quote:Originally posted by stevencarry
Buddy, if you fried an egg you would not have a half an inch of oil. What are you thinking? You would just have a "coating" of fat.
What I am thinking is that, like the terms "grill" and "barbecue", common usage has altered the strict definition of the word "fry". In my world, a fried egg is that in name only.
quote:I thought to "saute" would be with some oil otherwise whenever you see cooking on flat cast iron
www.lodgemfg.com like my reversible griddle/grill or probably most diners they are cooking on a surface that is never oiled,greased,or cleaned because that is how it works, the fat "seasons" the surface.
While the dictionary definition of "saute" is, "To fry quickly in a little fat," if you watch any of the chefs on PBS or the Food Network, saute's "in the know" meaning puts more emphasis on the amount of
time spent on the process rather than the amount of oil used. Sauted, grilled (which are actually griddled), and caramelized onions are all fried in a "little" fat, and yet, all are radically different and certainly not interchangeable.
As for you assertion that the griddles in most diners are "never oiled, greased or cleaned," thus seasoning the surface, I would posit that you are only partially correct. Most diners' griddles are oiled regularly. Restaurant suppliers offer numerous brands specifically for this purpose. You are correct that the oil is not added prior to
every item cooked on the griddle. That is because, as you state with your "seasoning" comment, that each time a burger, steak, chop, or whatever is cooked on the griddle it imparts it's own fats into the griddle's semi porous surface. Ask some of the many Waffle House fans we have on this site (not trying to pick a fight folks, but admit it, this is true), when they
do cook an item with little or no inherent fats of its own (i.e., eggs, hash browns),they will in fact add a small amount of the aforementioned cooking oil to the griddle.
quote:Buddy, no I have not read the crock/bbq. One is steaming, one is smoking, so I don't know how those two would go together.
We have no argument on this one. If I had wanted to join that battle I would have done so long ago on that thread. For a change, I choose to keep my mouth shut and let someone else enter the fray.
Speaking of which, where the heck are all you purists? Why hasn't anyone raised hell about the use of the words "crock pot" and "barbecue" in the same sentence. You're getting soft, all of you.
quote:And I have only seen a giant griddle in a Korean place. In fact the only thing I think they should be known for
is "Kim Chee" everything else is run of the mill.
Finally, my friend, you need to be hanging out at a better class of Korean restaurant.
Korean cuisine is amazing, offering brilliant contrasts between cold and spicy, sweet and savory, and with a remarkable variety of textures and colors.
The method of cooking you have described above is more common, to me at least, under the name
Mongolian Barbecue. Granted, it is no less inaccurate or misleading, but, one thing it ain't is Korean.
Here in Chicago a typical Korean Barbecue resataurant has large tables with a round, about 10"-12" diameter hole cut out of the middle. Thinly sliced meats are deliverd raw to your table with a variety of vegetables, relishes and condiments. A heavy duty metal bucket, about the size one would use for gardening purposes, filled with glowing charcoal is then set into the hole in the table. A prefitted grill (not a griddle; this has slots in it allowing for direct heat to meat contact) is placed on top of the bucket and the happy diners then place the meat and vegetables on the grill. If it's a really classy Korean restaurant, they will provide a server who will prepare the meal at your table.
You imply in a subsequent post that some folks are not taking this seriously. I can assure you I understand your frustration and do not wish to mock (
that's what
I'm thinking), however, I think you are creating your own pain here. My guess is that most of these errors are made out of ignorance, not an effort to deceive the buying public (most of whom don't know the difference either). I think you, as an enlightened consumer, knowing that this ignorance abounds, need to ask these questions before ordering.
If I walk into a typical diner or coffeshop and I see the word "barbecue" as part of an item's description, I know darn well, it ain't barbecued. On the other hand if I walk into a barbecue joint and I get something that clearly hasn't been barbecued, they will never see me again, and I will tell the world about said establishment's incompetence and deception (Open Pit Barbecue, 2 locations in west central Ohio; steer clear).
Bottom line here is, you can continue to let this make you nuts, and try to educate
every restaurant owner in America who
thinks he's serving "Barbecue", or you can ask the right questions before ordering and make the appropriate choices (something we failed to do at Open Pit Barbecue, 2 locations in west central Ohio; steer clear).
Good luck in your mission.
Buddy
