Well? What did you have for dinner tonight??

[iamwhatiseem]

Last night Chicken Thighs in a simple white wine/butter sauce and a spice blend with Scotch Bonnet flakes.
And steamed fresh green beans.
Scotch Bonnet peppers are finally making their way into spice blends and sauces. Much hotter than cayenne pepper, but also waaay more flavorful. Cayenne is just hot. Almost nothing else but heat. Scotch Bonnet is sweet and fruity. If you was to bite into one, all yoo will get is pain. But when cooked sparingly it is a wonderful heat that is also sweet and fruit flavored.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Tonight we're making fried chicken along with fried okra and garlic mashed tators.

Well I managed to fuck up the fried chicken.
Used a new recipe and the brine ended up way to salty,I had my reservations about the salt content but went with it anyway.
Big mistake!!! Fucked up two nice organic chickens in the process.
Oh well,win some lose some.
I've always loved fried chicken,it's one of those things I'll eat anytime I cant think of something better.
But the chicken places around me have gotten so bad I refuse to go to them any longer.
We dont really like making fried chicken at home due to the mess so we've decided to get a commercial fryer,way less mess and the oil reheats faster after after dropping in the chicken.

Looking at this model.

https://www.katom.com/605-PF10E.html

You can also get one large basket for it which we'll use the majority of the time.
We've had several of the cheap home fryers and to be honest they suck worse than doing it in a cast iron pot.
Kinda pricey at $550 bucks but it'll be the last fryer we'll ever buy.

 

[Muhammed]

Yesterday for my dad's birthday party I made BBQ pork belly with the spareribs attached.

It was a hit. Everybody loved it. I wish I would have made more so I could be eating leftovers right now. I thought I would have leftovers but everyone just went mega-carnivore over it like a pack of hyenas.

I tried this Chinese method I saw on a YouTube video for the first time where you use a needle style meat tenderizer to poke thousands of holes into the skin, being careful to not go all the way through the skin. The cracking ended up deliciously airy and crunchy.

It's also the first time I made BBQ pork belly with the ribs still attached.

This is definitely going on the regular menu at my home.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Yesterday for my dad's birthday party I made BBQ pork belly with the spareribs attached.

It was a hit. Everybody loved it. I wish I would have made more so I could be eating leftovers right now. I thought I would have leftovers but everyone just went mega-carnivore over it like a pack of hyenas.

I tried this Chinese method I saw on a YouTube video for the first time where you use a needle style meat tenderizer to poke thousands of holes into the skin, being careful to not go all the way through the skin. The cracking ended up deliciously airy and crunchy.

It's also the first time I made BBQ pork belly with the ribs still attached.

This is definitely going on the regular menu at my home.

Love a good pork belly!!

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Well I managed to fuck up the fried chicken.
Used a new recipe and the brine ended up way to salty,I had my reservations about the salt content but went with it anyway.
Big mistake!!! Fucked up two nice organic chickens in the process.
Oh well,win some lose some.
I've always loved fried chicken,it's one of those things I'll eat anytime I cant think of something better.
But the chicken places around me have gotten so bad I refuse to go to them any longer.
We dont really like making fried chicken at home due to the mess so we've decided to get a commercial fryer,way less mess and the oil reheats faster after after dropping in the chicken.

Looking at this model.

https://www.katom.com/605-PF10E.html

You can also get one large basket for it which we'll use the majority of the time.
We've had several of the cheap home fryers and to be honest they suck worse than doing it in a cast iron pot.
Kinda pricey at $550 bucks but it'll be the last fryer we'll ever buy.

View attachment 688448

Welp the new fryer will be here on Wednesday.
I'll let y'all know how it works
Of course the first thing will be fried chicken. Cant wait to be able to make onion rings,fried fish,okra,funnel cake,french fries and a host of other fried delights without the hassle and mess of using a stove top pot.
Oh ...and fried coconut shrimp!!!

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Well I managed to fuck up the fried chicken.
Used a new recipe and the brine ended up way to salty,I had my reservations about the salt content but went with it anyway.
Big mistake!!! Fucked up two nice organic chickens in the process.
Oh well,win some lose some.
I've always loved fried chicken,it's one of those things I'll eat anytime I cant think of something better.
But the chicken places around me have gotten so bad I refuse to go to them any longer.
We dont really like making fried chicken at home due to the mess so we've decided to get a commercial fryer,way less mess and the oil reheats faster after after dropping in the chicken.

Looking at this model.

https://www.katom.com/605-PF10E.html

You can also get one large basket for it which we'll use the majority of the time.
We've had several of the cheap home fryers and to be honest they suck worse than doing it in a cast iron pot.
Kinda pricey at $550 bucks but it'll be the last fryer we'll ever buy.

View attachment 688448

Welp..we tried out the new fryer this evening.
Was really looking forward to some deep fried shrimp to go with the fish but their truck didnt show.
So we settled for Cod,Red Snapper and some fresh Calamari.

All I can say is WOW this thing holds temp way better compared to a pot on the stove!!
We usually cut our fish up in 1 x 1 x 4 or 5 inch chunks to keep the pieces as equal as possible for even cooking.
Normally it takes 4 or 5 minutes a batch and it'll drop the oil temp by 30 or 40 degrees.
Did a few test pieces and they came out WAY over cooked. So I tried a few more test pieces and cut the time down to 3 minutes and they were on the edge of being over done.
Even with 8 pieces the temp only dropped about 10 degrees and was back up to temp in a couple of minutes.
This is gonna take some getting use to.
I did however reconfirm that I'm not a huge fan of calamari.

 

[Disir]

Welp..we tried out the new fryer this evening.
Was really looking forward to some deep fried shrimp to go with the fish but their truck didnt show.
So we settled for Cod,Red Snapper and some fresh Calamari.

All I can say is WOW this thing holds temp way better compared to a pot on the stove!!
We usually cut our fish up in 1 x 1 x 4 or 5 inch chunks to keep the pieces as equal as possible for even cooking.
Normally it takes 4 or 5 minutes a batch and it'll drop the oil temp by 30 or 40 degrees.
Did a few test pieces and they came out WAY over cooked. So I tried a few more test pieces and cut the time down to 3 minutes and they were on the edge of being over done
Even with 8 pieces the temp only dropped about 10 degrees and was back up to temp in a couple of minutes.
This is gonna take some getting use to.
I did however reconfirm that I'm not a huge fan of calamari.

That is one hell of a fryer for home cooking. I want to get a fryer but not a $600 fryer before Christmas so I can make struffoli and arancini. What kind of batter did you use for your fish?

 

[Disir]

I made pasta with an Italian sausage pumpkin sauce. That came out pretty good. I'll be eating that for...........the rest of my life.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

That is one hell of a fryer for home cooking. I want to get a fryer but not a $600 fryer before Christmas so I can make struffoli and arancini. What kind of batter did you use for your fish?

We used Louisiana brand.
It's pretty good by itself. We tried their new spicy blend and it was far to hot and I love spicy food.
Going to have to figure this fryer out,it cooks the fish so fast the batter didnt get a chance to get that golden brown color you want. Going to go with homemade next time and put some baking powder in it to help it crisp and brown.
Calamari usually takes close to 3 minutes,this thing did em in a minute or less.
The test pieces we fryed for 3 minutes were so rubbery you couldnt eat em.

We've had multiple cheaper fryers and to be honest you're better of using a cast iron pot on the stove.
The thing that makes the commercial fryers regain temp so fast is the heating elements are in the oil not on the outside of the pot like the regular fryers.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

We made Coconut Fried Shrimp.
We never left the kitchen,we tried several different coatings and dips so there really wasnt time to take a seat.
The new fryer cooked the shrimp in 1 minute and 15 seconds so by the time they cooled down and we ate em we had another batch in the oil.
The Wife said it reminded Her of eating eating out of a Fondue pot.

 

[Canon Shooter]

We went to 3 Forks for dinner tonight.

It was just exceptional...

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

We went to 3 Forks for dinner tonight.

It was just exceptional...

So which location did you go to?

 

[Canon Shooter]

So which location did you go to?

Jacksonville.

I usually try to avoid "chain store" restaurants, but high-end dining (3 Forks, Capitol Grill, etc) doesn't seem to suffer the same issues as more price-friendly chains do...

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Jacksonville.

I usually try to avoid "chain store" restaurants, but high-end dining (3 Forks, Capitol Grill, etc) doesn't seem to suffer the same issues as more price-friendly chains do...

I hear ya.
It's been awhile since the Wife and I have been to a nice sit down restaurant.
We used to do it frequently when we lived in Houston on Westheimer when we were younger.
These days we dont care to put on anything more than very casual clothes and cook at home.
I remember back in the day you couldnt get high end steaks or seafood from the grocery store,you had to go to the high end restaurants to get it. Thank God those days have changed,you can get the best beef or seafood in the world online these days.
To be honest the whole scamdemic ended any desire to eat out. Not for fear of catching the covide we just got used to cooking at home.
You can bet our favorite waiters and bartenders are not happy about it.

 

[Disir]

We used Louisiana brand.
It's pretty good by itself. We tried their new spicy blend and it was far to hot and I love spicy food.
Going to have to figure this fryer out,it cooks the fish so fast the batter didnt get a chance to get that golden brown color you want. Going to go with homemade next time and put some baking powder in it to help it crisp and brown.
Calamari usually takes close to 3 minutes,this thing did em in a minute or less.
The test pieces we fryed for 3 minutes were so rubbery you couldnt eat em.

We've had multiple cheaper fryers and to be honest you're better of using a cast iron pot on the stove.
The thing that makes the commercial fryers regain temp so fast is the heating elements are in the oil not on the outside of the pot like the regular fryers.

That sounds like a nightmare.

Ok. Well, I'm using a cast iron skillet as it is now. The way you are talking I might need to just stick with that.

 

[Disir]

I made a chicken sandwich with a Dorito breading. It wasn't bad. I think Ik'm making either Fideo or another attempt at sweet and sour pork because this time I think I have the perfect sauce.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Last night I made Arepas with some leftover pork shoulder.
Stuffed them with Pica de Gallo, lettuce, pork and sour cream.
Awesome.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Tonight.... fried rice with peas/carrots/egg/ham/jalepeno

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

That sounds like a nightmare.

Ok. Well, I'm using a cast iron skillet as it is now. The way you are talking I might need to just stick with that.

Yeah..this is certainly going to take some getting used to.
After all these years of frying in a cast iron pot and getting used to and bitching about the dramatic temp drops,this is a whole new animal.
I've fried chicken more than fish over the years and with chicken being thicker than a fillet it'll give me a better idea on whats going on.
I've toyed with the idea of turning down the heat to compensate for the crazy fast frying times.
If restaurants can do it so can I,I'll figure it out eventually.

 

[Disir]

Yeah..this is certainly going to take some getting used to.
After all these years of frying in a cast iron pot and getting used to and bitching about the dramatic temp drops,this is a whole new animal.
I've fried chicken more than fish over the years and with chicken being thicker than a fillet it'll give me a better idea on whats going on.
I've toyed with the idea of turning down the heat to compensate for the crazy fast frying times.
If restaurants can do it so can I,I'll figure it out eventually.

That is crazy.
Korean fried chicken is fried twice. Once at a lower temp and then at a higher temp to brown. Maybe that would work. I have fried catfish before and cod. I do that in the cast iron skillet. I pretend I do that pretty well. I didn't see a Korean fried fish recipe that was fried twice. It could be out there.......in Korean.