What's your favourite (non-electric) kitchen gadget/tool?

morning glory said:
No I don't line them. I would have thought that would mean the ridges would be less visible. If you flour the banneton then the dough doesn't stick at all (although it might if it were a very 'wet' dough, I suppose). The bannetons can easily be rinsed clean afterwards and dry quite quickly. Have you ever tried using the banneton without lining it?
Click to expand...
Nope never. I've always used it with a tea towel.
 
I had a bad experience with a mandolin slicer a couple of years back...used it without the guard (stupidly!) and sliced off the tip of my index finger! Not smart at all...so mandolin slicers or anything with a blade have me quivering in fear now!

I like my good old mortar and pestle for grinding herbs and spices, personally. I find it a therapeutic process!!
 
morning glory said:
Not counting a good sharp knife! My favourite little tool is a julienne cutter. Ultra simple to use, ultra cheap to buy. It produces pretty chef like julienne strips in seconds... This one costs just £3.50 (about 5 US dollars), from Lakeland.


View attachment 2425

Here is what you can do with this little gem:

View attachment 2426
Click to expand...

Ooh, I really like that. I think I'm going to buy myself one.

Here's one of my favorite non-electric, very basic, kitchen gadgets. I use them on a daily basis, not only for my toast, but also for other tasks. I just used them last night to pick my curly sweet potato fries off the foil, because I forgot to spray the foil. The fries were sticking, the spatula wasn't working, and I didn't want to burn my hands. I've burned my fingertips many times in the past removing toast from the toaster, and have seen people use metal flatware for that task, which is extremely dangerous. I always keep wooden toast tongs on hand now, to save my fingertips and the lives of my friends.

toast tongs.jpg
 
Other than a great sharp knife that fits my hands comfortably it would be a good pan that does not stick is too heavy and cleans up well. We have a Rachel Ray omelet pan that works great. It is a little small but it is the first pan I pull out when I want to cook a quick anything.

k2-_ac7318ff-8a5d-42b4-bd15-979130353611.v1.jpg
 
You ruined it for me when you excluded a knife @morning glory . After that I was struggling to find the next best thing. I am going to go with a frying pan but I don't get too attached because my husband buys these teflon ones that don't last too long. I call them disposables. I do have a good quality pan I hardly use but I like having it around so I will go with that if that qualifies.
 
morning glory said:
How wet is your bread dough? Would it stick to the banneton, do you think?
Click to expand...
Tried it today. 1 stuck, the other didn't of the 2 loaves in bannetons. 3rd loaf is a wet loaf so that always goes on a loaf tin, 4th loaf lined tea towel banneton didn't stick and didn't really see a difference. guess it was one of those days!
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
Tried it today. 1 stuck, the other didn't of the 2 loaves in bannetons. 3rd loaf is a wet loaf so that always goes on a loaf tin, 4th loaf lined tea towel banneton didn't stick and didn't really see a difference. guess it was one of those days!
Click to expand...
Ah well! My bannetons came with linen liners which I never used because I tried without them first of all and nothing ever stuck. I do flour the bannetons copiously though. I might just try a wetter dough to see what happens. Tomorrow, in fact! And I'll try to photograph the result. So... do you still get the same ridges in the final product when you use a tea-towel?
 
morning glory said:
Ah well! My bannetons came with linen liners which I never used because I tried without them first of all and nothing ever stuck. I do flour the bannetons copiously though. I might just try a wetter dough to see what happens. Tomorrow, in fact! And I'll try to photograph the result. So... do you still get the same ridges in the final product when you use a tea-towel?
Click to expand...
To a point. A wetter dough does not hold its shape as well and tends to spread more when removed from the banneton prior to cooking (in assuming you do this?). The result is a flatter but more moist bread. I tend to use rye flour in all my sourdough loaves so need the wetter dough. Plus my OH prefers a more most loaf as do I.
 
Well, it has to be the basic oven turner, flipper spatchula. I mean that is a great tool for using in the kitchen, I use it on nearly everything I cook. In terms of a kitchen gadget, not sure really. I use vaious tools as needed. I only recently started using a garlic press actually. It sat in the drawer for years.
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
To a point. A wetter dough does not hold its shape as well and tends to spread more when removed from the banneton prior to cooking (in assuming you do this?). The result is a flatter but more moist bread. I tend to use rye flour in all my sourdough loaves so need the wetter dough. Plus my OH prefers a more most loaf as do I.
Click to expand...
Yes... wet dough spreads so bannetons might not be the best way to prove that type of dough. Yes - I do turn it out of the banneton prior to cooking! Not sure its possible too cook in them! I would experiment but don't want to ruin my bannetons! Anyway, I'm about to turn a rather 'loose' dough out of the banneton and put it in the oven... we will see what happens.
 
eggbeater.jpg




My favorite kitchen gadget is this egg beater. It’s quite different from the whisk I normally use. I receive this from Sam’s Club when a salesman was promoting stainless steel knives. This gadget came as an extra tool. It’s really fun to use. I just place it in my eggs and push down and it starts to spin. It mixes my eggs well.
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
Not counting a decent knife, it has to be my garlic crusher... It is just fantastic and can crush ginger as well it is that strong.

4 years on and I still love it. It is super easy to use and stunningly easy to clean, plus the weight of it is great for hitting anything that needs cruising as well!

https://www.cookingbites.com/threads/wmf-profi-plus-garlic-press-review.377/
Click to expand...
I just ordered mine from Amazon. Should arrive on Friday. I justified the price by reassuring myself it was 'for life!'.
 
When I was young my dad bought my mom a tool that cuts one chunk of a potato into strips thereby making it easier for my mom to make french fries. I do not have a photo but it is something that you lodge your potato onto then push the handle to produce those evenly-cut fries. I know we still have it at home but we do not use it that often
 
morning glory said:
Yes... wet dough spreads so bannetons might not be the best way to prove that type of dough. Yes - I do turn it out of the banneton prior to cooking! Not sure its possible too cook in them! I would experiment but don't want to ruin my bannetons! Anyway, I'm about to turn a rather 'loose' dough out of the banneton and put it in the oven... we will see what happens.
Click to expand...

@SatNavSaysStraightOn, I didn't have any problem with the dough sticking to the banneton. Here it is after proving:
IMGP0114.JPG


And here after turning out:

IMGP0115.JPG


And here after baking:

IMGP0118.jpg


However, although wetter than my usual dough...it wasn't the wettest of wet like I would use for French Baguette. That's a nightmare to work with and I suspect it would stick.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom