Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Household Hints - Knives - Don't Put Knives in the Dishwasher

Question: Can good quality knives be cleaned in the dishwasher?

Answer: Well...answers on this one can vary. For example, fine knife makers like Wusthof say right on their website that technically you CAN clean their knives in the dishwasher. BUT - handwashing any fine knives is always recommended. In fact, even if you only have regular old cheapy knives, it's still going to maintain a sharp blade far longer if you carefully handwash these in the sink with some soapy water.

Why? The high temperature and bleaching agents in the dishwasher detergent cause damage to the knife's surface. If you've invested in quality knives by Wusthof, Henckels or Global, then take the time to wash the knives in some soapy water - by hand. You'll be taking much better care of your investment.

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I LOVE Kitchen Gadgets!
(Including fine knives...)
See my favorites at:
http://kitchengadget.blogspot.com/
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Saturday, December 15, 2007

Household Hints - Cooking Hints - Freeze Leftover Stock or Broth into Cubes

Freeze leftover homemade stock or broth in an ice cube tray, and then transfer the frozen stock cubes into baggies for storage. This makes it so easy to add a little bit of homemade stock to recipes that call for stock or broth cubes - you can use your delicious homemade stock instead!

Make sure to label the baggies so that you know what type of broth you have frozen inside.

Friday, December 07, 2007

Household Hints - Easy Cheap Way to Clean Copper

For a cheap formula for cleaning copper, just make a thick paste of lemon juice and salt. It really is that easy!

If you prefer to spend a little money on a good cookware cleaner - Swiss Cleaner is the cleaner that I recommend. It's great on copper AND stainless.