Re: The Cooking Thread - Paleo - Baking - Grilling - Q - Sushi - Whatcha got?

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

I would do it. I enjoy a good adventure with good people, even if they are strangers. But yeah a night game wouldn't work. And let me know so I can book a room at the Marriott.

[DWags]

I would do it. I enjoy a good adventure with good people, even if they are strangers. But yeah a night game wouldn't work. And let me know so I can book a room at the Marriott.

Done.

[Guest]

Had a bunch of extra strawberries yesterday so decided to work on the cobbler recipe and see if I could improve it by cutting the sugar a bit.   Ended up with something that tasted like warm biscuits floating in strawberry jam.   Tasty enough but not really what you want in a cobbler.

[Guest]

Posting because we've discussed popcorn machines a few times on here.   Was browsing one of the online auctions I follow and saw this machine on there.   Couldn't remember if it was one of the recommended models or not.   Looked online and the reviews look pretty solid for it - normally seems to be a $550.00 or so machine.   In this particular auction and knowing how things sell there I'll be somewhat surprised if it tops $100 and shocked if it tops $200.    Would be an hour drive or so from Hall & Van Dyke.  The upside is that I could let you know where there are some solid Amish bakers/gardeners in the area to pick up some other goodies.

Gold Medal #2085

Popcorn Machine


Commercial Popcorn machine, tested works, 16" X 18" X 30"(location c3)

[aualum06]

We have a machine at school pretty similar. Works pretty well

[aualum06]

Don't carry it with the doors against your chest. They break.

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

If you're registered, and want to bid on it for me you have my permission to go up to $100.

[Guest]

If you're registered, and want to bid on it for me you have my permission to go up to $100.

OK...I occasionally buy stuff there. I've known the owners since they were kids and my niece lives about 10 miles from there so she picks things up for me.

[MSU addict]

That popcorn machine is a Gold medal popper which really are tops. That particular model is sold at Sam's Club and currently goes for $469 new (just over $500 with tax and shipping) it is more of their value line. It is a 6oz machine, which is a good size for a home. It quite dirty but should clean up nicely. If it something breaks, replacement parts are pretty easy to get.

I am don't follow auctions like LooseGoose, but I would be surprised if it went for less than $100 and not surprised to see it top $200 (not including buyers premium or sales tax).

[Guest]

That popcorn machine is a Gold medal popper which really are tops. That particular model is sold at Sam's Club and currently goes for $469 new (just over $500 with tax and shipping) it is more of their value line. It is a 6oz machine, which is a good size for a home. It quite dirty but should clean up nicely. If it something breaks, replacement parts are pretty easy to get.

I am don't follow auctions like LooseGoose, but I would be surprised if it went for less than $100 and not surprised to see it top $200 (not including buyers premium or sales tax).

Auctions are quirkier than the people here - ;-) I've seen stuff at that one go really stupidly cheap because it's not a very big auction - 900 items every 2-3 weeks. Comparatively speaking the one in Bay City I linked a few weeks back with the signs in it sells 3500-4000 items every week.

Good to see a solid review though, it would make a good one for WBH then.

[Guest]

Don't carry it with the doors against your chest. They break.

By Mark C. on 4/1/2014
Have had this popper for 12 years and it is still going strong. We rent them out constantly and it needs very little maintenance. A broken door is about the only thing we get because a customer doesn't load it properly.

[aualum06]

Don't carry it with the doors against your chest. They break.

By Mark C. on 4/1/2014
Have had this popper for 12 years and it is still going strong. We rent them out constantly and it needs very little maintenance. A broken door is about the only thing we get because a customer doesn't load it properly.

We have three at school, two have broken doors because of me :-)

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

Ok, the popcorn guru hath spoken. Let's go up to $150.

[Guest]

Had extra blueberries and still working on my cobbler batter....

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

For Pantry and anyone else in the area...Sapporo Sushi at Big Beaver and John R is freaking excellent. Please check them out and keep them in business. They may source from Noble, I'm not sure, but their stuff is awesome. I've probably been a dozen times already and they have never disappointed.

[Guest]

For Pantry and anyone else in the area...Sapporo Sushi at Big Beaver and John R is freaking excellent. Please check them out and keep them in business. They may source from Noble, I'm not sure, but their stuff is awesome. I've probably been a dozen times already and they have never disappointed.

One of the few things I miss from the city that you just can't get here.

[Death Roe]

Sushi is disgusting

[DWags]

For Pantry and anyone else in the area...Sapporo Sushi at Big Beaver and John R is freaking excellent. Please check them out and keep them in business. They may source from Noble, I'm not sure, but their stuff is awesome. I've probably been a dozen times already and they have never disappointed.

One of the few things I miss from the city that you just can't get here.

They don't have it at gas stations up there?

[Guest]

I don't often revisit subjects in this thread but I have to mention the blueberry cobbler. When it was fresh on Saturday it was warm, juicy and tasty. I had some leftover that I decided to have tonight. Quite the transformation. After sitting for 48+ hours the cake part had soaked up all the juice and now have a jelly like consistency. And as a bonus it's really, really good. I think I may make any others a couple days ahead to let this happen. Some crappy pics but you can see the jelly like bottom.....







Weird how much of a difference a flash can make....

[Guest]

Was having lunch today and thought of our discussion the other day on legacy recipes.   This is a pretty simple side that my Grandma had on the table all summer long at the farm.  Just peel and slice a couple medium cukes, add some onions then cover them with about an 80/20 Vinegar & water mix.  A snappy, palate cleansing treat.

[DWags]

Was having lunch today and thought of our discussion the other day on legacy recipes.   This is a pretty simple side that my Grandma had on the table all summer long at the farm.  Just peel and slice a couple medium cukes, add some onions then cover them with about an 80/20 Vinegar & water mix.  A snappy, palate cleansing treat.

Are we cousins? My iron river grandma had that and baked two loaves of bread every other or third day. Man we are a shit load of bread.

[The Pantry]

Was having lunch today and thought of our discussion the other day on legacy recipes.   This is a pretty simple side that my Grandma had on the table all summer long at the farm.  Just peel and slice a couple medium cukes, add some onions then cover them with about an 80/20 Vinegar & water mix.  A snappy, palate cleansing treat.

My mom made that but didn't add the onions, which seems like a great idea.

[The Pantry]

Are we cousins?  My iron river grandma had that and baked two loaves of bread every other or third day.   Man we are a shit load of bread.

Mom baked bread pretty often.  Was great right out of the oven.  She use to buy Vidalia onions.  Butter on the bread and a thick slice of Vidalia in the middle.  Awesome sandwiches.

[Guest]

Ok, the popcorn guru hath spoken. Let's go up to $150.

You needed every bit of it.,....$140 + fees. Will get a bill tonight later, usually 9-10pm.

[pulling69]

FYI that popcorn machine, we found an older one at work at got it up an running a few months ago.... Took a few batches to get it working right but not bad.

[DWags]

Are we cousins? My iron river grandma had that and baked two loaves of bread every other or third day. Man we are a shit load of bread.

Mom baked bread pretty often. Was great right out of the oven. She use to buy Vidalia onions. Butter on the bread and a thick slick of Vidalia in the middle. Awesome sandwiches.

Probably the best smell ever created.

[The Pantry]

Mom baked bread pretty often. Was great right out of the oven. She use to buy Vidalia onions. Butter on the bread and a thick slick of Vidalia in the middle. Awesome sandwiches.

Probably the best smell ever created.

Yeah.

My memories are a bit conflicted. Mom sometimes made saffron bread. It was very good back then.

In years since have come to dislike saffron in anything. It's too over-powering.

[aualum06]

I've thought about trying bread making, first step I guess would be to steal my mother's bread pans

[Guest]

Making cobbler today for the weekend requests......a cherry and another blueberry.

[Guest]

These auctions are strange things....after not recalling ever seeing a commercial popcorn machine now they appear in back to back weeks in auctions 70 miles apart. This seems to be a different animal than the last one, more expensive to buy new but also needing much more rehab than the one last week.

Will see if MSU thinks it's even salvageable......

Popcorn Machine









New price....seems to be $1800-$1900

Google Shopping

[MSU addict]

Wow, that is a project.

Cretor's claims to have invented the popcorn machine - they are still in business and build in the USA.  They really do cater to the commercial market with little pretense of selling to the home market.  Parts are available but very expensive.  I would assume a new kettle assembly would run over $500.00.

I really don't know how that machine is in such bad shape.  The whole kettle assembly is a good quality stainless steel.  In fact, I believe the entire machine is stainless (not the cart) and there is a lot of rust.

They say it works - so I guess it could be just theoretically cleaned up (I am no expert at cleaning stainless steel) and be a functional machine that makes good popcorn.  It doubt it would be a pretty machine though.

I would have no idea how much it might go for, but I would suspect it would go pretty cheap.

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

Addict I'm going to run this thing for the first time after taking it apart, cleaning, painting and putting it back together. It says I should always run at least 5 batches?? I'm home by myself...

How much oil and corn do I put in each kettle batch?

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

Legit Disney quality. It's the stirrer I think that keeps distributing and mixing the oil/butter and salt. Good investment. Thanks you gents, especially LG.

[MSU addict]

Addict I'm going to run this thing for the first time after taking it apart, cleaning, painting and putting it back together. It says I should always run at least 5 batches?? I'm home by myself...

How much oil and corn do I put in each kettle batch?

Sorry, but I was not around earlier.

Six ounce popper - 1/4 cup of oil and 3/4 popcorn.

FWIW, I don't think I have ever run 5 batches back to back in my popper.  It fills up after about three to four (depending on the popcorn) and even if we have a number of people over that is a lot of popcorn.

Most of what I saw on that machine was just baked on grease.  They do make products to take it off that I hear work fairly well.  I keep mine clean and have never really had any baked on grease.  I use Windex to clean it, which Paragon (my machine) suggests. EDIT: Seeing the aluminum on your machine, Windex might be a bad idea. I would look up what Gold Medal recommends.

Keep the doors half open when you pop the corn to let out steam.  Most of the grease above the doors I saw on you machine I suspect would be because the door were closed when popping.  Did you notice how much steam it throws off?  I was shocked at the amount.

[Guest]

Legit Disney quality. It's the stirrer I think that keeps distributing and mixing the oil/butter and salt. Good investment. Thanks you gents, especially LG.

Updated pics? I'm glad you're happy, as you know buying in an auction can be a bit of a crap shoot so I'm glad it works right.

I'm going to be at that other auction next week for pickup so I'm debating buying that beast and hoping that the kettle IS stainless. If so I could probably clean that thing up and make a nickel. MSU was right on the cost of a new kettle for it $580.

PS - Remember if AU comes over he's not to move the machine.

[aualum06]

Legit Disney quality. It's the stirrer I think that keeps distributing and mixing the oil/butter and salt. Good investment. Thanks you gents, especially LG.

Updated pics? I'm glad you're happy, as you know buying in an auction can be a bit of a crap shoot so I'm glad it works right.

I'm going to be at that other auction next week for pickup so I'm debating buying that beast and hoping that the kettle IS stainless. If so I could probably clean that thing up and make a nickel. MSU was right on the cost of a new kettle for it $580.

PS - Remember if AU comes over he's not to move the machine.

If you need a snapped off door though, I'm your guy

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

I've always loved movie theater popcorn but what prompted me to try to take it up a notch and actually recreate it at home was a trip a few years ago to WDW. I probably posted it in a thread. You could blame it on the "atmosphere" but when we go to the parks it's typically 95+ with 95+ humidity so I don't think that's it. Maybe if it were Mickey Dove bars or Dasani. It's just freaking excellent popcorn, better than what I've had in a theater anywhere, and it was consistent throughout the parks.

So I did some research, and they outwardly advertise the ingredients they use, because of allergies and whatnot:

Lou Ana Pop n Lite popping oil
Diamond Crystal nut and popcorn salt
Pop Secret kernels

I had been trying other stuff on the stovetop and not quite able to replicate movie theater-good, let alone Magic Kingdom good. I used a big wok typically for a pan. I tried falvacol. I tried coconut oil. I tried some butter flavored oil addict linked me to. I tried the wok with the lid partially off to let steam escape. I tried the wok with a plastic colander on top (whoops) to let steam escape. I tried using my big aluminum foil chafing pans, one on top and one on bottom, poking holes in the one on top to let steam escape. I tried mixing the kernels and the salt and the oil together first. I tried putting the salt on after. I got the WDW ingredients and tried all of that again. Still no dice.

I got some ok results but nothing close. Not buttery enough, not light enough, too soggy, etc. This was jackpot.

Definitely something about the extra space for the steam and the constant mixing of the buttery oil with the kernels and the salt.

[WhiteBoyHatcher]

Here is what it looked like when I got it home. It was quite nasty.



There were a couple of cig butts and some kernels and some pubes in the bottom. I decided I hated the blue and wanted to see if I could get the top and bottom off easily to repaint it. I started taking screws out and before I knew it I decided I had to take the entire thing completely apart.

I cut the wires going into the power cord so I could pull it completely out and get the bottom metal part separated from the cord so I could paint it.





At this point I was kinda in trouble. It was all held together basically by those pieces, I had some electrical work in front of me and I had no idea what I was doing. I started snapping some pics with my phone so I could try to use those to get it back together. Somehow it worked!

The roof was still pretty nasty. I used a combo of dish soap, clorox wipes, hot water, some soaking of parts and even the dishwasher to wash most of the parts, including the plastic doors (which are still nasty) and the glass panels.

Here is the roof before I cleaned it with wipes. It doesn't look much better than this now, maybe 50% better.



I did ok. I could have done better with a better cleaning product. I fucked up the finish on the rails in the dishwasher. Oh well. The paint looks good.

The kettle I couldn't do much with. I soaked it for a bit but was wary of the power cord so I didn't want to get it too wet. Probably could have done better here with a degreaser, too, but it seemed fine.



Most importantly I got it back together somehow, got the electrical working after stripping some wires and adding some connectors back in. I honestly have about 8 leftover screws that I can't figure out where they went but it's solidly together, transported down to the basement and the electical is grounded and in solid working condition so fuck it, I guess.

[Guest]

Looks clean in the pics. Your kids will love that growing up. Quality popcorn for their friends on movie night.

[MSU addict]

I did ok. I could have done better with a better cleaning product. I fucked up the finish on the rails in the dishwasher. Oh well. The paint looks good.

The kettle I couldn't do much with. I soaked it for a bit but was wary of the power cord so I didn't want to get it too wet. Probably could have done better here with a degreaser, too, but it seemed fine.

Glad to hear you are happy with the purchase.

I thought everyone but my wife knows not to put aluminum in a dishwasher. Dishwashers use a very alkaline detergent and aluminum needs to be cleaned with acidic cleaners. You can probably make them look good again. A paste made of cream of tartar works well, but you should see improvement wiping them down with just vinegar or lemon juice. Google fixing oxidized aluminum.

The kettle also comes apart if you really want to give it a deep clean.

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