(Part 3) Top products from r/AskCulinary

• Ah this is actually a big topic.
  
• For a hone, you have three options. A basic grooved steel, a ceramic rod, or a diamond coated steel. The grooved (most common) and the diamond will hone your edge but will also sharpen for better and for worst your edge at the same time due to the courseness of the grooving / diamond coating. The ceramic will do the same, however because it's smooth, it's usually designed to give you a very fine grit at most in it's "sharpening" process ie removes as little metal as possible, maybe at most polish the edge a bit which favors most nicer knife owners. For a western style knife such as yours, and especially stamped blade with a low hardness, your edge usually will roll and fairly often and thus a hone is actually best for you to own and use on a somewhat daily basis. I recommend any non diamond, grooved steel although I find that diamond steels grind far too much metal at inaccurate angles (due to the very wild free hand motion of steeling) but does help give you a quick toothy edge. My personal one of use is ceramic.
  
• As for sharpening, while I don't like pull through or machine sharpeners at all and personally use stones, I don't exactly recommend them for you. The reason is I just don't see the time spend hand sharpening on stones worth the blade/blade material. That is, your knife isn't designed to hold an extremely keen edge, nor is it designed to hold an edge for an insane amount of time, thus for me, when I use a nox or a stamped blade a pull through or a machine sharpener is fine by me. As recommended the accusharp , or any of the decent chefchoice sharpeners will work very well for you. However if you want to progress and learn, then I recommend a low to medium grit combo stone. Say 600 and 1000/2000 so that if you feel like it, you can reset the bevel and then give your knife a decent working edge.
  
• Now say if you upgrade to nicer blades, then by all means stones is the way to go if not an Edge Pro system. Reason for it is that your paying for very nice metal on your blade and thus the very aggressive grinding actions of machine and pull thru sharpeners hurts your investment far more than helps it. Further more, you control the angle and the fineness of your blade. Have Super Blue core steel? Hap40? Bring that sucker down to 9-10 degrees a side with a 20k mirror polished edge. I like to see a machine do that. Plus, usually, with these 'nicer blades' your often running into Japanese knives. J knives are usually made with pretty hard metals, hrc 60+ which does not work with many steels on the market since J knives aren't designed for that to begin with. J knives are designed to have keen, hard , steep edges that are meant to be held for a long time and most likely to chip than roll so whenever it's time to touch up, it's by stones only.
  
• Anyways thats likely more than you ever wanted to know, so to answer your OP, for a steel I recommend the Tojiro Sharpening steel, if you prefer the ideal of a diamond steel giving you a toothy edge while your hone then a DMT fine will suit you. If you want your hone to just hone and not sharpen, then the Idahone fine is pretty much everyone's favorite.
  
• For sharpeners the AccuSharp is my favorite pull thru sharpener, the Spydero sharpmaker wasn't too bad and any of the common electric sharpeners will give you a working edge pesto pesto "pro" or get a basic combo stone

This is going to be the opposite of what you want to hear. But, you asked for it and I respect that. I think that there's no substitute for going about this old school and traditionally. The good news is that you can mostly do this for yourself, by yourself.

If you're disinclined (due to time or for another reason) to enroll in a culinary program get yourself either The Professional Chef or Martha Stewart's Cooking School

I know what you're thinking, "Martha Stewart? What am I? A housewife from Iowa?" Fuck that. I've been fortunate to have met and worked with Martha Stewart she's smart enough to know what she doesn't know and that particular book was actually written by a CIA alum and very closely follows the first year or so that you'd get in a program like that. It starts with knife work and then moves on to stocks and sauces. This particular book has actually been criticized as being too advance for people who have no idea what they're doing so, despite appearances, it may be perfect for you. If you want to feel more pro and go a little deeper, get the CIA text but know that it's more or less the same info and frankly, the pictures in the MSO book are really great. Plus, it looks like Amazon has them used for $6 bucks.

These resources will show you HOW to do what you want and they follow a specific, traditional track for a reason. Each thing that you learn builds on the next. You learn how to use your knife. Then, you practice your knife work while you make stocks. Then, you start to learn sauces in which to use your stocks. Etc. Etc. Etc. Almost like building flavors... It's all part of the discipline and you'll take that attention to detail into the kitchen with you and THAT'S what makes great food.

Then, get either Culinary Artistry or The Flavor Bible (Both by Page and Dornenburg. Also consider Ruhlman's Ratio (a colleague of mine won "Chopped" because she memorized all the dessert ratios in that book) and Segnit's Flavor Thesaurus. These will give you the "where" on building flavors and help you to start to express yourself creatively as you start to get your mechanics and fundamentals down.

Now, I know you want the fancy science stuff so that you can throw around smarty pants things about pH and phase transitions and heat transfer. So...go get Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking THAT is the bible. When the people who run the Ferran Adria class at Harvard have a question, it's not Myhrvold that they call up, it's Harold McGee. While Modernist Cuisine always has a long, exciting complicated solution to a problem I didn't even know I had, when I really want to know what the fuck is going on, I consult McGee and you will too, once you dig in.

Another one to consider which does a great job is the America's Test Kitchen Science of Good Cooking this will give you the fundamental "why's" or what's happening in practical situations and provides useful examples to see it for yourself.

Honestly, if someone came to me and asked if they should get MC or McGee and The Science of Good Cooking and could only pick one and never have the other, I'd recommend the McGee / ATK combo everyday of the week and twice on Tuesdays.

Good luck, dude. Go tear it up!

Not exactly. I have a typical, generic stir fry template (unless I'm trying to do something specific).

Heat a little oil till almost smoking, throw in some dried whole chiles and stir fry until they toasted and are smelling good.

Throw in the velveted meat, cooking till the color is right (need not be totally cooked through at this point), add some minced ginger and garlic and fry another 30 seconds or so until aromatic, then pull the meat and chiles and set aside.

Add whatever veggies and stir fry till just shy of tender-crisp (if you have a lid, another technique you can use--depending on the veggies involved--is adding a small bit of water and putting a lid to the wok to encourage steaming).

Add the meat back in along with whatever sauce is being used, and continue to cook until everything's happy.

My usual finishing sauce is a combination of soy sauce, water, sugar, rice wine, toasted sesame seed oil, corn starch.

There is a FANTASTIC youtube channel for American Chinese featuring an old hand that knows what the fuck he is doing. I will try to find it for when you I get home from work, and will edit it into this comment if I do.

EDIT - The chiles are totally optional. You can leave them out altogether, leave them in but eat around them, or, if you are a heat freak like me, eat them whole along with everything else on your plate. If you just want a kiss of heat, toast them in the oil, and then remove and discard before adding your meat. You can get big bags of the right kinda dried chile at any Asian grocery for cheap.

EDIT - Some links!

So in reviewing, this guy's channel has some American Chinese, but a lot of authentic Chinese recipes as well. If nothing else, watch some of his stir fry videos just to check his technique. Very solid fundamentals, but you'll need a proper wok and a decent gas burner to do what he does.

Here's the channel: Siu's Cooking

Not sure what your setup is, but these things are fantastic if you don't have access to a decent gas range: Portable Butane Burner. These are also available (along with fuel canisters) at pretty much any Asian grocery, usually less than $20.

Here's another solid channel to browse: Happy Wok

My boss bought me Cook's Illustrated Science of Good Cooking book. I actually liked it so much that I ended up buying the kindle version to read on my commute (now, with the kindle app, it's become my go-to cookbook simply because if i'm at the store i can pull it up on my phone, but that's slightly more incidental)

I liked it because it was very "cooking-focused"--my problem with Harold McGee's book was that I read it and though "ok...and how does that help me for dinner tonight?". The Science of Good Cooking book, on the other hand, made it feel like "ok this is cool, and this is how I can use that knowledge."

I skimmed a lot of the chapters on baking, but now that I'm getting into it I'm going to re-read them.

I like Ad Hoc At Home for relatively simple food done very well. It will help teach you to respect good ingredients while opening your eyes to some interesting flavor combinations.

I also have On Food and Cooking, which is dense but will teach you about food so that when you do pick up a "super fancy" recipe you may have a chance of actually understanding what the chef is doing and why.

And, of course, there's Ruhlman's Twenty, which is also very informative but is much more accessible than On Food and Cooking.

Here's my 2 cents on preventing burnt meat. Get a food thermometer like this: http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Digital-In-Oven-Thermometer-Graphite/dp/B000P6FLOY/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1374375316&sr=8-4&keywords=meat+thermometer. I highly suggest this for any beginner cook. It will help ensure you get the proper temperature for meat. My other advice, and it's a obvious statement, don't leave the meat alone.

• Preheat the oven to 350F.
  
  
• Marinate the chicken breast any way you like. I like to use soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and olive oil.
  
  
• Lay it on a cookie sheet.
  
  
• Stick the thermometer probe so that the tip is deep in the meat. Set the thermometer temp to 160F.
  
  
• Place the chicken in the oven. Make sure the plastic thing is outside the oven. The door will close on the wire.
  
  
• When the thermometer beeps. Take out the chicken. Don't remove the probe.
  
  
• Cover the chicken with aluminum foil. Wait 10 minutes. By this time, the chicken's temperature should reach the safe temp of 165F.
  
  
• Once it reaches 165F, it's done!

If you don't mind spending the extra 10 bucks, the Wustof Tri-stone (250-100-3000) is a great all-round kit and value for money. I recommend this over the cheaper Smith's Arkansas Tri-hone kit because the Wusthof kit uses water stones and I don't have to futz around with oil. But if you don't mind using an oil stone, nothing wrong with the Smith's.

I use a 250-1000 combo King Kotobuki waterstone for sharpening , and a 6000 King Kotobuki waterstone for honing/polishing. But this kit is a little pricey in the total.

PS: Here's a great video for technique: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFhMGJYhYpU

Well, for a large piece of meat, there are general cooking time guidelines that you would be better off using than a recipe anyway. But like what moikederp said, get one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Digital-In-Oven-Thermometer-Graphite/dp/B000P6FLOY Your food will end up being much better, and your life much easier. I know it seems a bit like overkill now, but you will be thankful later.

Since this AskCulinary, I am also going to recommend that when cooking you avoid just merely following recipes. Look at the food. Learn by site/smell/feel when things are done. Read more about techniques, so instead of blindly following a recipe that says "Turn a skillet up to medium-high heat, add some oil, then brown chicken breasts for 4 mintues on each side. Take the chicken cutlets out of the pan and add chicken stock" You can understand that you are using a very common technique where you brown the chicken, then deglaze the pan making a gravy.

I would recommend Modernist Cuisine at Home to anyone looking into a scientific approach to cooking without a second thought it is absolutely fantastic.

The full version of Modernist Cuisine is wonderful and interesting and I would say only about 15% of the recipes can be recreated using a standard home kitchen. If you're looking for practicality and recipes you can make yourself with a more scientific approach I would go with Modernist Cuisine at Home but if someone wants to know the ENTIRE in depth science(and history) behind the dishes Modernist Cuisine is the best.

What are you using it for?

I have this probe thermometer and love it. I know it's not a traditional candy thermometer, but I use it for caramel and deep frying all the time and it's great. My favorite feature is that you can set the alarm to go off at a certain temperature, so you don't have to stand there watching it the whole time.

Tools: another knife, or a end-grain cutting board. Digital scales are always handy. Pressure cookers can be had for under $100 and a water circulator (sous vide machine) will fall slightly above that price range.

Ingredients: Foie gras makes a good gift. I would be delighted to get some high-end pork product. for a gift.

Books: Modernist Cuisine at Home is as much a book as it is a reference guide and set of projects. On Food and Cooking is an essential book for food nerds.

My sister got me Cook's Illustrated The Science of Good Cooking, http://www.amazon.com/Science-Cooking-Cooks-Illustrated-Cookbooks/dp/1933615982, for my birthday a few years ago. It's an amazing book that does a lot of what you described, including experiments that test different recipes or methods to see which give the best results. They also do a good job explaining the science behind why certain methods or recipes are preferred over others.

Admittedly, it's not a masters-level food science textbook but it's definitely one of the most scientific cookbooks I've ever seen.

Edit: I should also add, about half the book is the science behind cooking methods while the other half is about baking.

I'm searching for the same thing!! I just bought 3 Shun knives and need a honing steel to keep a nice edge. I've looked around stores and amazon and i think I'm going to buy the shun honing steel. its a little more expensive but it's the nicest I've seen by far. here are links.

The Shun:
http://www.amazon.com/Shun-DM0750-Sharpening-Steel/dp/B000139H7I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346822054&sr=8-1&keywords=shun+honing

a good one also:

http://www.amazon.com/Wusthof-4473-10-Inch-Sharpening-Steel/dp/B00009WDT8/ref=pd_sim_sbs_k_6

I assume you're talking about an IR thermometer? I got one because, like you said, it's a novelty and pretty cheap. I use it for things like taking surface temperatures of foods (melted chocolate, meat that I'm curing, etc.)

A lot of TV chefs (cough...Alton Brown) use them for things like taking surface readings of pan's temperatures. Unfortunately, many times an IR thermometer can't accurately measure temperatures in this situation. They rely on a property called emissivity. Emissivity had to do with how a material emits its energy as heat. Long story short, light/shiny objects have low emissivity which means that an IR thermometer will read a temperature lower than the actual temperature. So using the IR thermometer will work much better on dark, matte finished (some types of teflon or cast iron) cookware than stainless steel/aluminum/copper. So buyer beware...

If you're trying to wrap your head around the whole shiny vs. dull situation and why that matters. Think about it like this. A shiny object will reflect the ambient energy/radiation to a greater degree and not so much emit its own.

I'm just curious as to why you'd prefer a set over a couple of good, individual knives? Not judging, just curious.

I'm actually thinking about buying my mom knives for Christmas, as I went over her house on Saturday and cooked for her and didn't think to bring my own (and nearly cut myself on a dull knife, sigh), but I'll likely buy her a nice chef's knife and a nice paring knife, as well as a honing steel. It will likely cost me about $100-200, and I'll likely go Wusthof.

http://www.amazon.com/Wusthof-Gourmet-8-Inch-Cooks-Knife/dp/B0001FATMI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1382997791&sr=8-2&keywords=wusthof+cook%27s+knife

and then this steel:

http://www.amazon.com/W%C3%BCsthof-4473-Wusthof-10-Inch-Sharpening/dp/B00009WDT8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382997825&sr=8-1&keywords=wusthof+honing+steel

and probably two knife guards.

Read about building flavor profiles.

There are a couple of good books on the market: The Flavor Bible and The Flavor Thesauraus. They both have a lot of information on what ingredients go well with each other.

Also, learn by doing. Try things you think may go together well, even if it's not conventional. Even if the things you try don't come together, you can still learn from it. Try to understand WHY it didn't work (cooking method, flavor profile, preparation all have an affect), think about what you can do to correct the mistake, then implement that the next time you try that dish. I don't own a copy of it myself (yet), but Cook's Illustrated Magazine's The Science of Good Cooking would probably help in that regard.

In general, I consider Alton Brown, Cook's Illustrated/Cook's Country, America's Test Kitchen, and Julia Child to be very reputable in the information they convey.

Which 12" skillet are you using? the lodge L10SK3? I believe that clocks in around 8.5 lbs

There are several lighter alternatives that are still cast iron.

Here's one example at ~4lbs
http://www.amazon.com/ExcelSteel-Inch-super-lightweight-frypan/dp/B0010D6RMG

CI did a review of several of them but found the performance extremely uneven; but you may be able to adapt to their properties.

The best alternative to maintain all of the properties you're looking for would be an uncoated carbon steel pan. You season and care for it similarly to cast iron and it develops a similar non-stick coating.

As long as you get a model with a metal handle it can handle the same amount of stovetop-to-oven traffic as your cast iron.

Just as with cast iron, the thicker the carbon steel pan, the more heat retention it will have and the more even the heat will tend to be; but at the expense of weight and responsiveness.

Here are a few examples:

http://www.amazon.com/DeBuyer-Mineral-Element-Frypan-Round/dp/B00462QP0W

http://www.amazon.com/Lodge-CRS12-Pre-Seasoned-Skillet-12-inch/dp/B005U93RYW

http://www.amazon.com/World-Cuisine-Black-Steel-Frying/dp/B001KZHF1G

Here's some approximate specifications I was able to dig up

• WC: 1.5mm thick, ~2-3lbs (~2 for 10", over 3 for 12.5"
  
• debuyer mineral B: 2.5mm-3mm thick ~4lbs 10", ~5.75lbs 12"
  
• lodge: 2.64mm thick, ~3lbs 10", ~4 lbs 12"
  
  [edit] It looks like the de buyer mineral b pan has a silicone button on the end that will likely be bad for putting under the broiler, but couldn't find any manufacturer recommendations for oven temperature or if you can just pop the thing off.

Get one of these: http://www.amazon.com/ThermoWorks-Original-Cooking-Thermometer-Timer/dp/B0019R4HQQ/ref=sr_1_6?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1406220476&sr=1-6&keywords=probe+thermometer

and one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Weber-6492-Original-Instant-Read-Thermometer/dp/B009IH0BZ0/ref=sr_1_4?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1406220476&sr=1-4&keywords=probe+thermometer

Start cooking by internal temperature, not by time vs weight. Your meat cooking skills will improve immeasurably. You can spend a lot more than the ones I liked above but they're a great place to start.

The CIA is a great place to turn to in situations like this. Here is their book on baking and pastry. As always, turning to the relevant section of The Bible helps to figure out exactly what is happening during the process.

Not a cookbook, but definitely something she might enjoy if she's studying gastronomy:

http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/kitchen/e71f/?srp=2

Also good:
http://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Gastronomy-Exploring-Traditions-Perspectives/dp/0231133138/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1331915990&sr=8-2

http://www.amazon.com/Building-Meal-Gastronomy-Constructivism-Perspectives/dp/0231144660/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1331916059&sr=8-4

A little technical perhaps, and not for someone without a background in chemistry, but Molecular Gastronomy by Herve This is pretty interesting.

> http://www.amazon.com/PB2-Powdered-Peanut-Butter-6-5/dp/B002GJ9JWS

Whoa! Never heard of that. Cool! I bet that would work really well. Thanks!

Protip: I keep a laser temperature gun (https://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Lasergrip-774-Non-contact-Thermometer/dp/B00837ZGRY/) in the kitchen precisely to know how hot my pans are. Also makes a great laser pointer for pet entertainment and it is handy to figure out where the drafts are coming from.

Anything an inch or more thick tends to get reverse seared or sous vided in my kitchen, really just much better methods if you've got the time and the tools.

A lot of famous restaurants and chefs have cookbooks that feature recipes from their restaurants.

It can be pretty hard to replicate a restaurant dish at home. I cook for a living and you have a lot of advantages in a professional kitchen. Hotter ovens and burners and all kinds of other toys.

So the recipes in restaurant cookbooks aren't always the most reliable when you do them at home. And the cookbooks are pricey. But they have pretty pictures.

If you want to get really crazy try one of these,


Mugaritz: A Natural Science of Cooking

or

Alinea

or

Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine

If you let the drippings sit for a minute, the fat will separate (as you noticed) and float. So next time, let it sit before you serve it, and skim off the fat with a spoon or ladle.

You can let it sit right in the roasting pan, then gently tip the pan so the juices collect in the corner. The deeper the pool, the deeper the fat and the easier it'll be to skim.

Or you can let it sit in a separate container, like a measuring cup or gravy separator (the latter has a spout that lets you pour from the bottom, leaving the fat behind).

Ohh fun thought! Not tested, but I think you should get some of the powdered PB2 stuff and replace some of the sugar with that!

It would be a fun experiment.

http://www.amazon.com/PB2-Powdered-Peanut-Butter-6-5/dp/B002GJ9JWS

Here's a great book

On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of Cooking
http://www.amazon.com/On-Food-Cooking-Science-Kitchen/dp/0684800012

Cooking for Geeks
http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Geeks-Science-Great-Hacks/dp/0596805888/ref=pd_sim_b_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=14FPMEDBMV4EW2MS7PBR

*The Science of Good Cooking
http://www.amazon.com/Science-Cooking-Cooks-Illustrated-Cookbooks/dp/1933615982/ref=pd_sim_b_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=14FPMEDBMV4EW2MS7PBR

Thomas Keller does something similar to this in Ad Hoc at Home. He has a creamy polenta recipe (if you don't have the book, here's an adaptation of it) that he pan fries once it's cooled. I've tried it, and it's delicious and totally firm. I cut mine in wedges, and it works perfectly.

I would try out some recipes for peanut butter hot chocolate (most seem to be hot chocolate with a spoon of peanut butter) and substitute PB2 for regular peanut butter. There's also a chocolate pb2 that you may want to try. You could premake your mix in a jar and bring it to work, or maybe just stash your cocoa and pb in your office and mix it there. Good luck!

I find the portable butane burners to be unbearably under powered and the butane canisters seem to get used up really quickly.

I would go with a propane cooktop that you can hook a 20lb propane tank up to. And find a place you can fill the propane tank, instead of exchanging it. It's often like 1/2 the cost to refill.

EDIT: One of these would be even more fun.

It's a Unicorn pepper mill for sure, I have the same one. Works great. https://www.amazon.com/Unicorn-Magnum-Plus-Pepper-Black/dp/B0000CFB4N

I would recommend a dozen or so books to get started. However, if I had to recommend one thing it would be this blog, as it dissects the first book from Alinea from the view point of a novice. It should make you think about cooking and food in a completely different way, and give you a head start into think about advanced concepts.

This thermoworks. I use it myself, it's very accurate, customer service is superb, and you can stick the probe in the oven (just don't do it too close to the top rack or when broiling). It takes a few seconds...if you must need the temperature fast, get the handheld ones by the same company.

Oven thermometer is a must, but IR guns are also a fun and cheap investment.

Definitely. If you are interested in the science of cooking:

• McGee, On Food and Cooking
  
• Lopez-Alt, The Food Lab

I l'get great results from the sharpmaker.

http://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Gastronomy-Exploring-Traditions-Perspectives/dp/0231133138/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335042671&sr=8-1

its an amazing book!

Good advice. This one has served me well for eight years and I think it meets all of those requirements.

The Alinea cookbook has several dessert recipes and is beautiful

Alinea https://www.amazon.com/dp/1580089283/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_zIIBzbCXCSD9V

I have only used then on gas ranges or this little gem. But I think you will be fine. If anything, when you are the at restaurant supply store, grab one of those burners and then you can break it out whenever you need to get some consistent heat either for stir frying, making eggs, or heating up that cast iron to get a nice sear on your steak. That little butane burner is a life saver.

Thank you!

Follow up question: would this be considered a smooth steel?

Wusthof steel

Or maybe this one?
victronox honing steel

I guess I'm not sure whether steels with very small ridges are considered smooth or you mean something entirely smooth. My googling has yielded mixed results.

I don't know what pans you are referring to, but the pans I'm talking about are nearly as heavy as my similarly sized cast iron. Something like this: http://www.amazon.com/DeBuyer-Mineral-Element-Frypan-Round/dp/B00462QP0W/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1368319450&sr=8-3&keywords=Carbon+steel+pan

My wife and I are both good home-cooks, and I've been prefessionally trained (years ago). We use this all the time and it's become old-reliable.

Maybe you need to buffer the heat coming off the electric coil, so you can adjust it better. Try one of these.

Along with these suggestions, check out PB2. It will probably be easier to mix than regular peanut butter.

This is true, for home cooking you have to convert recipes using the New/Old, and a lot of the time since they are designed for large batches, even with appropriate recipe conversion, they come out a little off.

I have new copy of Professional Cooking 7th edition, that I would let go of for cheap.
http://www.amazon.com/Professional-Cooking-Wayne-Gisslen/dp/0470197528/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345406315&sr=1-1&keywords=9780470197523

Like this?
http://www.amazon.com/OXO-Good-Grips-4-Cup-Separator/dp/B0002YTGIQ

how about something like this

Ladle and a gravy separator (which to be fair would probably be a specific/specialized tool if you didn't already have one). Ladle the fat out without having to be too fussy, then use the separator to pour the stock back in. Alternately, you can just ladle it into any old container or measuring cup, then pop that in the fridge to harden the fat and recover the extra stock, without having to chill the entire stockpot.

Professional Cooking is on par with the Pro Chef.

Be sure to distinguish the difference between French "cooking" and French food.

The techniques catalogued by Escoffier are still the same. The Pro Chef and Pro Cooking only rearrange them in a more modern and sometimes cohesive manner.

French food is a different thing entirely.

Yep: http://www.amazon.com/DeBuyer-Mineral-Element-Frypan-Round/dp/B00462QP0W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1397146040&sr=8-2&keywords=debuyer

If you just purchased your knife, DO NOT SHARPEN IT YOURSELF.

Your knife needs to be sharpened only every few years, maybe. However, it should be honed as part of your day-to-day process in the kitchen. I read an article the other day referencing an Italian master chef who honed his knife every four minutes, but come on, that's overkill.

The difference: sharpening a knife (with a whetstone) refers to re-grinding the steel to form a new edge. Usually the edge on your knife is fine (especially if it's brand new), it's just been knocked about and isn't entirely facing in the direction of your cutting force.

Honing a knife (with a honing steel) reshapes the blade and evens out any distortions or irregularities that may be present from ordinary use. After honing a knife, it cuts better not because it's sharper, but because you can actually use the cutting edge.

Here's Alton Brown's explanation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRUYAgrsoLw

If you are a science guy, I also recommend Cooking for Geeks.

http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Geeks-Science-Great-Hacks/dp/0596805888/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368040120&sr=8-1&keywords=cooking+for+geeks

It's doing to depend out the range more than anything. Every range will be a bit different, and the burners on the same range will probably be different as well.

It only takes $16 to find out how hot your pan is getting

Just a some that likes cooking alot here. Maybe pick one of these bad boys up and start playing.

http://www.amazon.com/Professional-Chef-Culinary-Institute-America/dp/0470421355

http://www.amazon.com/Ad-Hoc-Home-Thomas-Keller/dp/1579653774/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373677797&sr=1-1&keywords=thomas+keller+cookbooks

http://www.amazon.com/Bouchon-Bakery-Thomas-Keller/dp/1579654355/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373677797&sr=1-2&keywords=thomas+keller+cookbooks

http://www.amazon.com/French-Laundry-Cookbook-Thomas-Keller/dp/1579651267/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373677797&sr=1-3&keywords=thomas+keller+cookbooks

http://www.amazon.com/Bouchon-Thomas-Keller/dp/1579652395/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373677797&sr=1-4&keywords=thomas+keller+cookbooks

http://www.amazon.com/Under-Pressure-Cooking-Sous-Vide/dp/1579653510/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373677797&sr=1-6&keywords=thomas+keller+cookbooks

http://www.amazon.com/Momofuku-David-Chang/dp/030745195X/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373677797&sr=1-9&keywords=thomas+keller+cookbooks

http://www.amazon.com/Ratio-Simple-Behind-Everyday-Cooking/dp/1416571728/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373678139&sr=8-1&keywords=ratio

There's a difference between instant read thermometers and leave in probe thermometers. If there is a plastic/lcd readout directly attached to the metal probe, then no, you cannot leave it in the oven. If the metal probe connects to the readout part via a flexible wire, then yes, it's a leave in probe.

This is an example of a leave-in probe therm:

http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Digital--Oven-Thermometer-Graphite/dp/B000P6FLOY/

This is an example of a non-leave in therm:

http://www.amazon.com/CDN-DTQ450X-ProAccurate-Quick-Read-Thermometer/dp/B0021AEAG2

If 4 is too low and 5 is too high It sounds like you might need a heat tamer! It's a steel plate that goes over the burner to make it heat your pan more consistently and evenly.


https://www.amazon.com/Nordic-Ware-Tamer-Burner-Plate/dp/B00004W4UJ

Not to diminish the other recommendations, you may also want to look at Cooking for Geeks.

I got rid of my nonstick pan and got a carbon steel pan like this:

http://www.amazon.com/DeBuyer-Mineral-Element-Frypan-Round/dp/B00462QP0W/ref=pd_sim_k_6

Nonstick, no teflon or similar, but it needs to be seasoned similar to cast iron.

$35 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1580089283/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_haHUDbFXKFCT7

I got a lot out of:
http://www.amazon.com/Professional-Cooking-7th-Wayne-Gisslen/dp/0470197528

https://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Gastronomy-Exploring-Traditions-Perspectives/dp/0231133138

Wayne Gisslen's Professional Cooking 7th Ed. is probably what you're after.

[yup] (http://www.amazon.com/OXO-Good-Grips-4-Cup-Separator/dp/B0002YTGIQ)

I don't know much about it, but as far as I know Modernist Cuisine: the art and science of cooking is supposed to be a modernist Bible.

Edit: Modernist Cuisine at Home is probably more suitable for your needs though.

Get a small butane burner. I got mine at an Asian food store, but they're available at camping stores & restaurant supply places and of course on line eg. http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Butane-Stove-Camping-Burner/dp/B000RA8V1S
The butane comes in a can about the size of a can of spraypaint. I think they burn hotter than my propane camper stoves, they are super portable and can be used indoors if you need an extra burner. There is no problem with soot.

I'm not familiar with contact probes, and a quick google search wasn't helping me learn more. In fact, I'm not even sure if my thermometer is one or not, I just called it instant read because it reads instantaneously. Here's the probe thermometer I have http://www.amazon.com/ThermoWorks-Original-Cooking-Thermometer-Timer/dp/B0019R4HQQ/ref=sr_sp-btf_title_1_4?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1394203931&sr=1-4&keywords=probe+thermometer

edit: brain fart, just realized IR = infrared, not instant read. got it

I went with stones for a while, but then shifted over to the SpyderCo System with the ultrafine finish.

I don't know if this is cheating or getting the 100% sharpest edge, but damn it makes it easy to do on a monthly basis and cuts smoothly through anything I use while cooking.

It sounds like you might already have a block. Just buy the knives you need. You really don't even need to spend a lot of money. Yes more expensive knives hold their edge longer, but they even get dull too. You could get a $5 knife and use this for 2 minutes and have that knife sharp enough to shave with.

Get this: http://www.amazon.com/Spyderco-Tri-Angle-Sharpmaker-Sharpener-204MF/dp/B000Q9C4AE
It is idiot proof.

I don't think it's the pot at all. I have 3, a 12qt Calphalon tri-ply, a 16qt el-cheapo stainless pot and a 25qt All American (a pressure cooker that doubles as a giant pot when I need it to) and I make stews, chilis, sauces, etc all the time and have never burned the bottom.

What kind of stove top do you have? I have cooked on coil stoves before and they are extremely difficult to keep from burning the bottom of stuff due to the very localized heat generation, you could see the coil pattern in the burned stuff on the bottom of the pan. I have seen this on gas stoves as well with small flame diffusers.

What I think you need is this something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Nordic-Ware-Tamer-Burner-Plate/dp/B00004W4UJ

Which would be cheaper than buying a pan with a thick enough bottom to diffuse the heat of whatever you are cooking on.

>a whetting stone

Well, that's problem 1, IMHO. If your single stone is too rough, you'll never get a good edge. If it is too fine and your knife is dull, you'll never remove enough metal. Do you know the grit of your stone?

You probably need 4 surfaces to get a knife really sharp. A coarse stone to repair a nicked or damaged blade, and a few more successively finer stones/strops. Get one of these and some of this on an old belt, and you'll have the right tools.

Now, for feel. Yes, there is a very specific feel and sound when you are doing it right. To find the right angle, place your knife edge on the stone, and slowly rotate to the side, pivoting on the edge. At some point, you'll find a second point of contact on your bevel, and then your knife will rotate around that bevel, lifting the edge. Go back to where you found 2 points of contact. You want the knife resting on those 2 pivot points - that's the angle of the grind of your knife, and that's the angle you want to hold the knife at when you sharpen it.

If you sharpen at the correct angle, the knife will move smoothly along the surface (unless your stone is really rough), and it should make a hissing-type sound, not unlike what you hear in a movie when someone pulls a knife out of a holster. You won't get a good hiss if your stone is too rough though.

What kind of grind do these knives have? If they are hollow ground, you can't recreate that on a flat stone, take the knives to a pro sharpener with the right tools. Are they "scandi," flat, or high flat? If they are, they'll be extra easy to find the right angle. If they are convex, you'll probably have to work the 'hardest' to find the right angle, but just look for the sound and feel feedback.

This sounds daunting, but it really is a task that takes an hour to learn and a lifetime to master. Even with just an hour of the proper technique down, and the right tools, you should be able to get any blade to go from crap to tomato slicing in 20 minutes or less.

Not a pro but THIS kills it.

http://www.amazon.com/Unicorn-Magnum-Plus-Pepper-Black/dp/B0000CFB4N/ref=pd_sbs_k_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=07PGVJ18A9Z1H9P8MP1S