Tag Archives: oxo

Baking Equipment

5 Jan

I was recently asked what equipment is absolutely critical to me in my sweet life. Its an interesting question because I have only really begun to bake seriously over the last year or so. Before that, I would bake, but not with any real attempt at making and remaking the same recipe in the same way. I guess I was always comfortable with just winging it – which is fine. But if youre serious about baking, you do need a few serious tools – and a couple of fun things as well, just for the pure pleasure of it.

I have collected most of these items over several years. I have gotten to the point where if I want to bake, at any time, I can. I like that. These are the things which I have found to be pretty important in how I bake, and pretty critical in ensuring the finished quality of my baked goods. If youre passionate about baking, too, look over this list. And tell me if Ive left anything out! 🙂

A good oven, that you know how to use

An oven is (obviously) pretty critical to easy and happy baking days. You need an oven that fits your kitchen and budget, but is also the best you can afford. I like an oven that has the capability for convection too so things cook faster if youre making loads. I have a Rubine oven which I got on sale when I was renovating my house, but I dream of a big Viking oven – possibly even a double or triple one! Ahh, if I had the budget, and more importantly, the space. But you do with what you have. Make sure your oven is sturdy, has a good warranty, and is roomy enough to bake the things you love.

Oven temperature thermometer

 

It is absolutely critical to have a good oven thermometer. I have an Oxo oven thermometer, and I use it every single time I bake. When a recipe calls for preheating the oven (as most do), you must allow the oven to come up to the right temperature before putting in your creation. If you dont, you mess with the science of baking, and you can get very poor results. I never knew when my oven was at the right temperature (or in fact, if it was running too hot or cold). My oven thermometer helps me regulate the heat in my oven, and know the timing of when to put my baking in. I could not do without it.

And just a note here. I really like the Oxo brand of baking equipment. They are well designed, fairly priced, robust, easy to use, and very reliable. I love the measuring jugs for their flexibility and cleverness. I love my Oxo electric candy thermometer, for example. It helps me regulate the temperature for candy making, custard and ice cream bases. I would not do without it.

Really high quality pans/baking sheets

When I first started baking, I had a few baking sheets that I purchased in the supermarket. They tended to buckle in the heat of the oven. When I got serious, I started to read reviews online – particularly those at Cook’s Illustrated.

I ended up getting two Vollrath Cookie Sheets – huge sheets, with shallow curves on the short sides. My oven is small enough that the sheets actually slide into the grooves and thus dont need to sit on the racks. They are wonderful. I use them all the time. For baking, but also for prep work. They can be lined or unlined, and the cookies or baked goods still have minimal sticking. They are amongst the best investments I have ever made.

I also have several large baking sheets/pans, with a shallow lip all around, a bundt pan, a few tart pans (including one that has a removable base), a few glass baking pans, a square pan, two muffin tins (for cupcakes as well as muffins) and quite a few round cake tins in various sizes. Ive collected them over the years, and use all of them constantly. These days, I pay attention to build quality over anything else. I would rather buy one very good baking pan which can be flexible, rather than four or five single use pans which will warp, pit, or conduct heat unevenly. I find that for fairly priced baking goods, Ikea is a great bet.

Cooling racks

If you bake, you need cooling racks. These racks, which sit on a flat surface, are used to cool the pan/dish/ingredient once it comes out of the oven. If youre icing a cake or using any liquid (syrup or chocolate for instance) over a finished baked good, a rack is also useful, set over parchment paper or a baking tin, to allow any extra liquid to drip off. I have four or five of them, and have had them for so long, I cant remember where I got them!

KitchenAid mixer

I could not live without my KitchenAid stand mixer. I use it almost every time I bake. It is a workhorse, and makes life so much easier and happier. It is heavy, easy to clean and totally reliable. I love the level of control I have with it. Given that, as I am beginning to make macarons, I am going to invest in handheld electric beaters with flat blade whisks. Apparently, these are best for whisking macaron batter!

Grinder / Food processor / Immersion blender

OK, I admit it, I am a wee bit of a collector of kitchen kit. I admit it, and yet oh I love them all. I have a small grinder – for nuts, coffee beans, chocolate and spices. I also have a Cuisinart food processor which I use for easy quick puff pastry and doughs, and to grate, chop and mix with speed. I also have my beloved Kenwood immersion blender which I use to liquidise fillings and toppings. I am lucky that I dont have to choose between them!

Whisks, spatulas and spoons

I love my whisks. I have a heavy duty balloon whisk, for whipping cream, hand whisking batters and setting up icings. I also have a smaller whisk, and a sauce whisk which is flat. I dont like the non-stick whisks, but this is totally personal preference.

I have three heavy duty spatulas, which I use for everything from smoothing icing to stirring batters, and I also have an iSi silicone spatula scraper which has become like an extension of my hand. If I had to chose just one spatula, this would be it. It scrapes out bowls, mixes, stirs, smooths … everything! And because you hold it in the palm of your hand, its very intuitive.

I also have several offset spatulas, with stiff metal blades, offset from the handle for easy workings. To be honest, I cant even remember where I got them – I have several different sizes and lengths – but I use them for everything from removing cookies from the sheet to smoothing icing and fondant. An important instrument in the baker’s arsenal!

And I have a few mixing spoons I use all the time, in particular a Tovolo silicone mixing spoon which I find to be very hardy – I use it when I stir candy, melt butter or chocolate, and for stiff batters or to integrate egg into a batter. I also have several hand made cherry wood spoons by Jonathan’s Wild Cherry Spoons which I got at Dean and Deluca in New York. I bought these as gifts, and regretted that I did not keep one for myself! So when I was in New York recently, I made sure to get a few. I love them, and use them all the time.

Mixing Bowls

I have four stainless mixing bowls – two large and two small. My favourites are from Ikea – they have a rubber bottom, which is useful to make sure that the bowl doesnt slip and rubber lids which makes storage in the fridge simple. But I also love my small stainless bowl which has a very wide rim – it sits perfectly on my saucepan, and is what I use to melt chocolate or butter. I prefer stainless to plastic or melamine bowls, but again, its a matter of preference.

I also have several small bowls which I use for mise en place – prepping ingredients before actually starting to cook. Very useful, and indispensable when you need to be quick and focused.

Digital scale

I used to have a very cool looking manual scale, but I rarely used it. I never believed it was accurate, and I could never really judge small increments of weight (which you need to do with some degree of accuracy when you bake). Every time I start to bake (and actually, most times I begin to cook), I pull out my Oxo digital scale. It is brilliant. Easy to use, incredibly sturdy, simple to clean and it has the choice of ounces or grams. I love it, and use it every day.

Measuring cups

Many cooks prefer to have two sets of measuring cups – dry cups, which are traditionally a scoop variety and liquid measuring jugs. They measure the same volume, but some people find it easier to scoop dry ingredients. I am not one of those. I have two measuring jugs (4 cup and 2 cup) by Oxo which I use constantly. I love them because they also give liquid measurements along the sides (fluid ounces and milliliters) and they have a solid rubber handle. They pour very well, and are easy to control. I also have one glass measuring jug which I use particularly if I have sticky substances like honey which need to be measured out.

I like measuring jugs more than the scoop cup because I often use them as small bowls as well. I can measure out my flour and add the baking soda or powder, spices or salt, directly. All my dry ingredients can usually be combined easily in my 4 cup measuring cup, and this saves me quite a bit of washing up!

Teaspoon and tablespoon measures

Accuracy is critical in baking. Often you are required to add a teaspoon of this, half a tablespoon of that. When compiling my recipes, I have found that measuring spoons are vital in ensuring I can replicate my recipes exactly, over and over again. I used to have tons of measuring spoons – heart shaped ones my sister gave me, cheap plastic ones, flimsy round ones. They never really did it for me. But I adore my new set – five stainless steel measuring spoons by Progressive International. These are double spoons – one side of the spoon is round and the other is oval. I find it useful to have two versions of a particular measurement at hand at all times – this makes it easy if I am measuring liquid and dry. The spoons are heavy duty and very accurate.

Knives

Dont get me started on my knives! Its an obsession that makes me happy. But for baking, I really only use two knives. For larger jobs (chopping a big amount of chocolate or speeding through nuts and other hard ingredients), I use my Shun Santoku Knife. I really love that thing – solid, heavy, sharp and totally reliable. But more regularly, I use one of the three small Kuhn Rikon non stick paring knives which I have in a variety of colours. I like these knives. Theyre not “serious” knives in any sense – theyre light, theyre not crazy sharp, and they come in a variety of silly patterns and colours. But theyre very useful in the baking kitchen. They are small workhorses – they pare, peel and slice with ease, they are non stick, so they work through sticky substances easily and well. Clean up is a breeze too!

Bits and pieces

These are some of the items that I have found I use all the time when baking.

Dough Scraper and Chopper – again by Oxo, with a solid rubber grip. This scraper has a flat edge, so its not useful for for scraping down bowls. But it comes into its own when scraping dough off a flat surface and when dividing dough.

Rolling pins – I have several, most of them wood. Rolling pins are critical when you need flaky crusts, or are working with fondant.

Chopping boards – the more solid the board the better. I have two extremely solid plastic chopping boards, two heavy wooden boards and a small one for little jobs.

Cake Lifter – a large metal wedge, which lifts and moves cakes with ease. I love this thing! It makes broken cake layers a thing of the past.

Small Silicone Molds – for whimsy and fun, I have quite a few silicon molds which I bake little cakes in.

Pastry bags and tips – I never saw the use of these until I became serious with my baking. Now, I love them. The control that pastry bags give, with icing and batter, is unequalled. I use Ateco lined bags and tips, and I adore them.

Microplane zester – I use this zester for oranges, lemons and lime zest, and for spices like nutmeg or cinnamon. Simply the best.

Microplane coarse grater – I use this for grating butter into flour – the perfect way to get flaky crusts, pastries and scones.

Sieves – I have several sieves – small and large metal, a flour sieve and a nylon sieve. All useful in my kitchen.

Silicone baking and rolling mats – durable, easily washable, and very useful to prevent sticking of dough, cookies and fondant.

Parchment paper – I have huge, professional reams of this. I use it every day. From lining a baking pan, carrying and measuring ingredients, storing and wrapping. I could not do without it.

Boxes, bags and cake plates – I have found that as I bake more often, and as gifts, I need little paper boxes, bags, cake plates. They are so useful because they help to transport the baked goods easily, make gifts a cinch and you never have to worry about getting your favourite plate or container back!

Professional kitchen sources

Finally, I think one of the most non-negotiable parts of the baking kitchen is not in the kitchen at all! You need a good source of high quality baking equipment and ingredients. I have spoken about Bake with Yen in a previous post, and I like them for the basics of baking. But recently, I was introduced to PastryPro and I think I have found my version of baker’s heaven. This place is amazing, and I will do a full review of it soon. But for baking equipment, and staff who know exactly what they are doing – this is the place. Its a great source for the professional and home baker because they have everything you need, from equipment to ingredients to toys, all under one roof.

Find a baking shop, either online or near you, which professional bakers use, and make friends with the proprietors. They will give you good solid advice, and you will be able to source quality equipment at great prices.

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Baking requires a lot of patience and focus. And though this list I have made may look overwhelming, it is by no means exhaustive. Do remember that this list is the result of a passionate cook married with the spirit of a hoarder. I have tried to be restrained (probably failed miserably) but these are the things I use and love all the time!

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Review: Limited Edition Shun Elite Ken Onion Santoku Knife

17 Sep

Limited Edition Ken Onion

A while ago, I mentioned that I had ordered a present for myself – the limited edition Ken Onion 7 inch Santoku knife. It arrived about a week ago, and I have been using it steadily since. I wanted to get a feel for this knife before writing a review. I have used it every day since it arrived, for just about everything I cook, and it has exceeded my expectations.

I have relatively small hands, and when I cook at home, I usually use 4 – 6 inch utility knives. I love my Chef’s knives but as most of them are Sabatiers, and need to be sharpened and cared for very carefully, I prefer to use journey-man knives on a regular basis. When I came here to the US, I bought an Oxo Good Grips Chef’s knife, and I really liked it. It was light, easy to use, sharp, and flexible.

I remember thinking that I was not sure I could go back to my old knives once I returned home. I must admit though, the chef’s knife was a bit long and unwieldy for me – I managed to get through a huge amount of chopping and cutting, but the 8 inch knife blade, which narrows down to a sharp point, was just a bit too long. The width of the blade made it easy to chop through large onions and butternut easily, but the length lessened my feeling of control. While I liked the rubbery grip of the handle, it was also a bit wide for my hands, and did not feel extremely comfortable. I wondered if there was something that would “fit” me better.

When perusing the tempting pages of Gilt’s sale website, I came across the Shun Santoku knife as part of a set. The santoku is the Japanese version of a chef’s knife, and it is definitely made for smaller hands. The blade is the same width from hilt to tip basically, and its sometimes narrower than a chef’s knife, though this one was about the same width as my Oxo. Its blade edge is also straight – rather than curved for the chef’s knife – so the cutting motion is more of a chop than a rocking pace. Interestingly, the Ken Onion design incorporates a very small curve into the santoku knife, so you can choose slicing, chopping or rocking motions when using the knife.

I went online (thank goodness for the internet says this oldtimer!) and read as much as I could, and watched loads of videos about santoku knives (thank you youtube). Its amazing how much crap is out there, but occaisionally one chances across some solid information. A reader of this blog suggested I watch Martha Stewart on santoku knives, and I found her video online. It was very informative.

One thing I realised was that the “professional” way of holding a knife is very different from the way I have been holding one. That is to say, one holds the knife right at the point where blade meets handle. You need to almost pinch the knife between thumb and third finger, using the pointing finger to guide the knife. I always held my knife with the handle in the palm of my hand, but have now started to try and hold my kitchen knives in this new way… It seems a bit clumsy but once you get used to it, you realise exactly how much more control and strength you have. It makes using a knife very precise.

I have to admit though, the reason I purchased the Limited Edition Shun Elite Ken Onion Santoku (its full name!) is that it is so bloody gorgeous. I mean, this thing is a work of art. Ken Onion is known through the knife world (there is one, apparently) as a first rate artist – he generally makes switchblades and collectors knives. He has been in partnership with Kai knives for a while now, and has looked at making cooking knives from a new point of view. My knife was hand made in Seki City, Japan, the centre of the samurai tradition, and was inspired by old samurai swords.

Handle

The santoku has probably the most gorgeous handle I have ever seen in a cooking knife. Made of ebony pakkawood, it has a clever ergonomic design so that your hand fits right in, and rests along its curves as if you were made for each other. The wood is has a dark sheen, and embedded in the pakkawood is a brass and silver emblem reminiscent of a family crest. A brass and red ring join the handle to the blade. The hand forged (rather than stamped from a mold) steel blade is coated with 16 layers of high carbon stainless steel, making the knife impenetrable to rust, very sharp, and extremely hard. It has been shined to a glorious matte finish.

Importantly, this knife is also full tang, which means that the steel of the blade carries on through the entire handle. The ebony pakkawood is fixed onto the steel handle through the emblem rivet. This is a very vital part of any knife – I should know! One of the many scars on my hands is from a knife that detached itself from its handle and decided to chop me instead of the onion! Getting a knife that has a full tang means that it is fully balanced (between blade and handle) and also means that the sharp blade will never detach from the handle and mince you.

This knife is so pretty that the first day I had it, I just took it out of its (cheap paper) sheath to look at, and touch, and admire. I have to admit that I was a little disappointed that such an expensive and beautiful knife came with almost no protection, no sheath, no box, no storage. Luckily, I found a wonderful sheath via Cook’s Illustrated’s website (the Victorinox 8- to 10-inch BladeSafe Knife Guard) so at least now I can travel safely with it in my suitcase.

But it was when I started cooking with the santoku that I really noticed a difference. I often have very sore hands after chopping and mincing and slicing for hours on end. My hands feel painful and swollen sometimes. But with the santoku … I was literally looking for more things to chop and mince and slice! And the control! Paper thin slices, tiny dices, minuscule minces. I worked through a huge butternut, thick skin and all in a few minutes. Onions were the work of seconds. Literally. I have used this knife every day, in an infinite variety of ways, and its still sharp, its still as breathtakingly exquisite as when I first set eyes on it, and it has made me into a better cook because I have more confidence, more control, and am more aware of how the food I am cooking is being prepared.

The santoku really made me realise that knives are personal – they are not just a brand or a label, but about how a cook uses them to make the food that she or he is passionate about. This knife fits me. Its as though it was made for my hand. Its a beautiful balance of heavy and light, strength and flexibility. I am so happy I decided to treat myself to this knife because its made the cooking experience even more of a pleasure for me.

Is it the right knife for you? I am not sure. I would certainly suggest going to a cooking shop and trying out knifes – feel their heft, weight and balance. Think about what you are going to use them for – as a vegetarian cook, I am not concerned with bones and skin and cartilage (thank goodness), so my knife is really for fruits and vegetables. This knife is perfect for chopping, mincing, dicing, slicing. It fits my small(ish) hands very well, and feels like a natural extension of me. I love it – and I would highly rate the Shun knives by Kershaw/Kai for their quality, handling, and sharpness – and for their pure lustful beauty!

Enjoy, and good cooking!

In the Hand!

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More Cooking Obsessions

7 Sep

So here I sit, eating the last of the vegan chocolate cake (man, it was good), full as a tick after a phenomenally good veggie burger from BGR The Burger Joint. Their veggie burger is sooo delicious – black beans, oats, rice, molasses, with a smokey BBQ flavour, slathered in mojo sauce, roasted onions, fresh ripe tomatoes, lettuce, on a toasted brioche bun. Their fries are amongst the best I have ever had – I cant decide between the Yukon Golds or the sweet potato fries. And dont even get me started on the vanilla bean shake … pure sin. Creamy, flecked with vanilla bean, so thick it takes effort to get the good stuff. Full I am, full full full.

So obviously, I didnt do a lot of cooking today! I just ate, and ate very well. And that got me started thinking about some more of my cooking obsessions. I have written before about some of the things that I cannot do without, and I have remembered several other bits and pieces which I really adore. These are the things I take for granted in my kitchen, but which I could not do without. They make my daily life as a cook so much better.

Chef's Mat

I never think about it because its always there, but my GelPro Chef’s Mat is something I absolutely could not do without. This piece of kitchen equipment is used every day, and here in the US where I dont have one, I feel the difference. This mat is used in the most heavily trafficked areas of the kitchen – where I stand and chop vegetables, in front of the stove when I am cooking for ages. Its a very simple concept – a thick mat, filled with gel, that completely alleviates any fatigue associated with standing and cooking for long periods of time. This mat is so comfortable, easy to clean (simply wipe off any spills or stickies) and if anything sharp (like a knife) drops, then its cushioned and wont chop or cut floor or feet.

I love my mat. Its meant to stop foot, lower back and arthritic pain when cooking or standing for long periods of time. Its truly amazing. Its quite expensive, and for a long time, I really wondered if it was worth it to get one. But I did because I am sucker for new and interesting things, and I have never regretted it. Its quite beautiful in its simplicity, but its very well made, with anti microbial additives, so it never gets moldy even if its left without being cleaned for a while.

If I had to give a cook a present that they would not give themselves, this is what I would get them. I cannot tell you how fantastic cooking on this surface is – pure absolute pleasure. It makes standing over a hot stove for hours on end, or chopping a mountain of vegetables over the sink, totally easy. And it does it without me even remembering its there!

Magnetic Clips

When I cook, I often print out a recipe I have already written, and I need a place to put it so I can refer back to it as I mix and chop and saute and bake. Magnet clips, which are attached to my fridge, do the trick. I love the Endo Magnet Clip because it can hold up to 20 pages of writing. I usually have a pencil handy too so that I can notate and adjust recipes as I cook them. These clips are used constantly in my house.

Not only do they hold recipes, but I clip my shopping lists to them, important notes to my housekeeper, emergency contact numbers, calendars. Again, this is something that I never really thought about, but which makes my kitchen more efficient, and helps me do the work I need to do. I wouldnt be without them.

Magnet Hooks

And may be even more than I love the magnet clips, I love love love these magnet hooks that cover a whole lot of space on my fridge. As I have written in an earlier post, my kitchen is teeny tiny. I need to be able to access stuff quickly, but I also need to be able to store it nicely too! I like having things to hand … and because its my kitchen, and I know my own patterns and rhythms, I know that certain things, I want to be able to grab without opening a drawer or looking around for it.

These gorgeous magnetic hooks from ThreeByThree are wonderful. I use them to hang my oven mitts, my cooking aprons, dish towels, certain utensils, and for the big huge strong ones, even a fry pan or two. Seriously. They are amazing. They come in great colours, and are really strong. Useful beyond measure.

French OvenI have many, many pots and pans. I have different ones for different things, and of course, I love to collect them. I have a few copper pans that I have saved up slowly to purchase, but I have to say, my Le Creuset oval French Oven is probably one of my favourites. I found this pan at a Filene’s Basement store in NYC, for USD99, and I carried it home to Malaysia on my lap in the airplane (long ago, when you could bring things like a heavy cast iron pot onto the plane!).

Since then, many moons ago, I have used this pot for everything under the sun. You can bake brilliant bread in it, its wonderful for soups and stews, South African potjiekos, gratins and any manner of pasta. I have used it to bake a cake, and a tart when I didnt have the proper cake pans. Because it goes from stove top to oven with effortless ease, its the perfect multidimensional cooking vessel. Because its made of cast iron, the way it conducts heat is brilliant – even and strong, with no burning spots. I love this pot, and if I had to choose just one, I would probably choose this one.

Frying Pan

But I am very lucky, because I dont have to choose just one! My other favourite pan is my Green Pan. I use it all the time, every day, for just about everything. When I was renovating my kitchen and house, I was very aware of trying to be as ecologically friendly and sensitive as I possibly could. I read that non-stick pans were being reevaluated for their health and safety functions, and so I started doing some research.

I invested in several pans – a cast iron pan, which I love, but which is heavy and can be a bit unwieldy. I also bought a Green Pan, and I instantly fell in love. This is a GREAT non-stick pan – easy to use, very light, and yet incredibly functional. My Green Pan is the pan I reach for when sauteeing, frying, grilling cheese sandwiches, making pasta sauces, just about anything. It uses PTFE free Thermalon (dont ask me, I have no idea what it really is) technology which seems to be less scratch resistant and more sturdy than my other non stick pans. I use less oil and butter, and the heat conductivity is superb. Cooking with this pan makes me happy.for the oven!

One of the most annoying things about having an old oven is that temperatures can be so incredibly unreliable. For this reason, I really adore my Oxo Oven thermometer. It hangs on the oven rack and shows me temperature in both Fahrenheit and Celsius. Sometimes when you bake, a few degrees can make a huge difference between burned cookies and cakes or ones that turn out perfectly. Since I dont have the luxury of (or the money for) professional baking ovens, this oven thermometer which only costs USD15, ensures that I get as close to perfect as possible. I bake so much at home that I could not do without it! I love Oxo for all their kitchen stuff – beautifully designed, well thought out, useful and user friendly. Their salad spinner is the stuff of legend, their knives are sharp, comfortable in the hand and powerful, and their storage containers are awesome. But this simple thermometer is useful beyond words.

Santoku

And finally, an indulgence. I told you that I was totally obsessional about knives. Well, I was perusing a sample sale online, and I found this set of Ken Onion limited edition Shun knives. A paring knife, and this 7″ high carbon stainless steel Santoku knife. Look at that handle, imagine how it will fit snugly in the hand. Check out the blade… its so beautiful I could cry. It was so expensive, even on sale, that I almost did cry, but its my gift to myself for this trip. I cant wait to get them, and will write about them as soon as I have used them well enough to know how they feel in the hand… I was just so excited, I had to share them!

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