Question about Flank Steak

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I'm kinda in RT's camp, I rarely taste as I cook, but I can tell most times how it'll taste by the smell (except for baked goods), sounds weird I know, but that's just me.

And all this talk of this mysterious Chef John ... I thought this was a DC member and kept looking for him ... there is one, but a one timer long ago.
Then I was looking for a Chicken Gravy recipe using boxed broth, went to AllRecipe's website and there he was!
Then when it hit the link that RT posts of this Flank Steak recipe, there he was again!
All this talk of Flank Steak, that's what's for dinner tonight!! :LOL:
 
Wouldn't simmering flank steak or any cut in a marinade end up too strong tasting? Marinades are usually strongly flavored and drained off.
 
I definitely agree with tasting things like sausage or meatloaf by cooking a small amount and tasting to give you a chance to adjust seasonings. We'll also be doing the same thing to any beef or pork products we cure and smoke from now on. I'm glad I found that tip when I was looking at speck recipes because it would have been a salt lick like our first attempt at bacon was, if we hadn't known to soak it in some water to draw some salt out.

I also taste and adjust as I go when I'm making something I don't use a recipe for like tomato sauce or tzatziki, etc., etc
 
The difference is that you seem to enjoy your food while RR seems to often be unhappy with how hers turns out.

That's true, but one thing you should understand is, I haven't been cooking that long. In about ten years, I expect to have quite a list of things I like to eat but right now, I feel like I'm still just starting out. While I do have a list of recipes I do like, I also have a huge list of recipes I've never tried before and those are the ones I don't know if I'll like or not.

Once I put a bunch of ingredients together, it really doesn't matter if I taste or not because if I'm going to like the recipe, I'll like it and if I don't, I won't. Tasting at that point will only be saving me some time in cooking. I just didn't like the marinade I had that meat in and really, I'm not sure there was anything I could have done to save it at that point.

Or take that mac and cheese I made in the crock pot. I know next time to not use evaporated milk, but there wasn't much I could do once it was added to the recipe. Next time I won't use it and I look forward to a recipe I like and will use over again.

The thing is, I can keep experimenting and find more recipes I like (and don't like) or I could stop now and just stick to what I know I like. Since I have about 100 or so recipes I have listed that I still want to try, I guess I'll still be experimenting for a while.

I'm also the picky eater. Just because I don't like something doesn't necessarily means it isn't good. It just means that I don't like it.

And with this recipe, it's also one you reduce down. Just because the marinade didn't taste good (if I had tasted it), didn't mean the final result wouldn't taste good. I love making hoisin sauce chicken, but a friend of mine made it while I was at her house and refused to let it caramelize. I couldn't believe how much worse the sauce was if it doesn't caramelize and because my friend didn't taste it the way it's supposed to be cooked, she thinks hoisin sauce is terrible.
 
I have three sauces I use for chicken (teriyaki, hoisin, and balsamic BBQ sauces) and when I make chicken breasts in any of these sauces, I simply put the chicken in a glass baking dish and pour the sauce over them. The chicken bakes done, the sauce caramelizes, and I usually end up with a delicious meal.

Well, now I have another recipe that calls for flank steak and grilling. I don't have a grill, so I was wondering if I can put the steak in a glass dish like I do the chicken, pour the sauce over it, and bake the steak. The sauce has molasses in it, so I think it will caramelize the same way.

The thing is, I've never heard of anyone cooking beef this way. I've heard of sous vide, but I don't think this is exactly a sous vide.

Does anyone think this is going to work?

No. That’s a recipe for disaster.

And, yes, if the marinade sucks the final product will, too.

The FIRST rule of cooking is to taste as you cook. You’ll never be successful if you don’t.
 
Got it - you don't want suggestions for improvement. I'll remember that.

I asked if cooking the flank steak in the marinade was an option. From what I was told, it wasn't so I didn't. I don't recall asking if I should taste the food before I eat it, so those suggestions were surplus to requirements. Basically what you did was give me advice I didn't ask for and now you're upset because I'm rejecting it. I'm sorry about that, but your annoyance is something you need to work out for yourself. Don't try to blame me for it.

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I really do welcome the advice I get here and I follow it more often than not. But if I explain why I didn't do something and why I probably won't do something in the future, I don't welcome people getting upset over that. We all have our idiosyncrasies in the kitchen.

As for cooking, I started cooking to save money and I have been successful with that. But I'm not out to be a 5-star chef; I just want to make recipes I will enjoy eating. I will make mistakes along the way, but that's how anyone learns.

So let's not worry about the tasting, OK?
 
Tasting food as I'm going along is one of the first things I learned after I joined this site. If you don't, you really have no idea what the outcome will be. If you do, you have opportunities to tweak it - add more salt or a spice (not necessarily referring to heat) or herbs, or a splash of vinegar or lemon juice for brightness, or Worcestershire or soy sauce for increased savoriness. I even cook a tablespoon of a sausage mixture to make sure the seasoning is right before I cook the whole batch.

My cooking improved a lot once I started doing that.

I always make a small meatball burger to check seasoning before cooking the whole batch (I have never made homemade sausage).

No. That’s a recipe for disaster.

And, yes, if the marinade sucks the final product will, too.

The FIRST rule of cooking is to taste as you cook. You’ll never be successful if you don’t.

+2

You (and I mean that in the general/plural/everyone meaning not as a personal assualt) can never become a good cook if you don't taste as you go and LEARN what combinations work. All you will do is waste food and money by throwing away all the food you don't like.


When my mom was cooking she insisted I taste everything (when safe) from start to finish as it went along. So I could see/taste how the flavor changed as it cooked. This way I know when something still has that "raw" flavor and need to cook longer. I also tell what the final product needs "now" to taste good later. I even taste the seasoned flour and seasoned bread crumbs (I NEVER buy pre-seasoned crumbs or flour; you never know what all is in there) BEFORE I dredge/bread my cutlets.
 
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I asked if cooking the flank steak in the marinade was an option. From what I was told, it wasn't so I didn't. I don't recall asking if I should taste the food before I eat it, so those suggestions were surplus to requirements. Basically what you did was give me advice I didn't ask for and now you're upset because I'm rejecting it. I'm sorry about that, but your annoyance is something you need to work out for yourself. Don't try to blame me for it.

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I really do welcome the advice I get here and I follow it more often than not. But if I explain why I didn't do something and why I probably won't do something in the future, I don't welcome people getting upset over that. We all have our idiosyncrasies in the kitchen.

As for cooking, I started cooking to save money and I have been successful with that. But I'm not out to be a 5-star chef; I just want to make recipes I will enjoy eating. I will make mistakes along the way, but that's how anyone learns.

So let's not worry about the tasting, OK?

Just FYI, most recipes underseason. I don't know why it is so, but it is. If I don't taste as I mix, then I find that too many recipes turn out fairly bland, even those put out by some pretty good cooks. Watch TV chefs sometime when they say 1 teaspoon of something, then toss in half a handful. Also I generally read 1 teaspoon as a heaping teaspoon, not a level one, unless I'm baking.
 
And then I come along and underseason the underseasoned recipes! For some reason, I always cut back on the seasoning the first time I make something.

Once I've tried something and decided I like it, I'll start upping the seasonings. I do find I'm pretty sensitive to things like pepper and cayenne, so I'd rather start on the low end and work my way up. And oh, boy, do I have to cut down on the red pepper flakes when I find that in recipes!
 
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