54
votes
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Why do gelatin sheets have a diamond pattern?
I think it is a side effect of the drying process. If you look at about the 5m50s mark, the drying conveyor is a diamond pattern.
YouTube video of the process
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54
votes
Accepted
Why do I need sugar syrup for slush?
It's a bit more complex than you think. You need the right amount of sugar for the correct texture. Harold McGee (1990) clarifies this in his excellent book, The Curious Cook." He writes, &...
- 76.9k
30
votes
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How to make thick Asian sauces?
Thickening agents
To thicken, you would mix in an agent designed to do so. There are many options, but here are some that are directly applicable to Asian cooking:
Corn starch - Works well in small ...
- 939
30
votes
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What causes dough made from coconut flour to not stick together?
Gluten is what makes a dough stick together and have structure. Coconut flour has no gluten, so the resulting dough will be a crumbly mess. Intentionally gluten free recipes usually contain any number ...
- 10.6k
26
votes
Chocolate won’t harden up on my cookies
The problem is the “small amount of oil”. If you measured wrong or just eyeballed it, you now have a chocolate spread instead of a solid coating.
Storing the cookies in the fridge may or may not be ...
- 60.5k
24
votes
Bell peppers become either crunchy or soggy
There is a slight carry over with most things you cook. However I think the answer to most "Why is my stir fry not like the restaurant's?" questions, has to do with heat. Their stoves are much, much ...
- 11.2k
24
votes
How can I filter the solids out of my homemade pumpkin spice syrup?
Straining
Use cheesecloth.
You don't describe your process with cheesecloth in much detail, but I would suggest
line a colander with a couple of layers of cheesecloth, and place that colander over a ...
- 2,135
23
votes
How to make thick Asian sauces?
Many such sauces include a thickening starch, like corn starch. This can either be mixed with some of the cold liquid and stirred into the hot, or used to coat ingredients prior to adding liquid (with ...
- 45.2k
20
votes
Why do gelatin sheets have a diamond pattern?
The same reason why toilet paper is quilted. The pattern is there to ensure that the sheets do not stick together.
Small amounts of moisture will always be there during packaging. If the sheets of ...
- 1,095
19
votes
Accepted
Why does baking cooked rice not overcook it?
Rice does taste a little different after baking, and its texture is also a little different, but the reason it is not mushy or overcooked is that the recipe controls the moisture levels. Totally ...
- 12.1k
19
votes
Why does baking cooked rice not overcook it?
There are several factors involved here.
Being stuffed
This plays quite a big role. My mother would usually run out of peppers and place the extra stuffing in the pan alongside the peppers. The ...
- 140k
12
votes
How can I filter the solids out of my homemade pumpkin spice syrup?
Using whole spices is the way to go, as they will filter out with your metal sieve. You may need to cook the mixture or steep the spices in longer if you use whole spices, you'll want to taste as you ...
- 77.2k
10
votes
Accepted
UK Pork roast: why can't I make crisp crackling?
Whilst I do not know about the practices in Denmark that would make the achievement of crispy crackling there, I can comment upon the Chinese and UK angle, and, offer some tips for you to get good ...
- 116
10
votes
How to prevent my frozen dessert from going solid?
If you want to make sorbet, you need to agitate the mixture as it freezes. The best tool for this is an ice-cream machine. Follow the instructions for the machine, and cross-reference other recipes ...
- 3,520
9
votes
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Homemade ice cream texture gritty, sandy?
It sounds very much like you didn't manage to completely dissolve the sugar. It's also possible to get a bad texture from ice crystals in your ice cream, but I don't think you'd describe it as gritty ...
- 58.4k
9
votes
Trying to recreate my grandmother's buttermilk biscuits
Miscellaneous thoughts:
Egg whites are not going to give you "stretch" in a biscuit. The fat will interfere with that. The elasticity will come from the gluten. That means at least a little ...
- 30.2k
9
votes
How can I filter the solids out of my homemade pumpkin spice syrup?
If the spices sink to the bottom of the container, it may be better to decant the mixture:
Remove the liquid on top without disturbing the sludge at the bottom.
You can attempt to ladle the liquid ...
- 81.6k
8
votes
How to prevent eggplant having a tough or rubbery texture
Make sure your initial cooking is reasonably fast and hot, and from there just cook it until it's soft enough for your tastes.
Many vegetables firm up when cooked at lower temperatures, especially in ...
- 58.4k
8
votes
Bell peppers become either crunchy or soggy
Bell Peppers have a very fast change from crisp to soft
This is why you usually encounter them either raw or fully roasted and peeled. They change quickly. In a stir fry, cook them just a couple ...
- 3,486
8
votes
What causes dough made from coconut flour to not stick together?
From PrimalPal:
Because it doesn't contain gluten like many flours, coconut flour doesn't stick together as well as traditional flour – this means you'll have to use extra eggs.
Also note that ...
- 3,571
7
votes
Accepted
How to prevent eggplant having a tough or rubbery texture
You need a minimum cooking time and water for it to be cooked thoroughly. You mentioned that once they turned out tough and chewy: then they were not cooked fully through.
Vegetables are not like ...
- 621
7
votes
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Firm vs. crisp vs. crunchy for apples
'Firm', 'Crisp', and 'Crunchy' are not standardised labelling/marketing claims and will vary between vendors. The marketing or procurement teams, or the grower of each variety, may have given the ...
- 5,361
6
votes
How smooth is peanut butter?
Madehow.com discusses the entire process of making peanut butter.
Peanut butter is usually made by two grinding operations. The first reduces the nuts to a medium grind and the second to a fine, ...
- 493
6
votes
Beef in my stew isn't tender, how to fix it?
There are two possible reasons why the meat might be tough.
The right meat, just cooked not long enough
If your son used "stewing meat", that is, rich in collagen layers and marbeled, you are on the ...
- 60.5k
6
votes
How to make ridge structure of crispy chicken
In many places cornflakes are very cheap, I am assuming where you are they are expensive because they are imported. You aren't going to be able to get the ridged structure without something like ...
- 77.2k
6
votes
How to make ridge structure of crispy chicken
It's not that difficult to make flakes out of starch, if taste is not your major concern, as you are going to season and fry them and not eat with milk.
All you need is flour of your choice and water....
- 3,124
6
votes
Chocolate won’t harden up on my cookies
It may have something to do with the temperature that the coated cookies are stored at, I mean, some room temperatures can be significantly higher than others. Perhaps the chocolate will harden in the ...
- 3,571
6
votes
Chocolate won’t harden up on my cookies
In addition to Stephie's answer, when melting and re-cooling chocolate, it needs to be tempered properly. That refers to how the chocolate is cooled and "seeded". The fats in chocolate can ...
- 423
6
votes
Accepted
Should canned fish be flaky?
Fresh fish is considered ready for serving at 60-65°C (plus minus a bit, depending on what kind of fish, cut, personal preference etc.). At that point, fish will fall apart into moist flakes if ...
- 60.5k
5
votes
How to fix a sauce with overheated yogurt that has separated?
Did it and rescued it - important extended family meal and I took a curds and whey disaster to a great sauce! I cooked up chicken with its yoghurt base marinade, the yoghurt split. It tastes fine it's ...
- 51
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