The Conservative Cave
Current Events => The DUmpster => Topic started by: franksolich on January 04, 2009, 03:49:21 PM
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04-08-11 note from franksolich; this is from January 2009, but for some reason lots of lurkers are reading it.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=236x52288
Uh oh.
hippywife (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 02:49 PM
Original message
What did I do to screw this up and how do I fix it?
I wanted queso and haven't made it since we stopped buying Velveeta a very long time ago. So I browsed a few recipes.
I cut up a block of colby and a block of pepper jack into small chunks. Threw them in the crockpot with a can of petite diced tomatoes and some diced jalapeno slices.
When it was getting melty I added about 1/3 cup of cream.
The cheese is all melted but it's kinda gloppy, stingy sitting under a this pool of liquid, not too much. So I mixed up a little corn starch and added it. No better than it was.
Hep me! Hep me!
htuttle (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 02:58 PM
Response to Original message
1. You could try adding some wine or beer to help dissolve the cheese
You'd probably want to heat it up first before you add it. Normally, I'd heat the liquid first then dissolve the cheese in it.
Alternately, you could make a tiny bit of roux with butter and flour, add the beer or wine, heat until it's bubbling nicely, then dump it into the cheesy pot. It would be kind of like making fondue backwards.
hippywife (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:05 PM
Response to Reply #1
2. It's still very hot.
The crockpot is on. I don't have any beer or wine since we don't drink. I may try the roux.
Thanx, anyway.
Jesuswasntafascist (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:32 PM
Response to Original message
3. The only thing I can think of is maybe using the mixer to whip it together.
No, she might as well throw it away, because it's already ruined.
For whatever reasons, Grandma put tomatoes and peppers in with cheese.
Whatever possessed her to do that, one has no idea, no idea at all.
Husb2Sparkly (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:46 PM
Response to Reply #4
5. The cheesy-like substance will become one with your immersion blender
There will be no possible way to effect separation of the cheezy-like substance from the blades to which it will affix itself.
Ixnay on the lenderbay.
Jesuswasntafascist (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:48 PM
Response to Reply #5
6. Yes, that will be a sticky situation.
hippywife (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:50 PM
Response to Reply #5
7. Actually, it worked.
The cheese is now not globby, it's grainy but it's a small grain I can live with since it's jsut me and the other half eating it. Tastes fine and all the liquid has been absorbed into the rest. It actually started doing that when I reduced the heat to low on the crockpot. Tastes good, just not a great texture.
I think I'll actually follow a cheese fondue recipe the next time rather than look at queso recipes.
mtnester (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:56 PM
Response to Reply #7
9. It was the colby I betcha
it tends to break down like that
try cheddar the next time, see if that works better.
Glad you rescued it!
hippywife (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:58 PM
Response to Reply #9
11. Mighta been.
Rescued close enough. But not quite perfect.
Tab (1000+ posts) Fri Jan-02-09 11:41 AM
Response to Reply #11
17. You were a victim of the vagaries of the protein strands
And you're not the first, by any stretch of the imagination.
When cheese goes to hell, it seems particularly hard to rescue it, for some reason.
The only reason this cheese went to Hell is because Grandma put tomatoes and peppers in it. I have no idea why one would do that; it makes about as much sense as putting crumbly asphalt in chicken-noodle soup.
Tab (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 05:43 PM
Response to Reply #7
13. Cheese fondue is different than queso
I love fondue, but have it rarely. Queso I have to skip, being lactose intolerant. Just as well, as it's not the healthiest thing in the world (not that that's ever stopped me).
Warpy (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 05:28 PM
Response to Reply #5
12. Agreed. About the only way I can think of to fix this mess is making a white sauce and adding the hot white sauce to the hot, stringy cheese.
The strings of cheese will incorporate into the white sauce with a judicious use of a whisk and you'll have a velvety smooth cheese sauce with a kick.
Tangerine LaBamba (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:55 PM
Response to Original message
8. See?
Velveeta has its uses.
Although I don't think I've purchased any in thirty years. Forty?
Wow. The tambourine Bambi primitive's old.
hippywife (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-01-09 03:56 PM
Response to Reply #8
10. I still wouldn't eat it.
I just screwed this up by not finding proper instructions. I would rather eat this than Velveeta any day of the week.
grasswire (1000+ posts) Fri Jan-02-09 12:26 AM
Response to Reply #10
14. I had a similar problem on the weekend
I make a hot bean and cheese dip for the teenagers, and good lord teens and adults both love that kind of dip! The crazy part is that I never seem to have all the same stuff in the pantry each time I go to make it. Twice, it has gone to that gloppy stringy place, and I think the common denominator is because neither of those times did I have a can of refried beans to sort of serve as the base, and the cheese would not merge with the ro-tel or canned diced tomatoes. Stringy! I tried to fix it this weekend by adding more and more and more cheese. So it was delicious, but stayed stringy.
Basically, it's beans (I usually use refried and black), salsa, black olives, lots of cheese (cheddar or jack or pepperjack), some frozen corn, some sliced green onions, some green hot sauce, some lime juice.
I don't suppose the cheese could be reacting to the acidity of the tomatoes?
The cheese is probably vomitously reacting to the tomatoes and peppers.
Phentex (1000+ posts) Fri Jan-02-09 10:51 AM
Response to Reply #8
16. eh, I buy it once a year...for some football game.
sazemisery (1000+ posts) Fri Jan-02-09 04:54 AM
Response to Original message
15. Get Queso Fresco cheese from the grocery.
It is usually with the Mexican cream. Brown chorizo or ground beef w/taco seasonings. Slice cheese and place in pie pan. top with browned meat and broil until hot and bubbly. Dip with chips. Enjoy!
ccinamon (1000+ posts) Sun Jan-04-09 10:54 AM
Response to Original message
18. I'm an expert at queso...
been making it for 30 years...the best cheese to use is American Deluxe by Kraft...comes in a blue box in 1 or 2 lb "loafs"...it is expensive (one pound is about $4.59).
To keep costs down, I use 1lb American Deluxe and 1 lb mild or hot mexican velveeta or queso blanco, and 1 can of rotel tomatoes and chiles (I like my queso spicey, so I use the rotel made with habaneros).
Use medium heat and a non-stick pan, pour in the rotel first, cut up the cheese and start dropping into the pan, stirring occasionally, lower heat to low once all the cheese is in the pan...stir constantly. If it is a little thick (sometimes there is less juice in the rotel than other times), add a bit of water or open another can and use some of the juice to thin - be careful, you won't need much to thin the queso.
hippywife (1000+ posts) Sun Jan-04-09 10:56 AM
Response to Reply #18
19. Thanx for the info.
But really, any type processed cheese food is totally out of the question. I just need to adjust for using actual cheese.
Thanx, though, really.
One of the reasons franksolich feels so affectionately towards Grandma; her insistence upon only real food, no chemical food.
But why someone would be commonsensical about that, but not commonsensical about politics and religion, escapes me.
tiddlywinks (120 posts) Sun Jan-04-09 11:54 AM
Response to Original message
20. hi, melting cheeses into liquid is tricky, thinning it with a little water has helped
me in the past. I know this is way after the fact, though. Maybe for future ref.
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12 ounces Mexican chorizo (beef or pork)
1 (12-ounce) round Asadero cheese (or other white melting cheese) we have used Jack, mozzarella and provolove, as long as it is a REAL cheese.
1 green pepper sliced thin
Crumbled chiles
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Fresh corn or flour tortillas, as needed
Directions
Preheat oven to 300F.
Heat chorizo in a large skillet over medium-high heat until no longer pink, 6 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat, cool slightly and spoon off most of the fat.
Slice cheese into 1-inch cubes; place half in a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with half the chorizo the green peppers and remaining cheese. Top with remaining chorizo. Bake 15 to 20 minutes, until creamy and bubbly.
Remove from oven.
Top mixture with crumbled chiles, green onions and cilantro. Serve immediately with tortillas. Use a spoon to serve on the tortillas.
Great for game watching, movie watching or just plain eating! The smell is awesome!
I have never had queso but looking at this recipe (picked at random off the internet) it seems to me that her mistake was not cooking it in the oven at a high temperature from the start because baked cheese is going to be different to cheese warned slowly to a high heat over a long period of time which is what she did with the slow cooker.
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The only reason this cheese went to Hell is because Grandma put tomatoes and peppers in it. I have no idea why one would do that; it makes about as much sense as putting crumbly asphalt in chicken-noodle soup.
Have you never had chili con queso? It's a Mexican cheese dip. Tasty stuff.
I did a fondue-themed New Year party a couple years ago and did a cheese fondue. I made sure to bring a quart of milk with me, because that's exactly what happened to my cheese. It needs lots of stirring/babysitting.
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OMG! Bijou you've never had the delicious goodness that is queso?!?!?
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Love queso....spinach queso... :drool:
Rotel in cheese..... :drool: :drool:
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OMG! Bijou you've never had the delicious goodness that is queso?!?!?
No, we don't really have much by way of real Mexican food here, and the Tex Mex restaurants there are aren't terribly good. Queso isn't made in Spanish restaurants so I have not come across it and have never thought to make it.
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Love queso....spinach queso... :drool:
Rotel in cheese..... :drool: :drool:
A block of Velveeta, a can of Rotel, and a bag of tortillas. Yum.
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A block of Velveeta, a can of Rotel, and a bag of tortillas. Yum.
next time you make it, saute some chopped onions in butter first, before adding the cheese and Rotel. I could make a meal out of the stuff.... :drool:
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Velveeta, a can of hormel chili (no beans) and some jalapenos, finely diced (with a splash of the jalapeno juice from the jar)....with homemade tortilla chips....yum!
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Velveeta, a can of hormel chili (no beans) and some jalapenos, finely diced (with a splash of the jalapeno juice from the jar)....with homemade tortilla chips....yum!
When I've been doing it for parties/tailgates, I have browned a pound of ground beef with the onion (no butter), and a bit of garlic, drain it, then add the Mexican Velveeta with the Rotel...original or hot.
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Velveeta - the original plastic cheese. You can even use it as modeling clay for your kids. They say it's non-toxic. Sorta like Crayola crayons.
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No, we don't really have much by way of real Mexican food here, and the Tex Mex restaurants there are aren't terribly good. Queso isn't made in Spanish restaurants so I have not come across it and have never thought to make it.
That's another reason I can never leave Texas, Tex-Mex food. :drool:
Okay, it's 1 package of Velveeta and a can of Rotel in a crockpot. You can optionally add some browned ground beef to it. Rotel (http://www.ro-tel.com/products.jsp)
Okay, when I get some more funds, I'll have to send you a care package of Rotel and Velveeta and some Tostitos. :-)
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Have you never had chili con queso? It's a Mexican cheese dip. Tasty stuff.
I did a fondue-themed New Year party a couple years ago and did a cheese fondue. I made sure to bring a quart of milk with me, because that's exactly what happened to my cheese. It needs lots of stirring/babysitting.
Gotta forgive Frank he is a midwesterner. Their Idea of hot sauce is to nuke Heinz catsup for 1 minute. :evillaugh:
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Gotta forgive Frank he is a midwesterner. Their Idea of hot sauce is to nuke Heinz catsup for 1 minute.
That is, no doubt, sir, undeniably true.
For me, all one needs to do, to make a hamburger "special," is to use Heinz 57 or K.C. Masterpiece instead of ketchup. That's as good as it gets, that's as good as it needs to get.
To be bluntly honest, while authentic Mexican restaurants are a dime a dozen out here in the Sandhills of Nebraska, and while I've of course patronized such places, always getting the most excellent of food, I've never in my life heard of mixing cheese with tomatoes. To me, that seems like putting chocolate syrup in with spaghetti beef sauce.
Shudder.
I'm not disparaging the tastes of others--no way--but at times the tastes of others seem, well, just really odd.
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That is, no doubt, sir, undeniably true.
For me, all one needs to do, to make a hamburger "special," is to use Heinz 57 or K.C. Masterpiece instead of ketchup. That's as good as it gets, that's as good as it needs to get.
To be bluntly honest, while authentic Mexican restaurants are a dime a dozen out here in the Sandhills of Nebraska, and while I've of course patronized such places, always getting the most excellent of food, I've never in my life heard of mixing cheese with tomatoes. To me, that seems like putting chocolate syrup in with spaghetti beef sauce.
Shudder.
I'm not disparaging the tastes of others--no way--but at times the tastes of others seem, well, just really odd.
It is surprising what passes for Mexican cuisine in various parts of the country. Most everywhere you go you can get the standard fare tacos,burritos,re fried beans of many incarnations perhaps even some beef ,chicken ,cheese enchiladas. Most places that's it.
Even here in central TX the Mexican fast food is the prevalent Mexican cuisine. I remember in Cali you could easily locate a Mexican establishment that had all the various fast food fare but you could also get assorted meat dinners,stews,soups etc etc. Ya sure you find that occasionally here also but chances are they come at a premium.
I think southern Ca has a higher class of Mexican than central TX. At least Mexicans with a more discerning palate anyway.
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You haven't gotten "real" Mexican food unless you've had mechaca tacos/burritos (they have have scrambled eggs in them) from a Mexican Roach-Coach. It's one of the benefits of being over-run with illegals here in Cali.
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You haven't gotten "real" Mexican food unless you've had mechaca tacos/burritos (they have have scrambled eggs in them) from a Mexican Roach-Coach. It's one of the benefits of being over-run with illegals here in Cali.
There is a place here I occassionally stop in and get what I call kitchen sink burritos. Got potatoes,eggs,sausage,peppers,onions, bacon.,chorizo and a couple other ingredients. cost a couple bucks to get the gambit of ingredients but they are huge. Can also get a half dozen big enchiladas for i think it's $3.50 for lunch.
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That is, no doubt, sir, undeniably true.
For me, all one needs to do, to make a hamburger "special," is to use Heinz 57 or K.C. Masterpiece instead of ketchup. That's as good as it gets, that's as good as it needs to get.
To be bluntly honest, while authentic Mexican restaurants are a dime a dozen out here in the Sandhills of Nebraska, and while I've of course patronized such places, always getting the most excellent of food, I've never in my life heard of mixing cheese with tomatoes. To me, that seems like putting chocolate syrup in with spaghetti beef sauce.
Shudder.
I'm not disparaging the tastes of others--no way--but at times the tastes of others seem, well, just really odd.
Have you ever tried mole' at one of those restaurants?
Chicken Mole
Ingredients:
8 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup olive oil
4 ounces chopped green chilies
1 onion -- chopped
1 clove garlic -- minced
8 ounces tomato sauce
1 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon tabasco
2 whole cloves
1 ounce unsweetened baking chocolate
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
Directions:
Brown the chicken breasts in olive oil; set aside. Sauté onion and garlic. Add green chilies. Add remaining ingredients. Stir until chocolate is melted. Add browned chicken and cook over low heat for 30 minutes.
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Have you ever tried mole' at one of those restaurants?
No, sir, I have not.
It's my wary caution.
When I dine in a restaurant, I try to ensure that I don't order anything with more than three or four ingredients, and what's in it is easily identifiable.
Just the basic food, and Mexican restaurants have them.
I wouldn't touch unidentifiable glop with a ten-foot primitive.
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No, sir, I have not.
It's my wary caution.
When I dine in a restaurant, I try to ensure that I don't order anything with more than three or four ingredients, and what's in it is easily identifiable.
Just the basic food, and Mexican restaurants have them.
I wouldn't touch unidentifiable glop with a ten-foot primitive.
Chickenshit. :tongue:
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That is, no doubt, sir, undeniably true.
For me, all one needs to do, to make a hamburger "special," is to use Heinz 57 or K.C. Masterpiece instead of ketchup. That's as good as it gets, that's as good as it needs to get.
To be bluntly honest, while authentic Mexican restaurants are a dime a dozen out here in the Sandhills of Nebraska, and while I've of course patronized such places, always getting the most excellent of food, I've never in my life heard of mixing cheese with tomatoes. To me, that seems like putting chocolate syrup in with spaghetti beef sauce.
Shudder.
I'm not disparaging the tastes of others--no way--but at times the tastes of others seem, well, just really odd.
I don't know what's wrong with people coach...............why ruin perfectly good cheese
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Okay, some lurking primitives are reading this today, so time to bump to the top.
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Okay, some lurking primitives are reading this today, so time to bump to the top.
The lurking primitives you speak of must also thoroughly enjoy watching flies ****, because that's also about as exciting as this thread.
:fuelfire: :-)
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The lurking primitives you speak of must also thoroughly enjoy watching flies ****, because that's also about as exciting as this thread.
:fuelfire: :-)
You'd be surprised what people read here, sir.
One of the most popular threads--an old one, too--read by lurkers is one about how the 0bamaites found the Bush White House in the computer-technological "dark ages" when they took over; a dull mundane ordinary news story, but for some reason it always has a lot of readers.
I have no idea why.
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The lurking primitives you speak of must also thoroughly enjoy watching flies ****, because that's also about as exciting as this thread.
:fuelfire: :-)
Of course, you also have to realize that coach doesn't quite realize how complex Mexican food can be, like a nice ceviche, or a bowl of Menudo con Pata from El Tepeyac, or a "Stuffy Dinner" of carne adovada from Anita's in Fullerton.
God how I miss good Mexican food. You gotta save me, man--you just GOTTA!
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Sheesh, just use Velveeta, it's not like you eat this every day of the week. Pretentious bitch.
Cindie
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Sheesh, just use Velveeta, it's not like you eat this every day of the week. Pretentious bitch.
Cindie
This was the famous campfire (afterwards considerably truncated on Skins's island at the request of Mrs. Alfred Packer, at the time "Grandma") where Mrs. Alfred Packer and the immortal Tangerine LaBamba got into it, big time, about cheese versus cheese food.
Talk about a real cat-fight.
The immortal Tangerine LaBamba had the same response you did, madam; it's not like one eats cheese food every day, so what's the big deal?
It was a big deal with Mrs. Alfred Packer, who went into all sorts of vesta111-like ramblings, about how poor she was, what a lousy home hippyhubby Wild Bill had built for them, how many mood-altering pharmaceuticals Mrs. Alfred Packer was taking--just all sorts of violence.
That alas happened after I had posted this, the violence, and Skins had removed much of it (again, at Mrs. Alfred Packer's request) by the time I returned to it the next day.
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Sheesh, just use Velveeta, it's not like you eat this every day of the week. Pretentious bitch.
Cindie
I love Velveeta for dips and Kraft cheese slices for grilled cheese (must dip it in ketchup).
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I love Velveeta for dips and Kraft cheese slices for grilled cheese (must dip it in ketchup).
Same here for the ketchup, but I call them cheese toasties or toasted cheese.
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For me, all one needs to do, to make a hamburger "special," is to use Heinz 57 or K.C. Masterpiece instead of ketchup. That's as good as it gets, that's as good as it needs to get.I'm shocked. I would have bet the farm that coach's ideal hamburger would be a patty of hamburger, cooked to a gray, dry texture similar to those old egg cartons, on a plain bun, covered with sour cream.
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Same here for the ketchup, but I call them cheese toasties or toasted cheese.
Hate ketchup! I'll put spicy mustard and horseradish on just about anything.
Cindie
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I love Velveeta for dips and Kraft cheese slices for grilled cheese (must dip it in ketchup).
I use Velveeta slices for grilled cheese. (must dip in barbeque sauce :tongue: )