Bill, We've been giving that new stove a good workout today, that's for sure! Now that it's had it's "break-in" small fires, we were able to let it get up to peak-efficiency heat today, and it definitely got that living room toasty! Before the snow got TOO deep I thought to wade out and dig up some of the small logs we've had stashed behind the shop from when we took down a little tree a few years ago, so once they dried off we had some bigger pieces to add to the piles of kindling chunks DH produces in his work. The dog has discovered that he loves to lie with his head toward the stove getting toasty. And I think the warmth must have been a contributing factor to the fact that the cat, whom we've been trying to coax back into the living room since we got the dog, finally was willing to come hang out there for a while today. Still falling here, some 36 hours after it started. I can't complain, though --- we made sure we were well stocked up, and didn't have to go anywhere all day except to take the dog out. No power problems. Watched curling and Christmas specials. Cooked a tasty roast. Baked cookies. And since we both work at home, we won't have to be in a hurry to dig out the car tomorrow. Lots of blessings to count. My sister, a doctor in Halifax, had her car die yesterday and had to walk across town in the blizzard to get to her shift today. Zabby

"dcarch - I don't have scientific answers to your questions, but having quasi-followed Appliances over the years I've NEVER seen anyone question that electric boils faster than gas. " I will take your word for it since I have not visited that Forum. The key is to locate actual controlled studies to confirm if that is an empirical truth or one of the many anecdotal kitchen myths. I will say this again, I am not claiming that it is not true; I am saying that I have questions which I myself can't answer. "Evidently a gas flame is an even poorer delivery boy. " Either that or whoever tested gas was not aware that "watched pot never boils" :-) "Are you saying when properly adjusted, natural gas isn't a clean burning fuel? That'd be news to me, too. " Not what I meant. If gas is such a poor deliverer of heat then all the extra BTUs will be wasted in heating the air, and air conditioning is a big cost in restaurants. Gas also require an immense amount of make-up air for combustion, and to exhaust air for a restaurant to the roof thru fire proofed welded steel ducts in a high rise office building in NYC is incredibly expensive. In addition, electric cooking appliances are much easier for cleaning, and cleaning is a big problem for commercial kitchens. Why don't they use electric? "I'd guess there are many factors involved. Some I've already touched upon, and economics would certainly come into play." This heated debate really boils down (PUN + PUN!) to one single question: Except cooking in a TV studio, why no chefs prefer electric for cooking? dcarch

JoanEileen, do not wash the chicken because as has been pointed out, you are merely spreading bacteria. I also suspect that adding all that water is what causes "all the blood [to pour] out", because that never happens for me. I'd also suggest you not open the oven door for at least an hour and a quarter so as not to see anything that might distress you (not that there will be anything, but really the chicken doesn't need to be peeked at during the cooking phase and all you're doing is lowering the oven temperature opening the door unnecessarily.) Anthony Bourdain did a series once on the dishes he considered every cook should know how to do, and got guest chefs who were known for that particular dish to demonstrate. Roast chicken was one, and iirc it was demonstrated by Thomas What'sHisFace from the French Laundry.

The saucepan arrived this morning, and it is smaller than I expected. The description said "2 quarts" but the calibrations on the interior side only go to 1.5 quarts, and so the 2 quarts must refer to the amount of liquid when the pan is filled completely to the rim, just at the overflow level. I wanted a pan that would allow me to have 2 quarts inside for cooking, but I will make do with this pan. It's a very nice pan, and I do have uses for it - I was not buying it just for one special use - I was buying it because I already needed it. Also, I already needed a new portable induction burner because the old Duxtop is wearing out, and the buttons do not work all the time. I'll keep it here anyway, in case I want to use it in the patio and take the new Navaris to L.A. to use with my pressure cooker. I have a 10½"Ø cast iron comal (which I mentioned on a different thread) that I will try to use as a hot surface for my large saucepan. I had asked if I could do this, but no one responded to that question. Thanks, Dcarch, for that recommendation. As for annoyances - the biggest annoyance would be getting takeout food, and it really is not necessary. I did buy four tamales at Cárdenas market, and I still have two left. I also bought guacamole there but am now out of chips, although I have corn tortillas that I can crisp up in the toaster oven or on the comal. The biggest issue I have with takeout food is the cost, the second is that I would have to go somewhere to pick it up (or tip a delivery person), and the third is that I like the food I make myself much better. One exception is sushi, but I would have to drive 5.3 miles to Gelson's in Rancho Mirage to get that, and the sushi is expensive, although we often buy it on a weekly basis.