Home Ice Makers – A Small Guide
Posted by adoex in Ice, Information About Food on December 30, 2011
Ever since the first mechanical ice making concept was conceptualized way back in the 1840′s by John Gorrie, man has utilized this mechanical form of making things frozen for many, many uses. Back then, Gorrie envisaged using such a device to cheaply make ice which he could use to cool his patients down who were suffering from Malaria and Yellow Fever.
Over a hundred and fifty years later man is still using mechanical devices based on the same principals Gorrie set out all those years ago. Although there have been many improvements, the concept is still pretty much the same.
Ice makers are used all over the world these days to create ice quickly and cheaply. Whether it be for domestic use in drinks for example, or whether in the hospitality industry to cool drinks and food. They are even used widely in other sectors such as manufacturing and such. You’ve seen those large Ice Sculptures that are carved out of huge blocks by men with chainsaws right? Sure thing. Those blocks of ice came out of very large ice makers.
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Cultivating a Proper Taste for Truffles
Posted by adoex in Delicious Food on December 30, 2011
One gourmet blessed with command of language explained truffles’ flavour as “mushrooms to the power of ten with a hint of garlic”-hardly a shy and retiring flavour. Cooking with truffles, however, requires a delicate touch and a lot of practice, because the truffle-trained palette is more than a little discerning.
The longer you study these mysterious, exotic rare fungi, the more you must accept that people who buy and savour these precious delicacies do not live in the same world, breathe the same air, read the same books, or travel in the same circles as Larry Lunchbox. One must accept that the ability to pay four-digit prices for a pound of mushrooms puts a person in a place that carries privileges and pre-requisites beyond a working person’s. The people who know how to accoutre their dishes with truffles have no ethical qualms about eating rabbit or veal. The idea of conspicuous consumption is anathema to them; and the word “no” means nothing to them.
For everybody else in the world, the art and science of all things truffle require some explanation. Truffle 101 focuses on slicing or shaving, and, yes, there is an app for that. The upscale cookware vendors sell specially designed and chef-tested truffle slicers. Of course, if you must ask, you cannot afford one. You use your truffle slicer to apply the precious don’t-call-it-a-mushroom on food or into soups and sauces just before eating. The leading truffle site wisely suggests, “Shave raw white truffle on pasta, risotto, salads, eggs, sauces, or with poultry or other white meats such as rabbit or veal. White truffles also pair well with hard Italian cheeses, proscuito and salami.”
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