Today is Thanksgiving, and that means company. Company, of course, means food and cooking.

Back when I reviewed Jonathan Bloom’s book American Wasteland, I mentioned his contention that large refrigerators lead to more waste.

I agree that large refrigerators tend to be wasteful. Not only because you end up storing more than you need, and losing things in the back, but because you are cooling the refrigerator 365 days a year when you only use it to maximum capacity ten days a year.

But what do you do when houseguests turn up or you are hosting a dinner party, and you wish your refrigerator would just stretch?

Follow these tips and you may save yourself some money next time you need a new refrigerator.

• Throw out old food and use up the rest. If you are cooking up a storm for a crowd, you don’t want all those leftovers hanging around.
• Get rid of excess varieties of dressings, mustards, sauces and drinks. These are what tends to take up the extra space.
• Take foods out of the refrigerator when possible, like apples and oranges. Tomatoes, onions and potatoes should always be stored at room temperature.
• Transfer foods to smaller containers when possible. 
• Ask the neighbor for some refrigerator space. Or perhaps you can borrow the refrigerator in your church, synagogue or community center. Always ask permission and label your food carefully.
• Avoid storing the cooked food for long stretches. For instance, when hosting for a weekend plan plan to cook one of the later meals in the slow cooker. Cooking one meal at a time, with careful planning, works better here than cooking three days’ worth of food in advance. Chill drinks a few hours before they will be needed.
• Be relentless about getting rid of leftovers, by offering them up at the next meal or to a hungry family member. If you have a small amount, put it in a small bowl or as one option in a divided serving platter.  Containers of small amounts of leftovers will fill up the fridge quickly and are likely to get spoiled.
• Get one or more ice chests for storing food that won’t fit. They’re much cheaper than the cost and maintenance of a larger-capacity refrigerator, and they don’t take up room in your kitchen when you don’t need them. And they’ll come in handy for an electrical outage.
• If all else fails, rent a small refrigerator. You could also buy a used one and resell it at a similar price.
• Some people store an extra refrigerator and turn it on only a few times a year. That can work, if you don’t need that space for other things. Keep in mind that older models are notoriously inefficient. And if it’s in an out-of-the-way place you’ll want to check on it regularly to make sure it’s working properly.

Reader Ruth Kilner, interviewed here, broke her oven while cleaning it. She asked me to help her shop for a new one, by advising her what features are useful. Before writing I asked my friend Miriam F., whom I consider an expert on kitchen equipment. She said that a feature she recommends has become more common in the last few years: a “true” convection.

Ovens have gas or electric heating elements on the top and bottom. The problem is that when you place items on more than one rack, the top of the upper item and the bottom of the lower item get brown while the middle doesn’t. This is the case with my electric Electra brand. I need to set the timer for approximately half the cooking time, then switch the trays. I do have a fan that is supposed to circulate the heat, but because it is placed in the back of the oven where there is no heating element, it doesn’t make much difference.

You can identify a “true convection” (real “turbo”) because it has a heating element surrounding the fan.

Before you shop, make sure that your old oven can’t be repaired. The technology of ovens has not improved much and as with all appliances, parts tend to be more shoddy than in earlier years.

Here are more features to consider for when buying an oven. Many apply to the purchase of any major electrical appliance. Thanks to Cooking Manager fans on Facebook for their input into this question.

• Gas or electric? This depends on the cost and availability of gas in your area. Also, know whether you want a built-in oven that fits into a cabinet, or a stand-alone model that may have a cooking range on top.
• Heating settings. For standard baking, ovens heat from the top and bottom. For broiling, the upper element only is used.  My oven has a “pita” setting that heats only from the bottom, which would probably work for pizza too. There may be other settings. Check that any fan has a heating element surrounding it to distribute heat evenly.
• Size. This is one of the most important decisions. Do you want one large compartment or two smaller ones? Heating up a smaller oven is more efficient for one item, but if you bake a lot or need space for a turkey or a special baking pan you will want a big compartment. And be sure to measure your available space and pans before going to the store.
• Service and parts. Is this a brand that is common in your area, or will you have to send away for parts? Poll your friends and neighbors regarding service on a particular brand. How long is the warranty? Tip: Long-term service contracts are almost never worth the price, and they generally don’t cover parts. Better to put the money aside to pay for repairs when necessary. Chances are you will come out way ahead.
• Cleaning. I’ve written about the self-cleaning feature in the context of cleaning appliances. The self-cleaning element heats the oven to 1000 degrees Fahrenheit, charring any grease or residue. It often breaks, especially if it hasn’t been used in a while. The oven should be impossible to open during the self-cleaning cycle. Whether or not you get a self-cleaning oven, check for hard-to-clean seams or cracks.
• Timers, clocks, and other features. I’ve had my oven for 6 years and I’m still not sure I know how to use the automatic settings. Chances are the salesperson won’t either, so if this feature is important to you take time to read the instructions. I know that mine will turn off automatically. I can also place food in the oven and set it to turn on, then off again, at a later point.  Note: Many ovens have a safety feature that turns off the oven after two hours.
• Racks. Ovens usually come with baking trays and racks. Be sure that you can get as many as you need. Can you adjust the racks within the oven or are you stuck with one arrangement?
• Safety and accessibility. If you have small children, consider how easy it would be for them open the oven. Some ovens have safety locks that disable operation.  Oven doors are often extremely hot on the outside, so exercise caution when children are around.
• Glass window. Some ovens come with a glass window so that you can check the food while cooking, but this may make them harder to clean, and they can sometimes break. See note below about Smeg.
• Finish. Stainless steel finishes are neutral and timeless, but require a little more maintenance to keep off fingerprints. They also tend to cost more. Colors can look dated after a while, and may not match if you move or renovate. White is usually a good choice if you’re not sure.

Note: Miriam mentioned a problem she had with the Smeg gas oven, and I am putting it out here for general knowledge. When she replace the glass in the door, it imploded during the self-cleaning cycle. It turned out that only one side of the glass was treated to withstand the heat of the self-cleaning. The repairman hadn’t realized this, because most oven manufacturers treat both sides.

What features are important to you in your oven? Is there a particular brand you recommend, or a model that turned out to be a lemon?

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Photo: _JohnMuir

I tend to flip quickly through new cookbooks, skimming over all of the recipes I know I’ll never make: The recipes are too complicated, I don’t keep the necessary ingredients on hand, or the recipes are just another way of combining foods that we get enough of already.

But when Yosefa got interested in pressure cookers and praised Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure, I asked if I could borrow it.

I am not sure when Yosefa will see her book again. Even though I don’t live in the US, I could easily find 95% of the ingredients in the local market. Most of the suggestions include foods that I want to cook more often including quinoa, bulgur, beans peas and lentils, and a wide range of vegetables. The cookbook is nearly all vegan, with a wide range of gluten-free choices as well.

Even when a recipe calls for something that is usually bought processed, like coconut milk, Sass teaches you how to make it at home from dried coconut.  It’s worth buying Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure for that alone. And she gives loads of tips for using your pressure cooker, along with general cooking tips. For instance, she tells us that soaking brown rice reduces cooking time by 40%. Now that’s the kind of tip I like.

Sass teaches you how to make pressure cooked foods more flavorful, and how to avoid scorching foods like tomato sauces.

Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure also includes cooking charts with times for beans and whole grains. She likes to combine whole grains like quinoa or bulgur with brown rice. She lists a selection of “additions” to plain whole grains, classifying them according to whether you’re serving them with Mexican, Chinese or Indian food.

Last week I shared her recipe for Last-Minute Black-Eyed Pea Chili, which will give you a taste of her style. I’ve also made the Caribbean rice with hot pepper and coconut, Potatoes Paprikash, and Lentils and Squash (no need to take off the peel from the butternut squash!).

My only complaint so far is that she recommends cooking brown rice for 25 minutes in the pressure cooker, when I usually cook it for ten. She maintains that the longer cooking time makes the rice chewier and more digestible. I think the right answer for me might be somewhere in between, but I’m still experimenting.

I haven’t completely read through it and am looking forward to learning more tips. And Yosefa, you don’t have to worry—I will definitely be getting my own copy.

Reader tdr pointed out that Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure got five full stars on Amazon.

Slow cookers, first marketed under the brand name crock-pot, are often recommended for busy cooks. You put in the food, turn it on low, and seven or eight hours later you have a delicious meal. Frugal cooks prefer slow cookers too. But are slow cookers truly energy efficient, as is often claimed?

Apparently, we’ve been misled—even compared to the oven, which is considered an inefficient cooking method. The entire oven has to be heated even for a small item, and little of the heat gets to the food. But the oven does work efficiently by cycling on and off according to the internal temperature via a thermostat. I haven’t tested mine, but online I’ve seen 12-15 minutes of use during a full hour. So while the heating elements use 1000-2000 watts an hour, most of the time they will be off and your usage is only about a quarter of that. A lot depends on your oven, its size, and how often you open it.

The Slow cookers, or crock pot, doesn’t have a thermostat. It uses a small amount of wattage, but continuously. Doug Cotes over at The Dollar Stretcher calculated that to run his oven for an hour requires 600 watts. He writes:

Our slow-cooker is a large 5-quart brand with a low cooking power of 180 watts and a high cooking power of 250 watts. It’s information you find on the label. . . . the slow-cooker cooks continuously. What that means is if you cook on high with a 250 watt hour element for 4 hours, you use (4 X 250) 1000 watt hours of electricity. If you cook on low with a 180 watt hour element for 8 hours, you use (8 X 180) 1440 watt hours of electricity. No energy savings at my house. If you have a small slow-cooker with a low range that uses a 70-watt element, cooking for 8 hours only uses 560-watt hours of electricity.

Of course, there are other factors that go into cooking decisions. If you are making a casserole in the oven you can bake bread or roast vegetables at the same time. If you want s hot meal as soon as you get back from work, nothing beats the slow cooker. It’s especially good if you come home at a different time each day. My husband once left a chicken in the slow cooker for three days, and it came out just fine.

I have noticed that having on the slow cooker increases the temperature of my kitchen, so I don’t like to use it in the summer. If you have a small cooker, be sure to compare costs at it is likely to come out cheaper than using the oven.

Comparison of advantages of slow cookers vs. conventional ovens:

Advantages of slow cooker

• Flexibility in the length of cooking time.
• Can be prepared well in advance and forgotten.
• Portable: can be removed from the kitchen in hot weather or brought to a hospital or hotel room (if permitted).
• Easy way to use up leftovers.
• No need for pre-cooking, although you may want to soak beans or sauté onions.
• Great variety of recipes for one-pot meals.
• Can be used creatively for hot cereals, puddings, cakes and more.

Advantages of oven:

• More room to prepare several items and types of food.
• Cooks much faster.
• May use less energy because of quick cooking times, and the thermostat cycles the heating element off and on (see above).

If you are looking for more efficient cooking methods, try a pressure cooker or microwave.

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My Cooking Spreadsheet

Photo credit: Janine

Washing vegetables under the faucet uses up a lot of water, even if you are efficient (keeping the faucet off when needed, and rinsing large amounts all at once). Long ago I considered washing produce in the dishwasher, but I didn’t actually try it until reading about it in unplgged.

You can see from the picture how I distributed the vegetable in the upper and lower racks, in a single layer. I had to arrange them so that nothing would fall through, or hang below the rack and interfere with the spinning jets. As you can see, I used the flatware holders for some of the shorter celery racks.

Important: Use only the cold, rinse cycle with no detergent. I didn’t put any potatoes in this load, but I will next time. You’ll get the most efficiency by using all of the available space.

Results: Clean, although there was still some loose debris on some of the vegetables, so I will need to check each one. I blame this on the vagaries of my dishwasher, not the method. There’s a definite savings on water. As for time, It took several minutes to arrange the vegetables, but not as long as scrubbing each one.

Update: This should be obvious, but avoid washing sandy produce in the dishwasher as dirt can get stuck in the wheels.

Here’s a better view of the top rack:

Would you try this method? Why or why not?

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Tips for Choosing Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

Long-time readers know I enjoy learning the ins and outs of appliances. So whenever a technician visits, I talk to him (so far all male) and ask lots of questions. Of course, you have to take their advice with a grain of salt as you never know when they are trying to make you feel guilty for doing something wrong, to justify an unnecessary repair. And sometimes they are just mistaken. When repairs are simple enough, fixing it yourself is sensible. Appliance parts are readily available online.

Most of us have a few different types of appliances in our home, and repairmen generally specialize in one or the other. The repairman I called claimed that he worked on refrigerators, but in the end called someone else in to look at mine.

There are three main types of appliances and repairmen:

• Air-conditioners, freezers and refrigerators. These all involve cooling and a refrigerant that occasionally leaks.
• Washing machines and dishwashers. which are mainly mechanical and involve plumbing and pipes. Washing machine repairmen generally fix dryers and ovens, which are relatively simple machines.
• Gas. Working with gas burners, heaters, and ovens often requires special training and certification, because a leak can be so dangerous.

Washing machine

After a week of trying to get my regular washing machine repairman to show up, I called someone new. I asked him to look at my 9-year-old Electra front loader. Before you say that a washing machine is off-topic for a cooking website, remember that we use it for tablecloths, towels, napkins and rags.  The machine worked, but the spin cycle made odd noises. He said that the cause was running one load after another without letting the motor cool off and the motor was “sparking.” He took it off to be cleaned and refurbished.

When my older sons both come home for the weekend at the same time this is fairly hard to avoid, but I can try. And I recently found that in the summer when clothes dry quickly, it’s more efficient to wait until I have several full loads and do a marathon session instead of doing one or two loads a day, that may not always be completely full. He suggested 45 minutes after a cold cycle, and 3 hours after a very hot cycle (which I never run). My machine heats the water so it works quite hard for the hottest cycle. He also pointed out that the drums of most newer models are only coated with stainless steel, while mine is all stainless. And newer models are manufactured in China.

Before he left, he told me that he cleaned under the machine, and that it’s important to keep that area clear so that air can circulate. He said that when he comes back in a few years (hopefully not sooner) he’ll check to see whether I did a good job. Gee thanks.

Dishwasher

My dishwasher had been flashing an error message. Depending on how many times it flashes, you know what the repair should be. But the repairman simply reset the machine by pushing on the on button for a few seconds, and the machine stopped flashing. He pointed out that the salt and finishing rinse dispensers were empty. I protested that we always fill them up when the warning light goes off. “Ignore the warning lights. They’re meaningless,” he advised.

Refrigerator

I was concerned about my refrigerator, too, because I had to throw out a lot of food all at once. Recently the refrigerant had leaked out and been refilled, and the technician who did it warned me it that there could be an internal leak he couldn’t fix. The refrigerator technician, called in by the washing machine guy, said it works fine and had just overloaded. He said there was no need to check the level of refrigerant.

I had tried to cool a lot of cooked food at once on an extremely hot day, and everyone was home opening the refrigerator constantly. Some thinks barely lasted overnight. The same thing happened last year, when I cooked for my son’s bar mitzvah. Of course, then I made much larger quantities.

When it gets really hot I need to be vigilant about stagger cooking times, locking the refrigerator, or both. At any rate I was pleased it did not need any repair. Since he ended up repairing my air-conditioner it was not a wasted visit.

So do you think the repairmen know what they are talking about? What have you learned from your appliance repairman?

Photo credit: marcopapale.com

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11 Tips for Painless Kitchen Cleanup

Ever damage or break an appliance in the middle of cleaning it? I know I have. And if you’re expecting company and the repairman can’t get there, you’re stuck. Here are ten tips for cleaning your appliances safely.

1. Read the manual. All manuals provide cleaning instructions, so keep yours in a file for easy access. If you can’t find one, check for your manual online. But don’t follow the manual blindly. If it calls for a specific product, you probably have a substitute at home.
2. Unplug it. If the outlet is hard to reach, you can turn off the correct circuit breaker in the electric box. Remember to turn your refrigerator or freezer back on afterward.
3. Prepare for cleanup. Use gloves and wear old clothes. Spread newspaper underneath to catch spills and crumbs.
4. Don’t lose it. Keep a jar handy to store small parts as you remove them. You may want to draw a diagram so you can put them back correctly. Wash small parts in a pillow-case or mesh bag in the washing machine.
5. Be gentle (I). Harsh chemicals or rough cleaning materials like scotch-bright can damage a shiny finish. Wipe or spray delicate surfaces with a gentle solution, like all-purpose cleaner or dish detergent, wait a few minutes, then wipe.
6. Be gentle (II). It’s no secret that modern appliances use flimsy parts. Use two hands to remove shelves and drawers, and allow plenty of space to work.
7. Use chemicals wisely. Follow instructions on labels, wear gloves, and never mix ammonia and bleach. Use as small an amount as necessary and rinse carefully.
8. Keep it dry. Use a damp cloth for electronic keypads and the stovetop, which stop working when their insides get wet. If you’re lucky they’ll start working again after they dry out, but it can take a few days. Wet appliances can also trip the circuit breaker and cause a power outage.
9. Beware of self-cleaning ovens. Ovens are notorious for breaking during the self-cleaning cycle. If you run the cycle too often, you’ll use up the “glowbar.” But if you wait too long, the mechanism won’t be able to handle all the gunk. Run it after a major cooking session, never before.
10. Be gentle on yourself. A clean appliance isn’t worth a bad back. Know when to ask for help with moving appliances or heavy parts.

Have you ever broken an appliance while cleaning it? Please share your experience and advice in the comments.

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Is This Food Safe to Eat?

When Ilana-Davita mentioned Healthy Helpings in her reader interview, author Norene Gilletz came by to comment. She even joined my Facebook fan page. I wrote to Norene to let her know that I would be dedicating today’s post to her.

My mother loved gadgets. She wasn’t the first to get a microwave, but when she did she read every book and article on microwave cooking she could find.

My mother loved food processors best of all. She had three Cuisinarts: One fleishig (meaty), one pareve (neutral) and one for Passover. When she wanted to make cheesecake, she called the rabbi to approve using the pareve one. Her hand movements were so limited that chopping and mixing were painful. Food processors enabled her to continue to cook for the family. If she couldn’t make it in the food processor, she couldn’t make it at all.

One year my parents decided to spend Passover in my apartment in New York. My mother shipped me a mini-food processor along with basic new kitchen supplies. She couldn’t imagine making Passover without a food processor. (Somehow I did, because the box went back to Cincinnati. The elevator in my building was broken, and there was no one to bring the box up the stairs.) My mother also got me a copy of one of Norene’s earliest cookbooks, The Pleasures of Your Food Processor.

The Pleasures of Your Food Processor, later replaced by the Food Processor Bible, is one of the best resources out there for efficient food processor techniques. Well, I admit I haven’t read any others, but I’m sure I don’t need to. Regular readers of this blog would surely recognize Norene’s techniques.  Pleasures contains recipes for classic Jewish foods like potato kugel, pasta and kreplach, and stuffed cabbage. It has a whole section for Passover.

Many recipes  in Pleasures are too rich for my taste or include processed ingredients. I haven’t read Norene’s newer books, but they are advertised as healthy and light. Either way, you can’t beat Norene when it comes to time-saving methods. When I make honey cake I keep two cookbooks open: Jewish Cookery for its lighter oil-based recipe, and Norene’s Pleasures for its cake-mixing technique.

One clever idea of Norene’s is to make a cardboard cutout the size of the opening of your processor’s feed tube. Keep it in your purse and when you go to the store, you can choose vegetables small enough to fit without extra cutting.

My teens know Pleasures too, since they have taken over the birthday cake baking. The book covers came off long ago, and the recipe for Pareve Chocolate Cake is dusted with cocoa.

In New York I came across Norene’s Microways (no longer in print). My mother was a microwave expert by then and the recipes were similar to Pleasures, so I only mentioned it to her shortly before her death in 1990. I’ll never forget the expression on her face, wondering how I could not have shared this information with her immediately.

Norene, I owe you a debt of thanks for inspiring my mother, who in turn inspired this blog. You are an inspiration to me as well. I’m so glad you stopped by.

Microwave-Safe Casserole with Cover

In my recipes, I like to include instructions for using a variety of cooking methods. Some people don’t own microwaves, but in a dorm or hotel room, that may be the only cooking tool available. Different methods work better for different people and situations.

Reader Ilana-Davita’s stovetop broke, and in the absence of a crockpot she requested microwave recipes. Here are a couple of simple ones. They all require microwave-safe utensils, like toughened glass, ceramic, or silicon.

First read Microwave Myths and Microwave-Safe Utensils.

Microwave Scrambled Eggs:

Beat an egg with salt and pepper, then put it in a small greased bowl.  The egg needs about 60 seconds to cook. It will cook faster and more evenly if you scramble it with a fork in the middle of the cooking time. Cook until just before set. Let it finish on its own or it will be rubbery. Never cook a raw egg without breaking the yolk first, because it will explode.

Microwave rice:

• 1 cup white rice (200 grams)
• 1-1/2 cups water (350 ml)
• Salt

Cook, covered, on high for ten minutes. Make sure your dish is deep. Some recipes call for plastic wrap but a glass or ceramic plate works fine as a cover. It shouldn’t be sealed tightly. Let the rice sit for another ten minutes. (Note to Ariela: This won’t burn.)

Microwaved Vegetables:

You can cook just about any fresh or frozen vegetable in the microwave without additional water. Cooking times depend on the quantity. Below are a few examples:

• Potatoes and sweet potatoes: Scrub and prick with a fork. Place on a glass or ceramic plate. Cook on high for three minutes per potato. Large ones will take longer, but turning the potato over in the middle. If you are making a few, arrange them in the middle.
• Onions: Chop and cook on high, covered, for ten minutes until soft. Add to scrambled eggs, rice, quiche, or other recipes.
• Peppers: A fast, economical substitute for roasted peppers. Slice, cover and cook on high for 2 minutes.
• Eggplant: Chop and cook on high for 6 minutes. No need to salt and drain. Remove the liquid later if you like.

Microwave Oatmeal:

Mix one part whole oats and one part water. Cook for 3 minutes for one cup, more for larger quantities.

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It’s often said that dishwashers save water over washing by hand. I’m not convinced, because it’s possible to hand wash dishes using very little water. And dishwashers use more electricity, and require costly supplies. My mother had one but found it too difficult to bend down to take dishes in and out. Still, they are convenient for most and I want to share tips for saving money and resources when you wash by machine.

1. Always fill the dishwasher completely. Play around to fit in more utensils, but avoid stacking in layers.The water needs to reach the dishes from the top, center and bottom.
2. Buy extra dishes, glasses or flatware if you often run the dishwasher for a specific item.
3. If you use a solar water heater, connect your dishwasher intake pipe to the hot water instead of the cold. Then you won’t pay to heat up water the sun has already heated for free. If the water is cold no harm is done and unlike clothes, dishes aren’t harmed by very hot water.
4. Substitutes: For dishwasher salt, use large grained “kosher” salt. For rinse, use white vinegar and for detergent, there are many natural recipes. I use two teaspoons of a mixture of half borax and half baking soda. If you buy tablets or powder, use half for each load. [Update: I recently went back to commercial detergent, as the substitute caused problems for my machine. I still use the vinegar and salt though.]
5. Check your manual to adjust the amount of rinse used in each wash.
6. Stick with the lowest heat setting, even if it means washing a couple of extra dirty utensils by hand.
7. Clean the dishwasher every so often by cleaning a load at the highest setting. My technician recommends adding citric acid when the water is at its hottest.
8. Wipe filters, walls, nozzles and seals regularly. Wash small parts in a pillowcase in the washing machine.
9. Turn off the dishwasher before the final setting and let dishes air-dry.
10. Scrape dishes carefully. Crumbs and bits of legumes, tomato peels, avocado, peanut butter and dough scraps often stick, while scraps floating around in your machine can leave scratches on glass and china.

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