Tools & Utensils Archive

July 21, 2008

The Dough Whisk

I recently told someone that I was totally over my phase of buying kitchen stuff all the time. With a straight face, I explained that I was content with my current equipment, and that I needed nothing more, really. I'm afraid this is true in a distorted version of reality that exists only in my head. I can delude myself all I want, but the fact...

"The Dough Whisk" continues »

June 4, 2008

Sesame Mill: The Gadget You Never Knew You Needed

While in New York last month, Maxence and I had lunch at Ippudo, a ramen place that's the first American outpost of a popular Japanese chain. The decor was super sleek and the ramen excellent, but what really got me excited was the sesame mill that was propped on our table, keeping the shôyu company. It was a simple thing, really: a plastic see-...

"Sesame Mill: The Gadget You Never Knew You Needed" continues »

January 11, 2008

If There Could Only Be Five

If you keep an eye on my book list, you may have noticed I am currently reading Michael Ruhlman's recently published, orange book*. In The Elements of Cooking, he proposes to break down and discuss the building blocks of the cooking craft, like William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White did for writers in their classic little volume The Elements of Style, t...

"If There Could Only Be Five" continues »

September 17, 2007

Mon Laguiole

[Laguiole Pocket Knife] All right, I'm back! Technically, I have been back from my vacation for ten days, but as soon as I returned, I left again to be a witness at the wedding of two of my favorite people in the world, an honor and a duty that I took very seriously, although they ended up requiring very little work from me -- the purchase of a ...

"Mon Laguiole" continues »

August 8, 2007

Sorbet Mangue

[Mango Sorbet] La sorbetière (ice cream maker) is up there with la yaourtière (yogurt maker) in the list of appliances that were hot Mother's Day gifts in the seventies but ended up in said mother's attic pronto. And yet, when Maxence came home with my birthday present and it was a bulky box hiding a spaceship of a sorbetière, I could not have ...

"Sorbet Mangue" continues »

December 8, 2006

Kitchen Toolbox, Part III

[Looking for Part I and Part II?] Sharp things I am not a knife geek, so you won't find any opinionated, my-knives-are-holier-than-thine talk here. The three simple pointers I can share are: 1- you should first and foremost choose knives that feel comfortable, hefty (but not heavy), and well-balanced in your hand, 2- a high price doesn't necess...

"Kitchen Toolbox, Part III" continues »

December 6, 2006

Kitchen Toolbox, Part II

[Part I can be found here.] Utensils - A slotted turner, to lift and turn food in the skillet or sauté pan. Choose a heat-resistant one made of silicone or nylon so it won't scrape your pans. - A pair of locking tongs, to grab, flip, and arrange food in the pan as precisely as if you were using your fingers, minus the burns. - Wooden spoons, to...

"Kitchen Toolbox, Part II" continues »

December 4, 2006

Kitchen Toolbox, Part I

I have recently received several emails from readers who were asking if I could share my ideal set of kitchen equipment. I can't think of a more fitting time of year to do so, as some of these tools may make good items to add to your wish list if, like me, you are usually stumped when people ask what sort of gift you would like to receive. The f...

"Kitchen Toolbox, Part I" continues »

September 8, 2006

Conversions & Equivalents

As most of you know, Americans typically measure ingredients by volume, while the French measure them by weight. Being a bit of a transatlantic cook myself, I own a set of measuring cups and spoons (somewhat worn by years of dishwasher abuse) as well as a digital scale. I feel comfortable with both philosophies, but I prefer the gram/kilo system ...

"Conversions & Equivalents" continues »

July 30, 2006

Coquelle Jaune Poussin

[Chick Yellow Coquelle] Please join me in welcoming this yellow addition to my cocotte collection! Coquelle is a line of Le Creuset cast-iron pots designed by Raymond Loewy in 1958. They come in different colors, shapes, and sizes, but all of them share the same old-fashioned futuristic look, as if they were just about to take off from your stov...

"Coquelle Jaune Poussin" continues »

April 10, 2006

L'Aide de Cuisine

[The KitchenAid] I have given in to the demon of temptation, and I can tell you this: it is poppy red, it weighs twenty-two pounds, and it comes with a dough hook, a flat beater, a wire whisk, and a stainless steel bowl (which conveniently doubles up as a kitchen mirror). After so many years of lusting and wishing and yearning, resisting the ur...

"L'Aide de Cuisine" continues »

January 11, 2006

Wine Charms

When I was much younger, I loved fiddling and tinkering with things, building little trinkets, putting bits and pieces together, deconstructing toys and objects to see how they worked, and trying to get them back together afterwards -- not always successfully I might add. Duct tape and scissors were my very good friends, and I loved using my moth...

"Wine Charms" continues »

August 26, 2005

Introducing... la cocotte!

Finally! It's here! My birthday present and new best friend, my stupendous cast-iron cocotte by Staub! My parents came by my apartment yesterday and were kind enough to lug it on the metro with them, after driving it all the way back from Les Vosges, snuggly bundled up in multiple layers of bubble-wrap. 31 centimeters in length (12''), weighin...

"Introducing... la cocotte!" continues »

January 10, 2005

What Did I Ever Do Without You?

I recently had an epiphany. No, not that kind, it was a cooking utensil epiphany: I suddenly realized how badly I needed a potato masher. In just a few weeks, I had repeatedly found myself in the painful situation of having to puree things without a self-respecting tool, resorting to the use of a simple fork and expending large amounts of preci...

"What Did I Ever Do Without You?" continues »

January 3, 2005

Fondue Pot

This is the fabulous gift that Maxence's mother got us for Christmas: an electrical, nonstick, multiuse fondue pot! We've already broken it in with a fondue bourguignonne shared with Maxence's aunt and uncle: fondue bourguignonne (literally "fondue from Burgundy") has you cook little cubes of beef in oil, to be enjoyed with a variety of dipping...

"Fondue Pot" continues »

December 20, 2004

Self-Portrait With Egg Poachers

I finally caved in and bought a pair of stainless steel egg poachers, for 3€ each. When even the best advice and tips don't help and your poached eggs are ugly ducklings everytime, you can either settle for a life without home-poached eggs (too terrible to contemplate), or humbly admit to your own failings, and resort to the tool that some ...

"Self-Portrait With Egg Poachers" continues »

November 26, 2004

Marble Mortar Finds True Soulmate

Finally! Finally, I have acquired a pestle to go with the marble mortar my dear grandmother gave me as a birthday gift last summer. Okay, I make it sound like I've been searching high and low for one but it's not quite true. It's been on my mind all that time, I was thinking well, isn't it a shame to have such a marble beauty and just use it a...

"Marble Mortar Finds True Soulmate" continues »

August 19, 2004

Mamy's Marble Mortar

I love it when unexpected things -- be they gifts, ideas or opportunities -- fall onto my lap. Luckily, in this instance, the thing didn't literally fall onto my lap or I'd be limping as we speak, but you get my drift. Last Saturday, my sister Céline and I went to visit our dear grandmother, whom we call Mamy (although my sister insists on spell...

"Mamy's Marble Mortar" continues »

August 9, 2004

My Sharp Little Friend

I am proud to introduce you to my latest acquisition, The Mighty Mandoline! It had been on my I-want-this-so-much list for quite a while, and my parents offered that it be their birthday gift to me. My sister and I paid a little Saturday morning visit to Dehillerin and picked it up, in addition to, I'll admit, a few other thingies that we really ...

"My Sharp Little Friend" continues »

July 5, 2004

New Toys by Flexipan

Two weeks ago, I attended a home sale of Demarle Flexipan molds, hosted by my friend and fellow food-blogger Pascale. Demarle is the original inventor of those nonstick flexible baking molds, made of silicon and glass fiber. Originally sold to professionals only, they have been available to happy home bakers for a few years : most brands distribu...

"New Toys by Flexipan" continues »

May 28, 2004

Mini Paper Cups

You know how sometimes, you'll be reading a cookbook or a cooking magazine, and a recipe will call for a specific piece of equipment? And all of a sudden you just have to have that thing, right that minute? Even though this is the first recipe you've ever laid eyes on that mentioned it? Because you can just feel, deep inside of you, that it will ...

"Mini Paper Cups" continues »

May 14, 2004

The Potato Brush's Grand Debut

Due to overwhelming popular demand, I hereby present, drumroll please... the unbelievable, the phenomenal, the incredible... Potato Shaped Potato Brush! [Loud applause] It is small and it is cute! It's a she and she is shy! Please reserve The Brush your warmest welcome! [Roaring applause] An amazing con artist, she was discovered by our talent ...

"The Potato Brush's Grand Debut" continues »

May 7, 2004

Chocolate Dipping Fork

I keep a running list of tools I absolutely need and must acquire at all costs. I'll admit that this list tends to be much longer than reasonable, and completely out of proportion with the capacity of our kitchen or the actual utility of said tools. But hey, some girls buy shoes, I buy kitchen toys! (Well, shoes too, but I'm trying to make a po...

"Chocolate Dipping Fork" continues »

December 31, 2003

Meine Wunderschöne Gebäck-Presse

Please meet my new beautiful friend, the cookie press! Personally imported from Germany by my sister, and an awesome Christmas present for the kitchen toy addict that I am. You should have heard me squealing with joy, kneeling at the foot of the tree! It comes complete with a full set of cute little cookie shapes and an instructions booklet - hi...

"Meine Wunderschöne Gebäck-Presse" continues »

November 7, 2003

Garlic Press R.I.P.

I broke our garlic press yesterday, and now I can't help but wonder... Is this a sign of the Gods? Do I use too much garlic? Do I *eat* too much garlic? Have I pressed too much of it? Or too hard? Is this the first spasm of the Worldwide Garlic Mutiny? Some people are violently against garlic presses, so was this affirmative action from a command...

"Garlic Press R.I.P." continues »

October 19, 2003

Crèmes Brûlées Beware!

Please let me introduce you to the latest addition to my ever-growing collection of baking knick-knacks, tools and toys : <drumroll, please>... the Blowtorch! You do understand, of course, how badly I needed one of these. No, really. I mean, crèmes brûlées are just one of these desserts that any self-respecting cook *has* to be able to mak...

"Crèmes Brûlées Beware!" continues »

September 30, 2003

E. Dehillerin

E. Dehillerin is an excellent cooking utensils outlet located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris. It's a totally no-frills store, that has stayed pretty much the same since it was first opened in 1820 (something tells me they didn't sell silicon baking mats back then, though). It's open to individuals, but is mainly targeted at professionals. One...

"E. Dehillerin" continues »