Hi, I have a lot to catch up on, but have eagerly followed the various discussions. To the brave soul who answered my okra question, thanks! The okra technique of cutting it in half or quarters lengthwise and putting it on high heat in the oven for a few minutes worked so beautifully that I didn't have to add anything to it, and I sat there and ate the whole bowl! I didn't respond sooner because they were all sold out last week, so couldn't get any until this past Friday. Wonderful questions: I vividly remember a family member putting the temperature too high for a glass plate in the microwave, and it cracked, so agree with the suggestion about moderate temperatures. As far as freezing chicken legs, I do it all the time, especially when a giant bag of 10 lb is on sale for .99c lb. I do typically parcel them out into quart freezer bags with two or three in each. If the bags are thin, I might even double bag so as to avoid freezer burn: I place the zip top of the first bag on the inside, pointed toward the bottom seam of the second, and zip the top of the second sealed--hope that makes sense. That technique works great for breads as well. I often take the time to skin and de-bone a whole chicken, in order to save the bones for broth. As far as meat changing texture, I would say the difference is really not much, unless you are talking about tofu or leaner ground beef.
Speaking of greasy things, I often wait for boneless skinless chicken thighs to go on sale, just because they are a lot easier to deal with, and they hold up very well in a crockpot, whereas chicken breasts will dry out easily. Last time I cooked chicken leg quarters, I had grease all over my oven! I like the grease draining suggestions: I think my favorite is the colander Jenifer talked about, but I have been known to cheat. I put whatever the meat is on the George Foreman just long enough that it gets firm, allowing the grease to drain into the trough below. Then, I transfer the meat with a spatula to the dish I am cooking, crumble it, and continue cooking it until it is brown. Then I soak up the remaining grease with several layers of paper coffee filters. I don't typically save grease, though. Careful that the foil pie plate doesn't have holes pricked in the bottom, as some pre-packaged ones do--and those holes can be really tiny. I learned about the holes when placing a very runny french toast batter in a pie plate. Have a wonderful day, Jamey _______________________________________________ Cookinginthedark mailing list [email protected] http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark
