17
votes
Accepted
How do high-end restaurants promote such intense flavour in vegetables?
You actually answered your own question, it's the quality and freshness of the ingredients which makes the food in a great restaurant so good. A heritage variety beet which has been hand weeded and ...
- 73.2k
14
votes
Is Mulan-themed Szechuan McNugget Sauce really just a blend of BBQ and S&S?
See related question on Skeptics, which is basically a continuation of the original of this answer: https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/38472/was-a-package-of-mcdonalds-dipping-sauce-just-...
- 58.3k
9
votes
How to make hamburger buns as fluffy as in McDonald's?
The light commercial white bread structure is very different from homemade doughs. I'm learning how to achieve it, so here are some pointers:
The main objective is to make your gluten work really ...
- 101
8
votes
How can I keep my burgers flat?
Many chefs in the USA recommend pressing a large dimple in one side of the meat patty before cooking it on the nondimpled side first, to prevent the problem you are experiencing
- 2,271
8
votes
Accepted
What is the minimum time home baked bread should be left to cool before eating?
Giving a minimum time is not possible, because it depends on the size of the loaf, whether it is in a pan or not, and the ambient temperature of the location where it is cooling. In general, the ...
- 70.4k
7
votes
Accepted
What kind of oil and vinegar are used on italian subs?
It depends. At Subway sandwich shops (the fast food chain), "oil and vinegar" means a blended vegetable oil and an inexpensive red wine vinegar. That is all. Some Subway shops may have one oil bottle ...
- 402
7
votes
Why does this Egg McMuffins recipe taste terrible?
For starters, you left off the slice of Canadian bacon. McDonald's cooks their egg more by steaming it in a round mold; they do not fry them in a pan
You might try going to the Serious Eats site and ...
- 2,271
6
votes
How can I keep my burgers flat?
You shouldn't salt burgers before shaping; it tends to give them a sausage-like texture instead of a burger texture. (See, for example, this note from Cook's Illustrated). Salt the burgers, outside ...
- 13.1k
6
votes
How can I recreate canned whipped cream from scratch?
Sigh, I was trying to avoid answering this, but feel compelled to provide some information after all your revisions. I'm answering only this part of the question:
Can someone explain what these ...
- 55.9k
6
votes
Why does this Egg McMuffins recipe taste terrible?
An Egg McMuffin is an incredibly simple dish composed of:
A plain English muffin (may be lightly toasted)
A plain, fried egg with a broken yolk (cooked in a ring)
A plain piece of Canadian bacon, ...
- 595
5
votes
Accepted
Why are olives always better at the restaurant?
In comments you note that you last bought a jar of green, pitted olives in brine. Those tend to be much saltier than the versions served as a mezze in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern restaurants, in ...
- 14.9k
5
votes
Why are olives always better at the restaurant?
Assuming that you are buying from supermarket shelves,(and not, say, from olive bars that some supermarkets have) there is a quality difference between shelf-stable canned and jarred olives vs. olives ...
- 987
5
votes
How can I make my own Super Noodles/instant noodle seasoning?
Find a good Asian food market. They should sell small jars, tins, or liquid in sachets of soup flavours.
I find the jars most convenient. About a teaspoon per serving is plenty, store in the fridge ...
- 25k
5
votes
Accepted
What is the white sauce of Domino's pasta made of?
It's Alfredo sauce and according to Domino's nutrition guide it's made of:
Water
Cream (Cream, Milk)
Parmesan Cheese (Part-Skim Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes)
Asiago Cheese (...
- 2,106
5
votes
How do I keep my enchiladas from getting soggy when they cook?
I know this is a very old thread, but I'll throw in my 2 cents as I've been trying to solve this problem with mushy enchiladas for a long time!
I think it was maybe last year when I read America's ...
- 51
5
votes
How do high-end restaurants promote such intense flavour in vegetables?
There are a couple things available here:
Cooking techniques can concentrate flavor, even if the beetroot just looks halved. Sous vide'd root vegetables are extremely flavorful, because all the ...
- 180
5
votes
Accepted
What is this Tibetan dessert?
There were a couple outside possibilities that I saw - though its worth noting the differences in description mean that the dish you had would have to be a variation specific to that restaurant, as ...
- 11.7k
5
votes
Simulating the discontinued Lawry's Roasted Garlic Salt?
We know that:
1.1g contains 13% of the daily value of sodium which according to the FDA is < 2400mg/day so 320 mg checks out correctly.
The total weight of the entire container is 201 g and the ...
- 5,827
5
votes
Why does this Egg McMuffins recipe taste terrible?
I don't think egg McMuffin contains mayonnaise at all. Try just English Muffin (not a high-quality sourdough-y fancy Thomas, etc. or other name-brand one either - no whole wheat or raisin either, ...
- 7,064
5
votes
How to make a batter that is hard and hold up to sauce
It sounds more like they're frying, then baking the beef in the oven to finish it.
Fry the battered beef until in floats (to ensure it cooks all of the way through,) then bake in a 350° oven until it ...
- 405
5
votes
Find out what spices were used
Yes, theoretically, and no for practical purposes.
Here's the Yes part:
If you have access to a chemistry lab, you can certainly analyze the dish for the presence of specific molecules that would ...
- 55.9k
5
votes
Accepted
Are there any cookbooks specifically designed for restaurant-level chefs/cooks?
Disclaimer: Not a professional
Look at what organizations that train professionals use. For example, the Culinary Institute of America publishes The Professional Chef. My understanding is this an ...
- 2,464
4
votes
What is the orange coloured cream inside McAloo Tikki called and what are its ingredients?
They list it as “Tom Mayo” sauce on their website.
On further web search I find that the “Tom Mayo” means Tomato Mayonnaise only.
4
votes
How do restaurants make chicken fried rice? What ingredient am I missing?
It is hard to answer, unfortunately as OP description is a little vague, a picture of both "take out" and "homemade" versions would be helpful.
Are you missing a certain fragrance, taste, texture, ...
- 915
4
votes
How to replicate this bakery's bread
If it's pretzel bread, it may be dipped in a hot soda solution before baking, or lye for the brave and very, very careful. That would mostly be about the crust, rather than the density.
Several ...
- 14.4k
4
votes
How can I make my own Super Noodles/instant noodle seasoning?
To make the seasoning, you'll need to experiment. You'll need at least some of those chemicals, but you can probably find them with friendlier, less chemically-sounding, names.
Looking at the ...
- 429
4
votes
Accepted
What is in a Jamaican Chocolate Cheesecake?
While I've never experienced this cheesecake personally and the photo doesn't show anything at all "Jamaican" about it, I'd hazard a guess that the recipe involves rum. The traditional go-to cake in ...
- 204
4
votes
How do high-end restaurants promote such intense flavour in vegetables?
There is a hint in the "deep fried shallot rings". Unlike meats, vegetables tend to have rather more water in them than what is best for flavor and palatibility, so actually deep frying them is a good ...
- 15.2k
4
votes
How to make hamburger buns as fluffy as in McDonald's?
I have found that using russet (starchy) potatoes is always a winner. Boil a potato or two until very soft. Drain off some of the water and let it cool. Use the potato water as your yeast water. ...
- 41
4
votes
How to make hamburger buns as fluffy as in McDonald's?
If the buns soft but are too dense, you need a greater rise. A few suggestions:
Bread flour. A higher-gluten flour will generally allow more rise, by giving more support. You may need to add ...
- 32k
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