The Foodies Companion
Cooking Tips, Food History and Food Trivia. Interactive site
Friday, October 25, 2024
COOKING TIP: Cold Storage of Cheese
Wednesday, October 2, 2024
FOOD
HISTORY: SPAM
Everyone has
heard about but, really, what is Spam? Spam is canned precooked lunchmeat
containing pork shoulder with ham added, developed by the Hormel Co. In 1891,
George Hormel formed a retail meat market and pork business in Austen, Minnesota.
Over the years, Hormel always tried to improve his production and develop new
products. In 1916, they started selling dry sausages, a product that became
popular, especially with ethnic communities. Later, in 1921, after many years
of research and development, Hormel introduced “Hormel Flavor – Sealed Ham”.
The world’s first canned ham. When hams were cut the company was left with
thousands of pounds of pork shoulder. What to do with this surplus? Jay Hormel,
the son of founder Charles, came up with the idea of using the pork shoulders
for a new, spiced meat type product. Since “spiced ham” was not a particularly
inspiring name for the new product, a naming contest was held. The contest was
won by Kenneth Daigneau, a brother of one of Hormel’s executives, who using a
blending of the words, “spice” and “ham”, came up with the word “SPAM” for the
name of the new product, He was given $100 as a prize for the name. Spam was
launched in 1937. Although housewives of the1930’s liked the idea of unrefrigerated
and shelf-stable meat, Spam did not become global, until World War II when the
US purchased a variety of canned meats for the troops. Spam was the preferred
brand and was served to both American and allied soldiers overseas – about one
million pounds. It became a staple in England and Asian – Pacific countries
where rationing was in effect and where there was the presence of American
troops who ate it. The fact that it could be kept on the shelf for several
weeks and survive tropical heat made it a menu staple. In Hawaii, it became a
main source of protein when deep- sea fishing was restricted because. that
industry was run mainly by Japanese – Americans, whose patriotism was
questioned. After the war, the love of Spam remained and is one of Hawaii’s
“national” dishes even being included in sushi. Since Spam was introduced in
1937, more than eight billion cans have been sold by Hormel and is available in
44 countries. SPAM ON YOUR PLATE IS MUCH BETTER THAN SPAM IN YOUR EMAIL!!!
Sunday, September 1, 2024
FOOD TRIVIA: FISH AND CHIPS
The importance
of fish and chips to the overall wellbeing of the British is demonstrated by
the fact that this dish helped both their troops and civilian populations get
through two World Wars.
In WWI, Prime Minister Lloyd George made sure that the dish was not put on the
ration list unlike bread, sugar, and meat. This served as a great morale
booster. Again, in WWII, the government had to maintain a steady supply of fish
and potatoes. Even though the price of fish increased, the government still
maintained a supply. On the battlefield, as well, fish and chips played a role.
To separate friends from foe, the challenge code word was “fish”; response with
the reply “chips”, told you it was a friend. Initially, when fish and chips
were first eaten by the British, it was wrapped in a cone made of newspapers.
This survived until the late 1980’s, when it was ruled. unsafe for food to be
in contact with newspaper ink unless there was a grease-proof paper in between.
Originally, any kind of fish could be fried and used for fish and sold as “fish
and chips” dishes. Now, government regulations apply to fish and chip venues
which now, must specify the name the type of fish used, Haddock and Chips, Cod,
and Chips, etc. So, while merely "fish and chips" cannot be sold
anymore, the British tradition of deep-fried fish served with deep fried
potatoes is alive and well and continues not only the United Kingdom but in
other countries. as well. Fish and chips
are variously “sauced “in different countries: Australians use Tartar sauce,
England prefers malt vinegar, Scotland likes Brown Sauce, mayonnaise in Belgium
while in Denmark, Remoulade sauce is used.
Tuesday, July 30, 2024
COOKING TIP: Pasta
For your information: Fresh pasta is No better
than dried pasta. Each is used with different sauces. Fresh pasta is best
served with creamy, butter- based sauces which allows the texture of the pasta
to shine and be the star of the dish. Dried pasta is more versatile using a
wider variety of saucing to be used depending on the shape of the pasta. See
table below.
Never add oil to the water in which you are cooking
pasta. Adding it does not prevent sticking. However, it coats the pasta not
allowing sauce to cling to it and just wastes the oil. Pasta does not have to
be cooked in huge volumes of water. Enough water to cover the amount of pasta
you are cooking by an inch or two is enough. This plus a few stirs during
cooking time will prevent sticking. Do, however, add salt (Kosher, not iodized)
in the ratio; 1 tsp of Morton or ½ tbsp Diamond per quart of water. The salted
water is absorbed by the pasta and flavors it while cooking.
Do not break long pasta into strands. There are
numerous short pasta shapes to use if your dish calls for short pasta. Each
pasta shape is made for a specific type of saucing. Use the appropriate sauce
for the type you are using.
Never overcook pasta. Nobody likes mushy
pasta. Prepare each to its al dente (Italian
- to the tooth) consistency; it should have a little “resistance” to your teeth
when you bite into it. Cook according to the directions on the box. Taste
frequently while cooking. When it is
cooked about two or three minutes from the recommended cooking time or from the time
your tasting tells you the texture is almost at the point you would like it to
be, drain the pasta and put it into the sauce to finish cooking. This will
allow the sauce to be absorbed into the pasta in the last phase of cooking.
Further, the addition of a few tablespoons of the starchy pasta cooking water
to the sauce will help bind the sauce to the pasta.
RMEMBER, sauce judiciously, NEVER overpower the
pasta with sauce. The pasta should be the star of the dish, not the sauce. Use
just enough to fully coat all the pasta without leaving a pool of sauce under
it on the plate.
PASTA SAUCE
Long and Thin olive oil, herbs and spices, tomato,
Capellini, Vermicelli,
Angel Hair
Long and Flat cheese
or cream based
Fettuccine, Linguini,
Pappardelle
Tubular robust tomato, frequently with minced
meat
Penne, Cappelletti,
Ziti
Large and Flat baked in sauce with meat,
cheese. and/or vegetables
Lasagna
Pasta with filling olive oil or butter sauces, thin soups,
broth, light tomato
Ravioli, Tortellini,
Cappelletti
Saturday, June 22, 2024
FOOD HISTORY: Fois Gras
*Fattening geese and ducks had a dual purpose, Fois Gras, as a gourmet delicacy and the production of fat for the preserving of food - making confit (cooking the meat in and then leaving it covered by the fat.). This preserved the meat for several months, insuring a meat supply before many other methods of preservation were available. Fois Gras, the livers of geese and ducks caused by artificially overfeeding them to fatten the livers is a delicacy enjoyed by gourmets around the world. The word literally translated from the French means, "fat liver". The origin of Fois Gras is over 4500 years old. When ancient Egyptians hunted and then domesticated geese, they observed that they had a natural tendency to eat more than usual before they took on the stresses of long migration flights. ((Subsequently, it has been PROVEN that the weight of migrating birds increases by half at this time and that geese and ducks "fill up" before migrating flights and in times of potential bad weather.) In addition, they found that when these fatter birds were killed to be eaten during these periods, their meat became much more desirable and their livers, which now contained much more fat, had a richer, silkier and more delicious taste. To insure that they could have supplies of this fatter geese and duck meat and especially their much more fatty livers during the birds non-migratory modes, they developed an artificial method, called gavage, to reproduce this natural phenomenon. Gavage (forcing the birds to eat more food than normal) produced a fatter bird with a fattier liver. At least 20 tombs from the Ancient Egyptian Empire (2815 - 2400 BCE) depict scenes of artificially fattening geese. Over the years, figs, millet, sesame, vegetables and maize have been used for this purpose. From Egypt, the practice spread to Greece and then to Rome where cooking had evolved from a task performed by slaves to an art form. It was the Romans that found that fig fed birds livers had an enhanced taste; even to the point that these livers were given their own name;, "Iecur Figtatum" (fig stuffed liver"). Fois Gras became popular throughout the whole sphere of Roman influence. Jews living in in the Middle Eastern regions of the Roman Empire, because of dietary restrictions prohibiting the use of lard in cooking or using butter to cook with meat, used poultry fat for cooking. Therefore, these Jews were particular to the Roman way of producing ducks and geese with fatter meat and livers. Thus, when the Roman Empire fell, they continued making Fois Gras and it became a staple food of Jewish aristocratic society in Palestine. When these Jews migrated to Germany and France in the 11th century they carried the knowledge for making Fois Gras with them. While by the 1500's Fois Gras had made its appearance on tables in the Courts of the French Kings - the birds were now being force-fed corn brought back by Columbus from the Americas rather than figs - it wasn't until 17th century France that this delicacy was much more popularized by French Court Chefs. In 1788, the Governor of Alsace traded a Pate de Fois Gras to French King Louis XVI for a parcel of land in Picardy. The king loved the dish so much that he began to introduce Pate de Strasbourg (the capital city of Alsace) to the Courts of the rest of Europe. This is how Fois Gras became associated with French gastronomy. Fois Gras production became a thriving business in France and is still today, making France the country most associated with this luxurious food.
Friday, May 31, 2024
COOKING TIPS: "Making the Cut" Part 1; Meat
The
way meat is cut or handled may affect the ease of preparation, taste, texture, or visual
appeal. The following are tips on how to cut some foods to achieve the best of
the things mentioned above. They require knives that are always maintained to
be very sharp. Sharp knives are much safer than dull ones since they require less pressure to cut.
MEATS
In
general, any meat should be cut, “across the grain”. This shortens the fibers
making the meat more tender to chew.
COOKED
meat should ALWAYS be rested for 10 or more minutes, depending on the size of
the meat. WHY? When the meat is heated all the cells contract, squeezing their liquid
out and away from the heat toward the center of the meat. If it were to be
sliced as soon as the cooking time is up, all the juices pooled in the middle would run out and be lost to the meat. Resting for several minutes allows the
“pooled juices" to redistribute throughout the meat making each slice juicier.
This
is especially true for chicken and other poultry, which already contain less
moisture prior to cooking.
To
cut thin slices from a larger piece of raw meat, for scallops, very thin slices
for stir fry, etc., place meat in the freezer for some time to "rest" (stiffen the fibers) before cooking, As said above for “resting” meat, how much time in the freezer
will vary depending on the size of the meat. DO NOT FREEZE THE MEAT. The meat should be firm, but NOT FROZEN. Never try to cut frozen meat!!
Fry and taste a piece of your meatloaf or meatball mixture before you cook them. This way, you can correct the seasonings, if necessary.
When making hamburgers, use your thumb to make a depression in the middle of them, so they don't "bubble up" upon cooking