My most used kitchen tool
Like a lot of guys in the kitchen, I started off wanting all the coolest gadgets. Ok, I still want all the coolest gadgets, but now I want to make sure that each gadget is something useful. An example of a failed product for me is the Pig Tailed Food Flipper. It’s a metal rod curled like a pig’s tail that has a pointed end. I much prefer a good pair of spring-loaded tongs or my hands.
You see, the tool that I have learned I can’t do without is the simplest thing I have in my kitchen…my hands– in insulated gloves or a pair of welding gloves. Forget about pot holders and fancy silicone grippers. I don’t do much of anything with a hot dish/pan/pot/piece of burning wood without first putting on welding gloves.
You can get these at major hardware stores. The thicker, the better. There’s nothing like having the dexteriety and control of having all your fingers working instead of stuffed inside an oven mitt. Reaching into the oven, I don’t have to worry about touching the side or the rack at all.
These have become one of my most indispensible tools, and I make sure I always have a pair of them around.
This is a brilliant idea! We have a pair of those silicon gloves (my partner, Dave, likes to refer to them as his Doom Gloves and demo them by pouring boiling water over his hands). I find them unwieldy, though I rely on them for pulling jars and ramekins out of boiling water.
I bet welding gloves would make a nice replacement for my dish towels and potholders in other circumstances.
(Plus, maybe having a pair would inspire me to finally get around to doing some more welding.)