Recipes / British Election [split dual topic]

[Boiler 46,122]

1 hour ago, laylalex said:

I will be making Roast Beef for Xmas Eve -- I make it with an untrimmed tri tip, as this is the cut that Alex likes the most that is readily available here. I usually choose one that's about 3lbs, because there's only two of us and that is plenty for one meal and sandwiches for Al. Very simple -- I rub it with a mix of 1 tbsp of Colman's English Mustard (dry) mixed with 1 tbsp of Wondra flour (it is better, I think, with very fine flours), then a generous amount of freshly milled pepper and sea salt on all sides. I cut a large onion in half and place the seasoned beast on top of the onion. It then goes into a 475F oven for 20 mins, then I turn down the heat to 375F and roast it for another 15 minutes per pound, plus about 10 minutes for medium rare (don't add the extra time for rare, about 20 minutes extra for medium, and anything more than that makes you a heathen). I baste it at the end of the initial 20 minutes, then again every 15 minutes. Then it rests for a while, at least 20 minutes under foil. The onion and the drippings go into onion gravy (also another use for the Wondra flour). For Xmas Eve, I'll be making a larger roast than normal so we can have leftovers on Christmas Day PLUS sandwiches for Alex.

 

Extremely simple, and I'll usually have brussels sprouts or green beans on the side, along with horseradish. Sometimes I let myself be pestered into making mashed potatoes, since apparently I am amazing at it. (The key is a ridiculous amount of butter and half and half.)

 

And we will be having some of this at some point over the holidays: https://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/p/51877/edradour-2006-12-year-old-natural-cask-strength We brought back a bottle in October -- it was bottled in the year that he and I tried to have a relationship but couldn't figure it out -- here's hoping we finally have!

Peas?

 

Roast Potatoes?

[laylalex 7,300]

7 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Peas?

 

Roast Potatoes?

He doesn't like peas! I know. I put them in things and they get picked out. I asked if it was a taste thing or a texture thing or what, and he just said it was an everything thing and that they are foul. 

 

Roast potatoes are another thing altogether, very much loved by us both, but the oven I have in the current place is on the small side, so if I am making the roast there is not enough room to also roast roasties.  This will not be a problem in the new Chez Laylalex. I used to make them when I would go over to his old place in SF where there was a big enough oven but he moved out over 2 months ago. That place... the walls were so thin I knew what his neighbor's preferences in bed were, and when she switched from dating a guy named Bob to a guy named Eric.  

[Boiler 46,122]

3 minutes ago, laylalex said:

He doesn't like peas! I know. I put them in things and they get picked out. I asked if it was a taste thing or a texture thing or what, and he just said it was an everything thing and that they are foul. 

 

Roast potatoes are another thing altogether, very much loved by us both, but the oven I have in the current place is on the small side, so if I am making the roast there is not enough room to also roast roasties.  This will not be a problem in the new Chez Laylalex. I used to make them when I would go over to his old place in SF where there was a big enough oven but he moved out over 2 months ago. That place... the walls were so thin I knew what his neighbor's preferences in bed were, and when she switched from dating a guy named Bob to a guy named Eric.  

Put the potatoes in the pan with the meat.

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

2 hours ago, laylalex said:

What, and make him cook?  Terrifying, though we have moved past the "pink ham between two pieces of white bread is a sandwich" phase. No, you're probably right. I guess there are some things that no matter how much I say I want to have him be in charge of, I have problems letting go of. I've never been a great delegator -- I'm a type A perfectionist. Part of my therapy is learning how to accept that sometimes it is okay just to be okay at things, and to let others do things for me. My therapist last week told me I need to be better at self-care, which includes getting massages at least twice a month. I love this therapist! Now I just need to find another one just like her when we move.....

 

By "for Alex", I meant for you to use to cook for him.  That same recipe above would be done in about 20 minutes in an Instapot.

[laylalex 7,300]

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

Put the potatoes in the pan with the meat.

No, because the roast for different amounts of time, and the roasties need to cook in fat from the beginning, and the fat from the beef only drips down over time. Plus the roast and the roasties cook at different temps at the beginning. Don't cry for Alex -- he will have some in January.  He will do just fine without them and I will not get fired as cook anytime soon.

46 minutes ago, ALFKAD said:

By "for Alex", I meant for you to use to cook for him.  That same recipe above would be done in about 20 minutes in an Instapot.

LOL! But no, it really needs the roasting to be properly done with the browning, etc. Can you even get crackling in an Instapot?

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

6 minutes ago, laylalex said:

No, because the roast for different amounts of time, and the roasties need to cook in fat from the beginning, and the fat from the beef only drips down over time. Plus the roast and the roasties cook at different temps at the beginning. Don't cry for Alex -- he will have some in January.  He will do just fine without them and I will not get fired as cook anytime soon.

LOL! But no, it really needs the roasting to be properly done with the browning, etc. Can you even get crackling in an Instapot?

I have been able to make yogurt, brown a roast, cook a very tough roast to tender morsels, pressure cook chicken thighs in about 10 minutes so that they are full of juices, as well as make about a quart of gravy from the drippings.  And technically, a roast should be seared in a hot cast iron skillet prior to cooking to be done "right".  Between an Instapot, a sous vide cooker, and a manado grill, I can cook just about anything to perfection.

[laylalex 7,300]

1 minute ago, ALFKAD said:

I have been able to make yogurt, brown a roast, cook a very tough roast to tender morsels, pressure cook chicken thighs in about 10 minutes so that they are full of juices, as well as make about a quart of gravy from the drippings.  And technically, a roast should be seared in a hot cast iron skillet prior to cooking to be done "right".  Between an Instapot, a sous vide cooker, and a manado grill, I can cook just about anything to perfection.

I will have to differ you about how a roast is done "right." There are definitely different ways of doing one, some more likely to give flavor and roastiness than others. I'm familiar with the cast iron technique and I do use it for some things, but for this particular roast it needs to be all in the oven. I would be open to the idea of an instant pot, but I can't be sure that I can get crackling in it. (There has to be crackling or there will be much sadness and a look of bereft astonishment -- been there when I somehow messed up the temperatures.)

[luckytxn 2,265]

27 minutes ago, ALFKAD said:

I have been able to make yogurt, brown a roast, cook a very tough roast to tender morsels, pressure cook chicken thighs in about 10 minutes so that they are full of juices, as well as make about a quart of gravy from the drippings.  And technically, a roast should be seared in a hot cast iron skillet prior to cooking to be done "right".  Between an Instapot, a sous vide cooker, and a manado grill, I can cook just about anything to perfection.

Told my wife I wanted an InstaPot for Christmas. Her expression though told me I ain't getting one. She did buy me a muffin pan 2 days ago and I made blue berry muffins and then cornbread muffins.

Edited December 19, 2019 by luckytxn

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

6 hours ago, laylalex said:

I will have to differ you about how a roast is done "right." There are definitely different ways of doing one, some more likely to give flavor and roastiness than others. I'm familiar with the cast iron technique and I do use it for some things, but for this particular roast it needs to be all in the oven. I would be open to the idea of an instant pot, but I can't be sure that I can get crackling in it. (There has to be crackling or there will be much sadness and a look of bereft astonishment -- been there when I somehow messed up the temperatures.)

Why do you think you "can't get crackling" in it?

[laylalex 7,300]

12 hours ago, ALFKAD said:

Why do you think you "can't get crackling" in it?

Because I read up on it, and haven't been able to see anything that shows me that it can. It's not like browning -- and it isn't even "real" crackling -- that's really for pork because the skin needs to be on -- it's just a super-thick layer of fat. A quick blast on all sides won't do the trick in a pan. I had my suspicions, so I reached out to a friend who went to Le Cordon Bleu and who owns an Instant Pot and loves it, AND has had the exact dish I'm talking about from my kitchen (well, the kitchen in my old house). She said she did not think an Instant Pot would give the same results in terms of the "crusty" as she referred to it, or the browning/potting method. On the other hand, she said that if I wasn't wedded to the idea of "crusty," the Instant Pot would have great results. BUT since I am producing something for someone for whom the "crusty" is a really important thing, I just don't think it will work in this particular recipe. Also, the beauty of this dish is that it's literally one pan that everything happens in -- if I browned it in another pan (and browning is not what I want), I would have another pan to clean. So in conclusion I thank you for the idea but I will stick to my roast in the oven technique.  

[Burnt Reynolds 5,058]

18 hours ago, luckytxn said:

Told my wife I wanted an InstaPot for Christmas. Her expression though told me I ain't getting one. She did buy me a muffin pan 2 days ago and I made blue berry muffins and then cornbread muffins.

Why not? Got the wife (who does all the cooking) an InstantPot 8-quart like 3 or 4 years ago (was an extremely good deal), and she's absolutely loved it, so much so that she demanded we get their new blender (deal or not) they came out with on our last US trip. I'd recommend, on behalf of the wife.. not my own, I'm not the type of person you want in a kitchen cooking. 

Edited December 19, 2019 by Burnt Reynolds

[Boiler 46,122]

Have we determined which potatoes you roast taking into account the very limited variety available in the US?

[laylalex 7,300]

3 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Have we determined which potatoes you roast taking into account the very limited variety available in the US?

I use Yukon Golds, which are fairly waxy and make decent roasties in my opinion. Fingerlings don't do it for me. New potatoes are fine too, but I like the flesh of the Yukon Golds the best.

[Boiler 46,122]

Do you par boil?

 

Begs the question why such a large country has such a limited selection of potatoes. Never heard of roasting new pots.

[laylalex 7,300]

45 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Do you par boil?

 

Begs the question why such a large country has such a limited selection of potatoes. Never heard of roasting new pots.

You can roast new potatoes, but the results are nowhere near as good as with the Yukon Golds. As with so many things I have learned over the years from a moaning husband and now a moaning fiance that our selection of everything except breakfast cereals suck. Bread, cookies/biscuits, cuts of meat, cheeses (though this is not too bad here in Berkeley -- we have an amazing cheese store in the Gourmet Ghetto, though we're not supposed to call it that now), crisp flavors, etc. etc. 

 

I do par boil! (Edit to clarify: I actually do a weird steam/boil thing -- it's not just boiling.) Mostly because Delia says to, and I taught myself how to cook with her books. She calls for lard/drippings, but I tend not to have this around too often. I find that olive oil and butter are both fine, butter a bit nicer. When I have drippings (and I will after the roast next week) they do make them even better. When I really want something special, I buy a thing of goose fat. Christmas/New Year's is about the only time that I eat this much meat during the week, and I am going to have to do some serious exercise in the new year. I am reconsidering the wedding date again, so I may have a little longer than the 12 months I currently have. Recipe here: https://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/books/delias-winter-collection/perfect-roast-potatoes 

 

I realized this morning that yesterday would have been my 9th wedding anniversary.  On the other hand, it is the first time I have forgotten the significance of the date, which must be a good thing.

Edited December 19, 2019 by laylalex
To clarify cooking method, somewhat.