Craig Giesecke
Last week I put out a few ideas about commercial kitchen items that can seriously upgrade a kitchen at home, without spending a billion dollars or being stuck with something you’ll use only once or twice. I’ve been giving a lot of thought to this through the week and taking note of things at the shop, but I’m sure there are some things I’ve missed. When I find them, I’ll be sure to pass those along as well.
Any kitchen should have an immersible blender, since it’s invaluable for making soups and sauces. But this is one of those things that won’t require a trip to the restaurant supply store. The one we have at work is like three feet long and easily generates enough power to move a pirouge through a bayou at a pretty good speed. While this is fine if I’m making a 30-gallon pot of soup, it’s obviously gross overkill at home. What we discovered is even the 12-inch, $75 smaller commercial version was often too much even for restaurant use. Best to pick up the $20 version at any Wal-Mart or Rouse’s. It’s not terribly durable if it’s used every day, but it minces and liquifies things much better in smaller batches because it reaches corners easily.
Along the same lines, I’d invest another $25 or so in a mini food processor. Regular food processors are pretty much a standard item in home kitchens anymore, but they can also be overkill. If you’re serving two or four, you usually don’t need a half-quart of salad dressing or a pint of fresh minced garlic. While few things are nicer on your fingers than garlic’s aroma, sometimes you don’t want to make the time to individually chop each clove. Put five or six in the mini-processor for 6-7 seconds and there ya go. And you still get the aroma on your fingers.
Pick up a quality zester. The good ones look like tiny claws with itty-bitty circles at the business end and will cost about $4. Scraping the skin from a lime, lemon or orange is not only an excellent garnish, but the zest adds a delightful turn to a lot of dishes without being obtrusive. Your standard beef stew, even the Dinty-Moore stuff out of a can, takes on a whole new dimension if you add a little orange zest toward the end. You can store and use the fruit itself for juicing later.
A mandolin slicer. These can sometimes go by names like “super slicer” or something. They’re basically a flat, inclined board with adjustable, interchangeable blades to slice potatoes and other items very quickly. A good quality professional one can cost well over $100, but the much cheaper ones are fine for home use. I saw one at Rouse’s the other day for less than $20 and you’ll wonder how you ever worked without one – particularly if you need to thin-slice a dozen zucchini. Thirty minutes work takes five.
Of course, I’m preaching to a vast choir here. I’m 58 years old and many of you have a kitchen full of cookware well older than I am and experience to match. Part of me feels like a presumptuous idiot for pretending to offer any culinary advice in one of the great food cities of the world. If it works for you, then it works for you and that’s what is most important.
What I’m trying to do here is offer some ideas to make your kitchen work a little more efficiently without sacrificing that hands-on touch that can only improve what we do. We live in a time that has fortunately seen a return of the farm-to-table idea, we also can go to the store to buy pre-chopped onions, instant roux and overly salty stock in a can. Anyone who works all day and then comes home to actually make supper is an increasing rarity. We’re simply too tired anymore. Real cooking with real, basic ingredients is, for too many, a hobby and not a nightly event. No matter how things are at your house, there’s no need to shortcut. Better equipment doesn’t always cost a lot, things come together faster and your results will be more consistent.
Each of us who spends time in a kitchen, be it professional or at home, is constantly running across things that can move things along and improve what we do. What are your ideas?
Craig Giesecke has been a broadcaster and journalist for over 30 years, including nearly two decades at the AP and UPI covering news, sports, politics, food and travel. He has been the owner of J’anita’s for five years, serving well-reviewed upscale bar food and other dishes. Comments are encouraged and welcomed.
