Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Tips & Tricks: Side to Side Whisking

I like to whip cream using a whisk instead of my Kitchen Aid mixer.

There's something tactile about watching the cream change as I whisk it around. And to my mind it makes less to wash up after. Though that's probably not really true. But it's stuck in my head, so there you go.

I was interested when the July/August Cook's Illustrated has a piece on The Best Way to Use a Whisk.

It turns out that "side-to-side" works best. Much better, in fact, than the standard beating action we've all been taught. There's a lot of scientific talk about "shear force" and suchlike, and you can pick up a copy to get all the scoop.  I made a Pavlova last weekend and whipping up that cream with a back and forth action was definitely easy.

I also must put in a word here for Trader Joe's heavy cream. They've got really great dairy products, including a cottage cheese that is better than any of the regular stores. And their whipping cream is a nice thick and delicious product.

More about that Pavlova to come ...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I, too, love TJ's cottage cheese (and TJ's yogurt, and TJ's OJ and...). But, Julie, several years ago I sent a check to the company that you recommended for its exceptional canned tuna, and the company never responded. Sigh. I do appreciate your blogs, though -- that never changes. Thank you.
Best wishes always --
Meem

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