what's cooking? part 5: 2017-2027

not because it really needs to go to 2027 because we'll all be under the ocean by then but because part 4 started in 2007

i made some pretty great tomato soup yesterday

san marzano toms + butter in pressure cooker w salt and baking soda
veggie stock + drained liquid from toms + a few bags of lapsang souchong
puree toms w stick blender, drain through sieve, combine with liquid ingredients
maple syrup + fish sauce to taste

how do you get to the point in life where you're putting heterodox ingredients like tea, maple syrup and fish sauce in tomato soup? is this entirely your own invention or are you following some unknown and wild tradition?

its the food of my people

bored single men who spend a lot of time on food blogs

well I am impressed, it sounds delicious (though not sure about the tea). how long did you cook it for?

toms were in the pressure cooker for 20mins, which is the bulk of the cooking time

in the context of bold tomato flavor and stock, the tea adds primarily smokiness and some sweetness. it's worth trying, i think!

Were these canned whole toms? Why pressure cooker? Why baking soda???

whole canned toms

pressure cooker reaches higher temperatures, which, in combination with the increased pH you get with baking soda, leads to caramelization that would be impossible otherwise

i actually made a batch earlier in the week that i forgot to add baking soda to and the difference is pretty noticeable --- w/o it the soup is much brighter and more acidic/tomato-y (which might be what you want!)

i have a bream in the oven, stuffed it with lemon, garlic and parsley, threw a few slices of potato around it and i've got cabbage braising in some stock on the hob. been roasting fish a lot in the last few months, feels like one of the nicest things to eat without much effort.

Making a lamb shoulder tonight with broccoli and the serious eats roasted potatoes that I believe somebody posted on the other thread and have been intriguing me since.

how do you get to the point in life where you're putting heterodox ingredients like tea, maple syrup and fish sauce in tomato soup?

otm

its the food of my people

bored single men who spend a lot of time on food blogs

loltm

What are these blogs? Are they instant pot propagandists?

hey gbx do you do a natural release or quick release on the p.c. with this method?

mine's electric so i just do a slow release

should I get an instant pot? it seems like more like an appliance of convenience rather than one of, like, some crazy new benefit (like sous vide)

rfi: what is yr favorite way to prepare fennel?
preferably side dish but i'll take all comers

one place i worked at useda make a potato, fennel and leek gratin that was nice. other ideas: superthin sliced and put in a salad is great, too. or "melted", cooked slowly in olive oil with onions and garlic to get it really soft and borderline carmelised could be a nice side?

fennel is nice roasted

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/02/vegan-ramen-miso-creamy-vegan-vegetarian-food-lab-recipe.html

going to cook this at the weekend

I like fennel raw in salads, sautéed with leeks & green beans, roasted & carved up with a piece of meat or fish

Jim: it's good. Double and freeze, for all the effort.

thanks everyone! pretty new to fennel. i tried braising it in stock & vermouth last night & it turned out delicious, keen to try some of these recommendations

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/02/vegan-ramen-miso-creamy-vegan-vegetarian-food-lab-recipe.html

going to cook this at the weekend

― Islamic State of Mind (jim in vancouver), Tuesday, January 10, 2017 5:28 PM (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

oh man i've been wanting to try that but its daunting --- soda, you've done it? how long did it take?

i like fennel here are some things

fen risotto, maybe w/ salami
fen & chickpea broth w/ lemon zest and chilli
fen & potato soup
baked fen in like a puttanesca sauce w/ orange zest and feta
roast pork w fen (add fen seeds to pork herb rub too)
any bit of wite fish w/ fen, thyme, rosemary, lemon zest, capers etc

pernod good to have around just for fen

also if u ever want to parboil fen for anything do it in milk, or mostly milk, and keep for mash potato or gratin later

I don't like fennel because it is anise-y. I feel like I need to broaden my horizons tho w/r/t winter vegetables, I can't only eat potatoes all year, and I love kale but let's be honest it's not in season in February.

A friend is coming over on Sat bc she wants advice on cooking large hunks of meat. Considering a pot roast alongside a rolled stuffed pork loin -- one easy, one complicated.

try parsnips! one of our favorite winter things is just roasted winter veggies (beets, onions, carrots, garlic, parsnips, turnips, potatoes) mixed up with some olive oil, rosemary, and a bit of sausage, cover and bake.

best way to enjoy fennel is to throw it in the damn garbage bcz it tastes like licorice and it is GROSS

I made a great pork dish with star anise the other night and the first time I made it I used like one star anise (recipe says 5) because I hate licorice but actually it's so subtle it's really good so I always use 5 now

THANK U STEVIE YOU <---> ME = SAME TEAM

anise and fennel are wonderful flavors

that said i have bought fennel bulbs in the past and they have rotted in my fridge bc i couldn't decide what to do with them fast enough :/

tbh I wish I didnt' loathe anise/fennel bcz it wd make things a lot easier but welp here we are, what can ya do

parsnips are the devil fyi

hmph

parsnips are fine, they're sweet and a lil weird but they're fine

quickest way to ruin a soup imo

THE DEVIL

parsnips are good caramelized together with other vegetables as the base for a winter soup stock, they contribute a lot of complexity and are similar to carrots w/ their sweetness. im not a fan of plain parsnips though

for burly winter root vegetables i prefer celeriac

I stand with VG.

Honey roast parsnips are my secret ingredient in a veggie soup

monsters, all of u

mushroom pizza that has a bunch of rehydrated porcinis sauteed with a load of criminis and garlic, on top of fontina, carmelized onions with rosemary playing the role of sauce on some bland-o plain white dough i made

haven't had farinata in years, might attempt this recipe for saturday lunch http://www.seriouseats.com/2015/05/how-to-make-farinata-italian-chickpea-pancake.html

we had my brother and his family over for dinner the other night. they love cooking indian and so do we, so we made a huge feast. i haven't cooked this much food in a while:

masoor dal
benghali green beans and potatoes
tomato sambal
summer squash w/ mustard seeds
saag tofu

All the way at the other end of the vegetarian-omnivore spectrum, I'm making beef stock today.

I agree with VG that parsnips would not work well in any soup I know about, but they roast well and were quite acceptable in a beef and peanut stew recipe my wife made just a few days ago.

I really like roasted parsnips but they are such a damn awkward shape--the top fat part and the itty bitty skinny end make it diffcult to get evenly-roasting pieces.

Tonight is blackened mahi mahi on a bed of creamy saffron orzo night. I am not usually enthusiastic about orzo but it’s in the pantry and I have a recipe so we’ll see how it turns out!

I'm making black-eyed pea stew with both smoked and unsmoked ham hocks.

Tonight had leftover lamb ragu from the freezer, amazing to be able to enjoy something that would take hours in fifteen minutes with no chopping or washing. Also made some garlic bread as had a piece of baguette.

xpost PKBR do you have a recipe? i have only made black eyed peas once & am trying to build my rrpertoire

I need to come up with a way to make vegetarian hoppin’ john

I mean I could just leave out all the pig parts but that seems like taking the easy way out especially given my proclivity for experimenting with fake meat

xxxp have been firing up the slow cooker recently and got a bunch in the freezer for when I want that feeling

I've started to label stuff in the freezer which I prob should have done years ago also. It's not just identifying it when you are looking speculatively, it's more being aware it's there when you are looking for other stuff, and noting that for another time.

i hate digging through the freezer or trying to remember what's in there so I even have a list stuck to the freezer door like a total nerd

I put a special Sharpie and labels beside the fridge now, haha. Maybe I should have a list also :)

xp I have a whiteboard* on the pantry door for freezer contents, but it's at least 2 years out of date.

*idea swiped from erstwhile ilxor Tep

We should be keeping our freezer contents on the big whiteboard next to the fridge, instead of just using it as a magnetic surface to stick other people’s holiday cards on

Tep has a great food blog that he only posts to like twice a year but each entry is ca. 5000 words

https://www.patreon.com/c/therecipe/posts

xpost PKBR do you have a recipe? i have only made black eyed peas once & am trying to build my rrpertoire

― werewolves of laudanum (VegemiteGrrl), Sunday, January 4, 2026 3:47 PM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

No, I was being lazy and basically just treated them like beans, but they cooked a lot quicker (I had soaked them for a long time). I browned the fresh ham hocks, then sweated the soffrito (onion, garlic, carrot, celery), added the peas, brought to a boil for 5 minutes, then backed it down to a simmer and added salt and pepper, some Mexican oregano, and the smoked ham hock. After about half an hour I added red chard (subbed for collards because I couldn't find them). The peas were done in about 45 minutes. Then removed the meat from the hocks and added it back in with 2 tsp apple cider vinegar to brighten it up.

yum! thx!

Wait WmC isn’t Tep?!

lol no tep is a different dude. glad he’s still posting somewhere!

I count Tep as my guru in some ways, no idea if he'd be appalled by that or not, but he's taught me a lot and I ran with it (mostly down the beverage aisle).

wow @ that tep link, thanks!

it’s overcomplicated vegan chili day again!!!

My overcomplicated chili uses a homemade chili powder blend.

Do you add vegan cheese to yours?

I do not - at serving time it is up to the consumer to apply their toppings of choice, which in my household means the vegan qualifier immediately switches to vegetarian

My homemade chili powder blend includes sumac because I am an alchemist (see above)

i used to make chili powder blend, but at some point returned to basics and started using dried chiles, like ancho and guajillo, and making a puree. once cumin and oregano get introduced to the cooking (and typically a chipotle), i've found that's really all i need as far as spices.

I reserve my minimalist instincts for crafting beats on my phone, when it’s chili time I end up trying to pack too many warm seasonings into the pot because THEY’RE IN THE SPICE DRAWER I SHOULD USE THEM

Speaking of spices, I made a grill full of jerk chicken thighs, which should get me through the week along with the large amt of rice pilaf I also made. Nice to be able to go out and grill without dying of heatstroke.

can anyone recommend a super high quality can opener? i'm pissed that mine from target has already shit the bed, and besides i'm not buying shit from target right now

sorry that that was so vulgar

we’ve had an Oxo can opener for 25+ years
i can recommend for quality/durability

this one

https://a.co/d/2ShNkl9

i have that one also. weirdly, i had been thinking it was overkill to buy it as almost all tins over here have a ring pull and don't need to be opened. then this very evening the ring pull snapped off my tin of tuna and i was v glad of it. that's its annual use now.

I think OXO good grips products are chiefly designed for people with arthritis, but basically everything they make is brilliant, literally premium quality items you will use forever and not even that expensive. You can't go wrong with their products. I have their potato peeler, potato ricer, mandolin, whisk, grater, hand processor and this tin opener - that comes to mind. Love their stuff.

yeah we have quite a few too

thanks, all

Completely agree about Oxo. Also they aren't kidding with the lifetime guarantee. I've only had one thing break (rectangular floor mop thing that has an attached spray bottle and a little trigger to fire water as you mop, great product) and they instantly replaced it.

The lemon juicer is great and I just recently also got the potato ricer. Have a good few other bits can't remember them all now.

Did someone say before an ILXOR works for Oxo? I feel like maybe but can't remember.

ilOXOr

I have had good experiences with OXO products, but also a couple of duds: went through two salad spinners that both broke. Also, the lemon juicer (hinged style) failed and has been vastly outperformed by a cheap $8 metal one I bought at a liquor store.

Oh weird, I think I have that same juicer and it's been working well for years.

Did someone say before an ILXOR works for Oxo?

It's you, judging by these posts.

I'd obviously love to work for such a vibrant, global brand, and if I did I'd be happy to answer any questions anyone has about the range of versatile, durable products which Oxo Good Grips are proud to offer.

Yes there is an ilxor who worked for Oxo at one point — not sure what’s up anymore bc it has been some time since I learned of it.

It’s not localgarda

I made Pasta Genovese, which is a ragu made of beef shank braised in onion jus, for the first time yesterday while snowed in. The method I used was dead simple:

1. Nicely brown almost 5 pounds of bone in beef shank in large stock pot in 4 tablespoons of butter. You want the pot to get funky.
2. Add 1/2 bottle of white wine and reduce by 3/4.
3. Cover with 8 pounds of finely chopped onions (basically up to the top of the pot).
4. Add maybe 20 whole cherry tomatoes and maybe the same in whole black peppercorns.
5. Reduce heat to low, add a tight-fitting lid, and do not touch it or stir it until the onions have collapsed, meaning given up most of their liquid and reduced in volume by at least 1/3 (maybe 2 hours).
6. At this point you can stir it all together and continue cooking it with the lid off until the meat shreds at the lightest touch, about 2 more hours.
7. Remove the bones and any obviously large bits of fat.

This yielded almost 6 quarts of ragu. I served it over sedani, which is a like a ridged ziti with a very slight curve to it.

The flavor was really simple, deep, and amazing. It smelled like cheesesteaks when it was cooking, then the flavor of the finished product had the same deep onion sweetness of french onion soup.

8 pounds of finely chopped onions

damn son

need one of those little battery-powered neckstrap fans for that operation

I had almost no issues with these onions! I find tearing up is very hit or miss for me.

8 pounds? so did you chop like 12-15 onions?

beef shank ragu in onion jus - that sounds amazing!
my eyes are extremely sensitive to onions so I have some special onion goggles which are very sexy indeed

I didn't count, but probably 12 or so. Five large ones, a 3 lb bag, and most of another bag.

It took about an hour to chop the onions.

Actually, peeling them took longer than chopping them.