Terminalcoffee discussion
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What are the "must have" kitchen tools?/Kevin is lethal with a microwave and peppers.
mainly for me it is a whisk and a wooden spoon but that is because my wife and i have a lot of kid-less free time in the kitchen
also i have coveted a stand-up mixer, a high quality food processor and a regular hand operated can opener because i am tired of dragged the electric one out just to open a can of lima beans
I got a mandoline recently. It's a wonderful tool. It allows me to slice veggies paper thin consistently. I used it the other day for zucchini that I breaded and fried. A yummy appetizer for sure.One must be very careful with this tool, though. The first time I used it to slice potatoes, I sliced the end of my finger off. What a mess. But it's all healed up now. I am much more attentive to finger placement when I slice these days.
My father, who is an excellent, if somewhat experimental, cook, is obssessed with his knives. He has a fit if my Mom puts one in the dishwasher.
Ok, question related to the knives and dishwashers...what's the right way to wash pans? I know you're supposed to let them cool down soon, but some pans you want to age, etc., right?
Good knives are definitely kitchen must-haves. And good pans. Neither of those things belongs in the dishwasher.
RandomAnthony wrote: "Ok, question related to the knives and dishwashers...what's the right way to wash pans? I know you're supposed to let them cool down soon, but some pans you want to age, etc., right?"It's your cast-iron stuff you want to age, or season. Seasoning creates a natural non-stick surface and helps prevent rusting. Ideally you never wash a cast-iron pot, you just wipe it clean or rinse with hot water and a scrub brush.
You have to attach the socks to the cup-holder thingies with clothespins, Kevin. I thought everyone knew that. Otherwise they just go all over the place in there.
i don't have any of the cool gadgets some of you own or covet, except for that fancy can opener kevin is looking for.
Hm. So you just cut the lemon in half, for example, and use that to...ream it, I guess? I've never seen one before. Cool.
I need a citrus reamer, I'm missing one since I moved. I love my wire cheese slicer. I use it just about every day.
Hmm...I've never had a cheese slicer.We do have a Cabinet of Requirement. If you stand outside of it and say "I sure wish we had a..." and then look in there, you will find that thing, even if it had not previously been in there.
We once found a waffle iron.
I have an antique mortar and pestle, but sorry Random it's not for sale, but i agree with you, i think they look cool too :)
Magnetic bottle opener on the fridge.
janine wrote: "even better: on the wall."
Yeah, not bad but when I'm squashed I don't want to have to remember which wall it's on.
Yeah, not bad but when I'm squashed I don't want to have to remember which wall it's on.
janine wrote: "the wall by the fridge of course."
I like the way you think.
I like the way you think.
my office does. i can stick magnets right on the wall. you have to be paul bunyan to use thumb tacks though
RandomAnthony wrote: "Who's got metal walls?"
Apparently Lawrence Taylor, the big dummy.
Apparently Lawrence Taylor, the big dummy.
Stuff I like for the kitchen:1. microplanes, to grate cheese, ginger, nutmeg
2. My stick blender--much easier to clean than the blender. Also, the lid does not pop off because I'm blending hot soup. Steam scars.
3. Good knives from Japan, VERY sharp, Very hard steel.
4. Wine
5. Cutting boards that can go in the dishwasher
6. Husband who likes to piss me off by putting raw chicken on the counter and wiping the floor with my cute dishtowels. Oh well, can't have everything.
RandomAnthony wrote: "Who's got metal walls?"i don't. that bottle opener is permanently attached to the wall.
MY must-haves:- Williams-Sonoma gold-series cookie sheet (cooks awesome cookies) & cooling rack
- ice trays
- citrus zester
- measuring cup
- measuring spoons
- veggie peeler
- excellent knives
- egg separator
- nesting bowls
- colander
- cutting board
- dutch oven
- mixer
Lots of things work when performing in the kitchen. Crank up the Aretha Franklin, grab a whisk or a wooden spoon and you've got a microphone. Watch the microplane, though, it scratches up your fingers.
YES! Yes I do, TawNub. I have my great-grandmother's old dutch oven. I use it regularly. It's SOOO worn in, and I love it. In fact, I posted some pics on FB when we had a snow day of a pot of pasta e fagioli I made in it (actually, it was a two-potter, so I had to transfer some of it into the other pot)... My mother used it often to brown her roasts and then cook 'em. I also use it for cooking crawfish etouffee, red beans & rice, corned beef/New England boiled dinner, French lemon chicken, etc...
I made enough to share with the neighbor and some friends and family. Plus, it was nice to have around for a week - hearty with veggies and fresh herbs and meat. Up until then, it had been a long while since I'd done the two-potter run of soup. :)
It all sounds so good. I hope this festival feeds me tonight or I will be heading for Arkansas with a bowl and a spoon.
OH!!! You can bake bread in it?!! I mean, it makes sense that you could... I just never considered the possibility before now. :D
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I walk through some cooking stores and they, like, special forks for crushing garlic or devices for cutting eggs and I think "why can't I just use a normal fork and sharp knife?"
I think we're getting a juicer for mother's day...but that's mostly because my seven year old keeps asking for one and his mother doesn't seem to protest...
Also, I very much covet a standing mixer but I'll live with the hand ones because I can't rationalize dropping the cash on a standing one.