PrintA pinch of salt
Is it just me or do all of the Food Network personalities have an unusual definition of a "pinch" or a "little bit" or even more mathematical precise terms like table- and teaspoon?
It seems like everytime one of them (I'm watching Tyler Florence now) says, "Well, I'm going to add a little olive oil..." And he pours in much more than I would consider "a little". This happens again and again. Geez, he just said, "I'll add a little mayo..." And he put so much mayo on the spoon, it was practically dripping down the sides, falling off.
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13 Comments:
Sounds like he's winging it and he or someone will have to watch carefully and formulate a recipe to post on FN website. Although, wouldn't you think he'd be working FROM a recipe to film a tv show? Maybe the idea is to get you to look up the recipe so they can gauge how many are really interested. I noticed Aunt Sandy always reminds her fans (sorry, I'm laughing) to download her messipes from FN.
PerkyMac at 9:58AM on 03/01/08
Many years ago when my brother went to work for Todd English, every time Todd tasted one of his dishes he would say, "More olive oil, more salt."
That's why restaurant dishes taste so good!
SSMom at 10:21AM on 03/01/08
SLop, messipies.....I am rolling laughing.
crazyspice at 11:05AM on 03/01/08
A pinch of salt for some TV cooks is the barest little movement of the fingers on the salt to capture just a few grains. A pinch of salt (Krieger) for others seems like a truckload (Garten). What's even worse is watching them pour out "a tablespoon" of olive oil into a pan or a bowl! It's more like a quarter cup before the last "glug" of oil hits the receptacle. (Chiarello is notorious for this.)
I think this is what befuddles so many novice cooks. I rarely if ever measure but if I'm relaying a recipe, I will figure out exactly how much of something I'm using so as to give accurate info to the recipe recipient.
PS, when I salt water to boil macaroni, it's more like a palmful.
chiff0nade at 11:45AM on 03/01/08
I think a lot of it has to do with whether or not the tv cook in question has spent a lot of time in restaurant kitchens. Like SSMom mentioned, restaurants use far more fats--and oil and other seasonings--than the average home cook. But standard cookbooks and magazines (I'm thinking Good Housekeeping, etc.) and dietary sense has this rule of the 2 tbsp.
renzata at 2:07PM on 03/01/08
Sometimes I think it's irresponsible showmanship. I mean, does anyone on these sets ever end up eating some of what's been cooked "on camera"? Overgenerous oiling and/or salting strikes me more as theater than as an actual approach that's realistic (health-wise, anyway).
moibec at 3:24PM on 03/01/08
@chiff.......I'm surprised to see you cite Ina Garten. She is one of the very few who actually measure salt and pepper with real measuring spoons. The only times I can recall her not doing so is pasta water and a little pinch after tasting a finished dish and deciding it needs a little more salt.
PerkyMac at 3:48PM on 03/01/08
For the record, do we agree that a "pinch" is usually defined as 1/8 of a teaspoon?
grampart at 4:36PM on 03/01/08
If the olive oil bottle has a "liquor type" pour spout on it, it makes it look like a lot more is being poured out than actually is. It is a perception trick. So, in reality, it probably is a tablespoon or just a tad over.
A pinch is generally defined as about 1/16th of tsp. and again if they are holding it up and letting it fall into the bowl, pan, etc. it looks like more than it really is.
SayWhat at 5:19PM on 03/01/08
@grampart - I would have to concur with your assessment of a pinch probably being about an 1/8 t.
Would anyone else agree that, unless baking, the measurements of oil, s or p, herbs and the like, matter little within a teaspoon or so, when cooking impromptu? I, (as RR, I'm a little ashamed to admit) have come to approximate those types of ingredients more and more as I have become a more seasoned (no pun intended) cook. It's from the confidence in the kitchen that the years bring that allows those liberties. And as much as I despise it, I would have to agree with RR, unless it is actual "baking" (which she readily admits she does not partake in), perfect measurements are not normally required.
frederika at 6:06PM on 03/01/08
What annoys me more are people who make a point of saying that precise measurements are so critical in baking, and then they measure the flour in some weird way. And it they're baking bread, they'll usually say something about how the flour can be different on different days, so they may need to add some flour once they see how it is mixed. Yeah, right. Weigh the flour precisely, and chances are that you won't need to compensate. Or, go by feel and don't measure at all. But babbling about precise measuring (while mis-measuring) and then adding more later, or worse yet, dumping way too much flour than needed on the board to knead -- that's where it drives me batty.
As far as regular cooking (excluding baking where measuring certain ingredients does make a difference) to me it makes more sense to cook by look, feel and taste. You never know how hot a particular pepper will be or how sweet or tart an apple or tomato will be. And when it comes to herbs, it's always a question of how potent they are. And if you buy different brands of ingredients, the taste is going to be different, and you'll need to compensate for that. If you rely on precise measurements, you'll get the same results only if all your ingredients remain consistent. But if you learn to cook by taste, you can get the same result even when your starting ingredients are very inconsistent.
dbcurrie at 1:54AM on 03/02/08
i read these posts about Ina Garten - whom I love, by the way - but she usually measures with the same spoon.
For example, 1 teaspoon and 1/2 teaspoon is measured using the same 1 teaspoon measure, so it's also really eye-balling it.
MadelynRodriguez at 2:25PM on 03/02/08
It's true! Haha, my version of a little butter is definitely not the same as Paula Dean's. But besides the word "little" being a relative term, I think our culture is just used to the phrase "a little" in the way of conversation, so we forget what it actually means.
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 6:05PM on 03/03/08