Sunday Times

Ask Hilary

- James Orchard, Cape Town

Stewing over a recipe? Baffled by an ingredient? Short on meal ideas? Email food@sundaytime­s.co.za

Iwas glued to the recent Australian series of MasterChef and was wondering where I could find some of the specialise­d kitchen equipment used during the show — especially those nifty smokers the contestant­s used.

● Season 9 of MasterChef Australia must surely go down in history as the season of gadget wizardry as the contestant­s whipped out a number of nifty kitchen tools. Some of the favourites were:

Electric gelato/ice-cream makers Runner-up Ben Ungermann couldn’t start a cook-off without his ice-cream maker by his side as he whipped up an impressive variety of both sweet and savoury ice creams.

Food aromatiser used to conjure up aromatic vapours to stimulate the senses. The contestant­s couldn’t resist using this tool to create evocative puffs of smoke.

Electric pressure cookers after the icecream machine probably the most popular piece of equipment. But it was the lids that caused heart-stopping moments as contestant­s struggled to release them with seconds to go before plating.

Sous vide water baths and vacuum sealers not as popular in this season as in previous ones but cooking in plastic bags is here to stay.

Handheld smokers I too coveted the smokers mainly because they weren’t technologi­cally challengin­g as many kitchen tools are — and they are very effective too.

 ??  ?? All the listed kitchen tools are available online through yuppiechef, although at a price. The handheld smoker sells for just under R6 000, which is some investment for a puff of smoke. yuppiechef.com
All the listed kitchen tools are available online through yuppiechef, although at a price. The handheld smoker sells for just under R6 000, which is some investment for a puff of smoke. yuppiechef.com
 ??  ??

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