Maybe you will be confused, to find a "mostly bar & beverage blog" talking about sous vide. However this technique helped me to really do major breakthrough in housecrafted cordials, syrups and infusions. Instead of days and weeks, things in the bar take as much as overnight and as little as a couple of hours - not only to be better than the classic version, but also safer and more convenient. Why safer you might ask? Because cooking at a low temperature at a prolonged time kills most microbes (I would probably say all microbes which might be dangerous in the bar) - but also kills spoilage bacteria, aceto bacter (vinegar bacterium) and yeast. Hence if you are smart, it saves you a lot of work (big batches and then refrigerating or even freezing). Please comment if you are interested in any recipes or further explanation how to prolong shelf-life with sous vide. Now why can I tell you, which sous vide cooker to buy? I have worked in several hotel and restaurant bars over ...
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To all my regular readers, apologies, I haven’t posted anything for a while. One reason is the far too early eternal departure of my MacBook Pro. Liefe has to go on (in a pandemic without computer....) - but my workhorse always have been my laptop. Anyways - In my social distancing I have been busy - cocktails on a different level. Two of those I will present right here and now. People who know me or read regularly my blog understand, that I am pretty innovative - but I hate to create drinks without context. In fact I believe that most drinks should reference things (and mostly drink categories) people know. On the other side I hate, if people are meddling with drink categories and classic drinks. There is still no Green Apple M@rt1n1 (why don’t you call it cocktail?) or a French M@rt1n1 (or Espresso M@rt1n1 which is an Espresso Vodka) for me! So the margins to do something innovative and creative are very small. But I guess I did it - and if other people would take it on, it coul...
I like Punch. It is an online magazine about drinks. About cocktails. Mostly cutting edge. It is an inspiration. One of their latest article made me wonder: Microwave Your Manhattan Ryan Chetiyawardana has an unorthodox method for upgrading stirred classics. Look, my routine of making drinks involves quite unique techniques (compared to a normal "mixologist"). Techniques include using immersion circulators (precision "cooking"), using a vacuum pump and off course vacuum sealers and so on. But Microwaving stuff? Nope. So I read this article - and unfortunately Ryan Chetiyawardana is squabbling quite a lot of sciency gibberish - which the editor of the article just loves to "take in" and spread. From my perspective, the microwave oven just offers one particular advantage: it heats up liquids quickly. To be honest, I love to cook things in the microwave (vegetables are steamed perfectly in a microwave and it is quicker and easier than...
Today - I just further explored the “green extraction” in infusions: This time I have heated up water and gin up to 65ºC. To the gin I have added basil - to the water tarragon. After an hour or so, the gin (slowly) turned green. Not the green I expected (like before) - and I had to shake it... Hence I guess, the best way is to start with a room temperature liquid (but a hot, preheated sous vide bath). The water didn’t really become green at all (very pale yellow). I still have to try this with room temperature water - but I guess, the extraction doesn’t work with water as medium. The interesting point was, that both infusions gained coloration, when they chilled down in a water bath! I will experiment further with those changes: Starting with room temperature (or maybe even slightly chilled) liquid. Bringing it up to 65ºC and holding it for 2 hours. Chill down again under room temperature (and holding it at this temperature for an extended time). Probably it also wou...
Folks - a big sorry, that I haven't posted for such a long time. Well, I was busy, but also didn't fell that I could contribute anything interesting. As we are continuously working on Library bar [especially I am working on the "heads turning menu"], we had recently a tasting for their food. This just sparked some interest in finding the perfect bar bites. Bar food has different "angles": first an foremost it is additional revenue for the bar and additional service for the guests. With bar food you can also increase the average duration, the guests are staying in the bar - if they get hungry, they don't need to leave.. they can directly satisfy their cravings on site. It is also communicative and a different "culinary dimension" for the bar. I said it before: most bars, just don't find the right format and dishes. One dish, which I discovered, and which is perfectly suited for a bar is bitterballen. Bitterballen is a Dutch recip...
I really wanted to do some house-crafted limoncello today, for our Italian restaurant. And instead of zesting lemons, I had the idea of using whole fruits. Yes - usually zests working better - because there is far more surface. However my good friend, the sous-vide immersion circulator helped to cut the time in a fraction of traditional limoncello. The normal procedure of limoncello is: Zest [cleaned] lemons Add them into alcohol Traditionally high proof grain alcohol is used - however using vodka is just fine, if you are regarding the difference in ABV. Obviously in Italy high proof booze is used, as it is in production far cheaper than the refined product 'vodka'. Wait for several weeks [depending on the size of the zest pieces]. Strain and add sugar syrup [depending on the original occurring alcohol strength and the target strength]. Bottle and label. Now - I want to do this procedure as well - with two major differences: I want to use whole lemons - du...
As mentioned in my previous post, we are opening a restaurant with a Tiki beverage concept [please don't check for grammar mistakes or alike - I really try to keep you in the loop - though haven't got the usual time, to write up a perfect piece]. Due to the fact, that it was revealed not so long time ago, that the concept is changed to Tiki and the a rather busy holiday season, I could not prepare the infusions for Falernum, Allspice Dram and alike. However I am pretty good in putting 'a' and 'b' together... There is a version in the internets, which features to blend the ingredients for an allspice dram. Neat and interesting. Further Dave Arnold's rapid cavitation infusion would be also a way to go. Now the first concept usually works quite well. However the liquid is a bit cloudy - it is quite difficult to strain the blended pieces of botanical as well. And also the second concept works - however through rapid cavitations, aromas usually are far...
Ok - folks, as always an apology! It have been quiet around here. Yes - my work-life balance actually totally broke down. Festive season - a wine trip to Italy [well - this was at least a bit of life - nice trip though and nice wines... let me know, if you want to learn more about it]. Anyway - I am back... that means, not completely - I am just standing before a rather big challenge - another opening of a restaurant with a challenging beverage concept: tiki cocktails. If you have been more than once, you might have had the notion, that I am more like a classic cocktail kind of guy. Yes - I love to do something new - but always on rather simple cocktails with few ingredients. Tiki is not necessary right in my alley. However my style formed working almost 2 decades in the beverage business. And yes - I did my fair share of tiki. I will definitely post some picture of the tiki madness. However today, I am dedicating my time and this space for one particular ingredient: banan...