Come all ye self-styled chefs and kitchen users, we must talk.

Jonman wrote:
DanB wrote:

What with being almost only fat (and a little water), I'm pretty sure butter doesn't go mouldy (or pick up bacterial infection). Pets and bugs aside, the fat will oxidise (in a butter dish) long, long before it picked up anything growing on it

Hi there, Captain Wrongypants!

Mould will absolutely grow on butter. Faster than you might think.

Not suggesting that there is nothing that will grow on butter, I'm sure there are broadly plenty of things that will. But given that butter is substance for preserving milk most people will likely have eaten it before they see spoilage. See also Jam; a way of preserving fruit that is broadly hostile to microogranisms but you do occasionally open a jar and find is spoiled. That said in 36 years I've yet to open a butter dish to microbial spoilage but I've opened plenty of spoiled jam jars.

Anyway here's a passage from a text book on said
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=i...

Was the grind just not even enough, Jonman? It hasn't been a huge deal for me, but I'm not really all that picky. Do you use general black peppercorns or something fancy? No big deal, I'm just curious what you look for in a pepper grinder.

tuffalobuffalo wrote:

Was the grind just not even enough, Jonman? It hasn't been a huge deal for me, but I'm not really all that picky. Do you use general black peppercorns or something fancy? No big deal, I'm just curious what you look for in a pepper grinder. :)

It wasn't about even, it just wouldn't grind. You turn it, nothing comes out. You shake it, then turn it, a teeny bit of pepper comes out. You bang the sh*t out of it on the counter, and it might grind for 10 seconds before going dry again.

I use a peppercorn blend (white, black, red and who knows what else), and that grinder just didn't play nice with it. We resorted to our usual tactic when buying kitchen gear, checking out Cooks Illustrated's buying guide (the wife has a paid sub to their website), and buying the one they said was the best. That approach has yet to disappoint.

Jonman wrote:
tuffalobuffalo wrote:

Was the grind just not even enough, Jonman? It hasn't been a huge deal for me, but I'm not really all that picky. Do you use general black peppercorns or something fancy? No big deal, I'm just curious what you look for in a pepper grinder. :)

It wasn't about even, it just wouldn't grind. You turn it, nothing comes out. You shake it, then turn it, a teeny bit of pepper comes out. You bang the sh*t out of it on the counter, and it might grind for 10 seconds before going dry again.

I use a peppercorn blend (white, black, red and who knows what else), and that grinder just didn't play nice with it. We resorted to our usual tactic when buying kitchen gear, checking out Cooks Illustrated's buying guide (the wife has a paid sub to their website), and buying the one they said was the best. That approach has yet to disappoint.

OOCT

Well, I haven't had any issues with it using plain black peppercorns for what it's worth. The knobs on the bottom let you adjust the coarseness pretty well, too.

Tanglebones wrote:
Jonman wrote:

You bang the sh*t out of it on the counter, and it might grind for 10 seconds before going dry again.

OOCT

Pro tip - you can fill an oil mister with lube. Problem solved!

Coffee Grinders are nice for spices too you all.

DanB wrote:
Jonman wrote:
DanB wrote:

What with being almost only fat (and a little water), I'm pretty sure butter doesn't go mouldy (or pick up bacterial infection). Pets and bugs aside, the fat will oxidise (in a butter dish) long, long before it picked up anything growing on it

Hi there, Captain Wrongypants!

Mould will absolutely grow on butter. Faster than you might think.

Not suggesting that there is nothing that will grow on butter, I'm sure there are broadly plenty of things that will. But given that butter is substance for preserving milk most people will likely have eaten it before they see spoilage. See also Jam; a way of preserving fruit that is broadly hostile to microogranisms but you do occasionally open a jar and find is spoiled. That said in 36 years I've yet to open a butter dish to microbial spoilage but I've opened plenty of spoiled jam jars.

Anyway here's a passage from a text book on said
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=i...

I have a butter bell and love it. That said mold will grow easily in the summer if you are lax about changing the water. When I first got the bell it happened several times over the summer.

KingGorilla wrote:
Malor wrote:

Don't buy teflon woks... teflon breaks down at high temperatures, and it outgasses toxic products. Wok cooking is usually very hot, so not only are you poisoning the air and your food, the wok won't last very long. The teflon will degrade, and come right off the pan.

For things that stay at around boiling point, it's pretty okay -- there's a tiny bit of degradation, but it's quite small. But teflon at higher temps is not an especially good idea.

Proper Wok cooking is high heat cooking that teflon cannot handle. As a general rule, you should not get above a medium heat with anything teflon coated.

This brings me to a good question for us all. Good for the beginning chefs. But what is mandatory in a kitchen, your kitchen?

Cast Iron Skillet. Cast Iron Dutch Oven(flat bottom). 8" Chef's Knife. 6" Utility Knife. Kosher Sea Salt. Pepper Mill.

What AnimeJ said....you can do a ton of cooking with just those items. Maybe scratch the pepper mill in favor of a good mortar & pestle, so you can use it for more than just pepper.

Fire

LouZiffer wrote:

Fire

I was running on the assumption that a gas stove was a given.

As for Pestle/Mortar, I tend to buy ground spices, but even if I didn't, anything that would require grinding can go through the mill, and dried herbs can be handled without a mortar.

Besides fire, a good thermometer to judge the results of said fire. No need to get a fancy expensive Thermopen just yet. For a beginner, THIS is good for instant-ish. Maybe also THIS for oven stuff. I have them, and love them both. Especially the oven one with its alarm that lets me know when I'm 5-10 degrees shy of my target temp. I take the food out, and let it coast up to its temperature destination. They're $20 each.

Woks are non-stick by default if you use them right. I've never felt the need to buy one coated in teflon.

In fact there's not a single teflon cookware item in my house.

I made a few tiny pound cakes to test out a multilayer peanut butter and jam design I decided I wanted to try while fueled by insomnia. I without thinking put an entire teaspoon of salt into about 2 cups worth of ingredients. I'm so angry that I'm going to force myself to eat them as punishment.

FedoraMcQuaid wrote:

I made a few tiny pound cakes to test out a multilayer peanut butter and jam design I decided I wanted to try while fueled by insomnia. I without thinking put an entire teaspoon of salt into about 2 cups worth of ingredients. I'm so angry that I'm going to force myself to eat them as punishment.

I do not thing a teaspoon is so ruinous.
I did the salt/sugar mix-up with a blueberry cobbler on a camping trip. I used an entire cup in the crust.

FedoraMcQuaid wrote:

...multiplayer peanut butter and jam design I decided I wanted to try while fueled by insomnia.

Misread that and was confused and intrigued in equal measure.

KingGorilla wrote:

This brings me to a good question for us all. Good for the beginning chefs. But what is mandatory in a kitchen, your kitchen?

Edlund gripper tongs for me. I prefer the scalloped type that lock. Something about them that tickles my fancy.

KingGorilla wrote:

This brings me to a good question for us all. Good for the beginning chefs. But what is mandatory in a kitchen, your kitchen?

A good pair of kitchen shears. Particularly if you're low-balling the knives and are just starting out cooking for yourself. They're useful for everything from jointing chickens to snipping herbs.

Wusthof has some good ones (and they come apart for easy cleaning), but you don't have to go quite that far. I've also used ones from Oxo and Cuisinart I picked up in the grocery store that have lasted me for years.

brouhaha wrote:
KingGorilla wrote:

This brings me to a good question for us all. Good for the beginning chefs. But what is mandatory in a kitchen, your kitchen?

Edlund gripper tongs for me. I prefer the scalloped type that lock. Something about them that tickles my fancy.

Oh, yes. Tongs are an absolute must. Once you start cooking with them you'll wonder how you ever survived without them.

OG_slinger wrote:

Oh, yes. Tongs are an absolute must. Once you start cooking with them you'll wonder how you ever survived without them.

I both agree and disagree with you. Tongs do the same jobs that two wooden spoons used to do. Admittedly, the advantage is that tongs leave you a free hand where two wooden spoons don't.

Don't get me wrong, I'm riding the tong-train, just pointing out that I consider them far from essential.

And now I've typed "tongs" enough that it looks wrong.

For some things I am debating going with long cooking chopsticks. Tongs and spatulas have a factor of mushing some softer/more delicate foods that I would like to eliminate.

Jonman wrote:
OG_slinger wrote:

Oh, yes. Tongs are an absolute must. Once you start cooking with them you'll wonder how you ever survived without them.

I both agree and disagree with you. Tongs do the same jobs that two wooden spoons used to do. Admittedly, the advantage is that tongs leave you a free hand where two wooden spoons don't.

Don't get me wrong, I'm riding the tong-train, just pointing out that I consider them far from essential.

And now I've typed "tongs" enough that it looks wrong.

You also said you're riding the tong-train. Not sure why, but I have a feeling that Sulu would approve.

KingGorilla wrote:
FedoraMcQuaid wrote:

I made a few tiny pound cakes to test out a multilayer peanut butter and jam design I decided I wanted to try while fueled by insomnia. I without thinking put an entire teaspoon of salt into about 2 cups worth of ingredients. I'm so angry that I'm going to force myself to eat them as punishment.

I do not thing a teaspoon is so ruinous.
I did the salt/sugar mix-up with a blueberry cobbler on a camping trip. I used an entire cup in the crust.

It's very ruinous. It's like cake murder.

Who are these people who never used tongs? I don't think I've been without tongs in my house my entire life.

Does anyone have a favorite use for Szechuan peppercorns?

The last time I got my hands on some, this pepper salt was the standout hit -- it was good on almost anything -- but I'm looking for more things to try.

misplacedbravado wrote:

Does anyone have a favorite use for Szechuan peppercorns?

The last time I got my hands on some, this pepper salt was the standout hit -- it was good on almost anything -- but I'm looking for more things to try.

Ma Po Tofu

misplacedbravado wrote:

Does anyone have a favorite use for Szechuan peppercorns?

I use them in pretty much every Szechuan dish I make. Which is quite a few, after picking this up. I recommend it quite highly.

Kraint wrote:
KingGorilla wrote:

This brings me to a good question for us all. Good for the beginning chefs. But what is mandatory in a kitchen, your kitchen?

-A decent chef's knife
-Several cutting boards (one for raw meat, at least one for everything else)
-A big steel pan(10-12") with a thick bottom -or- a cast iron pan
-A big steel pot(at least 2Qt) with a thick bottom and a lid
-Aluminum foil
-Parchment paper
-At least one large mixing bowl, preferably steel
-A good set of measuring cups and spoons
-An aluminum baking/cookie sheet
-A colander

I'd add a couple things to this list.

- A non-stick dutch oven... something like this... I use it almost every meal for something. The high walls minimize the splatter you'd get from a skillet, and I make a lot of chili.
- some sauce pans - even picking up a set of Revereware from a yard sale will do.

Something I recently discovered but has been great are flexible cutting mats. More than any other cutting board, you want to keep these out of the dishwasher, due to warping. I suggest either getting non slip ones, or using some non slip shelf roll underneath.

Having that little funnel to get veggies into a bowl or pan is nice, it has made stir fry less mess.