# Bakin' with Crud #1: Basic Equipment and Techniques



## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

Today we're talking equipment and basic techniques because you kind of need to know those, otherwise your cakes might explode and kill everyone, and when that happens you go to hell before you die.

*Equipment*

*Pans, trays, sheets and tins:* Should always be heavy gauge with a good thick bottom. Non-stick coating is beneficial but not essential. For pastry and cake tins, a removable bottom can be useful, that way you don't have to flip the tin to remove a tart or cake. Again, not essential, but useful if you're a bit clumsy with your hands or are worried about breaking the contents of the tin.

*Pots:* Should always be oven-proof (of course!), preferably with easily graspable sides or handles. If your pots don't fit that description, you can always place them on a sturdy baking sheet for easy removal from the oven.

*Utensils:* Knives, spoons, forks, peelers, balloon whisks, fish slices, ladels, spatulas, palette knives; you'll find a use for all of these in baking. In addition to the standard butter *knife*, you'll be wanting some sharper kitchen knives: the _Sabatier_ mark is a sign of a high quality blade, they're expensive to buy new but you'd be surprised at how easy they are to find second hand and cheap.

For *spoons*, get a variety, from small metal tea spoons to desert spoons, rice spoons and large wooden spoons. If a new wooden spoon has obvious splinters, as some of them do, take some time to sand them down first with coarse and then with fine sandpaper. *Forks*, on the other hand, need only be the plain old dinner fork, good for mixing bread dough.

For *whisks* make sure to get a good chunky handle and a sturdily mounted business end; the last thing you need when beating eggs is all the prongs pinging out when the mixture begins to stiffen.

*Fish slices* and *ladels* can be found in both metal and non-stick plastic varieties, and it's a good idea to have both on hand depending on the kind of work you're doing. For batter mixtures like pancakes, I always use non-stick plastic utensils.

*Peelers* and *graters* come in all shapes and sizes, and it's a good idea to have a little variety on hand depending on what you need to do. There are special varieties such as zesters, which are used for zesting citrus fruits, or potato peelers which, well, you can fill in the rest. Graters are often multi-purpose with different types of grating tool on each side, most of these are universal across the board so just worry about finding one with a good sturdy handle.

*Palette knives* and *spatulas* are essential for many cakes. The former is a long and bendy (technical term) length of metal, despite what the name suggests, it is not sharp. The flat face of the knife is used for smoothing buttercream and other toppings on cakes, giving them a nice finish, and also for shaping soft butter when making puff pastry. The latter is extremely useful for _folding_, a special mixing technique used with beaten eggs, cream and other things to ensure the retention of the air that has been beaten in to them. With both, the essential feature is a good handle that you can grasp firmly but still have room for flexible movement.

Last but not least, the *rolling pin* is essential for all kinds of pastry and biscuit (cookie) dough, even the ready made stuff. There are two varieties: the one I use is just a plain cylinder of smooth wood, if you know wood working you could make one yourself rather easily; the other kind has a shaft through the centre with a handle on each end, making the rolling action considerably steadier and smoother, some find it easier to use, but it becomes easy this way to apply too much pressure and break your pastry dough.

*Measuring jugs:* These come in all shapes and sizes and are either made of plastic or Pyrex (heat resistant treated glass). My measuring jugs are plastic and can hold two pints (40 fluid ounces, or 1.1 litres) and I have found them to be more than enough for any recipe so far.

*Mixing bowls:* These come in plastic, glass, ceramic and pretty much any sturdy material you can think of. I myself favour the plastic variety; they're cheap, light, extremely durable, heat resistant (good for melting chocolate) and they don't chip. You'll often find yourself in need of different sizes and numbers of bowls, so be sure to have a good selection on hand.

*Cloths:* What? Yes! Cloths, or oven gloves, if you prefer. It's a good idea to have a big, thick, sturdy cloth for retrieving things from the oven, else y' might end up in a spot of bother, or the hospital. Oven gloves are handy because, of course, they allow for higher dexterity and they're well padded.

*Brushes:* A good brush is essential for glazing breads, buns, pastry, and also useful for greasing tins and trays with soft butter or oil. I recommend picking up a rubber tipped brush rather than the usual bristled brush, as they start to wear out they will leave bristles on the crust, not very pleasant to eat, the rubber tip avoids this problem entirely and can also be cleaned and fully dried in a matter of seconds.

*Gadgets:* There are all manner of gadgets from food mixers to electric whisks to sugar thermometers and so on. In my recipes I tend not to rely on them as in home baking there's always an effective alternative that you can do by hand. So if you're monetarily challenged like myself, fear not: it'll probably take longer and be harder work, but there's always a way.

*Basic Techniques*

*Hygiene:* Always wash your hands before handling any ingredients. Ensure that the work surface has been wiped down with a damp cloth and dried before working on it. If using soap or disinfectant to clean a surface, make sure all traces have been wiped away with a damp cloth and the surface has been dried in the same manner as before. Make sure all bowls, utensils and anything else are properly cleaned before using. Any newly purchased equipment whether brand new or second hand should be washed before use.

*Testing eggs:* The freshness of eggs can be tested by putting some water in a clear bowl or measuring jug and gently dropping the eggs in. If they sink, they're fresh, if they float, throw them away. Sometimes eggs will stand on their ends but remain seated on the bottom of the bowl, these are fine for cooking but shouldn't be used in raw or partially cooked egg dishes such as omelettes.

*Kneading:* Kneading refers simply to working dough by hand, and is by far the easiest technique to pick up. With two hands, push the heel of one palm in to the dough, on lifting it back up, take the far edge and fold it back over and repeat with the other hand at a cross angle. Repeat the process until the dough is smooth and elastic, usually about 10 minutes.

*Rubbing:* Rubbing is a method used for making shortcrust pastry. It's tricky in that the butter or cooking fat must remain cold. Cube the fat and add to the bowl of flour, giving a little mix with the knife or with a clean fork to ensure that the fat is coated. With your fore and index fingers and thumbs (preferably cold, you can run them under the cold tap if you need to) collect the cubes of fat and flour and rub them together firmly until the consistency of breadcrumbs is achieved, don't worry about getting every little bit of fat rubbed in as long as the general consistency is achieved. You can check the consistency visually by lightly shaking the bowl back and forth for about 10 seconds, any lumps of fat should come to the surface. If the fat begins to turn oily, either re-cool your fingers or cover the bowl and set it in the fridge for 10 minutes. The mix *must remain cold at all times*.

*Creaming:* Creaming butter is an essential part of many desserts, including a wide range of cakes and even some bread and pastry. It is easiest to do using an electric hand whisk, but with a little elbow grease the same result can be achieved using a big wooden spoon. In a mixing bowl, cut up the butter in to manageable chunks or slices and begin smooshing (another technical term) them together by applying pressure with the spoon and giving a little twist of the wrist. Depending on the amount of butter this could take upwards of 30 minutes, but hang in there, the results will be worth it. The creaming is done when the butter appears light, white and fluffy.

*Beating:*
With a balloon whisk: Hold the bowl at an angle so that the corner where the bottom and side meet forms a ditch or trench. With a firm grip on the whisk, and either using the wrist or forearm for momentum (latter is recommend, former can be very painful the next morning and for days after), begin hitting the liquid with a vigorous "circular" motion. Try to avoid lifting the whisk from the mixture, keeping the lowermost point of it near the surface of the bowl, otherwise it will splash everywhere. Whisk until the specified consistency is achieved, with cream or egg whites the usual goal is ether soft or stiff peaks, and in both of those cases you can test by tilting the bowl sideways and having the mixture hold in place, if it runs continue whisking. Sometimes you may just need to beat a little air in to a liquid, in this case a simple visual test for frothing will suffice.
By hand: Some recipes may require a soft item like creamed butter to be beaten by hand in to an already combined dough. This is by far the most physically strenuous (but thankfully rarely called upon) technique I know of and may tax even the fittest of you. Holding your arm rigid as with the whisking method, form your hand in to a "Karate chop" position and, using the whisking motion, try to cut in to the dough. The ultimate aim is a smooth and elastic dough, and this could take 20 minutes or more.

*That covers the basics, stay tuned for bread!*


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