Inane Thread - Boling Vegetables

[skipper734]

We don't own a microwave - that's how offended I am by your suggestion.

I bet you would if Apple made one. (Apple iwave)

 

[Tricky Dicky]

I'm not allowed to steam veg, for medical reasons. I don't use the kettle as it doesn't get de-scaled often enough. I do tend to put the veg in the pan then boil the water - I'm sure chefs would say that the water should be boiling before your plunge the veg in.

 

[Simster]

Most days my lunch is a big box of home roasted veg - any of butternut squash, sweet potato, mushrooms, courgettes, peppers, onions, leeks, carrots, broccoli, baby corn, mange tout with a handful or rocket and a liberal dosing of chilli sauce. I literally NEVER get bored of it.

And you're right - the squash is spectacular. 'Shrooms always roast well too.

Point of order. The best way of cooking courgette by a long long way is to lightly FRY them. They are watery, mushy shite when boiled, very plain when steamed, but a culinery DELIGHT when fried.

 

[BensGrandad]

Thats what I was brought up to believe. Root vegetables like potato carrot and swede etc go into cold water and brought up to the boil but greens sprouts etc go straight into boiling water.

 

[Seagull kimchi]

if its grown under ground boil from cold/if grown above place into boiling water

This is Gospel from the Rev.

 

[Hillian1]

I'm not allowed to steam veg, for medical reasons. I don't use the kettle as it doesn't get de-scaled often enough. I do tend to put the veg in the pan then boil the water - I'm sure chefs would say that the water should be boiling before your plunge the veg in.

What medical reason stops you steaming veg? i am intrigued

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

Point of order. The best way of cooking courgette by a long long way is to lightly FRY them. They are watery, mushy shite when boiled, very plain when steamed, but a culinery DELIGHT when fried.

True - but even better when thinly sliced, tossed in oil and griddled. Then when still warm, dressed with lemon juice, olive oil and a little fresh thyme, then served with fresh bread and a salt cheese such as feta.

 

[fire&skill]

We don't own a microwave - that's how offended I am by your suggestion.

I bet you would if Apple made one. (Apple iwave)

 

[Trufflehound]

Surely steaming saves energy and money? Once the water's boiled it's more efficient to steam it than boil whatever way you've boiled the water?

Yes, on the simple assumption that you're using less water for steaming than for boiling, so it will take less energy to keep it hot.

 

[Trufflehound]

if you cook with gas, i'd dispute that (but I might be wrong)

In a kettle, the heat from the element is directly in contact with the water, so heats that rather than the vessel or the surrounding air.

With a cooker, whether gas or electric, the heat has to pass through the air and the pan before it reaches the water. Therefore losses to the surroundings en route are inevitable.

Plus most modern kettles are better insulated than saucepans, so lose less heat to the surroundings. I can put my hand on my kettle after it's boiled without burning myself. I wouldn't dream of pulling that stunt with a pan of boiling water.


Having said all that, the amount of energy if insignificant compared to what we use on central heating. If people really want to save gas/electricity and therefore money, turning your thermostat down half a degree over the winter will save you far more than boiling a hundred kettles...

 

[Trufflehound]

Point of order. The best way of cooking courgette by a long long way is to lightly FRY them. They are watery, mushy shite when boiled, very plain when steamed, but a culinery DELIGHT when fried.

This is correct.

True - but even better when thinly sliced, tossed in oil and griddled. Then when still warm, dressed with lemon juice, olive oil and a little fresh thyme, then served with fresh bread and a salt cheese such as feta.

So is this.

 

[keaton]

In a kettle, the heat from the element is directly in contact with the water, so heats that rather than the vessel or the surrounding air.

With a cooker, whether gas or electric, the heat has to pass through the air and the pan before it reaches the water. Therefore losses to the surroundings en route are inevitable.

Plus most modern kettles are better insulated than saucepans, so lose less heat to the surroundings. I can put my hand on my kettle after it's boiled without burning myself. I wouldn't dream of pulling that stunt with a pan of boiling water.


Having said all that, the amount of energy if insignificant compared to what we use on central heating. If people really want to save gas/electricity and therefore money, turning your thermostat down half a degree over the winter will save you far more than boiling a hundred kettles...

But far more energy is used to get electricity to it's point of usage than gas

 

[NMH]

So many veg are best served raw.
Not spuds though - they are poisonous when uncooked.

 

[Simster]

True - but even better when thinly sliced, tossed in oil and griddled. Then when still warm, dressed with lemon juice, olive oil and a little fresh thyme, then served with fresh bread and a salt cheese such as feta.

 

[Fungus]

So many veg are best served raw.
Not spuds though - they are poisonous when uncooked.

Yep, courgettes should be eaten raw. Rubbish any other way.

 

[Bozza]

Griddling and pan frying is all well and good, but when I'm making a big batch of lunchable roast veg, simple is best. And simple is just chopping it all up and lobbing into a pan in the over with some olive oil and retrieving after 30-40 minutes.

 

[Trufflehound]

But far more energy is used to get electricity to it's point of usage than gas

Could be. Depends on how the electricity was produced. Getting gas from the North Sea (or wherever) to your hob is hardly an effiicient process either.

I think before he cooks any more vegetables, Cheeky Monkey needs to carry out a full Life-Cycle Analysis of his gas and electricity suppliers, and ask the gas and electricity companies to show a Certificate of Origin before deciding how to proceed.

Or he could just say sod it and turn the heating down instead...

 

[Trufflehound]

lobbing into a pan in the over

Would that be under over or over done?

We have clearance, Clarence.

Roger, Roger. What's our vector, Victor?

 

[The Large One]

Steaming - use salted water in the pan, and add your flavours (honey for carrots, cinnamon if steaming parsnips, nutmeg if steaming spuds). When done, use that flavoured water for the gravy.

 

[Gully]

For me boiling has to be the last option, far better to roast, steam, eat raw, stir-fry or bake, rather than boiling the very life out of a vegetable. However, when boiling, I always add the vegetables to lightly salted boiling water, even potatoes, which seems to work fairly well.

Good point about roasting root vegetables, earlier in the week I cooked a risotto and served it with parsnips, carrots and butternut squash that had been roasted in olive oil and honey...delicious!