What did you cook/eat today (March 2017)?

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creative said:
I see it had pork stock...never seen stock cubes for that! Oh, you can get ham stock cubes I think - did you use that?
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Yorky said:
Knorr produce a pork stock cube here which we use occasionally.
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Er yeah, funny thing about that. That’s one of the bits that didn’t exactly go to plan. When Tom Kerridge demoed it, the pork stock was thick and sticky and he used it to baste the log right at the end. So I too would tend to use chicken stock or perhaps a mix of chicken and vegetable stock for anything based around pork that needed stock, but because Mr Kerridge said pork stock, I did look in the supermarket and found the very Knorr pork stock that Yorky is talking about. Trouble is, I know these Knorr stock cubes, the stock they make is pretty thin. So the first thing I did, it says to mix the cube with about 450 ml of water, I mixed it with only 300ml. I poured the water on boiling but then let it stand for a good ten minutes before I mixed it. Then I put it on the stove, brought it back to the boil and left it simmering to see if it would reduce. It did reduce nicely but even when the fluid was significantly reduced it was still far too watery. Until right at the end, when there was hardly any left, it finally turned into a wonderful thick sticky goo, much akin to what Tom Kerridge had used. There wasn’t much of it, but there was probably just enough. But of course, because I was experimenting, I had done all this quite early on. So then I put it to one side while the log roasted intending to warm it up again just before the roast was ready. About twenty minutes before the end, I suddenly noticed the pot was missing. And yes, I found it in the sink with a load of water dumped on top of it. So then I tried to repeat the exercise but the second time it was still nowhere near reduced enough when the roast was ready, so the stock I basted the log with was basically far too fluid. Never mind. Next time.
 
I wonder if you could have thickened it while reducing by adding a slurry of cornstarch or arrowroot?
 
Ken Natton said:
Er yeah, funny thing about that. That’s one of the bits that didn’t exactly go to plan. When Tom Kerridge demoed it, the pork stock was thick and sticky and he used it to baste the log right at the end. So I too would tend to use chicken stock or perhaps a mix of chicken and vegetable stock for anything based around pork that needed stock, but because Mr Kerridge said pork stock, I did look in the supermarket and found the very Knorr pork stock that Yorky is talking about. Trouble is, I know these Knorr stock cubes, the stock they make is pretty thin. So the first thing I did, it says to mix the cube with about 450 ml of water, I mixed it with only 300ml. I poured the water on boiling but then let it stand for a good ten minutes before I mixed it. Then I put it on the stove, brought it back to the boil and left it simmering to see if it would reduce. It did reduce nicely but even when the fluid was significantly reduced it was still far too watery. Until right at the end, when there was hardly any left, it finally turned into a wonderful thick sticky goo, much akin to what Tom Kerridge had used. There wasn’t much of it, but there was probably just enough. But of course, because I was experimenting, I had done all this quite early on. So then I put it to one side while the log roasted intending to warm it up again just before the roast was ready. About twenty minutes before the end, I suddenly noticed the pot was missing. And yes, I found it in the sink with a load of water dumped on top of it. So then I tried to repeat the exercise but the second time it was still nowhere near reduced enough when the roast was ready, so the stock I basted the log with was basically far too fluid. Never mind. Next time.
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Be careful condensing those cubes. They get way salty in a hurry.
PS: the cubes make broth not stock.
 
Today will be steaks in brown gravy with potatoes. Need to either use or plant the potatoes.
 
After working all night, then taking a tour of a Catholic high school that we intend to send our son, then out shopping for his birthday gift (he's 13 tomorrow), I'm pooped.
So, I'm on my way home with a bacon, turkey, cheese, lettuce and tomato sandwich on toast, side of seasoned curly fries and cole slaw. Unless I fall asleep before I get home. Then I'll be having hospital food. Or dirt.
 
buckytom said:
I wonder if you could have thickened it while reducing by adding a slurry of cornstarch or arrowroot?
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Yeah, my mother uses cornflour to thicken things sometimes. I've never been convinced about it. I can never decide whether it has an adverse effect. Of course, the truth about Tom Kerridge's pork stock is that it wasn't made using stock cubes.


Cinisajoy said:
... the cubes make broth not stock.
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It calls them stock cubes on the box.


morning glory said:
Was it you or someone else who had put it there?!
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It was my wife tidying up after me. I do have a tendency sometimes to turn the kitchen into a bomb site. I do my share of clearing up the debris, I hasten to add, and on this occasion it hadn't actually got that bad. But sometimes she likes to be efficient, and I suppose the pot did look a bit like something that someone had just left without cleaning. Anyway, as I said, next time... And actually there will definitely be a next time. I had the left overs on my sandwiches today, very nice by the way, and my wife was very cutting in her assessment of my cruelty when she came in from work this evening hoping to pick at the left overs only to find that they had already gone. So we agreed that I should make it again soon. Success of a kind.
 
Ken Natton said:
Yeah, my mother uses cornflour to thicken things sometimes. I've never been convinced about it. I can never decide whether it has an adverse effect. Of course, the truth about Tom Kerridge's pork stock is that it wasn't made using stock cubes.




It calls them stock cubes on the box.




It was my wife tidying up after me. I do have a tendency sometimes to turn the kitchen into a bomb site. I do my share of clearing up the debris, I hasten to add, and on this occasion it hadn't actually got that bad. But sometimes she likes to be efficient, and I suppose the pot did look a bit like something that someone had just left without cleaning. Anyway, as I said, next time... And actually there will definitely be a next time. I had the left overs on my sandwiches today, very nice by the way, and my wife was very cutting in her assessment of my cruelty when she came in from work this evening hoping to pick at the left overs only to find that they had already gone. So we agreed that I should make it again soon. Success of a kind.
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A quick Google shows they are called bullion cubes in the US. So yes, they make more of a broth then a traditional stock and they are very salty.
I accidentally condensed a chicken cube. The resulting potatoes were almost too salty to eat.
 
Ken Natton said:
Er yeah, funny thing about that. That’s one of the bits that didn’t exactly go to plan. When Tom Kerridge demoed it, the pork stock was thick and sticky and he used it to baste the log right at the end. So I too would tend to use chicken stock or perhaps a mix of chicken and vegetable stock for anything based around pork that needed stock, but because Mr Kerridge said pork stock, I did look in the supermarket and found the very Knorr pork stock that Yorky is talking about. Trouble is, I know these Knorr stock cubes, the stock they make is pretty thin. So the first thing I did, it says to mix the cube with about 450 ml of water, I mixed it with only 300ml. I poured the water on boiling but then let it stand for a good ten minutes before I mixed it. Then I put it on the stove, brought it back to the boil and left it simmering to see if it would reduce. It did reduce nicely but even when the fluid was significantly reduced it was still far too watery. Until right at the end, when there was hardly any left, it finally turned into a wonderful thick sticky goo, much akin to what Tom Kerridge had used. There wasn’t much of it, but there was probably just enough. But of course, because I was experimenting, I had done all this quite early on. So then I put it to one side while the log roasted intending to warm it up again just before the roast was ready. About twenty minutes before the end, I suddenly noticed the pot was missing. And yes, I found it in the sink with a load of water dumped on top of it. So then I tried to repeat the exercise but the second time it was still nowhere near reduced enough when the roast was ready, so the stock I basted the log with was basically far too fluid. Never mind. Next time.
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I recall you saying you used supermarket pork mince, but if you have a mincer and did as the recipe said i.e. minced some pork shoulder, that would give you the bone maybe? If so, this would give a more gelatinous stock (reducing it down without any saltiness too).
 
Bits & Pieces Pasta night again tonight. This time with half an onion, half a leek, six cherry tomatoes, a couple of cloves of garlic, and some lightly boiled spring greens. I also mixed some raw red cabbage into it for a bit of crunch, and sprinkled some grated Cheddar cheese on it. It was so delicious, somedog didn't get a look in :laugh:

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Ken Natton said:
Er yeah, funny thing about that. That’s one of the bits that didn’t exactly go to plan. When Tom Kerridge demoed it, the pork stock was thick and sticky and he used it to baste the log right at the end. So I too would tend to use chicken stock or perhaps a mix of chicken and vegetable stock for anything based around pork that needed stock, but because Mr Kerridge said pork stock, I did look in the supermarket and found the very Knorr pork stock that Yorky is talking about. Trouble is, I know these Knorr stock cubes, the stock they make is pretty thin. So the first thing I did, it says to mix the cube with about 450 ml of water, I mixed it with only 300ml. I poured the water on boiling but then let it stand for a good ten minutes before I mixed it. Then I put it on the stove, brought it back to the boil and left it simmering to see if it would reduce. It did reduce nicely but even when the fluid was significantly reduced it was still far too watery. Until right at the end, when there was hardly any left, it finally turned into a wonderful thick sticky goo, much akin to what Tom Kerridge had used. There wasn’t much of it, but there was probably just enough. But of course, because I was experimenting, I had done all this quite early on. So then I put it to one side while the log roasted intending to warm it up again just before the roast was ready. About twenty minutes before the end, I suddenly noticed the pot was missing. And yes, I found it in the sink with a load of water dumped on top of it. So then I tried to repeat the exercise but the second time it was still nowhere near reduced enough when the roast was ready, so the stock I basted the log with was basically far too fluid. Never mind. Next time.
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Stock cubes don't thicken when they reduce, they just intensify. Sorry, but you need to use the proper stuff. Pork stock is hard to come by, I just use chicken stock.
 
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