- Oven
- Your home oven is fine. I survived selling baked stuff every Christmas when I was a teenager using my mother's conventional gas oven. Most ovens installed in newer units here in Australia are convection ovens, which are fan forced. Remember, these are slightly hotter than the conventional ovens because of the air that is circulating inside. We normally bake 20deg lower than the prescribed temperature in the recipe. If you ask me, I prefer using the conventional oven. There are just recipes that bake well in a conventional oven than in a fan forced oven and vice versa.
- Oven Thermometer
- Even if you have developed a good baking skill but if your oven's temperature is incorrect, you wouldn't be happy with your finished product. It takes awhile to know your oven. In a conventional oven, there are spots which are hottest. Normally, the sides would be hottest or the upper and lower most rack are because they are either near a heat source like the flame or heating element; or the walls of the oven. These are conductor of heat. Plus, I don't trust an oven dial.Commercial ovens,of course, can be trusted for these are being calibrated regularly.
- Hand Mixer/Stand Mixer
- If you're just starting, you will survive using a hand mixer. That's how I also started. You can even do away with it because you can first practice recipes that will not require a mixer. Recipes like carrot cake, banana bread, brownies or some cookies can be mixed manually.
- Once you're serious in baking, that's when you entertain the idea of buying a KITCHEN AID. Notice it is all in caps lock ha.ha.ha. I'm a great fan of it. I'm not being paid for this but I believe in the product. I think it's one of the best kept secrets of bakers. I remembered getting frustrated when I first made my boiled icing when I was 15. I just couldn't get the right consistency even after following the recipe religiously. On my 16th birthday, my mother bought me my first Kitchen Aid. Wow! that's when I realized it's not me, it was the mixer ha.ha.ha. Until now, my first Kitchen Aid is still working. My mother, who's 65, uses it to make muffins that she sells in our cafe. Yes, it's a bit expensive but don't look at it as an expense. It's an investment and will go along way.
- For commercial operations, Hobart is a good brand.
- Measuring cups and spoons
- There are two types of measuring cups. The nested cups are for dry ingredients while the other one is for liquid ingredients . Not all recipes are written in cups. You'll come across recipes in grams. Soon, you'll consider having a weighing scale. I'll discuss one of these days the advantages and disadvantages of recipes in cups and grams.
- Bowls and cake tins
- Plastic bowls can be used when measuring ingredients. I prefer using stainless bowls when mixing ingredients though. Aluminum bowls can react with certain ingredients or if you use a whisk to mix , don't be surprised if your batter turns greenish or grey in color due to chemical reaction. By the way, beat egg whites in a stainless bowl. It produces better peaks than if using a plastic bowl.
- Cake tins. I use aluminum or stainless tins instead of silicone pans because the former gives nicer color when baked and are better conductor of heat. Using the latter gives you a paler cake.You can start with the following and add other sizes or shapes as you progress:
- Square pan for your brownies or bar recipes
- Cookie sheet
- 8" or 9" round pan for your cakes
- Muffin/Cupcake tin
- Other Tools
- Wire whisk
- Metal spatula
- Rubber scraper
- Serrated knife (to slice your cakes)
- Wire rack to cool your cakes or cookies
- Sieve or strainer, for sifting your dry ingredients
I hope I didn't bore you. A bit lengthy but I think it's important. Now, if you have those, you're all set to bake.
No comments:
Post a Comment