Overheard at Work

[Nederstash]

Way to thread the needle, yo. +1

Hopefully she also thinks about how to cut some of the fat out of her budget, maybe. Wishful thinking, rite? >.<

I have a really strong urge to make her work on some foreclosure cases we have going... but that might just be rubbing it in her face. I'll just stick to our new agreement (which will be in writing of course!)

[With This Herring]

Wow, so many responses! Thanks! We actually came up with a solution we're both happy with: she's going to do a specific selection of tasks of the highed paid position for half her time, the other half of her time she will do her old job. I managed to divide the remaining 'higher' tasks to other coworkers. Her new pay will be halfway between old and higher pay. She can make this work with her mortgage. I feel this meets everyone's needs - it's only temporary until her contract expires, the work is getting done and her pay will reflect her work. I have a feeling that the lower stress levels will make her do the 'higher' tasks better. I think she got in way over her head and now she gets some room to breathe. I did stress that she's only on a year contract so she will need to hunt for jobs again in due time, because both jobs are temporary projects. But she knew that before her mortgage... *headdesk* I hope she'll find something, because I'm not going to bail her out again. As many of you pointed out, that's not the company's objective.

Thanks again everyone!

Out of curiosity, did the other employees sharing in these higher-for-her tasks also get a bump in pay?  Or are these tasks actually lower for them?

[ShoulderThingThatGoesUp]

I have one.... and it's actually giving me some restless nights. A few months back, I hired a girl fresh out of university on a one year contract. After a month trial period, things were going great and a more difficult position opened up. I told her she could have a shot at it since she was doing fine and she seemed really eager. The pay was also higher (couple hundred a month). We did discuss that it was a leap of faith and if it wasn't going well, she could return to her original position and pay, no harm no foul.

The past few weeks, this girl has been struggling, even after some intense coaching. She was frequently near tears. Had a talk with her and we reached the conclusion that the higher position was too much, too soon. But when I informed her it would be better if she went back to her old position with her old pay, she informed me that that wasn't possible... as she'd just bought a house and gotten a top-end mortgage, based on the higher paid job. All contracts signed and sealed.

So my options are:
A) let her keep her higher pay but make her do the tougher job - probably resulting in a burn out on her part
B) force the agreement: back to the old job with old pay - making her lose the house and a fair deal of money
C) let her keep the higher pay, but go back to the old job - resulting in a thoroughly overpaid colleague.

Need I remind you, she has a 1 year contract as well... How on EARTH can someone make this financial decision? And how in the hell did she manage to get that mortgage... I don't even want to look into that. Anyway, I'll probably go for option C... but I feel well shafted, to be honest!

Don't reward poor performance at work. You need to set clear benchmarks and timelines she needs to meet, and make the consequences clear to her if she doesn't meet those expectations.

Have you considered that she may be exaggerating her personal financial troubles to get some breathing space?

I think this is quite likely.

[jwc082]

Coworker told me today that she's finally glad to have a job that she earns enough to pay all her bills.

She makes $60,000 per year.

Holy sweet jesus I live on a fourth of that.

[katstache92]

CW 1: You guys ever use the ATM here at work?
CW 2: Yeah, occasionally.
CW 1: Do you get charged to get your money out?  I just checked and I got charged $3 twice to get $20 for the lottery!
CW 2: My ATM fees are reimbursed by the bank.

CW 1 calls bank, turns out he is not in the same program as CW1 even though he and CW 2 both use the same bank.  The bank will only refund one of the $3 charges.

CW 1: Oh well, I would rather spend $3 for a chance to win $xxx million than not win.

[serpentstooth]

Do you genuinely want to branch out with cooking, or is it more "well, MMM says to cook your own food so I guess I have to, sigh"?  It also sounds like you've gotten hold of some bad cookbooks/cooking websites, as they exist in far greater numbers than good ones.  I also began cooking in childhood, but even in the eighties I found I was a rarity when I got to college and the majority couldn't even warm up something in the microwave, so I don't condemn anyone not having the skills.  If you truly want to learn to cook, or cook better, I recommend Michael Bittman's How to Cook Everything.  It literally starts out from very basic stuff and builds on skills.  If you can't scramble an egg, there's no way you're going to make a successful soufflé. 

As for Oklahoma Oprah the Pioneer Woman ... she'll do in a pinch.  Just don't believe that a multimillionaire rancher's wife (before she began making her own millions) is just like you and me.  ;D

Thanks for the suggestions everyone :)  I'll probably check out the Pioneer Woman sometime.  I want to point out that I was just answering how someone may not really be able to cook, since that seemed unfathomable to an earlier poster.  My DH has cooked for years, and doesn't realize the kind of basic knowledge I'm lacking.  For example, within the last few months I learned that when you put oil in a pan to cook something, you can tell it's warm enough by tilting the pan around and when it runs in a liquid form, that's good.  I just kept throwing in water droplets until they really sizzled, which is more of a pain.  I also just scrambled my first eggs a month ago (but I don't like eggs, so there had never been a reason for me to do so before).  And I cook b/c we live in the middle of nowhere and I like eating food every day.  Done with this foam though!

I didn't realized how much cooking knowledge you pick up by osmosis until I met my husband. My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead. There are 17,000 little things that my husband never had occasion to learn and it makes cooking super frustrating and inefficient for him.

I like Pioneer Woman for raw beginners because she has pictures of everything. Don't know what "saute the onions until translucent means"? Well, here's a high res picture of translucent onions in a saute pan. Her taste is not the same as mine, but if you can learn basic cooking techniques, you can go find other recipes from there. I also really like Serious Eats, particularly Kenji Lopez Alt's articles. Even if you don't understand everything at first, you learn a LOT about how cooking works from reading him. You might also browse Craftsy.com. They have very detailed video courses done by professional chefs. They aren't free, but it may be worth buying one on sale if something really interests you.

[dragoncar]

I like Pioneer Woman for raw beginners because she has pictures of everything. Don't know what "saute the onions until translucent means"? Well, here's a high res picture of translucent onions in a saute pan.

I feel like I have a good handle on the "how," but there's a dearth of information on the "why."  For example, WHY do we sauté the onions until translucent?  What happens if I throw the onions in with the other ingredients at the same time?  They still get cooked right?  What if I cook the onions too long?  I love caramelized onions!

I sort of understand why you cook ginger or garlic first to get the flavor into the oil, but still not sure about onions.

I often think recipes have too many steps - brown this, set aside that, cook this separately until X and then combine. 

[RyanAtTanagra]

I like Pioneer Woman for raw beginners because she has pictures of everything. Don't know what "saute the onions until translucent means"? Well, here's a high res picture of translucent onions in a saute pan.

I feel like I have a good handle on the "how," but there's a dearth of information on the "why."  For example, WHY do we sauté the onions until translucent?  What happens if I throw the onions in with the other ingredients at the same time?  They still get cooked right?  What if I cook the onions too long?  I love caramelized onions!

I sort of understand why you cook ginger or garlic first to get the flavor into the oil, but still not sure about onions.

I often think recipes have too many steps - brown this, set aside that, cook this separately until X and then combine.

I am not a pro, or even a very good cook, but here's my basic explanation... hard stuff takes longer to get soft and release flavour. If you drop something on the floor and it makes a thunk, it should be the first thing in the pan. If it makes a splat, it can go in last.

Also, the less you want to eat something raw, the earlier it needs to go in the recipe. Wanna bite into that raw onion? How about a rutabaga? OK, so those go in first. Potato tastes like crap raw? Then it needs longer to cook.

Now combine the two to come out with a schedule. Celery is pretty hard, but is also pretty edible raw. So it goes in the pan after the hard onion that tastes like poop raw. Potato is really bouncy and tastes like crap raw, so you can put it in before the celery... and so on.

Those are great rules of thumb and also made me laugh.  +1

[dragoncar]

I like raw onion too, so maybe that's why it doesn't matter to me

[chemistk]

I like Pioneer Woman for raw beginners because she has pictures of everything. Don't know what "saute the onions until translucent means"? Well, here's a high res picture of translucent onions in a saute pan.

I feel like I have a good handle on the "how," but there's a dearth of information on the "why."  For example, WHY do we sauté the onions until translucent?  What happens if I throw the onions in with the other ingredients at the same time?  They still get cooked right?  What if I cook the onions too long?  I love caramelized onions!

I sort of understand why you cook ginger or garlic first to get the flavor into the oil, but still not sure about onions.

I often think recipes have too many steps - brown this, set aside that, cook this separately until X and then combine.

I am not a pro, or even a very good cook, but here's my basic explanation... hard stuff takes longer to get soft and release flavour. If you drop something on the floor and it makes a thunk, it should be the first thing in the pan. If it makes a splat, it can go in last.

Also, the less you want to eat something raw, the earlier it needs to go in the recipe. Wanna bite into that raw onion? How about a rutabaga? OK, so those go in first. Potato tastes like crap raw? Then it needs longer to cook.

Now combine the two to come out with a schedule. Celery is pretty hard, but is also pretty edible raw. So it goes in the pan after the hard onion that tastes like poop raw. Potato is really bouncy and tastes like crap raw, so you can put it in before the celery... and so on.

If I had to make one recommendation on this topic, watching Alton Brown's Good Eats (or reading the books, they work too) can seriously up your cooking skills. If you like the science behind everything, he goes into pretty great detail at times. he also talks about the history, nomenclature, cultural preferences, etc. about food. Watching an episode or two can easily drive one to try a thing or ten in the kitchen.

[dragoncar]

I like raw onion too, so maybe that's why it doesn't matter to me

Yup - me too, in the right place, like on a burger or in a salad, but not really in a stew or soup. Besides, if you're eating the onion raw, you're not cooking - so then its just making (ie. making a sammach, making a salad) and all the rules change.

FWIW, mushy, tasty stuff goes in last because it doesn't need to be softened through the breaking down of the cell walls and loads of chemistry stuff I'm not really sure about. Also, there is a fine line between carmelized onions and burnt onions. Just ask my smoke detector.

Most meats need a quick sear to seal the flavour in before cooking. Lean meats (turkey) need oil (butter, bacon) on them to prevent drying out. Stuff stuck into meat (garlic cloves) will mush-ify to add flavour as the meat cooks.

Here's a fun starter recipe to impress family and friends. Very few ingredients, relatively easy to make, and enough chemistry to keep things interesting: Pumpkin Pie Cake

Note that the hard pecans go in the fryingpan first so they release more flavour...

Raw onion on a stew (e.g. chili)?  Heaven.

But I guarantee if I sear my meat first, then throw onion on top while the meat cooks, the onion will be done by the time the meat is done.

If you do it in reverse (onion first) you have to take the onion out and set aside to sear the meat.  Never understood this sequence but see it all the time.

[gimp]

Speaking of onions, is anyone else pissed off that recipes requiring caramelized onions seem to say it takes 10 - 20 minutes to caramelize onions?

I get that they are trying to not scare off people by listing long cook times, but be real. You're probably not caramelizing onions properly in under 40 minutes even cheating with flour. I do it for as long as I have time to occasionally stir and add water... an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, whatever. The longer the tastier.

[johnny847]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

I'm confused. If they don't cook, what did they need that extra cabinet space for?

[arebelspy]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

Wow. Something almost everyone takes for granted, and deciding they don't need it?  Minimalizing their possessions?  Selling an unused item?

Sounds Mustachian to me!

;)

[Olive Branch]

I tried giving a savings/investment PowerPoint presentation to three of my co-workers and one of them kept complaining they simply couldn't save any money whatsoever, and that it was impossible. I didn't pry for details but if you're going to attend a retirement seminar where the focus is "save as much money as you can and invest the rest" why bother showing up?

[serpentstooth]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

Wow. Something almost everyone takes for granted, and deciding they don't need it?  Minimalizing their possessions?  Selling an unused item?

Sounds Mustachian to me!

;)

Ha. Except then you need to take into account that they eat every single meal out. Every. Single. Meal.

Which gets really tiring. When we were visiting I kept getting annoyed that you had to leave the house multiple times a day to get food.

[Kitsune]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

Wow. Something almost everyone takes for granted, and deciding they don't need it?  Minimalizing their possessions?  Selling an unused item?

Sounds Mustachian to me!

;)

Ha. Except then you need to take into account that they eat every single meal out. Every. Single. Meal.

Which gets really tiring. When we were visiting I kept getting annoyed that you had to leave the house multiple times a day to get food.

I have actually made hamburger buns, from scratch, because I was too lazy to pull on pants and walk 2 blocks to the store to buy some. Leaving the house for every single meal sounds like the WORST.

[serpentstooth]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

Wow. Something almost everyone takes for granted, and deciding they don't need it?  Minimalizing their possessions?  Selling an unused item?

Sounds Mustachian to me!

;)

Ha. Except then you need to take into account that they eat every single meal out. Every. Single. Meal.

Which gets really tiring. When we were visiting I kept getting annoyed that you had to leave the house multiple times a day to get food.

I have actually made hamburger buns, from scratch, because I was too lazy to pull on pants and walk 2 blocks to the store to buy some. Leaving the house for every single meal sounds like the WORST.

I have done exactly that before. I mean, you expect me to FIND socks, put them on, dress the baby in doll size outerwear, dress myself in outerwear, stick the baby in the stroller and all that before I even GO OUTSIDE. Forget it, I'll just bake.

[dragoncar]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

I'm confused. If they don't cook, what did they need that extra cabinet space for?

Disposible plates and cups, plastic flatware, thousands of packets of powdered Parmesan, red chili flakes, ketchup and dressing.  Two shelves of just take out menus.  One pineapple.

[serpentstooth]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

I'm confused. If they don't cook, what did they need that extra cabinet space for?

Disposible plates and cups, plastic flatware, thousands of packets of powdered Parmesan, red chili flakes, ketchup and dressing.  Two shelves of just take out menus.  One pineapple.

They don't believe in cheese, so definitely not parmesan. But I think they use it to store books, actually.

[MgoSam]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

I'm confused. If they don't cook, what did they need that extra cabinet space for?

Disposible plates and cups, plastic flatware, thousands of packets of powdered Parmesan, red chili flakes, ketchup and dressing.  Two shelves of just take out menus.  One pineapple.

They don't believe in cheese, so definitely not parmesan. But I think they use it to store books, actually.

Is Parmesan cheese? I thought it was just wood chips?

[frugalnacho]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

I'm confused. If they don't cook, what did they need that extra cabinet space for?

Disposible plates and cups, plastic flatware, thousands of packets of powdered Parmesan, red chili flakes, ketchup and dressing.  Two shelves of just take out menus.  One pineapple.

They don't believe in cheese, so definitely not parmesan. But I think they use it to store books, actually.

Cheese is a figment of the liberal media and the dairy industry.  Prove me wrong!

[serpentstooth]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

I'm confused. If they don't cook, what did they need that extra cabinet space for?

Disposible plates and cups, plastic flatware, thousands of packets of powdered Parmesan, red chili flakes, ketchup and dressing.  Two shelves of just take out menus.  One pineapple.

They don't believe in cheese, so definitely not parmesan. But I think they use it to store books, actually.

Cheese is a figment of the liberal media and the dairy industry.  Prove me wrong!

They're from a climate where dairy cultivation isn't really possible (far too hot), and it isn't really part of the traditional diet. And like 90% of East Asians, they're lactose intolerant. My FIL says cheese smells like rotten milk (which is basically is; it's just controlled rotting), and I think that it may be something hard to adjust to if you didn't grow up eating it.

[Mairuiming]

Yesterday, I had a very interesting conversation with a "financial planner" in a local bank.

FP: Sir, as per xyz report only 20% people save adequate amount for retirement in India. I would like to help you manage your investments so that you can retire comfortably.
Me: Thank you for your concern. Tell me more about your services
FP: At what age would you like to retire ?
Me: 45 (I am 32 now)
FP: 45 years to retirement ?
Me: No, at age of 45
FP: No one can retire at 45. You have to keep working longer to retire. Let me tell you about our great financial product (commission was 6% of fund value per year)

I ran so hard towards the door, security guards thought I have robbed the bank.

PS: I went to bank to close a dormant account and was caught by bank appointed financial planner. Main objective of the bank is to sell high commission products to unsuspecting customers in the name of "expert advice".

[coolistdude]

Yesterday, I had a very interesting conversation with a "financial planner" in a local bank.

FP: Sir, as per xyz report only 20% people save adequate amount for retirement in India. I would like to help you manage your investments so that you can retire comfortably.
Me: Thank you for your concern. Tell me more about your services
FP: At what age would you like to retire ?
Me: 45 (I am 32 now)
FP: 45 years to retirement ?
Me: No, at age of 45
FP: No one can retire at 45. You have to keep working longer to retire. Let me tell you about our great financial product (commission was 6% of fund value per year)

I ran so hard towards the door, security guards thought I have robbed the bank.

PS: I went to bank to close a dormant account and was caught by bank appointed financial planner. Main objective of the bank is to sell high commission products to unsuspecting customers in the name of "expert advice".

That last line is awful. Really, no one can retire at 45? Not even people making high six figures? I can only hope that the "FP" has nightmares of you retiring and telling all of his clients.

[markbike528CBX]

Yesterday, I had a very interesting conversation with a "financial planner" in a local bank.
........
FP: No one can retire at 45. You have to keep working longer to retire. Let me tell you about our great financial product (commission was 6% of fund value per year)

I ran so hard towards the door, security guards thought I have robbed the bank.
.......

Sounds like a post for the "Mustachian People Problems" thread.   
Especially if there was hassle from the guards.

[RWD]

FP: Sir, as per xyz report only 20% people save adequate amount for retirement in India. I would like to help you manage your investments so that you can retire comfortably.

This line is interest as according to this site the average household savings rate in India is 32%. Surely that means more than 20% are saving enough for retirement?

[MrsDinero]

My in-laws do not cook. As in, they sold their stove and put a cabinet in instead.

Wow. Something almost everyone takes for granted, and deciding they don't need it?  Minimalizing their possessions?  Selling an unused item?

Sounds Mustachian to me!

;)

Ha. Except then you need to take into account that they eat every single meal out. Every. Single. Meal.

Which gets really tiring. When we were visiting I kept getting annoyed that you had to leave the house multiple times a day to get food.

In my road warrior days (living in a 1 bedroom apartment) I would have gladly traded the stove for a washer and dryer, in fact I even tried negotiating this with the leasing office.  I never cooked on the 4-6 days a month I was home as it was easier to just get take out and not let things spoil.  Luckily I lived in a large city where there were several stores/markets that catered to take out, so I could get pizza, steak, a salad, chicken, whatever I wanted they had it, cooked it, and was ready to go!

[frugalnacho]

FP: Sir, as per xyz report only 20% people save adequate amount for retirement in India. I would like to help you manage your investments so that you can retire comfortably.

This line is interest as according to this site the average household savings rate in India is 32%. Surely that means more than 20% are saving enough for retirement?

The guy was selling investments with a 6% yearly commission.  Everything coming out of his mouth should be considered unreliable garbage.

[plainjane]

thousands of packets of powdered Parmesan

I'm obviously going to the wrong places.  I've never seen packets of powdered "parm". 

I once brought deli-grated parm to keep in the work fridge.  People feel much more comfortable using that on their own lunches than they did going into my stash of rice cakes, peanut butter or oatmeal, so I didn't do that again.

[RWD]

FP: Sir, as per xyz report only 20% people save adequate amount for retirement in India. I would like to help you manage your investments so that you can retire comfortably.

This line is interest as according to this site the average household savings rate in India is 32%. Surely that means more than 20% are saving enough for retirement?

The guy was selling investments with a 6% yearly commission.  Everything coming out of his mouth should be considered unreliable garbage.

Good point.

[maco]

Speaking of onions, is anyone else pissed off that recipes requiring caramelized onions seem to say it takes 10 - 20 minutes to caramelize onions?

I get that they are trying to not scare off people by listing long cook times, but be real. You're probably not caramelizing onions properly in under 40 minutes even cheating with flour. I do it for as long as I have time to occasionally stir and add water... an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, whatever. The longer the tastier.

Yeah, they really just mean brown them. I've heard the way to go is to put an entire bag worth of onions in the slow cooker overnight, then freeze the resulting carmelized onions.

[zephyr911]

I'm obviously going to the wrong places.  I've never seen packets of powdered "parm".

Powdered cellulose, more like. That shit is disgusting.

I once brought deli-grated parm to keep in the work fridge.  People feel much more comfortable using that on their own lunches than they did going into my stash of rice cakes, peanut butter or oatmeal, so I didn't do that again.

They probably thought of it is a condiment, and those are often fair game. I even label mine for breakroom sharing. Still kinda fucked up tho.

[Kitsune]

Speaking of onions, is anyone else pissed off that recipes requiring caramelized onions seem to say it takes 10 - 20 minutes to caramelize onions?

I get that they are trying to not scare off people by listing long cook times, but be real. You're probably not caramelizing onions properly in under 40 minutes even cheating with flour. I do it for as long as I have time to occasionally stir and add water... an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, whatever. The longer the tastier.

Yeah, they really just mean brown them. I've heard the way to go is to put an entire bag worth of onions in the slow cooker overnight, then freeze the resulting carmelized onions.

I use the oven! 10lb bag of onions through the food processor, into a large casserole dish (or 2...), drizzle with oil or butter, put into oven, stir every 20 minutes or so. This WILL make your kitchen smell like onions for a good 24 hours, but if you then freeze the resulting caramelized onions, that's a good few months of luxurious burger toppings, caramelized onion and goat cheese pizzas, etc... For about 3$ and 2 hours. :)

[boarder42]

Speaking of onions, is anyone else pissed off that recipes requiring caramelized onions seem to say it takes 10 - 20 minutes to caramelize onions?

I get that they are trying to not scare off people by listing long cook times, but be real. You're probably not caramelizing onions properly in under 40 minutes even cheating with flour. I do it for as long as I have time to occasionally stir and add water... an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, whatever. The longer the tastier.

Yeah, they really just mean brown them. I've heard the way to go is to put an entire bag worth of onions in the slow cooker overnight, then freeze the resulting carmelized onions.

I use the oven! 10lb bag of onions through the food processor, into a large casserole dish (or 2...), drizzle with oil or butter, put into oven, stir every 20 minutes or so. This WILL make your kitchen smell like onions for a good 24 hours, but if you then freeze the resulting caramelized onions, that's a good few months of luxurious burger toppings, caramelized onion and goat cheese pizzas, etc... For about 3$ and 2 hours. :)

throw a bunch in the crockpot and freeze. 

[RyanAtTanagra]

Speaking of onions, is anyone else pissed off that recipes requiring caramelized onions seem to say it takes 10 - 20 minutes to caramelize onions?

I get that they are trying to not scare off people by listing long cook times, but be real. You're probably not caramelizing onions properly in under 40 minutes even cheating with flour. I do it for as long as I have time to occasionally stir and add water... an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, whatever. The longer the tastier.

Yeah, they really just mean brown them. I've heard the way to go is to put an entire bag worth of onions in the slow cooker overnight, then freeze the resulting carmelized onions.

I use the oven! 10lb bag of onions through the food processor, into a large casserole dish (or 2...), drizzle with oil or butter, put into oven, stir every 20 minutes or so. This WILL make your kitchen smell like onions for a good 24 hours, but if you then freeze the resulting caramelized onions, that's a good few months of luxurious burger toppings, caramelized onion and goat cheese pizzas, etc... For about 3$ and 2 hours. :)

throw a bunch in the crockpot and freeze.

I don't think that's good for the crockpot.  Also very space inefficient.

[teen persuasion]

1. cooking - pretty much open ended and if you follow the all recipes path and start cooking recipes you think you'll like while reading comments you will learn to improvise and learn to COOK

2. baking  - SET ingredients and measurements and cook times and rest times etc. to cook it correctly

I disagree, I've never understood why baking is considered different from cooking.  I use recipes as a general guideline, but I ultimately go by feel for both.  For instance, after doing bread or cookies a few times I know what the proper water content should be before putting them in the oven.  It's not always the specified amount.  I've also never been able to use baking times exactly.  Gotta go by look or toothpick.  If baking was an exact science then recipes would never change.  There'd only be one chocolate chip cookie recipe out there :-(  Baking as with cooking: experiment, wing it!

baking is chemistry its very simple.  there are multiple recipes b/c people like things different. 

i cant just decide to add extra flour or water to something without it ruining a chemical reaction.  if i want a brothier soup i can add more liquid and still end up with soup.

 

Baking is one specific type of cooking, a subset of the cooking universe, not different from cooking.  Baking is cooking using hot air, i.e., in an oven.  You bake a cake, you don't bake soup.

[TomTX]

Most meats need a quick sear to seal the flavour  in activate the Maillard reaction before cooking. Lean meats (turkey) need oil (butter, bacon) on them to prevent drying out. Stuff stuck into meat (garlic cloves) will mush-ify to add flavour as the meat cooks.

[Mairuiming]

This line is interest as according to this site the average household savings rate in India is 32%. Surely that means more than 20% are saving enough for retirement?

Yes, household saving rate is quite high in India.
However, savings are split for 3 generations.

a) Most people in my generation (age 25-40) support parents in their retirement (my parents generations spend almost everything to raise kids, we are grateful for this)
b) Save for our retirement
c) Save for our child's college education, etc. (Indians feel that children should not make a career choice based on lack of funds. Aah, I will flip burgers because I cant afford college education. If child really wants to attend abc college, then parents will support these expenses, and we save for this.)

Saving for 3 generation at times results in insufficient savings for our retirement.

[iwasjustwondering]

1. cooking - pretty much open ended and if you follow the all recipes path and start cooking recipes you think you'll like while reading comments you will learn to improvise and learn to COOK

2. baking  - SET ingredients and measurements and cook times and rest times etc. to cook it correctly

I disagree, I've never understood why baking is considered different from cooking.  I use recipes as a general guideline, but I ultimately go by feel for both.  For instance, after doing bread or cookies a few times I know what the proper water content should be before putting them in the oven.  It's not always the specified amount.  I've also never been able to use baking times exactly.  Gotta go by look or toothpick.  If baking was an exact science then recipes would never change.  There'd only be one chocolate chip cookie recipe out there :-(  Baking as with cooking: experiment, wing it!

baking is chemistry its very simple.  there are multiple recipes b/c people like things different. 

i cant just decide to add extra flour or water to something without it ruining a chemical reaction.  if i want a brothier soup i can add more liquid and still end up with soup.

Ehh, baking is somewhere in the middle. You can futz with things slightly, but not completely. Like for chocolate chip cookies, you can add orange instead of vanilla (which is yummy, by the way). You can use more or less fat or change the kind of fat you use or even how you order the ingredients (will impact how crispy/soft and the size of the cookies). What you can't do, though, is change the ratio between liquid and solid.

I disagree.  I add a few tablespoons of extra flour to chocolate chip cookies.  It makes them less greasy, and softer.  I do agree on the orange extract instead of vanilla.  I've tried that one, too, and it's awesome. 

[aFrugalFather]

I agree with the oft cited phrase that cooking is an art and baking is a science. 

[serpentstooth]

Most meats need a quick sear to seal the flavour  in activate the Maillard reaction before cooking. Lean meats (turkey) need oil (butter, bacon) on them to prevent drying out. Stuff stuck into meat (garlic cloves) will mush-ify to add flavour as the meat cooks.

You can also sear AFTER stewing, which has its advantages.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/12/the-food-lab-reverse-sear-beef-tenderloin-filet-mignon.html

Also, now I want a really good steak.

[UnleashHell]

Most meats need a quick sear to seal the flavour  in activate the Maillard reaction before cooking. Lean meats (turkey) need oil (butter, bacon) on them to prevent drying out. Stuff stuck into meat (garlic cloves) will mush-ify to add flavour as the meat cooks.

You can also sear AFTER stewing, which has its advantages.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/12/the-food-lab-reverse-sear-beef-tenderloin-filet-mignon.html

Also, now I want a really good steak.

one of the best steaks I ever had was one I smoked and then seared.

[serpentstooth]

Most meats need a quick sear to seal the flavour  in activate the Maillard reaction before cooking. Lean meats (turkey) need oil (butter, bacon) on them to prevent drying out. Stuff stuck into meat (garlic cloves) will mush-ify to add flavour as the meat cooks.

You can also sear AFTER stewing, which has its advantages.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/12/the-food-lab-reverse-sear-beef-tenderloin-filet-mignon.html

Also, now I want a really good steak.

one of the best steaks I ever had was one I smoked and then seared.

I am really tempted to go to the fancy butcher and splurge on a Chateubriand and do it for dinner this week, but Mr. Tooth likes his meat well done (ewwwww), so forget it.

[Silverado]

Speaking of onions, is anyone else pissed off that recipes requiring caramelized onions seem to say it takes 10 - 20 minutes to caramelize onions?

I get that they are trying to not scare off people by listing long cook times, but be real. You're probably not caramelizing onions properly in under 40 minutes even cheating with flour. I do it for as long as I have time to occasionally stir and add water... an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, whatever. The longer the tastier.

Yeah, they really just mean brown them. I've heard the way to go is to put an entire bag worth of onions in the slow cooker overnight, then freeze the resulting carmelized onions.

I use the oven! 10lb bag of onions through the food processor, into a large casserole dish (or 2...), drizzle with oil or butter, put into oven, stir every 20 minutes or so. This WILL make your kitchen smell like onions for a good 24 hours, but if you then freeze the resulting caramelized onions, that's a good few months of luxurious burger toppings, caramelized onion and goat cheese pizzas, etc... For about 3$ and 2 hours. :)

throw a bunch in the crockpot and freeze.

I don't think that's good for the crockpot.  Also very space inefficient.

I flew by this first. That's funny.

[madmax]

A few months ago,I told coworker about passive investing and Bogleheads because he was always complaining that he lost money on his latest speculation. He seemed super excited and told me that he was switching to buying VFIFX (Vanguard target 2050). I met him recently and asked how he was doing - he sold all the stock in his brokerage as well as his 401k because the market was down.... :facepalm:

[ender]

A few months ago,I told coworker about passive investing and Bogleheads because he was always complaining that he lost money on his latest speculation. He seemed super excited and told me that he was switching to buying VFIFX (Vanguard target 2050). I met him recently and asked how he was doing - he sold all the stock in his brokerage as well as his 401k because the market was down.... :facepalm:

I sold everything in my 401k a few weeks ago, too.

Course I am rolling it over into an IRA, so there's that :)

[johnny847]

A few months ago,I told coworker about passive investing and Bogleheads because he was always complaining that he lost money on his latest speculation. He seemed super excited and told me that he was switching to buying VFIFX (Vanguard target 2050). I met him recently and asked how he was doing - he sold all the stock in his brokerage as well as his 401k because the market was down.... :facepalm:

Well he was consistent...VFIFX is 90% stocks so it's been doing poorly recently.

[WildJager]

1. cooking - pretty much open ended and if you follow the all recipes path and start cooking recipes you think you'll like while reading comments you will learn to improvise and learn to COOK

2. baking  - SET ingredients and measurements and cook times and rest times etc. to cook it correctly

I disagree, I've never understood why baking is considered different from cooking.  I use recipes as a general guideline, but I ultimately go by feel for both.  For instance, after doing bread or cookies a few times I know what the proper water content should be before putting them in the oven.  It's not always the specified amount.  I've also never been able to use baking times exactly.  Gotta go by look or toothpick.  If baking was an exact science then recipes would never change.  There'd only be one chocolate chip cookie recipe out there :-(  Baking as with cooking: experiment, wing it!

baking is chemistry its very simple.  there are multiple recipes b/c people like things different. 

i cant just decide to add extra flour or water to something without it ruining a chemical reaction.  if i want a brothier soup i can add more liquid and still end up with soup.

 

Baking is one specific type of cooking, a subset of the cooking universe, not different from cooking.  Baking is cooking using hot air, i.e., in an oven.  You bake a cake, you don't bake soup.

Semantics, but, I'd argue that roasting is the potentially better generic phrase for the basic subset of using dry air to heat.

While baking is also defined pretty much the same way, I think the deliniating factor is what you're preparing.  Food with fatty exteriers and a more solid structure, and cooked uncovered, is roasted.  While food that starts out with a non solid structure (may or may not be covered) is baked.  Hence the common use for "baking" as the specific term used for ... For lack of a better word, "baked goods."

Again, semantics, but an interesting distinction non the less.  Now if you put a soup in a Dutch oven into the oven would that be baking?  Probably not because the structure never solifies, but some questions just can't be answered.  ;)

[dragoncar]

1. cooking - pretty much open ended and if you follow the all recipes path and start cooking recipes you think you'll like while reading comments you will learn to improvise and learn to COOK

2. baking  - SET ingredients and measurements and cook times and rest times etc. to cook it correctly

I disagree, I've never understood why baking is considered different from cooking.  I use recipes as a general guideline, but I ultimately go by feel for both.  For instance, after doing bread or cookies a few times I know what the proper water content should be before putting them in the oven.  It's not always the specified amount.  I've also never been able to use baking times exactly.  Gotta go by look or toothpick.  If baking was an exact science then recipes would never change.  There'd only be one chocolate chip cookie recipe out there :-(  Baking as with cooking: experiment, wing it!

baking is chemistry its very simple.  there are multiple recipes b/c people like things different. 

i cant just decide to add extra flour or water to something without it ruining a chemical reaction.  if i want a brothier soup i can add more liquid and still end up with soup.

 

Baking is one specific type of cooking, a subset of the cooking universe, not different from cooking.  Baking is cooking using hot air, i.e., in an oven.  You bake a cake, you don't bake soup.

Semantics, but, I'd argue that roasting is the potentially better generic phrase for the basic subset of using dry air to heat.

While baking is also defined pretty much the same way, I think the deliniating factor is what you're preparing.  Food with fatty exteriers and a more solid structure, and cooked uncovered, is roasted.  While food that starts out with a non solid structure (may or may not be covered) is baked.  Hence the common use for "baking" as the specific term used for ... For lack of a better word, "baked goods."

Again, semantics, but an interesting distinction non the less.  Now if you put a soup in a Dutch oven into the oven would that be baking?  Probably not because the structure never solifies, but some questions just can't be answered.  ;)

What about baked ziti?