Pros and cons of stoneware baking and cooking?
l pinkmountain
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
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ci_lantro
7 years agoplllog
7 years agoRelated Discussions
Pros/Cons of AG vs DF Wolf in my configuration
Comments (16)Ha! We would be empty nesters but...we have had a few extras in the way of nieces and nephews and friends living with us due to transitions in their lives and now my son is back to town from school and looking for a job. In July we had a full house between semi-permanent guests and short term guests. I also cook meals that go out to my dad and sometimes others. When I watch the grandkids, I try to have dinner when the parents return so they don't have to cook. All this means I am generally cooking for 10--rarely just 2. If it is just the two of us, sometimes we just eat out :-))(date night!). I do use my wall oven the most but I am so glad to have the range oven and there are times that I almost could use another oven, more for a different temperature than capacity. On the other hand, I cooked for all these years with a 30 inch oven. The key for me to look effortless is having things made ahead. We have had "flying plates" dinners for 35, that consist of multiple mini courses that come out one after the other. Everything is premade on half sheets and the ovens got a workout for that. It seems like the family gatherings just get bigger- weddings and babies. Our extended family can be 30-40 and we have several parties a year for 60 or so. I also have had many wedding and baby showers, milestone birthdays and funeral dinners that range from 35-70 people. We also had rehearsal dinners but semi catered them. We didn't go with a warming drawer because the ovens go low enough to function that way and sometimes I use the rangetop. We had large disposable catering trays of pasta for a family dinner a few months ago and they kept warm on the simmer burners without scorching. I think one of the benefits of the warming drawer is that it keeps the humidity in the food so with the steam oven, you might not need it. If you haven't had convection, I think you will love it but it isn't for everything. I look at it as a tool and only use it when it will be a benefit to what I am cooking. I am still learning about it. I think your modes on the steam oven are different than on the regular oven. There is a slow roast vs a roast and convection roast. I would read the use and care manuals on all the appliances to better understand how they work. I don't agree with all of Wolf's recommendations for convection baking though. Convection is not the optimum thing for cakes or anything that needs to rise at least in the first part of the cooking cycle....See MoreRacking Up Sous Vide's Pros/Cons, Reprise
Comments (10)Posted by annie1992 "I don't like lamb in any form, so won't conjecture on the proper cooking of it. (grin) ----" Annie, I didn't use to like lamb at all, until they start charging a lot of money. Expensive = taste good ? LOL FOAS, thank you. I look forward to seeing more of your sous vide creations. Alexa, at the risk of being accused of anti Occam's Razor law, let's take a little time to chew the fat. First, the pictures might be a little misleading. I take food pictures using only the auto setting on my camera to save time. Depending on if the light is from the window (day) or from the CFL (night) or if the shot is wide-angle or close-up and the predominant color of the food item, the camera's built-in software takes charge and determines the red/white/blue balance for each picture. The colors on the first two are closer to the real thing. Rack of lamb, very expensive. If you take away the fat, and the bones, and shrinkage, it probably comes to $60.00 a pound here in NYC. Meat, bones and fat have different thermal conductivities, adding to it, the small size and the shape of a rack of lamb, it makes it very difficult to cook it perfectly unless you prefer the whole thing well-done. It is challenging to find a way to maximize perfection to every tiny morsel of this wondrous victual. At the temperature I set at 135F, it is too low to render the fat. Since I don�t eat the fat, it does not bother me just to scrape the fat off while I eat. But if I were to serve others who are not followers of the Paleolithic diet, I probably BBQ the fat a little longer and that will make the issue go away. No, you cannot make Schmaltz using a sous vide cooker. I think it needs to be emphasized that sous vide is merely a particular way of cooking with a special appliance. There is really no recipes for sous vide, no more than recipes for microwave, or cast iron frying pan, etc. It is unfortunate that the French word "sous vide" gives this concept a lot of unjustified mystique; the fact that top chefs and upscale restaurant use it makes it appearing un-approachable. It makes it seem like practitioners of this way of cooking belong to some religious cult. The truth is this: sous vide is just a water oven that can keep constant temperatures. If I were to name this appliance, I would call it "Cookware For Making Perfect Meats For Dummies" If you show a 10-year-old kid how to set the temperature, the kid can cook the meat sous vide just like a top chef. A sous vide cooker simply will not allow you to overcook or undercook, it makes no difference if your piece of meat is frozen on one half and the other half at room-temperature, thick on one end and thin on the other end. No doubt, sous vide is going to go thru similar fade as the microwave oven did. First microwave oven was scosting like $5,000 and there were many myths and fears surrounding these bizarre new electronic "radar ranges." By the seventies, more and more people were finding the benefits of microwave cooking to outweigh the supposedly risks, and none of them were dying of radiation poisoning, going blind, becoming sterile, or impotent. As fears ebbed, acceptance began pouring into the kitchens. dcarch...See MorePros and Cons of Slide-In Ranges versus Cooktop and Oven Cabinet
Comments (42)The dials on a slide-in range are at the front. You don't reach over the hot burners and steaming pans to change temps. This is recommended for "universal access" kitchens because a wheelchair person can use them a little better, although the surface is not lowered. These dials are easily accessed by a child, which might not be a benefit, though, if the child is just playing. The digital clock on the upright backed models is easily seen from a distance; same with the lighted indicators that show whether surfaces are hot or oven is in use. On a slide-in, the front dials and controls are on the same plane as the cooking surface so I would assume you need to approach the unit to see the lights. somewhat off topic.... regarding ranges....We began this remodel with the intention of using our old electric coil range until it died. I began to do some research and found that the upraised back on new ranges has risen significantly in my lifetime. I suspect that the gov't began to require that the dials be positioned farther from the cooking surface--in two past ranges I've worked with the dials were cockwacky because they'd melted a bit. Today's range appears to be abt 75 inches tall at the back OR HIGHER. This is a significant design aspect if you're planning new construction. We thought we'd put our niche behind range up high enough to clear any new range but when I got new one, there it is arching in front of the bottom of the niche just a bit. If you're going for a standard range like this, forget any fancy backsplash, esp if you have an under cab hood unit there also, since it has to be mounted lower than some of the decorative hood units. Our niche extends up behind the vent unit, which allows taller bottles if I get crazy and buy one of those exotic olive oils or something. There is only about a foot of actual space between the top of the range's arched back and the bottom of our vent unit. Doesn't bother me at all. nini804, there's a quote that says that any time form goes before function, take our your wallet....See Morepros and cons of double ovens in a 48” inch drop in range
Comments (7)Have you considered a 36” range with a 27” or 24” wall oven? (Assuming you'll have a microwave, it could go above the wall oven.) I don’t know how much difference 3” or 6” will make in your available space, but just thought I’d mention it. I have a 30” Thermador duel-fuel range and a 27” GE wall oven, and would you believe that the 27” oven is nearly as large as the 30”? ...and it’s actually deeper! If you’re really tight on wall space, I highly recommend the Wolf Gourmet countertop oven, which can hold 9” x 13” casserole dishes! I just got one about two weeks ago and I’ve used it every single day. By the way: Who makes a 48” drop-in range?...See MoreJasdip
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