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Product Review: SiliconeZone Measuring Cube and Clove Garlic Peeler

April 23, 2013

The Ranting Chef Product Reivews, Tools , , , , 5 Comments

The Ranting Chef does not get paid or receive any revenue from manufactures or retailers of products reviewed. I occasionally receive products that I am asked to use and see what I think. I take a look, try them out and tell you all about them.

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I must have been a good boy this year, because I came home to find this on my porch from SiliconeZone.

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Inside I found two very interesting products: the Measuring Cube and the Clove Garlic Peeler.

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I decided to try out the Clove Garlic Peeler first. This is a 3-4 inch piece of silicone formed in the shape of a large piece of garlic.

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Break a clove from the head of garlic.

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Drop it inside.

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Roll the garlic around with the base of your hand.

Photo Apr 13, 11 34 13 AMThe garlic comes out peeled and the mess stays inside. I pulled out all the skin to show you for this picture. It worked very well with all the little pieces of skin remaining in the bulb. I like it that way so I can empty it in the trash and not leave a trail of garlic skin all over the kitchen.

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I next tried the measuring cube.

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The cube is sturdy plastic and has four corners with different lines of measurement. One side is cups (up to 2 cups). The next is millilitres (up to 500). The third is fluid ounces (up to 16) and the last is pints (up to 1).

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The corners are translucent to easily see how full the cube is which allows you to properly measure your ingredients. They also each have a spout to smoothly pour your ingredients.

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What makes this product unique is what is built into the bottom of the cube: a silicone two ended measuring spoon with one end a teaspoon and the other tablespoon.

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The handy spoon better allows you to keep your measuring items in one place.

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A pretty cool product.

MY TAKE: I liked these products that SiliconeZone sent. The garlic peeler was easy to use and helped contain some of the mess when peeling garlic. I’m not sure I’d pull it out for a single clove but certainly would if I had a quantity (which I often do). The measuring cube is nice but what makes it a truly unique product is the measuring spoon in the bottom. This product is ideal for small kitchens. It is rare when you pull out measuring cups and don’t need measuring spoons so it is a great idea that SiliconeZone had to put them all in one place. You can purchase their products Amazon.com. Take a look at all of their great products and pick one up.

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Product Review: Littledeer Cooking Utensils

April 18, 2013

The Ranting Chef Product Reivews, Recipes, Tools , , Leave a comment

The Ranting Chef does not get paid or receive any revenue from manufactures or retailers of products reviewed. I occasionally receive products that I am asked to use and see what I think. I take a look, try them out and tell you all about them.

Packages coming for the Ranting Chef are awesome. Ones that come internationally? Extra awesome!

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What I found was a great collection of wooden utensils from Littledeer. Included in the box was: The Pot Scoop, The Better Spreader, The Pan Paddle, The Sprongs and The Serving Scoop.

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Littledeer is Canadian company that makes a variety of products including both canoeing paddles and cooking utensils. Designed with fluid dynamics in mind, many of the kitchen utensils are specifically designed for either a left-handed or right-handed user. Being right-handed, I’ve never really noticed as most utensils were made either generic or for righties. I do know that when I held these utensils (Littledeer confirmed if I was a lefty or righty before they sent them out), they fit in my hand like a glove.

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Look at how beautiful the wood is. Each utensil is made from a single piece of maple. The grain of each piece is unique and makes for a gorgeous product. The utensil is smoothed all around and has the Mapleware polish on it to help protect the wood. If you haven’t used wood utensils before, they are great for all cookware, including non-stick, and they clean up with some warm soapy water. I decided to give each tool a workout.

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The Sprongs went to work first. Reaching into a pan of sizzling oil, the utensil maintained it’s grip on even the rounded edges of chicken drumsticks.

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While I could have used The Sprongs to turn the chicken thighs, I wanted to get The Pan Paddle into action. This is one of the tools that is designed to your hand, and it feels it. Holding it with my other hand, it felt a bit awkward. In my right? Perfect. The Pan Paddle easily slid under a frying boneless chicken thigh in order to turn it.

Photo Apr 08, 5 05 23 PMThe Serving Scoop served dual purpose by helping to move around the onions

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and to later stir a sauce I was making.

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The Better Spreader went to work slicing a stick of butter.

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The Pot Scoop worked well in the mixing bowl

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And spreading the pie filling into the crust.

MY TAKE: Littledeer makes a product that is not only beautiful, but functional. As many chefs don’t give enough thought to “mouth feel” of their food, many utensil manufacturers don’t give enough thought to “hand feel”. It is obvious that Littledeer has spent quite a bit of time making their utensils fit your hand like a glove. I love that each utensil is made from a single piece of wood which improves the quality of the piece and the longevity. The utensils work effectively and I like that I don’t have to worry about using them with non-stick cookware. Many of the utensils I use on a daily basis I hide in a drawer when not in use. I’m happy to have Littledeer cooking paddles and utensils prominently displayed in my kitchen. You can purchase Littledeer products by visiting Williams-Sonoma here in the United States, or by checking out the “Where to Buy” section on Littledeer’s website.

DICED! A Ranting Chef Competition – Call for Entrants

February 18, 2013

The Ranting Chef Recipes , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 36 Comments

Calling all cooks:

I am announcing the first Ranting Chef cooking competition. In homage to, and in separation from a certain Food Network cooking show, I am announcing a call for entrants to a cooking competition: DICED! The competition works as follows:

  • Entrants  will be given a list of a few ingredients. With that they must create (or find) a recipe that contains and features those ingredients. They then must make the recipe, document it with a blog post, and take pictures of it. All writing and photography MUST be their own, even if they use a recipe they find elsewhere. Entrants will have a two week period from receiving the ingredient list to submit their post. I will post each blog on consecutive days
  • I will provide instructions to the readers of the blog to “like” the post as a vote. They will be asked to vote based on the use of the ingredients, desirability of the recipe, quality of the writing and great looking photos. The readers will vote on the one they like the best with the number of “likes”. The number the posts receives within one week of their posting date will count toward their total. Once a week goes by I will record the number of “likes” as their total. Readers can, and probably will, like more than one recipe.
  • Blog entries will be edited only for grammar, spelling mistakes and to add measurements typical to a US audience (if originally given in metric). Posts will go up in a random order.
  • Ingredients will be ones that I can obtain in my local grocery store and while I cannot guarantee you will be able to find them, I will not choose anything that I suspect to be obscure.
  • The first round will be posts about appetizer, soup or salad and will have five entrants. The top four will move on to the next round.
  • The second round will be post about a main course and relevant sides and will have four entrants. The top three will move on to the final round.
  • The final round will be a post about a dessert and will have three entrants.
  • In the event of a tie, the Ranting Chef will choose the winners of the tie.

Your prize will be the pride of winning and acclaim on this blog to readers around the world. I am working to see if I can get a sponsored prize or two, and if I do there will be something more tangible to win.

If you would like to compete and can fulfill the requirements stated above, send me an email at rantingchef@yahoo.com no later than midnight on February 28, 2013. I need your name, email address and a sentence or two about why you should be chosen. Those not selected for the first contest may be selected for future ones (if this goes well). For this first competition, I cannot guarantee any specific diet can be observed (gluten free, vegetarian, kosher).

Product Review: Look Oven Bags

December 6, 2012

The Ranting Chef Product Reivews, Recipes, Tools , , , , , , 9 Comments

I always love to get home and find a package addressed to The Ranting Chef. There are always goodies inside.

This envelope came from Inno-Labs, LP . These are the same folks who sent me the FireWire Grilling Skewers (which I LOVE and can’t imagine using a standard skewer again).

Inside were two packs of Look Oven Bags. I received a packet of 2 giant ones and another of 5 large bags. The giant ones are big enough for a whole ham or turkey, while the large ones fit your standard chicken or roast. To date I had only used oven bags that came with seasonings (pot roast).

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So far, I have used two of the large sized bags. The first was a pork roast (look for the Tuscan Pork Roast recipe to come in the next few months).

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The second use was also pork, but this time was Hungarian Goulash (also to post in the future). This one tested the ability to retain liquids through the cooking process as the bag had cups of liquid it needed to hold.

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One of the biggest differences between these bags and the others I have used, is that these stay clear throughout the cooking process. The previous ones I’ve used turned brown, but it was easy to see how the insides were cooking. I could see how pink or brown the pork was without compromising the integrity of the bag.

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They also retained the liquids very well. Even though they were boiling inside the bag, none escaped until I opened it or tilted it past the steam vents I had cut.

My Take: I thought they worked really well. The bags helped the meat to remain moist and juicy and the dishes I baked them in had no baked-on residue that I had to spend a lot of time scrubbing off. Clean up was a breeze. For longer baked meats, the bags are a good idea and these Look bags are both sturdy and great to use. Inno-Labs is the US distributor for the Look bags and you can contact them if you are a wholesaler, or if like me, a consumer, look for them to come to a WalMart or Kroger near you.

Product Review: The Burger Buddy

May 22, 2012

The Ranting Chef Product Reivews, Recipes, Tools , , , , , , 17 Comments

What’s this? A box addressed to The Ranting Chef??

The Burger Buddy? It sounds very intriguing.

Inside was the Burger Buddy (two pieces) and the directions.

The first piece has an inner ring, and outer ring (with drain holes) and two arms that allow it to sit across a saucepan.

The other piece is the press. The bottom of it fits the inner ring and has a decent handle on it.

This gives you an idea of the size. Made for any decent sized burger. The Burger Buddy is designed to reduce the amount of fat from your burger to make it a healthier meal option. Here is how it works:

Cook your burger through your normal method. I decided to use the Foreman grill. I used pre-made patties of 85% beef, 15% fat. While some fat drains off, the Burger Buddy promises to eliminate even more.

Heat water to at least 170 degrees.

Place the Burger Buddy over a pot and fill the center ring with hot water.

Place a patty in the center ring and take the press and push down on the patty. Use two hands (I needed one for the camera) and gently rock back and forth.

The fat will separate from the burger and end up in the water. Pour more water in to cause the water (and fat) to overflow into the outer ring where it will drain into the pot below. Remove the burger and eat.

Does it remove any fat?

Yes! This water was clear just a minute ago. Three quarter pound burgers later, you can’t see through it.

In case you thought I was kidding. While this is mostly water, there is a lot of fat in there.

How does it taste? Isn’t the fat important to the flavor of the burger? Abernathy Enterprises, maker of the Burger Buddy, has quite a bit of text on this, but I figured I’d run a taste test of my own. My wife, two teenage boys and myself were the taste testers. Only I knew which patties went through the Burger Buddy and which did not.

I made six burgers on the foreman. Three went through the Burger Buddy and three did not. One patty of each was cut into quarters and each of us tasted the burger with no bun and no condiments. I could not really tell much of a difference in taste. My wife and one son preferred the taste of the burger from the Burger Buddy. The other son, preferred the standard burger.

Next, we each received two half patties to dress anyway we wanted. I did not offer cheese or bacon (keeping the fat low) but condiments, lettuce, tomato and onion were in play. After individually dressing our burgers, we conducted another taste test. Once again, I could not tell the difference. My wife continued to prefer the taste of the Burger Buddy patty and my eldest continued to prefer the standard burger. My youngest, flipped and preferred the taste of the standard burger once dressed.

MY TAKE: There is no question that it works to remove copious amounts of fat from freshly cooked burgers. It could quickly be a money saver by being able to purchase less expensive ground meat and press out the fat versus buying ultra lean ground meat to start with that is much more expensive. The taste test was inconclusive. That is a good thing. It removes fat but does not seem to have any negative impact on the taste. For those who would like to reduce the fat in their diet but still want a burger, the Burger Buddy is a good answer.

You can purchase the Burger Buddy by clicking on the name.

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