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Makes evenly cooked food from edge to edge.
(Credit: Sur La Table)How we cook food is always changing. Gone are the days (mostly) of cooking over an open fire, with little more than a stick to act as a "kitchen gadget." Though nothing can replicate the taste created by fire on food, new methods of cooking have always inspired chefs to take their recipes to the next level. From the hearth to the microwave oven, this journey has not been fraught with peril. (For every worthwhile kitchen gadget, there seems to be a dozen that aren't.) However, every once in a while, the home cook is faced with a new challenge (cooking method) from which to build upon and grow.
Sous vide literally translates to "under vacuum" in French, but that's only half the story when it comes to sous vide cooking. Using a water bath as the cooking medium, the method requires consistent temperatures over a long period of time. While most people will skip the recipes that take two days to complete (yes, a very long time to wait for dinner), most recipes do not require so much forethought. What has been a growing trend in professional kitchens is now available at home.
Enter the SousVide Supreme Water Oven.
The countertop unit works in tandem with a vacuum sealer. Simply seal your food in a bag, and then pop it in the water bath. The machine regulates the temperature of the water to a 1-degree accuracy. The food cooks evenly from edge to edge. This is the main difference between this method and others. Consider chicken, fish, beef, or pork: when cooked by traditional methods, the inside is never cooked exactly as the outside. With sous vide cooking, food has no other option but to heat consistently; the temperature never rises above a set point.
Good things never go out of style; as proficient as sous vide cooking may be, the final results still benefit from a quick sear over an open fire to give it added taste and flavor. There's something comforting in the fact that no matter how far we progress in cooking technology, we still always come back to fire.
An opener for everybody.
(Credit: Hamilton Beach)Machines that open cans have always confused me. Sure, I understand that for some people opening canned goods can be physically challenging, but as a common kitchen item, its popularity escapes me. For me, it's just quicker and easier to use the handheld can opener. Granted, it's not always easy to find the handheld opener, but when you train yourself to always put it somewhere specific (like car keys), it's the quickest, most efficient tool available. Other than acting as a hard-to-misplace anchor, a can opener weighed down by a motor seems to me to be frivolous--unless, of course, you pile on additional openers.
The Hamilton Beach OpenStation Can Opener is a well-named contrivance designed to facilitate all your opening needs in one location. Not content to stop at cans, the opener supplies the means to open jars, bottles, cans and even those frustrating hard, clear plastic blister packs that so many gadgets come in. By integrating a removable multiuse tool (along with a jar opener) into the design, the can opener extends its usefulness and encourages users to go to one particular spot for all of their opening needs. Just be sure to put those removable tools back where they belong when finished.
The Hamilton Beach OpenStation Can Opener can be found online for about $25.
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Whistle (along) while you work.
(Credit: Electrolux)Cleaning is no fun. Making a mess is sure fun, but the aftermath can be a downer. But, regardless of the state of the house, the cleaning simply has to (at some point) get done. Cleaning while listening to music is one way to make the chores go by in a more enjoyable manner. However, sooner or later you're going to have to put down that duster and plug in the vacuum cleaner--and there goes the music. Unless of course, you have a vacuum cleaner that also plays music.
The Electrolux UltraSilencer Music Edition Amplified iPod Vacuum is a concept machine designed to make the chore of vacuuming as pleasant and efficient as possible. The musical vacuum cleaner not only features an iPod dock, but also--thanks to exceptionally silent operation--comes complete with two integrated speakers.
Backed up by data (click here for a PDF of the data, or here to watch a video), Electrolux has figured out that the best way to clean is to listen to music. And yes, it depends what type of music. Measuring such variables as Precision, Efficiency, Mood, and Fortitude, the test concluded that "overall, classical music was the best music style for vacuum cleaning." As an added bonus, no matter what type of music you prefer, the results determined that in all cases, the chore was less stressful and even burned more calories than vacuuming without music.
(Via Appliancist)
Here comes the soup.
(Credit: Irawoods.com)This time of year, there's a lot of cooking going on. While roasts, turkeys, hams, and side dishes galore mean lots of food on the table, they also mean there will be lots of leftovers in the refrigerator. When faced with a well-picked-over turkey or ham, one final dish comes to mind: soup. By using the leftover protein to make a stock or broth, a flavorful base is created that can be taken in any direction. However, to get that smooth consistency to which you can later add veggies, meat, or noodles, first you are going to need to puree it.
This Viking Hand Blender (VHB300SG) features a powerful 300-watt motor that makes it easy to create soup from all your leftovers. With the ability to blend directly in the cooking vessel, there is no need to work in batches using a blender of food processor. The ergonomic design incorporates a no-slip handle, assuring a firm grip as you blend your soup to preferred consistency.
While soup-making may be its highlight, the blender features attachments allowing it to be used for other tasks. A chopper attachment makes quick work of fruits and vegetables (perfect for adding to soup). Additionally, a stainless-steel whisking attachment is also available--just in case you get tired of all that soup.
Think small.
(Credit: Chef's Catalog)Why should kitchens with small (or no) counters get left out of the fun all the big kitchens have? They shouldn't, and they don't need to. Space-saving appliances abound, from under-counter toasters, to miniature microwaves. But when it comes to a do-it-all machine that chops and grinds, bulky food processors usually have all the fun. Unless you think small.
The Cuisinart Elite 4-Cup Food Chopper/Grinder (model number CH-4) is a smaller alternative to its larger brethren. Measuring less than 10 inches tall, with a base of 7.5 inches by 5 inches, the mini machine does big work in a small space. The appliance chops and grinds and purees, and with a 4-cup capacity, is able to handle most prep tasks. The touch-pad controls offer the choice between chop and grind, determining which way the dual-sided blade spins: sharp edge for chopping, dull edge for grinding.
Available for $49.95 in black or white, the model also features a die-cast version for $59.95. The versatile machine makes it easy to chop tomatoes, garlic, onions and herbs for a quick salsa or relish, and then turn right around and use it to grind whole spices or nuts for pies. All removable parts are dishwasher-safe, and the base can be cleaned with a damp cloth. With its small size and price to match, the chopper/grinder is sure to find space on your kitchen counter, no matter what you like to cook.
Blending by pictures.
(Credit: Amazon)I remember the blender my mom used from the time when I was young. Not only was it surprisingly loud for something that seemed to have only one moving part, but it also sure had a lot of buttons for that one little blade. They were push-style buttons, lined up neatly in a row. The 10 or so settings all had esoteric meanings, certainly for a young kid who couldn't fathom why one spinning sharp thing needed so many options. While I am still not sure about Grate as a blender function, I have come to terms with others like Frappe, and to some extent, Liquefy.
The DeLonghi DBL650 54-Ounce Blender uses symbols to get its point across. The stainless-steel blender with 54-ounce jar features five function settings enabled via symbolic pictures on the front. Included are settings for dips, soups, sauces, and beverages. Naturally, the all-important ice-crushing function is present and accounted for, easily identifiable as a single snowflake.
The blender features some nice modern touches in addition to the iconography. The sturdy housing and control layout signify a no-nonsense approach and impress a workhorse quality. The blender features a built-in strainer or filter, a well-thought-out inclusion that eliminates the need to root around the kitchen for an accessory. And as far as blending options go, don't worry if what you need isn't represented by what is on the buttons; the blender features three speeds and a pulse setting for all your blending needs.
TrueCookPlus on a Kenmore microwave oven.
(Credit: TrueCookPlus)The microwave oven is no doubt one of the most popular kitchen appliances available. But before its ubiquity, people had to get used to the idea that a few button presses (or physical dial turn as the case may have been) could produce a hot meal with seemingly little work. Then reality sunk in as this common phrase started to hit home: "Cooking time in your microwave oven may vary." While microwave ovens did not prove to be the easy answer to a properly cooked meal, the promise was certainly still there.
Fast-forward to now, and the promise of the microwave as the gateway to properly cooked quick meals has begun once again. The TrueCookPlus code system for microwave cooking is a simple-to-use numeric code that people punch into their microwave ovens to assure proper cooking time and power level depending on what item they are cooking. More than just a convenient code calibrated to the wattage of a particular brand of microwave, the parameters adjust for your microwave oven.
The code system takes into consideration such factors as voltage, wattage, oven age, hot or cold oven, power levels, and even elevation. (A simple one-time input of your zip code handles that.) Of course, food type, size, and weight are also considerations.
The software used in the TrueCookPlus code system works in conjunction with food manufacturers' test kitchens, so don't expect it to know exactly how to reheat your leftovers just yet. The system works in tandem with a traditional microwave (it will still heat those leftovers just as it does now), so consider this a feature to look for in upcoming microwaves. Currently, the feature is available on LG and Kenmore models with many food manufacturers, such as General Mills and Weight Watchers supplying codes for food products.
Together, forever.
(Credit: Amazon)Salt and pepper seem to have a lot of superstition attached to their existence. For example, there's that whole thing about throwing salt over one's shoulder after spilling it. Another one is that apparently, salt and pepper need to be kept together at all times. What happens if your throwing arm goes out, or if you are on a salt-reduced diet, I'll leave for other brave souls to test out, but when it comes to the world's most common spices, there is no end to how we keep them at the ready.
Not only is it important where and how we keep the salt and pepper, but what we do with them, too. The Cuisinart SP-2 Stainless-Steel Rechargeable Salt and Pepper Mills answers all these questions. The pair of mills stand atop of a base station, silently recharging in place as they wait to be put into use. When the time comes, the mills can each be adjusted to a fine or course grind, while equipped LED lights illuminate the target food.
The low-profile recharging station assures the pair are kept together. With the ability to grind out 15-20 minutes of continuous use, the mills offer a long-lasting charge, capable of getting through even the longest of dinners--just be sure to keep them together while passing them around the table.
Toast up a panini.
(Credit: DeLonghi)At some point in the long history of toasters, some enterprising individual realized that setting the thing on its side and giving it a door would create a whole new appliance. Thus the toaster oven was born. All of a sudden, and using practically the same amount of counter space, toasting and heating possibilities were exponentially increased. Since that moment in time, french bread pizza never looked back.
While it is true that the toaster oven is capable of everything from cooking frozen pizza to reheating leftovers, there are a few things the multitalented device has simply not been able to do. While I doubt soup may ever be on a toaster oven menu, at least one thing can be checked off that list: pressed panini sandwiches.
The DeLonghi Panini Toaster Oven (model number EOP2046) features all the bells and whistles we've come to expect from a toaster oven, but takes things one step further by integrating a panini press. An included nonstick grill plate serves as the base for the panini press feature, while a rubberized handle on the outside controls an internal wire rack that acts as the panini press. How well a wire rack emulates a panini press remains to be seen (expect this appliance to hit the shelves any day now), but considering the history of the toaster, this capability to create grill marks is just the start.
Cook where you want to.
(Credit: Chef's Catalog)Sometimes one stove isn't enough. That's not to say an additional stove is always necessary, but sometimes you just need a little more. Or, perhaps even more importantly, you need your cooktop to just move over there. Whether it is a matter of space or convenience, a portable cooktop is an excellent way to expand your options.
The Fissler CookStar Induction Pro Cooktop, PROX61 features 1,500 watts of power and nine heating levels to ensure quality results no matter what or where you need to cook. A boost function and a keep-warm setting provide precision control, either while preparing foods, or while serving them at the table. The easy-to-use touch-sensitive controls are intuitive, and at the end of the meal, the frameless glass-ceramic surface is easy to clean.
The most energy-efficient method of cooking is via induction, and considering safety issues (portable open-flame appliances even sound not-so-safe), the lack of surface heat makes induction cooktops desirable. Of course, induction-friendly cookware is needed, but considering the rising popularity of induction cooktops--both portable and not--finding quality cookware is not so much of a chore. Certainly expanding options and easy convenience are worth it in the end.
