Thanks for these hints, some I would have never thought of. I have used the vegetable puree for thickening and it works really well. Carrots seem to work the best and adds a nice color so I am told. I have made soups, taken out all the vegetables and pureed them then back into the broth and meat and no one ever knows what vegetables were in there! Hey a Mom has to do what a Mom has to do! *smile* Dee
----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]>; "Patricia Dunbar" <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 7:29 AM Subject: Re: [CnD] [Bulk] Thickening Stew Rhonda, and all who wish to use this as a reference, here's some great thickening advice with good directions that I got from Google. What I want to mention is: Follow the same directions with the oatmeal and tapioca as are given for the instant potatoes. Whichever agent you use, add 1 tsp at a time and whisk until the right consistency of thickness is obtained. This guide should solve your thickening problems. Thickeners GENERAL There are many ways to thicken sauces, soups, stews and other foods. The following are among the more popular thickeners. ? Roux, a mixture of flour and fat, is typically used to thicken sauces, gravies, soups and stews. The color and flavor of a roux are determined by the length of time the mixture?s cooked. The roux?s flavor, of course, becomes incorporated into that of the food. See ROUX for details. ? Beurre manie is a mixture of equal parts flour and softened butter, blended together to form a smooth paste. Bits of beurre manie are stirred into a boiling mixture until it thickens. ? Slurry is a simple mixture of equal amounts of flour and cold water used for thickening. No precooking is required; however, after the slurry is stirred into a hot mixture, it should be cooked for at least 5 minutes to diminish the flour?s raw taste. ? Cornstarch and arrowroot both have a stronger thickening power than that of flour. When using these thickeners, combine them first with a little liquid (broth, wine, water), stirring to make a paste. Always stir the liquid into the starch, rather than vice versa. Adding dry cornstarch or arrowroot directly to a mixture will create lumps. ? Use a whisk when adding a flour-, cornstarch- or other starch-based paste to a hot liquid. Whisk the liquid rapidly while drizzling in the starch mixture to thoroughly disperse it. ? Eggs are typically used to thicken custards, sauces and soups. You can use either whole eggs, yolks only or a combination of the two. When thickening with eggs, care must be taken not to heat them too quickly. The best way to handle this is to lightly beat the eggs, then rapidly stir in some of the hot mixture. Over low heat, slowly stir in the warmed egg fusion and keep stirring until the mixture is thickened as desired. ? Potatoes are one of my favorite thickeners. Combine cooked potatoes with a little liquid, puree, then stir into the mixture being thickened. Cook a potato quickly by quartering it and putting it in a microwave-safe bowl with a tablespoon of water. Cover and cook on high for 5 minutes, or until the potato is done. Mash the potato with a fork, then scoop it out of the skin directly into the mixture being thickened. You can also freeze leftover mashed potatoes in 1/2-cup blobs and stir into a sauce or gravy. Or save the flesh of leftover baked potatoes, mash with a little liquid and use the same way. And, though I don?t recommend them for general consumption, instant mashed potatoes also work. Add a tablespoon or two, then wait a minute to check the thickening action before adding more. ? Cooked rice works the same way. Puree it with enough liquid (wine, broth or some of the mixture you?ll be thickening) to create a thick but pourable mixture. ? Bread also makes a good thickener. Cut off the crusts, then crumble the bread, a little at a time, directly into the liquid to be thickened. Start with about 1/4 cup crumbs and add more if necessary. White bread isn?t your only option?rye or wheat can add a hearty flavor to soups and stews. ? Quick-cooking oatmeal can be used in the same way as bread, as can leftover cooked oatmeal. ? Tapioca flour and quick-cooking tapioca are good for thickening mixtures such as sauces, fruit fillings, soups and glazes. Tapioca-thickened mixtures don?t require stirring during cooking, can withstand long cooking times and don?t get cloudy. Tapioca flour produces a smooth texture; quick-cooking tapioca leaves tiny pieces of tapioca suspended in whatever it thickens. ? Vegetable puree can thicken and flavor soups and sauces. If you?re making a soup, simply cook more vegetables than you?ll need, remove them from the soup with a slotted spoon, and puree them in a blender with a little liquid. Stir the puree back into the soup. It?s a low-calorie, high-nutrition way to thicken soup. Save leftover cooked vegetables to puree and stir into sauces. __________________ CB: The Old Leather Bat ----- Original Message ----- From: "Patricia Dunbar" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]>; "Rhonda Scott" <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, November 23, 2009 5:30 PM Subject: Re: [CnD] [Bulk] Thickening Stew > corn starch? > Or a half a raw potato? > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Rhonda Scott" <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Monday, November 23, 2009 4:23 PM > Subject: [Bulk] [CnD] Thickening Stew > > >> Stew tonight, but too much stock and it's more like soup. LOL I'm >> terrible at thickening with cornstarch and water, will one day hopefully >> master that, but for now I need another way to thicken my stew! >> >> Any quick help appreciated. The vegetables just went in, so we have a bit >> of time. >> >> Rhonda >> _______________________________________________ >> Cookinginthedark mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark > > _______________________________________________ > Cookinginthedark mailing list > [email protected] > http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark _______________________________________________ Cookinginthedark mailing list [email protected] http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark Scanned by the Barracuda Spam Firewall at CPWS Broadband _______________________________________________ Cookinginthedark mailing list [email protected] http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark
