QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Welcome to the Questions and Answers Page

The purpose of this page is to allow anyone to pose a question on any aspect of cooking and have it answered here. We will post all the questions that are sent to us at least once a week or more often if it becomes necessary.

We ask only that you send your questions to our e-mail addresses:

gourmet_chef@bell.net

or

gourmet.chef.orlando@gmail.com

Your e-mail addresses will not appear on this page and your name will only appear if you wish. Once the question is answered your e-mail is deleted. E-mails are not sold or given to a third party or anyone else for that matter. We will only post the question and the answer on this page, we will not be answering each e-mail.

You  may also pose any questions in the Post a Comment section below.

Thank you for your co-operation in advance.

July 9th 2011

QUESTION: When I shop for meat I sometimes don't get the cut of meat that I want and the butcher sometimes doesn't know what I am talking about. Can you help me chef Orlando?  From Brad

ANSWER: Brad, go to HINTS and TIPS # 5 on this blog for a primer on the different cuts of meat. This will help you, Chef Orlando.

QUESTION: I have a problem when I cook meat. It never comes out the way I want. Is there a temperature guide. From Frenchy.

ANSWER: Frenchy, below is a temperature guide, however your best bet is a good quality instant read meat thermometer. It should be noted that stoves and ovens are not that accurate. They can differ from one make to another and over time they loose their accuracy and that is why I use an instant read thermometer.

Meat Temperature Chart
(Fahrenheit)

Beef:

 Rare 120° - 125°
 Medium-rare 130° - 135°
 Medium 140° - 145°
 Medium-well   150° - 155°
 Well done  160° and above

  Lamb

Rare135°
Medium-rare 140° - 150°
 Medium  160°
 Well done 165° and above
  
Poultry

 Chicken 165° - 175°
 Turkey 165° - 175°
 
Pork 150°


This should help in the mean time, Chef Orlando.

 
July 12th 2011

QUESTION: What is etouffee? Marion B.C. Canada

ANSWER: Étouffée or etouffee is a typical spicy and delicious Cajun stew usually served with shellfish or chicken over rice and is similar to gumbo. It is most popular in New Orleans and in the bayou country of the southernmost half of Louisiana.


QUESTION: How many recipes are there and if I print it how many pages will I have? From Jackie

ANSWER: There are approximately 400 recipes give or take 10 because we are still editing. The number of pages depends on how many recipes you put on the pages you are printing.


QUESTION: What is a bain marie. Sally from S.C. U.S.A.

ANSWER: A bain marie is a utensil and a cooking technique. One container with food to be cooked is placed in another, larger pan containing water that is at the simmering point. This method of cooking surrounds the food with very gentle heat and is used for cooking delicate dishes like custards or white sauces, or melting chocolates. It is also known as a water bath and you can find out more by going to Hints and Tips # 3 on this blog.


July 16th 2011

QUESTION: Will you be posting Cajun Recipes? Cajun Chef, Louisiana U.S.A.

ANSWER: Yes in the up and coming months I will be featuring Cajun and Creole recipes.


QUESTION: What is the difference between Cajun and Creole cooking? Shirley Pratt from Australia.

ANSWER: Well Shirley I will give you a simple answer and if you wish to learn more I suggest the Internet.

It's an age-old question: is there a distinction between Cajun and Creole cooking?

South Louisiana has two unique cuisines: the Creole cuisine with its rich array of courses indicating its close tie to European aristocracy, and Cajun cuisine with its one pot meals, pungent with the flavor of seafood and game.

The answer is somewhere in between. Creole cooking evolved out of the cosmopolitan culture of New Orleans, a city affected by the influx of international colonists who settled there after the Louisiana Purchase. New Orleans's denizens adopted spices from Africa and the Caribbean, butter and cream from France, tomatoes from Italy, and peppers from Spain and took advantage of the abundance of oysters, shrimp, and crab abundantly available in the Gulf.

Cajun cooking developed in Louisiana's rural back country. Cajun cuisine is characterized by the use of wild game, seafood's, wild vegetation and herbs. Acadians drew from their French and Southern roots, cooking whatever could be farmed and trapped locally, along with other inexpensive ingredients such as craw fish, rice, beans, and pork fat. Some of Louisiana's dishes are distinctly Creole, like shrimp rémoulade. Others — take craw fish étouffée, for instance — are credited to the Cajuns. But certain dishes shared by both cuisines, such as jambalaya, possess subtle differences: the Creole version typically contains tomatoes, while its Cajun counterpart employs a roux.

Over time, as the two terms have been used more generically and interchangeably, the differences between Cajun and Creole cooking have become blurred, and food historians have taken to focusing on regional differences within the state.


QUESTION: Would it be possible to e-mail me your Caribbean Cerviche Oysters recipe? I did not get a chance to copy it. Boston Bobby

ANSWER: No. But I will re-post it in August. I have had a tremendous amount of e-mails for this recipe.


QUESTION: My butcher recommended  Del Monico Steaks but I found them quite expensive. What is this cut of steak. From Beverley.

Monico or Del Monica steak has been around for a while at upscale butcher shops, but it is basically a rib eye steak plain and simple.


July 18th 2011


QUESTION: Will you ever have a post or page where followers or visitors can submit their recipes? From Chef Linda.

ANSWER: Yes Chef Linda we have been working on the idea for quite sometime now. We hope to launch this towards the end of August. Watch F.Y.I. for details.


July 20th 2011


QUESTION: Why don't you use a poll gadget from Blogger or Google so it makes it easy for us to vote on the recipe of the month? From Frenchy.

ANSWER: We tried both of these gadgets Frenchy but they were not accurate and they were down more than half the time. We also tried the blogger visitors counter and it did not work 90% of the time, that is why we went to a third party counter. We are still trying to find a third party poll gadget.


July 22nd 2011


QUESTION: I just read a recipe that called for a quantity of cooked pasta instead of dry. I don't know how much dry to use. From Edward.

ANSWER: The basic rule of thumb is 1 cup dry = 2 - 21/2 cups cooked. So just reverse it and that should help Edward.


QUESTION: I have noticed that you use a considerable amount of alcohol in your recipes. Should I be concerned for myself or family?

ANSWER: Most alcohol burns of or evaporates at 172 degrees F., enough said.


July 26th 2011

QUESTION: My recipe is the same but not the same it looks different from what I sent in. Am I right? From Shirley Pratt.

ANSWER: Not to worry Shirley, your recipe is the same its just we put in in the cookbook format as we do with all recipes. the only thing we do is we correct any spelling or grammatical erroes. We absolutely do not alter the recipes. 

August 5th 2011

QUESTION: When is the next Hints and Tips going to be posted? From Thomas.

ANSWER: To answer you Thomas, we are currently working on it and that is why it is not showing on the blog. It will be back up on Monday.

QUESTION: What is the difference between a dry rub and a wet rub? From Brad.

ANSWER: a dry rub is a mixture of dried spices and herbs where as a wet rub can be a mixture of both dried herbs and spices as well as liquid ingredients. When barbecuing meats and shellfish I personally prefer dry rubs, but for fish fillets I usually use a wet rub.


August 6th 2011


QUESTION: I take offense because your post, Hints and Tips was very one sided. Have you ever barbecued with charcoal? I think not! You know nothing about true barbecuing you ass. I started barbecuing when I was 16 and have been using charcoal for 11 years you dumb shit. From Stan the Man D.C. U.S.A.

ANSWER: I guess your question is have I ever used charcoal to barbecue and the answer is yes for more than 20 years and then I wondered why I wasted time with it when there were great gas barbecues. By your question I guess your in your mid 20's. Oh to be young again and so opinionated. F.Y.I. Stan the Man; I was in uniform when you were still in liquid form.

August 18th 2011


QUESTION: What is frisee? From Joannie Nebraska U.S.A.

ANSWER: Frisée is an edible plant with long, wide leaves in shades of green or sometimes red, or simply edged with red. It is a member of the Chicory family. It has a mildly bitter flavor and is often used in salad mixes.

August 20th 2011


QUESTION: How come you increased the prize money for this recipe contest? From Jessie Fort Worth Texas

ANSWER: Jessie, we knew it was going to be very hard to come up with a new or unique barbeque recipe because barbecues have been done to death; so we offered a little more incentive for this contest.


September 1st 2011


QUESTION: You state that you use the Maverick Digital Barbecue Thermometer but why not use a Regular Digital Thermometer? From Scottish Will.


ANSWER: The answer Scottish Will is that I do a lot of barbecue smoking and I need to know the ambient temperature not the meat temperature.


September 17th 2011


QUESTION: I have come across a few references to a mop in respect to barbecuing and I like to know what a mop is and/or how to use it. From Gigi (a follower)


ANSWER: Mops are sauces you might know as sop, bastes or mops. They add flavor, and moisture, and retain tenderness in the cooked meat. They are used extensively for low temperature smoking and and indirect barbecuing. they may also be used to baste the meat at the final stages of barbecuing.even after slow roasting. Mops are the true sauce of barbecues. There are several recipes for mops and how to use them on the internet. 

September 20th 2011

QUESTION: I noticed you have pushed the release of your cookbook to 15th of October. Is it because of more recipes or what? From Missy

ANSWER: Its a bit of both Missy. we did add some more recipes but the problem was with the editors; there were no people with any knowledge of cooking so my wife and a few of our associates are desperately trying to finish by the middle of next month.

September 23rd 2011


QUESTION: I love your Hints and Tips very much and I was wondering if you will be having a Hints and Tips about mushrooms? From Dixie


ANSWER: Yes in the very near future as we have received many requests Dixie.


January 24th 2012

QUESTION: My husband and I would like to host our first Superbowl party and would like Sharon and you to give some advice because we know you have hosted several Superbowl parties.Could you please help us? From Sally and Todd Bangor Maine.

ANSWER: If your Superbowl fans like Sharon and me you may also want to enjoy the game. Our first few Superbowl parties were less than great. First as an example, if you have 8 guests then buy snacks for 16,  i.e. dips, salsas, chips, crackers, and veggies; in other words double  all the snacks and food and no one will be disappointed. Sharon and I are both avid football fans so we make food that people can serve themselves. This year we are having my famous gourmet chili that Sharon and I make the night before and we let it simmer on Superbowl day. We put plates, utensils, butter, and fresh Belgiun bread on a long table so guests can help themselves. We also have 3 or 4 dips and salsa and plenty of chips, crackers, and veggies etc., to satisfy the guests. You could also make chicken wings, ribs, or meat and cheese platters for your guests. Our idea of a good Superbowl party is less work for the host and/or hostess so they can enjoy the game sa well.