Category: Adventures

So, I have a sous vide cooker. it keeps a water bath at a regulated temperature and allows you to slow cook things, vacuum sealed in a plastic bag. For meat, it is supposed to be a way to cook and tenderise it, without cooking fully- so 1 hr of cooking for a steak, but still pink and juicy.

I have the Anova Sous vide cooker.

Now I have to find out how to use it.

Starter points:

Sirloin steak. Rare 58˚c for 1 hr. Medium 60˚c for 1hr

I love finding old cookbooks. Here’s a special one though. On Gutenberg, this one is from 1852!!

Here’s a link:

A Plain Cookery Book for the Working Classes by Charles Elmé Francatelli
Charles Elmé Francatelli was reportedly the late Maître D’Hôtel and chief cook to the Queen.

Reprinted from the edition of 1852

I think I’ll be trying some of these.

From the book –
My object in writing this little book is to show you how you may prepare and cook your daily food, so as to obtain from it the greatest amount of nourishment at the least possible expense; and thus, by skill and economy, add, at the same time, to your comfort and to your comparatively slender means. The Recipes which it contains will afford sufficient variety, from the simple every-day fare to more tasty dishes for the birthday, Christmas-day, or other festive occasions.

To those of my readers who, from sickness or other hindrance, have not money in store, I would say, strive to lay by a little of your weekly wages … that your families may be well fed, and your homes made comfortable.

I’ve been making bread on and off for years, but I’ve never made sourdough. So, here’s the first of the adventure in sourdough.

I’ve been reading up on it though, and have been brewing a starter for the last week. It’ll take a  couple of weeks to get the starter ready, then I have to look after it every day until you need it again.

My starter is a 50/50 hydrated starter, 1 cup of strong flour, 1 cup of water. I mixed it and left it for 3 days (giving it a stir every now and then).

It seemed to be developing nicely. It bubbles gently, and smells of a mix of flour, bananas and pear drops. (from the reading I’ve done, this is apparently the right smell.)

On day 3 I fed it. I took out a cup of  mix and binned it, then added just over 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water. On day 5 I fed it again.

I used a white bread flour for the starter, but have been feeding it a little Spelt too.

Tomorrow, I make bread..