Cooking at Sea galley tips

I walked into my sister in law’s house just as she was pulling them out. They were running off the sheet, looking like some medical experiment gone wrong. Truly impressive.

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It’s a really easy recipe. All you do is add it.

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I made this video this afternoon. It shows how I flip over easy eggs without a utensil. Some things are easier to show than try to explain. https://youtu.be/omfgojuTeTw

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As an alternative to a non stick pan, a well seasoned “egg” pan also works well. Mine disappeared about the time my ex moved out. . . coincidence?

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Steaks warmed to room temperature before cooking are better(broiled or grilled not fried and flipped 60 times pressed on with a spatula until no juices are left in the well done hockey puck.) I have yelled at a cook flipping my steak , to order on a charcoal grill , over and over again and pressing on it with a spatula on an APL ship. I call the cooks SIU steak pressers. They squeeze all flavor out of an extra well done steak usually cooked at coffee time (1515). One Waterman ship I was on the top four deck/ engine manned the grill Thursday and Sunday to stop this travesty. I manned the grill and had med rare to well done for a mix and shrimp and chicken too.

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A post was merged into an existing topic: Cooking at Sea

Maybe you are right if you leave them out to room temperature. A lot of crap I was reading early in my cooking career said pull them about 20 minutes before you cook them. Turns out it only raises the temperature 2 degrees F. They would have to sit out quite a while to get to room temperature. This article says at least an hour. http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/06/the-food-lab-7-old-wives-tales-about-cooking-steak.html

I sailed with a cook that could turn good food into shit faster than my dog.

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The so-called Meat Boats trading to Europe from the Antipodes before the the container age had a general cargo of frozen meat. I only did one trip because as a just married I couldn’t afford the time in port.
Shopping was by “hatch brothers” and a carton or two of fine aged export steak was moved to the brine room along with liquid refreshments (normally sourced from Scotland or France that had been set aside from the outbound voyage.
Prior to 0400 the junior engineer repaired on deck and waved the Gas axe over some dunnage. Pit Masters had nothing on us. Sated we attempted to be tucked up before daylight.
We knew we had it good at the time never mind the recollections and many of the guys I sailed with had sailed out of Glasgow for the states with hatches full of whiskey.
One Master was confused and asked the mate why the crew going ashore were dressed in identical Burberry overcoats.
Money is not everything.

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Are you sure it wasn’t to let them rest for twenty minutes after cooking? That one is legit with a piece of prime beef.

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I have found (I do all the cooking at home) that the two most important tools in the kitchen are a scale and a thermometer. For the latter I prefer the Thermopen, pricey but worth it for accuracy and its very small tip.

Quick and effective way to cook steaks: bring up to room temperature, sear both sides on a cast iron grill or pan, finish in a 325 deg F oven until 135 or 140 F (3-4 minutes – pay attention!) internally, let rest 3-5 minutes depending on thickness.

Thermometer-free way to cook steaks on a charcoal or gas grill: Up to room temp, then cook on one side until blood just begins to show on top. Turn. Cook until juice just appears in sear marks on top for rare, juice just covers sear marks for medium rare, one minute more for medium. Rest.

Spatchcock (butterfly) chickens before roasting, save the backbones for stock. This avoids the problem of undercooked dark meat when the white meat is just right. Rub skin with olive oil and Cajun blackening seasoning. 3/4 way through roasting, brush with sweet barbecue sauce, serve extra sauce with chicken.

Tip for those on low salt diet: use small amounts of Cajun hot seasoning instead of salt. I prefer Aunt Sally’s Voodoo Heat from New Orleans (available by mail, maybe the gCaptain store could carry it and their blackening :sunglasses:). Works for all kinds of soups and sauces.

Enough for now.

Cheers,

Earl

Edit: added time in oven.

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Great tip about needing a thermometer, especially for a new guy getting told someone wants a medium rare steak. Your note about chicken is important to know when frying also. Awesome tips thanks! That Aunt Sally’s sounds interesting,

Thanks for your feedback. No. I was reading some more about it the other day, because I was going to put a note in the steak section of my dinner entrees about doing it. I’ve never been able to leave a steak sitting for 20 minutes. I was always making them “to order”, so they would get served right away.

It’s a steakhouse method of cooking that allows the juices to pool back into the meat before consumption. I’ve never gotten a piece of prime beef on a ship unless I bought it myself so it’s a moot point for this discussion. But at home I use it to great success over natural coals and some applewood for the smokiness. I think I’m going to go get a tomahawk ribeye right now actually.

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If it ever quits raining I’ll have to fire up the grill and give it a try-Thanks!

OK, you want to know what you do with a big cut of cheap, tough beef? Try this:

With your sharpest filet knife, cut a pocket inside the slab of mystery meat. Rub the inside with olive oil. Stuff with thin sliced hard salami (a mandoline is good for this) provolone cheese, and a lot of oregano. Stuff with all it will take. Sew the open end shut with one or two poultry skewers. Grill or roast in the oven until you get 160 deg F internal temp (important – you want that tough beef to break down). Slice diagonally like London Broil and serve.

I got this off a United in-flight magazine over 40 years ago. Supposedly came from Dean Martin, but who knows?

Cheers,

Earl

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The thing about Dean Martin might be bogus. When I was a teenager living in LA, my father in law was pals with Dean and belonged to the same golf club. There were plenty of tables in the clubhouse where Dean could have played poker with his buddies but he didn’t want that. Instead, he had a wooden card table with a green felt surface set up in a corner of the men’s locker room.
After lunch, you could often find him there playing cards, surrounded by friends smoking cigarettes and sipping cocktails. He was a big star with a successful TV show and could have hung out anywhere he wanted but his choice was to hang out in a slightly smelly locker room playing poker with his buddies. He was the epitome of cool. Being a teenager from a dysfunctional family and tormented by insecurities, I was especially impressed by his coolness. I have a hard time imagining him having to cook a big slab of cheap tough beef by himself when women were throwing themselves at his feet begging to do whatever he wanted.

He was probably happy to take the fee for using his picture in the article, though :sunglasses:

Cheers,

Earl

Yep, that I can see.

Thought I would share this video. It’s a short video with a few good tips on cooking. Gordon Ramsey does know how to make things easier. https://youtu.be/ZJy1ajvMU1k