Cooking Equipment & More from J&R Jr.
If you are a savvy shopper you know a good deal when you see it. Many name brand shops will have discount house wares that you've been looking for, or as in my case, I may not be specifically looking for it but there they are, items that would make my life easier or safer like items for an emergency kit. If an emergency happens you're not going to have the time or presence of mind to grab everything you need at that moment. You should have a non-electric can opener, water proof containers for keeping emergency kit items dry and clean, mess kits or paper plates, glasses and plastic eating utensils, trash bags and a flashlight with extra batteries. You can never be too prepared.It takes awhile for most new cooks to accumulate all the cookware they need. I started out with an inexpensive set of teflon-coated pans from a discount house wares shop and gradually upgraded to better, more efficient cookware as I was able. One of my favorite frying pans is a cast iron skillet. When I bought it, it didn't come with a lid so I bought a heavy glass lid that was just what I was looking for. One great thing about using a clear glass lid - it's easy to view what's cooking without losing necessary heat for cooking.
Professional chefs favor cast iron pans because they are dependable and allow precise control of cooking temperatures. They are ideal heat conductors, allow fat free cooking and if treated properly, will last forever. A medium setting or lower is sufficient when doing stovetop cooking in a cast iron pan, and these pans need to be seasoned prior to use in order to be stick resistant. It will then require no additional oil or butter- the seasoning also prevents rust. You should never let a cast iron pan soak in soapy water. You may hand wash it in hot soapy water, (never in the dishwasher), and dry it thoroughly, then re-season it after it's completely dry.
Whenever we watch a cookware demonstration at the state fair, my husband has to nearly wrestle me away at the end. All of the demos that I've seen, use waterless cooking and the food tastes amazing. They stack two or three pans, each with a different course, which would be a real time-saver.
