If you are a serious baker, you have to have a well stocked kitchen. It does not matter whether baking is your profession or your favorite hobby, whether you are a man or a women – if you do not have the most important baking utensils, your kitchen is incomplete. There are about ten basic utensils you need to have in order to be a good baker.
1. Bowls
That probably seems a bit obvious and self explanatory, but we are not talking about just any bowls. When it comes to baking, you are going to be dealing with a lot of batters and dough. These substances are very tenacious; they like to stick to things. Making sure you have the right kind of bowls for your baking enterprise is thus vitally important. You increase your efficiency quite a lot by making sure to buy non stick bowls for your baking. Slippery, slick surfaces are ideal.
2. Spatula
Naturally, spatulas come in hand for day to day cooking as well. However, this tool also has a specialized role in the baking world. You can use it to pry cookies, brownies, et cetera, out of the baking pans, and they can also be used to help serve.
3. Oven
Gas or electric, it really does not matter as long as you take good care of it. Keep it clean, keep the oven racks sparkling. Sometimes, when grease and foodstuffs build up inside your oven, the taste and smell of the debris can actually start invading your food! No one wants to sink their teeth into a poppy seed muffin and taste unpleasant flavors!
4. Whisk
Certainly, electric mixers are often easier to use. However, there are some things you still need to beat the old fashioned way. For instance, meringue does much better under the patient beating of a whisk. Heavy whipping cream does too.
5. Rolling pin
They are a must have for made from scratch pies, not to mention any number of other delicacies. Choosing a marble or heavy plastic rolling pin is better than a wooden one, because germs can cling to the pores inside wood.
6. Oven Thermometer
Because a great many foods require you to know its exact temperature at any given time, having an oven thermometer is also necessary for bakers. Some ovens don’t have accurate temperature reading and the only way to see if you have the exact temperature is to get an oven thermometer. Invest on those of high quality ones. They are specially made to withstand high heat.
7. Measuring spoons and cups
You will always need these, even if you are accomplished enough to eyeball your measurements. Better safe than sorry, after all.
8. Digital weighing scale
You can never really eyeball a substance’s weight, and since so many recipes require a certain amount of flour, sugar, et cetera, you can only benefit from having a good scale.
9. Baking pans
Pie pans for pies and cakes, square pans for brownies and cakes, bundt pans, muffin tins – there is a whole world of baking pans out there, but you at least need the basics. Again, go with non stick pans whenever possible; they will make the whole endeavor of baking a lot easier.
10. Kitchen timers
Unless you want to sit there watching the clock yourself, timers are necessary in order to keep you from burning your scrumptious pastries. It is often better to use another timer in conjunction with your stove’s timer, just in case one of them does not go off at the right time.
Tags: utensils baking
