Rules and Regulation in Kitchen Laboratory
1. Get
permission to use the kitchen.
2. Never
run, rush around or throw anything in the kitchen.
3. Work
quietly; avoid unnecessary chat so that the instruction s can be heard.
4 . All
accidents and breakages must be reported at once.
5. A high
level of personal hygiene is expected; wash hands before starting, always wear
an apron, have hair tied back and roll up sleeves.
6. Do not
move around the kitchen with hot objects e.g. frying pans, boiling water.
7. Keep
saucepan handles away from the edges of cookers and work surfaces.
8. Use oven
gloves to remove hot dishes from the oven.
9. Make
sure all appliances are turned off after use.
10. Sharp knives are dangerous be careful using
them.
11. Never touch plugs or electrical equipment with
wet hands.
12. The kitchen is provided with fire blankets and
fire extinguishers.
13. Keep units tidy at all times, all used cutlery
should be placed on a plate and all waste put in the correct bin
14. Handle food as little as possible.
15. Never dip fingers into food, never lick fingers
during cooking. Use a clean spoon each time you taste.
16. Never sit in kitchen work surfaces.
17. Each unit must be left clean, cookers cleaned
and sinks empty and washed.
18. Wash and dry all dishes, cutlery, etc., after
use and return them to their correct unit.
19. All kitchen cloths must be hung on the
clotheshorse after use.
20. Push chairs in under the table after cooking.
Kitchen Tools and Equipments
Electric
mixer: An appliance, either freestanding or
handheld, used for mixing and beating
Food
processor: An electric appliance with a blade
that revolves inside a container to chop, mixes, or blend food
Steamer: A covered pot with an insert something like a strainer,
used for steaming vegetables
Boiler: A utensil made up of two pans that fit together. Heat from
the water boiling in the lower pan cooks food in the upper pan without
scorching.
Double
boiler: Two saucepans that fit together so
that the contents of the upper pan can be cooked or heated by boiling water in
the bottom pan. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can improvise by placing
a heatproof mixing bowl over a larger pot filled with water.
Colander: A bowl with holes in the bottom and sides. It is used for
washing food or draining liquid from a solid food.
Dutch
oven: A heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid.
Dutch ovens are often used for cooking soups or stews.
Mortar: A strong bowl used with a pestle to grind, crush, or mash
spices and other foods
Pestle: A club-shaped utensil used with a mortar to grind, crush,
or mash spices or other foods
Paella
pan: A shallow, two-handled skillet used
to make and serve paella, Spain’s national dish. (Any large skillet can be used
in place of this pan.)
Pastry
brush: A small brush with nylon bristles
used for coating food with melted butter or other liquids
Slotted
spoon: A spoon with small openings in the
bowl, used to remove solid food from liquid
Springform
pan: A pan with a detachable rim
Strainer: A small wire-mesh bowl with a handle. It is used to drain
liquid from solid food or to remove solid bits from a liquid.
Whisk: A wire utensil for beating foods by hand
Wok: A pot with a rounded bottom and sloping sides, ideally
suited for stir-frying. A large skillet is a fine substitute.
Zester: A tool that peels off the rind of citrus fruits in thin
strips
Utensils
1. Spatulas to Blend, Mix,
Scrape
The term spatula refers to several
types of kitchen utensils including: rubber or silicone tools to blend or
scrape the food from the bowl; metal, silicone or plastic egg turners or
flippers. We'll look first at the type you would use to scrape a bowl or
stir in a pot. You need at least a couple of rubber or silicone spatulas, but
more is better, depending on what you like to do in the kitchen. If you
love to bake and cook, a few different styles and sizes would be
advisable. A new handy breed of spatula has emerged the last few years -
a combined spatula and spoon - called a spanula or spatula spoon. And the
Chef'n Company has revised their popular silicone Switchit spatulas, into dual
ended kitchen tools, which are very handy for everything from blending to
cleaning up.
2. Spatulas or Flippers to
Lift, Turn, Remove
Also called spatulas, are egg turners
or flippers for turning hamburgers and other food items. Metal or plastic
spatulas are handy for placing foods in a hot skillet and turning as
required. You can also use these spatulas for serving main dishes or
dessert portions. An assortment of sizes and styles is very practical for
various tasks and you'll want to have at least one that is very thin for removing
cookies from a baking sheet, as well as one that is very flexible for turning
eggs. Silicone spatulas are handy when turning foods in a hot skillet -
they can take the heat. However, they are more 'slippery' than other
types and not the best for turning eggs neatly.
3. Wooden Spoons
Wooden spoons continue to be kitchen
essentials because of their usefulness for mixing and stirring, either in a
bowl or in a pot on the stove. They are also ideal for use in nonstick
cookware. Though they do wear down over time and tend to discolor easily,
most are very durable. Though you can use a large metal stirring spoon
for mixing, a wooden spoon is preferred by most. That being said, there
are those that have turned their attention to the new spatula spoon or spanula
that can also take the heat.
4. Openers for Cans, Bottles,
Cartons
The basic opener - and every kitchen
needs at least one, is an opener that can open a food tin, preferably with a
smooth operation, and comfortable grip and turning knob. Though some prefer an
electric can opener, it's always handy to have a rotary model on hand for use
during power outages. In fact, your disaster kit should contain a simple, basic
can opener. You also need a can punch or bottle opener. Then there are
various other openers or box cutters for cartons or to safely open clamshell
packaging. And if you like to serve wine, a good cookscrew remover is a
must.
5. Vegetable Peelers
It can peel carrots or
potatoes with a paring knife, but you'll do a cleaner and sometimes safer job
with a vegetable peeler. You'll also remove less of the vegetable while
doing so, which means more food for the pot and so for this reason alone, a
peeler is worth having. There are various styles of peelers and most are
sharp and efficient. It really depends on your preference when it comes
to choosing between a straight (traditional) peeler and one where the blade is
offset. Some peelers are larger and more suited to peeling a large fruit
or vegetable. When choosing a peeler, handle it and see how well it fits
in your hand, because handle lengths do vary.
6. Serving and Salad Spoons
There are various serving spoons and
you'll need at least a small assortment and more, if you do a lot of
entertaining or buffet serving. Serving spoons come in either metal, stainless
or plastic construction. There are also slotted spoons for serving vegetables
and longer salad spoons which are usually a pair of specially-designed tools
that make serving lettuce or coleslaw easier. It can be very handy to have
different sizes of spoons, for serving from small bowls or large platter, or to
accommodate different food portions.
7. Soup Ladle
One of the most essential kitchen
utensils is a large soup spoon or ladle which is used for serving soup or
stews, but can also be used for gravy, dessert sauces or other foods. Use
a smaller ladle for delicate sauces or small servings. A soup ladle also
works well to remove or skim off fat from soups and stews.
8. Splatter Scren
Splatter screens are very handy and
easy to store, but not always on a cook's essential list of kitchen tools, but
they should be. That's because a splatter screen can save you clean-up time and
it can also make you want to cook or fry those foods that you tend to avoid,
simply because of the grease splatter they cause.
9. Pasta Spoon or Server
While you can serve pasta with a fork
or serving spoon, it's usually a messy operation. But with a pasta spoon
or server, you can easily transfer a little or much cooked pasta to a waiting
plate, without that mess. Pasta spoons are best used with spaghetti-style
or other long pasta noodles; you can use a large slotted serving spoon for
short pastas. There are plastic or metal pasta spoons - choose one based
on the type of pasta cooking pot you use. If you usually use a
nonstick pot, buy a plastic pasta spoon, which can then be used in any type of
pot, but avoid using a metal spoon in a nonstick pot.
10. Whisks for Blending,
Mixing
A wire or stainless whisk is
very practical for quick blending, mixing and whipping. Though it would take a
long time to whip cream with a hand whisk (this task is more quickly
accomplished with a hand blender or mixer), a wire whisk is great for blending
gravy, scrambling an egg or mixing a quick oil dressing. You can find a variety
of sizes and shapes of whisks on the market and more than one, can be very
practical for those who love to cook and bake.
