• About The Crew
  • Cooking Through ‘Modernist Cuisine’ At Home

Jet City Gastrophysics

~ Exploring Modernist Cuisine in the Northwest

Jet City Gastrophysics

Tag Archives: broccoli

Modernist Cuisine At Home: Combi Oven-Steamed Broccoli

13 Monday Jun 2011

Posted by jethro in brining, combi oven, MC at home, recipes

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

broccoli, combi oven, Modernist Cuisine, pickling

The Cast Of Characters

The Cast Of Characters

The title of this dish is misleading.  I mean, how easy is it to steam broccoli in a combi oven?  Set the settings, put it in, wait a few minutes.  No, that would not be satisfactory in the least.  We’re trying to do something different here.  And certainly, so are the authors of Modernist Cuisine.  Turns out it is better to call it Broccoli Three Ways.  Or The Broccoli Trinity.  Power Broc Triple Threat, perhaps. With our humble plant from the cabbage family, we are going to not just steam it, but fry it and pickle it as well.  And throw some cured fatback on top for good measure.  OK, now we’re talking.

Continue reading →

Modernist Cuisine At Home: Smooth Purees, Part II

21 Tuesday Dec 2010

Posted by jethro in MC at home, recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

asparagus, broccoli, Modernist Cuisine, VitaMix

Picking up where I left off from last month, I finished making the rest of the puree recipes from the PDF excerpt of Modernist Cuisine.  Well, almost all of it.  Two remaining recipes involved being sauteed and then blended in a commercial blender.  One required boiling and a Pacojet.  A Pacojet, which quickly purees frozen products to produce a very fine consistency, can be found used online.  For around $2900.  This is out of reach for this home cook, so it will have to wait until, oh, a miracle occurs.

In that last post, I had some issues getting a truly smooth puree.  Then, lo and behold, none other than Dr. Myhrvold himself, the author of Modernist Cuisine, kindly commented that I needed a commercial blender – in particular, a VitaMix – to get the results I was looking for.  How did he know?  He had his team re-test all the purees.  I can just imagine how the chefs felt, having to re-do their work because some frickin’ home cook blogger couldn’t nail it down.  Chefs, if you’re reading this, my apologies.  Just having lots of fun over here!

So I needed to find a VitaMix.  They sell for around $450 new, but that’s pretty steep.  I needed to find one used.  So to the Internet I went.  $300 was the going rate most of the time, but I, master of the bargain, was able to find one at a yard sale for $100!  So take heart, home cooks – miracles do occur.  Just keep your eyes peeled.

And with my VitaMix in hand, I was ready to conquer the next set of purees.

One: Asparagus

Bad Puree

Not So Smooth

As what seems to be a pattern for me, I learned something valuable about cooking this week by messing it up. This time it was over phrasing.  In particular, the instruction “thinly sliced”.  For me, thinly slicing asparagus implies lengthwise.  Otherwise, it would have said “thinly chop”, right?  I don’t think so.  In the first round, the thin stringy fibers of the inside of the asparagus refused to be finely blended, leaving choppy floss and an uneven texture.  So I went back to the store, bought some more, and sliced them appropriately.

Cooking Asparagus

I gave them a go in my new VitaMix and the smoothest, most beautiful bright green puree presented itself.  These Vitamix’s are awesome!

Smooth Asparagus

This Is Some Seriously Smooth Asparagus

I served it with a 24 hour sous vide pork belly for a dinner with friends and it went over famously.  If you have a VitaMix, go make some. Now.

Two: Broccoli

Broccoli Stems

The final puree called for broccoli stems.  At my local chain supermarket, they cut off the stems because they rightly assume the vast majority will just throw it away for the good stuff – the florets.  But as always my trusty Asian grocery store came through and had nice thick stems to use.

I followed the directions, which were very straightforward – saute on medium heat for 12 minutes with a neutral oil.  I looked through my cabinet: canola, pumpkin seed, avocado, olive, peanut…and grapeseed.  There’s a nice neutral standard.  After cooking I put them in the blender and gave them the spin of their life.

A Proper Blender

About To Be Liquified In A Proper Blender

And once again I was rewarded with a thick, creamy, smooth vegetable puree. On the parametric recipe, the asparagus and broccoli recipes point to other pages for reference in the cookbook.  I wonder what they help illuminate.  I know the purees taste great on their own, but I bet it would be fun to do some inverse spherification on them as well.  Maybe that’s what the other pages suggest.  Maybe not.  I’ll have to wait until March 2011 like everyone else.  But I do know that’s what’s up next in my kitchen.

Smooth Stems

Jethro

Search

Categories

From the Twitterverse

  • RT @Bourdain: How about ask "Who are these assholes?" As a where to start? I sure as shit don't know. twitter.com/TheGurglingCod… 6 years ago
  • RT @FMigoya: Birthday cake ganache. Hence the silver sprinkles. Individual confection. Photo by @Benfinkphoto https://t.co/DtkI6lXq3T 7 years ago

Feed Yourself

  • RSS - Posts

Recent Posts

  • Ferran In America
  • That One Time We Applied For A Food Patent
  • Ideas In Food At Home: Coffee Onion Rings
  • BOOM: Sansaire Circulator Raises $823k On Kickstarter
  • Dining Northwest Style at The Willows Inn
  • Sansaire, The $199 Circulator: A Brief History
  • Modernist Cuisine At Home: Barbeque Rubs And Another Sauce
  • Modernist Cuisine At Home: More Barbeque Sauces
  • The Price Of Cooking Modernist Cuisine, Part IV: More Gadgets, Ingredients and Resources
  • Modernist Cuisine At Home: Compressed Melon Terrine
  • That One Time We Were Nominated For Best Culinary Science Blog
  • Gastrophysics Labs Closes Doors; Reopens As A “Kitchen”

From the Archives

  • March 2014
  • November 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010

Blogroll

  • A Practical Guide to Sous Vide Cooking
  • Alinea At Home
  • Chef Rubber
  • Cooking Issues
  • eGullet
  • Eric Rivera's Cooking Blog
  • Ideas In Food
  • Khymos
  • L'epicerie
  • LeSanctuaire
  • Modernist Cuisine
  • Modernist Pantry
  • Seattle Food Geek
  • Studio Kitchen
  • The Alinea Project
  • Willequipped
  • Willpowder

  • ericriveracooks
  • jethro
  • sheimend

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Jet City Gastrophysics
    • Join 163 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Jet City Gastrophysics
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...