Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with cooking and breakfast

Oh, the oatmeal and the Crockpot will be friends.....

otherwordlyglow — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:26:08 -0800

I have a 5-qt slow cooker and would like to make as much Steel-Cut Oatmeal as I can in it for a breakfast for a crowd. What are the correct ratios and amounts of water and oats? Also interesting mix-in ideas are welcome. I'm providing breakfast for about 30 adults and one of the dishes we're doing is Steel-Cut Oats with a variety of topping available. In the interest of efficiency, I'm thinking it makes sense to put the oats in my 5-qt crockpot the night before so they'll be ready in the morning but I have no clue as to correct water/oats ratios. I make oats on the stove all the time and usually do 1/4 cup oats to 1 cup water for single serving but does that scale up in the exact same proportions? Are there different ratios for slow cookers due to the longer cooking time? And how many servings do you think I can get in one batch?

Also, I usually just make the oats plain,maybe with a little cinnamon and vanilla but any ideas for interesting ingredients to cook with the oats or to have available as a topping would be helpful.

Perfecting pancakes - perhaps pan problems?

bargex — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 01:53:21 -0800

Why is the first pancake I make the BEST of the batch? Over a few pancake breakfasts, I've found that the first pancake I make is the best of the batch; evenly light brown on both sides, a cut through the center shows the perfect core: fluffy but not too airy. Every pancake after the magical first comes out worse: unevenly colored (brown in the center, at the outer edge, and otherwise pale white) and thinner and denser - more like a crepe or a tortilla. Why is this happening? How do I improve my second, third, fourth, and fifth (on a hungry morning) pancakes?

Details about my preparation:
- I use a 10 inch steel pan (my largest) and cook one pancake at a time (~1/4 cup batter per pancake)
- I start heating then pan ~ 10-15 minutes before I put the first pancake on.
- I try to set the stove's temperature such that butter rubbed on the pan just barely starts to burn instead of melt
- My recipe is pretty basic - 2 cups milk w/ 1 tbsp lemon juice (buttermilk substitute), 2 cups unbleached flour, 2 tbsp sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 egg (separated), and 3 tbsp melted butter.
- I mix the dry and wet ingredients only barely - plenty of lumps in the batter

Do I need a cooking surface with a more consistent temperature? Should I let my pan rest & re-heat after removing the first pancake? Do I need more baking soda to puff up the batter that waits while the first pancake cooks?

Researching pancakes on the web, I read about the "dog's pancake," the first pancake of the batch, slandered as misshapen, simultaneously over and undercooked, ugly, and generally something only the dog would enjoy. My first is my best, and I want to bring that to the whole batch.

Huevos Rancheros Thread: GO!

piratebowling — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 09:24:38 -0800

For those who make huevos rancheros: what do you do to make them amazing? For those who eat huevos rancheros: what detail makes them go from okay to amazing? If I had to be limited to one meal for the rest of my life, it may well be huevos rancheros. My roommate has started making some kickass ones every couple of weeks, but he does it pretty much the same every time. What I love about the dish is going from restaurant to restaurant, each place makes it slightly differently.

So, in my quest to perfect this dish, please indulge me your secret to making the best huevos rancheros. Not detail is to small: type of tortilla, salsa, beans and cheese are all the types of detail I am looking for.

Help me have hot bacon, eggs and toast - all at the same time

illenion — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 19:21:36 -0800

I like making big breakfasts of multiple dishes. How can I most effectively time my cooking so that everything is done, hot and ready to serve at the same time? I like to make breakfasts that consist of any or all of the following: eggs, toast, bacon or sausages, home fries or hashbrowns (from whole potatoes, cut up by hand or shredded in a food processor), and pancakes. Often when some items finish cooking, I find I haven't coordinated and multitasked well enough to have all the items done and hot and ready to serve together.

Does anyone have any recommendations for how I can time my breakfast preparation to end up with the most things ready at the same time? I'm no chef, but I do enjoy cooking and trying new things in the kitchen, so any advice would be helpful. Also, my boyfriend often helps out, so any advice on how to make this two person effort run smoothly would be appreciated.

Cooking for hungry, hurried students

scission — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 17:33:23 -0800

What should I make for breakfast? I'm giving away the food to students who are on their way out of the dorm, heading to class. Easy to eat and easy to cook are both appreciated! This is a social event at college, for recruitment / rush but hopefully unintrusive about that.

-I have access to one kitchen, but there are others nearby if necessary (only for prep work)
-The space is small-ish and I'm told that the oven burns things easily; maybe it's hotter than it claims?
-No specific restriction on ingredients except that I have to buy it at an average supermarket and prefer cheaper things

The only thing that comes to mind for me is pancakes, but since we are having multiple breakfast events throughout the next month, I want more ideas to break up the tedium. Bonus points if you can offer advice on what works well in a hectic setting like this.

Tex mex chorizo and eggs?

jimmydare — Fri, 09 May 2008 19:19:56 -0800

I've got a Mother's Day dilemma: How can I cook chorizo and eggs like my wife gets in Southern Texas? We live in brooklyn, and I've tried to make chorizo and eggs with stuff from the grocery store, but there's something missing - it never has the flavor we get in Corpus Cristie. Is there some secret to the preparation? A special kind of Chorizo to buy?

How'd they cook that egg?

pwb503 — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 00:06:48 -0800

How'd they cook that egg? I ordered a "fried egg, over hard," and was presented with a normal fried egg but with what looked to be the yolk removed. There wasn't a hole in the egg, but rather just the skin of the yolk laying flacid over where one would normally see yellow. Upon further inspection, the yolk was actually "sandwiched" between the two cooked sides (top side and bottom side) of the egg white surrounding the yolk hole. It wasn't a fluke, as I got two eggs like this with my order. What is this type of egg called and how'd they do that?

Making an omelette, the Pepin way.

Brian James — Thu, 25 May 2006 14:32:02 -0800

Help me master this simple, straightforward omelette recipe. I'm trying out the omelette method seen in Jacques Pepin's Techniques, the same recipe is also present almost verbatim on Pepin's website, seen here.

1. Beat £ large eggs with a dash of salt, finely groundpepper and 2 tablespoons fresh chopped herbs ( a mixture (or plainof parsley, tarragon, chervil and chives) in a bowl with a fork until well combined; pieces of egg white should no longer separate from the yolk; the egg should be well homogenized. Melt 1 1/2 teaspoons of unsalted butter non-stick 6 to 8 inch skillet. Swirl the butter in the pan and, when the foaming has subsided, add the eggs. Holding the fork flat, stir the eggs as fast as you can while shaking the pan with your other hand so the eggs coagulate uniformly.

These instructions seem pretty easy, but it's that last sentence that's giving me trouble. I cannot get my omelette to look anything close to how it appears in the photo (#2) on the website. I'm doing this with 3 eggs in an 8-inch nonstick omelette pan under high heat. After adding the eggs, I wait 6 seconds for them to coagulate, then, using a silicone spatula (so as not to scratch the nonstick coating), I stir up the coagulated eggs at the bottom. What I wind up with is a bunch of peaks surrounded by raw egg, producing a runny omelette--if i wait for all the egg to cook, the bottom will be burnt. (Even if I went to a 10-inch omelette pan, I still don't think I could match the pictured result.) I can't get the omelette to form the evenly coagulated, textured surface that is in the photo:

So, can someone expound on how to reach the result shown in the photo? Is Pepin omitting a step? Should the omelette be flipped at some point?

[Mind you, I'm not interested in just any omelette recipe--I want to better understand this particular one.]

big breakfast

brautigan — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 03:37:23 -0800

What would be your perfect breakfast after a night with a partner? No unfertilized egg jokes please... Plan to make my new partner breakfast tomorrow morning. Can turn my hand to most things so any good ideas, simple or fancy, would be well received.

Tasty yummy eggy things!

fuzzbean — Wed, 14 Sep 2005 09:46:55 -0800

I want to make delicious crepes and omelets! What are your favorite fillings and combinations, and what's the best pan to use? I like crepes and omelets, and I eat a lot of them (especially omelets, which I make for breakfast almost every morning). I've been experimenting with different fillings. So far I have:

ham and cheese (green onions optional)
plain cheese of various varieties
spinach and feta
spinach and ricotta and parmesan
brie and pears/apples
sharp cheddar and pears/apples

But I want to spice things up! I want my crepes and omelets to go "Bam!" So what are your favorite filling suggestions? Bonus points for fillings that work for both crepes and omelets, but anything that you find tasty and delicious would be grand. I have no prejudices against any food group or type of cuisine; I'll try any wacky combination you can hand me (if there's something you don't quite dare to put together in your own kitchen, I'll be your guinea pig and report back). I just want them to be yummy!

I prefer omelets to not have stuff stuck in the egg itself (so it's basically an eggy crepe wrapped around filling, rather than having onions or something stirred into the egg). And I usually make these in the morning before work, so it'd be nice if there's not tons of prepwork involved (or if the prepwork can be done the night before). But hey, I'm flexible.

A related question: what are your favorite pans to use for this type of cooking? I'm looking for specifics ("I love my Cuisinart stainless steel 12-inch skillet"...etc.) I've read this thread, and I'm interested in stainless steel or cast iron. I don't want aluminum or nonstick surfaces (although I've been using a nonstick pan up until this point, I'd like to replace it--I really don't like the health implications of aluminum and nonstick). I don't have any issues with using as much butter or olive oil is necessary to keep things moving, and it'd be nice if the pan in question is <$50.

Perfect Fried Egg

jonah — Fri, 01 Apr 2005 09:18:41 -0800

I am looking for advice on how to make the perfect fried egg (in your opinion). Much more inside. I am pretty good at poaching, scrambling, and omlette-ing eggs. I have always hated fried eggs, but recently starting making them and am a convert. What is the best way to cook them, please be as specific as possible, include things like:

Pan type
Fat used (butter, oil, none, etc)
Heat setting
Cooking Time (I generally like yolks to be runny, whites not)
Flip?
Egg Introduction Method (crack in pan, crack in bowl...)
Garnishes?
Any other tips...