[Sca-cooks] More on salamanders

[Phil Troy / G. Tacitus Adamantius]

On Jul 25, 2010, at 4:30 AM, Stefan li Rous wrote:

<after I wrote this about eight billion years ago, and with no mention of anything I may subsequently have thought or said in the large interim>

> As for toasted cheese being made with a salamander, I believe this
> practice post-dates period, probably coming into being in the 18th-19th
> centuries when things like Mornay Sauce(more or less cheesy bechamel)
> became common, and thse sauces were and are frequently glazed under a
> broiler or salamander.
> ========
> 
> Well, only if we don't count the use of a fire shovel as a type of salamander.

True. But while we're taking that into account, it should be noted that we have pretty detailed written accounts of other methods of toasting cheese that don't call for a fire shovel -- and if it was an obvious solution that every cook thought of immediately, why wouldn't they use it? 

Yes, it surely appears the practice was known. Whether it was widely practiced, or even if the desired effect of food browned on top was really all that desirable from an aesthetic or a health standpoint, except in certain cases, is unclear. 

Adamantius





"Most men worry about their own bellies, and other people's souls, when we all ought to worry about our own souls, and other people's bellies."
			-- Rabbi Israel Salanter