No Tangent Tuesday: Frozen Food and Wisdom Teeth

Cooking Issues with Dave Arnold

Dave chats with Nastassia, Quinn and Jack for a classic No Tangent Tuesday. From wisdom teeth and frozen vegetables to guanciale curing and the merits of multiple centrifuges, the crew bounces between home cooking habits and deep technical dives.

• Quick Dinners and Frozen Food Quality – Nastassia shares her weeknight meal of pre-seasoned Whole Foods chicken breast, frozen broccoli, and pre-cooked rice. Dave explores the merits of frozen vegetables and the shelf-stable rice market. Peas and corn are praised; frozen Brussels sprouts are dismissed. Dave discusses his chicken saltimbocca technique and the ups and downs of using essential oils in cooking.

• DIY Guanciale and Curing Techniques – Quinn details a home-cured guanciale project using sage essential oil. Dave critiques the use of essential oils due to limited flavor diffusion in fat and questions whether the result matches the flavor of fresh herbs. The discussion expands into dry vs. wet styles of guanciale, optimal moisture loss, and terminology (e.g., “unctuous”).

• Frozen Fruit and At-Home Pizza – The crew discusses best uses for frozen fruit and Quinn describes a weekend pizza session using a gas-fired Ooni oven and homemade guanciale.

• Why Dave Avoids Homemade Cocktails and Pizza – Dave explains why he no longer makes cocktails or pizza at home, preferring to enjoy professional results (e.g., Wiley Dufresne’s pizza spot). He still enjoys home cooking for non-work-related food, like chicken pot pie.

• Spinzall Centrifuge Sale – Dave announces a temporary price drop on the Spinzall 2.0 centrifuge due to warehouse clearance. He explains the advantages of multiple small centrifuges versus one large industrial model, citing reliability, flexibility, and clarification performance. He also clarifies the technical differences between various centrifuge types (swinging bucket vs. fixed angle).

• Cane vs. Beet Sugar – In response to a listener question, Dave breaks down the minor but real differences between cane and beet sugar, including pH levels, crystallization behavior, and potential impacts on jelling and caramelization. Taste tests suggest differences are detectable when dry but vanish in solution.

• Goat Cream and Centrifuge Separation – Dave explores whether a Spinzall can separate cream from goat milk. He notes goat milk has smaller fat globules that make it naturally homogenized and explains how traditional cream separators work using spinning disks. He suggests testing the top fat layer from Spinzall output for reconstitution into cream.

• Durum Wheat and Semolina – Mike C writes in about baking with coarsely ground semolina. Dave and Quinn explain distinctions between semolina and fine durum flour (semola rimacinata), touching on hydration needs and flour properties.

• Clarification on Nitrogen Use in Cocktails – Dave stresses clear terminology when discussing nitrogen (N₂) versus nitrous oxide (N₂O). He warns against confusion when referring to “nitro” cocktails, noting that nitrogen creates microfoam textures while nitrous is used for rapid infusion.

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