Tools of the trade: more essential equipment

Food dehydrator​

Carol Haime, licensee of the Sandrock, in Farnham, Surrey, says her latest kitchen purchase is a food dehydrator.

She says: “I have been having loads of fun experimenting with drying lots of different foods. I have made onion and garlic crisps, dried banana, apple

slices and blueberries [to make a designer breakfast cereal], and dried some unusual chillies to make chilli powder.”

Haime adds: “I have also dried herbs, flowers, wild mushrooms, and spiced marinated beef and venison to make my own versions of biltong. Dehydrated foods last a long time and the nutrients are preserved with only the water being removed. It’s great for using up things that might otherwise be wasted and can help create some unusual garnishes for dishes.”

Microplane zesters​

Jesse Dunford Wood, chef patron at the Parlour, in Kensal Green, London, says he couldn’t do without a large amount of Microplane zesters. “You can use it for cheese, nuts, chocolate, lemon zest, or any citrus zest. We also use it for grating fresh horseradish on Sunday beef.”

“It literally gets used for everything in the kitchen and we have two in every section. They do tend to break though because they’re really fine. We absolutely rip through them.”

Thermomix​

Ashley Craig McCarthy, licensee at Ye Old Sun Inn, Colton, says: “We use a Thermomix which is great for purées, soups and custard. It’s a piece of
kit from Germany — effectively a food processor that heats while blending.”

He adds: “If you are blitzing a soup down, it cooks it well and it is silky smooth when it comes out. It saves a lot of time.”