Yes, it's another thread for the Dakkadakka League of Fatties! Wooooo! FOOD!!!!
This time, I want to know about the toys you've got in your kitchen. From those that see nearly daily use, to those that typically languish under a pall of dust in the back of the cupboard.
Me? I've got a Waffle Iron (sees occasional use), a Breville Toasty (very regular use, weekend breakfast of choice), a meat slicer (for when I makes my Bacon), Steamer, Deep Fat Fryer, electronic scales. And of course oven/hob, fridge freezer and microwave. Because you won't get very far without.
I absolutely love my Breville. It's quick, it's easy, it's a doddle to clean. And if I buy pre-shredded cheese, no bother to whip something up. If I'm starving hungry, just cheese will do. If I'm taking my time, bit of onion, maybe some ham. Still experimenting with fillings.
Deep Fryer is superb. Whack in Oven chips, and you'll get the best damned chips you've ever had in your life. Fact.
The others are bit more situational. Steamer usually sees use in the summer months, when not only do I tend to eat lighter, but I don't much fancy sweating in the kitchen. Put your stuff in, switch it on, come back when it's done. It's akin to my slow cooker, just used she it's ded hot. Nice bit of steamed salmon and veg, decent dinner right there (though mine sucks at doing rice)
Waffles? Well, as I struggle to source premixed waffle batter, so I don't use it as often as I'd like, because making it from scratch is a bit of a faff. And when you live on your own, I find ingredients go off before I can use them all up.
One: The best damn chips are the ones you cut from the potato and then deep-fry yourself. Anything else is axiomatically wrong and punishable by firing squad.
2) As for the actual discussion:
*Best item in the kitchen: The potato knife that I got from my parents. Sharper than my razor. Cuts everything, peels everything. No meal is made without it.
*Percolator. At home, I only drink coffee made with this.
*Toaster. Because bread needs toasting. Used almost daily.
*Gas furnace. You plebs may cook with electricity, but the direct heat from a gas cooker cannot be beaten except by a coal BBQ.
*Combi-oven. Needs replacing. I had it before I moved into the house, and its age is showing. Still makes great meals though.
*Blender. I never use it much, but my wife adores it for making fruit drinks, and they're glorious.
I really, really want a proper oven. Not just for all the meals I make, but for all the stuff my better half wants to make, too.
Joule Sous vide cooker. Love it for perfectly cooked meats. Can take a tough cut of meat and really breaks down the connective tissue to make a great meal
And with a good cut? My son is always over the moon when he sees me take it out.
Other stuff?
Micro plane grater. Cast iron skillet (esp to sear sous vide steaks!). Electric griddle for Sunday pancakes.
I'm a very healthy eater, and a pretty simple cook, so virtually every meal revolves around a Shun Premier chef's knife and either a Le Creuset cast iron skillet and/or a Falk copper pan.
I do occassionally have notions for other cooking toys - rice cookers/clow cookers/dutch ovens etc but after that first exciting week I use them very, very little.
Kanluwen wrote: A wok. It was my best investment in trying to get healthy as I do a lot of chicken stir-fry.
Yeah there's tons to be said for a well seasoned carbon steel wok. Unlike copper and cast iron you don't need to spend a fortune - a £20 effort will last indefinitely so long as you never leave it wet and everything tastes better over time.
I couldn't live without a rice cooker. I think anyone who eats a lot of rice should have one (it's obviously very common in Asian households).
An immersion blender is also very handy. I don't have much kitchen space (especially not counter-top space), so I don't own a normal blender. Mostly useful if you have stainless steel pots though.
My pressure cooker (the kind that goes on the stove, and has electronics in the lid to tell you how to adjust the heat) also sees a lot of use. Invaluable for beans (I'm not a fan of canned beans, and not all varieties are easy to find here), it also very good for some quick one-pot recipes. And it's also the biggest pot I own, so I cook my pasta in it and use it as a general large-sized pot.
Finally, I'm in love with my iron pan (Mineral B from de Buyer, the version with the removable handle).
The most gimmicky gadget I have is an Instant Pot (combination rice cooker/pressure cooker/rice cooker).
Been knocking out a lot of good recipes with that thing.
Other than that a mandolin and a spiralizer, an immersion blender, and a Ninja slicer thingy that we got as a Christmas present that supplements our food processor for smaller volumes.
Bran Dawri wrote: *Gas furnace. You plebs may cook with electricity, but the direct heat from a gas cooker cannot be beaten except by a coal BBQ.
Oh, I'd say a real wood stove beats gas, but you have to pay more attention because you can't control the temperature by turning a knob. As a bonus it also heats the kitchen and you can turn down the central heating. ;-)
A microwave oven doesn't count, does it? Then I don't really have any fancy cooking tools. Quality knives, pots and pans go a long way IMO. Steel stuff (maybe half non-stick) for everyday use and a few cast iron items for "proper" steaks or stews.
My kitchen is super basic. Gas stove, microwave, oven (too small for big pizzas , and a bunch of pans to make my soup, rice, pasta or pancakes in. It is not like I eat anything else.
I'm fairly straightforward. Particulars worth mention are my trusty cast iron (literally handed down for a couple generations), and a spatula I've had since I worked at a restaurant when I was 17, and my Shun chef's knife I acquired a few years ago. Coffee maker sees regular usage too.. I use it less nowadays, but I used to cook regularly with a crock pot too. Used less often are a couple of food processors, a deep fryer that gets used once every couple months, and a bunch of bread making devices. I bake the bread maybe once every 3-4 weeks. One of the neater gadgets is a danish dough whisk. Looks like this:
Spoiler:
My girlfriend on the other hand uses literally every gadget under the sun. She has a waffle maker, an immersion blender, a vitamix (sort of a super powerful blender thing), one of those kitchenaid multipurpose mixer things, a tea kettle, and probably a bunch of stuff I'm not remembering.
d-usa wrote: The most gimmicky gadget I have is an Instant Pot (combination rice cooker/pressure cooker/rice cooker).
That's my latest acquisition for the kitchen. Loving it so far. Admittedly, everything I've made in it I could probably have done in less time the old fashioned way on the stove, but the convenience of cooking it all in just one pot makes up for it.
We've got a panini maker, a Foreman Grill, a mixer, a waffle iron, a blender, a slow cooker/ crockpot and mini crockpot, toaster oven, microwave, stove and oven. We have a French Press, a drip coffee maker, a Keurig (for everyday use), a teapot, a loose-leaf teapot, a pitcher for making iced tea or coffee, an assortment of cocktail and wine glasses, etc.. We have a couple huge pots for soup, many pans, sauce pans and a wok, a turkey roaster, a stone pizza baking sheet thing, a wooden pizza baking paddle thing, various cake pans I am afraid to touch, brownie pans, cookie sheets, mixing bowls out the wazoo, salsa bowls, etc..
We mostly eat simple things all week, cook something nice on the weekend, and only get to use those special gadgets when entertaining guests.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
d-usa wrote: It’s all the convenience of a crockpot, with none of the waiting!
Good. I hate long waits.
I'll need to check this out, because we love crockpot foods but not crockpot set-up, waiting, or coming home to a humid house on a hot day.
I need it to heat the fat properly when making Toad in the Hole (sausages in batter, in case you were wondering). Trick to getting a good rise is for the fat in the bottom of the tin to be really hot, so the batter cooks as soon as if first hits.
I need it to heat the fat properly when making Toad in the Hole (sausages in batter, in case you were wondering). Trick to getting a good rise is for the fat in the bottom of the tin to be really hot, so the batter cooks as soon as if first hits.
Crock pot, deep fryer, wok and a HUGE skillet from Macy’s that was on 75% clearance (don’t know why). Add in a teavana tea maker and a coffee pot, and my kitchen is a happy place.
Get your dough right, and your dinner is costing you absolute pennies,
Not the way I make pizza it doesn't. I never could find a pizzaria that would put half a pound of fried bacon pieces (not strips, not bits) or an entire pepperoni onto a medium pizza.
Gadgets:
Digital meat thermometer
Micro plane rasp and box grater
Hand crank popcorn popper (Whirly-Pop, for heavens sake GET ONE NOW, use cocunut oil and flavored salts for movie theater popcorn on demand)
Mandolin
Toaster Oven - yes, toaster oven is useful even if you have an oven.
I spent two and a half years cooking with nothing but a two ring petrol burner, so I don't really go in for kitchen gadgets, I don't even have a microwave. I do use an electric whisk for baking or making pancake batter and the toaster sees regular use although I use the oven grill more. I use an espresso maker to make coffee every day too.
fresus wrote: I couldn't live without a rice cooker. I think anyone who eats a lot of rice should have one (it's obviously very common in Asian households).
I eat a lot of rice but I prefer it not to be cooked in a rice cooker.
My kitchen is pretty basic, pots, pans, oven, steamer, I've never really gotten in to kitchen gadgets. I managed to live for a year without a microwave, only reason I have one now is I moved in to a house that already had one.
That's really more than enough to make a lot of things! except some baked goods. But it works for me because i'm a pretty good cook and a terrible baker.
Though to be honest i got to use an industrial scale bread maker and oven a few days ago and now i want one for the room i don't have for them.
I've owned many different kitchen gadgets over the years but I always get rid of them. I basically buy them and use them once or twice, then forget about them. Like my bread maker, was fun at first, but got old fast. I had a George Forman grill, same deal. I do use my crock pot about once a month though.
My favorite gadget of all is a simple one.. my garlic press. I hate chopping and peeling garlic, but with this you don't need to!
But cleaning a garlic press is such a pain, I don't find it worth it.
I prefer the convenience of pre-chopped garlic. Or if I want something fresher, a mortar also makes quick work of it.
fresus wrote: But cleaning a garlic press is such a pain, I don't find it worth it.
I don't think the one pictured has it, but the one I own has a pad of little "fingers" on the reverse end, so all you need to do is flip it over 100% and it pops all the stuck garlic out.
edit: like so
Spoiler:
That being said, I will generally use the squeezy jar of prechopped garlic, unless I need it sliced for something.
fresus wrote: But cleaning a garlic press is such a pain, I don't find it worth it.
I don't think the one pictured has it, but the one I own has a pad of little "fingers" on the reverse end, so all you need to do is flip it over 100% and it pops all the stuck garlic out.
edit: like so
Spoiler:
That being said, I will generally use the squeezy jar of prechopped garlic, unless I need it sliced for something.
Does it work well? Cut garlic tends to be very sticky, so if you remove the gunk from the cutting holes just to have it stick to the "cleaning fingers", it's not so much of an improvement. On your picture, it looks like the stuff is made of silicone/rubber, so it's probably to avoid excessive stickiness.
Everybody has probably seen what I'm talking about, but I think one of my favorite gadgets is the bamboo steamer I picked up in Chinatown. It has a lid and two levels and sits perfectly over a sauce pan filled with boiling water, which steams whatever you happen to place in the device.
Favorite uses so far are for steaming Baos and Dumplings that we buy in bags from our favorite grocer in Chinatown. The Dumplings are great with a steam and then a quick sear in a skillet with some chili paste...nom, nom. I've only done fish a couple times as steamed fish isn't my favorite preparation, but Salmon turns out beautifully.
fresus wrote: Does it work well? Cut garlic tends to be very sticky, so if you remove the gunk from the cutting holes just to have it stick to the "cleaning fingers", it's not so much of an improvement. On your picture, it looks like the stuff is made of silicone/rubber, so it's probably to avoid excessive stickiness.
I'm not at home but I am pretty sure that's the one I own, and that one definitely it works great. Just use the press, flip it over, and rinse, comes right off. I imagine if you let it dry on there you're gonna have a problem though.
If you press garlic with enormous hand pressure like I do, when you flip the handle over, it just pops off a single piece, a little sheet of garlic skin.
I have a few items that I thought about adding to this list.
I have a turkey fryer, which is a deep fryer with a basket to hold a 14lb turkey. We like fried turkey so we use this a few times a year for a turkey, and we more often use it for making stuff like buffalo wings. The only downside is it takes quite a bit of oil and eats up a lot of my very limited counter-top real estate. It's totally worth it overall because there is nothing like having the oven free for other stuff on thanksgiving, and then not working on the turkey until literally 1 hour before you're ready to eat the turkey.
We have a kitchen aid mixer which I thought was a dumb purchase, but my wife wanted it so I got it for her. Turns out it was not a dumb purchase and I use it all the time, it's very nice to have something mixing while I work on something else.
I have a cast iron pan which I thought would be neat and wasn't. I had wanted to be the sort of person who owns a perfectly seasoned cast iron skillet, but it turns out I am not that person. It's a pain in the ass to clean properly with paper towels and a pinch of kosher salt, so I eventually give up, use brillo, and then re-season it in the oven with linseed oil. It never really get a great seasoning, but I also found it's not really great at pretty much anything anyway, and it weighs a fething ton. My wife can barely lift it empty. On the whole I kind of regret buying it.
I think my favorite kitchen thing, and I know this is a bit weird, is I have a little spatula/flipper I am very fond of. It's about 2 inches wide, 4 inches long, with no holes and a small handle. Kind of like this, but with a wooden handle:
Ouze wrote: I think my favorite kitchen thing, and I know this is a bit weird, is I have a little spatula/flipper I am very fond of. It's about 2 inches wide, 4 inches long, with no holes and a small handle. Kind of like this, but with a wooden handle:
Spoiler:
I dunno, I'm just fond of it.
Those are the kind that are normally used at restaurants, and they're fantastic because they're great for everything. You can flip, scrape, stir, and in a pinch even chop stuff with the side of it.
Girlfriend recently added another one to her pile: The garlic cube.
Seems to work pretty well. Has the fingers Ouze mentioned, and has a little screen for the fingers that you can pull out to yank out any garlic that gets smushed between them. Also means I don't have to chop her garlic for her (she hates chopping garlic by hand).
Homemade smoker made from a oil drum
Like, this year for thanks giving, im heading out to my cousins at like, 4 in the morning, setting up the smoker and getting ready for a long haul. we ait eating till 6 too.
But its gonna be worth it for the Applewood jelepeno smoked turkey.
Necros wrote: Don't make the mistake I made, and leave your brand new cast iron skillet in the sink to wash later. It'll turn orange real fast.
Err...yeah, don't leave cast iron in water. Wipe it rather than wash it if you can, wash only if you must, dry it immediately, and learn how to season that sucker properly.
Theoretically, that stand mixer could also be turned into many other gadgets (if it's a kitchenaid at least). I think most people don't ever bother with that though.
One of my kitchenhacks is to take smoked meats and put then in the bowl of my Kitchenaid, and then use the paddle attachment to turn multiple pounds of meat into shredded meat in less than 30 seconds.
I have a cast iron pan which I thought would be neat and wasn't. I had wanted to be the sort of person who owns a perfectly seasoned cast iron skillet, but it turns out I am not that person. It's a pain in the ass to clean properly with paper towels and a pinch of kosher salt, so I eventually give up, use brillo, and then re-season it in the oven with linseed oil. It never really get a great seasoning, but I also found it's not really great at pretty much anything anyway, and it weighs a fething ton. My wife can barely lift it empty. On the whole I kind of regret buying it.
Huh, you don't also go to the Badger & Blade forums, do you d-usa? I posted that same comic in a cast iron thread there the other day. Just wondering if it's coincidence we thought of the same response.
I had a slow night at work and spend about an hour browsing XKCD, and when I saw this it reminded me of the comment.
I also made some hash browns in my perfectly seasoned cast iron pan last night, lifted them out with the spatula and just wiped the pan down with a dry paper towel and it was nice and clean.
I hate them, they are the primadonnas of skillits.
I hae honestly not found what they do that is so great tht some of my ceramic skillets cant do just as well or even better.
hotsauceman1 wrote: I hate them, they are the primadonnas of skillits.
I hae honestly not found what they do that is so great tht some of my ceramic skillets cant do just as well or even better.
Steel (used in cast iron, carbon steel, or stainless steel) has a very high thermal mass. So it's great for searing, because when you put a cold thing in the pan, the pan's temperature doesn't drop as much. The downside is it also takes longer to heat up, which is why steel-based pans are always pre-heated.
Steel also radiates more light than other cooking materials. So you get more indirect cooking, like you typically do in an oven (helps a lot to get all-round crispy potatoes).
It's also a bad heat conductor. That can be a disadvantage, because you can get hot spots, which is why the bottom of some stainless steel pans are layered with better heat conductors (aluminum, or even copper). But in some cases it's viewed as a strong point, like in a wok where the bottom is much hotter than the sides, so you can control the cooking rate by moving the ingredients around.
Finally, the material itself is very durable and scratch-resistant (you can use metallic utensils, and even cut inside a steel pan). A cast iron or carbon steel pan's seasoning can be damaged, and is arguable harder to maintain than a typical non-stick aluminum pan. Stainless steel pans on the other hand are bomb proof (they're very common in professional kitchens).
hotsauceman1 wrote: I hate them, they are the primadonnas of skillits.
I hae honestly not found what they do that is so great tht some of my ceramic skillets cant do just as well or even better.
Steel (used in cast iron, carbon steel, or stainless steel)
Cast Iron and steel are distinct things. Both are iron alloys, but you don't get steel in cast iron, an object can only be one or the other and their properties are very different.
Cast iron retains heat fantastically and is incredibly consistent and resiliant - if it has hot spots, something very strange is going on. On the other hand, it weighs a ton, needs seasoning and care, and is reactive, so not good for cooking acidic foods unless it's enameled.
Different steel variants also differ a bit. Both stainless and carbon steel react quickly, are non-reactive, and can be cheap as chips (though cheap stainless steel often has hot spots). Carbon steel (the ideal wok material) requires even more seasoning and care than cast iron. Stainless steel is near indestructible (though can require a tough clean if you push your luck too far).
The show-offs choice for everything except dutch ovens, woks, and skillets, copper, is basically steel with all it's bad points removed. Not dishwasher safe and it's very expensive, though. The lid for my copper skillet is £200
Yeah, I always thought of copper as the primadonna of skillets.
The fact that cast iron is so heavy and dense is what makes it heat evenly. Totally agree that if there's hot spots, you're doing something wrong.
I honestly don't understand how people have so many issues with cleaning it and stuff. I think it's one of the easier things to clean, and I have to be waaaay less gentle with it than I do my nonstick stuff.
nfe wrote:Cast iron retains heat fantastically and is incredibly consistent and resiliant - if it has hot spots, something very strange is going on.
daedalus wrote:The fact that cast iron is so heavy and dense is what makes it heat evenly. Totally agree that if there's hot spots, you're doing something wrong.
Heating evenly depends on the thermal conductivity, not on the thermal mass. And cast iron is a pretty bad heat conductor (compared to aluminum and copper). You can actually see that with an infrared thermometer, or this person did a nice example with flour: http://www.cookingissues.com/2010/02/16/heavy-metal-the-science-of-cast-iron-cooking/ .
Proper pre-heating will help tremendously, but it's still much harder to get a homogeneous temperature in the pan than it is in an aluminum pan.
nfe wrote:Cast iron retains heat fantastically and is incredibly consistent and resiliant - if it has hot spots, something very strange is going on.
daedalus wrote:The fact that cast iron is so heavy and dense is what makes it heat evenly. Totally agree that if there's hot spots, you're doing something wrong.
Heating evenly depends on the thermal conductivity, not on the thermal mass. And cast iron is a pretty bad heat conductor (compared to aluminum and copper). You can actually see that with an infrared thermometer, or this person did a nice example with flour: http://www.cookingissues.com/2010/02/16/heavy-metal-the-science-of-cast-iron-cooking/ .
Conductivity is irrelevant if you pre-heat cast iron properly. i.e. in the oven for a long time. So I'll still hold that if you have hot spots, you are doing something wrong.
All part of the skill of learning your appliances.
Seriously. I do baking now and again (not as much as I'd like). And knowing the 'personality' of your oven is more important than getting the recipe right for your dough or batter.
Some run hot, some cooler. Need to know how to adapt the cooking time on each dish to suit.
nfe wrote:Cast iron retains heat fantastically and is incredibly consistent and resiliant - if it has hot spots, something very strange is going on.
daedalus wrote:The fact that cast iron is so heavy and dense is what makes it heat evenly. Totally agree that if there's hot spots, you're doing something wrong.
Heating evenly depends on the thermal conductivity, not on the thermal mass. And cast iron is a pretty bad heat conductor (compared to aluminum and copper). You can actually see that with an infrared thermometer, or this person did a nice example with flour: http://www.cookingissues.com/2010/02/16/heavy-metal-the-science-of-cast-iron-cooking/ .
Conductivity is irrelevant if you pre-heat cast iron properly. i.e. in the oven for a long time. So I'll still hold that if you have hot spots, you are doing something wrong.
Sure, if you think pre-heating a pan for an hour is practical…
Just as practical as having to clean a non-stick pan for an hour after each time you use it, and having to hand wash each grain of rice before using a rice cooker.
For non-exaggeration purposes, it takes 10 minutes to preheat a cast iron skillet on the stove top. I'm guessing that most of the meals that people might cook in a pan require at least 10 minutes of prep-time, so it really doesn't result in any longer cooking process. Even if it's just a simple steak, just put the pan on the stove top at the same time that you are taking the steak out of the fridge to let it warm up before cooking it. By the time the chill is gone from the meat, the pan is ready for it.
Alternatively you can just take any other thin metal pan, crank the heat up to 11, take an ice cold steak from the fridge and put the cold meat against the tiny thermal mass to get a nice non-crusty soggy grey piece of meat. Feel free to cook it well-done while you are at it, since it's already ruined anyway
nfe wrote:Cast iron retains heat fantastically and is incredibly consistent and resiliant - if it has hot spots, something very strange is going on.
daedalus wrote:The fact that cast iron is so heavy and dense is what makes it heat evenly. Totally agree that if there's hot spots, you're doing something wrong.
Heating evenly depends on the thermal conductivity, not on the thermal mass. And cast iron is a pretty bad heat conductor (compared to aluminum and copper). You can actually see that with an infrared thermometer, or this person did a nice example with flour: http://www.cookingissues.com/2010/02/16/heavy-metal-the-science-of-cast-iron-cooking/ .
Conductivity is irrelevant if you pre-heat cast iron properly. i.e. in the oven for a long time. So I'll still hold that if you have hot spots, you are doing something wrong.
Sure, if you think pre-heating a pan for an hour is practical…
Who said anything about practical? If you don't want to spend the time doing it right, then obviously don't bother using cast iron skillets or dutch ovens?
Now, that said, if you buy good cast iron, five minutes on a hot burner will do the job anyway.
Ouze wrote: I haven't experienced the hot spot issued described in the article, but I have a very large burner as my primary cooking surface.
I think for most of the cases of cast iron "hot spots" it's simply a case of "I didn't actually preheat my pan". Cast iron is great at getting hot, but gakky at conducting that heat to other parts of the pan. A thin pan put over a heat source will heat up over that heat source really quick, and then spread that heat to the rest of the metal just as quickly and when something cold goes into that pan the metal is going to cool off below that cold food and take heat away from the rest of the pan. A cold cast iron pan put over a heat source will take a little longer to heat up, then it will get really hot over the heat source, and then take a long time to take that heat and move it to the rest of the pan. The same "take a long time to heat up" property then also holds onto that head when a cold food hit it and lets you get that crusty sear on a steak because the metal is still hot after the cold meat soaks up the thermal energy. So yeah, I guess the lesson from that article is not "cast iron is bad and has hot spots" and more "don't start to cook food in a cold cast-iron pan".
I have a cast-iron enamel glazed dutch oven that I use for pasta for that same reason. It takes it a bit longer to heat up than a regular pot, but by the time the water boils the iron has soaked up so much thermal energy that by the time the cold pasta hits the boiling water the pot keeps that temperature drop to a minimum and I don't end up with non-boiling water for 5 minutes.
Alternatively you can just take any other thin metal pan, crank the heat up to 11, take an ice cold steak from the fridge and put the cold meat against the tiny thermal mass to get a nice non-crusty soggy grey piece of meat. Feel free to cook it well-done while you are at it, since it's already ruined anyway
Steak is just Sub-par meat anyway. Its just a slab of meat with nothing too it. Not much of a way to make it better.
Now cured meats and sausages.....
But yeah. Need to get meself a Wok, and looking for a very general consensus.
Is it better to get a cheap one, and replace with similar once wrecked, or is it a better economy to splurge out a bit more and get a more expensive one?
Instant Pot X2 just because it's that handy.
Rice cooker
Electric skillet
2 crock pots
Silicone baking sheets. Gods, those things are brilliant.
Vitamix, for blending down my special needs son's tube feeds
Kitchen Aid stand mixer
But would you like to know what my true secret weapon of the kitchen is?
White pepper.
Seriously, NOBODY ever uses the stuff. I stumbled onto it when we were doing a battalion exercise that my kitchen was feeding, and I took it to the scrambled eggs, with salt and a hint of garlic. Visiting commanders pulled me off to the side SPECIFICALLY because of the eggs, and requested the method be passed to their food service specialists.
It also works really well on hash browns, or any fried potato really.
Oh, I know. I used to not really dabble with cooking until I became an Army cook. Then it was everything to spice up whatever we had.
We once got a shipment of breakfast steaks in a meal kit, with no seasoning. We couldn't season, marinade, NOTHING. I noticed our leftover supplies from the previous night's meal and asked "Can't we marinate the steaks in that Italian dressing?" Turned out to be some of the tastiest steak I've ever made.
Is it better to get a cheap one, and replace with similar once wrecked, or is it a better economy to splurge out a bit more and get a more expensive one?
I wouldn't spend a ton on one, but you don't need to in order to get one that'll last forever. I think I bought mine for about 20 USD, roughly 10 years ago. It's carbon steel, so it's a little bit more maintenance (similar, but more difficult to season) than cast iron. The inside of it is still largely unseasoned after all this time even, but it doesn't rust if you rinse it off immediately after cooking with it and then dry it off.
Just don't get one of the nonstick ones. But I could say that about anything other than maybe a pasta pot... maybe.
If you don't know if you are going to use a tool that much, just get a cheap tool from Harbor Freight (cheap price, gak quality). If you end up using it enough to break it, replace it with a quality tool.
You can follow that advice for a lot of cooking gadgets as well.
I mean, it's no Full English, but man. Steak for brekkie.
What I'd REALLY go for is eggs over medium, rashers, black and white pudding, bangers, and some chips. THAT is a good breakfast. But no soda bread, never could develop a taste for that.
Failing that, as I fry up corned beef hash, JUST as it's starting to turn crispy, I dump three eggs that I've already beaten into the skillet and scramble them straight into the hash. Glorious.
And a good third place would be scrambled eggs covered in shredded hash browns, covered in ground sausage, covered in sausage gravy, covered in shredded cheese. Muenster is my fave, but cojack or cheddar will work in a pinch.
But I must politely disagree on certain things in the kitchen. Blenders and that should be of reasonable quality - the difference between cheap and reasonably priced stuff is quite marked (less powerful motors etc)
Pans tend to be fairly disposable though, hence the question. I understand professional chefs don't shell out on top of the range. They instead need something that'll do the job and stand up to a battering before being replaced.
If you don't know if you are going to use a tool that much, just get a cheap tool from Harbor Freight (cheap price, gak quality). If you end up using it enough to break it, replace it with a quality tool.
Heh, most of my NICER tools are cheap tools from harbor freight. The little drill press I bought from them is still going strong no matter how many drill bits I melt down in it.
...on the topic of kitchen gadgets and harbor freight tools, for Christmas I made my mother and two sisters some personalized cutlery.
I started with some stock Chicago Cutlery knives that I knocked the cheap handles off of. I electrolytically etched their names on the blades, replaced the handles with actual hardwood and pinned them with waterproof epoxy and brass rod. That brand seems to already have a good edge starting out, but I put a somewhat keener than normal edge on it with my detail grinder, and they're good to go. Mom's isn't pictured because I was still getting the reverse D grip on it (because she's a lefty).
I have some old fashioned cast iron pots and pans, a fairly nice wok, and an outdoor turkey deep fryer set up. Other than that, just the usual most folks have like a gas grill, charcoal grill, etc.
But I must politely disagree on certain things in the kitchen. Blenders and that should be of reasonable quality - the difference between cheap and reasonably priced stuff is quite marked (less powerful motors etc)
Pans tend to be fairly disposable though, hence the question. I understand professional chefs don't shell out on top of the range. They instead need something that'll do the job and stand up to a battering before being replaced.
Between my military career, my music "career", and my machining career, I cannot speak enough of the dangers and waste of cheaping out for any equipment you may need. I'm eyeballing a couple of LTDs that were made recently that are $1,000 US each. I could get a Squier or other budget brand guitar for under $200, but I am willing to pay more for quality. Kitchen appliances are right up there. You know what you get when you buy a $10 stand mixer? A $10 paper weight in a year as early as six months. Not worth it, best to drop $300+ on a Kitchen Aid from the beginning and be done with it.
Too true. I had a $10 can opener that gak out on me in 3 months. Three months. The handheld one from the dollar store lasted longer. Inexcusable. I have no problem paying for quality.
My current fave thing is our Instant Pot. That is just....so great. I can cook 3 lbs of frozen solid, fresh from the freezer chicken in about 35 minutes, including prep time. I just toss meat and veggies and rice if I want and its all done in no time. My wife made a roast and mashed potatoes at the same time in it a few nights ago.
Its a must have if like me you forget till last minute its your turn to cook dinner.
Asides from the usual kitchen goods (fridge, freezer and gas hob) I have a fair few gizmos as Mrs Squilverine loves to cook. We have a Kitchen aid mixer and proving drawer for bread and cake making. A recent addition was the popcorn maker which is more of a novelty item. The gadget which gets the most use is the Nespresso coffee machine.
Oddly the one thing we don't have and never seem to miss is a microwave
I've got a Microwave, but I use it only rarely. I'm not sure when or why it happened, but I've become quite disapproving of microwaved food.
It's quite irrational, because I know it can be incredibly convenient - spesh if you batch cook and freeze up on a Sunday. But just another oddity. Maybe it's the general advance on 'cook from frozen' stuff. I'm happier doing that in the oven.
, and a bunch of pans to make my soup, rice, pasta or pancakes in. It is not like I eat anything else.
I never could find a pizzaria that would put half a pound of fried bacon pieces (not strips, not bits) or an entire pepperoni onto a medium pizza.
