New York Times columnist Melissa Clark gave Nathan Myhrvold what many might consider the ultimate challenge: teach me recipes from Modernist Cuisine that I can make for a dinner party without buying any unusual ingredients or equipment.
Nathan isn’t one to turn down a challenge, and besides, cooking from Modernist Cuisine in a home kitchen is much easier than lifting it. Nathan taught Melissa how to cook salmon sous vide using tap water, cook steak in the oven, infuse celery with apple juice, caramelize delicata squash in a pressure cooker, and make balsamic panna cotta. For the results of Melissa’s dinner party, plus the recipes and videos, read the article here.
I enjoyed watching the video! The camera angles were good, and the two searing techniques were interesting. I prefer the frying pan over the propane torch!! Thanks for the excellent cooking tips!
I enjoyed learning the two searing techniques and plan on trying both of them at home. I love the flavor that my marinade adds to the steak. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to incorporate my marinade into this technique?
I made the panna cotta, but, unfortunately, it separated – the top looked slightly firm but underneath was liquidy.
What went wrong? I was maybe too careful not to let it boil – taking it off the heat when quite a few bubbles appeared on the surface. Or maybe my burner wasn’t hot enough. Any suggestions would be appreciated as it tastes wonderful but the consistency was off.
I made this recipe, but I used sfoaeod stock instead of beer. It turned out well. I think I added too much salt to it. But, it was very well seasoned and great tasting!!
I had trouble with the panna cotta recipe. The first time I tried, it took twelve hours to set. It tasted great though. I guessed that my citric acid (which was liquid from Kalustyan’s) may not have been at the same concentration as what Melissa used.
So, I tried again with a little more citric acid but the small increase didn’t make an appreciable difference and that time the top set but the bottom stayed liquidy – similarly to nancy Stahl’s comment.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.