The food lab better home cooking through science ( PDFDrive ) 70

guarantee that if you don’t already have one, putting a
saltcellaronyourcounterwillmakeyouabettercook.Any
wide-mouthed covered container with aneasy-open lid will
do, but a dedicated saltcellar does it with style. Mine is a
woodenjobwithaflip-toplidtopreventdust,water,oroil
fromgettingin.
Andpepper?Ifyou’vebeenusingpregroundpepper,do
yourselfafavorandbuyaninexpensivejarofpepperwitha
built-in mill.Then taste the fresh-ground stuff side by side
with the preground.Which would you rather be putting on
your food? If that doesn’t convince you to go out and buy
yourselfapeppermill,Icanonlyassumethatyouaredead
fromthetongueup.
You’ll want to invest in a mill that has a solid metal
grinding mechanism. Cheap ones are usually made of
plastic and will stop grinding after a year or less of regular
use.Although $35 to $60 might seem like a big chunk of
change, a real pepper mill will improve practically every
savory food item you cook. Peugeot is the Rolls-Royce of
pepper mills. Perfectly crafted, luxuriously styled, and
awesomelyefficient,thesemillslookgoodandgrindlikea
dream.They also run upward of $55. More affordable and
equally good if totally utilitarian is the Unicorn Magnum
Pepper Mill ($36.90). It has a tough nickel-plated grinding
mechanism, an easy-to-load design, and a quick grind-size
adjustmentscrew.
4.PrepBowlsofAllSizes
Here’s a mantra for aspiring chefs:An orderly kitchen is a
goodkitchen.

Isn’t it annoying trying to chop carrots on your cutting
boardwhenthatlittlepileofparsleyinthecornerisgetting
in your way? Or what about frantically trying to scoop up
the chopped ginger to get it into that stir-fry-in-progress
beforeyourbokchoywilts?Iuseseveralprepbowlswitha
small capacity (we’re talking 1-cup or less) pretty much
every time I cook to keep chopped aromatics, measured
spices, grated cheese, whatever, off my board, within easy
reach, and organized. This is what fancy cooks call their
mise en place. In the cabinet directly above my cutting
board, I have a couple dozen 25-cent ceramic condiment
and cereal bowls from IKEA for this very purpose. (If you
wanttogofancy,youcangetsetsofPyrexclearglassprep
bowls.)
Large mixing bowls are equally valuable.While the allglass ones look nice up on the shelf, they’re a total pain in
the butt to work with. I remember many days atCook’s
Illustrated magazine when we’d have to search through
stacks and stacks of glass bowls while working on a photo
shoot to find the one or two that weren’t chipped on their
edges.Wheredotheseglasschipsendup?Onthefloor?In
thefood?Inmyownkitchen,I’drathernotfindout.Plastic
bowlsseemlikeareasonablesolutionuntilyourealizethat
plastic absorbs both stains and odors from oily and other
foods. Pour a batch of olive-oil-and-butter-based marinara
sauce(here) into a white plastic bowl, and you’ll find that
you’renowtheproudownerofanorangeplasticbowl.
Instead, I use inexpensive stainless steel bowls that I
pickedupfromarestaurantsupplystore(ifyoudon’thave
a good one near you, try the ABC Valueline brand from