HELP! My chicken pot pie filling has always come out great when I made it in my Calphalon pot. When I used a different pot, The mix came out very sour. I got what I thought was a stainless steel pot, however, the mix was still our the next day. After asking around, I understand that there may still be aluminum in the core of the bottom of the pot. If I do invest in an "all stainless steel" pot, will this still happen? I make the filling in bulk-20 quarts, then I refridgerate it in the pot overnight. The next day, I make the crusts, fill them, and freeze them. In my recipe, I use a few cups of either nonfat dry milk powder, or whole milk, along with the chicken broth. Is there anyone who knows anything about this? I am new to this website in the hopes of someone more knowledgable than me having some answers.
Pot Pie Filling turning sour!
- Thread starter vblake
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HELP! My chicken pot pie filling has always come out great when I made it in my Calphalon pot. When I used a different pot, The mix came out very sour. I got what I thought was a stainless steel pot, however, the mix was still our the next day. After asking around, I understand that there may still be aluminum in the core of the bottom of the pot. If I do invest in an "all stainless steel" pot, will this still happen? I make the filling in bulk-20 quarts, then I refridgerate it in the pot overnight. The next day, I make the crusts, fill them, and freeze them. In my recipe, I use a few cups of either nonfat dry milk powder, or whole milk, along with the chicken broth. Is there anyone who knows anything about this? I am new to this website in the hopes of someone more knowledgable than me having some answers.
Constance
Master Chef
Your milk wasn't sour was it? I can't imagine that aluminum would have made it taste sour. Did you scrub the new pot thoroughly before using it?
Constance said:
Good thought Constance! Funky ingredients will give you funky results regarless of the pot its cooked in.
Aluminum in the "core" on the bottom of a stainless steel pot will not be a problem. The aluminum is totally isolated from the food - it's a stainless steel pot with an aluminum disk stuck on the bottom for more even distribution of the heat. The aluminum does not come in contact with the food.
It sounds like you may have used a regular standard professional-kitchen aluminum pot. I can't think of anything acetic enough in a chicken pot pie filling that would have caused it to go "sour" during the cooking ... brand doesn't matter ... but storing it overnight in aluminum could definately have caused it to pick up a "funky" flavor.
I would suggest checking with a restaurant supply house in your area and get plastic food grade storage containers for your overnight storage. My personal preference is clear Polycarbonate plastic made by Cambro (that's what I use because it doesn't stain), although Polyethylene should work just fine - and is a bit cheaper (about 1/2 the price).
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KAYLINDA
Head Chef
Welcome vblake! Glad to have you on the site!
jennyema
Chef Extraordinaire
WELCOME
I also suspect that it's probably an ingredient and not the pot.
And also, you don't want "all" stainless cookware. An aluminum core (or a copper core) is a much better choice. Great heat conductors. Like Michael said, problems arise when aluminum (reactive) touches food -- as in an all aluminum pot or pan.
I also suspect that it's probably an ingredient and not the pot.
And also, you don't want "all" stainless cookware. An aluminum core (or a copper core) is a much better choice. Great heat conductors. Like Michael said, problems arise when aluminum (reactive) touches food -- as in an all aluminum pot or pan.
Thanks for your advice. The milk was definately not sour and this happened several times with the stainless steel pot. The sauce was creamy and delicious when I made it in the ss pot. After refridgerating it overnight, filling the crusts, and baking them, something happened to turn the filling bad. When they come out of the oven, the filling isn't even creamy anymore. It seems somewhat separated and smells and tastes sour. The ingredients and method are exactly the same as when I used my smaller anodized pot. I need to make it in bulk now, so using a hard anodized pot isn't an option anymore. I bought this ss pot in a restaurant supply house. It is very heavy duty and is not a standard aluminum pot. It is a 24 quart ss pot.
jennyema
Chef Extraordinaire
SS is non reactive and I am pretty sure would not cause the filling to go sour.
This has happened more than once??
This has happened more than once??
jennyema
Chef Extraordinaire
HMMMMMMMMM... that's weird! Are you sure that the interior is stainless??
Andy M.
Certified Pretend Chef
What the others have said is right on. The pot is stainless therefore the pot is NOT the cause. If it happens several times, you have a bad batch of some ingredient. Have you checked the temp of the fridge?
Piccolina
Executive Chef
Just a crazy thought, but...Could it possibly have anything to do with the chemicals/soap/scouring pads that you are using to clean your pots with?
marmalady
Executive Chef
It would be better anyway if you cooled the mixture down in a large plastic covered tub. Putting the hot pot and mixture in the fridge won't cool it down fast enough.
Constance
Master Chef
You know, sometimes it's hard to cook a large thick mixture like that and keep the bottom stirred well enough. Could it be that it's scorching on the bottom? That will ruin the taste of the whole batch. I did that once when I was cooking a big batch of creamed corn for the freezer.
I suspect it is not cooling fast enough when you make a large batch and leave it
in the large pan. Try dividing up the mixture into smaller amounts, which is what you had when you made the smaller batch and, cooling quickly. It sounds almost like you are making yogurt when you keep milk warm for several hours.
If you can't divide into smaller portions then cool the whole pot in a sink full of ice and keep stirring til cool.
in the large pan. Try dividing up the mixture into smaller amounts, which is what you had when you made the smaller batch and, cooling quickly. It sounds almost like you are making yogurt when you keep milk warm for several hours.
If you can't divide into smaller portions then cool the whole pot in a sink full of ice and keep stirring til cool.
jennyema
Chef Extraordinaire
I think the others may be on to something ...
Could be that the SS pot is better at retaining heat than your old one and the mixture is cooling more slowly than before.
Could be that the SS pot is better at retaining heat than your old one and the mixture is cooling more slowly than before.
foodaholic
Senior Cook
- Joined
- Jul 18, 2002
- Messages
- 136
vblake said:
Generally speaking the base for a chicken pot pie is a veloute,yours is milk.It is possible that if you left it in the pot covered while the mixture was still hot that the condensation could have caused the sourness that you speak of.Happens all the time in commercial kitchens when someone puts a lid on a bucket of chicken stock and throws it in the walkin still hot.If you have anything acidic like lemon in the recipe along with the milk and again not allowing the mixture to cool properly,and by that I mean
not covered,then covered and refriderated.Possibly the chicken stock was not the freshest as well.I doubt it was the pot,metallic is one thing,sour is another.
The cooling down idea is the only thing so far that really makes sense. I didn't want to have to transfer everything into smaller containers, but it seeems I have no choice. I'll definately give it a try. Thank you all for your input. I'll let you know how it turns out next time. Hopefully I won't be wasting my time and money again. This has been a very costly problem, especially because all of the ingredients are certified organic! If this works, my customers will be very thankful as will I!
marmalady
Executive Chef
Costly, yes; and if it's certified organic, spend a little money on food-certified plastic containers, especially if you're selling your product. All you need is 1 customer complaint or illness, and you could be out of business.
gwkr36a
Cook
If your sink can hold the pot in it. You could try cooling it in an ice bath first. Thats the
way we used to do hot liquids in the commercial kitchen I worked in.
way we used to do hot liquids in the commercial kitchen I worked in.
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