Cooking Myths

Here is another myth:

Alcohol 'burns off' when cooking. I've even heard experienced chefs say this. I used to think it was so but in fact there is quite a bit of alcohol left after cooking. Probably not enough to make anyone drunk though. The classic dish for getting the teetotal relative a bit tipsy at Christmas is a sherry trifle, heavily doused with sherry. No cooking involved.
 
Morning Glory said:
Here is another myth:

Alcohol 'burns off' when cooking. I've even heard experienced chefs say this. I used to think it was so but in fact there is quite a bit of alcohol left after cooking. Probably not enough to make anyone drunk though. The classic dish for getting the teetotal relative a bit tipsy at Christmas is a sherry trifle, heavily doused with sherry. No cooking involved.
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Even a flambe' will not burn off all the alcohol.
 
I remember an illustrious chef once telling me that alcohol never completely disappears from cooking, and she pointed me in the direction of a chart. I don´t know if this was it, but I just found this on the internet;
Preparation Method / Percent Retained

alcohol added to boiling liquid & removed from heat / 85%
alcohol flamed / 75%
no heat, stored overnight / 70%
baked, 25 minutes, alcohol not stirred into mixture / 45%
baked/simmered dishes with alcohol stirred into mixture:
  • 15 minutes cooking time / 40%
  • 30 minutes cooking time / 35%
  • 1 hour cooking time / 25%
  • 1.5 hours cooking time / 20%
  • 2 hours cooking time / 10%
  • 2.5 hours cooking time / 5%
 
I remember a cooking class where the "alcohol burns off" myth was discussed, and one aspect the instructor wanted to get across was that there are people with true alcohol allergies, and if you think the alcohol all burns off, give them a helping of your whatever and see what happens.

Seasoning...one thing I note in British recipes I read and see on TV is that "seasoning," at least in those settings, seems to mean salt and pepper only, as they'll list "seasoning, to taste," or will say, "season the turkey liberally," and it's meant to mean salt and pepper.

When I was first cooking from British recipes, I'd shout, "Seasoning?!?! What seasoning?!?! Can you be a little more specific?!?!" :laugh:

As others have said, context is everything. :)
 
Wyshiepoo said:
I generally rinse my pasta with boiling water
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You mean you rinse the pasta after it's cooked?
Adding a drizzle (and I stress a drizzle) is not a bad thing and actually helps, but it does not apply to all type of pasta. For example I do it with fresh pasta (or buckwheat pasta) when I 'understand' from the consistency that it can stick. Or the best thing is to remove the pasta from the pot with a skimmer and add it directly to the pan with the sauce, sautéing it quickly.
Or, if you drain the pasta in the classic way, add a drop of oil and some of the sauce directly into the pot where you cooked pasta, stir and then add the rest of the sauce.
 
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Parmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano are the same.
Apart from the geographical production, they are two completely different cheeses despite their similar taste. Even just the texture makes a big difference. The texture of Parmigiano Reggiano is thicker and more compact, while Grana Padano tends to flake slightly. Both are very good cheeses, but you can feel the difference in taste on the palate.
 
MypinchofItaly said:
You mean you rinse the pasta after it's cooked?
Adding a drizzle (and I stress a drizzle) is not a bad thing and actually helps, but it does not apply to all type of pasta. For example I do it with fresh pasta (or buckwheat pasta) when I 'understand' from the consistency that it can stick. Or the best thing is to remove the pasta from the pot with a skimmer and add it directly to the pan with the sauce, sautéing it quickly.
Or, if you drain the pasta in the classic way, add a drop of oil and some of the sauce directly into the pot where you cooked pasta, stir and then add the rest of the sauce.
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I have found that to prevent pasta from sticking while it is cooking, stir often. To prevent pasta from sticking after it is done and the water strained off, do the same thing, at least once, before plating or mixing with sauce.
 
flyinglentris said:
I have found that to prevent pasta from sticking while it is cooking, stir often. To prevent pasta from sticking after it is done and the water strained off, do the same thing, at least once, before plating or mixing with sauce.
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But do you do this with all the pasta? I'm not one of those who constantly stir the pasta, for example with spaghetti (just to name one) I've never had this problem. It also depends on how much water one puts in.
 
MypinchofItaly said:
But do you do this with all the pasta? I'm not one of those who constantly stir the pasta, for example with spaghetti (just to name one) I've never had this problem. It also depends on how much water one puts in.
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Spaghetti pasta is certainly one that I have found a necessity to occasionally stir. The pasta that cannot be easily stirred is lasagna. To prevent lasagna sheets from sticking, the size of the boiler and amount of water is critical to start and they must be occasionally separated using a fork or preferably, a butter knife.

In truth, the tendency for pasta to stick while cooking is more critical with the amount of pasta cooked in a specific pot size and amount of water. But there is a trade-off for using a higher water to pasta ratio, less starch density. The amount of starch on pasta may be a preference for some who desire their sauces to adhere better.
 
I was looking over the web site with 51 cooking myths and it has a myth that pasta gets crowded in a pot. This seems absurd to consider a myth. Of course, pasta can get crowded in a pot, but it need not necessarily be so.

As I explained in the previous post, the size of the boiling pot (boiler) and the water to pasta ratio are what is important. This should primarily be assessed to control starch levels and if you will, sticking. Pasta does expand as it absorbs water and that can cause some crowding, if the pot was not selected to accommodate and the water to pasta ratio was not properly controlled.
 
NailBat said:
I'm pretty sure half of all human communication is people misinterpreting one another.
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No kidding lol. Fortunately though when someone becomes interested in a particular subject, they instinctively become more curious and part of the apprenticeship is the basic understanding of that subject. As a person becomes more involved they do more research, get more involved, hands on so to speak, building on their newly acquired knowledge and after a time they can be considered good at their trade. Gratefully I have the informed and knowledgeable half of humanity working in my kitchen :woot: . Cheers
 
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Morning Glory said:
What does that mean? If I leave a glass of spirits in a cupboard overnight then it will only retain 70% of its alcohol? So overnight the spirit reduces from 40% proof to 28% proof? That can't be right.
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I´ve got absolutely no idea whatsoever. As I said above, I pulled it off the internet, and I think it was from the USDA.
I CAN assure you, however, that back in the 1970´s, when I was playing cricket in Blackheath, a Jamaican buddy brought some 70° Proof Rum to the game. I sneaked a glass out and took it home.
A week later, it had all evaporated.:hyper::hyper::hyper::hyper:
 
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