The cookery thread

[chokeout]

Just laughing at these photos because I told my girlfriend off for trying to reorganise my spice drawer over the weekend. I just showed her this thread and she said 'you all deserve each other' 

[Thunderplex]

21 hours ago, Chest Rockwell said:

The Rockwell Dabba.  I guess from the top clockwise Chilli powder, Tumeric, Cumin Seeds, Cocaine, Garamond Masala, Mustard Seeds and Cloves in the middle.

[deathrey]

Is there one missing @Chest Rockwell or is it just very spacious? They are usually quite a snug fit

Edited November 7, 2023 by deathrey

[Chest Rockwell]

1 hour ago, Thunderplex said:

The Rockwell Dabba.  I guess from the top clockwise Chilli powder, Tumeric, Cumin Seeds, Cocaine, Garamond Masala, Mustard Seeds and Cloves in the middle.

Very close! As i cook mostly gujurati the dhana jeera gets pride of place in the dubba. Garam masala is off to the side, much to the consternation of my punjabi wife. 

@deathrey - it is a bit spacious but looks more roomy than it is in that picture. I just noticed that when I took that pic, someone had swapped the haldi and the garam masala (which is in a slightly smaller vessel as you may notice know that I've mentioned it).

 

[Carbomb]

Notice that Chest didn't deny the presence of the cocaine there. For his "special" dopiazas, perhaps?

[deathrey]

I'm with your wife @Chest Rockwell, in fact I have two of the little tubs with garam masala in them (the others are jeera, salt, haldi, red chilli flakes and black pepper). Mine all share a spoon too so I'm a little envious of your separate spoons.

[air_raid]

Post script - received a refund from eBay over sellers lack of communication but the labels turned up at the pickup shop anyway. The system works!

[chokeout]

Grew half a dozen different types of chilli for cooking with this year. Finally tried these in a Caribbean curry last week. They are Trinidad scorpions. Literally took me out of action for 2 days. Never again. 

[Gus Mears]

Can I just express my love here for scotch bonnets? What a marvellous pepper. A frequent midweek meal in the Mears house is chicken marinated in mango and scotch bonnet, grilled at the end to get a nice char. Tend to do a very bootleg jollof rice with it adding bonnet to the tomato/pepper/onion base which gives it a brilliant depth of flavour.

Have a few left, so might do some oxtail stew this weekend.

[air_raid]

36 minutes ago, Gus Mears said:

Can I just express my love here for scotch bonnets? What a marvellous pepper.

Call me crazy but I wasn't keen. Not the heat, but the earthy flavour I found a bit overpowering. Prefer habanero, or in really small doses, naga jolokia.

[BigJag]

How does something like a green chilli/birds eye differ from a Scott bonnet pepper? Is there a unique flavour to the pepper. Does the pepper yield more mouth burn?

[Chest Rockwell]

Yes is the simple answer. Different flavour and a different kind of and level of heat. 

Edit to add more - scotch bonnets in particular have a strong and distinct flavour that can divide people. I am with Gus personally, love them. Great depth of flavour, and work so well with fruity flavours to get that lovely sweet heat. 

Edited November 8, 2023 by Chest Rockwell

[chokeout]

I love a scotch bonnet. The Caribbean chilli sauce they make is delicious and you can really taste when they have been used. 

I've grown some of them as well this year and they have just the right amount of kick and taste, like Chest says, almost fruity. 

As an FYI this is the difference in heat between the Trinidad and it's friendlier brother, the scotch bonnet. 

 

[tiger_rick]

So jealous of chokeout's homegrown chillis. I've never had any luck growing them before. Last year, none of my seeds did anything. This year my initial seedlings did nothing. I planted some more later on and they eventually grew and then I finally got a load of buds (if that's the word) that flowered, some tiny little signs of them becoming chillis and then, boom, the weather turned and they all died off. 

Actually three trays I labelled chillis during my planting did grow nicely, turn into plants, I re-potted them, they grew on, and then they budded, flowered and delivered some beautiful, strong, red ... tomatoes. Doh.

[Chest Rockwell]

Hey gang. Looking for someone to sell me on buying a proper heavyweight casserole dish, rather than just using a normal cooking pot with a lid for everything like I currently do. 

I know theoretically why they are better, but to what extent do they make a noticeable difference to food? What are the scenarios in which they make the most difference?