Comments

Episode-1730- Expert Council Q&A for 2-12-16 — 12 Comments

  1. Not sure why this wasn’t mentioned, but best results for me are had by seasoning the cheap china store carbon steel woks like you do cast iron pans. It sure as hell made a “HUGE” difference for me. Stuff stuck like crazy, no matter how much oil I used before I seasoned mine. Still not completely perfect when using corn starch, but it cleans off easy with hot water and a scrubber. When I peak into the kitchens of chinese restaurants their woks always look nice and black to me. Please let me know if there is something I don’t know. And thanks for all the great information and content. $30 is too cheep. ;]

  2. On the steel wok: they will season alot like cast iron, not exactly but very similar, if cared for and treated similarly.

  3. You have a lot of God given talent and you are making good use of it. Really appreciate your logical thinking process. Thanks!

  4. I’ll chime in here…carbon steel is allot smoother and less pourous then cast iron. .so the seasoning process is far more effective with cast iron..but as you break in the carbon steel it will stick less..makes sense to get wok hot before adding oil..and once cleaned to heat it up to dry it and then oil again before putting away…but as commenter suggested they can be sticky at first, especially with proteins until they are broken in…

  5. As to the mustard question I do love using mustard to help emulsify vinaigrette but my kids are not huge fans of mustard..so I also like 1/8tsp xanthan gum…also..reduced vegetable and fruit juices can thicken nicely..like sun dried cherries or carrot juice etc..
    Love to hear Erica’s thoughts here as well..

  6. Regarding vinaigrettes, let me offer a somewhat different viewpoint. I was fortunate enough to go to Italy for the first time over 30 years ago. It was quite a surprise to see that even though salads were always served at lunch and dinner, there were no salad dressings offered. On the table was a bottle of wine vinegar and a bottle of olive oil. Each person put on their salad however much they liked of each, then seasoned with salt and pepper. I have been using the same system ever since. So much more healthful and so much easier too. Let me add that in Italy that is still the only way salads are served in restaurants and at home.

    • this is true….similar in parts of France…sometimes one of my favorite things is to use some seasoned rice vinegar and a pinch of sea salt on salad….very refreshing that way without the “weight” of the oil..

  7. For Ben Falk,
    BIOCHAR: Have you thought of covering your slash (to keep it dry ’til there are no winds) and making biochar? I worried about too much slash too until I hung out with Gloria Flora, teacher of all things irreplaceable and amazing about biochar. From using it as a way to better grow your starts, to 1000 years of fertility for your beds. Accordingly there is no waste that need go to waste. i personally use the “Pacific biochar” 50 degree sides hole in the ground to make great biochar that I inoculate in mycorhyzea, bocashi, and any thing else I can find (see Agricultural Research Institute.), innards, worm castings, horticultural molasses, and lots of water. I add the soup to al the areas around fruit trees and garden beds. Whatever you do, don’t forget to add biochar to your system. Thanks, Kelly Ware

  8. Sugar: For those who want to be entertained while learning about the effects of sugar and processed carbohydrate in general, try watching this Australian documentary, http://thatsugarfilm.com/.

    Watch what happens to this individual in 60 days just by going from eating something that might be described as Paleo to the typical offerings in your local supermarket. Note that the caloric intake and exercise were held constant during this experiment. If you think it all comes down to “eat less, move more” then you need to go work for the processed food industry. Also, note the effect on the Australian aboriginal people, and infants in Kentucky that are drinking Mountain Dew out of baby bottles.

    Food is very much a survivalist issue, not only from the food storage standpoint, but more importantly from the overall nature of the food supply and its long term effects on public health.

  9. I can highly recommend The Wok Shop out of San Fran. I bought a wok from them a few years ago, I think they also threw in a couple freebies at the time. Not sure if they are still doing that.

    http://www.wokshop.com/