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Food Thread: Braising...It's not just fancy welding!

[generic photo of braised meat. No, that's not a brisket!]

My first big braise of the season went off without a hitch, and I even got a pint of beautiful beef tallow out of it! That 13 pound brisket was untrimmed, so I went to town and then rendered the trimmings on a very low flame on the stove. It took a couple of hours, but I was left with beautiful beef tallow for frying potatoes or dipping bread (not really) or any manner of delicious things.

Back to the braise! I seared the trimmed brisket in a roasting pan on the stovetop. It was sort of a pain in the *ss, but I did an okay job. Then I sweated a ton of onion and carrot (cut big and chunky) and celery until it was soft (and maybe it picked up some color), then wine, chopped tomato, a bit of ketchup for sweetness, and a big handful of fresh thyme. I even pretended to use Bay leaf! Oh...I tied the thyme up with some twine so it was easily recovered after cooking.

Then covered the whole shebang and into the oven for four hours at 422 Kelvin.

When it was done I pulled the brisket out to rest a bit before chilling, and transferred the braising liquid and vegetables to a pot to cool. Then into the refrigerator for a day, after which I scraped the fat off the top and reheated for service. I chilled the brisket because cutting it when it was chilled was really easy.

Anyway, it sounds more complicated than it was. It took a fair bit of time because it was large and there was lots of chopping to be done, but it is a simple dish than when executed well is delicious, and can feed an army...or 12 people if you are counting.

Yup...lots of leftovers too!

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Oh good! The government has hatched another scheme to increase prices! But it's okay, most Americans don't eat much meat because it is so damned expensive already!

Meat and Poultry Products Effluent Guidelines - 2024 Proposed Rule

Here's an article that explains what is going on, but it is behind a paywall...sorry!

Dozens of Meat Processing Plants Expected to Shut Down Under New EPA Rules

The short explanation is that the EPA is sticking its nose where it doesn't belong. I know...that's a real shock! They re going to regulate the effluent from meat processing plants down to levels that will drive some producers out of business and raise the operating costs for the remaining ones.

Remember...no matter how much you hate government...it isn't enough.

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That's a plain old cauliflower gratin. But I roasted the cauliflower before I mixed it with the Béchamel and cheese mixture, because the last few times I made it the gratin was a bit soggy. And that minor tweak sure did work well!

I used Ina Garten's recipe, only with the correct amount of cheese...at least double what she calls for.

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Adding fat to vegetables is obviously the way to make them palatable. Adding two kinds of fat plus chilies is gilding the lily, but I like gilded lilies! And to topp it off, this recipe doesn't have that incredibly irritating affectation of most food websites...19 paragraphs of droning, boring bullsh*t before you get to the recipe!
Spicy Jalapeno Cream Corn
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California governor signs landmark legislation prohibiting six artificial dyes from the food served at public schools

Democratic Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel introduced the legislation in March, three years after a state report linked consuming synthetic food dyes to hyperactivity and neurobehavioral problems in certain children. Other studies have also shown some of the dyes to be carcinogenic.

Oh! A state report? Because California is to be trusted with biomedical research? $50 says the report is a mass of conjecture and supposition and hypotheticals and correlations, but is also very, very light on those pesky things called data!
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We are entering tomato hell, so beware. Broccolini that isn't $6/bunch, garlic...lots of garlic!, well-marbled hanger steaks and elk chops to: cbd dot aoshq at gmail dot com.

Who are those poor deluded soulsWe know who shake their Manhattans! These are the same people who drink fine bourbon with coke, and probably shake red wine with ice too.

And yes, I used to demand fancy bourbon, but let's face it, $1,200 for a bottle of bourbon is just stupid, insulting, and a ghastly affront to most people's palates and wallets. I think the sweet spot is $40-$60 for excellent and interesting bottles, and bumping that to $100 gets you an incremental improvement in quality, but nothing mind-blowing. More than that and I think you are paying for hype and rarity, which may look good in your liquor cabinet, but doesn't translate to more quality in the bottle.

The problem...or the solution...is to buy lots of bourbon, take tasting notes, and eventually arrive at your favorites! It should take forty of fifty years, but it is worth it!