The food lab better home cooking through science ( PDFDrive ) 69

upgraded to a fancy-pants model with a fuzzy logic
processor¶ and a nifty latching top that keeps the moisture
level inside at the exact right level. I love my rice cooker
almost as much as I love my instant-read thermometer,
whichisjustahairmorethanIlovemywife(justkidding,
honey).

ESSENTIALKITCHENHAND
TOOLSANDGADGETS
A well-stocked vacation home probably has two to three
drawers worth of tools, of which only half are even
identifiable and perhaps three or four are ever used. The
following is a list of tools that you’ll useall the time. Get
’em.
1.UtensilHolder
First things first: if your tools are at the back of a drawer,
you probably won’t use them.And if you don’t use them,
you probably won’t cook as often.And if you don’t cook,
what’s the point of living, really? A utensil holder with a
capacity of at least 2 quarts helps keeps your tools handy
rightwhereyouneedthem.Ifstyleiswhatyou’reafter,Le
Creuset makes handsome ceramic models in a variety of
colors for around $25. If, on the other hand, pure
functionality is your goal, any old small bucket will do. I
usea$5metalversionfromIKEA.
2.BenchScraper
A bench scraper is one of those tools whose advantages


aren’t obvious until you start using it regularly. I keep one
on my cutting board whenever I’m doing prep work. It

quickly transfers chopped mirepoix to my saucepan or
carrot peels to the trash. I use it to divide dough when
making pizzas, or ground beef when making burgers. For
cleanup,abenchscrapermakesshortworkofdoughscraps
that have dried onto the work surface, and it efficiently
picksuptinybitsofchoppedherbsandotherdebris.(Bythe
way, you shouldnever use the blade of your knife to pick
this stuff up off your board. It’s dangerous, and it will
rapidly dull the edge of your knife.)A bench scraper also
makes removing stickers from glass bottles or labels from
plasticcontainersasnap.
With its comfortable handle, sturdy construction,
convenient built-in 6-inch ruler, and an edge sharp enough
to rough-chop vegetables, the OXO Good Grips Pastry
Scraper($8.99)isthefirstchoiceforhomekitchens.Inmy
knife kit, however, I keep a lightweight plastic C. R.
Manufacturing scraper (50 cents), which performs most of
those functions at a fraction of the cost, in a much more
compactpackage.
3.SaltcellarandPepperMill
Whywouldanyoneneedasaltcellar?Underseasoningfood
is the most common culinary blunder. Ask me why your
food tastes blander than you’d like it to, and 90 percent of
the time, all it needs is a little pinch of salt. Having a
containerofasaltinaprominentspotbyyourprepstation
or stove serves as a constant reminder to season, taste,
season, and taste again until you get it exactly right. I