Wisdom for Wednesday- If you aren’t sure if your eggs are any good, float test them. Fill a glass with water put the egg in. If it sinks, it’s still good. If it floats, then throw it out. (or do a real float test if you are far enough from land haha).
Learn to buy your produce in season. Thought this was an interesting article. https://www.foodrenegade.com/your-apples-year-old/
You might be ruining a good clutch of baluts!
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Here’s something I came across the other day that works well. 1/3 thyme, 1/3 freeze-dried shallots, 1/3 sage. Grind together in a mortar and pestle (I do that for all dried herbs, brings out the flavor). Mix with butter to make a chef’s butter for cheap meat or use as a rub on chicken.
Also, if you can get hold of fresh sage, try frying a leaves in really hot peanut oil (like a few seconds), pat dry on paper towel and salt lightly. Makes a great garnish for all kinds of things.
Cheers,
Earl
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Thanks for sharing! Sounds interesting.
I want to do a video on the top 5 (or maybe 10) mistakes new cooks make. Can I get some suggestions please? I already asked my crew and want to see what the rest of you have to say. Thanks!!
Trying to cook when the meat is still frozen!
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They are doing that on the ship I’m on. The Steward is always giving meat ti the cook that’s frozen.
This sounds like a lack of communication. It sounds like they aren’t thinking about the next day. Working with frozen meat isn’t the end of the world. If it’s a roast or something you just can’t effectively sear the outside. The cook should probably ask for the next couple days meat selections in advance, but I don’t know how this is set up on your vessel. Someone needs to take some initiative. When I was cooking I had no one to blame but myself.
Cooked some frozen fish the other night, and remembered another tip: wet the fish down with rice vinegar during the last bit of defrosting, then just before cooking use paper towels and press all the moisture you can out of them. Helps kill the fishy taste.
Cheers,
Earl
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I decided on the top 5 based on the feedback I got from this site, my crewmembers, and my own observations. This is my longest video so far at almost 10 minutes!- https://youtu.be/mWietgYdA-Y
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OK, here’s another one. Scrubbing rice.
Put the uncooked rice in a bowl and wet down, not enough to cover but more than just damp. Scrub the grains together with your hands or a wooden spoon. You’ll see the water turn white. This is starch on the outside of the grains. Rinse, and do it again. Two more times usually does it.
The resulting cooked rice will be light, fluffy, sticky and flavorful.
Got this tip from an old cookbook by Victor Sen Yung, who played the cook Hop Sing in the old “Bonanza” show. (No dummy, he had a degree in economics and was an intel officer in WWII.)
Cheers,
Earl
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Excellent tip. I have seen this technique over the years. Always beautiful rice
What I do is considerably more energetic than that page suggests.
Cheers,
Earl
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Just a quick tip for aspiring cooks. Always read the recipe all the way through before beginning to make something. This will help you avoid mistakes and you’ll know what prep work needs done. Seems simple but I recently watched someone make this mistake on the Great British Baking Show.
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It’s the season for fresh corn in North America, and here’s an easy way to cook it as a side dish.
Cut the top off an ear and remove and discard the outer husks only
Peel back the inner husks and pull out the cornsilk. A stiff brush helps getting the last of it.
Rub the ear with butter, being sure to get it down into the spaces between kernels.
Fold the inner husks back and tie with kitchen twine.
For a standard (1200w) microwave, zap 5 minutes, turn, zap 4 minutes, turn, zap 3 minutes. The 3 minute zap is good to time resting time for steaks 
Peel back and discard husks and enjoy.
The 5-4-3 timing sequence also works for baked potatoes.
Cheers,
Earl
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Keep your knives sharp in the galley or kitchen
A dull knife in the galley can be dangerous. Your fingers arent replaceable.
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I’m a SA I’ve been on the hitch about 3 months with 3 to go. It’s cool, today my Steward comes to me and tells me he wants me to start doing more stuff in the Galley. That he sees I have talent and take great pride in my work. He wants to start getting me ready to be cook. Today he made egg salad and put it on a plate with crackers and bang it looked great. He wants me to start coming up with stuff. I need some Ideals with recipes. I would really appreciate any help with this. Lunch is normally 25 to 35 also if I make extra it can go on the salad bar. O one of the things I thought might work is like a black bean salad tell me what you think.
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Bean salad, pea salad, try a few different pasta salads- any of those would be great as lunch sides or on the bar. Here’s one to try. You probably need to triple or quadruple everything except the salt. My sides are usually for 6 to 8 people.
Pasta Provencale
Ingredients- • 2 medium zucchini (halved lengthwise and sliced) • 8 oz. sliced mushrooms • 3 minced garlic cloves • 1 bell pepper (stemmed, seeded, and sliced- recipe suggests green) • 1/4 cup chopped onion • 2 tbl extra virgin olive oil • 1-14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (undrained) • 1 tbl chopped fresh or dried basil • 1 tbl fresh oregano (or 1/8 tsp dried) • 1/4 tsp salt • 1/4 tsp pepper • 5 oz penne pasta (cooked) • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and rinse under cold water. Add oil to a large skillet on medium high heat. Saute the 1st 5 ingredients for about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Stir well. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer 1 minute. Remove from heat. Transfer to a serving bowl. Add pasta and cheese. Toss gently. Serve hot.
It doesn’t have to be exactly like this. Get creative. Let me know if this is the kind of thing you want.