Corkage 
Grape Puncher
Posts: 975
 | | 09-28-2005 02:50 PM |
| The chinois-stock making thread got me thinking. There is so much kitchen stuff that's a waste of money---perhaps convenient, but not necessary for good cooking. I think the exception in some cases is when you are cooking quantity. We've done a thread about the best things to spend $$ (ie knives) already, but what about the waste of $$?
Here's my list (in no particular order):
--Chinois - $120 waste--a $5 strainer works just as good (sorry Ray, I still love ya)
--multi-colored synthetic cutting boards --if you so concerned about salmonella, clean with a tbs of bleach --$1000 all clad (or anyother over priced brand) matching cookware--all you need is a a good non-stick skillet, a stainless skillet, a 5 qt stock pot, a reduction pan and a $15 lodge cast iron skillet. If you can't cook with that, eat out.
--Expensive stock pot---forget it, buy an enameled stock pot at K-Mart (martha stewart) for $12
$160 mandolin --sure you can get super thin slices of potatoes, but how many of you make potato chips regularly? Learn to work a knife.
--$300 Cuisinart food processor with extra blades. In most cases a $25 blender, a $10 stick blender, a $30 mini-chopper or some good old fashioned knife work will get the job done. I only use mine to make pasta, because I'm lazy when it comes to that.
$200 Le Cruset when a $20 lodge cast iron pot works just as good. Don't tell me you can't cook tomatoes in a Lodge but you can in the enameled Le Cruset. If your cooking tomatoes in quantity like making sauce, it should be in the $12 enameled stock pot anyways. I oven braise in a 16" stainless saute with a lid that I bought for $30. Works great.
--$200 Kitchen Aid stand mixer (unless your baking a lot) its a waste of counter space (like toaster ovens).
--misc little things like a garlic tube that removes skins. 
I own most of the stuff above  but I find a lot of it is underused.
Save your money and buy more wine  | | |
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Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts: 11214
| | 09-28-2005 02:54 PM |
| I agree with you on most of the things except for the food processor. I use my FP for just about everything. No need for extra blades, the slicer and grater do it all. For all else I use a handheld mixer so I don't have that big KitchenAid sitting on the counter. | | | |
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Rothko
Palm Beach
Wine Connoisseur
Posts: 5721
| | 09-28-2005 03:22 PM |
| 1) Refrigerators: If you need to store cold food for more than a day, then you aren't eating fresh. Get off your lazy butt and buy fresh food every day. Throw your fridge out. Your body will thank you.
2) Expensive silverware: $50 for a fork? Who do you think you are, Bill Gates? A .05 plastic spork will get the job done just as well. If you're really gung-ho, use two twigs as chopsticks, or eat everything the old-fashioned way - with your hands.
3) Extra Extra Extra Virgin Olive Oils: You're not sacrificing to the gods; why do you need a virgin? A cheap prostitute olive oil will satisfy all but the most discriminating palate.
4) Garbage Can: Get a dog. Enough said... | | | |
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ChangeMe
Master of Wine
Posts: 11169
| | 09-28-2005 03:47 PM |
| I have Calphalon One cookware and for pan searing, nothing beats my $10 cast iron chicken fryer.
I rarely use the food processor, but use my Braun hand blender a lot for sauces. | | | |
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skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts: 5452
| | 09-28-2005 03:47 PM |
| I'll agree except on the stock pot. I had one of those cheap enamel pots break a handle on me when a friend and I were lifting one off a stove with hot liquid in it. He got 2nd and 3rd degree burns on the tops of his feet and got to spend 5 days in the Alta Bates burn ward and I had two one inch blisters on my left foot (which fortunately didn't pop). I'd buy inexpensive pots but they absolutely have to have really well secured handles (preferably with large rivets). This typically means I get pots/pans that aren't really cheap but I can live with that. | | | |
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Corkage
Grape Puncher
Posts: 975
| | 09-28-2005 03:57 PM |
| Quote:
1) Refrigerators: If you need to store cold food for more than a day, then you aren't eating fresh. Get off your lazy butt and buy fresh food every day. Throw your fridge out. Your body will thank you.
2) Expensive silverware: $50 for a fork? Who do you think you are, Bill Gates? A .05 plastic spork will get the job done just as well. If you're really gung-ho, use two twigs as chopsticks, or eat everything the old-fashioned way - with your hands.
3) Extra Extra Extra Virgin Olive Oils: You're not sacrificing to the gods; why do you need a virgin? A cheap prostitute olive oil will satisfy all but the most discriminating palate.
4) Garbage Can: Get a dog. Enough said...
LOL
Winetex..Yeah, the food processor thing...well I bought it for my wife and she never uses it. I'd love to make perfect julienne or brunois with it but haven't been able to do it so I gave up. | | | |
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Mona_Lisa_Vito
Grape Sorter
Posts: 228
| | 09-28-2005 04:10 PM |
| I have to agree that a lot kitchen stuff is a waste of $$$. BUT, I love my food processor (I have 3 or 4 of them) and my Kitchen Aid stand mixer. I keep the mixer on a pull out shelf so it doesn't take up counter space (the beauty of the kitchen remodel!)
The other thing that I love but is totally ridiculous is the apple/potato peeler. I only use it at Thanksgiving (or when making the occassional apple pie) but it is a huge timesaver! | | | |
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Fred
Wine Thief
Posts: 2673
| | 09-28-2005 04:27 PM |
| the only piece of equiptment in my kitchen that I wouldn't give up even if you put a gun to my head is my coffee maker. Interesting you mention refridgerators Rothko. I was in Russia years ago and their version of a fridge/freezer was litteraly to hang food out the window in bags. Appartment buildings in this city were covered in bags of food because no one owned a fridge. | | | "It's better to have your enemies inside the tent pissing out, then outside the tent pissing in." -- Lyndon Johnson | |
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ChangeMe
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1475
| | 09-28-2005 04:36 PM |
| Quote:
--Chinois - $120 waste--a $5 strainer works just as good (sorry Ray, I still love ya)
HA! You think my chinois was a waste of money??? My stand mixer was over $300!!! But then again, I like to whip my stock before I pass it through my chinois | | | |
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ChangeMe
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1475
| | 09-28-2005 08:40 PM |
| Quote:
The chinois-stock making thread got me thinking. There is so much kitchen stuff that's a waste of money---perhaps convenient, but not necessary for good cooking.
BTW, I have no dishwasher, a $250 refrigerator, formica counters, and white laminated particle-board cabinets I assembled myself. If I have spent $2000 on extravagent crap, I am still WAY ahead of the game for value in terms of things necessary for good cooking. 
Are we really willing to call $50 to $100 cooking gadgets a waste of money on a board that has a thread that is currently debating how reasonable it is to spend $100,000 per year on wine??? Sure a lot of stuff isn't necessary, but if it serves any purpose and provides even a tiny increase in enjoyment... well, why not??? | | | |
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Erin Ann
Grape Stomper
Posts: 144
| | 09-28-2005 09:09 PM |
| Learned thatthe simple tools do a great job. Might take a tad more time or energy.
As for the FP, mine is a nice paper weight. Takes too long to assemble, and then clean and dry.
A good knife, a good wood board or a mandolin [cost $ 29.95] do just as well. | | | |
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JonesWineNo1
Sommelier
Posts: 8568
| | 09-29-2005 02:00 AM |
| Disagree strongly on a number of your items but it probably depends on what you are cooking. Chinois and Tamis are essential equipment and no $5 strainer is a reasonable substitute. | | | |
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Pool Boy
Laurl, MD (DC suburb)
Master of Wine
Posts: 13768
| | 09-29-2005 02:08 AM |
| Quote:
Disagree strongly on a number of your items but it probably depends on what you are cooking. Chinois and Tamis are essential equipment and no $5 strainer is a reasonable substitute.
I have never had any food a la Jones, so I know I can't compare, but I *have* had Corkage-food. And, I'll agree with him for now on that basis alone. 
That said, corkage, you're a nut. Stand mixers are essential. I know you don't bake much and you put a caveat in there for if you do, but.... They make baking almost effortless. A MUST.
Food processors are not 'essential', but they sure do come in handy at times for certain things.
And as for big expensive enameled cast iron pots a la le Creuset...I beg to differ again. OK, maybe not on the smaller pot sizes, but if you get beyond say the 8 quart range, I seriously think you do need to make the investment to get a proper tool And, if you don't mind what color you get, you can get some steals sometimes on the web. | | | www.roguefood.com -- www.cellartracker.com | |
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ChangeMe
Grape Fermenter
Posts: 667
| | 09-29-2005 02:26 AM |
| Quote:
--misc little things like a garlic tube that removes skins.
I love this thing. Use it all the time. Another use for it is to rub some peanut butter in the inside and toss it around for the dog. Keeps him entertained for hours. | | | |
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Landshark
Barrel Racker
Posts: 1894
| | 09-29-2005 05:20 AM |
| Just because some kitchen tool is not "essential" does not mean it is not helpful, or more efficient, or more practical, or more pleasing to use than the basic necessities.
You also do not need a cd or mp3 player just buy a harmonica if you want music. | | | |
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Corkage
Grape Puncher
Posts: 975
| | 09-29-2005 04:09 PM |
| Quote:
Disagree strongly on a number of your items but it probably depends on what you are cooking. Chinois and Tamis are essential equipment and no $5 strainer is a reasonable substitute.
I don't understand how these are essential (convenience aside): most stocks are used as foundations for other things, such as sauces or soups. The required degree of clarity for such uses can be achieved satisfactorily using a strainer. Higher levels of clarity (ie for consomme or soups where such clarity is desired) can really only be achieved consistently by using egg whites.
Are you saying that the use of a chamois and tamil affect thetaste of the finished stock? If proper straining and extraction technique is used, any difference in taste is negligible and probably more likely the result of ingredients/proportions.
Just interested in your statement. | | | |
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Corkage
Grape Puncher
Posts: 975
| | 09-29-2005 04:14 PM |
| Quote:
Quote:
Disagree strongly on a number of your items but it probably depends on what you are cooking. Chinois and Tamis are essential equipment and no $5 strainer is a reasonable substitute.
I have never had any food a la Jones, so I know I can't compare, but I *have* had Corkage-food. And, I'll agree with him for now on that basis alone.
That said, corkage, you're a nut. Stand mixers are essential. I know you don't bake much and you put a caveat in there for if you do, but.... They make baking almost effortless. A MUST.
Food processors are not 'essential', but they sure do come in handy at times for certain things.
And as for big expensive enameled cast iron pots a la le Creuset...I beg to differ again. OK, maybe not on the smaller pot sizes, but if you get beyond say the 8 quart range, I seriously think you do need to make the investment to get a proper tool And, if you don't mind what color you get, you can get some steals sometimes on the web.
TJ, your'e right, I don't bake hence my qualfication about stand mixers.
My point on the Le Cruset is this: I believe in large cast iron covered pots but a large Lodge cast iron at a fraction of the cost will do the same job as a Le Cruset. Any differences in the final result will likely be attributable to technique, recipe and quality of ingredients. There are other less expensive brands of enameled cast iron posts as well. Le Cruset is a scam. | | | |
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ChangeMe
Barrel Filler
Posts: 1475
| | 09-29-2005 04:34 PM |
| Quote:
I don't understand how these are essential (convenience aside): most stocks are used as foundations for other things, such as sauces or soups. The required degree of clarity for such uses can be achieved satisfactorily using a strainer. Higher levels of clarity (ie for consomme or soups where such clarity is desired) can really only be achieved consistently by using egg whites.
Corkage, I'm not sure what the "chinois = using it for stock" deal is.
I know it was mentioned on the other thread as being essential for stock (not by me), but you seem to think that is the only thing anyone might use it for, and I'm not sure why. | | | |
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JonesWineNo1
Sommelier
Posts: 8568
| | 09-29-2005 04:38 PM |
| These tools are not limited in use to straining out solids from a stock. These tools are essential for determining the texture of a finished product - the most typical example being a pureed soup. Passing the soup through a chinois multiple times results in a velvety texture that cannot be acheived with a $5 strainer. | | | |
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JonesWineNo1
Sommelier
Posts: 8568
| | 09-29-2005 04:38 PM |
| I agree Raybanz. I don't associate stock at all with a chinois. | | | |
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