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Post by 58limited on May 28, 2015 18:44:00 GMT -5
I decided to post this here after a little feedback on my cheddar soup thread (http://chamberscommune.proboards.com/thread/2576/hudsons-canadian-cheese-soup).
Bitters are mostly known for use in cocktails but can also be used in cooking as well. This recipe is my little secret ingredient in the brine solution I inject into the pork shoulders, you can just taste a hint of the bitters in the melt-in-your-mouth pork.
INGREDIENTS 2 tbsp. black peppercorn 1 tbsp. cumin seed 1 tbsp. yellow mustard seed 1 tbsp. black mustard seed 2 tbsp. espresso beans 2 dried chipotle peppers 4 sun-dried tomato halves 15 tbsp. dried oregano 1 fistful thyme (stems and all) Zest of 3 oranges Zest of 3 grapefruit 3 tbsp. gentian root 4 bay leaves 750 ml grain alcohol
PREPARATION In a medium-size saucepan, toast the black peppercorn and the cumin seed until aromatic. Briefly toast the mustard seeds. Using a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle, crush the peppercorn, cumin, mustards, and espresso beans. Combine with remaining ingredients in a glass mason jar. Shake well and let macerate for 10 days (for best results agitate daily for 10 seconds). When finished, strain thoroughly through cheesecloth and use in cocktails.
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Post by mach12 on Jul 19, 2017 10:33:33 GMT -5
It took me awhile to use up the bottle of Angostura bitters so I just got around to trying this and man is it good. I never tried cooking with bitters and this is a whole new world of cooking for me. sometimes I use it just to add a new twist to an old favorite and it's great for that.
I read an article that said you could use bitters almost everywhere that you use extracts, either replacing the extract or by going half and half, and it said to try it in sweet foods like homemade ice cream, or add a couple of drops to your coffee if you use cream and sugar. That was the limited info I started with and it has been trial and error from there. Some things were just okay and others were a real hit but nothing I've tried yet needed to go to the chickens. Creamy soups all seem to benefit and so do some gravies and sauces, though Kitchen Bouquet outdoes it in some. I'm still playing with all of that. Most of the time I don't really taste the bitters, it's more like the bitters bring out the flavors of what's there. Like with coffee. I just put a bit in my spoon and then stir it in. Whodathunkit?
The first thing I tried it in was plain old Campbell's tomato soup. I used milk instead of water and then stirred in probably 1/2 teaspoon into the soup (1 can) as it was heating and to me the soup tasted like it used to taste when I was a kid. Not a real noticeable difference, more like it was enhanced. I know they've been reducing sodium in a lot of processed foods and wonder whether that had something to do with it. Maybe the next thing is to try using bitters in place of salt, or at least to reduce it.
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Post by evangeline on Aug 1, 2017 6:44:42 GMT -5
Oh! Oh! Forgot I have a bottle of Angostura bitters in the cabinet on the floor that I have to roll myself into a hedge-hog to get into with my paws outstretched as far as they will go, knocking myself in the fool forehead all the while. . . And then later there might be a Sazerac. . .
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