Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with AltonBrown

Why is my chocolate mousse not mousse-y?

starvingartist — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:53:42 -0800

What happened to my chocolate mousse? I followed a recipe by Alton Brown, but the resulting texture was very strange. I've done this recipe before, but this time things got wonky. Recipe is here, but I'll summarize it if you don't feel like going to read it.

Melt chocolate in double boiler with butter, coffee and rum; remove and let cool

Put 1 tsp of gelatin in 1/4 cup heavy cream; let bloom for 10 minutes

Whip 1 1/2 cups heavy cream to stiff peaks

Heat gelatin over low heat by swirling pan over burner; do not let cream boil

Stir gelatin/cream mixture into chocolate

Fold whipped cream into chocolate

Refrigerate to chill

Usually this results in a dense but moist, very rich chocolate mousse. This time, however, the texture was more like chalk. It's very dry and crumbly, not crunchy but not very smooth. My wife and I can't really think of a comparison; it was "quite unique", in her words.

The only thing that's unclear in the recipe, and it drives me crazy every time I see it, is that the instructions for heating the gelatin and cream simply say to heat the cream and make sure it doesn't boil. There is no mention of what temperature to heat it to, or what to look for so you know it's done. I assumed it was done when the gelatin dissolved and the cream started to thicken. Did I overdo the gelatin or something? I'm stumped.

KITCHEN GADGET FILTER: Where can I buy an Alton Brown Salt Cellar in the Toronto, Canada area

saradarlin — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 22:47:43 -0800

I love the salt dish used by chef Alton Brown on "Good Eats". Google tells me that this is a Salt Cellar. I saw one on eBay but would like to see one in person as I am worried about the quality. Alton Brown sells them on his website but will not ship to Canada. Has anyone out there see one IRL?

Batali's Big Knife

rorycberger — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 14:59:11 -0800

What is the big knife called (and where can i buy it) that Mario Batali uses sometimes on Iron Chef America? It is a very large knife, sort of like a cleaver but with a rounded point, and it has a green handle. I don't remember which battle it was used in, but it can be seen during the opening credits/intro montage on recent battles. I believe Alton specifically called it out by name once, but I can't rememember the exact name. Something with letters and numbers, like EX-50, but I don't think that's it. Thanks!

Feasting on Asphalt in the Northeast

derMax — Wed, 30 May 2007 04:05:55 -0800

Please introduce my non-American friend and his mother to Real Americana food joints in North East USA, the more picturesque and famous the better. A friend is planning to take a 2-week long road trip with his mom (who hasn't had a vacation in decades), starting in NYC. He's a big fan of Alton Brown and he wants to do a trip rather like the one AB did in Feasting on Asphalt but concentrated around NY State/NJ/PA, maybe New England also. (Feasting on Asphalt didn't cover that area at all.) I already told him to pick up a copy of Road Food, but I am wondering what MeFi people would recommend.

Criteria: decent, all-American food; not too expensive or fancy (no Michelin stars required); picturesque is good (they want to take lots of photos with mom in the foreground); famous or notorious is even better. Restaurants, diners, roadside stands, interesting food related shops are all good.

Alton vs. Martha in the Kitchen?

UnclePlayground — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 11:42:57 -0800

Alton Brown vs. Martha Stewart: Who do you trust more in the kitchen? Please help my wife and I with a minor disagreement regarding who should be more respected in the kitchen with the cooking. This has nothing to do with crafts and gardening, we all know the scope of Martha's domain. Strictly food.
If you wanted to follow the teachings of one or the other, which would you prefer and most importantly, WHY?

Cardboard Box Smoker Advice?

robocop is bleeding — Thu, 30 Jun 2005 09:55:09 -0800

This weekend I intend to construct a Custom Corrugated Vapor Colloid Applicator to smoke some fish. Now I've seen Alton Brown do this on my DVD of the show a dozen times, but I'm still a bit iffy about 1) not burning the house down 2) creating something non-food poisonalicious and 3) getting it done in time for a BBQ on Sunday. Any MeFi homemade smoker veterans have any tips for a beginner?