Boshizzle
somebody shut me the fark up.
A few weeks ago I posted a recipe I developed called "BlackHawk Brisket" for rubbing a hot and fast brisket with baking soda in order to achieve the best bark I could get while cooking hot and fast. The post is here - http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=135353 .
There is some good discussion in that thread about what led me to put baking soda on a brisket. In a nutshell, it boils down to a way to speed up the Maillard reaction. Raising the PH of food speeds up the Maillard reaction and baking soda raises PH levels. Until now, I never dug into how much baking soda I needed. I figured I didn't need much so, I used about 2 pinches (3 half pinches) on briskets.
The discussion in the post led to PitMaster T conducting an experiment using baking soda on fried onions. The results are here - http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=136179 .
Tonight, I decided to try the baking soda on grilled beef to see what results I would get.
I started with two choice ribeyes. I seasoned them with peanut oil, salt, pepper, and granulated garlic. One of them has a toothpick in it. That is the one with the baking soda on it. I used proportionally the same amount that I put on my BlackHawk brisket.
Here is a pic of the steaks after the flip. The one with the baking soda applied has a more even browning than the one without the baking soda.
Here is the finished pic. Clearly, the one with the baking soda is more evenly browned and slightly darker.
For the brethren who like to see the "$$$" shot, here are two.
Now, this single experiment doesn't prove that baking soda speeds up the Maillard process but it does indicate that more experimenting needs to be done.
Which is too bad. Now, I have to buy more steak to eat tomorrow. I don't know how I will break the news to my wife. "Dog on it, Dear, I just have to cook a few more steaks to get to the bottom of this baking soda thing. It's all in the name of food Science. :icon_smile_tongue:
There is some good discussion in that thread about what led me to put baking soda on a brisket. In a nutshell, it boils down to a way to speed up the Maillard reaction. Raising the PH of food speeds up the Maillard reaction and baking soda raises PH levels. Until now, I never dug into how much baking soda I needed. I figured I didn't need much so, I used about 2 pinches (3 half pinches) on briskets.
The discussion in the post led to PitMaster T conducting an experiment using baking soda on fried onions. The results are here - http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=136179 .
Tonight, I decided to try the baking soda on grilled beef to see what results I would get.
I started with two choice ribeyes. I seasoned them with peanut oil, salt, pepper, and granulated garlic. One of them has a toothpick in it. That is the one with the baking soda on it. I used proportionally the same amount that I put on my BlackHawk brisket.
Here is a pic of the steaks after the flip. The one with the baking soda applied has a more even browning than the one without the baking soda.
Here is the finished pic. Clearly, the one with the baking soda is more evenly browned and slightly darker.
For the brethren who like to see the "$$$" shot, here are two.
Now, this single experiment doesn't prove that baking soda speeds up the Maillard process but it does indicate that more experimenting needs to be done.
Which is too bad. Now, I have to buy more steak to eat tomorrow. I don't know how I will break the news to my wife. "Dog on it, Dear, I just have to cook a few more steaks to get to the bottom of this baking soda thing. It's all in the name of food Science. :icon_smile_tongue:
