My father used to say, “Chuck doesn’t do anything in halves.” He was right: sometimes its a virtue and sometimes a curse. He and my mother taught me to cook, sometimes using cookbooks, like Julia Child's, but more frequently just winging it. This site is a roller coaster ride of recipes, articles, ingredients and anything else that involves cooking and presenting food. There is something here for everybody from beginners to experts.
Cooking Temps
Chicken breast 165, Chicken thigh 170 or more. Pork med well 145, Pork med 140, Rack of lamb med rare 131, Beef very rare 125, Beef rare 130,Beef med rare 135, Duck Breast 126, Salmon med 118, Disclaimer: USDA stds dictate much higher temps. To be super safe, cook everything until it is dry and crunchy, then toss it in the trash
Preparing Real Wasabi
The green stuff you get at a sushi restaurant is not wasabi. It is a fake and a fraud. Ever wonder how anybody came up with the idea of taking real delicate fish and adding a green paste to it that nearly blows your head off? They didn't. Real wasabi is very difficult to grow and is very expensive. You can get it here for $100/lb.
It is not nearly as "hot" as the fake stuff, and it has flavor and texture. The heat tends to stay in your mouth rather that rising into the sinuses and blowing off your head. The best way to prepare it is by using a sharkskin grater which is a grater made out of .... sharkskin. A microplane grater does not work well because it fails to release the flavor properly.
Check out the video here
