Saturday Supper - 8/20/2016

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Greg, it's raw on the inside. I only do a 30 second sear on each side and the edges. When it comes to tuna, I usually serve it with either ponzu or wasabi mayo. I didn't happen to have either on hand today, so it went on the plate au naturel.

My man!!! You have accelerated my plans to do a sushi tuna sear, I prefer wasabi mixed in soy sauce. You know the deal, place some wasabi paste in your dish of soy sauce and only slightly mix it. -- To be truthful I'll sear only part of my tuna. It's so good raw that I don't want to risk the whole thing!

Do you have any additional accompaniment suggestions besides the tomato-avocado salad?

p.s. definitely not into edamams.
 
too funny, you guys talking about the tuna...

have a friend who wants to do some for me but fish to start is not my favourite and raw definitely pushes it under the carpet. I told her "You serve me tuna and it better come out of a can!"

Salmon I like and I can do smoked salmon as in lox but gravlax... yes taxlady, I did say I would try anything at least once. Same 'tuna' friend wanted to serve salmon tartar, groan... no no no

But I love seafood as in shellfish. I can do about 2-3 oysters raw (but not cooked - yech, patoui, pwahh)! Shrimp, mussels, clams, lobsters, scampi, squid and octopus too. Very mild fish such as sole, tilapia, snapper too, cod, haddock, - oh yum- fish and chips :pig::pig::pig:
I like escargot or at least the garlic butter they're served in. Don't find they themselves have that much taste.
 
too funny, you guys talking about the tuna...

have a friend who wants to do some for me but fish to start is not my favourite and raw definitely pushes it under the carpet. I told her "You serve me tuna and it better come out of a can!"

Salmon I like and I can do smoked salmon as in lox but gravlax... yes taxlady, I did say I would try anything at least once. Same 'tuna' friend wanted to serve salmon tartar, groan... no no no

But I love seafood as in shellfish. I can do about 2-3 oysters raw (but not cooked - yech, patoui, pwahh)! Shrimp, mussels, clams, lobsters, scampi, squid and octopus too. Very mild fish such as sole, tilapia, snapper too, cod, haddock, - oh yum- fish and chips :pig::pig::pig:
I like escargot or at least the garlic butter they're served in. Don't find they themselves have that much taste.

Gravlax, like ceviche, is "cooked" without heat. I will not eat salmon unless it is smoked or cured. If you like raw oysters, you should try uni.;)
 
Gravlax, like ceviche, is "cooked" without heat.

Yeah, I forgot to mention ceviche - I don't give a :censored: if the lemon is "supposedly cooking" the 'whatever' - I cannot wrap my brain around it - sorry but that is still raw and able to crawl with all it's inherent nasties. (shudder)

Back in the day I can still remember my grandmother & mother using lemon juice to wipe down the chicken. It was (and is) a way to remove surface bacteria. I still do it on occasion, especially in the cavity of fowl. But if you soaked the bird in lemon juice - it didn't mean the darn thing was cooked!

and now I'm off to go and google uni. :rolleyes:
 
My man!!! You have accelerated my plans to do a sushi tuna sear, I prefer wasabi mixed in soy sauce. You know the deal, place some wasabi paste in your dish of soy sauce and only slightly mix it. -- To be truthful I'll sear only part of my tuna. It's so good raw that I don't want to risk the whole thing!

Do you have any additional accompaniment suggestions besides the tomato-avocado salad?

p.s. definitely not into edamams.

I made seared tuna recently. For a side, I made sesame noodles topped with spicy pickled julienned zucchini, summer squash and onion. I have also served it with Chinese cucumber salad - sliced cucumbers marinated in rice wine vinegar, a little water, a dab or soy sauce, and sesame oil, sprinkled with sesame seeds to serve.
 
Yeah, I forgot to mention ceviche - I don't give a :censored: if the lemon is "supposedly cooking" the 'whatever' - I cannot wrap my brain around it - sorry but that is still raw and able to crawl with all it's inherent nasties. (shudder)

Back in the day I can still remember my grandmother & mother using lemon juice to wipe down the chicken. It was (and is) a way to remove surface bacteria. I still do it on occasion, especially in the cavity of fowl. But if you soaked the bird in lemon juice - it didn't mean the darn thing was cooked!

That's too bad. Ceviche is one of my favorite foods :yum: It's hardly crawling ;) And of course, a whole chicken isn't remotely like thinly sliced seafood. Seafood is much less dense than chicken. Mmm. I need to head for the fishmonger this week. Maybe get some fresh scallops.
 
It was an interesting experience. Cleaning and picking out the uni was fun. :rolleyes: I'd have it again though, especially if somebody else cleaned it for me!
 
Yeah, I forgot to mention ceviche - I don't give a :censored: if the lemon is "supposedly cooking" the 'whatever' - I cannot wrap my brain around it - sorry but that is still raw and able to crawl with all it's inherent nasties. (shudder)

Back in the day I can still remember my grandmother & mother using lemon juice to wipe down the chicken. It was (and is) a way to remove surface bacteria. I still do it on occasion, especially in the cavity of fowl. But if you soaked the bird in lemon juice - it didn't mean the darn thing was cooked!

and now I'm off to go and google uni. :rolleyes:

What about carpaccio or tartare? Umm, carpaccio over arugula with parm shavings. There's also a restaurant we go to once in a while that dresses it with a vinaigrette that uses the tiny capers. Don't usually like them but they seem to go with the carpaccio.
 
What about carpaccio or tartare? Umm, carpaccio over arugula with parm shavings. .... that uses the tiny capers. Don't usually like them but they seem to go with the carpaccio.

Carpaccio can be either beef or fish. I can guarantee it would be a very small portion of fish for me to try. Beef might win out but still... Tartare is always beef (or at least it used to be!)
Not partial to arugula, don't mind it mixed in salads but not too much. Not a big fan of bitter greens, spinach is about as far as I go. You can have your kale, chard, etc.
Love capers, little salty vinegary morsels. I think the hit of salt is what you are liking with the carpaccio.
 
Well, yeah... I too have problems in certain areas - but I certainly won't say which ones! don't need someone to call me out deliberately :LOL:
 
GG you definitely got good ideas! Both the sesame noodles and the Chinese cucumber salad sound great!

Folks, ceviche is cooked because the acid in the lemon denatures the proteins. Applying heat also denatures proteins. Denaturing means breaking the protein chains apart. Exploded molecule either way.

First time I had sushi I was in my 20s dining out with my parents and they enticed me to try it, probably tuna on rice with wasabi. Didn't like it. Time passed and I tried it again, loved it!

These days I think nothing of getting a half pound of sushi grade tuna (usually flash frozen, they do that because 24 hours kills any possible parasites, might as well leave it frozen to ship it). As it thaws there is a point that it is just so, the perfect time to slice it before it gets too soft and even a very sharp knife can smoosh it. I get a chilled dish, put de tuna in, put the bowl with the soy sauce in, and...

There's a game Japanese chefs play and I love it too. You work your wasabi into an oblong shape and sort of push it in the right place in the dish. Then you take a small knife point and starting at one end you make a regular row of overlapping depressions from the middle to one side, angling down. Then do the mirror image on the other side. The end result is a little leaf shaped serving of wasabi.

Or if you're lazy you can just roll it into a cone, meh. :)
 
Kudos Greg, I thank you for your excellent explanation. Might 'might' make it a bit easier for me to try.
I actually do like my meat rare, lamb is pink and so is pork. But I think it is the texture that really puts me off if it is not "firm". Had some salmon kabobs once and the centers were 'soft' _ I had to exercise the utmost control to swallow. It truly makes me gag. I've had Beef Wellington and a Standing Rib (both my own!) that everyone raved about but made me hesitate!

And back to science:-
So if "exploding the molecules and/or breaking the protein chains" are cooking the subject without actual heat... what is the purpose of using a thermometer and bringing something to a specific temperature? Could we not just soak everything (cut thin enough) and it would be cooked?

Steak tartare and salmon tartare are not soaked in lemon or any other acid.

and if freezing the tuna is enough to kill any parasites (or at least certainly most) then why cook meat at all? Why not just freeze it - thaw it -and slam it on the table?

This is getting complicated for me... think I'm getting a headache - another glass of wine should take care of it.
 
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And back to science:-
So if "exploding the molecules and/or breaking the protein chains" are cooking the subject without actual heat... what is the purpose of using a thermometer and bringing something to a specific temperature? Could we not just soak everything (cut thin enough) and it would be cooked?

You could. However, people generally enjoy the complex flavors created by the Maillard reaction (browning) and meat gets tough when overcooked. It also gets mushy when over-marinated. The thermometer is used to make sure meat is not overcooked.

Denaturing actually unfolds protein coils, rather than "exploding" them. This is a great, detailed description: http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/07/the-food-lab-ceviche-and-the-science-of-marin.html

Steak tartare and salmon tartare are not soaked in lemon or any other acid.

No, they're not. They're different dishes.

and if freezing the tuna is enough to kill any parasites (or at least certainly most) then why cook meat at all? Why not just freeze it - thaw it -and slam it on the table?

Again, you could. Many people don't like the texture of raw beef, chicken and pork. Cooked meat and poultry taste better and are easier to eat and to digest. Also, parasites are not the only concern. Food-borne illness from meat and poultry is typically from the toxins produced by bacteria, not from parasites that directly infect people.

Cheers! :)
 
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OK Garlic, have to mull this one over and be careful how I answer... LOL

But I will - just busy the next couple of days and then have to go visit my sister - northern Ontario and not with a lot of internet connections - will see if I can sneak in a few comments before I leave. :angel:
 
OK Garlic, have to mull this one over and be careful how I answer... LOL

But I will - just busy the next couple of days and then have to go visit my sister - northern Ontario and not with a lot of internet connections - will see if I can sneak in a few comments before I leave. :angel:

Okay. Do check out The Food Lab, though. The author was an editor at Cooks Illustrated and uses the scientific method to evaluate and perfect recipes. DH gave me his book for Christmas and I love it :heart:

Hope you have a great trip :)
 
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