Cooking "rules"

Nancy Young said:

"Andy" <q> wrote

Quoted message said:

A long time ago, I read or heard that microwaving killed the nutritional
value of food. Rule or No Rule?

No Rule!

nancy

Well, no more rule than conventional cooking. Some vitamins are heat
sensitive, but your protein, minerals and the rest make it through
unscathed.

maxine in ri

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1148148432.592781.75840
@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

minerals and the rest make it through unscathed.

maxine in ri

maxine,

But, but, but... wouldn't microwave heat turn iron to rust? 😉)

Andy

Andy said:

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1148138578.956608.89680
@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

You forgot to mention the most important rule... Heinz Ketchup RULES!

Sheldon

Yeah, right! It's only nutritional value is sodium and sugar (genetically
engineered high fructose corn syrup).

Or maybe their new one-carb ketchup (splenda'd). Or their "no salt
added" ketchup.

http://www.dietfacts.com/list.asp?brand=Heinz

Quoted message said:

Gimme tomatoes anyday or organic tomato paste even.

Andy

Er, he was responding to Stan, who is a conniseur (which I cannot
spell) of ketchup.

For a different take on ketchup:

6-8 beefsteak tomatoes
12-16 cloves of garlic, sliced
1-1/2 cups good olive oil, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
fresh ground pepper
6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 350F
Slice tomatoes across their equator. Place in a foil lined baking pan
that has 1/2 cup olive oil on the bottom. Stick slices of cloves into
the seed areas of the tomatoes, one clove per half. Sprinkle with
sugar, salt and pepper. Drizzle vinegar over all. Drizzle rest of oil
over all.

Place on middle rack in oven, and roast for 2 hours, until tomatoes are
starting to shrink and flatten.

Lower oven temperature to 225F and bake for another 2-4 hours.

Cool, and drain off any liquid still in the pan. This tomato flavored
oil is wonderful in salad dressings or for dipping. Store the tomatoes
in the refrigerator, and use instead of ketchup for topping burgers or
in wraps.

maxine in ri

"Old Mother Ashby" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

D.Currie said:

Do you know people who tell you that things are "rules" for cooking, but
they seem odd or wrong to you?

For example, a friend of my insists that the stuffing that she puts into
turkey can't be eaten cold -- it has to be reheated if it's leftover --
because she puts pork sausage in it, and she believes that pork cannot be
eaten cold. I'm sure she's confusing the rule about cooking pork to a
proper temperature, because obviously there are plenty of pork products
that are eaten cooked but cold.

The other day, my MIL proclaimed that "you're not supposed to serve more
than one colorful dish at a meal." And she said she was breaking the rule
by having two "colorful" things at the meal, although I'm not even sure
what she meant by that. Has anyone heard this "rule" or anything like it?

What does MIL mean by "colorful"?

I wish I knew. She sometimes says things that befuddle me so completely that
I can't wrap my head around it for a while.

I know there is a widespread view that

Quoted message said:

it's better not to have everything on the plate more or less the *same*
colour (eg chicken breast, cauliflower in cheese sauce and mashed potato),
but that's not a rule, it's an aesthetic thing.

I try for several colors/textures in a meal -- usually 3 colors, three
textures, if I can. But I don't go hang myself if I can't get the 3. And I
wouldn't expect anyone else to follow this as a "rule," it's just something
I do because it works for me when I'm planning a meal.

Does she think

Quoted message said:

that if you serve a greek salad you can only have rice pudding for
dessert?

I think she had a salad which was mostly green with some flecks of red that
might have been cranberry sauce, and then she had carrots with the meal.
There weren't flashing neon vegetables, for sure. Maybe she meant
"multicolored," but I really don't know.

Quoted message said:

There are some rules that are health and safety matters (clean your
chopping board after cutting raw meat), and others that really go to
technique (rest your pastry in the fridge for a while before rolling it
out) but there's an awful lot of old wives tales out there - my MIL
believes you have to cut whacking great crosses into brussels sprouts
before boiling them to death, otherwise they'd be indigestible!

I love brussels sprouts, but boiling them to death is a sad thing. :-(

Donna

Andy said:

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1148148432.592781.75840
@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

minerals and the rest make it through unscathed.

maxine in ri

maxine,

But, but, but... wouldn't microwave heat turn iron to rust? 😉)

Andy

No, microwave heat will not occur when you put your iron skillet in the
microwave and turn it on. Klystron tube suicide, and the need for a
new nuke.

Also, if you need to heat your iron in the microwave, you need a new
iron as well. Unless you have one of those antiques that normally
heats on the woodstove....

;^0

maxine in ri

"Stan Horwitz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted post said:

D.Currie said:

Do you know people who tell you that things are "rules" for cooking,
but
they seem odd or wrong to you?

One rule I have heard is that raw meat should not be cooked in a
microwave as it will be unsafe to eat. But the truth is that the
temperature is what kills bacteria. It doesn't matter how the
temperature gets there. Meat and fish can be cooked in the microwave.
It may not be the way that somebody wants it, but there is certainly
nothing unsafe about it as long as it is fully cooked.

I have never heard of that rule. I agree, that rule makes no sense.
Perhaps that's why I have never heard about it.

Quoted message said:

I wouldn't call it a rule, but some people are horrified with the idea
of cooking something well done as if that makes it inedible, but some
people (like me) actually prefer it that way. I realize many people
would not enjoy it, but then I don't enjoy rare meat and won't eat it.
We all have our own preferences. It's funny to hear it stated as if
everybody likes exactly the same thing.

Yup. I hate well done food, but if a guest requests a steak or something
well done, I will happily comply. If I am told the well done item tastes
good, I might ask how the person could possibly know, but I would not
deny the request.

I have a friend who hates meat to be pink at all, which is fine for her. But
she's so disgusted and squeamish about it that she won't cook anyone else's
food any other way, so you better hope you're not invited for any sort of
beef dish that you'd prefer to be less than well done.

She also gets a little weird at restaurants if someone nearby orders meat
that's rare or medium.

Donna

Chatty Cathy said:

Peter A said:

There's only one rule, and that's "there are no rules in cooking."

I have to agree.... although there are some "personal preferences".

I, for one, will NOT boil eggs and potatoes in the same pot (at the same
time) - although some of my family may disagree with me on this. I have
no "scientific" reason for this - I just find the whole idea bleh.
--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

That would overcook the eggs, or undercook the taters. Why do they do
that? Is it for a specific dish, or just to save time and pots to wash?

maxine in ri

"Stan Horwitz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

D.Currie said:

Do you know people who tell you that things are "rules" for cooking, but
they seem odd or wrong to you?

For example, a friend of my insists that the stuffing that she puts into
turkey can't be eaten cold -- it has to be reheated if it's leftover --
because she puts pork sausage in it, and she believes that pork cannot be
eaten cold. I'm sure she's confusing the rule about cooking pork to a
proper
temperature, because obviously there are plenty of pork products that are
eaten cooked but cold.

The other day, my MIL proclaimed that "you're not supposed to serve more
than one colorful dish at a meal." And she said she was breaking the rule
by
having two "colorful" things at the meal, although I'm not even sure what
she meant by that. Has anyone heard this "rule" or anything like it?

I am very much a "do whatever works for you" kind of person.

If your friend is content to abide by those "rules." More power to her.
I have never heard of either rule. You're probably right in your
suspicion that your friend is confusing the rule about always cooking
pork products adequately before eating them, but if she's happy eating
stuffing only when its heated, why would it matter to you?

It doesn't matter, it's just a curious thing. I don't put pork sausage in
turkey stuffing, so I don't know if there was ever some sort of issue that's
since resolved itself, or whether this is just a misunderstanding on her
part.

I do not eat

Quoted message said:

cold stuffing because I prefer to eat it to be heated first. I couldn't
care less about the colors of food on my plate as long as the food is
reasonably healthy and reasonably tasty.

The only rules I pay attention to with food preparation are those
involving safety and sanitation.

I'm not big on rules, and tend to play fast-and-loose with recipes as well.
Maybe that's why it strikes me funny when someone tells me that "this is a
rule" and it's nothing I've ever heard of before.

Maybe I am a maverick because such

Quoted message said:

rules strike me as being pointless, except for the safety and sanitation
rules. Hell, I evenn drink red wines with chicken! Ohhh! Ahhh!

Yeah, well, I drink white wine with beef! So there!

Donna

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1148149849.861933.188240
@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

Andy said:

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in

news:1148148432.592781.75840

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

minerals and the rest make it through unscathed.

maxine in ri

maxine,

But, but, but... wouldn't microwave heat turn iron to rust? 😉)

Andy

No, microwave heat will not occur when you put your iron skillet in the
microwave and turn it on. Klystron tube suicide, and the need for a
new nuke.

Also, if you need to heat your iron in the microwave, you need a new
iron as well. Unless you have one of those antiques that normally
heats on the woodstove....

;^0

maxine in ri

maxine,

OOPS! LOL! I meant iron, as in the mineral in food.

Andy

"Chatty Cathy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Peter A said:

There's only one rule, and that's "there are no rules in cooking."

I have to agree.... although there are some "personal preferences".

I, for one, will NOT boil eggs and potatoes in the same pot (at the same
time) - although some of my family may disagree with me on this. I have no
"scientific" reason for this - I just find the whole idea bleh.

It's not something I ever would have thought of doing. But now that you
mention it, I don't think I'd want them boiled together, and I really can't
say why. Besides the fact that they'd need different times to cook,
probably. But you're right, it just doesn't sound like a good idea.

Donna

D.Currie said:

"Old Mother Ashby" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

D.Currie said:

Do you know people who tell you that things are "rules" for cooking, but
they seem odd or wrong to you?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

The other day, my MIL proclaimed that "you're not supposed to serve more
than one colorful dish at a meal." And she said she was breaking the rule
by having two "colorful" things at the meal, although I'm not even sure
what she meant by that. Has anyone heard this "rule" or anything like it?

What does MIL mean by "colorful"?

I wish I knew. She sometimes says things that befuddle me so completely that
I can't wrap my head around it for a while.

I know there is a widespread view that

Quoted message said:

it's better not to have everything on the plate more or less the *same*
colour (eg chicken breast, cauliflower in cheese sauce and mashed potato),
but that's not a rule, it's an aesthetic thing.

I try for several colors/textures in a meal -- usually 3 colors, three
textures, if I can. But I don't go hang myself if I can't get the 3. And I
wouldn't expect anyone else to follow this as a "rule," it's just something
I do because it works for me when I'm planning a meal.

Does she think

Quoted message said:

that if you serve a greek salad you can only have rice pudding for
dessert?

I think she had a salad which was mostly green with some flecks of red that
might have been cranberry sauce, and then she had carrots with the meal.
There weren't flashing neon vegetables, for sure. Maybe she meant
"multicolored," but I really don't know.

For health reasons, the recommendations are to have a diet that
includes colorful ingredients. The reds, yellows and oranges, along
with the dark greens, all contain lots of phytonutrients as well as
vitamins and minerals. She may have heard something that suggested
_adding_ a colored vegetable to the meal, and assumed that it meant
only one. I've had friends who were on the white diet: white bread,
white potatoes, white chicken, white pastry but no white asparagus or
iceburg lettuce. Those are the folks that sort of advice is directed
towards.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There are some rules that are health and safety matters (clean your
chopping board after cutting raw meat), and others that really go to
technique (rest your pastry in the fridge for a while before rolling it
out) but there's an awful lot of old wives tales out there - my MIL
believes you have to cut whacking great crosses into brussels sprouts
before boiling them to death, otherwise they'd be indigestible!

I love brussels sprouts, but boiling them to death is a sad thing. :-(

Donna

They're indigestible after being boiled to death! Even just the smell
will kill ya!

maxine in ri

"Dave Smith" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

D.Currie said:

Do you know people who tell you that things are "rules" for cooking, but
they seem odd or wrong to you?

For example, a friend of my insists that the stuffing that she puts into
turkey can't be eaten cold -- it has to be reheated if it's leftover --
because she puts pork sausage in it, and she believes that pork cannot be
eaten cold. I'm sure she's confusing the rule about cooking pork to a
proper
temperature, because obviously there are plenty of pork products that are
eaten cooked but cold.

I hope that you don't offer her a ham sandwich.
:-)

I know she buys deli ham, which is why her explanation about the stuffing
struck me so oddly. If she said that she was told the pork mixed with
something else and became toxic, I wouldn't have thought much about it.
Wouldn't have believed it, probably, but it would have been easier to grasp.
But her logic about cold pork didn't make sense to me.

Donna

Andy said:

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1148149849.861933.188240
@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

Andy said:

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in

news:1148148432.592781.75840

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

> minerals and the rest make it through unscathed.
>
> maxine in ri

maxine,

But, but, but... wouldn't microwave heat turn iron to rust? 😉)

Andy

No, microwave heat will not occur when you put your iron skillet in the
microwave and turn it on. Klystron tube suicide, and the need for a
new nuke.

Also, if you need to heat your iron in the microwave, you need a new
iron as well. Unless you have one of those antiques that normally
heats on the woodstove....

;^0

maxine in ri

maxine,

OOPS! LOL! I meant iron, as in the mineral in food.

Andy

I knew that.<g>

maxine

"Andy" <q> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"[email hidden]" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

One rule I have heard is that raw meat should not be cooked in a
microwave as it will be unsafe to eat. But the truth is that the
temperature is what kills bacteria. It doesn't matter how the
temperature gets there. Meat and fish can be cooked in the microwave.
It may not be the way that somebody wants it, but there is certainly
nothing unsafe about it as long as it is fully cooked.

A long time ago, I read or heard that microwaving killed the nutritional
value of food. Rule or No Rule?

I think that one came about when people were first buying microwaves and the
nay-sayers were coming up with all sorts of reasons why the radiation was
going to kill you. Seems to me there was some notion about how it was going
to change the genetic structure of the veggies you cooked in there. Huh? If
I'm cooking them, I'd not going to breed them...

Donna

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Andy said:

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:1148149849.861933.188240 @j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

Andy wrote:
> "maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in

news:1148148432.592781.75840

Quoted message said:

> @j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:
>
> > minerals and the rest make it through unscathed.
> >
> > maxine in ri
>
>
> maxine,
>
> But, but, but... wouldn't microwave heat turn iron to rust? 😉)
>
> Andy

No, microwave heat will not occur when you put your iron skillet in
the microwave and turn it on. Klystron tube suicide, and the need
for a new nuke.

Also, if you need to heat your iron in the microwave, you need a
new iron as well. Unless you have one of those antiques that
normally heats on the woodstove....

;^0

maxine in ri

maxine,

OOPS! LOL! I meant iron, as in the mineral in food.

Andy

I knew that.<g>

maxine

maxine,

Well, go on and call me gullible. It won't be the first time!

Andy
Newbie

"Peter A" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

For example, a friend of my insists that the stuffing that she puts into
turkey can't be eaten cold -- it has to be reheated if it's leftover --
because she puts pork sausage in it, and she believes that pork cannot be
eaten cold. I'm sure she's confusing the rule about cooking pork to a
proper
temperature, because obviously there are plenty of pork products that are
eaten cooked but cold.

The other day, my MIL proclaimed that "you're not supposed to serve more
than one colorful dish at a meal." And she said she was breaking the rule
by
having two "colorful" things at the meal, although I'm not even sure what
she meant by that. Has anyone heard this "rule" or anything like it?

There's only one rule, and that's "there are no rules in cooking."

I believe that there are plenty of rules. But they're all meant to be
broken. :-)

Donna

"D.Currie" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

I think that one came about when people were first buying microwaves
and the nay-sayers were coming up with all sorts of reasons why the
radiation was going to kill you. Seems to me there was some notion
about how it was going to change the genetic structure of the veggies
you cooked in there. Huh? If I'm cooking them, I'd not going to breed
them...

Donna

Donna,

With such high RF (radio frequency) microwave power bombardment,
something's gotta give!

Almost tantamount to genetically engineering foods without your
knowledge?

Maybe.

Andy

D.Currie said:

"Chatty Cathy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Peter A said:

There's only one rule, and that's "there are no rules in cooking."

I have to agree.... although there are some "personal preferences".

I, for one, will NOT boil eggs and potatoes in the same pot (at the same
time) - although some of my family may disagree with me on this. I have no
"scientific" reason for this - I just find the whole idea bleh.

It's not something I ever would have thought of doing. But now that you
mention it, I don't think I'd want them boiled together, and I really can't
say why. Besides the fact that they'd need different times to cook,
probably. But you're right, it just doesn't sound like a good idea.

Donna

Reasoning behind it is this: We have to boil potatoes (for mash or
whatever) and we also need some boiled eggs (for salad or whatever). The
eggs CAN be taken out of the boiling water after 12 or so minutes -
but... bleh...

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

"maxine in ri" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

For health reasons, the recommendations are to have a diet that
includes colorful ingredients. The reds, yellows and oranges, along
with the dark greens, all contain lots of phytonutrients as well as
vitamins and minerals. She may have heard something that suggested
_adding_ a colored vegetable to the meal, and assumed that it meant
only one. I've had friends who were on the white diet: white bread,
white potatoes, white chicken, white pastry but no white asparagus or
iceburg lettuce. Those are the folks that sort of advice is directed
towards.

She says a lot of things that make me wonder. We were there for dinner one
night, and there was another couple as well, and the ktichen was spotless
and there was no sign of meal preparation. Just before serving time, she
started putting things in the microwave, and dashed out to the garage to
warm up the buns (she's got a toaster oven and electric broiler and stuff
like that in the garage).

The other guests made some comment about how everything was done ahead of
time, and MIL said, "We're from Chicago, and that's how we do it there, so
we don't have to be in the kitchen when the guests are here." Or something
to that effect.

I'm from the Chicago area, and I was boggled. But the guests were nodding
their heads like, "Oh yeah, that must be a regional thing. They must
microwave everything in Chicago."

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There are some rules that are health and safety matters (clean your
chopping board after cutting raw meat), and others that really go to
technique (rest your pastry in the fridge for a while before rolling it
out) but there's an awful lot of old wives tales out there - my MIL
believes you have to cut whacking great crosses into brussels sprouts
before boiling them to death, otherwise they'd be indigestible!

I love brussels sprouts, but boiling them to death is a sad thing. :-(

Donna

They're indigestible after being boiled to death! Even just the smell
will kill ya!

And if left alone, they will come to life and murder you in your sleep.
Really. It's a "rule."

Donna

D.Currie said:

"Chatty Cathy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Peter A said:

There's only one rule, and that's "there are no rules in cooking."

I have to agree.... although there are some "personal preferences".

I, for one, will NOT boil eggs and potatoes in the same pot (at the same
time) - although some of my family may disagree with me on this. I have no
"scientific" reason for this - I just find the whole idea bleh.

It's not something I ever would have thought of doing. But now that you
mention it, I don't think I'd want them boiled together, and I really can't
say why. Besides the fact that they'd need different times to cook,
probably. But you're right, it just doesn't sound like a good idea.

I do it when making potato salad and take the egg out when it's done and
let the potatoes finish. The egg gets starch on it, but it just rinses
off when I drop it in cold water to cool before peeling.

Dawn