Everyday Misc Cooking Photos w/ details

[MacKenzie]

Sous vide  smoked pork chops yesterday, today I decided to give them a little sear. Also made a potato salad and picked some greens, radish from the deck planter and almost the last chive flower.

Searing.

Done.

Plated with the goodies.

Tasting fine to me.;)

Edited July 1, 2018 by MacKenzie

[Syzygies]

I'm starting to get the hang of Moroccan bread. Some transfer from that pizza thread helped.

Never start a fire without a plan for the after-party. Here, an idea I saw in a Spanish cookbook once: Toss potato slices and onion slices in black pepper, pimenton, Marash pepper, cumin, salt, and olive oil. Bake for an hour or two in a clay cazuela.

[amusedtodeath]

The potato dish sounds great. Would need to find substitutes for items not found around here - pimenton and marash pepper... Maybe allspice instead of the pimenton? Not familiar with the marash. Bread looks tasty! 

Edited July 2, 2018 by amusedtodeath

[tony b]

Pimenton isn't that hard to find. Just use smoked paprika instead. Never heard of Marash pepper? 

[BonFire]

just ordered Aleppo pepper which i gathered is similar if not the same as Marash (correct me if I'm wrong ), pimenton is paprika and also got a 28cm cazuela on way as well.

That potato dish looks awesome 

Edited July 2, 2018 by BonFire

[Syzygies]

45 minutes ago, BonFire said:

just ordered Aleppo pepper which i gathered is similar if not the same as Marash

That potato dish looks awesome 

Yes, Aleppo and Marash are quite similar. We have both, and sniff each of them to decide what to use. Use it like and along with black pepper; do as the Romans and start the black pepper, red pepper in your oil before adding anything else.

While the potato onion dish is a great side by itself, we generally use it as an upgrade to replace frying the potatoes and onions for Tortilla Española (Spanish Egg and Potato Omelette).

[Bruce Pearson]

Mac that pork chop dinner looks perfect! Almost to nice to eat, almost lol

[Bruce Pearson]

Syzygies is that Moroccan bread like pita bread? Everything there look mighty yummy.

[MacKenzie]

I love the colour on that bread, it is mouthwatering, I keep thinking about it.

Edited July 2, 2018 by MacKenzie

[Syzygies]

4 hours ago, MacKenzie said:

I love the colour on that bread

I believe the color is from two sources: I hydrolyze the whole grain flours overnight, developing natural sugars. And I proof the yeast with a bit of honey. Baking at 435 F in a KK, these both contribute color if one is patient.

Overall, this is a simplification of my sourdough batards, that you have made. Overnight hydrolyze, then knead in remaining ingredients using a stand mixer. Two to three hour bulk rise, ten minute bench rest, 90 minute proof in final loaf shape.

I've played with many variations of the above. Wetter doughs are harder to work with, and transfer to the oven. The farro adds great flavor and texture. It's a mistake to add the starter the night before, or to knead too far in the stand mixer. And so forth. The form factor is very forgiving; one can go all whole grains, and leave out the AA. (The recipe assumes a 100% hydration starter, 2:1:1 white flour, red wheat, rye. The water handling is tuned so the hydrations of the two components match, for ease of mixing.)

Edited July 2, 2018 by Syzygies

[MacKenzie]

I've added these two things to my breakfast items. They are from the deck planter and I know I won't be able to eat it all.

 

Just look at the moisture in the radish. The lettuce and radish are only steps and minutes from my kitchen. 

I have just recently added the shade cloth to provide protection from the sun, there is spinach on the other end.

Edited July 2, 2018 by MacKenzie

[Bruce Pearson]

You never cease to amaze me Mac. Such a green thumb

[tony b]

[MacKenzie]

Aussie's influence reaches far and wide, I did a spatchcock chicken today so I'd have some leftovers. 

Edited July 4, 2018 by MacKenzie

[tony b]

Nice chook, MacKenzie.

[Bruce Pearson]

Yum yum looks good Mac

[Syzygies]

Last night's spareribs prep. By request for a 4th of July party.

We have many Mexican markets nearby in California, making it easy to find great chiles.

[Pequod]

Guajillo and ancho?

[MacKenzie]

What a beautiful grind.  

[Syzygies]

1 hour ago, MacKenzie said:

What a beautiful grind.  

Sieve, regrind what doesn't pass through the sieve. My usual technique also for spices. For example, freshly ground turmeric can be sourced from multiple varieties of turmeric (Kalustyan's has whole Alleppy turmeric from Kerela, in addition to the usual turmeric, and Aleppo, Maras, and Urfa peppers), and tastes much better than preground (even grinding a month at a time, for multiple Indian and Moroccan meals). I bash whole turmeric into smallish pieces in a mortar, grind, sieve, grind, ...

No picture, but I put my two quart Dutch oven smoke pot on top of my Solo Stove Campfire (still on sale a few more hours), to preheat it and get some initial lump charcoal embers to go underneath in a cradle of coco extruded lump. I was going to take a picture, but I saw the smoke pot off-gassing a small, beautiful flame, so I knew it was ready.

For anyone who thinks I was already crazy to use flour paste to seal my smoke pot lid, I'm sorry to introduce the complication of preheating the Dutch oven. It however worked amazingly well. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make the best food I can; the flour paste is a chance to meditate on the childhood reasons why I once feared complexity in cooking. And a chance to wonder why I never tried a stainless steel Klean Kanteen instead. They make an optional stainless cap; one would need to remove the silicon seal. I'd drill 1/8" holes as usual, along the side that faces down to burn off-gassing, and three or more in case one is unfortunately blocked by shifting wood. One doesn't want to create a bomb; the Dutch oven has the advantage that in the worst case it will simply blow it's lid. Huh. Meditation over, maybe I'll stick to Dutch ovens. They do hold more.

Edited July 4, 2018 by Syzygies