The Something Offal kitchen equipment thread

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SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Those don't appear to be food grade.

# ¿ Aug 27, 2023 20:57

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# ¿ May 13, 2024 04:02

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Nettle Soup posted:

https://invopak.co.uk/17-l-plastic-square-olive-green-bucket-with-handle

This is the supplier everyone gets them from, and it tags them as food grade.

Are you just assuming they're the same supplier because they look similar, or is that stated somewhere? The Trakker bucket, for example, is listed on several retailer's sites and none of the ones I checked either claimed they're food grade or gave Invopak as the supplier. Same with the product page on Trakker's own site.

# ¿ Aug 27, 2023 21:16

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Nettle Soup posted:

I just went downstairs and checked, both the random ebay ones and the lincsplastics ones are identical in build quality and marked PP5 on the bottom.

I mean it's your choice and all that. But the recycling number doesn't necessarily tell you anything. Polypropylene can be food grade, just like many plastics. But just because something is made out of PP and it's similar in construction to something that's food grade doesn't mean it is food grade. Like two items might be produced in the same factory in the same dimensions and one's food grade because it's using new plastic and the other isn't because it's using recycled plastic with a prohibited prior use. For example.

And precisely because you can't tell just by looking at it or checking the recycling number, I'd expect the seller to indicate if a container is food grade if it is. But, you know, maybe not for a bait bucket? I dunno.

And, like I said, it's certainly up to you. But food grade buckets aren't particularly expensive and it's not like you're going to be burning through them and having to re-buy every other week or something like that. So I don't really see the angle in rolling the dice on it.

# ¿ Aug 28, 2023 09:48

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Steve Yun posted:

Japanese deep frying pot:

Curled rim to reduce spatter, rack on lid to let oil drip back into pot, thermometer, and a spout lip so you can pour out the oil later

Does anyone make a tempura pot that's not flimsy and too small? Every tempura pot I've ever seen has been like two quarts and feels like you could crush it like a beer can.

# ¿ Sep 18, 2023 14:51

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

CommonShore posted:

Anyone have much experience with tortilla presses? I'm thinking about building a wooden one (out of hardwoods that I have, probably maple and ash)) after seeing a dude on Iron Chef use a wooden one. I've never used one and so I'm not sure about a few things - should there be any clearance in the thing when it's closed? How much force does it put on the hinges?

Every cast iron tortilla press I've ever used was designed so that the plates are flat against each other (+/- tolerances) when the press is empty and closed.

In terms of the amount of force on the hinges: I could do a back-of-envelope calculation for you, but both the hinge and the pivot for the handle are usually like a 1/4 bolt and clevis pin (respectively). In normal use you're expecting that the cook might lean on the handle, but nothing more than that.

# ¿ Sep 26, 2023 03:42

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

I use a tortilla press with pizza dough to make pizza rolls—the kind that originated in West Virginia, not the fried ravioli-like thing from Totino's. The "traditional" way of doing it is to roll out the dough like you're making like a 14" pizza, lay pepperoni and cheese along the perimeter, cut into slices, and then roll up each slice from the outside in. That works fine, but for smaller batches I'll divide the dough into like (guessing) ~100g balls, let them rest until the dough is fairly relaxed, then flatten each ball in the press (using a cut apart ziplock bag as a liner to prevent sticking). Then each one gets some of whatever toppings I'm using before being rolled up like a wee burrito or something. Brushed with butter, into the oven, brushed with butter again, serve with dipping sauces: pizza sauce, ranch, whatever.

# ¿ Sep 26, 2023 22:27

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

effika posted:

Yeah they're all grey and matte now, but aren't flaking. I don't mind. They always have parchment on them anyway.

So...what's getting on them that they need to go through the dishwasher for?

# ¿ Sep 27, 2023 22:00

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Ah. I tend to use either silicone sheet liners (if I don't have to slide whatever I'm baking off them) or parchment (if I do), and line with aluminum foil if I'm doing anything that's going to dump a lot of fat/oil/cheese/whatever all over the sheet. Then most of the time all it needs is a wipe off with a damp towel.

# ¿ Sep 27, 2023 22:11

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

For the last however many years I've been using Tramontina for nonstick fry pans. They're aluminum, but they heat evenly enough I can do a French omelette in them, which is the fussiest actual application I have for a nonstick frypan and I 100% don't give a poo poo about the pan's imagined abstract performance characteristics beyond that.

# ¿ Oct 13, 2023 21:49

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Arsenic Lupin posted:

Not even that: I want my cast-iron and my All-Clad and my carbon steel, each serving a different purpose. I like enameled casseroles, but I don't see why I would want an enamelware skillet.

Probably nice for generic single skillet "protein on a bed of veg" dishes, especially if you're expecting to make a sauce out of the jus and want it clear. Basically using it as a mini casserole or roaster instead of like a fry pan.

# ¿ Oct 20, 2023 21:10

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Steve Yun posted:

I use bail jars to ferment. If there�s enough pressure it will open the lid a tiny crack to release

Yeah, wide-mouth mason jars are good fermentation vessels for small ferments (like peppers for hot sauces, pickled okra, fermented cherry tomatoes, and that kind of thing). You can get airlock lids and glass weights for them that make most ferments pretty fire-and-forget.

I've also got a bigass fermentation crock with it's own integral airlock system: the top of the crock has a circular trough that you fill with water, and a lid that's shaped a little like an inverted ashtray that you fit into the trough (with a slot that extends above the water level to serve as the carburetor or whatever you call it on a fermentation vessel). It's great for making large batches (multiple pounds) of pickles or kraut at a time.

For kimchi I usually use 8 quart cambros. I got a couple fermentation airlocks that fit into rubber stoppers, and then used a hole saw to put a hole in the lids the right size for the stoppers. That said, for kimchi you can get away with just fermenting in an unmodified cambro, because the lids don't snap on tight enough to keep a ferment from burping itself if it builds up enough pressure.

# ¿ Oct 24, 2023 21:25

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Diamonds On MY Fish posted:

I use ReCap lids. A #5.5 drilled stopper fits perfectly into them and they screw right in to any widemouth mason jar.

Yeah, that's the kind of fermentation lid I use with mason jars. For cambros I picked up a few more of the stoppered airlock things and drilled the cambro lids with a hole the same diameter as the one in the mason jar lids, so everything uses the same airlocks.

# ¿ Oct 25, 2023 20:51

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

KD8000 from My Weight unless you need > 1g accuracy.

# ¿ Nov 22, 2023 22:54

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

I've moved my KD8000 multiple times since I first replied. It's awesome.

# ¿ Nov 22, 2023 23:04

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Steve Yun posted:

I have an oxo and I love it but they are way overpriced compared to the competition

The KD8000's price has gone up a lot in the ~10 years since I bought mine (~US$35 then, ~$US50 now) but it's still what I'd buy if I had to replace it.

Also, I've been using it daily for nearly a decade and the first time I ever had trouble with it was literally a couple weeks ago, when it wouldn't turn on. Took me a minute to remember, oh yeah it has batteries. It had been still running on the no-name rando AAs it came with.

# ¿ Nov 22, 2023 23:17

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

VelociBacon posted:

I know they're fuzzy and whatever but I've never seen my zoji ever adjust cooking time. Isn't that what the fuzzy logic stuff is supposed to do? I set it to go, usually on quick setting, and 40min later I'm riced. Always exactly 40min.

I assume it's just a PID. So what it's doing is adjusting the duty cycle of the heating element to approximate a pre-defined time/temperature curve. In other words it's not trying to adjust the time, it's trying to adjust the temperature to finish at a set time.

# ¿ Dec 5, 2023 03:00

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Eeyo posted:

I think PID loops are distinct from fuzzy logic, mathematically.

They are, but I'm saying that I think Zojirushi's "Neuro Fuzzy logic" rice cookers are just using PIDs, not a "true" fuzzy control system. That's just based on their own descriptions of the functionality and observation of their cookers in practice, I'd be happy to be proven wrong.

# ¿ Dec 5, 2023 10:17

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Probably nice if you're using your dutch oven for deep frying.

# ¿ Jan 8, 2024 06:10

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Internet Explorer posted:

I think a wok-style pan is better, no need for the oil in the bottom when everything floats to the top.

Yeah a wok's great if you're frying little bits and bobs, but for bigger stuff the fact that you have to use a shitload more oil for the same depth starts to hurt.

# ¿ Jan 8, 2024 21:12

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

There is literally no way to give yourself radiation poisoning or anything like that using a microwave oven, microwaves aren't that kind of radiation.

The paint is also just there to make it look pretty and so it's easier to clean. You can buy microwave paint to do touchup, so if you're worried about it that's an alternative to replacing the whole thing. I don't know how easy it would be to repair weird cracking like that, which looks like it's caused by an internal carousel. My main concern would be that whatever caused that to happen in the first place is just going to do the same thing to any repair work, but no way to tell without examining the oven itself.

# ¿ Jan 25, 2024 01:53

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Steve Yun posted:

I *think* it�s watts/cuft

I haven�t researched it but my tiny one cooks as fast as the big one at my sisters house

I *think* they do this so that microwave food instructions will be uniform

Edit ^^^^ I�m guessing there will be some variation between models/brands but I think watts/cuft is the industry standard target

Panasonic's webpage currently lists a bunch of microwaves.

1200 W@1.4 cu. ft. (857 w/ft^3)
1200 W@1.3 cu. ft. (923 w/ft^3)
1250 W@1.6 cu. ft. (781 w/ft^3)
1250 W@2.2 cu. ft. (568 w/ft^3)
1100 W@1.3 cu. ft. (846 w/ft^3)
1200 W@1.2 cu. ft. (1000 w/ft^3)

...and then more on another page I didn't bother to look at.

# ¿ Feb 14, 2024 03:24

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

I use the Winco boar bristle pastry brushes. They're like US$3 a pop and I've never noticed any problems with them shedding.

# ¿ Feb 28, 2024 05:20

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Eccles posted:

I need a new kettle. I bought a Cosori 1.7L electric kettle last week, but even after running a dozen or more batches of water through it (plus one batch of white vinegar), the hot water it produces smells like musty old towels. I would prefer a kettle that produces water that smells like hot water. Any suggestions for something available in the US that doesn�t literally stink?

Not exactly an electric kettle, but I've had a Zojirushi water boiler for over a decade. It gets used daily and I've never had any problems with it.

# ¿ Mar 21, 2024 22:51

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Submarine Sandpaper posted:

The capillary action of wood is what's antimicrobial, so the gashes really don't matter.

The second part is not true, without a number of fairly specific caveats. In tests, for example, ~3 minute recovery rates (of e.g. E. coli) for a used wooden board are ~an order of magnitude greater than for a new board made of the same wood.

# ¿ Mar 29, 2024 23:32

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Submarine Sandpaper posted:

What're the o.g. figures? An order of magnitude for microbes means like an hour to me, which does not really matter if you prep meat last.

E oh 3 mins, still stand by my laziness statement

The three minute time has nothing to do with the pathogen growth rate, it's the time at which the sample was collected. In cutting board tests the surface is contaminated and then later tested. If you test three minutes after contamination, the number of recovered pathogens is an order of magnitude greater for an old wood cutting board versus a new wood cutting board.

# ¿ Mar 30, 2024 03:00

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

alnilam posted:

I don't have a dog in this fight but the question at hand is end grain cutting board vs side grain, not wood vs not, so this isn't relevant unless we know if the test you're talking about was end or side grain, since the entire claim at hand is that end grain is kind of self healing

I'm not talking about wood versus not, I'm talking about new wood cutting boards versus wood cutting boards that have been used.

Separately testing shows that end grain (independent of age) performs better (lower recovery rate of contaminants) than other wood cutting boards (non-end grain or laminated, the latter of which perform substantially worse). But I was specifically addressing Submarine Sandpaper's comment that "wood is what's antimicrobial, so the gashes really don't matter". The latter part is not true. Or it is not true without a number of caveats. Which is what I said.

# ¿ Mar 30, 2024 03:54

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Submarine Sandpaper posted:

And what's the dealio after the reproductive cycles? You're just saying surface area exists.

It depends on the environmental conditions and the specific pathogen. There isn't one single reproductive rate for any given foodborne pathogen, and there are multiple possible pathogens.

# ¿ Mar 31, 2024 01:43

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

That Works posted:

I just hit my bamboo cutting board with soap and hot water and a lil scrubbing pad asap after cutting meat. Seems fine?

The recommendation from the USDA is to do what you're doing (cleaning) then additionally soaking the surface with a dilute solution of bleach (sanitising).

With a plastic cutting board you get both by throwing it in a dishwasher, but that's not recommended for wood cutting boards.

# ¿ Mar 31, 2024 01:54

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Steve Yun posted:

Now that I think about it there should be a consumer food chopper that does �chop once and spit out� so you can get uniform onion and carrot dice

It's called a knife OP

# ¿ Apr 16, 2024 00:26

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Looks pretty much the same as what you'd find on a Matfer or De Buyer carbon steel pan. Main thing I'd give the side-eye to is the wooden handle scales.

# ¿ Apr 16, 2024 22:52

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# ¿ May 13, 2024 04:02

SubG: Aug 19, 2004; It's a hard world for little things.

Aramoro posted:

Problem with those pans, wooden bit or not is they're 60cm wide so absolutely will not fit in my oven like it or not.

How big is your oven?

30 cm pan with a 28 cm handle in a 50 cm square oven:

Exactly the same thing:

# ¿ Apr 17, 2024 22:00

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Goons with Spoons > The Something Offal kitchen equipment thread

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