Cookware

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Zimran - I think what you're finding is that Argentinian grills are expensive outside of Argentina because they are not common outside of Argentina. For Argentinians this grill style is everywhere and often homemade. I'd say the functionality of a parilla is not all that different from indirect cooking on a charcoal or gas grill. Indirect cooking is when the hot, ashy coals are banked to one side leaving an area without coals. On a gas grill you would simply heat one or two burners on high and turn off the remaining burner. Meat is cooked, covered, slowly farther away from the fire using the ambient heat inside the grill and then moved above the fire to sear or char. In the case of a parilla, the grill is more open so the ambient heat isn't contained, which means the meat will take longer to cook. I think this, combined with the fact that they are usually cooking some pretty large pieces of meat, contributes to the amount of time you are seeing the meat on the grill. Many Argentinians also prefer their meat cooked medium to medium-well. My conclusion is that, if you are already using a two-level fire for indirect cooking on your grill, you're likely getting a similar effect to a parilla. Whether it makes sense to do it on the grill or in the oven is more of a personal, and likely seasonal, preference. Do you want to add some smoke? Do you simply prefer the flavor of charcoal-grilled meats? Do you just want to sit outside on a nice summer day with a couple of beers while your grill cooks your dinner? If yes, choose the grill instead of the oven. If it's particularly cold or windy out you're never going to get enough ambient heat from the grill to cook meat low and slow so, in that case, I'd choose the oven. In any event, we're huge proponents here at Milk Street of grilling using indirect heat for tender and flavorful meat. Hope that helps! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Matthew Card

The simple solution is Camelia oil! Used by Japanese cooks to keep their carbon blades rust free, wipe it on. and wipe dry with a paper towel. For rust spots, use a little coarse salt and neutral oil to scrub the blade clean.

Answered by Matthew Card

Steamed chocolate cake! Stovetop Chocolate Cake Gussy up with whipped cream with a touch of brown sugar, vanilla and sour cream for a tangy accent. A few berries would be great too.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi - I always recommend, when purchasing cookware, to just buy the pieces you use the most. Generally speaking, cookware sets aren’t cost-effective since they often include pieces you don’t need/use and are missing more useful ones. I would advise evaluating what you use most often and simply replacing those pieces. None of the traditional nonstick pans can handle metal utensils but a carbon steel pan can. Carbon steel, when seasoned properly and regularly, can develop as nonstick a surface as any traditional nonstick pan and is much more durable and resilient. Please visit our store to see some of the cookware we use here at Milk Street: https://store.177milkstreet.com/collections/cookware-by-milk-street. Good luck! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Steve - I don’t see any disadvantage to using a scraper mixer blade. I might stop the mixer once to confirm that it’s not leaving any unmixed bits on the bottom or sides, but these things do a pretty good job of getting the scraping done for you. I think it’s probably going to work pretty well. Good luck! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Richard - Some of our recipes converted to the pressure cooker - plus many more new pressure cooker recipes - will be available in our new cookbook, Milk Street Fast & Slow, due in April 2020. Look for it in the Milk Street Store in early April! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Tamara - Carbon-steel pans are relatives of cast-iron cookware. Both are made from iron, but cast-iron contains slightly more carbon, giving it a rougher surface and more brittle structure. Carbon-steel pans, with more iron and less carbon, are lighter and their surface is smoother, especially the case as compared to modern cast iron pans. Vintage cast iron tends to be smoother and more similar to carbon steel. Cast iron will get a bit hotter than carbon steel but will take longer to heat up and cool down. So, for recipes or foods that require quick temperature changes - maybe a recipe where you're searing skin-on fish and then lowering the temp to finish cooking it through - a carbon steel might be a better bet. Whereas for quick, hot cooking - searing a steak or charring vegetables - a cast iron pan is a little better. Both will behave pretty similarly if used in the oven. A carbon steel pan is great for sautéing vegetables or making stir fries without a wok since it's surface gets ripping hot but it's a bit lighter than cast iron making it easier to lift and shake around. All of that being said, I would say they are pretty interchangeable under most circumstances. Hope that helps! Best. Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Marissa - First I would say, "don't mess with perfection!" :-) If you are loving the way your bars and breads are turning out, I would keep doing what you're doing and continue baking them in your glass pans. Glass is an insulator. This means that it's slower to heat up but will hold heat longer. This is why it's taking longer to bake your brownies and banana bread than recipes suggest. The downside is that it takes longer for the center to cook so the edges may overcook before the center is baked through which can cause the sides to rise higher than the center. I find that, especially with baked goods, personal preferences are wildly varied. So, while most experts and professionals would say that a metal pan is the preferred choice, you may prefer results in a glass baking dish. If you do decide to make the switch to metal, choose a light-colored aluminum pan which will offer more consistent heating and browning. Hope this helps! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Madeliene - I checked in with the recipe developers who worked on our Durotherm recipes and they said they can be modified to traditional cookware. In some cases, our Durotherm recipes are the same as the corresponding traditional recipe whereas in others we had to make some key changes. Was there a particular recipe you were hoping to make? It might help me pinpoint what changes to make in that particular recipe. Let me know! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Maureen - First, let's talk about steeling (also called honing) vs. sharpening. Although the Chantry Knife Sharpener is marketed as a sharpener, it is really a honing device made up of two butcher's steels. Unlike sharpening, which removes metal from the edge, steeling is really aligning the edge in a less aggressive manner. A properly steeled edge has the knife edge in alignment so the edge cuts in a nice fine line. Because its purpose isn't to remove metal from the edge, it cannot take a dull edge and refine it to a new sharpened edge. Steels will re-align an already sharp blade but won't actually sharpen a dull blade.The purpose of the Chantry Steel is to keep your knives sharp so you don't have to sharpen them as frequently. Ideally you would periodically send your knife to a professional to sharpen or use a whetstone and then maintain the blade using your Chantry or a honing steel. Either way, you can't use the Chantry (or any other single-slot knife sharpener) on Asian knives. Asian knives require a different honing angle than European chef's knives. European knives are honed to 18 to 20 degrees whereas Asian knives are honed to 15 to 17 degrees. At Milk Street we recommend the Kitchen IQ Angle Adjust or the Chef's Choice Pronto Pro for easy at-home sharpening of different styles of knives because they offer different slots for different honing angles. Thanks for writing in! Best, Lynn C.