Ask Alton Brown How Food+Heat=Cooking 844
This week's Slashdot interview guest is Alton Brown, host of the popular cable TV show Good Eats. This is a "reader request" interview in the wake of the surprisingly popular Slashdot review of Alton's book, I'm Just Here for the Food. Please post your questions below. we'll send 10 of the highest-moderated to Alton, and post his answers when we get them back.
Alton. (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm rather tired of bowls of corn flakes.
Winmac.
Where do you get all the cool gadgets... (Score:2, Interesting)
Suggest a good recipe using an all beef hot dog. (Score:2, Interesting)
The Source... (Score:5, Interesting)
Other than your own cooking, what do you like? (Score:5, Interesting)
What are your favorite resteraunts? (Score:4, Interesting)
Why are some people better Cooks? (Score:5, Interesting)
I've know several people that follow a recipe very exactly. The food they create just doesn't turn out very good.
Personally, I'll use a recipe as a guideline and use rough estimates. Most of the time, my meals turn out pretty well.
It's as if a intuitive sense is needed.
How does someone learn/teach this skill?
Salt.... (Score:2, Interesting)
Vegetarians (Score:5, Interesting)
I sort of compare it to Microsoft talking to a lot of my friends: there is a lot of misinformation out there, and you simply don't need to support a "big evil company" just like you don't need to eat the flesh of animals.
Mod this as you feel appropriate
Economy Geek Food (Score:5, Interesting)
Here's what I want in a meal. If I'm like other geeks, and I think I am, they'll be interested too:
- Easy to prepare in bulk, hard to screw up
- Made from cheap ingredients I can purchase in bulk and that keep more-or-less indefinitely
- Leftovers are robust and reheatable in the microwave
- Healthy and tasty
My best recipe so far is two gallons of chili made in a big slow-cooker. Do you have any other suggestions?
Questions... (Score:3, Interesting)
Do you keep a database of your recipes or do you use the old fashion method of dead trees?
Junk Food (Score:3, Interesting)
posting anonymously for obvious reasons (Score:5, Interesting)
I myself am a decent enough cook, however, I don't know how to teach her to cook, as I am a horrible teacher.
So, my question to you is this...
How can a pretty bad cook learn the essentials of good cooking?
Cute + Furry = Tasty (Score:1, Interesting)
So far, I've collected:
Gerbil in the microwave [joecartoon.com] (the perfect quick meal for the starving college student)
Gerbil Soup, She Devil-style [ahafilm.info]
As you can see, my list is far from complete. I'd appreciate any new gerbil recipies you can offer.
Differences in yeasts? (Score:4, Interesting)
How does he develop these methods? (Score:5, Interesting)
Back to the grill, he's removed one of the plates on the side of his grill and fitted it with a piece of tailpipe. Then, when he's grilling, he sticks a hair dryer in the tailpipe and uses it to whip the coals into an inferno. Which might explain why he gets his oven mitts from the hardware store in the form of welding gloves. When talking about ovens, he describes how he builds an oven out of firebricks, and how he uses a large terra cotta pot to cook a chicken in his oven. It's all in the name of even heat distribution. He's also not above rewiring his electric skillet to provide a greater range of temperatures. You know you've read something good when the author includes a mini-disclaimer to the effect of "if you try this at home kids, I and the publisher are not responsible."
Okay, well, he's apparently fairly cool.
As for the question: how does he come up with these rather novel cooking methods? Is it trial and error (and, if so, what errors)? Does he have any sort of physics background? Or does he just wake up at 2am and think what a wizard idea it would be to use a hair dryer as a catalyst for his cooking?
Recipes on foodtv.com (Score:4, Interesting)
First of all, thanks for a great cooking show. I've used ideas from many of them (such as quarry tile for a pizza oven), and when I'm not making up my own dishes, the recipes I use are almost always yours.
I've noticed what appear to be some discrepencies between the recipes listed on foodtv.com and the recipes which appear on the actual show. For the "Deep Purple" episode, you carefully noted that the parsely in the baba ghannouj recipe should be added at the very end, because chopping it too long would turn it bitter, but the online version just tosses it in with the rest. Similarly, the eggplant pasta recipe from that show seems to try to double the recipe, but the amount of some ingredients has not increased consistently. I know that doubling a recipe is non-linear, but I would have thought less basil would be used, not more. Finally, the "Herb Spread" recipe from "Good Milk Gone Bad" seems to have been completely altered, with the original spices listed as "an alternative" (though it would still include Worcestire sauce, which wasn't in the original). I've used the original version of that spread for 3 parties, and everyone has really liked it, so I don't see why that was done.
I saw your comments and addendum on the online recipe for pizza dough, so I was just wondering why the recipes are sometimes different from the shows.
Anyway, thanks again for a great show. I really hope to see more released on DVD (the current ones out aren't the ones I really want), or at least some older shows repeated on Food Network.
Gizmos (Score:2, Interesting)
Small kitchen - what tools? (Score:3, Interesting)
dirty pleasures .. ? (Score:5, Interesting)
Question (Score:2, Interesting)
Art vs. Science (Score:5, Interesting)
Knives (Score:2, Interesting)
One discussion I haven't seen: I consider the most important multitasker in my kitchen to be a knife, mainly my 8" chef's knife. What advice do you have for choosing a set of knives? Which knives do you consider the most important in food prep? Do you sharpen them yourself or have them sharpened at a shop?
Thank You
Chris
Cancerous Carbs? (Score:4, Interesting)
Do you think this will affect your cooking recommendations in anyway?
What are your thoughts on MSG? (Score:5, Interesting)
Where is it approprate, and how might I use it best? Or why shouldn't I use it at all?
Resteraunts (Score:5, Interesting)
Iron Chef (Score:5, Interesting)
must have video! (Score:5, Interesting)
My question (Score:5, Interesting)
Elements of cooking (Score:5, Interesting)
I think that the most interesting part of your show to this audience is your emphasis on the science of cooking, from discussion of protein (such as in your angel foodcake episode and your recent souffle episode).
But the other difference in Good Eats is the great emphasis you place on the parts of cooking, that is the elements at a more abstract level, such as use of heat, individual ingredients (which is the topic of many of the shows) and methods of cooking (such as the right way to mix and fold).
This all makes Good Eats interesting for us geeks out there who want to understand the science, but also helps us non-cooking geeks become literate in the supermarket and kitchen.
What gave you the idea to present cooking in this way and do you have any suggestions for other resources that present food and food preparation in the same way?
- Serge Wroclawski
Heart attack by age 45... (Score:2, Interesting)
Many of your recipes tend to be a high in fat (for example, deep fried mac and cheese [foodtv.com]). How often do you eat food like that? Do you worry you'll die of a heart attack by age 45?
Thanks for the shows, I really enjoy them.
Where do you get you Scientific Info? (Score:5, Interesting)
Foods you *don't* like? (Score:5, Interesting)
Are there any specific foods, however, which you expressly *DO NOT* like? Where the preparation is particularly odious, or where the cooking itself is tedious, or where you just plain don't like the taste?
Basic skills and knowledge (Score:4, Interesting)
High Altitude (Score:2, Interesting)
As a big fan of yours, your show is a refreshing change from the same old shows on FoodTV. I really enjoy trying out your recipes and have had some great success. However, the problems arise when baking. Because I live in high-altitude (Boulder, CO) I have to adjust the temperatures and ingredient mixtures. There is an easy formula to follow and it works for most things, but not all. Your awesome recipe for a water-bake cheesecake has been a bit hit with my family and friends. The problem is, that I have to really tweak the cooking time and temperature to get it firm all the way through. On to my question...
What do you suggest for high-altitude recipes that don't include yeast, flour, or other dry baked goods (i.e. the cheesecake)?
Is it hard to be objective? (Score:5, Interesting)
Tech geeks are infamous for dealing with non-tech people with disdain, because we know (or think we know) so much about technology.
I have often wondered if this happens to chefs. When you go out to eat, do you overthink the food or are you able to just enjoy it? If something isn't quite perfect, do you find yourself thinking "They should have done this, or that". As your experience and tastes grow, do you find food to be less enjoyable and more work, or is it something that brings you continuous enjoyment?
And thanks for doing such a fantastic show, I liken it to the science show "Beakman's World" of several years ago.
responsibilities for promoting healthier eating (Score:4, Interesting)
As a popular TV chef who also tends to educate more than just throw food together, do you feel responsible to promote healthier eating? And I don't mean that "low fat" nonsense which you yourself point out is bollocks in your book, but things like avoiding the foods that we tend to over-eat nowadays because they are so tasty and cheaply produced? (eg, sugar, HFCS, white flours, etc, all that stuff devoid of any nutrional value).
Cheers,
Coolfish (Sushi, if you will
10 Most Essential Cooking Tools (Score:2, Interesting)
Heck, what are the ten things that should be in my fridge and pantry at all times?
Technical questions (Score:5, Interesting)
I had a technical question, we always see these shots coming out of refrigerators and ovens. Do you actually have little windows in the back of your appliances or are those props built up for the shows? I always assumed they were props but you never know. Also, is that really your house you shoot in? I love the Magritte hate with chicken painting.
Good Programming Eats!! (Score:2, Interesting)
1. Cheap ( half the geeks in the world are unemployeed since the bubble burst )
2. Fast to cook ( We aint got time to spend on some fancy meal, we got programming to do )
3. Easy to make ( Give us a manual on C no problem, give most of us a cook book
Outdoor taste indoors (Score:1, Interesting)
Eating.. how much, how often? (Score:5, Interesting)
What's your take... how often do you eat a day, or do you not "plan" eating, and just eat whenever hungry or at non-structured intervals?
Campfire Cooking (Score:5, Interesting)
I just came back from a trip in the great hinterlands of Minnesota, so this question is spawned from recent culinary experience:
If you were sent out to the middle of nowhere and had some time to prepare for the trip, what sorts of equipment would you take along and what dishes would you prepare? For the sake of keeping it simple, let's say you had to cook a brekfast and dinner over a campfire. What would you make to really wow your fellow campers using as few ingredients and as little equpiment as possible?
Thank you,
-AP
Re:Utensiles (Score:3, Interesting)
I've just graduated from college and have moved out into an apartment. I really want to take the time to cook good food, but I don't have all the equipment. I'm also nearly broke paying back my college loans. I've put away $300 to start building my dream kitchen. What do you recommend I purchase so that I can make some good eats? I already have the stove and microwave. What else?
Cooktops, ovens, etc. (Score:5, Interesting)
Instructional videos (Score:2, Interesting)
Lower Fat and Cholesterol? (Score:5, Interesting)
I applaud episodes like "Good Milk Gone Bad" and "The Other Red Meat" that focus on lower fat and cholesterol foods. But many of your recipes call for butter, oil, cream, and other less than healthful foods (even bacon grease!). What do you think about some of the substitutes out there, or using ingredients like applesauce to replace butter?
Thank You
Chris
Cooking In Lava (Score:5, Interesting)
Now... on to, perhaps, one of the more unusual questions you might receive. This question deals directly with how heat affects food.
Specifically... I live on the slopes of an active volcano. One of the things we like to do for fun is cook game hen and pork loins in the hot lava itself. First, let me describe our process, and then our question.
To cook a game hen we first season and then wrap the hen in about 10 Ti (or banana) leaves. These protect the hen from actually burning.
Next we find an active surface breakout of lava. We use a shovel (we also are wearing kevlar gloves that can withstand 2000 degrees of heat) and get a good shovel full of red lava. We place this on the ground a distance from the flow. We then position the Ti-wrapped hen in the middle of the blob of lava and cover it with another shovel full of lava. We try to leave a small opening to the Ti leaves, for steam to escape (or we can potentially have a steam explosion).
Now, the question. The lava is initially at 2000 degrees when we start cooking. After about 15 minutes it has cooled to around 850 degrees (outside of the rock - we read this using an infrared pyrometer). After about 45 minutes the outside is about 450 degrees. At that point we hit the rock with the shovel to open it. Only a few of the Ti leaves will remain uncharred. We remove those and the hen is then very moist and delicious.
How is it possible, using a heat source at 2000 degrees (that granted, gets cooler over time) that it still takes 45 minutes to cook the game hen? We would have thought that the cooking would have been near instantanous - but repeated experiments at various lengths of time reveal that it takes exactly as long in the lava, as in an oven.
If you would like to view pictures of this process... click here [dolphinbayhotel.com].
Aloha
Homebrew! (Score:5, Interesting)
Can you please say a few things about how you feel about beer: drinking it, cooking with it, brewing it yourself?
("Relax, don't worry, have a homebrew.")
production of show (Score:5, Interesting)
Your show seems to have production values similar to other cooking shows, but I get the impression that the same, ah, practical approach you have to cooking was taken to production. ("Ok, this is just him and some camera guy in his home kitchen.")
How many people does it actually take to produce Good Eats, how much money is that, and who exactly owns and runs which parts of that operation?
Boiling water (Score:5, Interesting)
I think this is the kind of question Alton loves to answer.
Recipes always call for you to boil cold water. I'm too impatient for that. I like to start with hot water. I can imagine that an old water heater would let the water sit there for a while, and might get extra "junk" in it. I bet newer ones circulate the water better. Plus, I'm boiling the friggin water anyway. There's not going to be any live bacteria in it.
Can I please continue to boil hot water?
PS. I still want to see you do a standing back flip like Jamie Oliver.
Equipment (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Homebrew! (Score:2, Interesting)
Good Eats Production & the Future of Good Eats (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm convinced your show, Good Eats, is one of the best things on television. I was hoping you could tell us more about how you got the idea to shoot a show in the first place, how you decided to put a scientific slant on things, and where you would like to take Good Eats in the future?
Thank you,
-AP
Important new technology? (Score:2, Interesting)
A nerds perspective... (Score:2, Interesting)
How much atonomy and decision making power do you have in deciding the topics for your shows? Has the food network ever told you that a particular show was a bad idea?
Keep up the great work!
Re:Recipes on foodtv.com (Score:3, Interesting)
The proper quote is "a pint is a pound the world around".
And, of course, it isn't. Don't be an idiot. But it works well for most fluids used in cooking, such as water and milk. Spot on? Of course not. But close enough.
More importantly, it's close enough so you can guesstimate just how heavy that 10 gallon jug of water is.
Of course, if you're cooking with mercury, we won't have to worry about answering your questions for long.
Re-Heat Safe Cooking (Score:2, Interesting)
Cooking with Smoke (Score:5, Interesting)
For instance, why do smoked meats stay moist and tender instead of drying out? Why do smoked meats have a pink color near the surface - almost appearing uncooked? Is cooking with smoke really carcinogenous?
Rotisserie cooking (Score:1, Interesting)
My wife and I got a rotisseried chicken yesterday and it was fantastic. There are lot's of ways to cook a chicken and a lot of ways to ruin a chicken but cooking chicken in a rotisserie really seems to be a great way to achieve excellent flavor, texture, and juicy-ness.
What's your take on rotisserie cooking for poultry, lamb, beef?
Thanks,
Chip and Debby
stove purchase (Score:2, Interesting)
Now the question:
I just remodeled my kitchen. It's not all that big, but the one thing I really want in it is one of those huge 8 burner gas stoves - DCS, Dacor, Viking, something like that. My question is what benefits or drawbacks are there from using a 'commercial residential' model as opposed to something more conventionally residential, like a GE Spectra? Venting and space are not problems. (Natural Gas all the way - no electrics - I have an electric now and just like the way gas cooks better - and I think a gas oven produces better bread). Oh, and love your show.
The State of Food (Score:3, Interesting)
I have three questions.
I learned a long time ago that I enjoyed cooking more than anything else. Part of that is that, being a geek, I live in a digital world, and the analog act of cooking is very soothing. While I will complain loudly at standing in a line longer than ten minutes, I've often spent HOURS on my feet in the kitchen cooking for holidays, and went to bed that night blissfully calm.
In the US today, with rampant McCuisine and dual income families, the concept of cooking has been shoved to the back burner, so to speak. Eating is something you do, not something you enjoy. Even worse, good food is, for many, something you go get, not something you do in your own kitchen.
So, riddle me these questions three...
1) What can be done about the dumbing down of american cuisine? Your show is a spectacular start, but there simply arent enough of them. You actually make other shows irrelevant. I'm no longer content to see the "How" without also getting the "why?" Short of "Good Eats 2", what can be done to teach americans what good food is?
2) You're living the life I'd kill for. You were a Video guy who left to go to culinary school. I'm a web guy who would give anything to do the same, if I could figure out how to pay the mortgage and feed the three kids in the interim. I have taken the path of self education. Your book is, quite honestly, a textbook that should be required reading for anyone who wants to cook. I'm waiting for my copy of McGee's On Food And Cooking [amazon.com], what other resources do you recommend for someone who is very serious about culinary education, but doesn't have the resources for an immersive culinary school?
3) Your equipment recommendations, so far, have been dead on. My Magnum pepper mill is a dream, My lodge cast iron has a seasoning my grandmother would have been jealous of, and Spring loaded tongs have been a fixture in my kitchen since before you did your PBS shows. But I have yet to find a source for your Jomac gloves, and I am still patiently waiting for the Plunger and Plunger Junior to go on sale at Your Site [altonbrown.com]. Hook a brother up, to steal a Nicholson line, "Where does he get these wonderful toys."?
Oh, and I'll slide in one more question. What subjects are on tap for next season?
Herbs & Spices (Score:4, Interesting)
There has been an amazing improvement in everything I cook. Everything from McCormick really is bland dust next to its Penzeys equivalent. (No, I have no affiliation of any sort with Penzeys, just a recent convert).
So where do you go for your dried herbs and spices? Better yet, where do you recommend your viewers & readers buy reasonably priced quality herbs and spices?
Thanks!
Next Book? (Score:4, Interesting)
Maybe after reading a book like that, and I'm Just Here for the Food, I'll have learned enough to know that I know nothing. Only then will I be able to snatch a pebble from Julia Child's hand.
BTW, great TV show, great book!
Tension with sponsors/advertisers? (Score:2, Interesting)
Most kitchen shows these days are obviously supported by corporate sponsors - whose business apparently depends on pressuring people into buying needlessly specialized gadgets for the kitchen. I'd like you to comment on the possible tension between presenting reliable, affordable advice to people and getting enough advertising dollars to keep afloat.
Ideally there would be no tension: You promote "Good Eats" and that will surely increase the number of home cooks out there and keep the wheels of the industry turning!
Thanks for giving us such a great show,
Joe and Allison.
sauce thickening (Score:1, Interesting)
Questions on sauces... (Score:5, Interesting)
1. When trying to pan-fry things, the books recommend leaving the food in place without moving for a few minutes to develop the fond. Unfortunatly for me, I always end up with burnt bits and an hour of scrubbing my All-Clad pots. For poaching, it's recommended to cook in liquid at the target temperature, because then the food will never overcook. Can you do the same thing for pan frying, or will you never develop a fond? Or to put it another way (aka the geeky slashdot way,) what's the magic temperature for the Maillard reaction?
2. Because I'm a typical indentured serf with long work hours, I cook enough food on the weekends that I can bring my dinners to work and microwave them. But I'm having problems with Roux-based sauces, as after a night in the refrigerator, they turn to gelatenous blobs instead of creamy sauces (This may be a result of using home-made chicken stock.) What's the best way to reconstitute a sauce?
Cooking shows for the lonely (Score:2, Interesting)
Or, how does one cook for one?
Book recommendations (Score:2, Interesting)
Other than your own books (of course), which
books/writers do you recommend to learn new cuisines from?
Anthony Bourdain (Score:4, Interesting)
Salsa Chicken (Score:2, Interesting)
Your expanding middle... (Score:5, Interesting)
Safe Cooking Temps (Score:5, Interesting)
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/ham.htm
states that "cook-before-eating hams must reach 160 F to be safely cooked before serving." I know those bad boys have been salt cured but I would still be worried about trichinosis. Your "done" temperatures for meat are often lower than what the food safety people would have them be. This is a long winded way of asking "What is your approach to food safety?" You look pretty healthy to me so I'll assume you know something those government fussbudgets don't but I'd feel better about trying out some of your recipes if I knew what that was.
Re:posting anonymously for obvious reasons (Score:1, Interesting)
By spending time with her fiance, discussing cooking? By talking about the things that make her cooking good/bad/indifferent? By not having an a-hole of a fiance complain about her cooking publicly? *cursing*
Relationships are built on trust and communication. Not "Honey, you make the worst crap I've ever tasted" communication, but "I know you worked hard on this dish, but it's [too salty|got mushrooms|kinda funny looking]." Although sometimes, walking into the kitchen and saying "What did you do to that rice?" is needed.
Cooking is an art. It takes imagination and self-confidence. If the cookbook says one thing, and you want to do another, and your bf/gf has bitched about your cooking in the past, you won't feel free to experiment.
Disclaimer: I am a pretty good cook, and so is my bf. We actually discuss what makes the meal that we're eating good, so that we both learn. Sometimes I screw up, sometimes he screws up, but we still learn in the process. We learn things like the ginger jar has no shaker top so be careful, cayenne and chili powder make everything taste better, and it's really hard to screw up a burrito.
Maybe you'll just have to do the lion's share of the cooking. Maybe your next vacation can include a trip to a cooking school for you and your fiancee.
The Secret Life of Alton Brown (Score:2, Interesting)
Frozen Ding-Dongs?
Popeye's Chicken?
Deep-fried Twinkies?
Cooking for restricted diets (Score:2, Interesting)
What resources do you use and/or suggest using (such as good substitutions for common ingredients that work well across a range of diets) when preparing full meals for dietary-challenged folk?
Along a similar line... (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Why are some people better Cooks? (Score:3, Interesting)
That's why B.B. King is a genius. Can you imagine anyone going up to him and saying, "Wow, that concert tonight was technically perfect!". Or, for that matter, "Man, you played fast tonight!" Not to detract from his technical abilities, but what matters is feeling. Call it soul, if you like -- it's the difference between B.B. King and legions of metal guitarists who can squeeze out 15 notes per second, but will never be musicians.
It's probably the same reason why my spaghetti bolognaise is, well, usually not much more than your average spaghetti bolognaise. Sure, I can cook; but I haven't rehearsed my cooking, and I don't have a cook's feel for the proportions and the mixing and whatever else an expert does. And an expert in any field, be it cooking or painting or music, is a joy to behold.
American Cuisine (Score:4, Interesting)
1. The post-Prohibition recovery of American viticulture, and the general improvement of wine quality in general; (no more Ripple!)
2. I can buy morels, prosciutto, tomatillos, good bread, taro root, radicchio, and organ meats in my local grocery store;
3. 'Asian Cuisine' no longer implies Mai-Tai's with little umbrellas served in a coconut shell;
4. The Food Network;
5. Williams-Sonoma is in every metro area of 100,000 or more, it seems. Yes, it's pretentious and expensive - but it's there.
6. Microbreweries.
'Dumbed down'? No. American cuisine is now at its most brilliant - and it's getting better.
Your Previous Experiments (Score:5, Interesting)
In the interest of comedy and safety could you tell us of some of your experiments that didn't quite make it to the screen or page?
Non-Reactive Cookware (Score:2, Interesting)
I always hear "Use a non-reactive pan for this".
But what exactly is the "reaction" in a reactive pan and how does it affect the food your cooking?
Also what materials make up non-reactive and reactive cookware?
Thanks.
Breast Milk Yogurt story? (Score:2, Interesting)
Diet styles? (Score:1, Interesting)
Would you do the show in High-Definition? (Score:3, Interesting)
I have a High-Definition system and love it, but there's one thing missing - an HD cooking show. You really seem to be into having a show that looks different than all the other cooking shows. Any possibility of making at least one demo show in HD? Marc Cuban's HD-NET [hd.net] would show it.
Genetically engineered foods (Score:2, Interesting)
Most Memorable Mistake? (Score:3, Interesting)
What are the most memorable accidents, or acts of blatant stupidity, that you've seen or taken part in during cooking?
Gravy? (Score:3, Interesting)
What, exactly, is the science and process behind making good and wholesome gravy?
Seriously, Alton - my wife yesterday, when I mentioned that this was going to be an "Ask /." interview, told me that she wanted to pay YOU $1000.00 (US) to come over to our house to teach her how to make gravy. I am almost ready to front that amount, too.
It seems like every time we have tried to make gravy, it either never thickens, or we get paste. It seems like a simple thing to do - leave some pan drippings (and the grungy gunk too - flavor bits!), add a tiny bit of flour, mix and brown to create a nice roue (or however that is spelled), then add some milk, and perhaps a little more flour to thicken (salt, pepper, and spicing to taste).
I think we managed ONCE to create a real gravy.
So Alton, my question is:
HOW DO YOU MAKE GRAVY???!!!
Kitchen disasters (Score:3, Interesting)
"Seasoned" pans (Score:3, Interesting)
My wife is a wonderful woman, but has a phobia about cast iron pans. I cannot seem to convince her to let a cast iron pan "season" like it is supposed to. I scrub it out with kosher salt as you are supposed to, but she insists on putting that sucker in the sink and scrubbing it with a Brillo pad to get it "clean"...totally ruining the seasoning.
What can you say to her to convince her that a well-seasoned cast iron frying pan is healthy?
A question for AB (Score:2, Interesting)
OK, my question for you is I want a recipe for pot stickers. I just want a down to earth recipe that doesn't require too many synapses. Thanks.
Oh yeah, when I saw you on your book tour (the AB North American Tour) I asked you if you knew where you got the spherical molds for the jello eye ball halloween recipe. I was wondering what ever happened there. Anyways, great job on the Book and the Show.
Rick