• Forums Software Updates

    The forums will be undergoing updates on Sunday 10th November 2024.
    Little to no downtime is expected.
  • We have updated the guidelines regarding posting political content: please see the stickied thread on Website Issues.

Perpetual Stew (Pottage; Pot-Au-Feu)

Fluttermoth said:
I mean, chili and curries are just spicy stews, you don't like those?

And there's nothing better than hot soup on a cold day, it warms your very cockles, it does :hahazebs: And there's so many flavours of soup, there's got to be one you like, my mind is reeling!
Click to expand...
All good points. Plus, while you can make soup out of nearly any combination of vegetables, a posh Deli version may be created by lobbing in some curry/chilli powder. ;)
 
I have a book somewhere that mentions an Edwardian outbreak of food poisoning that was alleged to have started in a chip shop when a child dipped her dirty hand in a pan of mushy peas for a sneaky taste.

Seems unlikely. I'd put that down more to reheating peas that should have been discarded.
 
Casserole, " To be done slowly over a number of hours"
Mmm Me first please.

:itslove: :)
 
Was just reading about George Orwell and noted that he once lived in the rue du Pot de Fer, a working class district in Paris.
A Pot de Fer was an ancient cannon:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot-de-fer

1280px-Arrow_fireing_cannon1.jpg

Just thought it might be of interest.
 
Rik Myalls 'Sweet Porridge' from Grim Tales (tales of the Brothers Grimm)

 
escargot said:
I know, but the version I learned (northwest UK) was 'pease pudding', which people make and you can even buy in tins, as already mentioned.
Click to expand...
The version I learned (South West childhood) was pease pudding too. I didn't find out what it was until much later, and it was later again that I found I really didn't like it!

Talking of stews, when my daughter was over from Oz she cooked a meal for me and one of her friends. It was diced beef, slowly cooked in a cream and pepper sauce and gravy. I kept calling it 'stew' and she said 'it's not stew! Stew is disgusting!' but was unable to come up with an alternative name for it. To me 'stew' is the cooking method rather than the product, so anything cooked slowly is 'stew'.
 
Fluttermoth said:
That's one of the most amazing things about home-made soups and stews; you get SO much from just a few ingredients! They're also a great way of getting some extra vegetables into your children :D
Click to expand...
I often have home-made soup and find I lose weight by stuffing myself with it instead of making toast. It's worth making the effort with nice stock.

There was an offer on Facebook for a pack of four Knorr Vegetable Stock Pots on Facebook a while ago. I did of course take advantage and was an instant convert.
Astonishingly tasty. Huge improvement. :)

So when I finish up my current Oxo Vegetarian stash I will switch to those ones.
I do also have the mirepoix option. Made about a gallon of that a few weeks ago and froze some for later.
 
escargot said:
I often have home-made soup and find I lose weight by stuffing myself with it instead of making toast. It's worth making the effort with nice stock.

There was an offer on Facebook for a pack of four Knorr Vegetable Stock Pots on Facebook a while ago. I did of course take advantage and was an instant convert.
Astonishingly tasty. Huge improvement. :)

So when I finish up my current Oxo Vegetarian stash I will switch to those ones.
I do also have the mirepoix option. Made about a gallon of that a few weeks ago and froze some for later.
Click to expand...
I've actually gone back to oxo after trying all the other ones.
 
I think perpetual stew may well have been the default for peasants in medieval times and probably later. Bag-puddings, trussed fowl and pieces of pork may all have taken their turn in the bubbling pot*. In leaner times, their memory may have lent a homeopathic savour to the roots and herbs that could be scavenged.

*Or "layering the flavours," in chef-speak! :oops:
 
Big hotels I worked at in the 1980's had perpetual stock-pots that consumed the meat bones and were always on, 24/7. Once in a blue moon one might be turned off and sent for emptying and cleaning; in service, the old bones were fished out in a big spoon and disposed of then replaced with fresh.
 
That was the standard practice in many places once.

Is it the same thing?

I thought the stock pot started with a big bundle of bones and some chopped veg.

And the resultant broth taken out to start maybe a stew with, or juice for a pie, or possibly to eat if hungry and in need of a hot snack.
 
Fluttermoth said:
I know what you mean, but if it's got enough veggies, and maybe some lentils or beans, add some good bread (home made for preference, of course, everyone eats too much home made bread!) and it can definitely be a meal :)
Click to expand...
Yup, depends on the ingredients. We're not always talking about a delicate consommé.
 
The culprit 9 times out of 10 is inadequate reheating. In some cases, it just may be that the ingredients are bad and the food was never cooked thouroughly in the first place. But problems with reheating is more likely. Anything heated above 74.5 (75) degrees celcius will be technically OK to eat. The slow cooling of food allows for the perfect breeding ground for any bacteria, so cooked food should be chilled quickly to slow the multiplication. If the food is then reheated poorly it allows any bacteria to come back to life and replicate. This is why you need to temperature check in the thickest part or next to the bone and get it all above 75 degrees.

Most takeaway food is prepped and then frozen or chilled waiting for your order. Why you think about how many different dishes and ingredients are on a takeaway menu, you'll quickly realise that we're not dealing with all fresh ingredients here. The local dodgy Chinese takeaway doesn't have fresh duck breasts waiting for me to ring. They are already roasted and frozen. So if they did a bad job of chilling and reheating it then I may get sick.

Or say a pizza with chicken on it. The pizza isn't cooked with raw chicken sitting on top. It has already been cooked and then is chilled and/or frozen. Heating chicken above 75 degress will kill anything which may be harmful to you.

Rice is a killer. There is a type of spore than survives cooking and if your rice is left at room temperature then you can get really ill. Reheat it poorly and you'll wish you had never been born.
 
Ronnie Jersey said:
What's wrong with Cairo tap water??
Lasagna, my favorite! I have cooked many versions of it, using cottage cheese instead of ricotta cheese (too thick), and Rao's sauce (vegetables only), different spices (sometimes throw in a bay leaf or two), and a bit of fried sausage thrown in for flavor, with ground beef.
Always better the next day! But I refrigerate it always.
If I make extra, it goes in the freezer, and tastes great when heated in the oven from its frozen state.
Click to expand...
I was once very ill in Egypt and it was determined that it had more likely been caused by the salad I ate, not any meat, due to to the water that had been used to wash it. I also saw raw chickens being roasted above more cooked ones, (but whether they rotated them back for a while to burn off any uncooked juices before serving, I don't know).
 
I did not know about left-out rice being dangerous until just now reading this very thread. When i recall all the times i've let rice stand overnight on the sideboard, and blithely refried and served it the next evening -- i shudder to think. Thanks, gang, for pulling my coat before i unwittingly poisoned someone.
 
An ex-girlfriend's dad had one of these going in his slow cooker.
 
His Extremely DeLux Self said:
I did not know about left-out rice being dangerous until just now reading this very thread. When i recall all the times i've let rice stand overnight on the sideboard, and blithely refried and served it the next evening -- i shudder to think. Thanks, gang, for pulling my coat before i unwittingly poisoned someone.
Click to expand...
There's an interesting discussion in this thread. I and others report no ill effects from reheating rice left out in high ambient temperatures, and there is a timely reminder that science is not some noble endeavour beyond mundane society, but is in fact deeply rooted in the cultural assumptions of time and milieu.
 
Floyd1 said:
I was once very ill in Egypt and it was determined that it had more likely been caused by the salad I ate, not any meat, due to to the water that had been used to wash it. I also saw raw chickens being roasted above more cooked ones, (but whether they rotated them back for a while to burn off any uncooked juices before serving, I don't know).
Click to expand...
Water is still commonly overlooked as a source of illness. You are cautioned as a foreigner in St. Petersburg never to drink the tap water (2000ish, may have changed).
 
His Extremely DeLux Self said:
I did not know about left-out rice being dangerous until just now reading this very thread. When i recall all the times i've let rice stand overnight on the sideboard, and blithely refried and served it the next evening -- i shudder to think. Thanks, gang, for pulling my coat before i unwittingly poisoned someone.
Click to expand...
I didn't know about this either until quite recently. I have often eaten left out rice next day too.
 
It's the luck of the draw. Something that offers a good opportunity for bad bacteria to grow may not actually meet up with any bad bacteria. You might be able to drink the water in Mexico with no ill effects. Just know that you're sliding along that probability curve. Humans crave certainty. but frequently there is none.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top