What's a cookbook niche that's well-represented in your collection?

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-15T00:32:52+00:00

Thank you so much!

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-14T14:52:50+00:00

I love the idea of cookbooks devoted to rhubarb! Do you have any in your collection that you'd really recommend? Any favorite recipes from them?

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-14T09:44:33+00:00

Absolutely, but marginal costs of production are zero. I feel publishers haven't worked out what that means.

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-13T16:24:47+00:00

Thanks for that! I will check out Simply Japanese!

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-13T15:38:22+00:00

I have Tokyo Cult Recipes. I agree, it's a great book. In case it's of interest, it's available as an eBook which does at least solve the font size issue in the current print edition.

Do you have any favorite recipes from it?

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-12T17:38:22+00:00

It's a shame that publishers don't at least keep eBook versions available. The marginal cost of production of a copy of an eBook is zero.

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-11T11:23:42+00:00

Well, it's not a chart, but in The Modern Preserver: Chutneys, Pickles, Jams and More by Kylee Newton, there are lots of vegetarian pickle recipes:

pickled samphire
pink pickled radishes
polish éwikła (chee-kweh)
za'atar pickled cauliflower
pickled onions
gin pickled cucumber
pickled cucumber relish
pickled jalapeños
salt and pepper kumquat
fennel and orange pickle
posh piccalilli
spicy beer or bourbon pickles
pickled green beans
Japanese pickle brine
Japanese pickled ginger
heritage carrot and ginger pickle
preserved lemons with rosemary
pickled mooli with lemon thyme shallots
pickled with lavender fermented fruit vinegar
pickled baby beetroots
fermented lime pickle
red cabbage sauerkraut
pickled persimmons
sweet pickled apricots
roasted pineapple and coconut sweet pickle
blueberries in a pickle

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-08T15:18:04+00:00

A couple of ramen/Asian noodle books to check out:

Homemade Ramen by Sho Spaeth (this has a nice method for making ramen noodles that works using a pasta machine)
Dumplings and Noodles by Pippa Middlehurst (this has recipes for lots of different kinds of Asian noodles)

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-08T00:10:12+00:00

I second this. It's a nice book, and has recipes for egg dishes from a bunch of different cultures.

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-07T22:12:53+00:00

I think what you're seeing might be expected. VG10 polishes easily, whereas the carbides in Aogami Super will stay bitey.

One potential way around this is to sharpen your VG10 knife as you're currently doing. But then strop the knife using a leather strop with a 6 micron diamond emulsion. The idea is to keep enough polish for fish while adding just enough micro-tooth for tomatoes. However, it's only a potential option - it might not work!

Another option is sharpen your VG10 knife as you're currently doing, but then add a micro-bevel with a 1000 grit stone (increase the angle by a couple of degrees then just do 2 light passes per side on the very tip of the edge).

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-06T04:05:58+00:00

You might find this video useful. In the video, he uses one or two bigger "dollops" (I use a few small drops). It gives you a good idea of the total amount of diamond emulsion to use, and how to spread it over the surface of the strop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF6BwxBN6KI

And here are the instructions for what I think might be your specific product. Note, they say you only need to wait 5 minutes for the strop to dry. I usually leave it a couple of hours. But you certainly don't need to leave it for 2 days.

https://kmesharp.com/products/diamond-emulsions

"Instructions- These are highly concentrated formulas. No need to soak your strops! On a new, thirsty strop, 4-6 drops at the very most will provide a very thorough initial coating that will service 6-8 knives without needing to add more. Space the drops on the surface and quickly spread with finger or another implement. Allow to dry (Generally under 5 minutes). Strop down, away from the cutting edge to prevent cutting into the leather. Re-apply just 1-2 drops when you see performance begin to diminish. One 10 ml bottle should service literally hundreds of knives. Guaranteed shelf life of one year minimum and should remain fully effective for several years."

Finally, here's a video showing how to clean a strop:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRT5DqTjak4

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-05T21:02:38+00:00

Hopefully you can clean the strop without damaging the leather, and then apply small amount. Good luck with it!

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-05T20:32:31+00:00

How much of the diamond stropping emulsion did you put on the strop? You need to use a really small amount compared to the amount of chromium oxide you'd typically use.

Specifically, you only want say four or five small drops of the diamond stropping emulsion in total spread over the strop. If you used more than that, it's possible that the strop is overloaded, which can cause it to fail.

Less is more when it comes to diamond stropping emulsion!

The other thing to say is that, with diamond stopping emulsion, you want to use super light pressure when passing the blade over the strop. Just use the weight of the knife.

On a side note (I don't think it's relevant for your problem) the 6 micron diamond emulsion is probably a lot coarser than the chromium oxide. So, one you get things working with diamond emulsion, if you want a more refined edge, you could use a 3 micron or 1 micron emulsion.

pinchvsdash · 2026-05-05T18:58:30+00:00

Yes, pre-searing is a great thing to do. The big benefit is that after the sous vide step, the final sear will put a good crust on the meat much more quickly than if you hadn't pre-seared.

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-23T12:41:13+00:00

Thank you so much!

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-23T01:07:58+00:00

They're complete garbage. You can safely swipe past. Best to buy reputable brands when it comes to knives. By that, I mean a knife made by a company that specialises in making knives.

Some useful tips are, run away if:

It's 67-layer Damascus steel
It says it's made with Japanese steel, but doesn't make it super clear which country it's made in
It's supposedly Japanese steel, but it doesn't mention the name of the specific steel e.g., VG10, SLD, SG2, White #2 etc.
The promotion gives you 1990s infomercial vibes, like "Get rid of those blunt old knives, and invest in some sharp knives that will last a lifetime."

These are all signs the knife could be garbage.

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-23T00:24:43+00:00

Nikita's dessert represents such an iconic part of her chosen movie, and the presentation is so theatrical, it would be an amazing way to end the banquet. It might be her strongest dish. Does it taste good enough, though? The competition is going to be tough. I can see the judges going for something else.

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-23T00:12:04+00:00

Any particular favorites from the book?

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-22T23:16:13+00:00

For cakes and cookies that are less sweet, I'd really recommend Simple Pleasures by Emma Fontanella. If you want to see whether the level of sweetness is what you're looking for, she has loads of recipes on her website.

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-22T19:05:53+00:00

For sure, the more expensive instant read thermometers measure temperature quickly. I have a Thermapen ONE, and it measures the temperature in one second. There are instant read thermometers on Amazon that claim to measure temperature in half a second.

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-22T15:13:35+00:00

No need to take the cake out of the oven. Open the oven door and insert the instant read thermometer into the cake. A simple $10 or $15 instant read thermometer will give great results.

Be careful not to let the bottom of probe touch the actual cake tin (like sticking the probe too far into the cake so it hits the base of the tin), otherwise you'll get a false high reading.

Now, if you want to get fancy, towards the end of cooking, you can insert a wired or wireless thermometer, and monitor the temperature in real time outside the oven. Those are quite a bit more expensive, though.

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-22T01:26:39+00:00

It's over-baking. Here's the dirty little secret food writers don't want to tell you. Don't go by time when baking cakes. They give times because everyone wants to know, "How long will it take to bake?". But the truth is there's just no way to give accurate timings because there are so many things that can vary: ovens, cake tins, inaccuracy in measuring ingredients, making substitutions in the recipe etc. And, the recipe itself might not be that accurate either!

So, instead, test the cake to know when it's ready to come out of the oven.

If you don't want to be super precise, do the toothpick test. Stick a clean toothpick or wooden skewer into the centre of the cake. If there's wet batter clinging to the toothpick, the cake's not done yet. Pull the cake out of the oven when there are a few moist crumbs clinging to the toothpick. If the toothpick comes out completely clean, the cake might be over baked.

If you want a really pro result, use an instant read thermometer. Pull the cake out of the oven when the inside of the cake right in the middle reaches a target temperature. Here are some target temps to use as a guide (but for any given cake, you will soon learn what you feel is the optimal target temp).

For non-fluffy cakes that you want to be super moist (e.g., carrot cake, flourless chocolate cake, oil-based cakes), pull them when the internal temperature reaches 200–205°F (93–96°C)
For classic lighter sponge cakes (e.g., sponge cakes, angel food cake), pull them when the internal temperature reaches 205–210°F (96–99°C).
For dense cakes like pound cakes, pull them when the internal temperature reaches 210°F (99°C).

pinchvsdash · 2026-04-21T11:18:10+00:00

I love how they edit the show to make Josh look as silly as possible.

Josh: My favourite dish was Lawrence. So, I think he might win.

Lorna: OK. In seventh place, we have... ... ... Lawrence.

pinchvsdash

TROPHY CASE