pepper
2 TBSP Paprika
1 TBSP Chipotle pepper
1 TBSP dried Oregano
1 TBSP Granulated garlic
1 Tsp Coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
(Most recipes build upon salt, pepper and garlic powder. This is similar to others, with the chipotle and coriander added.)
Next recipe recommendation is for your baby back ribs. If you can find an Asian store near you, look for some thai sweet soy to use as your shmear. (then add your rub of choice)
I am actually going to stop by an Asian market kind of near me this weekend! Don’t have a smoker yet but one day… definitely going to look for that sauce and the smoker!
Some folks use mustard as a shmear on the ribs to get more of the rub to stick.
Already having the sweet soy in the fridge and knowing it was super tacky from all the molasses in it, I used it instead of mustard once and haven’t turned back.
My advice in this thread is 100% useless information to anyone without a smoker. (and about 90% useless to those who smoke already)
