Tropicalsenior
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Posts posted by Tropicalsenior
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53 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:
that I received as a gift
What on Earth did you ever do to that poor person to make them hate you so?
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13 minutes ago, AlaMoi said:
chop-o-matics . . . from the 50's . . .
My Chopper that I loved was more like that except that it was all plastic.
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No, it is definitely a ricer.
My mother was a sucker for little gadgets. The Watkins Spiceman always seem to have a few when he came around and she couldn't resist them. The most ridiculous one that I remember was one that screwed into carrots and cut them into things that looked like Shirley Temple's curls. My dad teased her unmercively when she tried to serve him those.
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10 minutes ago, Smithy said:
I wouldn't call either of those useless, except to me
I probably should have clarified more. I had one of those that I absolutely loved. The blade rotated as it punched down. The clear plastic base finally cracked and I held it together with packing tape until I felt that it was no longer very sanitary. I since tried to replace it and the first one had a hesitation glitch so that by the time it hit the nuts it barely caressed them. The second one does not have a rotating blade so that you have to shake it between punches to get it to find the nuts. They are both poorly designed garbage so they are going out with the rest of the garbage.
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1 hour ago, mgaretz said:
Char siu style chicken wings,
Now that is a recipe that I would love to have. Please?
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I was sure I had an extra one of those in the pantry. Where did it go?
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Call me nosy if you like, but one of my favorite things to do is to see what topics other people are reading, especially our online guests. It takes me down some very interesting rabbit holes. Some of them are very old rabbit holes. Occasionally I find one that I think should definitely be revived. This is one of them.
Recently, our discussion of Wooden Spoons prompted me to clear out the ones that I never use. This one has sent me back into my drawers and cabinets and I can't believe the useless junk that I have found. Some things I have gotten as gifts, but most of the junk, I am guilty of buying myself.
A tiny ricer, can't even put a quarter of a potato in it, probably used once.
Two plunger type choppers that only work for chopping nuts.
A donut cutter, probably only used once because it cuts the dough just fine but it wouldn't come back out of the cutter. And I probably haven't made donuts in 20 years.
I'm just getting started pitching things so I can probably add more as I go along. How about the rest of you? What totally useless things do you have hidden in your kitchen?
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13 hours ago, JAZ said:
I used to run the "Cooking for Two" site for About.com back when About.com was a thing
I just want to say thank you. I spent many happy hours going down rabbit holes on About.com.
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I seem to be totally incapable of cooking just a little bit of spaghetti. Short pasta, noodles, no problem. But give me a package of spaghetti and I'm going to make enough for us, the neighbors and the dog. And I don't even have a dog anymore. I've used measurements from the internet, those stupid little things with holes in it and every other trick. It just seems like when I get the spaghetti in my hand it just doesn't look like enough and I just have to throw in some more. So, now that I figured out how to weigh it on the scale how many ounces should I use for two small portions?
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3 minutes ago, chromedome said:
I mostly use tongs, but I drain the pasta first. I'm notably clumsy - see my "I shall never again" post about cutting myself on sugar - and so far, the worst that's happened is a few pieces falling to the counter or floor (and we have dogs, so I don't even need to clean it up).
I'm even out of luck there. My last dog died last November and my cat won't stoop to touch human food.
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4 minutes ago, weinoo said:
Removing spaghetti-type pasta from a pot is why they invented tongs.
Only for the well coordinated. I would have it in my hair and over half of the kitchen.
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1 minute ago, liuzhou said:
I always weigh my pasta portions.
I always do with short pasta but the Spaghetti would always roll off the scale. And those pasta measures with holes in them are a big PIA.
But as I said before, too soon old, too late smart.
However, I am still learning.
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2 minutes ago, KennethT said:
Although I have to say that I don't remember seeing anyone else post a photo of them making any of the recipes I've put up
Let's face it, you and your recipes are unique. But yes, it is a great way to make sure that they will be here forever for you. Too many other recipe platforms have crashed and burned. Personally, I use Drive to save my recipes but who knows if it will be there forever.
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10 minutes ago, AlaMoi said:
how to measure spaghetti without really trying . . .
How to make your fellow member feel stupid. I never thought of using a glass. Perfect!
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4 minutes ago, liuzhou said:
one with holes in the centre to measure dry noodle portions,
I never even thought of using it for that. I always thought it was just to let the water drain.
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Although there isn't a chance in a Million that I could recreate any of your dishes here in Costa Rica, I enjoy reading them. Your repertoire is amazing and I do so admire your attention to detail in recreating the food that you love.
In the late sixties I had an Indonesian neighbor and I saw the frustration that she went through trying to recreate the dishes that she grew up with.
You are lucky that you live in New York and are able to find what you do.
Thank you so much for taking the trouble to post the recipes.
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5 minutes ago, chromedome said:
I have the plastic equivalent.
I've had the plastic equivalent and believe me, they can't hold a candle to the wooden ones. I can see them being very useful as a back scratcher.
Now that I remember, the first wooden spaghetti catcher that I had was actually a big back scratcher, made in Costa Rica. My husband stole it from me and I bought this one.
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I've been reading through this topic from the very beginning hoping to somehow resolve my relationship with these nasty little critters. Had I started this topic I would have called it The Curse of the Spoon Holders. They are oh so necessary and yet none of them fit my needs. If I get one I like, I break it. If it's only adequate, it lasts forever.
First, I have one like @Darienne's. I keep it in my baking area because it is fine for a whisk or for one spoon.
Second, I have one on my stove that is adequate. Not that I'm all that crazy about Christmas all year long but at least it's big enough for a spatula and a tasting spoon.
Finally, I have one from Belize that my husband brought back as a souvenir. It's hanging above my stove and I can grab it when I'm desperate. Other than that it's completely useless.
For now I think I'm going to start using a small plate. It makes more sense to me and I don't know why I never thought of it before. As they say, too soon old and too late smart.
I'm going to start looking for something like Fat Boy's. I've seen them in the stores all the time here and always thought that they look like a pretty useless little dish. Now that I know what they would be good for, I will probably never see one again. If I do, I will buy four of them because if they work and I like them I'm sure to break them.
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1 minute ago, weinoo said:
I would keep at least the tallest spoon, and the flat spatula-like thing. I've never understood what the thing on the left (with the spikes) is used for. Though I probably have 2.
You hit it right on the head. The spiky thing is for lifting spaghetti. Once you get used to it it works like a charm. I always wanted a spaghetti pot with a strainer but I never could find one that I liked or that fit my storage space so for small amounts of spaghetti, this is great.
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These are everything that came out of my spoon holder beside my stove and after due consideration, very few will be going back in.
The one that I use the most is the pathetic little critter on the right. I made that one. When we first came to Costa Rica, I couldn't buy a decent wooden spoon for love nor money. They were more just like wooden paddles. So I bought a paddle and carved it into a spoon. I spent hours burnishing it to a high polish. It has been well worth it because it has given me 30 years of good use. Anything that doesn't go in my stand mixer gets mixed with that. I have gone almost exclusively to silicone spatulas for cooking so the rest are like "dead wood" for me and I might as well get rid of them.
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2 minutes ago, ElsieD said:
What is a peep?
Aren't they those disgusting little marshmallow chickens?
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26 minutes ago, weinoo said:
. I actually wish I had my grandmother's stand-alone ashtray,
Wouldn't work for me. I can trip over my own feet, I can only imagine what would happen with an ashtray in the middle of the floor.
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37 minutes ago, ElsieD said:
just use the eggs
I would just use the eggs. These are awfully pretty.
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On 3/25/2023 at 2:33 PM, Darienne said:
However, young man, as to being ancient...you have quite a way to go yet.
Compared to some of us, you are a baby. I even have Darienne beat when it comes to age. Welcome to eGullet. I hope that you are ready to jump right in. You will find a really friendly group when you do.
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The Humble Squeeze Bottle
in Kitchen Consumer
Posted
I have one pretty good sized squeeze bottle that I keep in the door of the refrigerator with mayonnaise in it. It is so handy. When I want to make a sandwich I pull it out, squeeze mayonnaise on the bread and put it back. No messy jar and no messy knife. My canola oil I keep in a decorative wine bottle with a bar type pour spout. And just now watching a video of Jacques Pepin, I noticed that he has exactly the same thing. I always keep my other oils in their original containers in a dark cabinet.
I've had squeeze bottles with the attached lids like the one shown in the ad and my experience has always been that the bottles outlasted the little tab that attaches the cover. When that happened I usually resorted to using the top from a cheap Bic pen.