Cooking thread

The salsa is as hot as it needs to be. Change comes from within



If you want to ruin it, I think you can add acids. I think they break down the stuff that makes things "hot". Lemons, limes, whatever.

Personally, I'd just make my own. Dice / mince / puree tomato with cilantro and onion (or however you make salsa) to create a sort of base, then dump your too-hot salsa into it. That will serve to dilute it without ruining it.

Quote: Face

The salsa is as hot as it needs to be. Change comes from within

good one :)

Quote:

If you want to ruin it, I think you can add acids. I think they break down the stuff that makes things "hot". Lemons, limes, whatever.

I know capsaicins are made of alkaloids, ergo acids should neutralize them. But in my experience it doesn't work that way. Perhaps because acids also "hurt" the mouth? I don't know. What I know is when I add lime to hot sauce for raw vegetables or munchies, the effect is hotter than with sauce alone.

What does diffuse hot chilies is dairy and perhaps sugar. Calcium carbonate does as well. When I overdo it with the hot sauce, I chew a Tums afterward. But that's not something you can add to food.

Quote: Nareed

good one :)

Thanks =)

Quote: Nareed

I know capsaicins are made of alkaloids, ergo acids should neutralize them. But in my experience it doesn't work that way. Perhaps because acids also "hurt" the mouth? I don't know. What I know is when I add lime to hot sauce for raw vegetables or munchies, the effect is hotter than with sauce alone.

What does diffuse hot chilies is dairy and perhaps sugar. Calcium carbonate does as well. When I overdo it with the hot sauce, I chew a Tums afterward. But that's not something you can add to food.

Sort of an aside, but I enjoy hot stuff and also have a bit of a LifeSaver habit. I found that if you eat spicy foods and then pop one in (wintergreen, in my case), it's like throwing gasoline on a fire. It goes from a tolerable and even pleasurable tingle to so hot you want to cut your tongue off just to experience relief.

Haven't really figured that one out.

Quote: Face

I found that if you eat spicy foods and then pop one in (wintergreen, in my case), it's like throwing gasoline on a fire.

I don't recall ever throwing mint in the mix.

I like mint, but peppermint in almost any form, especially in breath mints, I find worse than biting on a raw jalapeño (which I did once).

From Tuesday to Thursday we left work at 1:30 am. Friday around 8 pm. I slept perhaps 4 hours on the late nights, then spent most of Saturday sleeping.

Sunday I had to go to the office. So I cooked my weekly lunch (chicken in BBQ sauce) early in the morning. After the office I took a nap and woke up near 7 pm. then I worked out 20 minutes on the treadmill, showered, made a try at coconut cheesecake, used up some leftover jocoque and greek yogurt to make a dip, made dinner, ate dinner, booked my vacation (finally!!), and wound up back in bed by 12 am.

It turns out cheesecake using real cream cheese is easy to make. I was concerned about beating it with a mixer. But aside from some initial splatter, there were no problems.

The recipe is very simple:

450 gr. cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup coconut cream (here you only find them sweetened, ergo less sugar)
2 eggs
Shredded cococnut

Beat the cheese by itself for a bit to get the major splatter out of the way. Add sugar and beat. Add cream of coconut and beat. Add the eggs and beat. When it's all homogenous, add the shredded coconut and mix it in with a spatula or a spoon. Pour into a mold, either well-greased or with a cookie crumb crust (I buy mine premade) and bake for 45-55 minutes at 180 C.

I skipped making a whipped cream and coconut topping due to the late hour. And because I didn't want to reassemble, disassemble and clean the mixer again.

Oh, the dip I made was quite good, but I couldn't get the amounts down. see, I had some jocoque with garlic left in its container, and likewise some plain Greek yogurt. I don't know how much. so I mixed them both with some green onion stalks sliced thinly (I think they're called "chives"), added some paprika, and stirred, with difficulty, using a fork. I then tasted it, added more paprika, and stirred some more.

It was ok. after a night spent in the fridge and spread on crackers, it was better.

It's back to the drawing board for the pepper sauce, but I managed rather well with the mocha cheesecake.

I also broke one of my own cooking laws: I attempted to fix a culinary disaster. I came SO close, too.

See, when I added too much powdered cocoa to the cream cheese, the mix turned from thick and creamy quasi-fluid to nearly solid lumps. I "fixed" it by adding 300 gr. of Greek yogurt (my original idea was for 150 gr.) So the cake is too chocolaty and not cheesy enough, but it's quite good all things considered.

The problem with these high-calorie recipes is I can't do them often.

Maybe when I get back from vacation. I should also try a different type of instant coffee.

My latest brainstorm: Kathy's Cilantro Lime Chicken.

Three half chicken breasts, skinless and boneless, cut into half strips
These get marinated in the juice of two limes with a little salt and pepper for a few hours.

For the sauce:

The juice of 2 limes
1 Cup chicken broth
A handful of cilantro, twigs and all (just break the largest twigs if needed)
1 1/2 cloves of garlic

Put that into a blender.

After cooking the chicken, along with some onion cut into rings (NOT chopped), remove the pan from the heat and let it cool. Add the sauce and turn the heat on low. When t begins to bubble add 1/4 cup cold water with one tsp. corn starch and mix well. Add the chicken and onions and toss it to coat all the pieces. Cook on just long enough to heat the chicken and serve.

Jeopardy champion computer "Watson" is publishing a cookbook.

http://www.businessinsider.com/ibm-watson-supercomputer-cookbook-2015-4

Yup, proof the end is near. Nigh? The Chef overlords are in the kitchen.

Quote: rxwine

Yup, proof the end is near. Nigh? The Chef overlords are in the kitchen.

I wouldn't try a recipe from an entity that cannot eat what it makes.

Call me when they take over the dining room ;)