Print_______ is too much work for me.
With the discussion of elaborate meals, I began to think about stuff I'd never do. Me, I'd never deep-fry anything. All that oil, all that keeping it at the right temperature...I've been tempted by a couple of doughnut recipes I've seen, but even they. And I know if I bought a deep fryer I'd use it once and it'd end up in the garage. What about you?
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23 Comments:
Spun sugar. Caramel. Too fiddly for me (that, and I've never gotten them right, either). Not much else, though.
I love to deep-fry. Very little of the oil is actually used, and it can be reused. Deep fryers are generally useless. A deep heavy pot and a thermometer are all you need. And it's such fun to make your own fried clam bellies and onion rings. End of lecture.
Some of my friends won't attempt hollandaise and the like, but I find making sauces incredibly relaxing.
BaHa at 6:03PM on 10/13/07
Lemons--great question! For me, yeast dough breads are too much work only because I am always disappointed in my results :(
JEP at 7:34PM on 10/13/07
Turducken. As intriguing as it sounds, I'd never do it. I've glove-boned turkeys and filled them with vegetable pate but I'd never do a turducken.
Spun sugar - the biggest pain with that is trying not to be messy. A friend did a croquembouche complete with spun sugar and we did it in the hallway of my brother's apartment building with newspaper spread all over the place...LOL.
chiff0nade at 8:08PM on 10/13/07
Puff pastry. I mean, even the thought of it makes me want to run to the freezer for the pre-made stuff. Normal pastry I love to make, but that? No way. Making filo too. Also, couscous the long way. 10 minute couscous is good enough for me!
Peasantwench at 9:18PM on 10/13/07
Bagels. Once you find a good bagel place, all you need is to get there when they are fresh and I don't see how you could ever create something better for your time, considering the yeast and the boiling, etc. I get disappointed when making bread too, but I'm hoping for a breakthrough someday!
Littlebluesiren at 12:01AM on 10/14/07
Phylo and anything made with it has alluded me for a lifetime. Everytime I see some instructional video or read instructions about its use, they always warn about how destined I am to failure. Why set myself up for something like that when there are good bakeries aplenty that have magicians in the back room? Yeast breads; no problem. I love the therapy that kneading brings to the kitchen...
czken at 8:51AM on 10/14/07
Where are you, Littleblue? I live in Manhattan and haven't had a decent bagel for at least a decade and probably more.
BaHa at 9:22AM on 10/14/07
Continuing with the pastry theme, I made puff pasrty once. It was in a baking class and it took 6 hours. I will never do it again. As far as yeast breads, I made 2 loaves just yesterday. I think yeast bread success comes in picking an easy recipe, and making it over and over . I started with a honey whole wheat from a William Sonoma baking book.
Mich23 at 9:27AM on 10/14/07
Sushi. I always feel like by the time I buy the ingredients and prepare the rice, I could've just gotten take-out.
Kerosena at 10:59AM on 10/14/07
Layer cakes. Honestly, I know it's just a matter of practice, but while I'm patient enough for pies, bagels, and bread, layer cakes make me throw up my hands. A single, delicious layer of cake, with or without frosting, is good enough for me.
Christina at 12:23PM on 10/14/07
I agree with phillo being too much. A dear friend tried to teach me, needless to say, it was a complete disaster! The frozen stuff isnt near as good as hers, but to be honest, the time is just not worth the effort for me!
huney_bumper at 1:11PM on 10/14/07
Anything that requires baking and a light hand
cupcakes=fail
Muffins=fail
sponge cake/ angel cake= fail
souffle (sp?)= fail.
I tend to stick to the crumbles/crisps and puddings. They're supposed to look like crap ^^
choc_puddin at 6:09AM on 10/15/07
Pretzels and Bagels. Oh and Indian food.
StudentStomach at 8:08AM on 10/15/07
I'm with the puff pastry folks.
hereandthe at 9:25AM on 10/15/07
Well, I do mean decent, Baha. We don't have amazing ones here in Pittsburgh but there is one local bakery that I love for bagels. But we might have different bagels standards - I like NY bagels!
Littlebluesiren at 12:34PM on 10/15/07
Homemade pasta. I've had fresh pasta and it was soooo good, but too much work for me, with all that sticky egg business.
hatlady at 1:27PM on 10/15/07
Hmm...this is a tough question for me because on a day-to-day basis I never find time to make elaborate meals, let alone simple ones at times, BUT when I do cook I like to make complicated things like creme brulee. One daunting task though for me has always been to make my own bread, but yet I still plan to one day!
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 2:46PM on 10/15/07
Home canning just scares me to death. Every few years I think about it, but then I get myself worked up to the point of paralysis, and that's the end of that!
Anything requiring a good pastry dough technique (piecrust, puff, etc.) is completely beyond me. Although I do great with biscuits (go figure). I'm thinking of trying it out with leaf lard to see if that's my solution...
Candy -- anything with cooked sugar to some special stage intimidates the hell out of me. I'm the fourth generation to own the Sugared Walnut recipe passed down through my dad's family (it is so totally to die for), and I've never made it. For the ultimate in pathetic, it's my ex who mastered it, and I still rely on him to make me batch every Christmas.
8-O
Deep-frying. It's something I can do pretty well, but I just won't. It's such a mess, a lot a work, etc., that I just dig in my heels and refuse. Poor hubby. He's from the South and has been asking for fried chicken all summer long. Must be time to go home and visit the folks!
LoCo at 7:20PM on 10/19/07
angel cake and souffles
they take too much time, care and work and always comes out disappointingly deflated when i try to make it
mochateri at 7:27PM on 10/21/07
pie crust, all that careful handling it too much for me, I always buy it. Puff pastry, deep frying, I hate making stock as well. I do ok with sponge cakes and angel food cakes, but I haven't found an angel food cake that actually tastes good yet. I'm better with cakes, yeast breads, cookies and pastries.
elderberry44 at 8:58PM on 10/23/07
baha,
don't you like the bagels at zabar's? i think they're really good.
there is a bagel shop in midwood brooklyn called say bagel and cheese on avenue m. their bagels are unbelievable -- or they were when i used to work in that neighborhood a few years ago. they were so fantastic that i used to bow to the baker, a very personable orthodox man who was equally delighted and embarrassed by my worship.
cybercita at 9:20PM on 10/23/07
blue crabs, too much work to eat and I always end up eating some little bits of shells by accident. Soft Shell crabs and Dungenous/BC crabs are a completely different case.
ag3208 at 8:30PM on 11/06/07
Practically everything! I'll just live vicariously through you guys, thanks.
Annmarie at 9:04PM on 11/06/07