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8 Essential Kitchen Gadgets

by Matthew Zuras on March 18, 2010 at 12:40 PM

Heating pad

Our backs ache after a long day of blogging, so we frequently turn to an electric heating pad for relief. But did you know that this relaxing gadget can make food? We concocted some delicious hollandaise this weekend without a stove, using only two bowls with a heating pad in between.

Depending on the heating strength of your pad, you can do anything from making your own yogurt to accelerating the rise of yeast breads. You can also eliminate the mess (and the potential for steam burns from a double-boiler) with the pad's dry heat. Try these heating pad uses, and suggest more in the comments:
  • Just one drop of condensed steam can cause melting chocolate to seize, becoming a grainy mess that will never again return to being smooth cacao. Place a slightly smaller bowl in a large bowl with a heating pad in the middle to gently melt chocolate for drizzling and dipping (suitable for homemade truffles). Keep it on medium while infrequently stirring, so you'll have a chance to walk away if need be.
  • Gravies, sauces and soups can gel up or form an unappetizing skin if taken off the heat. Use the double-bowl method (with a kitchen cloth or paper towel over the top to catch potential condensation) to keep them warm and at their full textural potential.
  • Those essential fungal beasties known as yeasts are integral to a majority of baked goods. Keep your Saccharomyces happy at a basking temperature by slipping a heating pad set on low around the dough bowl. Your bread will rise faster than it will at room temperature, without losing much flavor. Just don't set the pad any higher, or you run the risk of killing your critters prematurely.
  • If you want to make your own yogurt (which is surprisingly easy), don't buy one of those uni-tasker contraptions that always leave you with mixed results. Follow the instructions here, but put your final inoculated mixture in a large vertical container wrapped with a heating pad. After you've nestled a sanitized probe thermometer inside, just set your pad on medium and make sure it stays at around 118 F. About eight hours later, you will have a ton of delicious, fresh yogurt for the cost of a gallon of milk. (We like to add about half a cup of nonfat powdered milk after inoculation for a thicker, Greek-style texture. Opa!)

Electric kettle

Do you like tea? We love tea! But we also love broth, soup, and warm sauces. Let your electric kettle live up to its full potential instead of limiting it to plain old water. Look for an electric kettle that has an adjustable temperature control. With it, you'll be able to employ your vessel in heating any variety of liquid. Heat broth for risotto, warm some jus or bordelaise, or just boil water faster than with a microwave.

Toaster oven

Some of you, like us, may have lived exclusively off the toaster oven in your years as an undergrad. For those not familiar with the endless properties of this miniature oven, all we can say is: pizza bagels! With a toaster oven the right size, you can even roast small game and veggies. Use the broiler function to caramelize sugar on top of crème brulée (that is, if you don't own an awesome mini-torch), make quick Welsh rarebit, toast any size and thickness of bread, and more. Our favorite use: personal-sized terrines of baked mac and cheese. Yum.




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