sharp_as_knives (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sharp_as_knives) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2016-03-14 11:50 pm
sharp_as_knives) wrote in fandomhigh2016-03-14 11:50 pm
Entry tags:
Beginning Gourmet Cooking Techniques | Tuesday, period 1
Hannibal leaned on the counter at the front to address everyone once they were there. "Our next topic here is safety. We'll be spending two weeks on it, as it's quite important. You wouldn't want to unintentionally poison yourself or anyone else with your cooking, after all." Intentionally would be a topic for a different class.
"Safety is something you should concern yourself with from the very beginning — it affects how you choose your foods, how you cook them, and how you keep them until they've been eaten. We will cover every aspect of these." He grinned. "At least for those of you who choose your foods from a grocery. If you hunt your food by other means, I encourage you to find out its safety as well, but we won't be covering that."
"We'll start with dairy. Dairy should always be kept cold. This means when you're shopping, don't choose it first, then wander around the store, and don't go on any trips. Make certain it's cold when you get it; otherwise, it may already be going bad. And if you're not going straight home, pack your dairy in ice. Be observant. Once it's in your own refrigerator, milk should only be kept for one week, cream a little longer. Yogurt and the like," he gave them a very sour look, "if there is anything growing on it, it is far too old."
He took out two carafes of milk. "If you are at all unsure of your milk, it's best to test it. The dates the bottles have on them are no guarantee. Trust your senses. First," he held up one of the carafes, "smell it. If milk is fresh, it should have a smooth, pleasant scent, or you may notice no scent at all." He held up the other. "If it is spoiling, the scent will be noticeably unpleasant." He passed both carafes around for everyone to smell.
"You can also observe the color. If you can't see it because of the container, pour some into a glass. It should be white. Not yellow or grey or anything else." He poured out some good milk and some with a decided yellow cast to it. "And lastly, the texture." He poured the milk again. "If it is thick or anything other than smooth, throw it out." He eyed them all pointedly. "If you think your budget is too tight to allow for new milk, think of how much it will cost to be sick."
Hannibal set the milk aside. "Also, cheese. It can be harder to tell by smell, since some cheeses are fairly fragrant even when edible. The exception is the very liquid cheeses — ricotta, cottage cheese, and so forth. Treat them as you would milk; if they are bad, they will smell it. Also, if they are moldy, throw them out." He really couldn't say that enough.
"For the others, taste or sight is probably your safest bet." Since you likely didn't have a nose as sharp as his. He took out several different types. "If it is solid, leave it in the original wrap; this will keep it freshest. Hard cheeses are somewhat resilient." He held up a chunk of parmesan. "You may leave them out without harm, and if they get mold on them which is not intentional, you may trim it off, along with half an inch around it; the rest will still be usable. Also, you can freeze them if you wrap them tightly."
He picked up a wedge of brie. "Cheeses with more water in them you may want to leave out to soften before eating, but you should still be somewhat careful. Don't leave them out for longer than a couple of hours. If they get mold on them, throw them out. And they do not freeze well."
Next was gorgonzola. "Blue cheeses have mold in them already. It's intentional." He held it up for them to see. "For these, you'll want to treat them like whatever they most resemble. If they have more water, you'll want to refrigerate them. If they are harder, perhaps not. However, these do not precisely go bad. They get sharper with age, and eventually you will not want to eat them. It is, however, down to your own taste."
He held up paper that was waxed on one side. "Cheese paper is the best wrapping once you open cheese. Since I doubt you will have any, the next best thing is a layer of parchment inside plastic wrap. Do not wrap your cheese directly in plastic unless you enjoy the taste of plastic." His expression said what he thought of it.
He waited for questions about dairy, then continued.
"Next are eggs." He pulled out a carton. "Always keep them refrigerated. Don't leave them out. Make sure when you buy them that they are clean, and the shells are not cracked." He held one up. "Often if they stick when you move them in the carton, it means the shell has cracked. But also use your eyes." He held up a slightly cracked egg. "You don't want to buy anything that may already have bacteria in it."
"Store them in their original carton; keep them no more than five weeks. If you need to, you can freeze them, but not in the shells; beat them together and then freeze them. Once you remove them from the shell, if you're not freezing them, use or eat them — or anything you make using them as a primary ingredient — within three or four days."
He cracked an egg expertly into a bowl. "Keep them separate from other foods to avoid cross-contamination. And unless you know that your eggs are safe, you should avoid eating anything that contains raw egg."
He waited for questions about that, then nodded. "Today you will not be cooking." He put away the previous examples and set out a large assortment of small dishes of milk, cream, yogurt, many different cheeses, and a few eggs. "Instead, I want you to determine which of these are fresh, and which are not. You may use any tests you like, but I would caution you against consuming too much. You may discuss amongst yourselves or work alone. I will also be here to answer questions."
"Safety is something you should concern yourself with from the very beginning — it affects how you choose your foods, how you cook them, and how you keep them until they've been eaten. We will cover every aspect of these." He grinned. "At least for those of you who choose your foods from a grocery. If you hunt your food by other means, I encourage you to find out its safety as well, but we won't be covering that."
"We'll start with dairy. Dairy should always be kept cold. This means when you're shopping, don't choose it first, then wander around the store, and don't go on any trips. Make certain it's cold when you get it; otherwise, it may already be going bad. And if you're not going straight home, pack your dairy in ice. Be observant. Once it's in your own refrigerator, milk should only be kept for one week, cream a little longer. Yogurt and the like," he gave them a very sour look, "if there is anything growing on it, it is far too old."
He took out two carafes of milk. "If you are at all unsure of your milk, it's best to test it. The dates the bottles have on them are no guarantee. Trust your senses. First," he held up one of the carafes, "smell it. If milk is fresh, it should have a smooth, pleasant scent, or you may notice no scent at all." He held up the other. "If it is spoiling, the scent will be noticeably unpleasant." He passed both carafes around for everyone to smell.
"You can also observe the color. If you can't see it because of the container, pour some into a glass. It should be white. Not yellow or grey or anything else." He poured out some good milk and some with a decided yellow cast to it. "And lastly, the texture." He poured the milk again. "If it is thick or anything other than smooth, throw it out." He eyed them all pointedly. "If you think your budget is too tight to allow for new milk, think of how much it will cost to be sick."
Hannibal set the milk aside. "Also, cheese. It can be harder to tell by smell, since some cheeses are fairly fragrant even when edible. The exception is the very liquid cheeses — ricotta, cottage cheese, and so forth. Treat them as you would milk; if they are bad, they will smell it. Also, if they are moldy, throw them out." He really couldn't say that enough.
"For the others, taste or sight is probably your safest bet." Since you likely didn't have a nose as sharp as his. He took out several different types. "If it is solid, leave it in the original wrap; this will keep it freshest. Hard cheeses are somewhat resilient." He held up a chunk of parmesan. "You may leave them out without harm, and if they get mold on them which is not intentional, you may trim it off, along with half an inch around it; the rest will still be usable. Also, you can freeze them if you wrap them tightly."
He picked up a wedge of brie. "Cheeses with more water in them you may want to leave out to soften before eating, but you should still be somewhat careful. Don't leave them out for longer than a couple of hours. If they get mold on them, throw them out. And they do not freeze well."
Next was gorgonzola. "Blue cheeses have mold in them already. It's intentional." He held it up for them to see. "For these, you'll want to treat them like whatever they most resemble. If they have more water, you'll want to refrigerate them. If they are harder, perhaps not. However, these do not precisely go bad. They get sharper with age, and eventually you will not want to eat them. It is, however, down to your own taste."
He held up paper that was waxed on one side. "Cheese paper is the best wrapping once you open cheese. Since I doubt you will have any, the next best thing is a layer of parchment inside plastic wrap. Do not wrap your cheese directly in plastic unless you enjoy the taste of plastic." His expression said what he thought of it.
He waited for questions about dairy, then continued.
"Next are eggs." He pulled out a carton. "Always keep them refrigerated. Don't leave them out. Make sure when you buy them that they are clean, and the shells are not cracked." He held one up. "Often if they stick when you move them in the carton, it means the shell has cracked. But also use your eyes." He held up a slightly cracked egg. "You don't want to buy anything that may already have bacteria in it."
"Store them in their original carton; keep them no more than five weeks. If you need to, you can freeze them, but not in the shells; beat them together and then freeze them. Once you remove them from the shell, if you're not freezing them, use or eat them — or anything you make using them as a primary ingredient — within three or four days."
He cracked an egg expertly into a bowl. "Keep them separate from other foods to avoid cross-contamination. And unless you know that your eggs are safe, you should avoid eating anything that contains raw egg."
He waited for questions about that, then nodded. "Today you will not be cooking." He put away the previous examples and set out a large assortment of small dishes of milk, cream, yogurt, many different cheeses, and a few eggs. "Instead, I want you to determine which of these are fresh, and which are not. You may use any tests you like, but I would caution you against consuming too much. You may discuss amongst yourselves or work alone. I will also be here to answer questions."
Re: Sign in!
Re: Sign in!
Re: Sign in!
Re: Sign in!