I installed a new printing method that uses strictly CSS rather than the old way: a page parsing program. This new method will save me a lot of time and maintenance.
If you have any feedback, let me know.
New Print for dougthecook
April 30th, 2009Making Tea an Easy Way
February 21st, 2009My wife and I were talking to one of the cooks at Trader Joes about making tea. She made it in the usual way: boil water, steep the teabag, and drink it. Our way is a little different: fill the coffeemaker with water, run the coffeemaker to get hot water, then steep a bag or two in the coffeepot. Makes plenty of hot tea.
FWIW, I measured the temperature of the hot water of the coffeepot and it hovered around 160 degrees F. I believe ideal coffee is brewed at 180 to 190 degrees, according to a friend who used to design coffee percolators. I’m not sure the ideal temperature for brewing tea.
Pizza Crust Update
February 14th, 2009Having the past few crusts a little gooey inside, I decided to precook the crust. The past two crusts I precooked 10 minutes in an iron skillet while the oven warmed up. The result was excellent; a crisp crust cooked through. Another hint is to bring the dough to room temperature before forming it.
Pizza Dough Update
December 27th, 2008The other day I made dougthecook pizza dough with an added 1 tsp of cream of tartar. Big difference, though I’ll have to make the dough a few times just to make sure. The dough was very elastic and easy to work with; easier than not having cream of tartar. The dough seemed smoother; empirical evidence only. Also, the dough rose much better than previously. All in all, I’ll have to add cream of tartar to the ingredient list.
Pizza Dough Improv?
December 25th, 2008I made a batch of dougthecook pizza dough tonight with a new addition: 1 tsp cream of tartar. In reading the ingredients of Lou Malnati’s frozen pizza, cream of tartar, a dough conditioner, is used. According to the research I did the role of cream of tartar is to keep the dough elastic. No scientific explanation was found but empirical evidence from people that make their own play dough. They say adding cream of tartar improves elasticity and dough smoothness. Thanks kids!
dtc
Pork and Red Wine
December 17th, 2008Not everything we make turns out wonderful. Trying new recipes is a gamble though we try and reduce failure by looking at the ingredients and thinking how it will taste. I was wrong on the following pork and red wine recipe:
Pork and Red Wine Sauce
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 tsp honey
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 TBS onion, finely chopped
1 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
4 pork chops
1 TBS Olive oil, lite
Combine all ingredients except olive oil and onion in a nonreactive bowl.
Marinate pork for 10 minutes.
Cook pork in a skillet, about 5 minutes per side, on med heat. Remove and keep warm.
Add olive oil and onion on med-low heat. Cook until limp.
Add marinade, scrape fond off bottom, and let boil for a minute or so.
Remove bay leaf. Pour over chops and serve.
The red wine sauce and pork just didn’t have that great flavor combination. Certainly others may like it; it sure sounded good. I’d rate it a 2/5 and probably not make it again.
Update: 12/21/2008
I had plenty of leftover pork with red wine sauce. The next day I reheated the pork with some sauce on it…and it was delicious!
Doug
Simple Carrots to Eat
December 3rd, 2008I had a bunch of left-over carrots from Thanksgiving. After spending some time looking for ways to use them, I made it simple: stir-fry them. First I julienned the carrots and brought them to room temperature. Then I sauteed them on medium heat in an iron skillet and covered them for a minute or so. This process was repeated several times until the carrots were nice and brown…and soft. No sauce, no nothing…just a batch of delicious carrots with their sweetness brought out.
update: 12/25/2008
After several trials of sauteing carrots I found out if you saute them until nice golden brown then add a 1/4 cup of water and cover for 5 minutes the carrots turn out more tender. This works especially well if the carrots are cut to a larger size; say the size of a pencil.
dtc
How to Saute a Moist Chicken
November 23rd, 2008One thing I have had very good luck with is sauteing moist chicken. When I go out to eat, I rarely order chicken because it is served dry which means it is overcooked. This method works well for chicken breast which is what I usually cook.
Ok, enough. Here’s how it is done:
1. Brine the chicken. This is optional but makes a big difference.
2. Make sure the chicken is at room temperature.
3. Make sure the chicken is not too thick. Chicken breast usually is tapered with the fat end about 1 1/2 inches thick. I cut the breast in two (thin and thick part) then cut the thick part in half so each piece is about 3/4 inch thick.
4. Use a marinade. This is optional but enhances the flavor and adds a little moisture to the chicken.
5. Use an iron skillet or aluminum one. Don’t use a nonstick because the chicken does not brown well.
6. Don’t get the skillet too hot or else the chicken will be done on the outside but not on the inside. On a gas or electric stove, I cook at medium heat. You want a nice golden brown finish; not black.
7. Make sure the oil is hot enough. I use corn, peanut, or high temp olive oil. The oil should be shimmering in the pan but not smoking.
8. Make sure the chicken is patted dry or else oil will spatter when you immerse the chicken.
9. Put the chicken in the skillet. Don’t crowd it; in other words there should be space in between each piece.
10. Cover the skillet about 75% of the way. This helps cook the chicken through and prevents oil spatter but does not steam cook it much.
11. Flip the chicken after 4 minutes. It should be golden brown on the bottom. Cook until the middle of the chicken is about 160 degrees. I use a quick digital thermometer to measure but I know my stove enough that I can take out the chicken after 4 minutes (8 total) of cooking.
12. Put the chicken on a platter and cover it. I use a skillet lid. Let it rest for 4 minutes then serve. In the mean time, I like to make pan sauce which is delicious. The quickest way is to pour about 1/2 cup of vermouth in the pan while it is on medium heat. Let it boil for a minute then scrape up the bits of fond with a flat wooden spoon or spatula. Let it boil for another minute or so. Serve over the chicken. Yum Tum! And you will have a relatively clean pan.
There you have it. I have had countless people ask me how can the chicken be so moist and tasty. Now you know.
No Cook Pizza Sauce Redux
November 23rd, 2008I finally did it: made a homemade pizza with a no cook sauce. Naturally I used dougthecook pizza sauce but did not cook the sauce. All ingredients were mixed in a bowl and sat in the refrigerator for several hours so the flavors could meld. After cooking the sauce on the pizza, it tasted very fresh. My wife said it tasted very good and was surprised. That takes a half hour off making a pizza.
Real Macaroni and Cheese
November 19th, 2008I know mac and cheese is popular: Kraft sells over 1 million boxes a day. Though buying it is easy, the taste is ok unless I’m *very* hungry. It was time to make it from scratch. I usually don’t make things with butter but I made an exception.
Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
Ingredients
4 oz uncooked elbow pasta (macaroni)
1 cup milk
paprika
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 TBS butter (I used bakeable margarine)
Directions
Make macaroni according to directions. Drain.
While heat is on med-low, stir in 1/2 cup milk, butter, and cheese until melted. Add more milk until sauce is thick. Sprinkle with paprika.
Epilogue
Originally I put in the 1 cup milk and the sauce was too thin. Definitely tastes better than the old standby and just about as easy to make.
This goes well with baked beans.
dtc