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January 02, 2006

grate scott!

i know. groan.

today i added a second microplane to my kitchen; this is a small one, appropriate for zesting and fine grating– lemons, nutmeg, that sort of thing. i needed to zest a lemon for a recipe.

astonishing, using the thing. i remembered the first time i tried to zest a lemon for a recipe. i was a teenager, and i think it went so badly that i actually called my mother at work to find out what i was doing wrong. nothing, as it turned out. she probably told me to just put some elbow grease into it and eventually, you'll have some zest. mostly, the zest was stuck in the grater, one of those box graters that are great for large shavings but suck at anything really small.

one swipe on the microplane and i had a small pile of translucent zest. in about a minute i'd zested and entire, large lemon. the thing that struck me about the results was how oily they were. something about the way the microplane works brings a lot of the lemon oil out of the peel, which is exactly what you want when zesting a lemon.

today i also bought a silpat, something i've known about and wanted for years, but they're expensive so i've always put off buying one. supposedly nothing will stick to a silpat (you use it to line a baking sheet). we'll see.

i have this funny guilt about buying nice kitchen things, even relatively inexpensive things that are under $10, which is why i've never done much outfitting of my kitchen. there's always a cheaper tool or a way to improvise; why spend the money if you don't really have to? i've ground nuts with a hammer and waxed paper, before i even had a blender. i've baked cookies in a copper-bottom skillet missing its handle, more times than i can remember. i've steamed vegetables in a colander, and baked deep-dish pizza in an iron skillet.

and yet, i do recognize the value in good kitchen tools. over the years i've acquired some nice small appliances; nothing as frivolous as a bread machine or rice steamer, but good solid stuff, like a stand mixer that weighs more than a small child, and a food processor with a fancy french name.

anyway, i'm getting over this mental hurdle that i have about utensils and small tools. i am definitely fed up with my pots and pans, but it'll take some planning to replace those. i'm toying with the idea that i might one day like to have a very nice dutch oven.

i'm also thinking about replacing one of the biggest tools in my kitchen, but i'll write about that later, when i know more.

oh, and knives. i have to work on the knives.

Posted by lisa at January 02, 2006 09:34 PM

Comments

there's nothing frivolous about a rice steamer if you eat a lot of rice.

we have an oval le creuset oven. it is the most amazing thing ever. sometimes you can get a decent discount at the outlet store in burlington, if you're not too choosy about the color.

Posted by: Sarah on January 2, 2006 10:28 PM

one of the most perfect gifts i've ever given was a silpat to a cookie-baker. he used it a lot, I think.

and we have a very nice rice cooker - it has more than paid for itself. well, okay - it was a gift. but if i'd paid for it...by now it would have more than paid for itself.

Posted by: pinky on January 2, 2006 11:11 PM

i totally understand your utensil-phobia. i don't think i've ever bought myself anything for the kitchen... i always have to wait for relatives to bail me out at christmas. this year, rob & lulu got me a whole new cookware set, as well as a nice new knife, spatula set and a new peeler.

seriously. i am so lame that i need my family to make sure i can cook. sheesh.

Posted by: xta on January 2, 2006 11:31 PM

i almost never eat rice, and as far as i know all a rice cooker does is cook rice, so for me it would be kind of frivolous... but yes, for someone for whom rice is a staple, i can see that it would be a great appliance to have.

my thinking (for my kitchen) is that a single-purpose appliance is probably not worth the space and money. a utensil, something small and less expensive, can be more specialized.

i'll have to start haunting the outlet mall at lunch.

Posted by: lisa on January 2, 2006 11:52 PM

Holy mother of god -- she's buying all my kitchen utensils. :)

The day my Microplane arrived, I was supposed to go over to a friend's house. They called me after a couple hours. asking where I was. I'd been wandering around in the kitchen, grating things. :)

Posted by: Joseph H. Vilas on January 3, 2006 12:07 AM

my stand mixer has revolutionized my kitchen! a good food processor is next on my list.

i do have my share of frivolous appliances though--the crepe maker and fondue pot spring immediately to mind. maybe i should make some crepes and chocolate fondue before school starts back up . . . anyone interested in fondue night? :)

Posted by: alicia on January 3, 2006 08:44 AM

TJ Maxx (I usually go to the one on 15-501) often has cheap le creuset pieces. Some have irregular enamel, but some don't. I swear I only took notice of them because Jeannette Winterson claimed to have prostituted her lesbian services out for said pots...

Posted by: marie on January 3, 2006 08:08 PM

today a co-worker mentioned that his wife found a lot of great kitchen stuff at TJ Maxx to outfit their new RV, so it's definitely on my list to try. that's also within easy reach at lunchtime.

i don't consider my fondue pot an appliance (it's not electric), so its frivolousness seems less of a problem. it can live on an upper shelf out of reach.

of course, i don't consider a waffle iron frivlous even though it has a single use and is definitely an appliance. i either do or do not need to get my priorities straight, or else i should just be careful about talking trash about rice cookers.

Posted by: lisa on January 4, 2006 12:46 AM

A stand mixer is expensive. A silpat is not expensive.

Posted by: Jason! on January 4, 2006 10:41 AM

I always read that automatic rice cookers are also "steamers", but I have never actually seen one used as such.

The most useful thing I had in my old kitchen (which is now packed in storage) was a stovetop steamer which was like a double-boiler except for the top part was a perforated pot, rather than a solid pot. I used that thing all the time, for reheating rice, meat, noodles, vegetables. Much better for me than the microwave. And Lord, as I type, I remember chicken breasts reheated in a toaster oven during my childhood. It's no wonder I never made it past 5'6".

Last week I walked all over frickin' Chinatown (SFO) to find two cleavers that I wanted. Ended up with three. Total outlay: $40.

Has anybody noticed that magnetic north is shifted by Joe's knife collection?

Posted by: Phil on January 9, 2006 01:30 AM

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