The Blue Pepper » cooks

Mandolin Slicer Brings Creativity to Slicing

Karen — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 18:14:57 +0000

Cooking delicious and sumptuous meals would not be possible without the use of a food slicer in the kitchen. The most effective tool used by all sorts of cooks to creatively cut almost any type of firm vegetable or fruit is the mandolin slicer. This essential kitchen tool has been around since the 16th century. The reason for its popularity is that the mandolin slicer has a perfect set of sharp cutting blades enabling you to precisely achieve the desired thickness or thinness of your food item. Achieving the perfect cut will greatly enhance the aesthetic appeal of your dishes and menus making them the favorite choice among guests.

Thin or thick, straight or crinkled, it doesn’t matter. With the three kinds of mandolin slicer, whatever specification you want will easily be accomplished. You can have a choice from adjustable platform, the fixed platform and a flat board mandolin. The difference between the first two kinds is that you can have certain adjustments with the first one to cut various thicknesses, while the second one has a limited cutting ability. The flat board, on the other hand, uses one single basic cut with its single blade.

You can certainly discover different knives on the market that also have the same extreme sharpness as the blades on a mandolin slicer; however, you can never achieve the same precision guides and perfect cut. In addition, this manual food processor comes in a variety of different designs and is made out of plastic or metal.

Considering the fact that mandolin slicers come with very sharp blades, it is advisable that you use this kitchen tool with extreme caution especially if you are beginner in the field of cooking and kitchenware. It is recommended that both casual and professional chefs use protective gloves while using this tool to protect their fingers.

Used with care, the mandolin slicer is a great tool to effectively make crinkle cuts, sticks, and slices in various thickness or thinness. Making a large amount of food is no longer such a daunting task to overcome.

Pampered Chef Stoneware

Karen — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:27:55 +0000

Nobody can live without eating something. Housewives, especially, choose to spend most of their time inside their homes to take care of and serve their family. They wash the dishes, clean the house, do the laundry, and cook for the family three times a day. No, make it three to five times a day, for those who cook their snacks and those who love baking. These kitchen-loving moms know what is excellent for them and for the kitchen, and excellent moms choose exceptional kitchen pieces, like Pampered Chef Stoneware.

You can find different forms of stoneware existing in the market today. There are these deep dish bakers that have round sides, round stones in different shapes and sizes but with no sides, bar pans, which come in a cookie sheet size and so much more.

However, there are a number of distinct variations among types. There are some that come as glazed pieces, which appear glossy. Glazed Pampered Chef Stoneware can be washed with soap and water, and does not necessarily need to be seasoned. They are glazed in any color and come in different designs or decorations, making the stoneware not only lovely to use, but also lovely to the eyes.

Stoneware is made from clay. Most stoneware pieces will definitely break if you accidentally drop them, but with Pampered Chef Stoneware, your purchase will come with a great warranty for three years. To submit a claim on the product’s warranty, just follow the guidelines on the back of your receipt and they will send you a new piece, with no questions asked.

Once you start using Pampered Chef Stoneware, you will no longer be interested in metal cookware. Many cooks have discarded their glasses and metals after getting stoneware of their own. There is stoneware available for every purpose. You can make anything that you like with them. Definitely, an exceptional kitchen has Pampered Chef Stoneware. So what are you waiting for? Try one now!

Electric Pressure Cookers Take the Pressure Off of Cooking

Karen — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:05:03 +0000

One of the biggest challenges facing many beginning cooks is how to get meat fully cooked while keeping it tender. This challenge is even greater if you’re trying to use less expensive cuts of meat. With the easiest ways to overcome this problem is to get an electric pressure cooker. With an electric pressure cooker, you can count on creating dishes that are both well cooked and tender. At the same time, total cooking time is greatly reduced compared to other methods.

If you love cooking great meals for the family or your friends but do not have any time to experiment much in the kitchen, you usually tend to eat out. This happens quite a bit these days, but this habit is very, very unhealthy. Instead of spending so much time out of the house, why not try something they can keep your home eating good, natural and healthy home-cooked meals. And electric pressure cooker can help you do this

When making a decision on what type of electric pressure cooker is suitable for you, you have to classify your cooking range before going shopping. Pressure cookers are available in different sizes, designs and materials. If you have a small family and do not cook much food, you may choose the 3 – 4 quart size of pressure cooker. The 6 quart size is better if your family is medium sized, while 8-10 quarts would be enough to feed an extended family size.

Depending on the brand name, pressure cookers may be made from stainless steels or aluminum. There are also some that comes with see through lids to allow you to check through the transparent glass and ensure the meal is not being overcooked. Electric pressure cookers are mainly designed to significantly lessen cooking time using high pressure to increase the temperature, also providing equal heat distribution. The food is cooked very quickly without changing its flavor or its color.

Owning an electric pressure cooker will certainly unload lots of pressure from you when cooking meat and other dishes. To make your meals with your family and friends more pleasurable and fun, start shopping for an electric pressure cooker now.