Ask me anything -- The cooking and baking edition.

[Denninmi]

Ask me any food related question. I'll try to answer it.

[Phentex]

1. LOL! Love it!...

What are some good low sodium meals? Spouse needs to go low sodium. I already use as little salt as possible, but we are not salt free.

Are the salt substitutes, well, worth their salt? :)

[Denninmi]

2. Well, that IS a good question. Thanks.

Finally, a taker.

We are cautious about sodium at my house, too. I find that most commercially made products are overly salted.

The main salt substitutes are 1) Potassium chloride and 2) Citric Acid aka Sour Salt

Both are ok in limited quantities. Too much KCl makes dishes bitter, too much Citric Acid makes them sour. Now, I'd take too sour over too bitter - you can always add a pinch of sweetener to the dish to help counterbalance. I do this often with things like tomato sauces, chili.

Things to avoid -- well, anything highly processed. Manufacturers add WAY too much sodium to foods, IMHO. The way to go is basically cook from scratch and/or use minimally processed and low sodium ingredients.

Also, watch out for "hidden" sodium, in things like chicken breast that has been "enhanced" -- I try to avoid that at all cost, but if not possible, I soak it out in distilled water for an hour or so before using. With something like ham, I try to buy the lower sodium version, and then precook in water, which I discard. It does help get rid of some of the salt.

Herbs and spices help tremendously to up the flavor. Just avoid any blends that may contain salt -- you can make your own easily, although it does involve some investment in the herbs and spices.

Here's an example of high versus lower sodium, just off the top of my head -- tacos or nachos. Many people would use a taco seasoning mix with their ground beef, sodium laden refried beans, pre-salted taco shells or nacho chips, salted taco sauce or salsa, and salty cheese. Instead, use fresh beef, blend up a mix of onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, cumin, and cayenne to season it with. Make your own low salt chips or shells by buying plain tortillas, which are pretty low in sodium, and frying or baking yourself. Buy dried beans, soak in plain water, cook in plain water, and then mash and fry yourself with onion, a little cumin, etc, but no salt. Make a fresh salsa with onion, tomato, pepper, cilantro, and lime juice. And, finally, select a lower sodium cheese. Swiss, believe it or not, is often among the lowest, and I personally find it tastes good with almost any cuisine.

It does take a little more work, a little more time, and low sodium products often cost a little more. But you can't put a price on health.

[Warpy]

7. I'm low salt, too.

Some people swear by Mrs. Dash. I mostly swear at it, I think it's horrible stuff, clashing herbs with that bitter KCL undertone.

The best thing is to cook without salt. You can add flavor to meat with plenty of things like garlic, mushrooms and wine. You can add flavor to veggies with pepper and a little lemon juice. Oh, and develop a high tolerance for kvetching. Everything is going to taste like cardboard for the first two weeks and not much better after that while the tastebuds adjust, but they do and you begin to taste the food instead of missing the salt.

The great thing to do is eat in a restaurant about a month or so into the diet. It's amazing, all you can taste is SALT.

[KC]

10. I rarely ever use

salt and when I eat out you really can taste how much salt is in that food. After not using salt for so long
it feels like it burns my tongue !

[Hotler]

3. 2 questions

1.) Why do baked goods sink in the middle when you take them out of the oven? I notice it only on stuff that calls for baking powder or baking soda.
2.) Why do some recipes for non-yeast breads call for 350 degrees and others call for 400 degees?

[Denninmi]

4. OK:

1) A couple of possible causes: A) air pockets -- especially on things like certain cakes. Be sure to "settle" the batter before putting into the over or B) underbaking, not fully set. Check your oven temp. Adjust up if necessary. Also be sure you're baking it long enough.

2) I would say the difference lies in the specific recipe, particularly in the moisture, fat, and sugar content. Generally, you should always go by what the recipe calls for, BUT, pay attention to your own oven temp, it could be off, and other factors such as the type of pan, the position of the oven rack, and the type of oven (convection versus conventional, for example), to make sure you're not over or under baking.

[Hotler]

5. Here is what i did.

Mountain High yogurt peasant bread.
whole wheat flour
corn meal
baking powder
salt
sugar
cumin
eggs
milk
yogurt cheese (drained yogurt, 2-days)
shredded cheddar cheese
diced green chiles
9" round cake pan
400 degrees, 25-min, tooth pick test
Failed tooth pick test at 25-min. baked 5-min longer, tooth pick came out clean this time.
It didn't fall to much but came out under cooked. Bottom and inside still moist (gummy). Top nice and golden. The tooth pick test must lie sometimes.

[Denninmi]

9. Couple of thoughts?

Did you verify your oven temp with a separate, accurate thermometer. They drift over time, and usually, from what I've heard, tend to fall lower than the setting. So perhaps your oven is under temperature.

Also, the recipe sounds like it would be a bit on the wet, heavy side just by virtue of the ingredients. Although it sounds counter-intuitive, you might try turning the temp down after the crust is browned, to about 325-350, and give it an extra 10-15 minutes, the goal being to make sure the center gets fully cooked and set, without over-browning the crust.

[cbayer]

6. What is your position on foie gras?

[Denninmi]

8. Um, yeah, no.

Don't get me wrong, I eat meat. I raise birds for meat. I also have a few geese.

Geese are really intelligent, really social, and very aware. The thought of doing that to them bothers me.

[Hotler]

11. Thank you. n/t

[mntleo2]

12. Do you know anything about cooking/baking with Stevia?

Some of the questions I have is:

1. Is stevia "sweeter" than cane sugar?
2. Do you use the same amount in a recipe as sugar?
3. Stevia is expensive so I would probably not try to make a cookie with it, but might add it to something like a corn bread that doesn't take much, but how much?
4. Is the consistency of stevia the same as sugar? What I mean about this is, using sugar can make something more "chewy" because of its properties, what are the properties of stevia?
5. Are there any health warnings about stevia and its use?
6. Is there a "brown sugar" type stevia?

May have more questions but this will do for now, lol.

Cat in Seattle