Indholdsfortegnelse for CID March/April 2018 i Cook's Illustrated

If you’re like me, you can chart your development as a cook by the pizzas you’ve pulled from your oven over the years. There was the preferred pie of my early days: half an English muffin topped with brick-red jarred pizza sauce and hand-torn string cheese, baked in the to aster oven until cheese drooled from the sides and ignited on the glowing coil below. The middle years could be best described as homemade-ish. A signature technique of this period was to start with a store-bought frozen pizza and patch its sparse coating of freezer-burnt cheese with a fresh layer of pregrated part-skim mozzarella. From there I advanced to hitting up the supermarket—or an accommodating local pizza shop—for premade dough. Back home, I’d assault the dough with a rolling pin…

We’ve all suffered through dry, chalky, or tough pork tenderloin. That’s because traditional techniques such as oven roasting or pan searing use high heat in an attempt to give the mild meat a flavorful browned crust, but these methods typically overcook the lean pork. Lowering the heat can alleviate dryness—but at the expense of browning. What if there were a way to guarantee juicy, flavorful, fork-tender meat? Chefs in high-end restaurants have been doing just that by cooking food very gently using a technique called sous vide that keeps the food from rising above the ideal doneness temperature; afterward meat is typically seared rapidly to produce a browned crust. (In recent years, sous vide machines have gotten far less expensive. See “Sous Vide Circulators” for details.) In the test kitchen,…

If there is anything in life I can claim to have mastered, it’s making pizza: It was the first food I learned to cook, at age 15. Since then, I’ve developed nine pizza recipes. I’ve built two outdoor pizza ovens. Heck, I even teach pizza-making classes in my free time. But mastery can turn to complacency, so I was intrigued when editor in chief Dan Souza tasked me with the following challenge: Make really good pizza from scratch in just 1 hour, start to finish. It would be the ultimate test, as it went against the gospel I’ve been preaching for years, which says that for superlative pizza—a mildly yeasty, slightly tangy crust that’s crisp on the outside and pleasantly chewy within—you must let the dough proof in the refrigerator…

If you only know lentil soup as a plain and rather homogeneous dish, prepare to be wowed by the Moroccan version known as harira. Not only is this soup, which is native to the Maghreb region of North Africa, full of warm spices and fresh herbs, but it’s usually bulked up with chickpeas or fava beans, pasta or rice, tomatoes, hearty greens, and sometimes even lamb, beef, or chicken. The hearty base is usually brightened with a good bit of lemon juice and maybe a spoonful of the spicy North African chili paste, harissa. No wonder it’s often the first dish Muslims eat when they break their daily fast during Ramadan. Like countless other regional dishes, harira’s exact ingredients vary from region to region and even from family to family.…

I’ve had plenty of trials with fancy layer cakes and macarons—dishes that challenge even the most experienced chefs—but if you ask me, the task with the real intimidation factor is caramel. It’s something I’ve been making for more than 30 years but have only recently mastered, let alone understood. That’s because the process of making caramel is riddled with pitfalls. Sugar can melt unevenly and burn or crystallize, leaving you with a gritty mess. Many recipes offer tweaks to prevent these mishaps, but there’s little agreement on what actually works. I tested every variable and question I could think of until I had a firm grip on what makes caramel succeed and fail (keep reading—I’ll walk you through everything I learned) and a technique that even novice cooks will feel…

Whenever a piece of restaurant equipment becomes available to home cooks, we take notice. Replacing flimsy jelly roll pans with sturdy rimmed baking sheets changed the way we cook. Using bench scrapers and Y-shaped vegetable peelers made our prep work easier and more efficient. More expensive and esoteric tools, such as high-powered blenders, sous vide machines, and carbon-steel skillets, have also transitioned from restaurant to home kitchens. Recently, a low-frills restaurant product appeared on supermarket shelves: parchment paper sheets, a precut version of the rolls that we have long used to line baking sheets. Since the sheets are cut to the dimensions of a standard rimmed baking sheet, no trimming is necessary, which saves time and waste. And unlike rolled parchment, which needs to be wrestled out of its box…

Twenty-one editors and cooks at America’s Test Kitchen sampled seven Pecorino Romano and Romano cheese products plain at room temperature and in our recipe for Spaghetti with Pecorino and Black Pepper (Cacio e Pepe). Scores were averaged, with the cooked application’s scores weighted more heavily since this cheese is more frequently used for cooking than as a table cheese. Products are listed below in order of preference. Nutrition data is from product labels, standardized for comparison, using a serving size of 1 ounce (28 grams). An independent laboratory analyzed pH. Prices were paid in Boston-area supermarkets and online (not including shipping). To see the full tasting results, go to CooksIllustrated.com/apr18. RECOMMENDED BOAR’S HEAD Pecorino Romano PRICE: $6.99 for 7 oz ($1.00 per oz) ORIGIN: Sardinia, Italy (non-DOP) MILK: Sheep AGED:…

Clip—or Stitch—Tacos Closed To prevent soft tacos from spilling open while she’s filling the others, Sue Wallin of Seattle, Wash., uses one of two tricks to keep the stuffed tortillas closed: She pinches each one with a bag clip or threads a toothpick through the top of the tortilla, which holds the taco together much like it would a club sandwich. Make Supersmooth Guacamole with a Ricer To make silky guacamole without wearing out her arm, Rochelle Rougier-Maas of Mahtomedi, Minn., presses peeled and pitted avocado halves through the fine holes of a potato ricer before mixing in other ingredients. Avoid Coffee Grinder Static When transferring ground coffee from his burr-style coffee grinder’s container to his coffee maker, Jim Forrest of Franconia, N.H., has found that static in the container…

SERVES 4 We prefer natural pork in this recipe. If using enhanced pork (injected with a salt solution), reduce the salt in step 2 to ¼ teaspoon per steak. Serve the pork with Scallion-Ginger Relish (page 6), if desired. Our recipe for Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin Steaks for Two is available for free for four months at CooksIllustrated.com/apr18. Our quick guide to getting started with sous vide is available at CooksIllustrated.com/sousvideguide. Two additional sous vide recipes—Butter-Basted Thick-Cut Rib-Eye Steaks and Soft-Poached Eggs—are available at CooksIllustrated.com/sousvide. 1. HEAT WATER TO PRECISE TEMPERATURE Using sous vide circulator, bring 4 quarts water (water should be 4 inches deep) to 140°F/60°C in 7-quart Dutch oven or similar-size heatproof container. WHY? A sous vide circulator brings the water to the exact ideal doneness temperature of…

Every region with a coastline seems to boast its own version of seafood stew—bouillabaisse, cioppino, gumbo, and chowder, to name a few. But I’d argue that Brazil’s take, called moqueca (mo-KAYkah), particularly the version popular in the country’s northeastern region, known as Moqueca Baiana, is a standout among the rest. To make it, cooks typically marinate fish and/or shellfish in lime juice, salt, and garlic; stew the mixture in a clay pot with coconut milk and a few aromatic vegetables and herbs; drizzle the dish with sweet, nutty African dendê (palm) oil and a creamy, tangy hot pepper sauce made from local malagueta chiles; and serve it with rice alongside. That combination of rich coconut milk, briny seafood, bright citrus, and savory vegetables produces a broth that’s full-bodied, lush, and…

You have to hand it to the botanists at Sakata Seed Corporation. When they crossbred conventional broccoli and Chinese broccoli in the early 1990s, the resulting broccolini plant combined the best traits of the two parents with virtually none of their flaws. Whereas broccoli is thick and sturdy and its flavor can be slightly bitter, broccolini is svelte, with the asparagus-like crunch and sweetness of Chinese broccoli. Broccolini also trades broccoli’s densely packed crowns and the Chinese version’s abundance of cabbagey leaves for just a few delicate, mild-tasting florets and greens. These traits make broccolini easy to prepare, too. There’s no fibrous skin to strip away, no shrub-like crowns to break down, and no floret debris to sweep from the cutting board. A lot of recipes call for treating broccolini…

Long ago—in 1283, to be exact, if stories are to be believed— the warden of a military prison in Dadu (modern Beijing) prepared the final meal for Wen Tianxiang, a Song dynasty patriot. Legend has it that on the eve of the execution, with just a handful of ingredients at his disposal— soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice wine—the warden invented a chicken recipe by combining 1 cup of each ingredient. San bei ji, or three-cup chicken, as it has come to be known, must have been well received, for in the ensuing years, the recipe was adopted by neighboring Taiwan and has since evolved into a national dish of sorts. These days, chiles are included for heat, along with generous amounts of fresh ginger, garlic, scallions, and Thai basil.…

We tested 10 parchment papers, with our lineup including a mix of rolls and precut sheets. We baked a variety of foods on each product (including some in a 500-degree oven) and used sheets of each to roll out disks of cookie dough and roll jelly roll cakes. We also tested the papers’ strength. Throughout, we evaluated how cleanly the baked foods released from the papers and checked the foods for even, consistent browning. Several users took the papers home, where they evaluated their performance and ease of use and noted how easy they were to store in kitchen cabinets and drawers. For parchment rolls, we calculated the approximate number of sheets per container by roughly dividing the total length by 16 inches (the approximate length of the cooking surface…

WHAT IS IT? Back in the days before boutique coffee shops occupied every street corner, many folks not only brewed their own coffee but also roasted their own beans. To do so, they would have used a stovetop roaster such as this one made in Germany around the turn of the century. Weighing in at a hefty 8 pounds, this 8 by 4-inch cast-iron roaster could be used to roast up to 1 pound of beans at a time. Like a stovetop corn popper, the roaster is set over a flame. The user then constantly rotates its handle, which turns a paddle inside the roaster to keep the beans in motion. When we tested this model, we found that it worked well. Over medium heat, it took about 14 minutes…

Traditional pulled chicken is a true labor of love: First you brine bone-in, skin-on parts for an hour or so. Then you cook them slowly over coals and wood chunks until the meat is moist and tender within and kissed with smoke flavor throughout. With the skin burnished to a deep mahogany, smoked chicken is a beautiful thing—making it feel almost like a crime to pull off the skin, shred the richly flavored meat, and douse it in barbecue sauce for sandwiches. I developed a killer recipe for Smoked Chicken (July/August 2011), and if I make it for friends, you’d better believe I’m going to get full credit for all the work by showing off its burnished parts. But for those times when I need a quick weeknight meal or…

Whether or not you’re familiar with sous vide, chances are you’ve eaten food prepared this way. In the past decade, sous vide—the method of cooking food in a precise, controlled water bath—has gone from high-end restaurants to home kitchens. Though freestanding machines exist, home cooks typically use immersion circulators— slim, stick-like devices that attach to different vessels and continuously heat the water. We evaluated seven models with prices ranging from $129.99 to $274.95 by cooking eggs, salmon, flank steak, pork loin, and beef short ribs to a range of temperatures. Our testing revealed flaws in certain models: Some fluctuated more than 1 degree from the target temperature, which resulted in over- or undercooked eggs; a few machines required a confusing sequence of button-pushing to get started; and the two largest…

Compared with the white soda bread strewn with raisins and caraway seeds that makes its annual appearance in the United States around St. Patrick’s Day, Ireland’s rustic brown soda bread might seem austere. It’s traditionally made with just four ingredients: wholemeal flour (more about that later), baking soda, salt, and buttermilk. But those minimal ingredients make a crusty bread with a savory, nutty flavor that pairs well with a wide variety of foods. Soups, cheese, cured fish, beer, and hard cider all make excellent accompaniments, and it’s equally good with a smear of salted butter. Considering its versatility, it’s little wonder that brown soda bread is the preferred version in Ireland. The other appeal of soda bread—both white and brown versions—is that it’s dead simple to make. In fact, it’s…

QUICK TOMATO SAUCE What Can Go Wrong: With little time to simmer and meld flavors, quick tomato sauces can taste dull or, worse, like you simply dumped a can of tomatoes on the pasta. How We Fix It: Minimally processed crushed tomatoes offer bright, fresh flavor and preclude the need to puree whole canned tomatoes ourselves. Grating the onion releases a lot of its flavor quickly. Sauteing the onion in butter, versus oil, contributes rich meatiness from the browned milk solids. Garlic; oregano; and a touch of sugar; plus basil and olive oil further ramp up the flavor. GRATE ONION Efficiently creates more of the compounds that give cooked onion complex flavor Cooking Time: 15 minutes 2 tablespoons unsalted butter¼ cup grated onion1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano or ¼ teaspoon…

If tart, citrusy flavors are the rays of sunshine that brighten lemon bars, then thickeners are the storm clouds that cover them up. And therein lies a culinary catch-22: For bars with lots of lemon zing, you need lots of lemon juice. But the more juice you use, the more flavor-dulling binders—such as eggs and starch—are required to keep the filling firm and sliceable. My task was to find a way around this problem. Laying the Foundation With lemon bars, it’s easy to overlook the crust and focus on the wobbly, creamy, lemony layer. And that’s exactly what most recipes do. But not mine. Instead of a nondescript platform for the filling, I wanted a crisp crumb with buttery sweetness. The typical crust is modeled on a British shortbread cookie.…

Pecorino Romano is like the seasoned character actor who improves dozens of movies but never gets recognition. It’s one of the world’s oldest cheeses, named for its origins in ancient Rome, and its firm, slightly oily, crystalline texture and salty, funky flavor deserve fresh consideration out of the shadow of its more famous cousin, Parmigiano-Reggiano. In the test kitchen, we use Pecorino in salads, soups, and frittatas, as well as in classic Italian pasta dishes such as cacio e pepe, pasta all’amatriciana, and lasagna, where its complex flavor is a quiet powerhouse. But does it matter which cheese you bring home? We chose seven nationally available versions priced from $0.67 to $1.33 per ounce. In supermarkets, you’ll find cheeses labeled Pecorino Romano and Romano sold side by side, so we…

RECOMMENDED DEXAS Heavy Duty Grippmats MODEL: 6554PK2 PRICE: $19.99 for set of 4 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED DEMARLE SILPAT U.S. Half-Size Non-Stick Silicone Baking Mat MODEL: AE420295-07 PRICE: $22.35 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED MICROPLANE Home Series Fine Grater MODEL: 44002 PRICE: $14.95 RECOMMENDED THERMOWORKS DOT MODEL: TX-1200-OR (orange) PRICE: $39.00 ($4.00 for pot clip) RECOMMENDED LODGE NOKONA Leather Handle Holder MODEL: ALHHNS85 PRICE: $13.43 Flexible Cutting Mats Lightweight and flexible, plastic cutting mats are dishwasher-safe and generally flexible enough to be rolled up for funneling ingredients into a skillet or bowl. We put eight models, priced from $2.00 to $8.00 per mat, through a slew of cutting and chopping tasks to evaluate how well they stood up to stains, odors, repeated knife strokes, and washing. Mats that were textured on both sides provided stability on…