I’ve often thought I’d like to own a deep fryer—I love hush puppies and fried chicken, but I’m not crazy about the mess and smells I get from deep-frying in a pot on the stove. So I decided to try out one of the higher-end deep fryers on the market. The DeLonghi Roto electric fryer was surprisingly easy to use, and it’s loaded with smart features, but I discovered that it’s not the answer to all my deep-frying dreams.

Features

Safety: The fryer is encased in a sleek plastic housing that stays cool. The power cord is magnetized so that if something catches on it, the cord instantly falls out of the outlet (to avoid pulling on the pot of hot oil). The lid remains shut while lowering and raising the frying basket to prevent splatters.

Convenience: A handy oil drainage system features a neatly hidden rubber hose. A filtering system cuts down on odors. A nonstick interior means food doesn’t stick. The frying basket is dishwasher safe. The lid has a window. The oil heats up very quickly, in about 10 minutes.

Extras: DeLonghi makes several fryers (one model is half the price of this one yet includes the same convenience and safety features) but the Roto fryer has some nice extras. A rotating tilted basket bathes the food as it spins, so the fryer needs much less oil. There are five temperature settings between 300°F and 370°F; great for cooking french fries in two stages (do an initial fry at lower temperature and finish at a higher temperature).

How it performs

This deep fryer operates on one controlling feature: you put food in the basket, shut the lid, and lower the basket. I had good results with anything sturdy, but wet batters stuck and cooked onto the basket. Here’s what I tested and how they fared.

Disappointing results:
onion rings
tempura
hush puppies

Great results:
french fries
fried chicken
fried shrimp
egg rolls
panko-crusted chicken strips
potato croquettes

The bottom line

If you fry lots of french fries, fried chicken, or any breaded or wrapped food, invest in the Roto fryer. But if fritters and other battered food are on your menu, stick with a saucepan and a deep-frying thermometer.

All About Griddles

A griddle is a great piece of cooking equipment to have in the kitchen. It is a flat cooking surface with a heat source underneath and can be in one of three formats. It can be a piece of cookware, such as a non-stick or cast iron griddle that is heated over a burner, or it can be built into a range. There are also electric griddles, which are plugged in and rest on the counter, separately from a stovetop.

Griddles are ideal when cooking for a crowd as they have a large surface area. The fact that there are no sides (as with a skillet) makes it easier to flip food, and the open area doesn't trap any moisture so the food—for example, hash browns—becomes nice and crispy.

Cooking on a Griddle

When many of us hear griddle we think of breakfast. Probably because most pancake recipes instruct to "heat the griddle" as you make the batter, or as we sit at the counter at the diner we watch the cook crack our eggs onto the griddle. It works well for not only pancakes and eggs but also bacon, French toast, hash browns, and other breakfast items. Griddles are also often used for cooking burgers and other hot sandwiches such as grilled cheese.

An electric griddle does have a few advantages over one that is in or on the stovetop. Because it is not relying on the range burners as the heating source, the cooking surface is heated evenly throughout. An electric griddle also has a well around the sides for where the grease can drip off and pool. And if you are cooking a lot of dishes at once—for a holiday, for example—you are not taking up any of the burners on the stove.

Commercial Griddle vs. Flat Top

A commercial griddle (i.e. a griddle that is built into a range top) may look similar to a flat top but they are different in certain respects. For one thing, flat tops tend to be made of lighter steel, and the heat source underneath is made up of multiple round burners, not one that is rectangular and runs across the entire top, as is with a griddle. Also, only food is placed directly on the griddle, whereas a flat top can accommodate both food and cookware (such as pots and pans) on its surface.

Griddle Safety

Whether cooking on a standalone electric griddle or on a built-in griddle on a range, it's important to keep some key safety tips in mind. Always use an oven mitt when working with a griddle; as the griddle gets hot, it can be easy to forget that all elements of the griddle (including the handles and edges) will heat up.

You should also use a properly sized spatula. If you are cooking oversized sandwiches, giant pancakes, or other large food items, use a larger spatula to prevent burning yourself (and the food).

It is important to keep an eye on excess grease during cooking. If you are cooking bacon, for example, you will have a lot of grease and will need to make sure the grease can be drained and will not overflow onto the stovetop. Grease fires occur when grease interacts with an open flame.

Griddle Tips

The benefit of cooking with a griddle is the big, smooth surface it provides. But having this large surface means that you need to keep a few things in mind. First, make sure that you use a proper amount of oil, butter, or non-stick cooking spray to ensure your food does not stick to your griddle. If you are using a very large griddle, it can be helpful to keep your oil in a plastic squeeze bottle; this way you can precisely point and aim when adding oil to the griddle.

Panini Grill

A countertop or stovetop grill that is used to make the traditional panini, a small Italian sandwich. Also referred to as a Panini Maker, Panini Press, or a Grill Press, the Panini Grill contains top and bottom ridged heat plates that press and grill the bread in one operation. This feature produces a golden, crispy crust on both sides of the sandwich without requiring the sandwich be flipped to grill the other side. Typically, the sandwich is filled with a variety of ingredients such as meats, cheeses, roasted bell peppers, roasted egg plant, sweet basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and other similar sandwich fillings. As the weight of the grill presses against the sandwich top and bottom, the inside fillings and the crust are compressed as is the crust into a compact sandwich.

How to make a Bain Marie?

What is a Bain Marie? When baking or cooking you will often encounter this term. Some of you may know what it is but will have never used it. Some of you may have made one, but do not know the variety of things it can be used for.

So what is a Bain Marie? (pronounced ban mah-REE)? Well, it is just a French technical cooking term for a hot water bath (aka Mary’s bath). It is used for cooking delicate foods, over low temperatures, by using the steam the Bain Marie creates. This is utilized to make temperamental sauces like Hollandaise and egg based custards like Creme Anglaise. A Bain Marie is also a great way to reheat things while keeping the integrity of the texture; for example, creamy soups and mashed potato.

A Bain Marie is very easy to put together. All you need is a small saucepan with high sides, and a large heat proof bowl to put into it that covers the top of the saucepan. My favorite for this is a large clear Pyrex bowl.

Place your saucepan on the stove over a medium heat, followed by about 4 inches of water. Then, add in your heat proof bowl. Be careful, as you don’t want the simmering water in your saucepan to touch the bottom of the bowl.

You want to make sure your bowl fits snugly over the saucepan, so the steam is trapped beneath it. When melting chocolate, you don’t want steam to come out from the sides of the bowl, as the moisture can make your chocolate seize, which is hard to fix.

Heat the water to a simmer, then add the ingredients you need into the bowl to be melted, cooked or re heated. This is such a useful make-shift kitchen tool and one of my favorite alternatives to a microwave.

For oven baked custards you will use a large roasting dish, and add hot water to come to about 3/4 way up the dishes/ramekins. This is best done when the roasting dish is already in the oven. This ensures a gentle baking of the custard. This technique is also used for terrines , and Paté, or any food which requires gentle cooking.

how to make and use a killing cone

Most people choose not to think about how the chicken, turkey, goose, or other winged creature spent its last moments on this earth before getting wrapped, shipped, and consumed. In fact, most people don’t want to know anything about the living version of their food and it is that attitude which has allowed corporations to abuse these beautiful animals for decades. nike air max 90 femme adidas iphone 8 case But the winds of change are a-blowing and we thought it prudent to show you, our wonderful friends, how and why we make and use a killing cone.

First, let’s talk about how the killing cone works. iphone 8 plus case back and front The bird is placed head-down into the cone (as seen below). ugg outlet The bird, when upside down, goes into a sleepy trance-like state. doudoune canada goose We then kill the bird quickly by severing the main artery in the neck with a very sharp knife. The bird then stays in the cone while the blood drains out into a bucket below.

Decide which size cone you need to make: