NUMBER 153 JULY & AUGUST 2018

Grilled Chicken
Thighs
Dead-Simple Method
Tacos Dorados
Ultimate Hard-Shell Tacos
Chewiest
Granola Bars
Unlikely Secret Ingredient
How to Grill
Tomatoes
Plus Three Bold Recipes
Mexican Corn Salad
Fast and Flavorful
Testing Instant-Read
Thermometers
Finding the Fastest
˚
Tasting Fresh Mozzarella
Top 12 Grilling Mistakes to Avoid
Peruvian Ceviche

CooksIllustrated.com
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 JULY & AUGUST 2018

2 Quick Tips 20 Mexican Corn Salad

Quick and easy ways to perform everyday tasks, Make this bright, creamy charred-corn salad
from pounding meat to storing dry goods. without firing up the grill. BY LAN LAM
COMPILED BY ANNIE PETITO

21 Dark Chocolate
4 Grilled Chicken Thighs Fudge Sauce
Flavorful, meaty, inexpensive thighs should be the We wanted a pourable, easily reheated sauce
easiest part of the chicken to cook on the grill— with a dark chocolate soul. BY STEVE DUNN
not a direct path to an inferno.
BY STEVE DUNN
22 Peach Tarte Tatin
Yes, you can make a juicy, summery, peach-crowned
6 Fresh Tomato Sauce version of the classic upside-down caramelized
Tomato flavor is fleeting—which is why we apple tart. No, you can’t simply substitute peaches
examined every part of the fruit and our cooking for apples. BY ANDREA GEARY
method until we’d engineered a sauce that was
bright, sweet, and aromatic. BY STEVE DUNN
24 Tasting Fresh Mozzarella
What makes the best fresh mozzarella? It’s all
8 Introducing Tacos Dorados about balance. BY LAUREN SAVOIE
The hard-shell taco has been an American staple
for more than half a century. When we traced
its roots, we found a way to take it to a new,
PAGE 14
26 Testing Digital
ultracrispy level. BY ANNIE PETITO Thermometers
We’ve recommended a Thermapen for more
14 How to Grill Tomatoes
10 Vietnamese Pork Grilling enhances tomatoes with smoky char
than a decade, but there’s new competition. Is it
still the best option?
with Rice Noodles while preserving their summery taste. But don’t
BY HANNAH CROWLEY
Bun cha—a one-dish meal featuring grilled pork simply throw them onto the fire or you’ll end up
patties, crisp vegetables, springy noodles, and a with a mushy mess. BY ANNIE PETITO
vibrant sauce—cooks as quickly as a burger but 28 Ingredient Notes
tastes much lighter. BY ANDREA GEARY
16 Top 12 Grilling Mistakes BY ANDREA GEARY, ANDREW JANJIGIAN, LAN LAM
& ANNIE PETITO
to Avoid
12 Better-Than-the-Box Some of the most common practices are also the
Granola Bars wrong ones. BY ELIZABETH BOMZE 30 Kitchen Notes
BY STEVE DUNN, ANDREA GEARY & LAN LAM
We love the idea of chewy granola bars, but
store-bought versions are overly sweet, contain
mostly filler, and are soft, not chewy. We took
18 Peruvian Ceviche 32 Equipment Corner
Bright citrus is great with fresh seafood—provided
matters into our own hands. BY ANDREA GEARY BY MIYE BROMBERG, EMILY PHARES, LAUREN
that the acid doesn’t overwhelm its delicate flavor.
We went fishing for more balance and found it in SAVOIE & KATE SHANNON
this regional version.
BY ANDREW JANJIGIAN

BACK COVER ILLUSTRATED BY JOHN BURGOYNE

Corn Products
CORN is one of the world’s most essential food crops. While the corn silk is
discarded from a cleaned ear, CORN HUSKS are harvested and dried. When America’s Test Kitchen is a real test kitchen
reconstituted, they can be used to wrap tamales. Plump HOMINY, made by located in Boston. It is the home of more than
60 test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists.
soaking dried yellow or white kernels in an alkaline solution to remove the
Our mission is to test recipes until we under-
hull and germ, can be added to dishes such as Mexican posole. It can also be stand exactly how and why they work and
ground and dried to make masa harina, which is mixed with water to make eventually arrive at the very best version. We
chewy, pliable yellow or WHITE CORN TORTILLAS. Cutting the tortillas into also test kitchen equipment and supermarket
quarters and then crisping them in hot oil produces TORTILLA CHIPS. ingredients in search of products that ofer the
CORN NUTS, giant dried corn kernels that have been soaked, fried, and salted, best value and performance. You can watch
are consumed both as a snack and as a garnish for ceviche. CORNMEAL is us work by tuning in to America’s Test Kitchen
(AmericasTestKitchen.com) and Cook’s Country
ground dried yellow or white corn kernels, from ine- and coarse-ground
from America’s Test Kitchen (CooksCountry.com)
POLENTA to grits. The kernels of certain varieties of corn can be dried and
on public television and listen to our weekly
used to make POPCORN. These KERNELS can be YELLOW or CRIMSON (the segments on The Splendid Table on public radio.
pufed corn does not retain the colors). Heat causes the moisture within them You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter,
to build up steam pressure so that they explode into tender pufs. Pinterest, and Instagram.
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ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE

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JULY & AUGUST 2018

1
 Plunge Tomato Paste Pin Your Place in a Recipe
Instead of spooning tomato paste
from its small can, Gary Schwartz
of Lake Elmo, Minn., “plunges” it
QUI CK To avoid losing her place in a recipe
when toggling between reading the
text and cooking, Mary Gerber of
out. He uses a can opener to cut
the lids on both ends, removes the
lid from only one side, and uses the
TI P S Brunswick, Maine, clips a clothespin
to the page. She moves it down the
text as she cooks so she can quickly
freed-up lid on the opposite side find her place.
to push the paste into a bowl. j COMPILED BY ANNIE PETITO k

Crumple Parchment Paper for Blind Baking

Alice Hall of Chardon, Ohio, lines pastry shells with parchment paper when
blind-baking but finds it difficult to position the stiff parchment snugly in the shell
before adding pie weights. Crumpling the paper into a ball and then unfolding it
helps it settle into the pastry.

Same Sheet for Raw and

Cooked Meat
When transporting raw proteins to
the grill on a rimmed baking sheet,
Kristin Wianecki of Okemos, Mich.,
lines the sheet with aluminum foil or
plastic wrap so that she can remove
the liner and reuse the sheet to col-
lect the cooked food.
Watermelon “Sticks”
Eating watermelon wedges is messy, so Trisha Novy of Philadelphia, Pa., cuts the melon into sticks that are tidier to bite. First,
she halves the melon crosswise. Then, working with one half at a time, she cuts 1- to 2-inch slices across the melon, rotates it,
and cuts it again in a grid pattern.

ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE

SEND US YOUR TIPS We will provide a complimentary one-year subscription for each tip we print. Send your tip, name, address, and
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COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

2
Save Time with Spice Kits Salad Greens Boxes as Storage Bins
Nancy Immel of Bernalillo, N.M., saves herself prep time by putting together “spice kits” Sharon Morris of Austin, Texas, reuses large plastic salad greens
in advance for her favorite dishes and storing them in small zipper-lock bags to have at the containers as bins to consolidate dry goods such as pasta and
ready when she cooks these recipes. rice in her pantry. The clear plastic means the contents are easily
visible, and the flat containers can be stacked.

Makeshift Meat Pounder

Mandy Phillips of Omaha, Neb., doesn’t
own a meat pounder, so she uses the
flat bottom of a small heavy skillet
instead. After sandwiching the raw meat
between sheets of plastic wrap, she
pounds the meat to an even thickness.

Mind the Gaps (in Your Bread)

When you use bread slices with large holes in the crumb to make
grilled cheese sandwiches, melted cheese can drip through the holes
and make a mess. Liz LeVan of San Antonio, Texas, plugs up the holes
by tearing some of the soft crumb from the heel of the bread and
stuffing the pieces into the gaps.

An Easier Way to Clean Corn

When husking fresh corn, Carrol Bailey of Williamsburg,
Va., dons clean rubber gloves to remove the clingy silk.
The friction from the gloves helps her grab the fine
threads, making them easier to pull away.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

3
 Grilled Chicken Thighs
Flavorful, meaty, inexpensive thighs should be the easiest part of the
chicken to cook on the grill—not a direct path to an inferno.
j BY STEVE DUNN k

O
ne of my earliest cooking we’ve found that dark meat benefits from
memories is of my dad posi- being cooked much more thoroughly,
tioned at the grill, squirt especially if it also cooks slowly. That’s
bottle in one hand and grill because the longer the meat spends cook-
tongs in the other, working furiously to ing at temperatures above 140 degrees, the
rescue chicken thighs from a three-alarm more of its abundant collagen breaks down
blaze. In a rush to get dinner on the table, and transforms into gelatin that lubricates
he would position the thighs directly over the meat, making it seem juicy and tender.
the fire to cook them quickly. Within The method was dead easy, and all
minutes, their rendering fat dripped into seemed to be going well until I moved
the flames, ignited, and grew into a blaze the thighs to the hotter side of the grill
that forced him to shuffle the chicken and flipped them onto their skin sides
around the grate while he simultaneously to crisp. Fat poured out from under the
tried to quell the fire with water from his skin, dripped into the fire, and sent flames
squirt bottle. I can’t lie: The pyrotechnics shooting up. I managed to salvage some
were pretty thrilling to watch as a kid. But of the thighs and was pleased that the meat
eating the chicken was less thrilling—the was, indeed, quite tender and moist after the
chewy meat tasted of acrid smoke and was lengthy stint over indirect heat. But the skin
covered with rubbery, badly charred skin. wasn’t nearly as nice to eat—not just because
Chicken thighs have a lot going for them: it was burnt in spots, but because it was still
They’re more flavorful and less prone to flabby and chewy beneath the surface.
overcooking than leaner breasts, boast a rela-
tively high ratio of meat to bone, and have a Skin Treatment
flat layer of skin that is prime for browning Crispy, evenly bronzed chicken skin is a
and crisping. What makes them challenging real treat, but it takes both ample time
to cook, especially over a live fire, is that they and heat to produce those results. That’s
tend to have more subcutaneous fat than The flat layer of skin on thighs is ideal for crisping over the fire. partly because chicken skin—particularly
other parts of the chicken, which means the the skin on thighs—is padded with fat that
skin is at risk of not thoroughly rendering and remain- closer to the heat go to the outside, and those on must render before the skin can crisp. But fat isn’t
ing chewy and flabby, which will cause flare-ups. the outside go closer to the heat—so that they all the only factor that makes chicken skin flabby and
My goal: a recipe that would produce juicy, fla- finish cooking at the same time. Then we move the chewy; skin, like meat, contains collagen that must
vorful meat and well-rendered, crispy skin—minus drumsticks directly over the heat to briefly brown break down in order for it to turn tender. Only once
the inferno. and crisp the skin. the skin is tender can it then crisp (see “What’s Good
I placed eight thighs skin side up over the cooler for Tender Meat Is Good for the Crispiest Skin”).
A Leg Up half of a grill, thinking that the fat in the skin would The thighs were already spending a long time

PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY; ILLUSTRATION: JAY LAYMAN

My colleague Andrea Geary recently developed a lubricate the meat as it rendered. After 20 minutes, on the grill, but maybe the skin wasn’t getting
recipe for Grilled Spice-Rubbed Chicken Drumsticks I rearranged the pieces and then let them cook hot enough to shed fat. So I spent the next several
(May/June 2017) that I thought might be a good for another 15 to 20 minutes until they registered tests exposing the skin to more heat. Making a
blueprint for thighs, too. The key is to cook the between 185 and 190 degrees. That’s well past the hotter fire helped but at the expense of the meat,
chicken over indirect heat for about an hour, during point of doneness for white meat (160 degrees), but which moved too quickly through the collagen
which time fat and collagen in the meat and skin ren-
der and break down, respectively, so that the meat is
tender and the skin is primed for crisping. We also How to Portion the Paste LESS PASTE ON SKIN SIDE
Minimal moisture means
arrange the drumsticks in two rows alongside the fire Our pastes add potent lavor, but it’s important MORE PASTE
ON FLESH SIDE skin can crisp.
and rearrange them halfway through cooking—those to apply them strategically. We found that too Nooks and
much paste on the skin prevented it from crisp- crannies capture
ing, so we applied two-thirds of the paste to bold flavors.
Mostly Hands-Of Chicken the lesh side and the remaining one-third to the
A step-by-step video is available skin side to ensure that the skin was seasoned
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 but not wet.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

4
 SCIENCE What’s Good for Tender Meat Is Good for the Crispiest Skin
We know that cooking chicken thighs low and slow Collagen Water Gelatin
is a sureire way to produce tender meat. But it’s also
a great way to ensure crispy skin. Like thigh meat,
chicken skin is loaded with collagen. During cook-
ing—especially lengthy cooking at relatively moderate
temperatures—collagen breaks down into a protein
called gelatin. That gelatin forms a mesh that holds on
to water and makes the skin soft and tender.
Then, when the tender skin is seared over high
heat, the gelatin strands become rigid and the water
evaporates out from among them so fast that it leaves
RAW SKIN COOKED SKIN SEARED SKIN
behind tiny air spaces in the mesh—or, as we perceive Collagen starts out Cooking breaks down Quickly cooking off water
it, crispiness. tough and chewy. collagen into soft gelatin. leaves gelatin crisped.

breakdown zone and was thus not as tender. I had were lots of nooks and crannies to capture the paste, 3. Clean and oil cooking grate. Place chicken,
better luck turning the thighs skin side down mid- and the remaining third that I rubbed over the skin skin side down, on cooler side of grill. Cover and
way through cooking instead of at the end; more seasoned and flavored it without adding so much cook for 20 minutes. Rearrange chicken, keeping
direct (but still gentle) heat melted the fat, which moisture that crisping was inhibited. The only hitch: skin side down, so that pieces that were positioned
now dripped out of each piece instead of puddling Since the chicken cooked skin side down the whole closest to edge of grill are now closer to heat
under the skin. But I got the best results yet when time, the paste on the flesh side looked and tasted a source and vice versa. Cover and continue to cook
I cooked the chicken skin side down from start to bit raw. So after the skin crisped over the hotter side until chicken registers 185 to 190 degrees, 15 to
finish. By the time the meat was tender, much of of the grill, I flipped the pieces onto the flesh side for 20 minutes longer.
the skin’s fat had rendered and the skin had become a minute or two to take the raw edge off the paste. 4. Move all chicken, skin side down, to hotter
paper-thin and soft, so all I had to do to crisp it up Perfectly tender, juicy meat; thin, crispy skin; bold side of grill and cook until skin is lightly charred,
was slide the thighs over to the hotter side for about flavor; and a method that requires practically zero about 5 minutes. Flip chicken and cook until flesh
5 minutes. The method was so easy, and the results work. Dinner’s in the bag—not in the fire. side is lightly browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer
were perfect—if a bit plain. to platter, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest for
BEST GRILLED CHICKEN THIGHS 10 minutes. Serve.
Aced the Paste SERVES 4 TO 6
I didn’t want to thwart my skin-crisping efforts by GOCHUJANG PASTE
dousing the thighs with a wet marinade, so I rubbed In step 1, the chicken can be refrigerated for up MAKES ABOUT ⅓ CUP
a few robustly seasoned pastes onto the chicken: a to 2 hours before grilling. Our recipes for Best
version that tapped into my love of Korean fried Grilled Chicken Thighs for Two and Garam Masala Gochujang, or Korean red chili paste, can be found in
chicken with gochujang and soy sauce, a mustard Paste are available for free for four months at Asian markets or in the Asian section of large
and tarragon paste with loads of garlic, and an Indian CooksIllustrated.com/aug18. supermarkets.
version with garam masala and ginger.
The trick was applying it strategically, since even 8 (5- to 7-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, 3 tablespoons gochujang
the moderate moisture in the paste could soften the trimmed 1 tablespoon soy sauce
skin. I found that spreading two-thirds of the paste ½ teaspoon kosher salt 2 garlic cloves, minced
on the flesh side of each thigh worked best; there 1 recipe paste (recipes follow) 2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1. Place chicken, skin side up, on large plate.
Perfect Results, Sprinkle skin side with salt and spread evenly with Combine all ingredients in bowl.
Practically Zero Efort one-third of spice paste. Flip chicken and spread
We found that the best way to produce moist, remaining two-thirds of paste evenly over flesh side. MUSTARD-TARRAGON PASTE
tender meat and thin, crispy skin is also the easiest. Refrigerate while preparing grill. MAKES ABOUT ⅓ CUP

2A. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open

bottom vent halfway. Light large chimney starter Rosemary or thyme can be substituted for the tar-
1. Cook, skin side
down, over cooler
mounded with charcoal briquettes (7 quarts). When ragon, if desired. When using this paste, we like to
side until last few top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly serve the chicken with lemon wedges.
minutes. over half of grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover,
and open lid vent halfway. Heat grill until hot, about 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
5 minutes. 5 garlic cloves, minced
2. Transfer to
hotter side and 2B. FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
sear skin; flip and high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 min- 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon
sear flesh side. utes. Leave primary burner on high and turn off 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
other burner(s). (Adjust primary burner [or, if using 1 teaspoon water
3-burner grill, primary burner and second burner] ½ teaspoon pepper
SET IT AND (ALMOST) FORGET IT
as needed to maintain grill temperature around
350 degrees.) Combine all ingredients in bowl.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

5
 Fresh Tomato Sauce
Tomato lavor is leeting—which is why we examined every part of the fruit and our
cooking method until we’d engineered a sauce that was bright, sweet, and aromatic.
j BY STEVE DUNN k

H
igh-end, tech-minded chefs I roughly chopped the tomatoes and sim-
and bartenders cheat the nor- mered each batch for about 40 minutes,
mal laws of cooking by using by which point the sauces had enough
a contraption called a rotary body to coat pasta.
evaporator (or “rotovap”). The device, There was no question that using the
which costs upwards of $8,000, works by whole tomato, sans the core, contributed
gently heating a liquid, such as tomato to a more complex flavor in the sauce and
juice, in a vacuum chamber. The vacuum that eliminating any single component
lets the juice boil at near room tempera- could throw off the balance. Most nota-
ture, which lets volatile flavors get extracted bly, the batch that contained no skins or
from the liquid and concentrated. jelly was so sweet and one-dimensional
It’s a tool that could revolutionize that tasters likened it to tomato “candy.”
fresh tomato sauce, which has an inherent Leaving in the jelly and seeds yielded a
dilemma: Simmering cooks out the very sauce with better sweet-savory balance,
thing that makes a ripe tomato so special—its and using the skins improved it even
bright, sweet, delicate flavor. On the other further. (For more information on what
hand, if you don’t cook juicy tomatoes long each part of the tomato contributes, see
enough to evaporate a good bit of their “Calibrating Balanced Tomato Flavor.”)
liquid, the sauce won’t have enough body A drawback to including the seeds and
to cling to pasta, and its flavor won’t be skins was that they marred the sauce’s
intense enough. consistency. Also, many sources claim
Imagine: a fresh tomato sauce that actu- that tomato seeds impart bitterness, so
ally tastes like a fresh tomato. I didn’t have a I figured I’d make a seedless batch to
rotovap. But I did have a garden chock-full find out. Seeding the tomatoes would
of tomatoes, along with a test kitchen and be simple: After halving the tomatoes, I
a dream. gently squeezed the jelly into a fine-mesh
This vibrant-tasting sauce has a lighter consistency than most tomato sauces, strainer that I’d set over a bowl, discarding
The Tomato Lab so don’t add any pasta cooking water or it will be too loose. the seeds and capturing the flavor-packed
I combed through a number of sauce recipes liquid to add to the sauce. Then I
that called for fresh tomatoes (conventional round tomatoes, extra-virgin olive oil, and a little minced chopped the tomato flesh and, to break down the
ones, not plum or cherry varieties), but I came garlic) but varied which tomato components I used: skins, pureed the pieces with their liquid in a blender
away with more questions than I’d started with. For one batch I removed only the core, keeping the until the mixture was smooth.
Not only was there no consensus on which parts skin, the flesh, and the thick “jelly” and seeds; for That yielded about 10 cups of tomato puree,
of the tomato should be included or eliminated another I cored the tomatoes and removed the skin; which tasted sweet, savory, bright, and delicately
(other than the core), but the cooking times ranged and for the third I cored the tomatoes and removed aromatic. (Including the skins also made the recipe
from just 20 minutes to as long as 2 hours. When the skin, jelly, and seeds, using just the tomato flesh. ultrasimple because there was no need to blanch,
I made some of the recipes, I wasn’t surprised that
the quick-cooked sauces retained much more fresh
tomato flavor than those that simmered for longer. Save Some Fresh Flavor for Later
But there were also stark flavor differences among the Raw ripe tomatoes are loaded with lavor and aroma
lot—one-dimensional sweetness in some, balanced compounds that make them taste sweet, bright, and
savoriness in others—that seemed to relate directly aromatic. But many of those compounds are volatile PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
to which parts of the tomato I’d used. when heated, which is why cooking the fruit to a
That informed my next round of tests, in which I sauce-like consistency destroys its fresh lavor. To
made batches of the same simple sauce (5 pounds of make a sauce that was thick enough to coat pasta
but retained as much fresh tomato lavor as possible,
we reserved some of the raw tomato jelly that we’d
Steve Keeps It Simple strained of its seeds and added it to the sauce at
A step-by-step video is available the end of cooking, along with fresh basil and some
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 extra-virgin olive oil.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

6
 RECIPE TESTING Calibrating Balanced Tomato Flavor
Did you know that the most concentrated source of fresh tomato lavor is in the fruit’s skin? Neither did we,
until we tasted batches of our Fresh Tomato Sauce made with varying parts of the fruit: skin, lesh, jelly, and
seeds. (In each batch, we irst discarded the core.) Our goal was to determine which elements of a tomato
we should keep and which we should discard for a sauce that tasted sweet, bright, and aromatic.
(The upshot: The sauce that contained skin, lesh, and jelly delivered the most balanced lavor. (The seeds
didn’t contribute any noticeable lavor, but their texture was distracting, so we strained them out.) Here’s a
breakdown of the dominant lavor and aroma compounds in each component.

Skin:
Aroma Flesh:
compounds Aroma compounds, sugars
(including (glucose and fructose), and
terpenes, acids (citric and malic acids)
ketones, and
aldehydes) Jelly:
Umami compounds (including
amino acids), sugars, and acids

shock, and peel the tomatoes as many recipes pepper flakes along with the garlic, and to reinforce Don’t Can It—Freeze It
require.) Notably, the seedless puree tasted no differ- the freshness, I added a couple of tablespoons of If you have a bumper crop of tomatoes, the
ent from the previous batch, proving that the seeds olive oil and a cup of shredded basil to the cooked recipe for our Fresh Tomato Sauce can be
hadn’t contributed any significant flavor, bitter or sauce with the reserved tomato jelly. easily doubled. But we don’t recommend
otherwise. But achieving that flavor balance brought The result boasted all the nuances of a ripe sum- canning this sauce; doing so requires adding acid
me only partway to my goal. I needed to reduce the mer tomato—delicate sweetness, fragrant aroma, to make the sauce food-safe, which will distort
puree by about half to achieve a sauce-like consis- vibrant but balanced acidity—with just enough body its delicate, sweet lavor. Simply portion it into
tency, but many of the aromatic flavor compounds in to cling to pasta. (No rotovap necessary!) This is the airtight containers or jars and freeze it for up
the fruit that made the puree taste fresh and balanced sauce I’ll be making every summer, and since the to three months. Here are two tips that make
are volatile, meaning they evaporate at a relatively recipe makes a generous amount and can easily be the process easy.
low temperature. That’s why simmering the sauce doubled, I’ll be stashing a supply in the freezer to
all but kills fresh tomato flavor. enjoy in the dead of winter when I need to remind 1. To quickly cool the sauce, transfer it to a
myself what a ripe tomato tastes like. stainless-steel bowl, set the bowl over a larger
Freshen Up bowl illed with ice, and stir the sauce until cool.
When making sauces or stews with ingredients FRESH TOMATO SAUCE 2. Be sure to leave at least ½ inch of head-
that contain volatile flavors, such as wine, we often YIELDS 5 CUPS; ENOUGH FOR 2 POUNDS PASTA space—that is, some space between the top
reserve a small portion to add at the end of cooking of the food and the rim of the container—to
to reintroduce any flavors that were lost. So for my We developed this recipe using ripe in-season toma- account for the liquid’s expansion as it freezes.
next test, I reserved 1 cup of the strained jelly to add toes. Supermarket vine-ripened tomatoes will work
back to the sauce. Happily, I found that it restored here, but the sauce won’t be as flavorful. Don’t use
much of the tomatoes’ bright sweetness. The only plum tomatoes; they are low in moisture and don’t seeds. Set aside 1 cup liquid and transfer any remain-
hitch was that the jelly thinned the sauce too much, work well in this recipe. This is a light-bodied sauce, ing liquid to large bowl.
so I made another batch in which I reduced the so don’t adjust its consistency with reserved pasta 2. Cut tomatoes into rough 1½-inch pieces.
sauce to 4 cups instead of 5 cups to compensate for cooking water as you would with most other pasta Working in 2 or 3 batches, process tomatoes in
the liquid I’d be adding back. The result: a balanced sauces or it will be too runny. This recipe can easily blender until smooth, 30 to 45 seconds; transfer
sauce with just the right amount of body. be doubled. puree to large bowl with strained liquid (you should
All I had left to do was polish the flavors, and I have about 10 cups puree).
did so with a light touch to keep the tomato notes 5 pounds ripe tomatoes, cored 3. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in Dutch oven over
at the forefront. I sautéed dried oregano and red ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic, pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced flakes, and oregano and cook until fragrant, about
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 minute. Stir in tomato puree and 1 teaspoon salt.
You’ve Never Had Tomato ¼ teaspoon dried oregano Increase heat to medium-high and bring to simmer.
Sauce Like This Salt Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring
If you’ve never tasted tomato sauce made from 1 cup fresh basil leaves, shredded occasionally, until reduced to 4 cups, 45 minutes
ripe summer fruit, prepare to be wowed. Unlike to 1 hour.
sauces made from canned tomatoes, which 1. Cut tomatoes in half along equator. Set 4. Remove pot from heat and stir in basil, reserved
have a more concentrated, “cooked” lavor and fine-mesh strainer over medium bowl. Gently squeeze tomato liquid, and remaining 2 tablespoons oil.
heavier body, this version boasts a lighter con- tomato halves, cut sides down, over strainer to col- Season with salt to taste. Use immediately or let cool
sistency and vibrant, more aromatic lavor that lect seeds and jelly, scraping any seeds that cling to completely before refrigerating or freezing. (Sauce
actually tastes like a fresh tomato. tomatoes into strainer. Using rubber spatula, press on can be refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for
seeds to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard up to 3 months.)

JULY & AUGUST 2018

7
 Introducing Tacos Dorados
The hard-shell taco has been an American staple for more than half a century.
When we traced its roots, we found a way to take it to a new, ultracrispy level.
j BY ANNIE PETITO k

M
aybe it’s nostalgia—the Meanwhile, I sautéed finely chopped
first bite that cracks the onion and added modest amounts of
shell, sending orange common taco seasonings—chili powder,
grease down your wrist. paprika, ground cumin, and garlic pow-
Or perhaps it’s the satisfying combination der—to bloom in the oil and release their
of spiced meat, creamy cheese, and cool, flavors. Then I added the treated beef and
crisp lettuce that makes hard-shell tacos cooked it until it lost its pink color.
so popular. Either way, Americans have It was a fine start, but I wanted a bolder
an enduring love for this lunchroom and spice flavor and more meaty depth. I
dinnertime staple. increased all the spices to a total ¼ cup, and
Ease is a big part of the appeal: Relying to boost the savoriness, I cooked a couple
on a packet of powdered taco seasoning and of tablespoons of umami-rich tomato paste
a sleeve of prefried taco shells means that in the skillet with the onion before adding
dinner comes together in a flash. But when the beef. My filling was now well spiced and
I recently prepared tacos using the contents rich-tasting. It was time to stuff the meat
of a supermarket kit, my middle school into tortillas and fry them up.
memories were obscured by a dust cloud of To ensure that the tortillas were pliable
flat spices covering dry, nubbly meat. enough to be filled without cracking or fall-
ing apart, I borrowed a technique that we
Choose Your Shell Adventure use for enchiladas: brushing each side with
I’d followed the instructions for preparing oil and then briefly baking the tortillas until
the shells, baking them for a few minutes they become flexible.
before serving, and they were fine, though But even with tortillas that cooperated
not terribly flavorful. Frying your own shells nicely, my filling was a little loose and
into the proper U shape using corn tortillas tended to spill out. I tried binding it with
produces better results—rich corn flavor and flour and even with mashed canned beans,
a light, crispy texture that’s miles apart from Open the crispy fried shell like a book to load in shredded lettuce, cheddar but ultimately it was easier to simply stir in
the hard crunch of the prefab type—but the cheese, sour cream, chopped tomatoes, pickled jalapeños, and hot sauce. some of the cheddar cheese I was already
process is tedious and messy. using as a garnish. I mixed ½ cup of the
Not truly satisfied with either choice, I dug into Beefing Up shredded cheddar into the beef while it was still hot.
the history of hard-shell tacos. It turns out that Before I tackled frying the filled tortillas, I wanted The cheese melted seamlessly, helping the beef stay
although commercially made hard-shell tacos are to revamp the usual beef taco filling to work in put in the tortilla and enriching the mixture as well.
an American innovation, crispy-shell tacos have long my tacos dorados. I started with 90 percent lean Finally, instead of deep-frying, which seemed
existed in Mexico under the name tacos dorados, or ground beef, figuring that 85 percent would be fussy for these slender tacos, I simply shallow-fried
“golden tacos.” The way they’re prepared is pure on the greasy side. To ensure that the meat stayed them in the same skillet I’d used to cook the beef. I
genius: Soft corn tortillas are filled, folded in half, tender and juicy, I used a test kitchen trick: raising was able to fry 12 tacos in just ¼ cup of oil, and with
and then deep-fried. At the table, the tacos are its pH with baking soda to help the proteins attract some strategic arrangement in the skillet, I could
opened like a book and stuffed with garnishes. and retain more water. I combined ¼ teaspoon of complete the job in two batches of six.
After just one go-round with the filled-before-fried baking soda with 1 tablespoon of water so it would As my colleagues eagerly pried open the tacos,
method, I was hooked. The fried shells were shat- distribute evenly. I then stirred it into the raw beef added garnishes, and crunched away, I knew I had
teringly crispy on their flat sides yet flexible at their and let the mixture sit. upped my taco game for good.
spines, so they didn’t break into a million pieces PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
when I took a bite, and they boasted true corn flavor.
This was what I had been craving; I just needed to Shells That Don’t Split 90°+
come up with a low-fuss technique. We’ve all eaten tacos that shatter at the irst bite. That’s why
we were happy to ind that stuing tortillas with illing before
frying them not only produces great-tasting tacos but also cre-
Watch: Crispiest Tacos Ever ates crispy yet lexible shells that stay intact when you dive in.
A step-by-step video is available To wit: We pried ours open to a 90-degree angle with no split-
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 ting or cracking, an impossible feat with store-bought shells.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

8
 CRISPY TACOS (TACOS DORADOS) A New Way to Make Tacos
SERVES 4 A few changes to the usual routine result in the crispiest, tastiest tacos around.
Arrange the tacos so they face the same direction in
the skillet to make them easy to fit and flip. To ensure
crispy tacos, cook the tortillas until they are deeply
browned. To garnish, open each taco like a book and
load it with your preferred toppings; close it to eat.

1 tablespoon water
¼ teaspoon baking soda
12 ounces 90 percent lean ground beef
7 tablespoons vegetable oil DUMP STORE-BOUGHT OR FILL ’EM FIRST Stuf the SHALLOW-FRY IN MINIMAL
1 onion, chopped fine DEEP-FRIED SHELLS Brush warmed tortillas with savory OIL Fry the tacos in two batches
1½ tablespoons chili powder the corn tortillas with oil; bake until ground beef bound together with until crispy. (Only ¼ cup of oil is
1½ tablespoons paprika pliable enough to stuf. melted cheddar cheese. needed for 12 tacos.)
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
1½ teaspoons garlic powder
Salt 6 tacos in skillet with open sides facing away from Remove skillet from heat and transfer tacos to
2 tablespoons tomato paste you. Cook, adjusting heat so oil actively sizzles and prepared wire rack. Blot tops of tacos with double
2 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded (½ cup), bubbles appear around edges of tacos, until tacos are layer of paper towels. Place sheet with fried tacos in
plus extra for serving crispy and deeply browned on 1 side, 2 to 3 minutes. oven to keep warm. Return skillet to medium-high
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas Using tongs and thin spatula, carefully flip tacos. heat and cook remaining tacos. Serve tacos imme-
Cook until deeply browned on second side, 2 to diately, passing extra cheddar, lettuce, tomato, sour
Shredded iceberg lettuce 3 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary. cream, jalapeños, and hot sauce separately.
Chopped tomato
Sour cream
Pickled jalapeño slices Make It a Party with Micheladas
Hot sauce For this classic Mexican cocktail made with beer, lime, and savory seasonings, we found that a full ¼ cup of
lime juice per drink was key. To balance the lime, we added doses of Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce,
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat inding that a thicker hot sauce added a bit of body. To ensure that everything is blended, we combine the
oven to 400 degrees. Combine water and baking lavorful base ingredients before pouring in the beer.
soda in large bowl. Add beef and mix until thor-
oughly combined. Set aside. MICHELADA
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet (MEXICAN BEER AND LIME COCKTAIL)
over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and MAKES 4 COCKTAILS
cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 6 min-
utes. Add chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, Use a well-chilled Mexican lager. Our favorite is
and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring frequently, until Tecate, but Corona Extra or Modelo will also work.
fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste and We recommend Cholula or Tapatío hot sauces
cook until paste is rust-colored, 1 to 2 minutes. Add for their lavor and thicker consistencies. If using a
beef mixture and cook, using wooden spoon to break thinner, vinegary hot sauce such as Tabasco, which
meat into pieces no larger than ¼ inch, until beef is is spicier, start with half the amount called for and
no longer pink, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer beef mixture adjust to your taste after mixing. Do not use bottled
to bowl; stir in cheddar until cheese has melted and lime juice here.
mixture is homogeneous. Wipe skillet clean with
paper towels. Kosher salt
Thoroughly brush both sides of tortillas with ¼ teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons oil. Arrange tortillas, overlapping, on 1 cup lime juice (8 limes), plus lime
rimmed baking sheet in 2 rows (6 tortillas each). wedges for serving
Bake until tortillas are warm and pliable, about 8 teaspoons hot sauce, plus extra
5 minutes. Remove tortillas from oven and reduce for serving
oven temperature to 200 degrees. 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Place 2 tablespoons filling on 1 side of 1 tortilla. 4 (12-ounce) Mexican beers, chilled
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE

Fold and press to close tortilla (edges will be open,

but tortilla will remain folded). Repeat with remain- 1. Combine 2 teaspoons salt and chili powder on This tart, spicy cocktail is a refreshing accompani-
ing tortillas and remaining filling. (At this point, small plate and spread into even layer. Rub rims of ment to our Crispy Tacos (Tacos Dorados).
filled tortillas can be covered and refrigerated for 4 pint glasses with 1 lime wedge to moisten, then dip
up to 12 hours.) rims into salt mixture to coat. Set aside glasses. cubes and divide lime juice mixture evenly among
Set wire rack in second rimmed baking sheet 2. Combine lime juice, hot sauce, Worcestershire, glasses. Fill glasses with beer. Serve with lime wedges,
and line rack with double layer of paper towels. and ¼ teaspoon salt in 2-cup liquid measuring cup, extra hot sauce, and remaining beer, topping of
Heat remaining ¼ cup oil in now-empty skillet stirring to dissolve salt. Fill prepared glasses with ice glasses as needed.
over medium-high heat until shimmering. Arrange

JULY & AUGUST 2018

9
 Vietnamese Pork with Rice Noodles
Bun cha—a one-dish meal featuring grilled pork patties, crisp vegetables, springy
noodles, and a vibrant sauce—cooks as quickly as a burger but tastes much lighter.
j BY ANDREA GEARY k

I
usually start the summer months The pork belly released lots of fat, caus-
dreaming about ambitious grilling ing impressive flare-ups, so I had to move
projects such as ribs and brisket, the strips around a lot and I lost about a
but when the evenings turn hot and quarter of them between the bars. Those
humid, I find myself seeking out lighter, that didn’t fall through were nicely charred
fresher options that I can make more but very chewy. Ultimately, I decided to
quickly. That’s how I learned about bun skip the strips altogether and stick with
cha, a vibrant Vietnamese dish of rice just the patties, which would make the
noodles, grilled pork, and crisp vegeta- recipe quicker to prepare. But the patties
bles, all pulled together with a light yet needed work, too. Though they were
potent sauce. easier to maneuver on the grill and stayed
In the street-food stalls of Hanoi, where more tender than the pork belly, they were
the dish originated, cooks prepare fatty cuts dry inside by the time their exteriors had
such as pork shoulder or belly in two ways: charred sufficiently—and a dunk in the
They slice some into thin strips and mari- sauce couldn’t save them. Besides, finely
nate it in fish sauce, sugar, black pepper, chopping pork shoulder—a big, tough
and maybe some minced shallots or onions, cut—had taken longer than it did to actu-
and they finely chop the rest (cha refers to ally cook it.
chopped meat), mix it with similar season- I’d seen a few recipes that called for
ings, and shape it into small patties. Then supermarket ground pork in place of the
they grill all the pork over a box of hot coals chopped meat. It wouldn’t be as authentic,
and—here comes the genius bit—unload but taking the shortcut would make this
the sizzling meat into bowls of nuoc cham, dish a snap to prepare—something I could
an intensely flavored mixture of lime juice, throw together any night of the week.
fish sauce, sugar, water, and sometimes Besides, my goal for the pork would remain
garlic and chiles. The nuoc cham picks up the same: deeply savory, well-charred, rich
the meaty char flavor while every inch of the To serve, arrange the components on platters and allow diners to assemble meat that balanced the bright-tasting sauce,
pork is bathed in zesty sauce. Then the pork individual bowls of meat, noodles, salad, and sauce. crisp vegetables, and noodles.
is plucked from the bowl and served with a I mixed 1 pound of ground pork with
platter of cool, delicate rice noodles; tender greens; shallots. I also finely chopped an equal amount of the usual seasonings plus ½ teaspoon of baking
leafy herbs; and crisp cucumbers or bean sprouts. pork shoulder, folded in more of the seasonings, and soda—a favorite test kitchen trick. The baking
Diners assemble bowls of the components to their shaped the mixture into small patties. To simulate soda boosts the meat’s pH, which in turn enhances
taste and drizzle more of the grilled meat–infused the brazier over which the meat would traditionally browning and inhibits the tendency of meat fibers
sauce over the top. be cooked, I piled a chimney’s worth of hot coals on to tighten up and squeeze out moisture as they
What makes bun cha so appealing to eat is that one side of my grill, dropped the cooking grate in cook. The result: patties that browned quickly and
it’s a one-dish meal with a brilliant contrast of flavors place, and arranged the meat directly over the coals. stayed juicy.
and textures. And as far as I could tell from the reci-
pes I consulted, what makes this dish so appealing to
cook is that it comes together relatively quickly and A World-Class Condiment
uses a small arsenal of mostly familiar ingredients. Nuoc cham—a salty-sour-sweet combination
of ish sauce, lime juice, and sugar that is usually
Pat-a-Cake diluted with water and is often seasoned with PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
Following the lead of one recipe I’d found, I sliced garlic and/or chile—is as essential to Vietnamese
½ pound of pork belly into strips and marinated them cooking as salsa is to Mexican cuisine. It func-
in a mixture of fish sauce, sugar, pepper, and minced tions as a dipping sauce or dressing for countless
dishes and is a snap to make. The key is lavor
balance. We make sure to use hot water (which
Look: Bun Cha at Home helps quickly dissolve the sugar) and to grind—
A step-by-step video is available ESSENTIAL SAUCE
not just mince—the garlic and chile so that their The salty-sour-sweet and spicy flavors of nuoc cham
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 assertive lavors disperse evenly. enhances countless Vietnamese dishes.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

10
 Sauce Does Double Duty leaves and stems), and cucumber slices separately so S H O P P I N G Two Common
In bun cha, the assertively lavored sauce called that diners could compose their own salads. Types of Rice Noodles
nuoc cham is the element that brings together the Every bite was an extraordinary balance of smoky, Dried rice noodles come in dozens of varieties,
various components of the dish. It functions as a juicy meat; tangy, salty-sweet sauce; cool, tender but there are two styles that you’re likely to ind
postmarinade for the grilled pork, infusing the pat- greens; and delicately springy noodles. And the kicker at the supermarket.
ties with salty, sour, sweet, and aromatic lavors. was that when I tallied up my over-the-heat cooking Rice sticks are straight and lat and can be
Then the meat-infused liquid is used as a sauce time—4 minutes to boil the noodles plus 8 minutes narrow like linguine or wide like pappardelle; they
that dresses the rest of the components. to grill the patties—it equaled just 12 minutes, making ofer great chew and are typically used in noodle
this an ideal dinner to cook on a sweltering summer soups such as pho and stir-fries such as pad Thai.
night. Or on any night, for that matter. Rice vermicelli are round strands that range
Meaty char in size from slightly wider than angel hair to about
Tangy, salty, flavors infuse VIETNAMESE GRILLED PORK PATTIES WITH the thickness of spaghetti. They look wiry in the
and sweet the sauce. RICE NOODLES AND SALAD (BUN CHA) package but turn nicely springy when cooked; the
flavors infuse SERVES 4 TO 6 noodles’ diameter inluences their cooking time,
the patties.
so check them for doneness early and often.
Look for dried rice vermicelli in the Asian section They’re the best choice for noodle bowls such
of your supermarket. We prefer the more delicate as bun cha and for summer rolls. We prefer the
springiness of vermicelli made from 100 percent rice more delicate springiness of vermicelli that are
FLAVOR EXCHANGE
Dunking the grilled meat into the sauce
flour to those that include a secondary starch such as made from 100 percent rice lour to those that
enhances the flavors of both components. cornstarch. If you can find only the latter, just cook include a secondary starch such as cornstarch;
them longer—up to 12 minutes. For a less spicy however, if you can ind only noodles that con-
sauce, use only half the Thai chile. For the cilantro, tain cornstarch, just cook them a bit longer.
Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet use the leaves and the thin, delicate stems, not the RICE STICKS RICE VERMICELLI
Nuoc cham, according to cookbook author Andrea thicker ones close to the root. To serve, place platters
Nguyen, is a dipping sauce that every good of noodles, salad, sauce, and pork patties on the table
Vietnamese cook needs to master and is the ele- and allow diners to combine components to their
ment that brings together all the components in taste. The sauce is potent, so use it sparingly. Our
this dish and many others in Vietnamese cuisine. recipe for Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patties with Rice
It’s also a cinch to make. The tricks are to balance Noodles and Salad (Bun Cha) for Two is available for
the saltiness of the fish sauce with the brightness of free for four months at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18.
lime juice or vinegar and the sweetness of sugar and
to add just enough water so that the sauce enlivens Noodles and Salad
rather than overpowers whatever you’re dressing. My 8 ounces rice vermicelli
placeholder version tasted balanced but spartan, so 1 head Boston lettuce (8 ounces), torn into Arrange lettuce, cucumber, cilantro, and mint sepa-
I tried incorporating the chile and garlic I had seen bite-size pieces rately on large platter and refrigerate until needed.
in some recipes. 1 English cucumber, peeled, quartered 2. FOR THE SAUCE: Using mortar and pestle
However, I couldn’t mince the chile and garlic lengthwise, seeded, and sliced thin on bias (or on cutting board using flat side of chef’s knife),
finely enough to distribute their flavors evenly 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves and stems mash Thai chile, 1 tablespoon sugar, and garlic to fine
throughout the sauce, so some bites were fiery or 1 cup fresh mint leaves, torn if large paste. Transfer to medium bowl and add hot water
pungent while others fell flat. But Nguyen makes a and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Stir until sugar is
helpful suggestion in her version: Combine the aro- Sauce dissolved. Stir in fish sauce and lime juice. Set aside.
matics with some of the sugar in a mortar and pestle. 1 small Thai chile, stemmed and minced 3. FOR THE PORK PATTIES: Combine
The granules act as an abrasive, helping speedily 3 tablespoons sugar shallot, fish sauce, sugar, baking soda, and pepper
reduce everything to a paste that made every drop of 1 garlic clove, minced in medium bowl. Add pork and mix until well
the sauce taste more vibrant. (In lieu of a mortar and ⅔ cup hot water combined. Shape pork mixture into 12 patties, each
pestle, you can smear the sugar across the minced 5 tablespoons fish sauce about 2½ inches wide and ½ inch thick.
aromatics several times with the flat side of a chef’s ¼ cup lime juice (2 limes) 4A. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bot-
knife on a cutting board.) tom vent completely. Light large chimney starter filled
Pork Patties with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals
Composing a Salad 1 large shallot, minced are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over half of
When cooked, rice vermicelli, the bun in bun cha, 1 tablespoon fish sauce grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid
should be fine and delicate yet resilient. My noodles 1½ teaspoons sugar vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
softened after about 4 minutes in boiling water, at ½ teaspoon baking soda 4B. FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to
which point I drained them and rinsed them well ½ teaspoon pepper high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes.
with cold water to halt their cooking and wash away 1 pound ground pork Leave all burners on high.
ILLUSTRATION: JAY LAYMAN

surface starch to minimize stickiness. Then I drained 5. Clean and oil cooking grate. Cook patties
them again and spread them out on a platter to air-dry 1. FOR THE NOODLES AND SALAD: Bring (directly over coals if using charcoal; covered if using
while I made the salad. 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Stir in noodles and gas) until well charred, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
I tore a head of tender Boston lettuce into bite-size cook until tender but not mushy, 4 to 12 minutes. Transfer grilled patties to bowl with sauce and gently
pieces and, per Vietnamese tradition, arranged the Drain noodles and rinse under cold running water toss to coat. Let stand for 5 minutes.
nuoc cham–moistened pork, remaining sauce, noo- until cool. Drain noodles very well, spread on large 6. Transfer patties to serving plate, reserving sauce.
dles, greens, herbs (mint leaves and delicate cilantro plate, and let stand at room temperature to dry. Serve noodles, salad, sauce, and pork patties separately.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

11
 Better-Than-the-Box Granola Bars
We love the idea of chewy granola bars, but store-bought versions are overly sweet,
contain mostly filler, and are soft, not chewy. We took matters into our own hands.
j BY ANDREA GEARY k

E
very adult I know goes through Using oil instead of butter would allow the
the same mental checklist bars to keep longer at room temperature.) I
before leaving the house in the pressed the mixture firmly into a foil-lined,
morning: Keys? Phone? Wallet? greased baking pan and baked it for about
Granola bar? Okay, maybe that last one 25 minutes. These bars tasted pretty good
is just me. but, like many in my initial round of test-
But granola bars should be on your ing, were both tacky and crumbly.
must-have list because they’re tasty and Thinking that smaller particles might
easy to eat on the go. And because they absorb some of the stickiness and hold
contain fiber, protein, and healthy fats, they together better, I coarsely ground the
make great snacking alternatives to hastily toasted oats and nuts in the food processor
grabbed cookies or chips. That said, buying before mixing the next batch. This granola
granola bars can be disappointing. Many was more cohesive, which made it easier
commercial bars are so sweet that they’re to cut into bars, but they felt grainy and
really just undercover candy, and most are pasty in my mouth and bore an unsettling
pretty light on hearty additions such as resemblance to those blocks of compressed
nuts, seeds, and dried fruit. Such stinginess seeds you hang out for the birds when the
is especially annoying because granola bars weather turns cold. So the oats would have
are pricey, even though most are largely to stay whole. But having the food proces-
composed of inexpensive oats. sor out reminded me of another technique
I decided that the best way to be sure I had seen: binding the bars with pureed
the granola bars in my bag were packed dried fruit.
with satisfying nuts, seeds, and fruit; had
just the right amount of sweetness; and The Sticking Point
kept costs in check was to make them While my next batch of oats, nuts, and
myself. Mine would be of the chewy vari- seeds toasted, I ground 1 cup of dried
ety. Crunchy granola has its place (on top Use a sharp chef ’s knife to cut the granola into neat, portable bars. apricots with the brown sugar in the food
of Greek yogurt), but chewy bars are less processor. I added peanut butter, honey,
likely to fall apart in my hand, and the physical act Most bars were unacceptably sticky to the touch and oil as the machine ran, and then I mixed the
of chewing them reinforces the feeling that I’ve yet, paradoxically, they refused to stick together. promisingly viscous mixture with the warm oat mix-
eaten something substantial. And I’m not alone: These bars were tender all the way through and were ture and the cranberries. I also added some crisped
When I polled our readers on Facebook, 72 percent too yielding to be called “chewy.” Other bars were rice cereal. I suspected that firm compression of the
of them preferred chewy bars. drier and left my hands cleaner, but mixture before baking was going to
they were too hard and were prone Spend Less, be important for cohesion, so I hoped
All Mixed Up to shattering into messy chunks. I Get More that the airy cereal would provide tiny
The first recipes I tried followed a similar procedure: wanted to make cohesive granola Our granola bars cost pockets of lightness. After baking and
I mixed oats, nuts, seeds, and, in some cases, chunks bars with varied textures, balanced about 50 percent less cooling, these bars stood up to cut-
of dried fruit with a combination of sugar and a sweetness, and plenty of chew, ideal than commercial varieties. ting better than any previous batches,
liquid sweetener—usually honey or maple syrup. for on-the-go snacking. Plus, they contain more but they were still rather tender and
Most recipes called for stirring in some oil or butter; hearty nuts, seeds, and crumbly when I ate them. I was aiming
many also called for peanut butter or almond but- For the Birds dried fruit. for a bar so resilient that I could bend
ter. I spread the mixtures in pans and baked them. I started my own baseline recipe by it into a shallow arc; this bar simply PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
So far, so easy. It was only when I tried to cut the toasting 2½ cups of oats, 1 cup of sunflower seeds, broke in two.
cooled slabs into individual bars that things literally and 1½ cups of chopped walnuts in the oven to I knew that fat tenderizes baked goods. Was it
fell apart. bring out their flavors. I transferred everything to possible that my formula was simply too high in fat?
a bowl and stirred in 1 cup of dried cranberries for If so, I had two options: Nix the vegetable oil or nix
pops of brightness. One cup of brown sugar and the peanut butter. I decided to eliminate the latter so
Watch: DIY Granola Bars ½ cup each of peanut butter and honey made up I could devise a nut-free variation later on.
A step-by-step video is available my “glue.” Because it’s high in saturated fat, butter Now I was getting somewhere: Without the
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 seemed antithetical to the granola bar concept, so I peanut butter, the bars were distinctly chewy and
mixed in ½ cup of vegetable oil instead. (A bonus: definitely cohesive. They even passed the bend test.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

12
 How We Put the “Chew” in Our Chewy Granola Bars sunflower seeds on rimmed baking sheet and toast
“Too tender.” “Too soft.” “Too dense.” We obsessed over getting the perfect chewy texture in our granola until lightly browned and fragrant, 12 to 15 min-
bars, meaning each bite should meet with repeated resistance as you chew. How did we achieve it? A mix of utes, stirring halfway through toasting. Reduce oven
pureed dried apricots, brown sugar, oil, and water helped the bars’ ingredients cohere. Using just the temperature to 300 degrees.
right amount of moisture was also key: We added enough to make the bars tender 3. While oat mixture is toasting, process apricots,
and to hold them together when they were bent or bitten—but not sugar, and salt in food processor until apricots are
so much that they became soft and lost their chew. very finely ground, about 15 seconds. With proces-
sor running, add oil and water. Continue to process
until homogeneous paste forms, about 1 minute
longer. Transfer paste to large, wide bowl.
4. Add warm oat mixture to bowl and stir with
rubber spatula until well coated. Add cereal and
cranberries and stir gently until ingredients are evenly
mixed. Transfer mixture to prepared pan and spread
A BENDY BAR
into even layer. Place 14-inch sheet of parchment or
Properly chewy bars
should flex, not break, waxed paper on top of granola and press and smooth
when bent. very firmly with your hands, especially at edges and
corners, until granola is level and compact. Remove
parchment and bake granola until fragrant and just
Just Add Water batch, streaming it into the food processor with the beginning to brown around edges, about 25 minutes.
I knew I was getting close, but without peanut oil. Three tablespoons of water worked beautifully, Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 1 hour.
butter’s salty richness, the bars were a bit too producing bars that were chewy and cohesive without Using foil overhang, lift granola out of pan. Return
sweet and the honey flavor was especially obtrusive. being sticky. The tart cranberries, nutty toasted oats, to wire rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour.
Discouragingly, a batch made without honey was too and crunchy walnuts were balanced by the sweetness 5. Discard foil and transfer granola to cutting
dry and crumbly. I considered using corn syrup, which of the apricots and brown sugar. board. Using chef’s knife, cut granola in half crosswise
has very little flavor, in place of the honey because I was so happy with this recipe that I used it as a to create two 6½ by 9-inch rectangles. Cut each rect-
it seemed like some form of syrup was the key to a template for a hazelnut, cherry, and cacao nib bar angle in half to make four 3¼ by 9-inch strips. Cut
chewy, moist, cohesive texture. But was it? so sophisticated that a box of them would make a each strip crosswise into 6 equal pieces. (Granola bars
Syrups are mostly sugar and water. In some cases, luxurious gift, and a richly seeded, nut-free version. can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 weeks.)
they’re added to recipes, such as caramel, to inhibit
crystallization, but that wasn’t important in my gra- CHEWY GRANOLA BARS WITH CHEWY GRANOLA BARS WITH
nola bars. So maybe it wasn’t a syrup that was the WALNUTS AND CRANBERRIES HAZELNUTS, CHERRIES, AND CACAO NIBS
magic ingredient. Maybe it was something I had never MAKES 24 BARS
seen in a granola bar recipe: water. Substitute blanched hazelnuts for walnuts and pulse
The ½ cup of honey had been contributing water, We like the sweetness of Mediterranean or Turkish until finely chopped, 8 to 12 pulses. Substitute
so I added a small amount to the next honey-free apricots in this recipe. Be sure to use apricots that are chopped dried cherries for cranberries. Stir in ½ cup
soft and moist, or the bars will not hold together well. cacao nibs with cereal in step 4.
Avoid using extra-thick rolled oats here. Light and
Staying Power dark brown sugar will work equally well in this recipe. NUT-FREE CHEWY GRANOLA BARS
Stored in an airtight container between sheets of
parchment or waxed paper, our granola bars keep 1½ cups walnuts Omit walnuts and cranberries. Toast 1 cup raw pepi-
for three weeks. As your stock diminishes, trans- 2½ cups (7½ ounces) old-fashioned rolled oats tas, ¼ cup sesame seeds, and ¼ cup chia seeds with
fer the bars to a smaller container to minimize 1 cup raw sunflower seeds oats in step 2. Increase cereal to 2 cups.
their exposure to air, which can dry them out. 1 cup dried apricots
1 cup packed (7 ounces) brown sugar
TECHNIQUE
¾ teaspoon salt
½ cup vegetable oil PRESSING FOR SUCCESS
3 tablespoons water
1½ cups (1½ ounces) Rice Krispies cereal
1 cup dried cranberries

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat

oven to 350 degrees. Make foil sling for 13 by 9-inch
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE

baking pan by folding 2 long sheets of aluminum

foil; first sheet should be 13 inches wide and second
sheet should be 9 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil
in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil
hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and Using parchment or waxed paper to irmly press
up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Lightly the raw granola mixture into the pan leads to a
spray foil with vegetable oil spray. more cohesive mixture that is easier to slice into
2. Pulse walnuts in food processor until finely bars and, in turn, less messy to eat.
chopped, 8 to 10 pulses. Spread walnuts, oats, and

JULY & AUGUST 2018

13
 How to Grill Tomatoes
Grilling enhances tomatoes with smoky char while preserving their summery taste.
But don’t simply throw them onto the fire or you’ll end up with a mushy mess.
j BY ANNIE PETITO k

H
ere’s an idea for showcasing sum-
mer tomatoes that you may not have
considered: Grill them. A stint over
a hot fire softens the fruit’s flesh and
concentrates its sweetness. Meanwhile, the smoky
char of the grill adds another dimension of flavor.
If that’s not enough to grab your attention, con-
sider this: Tomatoes cook quickly, so you can grill
them while your steak or other protein is resting
and the coals are still hot.
For my first attempt, I used the easiest approach
I could think of: simply placing 2 pounds of whole
tomatoes on the grill. But by the time the fruit had
sufficiently charred on the exterior, it was starting to
turn mushy and disintegrate within. Plus, the interior
didn’t pick up any grill flavor to speak of.
It worked better to cut the tomatoes in half so that
both the interiors and the exteriors could spend some
time in contact with the grill grate. This way, there
was lots of surface area available to quickly caramelize
and char before the flesh started to break down too
much. I also found that ripe but still firm tomatoes
held their shape best during and after grilling—super-
squishy ones fell apart. What’s more, the way the
tomatoes were cut had a huge impact on the results:
It was essential to halve them along their equators, not
pole to pole. Cut this way, the tomatoes stayed intact
even as they began to soften (see “The Best Way to
Halve Tomatoes for Grilling”).
While the grill heated up—which took about
15 minutes—I sprinkled the raw tomato halves with
salt and pepper and drizzled them with extra-virgin
olive oil. Almost immediately, the salt began to draw
liquid from the tomato flesh via osmosis, which is just
what I wanted. The drier the tomatoes were, the more
easily caramelization could occur.
Leaving the tomato liquid in the bowl, I placed the
tomatoes skin sides down on the grill. After a few min-
utes, I flipped them—only to have warmed seeds and Clockwise from top left: Grill the tomatoes while your protein rests and serve them as a simple side. Or make
liquid flood the coals. The next time around, I grilled Grilled Tomato Salsa, Grilled Tomato Gazpacho, or Marinated Grilled Tomatoes with Fresh Mozzarella.
the halves cut sides down for about 5 minutes and
then flipped them skin sides down and cooked them When the skins were adequately charred and These tomatoes were great for just about any- PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
roughly 5 minutes longer. With this approach, the the juices were bubbling, I pulled the tomatoes thing, including pasta, sandwiches, salads, soup,
skins acted as cradles during the second half of cook- off the grill. They tasted sweet and savory, with a and sauces. To show off their versatility even fur-
ing, helping contain the flesh as it continued to soften. light smokiness, but they lacked a bit of brightness. ther, I developed a simple grilled tomato salsa with
I realized that the liquid shed during the salting onion, jalapeño, cilantro, and lime juice, as well as
step was loaded with fresh, raw tomato flavor, a marinated mixture of fresh mozzarella cheese and
Annie Shares the Secrets so I drizzled it onto the grilled halves. The fresh the tomatoes. And for a deeply flavorful twist on
A step-by-step video is available tomato juice captured the true essence of summer gazpacho, I pureed the tomatoes with cucumber,
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 and beautifully complemented the richer taste of aromatics, olive oil, vinegar, and a slice of bread
the grilled flesh. for body.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

14
 GRILLED TOMATOES MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS To serve the tomatoes as a simple side dish, top them with the reserved juice, 2 tablespoons of torn fresh basil
leaves, 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil, and lake sea salt to taste. This recipe can easily be doubled.

1. Core 2 pounds ripe but irm toma- 2. Toss tomatoes with 1 tablespoon 3. Place tomatoes, cut sides down, on 4. Using tongs or thin metal spatula,
toes and halve along equator. extra-virgin olive oil, ½ teaspoon salt, clean, oiled grate of hot grill and cook carefully lip tomatoes and continue
and ¼ teaspoon pepper in large bowl. (covered if using gas) until charred and to cook (covered if using gas) until skin
Let stand for at least 15 minutes or up beginning to soften, 4 to 6 minutes. sides are charred and juice bubbles,
to 1 hour. Reserve any juice left in bowl. 4 to 6 minutes longer. Transfer tomatoes
to large plate. (Tomatoes can be
For the best results, use in-season, round tomatoes that are ripe yet a bit irm so they will hold their refrigerated for up to 2 days.)
shape on the grill. Plum tomatoes may be used, but they will be drier in texture. If using plum tomatoes,
halve them lengthwise. Supermarket vine-ripened tomatoes will work but won’t be as lavorful.
1 recipe Grilled Tomatoes
8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, torn into
For the recipes in which the tomatoes were smooth, about 2 minutes longer. Strain soup through bite-size pieces and patted dry
chopped, I initially slipped off the skins since their fine-mesh strainer into large measuring cup, using ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
texture was distracting. But because some of the back of ladle or rubber spatula to press soup through ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
smokiness of the grill does transfer into the skins, strainer. Stir in parsley and vinegar. Add enough 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
discarding them meant discarding smoky flavor. It water to yield 4 cups soup. Cover and refrigerate for ¼ teaspoon salt
worked much better to chop the skins separately and at least 2 hours to chill and develop flavors. Season ¼ teaspoon pepper
include them. This way, their flavor could permeate with salt, pepper, and extra vinegar to taste. Serve. Pinch red pepper flakes
the dish without their texture being bothersome.
These tomatoes are so full-flavored and versatile GRILLED TOMATO SALSA Remove and reserve tomato skins; cut tomato flesh
that I plan on making them all summer long. MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS into ½-inch pieces and chop skins fine. Combine
tomatoes, skins, mozzarella, oil, basil, vinegar,
GRILLED TOMATO GAZPACHO For more heat, reserve and mince the jalapeño ribs salt, pepper, and pepper flakes in bowl, ensuring
SERVES 4 and seeds and add them to the salsa. that tomatoes and mozzarella are submerged in
oil-vinegar mixture. Let stand at room temperature
For the best flavor, refrigerate the gazpacho over- 1 recipe Grilled Tomatoes, room temperature, until flavors meld, up to 1 hour, stirring occasionally
night before serving. Red wine vinegar can be sub- with juice reserved to ensure that tomatoes are evenly coated. Serve.
stituted for the sherry vinegar, if desired. ¼ cup finely chopped onion (Mixture can be refrigerated for up to 2 days; let
1 jalapeño chile, stemmed, seeded, and minced come to room temperature before serving.)
1 recipe Grilled Tomatoes, room temperature, 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
with juice reserved 1–2 tablespoons lime juice
TECHNIQUE
1 small cucumber, peeled and cut into 1-inch Salt and pepper
pieces THE BEST WAY TO HALVE
1 slice hearty white sandwich bread, crust Remove and reserve tomato skins; chop tomato TOMATOES FOR GRILLING
removed, torn into 1-inch pieces flesh coarse and chop skins fine. Combine toma-
Moisture
1 small shallot, peeled and halved toes, skins, reserved juice, onion, jalapeño, cilantro,
evaporates
1 small garlic clove, peeled and quartered and 1 tablespoon lime juice in medium bowl. Let via open
1 small serrano chile, stemmed and halved stand at room temperature until flavors meld, about seed
lengthwise 30 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and up to pockets.
Salt and pepper 1 tablespoon additional lime juice to taste. Serve.
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil (Salsa can be refrigerated for up to 2 days; let come
2 tablespoons finely minced fresh parsley to room temperature before serving.)
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar, plus extra for How you halve a tomato afects how well it will
ILLUSTRATION: JAY LAYMAN

seasoning MARINATED GRILLED TOMATOES hold its shape during grilling. Cutting it pole to
Water WITH FRESH MOZZARELLA pole leaves intact seed pockets that will burst
MAKES ABOUT 3 CUPS when heated, causing the tomato to slump.
Process tomatoes and reserved juice, cucumber, However, cutting it along the equator slashes the
bread, shallot, garlic, serrano, and 1 teaspoon salt in Serve this dish at room temperature by itself, along- seed pockets so that moisture can escape and the
blender for 30 seconds. With blender running, slowly side crusty bread, as a topping for bruschetta or tomato stays intact.
drizzle in oil; continue to process until completely grilled pizza, or as part of an antipasto platter.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

15
Top 12 Grilling Mistakes to Avoid
Some of the most common practices are also the wrong ones.
BY ELIZABETH BOMZE

C 1Using lighter luid

Lighter luid can impart a chemical lavor to the food.
3
WINNING CHARCOAL MODEL:
WEBER PERFORMER DELUXE
CHARCOAL GRILL ($399.00)
( BEST PRACTICE Light coals in a chimney starter. Maintains heat well;
well-positioned vents; push-button
Method: Place wadded-up newspaper in the bottom cham- gas ignition; roomy cart
11
ber and briquettes in the top. Light the newspaper. When the 1
top coals are covered in ash, dump the coals into the grill.

2 6

C 2 Packing too much paper

into the chimney
Doing so blocks airlow, so the coals will take longer to
ignite—or will not ignite at all.
( BEST PRACTICE Don’t place more than two sheets 11
of newspaper in the bottom chamber at one time.

C 3 Pouring the coals before

they are fully ignited
If the coals aren’t hot enough, they won’t cook food 8
at the right rate. Or, worse, the ire can die out.
( BEST PRACTICE Don’t pour the coals until the top layer is
partially covered with ash—a sure sign that they’re ready.

C
G 4 Skipping the preheat step
Meat placed on a cooking grate that’s not suiciently hot will stick aggressively because its proteins
form a chemical bond with the metal.
( BEST PRACTICE Wait to add food until the metal is very hot. This will break the bonds Charcoal Preheat Time: Gas Preheat Time:
(which are thermally unstable), preventing sticking. It will also produce much better color and char. About 5 minutes About 15 minutes

C
G 5 Using one ire setup for all tasks
The ire setup—how much charcoal or how many burners you’re using and where the heat is located in relation to the food—allows you to control the heat level and the
rate of cooking. Using the wrong setup can cause food to burn before it’s cooked through or cook through without developing any lavorful browning or char.
( BEST PRACTICE Use one of our three favorite ire setups.

SINGLE-LEVEL FIRE HALF-GRILL FIRE CONCENTRATED FIRE

Best for: Small, quick-cooking foods such as sausages, Best for: Foods that you want to cook gently but also Best for: Quick-cooking foods on which you want
shrimp, ish illets, and some vegetables. sear, such as bone-in chicken parts and pork chops. substantial char, such as burgers or thin steaks.
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE

Charcoal Setup: Gas Setup: Turn all Charcoal Setup: Gas Setup: Turn all Charcoal Setup: Poke Gas Setup: Concentrated
Distribute lit coals in burners to high, cover, Distribute lit coals in even burners to high, cover, holes in bottom of large ire setup is not possible
even layer across and heat grill until hot. layer over half of grill. and heat grill until hot. disposable aluminum pan, on gas grill. To maximize
bottom of grill. Leave all burners on high. Leave primary burner on place pan in center of grill, heat, turn all burners to
high and turn of other and pour lit coals into pan. high.
burner(s).

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

16
 C
G 8 Cooking on a gunked-up grill
Food debris, grease, and smoke that build up on various parts
of the grill can cause sticking and impart of-lavors to food; full
WINNING GAS MODEL: grease traps can ignite; and built-up grease on the interior basin
WEBER SPIRIT E-310 and underside of the grill lid can carbonize and turn into a patchy
GAS GRILL ($499.00) layer that lakes of and lands on your food.
Steady heat; sturdy cart; 9 10
well-angled lid; large, stable ( HOW TO CLEAN YOUR GRILL
grease tray; built-in Grill grates: After preheating the grill, scrape the cooking grate
fuel gauge clean with a grill brush.
Interior basin and lid: Lightly scrub the cool grill and lid with steel
wool and water.
Ash catcher (charcoal only): Empty the cooled ash regularly.
Grease traps (gas only): Remove the cool shallow pan from
12
6 under your grill and scrub it with hot soapy water. To make
cleanup easier, line the pan with aluminum foil before use.
8

G 9 Leaving the lid open

Because gas grills deliver less heat output than charcoal models,
grilling certain foods with the lid up allows too much heat to
escape. Note: You should never light a gas grill with the lid down,
which can trap gas and cause a dangerous explosion.
LEGEND: ( BEST PRACTICE When directed in a recipe, keep the lid
closed to trap as much heat as possible.
C CHARCOAL
GRILLS 7
G GAS GRILLS C
G 10 Lifting the lid too often
This is equivalent to frequently opening the oven door. Heat will
U P D AT E escape, which prolongs the grilling time.
We recently discovered that the ( BEST PRACTICE Use a probe thermometer, which allows
Weber Spirit E-310 Gas Grill has you to monitor food’s doneness without opening the grill.
been replaced with the Weber Spirit
II E-310 ($499.00). We ordered and
tested the updated model and are
happy to report it’s our new favorite
gas grill. We’ll publish the updated
C 11 Ignoring the grill vents
If you’re not using the vents, you’re not control-
testing results in a future issue. ling the heat output.
( HOW GRILL VENTS WORK
Grill vents are like the dials on your stovetop:
They allow you to manipulate how hot
C
G 6Not oiling the
cooking grate
G 7
Not
checking the
the ire gets and how the food cooks.
Charcoal grills have top vents on the lid
and bottom vents on the underside of
Most cooking grates are made of propane tank the basin. (Gas grills have vents, too, but
steel or cast iron and must be oiled You don’t want to end up they are not adjustable.) In general, open-
before grilling to keep food from with an empty propane ing the vents completely allows more oxygen
sticking. tank in the middle of grill- to reach the ire so that it burns hotter and
( BEST PRACTICE Using ing—especially in the case faster; partially closing the vents lowers the
tongs, dip a wad of paper towels in of a lengthy project such as temperature and prolongs the ire’s duration.
vegetable oil and thoroughly wipe brisket or ribs.
the preheated, scrubbed cooking ( HOW TO CHECK THE TANK
grate before adding food. If your grill does not have a built-in fuel gauge, you
can buy an external one—for example, the intuitive
Original Grill Gauge ($13.99). Or try this hot water
C
G 12 Turning the meat too soon
Meat will stick to the cooking grate until the meat’s surface is hot
trick: Boil 1 cup of water and pour it down the side of enough to release (see “Skipping the preheat step”). Lifting meat
the tank. Feel the metal with your hand. Where the before it naturally releases will tear it.
water has warmed the surface of the tank, it is empty; ( BEST PRACTICE Sear the meat without moving it until a
where the tank remains cool to the touch, there is still substantial crust forms around the edges. If the meat doesn’t lift
propane inside. easily, continue searing until it does.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

17
 Peruvian Ceviche
Bright citrus is great with fresh seafood—provided that the acid doesn’t overwhelm its
delicate lavor. We went fishing for more balance and found it in this regional version.
j BY ANDREW JANJIGIAN k

I
n the summer, ceviche is one of my or an abundance of greasy oil.)
go-to dinners for three big reasons: I began working on my version by slicing
It’s easy and quick, it doesn’t require 1 pound of skinless red snapper into small
turning on the stove or oven or even pieces. To make the leche, I poured ½ cup
firing up the grill, and it’s the only dish of fresh lime juice into a blender along with
that truly allows the fresh, clean, deli- two garlic cloves, ¼ cup of chopped cilan-
cate flavor of seafood to shine. Ceviche, tro, a couple of teaspoons of salt, and a table-
of course, is the Latin American dish in spoon of olive oil. For a bit of heat, I added
which pieces of raw fish are “cooked” in some aji amarillo paste, which is made from
an acidic marinade until the flesh firms and a fruity yellow pepper of the same name (see
turns opaque. “Introducing Aji Amarillo Chile Paste” on
Full disclosure: When I make ceviche page 28) and is traditional to many Peruvian
at home, I don’t normally use a recipe. ceviches (a seeded habanero chile can be
I juice some limes, cut up the fish (usually substituted in a pinch). Finally, I added
a firm-fleshed white variety such as sea bass, ⅓ cup of sliced snapper. After blending,
snapper, or halibut—whatever is freshest I strained out any remaining solids.
at the market), and let the fish marinate The resulting leche had the creamy con-
in the lime juice until it just begins to turn sistency I was aiming for, but the lime was
opaque. Then I add minced garlic and chiles, so muted that I could barely taste it. Plus,
chopped cilantro, some thinly sliced onion, blending the green cilantro with the yellow
creamy diced avocado, a glug of olive oil for chile paste turned the leche an unappealing
some richness, and a generous pinch of salt. muddy brown. I made a new batch with
Some crunchy garnishes go in a bowl to be ¾ cup of lime juice and no cilantro (I would
served alongside. When I started researching add it as a garnish). This bright yellow leche
traditional recipes, I quickly realized how had silky, rich body and bright, balanced
simplistic my understanding of ceviche was. flavor. It was time to figure out how long to
Plenty of versions took an approach similar The bright, balanced dressing for our ceviche is packed with aromatics, “cook” my fish in this new marinade.
to mine, but the Peruvian recipes opened my herbs, and chiles. Its emulsified consistency coats every piece of fish.
eyes to a more sophisticated take. Firming Things Up
emulsified vinaigrette. Thanks to that emulsification, The acid in a ceviche marinade denatures (unravels)
A New Spin on Ceviche the silky marinade coats and clings to each piece of and coagulates (clumps together) proteins, giving
Many Peruvian recipes call for blending the mari- fish. (This was a sharp contrast to my usual unblended the fish an opaque appearance and a slightly firm—
nade ingredients—citrus juice, aromatics, and olive marinade, which always runs right off the fish, causing yet still tender—texture (see “How Acid ‘Cooks’
oil—before adding the seafood. But there’s another individual bites to feature too much sharp lime juice Fish”). When fish is marinated in pure lime juice, it
component they often add to the marinade: fish.
Some recipes call for a concentrated fish broth; others
call for adding a small portion of fish before blending How Acid “Cooks” Fish
and straining. In both cases, the added seafood brings Acids denature and coagulate ish proteins, irming ish and turning it opaque just as hot cooking methods do.
savory depth to the marinade, which is called leche de However, “cooking” with acid doesn’t change the ish’s taste—its clean, delicate lavor still shines. It also does
tigre (“tiger’s milk”). This leche is sometimes poured not kill microbes, which underscores the importance of using the freshest seafood. Our leche de tigre is about
over the the marinated fish before serving, like a sauce, three times less acidic
or drunk as a beverage, either on its own or mixed than straight lime juice, PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
into a cocktail (an alleged aphrodisiac). so it afects the ish
With its creamy, rich consistency and balanced, more slowly, giving us
nuanced flavor, the blended marinade is akin to an some breathing room in
the marinating time. We
marinated thin slices of
Andrew’s Summertime Fave ish in our leche to dem-
A step-by-step video is available onstrate how it afects
15 MINUTES 30 MINUTES 90 MINUTES
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 Still too raw Just firm and opaque Dry and chalky the lesh over time.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

18
 How to Buy the Freshest Fish Shrimp: The Starter Ceviche
When making ceviche, using the freshest sea- Unlike with ish ceviches, many shrimp ceviches
food possible is imperative for both lavor and begin by lightly poaching the shellish, making these
food safety reasons. Here’s what to look for: versions a good entry point into the world of cevi-
* CLEAN SMELL The seafood (and the che for the uninitiated. Shrimp proteins are slow to
store or counter) should smell like the sea, not denature in acid as compared with ish (or scallops),
ishy or sour. so the quick poach irms the shrimp before they’re
* SHINY SURFACE Fillets should look marinated. We found that thawed frozen shrimp
bright and shiny; whole ish should have bright, work just as well as fresh in this application, making
clear eyes. it a great option when superfresh ish isn’t available.
* FIRM TEXTURE Fresh ish is irm. Ask Our version blends fresh tomato, jalapeño, and lime
your ishmonger to press the lesh with their in- juice into the leche de tigre. After a 30-minute mari-
ger; it should spring back. nade, the poached shrimp are tossed with jícama,
* ADVICE Ask your ishmonger what’s fresh- tomato, avocado, Vidalia onion, and cilantro. Our
est that day, even if it’s not what you originally recipe for Peruvian Shrimp Ceviche with Tomato,
had in mind. Ceviche works with many diferent Jícama, and Avocado is available for free for four
varieties of ish. months at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18.

turns opaque at the edges almost instantly and goes PERUVIAN FISH CEVICHE 3 oranges
from tender to firm in minutes. In contrast, the WITH RADISHES AND ORANGE 8 ounces radishes, trimmed, halved,
leche’s more tempered acidity affects the fish more SERVES 4 TO 6 AS A MAIN DISH OR 6 TO 8 AS AN APPETIZER and sliced thin
slowly, providing a wider window for serving. For ¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
my snapper, I found 30 to 40 minutes to be the ideal It is imperative that you use the freshest fish pos- 1 cup corn nuts
marinating time. At around the 30-minute mark, sible in this recipe. Do not use frozen fish. Sea bass, 1 cup lightly salted popcorn
it’s just beginning to turn opaque and its texture is halibut, or grouper can be substituted for the snap-
firm but easily yields as you bite into it. Those who per, if desired. For more information about cutting 1. Using sharp knife, cut fish lengthwise into
prefer ceviche with a texture closer to that of fully citrus segments, see page 29. Aji amarillo chile ½-inch-wide strips. Slice each strip crosswise ⅛ inch
cooked fish can marinate for 45 minutes to 1 hour, paste can be found in the Latin section of grocery thick. Set aside ⅓ cup (2½ ounces) fish pieces. Toss
though beyond that I found the texture unpleasantly stores (for more information, see page 28); if you remaining fish with 1 teaspoon salt and refrigerate
dry and chalky. can’t find it, you can substitute 1 stemmed and for at least 10 minutes or up to 30 minutes.
seeded habanero chile. Serving the popcorn and 2. Meanwhile, process reserved fish pieces,
Salt First corn nuts separately allows diners to customize their 2½ teaspoons salt, lime juice, 2 tablespoons oil,
Before cooking, we often season proteins, including ceviche to suit their taste. Our recipes for Peruvian chile paste, and garlic in blender until smooth,
fish, with salt and let them sit to season them through- Scallop Ceviche with Cucumber and Grapefruit and 30 to 60 seconds. Strain mixture through fine-mesh
out. Was this step necessary here, considering I had Peruvian Shrimp Ceviche with Tomato, Jícama, and strainer set over large bowl, pressing on solids to
sliced the fish thin and exposed more surface area to Avocado are available for free for four months at extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids.
the marinade? I tossed my next batch of sliced snapper CooksIllustrated.com/aug18. (Sauce can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. It
with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and refrigerated it while will separate slightly; whisk to recombine before
I made my leche. After a 30-minute soak, I tasted the 1 pound skinless red snapper fillets, proceeding with recipe.)
presalted ceviche alongside an unsalted version (I still ½ inch thick 3. Cut away peel and pith from oranges.
seasoned each batch before serving). The results were Kosher salt Holding fruit over bowl, use paring knife to
clear: Salting enhanced the flavor of the fish; it stood ¾ cup lime juice (6 limes) slice between membranes to release segments.
out against the other bold flavors in the ceviche. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil Cut orange segments into ¼-inch pieces. Add
Further testing showed that a mere 10 minutes was 1 tablespoon aji amarillo chile paste oranges, salted fish, and radishes to bowl with
all it took for the salt to have a noticeable effect on 2 garlic cloves, peeled sauce and toss to combine. Refrigerate for 30 to
the small pieces of fish. 40 minutes (for more-opaque fish, refrigerate for
All that was left was sorting out the mix-ins: It’s 45 minutes to 1 hour).
the layering of flavors and textures that makes a 4. Add cilantro to ceviche and toss to combine.
great ceviche. I liked the bright lime from the leche Portion ceviche into individual bowls and drizzle
de tigre, but I thought it would be nice to bring in with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Serve, passing corn
another citrus, so I added orange segments for sweet nuts and popcorn separately.
notes. Thinly sliced radishes added crisp texture
and colorful contrast to the yellow leche and green
cilantro. For salty, crunchy garnishes, I made a batch Add Some Crunch (and Pop)
of popcorn (much to the delight of my colleagues) In Peru and Ecuador, where many diferent types of
and set out a bowl of corn nuts. Both are traditional corn are grown, popcorn and corn nuts are often
in Latin America. served alongside ceviche. Their salty crunch is the
Now that I’ve experienced this whole new world perfect complement to ceviche’s bright, fresh lavors.
of elegant-yet-easy ceviches made with leche de tigre, Plantain chips (recipe on page 29) and tortilla chips
I know what I’m making for dinner the next time it’s are also popular accompaniments.
too hot to cook.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

19
 Mexican Corn Salad
Make this bright, creamy charred-corn salad without firing up the grill.
j BY LAN LAM k

I
f you’re enjoying grilled corn only with but- chile, chili powder, and garlic that I’d toasted in the
ter and salt, you’re missing out. Take just empty skillet after cooking the corn. Finally, once the
one bite of Mexican street corn, called elote, mixture had cooled, I tossed in cilantro, scallions, and
and you’ll know why it has become wildly some salty crumbled cotija cheese. The next time
popular in the United States. A charred ear of corn I’m craving my favorite way to eat corn, I can make
is slathered with rich, tangy crema; coated with a batch in less time than it takes to fire up the grill.
salty cotija cheese; sprinkled with chili powder;
and finished with a squeeze of lime. This smoky, MEXICAN CORN SALAD (ESQUITES)
creamy, bright, salty ear has just one catch: It’s SERVES 6 TO 8
messy to eat.
Some vendors offer elote in salad form (esquites), If desired, substitute plain Greek yogurt for the sour
with charred kernels layered or tossed with the gar- cream. We like serrano chiles here, but you can sub-
nishes. You get the ideal ratio of flavors and textures stitute a jalapeño chile that has been halved lengthwise
in every bite but with the convenience of a fork. I and sliced into ⅛-inch-thick half-moons. Adjust the
wanted to find a way to make this flavor-packed side amount of chiles to suit your taste. If cotija cheese is
dish even when I’m not firing up the grill. unavailable, substitute feta cheese.
The broiler seemed a good place to start since its
intense radiant heat is similar to that of a grill. I placed 3 tablespoons lime juice, plus extra for
six ears of corn on a baking sheet and broiled them seasoning (2 limes)
on the highest oven rack, rotating them every few 3 tablespoons sour cream
minutes. Unfortunately, only the rows of kernels clos- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
est to the broiler browned; the rest turned dry and 1–2 serrano chiles, stemmed and cut into
leathery. I thought that if I cut the kernels off the cob Handfuls of scallions and cilantro round out our salad. ⅛-inch-thick rings
and spread them into an even layer, more of them Salt
might char, so I gave it a try. While more kernels were farther from the heating element, it had taken 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
browned, nearly all were overcooked. Because they them much longer to develop any color. 6 ears corn, kernels cut from cobs (6 cups)
It was time to try the stove. It seemed like cutting 2 garlic cloves, minced
the kernels off the cob was still the way to go since it ½ teaspoon chili powder
A Neat Way to Cut Corn allows more kernels to come in contact with the heat. 4 ounces cotija cheese, crumbled (1 cup)
Plus, cut kernels release a starchy, sugary liquid that, ¾ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
in theory, would help with browning. 3 scallions, sliced thin
I grabbed a nonstick skillet and cooked the kernels
in a little oil over high heat, without stirring them. 1. Combine lime juice, sour cream, mayonnaise,
The kernels touching the pan’s surface charred beauti- serrano(s), and ¼ teaspoon salt in large bowl. Set
fully and those in the middle were plump and perfectly aside.
cooked, but those on top remained raw and starchy. 2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet
I was fine with some of the kernels not being charred over high heat until shimmering. Add half of corn and
The most common method of cutting corn from so long as they were tender and plump, but what if spread into even layer. Sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon salt.
the cob involves standing the corn up vertically, I split the corn into two batches? This would put Cover and cook, without stirring, until corn touching
which causes the kernels to scatter. Here’s an more kernels in contact with the hot skillet, and fewer skillet is charred, about 3 minutes. Remove skillet
alternative that keeps the kernels more contained: kernels in the pan might lead to more even cooking. from heat and let stand, covered, for 15 seconds,
(Stand corn vertically and remove strip by slicing I heated some oil in a fresh skillet, added half the until any popping subsides. Transfer corn to bowl
downward. Place corn horizontally on cut side. kernels, and covered the skillet to trap steam. After with sour cream mixture. Repeat with 1 tablespoon
(Use narrower front third of chef ’s knife to slice 3 minutes, the corn on the bottom was perfectly oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and remaining corn.
downward along cob and remove kernels. With charred and the rest was juicy and tender. After 3. Return now-empty skillet to medium heat and
PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY

less distance to fall, kernels don’t scatter as far. repeating the technique with the remaining kernels, add remaining 1 teaspoon oil, garlic, and chili pow-
I had plenty of charred corn to give my salad its der. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about
signature flavor. 30 seconds. Transfer garlic mixture to bowl with
It was time to dress the dish. Mexican crema can corn mixture and toss to combine. Let cool for at
Watch: Mexican Street Food be hard to find, but a combination of mayonnaise, least 15 minutes.
A step-by-step video is available sour cream, and lime juice produced a similar creamy 4. Add cotija, cilantro, and scallions and toss to
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 tang and clung even better to the corn. To give my combine. Season salad with salt and up to 1 table-
salad heat and bite, I stirred in some sliced serrano spoon extra lime juice to taste. Serve.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

20
 Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce
We wanted a pourable, easily reheated sauce with a dark chocolate soul.
j BY STEVE DUNN k

I
recently questioned my colleagues about the DARK CHOCOLATE FUDGE SAUCE
hot fudge sauce they ate as kids, and their rec- MAKES 2 CUPS
ollections were strikingly similar: It was more
sweet than chocolaty and was so thick that it We like to serve this sauce over ice cream, but it can
fell onto ice cream in globs. There are still plenty of also be drizzled over fresh fruit. We prefer to use
sickly sweet, overly thick, barely chocolaty sauces Dutch-processed cocoa powder here (our favorite
out there, but our adult palates crave something is from Droste), but other cocoa powders will work.
less sugary, with darker chocolate and a luxurious, Our favorite unsweetened chocolate is Hershey’s
pourable consistency. Also, with the wisdom of Unsweetened Chocolate Baking Bar. Our recipes
age, we’ve learned that devouring an entire batch for Dark Chocolate–Peanut Butter Fudge Sauce and
in one sitting isn’t prudent, so an ideal sauce could Mexican Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce are available for
be refrigerated and reheated multiple times. free for four months at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18.
Most fudge sauce recipes have a short ingredient
list: bar chocolate and/or cocoa powder, sugar, and 1¼ cups (8¾ ounces) sugar
dairy. I planned on using a blend of cocoa powder and ⅔ cup whole or 2 percent low-fat milk
unsweetened chocolate so that I would have complete ¼ teaspoon salt
control over the amount of sugar. The former would ⅓ cup (1 ounce) unsweetened cocoa powder,
add complexity, and the latter would contribute sifted
richness from its higher proportion of cocoa butter. 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped fine
I heated milk and sugar, whisked in the cocoa powder, 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into
poured this mixture over finely chopped chocolate, 8 pieces and chilled
and then allowed the chocolate to melt so I could 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
whisk the mixture to a saucy consistency. Our sauce can be refrigerated for up to one month
It turned out that my starting ratio (½ cup cocoa and reheated whenever a craving strikes. 1. Heat sugar, milk, and salt in medium saucepan
powder to 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate) was too over medium-low heat, whisking gently, until sugar
cocoa-heavy and produced a chalky texture. Dropping it. Would the same principle apply here? Indeed, has dissolved and liquid starts to bubble around
the cocoa to ⅓ cup and increasing the chocolate to incorporating 4 tablespoons of cold butter into the edges of saucepan, 5 to 6 minutes. Reduce heat to
3 ounces provided enough additional cocoa butter fudge sauce gave it body (and added a touch of low, add cocoa, and whisk until smooth.
to smooth the sauce. I evaluated sweeteners next, richness). Here’s how it works: Fudge sauce is an 2. Remove saucepan from heat, stir in choco-
with confectioners’ sugar, brown sugar, and corn emulsion, a combination of two liquids—fat and late, and let stand for 3 minutes. Whisk sauce until
syrup auditioning for the spot that granulated sugar water—that don’t ordinarily mix. (In this instance, smooth and chocolate is fully melted. Add but-
currently held. Ultimately, I stuck with granulated the liquids are cocoa butter and the water in milk.) ter and whisk until fully incorporated and sauce
sugar since we didn’t notice a huge difference and it Whisking transforms the melted cocoa butter into thickens slightly. Whisk in vanilla and serve. (Sauce
was the simplest choice. tiny droplets of fat, which are dispersed throughout can be refrigerated for up to 1 month. Gently
I now had an easy-to-make sauce that delivered the water to form an emulsion. Emulsifying proteins reheat sauce in microwave [do not let it exceed
deep flavor with just enough sweetness, and it was from the milk help keep it all stable. Butter made 110 degrees], stirring every 10 seconds, until just
nicely emulsified. But it wasn’t thick enough. Swirling the sauce even thicker by dispersing even more fat warmed and pourable.)
a few knobs of butter into a savory pan sauce thickens droplets throughout the sauce. The fat in the butter
also added shine: The more liquid fat there is in an DARK CHOCOLATE–ORANGE FUDGE SAUCE
emulsion, the glossier its surface will be.
Butter Makes It Better After stirring in vanilla extract and a sprinkling of Bring milk and 8 (3-inch) strips orange zest to
Butter plays three roles in our Dark Chocolate salt to help the chocolate flavor pop, I spooned the simmer in medium saucepan over medium heat.
Fudge Sauce: sauce over ice cream. It had just the right amount of Remove saucepan from heat, cover, and let stand for
* Helps emulsify the flow, thickened slightly as it cooled but didn’t seize or 15 minutes. Strain milk mixture through fine-mesh
PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY

ingredients harden, and tasted like a molten dark chocolate bar. strainer into bowl, pressing on zest to extract liquid;
* Thickens the Finally—and crucially—I found that the emulsion discard zest. Return milk to saucepan and proceed
sauce by dispers- was sustained when I refrigerated and then gently with recipe, reducing cooking time to 3 to 4 minutes.
ing fat droplets reheated the sauce. It was important not to exceed
throughout 110 degrees, a little above body temperature, lest the
Look: Deep, Dark Chocolate
* Adds sauce break and become greasy on top.
attractive, We celebrated the achievement late one afternoon A step-by-step video is available
glossy shine in the test kitchen with a sundae bar to satisfy our at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18
adult tastes—and our inner children.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

21
 Peach Tarte Tatin
Yes, you can make a juicy, summery, peach-crowned version of the classic upside-down
caramelized apple tart. No, you can’t simply substitute peaches for apples.
j BY ANDREA GEARY k

I
f you’ve got peaches, you should cornstarch produced a gelled texture instead
make a peach tarte Tatin. You say of the lightly sticky peaches I envisioned.
your peaches aren’t quite ripe? But without a thickener, the watery
You’re allergic to long ingredient failures continued. Steam vents cut into the
lists? You always fret that you’ve added puff pastry proved ineffective. Withholding
the wrong amount of thickener to fruit the pastry until later in the baking process
pie filling, and fluting a fancy pie crust allowed for some evaporation—but not
edge makes you feel graceless and inept? enough. As each tart emerged from the
Excellent: This is the dessert for you. oven, I quantified my failure by placing
But first a quick review of how the an inverted plate on top of the pastry and
original apple version of tarte Tatin is tilting the skillet over a liquid measuring
made. You start on the stovetop, cooking cup. Each time almost a full cup of liquid
a skillet full of apple chunks with butter poured out.
and sugar. There’s no thickener required Instead of thickening the liquid, how
because apples give off just a small amount about getting rid of it before the peaches
of moisture when they’re cooked, and it went into the oven? I tossed the peaches
evaporates during this step. When the fruit with 1 cup of sugar and let them sit while
is lacquered with a dark caramel, you place the sugar pulled juice out via osmosis. It
a disk of raw puff pastry or pie dough on seemed promising: After 45 minutes, the
top, transfer the skillet to a hot oven, and peaches released ¾ cup of liquid, which I
bake until the pastry is browned and crisp reserved. I proceeded with the caramelizing
and gently molded around the fruit. and baking, and while the tart was in the
Here comes the plot twist: Rather than oven, I reduced the juice to a syrup, which
scoop the dessert straight from the skillet, I planned to brush onto the baked tart.
you flip the whole thing onto a platter, To my dismay, the postbake “tilt and
revealing the apples in all their burnished, drain” test still yielded almost ¾ cup of
buttery splendor. The crust is now on the For a glossy finish, brush some of the reduced peach juice (enhanced with juice. Belatedly, I realized that much of
bottom, offering an intriguing dual person- a touch of bourbon) onto the tart before serving. what I had drained off before baking had
ality: flaky and crisp on one side, soft and been liquefied sugar, and indeed, after I
velveted with caramelized fruit juices on the other. procedure: caramelize the peaches, cover with pastry brushed the syrupy reduction onto the tart, it was far
Despite its numerous charms, apple tarte Tatin isn’t (I opted for convenient store-bought puff), bake, and too sweet. I considered halving the macerating sugar,
really a summer dessert, so I was eager to try a few flip. But each one turned out too sweet, mushy, and/ but that would mean halving the osmotic force
of the many recipes I found in which peaches were or flooded with watery juice. Simply swapping peaches exerted on the peaches, so even less liquid would be
substituted for the apples. They followed the same for apples wasn’t going to cut it. released. It didn’t seem worthwhile.

Firm Peaches Are Preferable Juicy Fruit Full Tilt

I had an idea about how to deal with the excess juice, It occurred to me that my tilting and draining move
This tart is the rare instance but first I got the caramelization process underway. might be good for something beyond measuring
where perfectly ripe fruit Most recipes call for melting the butter and sugar in my failures: I decided to skip macerating and simply
isn’t a must. In fact, we pre- a skillet before arranging the peaches on top—a nasty bake the tart, drain off the accumulated juice, and
fer irm, barely ripe peaches burn waiting to happen. I kept things safe by smearing then reduce the liquid and brush it onto the peaches.
for the recipe because they a cold skillet with 3 tablespoons of softened butter and Having taken no preemptive measures to decrease PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY
don’t require blanching to then sprinkling it with ½ cup of sugar (and a pinch the excess liquid, I knew this tart would be a real
peel, and they taste just as of salt). Next, hoping that a thickener might bind up slosh-fest when it came out of the oven. So, with
good in the tart. the extra liquid, I tossed 2 pounds of peeled, pitted, safety in mind, I transferred it to a wire rack to cool
and quartered peaches with cornstarch. I spiraled the for 20 minutes before draining the juice.
chunks snugly on top of the sugar and placed the After I’d drained the juice, the tart, for once, was
Andrea Shows You How skillet over high heat. Ten minutes later, the butter, not drowning. And when brushed with the reduced
A step-by-step video is available sugar, and peach juice had combined to make a rich juice, the peaches were pretty much perfect: soft but
at CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 caramel. I popped the puff pastry disk on top and not too soft, with a lovely balance of sweetness and
placed the skillet in a 400-degree oven. Sadly, the caramel-y bitterness.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

22
 SCIENCE Why Peaches Shed More Juice Than Apples 1. Invert rimmed baking sheet and place sheet of
Peaches contain a bit more water than apples (88 percent and 84 percent, respectively), but that’s not why parchment paper or waxed paper on top. Roll dough
peaches shed so much more juice during cooking. It’s because peaches have very little pectin, while apples into 10-inch circle on lightly floured counter. Loosely
have it in abundance. When apples are cooked, they release water, but the pectin in their cell walls absorbs roll dough around rolling pin and gently unroll it
most of it instead of allowing it to leak out. Because peaches have far less pectin, they don’t retain their juice onto prepared sheet. Working around circumference,
nearly as well. fold ½ inch of dough under itself and pinch to create
9-inch round with raised rim. Cut three 2-inch slits in
center of dough and refrigerate until needed.
2. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat
oven to 400 degrees. Smear butter over bottom of
10-inch ovensafe skillet. Sprinkle ½ cup sugar over
Pectin strands butter and shake skillet to distribute sugar in even
APPLE PECTIN
layer. Sprinkle salt over sugar. Arrange peaches in
Abundant pectin traps juice to form a gel PEACH PECTIN circular pattern around edge of skillet, nestling fruit
that makes it hard for juice to leak out. Less pectin means that more juice can leak out. snugly. Tuck remaining peaches into center, squeez-
ing in as much fruit as possible (it is not necessary to
maintain circular pattern in center).
Earning My Crust more complexity—to the reducing juice before 3. Place skillet over high heat and cook, without
Now that I had sorted out the juice problem, I could brushing the mixture over the peaches. Finally, I stirring fruit, until juice is released and turns from
no longer ignore the fact that, except at the very whipped some lightly sweetened cream to serve pink to deep amber, 8 to 12 minutes. (If necessary,
edges, the underside of the puff pastry was kind of alongside. Now that I have a summery peach version, adjust skillet’s placement on burner to even out hot
raw. So for my next test, I parbaked the pastry on I can make tarte Tatin all year round. spots and encourage even browning.) Remove skillet
a baking sheet while I caramelized the peaches and from heat. Carefully slide prepared dough over fruit,
then married the two for a final bake. PEACH TARTE TATIN making sure dough is centered and does not touch
But they remained very separate. The crust stayed SERVES 8 edge of skillet. Brush dough lightly with water and
awkwardly flat instead of molding itself around the sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake
peaches, and I never got that velvety interface where We recommend using our Foolproof All-Butter until crust is very well browned, 30 to 35 minutes.
the fruit and crust met. And though the puff pastry Dough for Single-Crust Pie for this recipe (available Transfer skillet to wire rack set in rimmed baking
expanded majestically in the oven, it collapsed under for free for four months at CooksIllustrated.com/ sheet and let cool for 20 minutes.
the fruit when I inverted the tart, so even though it aug18). Chill the dough for at least 1 hour before 4. Place inverted plate on top of crust. With 1
was fully baked, it seemed dense and tough. rolling it. We like using firm peaches in this recipe hand firmly securing plate, carefully tip skillet over
Given the special requirements of a peach Tatin, pie because they are easier to peel and retain their shape bowl to drain juice (skillet handle may still be hot).
dough was a better option. I simply rolled out a disk when cooked; yellow peaches are also preferable to When all juice has been transferred to bowl, return
of dough, folded the edge underneath itself to form white peaches. For instructions on peeling and pitting skillet to wire rack, remove plate, and shake skillet
a bit of a rim to contain the peaches, cut a few vents, peaches, see page 31. When pouring off the liquid firmly to redistribute peaches. Carefully invert tart
and placed the pastry on top of the caramelized fruit. in step 4, the peaches may shift in the skillet; shaking onto plate, then slide tart onto wire rack. (If peaches
I brushed the dough with water and sprinkled it with the skillet will help redistribute them. Serve the tart have shifted during unmolding, gently nudge them
sugar, so it would become extra crunchy when baked. with lightly sweetened whipped cream, if desired. back into place with spoon.)
As the tart baked, the pie crust absorbed more steam 5. Pour juice into now-empty skillet (handle may
than the less-porous puff pastry had and did it without 1 recipe single-crust pie dough, chilled be hot). Stir in bourbon, if using, and cook over
getting soggy, so there was a little less juice to drain. 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is dark
Sensing that I was nearing the end of my quest, ½ cup (3½ ounces) plus 2 tablespoons sugar and thick and starting to smoke, 2 to 3 minutes.
I celebrated by adding a bit of bourbon—for a little ¼ teaspoon salt Return mixture to bowl and let cool until mixture is
2 pounds ripe but firm peaches, peeled, consistency of honey, 2 to 3 minutes. Brush mixture
pitted, and quartered over peaches. Let tart cool for at least 20 minutes.
ILLUSTRATION: JAY LAYMAN (TOP), JOHN BURGOYNE (BOTTOM)

1 tablespoon bourbon (optional) Cut into wedges and serve.

Put Your Peach Juice to Work 1. USE PIE DOUGH, NOT 2. DRAIN AND RESERVE 3. REDUCE JUICE INTO
Because peaches throw of so much liquid during cook- PUFF PASTRY Pie dough JUICE Once the tart is baked, GLAZE Combine the peach
ing, we had to ind ways to make sure our tart didn’t absorbs more steam than get rid of excess liquid by placing juice with bourbon and reduce
end up awash in it (as in the failed test above). At the less-porous puf pastry, so the an inverted plate on the crust and the mixture into a thick, lavorful
same time, we put that excess juice to good use. juice ends up a bit thicker. draining of juice. glaze to brush onto the peaches.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

23
 Tasting Fresh Mozzarella
What makes the best fresh mozzarella? It’s all about balance.
j BY L A U R E N S AV O I E k

M
ozzarella comes in many forms, Mark Johnson, assistant director of the Wisconsin
including string cheese, dense Center for Dairy Research at the University of
blocks for shredding, and larger Wisconsin–Madison, told us that citric acid is more
balls of “fresh” high-moisture effective at stretching the mozzarella, so less acid can
mozzarella. You can also make it at home with be used. This means that the cheese ends up with a
a few specialty ingredients in less than an hour. higher pH (it is less acidic) and tastes sweeter and
According to the traditional method, milk, ren- not at all tangy. By contrast, more vinegar or cheese
net, and an acid are heated until the curds separate culture is needed to acidify mozzarella, so cheeses
from the whey. The curds are strained, salted, and produced this way have a lower pH (they’re more
plunged into hot water to make them flexible. acidic) and a characteristic tang.
Once removed from the water, they are stretched Lab tests confirmed this. The pH of the cheeses in
until they become smooth and elastic. Finally, the our lineup ranged from 5.8 to 6.2, and we noticed
cheese is shaped into a block or a ball and cooled, that these slight variations in acidity can translate
and then it’s ready to eat. into big flavor differences. Tasters found the two
highest-pH cheeses, which were acidified with lactic
What Exactly Is “Fresh” Mozzarella? or citric acid, too bland and sweet; they found the
For centuries, fresh mozzarella has been made in Italy two lowest-pH cheeses, which were acidified with
using buffalo’s milk. But since buffalo mozzarella is vinegar or cheese culture, a bit too tart. Our favorite
not aged and is usually produced with unpasteurized mozzarellas, which had a moderate pH (about 6.0)
milk, its shelf life is only four to five days, making the and were acidified with vinegar or cheese culture,
cheese difficult to export to the United States. We tasted the cheeses in three different applications, were subtly tangy. These products may have been
While there are a few buffalo mozzarella producers including our Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad. made using slightly less vinegar or cheese culture
in the United States, most domestic “fresh” mozza- than the lower-pH cheeses, though other factors can
rella is made from pasteurized cow’s milk. The term With this in mind, we set out to find our favorite influence pH, including naturally occurring bacteria,
“fresh mozzarella” is not recognized by the U.S. Food fresh mozzarella, focusing on cheeses labeled “fresh” the cows’ diet, and the original fat and moisture
and Drug Administration, but cheesemakers use it to and sold in shrink-wrapped balls or packed in brine. content of the milk.
denote a style of mozzarella that is higher in moisture We rounded up eight nationally available products
and is eaten raw (“fresh”) rather than cooked (with a priced from $0.32 to $1.00 per ounce and tasted them Acid and Moisture Affect Texture
few exceptions, such as pizza margherita). plain, in our recipe for Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad, Variations in pH can also affect texture. Johnson
and melted onto miniature toasts. We didn’t notice explained that cheese is a tightly bound matrix of
much difference in the cheeses when they were melted; protein (called casein) and fat, and acid helps break
Tracking pH and Sodium Levels however, flavor and texture differences were apparent down this tough protein. In general, this means that
We found that cheeses with moderate amounts in the plain and Caprese salad tastings. mozzarellas with a higher pH (less acidic) are relatively
of sodium were full-lavored and savory. We also Sodium played a big part in how we perceived firm. Again, this tracked with our results; tasters found
noticed a correlation between pH and lavor: flavor. The cheeses’ sodium levels ranged from 50 to the higher-pH cheeses a bit dense and noted that one
Those cheeses that fell in the middle of our lineup’s 110 milligrams per 1-ounce serving, and tasters lower-pH cheese was too soft and slightly weepy. Our
pH range were subtly tangy and slightly sweet. found cheeses at the low end of the spectrum bland favorite products were soft, plush, and tender.
Tasters noted that our favorite cheese, with a pH and boring. Mozzarellas at the higher end of the The two top-rated cheeses also had higher mois-
of 6.0 and 85 milligrams of sodium per serving, sodium spectrum fared a bit better, but a few tasters ture content, more than 60 percent, that resulted
had “balanced tang” and was “well seasoned.” found them overly salty. We preferred products with in a melt-in-your-mouth creaminess when tasted
a moderate amount of sodium (85 to 95 milligrams uncooked. The driest product (with about 49 per-
NOT pH TANGY
RECOMMENDED per serving); they were savory and flavorful without cent moisture) was dense and tough, similar to block
RECOMMENDED
WITH RESERVATIONS
being overwhelmingly salty. cheese for grating. However, texture differences
Zeroing in on differences in the tanginess of were less noticeable when we melted the cheeses; all
the cheeses took a bit more digging. During the were perfectly milky, stretchy, and chewy.
RECOMMENDED
SODIUM mozzarella-making process, an acid is added to help
BLAND WINNER
pH = 6.0
SALTY the curds stretch. This acid can be vinegar, cheese A Better Mozzarella
Sodium = 85 mg culture (which causes natural bacteria to form and Our favorite cheese was BelGioioso Fresh Mozzarella
turn milk sugars into lactic acid), lactic acid, and/or ($7.99 for 8 ounces, in a vacuum-sealed ball), which
citric acid. We looked at product labels and noticed had moderate tang, moderate sodium, and high
SWEET a trend: Those with lactic or citric acid were at the moisture. These attributes combined to create a
bottom of our rankings, and those at the top used cheese with a savory, buttery richness; a tender curd;
vinegar or cheese culture. and clean, milky flavor.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

24
 TASTING FRESH MOZZARELLA
Twenty-one America’s Test Kitchen stafers sampled eight fresh mozzarellas plain (twice, to control for variability), in our recipe for Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad, and
melted onto miniature toasts. We sent samples of each to an independent lab to have pH, moisture, fat, and protein levels calculated. Sodium level and type of acid were
taken from ingredient labels. Sodium levels were standardized for comparison, using a serving size of 1 ounce. Products appear below in order of preference.

RECOMMENDED R E C O M M E N D E D W I T H R E S E R VAT I O N S

BELGIOIOSO Fresh Mozzarella BOAR’S HEAD Fresh Mozzarella Cheese

PRICE: $7.99 for 8 oz ($1.00 per oz) PRICE: $4.99 for 8 oz ($0.62 per oz)
PACKAGE: Shrink-wrapped PACKAGE: Shrink-wrapped
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, vinegar, enzymes, salt INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, vinegar, sea salt,
SODIUM: 85 mg rennet
TYPE OF ACID: Vinegar SODIUM: 90 mg

pH: 6.0 TYPE OF ACID: Vinegar

MOISTURE: 60.3% pH: 5.8

COMMENTS: This “plush” mozzarella was “pillowy” and “tender,” with a “melt-in- MOISTURE: 58.3%
your-mouth” richness that tasters loved. It had a moderate amount of sodium and COMMENTS: This cheese, which was more “yellow” than the stark white we’re used
“balanced tang” as well as a flavor that was “buttery,” “creamy,” and “fresh.” Overall, to with mozzarella, had a “buttery” and “fairly salty” flavor. Tasters were split on its
it’s a “well-seasoned,” “luscious” mozzarella. texture, which was “soft” and “almost spreadable” when uncooked. While this cheese
would be fine for a margherita pizza, it was a little atypical for a Caprese salad or for
serving plain because of its softer texture.
LIONI Fresh Mozzarella
PRICE: $4.99 for 8 oz ($0.62 per oz)
CALABRO Fior Di Latte Ovolini
PACKAGE: Shrink-wrapped
PRICE: $4.99 for 8 oz ($0.62 per oz)
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized whole milk, starter,
cheese cultures, vegetable rennet, salt PACKAGE: Brine
SODIUM: 95 mg INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, starter, rennet, salt

TYPE OF ACID: Cheese culture SODIUM: 90 mg

pH: 5.9 TYPE OF ACID: Cheese culture

MOISTURE: 61.2% pH: 5.8

COMMENTS: An all-around “balanced” cheese, this mozzarella was “tender but not MOISTURE: 59.5%
too squishy” and “firm but not too dry.” It had “the perfect amount of salt,” and COMMENTS: One of two brine-packed cheeses in our lineup, this mozzarella was
tasters also picked up on “grassy” notes of “cultured” milk (it uses cheese culture to “moist” and “tender,” with “vegetal,” “fresh dairy” notes. Its interior was “soft” and
acidify the curds). Its texture was “springy” and “soft,” and we loved its “luxurious,” “creamy” but a bit “loose,” almost like “cottage cheese,” likely because of its lower
“buttery” richness. pH. This also meant that the cheese was more acidic, and many tasters noted “a hint
of sourness,” which they were divided on.
FRIGO Fresh Mozzarella Cheese
PRICE: $3.99 for 8 oz ($0.50 per oz) CRAVE BROTHERS Farmstead Classics Fresh
PACKAGE: Shrink-wrapped
Mozzarella Cheese
PRICE: $5.99 for 16 oz ($0.37 per oz)
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, cheese cultures,
salt, enzymes PACKAGE: Shrink-wrapped
SODIUM: 110 mg INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, lactic/citric acid, salt, enzymes

TYPE OF ACID: Cheese culture SODIUM: 55 mg

pH: 6.1 TYPE OF ACID: Lactic and citric acids

MOISTURE: 55.9% pH: 6.2

COMMENTS: This “bold” mozzarella had plenty of sodium; most tasters found it “bal- MOISTURE: 48.8%
anced,” but a few thought it was “overseasoned.” Its texture was “springy,” “bouncy,” COMMENTS: With the lowest moisture content of any cheese in our lineup, this mozza-
and “smooth,” and it had a “mild,” “sweet” milkiness that contrasted with its more rella was “firm” and “chewy”—more like low-moisture shredding mozzarella than fresh.
“savory” notes. Tasters also thought it was “a bit bland” and “slightly sweet” from its low levels of salt
and acid. Still, many tasters applauded this cheese’s subtle “fresh,” “milky” flavors.
GALBANI Fresh Mozzarella N OT R E C O M M E N D E D
PRICE: $4.59 for 8 oz ($0.57 per oz)
PACKAGE: Shrink-wrapped DI STEFANO Mozzarella Cheese
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, vinegar, salt, enzymes PRICE: $2.59 for 8 oz ($0.32 per oz)
SODIUM: 100 mg PACKAGE: Brine
TYPE OF ACID: Vinegar INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, salt, lactic acid, culture rennet
pH: 5.9 SODIUM: 50 mg
MOISTURE: 57.9% TYPE OF ACID: Lactic acid and cheese culture
COMMENTS: This mozzarella was “soft,” “moist,” and “chewy,” with “tangy vinegar pH: 6.2
notes” and a “buttery dairy flavor.” Its “shaggy,” almost “grainy” texture reminded a MOISTURE: 61.8%
few tasters of “hand-pulled mozz.” Though it was “a bit too salty and tangy” for some
COMMENTS: This mozzarella was “bland” and “rubbery,” likely because of its low
tasters, most liked this “fresh,” “complex” cheese.
amount of sodium and high pH. Its “dense” yet “watery” and “gritty” texture confused
tasters, with a few comparing it to a “wet sponge.” In Caprese salad, it was “weepy”
and “flavorless,” disappearing among the stronger flavors of the tomatoes and basil.

JULY & AUGUST 2018

25
 Testing Digital Thermometers
We’ve recommended a Thermapen for more than a decade,
but there’s new competition. Is it still the best option?
j BY HANNAH CROWLEY k

I
f you cook or bake regularly, you should have appreciated digital displays that rotate as you move
a food thermometer. A good thermometer the thermometer; this is great for lefties and anyone
takes the guesswork out of cooking, telling who needs to adjust their grip during use so that they
you exactly what’s going on inside your food. don’t have to read the temperature upside down.
The old dial-faced ones are slow and imprecise: Some models rotated the digits two ways, flipping
Digital is the only way to go. them 180 degrees; others rotated four ways so the
We’ve highly recommended the ThermoWorks digits could face all sides of the screen.
Thermapen Mk4 ($99.00) for years. But recently, We also liked backlights, which were useful for
competition has emerged, and many of the new mod- grilling at night and reaching into dark ovens. Six
els are less expensive. Could any top our old favorite? models had them, but the Mk4 is the only one that
To find out, we gathered 11 digital thermometers turned on automatically in low light. (The OXO
priced from $11.95 to $99.95, including the Mk4 model has a black screen with white digits, making it
and the ThermoWorks ThermoPop ($29.00), our easy to read even in the dark.) Another feature we val-
top-rated inexpensive model, and put them all ued was sleep mode, in which thermometers turn off
through a series of tests to examine accuracy, speed, when not in use. Even better was a sleep mode with
comfort, visibility, ease of use, and durability. an auto wake-up feature that turns the thermometer
on when it’s moved (if the probe is open).
Accuracy and Speed Are Paramount After more than 50 hours of testing, we found a
Our first tests were focused on accuracy: We used few decent models. But only one could hold a candle
each thermometer to read the temperatures of a The best thermometer gave us a reading in 2.2 seconds. to the Mk4 and do so with a smaller price tag: The
32-degree ice bath, 212-degree boiling water, and Lavatools Javelin Pro DUO ($49.99) is fast and
a 125-degree sous vide water bath, repeating the first the pinch grip we had to use with smaller handles. We accurate, with a big, clear display; a motion-activated
two tests three times and the third test 10 times. The awarded more points to models with screens located backlight; a sleep mode with auto wake-up; and
least accurate models were off by about 2 degrees— near the probe. This meant there was more room on a 180-degree rotating display. It wasn’t quite as
not enough to ruin a dish but not exactly confidence- the back end of the handle to grip the thermometer comfortable as the Mk4, and its single button had
inspiring. Our top-rated thermometers were within 1 without obscuring the display. We also liked models three functions (hold, minimum, maximum), which
degree of accuracy every time. We also preferred those with minimal buttons. testers found a bit confusing. Priced $50.00 less
that gave us readings without decimal points, which than the Mk4, it’s a good deal; we’re naming it our
we found distracting; it doesn’t matter if your steak Extra Features Made All the Difference favorite midprice thermometer. The ThermoWorks
is cooked to 125 or 125.2 degrees. Most of the thermometers boasted extra features, Thermopop ($29.00), a very basic, fast, and accurate
Speed was crucial, too. The thermometers took, on but not all were created equal. For example, we model, is again our winning inexpensive option.
average, from 2 seconds to just under 12 seconds to found minimum and maximum buttons superflu- But in the end, the ThermoWorks Thermapen Mk4
provide a reading. Twelve seconds may not seem long, ous. (You don’t need the thermometer to tell you ($99.00) is still the best. It’s quick, precise, and intui-
but when our hands were hovering over a steaming the temperature range over the span of a few seconds tive as well as calibratable and waterproof, making it a
pot of boiling water, it felt like an eternity. The best if you’re standing there looking at it.) However, we worthwhile investment for any home cook.
models read in just 2 to 3 seconds.

PHOTOGRAPH (BOTTOM): COURTESY OF THERMOWORKS

All the thermometers we tested have two basic
parts: a metal probe that sticks into the food and a TECHNIQUE KEEPING YOUR THERMOMETER IN TIP-TOP SHAPE
handle that houses the electronics and any controls. The ThermoWorks Thermapen Mk4 ($99.00) is an expensive thermometer, so we like that it comes with a
The size and design of both determined how comfort- two-year warranty. You can protect your investment by cleaning it carefully and protecting it from prolonged
able and easy to use the thermometers were. Overall, exposure to heat.
we preferred models with big handles and long probes Careful Cleaning: Spray an antibacterial cleaning Mind the Heat: Common resting places for kitchen
that opened like a switchblade (no separate covers solution onto a cloth or a paper towel and wipe thermometers, such as the space between the burn-
to keep track of). A probe that measured at least the body and probe clean. Avoid cleaning wipes or ers on a stove, can get hot enough to melt a ther-
4 inches long was essential for reaching the center of solutions that contain isopropyl alcohol, which mometer; even prolonged periods of direct sunlight
a large roast or steak, and it kept our hands farther can damage the screen. Because the can cause damage. The manufac-
away from the heat. Mk4 is waterproof, you can also clean turer’s rule of thumb is this: If
As for the handles, the most comfortable ones were it under running water with soap, but it’s too hot for your hands, it’s
long and broad. This meant there was more room for avoid rotating the probe while doing so too hot for your thermometer
us to grip the thermometer multiple ways with our full because it can damage the electronics. YES, IT MELTS (and mind the sun).
hand, like a handshake, which felt more secure than

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

26
 TESTING DIGITAL THERMOMETERS
We tested 11 digital thermometers priced from $11.95 to $99.95. We ran a series of accuracy and speed tests and evaluated each model’s comfort, ease of use, and
durability while making caramel, roasted beef, seared steaks, and grilled chicken. We asked a series of testers to evaluate each thermometer’s comfort and usability.
Temperature ranges were reported by manufacturers; we calculated the average margin of error from all three accuracy tests. All thermometers were purchased
online, and the top 10 appear below from left to right in order of preference.

ThermoWorks OXO Good Grips Lavatools Javelin ThermoWorks Lavatools Polder Maverick Rain Drop Taylor Rotating Palermo Instant EatSmart
Thermapen Mk4 Thermocouple PRO Duo ThermoPop Javelin Stable-Read Waterproof Digital Display Read Meat Precision Pro
Thermometer Instant Read Thermometer Thermometer Thermometer Digital Food
Digital Thermometer Thermometer

ACCURACY: H I G H LY R E C O M M E N D E D TESTERS’ COMMENTS

We evaluated accuracy by THERMOWORKS Thermapen Mk4 ACCURACY: +++ Our old winner is still the best. It’s dead accurate, fast,
taking the temperatures MODEL: THS-234-457 (blue) PRICE: $99.00 SPEED: +++ and comfortable, with a long handle that allows for
of a 32-degree ice bath, a multiple grips. The automatic backlight was useful for
AVERAGE READ TIME: 2.2 sec EASE OF USE: +++
low light, and the rotating screen is handy for lefties and
125-degree sous vide water RANGE: -58°F to 572°F PROBE LENGTH: 4.3 in DURABILITY: +++ righties alike. It also comes with an auto wake-up func-
bath, and 212-degree boiling tion and is waterproof and calibratable.
water; models that were within
RECOMMENDED
1 degree of accuracy at each
temperature rated highest. OXO Good Grips Thermocouple ACCURACY: +++ This newcomer had two unique features that we
Thermometer SPEED:+++ really liked: Its probe opened 225 degrees (instead of
11204300 $99.95 180 degrees), enhancing viewability, and its display had
SPEED: MODEL: PRICE: EASE OF USE: ++½
white digits on a black screen, negating the need for a
AVERAGE READ TIME: 3.85 sec DURABILITY: +++
We timed how long it took backlight. The downsides? There’s no auto wake-up fea-
RANGE: -58°F to 572°F PROBE LENGTH: 4.25 in ture, the probe is a bit stiff, and the handle was too slick.
for each thermometer to read
temperature in the accuracy LAVATOOLS Javelin PRO Duo BEST ACCURACY: +++ This fast, accurate thermometer had a large handle that
MIDPRICE kept us safely away from the heat, though it was slightly
tests; those that read in 6 sec- MODEL: PX1D $49.99
PRICE: OPTION SPEED:+++
slick and a bit small. We appreciated its big, clear display;
onds or less rated highest. AVERAGE READ TIME: 3 sec EASE OF USE: ++½
long probe; and easy operation. Its single button has
RANGE: -40°F to 482°F PROBE LENGTH: 4.35 in DURABILITY: +++ three functions, which we sometimes found confusing,
EASE OF USE: and it wasn’t perfectly responsive.
We rated how easy and THERMOWORKS ThermoPop BEST ACCURACY: +++ Compared with fancier models, our former inexpen-
LOW-PRICE sive winner felt like driving a standard car. The display
comfortable each model was MODEL: TX-3100-PK PRICE: $29.00 OPTION SPEED:+++
rotates and has a backlight, but you have to press a
to use. We preferred those AVERAGE READ TIME: 3 sec EASE OF USE: ++
button for both functions. It makes the best of its small
with spacious, grippy handles; RANGE: -58°F to 572°F PROBE LENGTH: 4.5 in DURABILITY: +++ lollipop-shaped head with a grippy, ergonomic design.
long probes; and minimal but- R E C O M M E N D E D W I T H R E S E R VAT I O N S
tons. Models with automatic
LAVATOOLS Javelin ACCURACY: +++ This thermometer was intuitive, fast, and accurate, but
wake-up, easy-to-read displays, its smaller size was a severe limitation. At 2.8 inches
MODEL: PT12 $24.99
PRICE: SPEED:+++
and a single step for turning on long, its probe couldn’t reach the center of a large roast
AVERAGE READ TIME: 3.9 sec EASE OF USE: +½
and of also rated highest. and, combined with its small handle, it sometimes put
RANGE: -40°F to 482°F PROBE LENGTH: 2.8 in DURABILITY: +++ our hands dangerously close to the heat. It also lacked a
backlight and a rotating screen.
DURABILITY:
N OT R E C O M M E N D E D
We monitored the thermom-
eters throughout testing for POLDER MAVERICK TAYLOR PALERMO EATSMART
Stable-Read Rain Drop Rotating Display Instant Read Meat Precision Pro Digital
both functional and cosmetic Instant Read Digital Waterproof Digital Thermometer Thermometer Food Thermometer
damage; those that emerged Thermometer Thermometer MODEL: 9834 MODEL: DTH-81 MODEL: ESFT-01
looking and operating like new MODEL: THM-389-90 MODEL: PT-55 PRICE: $17.99 PRICE: $11.97 PRICE: $11.95
rated highest. PRICE: $15.99 PRICE: $39.99 AVERAGE READ TIME: AVERAGE READ TIME: AVERAGE READ TIME:
AVERAGE READ TIME: AVERAGE READ TIME: 7.2 sec 9.7 sec 7.9 sec
8.7 sec 4.8 sec RANGE: -40°F to 482°F RANGE: -58°F to 572°F RANGE: -40°F to 450°F
Hannah Tests RANGE: -49°F to 392°F RANGE: 4°F to 572°F PROBE LENGTH: 5.6 in PROBE LENGTH: 4.6 in PROBE LENGTH: 3 in
the Thermometers PROBE LENGTH: 4.2 in PROBE LENGTH: 3.9 in ACCURACY: ++½ ACCURACY: +++ ACCURACY: +++
ACCURACY: ++½ ACCURACY: ++½ SPEED: ++ SPEED: +½ SPEED: ++
A free video is
SPEED: ++ SPEED: +++ EASE OF USE: + EASE OF USE: ½ EASE OF USE: +
available at
EASE OF USE: ++ EASE OF USE: + DURABILITY: +++ DURABILITY: ++½ DURABILITY: +½
CooksIllustrated.com/aug18
DURABILITY: ++ DURABILITY: ++

JULY & AUGUST 2018

27
 INGREDIENT NOTES
j B Y A N D R E A G E A R Y, A N D R E W J A N J I G I A N , L A N L A M & A N N I E P E T I T O k

Yellow versus White Peaches

Tasting Burrata Yellow peaches, with red-orange skin and golden lesh, and white peaches, with
rosy-yellow skin and pale, butter-colored lesh, are the most common options in grocery
Imagine slicing open a tender ball of fresh mozzarella to ind a luscious, thick stores and fruit markets. We wondered whether the two could be used interchangeably,
cream teeming with plush bits of curd. A mozzarella ofshoot, burrata is so we sampled them plain; baked into a rustic, cobbler-like dessert called sonker; and in
made in much the same way, but before the ball is twisted and sealed, it’s a fresh salsa. We found that their diferences were more than skin-deep. Yellow peaches
stufed with a mixture of curd and cream. Cheesemakers in the Puglia region had a brighter, slightly more acidic taste that balanced the sweetness of the sonker, and
of Italy began making burrata in the early 20th century as a way to use up their sturdier lesh held up better to baking than that of the white peaches. We also liked
leftovers from the production of fresh mozzarella. Then, around the turn of the brightness the yellow peaches brought to the salsa. The white peaches, meanwhile,
the century, artisanal cheesemakers in the United States started crafting their had virtually no acidity, making the sonker taste overly sweet. Their softer lesh turned
own versions; large manufacturers eventually followed suit. We wondered if mushy in the oven, and their delicate loral taste was overwhelmed in salsa.
any domestic supermarket options could deliver the luxurious experience we
associate with burrata, so we rounded up four nationally available products
priced from $3.80 to $6.50 for 8 ounces. We sampled them plain and in our
recipe for Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Salad with Pangrattato and Basil.
We immediately noticed the cheeses’ varying ratios of shell to illing.
Lower-ranking cheeses had thinner shells that disappeared into the illing (our YELLOW PEACH WHITE PEACH
least favorite was less than 20 percent shell). By comparison, our top two Great for baking Save for snacking
products had an equal amount of hefty shell and soft illing, which provided ( Bottom line: We’ll stick with yellow peaches for baking and cooking and enjoy
a nice textural contrast. Tasters also liked clean, milky, slightly salty lavor and the mild, loral lavor of white peaches for eating them out of hand. But if you do
favored products with at least 80 milligrams of sodium per serving. Our win- cook or bake with white peaches, know that their softer, smoother texture may afect
ner, Lioni Burrata con Panna, was bright-tasting and nicely salted, with a thick, the dish’s consistency and you might need to add a bit of acid for balance. –A.P.
luscious cream that tasters loved. It was lauded for its “luxurious,” pillowy
texture and fresh dairy lavor—proving that it is possible to get high-quality
burrata from the supermarket. –Lauren Savoie Don’t Toss Expired Cocoa Powder
Some see a box of unsweetened cocoa powder six years past its expiration date
RECOMMENDED and think “trash.” In the test kitchen, we think “testing opportunity.” Wondering
if cocoa spoils or loses its lavor over time as spices do, we made hot cocoa
LIONI Burrata con Panna
and chocolate butter cookies with the six-year-old cocoa and a freshly opened
PRICE: $6.50 for 8 oz ($0.81 per oz)
box of the same product. When we tasted them side by side, only about half
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized whole milk, cream, starter,
cheese cultures, vegetable rennet, and salt the tasters noted a diference, calling the samples made with the geriatric cocoa
SODIUM: 80 mg PERCENTAGE FILLING: 48% PERCENTAGE SHELL: 52% “duller,” “weaker,” and “more mellow.” No one noted any of-lavors.
COMMENTS: “This is mozzarella from heaven,” said one taster about this “but- When we repeated the test using high- and low-fat cocoa powders one to
tery,” “rich” product. Tasters singled it out as the “creamiest” and “saltiest” of the two years past their expiration dates, again comparing them with samples made
bunch. It also had a distinct shell, with a “balanced” amount of “thick” filling.
with fresh cocoa, tasters could not diferentiate between the samples. The com-
pounds that give cocoa powder its lavor are less volatile than those in ground
BELGIOIOSO Burrata spices, which lose much of their lavor and aroma after about a year. The more
PRICE: $4.99 for 8 oz ($0.62 per oz)
volatile the molecule, the more rapidly it evaporates and degrades.
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized milk, cream, vinegar, enzymes, salt
SODIUM: 85 mg
* The takeaway: If you come across cocoa powder that’s past its expiration
date–even by a couple of years—it’s ine to use. –A.G.
PERCENTAGE FILLING: 44% PERCENTAGE SHELL: 56%
COMMENTS: With our tasters’ ideal shell-to-cream ratio, this “pillowy” burrata
was “soft without being overly watery” and had “sweet dairy flavor.” The inside
was “tender” and “stringy,” with “distinct” pieces that we liked in salad. Introducing Aji Amarillo Chile Paste
Our Peruvian Fish Ceviche with Radishes and Orange (page 19)
CALABRO Burrata uses aji amarillo chile paste for heat and a hint of fruity lavor.
PRICE: $4.99 for 8 oz ($0.62 per oz) Available in the Latin section of many grocery stores and popular ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE
INGREDIENTS: Pasteurized whole milk, pasteurized cultured in Peruvian and Bolivian cuisines, this paste is made from a vibrant
cream, starter, vegetable rennet, packed in lightly salted water
yellow chile (aji amarillo translates as “yellow pepper”) and typically
SODIUM: 50 mg
salt and citric acid, the latter of which adds brightness and acts as UNMELLOW
PERCENTAGE FILLING: 73% PERCENTAGE SHELL: 27%
a preservative. Tasters likened the chile paste’s lavor to that of a YELLOW
COMMENTS: This burrata was “creamy” and “luscious,” with a “mild” and “milky”
habanero but with a moderate amount of heat. A few picked out Medium heat,
flavor. The filling was on the thinner side, and while it produced a satisfying gush
vibrant color
when we first sliced into the cheese, it was a little “watery” in salad. A few tasters a slightly sweet, vegetal inish reminiscent of red bell peppers.
also thought it was a bit “underseasoned” because of its lower sodium content. Use aji amarillo paste to punch up the lavor of marinades and dressings, stir it
*Sodium levels were standardized for comparison, using a serving size of 1 ounce. into mayonnaise to make a peppy spread for sandwiches, or fold a small amount into
salsa or guacamole. –L.L.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

28
Cucumber Primer DIY RECIPE Plantain Chips
Gone are the days when supermarkets sold only one Plantain chips are expensive and are not always easy to ind in stores, but they
kind of cucumber. We tried four easy-to-ind varieties are a snap to make at home using our method. Slicing the plantains thinly and
plain and in bread-and-butter pickles. Below is a little evenly ensures that they cook up crispy without burning, so we highly recom-
background on each and what we learned. –A.G. mend using a mandoline for this recipe. Frying the plantains at a relatively gentle
325 degrees lets the interiors of the chips cook through before the exteriors
* Pickling (Kirby): Small and squat; dense, crunchy begin to brown, so they are crispy inside and out. Enjoy plantain chips out of
lesh; available late summer to late fall hand or serve them alongside salsas, guacamole, or our Peruvian Fish Ceviche
Uses: Pickles, salads, crudités with Radishes and Orange (page 19). –A.J.
Notes: This was the only variety we liked as pickles; its
skin can be tough, so consider peeling it if eating it raw in PLANTAIN CHIPS
salads. SERVES 4

* Seedless (English/European/Hothouse): Long

and slim; sold shrink-wrapped; slightly sweet and Be sure to use plantains that are as unripe
melon-y; available year-round (dark green) as possible. To peel plantains,
Uses: Salads, crudités trim ½ inch from each end to expose the
Notes: The skins contain fewer bitter-tasting lesh and then use a paring knife to cut length-
cucurbitacins than those of slicing cucumbers, and the wise through the skin. Use a spoon to peel
seeds are tiny, so leave them in if you like. back the skin along the cut and remove it. We
* Slicing (American): Thick, with dark-green skin and plen- prefer to slice the plantains using a mandoline,
tiful seeds; crisp texture; mild lavor; available year-round but they can be sliced using a sharp knife; just
Uses: Salads, crudités be sure to slice them precisely and evenly.
Notes: Remove the tough seeds, trim the ends, and Add the plantain slices to the oil a few at a
remove the skin, which contains a relatively high con- time to prevent them from sticking together.
centration of cucurbitacins.
* Mini (Persian): Small and slim; similar to seedless TEAM 4 cups vegetable oil
cucumbers in lavor and texture; available year-round CUCUMBER 3 unripe plantains, peeled and sliced
Uses: Salads, crudités Clockwise on bias 1/16 inch thick
from top left:
Notes: There’s no need to peel or seed mini cukes; pickling, seedless, Kosher salt
they’re typically more expensive than other varieties. slicing, mini
Line rimmed baking sheet with double layer of paper towels. Heat oil in large
Dutch oven over medium-high heat to 325 degrees. Carefully add one-third
Technique: How to Segment Citrus of plantains and cook, stirring with slotted spoon or spider skimmer, until light
When slicing oranges, grapefruits, and other citrus fruits into segments, it’s impor- golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes, adjusting burner, if necessary, to maintain oil tem-
tant to cut the sections free of the membranes and pith, which are ibrous and bit- perature between 300 and 325 degrees. Using slotted spoon or spider skimmer,
ter. Here’s how we do this in the test transfer chips to prepared sheet and season lightly with salt. Return oil to 325
kitchen. –A.J. degrees and repeat with remaining plantains in 2 batches. (Cooled chips can be
stored at room temperature for up to 1 week.)
1. TRIM Cut thin slice from top and
bottom of fruit. Use paring knife to
remove 1-inch-wide swaths of rind Mediterranean versus Mexican Oregano
and white pith, cutting from top to Oregano is one of the few herbs that retains much of its lavor when dried, which is why
bottom of fruit. (Working in small we call for it in many recipes. Oregano’s aroma compounds are less volatile than those
sections helps you follow contour of of other herbs, meaning that more remain after the leaves are dried. There are two
fruit, leaving more of lesh intact.) general categories of oregano: Mediterranean and Mexican, which come from diferent
plants. Mediterranean oregano (Origanum vulgare) is a member of the mint family and
2. SLICE Hold fruit over bowl to 3. SEGMENT Insert blade between a close relative of marjoram, while Mexican oregano (Lippia graveolens) is a member of
catch juice and segments. Insert blade membrane and other side of segment. the verbena family and a close relative of lemon verbena. Both plants contain a phenolic
of paring knife between membrane Again slice to center of fruit. Segment compound called carvacrol, which gives both herbs their distinctive, pungent lavor.
and side of segment. Carefully slice to should release. If it does not, use knife We tried both types in tomato
center of fruit. One side of segment will to gently pry segment away from fruit. sauce and mojo-marinated skirt steak
be separated. Repeat with remaining sections. and noticed minimal diferences. The
Mediterranean oregano was milder and
faintly sweeter, while the Mexican type
was stronger, with a hint of menthol.
As with other dried herbs, oregano’s
volatile compounds will eventually dis-
sipate. Whichever kind you choose, be
sure to store it in a cool, dry, dark place
to preserve its lavor. Discard your
oregano if it’s faded in color or has lost
its distinctive aroma. –L.L. MEDITERRANEAN MEXICAN

JULY & AUGUST 2018

29
 K I T CH E N N O T E S
j BY STEVE DUNN, ANDREA GEARY & LAN LAM k

WHAT IS IT?
Brush Up on Brushes
If you’re equal parts cook and baker, consider keeping two brushes in your kitchen—a
Resembling the skeleton of an old umbrella, a bois lélé is the pastry brush with thin, natural-iber bristles, and a sturdy silicone brush. –A.G.
denuded twig from the so-called swizzlestick tree (Quararibea
turbinata), which grows throughout the eastern Caribbean.
Beginning in the late 19th century, British colonists in the
Caribbean islands used the stick, which features short spikes
radiating out from the end of a central pole, to mix a type of
drink drink called a “swizzle.”
We acquired a bois lélé from a local mixology shop and
used it to mix a classic
version of the cocktail.
After illing a highball glass
with crushed ice, orange
and pineapple juices,
dark rum, grenadine,
and a dash of bitters, N AT U R A L - F I B E R B R U S H SILICONE BRUSH
we inserted the bois lélé Use for: Applying egg wash or glaze to Use for: High-heat applications; basting
spiky side down and delicate doughs and pastry or butter/oil meat or poultry; applying oil or melted
rapidly rubbed the upper to phyllo dough; brushing crumbs from butter to pans; applying anything with
portion between our cake layers strong odor
palms to spin the stick
Avoid: High heat, which can burn Avoid: Delicate items. Brush can dam-
(and spikes) and mix the
bristles and melt glue that secures them. age fragile dough or fruit; its larger
drink. It worked beauti-
Also avoid using with anything that has bristles can also leave visible lines on
fully. Of course, a long
strong odor—smells cling to bristles, baked goods.
spoon or a modern
even after washing.
swizzle stick will get the
job done, too, but a To clean: Rinse briely to remove To clean: Place in top rack of dish-
bois lélé does it with debris. Rub warm, soapy water into washer. Replace if silicone retains
BOIS LÉLÉ
more panache. –S.D. (SWIZZLE STICK) bristles and rinse thoroughly. Blot with smells even after washing.
towel and lay lat to dry. Replace brush
if it begins to smell.
The Right Place for Leftover Pie
Where’s the best place to store a pie? According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA), pies containing perishable ingredients such as eggs or dairy must be refriger- Caring for Cast Iron, Inside and Out
ated once cool. But what about fruit pies? The USDA says they’re food-safe at room We recommend oiling the interiors
temperature for up to two days because they contain plenty of sugar and acid, which of cast-iron (and carbon-steel)
retard bacteria growth. But does storage temperature afect the pies’ texture or lavor? pans after every use, but it’s also
To ind out, we made two apple and two blueberry pies. We stored one of each in important to maintain the exteriors
the refrigerator and the others on the counter overnight. The next day we tasted all four of these pans, which are exposed
pies at room temperature. We expected the crusts on the refrigerated pies to be tough to splatters, drips, and splashes
and chewy because cold typically hastens the staling of baked goods. But the pies were during cooking. Without proper
indistinguishable. The low moisture and high fat care, the exteriors can rust or
content of pie crust makes it resistant to develop tacky buildup.
staling in a way that leaner, moister To keep your pans looking spify
items, such as breads, are not. inside and out, add this quick inal
( The takeaway: Refrigerate
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN BURGOYNE
step to your regular maintenance
leftover pie containing eggs or routine: After you’ve cleaned the
dairy right away. Fruit pies can whole pan and oiled and wiped out NO ADDED OIL NEEDED
be stored either at room tem- its interior, turn of the heat and lip
perature or in the refrigerator the pan over. Wipe the bottom, outer edge, and handle with the trace oil remaining
for up to two days (covering on the paper towels you used to oil the cooking surface. Do not add more oil to the
them with an overturned bowl paper towels, as excess oil on the pan bottom can leave a grease spot in your cabi-
is a handy way to keep them net and cause excess smoking during the pan’s next use. Let the pan cool completely
OVERTURNED BOWL = PIE PROTECTOR protected). –A.G. before storing. –A.G.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

30
 SCIENCE
Preventing Hot Milk from Sticking to Pans
When heating milk on the stovetop for custard, bread, homemade ricotta, or even
hot chocolate, we’re often left with a stubborn ilm of cooked—or scorched—
milk on the bottom and sides of the pan. Constantly scraping the pan bottom
as the milk heats to prevent the ilm from forming isn’t practical, but we’d heard
that wetting the pan with water before adding the milk would prevent the milk
from sticking. We decided to put this bit of kitchen lore to the test.

EXPERIMENT
We pretreated three identical metal saucepans. In the irst, we swirled 2 table-
( Liquids pour from cookware in a spoons of water around the saucepan’s bottom and sides. We lightly sprayed
wide stream that narrows as it falls: the second saucepan’s surface with vegetable oil spray. We rubbed the bottom
Hold the pot or pan 3 to 4 inches and sides of a third saucepan with butter and left a fourth saucepan untreated.
from the top of the catch vessel. This We added 2 cups of whole milk to each saucepan and then cooked each over
is close enough to prevent splattering medium-low heat for 10 minutes before pouring out the milk and examining them.
but far enough for the stream to nar-
row to a manageable width. R E S U LT S
The saucepan misted with vegetable oil spray had just a tiny bit of milk residue
( Cookware with a curved lip has (tasters did not notice any of-lavors from the oil), while the water-treated
the edge: A curved lip helps prevent saucepan was almost as clean. The saucepan treated with butter was no cleaner
liquid from dribbling down the out- than the untreated one, and stirring every 2 minutes produced a similar result.
side of the cookware by giving the
stream a little arc as it leaves the pan. E X P L A N AT I O N
When you add milk to a dry pan, it lows into microscopic imperfections in the
( For the liquid to pour in a neat pan bottom. As the milk heats, its proteins coagulate and stick to the pan and
stream, there should be some each other. Misting the pan with vegetable oil spray prior to adding the
force behind it: Commit to the milk creates a thin ilm on the pan’s surface, which
The Proper Way to Pour pour instead of tilting the pot or pan acts as a barrier and makes milk proteins
Transferring liquid from one vessel to slowly. This also prevents liquid from less likely to adhere.
another can be tricky. Whether it’s pouring down the outside of the
pouring a reduced sauce from a skillet cookware (and onto your counter). TA K E AWAY
into a measuring cup or stock from a The next time we’re
saucepan into storage containers, most ( The stiller the liquid, the easier heating milk, we’ll
cooks’ impulse is to bring the larger ves- the pour: Sloshing liquid is far messier save ourselves some
sel as close as possible to the smaller to pour than still liquid, so bring the cleanup and irst
one and pour slowly and carefully. But catch vessel to your cookware rather mist the pan with
those tactics often lead to spills and than the other way around. Hold the vegetable oil spray
splatters. We spent a few hours in the cookware with your dominant hand (or swirl in some
test kitchen honing our pouring skills. (or both hands) and use the helper water if we don’t want
Here’s what we learned. –L.L handle, if available, as you pour. to add oil). –S.D.
TREATED UNTREATED

Best Ways to Peel and Pit Peaches

What’s the easiest, tidiest method for peeling a peach? It depends on the fruit’s ripeness. –A.G.

For irm peaches: Use sharp For soft, ripe peaches: Cut shallow cross in skin at blossom end of To pit: Carefully cut peeled peach in half along equator, making
vegetable peeler to remove cir- each peach. Plunge peaches, few at a time, into large pot of boiling sure to cut down to pit. Grasp both halves of peach and twist in
cle of skin at top and bottom of water for about 30 seconds. Transfer fruit to bowl of ice water until opposite directions until 1 side pulls away from pit. Wiggle pit back
peach, then remove remaining cool enough to handle, then strip away skins using your ingers (use and forth to loosen, then twist to remove. (For intractable pits, cut
skin with top-to-bottom strokes paring knife for any stubborn bits). lesh from pit with vertical swipes of chef ’s knife, leaving pit encased
of peeler. in squared-of column of lesh.)
ILLUSTRATION: JAY LAYMAN

JULY & AUGUST 2018

31
 E Q U I PM E N T C O RN E R
j BY M I Y E B R O M B E R G , E M I LY P H A R E S , L A U R E N S AV O I E & K AT E S H A N N O N k

H I G H LY R E C O M M E N D E D N OT R E C O M M E N D E D RECOMMENDED H I G H LY R E C O M M E N D E D RECOMMENDED

OXO Good Grips 9" Tongs CUISINART WINCO Flat Pastry and VICTORINOX Swiss Army OXO Good Grips Stainless
MODEL: 28481 Automatic Cold Brew Basting Brush, 1½ Inch Fibrox Pro 6" Chef’s Knife Steel Steamer with
PRICE: $11.99
Cofeemaker MODEL: WBR-15 MODEL: 47570.US2 Extendable Handle
MODEL: DCB-10 PRICE: $6.93 PRICE: $20.99 MODEL: 1067247
PRICE: $99.99 PRICE: $17.95

9-Inch Tongs Chef’s Knives For Kids

We typically reach for 12-inch tongs to protect our hands from heat and messes in Standard chef ’s knives are too big for most kids, so we were pleased to discover
the kitchen. However, some cooks prefer the feel of a shorter pair, so we tested six kid-size versions a few years ago. These knives have smaller handles, shorter 2- to
pairs of tongs priced from $11.99 to $35.00, all 9 to 9.5 inches in length. We put each 4-inch metal or plastic blades, and built-in safety features such as blunt cutting edges
pair of tongs through a battery of kitchen tests—from portioning angel hair pasta to or inger guards. With more kids’ knives entering the market, we wondered if our
transferring a hot baked potato from baking sheet to cutting board—examining each old favorite from Opinel ($45.00) was still the best. We tested it alongside four other
pair’s tension, precision, comfort, and locking mechanism. One pair, the OXO Good models priced from $7.36 to $58.50, as well as a 6-inch version of our winning 8-inch
Grips 9" Tongs ($11.99), was comfortable to use, intuitive to lock, and could easily and chef ’s knife from Victorinox ($20.99). We put the knives through some basic tests—
securely pick up objects of all shapes and sizes. The uncoated, scalloped stainless-steel dicing vegetables, mincing herbs, and slicing cheese—and eliminated two that seemed
tips gave us a precise grip on everything we threw at them. –E.P. dangerous and inefective. We then rounded up a group of children aged 8 to 13 with
varying levels of cooking experience. We asked them to chop celery with the remain-
Cuisinart Automatic Cold Brew Cofeemaker ing knives and surveyed them on their favorite models. The 8- and 9-year-olds all liked
Cofee aicionados swear by the cold-brew method for making smooth, nuanced iced our previous winner, the Opinel Le Petit Chef Cutlery Set ($45.00 for two-piece set),
cofee. But there’s one drawback: The process takes 12 to 24 hours. The Cuisinart which features a wooden handle and a inger hole that encourages a safe grip. The
Automatic Cold Brew Cofeemaker ($99.99) promises to make ready-to-drink 12- and 13-year-olds preferred the lightweight and nimble Victorinox Swiss Army
cold-brewed cofee in as little as 25 minutes. Designed like an automatic drip cofee Fibrox Pro 6" Chef ’s Knife ($20.99); its pointed tip required caution, but the children
maker, this machine has a water reservoir and reusable ilter that sit atop a carafe. said they felt safe and adults reported feeling comfortable watching them use it. As for
The ilter spins on and of in 10-second intervals for 25, 35, or 45 minutes for “mild,” the 10- and 11-year-olds, their preference between the Opinel and Victorinox was
“medium,” or “bold” cofee, respectively. We compared cofee made with the bold inluenced by their hand size and level of experience in the kitchen. We think either is
setting with that made with concentrate from our favorite traditional cold-brew sys- an excellent addition to a young cook’s toolkit. –K.S.
tem, the Toddy Cold Brew System ($34.95). The Cuisinart’s cofee was pale, thin, and
weak-tasting and was also cloudy, with a ilm of bitter sediment. For now, it seems that Steamer Baskets
quicker cold brew is too good to be true, so we’ll stick with the Toddy. –L.S. Steamer baskets allow you to cook food quickly, consistently, and eiciently when
set over as little as ½ inch of boiling water. They come in diferent styles, but we
Pastry Brushes generally prefer collapsible versions, which are easier to clean and can be folded
Natural-iber pastry brushes are useful for many delicate kitchen tasks, such as down after use for more compact storage. Since we last tested steamer baskets,
spreading egg wash, glaze, or melted butter on doughs or pastry. To ind the best our winner, the OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Steamer with Extendable Handle
one, we bought six products priced from $5.32 to $15.95, all with 1½-inch-long ($17.95), was slightly redesigned. Curious to see if the new version held up to the
brush heads, and evaluated them as we applied viscous egg wash to raw bread competition, we pitted it against six other collapsible models (three metal, two
dough, slick olive oil to sheets of phyllo, and thick glazes to fruit tarts. And since these silicone, and one plastic) priced from $8.41 to $28.52. We used each to steam
brushes are somewhat notorious for shedding bristles during use and washing, we broccoli and dumplings, hard-cook eggs, and poach chicken. All models cooked food
kept track of the number of bristles lost during testing. All the brushes performed evenly, but some—namely the silicone versions—were too small. The models also
respectably, but minor diferences in bristle length, uniformity, and density helped set difered in the position and length of their handles; we preferred centered handles that
some models apart. Our winning brush, the Winco Flat Pastry and Basting Brush, were tall enough to grasp securely with tongs or an oven mitt but not so tall that they
1½ inch ($6.93), was agile and eicient. Its head had lots of bristles to wick up plenty prevented us from securely placing the lid on the pot. Our winner solves this problem
of liquid but was not so dense that it bruised delicate berries or tore phyllo dough. with a telescoping handle that extends from 2½ inches to 4 inches. The OXO Good
Additionally, it had a varnished wooden handle that was comfortable to hold (though Grips Stainless Steel Steamer with Extendable Handle ($17.95), the updated version
not as grippy as some) and it lost just two bristles during testing—the fewest of any of our old favorite, is a little inicky to clean (like other metal models), but its unique
of the models we tested. –M.B. handle and large capacity allowed it to maintain its irst-place ranking. –M.B.

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED

32
 INDEX
July & August 2018
MAIN DISHES BONUS ONLINE CONTENT
Best Grilled Chicken Thighs 5 Go to CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 for
Crispy Tacos (Tacos Dorados) 9 more recipes.
Peruvian Fish Ceviche with Radishes and
Orange 19 Best Grilled Chicken Thighs for Two
Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patties with Rice Dark Chocolate–Peanut Butter Fudge Sauce
Noodles and Salad (Bun Cha) 11 Garam Masala Paste
Mexican Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce
SIDE DISHES Peruvian Scallop Ceviche with Cucumber Chewy Granola Bars, 13 Fresh Tomato Sauce, 7
Grilled Tomatoes 15 and Grapefruit
Marinated Grilled Tomatoes with Fresh Peruvian Shrimp Ceviche with Tomato,
Mozzarella 15 Jícama, and Avocado
Mexican Corn Salad (Esquites) 20 Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patties with Rice
Noodles and Salad (Bun Cha) for Two
SOUP
Grilled Tomato Gazpacho 15
RECIPE VIDEOS
Want to see how to make any of the recipes
S N AC K S
in this issue? There’s a free video for that.
Chewy Granola Bars with Walnuts and
Go to CooksIllustrated.com/aug18 and
Cranberries 13 click on videos.
Nut-Free 13
with Hazelnuts, Cherries, and F O L LOW U S O N S O C I A L M E D I A
Cacao Nibs 13 facebook.com/CooksIllustrated
Plantain Chips 29 Mexican Corn Salad (Esquites), 20 Peach Tarte Tatin, 23
twitter.com/TestKitchen
pinterest.com/TestKitchen
D E S S E RT instagram.com/CooksIllustrated
Peach Tarte Tatin 23 youtube.com/AmericasTestKitchen
DIP
Grilled Tomato Salsa 15

B E V E R AG E
Michelada (Mexican Beer and
Lime Cocktail) 9

SAUCES
Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce 21
Dark Chocolate–Orange 21
Fresh Tomato Sauce 7 Vietnamese Grilled Pork with Rice Noodles, 11 Best Grilled Chicken Thighs, 5

S P I C E PA S T E S
Gochujang Paste 5
Mustard-Tarragon Paste 5

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Grilled Tomatoes, 15 Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce, 21

PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL TREMBLAY; STYLING: KENDRA McKNIGHT