The "hopefully" ongoing snack sticks thread

[Culinary Otter]

So. After a very limited taste test, I'm pretty happy with my Hamburger Helper snack sticks. My closest circle devoured them. Instantaneously.

Unfortunately, they have left me with A) an inflated ego, and 2) an empty drawer of snack sticks. 3) a job that leaves me with too much time on my hands.

So, I have now decided my lot in life is to recreate "comfort food" in a cozy snack treat version.

This thread is completely stupid. Guaranteed I can't do everything I'm setting out to do, but this is the stuff I enjoy. Please join me on this journey with the following caveats:

*I am not trained, In any form whatsoever, Red seal, blue seal, black seal... I ain't it. I encourage you to follow along but I don't encourage you to follow. If I'm doing something completely un-food-safe please tell me.

Comfort Food Snack Stick #1:

Salisbury steak.

The biggest issue: The umami, the velvety sauce, the mushrooms, the unctuous texture.
My solution: Mushroom, mushroom, oh wait, mushroom.

The literal Achilles heel in this will be recreating the gravy, so my thoughts:

- Use my tried and true Salisbury steak recipe
- rehydrate mushrooms; concentrate them; amp up the flavour

Here we go:



Minced onion, dijon, Wooster, Ketchup, Salt.

Minced re-hydrated mushrooms

Salt, to the same sausage % one prefers, sodium erythrobate and cure to standard %

Not sure this is ever going to work, but amongst my ideas it's the most likely, Thanks for looking.

Curing now. results to follow.

 

[Culinary Otter]

If this works, I have a number of ideas for the future in snack sticks

 

[JLeonard]

If you need/want an impartial taste tester I’ll PM you my addy. I’ll follow along to see what you come up with!

Jim

 

[crankybuzzard]

I'm in for this one! Looks, and sounds, good

 

[Brokenhandle]

I'm in as well... worse case scenario is you make me hungry and give me more to add to my way too much stuff to do list!

Ryan

 

[crazymoon]

CO, Very interested in your results !

 

[Culinary Otter]

Unfortunately I'm stuck working nights this weekend, so won't be able to throw these sticks in until I'm off on Monday morning and can give them the attention they deserve. So the Salisbury Steak mix is currently waiting patiently in the fridge until then.

Meanwhile, my idea for Comfort Food Snack Stick #2 - a hearty Spaghetti Bolognese.

Like so many things, the base of a good Bolognese is mirepoix, so in the meantime I figured I'd better get a jump on that and start dehydrating some vegetables to make a mirepoix powder.

Blanched and drying away while I go and get some shut-eye!

 

[Culinary Otter]

Salisbury steak mix in to dehydrate

 

[JLeonard]

Hmmm.....Looks good. Be interesting to try one (or a half dozen) of them out.

Jim

 

[Culinary Otter]

Hmmm.....Looks good. Be interesting to try one (or a half dozen) of them out.

Jim

Man I'll send them via mail gladly but sure CSIS will flag meat products at the border

 

[JLeonard]

Man I'll send them via mail gladly but sure CSIS will flag meat products at the border

Man them border guys wanna ruin all the fun!

Jim

 

[Culinary Otter]

Man them border guys wanna ruin all the fun!

Jim

You ain't kidding I just got changed $80 for a $20 item and half of that was just for the "privilege" of opening my package and then sending it back to me.

 

[indaswamp]

Interesting idea....

for this:

The biggest issue: The umami, the velvety sauce, the mushrooms, the unctuous texture.

Try adding I+G powder along with the mushrooms....it's an very potent umami enhancer.

https://www.amazon.com/Sodium-Inosi...+it+meaty+i+++g+umami+enhancer,aps,142&sr=8-2

 

[Texas Cookin']

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

Fred

 

[Culinary Otter]

Interesting idea....

for this:

Try adding I+G powder along with the mushrooms....it's an very potent umami enhancer.

https://www.amazon.com/Sodium-Inosinate-Guanylate-45-gram/dp/B07ZQRTG7M/ref=sr_1_2?crid=LK4V6FH6RXRD&keywords=make+it+meaty+I+++G+umami+enhancer&qid=1705943787&sprefix=make+it+meaty+i+++g+umami+enhancer,aps,142&sr=8-2

I've never heard of I&g - and apparently not available on Amazon Canada.

Interesting. Is this glutamate based or similar to MSG? If it is I can def work with that to do something similar.

 

[indaswamp]

Hmmm....crazy you can't buy it in Canada.

More info:
https://culinarylore.com/ingredients:disodium-guanylate-disodium-inosinate-in-foods/

 

[Culinary Otter]

Hmmm....crazy you can't buy it in Canada.

In the country that we reduce Prague powder #1 to Prague powder #.0985 to save some folks some nitrites in their diet? It's crazy but par for the course.

I'm going to look into this thank you so much.

 

[indaswamp]

In the country that we reduce Prague powder #1 to Prague powder #.0985 to save some folks some nitrites in their diet? I'rs crazy but par for the course.

I'm going to look into this thank you so much.

Yep....crazy indeed....
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27872324/

 

[Culinary Otter]

Yep....crazy indeed....
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27872324/

Haha you're getting no disagreement from me.

But we're taking about a country who thinks making you purchase a cloth bag that will fall apart tomorrow for a dollar each time you go to the grocery store is somehow saving the planet. I don't trust them to save me from much, let alone food chemistry.

 

[Culinary Otter]

Salisbury sticks out of the combi (out of laziness/lack of sleep)

Combi / dehy is much better than just combi FWIW.

I'm torn. They're freaking delicious - so I'm calling this a win - but they're not what I'm looking for. going to look into @indaswamp 's ideas further.

Onto the Bolognese and I'll revisit this again.