Cooking Issues

Latest Episodes:

Episode 143: Olive Slime & Fantasy Football Oct 15, 2013

Show notes

Why are canned black olives so bad? This week on Cooking Issues, Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez are talking about some of the cocktails they’re making with crab apples for Martha Stewart’s American Made event. Hear how olives for canning are preserved using huge vats of lactic and acetic acid! Later, Dave answers a listener question about natural pickling. Can you boil vegetables before pickling them? Find out how to change the acid profile of different citrus juices. How should one treat leftover pasta versus leftover meats? How does Nastassia’s fantasy football team interfere at Booker and Dax? Find out all of this and more on this week’s edition of Cooking Issues! Thanks to our sponsor, Underground Meats.

“The Wickson apple is nice little apple because it has a very high sugar content and a high acid content. And what that means is that it’s good for cocktails.” [4:10]

“Only in the U.S. does bacon refer only to the belly of the pig.” [28:10]

“American beer is supposed to cold because it has no flavor!” [39:15]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

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Episode 142: Maximum Flavor Oct 08, 2013

Show notes

This week on Cooking Issues, Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez are joined by Aki Kamozawa and H. Alexander Talbot of Ideas in Food to talk food science and their new book, Maximum Flavor. Tune into this episode to hear how to reduce foam in shellfish stocks using a pressure cooker, and learn how hard water can affect beans. Are refrigerations naturally dry or moist, and how does refrigeration humidity influence food storage? Listen in to learn more about grilling cheeses, milk proteins, imitation caviar and more! What’s the best way to use blueberries in stirred cocktails? Make sure you don’t miss another insightful edition of Cooking Issues! This program has been sponsored by MOOD Magazine.

“You can do fermentations without salt, but they’re not going to be consistent… If it gets sour, you’re probably going to be safe, but if it doesn’t, it’s possible that you’re going have some crazy stuff growing in there.” [18:25]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

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Episode 141: It’s Paste! Sep 24, 2013

Show notes

Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez talking HASIP Plans, 3-D Printing, pudding, and more on this week’s Cooking Issues. Tune in to hear Dave talk about the processed involved with validating HASIP Plans, and why you should support Underground Meats in their mission to create their own! Later, learn about the difficulties associated with pasteurizing fish. Piper from Booker and Dax calls in to talk about how he prefers to make puddings using different varieties of carrageenan. Is there a way to make 3-D printed food taste delicious? Finally, hear Dave talk about humane slaughter methods, and why there is not an ikejime equivalent for poultry or red meat. Thanks to our sponsor, Underground Meats.

“Most fish cannot be adequately pasteurized in a vacuum bag because you have to cook it either too high or too long.” [14:20]

“Food is about the day-in and day-out creation of something you want to eat… 3-D printing is all about extrusion using paste, and there’s only so much flavor or taste that you can get out of paste.” [37:00]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

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Episode 140: Fermentation & Tofu Sep 17, 2013

Show notes

After an unexpected two-week hiatus, Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez are back with another episode of Cooking Issues! Tune in to hear Dave talk about his recent trip to Harvard University, and why he almost had a disastrous experience involving propane torches in his car on the way to Cambridge. Tune in to hear Dave take on fermentation! Dave talks about fermenting tomato paste and making hot pepper sauce. Learn about salinity, and whether or not it is safe to make ramen noodles using lye. Later, Dave describes the methodology of tofu-making and lays out some ideas for making a low-sugar sorbet. What’s the difference between low temperature cooking and sous vide? Find out all of this and more on this week’s edition of Cooking Issues! Thanks to our sponsor, Fairway Market.

“Most recipes for pepper sauces just give a brine strength, but don’t give an actual salinity of the finished product.” [24:05]

“If you’re making a sorbet without sugar, it’s not going to have the same texture… Sugar has very good texturizing properties.” [41:00]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 139: Eat Your Yolks Aug 27, 2013

Show notes

What are the culinary and nutritional benefits of egg yolks? Find out all of this and more on this week’s edition of Cooking Issues. Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez are in the studio talking fried cheese, agar clarification, and a wealth of other topics. Find out why a good grinder is necessary for quality espresso. How can you create a deep freezing contraption with a salt water brine? Why does hydrolyzed pea protein lend itself to wobbly desserts? Tune in to learn more about the muscular systems of mollusks, how to remove grit from pudding, and steps to dry-salt a turkey! This episode has been brought to you by S. Wallace Edwards & Sons.

“The grinder, in terms of the quality of your coffee, is equally as important as your espresso machine.” [4:15]

“From a cooking standpoint, egg yolks are a miracle because they have all sorts of emulsification properties.” [9:40]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 138: Fish Show Aug 20, 2013

Show notes

Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez get fishy on this week’s edition of Cooking Issues. After recounting the events of the recent puffing gun party, Dave gets down to business and talks about the various Japanese fish-killing techniques, and how they alter the texture and taste of fish. What are some of the necessary steps for preserving fish? Dave explains how to can and cure fish! Hear Dave resolve more listener cooking problems regarding chilling drinks, fungus on stone fruit, meat glue, gelatin, and blenders! You don’t want to miss out on this week’s episode of Cooking Issues! Thanks to our sponsor, The International Culinary Center.

“The standard Western-style of fish-killing puts a lot of stress on the fish as it’s dying, and the stress has deleterious qualities on the flesh of the fish from an eating standpoint.” [14:20]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 137: Delhi Belly Aug 06, 2013

Show notes

After sharing some unorthodox ideas for detox methods, Dave Arnold and Nastassia Lopez dig into a new batch of listener questions on this week’s episode of Cooking Issues. Hear how different eggs create different types of mayonnaise, and why one listener is having trouble making mayo from turkey eggs. Listen in to find out about some homemade, DIY immersion circulator technologies! Dave talks about muscle tissue in squid and octopus, and how invertebrates tend to get get mushy after long cooking times. Find out how changing the pH of certain seafoods can alter the texture when cooking! Finally, tune in to hear about the different grains, legumes, and beans that were blasted through the Museum of Food and Drink’s puffing gun! This program has been brought to you by Tekserve.

“I hate mechanical relays for DIY electronics projects. Spend the extra three bucks and get a solid-state relay. They’ll last infinitely longer than mechanical relays unless you fry them.” [32:15]

“Squid and octopus muscle is very different than vertebrate muscle… They tend to shrink up a lot more than vertebrate muscles do.” [36:30]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 136: Dave Tweaks on Lemonade Jul 30, 2013

Show notes

The phone lines are off the hook on this week’s episode of Cooking Issues! Dave Arnold is joined by Nastassia “The Hammer” Lopez, and is enduring the beginning stages of his lemonade cleanse. Learn about the history of the Stanley Burroughs Master Cleanse, and why Dave thinks it’s a bunch of baloney. Tune into this episode to learn the best way to slice country ham at home. What food safety considerations should people on neutropenic diets keep in mind? Find out why sausage casings have a tendency to break if they aren’t precooked. What kinds of fish lend themselves to low temperature cooking? Is it harder for bread to rise in higher altitude? How do different sugars affect flavor? Find out all of this and more on this week’s episode of Cooking Issues! Thanks to our sponsor, Fairway Market.

“European hams are not cured in the same way that American hams are cured because they are hung in different ways while they cure.” [9:50]

“Between does and bucks, people prefer the meat of does because they’re more tender… There is also a breakdown in the difference of flavor.” [14:00]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 135: Puffing Gun Coming to You Jul 23, 2013

Show notes

Congratulations to the Museum of Food and Drink on their successful Kickstarter campaign! Look out for the cereal puffer in a city near you! Dave Arnold is back in the studio this week with Nastassia Lopez to answer a few listener questions on topics such as micron size and sauerkraut. Find out how to use skin from slab bacon to make homemade pork rinds! Learn how to cook bratwurst in a circulator, and use unconventional fruit flavors in ice cream. Tune in next week to hear how Dave is handling his self-imposed lemonade cleanse! Thanks to our sponsor, Fairway Market.

“The goal when making pork rinds is to convert all of the collagen into gelatin.” [14:40]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 134: Fund the Puffer Jul 16, 2013

Show notes

The Museum of Food and Drink’s Kickstarter is drawing to a close; tune into this week’s Cooking Issues, and donate today! This week, Nastassia Lopez, Peter Kim, and Piper Kristensen hold down the studio while Dave Arnold calls into the show from New Orleans. Tune in to hear about some of MOFAD’s upcoming plans, and why it’s imperative to support the MOFAD Kickstarter campaign now! Tune into this episode to hear the differences between young, commercial meat and older game animals. Where is the best place to find katsuobushi in New York City? Find out how to smooth out your ropey yogurt, and how to make lean bread with spent brewer’s grains. Tune in to learn about the different types of bacteria that are able to grow in your fridge! Thanks to our sponsor, ChefSteps.

“The beef that we get is relatively neutral in flavor because the cattle are young. The older the game meat, the more interesting the flavor is going to be.” [15:25]

— Dave Arnold on Cooking Issues

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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