Kitchen Collection Non-Stick Cooling Rack: So handy in the kitchen
Written: Oct 07 '09 (Updated Oct 08 '09)
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| rudixeno's Full Review: Kitchen Collection Non-Stick Cooling Rack |
I’m not exactly sure where the first of these to show up in our kitchen came from. It seems that it’s just always been there. My lovely wife swears that I must have bought it, but I know differently. It’s possible that she bought it, but probably more likely that one of our friends or relatives left it after a children’s baking project. All I know is that as the chief chef in this family, I have come to think of it as indispensible.
That’s why when I was attending a garage sale not too many months ago and I spotted a stack of six of these on a table I snatched the whole lot of them. “How much?” I inquired. “Three dollars”, came the reply. Sold, I decided.
Now those who follow me know I’m really not much into baking. Sure I dabble from time to time, but it’s not something that’s taken hold of me. My wife and daughter are a whole other story. They do enjoy the mom/daughter cookie thing. And, if you’re baking cookies, a cooling rack is just the thing to make your cookies come out crispy and oh so good. At 10” x 16”, this rack is just about right for a batch of pre-boxed or rolled cookies. Any more than that and you’ll find it small.
So, of course when I saw a half dozen of these beauties available for a scant $3.00, what was there to think about? I snatched them.
Kitchen Collection Non-Stick Cooling Rack
Okay, so we’re talking about a wire, raised cooling rack measuring 10” x 16”. It has a non-stick coating on it that keeps it non-stick of course, but also keeps it from rusting. The girls love them for baking projects of course, but I find them to be quite versatile. Sure, for the rare baking project of mine they are great. But I find several uses for them.
Given their size they make an excellent trivet for our glassed-topped breakfast and dining room tables. When I take out a blistering casserole prepared in either one of my Anchor-Hocking or Le Creuset Baking pans, I can set it right down on the glass-top without worrying about damage. But honestly, I have a whole collection of decorative trivets that can be used.
Frying: The sweet spot
Where I find the Kitchen Collection Non-Stick Cooling Rack to really come in handy is in the area of frying. I do so love fried foods.
Of course it doesn’t take much imagination to see that by placing one or a few of these on top of some paper towels you can drain your fried foods of excess oils, and of course I find it very handy in this roll. But, where I really find this cooling rack handy is during frying preparation, especially when I’m engaged in my beloved Southern Frying projects.
A Proper Set-Up
When I’m doing my southern frying thing, I have a standard preparation routine. I beat some egg whites and prepare a mixture of 2/3 rds all purpose flour to 1/3 corn starch and mix it well. I coat my chicken or pork chops in the egg white then dredge them in the flour/starch mixture. Of course I have already heated some frying oil up to about 375F degrees.
Now some cooks will put the chicken piece or chop straight away into the fryer. This is a very common technique. I prefer to take the dredged piece and let it rest for about 15 minutes on top of the cooling rack to allow the egg white and flour mix to set-up. If you think of the egg-wash as a paste, all of this makes perfect sense. After about 15 minutes the pieces can be placed in the hot oil without the flour mix falling off and clouding the oil. The results approach perfection in terms of producing a nice crisp golden brown piece.
Draining
If you set up your Kitchen Collection Non-Stick Cooling Rack on top of paper toweling from the start of the meal prep, the pieces can be removed from the fryer to the rack exactly where you left them. How convenient is this?
Size as an issue
At 10” x 16”, a single rack is just large enough for eight crowded pieces of chicken. It’s good, but not great. Pork chops, of course are a whole other story. There’s just not enough room on a single rack. I find that I use a minimum of three racks when preparing a meal and more if I’m preparing for a crowd.
Although there are larger racks of this type available from Kitchen Collection, having 7 of these in our house has seemed to do the trick for virtually any size project. I also like the versatility of placing the 10” x 16” racks wherever I can find a place for them. In a busy kitchen that can be a challenge.
Clean-Up
Having a non-stick coating on these racks makes their clean-up a rather simple thing. Like most cooks I find clean-up the least inspiring part of the job. If I’m using only one or two of these racks hand-washing is little more than a little soapy water and a rinse under the faucet. When using the whole gang, I generally just put them in the dishwasher.
Bottom Line
Whether you choose to bake, fry or both the Kitchen Collection Non-Stick Cooling Rack is a kitchen tool well worth having. I believe you can find them on-line for about $9.99 for a pair. If you see them at a tag or garage sale just grab them. You won’t be sorry. I highly recommend them.
Now go cook something good tonight.
Rudi
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 3.00 used
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