Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

I knew these guys when they were in high school, and am so pleased to see what they're doing now. They are wonderful people and it sounds like they're doing a wonderful thing.

Wish I had access to pork like this. Eating pigs that haven't been raised humanely really hurts, and it's gratifying there are more and more choices for animals that have led a good life before they die for us.

Folks like this are so inspiring. Thanks for sharing their story.

So I didn't see the last post, and I haven't read all the comments, but it's a topic that depends on the situation, imo. If it was a large group of people, I would ask again, because that does eat up a lot of one waitress's time. I dined at a nice little place with a friend a few months back, and it was my second time there (pretty sure the waiters recognized me). I had tipped well the first time, as it was a great experience, and the second time, my friend and I completely miscalculated the tip. My waiter came back around and asked us if everything was ok. It was a bit awkward, but I'm glad he did ask, because he deserved more than the $3 we had somehow managed to leave.

I think the whole idea of tipping is ridiculous: do you tip the toll collector for taking your money? Do you tip the gas man for reading your meter? Do you tip your IT guy for fixing your computer? Of course not. Now, obviously, they don't live on tips. GUESS WHAT: NEITHER SHOULD WAITERS! How insane is it that a customer has to pay basically twice: for the food and for the service? Can you imagine if we had to tip UPS person for delivering the package to your house? Here's another tidbit: are the dishes heavier at T.G.I. Fridays than they are in a fancy steakhouse with $100+ dishes? Where do you come off with a sense of entitlement to a $20 tip just because the food was $100, whereas at Fridays a $20 plate would only get a $4 tip? If restaurant you work at charges that much for food, let them pay you! Enough is enough!

To keep your beef safe for you and your family here are some tips to remember :

4 C's (Cool It, Clean It, Cook It, Don't Cross It)

1. "Cool It" When shopping, choose your beef items at the end of your shopping trip. When home put your beef in the refrigerator immediately. Total "room temperature" exposure for meat is two hours.

2. "Clean It" When ready to prepare your beef product make sure all cooking surfaces and utensils are clean.

3. "Cook It" When cooking beef, especially ground beef, the magic internal cooked temperature is 160 degrees, for more information go to: www.safeandsavory.com.

4. "Don't Cross It" in other words, keep raw meat and cooked meat separate, never shall the two cross, keep in separate cutting boards, bowls when stir frying and plates for grilling.

For more information about safe cooking go to www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com and www.safeandsavory.com

One interesting note I have found over the years is that white mold is rarely worrisome. In many cases it is actually penicillin, and whatever it is, I not only encourage it on my salami when I am curing them, but will happily scoop off little spots o'mold where I see them and eat the rest of the item; tomato paste springs to mind.

Black mold, on the other hand, is no bueno.

As for aging of meat, one man's rotten is another's delicacy. I like to hang my pheasants for several days before gutting them, but I know a few people who will hang for more than a week. The meat stinks by then and will drive everyone out of the kitchen when cooking the bird...but by all accounts, is the finest flavored and tenderest poultry ever eaten. I've not been brave enough to go beyond 5 days.

Aged steaks are dry-aged in a controlled environment. The mold is external and burned off during cooking. That's why a rare steak differs from a rare burger...with a burger, there is much more exposed surface space (as the meat has been ground).

With things like cheese, there is good and bad mold. Blue cheese or Gorgonzola have good, harmless mold. Some cheeses, like Cheddar, develop a form of 'white mold'. This is less pleasant. And it cannot be scraped off...it has roots invisible to the naked eye that permeate the cheese. So don't be like my grandmother and scrape the green bits off. Cut at least an inch off each side.

On a sidenote, mayonnaise gets a bad rap. There's too much acid in mayo for it to go bad quickly, even when warm. The picnic villain is what's mixed with it...tuna, chicken, eggs, ham. All of these will go bad much sooner than mayo.

Sousvide is right - McGee On Food and Cooking is a great read. You'll learn lots of little things you'd never learn anywhere else. And if you're an Alton fan then McGee is one of his sources.

cool link @bitzie! thx

Dang, only 10.

I am surprised no one came up with this...I don't know where I got the idea...I think an old German neighbor. Melt about 3 tbl or more of cold bacon grease--depending on size of pan but it works best with no more than 6 in a pan) in cast iron skillet until almost smoking (at least a #9--I don't think another kind of pan will work the same way!). Quickly add hamburger or hot dog bun bottoms and tops (this is the best way to use up old stale buns that I throw in the freezer just for this reason) and WATCH CAREFULLY....they will burn quickly. Make sure they are browning evenly. Remove at once, sprinkle with a little salt and serve immediately while still hot. Once they cool...not at all the same flavor or consistency! I've never found the spelling but my friend called it Schtipp Bread--at home we call it 'fried bun bottoms'. Any suggestions about how to spell or find derivation?

In Tuscany there's a salami called Biroldo made in the Garfagnana area, blood is used but also bits of meat taken from the pig's head, read on and I'm sure you'll change your mind on blood related food items:
http://www.turismo.intoscana.it/intoscana2/export/TurismoRTen/sito-TurismoRTen/Contenuti/Prodotti-tipici/Formaggi-e-salumi/visualizza_asset.html_1034509507.html

It would have been nice to have a review of how any of this tasted...