What are you eating?

[Buffalobiian]

I just had the fattiest pasta meal in my life.

After finishing a takeaway container of (what I thought was) Penne Carbonara, there was 1 tablespoon of pure oil left in the tub.

Describe how I feel in one word? Saturated

[fahoumh]

Do you think it was Extra Virgin Olive Oil? If it was, then you don't really have much to worry about.

EDIT: I used "too" instead of "to"

[Buffalobiian]

Do you think it was Extra Virgin Olive Oil? If it was, then you don't really have much too worry about.

I doubt it. Probably 100% vegetable or canola oil. It tasted rather good still.

On a different note, I've discovered these past-expiry-date Cadbury BrunchBars in my cupboard, and have been eating those for the past week or so for breakfast.

Cadbury + "toasted coconut" can't be good for me. When it goes down, it leaves a thick, dry feeling behind in my throat too. But I think I'll finish off these regardless before I move on the my healthier (and probably also expired) fruit bars.

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edit: I forgot to bring lunch today, so popped down the the local city restaurants for something to eat, and ended up settling with some fettucine + salmon in dill sauce. It was good and all (pasta was freshly made I think), but damn the serving was small. I could have easily eaten 4 plates of it. After sitting for 5mins afterwards though, it manages to be just short of being enough. (no where near full, but enough).

My next choice was then to either head back up to the office or pop by Hungry Jacks (aka Burger King) on the way and pick up a burger (forking out even more money).

I've heard that supposedly eating till you're just short of being full is good for your health, but that's like pulling out at the last minute.

[fahoumh]

I doubt it. Probably 100% vegetable or canola oil. It tasted rather good still.

Hahaha. Well, as long as it tasted good.

On a different note, I've discovered these past-expiry-date Cadbury BrunchBars in my cupboard, and have been eating those for the past week or so for breakfast.

Cadbury + "toasted coconut" can't be good for me. When it goes down, it leaves a thick, dry feeling behind in my throat too. But I think I'll finish off these regardless before I move on the my healthier (and probably also expired) fruit bars.

How far past the expiry date are they? And that feeling you described sounds worse than the worst case of cotton mouth.

but that's like pulling out at the last minute.

OMG, that is fucking hilarious. And yeah, it's pretty a good feeling when I'm done eating, lean back, and let out a good belch. Not very proper but it's usually around close friends.

[animus]

I had some Ddukbokki for the first time which is a Korean dish for Spicy Rice Cakes with Fish Cakes. It wasn't spicy enough, which is probably attributed to how weak the general Western population is with spicy food but damn it was good. It made me really full considering how little I ate of it, due to the fact that rice cakes are so thick and condensed.

[Kraco]

I ate today a steak of mixed minced moose meat and minced beef, with mashed potatoes. I'm far from being even a decent steak cook but fortunately moose meat belongs to the best meats around, so it alone made the deed much easier. Although I had to be very careful with spices in order to avoid masking the moose meat's own taste. No use having excellent ingredients if you can't taste them. So, I only used some pepper and salt, plus a little paprika.

[shinta|hikari]

I really have to try moose meat then!. Can you describe its taste and texture? Please be as detailed as you can, and not just liken it to some other meat. Also, what flavours go well with it?

I like goat meat if not for its extremely tough texture. Is moose like that as well? Of course, since you used minced meat, it would not be tough at all, but what if it was an actual cut?

[Kraco]

Unfortunately my prime interests in things edible lie in sweet, baked things where I even consider my skills tolerable, unlike with actual meals where lasagne is the most complicated dish I've ever made (and it's not complicated at all, of course).

Moose naturally has game taste since they are beasts living in the wilds. So, it has more flavour as such than typical farm grown animals. This is why I wanted to be careful with the spices. It's not overly tough, though, in my opinion. I have eaten it in myriad forms over the years. It's excellent in soups or stews and as a roast. I think it's kind of airy as a roast, not tough or overly dense. I don't think the texture in a soup is that different compared to beef, perhaps. It has very little fat as well, which is considered a plus in any meat at least in these parts.

Sorry, but I'm pretty lousy at describing tastes. I've eaten moose as long as I can remember and I consider it a lot better than reindeer, for example (not that reindeer would be bad either). Still, it's highly valuable meat as it's all game and hunting really costs an arm and a leg despite the animals growing themselves up freely. So, hunters aren't really willing to deal it out just like that. That's why any moose meat I've got is random.

[shinta|hikari]

Seems like an interesting culinary experience. Unfortunately, that means I won't be able to have that any time soon, seeing as it is that hard to get.

I made myself some melon pan this weekend. I made two different recipes because I wanted to try out the differences before creating my own.

This one has a good crust that is easy to decorate, but lacked flavor in my opinion. I think it needed a bit more sugar in the cookie topping.



This batch was a lot richer, but the topping could not be decorated because of the amount of fat in it making it soft. It was almost too rich, and the bread deteriorated quickly in taste only a few hours after baking.



I finally made my own recipe, which basically follows the 1st one only with more sugar for the topping, and a longer baking time.

[shinta|hikari]

Seems like an interesting culinary experience. Unfortunately, that means I won't be able to have that any time soon, seeing as it is that hard to get.

I made myself some melon pan this weekend. I made two different recipes because I wanted to try out the differences before creating my own.

This one has a good crust that is easy to decorate, but lacked flavor in my opinion. I think it needed a bit more sugar in the cookie topping.



This batch was a lot richer, but the topping could not be decorated because of the amount of fat in it making it soft. It was almost too rich, and the bread deteriorated quickly in taste only a few hours after baking.



I finally made my own recipe, which basically follows the 1st one only with more sugar for the topping, and a longer baking time.

[Buffalobiian]

Do they have any filling inside, or is the melon flavour in the bread (if there's melon flavour at all)?

[shinta|hikari]

No filling, and no melon flavor. I am trying not to be too ambitious in my bread making, since I only started one week ago when I bought my first (both own and use) oven.

Also, melon pan is rarely filled or flavored with melon in Japan, and I was aiming for a more authentic version. In my experience, melon flavored melon pan is far from being delectable. I will definitely add chocolate chips in the next try though. Maybe even white chocolate chips...

[Buffalobiian]

No filling, and no melon flavor. I am trying not to be too ambitious in my bread making, since I only started one week ago when I bought my first (both own and use) oven.

The last sentence threw me off for a minute or two thinking about portable ovens. Living in Australia builds the impression into our minds that household ovens are in-built under the stove.

Also, melon pan is rarely filled or flavored with melon in Japan, and I was aiming for a more authentic version. In my experience, melon flavored melon pan is far from being delectable. I will definitely add chocolate chips in the next try though. Maybe even white chocolate chips...

Yeah, I wasn't sure how/if melon pan was flavoured normally.

How about the texture? For example, is it supposed to be spongy, doughly, crisp, dense?

Too bad I can't be there to taste test.

[shinta|hikari]

Melon pan is basically bread with a cookie topping/coating. The cookie layer is supposed to be slightly crisp and sweet, while the bread inside is soft and light. It usually does not have any flavoring aside from the usual butter and sugar. It is not uncommon to see them with chocolate chips on the topping though.

[shinta|hikari]

Sorry for the double post, but I feel it is warranted with the amount of material I am about to post.

I have been on a baking spree the last few days. This is my own version of curry pan, with my special pork curry recipe (with bacon!).





Here are some banana muffins with chocolate chip and raisins.



And here are the croissants I finished making (after 14 hours of labour) right now.



The better shaped ones are currently frozen for future use. These are the odd shaped ones that were produced due to my inexperience at pastry shaping.

I swore that I would never make croissants again during the process of making it, but I slowly had to take it back when my house began smelling like a french bakery during baking. I swore to make croissants again the moment I ripped one open and heard the crisp crust cracking. Then I had to double think that oath in consideration of my health and diet plans when I ate 5 pieces right after I bit into one.

[The Heretic Azazel]

That curry pan looks so good. please come be my housewife.

[Kraco]

Yeah, those curry pans look really good.

Although baking is kind of a hobby of mine, I'll probably never make croissants. So much fat that it simply unnerves me.

[shinta|hikari]

I agree. I am thinking of it as a very rare treat, as well as practice doing more difficult baking techniques, and an exercise of patience (something which I severely lack).

The curry pans were indeed great, and much easier to make than croissants if you have leftover curry.

[Buffalobiian]

What's the orange outer layer of the curry pan?

I always assumed curry pan was simply bread with curry filling.

[shinta|hikari]

Panko bread crumbs. It is lightly deep fried, then I baked them to prevent too much oil from being absorbed. Panko is very light anyway so very little oil is taken up, but I wanted to go the extra mile.

Curry pan is generally like this in Japan, only less fluffy.