For all you cooks. Add more if you please.

[RA1]

Hard cooked eggs.

I can't believe it took me so long to know this. However, it is amazing how easily they peel.

Steam them. Place eggs in the upper half of a two pot steamer with sufficient water in the bottom. Steam for 20 minutes, let cool and enjoy. No more cracked shells from over boiling. No problem with very fresh eggs or those that a little older.

Best regards,

RA1

[Guest hitoallusa]

Oh my am I going to get breakfast in bed if I marry our RA1? I love guys who can prepare breakfast for me in the morning... Don't particularly like eating in the bed but for a romantic morning event...sigh lol

[Guest FourAces]

20 minutes seems like double the time for a hard boiled egg. But I could be wrong as I haven't made them in a while. Now I have a craving for a egg salad sandwich .... and I have no eggs

[wayout]

I love eggs (prepared in any and every way) and could eat them everyday for breakfast if it wasn't for cholesterol. I would try the steaming method but I don't have a steamer. My "recipe" for hard boiled eggs is pretty straightforward and works (for me) every time.

1. Take eggs out of fridge and allow to warm up some before cooking.

2. Put eggs in a pot (sized so the number of eggs you want to make so it covers the bottom in one layer).

3. Fill the pot with cold water to just cover eggs.

4. Add salt to the water. That is a critical step for making sure the hard boiled egg peels very easily. It works, believe me, but I have no idea why just having salt added to the water does it.

5. Turn on heat and bring to a slow boil.

6. Immediately turn off heat, cover and let sit for about 15 minutes.

7. Rinse eggs in cold water, refrigerate.

8. Peal and eat as the mood strikes.

[RA1]

I appreciate the posts. The "recipe" I mentioned isn't for hard boiled eggs but steamed eggs which is why it takes 20 minutes. I also realize there are any number of fool proof cooking methods. I read about steaming, tried it and was very pleased with the results. Additionally I happened to have in my kitchen a metal pan with an insert with holes in it and a top for this type of steaming. If I had to buy something I likely would have resisted trying this. As mentioned before, you never will accidentally crack an egg during steaming as you might during boiling. And, they peel very easily. I have found hard boiled eggs sometimes do and sometimes don't which some have said has to do with the age of the eggs. However, wayout's method may work just as well.

Eggs, like coffee and many other common foods, seem to fall into and out of favor as various things about them are "discovered". Right now I think that a couple of eggs 3-5 times a week is OK. Who knows?

Any other recipe ideas that have made simple foods simpler?

Best regards,

RA1

[AdamSmith]

Any other recipe ideas that have made simple foods simpler?

Simple way to make steak cooked on the stovetop come out close to charcoal-grilled:

Use a cast-iron skillet. Sprinkle the bottom with coarse sea salt or kosher salt. Heat very hot on high flame, then throw in your steak(s). Keeping flame on high, cook 5 minutes one side, turn and cook 5 minutes on other side, lowering flame slightly if needed to prevent burning. Steak should come out not burnt but with scorched surface similar to grilled.

5 min/5 min gives medium-rare center. Ribeyes are a good cut for this treatment thanks to their high fat content which helps yield a nice crunchy crust but not burnt or dried-out.

[RA1]

I believe ships must do something similar to this as they are not allowed to have open fires.

Thanks.

Best regards,

RA1

[ihpguy]

I eat at least 6 hard-boiled eggs daily. The yolks all go to the dogs. Low-calorie and great source of protein.

[ihpguy]

My husband, Fabio Viviani, tells you the best way to cook 'em up in Kitchen Secrets 101.

http://screen.yahoo.com/chowciao-kitchen-secrets-101-perfect-212016577.html

[Guest FourAces]

RA1 had mentioned steaming .. so not sure he was seeking hard boiled egg ideas. I love steamed veggies with lots of unhealthy butter on them I am also a big fan of steamed rice ... maybe with a little soy sauce but not too much. Too bad I don't cook for myself so I don't eat these things unless its in a wrapper from McDonalds

[RA1]

I seek any cooking comments anyone wishes to make. Steamed veggies are very good for you but limit the butter. There is such a thing as lite soy sauce.

I steamed some eggs between this morning and now. Delicious. Easy to peel and no off centered yolk and no cracked shell until I cracked it.

Best regards,

RA1

[AdamSmith]

Many steamed veggies take well to a little olive oil, much better for the coronary apparatus than butter and quite tasty.

[wayout]

I eat at least 6 hard-boiled eggs daily. The yolks all go to the dogs. Low-calorie and great source of protein.

I didn't realize dogs would enjoy yolks. Made some hard boiled eggs after reading this and gave a yolk to our dog and she loved it. Thanks for this and you made my little girl a very happy doggie this evening

[RA1]

I eat at least 6 hard-boiled eggs daily. The yolks all go to the dogs. Low-calorie and great source of protein.

I hope you have several dogs or are providing them with statin Rx.

Best regards,

RA1

[AdamSmith]

Our vet said a raw egg in our dog's food every few days would be good for his coat and skin, which would get dry and flaky in places during winter. He loved those eggs.

[Guest hitoallusa]

Aww you are such a good friend to your dog..

Our vet said a raw egg in our dog's food every few days would be good for his coat and skin, which would get dry and flaky in places during winter. He loved those eggs.

[RA1]

For an outdoor dog especially (are there any more of those) a little left over grease once a day will make their coat shiny and is good for their skin also. About a teaspoon or so, depending upon the size of the dog.

Best regards,

RA1

[ihpguy]

There are three of them and only one of me. They inhale pretty much everything except olives and certain veggies. Along with lots and lots of tasty horseshit. They like smoked cow bones. Shavings from horse hooves. Not so much fish carcass.

[Guest hitoallusa]

So adorable!

[AdamSmith]

Few things would seem simpler than baked salmon, but I've been served the most mangled versions. How people manage to beat up this poor fish by overcooking, drying out, or the cardinal sin of buying old fish or letting it get old in the fridge before cooking. High oil content makes it go off faster than many other fish.

Assuming a nice fresh cut, some ways to keep it moist when cooking...

(1) Season as you like, wrap loosely in a tightly sealed foil tent and bake.

Or (2) bake uncovered 400 deg about 30 min, after coating with this mixture (this is enough for a single-serving 1/4-lb fillet):

1/4 cup bread crumbs (use panko; the regular ones will come out a soggy mess rather than crisp and crusted)
1/4 cut mayo
2 tablespoons parmesan

Makes a nice crust that keeps the fish moist while baking.

Or (3) poach it. I was intimidated by the word until I did it the first time. Idiotically simple, and scrumptious. Greatly helps that Whole Foods etc. now sell decent-quality fish broth in cartons, in place of the old bottled "clam juice" that used to be the only choice other than making your own. I wonder what was really in that bottled stuff, which made me think of the life-essence fluid in "Re-Animator."

...It occurs that lurker being a professional chef will be stifling his chortles at these amateur cooking posts. But then his shortcuts would be our long-way-arounds. First time I glanced into Escoffier I noticed that what at first looks like a short recipe is liable to take all day, due to his professional compression of an hours-long prep step into a one-word command. Alas my scullery maid ran off with the footman.

[wayout]

Alas my scullery maid ran off with the footman.

I hate when that happens. A decent footman is so hard to find these days.

As I start to gain more confidence in the kitchen I am slowly starting to make fresh fish, always baked so far, rather than those dreadful fish sticks from the freezer. I found that a butcher near me flies in fresh salmon and scrod every Thursday so I often go up there first thing Friday to get some. However, for some reason I find cooking fresh fish to be a bit of a challenge for me and still searching for that foolproof method so your tips are much appreciated..

[AdamSmith]

Fish are so enjoyable to cook once you get the hang of handling them.

Also good for those of us without much patience. An easy and quick way to treat nice cod or haddock fillets for example is to season as you like (maybe a little pepper, salt and an herb like rosemary on top), sprinkle a little oil in a hot skillet, drop in your fish (skin side down if they have skin), saute a couple of minutes, then stick under a hot broiler for another 4-6 minutes. With some fast-cooking couscous and a green salad, dinner fit for company is ready inside 10 minutes.

The quicker to get to the post-prandial activities!

[RA1]

IHPGUY- Thanks for sending pix of your "family". Very nice, although I never saw exactly 3 in any photo.

Fish: I have had reasonable luck simply broiling most filets of fish covered with butter, lemon juice and garlic powder. Quick and easy but you do have to watch to prevent burning. Not too much garlic.

I am not a chef but a home cook.

Best regards,

RA1