The Frying Pan

12:11 AM

Crunchy, crispy, crumbly!

12:30 AM

:) I just got an answer to that question that's intriguing, but I'm not sure I completely understand it.

@Cerberus guess what my grocery store had when I went to get Jello for the Jello-shots experiment (hint: I'd never seen it in Alaska before today)

12:46 AM

@Jolenealaska Ummm...I have no idea! Something Dutch? Raw herring, stroopwafels?

It's related to the silly watermelon jello shots question. Have you read that?

Umm no...

Q: How to make XXL Watermelon Jell-O Shots without falling apart?

I was trying to make XXL Watermelon Jell-O Shots but the Jell-O was not firm enough and fell apart. Should I use more Jell-O and less water next time? The recipe requires unflavoured gelatin but I can't find it in the grocery store nearby, hence can I use more Jell-O so its more concentrated and ...

Since you hadn't read it, I assume you also didn't read the discussion above between me and Jefromi.

For the first time I have ever noticed, my grocery store had mini watermelons today.

So I have a watermelon gelling in the fridge :)

2 more hours before I can cut it open and see what I've got :)

I am just about dying of anticipation!

Mini watermelons sound like fun!

1:01 AM

I ate what I dug out of 1/2 the thing. It was good!

Yay!

Q: How to make Coconut/Chili Sauce (based on Photos)

I'm about to make myself dinner. If it works like I think it will, it will be my answer to this question:

This is a Vietnamese dish described in the menu as "Scampi with Coconut/Chili Sauce". Can anyone tell me what ingredients I would need to make this sauce at home? I enclose two different variants from two related restaurants, where the sauce varies slightly. The one above which is thicker tastes...

sauce restaurant-mimicry vietnamese-cuisine

Hmm.

That could be nice...I love coconut.

1:28 AM

I like coconut milk, but not the flakes. I'm looking forward to it. I just finished cleaning colossal wild shrimp and I've got a zucchini cut up. I need to cut up an onion and quarter some mushrooms. Them I'll put it together and see what I've got.

18 hours later…

7:42 PM

Marco!

Hey Tall...Polo

Hey sugar plum

How goes it?

It goes alright. I'm playing in my kitchen and watching Chopped, so life is good.

8:04 PM

Good good

How did your Coconut chilli sauce go?

It was really yummy!

It was thicker than the picture in the question though, I'm doing it again as we "speak" and adding a stock made from the shrimp shells.

Cool

Coconut milk is great

I have an excellent recipe for quick beef rendang using leftover brisket

That uses coconut milk, I should add

It is a lovely ingredient. It took me a while to really discover it because I really don't like coconut meat. But that's just a texture thing.

Ooh..I had to Google rendang, that sounds good.

Fun coconut fact: you can use coconut water as an emergency hydration IV fluid because it is almost exactly the same composition as the water in our bodies and is sterile in the coconut

So there you go

Wow, sterile, really? That's amazing.

8:14 PM

Yah

I like that.

Rendang is awesome

It is.

But I must away.

Later!

Cya Cerby!

Whiz 2 onions, a bunch of cilantro, a couple of cloves of garlic, a chilli or two, a teaspoon of turmeric and a teaspoon of cinnamon in a blender

Fry the resulting paste slowly for 15 minutes until fragrant

Add chopped or shredded cooked brisket, a can of coconut milk and half a can of water.

Crumble in a beef stock cube

Simmer for 20-25 minutes

Done

So, so tasty considering there aren't that many spices in there

8:18 PM

Hmm...as it turns out I have a brisket recipe I want to try, so that would give me an interesting thing to try with the leftovers.

It was Meant To Be!

:) I really want to play a game of Scrabble soon, I want to ask you something, but not here.

My shrimp needs my attention! I need to go do that...Cya soon!

Intriguing!

Go, see to your prawns ;)

It will be quite a while until I can play scrabble

So it might be easier just to ask and delete

8:34 PM

Are you there now?

Yup

I don't think so

...

Oh, lol

...

My shrimp are lovely! I just finished velveting them for tonight's dinner.

How do you cook your velveted things?

I usually poach then stir fry

Yes, I poach in simmering water with a bit of oil, just long enough for the surface to become opaque. Then I chill and stir-fry later.

I just asked a question about the technique, because I haven't a clue why it works so well.

8:50 PM

I've heard it said that the cornflour acts as a seal keeping the moisture in

I even sometimes velvet meats for totally non-Asian applications.

But I haven't seen the research

Perhaps it just works like a light batter

Protects from direct heat

The method and ingredients from the link I posted in my question is particularly lovely because the flavor is very nice.

It takes no time and can be done way in advance, it's a very nice thing.

I declare international velveting day!

I think the "batter" thing is probably most of the answer. That and the nature of the process means that the cooking is slower.

8:56 PM

It works in oil too

Yep, the oil in water usually seems the best compromise for frugality, ease and taste. I'll poach in just oil too, you get more of a sense of batter that way.

Well, I'm still shaking the effects of a migraine, so I think I'll head bedwards

Have a good one