Tips Guides Resources

Vanilla offers one of the comforting and distinctive flavors in the world. The aroma is favored not only for baking, but for aromatherapy, candles, and perfumes, among others. Vanilla is available for cooking and baking in a variety of forms, including whole bean, vanilla extract, vanilla paste, and vanilla powder.

The powdered version is probably the least commonly available form, but it offers unique and useful properties that home cooks will appreciate. While the heat of many dishes will diminish the flavor of liquid vanilla extract, vanilla powder tends to retain the flavor much better, as there is no alcohol -a key ingredient in extracts- to evaporate. It also works well in dishes that won’t benefit from added liquid. It is a useful ingredient in baked goods, liquids, and cream based dishes, dissolving easily and imparting a strong flavor.

Vanilla powder is actually available in two different forms, and may be labeled differently depending on the manufacturer. It may be ground vanilla, simply vanilla beans that have been dried and cured, and ground into a fine powder, or a sweetened vanilla powder, which is a very fine mixture of various types of sugars, such as dextrose or sucrose, and mixed with vanilla extract. (This is not the same as vanilla sugar).

Pure ground vanilla is much more potent than vanilla extract, and cooks should use about half the amount of extract called for in most recipes. The powdered variety made with sugars should be used with the same measurements as liquid extract. All vanilla powders dissolve easily in liquids, and are ideal for adding to coffee, cocoa, tea, and other liquid based dishes. It is important for consumers to check the ingredient label to find out which version is being purchased, as quality and price may vary greatly.

For a quick treat, vanilla powder can be sprinkled on fresh fruit or toast, and added to coffee and oatmeal. When cooking or baking, it easily mixes with liquids without lumping and adds flavor to breads, cakes, cookies, frostings, and meringues, as well as the traditional cream based desserts such as ice cream and custards. When using in icings, vanilla powder is less likely to turn the color from white to the natural ivory that is taken on when using vanilla extract.

For the home cook who finds himself stuck with a few beans which have dried up from disuse- or just in want of vanilla powder, this delicacy can be created at home by running dried beans through a home coffee grinder. The drier the bean, the more powder-like the result. Leaving the bean out in the open to further dry out may help if it is too moist to grind.

Vanilla powder may be difficult to locate at the local grocery store, but it is often available online, from specialty cooking shops, or specialty grocery stores. It is available in traditional and organic as well. It should be stored the same way vanilla beans are kept- in a cool, dry location, with a tight seal to prevent moisture intrusion. Vanilla powder is a tasty, versatile treat that cooks can use in a myriad of ways to impart the unique mellow, creamy flavor of vanilla.

Resources: Vanilla powder can add some incredible flavor to your cooking. Give it a try! If you are looking vanilla powder or for other vanilla extract, visit Vanilla Importers (http://www.vanillaimporters.com).

Many people are more familiar with using commercial microwaves in their kitchens rather than seeing large industrial microwaves (which are commonly used in restaurants and bars). For many homes and houses this is an essential piece of equipment, handy for warming up cooled or refrigerator foods, cooking popcorns, or for those leading a busy lifestyle can pop their meals in for cooking and enjoy a filling meal in just a few minutes.

Commercial microwaves have been around since the 1940s where it was aptly named the Radarange. A man named Percy Spencer discovered the principles behind cooking food using microwaves, when developing magnetrons for radar sets, for a company called Raytheon. Upon working on radar, he noticed that a peanut chocolate had been melted from the microwaves. The first foods to be cooked were popcorn and an egg which had exploded during the experimentation process. This then progressed into building an enclosed box which contained the radiation making it safer to cook food.

When the microwaves first came onto the market, they were a massive six foot high and consumed almost 3 times the amount of energy that normal contemporary microwaves do today. They were priced between 1500 and 3000 pounds, therefore only the privileged few were able to enjoy the luxuries of fast food cooking. The first home model was priced around 500 pounds, one of the first countertop models which was redesigned to be smaller, more portable and was only 100 volts. This was much safer than the previous models, taking up less space and available for a lower price.

By the 1970’s commercial microwaves changed over the years becoming more advanced, quicker at cooking food and being more capable of cooking ingredients quickly where the oven was not able to. More and more people were seeing the benefits of using a microwave in their kitchen, and seeing less of the myths and risks involved with using one. The myths that spread around the production of the microwave were instances of dying from radiation poisoning, impotence, going blind and being sterile. As the myths were unfolded and more people were becoming more aware that this was not true, the demands for microwaves sky rocketed.

By 1975 commercial microwaves were superseding the sales of gas ovens, becoming available to nearly 9 million people in the United States alone, making it an essential household item. The mid-eighties saw development of microwaveable food being advertised and taking off as a fast food alternative for busy working people. Much to their dismay, the food lacked the great taste and nutritional value of home cooked foods. As time passed on, more microwaveable food were introduced promising better taste and looking more appealing resembling fresh ingredients and home-cooked feel good food.

Eventually baking, roasting, grilling and toasting became a feature of the microwave, allowing people to add more time where they did not have before. It also gave new meaning to TV dinners, as the food industry started churning out more microwaveable fast food options rather than promoting its benefits for being quick at defrosting frozen foods, cooking jacket potatoes in ten minutes and warming up cold food left from the night before.

Furthermore, a major disadvantage of cooking with a microwave is that it is next to impossible to enhance any flavour of the food by browning onions or slow cooking for extra flavour to come out. Nevertheless they still have a very important place in the kitchen and will continue to thrive in our lifetime.

Resources: Anna Stenning understands that commercial microwaves are an important part of cooking having seen how people have become dependent on them.

Sushi, you either love or your hate it. There doesn’t seem to be an in between. Now I’ve been a seafood lover since I was very young, but the thought of consuming raw fish didn’t really appeal to me even though I had a steady diet of it in childhood when I lived in Europe (herring, onions and sour cream).

It hasn’t been until recently that I started eating sushi, and I have to say I could eat it almost every day!

Whether you’re a connoisseur or just starting to find your way, here are some hints on how you can be sure you’re getting good sushi.

1. All reputable sushi restaurants have a sushi bar where the fish is on display, and it shouldn’t be just for show. Don’t be shy, go up to the bar and have a look. The fish should be juicy in appearance, not dried out. Is the chef using the fish on display? If not, why not? Reputable sushi restaurants take pride in the quality and freshness of their fish and will actually use the fish on display. Avoid sushi restaurants that do not have a fish display.

2. All you can eat sushi restaurants, whereby you can order as much as you like for one price, tend to be mediocre at best. High quality seafood is expensive, and in the case of sushi, you get what you pay for. I used to eat at an all inclusive sushi restaurant and thought it was quite good until I ate at a more traditional, pay by the piece, establishment. The difference in the food was like night and day, not to mention the atmosphere and the service.

3. Sushi rice has a very delicate flavor and is usually made with short grained rice, water, rice vinegar, sugar and salt. If your restaurant’s sushi rice is flavorless, find another restaurant.

4. Ordering sushi is not like ordering fast food, and you should be able to order a few pieces at a time. If your server insists that you order everything at once, something’s amiss. Take the time to savor each piece individually, and use the small pieces of ginger to cleanse your palate in between pieces.

5. There should be a combination of traditional sushi and sashimi, and the more modern like California Rolls. If the menu is lacking in the traditional, and leans more towards the colorfully named rolls, chances are that the sushi chef is not traditionally trained, and you may not be getting the real thing.

6. For a genuine treat, simply ask the sushi chef to prepare something for you and leave it up to him to decide what’s best. Sure, you may be taking a chance, but your willingness to experiment may very well turn into the sushi delight! I did this a few weeks ago at my favorite sushi restaurant that I’ve been attending for over a year. The chef knows me on sight, and was delighted and honored that I trusted him to prepare something unique. I was not disappointed.

Resources: This article was written by Shawn Wilson, a member of the customer support team at Datepad, where internet dating is always free. Datepad has a massive directory of informative dating articles along with a great list of dating site reviews on their dating blog.

Christmas really is just around the corner, some people may feel a tad nervous about the future of their bank balance, but many will be more excited at the prospect of seeing friends and family for a big feast and lots of presents. The trouble is that many people do not know how to prepare for a good Christmas meal, as this is probably the biggest task anyone can take on for just one day. Everything has to be prepared in advance, with the cutlery and dinner service plates all selected prior to the day of festivities.

A good way of alleviating any worries or anxieties is to plan ahead. This is a golden rule for any type of special occasion, because without the planning and preparation, the day you have been looking forward to may not turn out the way you want it to. Providing a good dinner service to guests or to family is something that needs to be thought out and selected carefully, to cater to everybody’s taste and needs.

The dinner service itself does not need to be a formal event, considering it is a Christmas day that you are enjoying and not a Royal banquet. Therefore, you can take this as a fun challenge which you can enjoy taking part in. The cooking part is probably the most difficult part of the day, but if you have a good idea of what ingredients you will need to use then it is a good idea to write these down so you can then draw up your own shopping list.

Buy your turkey early! Surprisingly enough these are sold out very quickly from the shops. You should not leave this to the last minute, because there will not be many good quality turkeys left nearer the time. I normally buy organic turkey, because to me they make the tastiest and juiciest meat, but this is not essential for everybody. The vegetables can be bought a few days in advance, because they will go off a lot quicker if bought a month in advance.

The dry ingredients can be bought well in advance as they will continue to stay in good enough quality up until Christmas day. Things like cream, milk, cheese and butter, can all be bought during the same time as when you buy vegetables. One thing you will need to double check on is your kitchen equipment. On one occasion when I was preparing for the Christmas, I realised my baking tray for the turkey was not deep enough and I had nowhere to bake the stuffing! This was a stressful point, therefore after much rummaging I found something substantial for both dishes.

You do not want to make the same mistake; therefore you should go through all of your utensils and be sure to have each one stocked. On the day of cooking you want to be trouble free and well-prepared for everything. The smallest of all details, such as the dinner service on the day, laying the food out in an organised fashion, will make a lot of difference, so whatever recipe you follow make sure you have everything in place.

In terms of decorations, you do not need to splash on hundreds of pounds on fancy Christmas trinkets and surprises. I remember a time when children used to make their Christmas decorations and spent time on perfecting their Christmas hats. This could be something you could try yourself as long as you allow yourself time to do this. This could also be something you choose to do as a form of therapy. A quick trip to a local pound shop will also enable you to find some affordable and fancy decorations to use for the house and tabletops.

Keep the tableware simple, elegant and interesting. Candles are a good decoration rather than flowers, because they are inexpensive and do not take up much space. Christmas crackers are a must-have so be sure to stock up some fine crackers in advance.

Be sure to delegate responsibility and assign tasks to the rest of the family, so you can off-load some of the stress. This way you can keep check of what you need to worry about and what task is already being covered.

Resources: Anna Stenning loves to put up the best dinner service on Christmas day, as she enjoys the preparation process.

Time saving devices for the kitchen are not a new concept. Literally since the days of the cave dwelling, man has endeavoured to save time and energy on finding and preparing food.

This conservation of energy allows either a chance to rest or an opportunity to burn up calories on other tasks. In the days of the hunter gatherer the whole of each day was spent sourcing, preparing and storing food for when times were hard. This task would require the whole clan to contribute, and there was little time for any other activities.

Back to the modern day; we have so many labour saving devices to hand that we are practically snowed under with other jobs we just need to get done. Even fitting in socialising seems like a finely timed task at times. This is all part and parcel of the modern world, and is a template that the future will follow.

We currently have a huge choice in appliances to utilise, and whilst the plain ole simple knife may be sufficient for a domestic setting, in a commercial kitchen, something with a bit more clout is needed for productivity and profit.

The term ‘labour saving’ in the catering industry translates as profit making. If there is an opportunity to save time by using a processing tool such as a robot coupe, this means that less man hours need to be paid for to do the task manually.

Productivity is high in relation to expenditure on equipment and labour costs. It could take five people an hour to prepare the vegetables needed for service using knives, or it could take one person the same time using a robot coupe.

Prices start from as little as 35 GBP, a bit more pricey than the humble parring knife, and these are adequate for a small catering department; but these machines can be built to scale and are able to function in large scale industrial catering plants.

For the regular commercial kitchen though, a high usage top end processor can cost in the region of 2,000 GBP. It is not just the preparation of vegetables that warrant the investment in a robot coupe, these processors can be built to process a variety of foods in a number of different ways. Grinding, pulping, pureeing, blending, shredding and kneading are actions that can be programmed into a robot coupe apart from slicing and chopping.

The invention of these machines was a direct result of observations made by a salesman for a catering company. The Frenchman witnessed firsthand the time expended on preparation of food stuffs in his clients’ kitchen, and immediately came up with the idea of placing a revolving blade in the base of a bowl.

This design went on to inspire the processors we know today in both commercial and domestic use. The use of robots in the kitchen is likely to expand in the future too, as an ever more demanding way of life calls for yet more productive and time efficient ways of processing are called for.

What kind of machine would this be; where is the robot coupe going to take us? We all know that turning to a spot of sci fi can be a valid indicator of progression, and drawing upon many films and comics it could be a case that all kitchen equipment will amalgamate in one big super unit.

Would tipping all the ingredients in one end of a machine, punching in a programme, and then sitting back and waiting produce a perfectly prepped, cooked and served souffle? And what exactly would we be doing while it did this? Building the next labour saving profit building machine at a guess!

Resources: Dominic Donaldson is an expert in the catering industry. Find out more about the robot coupe and how it can speed up the prep rate in your kitchen at Acot Wholesale.

Commercial Kitchens, what is involved? Starting out in the world of catering, or refurbishing an already established commercial catering establishment is an expensive venture and one which comes with many restrictions, these restrictions are imposed by health and safety authorities also local government.

There are a multitude of requirements which have to be accounted for before the practical can be entered into. Planning, preparation and legal advice need to be sort as priority especially if this is a brand new venture. Planning a commercial kitchen whether that is for a school, hospital or specifically a restaurant should take into account all aspects of catering, for example the food being prepared, the amount of people working in the environment, who the food is being prepared for also the quantities of people who you are going to be catering for.

A level of thought has to go into the layout of the kitchen itself, using the same rule which is applied to normal kitchen layouts such as the work triangle might not essentially work on the larger scale. Catering equipment of course is larger than domestic catering appliances.

Food health, safety and hygiene are paramount, hand washing facilities have to installed as well as sinks for washing up, fridges, freezers and the proper food storage units need to considered even down to health and safety standards of chopping boards, colour coded for use, for example chopping poultry, raw meat, vegetables, the list is never ended and the checks are ongoing too.

Many people in the catering industry these days use the services of commercial kitchen fitters, fair enough they may not actually have hands on experience with the actual catering side of things but a reputable company will have enough experience of fitting commercial kitchens and catering establishments to know what works and what does not.
These companies can have hands on input from start to finish, planning through to furnishing. They will have the knowledge not only of how a layout of an industrial kitchen should look but also how it works, accompanied by knowledge of the requirements and specifications which need to be in place in order to get your kitchen, restaurant or catering establishment up and running with as little hold ups as possible.

Of course there is such a wide range of catering equipment which can be installed in a kitchen, industrial size refrigeration units, ovens, steam ovens, rotisseries, combination ovens, microwaves the list is endless, knowing what you require is essential as keeping to budget and utilising space is essential to running a business, know your means before starting out. Other aspects to bear in mind are sinks, food preparation space, whether or not food service is essential as in the case of many restaurants and canteens. Finding out all of these things before spending a penny is a useful exercise in planning.
As with all new ventures there will be external input regarding health, safety and hygiene whereby environmental standards will be required. These inspections will be a continuous event with occasional spot checks to make sure the standards are kept to the highest levels.

Seeking the input from companies who specialise in commercial kitchen fitting is probably one of the easiest ways in which to work out what is required both structurally and with choosing the vital catering equipment. With their knowledge of fitting and your knowledge of your specific restaurants or catering establishment requirements, a kitchen fit for a king can be achieved.

Resources: Dominic Donaldson is an expert in commercial catering equipment. Find out more about Catering Equipment and how to equip a commercial catering establishment.