Thread: Always Reach for the Hamilton Beach (RIP Eddie)

Where to even start? For a hand mixer I actually like our old vintage hand crank one. It has a very high gear ratio and if you turn it pretty fast it will whip egg whites to peaks in no time at all. We have two electrics but I actually almost never use them. Our Kitchen-Aid stand mixer gets used a lot, especially when I make bread. It is a beast, never bogs down, never gives up.

Microwave is essential in our kitchen. I take a bag of birdseye frozen vegs and stick it in there for 2-1/2 minutes to use in a recipe, 3-1/2 or 4 minutes to just pour out onto plates. No stirring, no fuss, just really great vegs. Pat of butter and a shake of Slap Ya Mama and bam, vegs even a stone cold carnivore would eat.

We have two DeLonghi superautomatic espresso machines, and the wife spoils me with a quad shot cappuccino every morning. All she has to do is fill the water and the bean hopper, and dump the puck bin once in a while and keep the steam wand clean. Push a button, turn a lever to steam the milk, push another button for two shots and again for the other two, perfect cappuccino, way better than you get at TarMuck's, and she doesn't even have to know how to actually make coffee. The machine does everything and does it pretty darn good. We did keep one for real espresso and one for decaf but we went like two years without ever having a shot of decaf, so one is now at the new house and one here at the old.

KitchenAid side cutting can opener. I like side cutters because you can use half the can of something and just plop the lid right back on and stick it in the fridge, use the rest the next day, no fussing with saran wrap or numinum foil. Top cutting can openers are SOOOOOOOO 2021!

Sous vide. Since buying a sous vide tank and wand, I have really upped my game. Poultry breast has got to be one of the trickiest dishes to get exactly right. Too dry, or undercooked, your choice. It can be hard to really nail it because it can be perfect by an internal thermometer but self cook on the platter some more. With sous vide, you know it is safe to eat, so just re-cook to taste for a nice finish. Teriffic for tough or naturally dry cuts of beef or pork, too. A pork loin (not talking about tenderloin) can be pretty lean with basically zero marble, and so same problem as a turkey breast, half the time it is over or under cooked, at least to the discerning palate. Sous vide is the answer. Nice and juicy every time. Give it a rub of Slap Ya Mama and a few minutes in a broiler or over a hot fire in the grill for a nice tasty crust, and oh mammy come get ya baby boy, that's some fine eating, and incredibly cheap. I like to sous vide a beef rump roast and run it through the slicer for sammitch meat. Sometimes I make a nice dark roux and cook the sliced beef in it some more, for roast beast poboys.

Meat slicer. I have a cheapie off brand but very heavy duty 10" slicer and I love it. It is a lot of work to clean but for a big job it really does great.

Mandolin, with food pusher. I love it for slicing an onion in a hurry, and with the food pusher I never cut my fingertips or even get close calls. The one we have now will also do french fries or those riffly cut slices but I just use it for slices.

The barbecue. We have about 4 cords of pecan stacked in front of the house, and one of those Home Depot barbecue grills with the firebox on one end and the smokestack on the other end, like a proper barbecue. We do a lot of stuff on it with the meat all the way at the cold end, keeping the temp down around 220 or 230 degrees all day, then move it to the little grill in the firebox for the crust. When the meat has had a few hours in the fridge, it is ready to slice for salads, sammitches, and other stuff, with that gorgeous smoke ring and exquisite flavor and aroma. Okay, yeah getting off topic. That thing is like 7 feet long so not a handheld appliance at all.