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I don't think there is any "right" or "wrong" in the degrees to which people want things cooked. Mr. Ruhlman may not approve of "well-done" meat or scrambled eggs cooked dry, but is it his business? Unless he's paying the grocery bill, I vote no.
I don't tell people they shouldn't eat raw oysters or raw cookie dough, even though I never would (because I've had salmonella poisoning and I don't want it again). When I'm in the running for a James Beard award, someone can tell me I'm "not doing it right." When I'm cooking for myself, I know what I like and how to create that.
I dislike these "you're doing it wrong" posts and the equivalent articles on Slate.com. If someone likes their eggs cooked "wrong," that's fine. They're the ones having to eat them. For a variety of reasons having to do with chick shredding machines that grind up live male chicks, and the conditions in which most chickens are farmed and the way they're slaughtered (think Michael Vicks and his electrocuted dogs), I think anyone eating eggs or poultry is "eating wrong," but it's none of my business what other people eat or how they like their food cooked.
Scrambling some eggs for breakfast? Be warned: They're "one of the most overcooked dishes in America," food writer Michael Ruhlman tells NPR. "We kill our eggs with heat." What we should really be doing, he says, is cooking them "very slowly over very gentle heat." That way, "the curds form," and "the rest of the egg sort of warms but doesn't fully cook and becomes a sauce for the curds.
NPR can take their "Doing it Wrong" and buzz off. People are allowed to like their food cooked in different manners. There is no "right" or "wrong."
For an organization like NPR, I'm surprised they'd be so blatantly judgmental. Okay, maybe not. Maybe eggs cooked without still being slimy are preferred by conservatives.
That food writer doesn't need to eat at my house. If "overcooking" scrambled eggs is wrong, I don't wanna be right!
Even if I'm cooking poached, soft boiled eggs or "dippy" eggs (hee!), I don't want any clear egg whites. When I make scrambled eggs, it's just eggs, butter, salt, pepper, and maybe some cheddar cheese, and I like when they brown just a little. If I want them to be soupy, I'll just skip the scrambled eggs and make avgolemono soup instead.
There is a wrong and right way when it comes to this. The author is right, everyone else is wrong and overcooks their eggs. BUT....if thats the way you like them, you have the right to eat them anyway you like. Just understand that if you get scrambled eggs prepared by a trained chef, someone trained to properly prepare and serve food, you will get a plate of eggs cooked over very low heat until soft curds are formed and the balance thickens into a nice sauce for them to move around in.
The 3 things most people screw up and over cook are eggs, chicken and pork. I hate eating at "the next Julia Childs" house and get served these cooked dry, I just nod my head politely, chew a little harder and reach for my glass of water.
Quote:
Originally Posted by elnina
I think there is a whole generation that does not know how real food look/taste.
I know there is.
Quote:
Originally Posted by elnina
Many people say that real food taste worse than plastic, processed food.
I believe there is good reason for this. Science. They have gotten so good at engineering flavors and marketing highly processed foods that this is by far the primary source of what most people eat nowadays. I mean I see commercials touting a "home cooked meal" that comes in a bag that you microwave or heat up in a skillet. People buy into this thinking that hamburger helper is a home cooked meal and equate that to a healthier option than ordering a big mac, when the truth is....its not. not by a long shot.
I was fortunate enough to grow up on a farm where a lot of the food we ate came from the garden, the pasture, the ponds/creeks or the woods. No choice but to have home cooking with those ingredients. With that I find that my taste is exactly opposite. Many common items that people eat taste....well fake. Or maybe processed.
Worst offenders... Doritos and etc. I cannot stand them, never eat them, always opted for plain lays but don't even eat those any more. Hamburger helper....egad. Disgusting. How much help do you need to brown some hamburger meat, add in some diced veggies and seasoning, make a sauce and boil some noodles. Seriously. You talking like 10 or 15 more mins tops. Anything cheese with Kraft, god forbid Velveeta, on it. Tastes chemically and otherwise bland. Microwave dinners, looking at you Hungry Man and Lean Cuisine, are deplorable. I seriously cannot choke one down. I would sooner skip that meal and go hungry. I could go on but you get the point.
There is a wrong and right way when it comes to this. The author is right, everyone else is wrong and overcooks their eggs. BUT....if thats the way you like them, you have the right to eat them anyway you like. Just understand that if you get scrambled eggs prepared by a trained chef, someone trained to properly prepare and serve food, you will get a plate of eggs cooked over very low heat until soft curds are formed and the balance thickens into a nice sauce for them to move around in.
The 3 things most people screw up and over cook are eggs, chicken and pork. I hate eating at "the next Julia Childs" house and get served these cooked dry, I just nod my head politely, chew a little harder and reach for my glass of water....
^^^ I agree.
There are established culinary ways how to cook food to get the best of it.
You might agree with it or not, it doesn't matter. If you like hard scrambled eggs, or mushy vegetables, or overcooked steak - that's fine. That's the way YOU or your family like it cooked. But that doesn't mean that's the way it supposed to be cooked, or served in good restaurants, where chefs are trained, and cooking is an art.
Scrambling some eggs for breakfast? Be warned: They're "one of the most overcooked dishes in America," food writer Michael Ruhlman tells NPR. "We kill our eggs with heat." What we should really be doing, he says, is cooking them "very slowly over very gentle heat." That way, "the curds form," and "the rest of the egg sort of warms but doesn't fully cook and becomes a sauce for the curds.
If you're cooking eggs the way you prefer, and someone else prefers them another way, you're 'doing it wrong'...?
I like my food cooked certain ways. Happily, I don't confuse my personal tastes for the way others should necessarily do things.
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