Text 14092, 88 rader
Skriven 2007-04-16 17:04:51 av Carol Shenkenberger (6:757/1)
     Kommentar till en text av Glen Jamieson
Ärende: Re: HAWG TIED  70320
============================
*** Quoting Glen Jamieson from a message to Carol Shenkenberger ***

 GJ> missed eating any decent beef in USA; the stuff I have had there
 GJ> lacked flavour. By contrast, the Limousin beef that Nora and I ate in

 CS> Much of this would have to do with cooking style and as Ian notes
 CS> above, marbling.  Due to health concerns in a culture tht eats a LOT of
 CS> beef per capita compared to most others, the fat content has gone down.
 CS> This mandates a change in cooking techniques that if not followed,
 CS> will destroy the flavor to a good degree.

GJ> I'm sure that there must be wonderful, tasty, beautifully cooked beef
GJ> in the USA (otherwise MLoo would die!), but so far I haven't had it.
GJ> I can see that I must do something about that.  :)

Heheh My ship won the NEY award just a month ago.  Thats a fleet award for
'best of the best'.  Now, you've heard shipboard food is pretty good.  Sure,
sometimes I get to wanting 'other' but my ship is pretty good.

Want good beef pot roast?  We make *killer good* pot roast.  I would be very
happy to pay 20$ a plate for it.  It's that good.

Lunch today was fresh baked catfish with herbs and butter (my choice), pepper
steak (they do this rather well and i'd be happy to pay in a restraunt for as
good), braised potatoes au gratin, asparagus (canned stuff and mushy but i
happen to like it that way), mixed veggies (corn, green beans, limas,
carrots), stir fry cabbage with garlic and peppers, fresh yeast rolls, dutch
apple betty pie, COOKIES HOT FROM THE OVEN (major SNARF!), and other stuff.

The baked catfish was excellent with a delicate hand of seasoning and matched
well with the fresh yeast rolls and real butter (the packets say they are from
New Zealand this week).  I was a naughty girl and skipped my veggies so I
could have FRESH HOT COOKIES FROM THE OVEN.  Ahem.  Sorry.  I like my
cookies....

Yesterday we had one of our little fun days at sea when we sorta say 'screw the
work, lets have a holiday'.  We did all sorts of sporty things like volley
ball in the hangar bay, a movie on a big screen (Happy Feet was the movie and
major surround sound effects) and 'Iron Chef' championship.  The 4 mess decks
competed for 'best plate' and the limiter was 'has to be what we have on the
menu today'.

Iron Chef has a new meaning with that limiter!  No 'strange food item to cook'
but a very 'set' menu.  That night was: Trout (frozen whole but cleaned),
fresh cabbage stir fry (only allowed to vary the oil and veggies but no meat
allowed), Potatos with only spices and type of slice variations.

The main mess decks won the award for best stir fry version.
The CPO mess won the fish version.
The wardroom won on the potatoes.

Second place awards made the overall winner the Wardroom, then the CPO mess
with main mess being 3rd.  Staff mess lost all 3 <g>.  All were pretty close
though.

GJ> There are 2 ways of cooking roo.  The tenderer cuts and steaks are
GJ> best seared very quickly on the outside, then allowed to rest in a
GJ> warm place; that avoids loss of juices and consequent dry, tough shoe
GJ> leather.   Tougher joints, tail and backbone are slow-cooked as a
GJ> stew, with bones, if possible.  This gives a deeper, richer flavour
GJ> which responds well to Asian spicing.

Same for beef tactics.  The lower the fat, the more needed to either fast sear
and serve right away, or slow-cook.  The main problem with slow-cooked beef is
probably the same as Roo.  Too much water leaches the flavor out too far so
you need to be minimal on water or accept that the broth is 'meaty while the
meat is not'.

 CS> Done *right* the USA lower fat beefs are incredibly good.  I found

GJ> From what I have read, MLoo cooks his beef to get that same burnt
GJ> outside and tender, warm red inside that I aim for with the 98%
GJ> fat-free roo steaks.

Probably does!  I use the same 'wave it over a flame just enough' most of the
time.  Old USA recipes will use the broiler?  Thats an oven thing I dont see
elesewhere.  USA ovens have a top and bottom heating element.  Top one only is
a 'broiler'.  I see little difference in using it vice the bottom (bake) unit
as normal cooks do.  Could be I am missing something, but then, I'm a totally
self taught cook.  Mom, lovely as she is, wasnt a fancy cook and had only
minimal forays into cookery at all.  Bert cooks better <g>.  Except, *no one*
(not even me) can beat her beef stew.  I've been trying for 25 years and still
cant make one as good as her's dagnabbit!

                                       xxcarol

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