It is time to talk about the last part (but not less important) of this so special series the utensils and process machine. These utensils are very useful in the kitchen that some people keep them beside the oven, very close to their hands. So let’s check them out! Please check all the others blog posts about essential kitchen tools.
1. Moulis: are the ancestors to blenders. They are well known for making passata. Another less common application is to make Gnocchi or even mash potato. Using a moulis instead of a masher helps to achieve a lighter and fluffier result.
2. Rolling pin: can be use to roll a dough flat, tenderize a piece of meat or even crunch some nuts. Get the small rolling pin if you consider making your own dumpling skin at some point.
3. Wooden spoons: these are great for stirring your ingredients on a hot surface because wood does not melt, unlike plastic spoons. Also wood does not scratch the surface of a pan, unlike metal spoons. So consider using a wooden spoon. If you are planning to cook risotto, you will achieve a better result using wooden spoons. Just make sure you wash them in the sink rather than the dishwasher because the one weakness of a wooden spoon is that they split under consistent heat pressure from a dishwasher.
4. Spatulas: these are perfect when you need to cook two sides of something. Could be a pancake or a hash brown? But maybe you are cooking something that is too heavy for a spatula. In which case you should use.
5. Tongs: can be used in the same way as spatulas. To cook both sides of a steak for example. They are also perfect for grabbing and moving food around.
6. Whisk: are perfect for two reasons, blending ingredients and removing any unwanted clumps, but also for adding air to your ingredients. Making scrambled eggs or pancake mix? Using a whisk is much faster than using a fork, and it’s better too. Making a pavlova? Whisking those egg whites will add air until the right texture is acquired.
7. Pasta machine: as the name suggests these are used for making pasta, from scratch. But if you are just a little bit creative you can find other ways of using a pasta machine to make other things. Our Chefs at VIVE use the pasta machine to roll short crust.
8. Tea towel: consider having two tea towels at any one time. One for drying and one for picking up hot surfaced equipment. It is important to note that if you intend to pick up hot equipment such a cast-iron pan handle, make sure that the tea towel is dry: A wet towel transfers heat and may end up burning your hand.
9. Blue Chux: Clean as you go! these are perfect for picking up the smallest particles of ingredients you most likely spilled in the kitchen. Use these to always keep your benches sparkly clean. They are highly absorbent.
Utensil Process Machine
+ Immersion/stick blender: this is a versatile and convenient tool because it takes a very little space and is easy to clean. Also, you can make smoothies and milkshakes, beating eggs, blending pancake batter, puréeing soup, making whipped cream, whipping up homemade mayonnaise, making pesto sauce, mixing salad dressing, bleeding hummus and purée tomato sauce.
+ VITAMIX: We could have called it High Speed blender, but a Vitamix is a Vitamix. We use it to make anything from a healthy smoothie, paste, soup, mixing spices… particularly useful for our Baby Food workshop too!
