Fire - Learn, conquer, rule

We'd been out BBQing on the beach a couple of times and I realized this is primal to us. A part of our genetic memory you can say.

From starting the fire to putting the vegetables and meat on the grill it all came very naturally to us. Now I know why Mel likes to BBQ so much; you're outdoors, your archaic primeval instinct piqued, the wind in your hair, the tongs in your hand and a fire to be conquered and ruled over.

Speaking of which, I watch TV a lot, I love the idiot box, its entertainment and education for me. I could spend hours glaring at the pixels as they dance and create the most amazing stories.

I was watching TV and there was Junior Masterchef, with kids who are absolutely amazing using terms and techniques I've never heard of. I am awe-inspired by the program and the kids/Chef's there. It showed me I have much to learn, conquer and rule over. We've outgrown our primal instinct of just putting meat on fire and moved on to Bain-marie. I researched and found a few of the techniques noted below I wanted to learn.


1. Bain-marie - Water bath or Mary's bath (literal translation) is used to heat substance to its melting point by gently raising the temperature. While reading about it online I also realized the current use of Bain-marie is to keep your food warm in cafeteria's. If tomorrow you see a large steel equipment with water being boiled at the bottom then you've found yourself a bain-marie. Another common use of bain-marie is to make custards to avoid uneven heat dissipation across the mixture, to avoid crustiness. My favorite use of this method is making Cheesecakes. Yummm.

2. Broiling vs Grilling - I read a bit about this online and got tired of the UK, US conflict. In some forums, it potato, potahto of providing heat from the surrounding and cooking using this heat for example grilling outdoors, similar to barbeque. One difference most sources agree on is that grilling is when heat is provided from below and broiling is when heat is provided from the top.

3. Scalding - Imagine this, you do it every day but don't know the word for it. I used to watch over the milk till it bubbles slowly and rises and then you shut the stove off. Then Amma would wait for it to reach room temperature before adding some yogurt to make more for the next day. It feels so good to know a new word.

4. Sous-vide - Literally means cooking under vacuum, you create the vacuum by adding your meat into an airtight plastic bag and submerging the food in water of about 44 degrees lasting for over 72hrs. This is a method for the patient. I read there are several risks of  this technique some of them include botulism if not done correctly.

5. Degorging - This is another method I've used a several times but I never knew the word for it. I use it mostly for Bittergourd, by placing it in salt water till the bitterness goes away and just by rinsing you've bittergourd ready to use. What I learnt by reading more is that it reduces oil absorption.

Now that I understand, through words what these techniques are, all thats left is for me to actually put some of them to practice. I'm also glad I know why I do something while cooking and I've found words to describe them. It's always great to learn something new. Inspiring to see people around you who know so much more and getting the opportunity to pick up a new skill.