HAPPY HANUKKAH (Chanukah)

CookingWithCarlo.com ^ | Dec. 18, 2003 | Carlo3b Dad, Chef, Author

[carlo3b]

Cryovac is a packing and shipping technique that prolongs shelf life and may even help in some ways to tenderize the meat, but it is not compatible with aging, and vacuum packed meat does not retain moisture very well during cooking.

What is the most tender cut of meat?
Since you asked, I will try to explain what we don't know about TENDER MEAT, because many things that are beyond the meat grading boards control. Much of the tenderness has more to do with the handling of the host (the cow) than the aging. What happened to the herd prior to it's demise, and what happened immediately after, probably has more to do with 'Warner-Bratzler shear force test' results (the tender test) than the aging, or ahem, the price. A peaceful end is the more important than the price, aging, feeding, or packaging. Just like with people, stress makes you bitter and tough.

Sex doesn't matter either.. GASP!
Which gender of cattle is more tender than the other is always the determining factor.. is BULL.. :) If a host is fed the proper enzymes, and treated quietly and with care until the moment of .. decision, whether he or she won't matter.

As the owner of high end, Gourmet Restaurants, I spent fortunes on purchasing quality meat with the hopes of getting the most flavorful, tender meats that money could buy. Price isn't the determining factor, but what other method is there? Where you purchase your food is the only real determining factor that I can suggest.

Here are some additional neat facts that won't help you guarentee a perfect piece of meat either.. LOLLOL

  Which meat cuts are tender?
Those that you pay most for, basically. But tenderness is not guaranteed by price. There will be tough meat cuts in every grade. Tough meat cannot be recognised by eye when you are buying at the supermarket. In the USA, where cattle are fed grains and other supplements to lay down extra fat within the muscle ('marbling'), consumers often choose the most 'marbled' cuts as an indication of tenderness. Yet marbling accounts for a mere 10% of the variation in tenderness. Many lean carcasses that testing has shown were tender have received lower grades because they don't have enough visible fat marbling to be classified as 'USDA choice' or higher. And yet marbling is a very poor predictor of tenderness.
 

Tender cuts	Tough cuts
Tenderloin steak	Round tip steak
Top blade steak	Bottom round roast
Top loin steak	Top round roast
Rib roast	Chuck tender steak
Rib steak	Chuck roll steak
Ribeye steak	Eye of round roast
Chuck roll roast	Rump roast
Clod roast	Bottom round steak
Round tip roast	Eye of round steak
Top sirloin steak	Top round steak

From Morgan et al 1991 -tender and tough meat cuts as measured by shear force derived from the US National Beef Tenderness Survey. 'Tender' and 'tough' are grades, and the most tender cut is at the top of each column. The terminology for the cuts is American.

How do you measure 'tenderness'?
Scientists measure the force needed to shear muscles. The more force needed, the tougher the meat is. This is known as the 'Warner-Bratzler shear force test'. It's units of measurement are kilograms of force needed to shear a 1 cubic centimeter muscle sample. The other method used is a straight sensory panel test, where ordinary people eat the meat and record their perception of it's tenderness. In the table above, the most tender cut, tenderloin, had a shear force of approximately 2.6, and the toughest meat cut, top round steak, had ashear force of 5.3.

What factors affect the tenderness of the meat we buy in the supermarket?
By the time the meat is in the refrigerated display, it's tenderness - or otherwise - is largely set. Obviously, the 'best cuts' are the most tender. But even meat that should have been tender can be made tough by stress just prior to slaughter. In general, breed and sex have relatively little effect on tenderness, but pre slaughter treatments such as Vitamin D injections or medication, quiet handling and good transport conditions on the way to the killing plant, electric stunning to render the animals unconscious immediately prior to slaughter, freezing then thawing and then aging to allow muscle enzymes to break apart muscle fibers - all treatments significantly improved tenderness.

[KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle]

Gut yontev! Holiday blessings, to all my Free Republic friends, Jews and non-Jews alike! Mir zolen zich bagegenen ahf simches! :)

[carlo3b]

Thanks and may Israel, with G_d's help, repel the Jihadists who would destroy Israel

Someday we may all find Peace, I hope we are still alive when it happens.. HAPPY HANUKKAH my FRiend

[carlo3b]

Happy HANUKKAH to all our Jewish freepers!

..and Merry Christmas to most of the rest..and Happy New Year to you dear girl. . :)

[carlo3b]

..many of these recipes are similar to one's I make and remember and a couple - the Babka & the jelly doughnuts - are foods from my childhood that I have no authentic recipe for...

Bless you, I have a bushel of authentic ethic recipes many of my favorites are Kosher.. just ask and they could be yours.. :)

[carlo3b]

A salad spinner does a great job of removing all the water from the potatoes. Cheers!

Great tip, Thank you so much.. :)

[carlo3b]

I just discovered after all these years of being one of the "Latke Queens" at my synagogue that YOU DON'T HAVE TO PEEL THE POTATOES! I hate peeling potatoes! And the latkes don't taste any different.

My neighbor would tell you that it tastes better with peels on, than without.. GOOD FOR YOU.. have a Happy Holiday.. :)

German Chocolate Cake

A delicious Diabetic recipe.

For cake:

• 4  oz. baking chocolate
• 1/2  cup boiling water
• 1/2  cup butter
• 1/2  cup granulated sugar replacement
• 3  Tbls. granulated fructose
• 4  lg. egg yolks
• 2  tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/4  cups flour
• 1  tsp. baking soda
• 1/2  tsp. salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 4  lg. egg whites, stiffly beaten

Frosting:

• 1  cup evaporated skim milk
• 1/3  cup granulated sugar replacement
• 1  lg. egg
• 1  Tbls. flour
• 2  Tbls. margarine
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4  cup unsweetened coconut
• 1/3  cup chopped pecans

For cake:
1) Melt chocolate in boiling water, cool.
2) Cream next three ingredients till fluffy.
3) Add yolks, one at a time, beating well.
4) Blend in vanilla and chocolate water.
5) Sift flour with baking soda and salt.
6) Add alternately with buttermilk to chocolate mixture, beating each time till smooth.
7) Fold in beaten egg whites.
Grease three 9-in.pans and line with paper.  Grease again and pour in batter.
Bake 25-30 min.  at 350øF.  Remove paper lining and cool.
 
Exchange: 1 serving = 1/2 bread, 1/2 fat Calories: 1 serving = 50 calories
 
For frosting:
1) Combine all but vanilla and pecans in saucepan.
2) Cook and stir on low heat till thick.  Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and pecans.
Cool slightly; spread over cake while warm.
 
 Yield: frosts 2 9-in.  layers or 13 x 9 in.  cake Exchange: 1/18 recipe = 1/7 bread, 1 fat Calories: 1/18 recipe = 54 calories

[tubebender]

Thanks for the excellent reply. What can you do once you get the roast home to do the most to maintain the quality of the cut prior to cooking and can you age meat at home? Then how can you maintain the tenderness of the Beast during roasting? We use a remote thermometer and let then let the meat set before carving. We use convection-bake in our Decor Oven...

[carlo3b]

Merry Christmas, and Happy Hanukkah to you dear FRiend .. )

[fortunecookie]

Thank you! Sounds yummy!

[carlo3b]

The only time I have ever heard of a Babka was on a Seinfeld episode ("There's a chocolate babka?")

BEETS, TURNIPS, AND BEEF TSIMMES
Anyone remember this wonderful traditional holiday dish.. I do, and I love it.. sigh

• 3 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 3 pounds flanken, chuck, or brisket of beef
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 3 cups boiling water
• 1/4 cup honey or to taste
• 8 carrots, coarsely grated
• 1 turnip, coarsely grated
• 1 beet, coarsely grated
• 1 sweet potato, peeled and quartered (optional)

1) Mix 2 teaspoons of the salt and pepper and rub it into the beef.
2) Place in a Dutch oven or heavy pot with the onions and brown slowly over a medium heat.
3) Add the flour, mixing well. Add the water, stirring, until it reaches the boiling point. Cover and simmer slowly for about 1 hour.
4) Mix the honey in with the meat, then add the vegetables and remaining salt.
Cover and bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for an hour and a half, removing the cover for the last 15 to 20 minutes.
Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Jewish Cooking in America, Joan Nathan

[carlo3b]

There is one way and one way only to cook an expensive roast to the perfect degree of doneness, and tenderness that you desire, through and through. That is to apply heat slowly, steadily and evenly until the internal temperature of the meat reaches a specific degree, within a tolerance of one or two degrees.

Step I
Heat oven to proper temperature 325°F for Eye of Round and Round Tip Roasts, 350°F for Rib Eye Roasts and Rib Roasts, 425°F for Tenderloin and Tri-Tip Roasts. Place roast, straight from the refrigerator, fat side up, on rack in shallow roasting pan. Insert meat thermometer into thickest part, not touching the fat.

Step II
Season beef before roasting as desired. Do not cover or add water.

Step III
Remove roast when meat thermometer registers 135° - 155°F (medium). This is 5-10 F below final desired doneness. Tent roast loosely with aluminum foil and let stand for 15 minutes.

Step IV
Roast temperature will continue to rise about 5° - 10°F to final desired doneness and will be easier to carve. Carve across the grain, when possible.

Garnish and enjoy!

[Momaw Nadon]

The Hanukkah Song Part II

by Adam Sandler


Time to take out the Menorahs!

Put on your yarmulke, it's time for Hanukkah
So much fun-akkah to celebrate Hanukkah.


Hanukkah is, the Festival of Lights.
Instead of one day of presents, we get eight crazy nights!

When you feel like the only kid in town without a Christmas tree,
Here's a new list of people who are Jewish, just like you and me:

Winona Ryder drinks Manishewitz wine,
Then spins a Dreidel with Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein.

Guess who give and receives loads of Hanukkah toys?
The girls from Veruca Salt and all three Beastie Boys.

Lenny Kravitz is half Jewish, Courtney Love is half too.
Put them together, what a funky, bad-ass Jew!

We got Harvey Keitel and flash dancer Jennifer Beals.
Yasmine Bleeth from Baywatch is Jewish and yes her boobs are real.

Put on that yarmulke, it's time for Hanukkah.
2 time Oscar winner Dustin Hoffman-aka celebrates Hanukkah.

O.J. Simpson-- STILL NOT A JEW!


But guess who is, the guy who does the voice for Scooby-Doo.

Bob Dylan was born a Jew, then he wasn't, but now he's back.
Mary Tyler Moore's husband is Jewish 'cuz we're pretty good in the sack.

Guess who got Bar Mitzvah-ed on the PGA tour?
No, I'm not talking about Tiger Woods, I'm talking about Mr. Happy Gilmore.

So many Jews are in the show-biz.
Bruce Springsteen isn't Jewish, but my mother thinks he is.

Tell that old harmonica, it's time to celebrate Hanukkah
It's not pronounced Chanukkah
The C is silent in Hanukkah
So read your Hooked on Phonic-ah
Get drunk in Tijuan-ica
If you really, really wanna-ka
Have a happy, happy, happy, happy Hanukkah!

Happy Hanukkah!

[Victoria Delsoul]

[bray]

Well, he couldn't very well celebrate Christmas or Easter?? Jews and Christians are connected through faith. We worship a Jew and the same God. We just believe that Jesus was the Messiah and you are still waiting.

Pray for W and Merry Christ's Night and Happy Honnukah

[wardaddy]

Happy Chanukah! Ya'll!!

[bray]

Of course not, their 95-98% Democrat!

Where in the world did you get your info?

It may be a bit of an exageration but not by much. Republicans continue to support Isreal and Dems continue to support Palestinians and trash Zionist Isreal and yet the Jews continue to vote in block. It amazes most of us, like watching Jews buying more suicide belts to blow themselves up???

Pray for W and Merry Christ's Night

[Maven]

MYRA'S LOW-CARB FAUXTATO KUGEL/LATKES

1 large head cauliflower
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter OR 8 1/2 cup schmaltz
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
4 eggs, beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 2-quart casserole dish with butter or spray.

Break the cauliflower into flowerets, and wash thoroughly. Cook - by boiling, steaming or microwaving - until just done, but not too soft. In a food processor, process the cooked cauliflower until it resembles grated potatoes - do it in batches if your processor isn't large enough. Transfer to a large bowl.

In a skillet, melt 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, then add the onion and saute until the onion is golden brown. When done, add the onion/butter mixture to the cauliflower, along with the salt and pepper. Let cool for a few minutes, then add the beaten eggs, mixing thoroughly.

Pour into the casserole dish and smooth the top. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and pour over the top of the mixture. Bake, uncovered, for about 40-50 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and crisp. Serve hot.

Makes 6 servings. Each serving is 227.45 calories, 19 grams fat (10.67 saturated, 1.18 polyunsaturated, 5.72 monounsaturated), 9.35 grams carbs with 3.83 grams fiber, for a net carb count of 5.52 carbs, and 7.29 grams of protein.

NOTE: If you make it with butter, you can serve it with sour cream dolloped on the top, which is extra yummy.

NOTE 2: You can also use this mixture to make "fauxtato" latkes - just melt some butter (or use oil) in a skillet, and fry up heaping tablespoons of the mixture, browning on both sides. I don't know how many latkes this will make, but it should make quite a few.

Myra (aka Maven)

[dennisw]

I always laugh when I hear the word "babka"

[HiTech RedNeck]

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter OR 8 1/2 cup schmaltz

Eight and one half cups of schmaltz???