Random Food Questions Thread - Page 360

I know sauce au poivre with poivre dans la sauce. Makes sense regarding the name, but maybe you're right.

I'm not sure sauce au poivre even exists. I was describing the method for steak au poivre, which is what I assumed he meant because real poivrade sauce is so rare these days, and doubly so in a country where wild game is almost never sold.

pull on the 'leaves' at the top - if they release pretty easily, the pineapple is ripe.

If leaves pull out easily you've probably got an over ripe or rotten pineapple. You should look for a yellowy colour from the base to at least half way up preferably higher. Smell the base of the pineapple it should smell sweet like pineapple juice. It should still be firm/slightly soft to the touch, if it's spongy it is over ripe, if it has little smell and is firm it isn't ripe. Don't buy a completely green pineapple.

If you pepper the steak before putting it in the pan don't you find that the pepper burns? Especially in a pan hot enough to get a good maillard reaction on the steak. I usually add pepper to the pan before deglazing.

IMO it doesn't really burn (unless you burn the steak, too). Maillard takes place at >250°F. Actually, the taste of pepper changes when you heat it. None is better, but you may very well prefer the non-"grilled" pepper.

Yep I know pepper changes as you heat it, I cook it a little before deglazing and also often add fresh pepper just before deglazing as well.

I agree with you for the most part. Still, just because I think something doesn't mean it is the right answer to a question.

That makes sense. Thanks a bunch.

Are fresh porcini from Poland any good?

it reallly depends on the quality (not a circular answer). central europe is really REALLY rich in great wild mushrooms and has a long tradition of mushroom cookery (including and maybe especially boletes). but a great mushroom harvested in poland, shipped carelessly and stored too long will not be a good mushroom. you know what to look for -- firm, not slimy, stems should be firm, too. whether you want the caps tightly closed or not depends on how you're going to use them ... tightly closed is best for raw; open is a little sloppier but richer flavored ... best for cooking (trim the gills).

That makes sense. I can buy them directly from the importers, but I am wondering if Polish ones are considered inferior to others.

Mitteleuropean chanterelles are great.

you know, before being devastated by wwi, wwii and the iron curtain, mitteleuropa was regarded as a culinary paradise, the equal of france and probably ahead of italy. sometime pick up joseph wechsberg's great book "blue trout and black truffles" and you'll get a real sense of what was lost .

Is the recipe for the Robuchon quail with foie gras in any book? I have felt like making that for some time and seen a few of you dudes making it but couldn't find the recipe in any books. Le Grand Livre is like $500 so I just go browse it at the store.