#meat-thermometers

#meat-thermometers

Lukewarm coffee is the only insult I regularly give myself. I get distracted by work and forget my mug until it cools down, only to find my once-beautiful coffee tepid and stale and tragic.

Frozen patties aren't the budget option they seem. A 16-ounce pack of organic grass-fed beef from Whole Foods on Amazon runs $9.99, which breaks down to $2.50 each, compared to $2 per patty for fresh ground beef.

"If you have white meats like chicken or pork you need to use lighter woods for smoking. White meats have a more subtle flavor than red meats such as beef or lamb. Choosing lighter woods, therefore, means you're not overpowering the qualities of the meat itself, but complementing it with an appropriately delicate wood-flavor."

"The longer this halibut sits on that hot grill, the easier it will come away from the grate itself."

"I'm certain some wonderful store-bought brands of duck confit may exist, but, in my experience, the homemade product is always more tender and moist."

The word 'allium' is the name of a group of vegetables including garlic, onions, chives, leeks and others that are botanically related. Because of the myriad ways they influence flavor, in states ranging from raw to cooked (even burnt), they're culinarily related too.

When churning out cover after cover at the saute station you can't exactly be picky about what's on the shelf above the stove. But that doesn't mean professional chefs don't have opinions about the pans they use every day during service.

Whether donning an apron at home or in a Michelin-starred restaurant, pretty much everyone agrees on the merits of cooking with cast-iron pans. They've been around for generations, passed down like an heirloom and fired up for all kinds of meals, from everyday comfort food to special company-is-coming fare. But there's one thing that needs to be acknowledged: it's not ideal for everything - specifically, cooking eggs.

While some recent viral hacks suggest placing the chicken in a sealable plastic bag and to essentially smash it apart, this is neither efficient nor effective. Carefully separating the meat from the bones while your rotisserie chicken is still hot is the most logical choice, since everything is still fairly pliable; once the chicken cools and the fats congeal, it's considerably more difficult.

"Fold maybe 6-8 inches of that tapered in back on itself and tie it off. That will make the skinny end much closer to the thickness of the fat end and allow for the roast to cook evenly," he says. "Trussing the rest of the tenderloin with tight circles of butcher's twine every couple inches will also keep the tenderloin round rather than allowing it to flatten out, which will also help with cooking evenly."

A candle warmer can provide much slower, steadier heat. Just place your bowl onto the warmer and stir the chocolate gradually until it reaches your desired consistency. You'll get smooth results every time because you can control every second of the process. This also avoids any potential of the chocolate coming into contact with water, which can turn chocolate into a gritty mess.

Recipe apps live on screens while the physical tools that actually make food better are scattered across drawers and cupboards. Your phone is propped against a mug, your scale is buried somewhere, and you are guessing at temperatures because the thermometer is never where you left it. Most digital cooking tools ignore the reality that kitchens are crowded, messy spaces where the tools you need for precision are rarely connected to the guidance telling you what to do.