CityMama™

Kitchen

Some of the best meals are created in small restaurant and/or home kitchens. Can't wait to start working my magic in this one!

posted on-the-fly with my iphone

Kitchen gadgets everyone should have: Egg Slicer [NaBloPoMo Day 8-late]

I don't know what I would do without my trusty egg slicer. It's not the most often-used gadget in my drawer, but it's one I am always glad to have on hand when I need it. 

To slice eggs, you just lay your hard-boiled egg* on it, close the metal wires down over it and voila, perfectly uniform slices.  To chop them further, I carefully pick up the sliced egg making sure it stays together, give it a quarter turn and slice again. Take the chopped egg and combine with mayo and mustard for a quick egg salad, or scatter them over a spinach salad with bacon. (Or any salad, really. I love egg on salad.)

I also use the egg slicer for slicing membrillo or quince paste to serve with manchego cheese. And speaking of cheese, I bet it would be good for slicing some medium-soft cheeses. I hear it's also great for slicing mushrooms, but I haven't tried that.

(I know this is a belated post, but I wanted to squeeze it in under the wire before starting in on the tutorials.)

*Don't know how to properly cook a hard-boiled egg? This is my method and it works great every time. No gray-green yolks. No rubbery whites.

Kitchen gadgets that everyone should have: Three really sharp knives [NaBloPoMo Day 6]

I blame Rachael Ray for the Santoku knife trend that has been sweeping the nation for past few years. Suddenly everyone had to have "Rachael's knife" and then they proceeded to use that knife for every chopping chore even if another knife would have served a better purpose. (Jacques Pepin is probably mortified.)  There is nothing wrong with Santoku (Japanese-style) knives. I own two of them myself, but I here's the difference: I only use it for cutting vegetables and fruit, and it could never be a replacement for a really good chef's knife.

I've been collecting knives since I had a kitchen of my own to cook in and am kind of a nerd about having having a specific knife for a specific purposes. I have cleavers for hacking up bone-in pieces of meat, a boning of knife for removing poultry from the bone, paring knives of all shapes and sizes, a Japanese knife only for slicing fish for sashimi, and a long skinny blunted knife I bought in Italy for slicing prosciutto (or ham). I have a drawer full of knives to suit any kitchen need, but the three I turn to most often are these:

A chef's knife. Meet my baby. This Global 8-in. chef's knife is the workhorse in my kitchen. I love the textured handle which makes for a good grip. I love that it feels properly weighted in my hand. I love its samurai-sword-like sharpness. It is my go-to knife for all kinds of jobs from cutting up meat to slicing veggies. Invest in a really great chef's knife and you won't be sorry. (And "really great" doesn't have to mean expensive, I just prefer Global knives. It's a Japanese brand and I suppose I have a thing for Japanese knives.:

A ceramic Santoku knife. I prefer ceramic because it stays razor sharp and is very light. This style of knife is great for slicing and chopping fruits and vegetables. You can also use it for meat, but I prefer a chef's knife with a longer blade for that. My favorite Santoku is made by Kyocera (yes, another Japanese brand.):

A really good paring knife. I love these from Williams-Sonoma. I use them for peeling fruits and vegetables like apple skin and the tough woody ends of broccoli or asparagus. (I'm actually faster with a paring knife than with a peeler.) These are great for small cutting jobs like cubing avocado or hulling strawberries. You almost don't need peelers and hullers if you have a paring knife.:

Anyone else a Knife nerd like me? Let's talk!

Kitchen gadgets that everyone should have: Screwpull wine opener [NaBloPoMo Day 5]

This is a gadget that is especially appropriate today! (Yes we did!) Ahem. If you are like me and have a drawerful of wine openers that you can't figure out how to use, get thee a Screwpull. It is the easiest wine opener that you will ever use.

Here's how it works:

1. Remove the foil from the wine bottle
2. Set the Screwpull atop the bottle
3. Start turning.

That's it. Hold the sides firmly with one hand as you turn the handle with your other hand until the cork comes out. There is no twisting, adjusting those wingy things, setting the bottle between your legs as you puuuuullll the cork out. You don't have to worry about setting the screw exactly in the center. You won't push the cork through the neck of the bottle into the wine. The turning action of the Screwpull gets the cork all the way out easily and with almost no effort.

This is another kitchen gadget that I personally can't live without.  Is it more expensive than a grocery store wine opener? Yes, but it will last years.  Ours is at least 10-12 years old and is still working like a champ. Do you have one? Do you love it? Share!

Kitchen gadgets everyone should have: A Microplane grater/zester [NaBloPoMo Day 3]

I'm kicking off kitchen gadget week with my favorite gadget in my kitchen gadget arsenal: my Microplane grater. Accept no substitutes, folks, the Microplane will rock your grating world. If I could only choose one kitchen gadget (aside from a really sharp chef's knife) to take with me to a deserted island, it would be my Microplane.

I own three Microplanes: 2 grater/zesters (so two people can grate cheese at a time--helpful for pasta parties!) and a ribbon zester for grating chocolate. My microplane grater/zester isn't limited to grating cheese, however.  I use it for grating citrus zest and for grating ginger and garlic, too.  I use the ribbon grater for grating apples into our homemade Bircher muesli and for grating carrots into a salad. 

But the best use of the Microplane is definitely for grating hard cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano.  I rarely buy pre-grated cheese. For one, it's more expensive and two, I don't always trust what's in it. I buy hunks of cheese in bulk and make quick work of it with my trusty Microplane. Even very hard cheeses grate beautifully with a Microplane.

Tonight we made a luscious chocolate orange mousse and the first thing I reached for was the Microplane grater so we could add some fresh orange zest along with the orange juice.  If you don't have one maybe Santa will bring one to you...if you'd ve been nice!