Favorite cooking tools
Nov. 17th, 2011 03:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snousleThere is a lot of crap in the cookware world, but there are a few gems as well. This is what I have come across in the past few years that I really like, and which have provided big improvements over whatever came before. You can look them up on Amazon.
- Thermapen thermometer. $100. This is it - there is no other thermometer, the rest are mere pretenders. It has a fine point that measures the temperature exactly where you place it, to 0.2 degrees F accuracy within seconds. Can be used at deep-frying temperatures. Rugged, moisture-proof and easy to read. It unveils a whole landscape of temperature you never knew existed.
- Breville toaster oven. $250. Amazingly precise, flexible cooking device. Perfect for, of all things, soups and stews. It can accomodate a half-sized food pan and will hold any simmer temperature from 160 to 210 within a few degrees. Could plausibly be used for sous-vide. Also holds a quarter size commercial baking sheet and offers reasonably uniform browning and accurate time/temperature control for baking. (It doesn't start the countdown until it hits the target temperature, which is very handy!) Useful for gentle plate warming and holding of hot foods in general. Fits a 13" round plate or pizza thanks to a little extra space provided at the back. Also makes toast. Very good toast. If I were a college student in a dorm, this would be my one and only cooking appliance.
- ADE "iPad look" kitchen scale. Gram measurements up to 5 KG (11 lb) which is an unusually good combination of accuracy and range, for just $40. Clever design where the weight seems to be measured through its feet. You can also play hilarious pranks on your friends by handing it to them and telling them it's Apple's latest prototype device, "now with LRF support". It looks just like an iPad with some extra logos and a retro digital readout where the home button should be.
- Frieling coffee press. Simple, shiny, insulated, and unbreakable. Makes all other coffee presses look like trash. $60-80.
- Anolon natural beechwood tongs. Simple design, easy to clean, elegant and refined look. But the real charm is the smooth and precise action. They feel like an extension of your own hand. Teflon-safe.
- Induction hotplates - various brands, $400-$1000. These only work with iron cookware, but boy howdy do they work. Extremely safe and efficient. Like cooking on the Starship Enterprise. Most have integrated thermostats that do a reasonable job of holding liquids within 10F of a desired temperature.
If you are ever outfitting a small kitchen, skip the range/oven combo - get one or two induction hotplates and a Breville, stick them on the countertop, and enjoy the flexibility of putting them wherever you like.
FWIW if there is ever any class of kitchen stuff you need advice on, ask, I have been combing the market for years and have opinions on pretty much everything.
- Thermapen thermometer. $100. This is it - there is no other thermometer, the rest are mere pretenders. It has a fine point that measures the temperature exactly where you place it, to 0.2 degrees F accuracy within seconds. Can be used at deep-frying temperatures. Rugged, moisture-proof and easy to read. It unveils a whole landscape of temperature you never knew existed.
- Breville toaster oven. $250. Amazingly precise, flexible cooking device. Perfect for, of all things, soups and stews. It can accomodate a half-sized food pan and will hold any simmer temperature from 160 to 210 within a few degrees. Could plausibly be used for sous-vide. Also holds a quarter size commercial baking sheet and offers reasonably uniform browning and accurate time/temperature control for baking. (It doesn't start the countdown until it hits the target temperature, which is very handy!) Useful for gentle plate warming and holding of hot foods in general. Fits a 13" round plate or pizza thanks to a little extra space provided at the back. Also makes toast. Very good toast. If I were a college student in a dorm, this would be my one and only cooking appliance.
- ADE "iPad look" kitchen scale. Gram measurements up to 5 KG (11 lb) which is an unusually good combination of accuracy and range, for just $40. Clever design where the weight seems to be measured through its feet. You can also play hilarious pranks on your friends by handing it to them and telling them it's Apple's latest prototype device, "now with LRF support". It looks just like an iPad with some extra logos and a retro digital readout where the home button should be.
- Frieling coffee press. Simple, shiny, insulated, and unbreakable. Makes all other coffee presses look like trash. $60-80.
- Anolon natural beechwood tongs. Simple design, easy to clean, elegant and refined look. But the real charm is the smooth and precise action. They feel like an extension of your own hand. Teflon-safe.
- Induction hotplates - various brands, $400-$1000. These only work with iron cookware, but boy howdy do they work. Extremely safe and efficient. Like cooking on the Starship Enterprise. Most have integrated thermostats that do a reasonable job of holding liquids within 10F of a desired temperature.
If you are ever outfitting a small kitchen, skip the range/oven combo - get one or two induction hotplates and a Breville, stick them on the countertop, and enjoy the flexibility of putting them wherever you like.
FWIW if there is ever any class of kitchen stuff you need advice on, ask, I have been combing the market for years and have opinions on pretty much everything.
