Tools and Techniques

Baking Tools and Techniques Tools:

Mixing Bowl, Electric Mixer or a wooden stick, Cake tins, Measuring cups and spoons, Kitchen scale, Sieve, Oven gloves, Rolling Pin, Apron, Napkins, Icing accessories and Oven

**Baking Techniques:**

There are four (4) major techniques in the art of baking: -

Creaming: This involves mixing butter or butter and sugar together depending on the recipe until it is light and fluffy. The mixture has to be ready for the next step. This technique could also determine how fluffy your end product will be
Whisking: This method is for recipes that have eggs as the main ingredient e.g sponge cake. It is also the method used in beating eggs to put in your basic cake mixture after creaming. This method also determines how fluffy your end product will be
Folding in: This involves putting your dry ingredients into the mixture. Stir until mixture is smooth. Avoid beating during this step as over enthusiastic beating can produce a heavy and coarse-textured cake. Folding-in process allows air into the mixture as well which helps in the leavening of the cake
Kneading: This involves folding your pastry over itself and pressing it flat until it is smooth. The work surface should be sprinkled with flour when preparing bread, chin chin, meat pie or icing when preparing fondant icing These techniques may vary depending on the recipes you are working with

**Cooking Techniques:**

Cooking can be done with or without water or oil

Boiling: Cooking with complete immersion of food in water in high temperature
Blanching: Cooking with partial immersion in water
Simmering: Cooking with complete immersion in water but below boiling point
Pressure Cooking: Cooking with in a special pressure pot. Food cooks faster with a pressure cooker
Sauteing: Complete or partial cooking of food but food does not change colour. Cooking is done with low heat, little fat and with the juice of the food
Stewing: Complete cooking of food in an equal mixture of oil and water
Steaming: Cooking with the food placed over steam from boiling water
Baking: Heating up food without water usually in an enclosed compartment – an oven
Grilling: Cooking without water cooking that involves dry heat being applied to the surface of the food
Barbecue: Cooking meat with the heat and hot smoke of a fire from smoking wood, hot coals of charcoal, cooking gas or even electricity. It may also include application of a marinade or a spicy sauce to the meat or vegetables as seasoning
Stir Frying: Partial or complete cooking with fat and at a high temperature for a short time
Deep Frying: Complete immersion of food in a lot of oil and usually for a long time. The food usually changes colour
Microwave Cooking: Cooking with microwave heat. It is not medically recommended.