Cream Whippers N2O vs CO2

N2O is more stable than CO2.

Mixing N2O with water or cream won't create diffetent molecules. If the liquid you add N2O is not very thick (like water) the gas and liquid will separate in two. If it is thick, as with cream, the gas will get trapped in it.

CO2 reacts with water (H2O) making H2CO3 (carbonic acid). It makes soda water, which has a slight acid taste, and get bubbles of released CO2 if the pressure of the soda water falls. CO2 can be used for whipping cream, but it will give acid taste to it.

CO2 Produces the fizzy sensation found in carbonated drinks where as N2O will aerate cream as whipped.

None of them cools liquids. The chargers get cooled down when opened, as the gas inside them decreases pressure. But that gas goes to the cream whipper or the soda siphon, which theoretically should increase its temperature, but having a much larger volume than the charger makes that increase unnoticeable

Hollandaise Foam

Hollandaise Foam is a lighter and more refied version of the classic sauce.

White Wine Reduction:
10Ltrs - White Wine Vinegar
6 - Shallots
1 Pkt - Chervil
Reduce to 3ltrs

300g - Butter
120g - Water
170g - Pasteurized Yolk
30g - White Wine Reduction
30g - Lemon Juice
6g - Salt

Vac and cook at 75C for 30 Mins, Pour into ISI siphon gun and charge with 2 n20 canisters.

Reheat only once.

Sourdough Spaetzle

Making dough products “Sourdough” really kicks them up a knotch both is skill level and flavour. I have listed a traditional Spaetzle here a few months ago which is lovley bu it dosnt even touch this one!

300 - Sour Dough Starter
100 - Plain Flour
1 - Egg
5 - Sea Salt
Olive Oil (to drizzle over the cooked spaetzle)

Mix everything together to form a smooth dough then push through a collender into boiling water. lift the cooked Spaetzle out into ice water to stop the cooking.

Before serving fry in butter as you would for Gnochi then season and serve.

Preserved Lemons

A burst of freshness! is exactly what preserved lemons tastes like. if you havented had it before try this awesome recipe!

12 Lemons
12g Salt
8g Sugar
300g Olive Oil

Wash the lemons in hot water to remove any wax or nastyness then top and tail them. Add the lemons into the mix of the other ingredients. Massage them well then store ither in a vaccum pac bag or in and air tight container

Guinness Cake Recipe

Insanley moist and morish cake!

250 Guinness stout
250 unsalted butter
75 cocoa powder
400 caster sugar
142 pot of sour cream
2 eggs
1.5 tbsp of vanilla extract
275 plain flour
2.5 tsp of bicarbonate of soda

Mix all the cake ingredients together and make sure it is well homogenised. bake in a preheated ovan @ 170c for 30-40 mins

While the cake is hot you can brush some guinness onto the sponge for extra moisture and guinness-y-ness!


Place a damp cloth other the cake until it cools to stop any edges drying out.

* Optional - carve the top layer off to make it flat before icing.

Icing

200 of cream cheese
50 of double cream
300 icing sugar

Whisk all together untill light and fluffy.

Allow the cake to cool fully before icing..

Culinary Glossary

A

Agar Agar - seaweed based gelling agent
Ageing - the process of keeping something for a period of time to improve flavour, texture or aroma
Al Dente - an italian expression meaning “to the tooth” indicating the correct degree of cooking of rice, pasta and vegetables.
Ambrosia - in Greek mythology it was the food of the gods! - also the best cup of tea i have ever had!
AOC - Appelation d'Origine Contrôlée - French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butters, and other food items
Apicus - a grand foodie of the roman empire - sometimes Apicus Cuisine is described as the food of the roman empire.

B

Brandad - french dish - a puree of cooked salt cod with garlic
Bard - to layer fat over the top of something before roasting in the ovan
Bacchus - in Roman mythology the god of wine
Blind Bake - to cook the empty shell of a tart or pie
Ballontine - To roll a product (usually meat) up into a cylinder with clingfilm or muslin. can be served hot or cold.
Banquet - a formal meal for a large number of guests usually to celebrate or mark an occasion.
Blanch - to quickly cook or partly cook an ingredient in seasoned boiling water
Brix - the scale used to measure sugar content. one degree Brix is 1 gram of sucrose in 100 grams of solution. measued with a Refractometer or a hydrometer
Beurre Monté - to add butter and fully emulsify. to melt butter but keep it fully emulsified
Bain-Marie - a bath of hot water used to keep food warm
Baste - to spoon a liquid over an ingredient as it cooks

C

Centrifuge - a machene used in molecular kitchens that spins liquid products at high speed to separate solids from liquids
Cartouche - Basically a lid made from butter paper or grease proof paper
Chinois - a conical strainer with a handle
Cider - an alcoholic drink made from the natural fermentation of fruit juice
Cloche - a convex dish cover made of brass silver or steel used in formal restaurants to keep food hot on the way to the table.
Cock-A-Leekie - a traditional scottish soup of chicken and leek
Confit - to cook something (traditionally meat) in fat at a low temperature for a long time.

D

Deep Fry - to cook an item submerged in hot oil
Dariole - a small deep round mold with slopping sides. used for portioning or cooking desserts
Decoction - the extraction of constituents of a ingredients by boiling it in water. used bouillons, court-bouillons and consomes
Deglaze - to add wine, water or stock to a pan that has been cooked in to remove the flavour from its surface.
Degorger - to soak meat or fish in water to remove impurities or to sprinkle vegetables with sugar and salt to draw out moisture and remove bitterness

E

Ecossaise (a la) - a french culinery term meaning “in the style of scotland”
Ester (sugar) - Hydrocolloid - Emulsifier used for making stable light foams
Elixer - a solution of aromatic substances in an alcohol
Emulsion - a preperation that involves dispensing one kind of liquid (in the form of tiny droplets) in another liquid, with which is does not naturally mix.
Escoffier - a renowned french chef. revolutionised french cuisine in the late 1800s and early 1900s. he was known as the emperor of chefs or the king of chefs

F

Flavour - the sensation produced when food comes in contact with taste buds on the tongue.
Foam - a Liquid that suspends air within its structure
Foie Gras - goose or duck liver that is enlarged by feeding the birds with a high fat diet (usually corn)
Food - a substance eaten in order to sustain life - and so much more than that…
Food Allergen - any substance contained in food that can produce and adverse immune reaction in anyone predisposed to it
Farce - a stuffing usually made from meat
Finnan Haddie - a north eastern Scottish delicacy that is cold smoked haddock. smoked with peat and green wood.

G

Galantine - a process of boning stuffing and rolling meat into a cylinder (usually poultry/game). the cylinder is then cooked cooled and sliced before serving. (always served cold)
Game - all wild meats that are hunted (sometimes wrongfully named for farmed animals that are or used to be hunted)
Ganache - chocolate and cream
Gastronomy - the art of good eating
Grog - a 17th century drink containing rum (or whiskey) , water, sugar and sometimes lemon
Gruel - one of the oldest forms of nourishment. a liquid food made my boiling cereal flour with milk. water or vegetable broth ( porridge is a modern decendant from gruel)

H

HACCP - Hazard Analysis, Critical Control Point - a health hygiene monitoring system most British chefs use.
Haggis - Scottish national dish, a type of spiced offal sausage traditionally cooked in a sheeps stomach.
Halal - Arab word meaning legal which is used to designate foods whose consumption is authorised by Islam
Hydrocolloid - a substance affects liquid - a “culinary chemical”
Hydrometer - a tool used to measure the gravity or density of liquids. it can be used to measure sugar content.

I J K L

Infusion - the process of adding flavour to an ingredient with other ingredients
Jus - a French culinary term meaning gravy, sauce or cooking juices
Junket - an ancent dessert similar to pannacotta except the gelatin is replaced with rennit and the milk is curdled rather than set.
Kedgeree - a British breakfast dish originally from india consisting of rice, spices, smoked haddock and egg
Ketchup - a sweet and sour vegetable based condiment
Kimchi - a Korian preparation of spicy fermented cabbage
Kosher - food that is permitted to be eaten according to Jewish dietary law
Larding - to add fat to lean meat using a larding needle. the fat is threaded through the meat.
Leaven - any substance that can produce raising through fermentation of dough or batter.

M N O P

Mouli - a hand cranked food processing machine. like a colinder with a padde that can mash stuff like potatoes.
Muslin - fine cloth for passing liquids and wrapping food
Mince - to chop very finely with a knife
Macédoine - to cut vegetables into large cubed dice
Moire Poix - roughly cut carrots onions leek and celery
Macerate - to soften my soaking in liquid
Mandolin - a vegetable slicer
Marinade - to soak something in aromatic liquid in order to flavour/soften/tenderise
Moisten - to add liquid to something.
Maillard reaction - a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars that gives browned food its distinctive flavour.
Nappe - the consistency that coats perfectly. to sauce over an ingredient
Organic - food grown or raised without chemicals or artificial growth enhancers, without chemical fertilisers or pesticides
Pass - to strain a liquid through something like a chinoix, sieve or conical strainer
Pass - the area of the kitchen were plates are presented before going to the customer
Plancha - a large flat cooking surface
Poach - to cook in a hot liquid that is not boiling

Q R S T

Refractometer - measures sugar content of a liquid by looking at its refractive index which deals with how much light is bent or refracted.
Roux - a paste made from equal quantities of flour and fat. used to thicken sauces. also a famous culinary dynasty, the roux family have shaped the culinary landscape of Britian.
Reconstitute - to hydrate a dried ingredient
Reduce - to heat something with the intention of boiling off water to reduce its volume increasing flavour and intensity of the liquid
Refresh - to take a hot product and cool it rapidly in ice water
Season - to add flavour to something with salt, acid orspices
Seasonal - produce only available during a particular time of year
Saute - to toss in a frying pan with hot fat
Sear - to brown something quickly in a hot pan
Set - to allow something to solidify
Shuck - to open/remove the shells of an ingredient
Simmer - a barely boiling liquid. hot enough to produce tiny little bubbles that do not break the surface of the water
Skim - to remove impurities or fat from the surface of a product
Sweat - to cook vegetables gently in butter untill they soften but not colour
Stew - to cook in a pot on the stove with a lid (usually for a long time untill tender)
Stock - a flavoured liquid used for cooking
Steep - to soak ingredients in liquid
Smoking Point - the temerature a product begins to smoke (oil/woodchips)
Temper - to harden (chocolate)/ to gradually add a hot liquid to a mix containing eggs to stop them from scrambling.
Torch - to cook something quickly with flame

U V W X Y Z

Vinaigrette - a sauce… Vinegar mixed with oil

Gellan Gum

Gelification.
A non-thermo-reversible gel meaning that once set it will not remelt. it can withstand upto 120C

This is a good substitute to Agar and only uses around half the amount to achieve similar.

Gellan Gum has been used in ice-cream production to produce an ice cream that wont melt.

When making a Gellan Gum jelly it is very important to cook to atleast 100c
Dosage Rates: 0.1% - 2.0%

Xanthan Gum

Gelification.
Xanthan Gum is made from fermenting sugars and is named from the type of bacteria that is formed Xanthomonas campestris.

An emulsion can be formed with as little as 0.1% (by weight). Increasing the amount of gum gives a thicker, more stable emulsion up to 1% xanthan gum.

To make a foam, 0.2–0.8% xanthan gum is used. Larger amounts result in larger bubbles and denser foam. Egg white powder (0.2–2.0%) with 0.1–0.4% xanthan gum yields bubbles similar to soap bubbles.

Agar Agar

Gelification.
Derived from red sea weed. Used in desserts in Asia for centuries.

A standard set Agar Agar quantity is 0.9g to 100g of liquid. Raise the quantity to 1.3g per 100g of liquid when the liquid is at higher levels of acidity.

The Agar Agar should be mixed with the liquid cold then brought to the boil and cooked out for 5 mins before pouring into a container and set


Gelatin

Gelification.
Derived from collegen removed from animal parts. Its the most common “culinary chemical” and can be found in most shops.

we recommend only using bronze leaf gelatin as it is the weakest grade of commercial gelatin so this give more flexibility on setting firmness.

Blooming the gelatin is very important prior to use. all you need to do is soak it in ice water for 2-3 mins to semi hydrate the sheet before adding.

Gelatin is thermo-reversible. Meaning it can be remelted.

Delicate set jelly is 6 (19.8g) sheets per 1000g

Mussels and Clams

Mussels, Cockles and Clams i prepare and cook the same way.

Put your Molluscs in a container and run them under very cold water for at least 1 hour then turn the water off and add a handful of salt to the water and mix. leave this for 10 mins then pour off the water. do this before use to help remove any grit or sand in them.

In a large bowl add your Molluscs, a few cups or white wine, a roughly chopped onion, fennel and a few cloves of garlic. then pre heat a very large pan with a tightly fitting lid untill it is screaming hot. add the Molluscs and wine mix to the pan and put the lid on. shake the pan well. allow to cook for 2 mins and open to see if the shells are open. if they arnt keep cooking… if they are turn the heat off and remove from the pot by pouring them into a colander. save the liquid for sauces. serve hot in the shells or once the molluscs are cold you can pick them out of their shell.

Scallops Cooking

Scallops have to be one of the most beautiful ingredients. so sweet and delicate. They deserve the upmost respect.

Fresh scallops are really good eaten raw.

To cook Scallops season them well on one side and add into a medium to hot pan with a splash of oil in. Season the other side now. Cook the Scallop until coloured well (an even colour of cornflakes is what you are looking for). Then turn over, add some butter and baste for 3 minutes untill cooked. Rest for one minute.

Red Meat

A cooking technique...

Cooking most red meat is fairly similar. The differences in muscle structure and fat content will usually dictate how they should be cooked.

Blue - 45C - 50C
Rare - 50C - 55C
Medium Rare - 55C - 60C
Medium - 60C - 65C
Medium Well - 65C - 70C
Well done - 70+
Confit - 82C for atleast 12 Hours

For tender cuts we recommend either cooking Sous Vide to the temps described above then searing in a very hot pan, or for non Sous Vide try roasting in a pan and then putting through the oven use a probe thermometer to check the internal temperature.