RESEP MASAKAN ORIENTAL

Welcome to our annual homemade edible gift episode, where you finally figure out what to get that “special” (aka super-picky and has everything) foodie on your holiday list. By the way, if you’re a fan of candied citrus, you ‘ll want to make extra, since Buddha’s Hand is a unique and special treat. To me this crazy looking fruit tastes/smells like a really fragrant Meyer lemon with hints of grapefruit, and if you can find it, I recommend you give it a go. It’s not cheap, but what is? If you can’t find it, don’t despair; this technique works perfectly fine with strips of orange or lemon peel. Regarding the blanching step I mention in the video; I heard that pre-boiling wasn’t necessary for this fragrant fruit, as it’s not as bitter as other types of citrus, so I tested it both ways, and I’m glad I did. The batch I boiled in water first had virtually no bitterness left, and still had a fairly strong citrus flavor. The batch that was candied raw definitely had a more fragrant aroma and v...

I love deviled eggs, and have probably had fifty different versions over the years, but these crab-stuffed beauties may be my favorite. The sweet crab is a perfect compliment to the spicy eggs, but above and beyond the delicious flavors, these just look extra special. Okay, that’s enough about the recipe…now, on to more important matters. Considering the fact that we’ve done almost 1,000 uploads, we’ve had very few controversial recipes. And by “controversial, I mean videos that caused vigorous debate about whether the recipe actually works as shown. One such video was our “ How to Make Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs .” While most had no issues, a small but vocal group claimed the recipe didn’t work at all. Some went so far as to say the video was a hoax, as if the egg industry had gotten to me, and convinced me to trick my viewers into wasting eggs to increase sales. I’ll admit, it is a brilliant plan, but it’s not true. To prove my innocence, I’ve used the exact same method here, and once...

A great holiday ham glaze needs to have three things; a wonderful flavor, a gorgeous, shiny appearance, and a crispy, crackling crust you can hear across the room. I’m happy to report this easy to make glaze has all those things in abundance. This honey glaze will work on any size or style of ham, and as long as you keep the mixture quite thick, and caramelize it properly at the end, you will be the proud owner of a magazine cover-quality ham. As I mention in the video, this was an uncured, fully-cooked, country-style ham, and if you use something similar, I’m recommending you pull it at 130 F. internal temp. Remember, ham is already cooked, so we just want it hot enough to eat. By the way, if you’re using a ham that’s not cooked already, you’re on your own! The type of ham I used doesn’t contain a lot of added water like most hams in the supermarket, so it’s even more crucial to use a thermometer to achieve the proper temp. The meat has a denser, drier texture, and while the payoff i...

This Cornish pasty is one of those rare recipes that novice cooks will find easier to make than experienced bakers. That’s because to make this to its original, and very sturdy specifications, you’re forced to over-mix the dough…a cardinal sin that literally gives pie makers nightmares. Like any pastry dough, we’re just adding just enough ice water to bring everything together, but unlike classic pie dough, we’re going to knead the mixture for a couple minutes past that point.   Thanks to a little thing called muscle memory, this is not going to be easy for some of you. Get over it; because once you taste and feel the final product, it will all make sense. The tougher, but not tough dough is the perfect delivery system for the meaty filling. Speaking of which, I went with a fairly traditional version, and provided the recipe below, but this great crust will work with all sorts of stuffings. You could use cooked meat in these, but part of what makes them so good, is how the raw ing...

Homemade, edible holiday gifts are kind of tricky. There is a fine line between giving a unique, thoughtful, carefully prepared gourmet goodie, and giving someone something that looks like it was just an easy way out. Hopefully, this beautiful looking and smelling fresh herb "finishing" salt will be seen as the former. If this looks familiar, I did a similar version a few years ago for About.com, and since I needed a Holiday-themed gift idea to film for this year's YouTube Holiday Solution Center , I decided to give it another go. As you'll see, I used rosemary and lemon thyme, but other hearty green herbs will also work. By "hearty," I mean herbs that are sturdy and resinous, like savory, oregano, and marjoram. Fragile herbs like dill, chervil, and cilantro, just don’t work as well. Answers to a few common questions: Yes, the color will fade within a few weeks, but the herby flavor and aroma will remain intact for much longer. There is no shelf-life limit, ...

Any cheese ball is a welcome addition to a holiday party spread, but when you bring one that looks like a pine cone, you’re talking about a real showstopper.  The only danger, as I joked about in the intro, would be hurting the feelings of other guests who also decided to bring a cheese ball, sans camouflage. Hey, they’ll just have to raise their game next year. Obviously, this seasonally appropriate appetizer can be made using any cheese spread, or cheese ball recipe, but if you’re going to use this one, which comes highly recommended, we should talk about the garlic. I love raw garlic, and since I felt a little cold coming on, I decided to be generous with the amount. For normal people, two cloves might be a little strong here, so fair warning. If you’re a fan of roasted garlic, that would be beautiful in this as well. Also, if you’re a fan of our beer cheese recipe , there’s no way that wouldn’t be perfect too. I really hope you give this easy, delicious, and gorgeous-to-look-a...

I had been fantasizing for weeks about doing a whole, home-cured ham for the holidays. I always get lots of requests for this kind of thing, and was fully prepared to give it a go, but then a strange thing happened, I heard the word “Hamlet.”  It was on TV, and completely unrelated to cured pork, but for whatever reason the word made me think of cute little, individually sized hams. That’s all it took, and off I went trying to figure out how to make this thing happen. I knew I wanted a process that wouldn’t require the pink curing salts used in commercially produced hams, not because they are unhealthy, they’re not, but because it would be hard for some of you to find. I’ve read things in the past about using celery’s naturally occurring nitrates to accomplish the same thing, so that’s what I used, and as you’ll hear me say several times in the video, I was thrilled with the results! While not exactly like a classic city ham, this was very close. The firm, moist texture was great,...

This is what our 6-pounder looked like. Would a 20 pounder work as well? Spoiler Alert: Yes. The most common question after we posted our now famous “ Method X ” for making perfect prime rib was “will this work with much bigger, full-size roasts?” Since I ' d only used the method on smaller specimens, I was hesitant to green-light much larger pieces of beef without having tested it myself. Well, thanks to Bill in Salt Lake City, we now have visual proof that this great technique does work on the big boys. Here’s what the fearless cook had to sa y : “Your recipe does indeed work on larger bone-in prime rib roasts . I followed the recipe to the tee, on three 18 to 21 lb. roasts using three different ovens in three separate ski condo ovens, all with different thermostats. All came out perfectly. I had 29 very pleased snowmobilers!” As everyone knows, there are few groups harder to please than a bunch of starving, probably drunk snowmobilers, so this must have really been amazing. Be...

After posting my turkey ballotine photos from Thanksgiving, I was inundated with requests (demands) for a video demonstration. Of course, that would have meant buying and eating another turkey, so I decided to take the easy way out and post this clip from one of my heroes, Jacques Pépin. This is from pepinfan’s YouTube page , and it looks to be an episode from the venerable chef’s public television series. This was the exact same technique I used on the turkey, except I needed to use a knife for several steps that he's simply doing with his hands. Hopefully it gives you some idea how it’s done. Enjoy!

After being inspired by watching dozens of celebrity chefs' favorite turkey techniques over the last few days, I decided to show a turkey being prepared using none of them. This goes out to all you terrified first timers whose heads are probably spinning with cryptic visions of brining, rubbing, marinating, injecting, smoking, and frying. This also goes out to you grizzled veterans who realize the turkey is  nothing more than an edible centerpiece; merely an excuse to surround ourselves with the most delicious and decadent side dishes and desserts possible. I’m not saying that all those tips and tricks aren’t worthwhile; they are, and I’ve used many of them at one time or another, but the fact remains that if you simply buy a great bird, rub it with a some butter, season it generously, and slow roast it – you’ll have a perfectly wonderful tasting turkey with magazine cover good looks. Having said that, I don't really expect most of you to just settle for such a primitive metho...

If you’re a turkey, and you’re getting boned-out, there’s a good chance you’re about to become Turducken, which in this chef’s opinion, is one of the most overrated recipes of all time. When was the last time you sat down in a restaurant and thought, “I hope the chef’s doing a turkey, duck, chicken trio.” However, the idea of removing those pesky bones before your bird makes its grand entrance may be worth considering. Not only do you get an impressive looking roast to wow the table, but carving is significantly easier. I didn't have time to show here, but of course you are making a killer turkey stock with all those bones, so that's another advantage. Also, if you're worried about losing flavor, don't. This tastes virtually identical.  If you’ve ever found yourself hacking up a perfectly good turkey in front of the family, while flop-sweat drips onto the mangled meat, then this approach may be for you. Sure, it takes a good hour to prep, but that’s pretty much where th...

As I’m sure you’ve heard by now, possibly in our last post, today is National Homemade Bread Day. So, I decided to do a flatbread video, demonstrating what was probably the world’s first wheat-based bread. It never ceases to amaze me how a little flour and water can be transformed into such delicious, gorgeous bread, and in just a matter of minutes at that. Inspired by the thought of these earliest flatbreads, I went with about half wheat flour and half all-purpose, as well as a little spoon of corn meal for some extra texture.   I’ll be giving no ingredient amounts below. Flatbread’s not like that. Combine water, flour and a pinch or two of salt; and mix together as shown until you have a soft, sticky dough. That’s it. The other key is to use a very hot cast iron pan or griddle. You can wipe the surface with a tiny bit of vegetable oil, but basically a dry pan works the best. If you’re not in a hurry, wrap your dough and let it sit on the counter top for an hour or two. This will...

As promised, here’s the video for how to make your own puff pastry shells, or vol au vents, as they'd be called in France, and select U.S. locations. These are fairly simple to make, and once baked the real fun begins, as they can hold so many amazing fillings, both sweet and savory. The key is making sure your puff pastry dough is very firm, and very cold, preferably still partially frozen, before you start cutting it. You want nice clean cuts, because if you mash the layers of pastry together, your shells will not rise as high, and they can also bake into some strange shapes. Having said that, even though I was filming, and working way too slowly, these still came out pretty well. Once they’re filled they look great, so it’s not that big of a deal, but in general, the colder the dough, the nicer the final product. Other than being too rough with the dough, the other common mistake is under cooking. Your shells might look beautiful at 15 minutes, but may still be kind of raw ...

People throw the term “like a boss” around very casually these days, but when I say this technique shows how to peel garlic like a boss, it’s meant literally. I was channel surfing a while back, and saw Martha Stewart demo this very cool trick, and she is, in every sense of the word, a boss. Many people have inspired me along this entrepreneurial journey online, and Martha is definitely one of them. By the way, I hope she doesn’t take exception to my prison shank joke; but since we are friends (and by friends I mean we’ve never spoken, but do follow each other on Twitter ), I’m sure she’ll be fine with it. All kidding aside, this trick is no joke. The great thing about this method, besides the speed and ease, is that you are truly peeling the garlic, and not crushing it. A crushed garlic clove produces a stronger flavor than a peeled one, especially when used raw, and so this is perfect when you need to mince or slice whole, undamaged cloves. I hope you give this easy trick a try soon...

They say timing is everything; to which I would add, “was” everything, and “will be” everything. So, with that in mind I present this “make-ahead” turkey gravy with porcini mushrooms and Marsala wine. The Thanksgiving Day kitchen is a busy, hectic scene that can intimidate even the most experienced cooks. As dinnertime approaches, you’re flying around the kitchen trying to get everything to the table, hot, looking delicious, and most importantly, on time. While the turkey is resting under foil, you’re mashing potatoes, reheating sweet potatoes, warming rolls, and probably trying to finish a gravy. That’s a lot of stuff going on, and one reason new cooks are so afraid to try a big holiday meal. However, by doing your gravy ahead of time, you make that last-minute production a lot easier, and your other offerings will benefit from the extra attention. That’s not to say I want you to throw away all those lovely turkey pan juices sitting in your roasting pan. Time permitting of course, st...

When a very positively reviewed cookie, cake, or other pastry recipe and gets an atypically bad appraisal, it can often be traced back to flour measuring technique, or lack there of. I did this video a few years ago to illustrate the point, and since we’re heading into holiday baking season, I thought it’d be a great time to review. This isn’t to say that people don’t occasionally post recipes with ingredient errors [clears throat nervously] , but if a cookie gets mostly rave reviews, and yet you thought it was a little dense, there’s a chance it could be this common culprit. Anyway, this clip shows you why weight is better, and also how to properly measure by volume. Enjoy!

Since we’re heading into rich and creamy sauce season, I thought I’d use a nice hunk of Gorgonzola as an excuse to post a tutorial for a classic “cream sauce.”  Unlike what’s passed off as the real stuff at casual dining chains, a true cream sauce contains nothing but heavy cream, and is on another level when it comes to taste and texture. A regular diet of cream sauce isn’t recommended, but once in a while, it’s nice to take a break from the old 2%, and the technique is dead simple. Simmer cream in a saucepan until it reduces and thickens slightly, flavor it however, and toss in some hot (hopefully stuffed) pasta. Done and done. I went with a fairly mild, crumbly Gorgonzola this time, but no matter which you choose, be careful not to “cook” the cheese. You just want to stir it in on low, until it’s almost gone, and then turn off the heat. Otherwise the cheese will “break,” and you’ll have a greasy mess. Since my mini-ravioli delivery system featured a squash filling, I decided to ...

I've gotten a ton of food wishes for a pressure cooker demo, all unfulfilled due to my serious lack of a pressure cooker. So, when my friends at IMUSA asked me if I was interested in testing their pressure cooker, I answered with an enthusiastic yes. When you ask someone why they don't use a pressure cooker, one of the most common replies is something to the effect of, "I'm really not into being killed by an exploding stew." Well, I'm here to tell you, if used properly (meaning you actually read and follow the directions), the chances of a pressure cooker injuring you in an explosion is in credibly slim. You have a better chance of breaking your toe by dropping a bowling ball on it, and this assumes you don't bowl. While the video features a quite acceptable beef stew-style chili recipe, which I've always called chili Colorado, the point of this post is to give someone new to pressure cookers an overview of the basic steps, tips, and techniques. I...

I’m not sure when or where I started reheating leftover pizza using this stovetop method, but it’s one of my favorite kitchen shortcuts of all time. By the way, since I don’t remember learning this from anyone, I’ll assume I invented it.  So, if you’ve been actually been doing this for years, and know many others who do the same, please keep it to yourself, and just let me have my moment. There are so many advantages to using this method. There’s no insufferable wait for an oven to preheat (10 minutes in real time is 45 minutes in “I have the munchies” time); you don’t waste all that extra energy (you’re welcome, Planet Earth); and most important of all, you get perfectly crisp crust. In fact, you’ll get a crust that’s hotter and crispier than it was when it was first served. Of course some of you will go to the old toaster oven card, and while that does work just as fast as this method, it does not give you the same quality of crispy crust. Besides, many of us haven’t seen a toast...

This time of year pomegranates make their annual appearance in produce aisles, and despite being beautiful, delicious, and nutritious, many shoppers avoid them because they simply don’t know how to work with the colorful, but mysterious fruit. This video shows a great method for harvesting all those juicy seeds without any mess. By the way, the individual kernels are water-proof, so don't worry about them losing any flavor in the bowl. Enjoy!