How long can you actually store uncooked noodles? I found a pack and despite being expired several months ago they still look alright to me.

As in fresh noodles or dry ones? Fresh ones will either go rancid or rot whether there's eggs in them or not, but the dry ones will be fine for a long time - and anything wrong with them will be fixed by a drop in boiling water anyways.

So I've got quite a bit of tofu in the fridge.
What should I cook with all this tofu? Because I've got no ideas.

Also, what's your version of the best white pasta sauce ever?

>>4997
Extra-firm tofu is actually pretty good seared or fried up. The key is to use a wicked-hot pan - once it starts smoking, it's ready for the tofu. Just don't ever pretend it's meat, that's bullshit and it'll ruin tofu for you. And any texture is good cubed up and tossed in a soup, such as miso or ramen. Here's a few basic tofu dishes that'll help you think with it a little more:
http://www.closetcooking.com/2008/04/mapo-tofu-version-20.html
http://newasiancuisine.com/6428-deep-fried-tofu-in-sweet-fish-stock-agedashi-tofu.html
http://steamykitchen.com/3112-tofu-and-soba-noodles-with-lemon-ginger-dressing.html

Also lot of vegan cake or smoothie recipes call for silken tofu - you just stick it in the blender with other stuff and it doesn't really taste that odd, just adds creamyness. It's pretty nice in strawberry-banana smoothies, provided you only add about 1/8 a measure to the whole amount of fruit.
Also, vegan cheesecake? What the balls?
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2006/12/vegan-eggnog-cheesecake.html

As for the pasta sauce... well I don't like a lot of white pasta sauce. Heavy cream in savory dishes is just not my thing. But sometimes I'll dress up a bechamel - which is basically 1 tbsp butter, melted, turned to a soft paste over medium heat with the addition of 2 tbsp flour, and then gradually stirring in 1 cup of milk waiting till each addition gets absorbed into the roux. Hit it with a little pepper and nutmeg. Boring, right?

But when you roast and food-process some garlic into a fragrant paste, add about two tablespoons of white wine with that cream and just cook it a little longer, and then grate in a small handful or so, of Gruyere cheese (or Parmesan, but I'm ~unique and Gruyere stays nice and creamy), stirring it over the heat just enough to melt that all in and make it ridic creamy and cheesy, and top of that pasta with a bit more garlic and some fried sage or fresh basil, or bake it gratin-style with breadcrumbs before serving it with minced fresh herbs, and you got yourself one yummy cheesy pasta sauce. The wine helps smooth out the richness, but you can always squeeze in just a hint of fresh lemon at the very end if you like. My measurements are loose here because simply depending on the Gruyere you use you'll get different results, so you gotta taste and adjust till you like it.

I like a penne pasta best, and of course you can toss in whatever green vegs laying around. This is more of a mac and cheese than a fettucine alfredo, but there you have it.

>>4999
Why thank you! I'm definitely going to try the tofu with lemon dressing, but I'm going to have to swap out soba for ramen instead. And that white sauce sounds delicious. I think I tried a similar approach to it a couple of times except I used parmesan. You're right about the texture, it gets grainy after a while.

Oh mighty comrade, what is the easiest and best way to clean a stove top that looks like a volcano spat upon it?

>>5029
Man why do you guys go straight to comrade for everything /ck/ related
I'm a culinary student too. :[
But nah she probably in all sincerity knows way more than me, might wanna stick with your current approach.

>>5029
What kind of stove top?

If it's one of the glass cook surfaces, you're going to want to throw down some baking soda and scrub at it. You might need to break out a razor blade, but be very careful there aren't any knicks or bends in the blade that could damage the surface.

If it's electric, you can just pull the burners out. That way you can pull the bowl out and scrub to your heart's content. Often you can lift the entire range up; the stove and burners are on a hinged piece with a slightly concave surface underneath to catch liquid spills that make it past the bowls. For heavy duty cleaning I'd try soaking the spill with hot water, letting it sit with a bit, then attacking it with a really stiff scrubbing sponge.

Gas I'm not really sure about, as I've only had access to a gas stove for about three months of my entire life.

>>5031
It's a gas.

>>5029
Gas stove with those big cast-iron burners? At school we just scrub 'em with a wet, long handled bristle brush. Make sure to heat it up a little first so it comes off easier, unless it's like totally black and burned in which case that won't make a difference.

>>5030
and you can join in too kitchen-bro, I don't have all the answers

Oh and I forgot to add you should turn the flame on low so it'll just all fall in the fire. Easiet way to do it.

>>5034
Haha, nah, it's cool, I only started recently, I'm still pretty ignorant.

I also just realized that this is your advice thread so whoops. B)

Hey comrade, why is it that when rice is first made, and you stir it vigorously, it turns to mush, but when reheated the next day, this doesn't happen?

>>5040
The whole thing about stirring rice is that you break up the starch molecules and cause the grain to release more - this is why you stir risotto to get that creamy texture, and leave regular rice alone because it releases too much starch and loses its form.

I've never actually done that, but I'm guessing your mushy rice would dry out overnight and the starch hardens, much like when you leave regular rice out and the next day it's like a bunch of hard, separate little grains. So then you can just reheat it and it's fine.

>>5041
Nah, I meant, why rice, when stirred the day after, doesn't turn to mush, but you answered it, so yeah, thanks!

I'll be away for most of Saturday, and will need some sort of lunch to bring with me. Something that's good cold, since I won't have any opportunity to warm it. Incidentally, I also have a lot of eggs that will expire soon. Is there a good way to kill these birds with one stone?

>>5043
A big hearty omelet, like a Spanish tortilla or fritatta is your best bet - they're pretty tasty even cold and will use a ton of eggs. Saute some thin-sliced potatoes, onions, garlic, whatever few veggies you got lying around such as mushrooms or sundried tomatoes, then stir up and season your eggs and make a good, thick layer. Don't add cheese, all melting deliciousness will be lost when it's cold. You will need to flip it, and your best best is to just have two non-stick or well-sprayed pans ready, one to cook in and the other to place on top, hold tight and turn over. You can also turn it out on a plate and then slide from the plate to the pan. It's ready to flip when you see the edges getting brown and the runny top layer is getting more solid but still has a bit of runny egg on top.

Here's some simple recipes with plenty of photos and more details:
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/spanish_tortilla/
http://nourishedkitchen.com/a-recipe-fresh-herb-frittata/
http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/09/tortilla-de-patatas/

Hey comrad, are you going to one of those fancy culinary schools, like the Culinary Institute (AI) or Le Cordon Bleu? Or are you at a community college?

>>5046
No, but a few of my instructors went to those fancy schools. I'm at one of those technical institutes you see tv commercials for and hear horror stories about, but this one actually has a great track record among graduates for their culinary program, are regularly reviewed by the acf and a ton of local, successful restaurants around here are under the control of or mostly staffed by the students here.

It really isn't so much about fancy schools as it is making industry connections and proving that you can show up every day and work your ass off in the heat of a kitchen.

also I got a nice scholarship :)

>>5048
*former students whoops

I'm making meatball sandwiches and I don't usually cook. Beautiful Kitchen Goddess, any ideas?

>>5055
well first off, the secret to any great sandwich, whether meatball or anything, is cheese. put some cheese in them meatballs. You can roll the meat around blue, feta, mozzarella, mix in grated romano or parmesan, whatever you have around that isn't that processed american crap. You can even throw some milk in there for a nice flavor. If you have swiss cheese or provolone, even better - assemble the sandwich open-faced, lay that shit on top, and stick it under a broiler. A good standard meatball just needs some breadcrumbs, one egg as binder or else some oil, crushed garlic, a few herbs or whatever seasoning, and one thing I like to put in is a tiny pinch of ground cloves. Just a little, they go a long way, but it helps round out and beefen up the flavor somehow. You can mix ground beef and pork, some lamb and veal if you want to get fancy, some turkey if you want to get healthy, or just beef all the way.

Use a good tomato sauce - you can make your own but the jars of ragu and marinaara are fine too. After you fully brown your meatballs in a skillet, pour that right over them and let it simmer and stew for a while, twenty minutes or so. Maximum delicious.

When those are nearly finished, get a hot skillet going for some green peppers, if you like, with plenty of oil. You'll use this pan to get your bread ready too - a good hoagie roll, a supermarket sandwich roll, little Italian or French baguette, your choice - spread with a little butter and toasted by laying it flat on a hot, greased pan. Get it all crispy and nicely toasted (this is very important, nothing ruins a sandwich like soggy bread), then turn it over, leaving it in the skillet to get the top side a little, spoon on some meatballs, tomato sauce, peppers, a bit of pepper or fresh basil or those yellow pepperocinos or some green crap if you want to feel healthy, toss on more cheese and under the broiler with that till the cheese is melting and bubbling and lovely.

Put it together and bite. Let the grease drip down your hands. Orgasm.

How about quick sandwiches in general? Please keep in mind that having grown up in a house that practically never had cold cuts, I know absolutely nothing about making a good sammich.

I need medium buget lunch ideas.

5 food group meals that fit in a ziplock bag. Any suggestions?
It doesn't actually have to taste good, that's just a bonus.

>>5067
Sorry for the late replies, I forgot all about this board.

The keys to good sandwiches are just using good things and taking the time to do it right. Don't ever put cold cuts straight from the package on plain white bread straight from the package, it's just a soggy mess. Buy a good mustard and use real mayonnaise, check out different breads from rye blends to stone-ground wheat to country french to see what you like best, and cook the meat properly, whether by simply seariing up those cold cuts so they won't drip juice all in the bread or roasting a chicken breast, braising a corned beef, etc. Always place spread on the bread, unless you're not toasting it and you're not eating it immediately. Sogginess is the enemy. You can get creative with spreads too - blue cheese dressing is nice on a BLT, for example, and I love a homemade mustard on pumpernickel and roast beef.

Say you're making a BLT. Make sure that bacon is nice and crispy. And plain iceburg lettuce is kind of gross - a crisp romaine or spinach works much better. Quality bread, white sandwich or light rye is best, pressed in a hot (bacon-greased?) skillet to toast it up, good tomatoes thinly sliced and set on top of the lettuce. A little dijon mustard, hot crispy bacon on top, and you're golden.

>>5068
This is kind of cliche, but cold sandwiches, wraps, burritos are your best bet. Things that will taste good cold after being tossed around in a ziplock. Try empanadas, beerocks, or stuff pita pockets with falafels and tzaziki or hummus.

Hey comrade, got a particular popover recipe you like? Seems everyone's got a massively different opinion on the egg:flour:milk ratio.

>>5073

Any general combos you can recommend like, uhh... what goes best with white meat or pork or beef, etc.? Thanks, brosis.

I bought a brick of white Parmesan cheese under the pretense that it was easy to cook and now I have a brick of white Parmesan cheese that is hard to cook how do I fix this

>>5131
Not comrade but Parmesan is easy to use up. You can throw it on top of literally any pasta I can think of off the top of my head, it has a nice place in most breadings for meat, and, if nothing else, I fucking love Parmesan crackers.
Just grate up a whole bunch of it, toss some parchment paper onto a pan, and get a nice rounded tablespoon of the Parm, spoon it onto the parchment, flatten it out a bit(but not too much), repeat until the pan is full, giving plenty of space between each mound of Parm. Grind some black pepper over none/some/all of them, toss them in a preheated 400 degree oven for five minutes, take them out, slide the parchment off the pan, and let cool before enjoying.
When you first take them out they'll be pretty soft and pliable, cause, y'know, melted cheese, you can use that to your advantage if you're good at handling hot things. You can toss them over some sort of thin cylinder(a clean spice jar comes to mind but basically anything thinner in diameter than the cracker works) and let the edges of the cracker droop down to make little cups, which you can make p cool appetizers out of.
You can eat the crackers straight, or snap them in quarters and toss them in a salad, or whatevs.

>>5129
well uhh at my new job I started this amazing chicken sandwich. Spinach, melted havarti, tomatoes, and a creamy garlic pesto-aioli on a chicken breast and hamburger bun. Any cheese that isn't American is good. Pork and pastrami goes well with mustard, tangy flavors, strong-flavored cheeses and swiss, barbecue flavors, and pickles, no veggies, on rye breads and soft hamburger buns. Roast beef is good with light cheeses like provolone and mozarella, different veggies, whether grilled bell peppers and onions or tomatoes, whole wheat or soft white sandwich rolls. Chicken can go with anything, whether it's a classy arugula and primavera sauce with Parmesan on ciabatta or the sandwich I previously described.

>>5131
What >>5132 said. Also, if you have a Silpat or good parchment you can grate some cheese in small circles, pat it out kind of thin, season it, and pop it in a 350 degree oven for five to ten minutes - just keep an eye on it and take them out when they're crispy. Cheese crackers. Ballin.

How do i go about making good orange chicken or just chinese food in general

>>5147
Marinate some chunks of chicken thighs and legs (or breasts) in minced garlic, soy sauce, orange juice, and ginger for thirty minutes or so. Dredge each piece (coat it, then shake it off) in cornstarch. Deep fry them in oil heated to 360 or so till they're totally golden brown.

While your chicken was marinating, do the sauce. Cook about a cup of orange juice with a quarter cup soy sauce, more minced garlic and ginger, a squeeze of ketchup, chili flakes if you like, a few tablespoons vinegar and lemon juice, a quarter cup brown sugar. Once that's simmering, stir with some cornstarch a little water to make a slurry, then add to the sauce and cook till it thickens. The second the chicken comes out of the deep-fryer, lay them on paper towels for a few seconds, then it goes in the saute pan you got the sauce cooking in. Coat them well and eat immediatly.

http://sweetsedition.blogspot.com/

awww shit dawgs

Ooh! Question!
Is Ramsay's F Word an acceptable substute for culinary school?
Nah, kidding. What do you think of the show, tho?

>>5410
nnnoooo

I don't watch it much. the only cooking shows I watch are Iron Chef Japan and Diners Drive ins and Dives!!!

(and Two Fat Ladies but I lost the channel)

Hey Comrade, are there any foods you personally don't like but wind up using in dishes? I am a total bitch about spinach, onions, peppers, and tomatoes, but it seems like most dishes call for some combination of these.

>>5412
about the only thing I really hate is artichokes because they're a bitch in the face to clean and cut properly and hurt your hands and now your cutting board is all green and shit, eughhhh

but honestly most of things are just a part of building your flavor profile. you may not like onions, but they add that sweet-savory full-bodied flavor to a dish. I just see each ingredient as either supporting cast or star - some things you have as the main item, everything else matters but it's working with other things, not standing solo. A lot of those ingredients people don't like you can throw in a dish and they end up loving it. People say they hate garlic or celery, guess what it's in about 80% of what you're eating.