Random Food Questions Thread - Page 375

hope she's ok

shes good.

Is this a matsutake?

It smells like pine, but also a little foul.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Too-Many-Chiefs-Only-Indian/dp/095589302X/ref=pd_sim_b_10

I'm guessing they'll change the name when/if they release this in the US?

Is a walnut that has just been shelled noticeably tastier than those sold pre-shelled?

Hmmm... noticeably tastier...

If anything I'd tend to say there is sometimes a bitterness to shelled walnuts that I find missing from just-shelled. Not sure I'd say better or worse.
I don't know how fresh they stay in shell... I suspect some stores keep whole walnuts on the shelves longer in terms of "sell by" than shelled?



Related... I asked myself just last week while enjoying particularly good roasted cashews, why do you never see them in shell? Turns out the shell is toxic.

How much should I spend on foie gras? The only time I have seen it around me was like $45 a lb. Is that too much if I just want to get like half a lb to try it for the first time?

I am wondering if more of the walnut's oil content is present in just shelled. Perhaps the bitterness is caused by the fats oxidizing in the shell, but I'm not sure. Maybe fg can help.

$45/lb for foie gras seems a little high.

Will ice cream melt if kept in a cooler with ice for approximately one hour?

Probably not. If you are worried, wrap some dry ice in newspaper and put it at the bottom of the cooler, then put a rack on top, then your ice cream.

I am considering dry ice. Thanks for the tip.

What is the correct way to shape agnolotti? I know how to do it but in some examples/pictures it looks like they do a final fold over to create a sort of pocket/flap. Let me describe the two ways and someone can tell me the "correct" method.

Method A: Roll out a length of flat pasta, 18 inches x 6 inches (arbitrary). Pipe a length of filling, leaving a 3/4" gap on the left, right, and bottom. Brush all around with egg yolk mixture. Fold the pasta sheet from the bottom, over the filling, using fingers, pinch separate pockets, making sure there are no air bubbles. Use a pasta roller and cut across the top edge, then in-between the pillows to separate.

Method B: Same as A except before cutting, roll the long fat row of pasta forward so now there's two "layers" at the bottom. Cut across the top (same as before), and cut to separate.

there should lbe only one layer of pasta on each side. you want to pipe (or spoon) blogs, not a long row, of filling. but beyond that, there are about as many acceptable techniques as there are big-armed women in bologna.

I swear, whenever I order a dish that says agnolotti the shape is different every time other than folding in half.

anybody know how these faux cellophane edible packets are made, and what they're made of? (ie Mugaritz, el Bulli, et al) the actual clear wrap and the closure.