Cooking Questions 4: More questions about cookery

[wolverine]

Thanks.

[Inigima]

Are russet potatoes and "baking potatoes" the same thing? I know russets are good candidates for baking, that's not what I'm asking -- I want to know if they're literally synonymous. There were big bags of "baking potatoes" next to the russets at the store yesterday, which is what prompted the question.

[MisterOJ]

Are russet potatoes and "baking potatoes" the same thing? I know russets are good candidates for baking, that's not what I'm asking -- I want to know if they're literally synonymous. There were big bags of "baking potatoes" next to the russets at the store yesterday, which is what prompted the question.

I would say no. In my mind, a "baking potato" is a potato that is large enough to make a good baked potato from. It has more to do with size than anything. You can have small russet potatoes that aren't really big enough to bake.

[kairparavel]

Those baking potatoes are almost certainly Russet. The labeling is probably in aid of consumers who don't know a Russet from a Yukon Gold from a Fingerling etc.  Russet and other high starch potatoes are best for baking. In fact, some bags are labeled 'baking/Russet' or vice versa. You won't go wrong choosing either, even if the bag of baking potatoes is a different variety. But when in doubt, go with what you know. 

 

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/1105586

[Inigima]

Cool. Thanks!

[Inigima]

I wanna try making pulled pork for the first time. I almost never cook pork. I understand that I basically need to buy a 3-6 pound pork shoulder and stick it in a dutch oven with some liquid for 5 or 6 hours, but I don't know anything else -- whether I should sear the meat first, what I should do the shoulder before it goes in, etc. Anyone have a Babby's First Pulled Pork recipe to share?

I don't own a slow cooker or a smoker, so please, dutch oven only.

[Inigima]

Working from this recipe, I bought 7 pounds and change of Boston butt. I trimmed some excess fat but left the fatcap on, scored the fatcap, made a dry rub, and rubbed it all over. It's hanging out in the fridge in plastic wrap in a 13x9 baking dish.

Assuming I haven't done anything wrong, my plan was to bake it for 5-6 hours tomorrow as per the recipe; my original intention was to make it in the Dutch oven, in the oven. So, questions:

• Sear on stovetop first?
• Should I leave the lid off? Is it okay to cut it in half if if doesn't fit?
• Should I just forget the Dutch oven and do it in the 13x9 (after removing the plastic wrap)?

[all swedes are racist]

Someone (MC) correct me if I'm wrong, but I would:

Not sear it first. I believe this would cause some of that good connective tissue you want to "melt" to instead tighten up. Save that for a roast or something. Plus, the rub would probably just fall off. If you are looking for more of a crust type action, might be better to start in the oven at a higher temp and uncovered for half an hour or something

Not cut it in half if I could help it, but probably wouldn't ruin it if you did. If you do, might want to check in on the temperature earlier and adjust cooking time accordingly. 

Cooking in the baking dish should be fine, but I'd keep it covered in aluminum foil; the idea is to keep most of the moisture in the cooking vessel; keeps the meat from drying out and helps dissolve the water soluble connective tissues. 

Anyway, enjoy. Pulled pork is possibly one of mankinds greatest contributions to the universe, right up there with smoked meats, quality beer, and cat videos on youtube

[Inigima]

Cool, thanks. I ended up a. not searing, b. roasting in the 13x9 it rested in, and c. not cutting in half.

[MercenaryChef]

pulled pork:

here are some base rules in my world:

• fat is key. make sure to use a large piece of pork butt/boston butt/shoulder. leaner cuts will end up dry. 
• ideally should be smoked. pork and smoke are the greatest friends in the world. they truly are.that said i have made nice pork before in an oven or even a slow cooker (which i traditionally am not a fan of)
• brine. brine will do a couple things for you. one it will help maintain moisture but will also allow you to infuse deep flavor to your pork. that is even more useful when not smoking. ideally a brine is 1 gallon of water, 1 cup of kosher salt, 1/4 cup of  sweetener of your choice (agave, honey, brown sugar, white sugar, dextrose). from there you can tailor it by adding aromatics to suit your needs. maybe you want orange peel, chilies, peppercorns, bay leaves, coriander. it is truly open to whatever flavor profile you are going for.
• the lobster is right. don't sear it. maillard reaction is delicious, but this is not the place for it. if you were smoking you would get a lovely crust or bark but in the oven that won't happen.
• after brining dry the piece of meat and rub with additional seasoning. i have a barbecue spice blend i like. it has 12 or so ingredients in it. truly just additional salt, pepper and perhaps some paprika for additional color will do. it is all about how involved you want to be.
• whether in a slow cooker or a dutch oven you want to cook the meat at a low temperature covered. i like 225. it will take hours. be patient. as it cooks the fat will render slowly helping sort of confit the meat. when it is sufficiently tender (should be able to be pulled, hence the name) it should be allowed to cool for at least 30 minutes covered before the actual pulling.
• remove from the vessel, pull into the pieces you prefer with tongs, forks, gloved hands or wolverine claws. check the seasoning, adjust with salt and whatever else you like, apply a sauce if your need to and enjoy!

for inspiration this is what it looks like smoked:
https://www.instagram.com/p/-om5A8x8YT/?taken-by=escoffiersghost

[Howdyphillip]

MC has the pulled pork to pretty much perfection here. The one thing that I will add is to use a thermometer on the meat. keep checking it regularly. There will come a time when the temperature plateaus for a while somewhere between 110f, and 120f. When it does this, crank your temperature to 350f for a little while until it starts rising. When it does, turn it back down to a 225f cooking temp. This will keep the meat from hardening and allow you to pull it easier.

[Inigima]

Thanks guys. It's actually been in the oven since 8:30 this morning; I didn't cover it because the recipe I worked from didn't tell me to. It's got a couple hours to go yet, I could cover it now if it's still worth doing. Not to worry MC, this is 7 pounds and change of bone-in Boston butt.

EDIT: It's at 300F because that's what the recipe said; is that too high? :/ Recipe here http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/oven-roasted-pulled-pork-sandwiches-recipe.html

[all swedes are racist]

Yeah, I'd cover it and bring down the temperature, assuming you can spare the extra cooking time... 

[MercenaryChef]

Yeah, I'd cover it and bring down the temperature, assuming you can spare the extra cooking time... 

i would do that too.

ini, am sure it will come out great.

[Inigima]

Okay, I'll foil it and drop to 225. Thanks!

[Yagathai]

Since the board update removed the bake-off thread, I don't really have the heart to restart it. I did make a mushroom tart, though:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CU3pkJqW4AAFG10.jpg

[Lily Valley]

I got a huge bag of spicy mustard greens from my pal's farm.  They're young and it seems like a shame to cook them into oblivion, but raw they're HOT.  I can do a few in salad, but I'd  like to make something nice with them.  Anyone got ideas?

[Seli]

Just a short exposure to heat perhaps? Mix them in raw with warm (roughly) mashed potatoes, which is a traditional way to eat curly endive here which I know also works for rucola/rocket. 

Or mix them finely chopped with olive oil, garlic and warm pasta.

[Yagathai]

Pickle them! Pickled mustard greens are the best thing!

Wash the leaves, to get rid of any poop left on the leaves. Cut the leaves into bite-sized pieces, about 1.5-2" long and slightly less wide. Put them in a colander or on a wire rack until they dry thoroughly. Toss them in a bowl with some coarse salt. I'd ballpark the salt necessary as about 1/2 cup of salt for every pound of greens.  At this point I also like to toss in some sliced scallion, but that's not necessary. Let it sit for an hour, covered.

Next, knead/massage the salt into the veggies until the veggies have visibly started to wilt, and have given up a lot of their water. How much? I dunno, until the volume is significantly reduced by a third or so. Then cover (airtight!) and let sit for an hour or two, or as long as overnight.

In the meantime, prepare a two quart glass jar (or two one quart jars, if that's how you roll) by sterilizing it according to standard canning procedure (boiling it for 10 minutes, fully submerged. Often a dishwasher cycle on the pots and pans cycle and high heat will do the trick as well).

Boil some water, then let it cool to room temp.  To the bowl of greens add at least 4 small hot peppers, like thai birdseye or two regular-sized serrano, sliced in half (birdseye) or quarters (serrano) with the seeds left in (unless you're a wuss, in which case take the seeds out). Mix well, then add the contents of the bowl to the jar. It should fill up about 2/3s of the way.  There should be enough liquid from the bowl to cover the veggies when you pack them down tightly (NOT with your hands  -- use a clean, preferably sterile utensil). If there isn't enough liquid, add enough (boiled, cooled) water to cover. Also add 1 tsp of szechuan peppercorns (regular peppercorns are not the same, but can do in a pinch I guess), 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp salt.   

If you're using a jar that doesn't have an airtight rubberish seal, cover the mouth of the jar with plastic wrap or a ziptop bag big enough to hang down the sides of the jar. Add some pie weights or some water to make sure the surface of the plastic sits on top of the greens -- the idea is to minimize the exposure to air.  Seal up the jar with the lid and hold at room temp for at least three days, maybe a week depending on ambient temperature. When the water turns yellowish green, taste the greens to see if they need more time or not. If not, refrigerate immediately.  Keep an eye on them -- if the water starts to go cloudy or develops a milky film, your greens have gone off. Should have eaten them sooner!

[Lily Valley]

Pickle them!

Pickled greens?   Just like regular fridge pickles?