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I would like to drink more bubbly water (and maybe lemonade?), but I don't want to spend the cash or fill the dump with plastic bottles. Is a one-gallon minikeg that uses 16g CO2 tubes enough to do the job, or do I really need to buy the 5-pound tank, hose, fill cap, and regulator? And how does refilling a CO2 tank work, in practice (WRT cost, turnaround time, etc.)? [more inside]
posted by wenestvedt at 10:55 AM - 14 answers

Here's an extremely specific question about bread. I would like to economize by making sub sandwiches to bring to games and parks, but with only two people, I don't want to waste a lot of bread. What's the best kind of bread or roll for this? And is there any way to freeze and thaw, without ruining the texture?
posted by haptic_avenger at 1:27 PM - 9 answers

I got a hankering for bean soup despite it being July. So I [more inside]
posted by Czjewel at 10:31 AM - 13 answers

Planning a 99 Ranch Market (US based Chinese megagrocery) run, and looking for ideas for instant/frozen foods to try. [more inside]
posted by bluesky78987 at 9:19 AM - 12 answers

Looking for life tips in being as lazy and cheap as possible but showing up to parties with a delicious bread product [more inside]
posted by bbqturtle at 5:58 AM - 18 answers

I'm trying to eat more soluble fiber, but finding accurate nutrition information is proving hard, especially since I'm not just looking for fiber amounts, but soluble fiber. Many sites don't distinguish between soluble and insoluble. When they do, their values are often wildly discordant. For instance, one site says a medium apple contains 4.5g of soluble fiber. Another site says 1g. Both are affiliated with universities and thus should be reliable. Do you know of any site that's accurate? Or is this a fool's errand?
posted by gigondas at 3:46 PM - 1 answers

I'd like to hear about the summer meals you make again and again because they are light (or on the lighter side, at least), easy, tasty, and don't heat up the whole house. [more inside]
posted by taz at 8:46 AM - 33 answers

Hi, Boston! What should I get delivered for my dinner tonight? [more inside]
posted by meese at 2:28 PM - 3 answers

I need bean recipes! I want to eat more beans as a side dish, namely for morning protein. What kinds of beans do you eat on the side, and how do you prepare them? [more inside]
posted by zardoz at 4:14 PM - 18 answers

Hello. For a wedding anniversary, I'm looking for a really good restaurant that has outdoor tables. Preferable: Downtown, East Side. [more inside]
posted by DMelanogaster at 10:21 AM - 4 answers

As a lifelong water-hater I have been compelled to start Hydrating and am looking for the most convenient and painless way to do so. Historically, I hate water bottles because their straws/spouts get gunked up immediate and they taste either weird and plastic or weird and metallic. These days I hear a lot about the various Big Dumb Cups (Stanley, Hydro Flask, etc.) as status symbols or signs of our societal collapse or something -- but very little about what they are like to use. Do you have a Big Dumb Cup, and love it? Tell me about it. [more inside]
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 10:12 AM - 24 answers

I have drug-resistant depression. Over the last decade, I've been able to manage it and life in general through a combination of maintaining a healthy weight, exercise, acupuncture, meditation, and a whole bucket of cognitive and behavioral skills to help me through the rough bits. The healthy weight is the key for me - if my weight drops below a certain threshold, everything else fails. Due to unavoidable life circumstances, my weight has dropped significantly below that threshold. I need to put on 7 pounds as quickly as I can from healthy foods, and I am having trouble just brushing my teeth let alone doing recipe research. Please share your favorite healthy, high-calorie, simple to prepare meals, with immense thanks in advance.
posted by Silvery Fish at 9:59 AM - 37 answers

I've been eating more salads (mixed chopped vegetables and cheeses, sometimes also fruit or nuts, usually with leafy greens but not always) and as much as I love my standard homemade dressings, I'm looking to branch out. My usuals: ranch, Caesar, basic vinaigrettes. What else you got? I don't like mint or fennel, and I do lean toward creamy dressings, but I'm open to hearing about almost anything. Assume I already know I can just dress salads with acid & oil, and that I can add stuff to vary the flavor of my ranch & vinaigrette.
posted by rhiannonstone at 6:56 PM - 42 answers

There's a mason jar filled with gin and blackberries that's been sitting on a kitchen counter for about 10 months. The house has central heat and air, so no temperature extremes and the kitchen has no direct sunlight. Is the gin safe to drink? [more inside]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:41 AM - 16 answers

I am overwhelmed with herbs from our weekly farm box. I currently have more fresh dill, cilantro, and lemon balm than I know what to do with. Oh, and several bunches of scallions. Suggestions for recipes that use a ton of these in one go? Vegetarian preferred but not required, don't eat beef, not crazy about spicy stuff.
posted by skycrashesdown at 12:16 PM - 26 answers

Do I need to trim fat for lamb stock? [more inside]
posted by LonnieK at 7:43 PM - 11 answers

I recently watched an episode of QI from 2013 where the panelists were served small dishes of kimchi. None of them had heard of kimchi before. Was they saying this just for laughs, or was kimchi actually obscure in the UK ten years ago, or was it just an odd coincidence that these four people hadn't heard of kimchi? Is it widely available now? [more inside]
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:53 AM - 22 answers

I'm researching different cities, mostly in Europe and North America, and when looking at international restaurants (relative to the country I'm looking at), I find the same cuisines show up all the time, no matter the city. Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Vietnamese, even frequently Brazilian, seem ubiquitous. A lot more inside (including more about food representation in cities than you thought you wanted to know). [more inside]
posted by Meldanthral at 6:12 PM - 24 answers

I can't have numerous ingredients. What to add in place of oil? [more inside]
posted by intrepid_simpleton at 2:06 PM - 14 answers

similar to lindt's 95%. more below, peeps: [more inside]
posted by bitterkitten at 8:50 AM - 9 answers