Quaintrelle Weekender

Four ways to a better weekend

Welcome to Quaintrelle Weekender.

This is a short list of things I am currently loving to make eating, drinking, and hosting easier and a lot more interesting.

Store It:

Restaurant Grade Deli Containers

These are indispensable to the culinary trade. There’s not a restaurant around that doesn’t have thousands of them stockpiled, and the chef’s school at George Brown College, where I teach and take lessons, has boxes of them too. If you’re a serious cook, or a serious about storage, these are a necessity.

I’m very dedicated to these litre, half-litre, and quarter-litre vessels, but it’s come to my attention not everyone knows of them. My mum, for example, just learned the beauty of these convenient containers and now asks me to bring more every time I visit. I think a co-dependency is developing.

Lightweight, yet durable, transparent for easy identification, dishwasher, freezer, microwave, and fridge proof… there’s really nothing these handy repositories can’t do. Plus, the diameter is the same no matter the volume, so the lids fit each container – no more putzing around in the match-the-lid-to-the container game.

They’re super cheap so I can give them away when I bring things to friends’ houses, stackable and take up much less space than conventional containers in the fridge or freezer, and, as mentioned, light weight, so easier to transport than glass.

I’ve linked to Amazon, which has decent prices on containers. If you buy from your local restaurant supply store, they’re even cheaper, but you have to buy by the case, which will be at least hundreds, but probably even thousands. And that’s a lot. Even for a devotee like me.

Cook It Right:

Digital Thermometer

I was grilling steak for a group dinner a few weeks ago.

And I was shocked by how many people complimented me on how well-cooked they were.

This humble brag is not to boast about myself (but if you want to leave a little high-five about my exceptional grilling abilities in the comments below, I really can’t stop you. Go on.)

Here’s my secret to a well-cooked steak: monitor the temperature.

We all laugh at the old trope of dudes let loose at the grill, poking and prodding their meat (a-hem), moving it from one side to another, pressing on it, flipping it, flipping it again. But there’s a reason these tropes exist.

There’s no shame in my grilling game, so rather than gamble on the doneness of a steak or chicken or fish, I use a digital thermometer to monitor the temperature. I have a digital one with pre-sets for meats and temperature, and a long-reaching, heat-proof wire that attaches the temperature gauge to a needle that’s inserted into the meat so I don’t have to lift the barbecue lid (or open the oven) and lose heat. Mine also beeps when the desired temperature is reached so I’m not a slave to the grill.

I know it’s way cooler to open and close the lid 57 times and give your beef a cheeky slap every now and again, but if you want to make meat people actually like, the prosaic thermometer is the way to go.

I got mine for about $15 from Loblaws grocery store in Canada, but I’ve attached a similar that you can find on Amazon.

Out Damned Spot!

Laundry Love by Patric Richardson

Red wine, barbecue sauce, grass. There is no stain imaginable that Laundry Evangelist Patric Richardson can’t tackle, and show you how to do the same safely, environmentally, and efficiently.

I’ve been using his book like a literal laundry bible for two years. I keep it on the shelf next to my washer. I’ve become so adept at stain removal, I stopped a lady in line at the coffee shop the other day to compliment her cream, wide-leg jeans; when she lamented how her boyfriend dropped a Sharpie on them, I had the answer she was seeking. Yes, friends, I too, have become a laundry oracle (if you want to see my effortless red-wine stain removal in action, check out this video).

As we set out for a season’s worth of fun in the sun, get this book and never worry about a grape popsicle, strawberry shortcake, or mayonnaise stains again.

Kitchen Equipped

simplehuman 45 litre/12 gallon hands-free kitchen step trash can

I wrote about my joy at finally indulging in a premium garbage can in April. If you missed it, the blog is linked at the bottom of this post.

But here’s the reality, party planners: you can have all the fancy candles and polished glasses you want, but it’s the unmentionables, and often forgotten abouts, that can make or break a party.

Just like you don’t want to run out of toilet paper, you want an easy, good-looking place to put your trash.

I can’t tell you how much easier my kitchen life has become thanks to my shiny, new garbage can. It keeps things neat, tidy, and smell-free.

It seems utterly ridiculous, but I love this garbage can.

One for the Road

The Paloma is one of my favourite summer cocktails. Tart, sweet, a little salty and just touch bitter. Like me.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz blanco tequila

• 1 ½ oz red grapefruit juice

• ½ oz lime juice

• ½ oz simple syrup

• Salt and/or Tajin for rimming

• Grapefruit wedge for garnish

How to Make It: 

1. Dip the edge of a rock glass into the simple syrup and then into the salt/Tajin mixture.

2. Fill the glass with fresh ice.

3. Into a shaker filled with ice, add the tequila through simple syrup. Shake vigorously until cold and strain into the rimmed glass.

4. Garnish with the grapefruit wedge.

Hey – did you know if you check that little heart at the bottom or the top of this post, the magic internet fairies will show it to more people? And, seeing little hearts all lit up just makes mine light up too.

If you like reading Quaintrelle, it would mean so much to me if you could share it with a few like-minded winos, foodies, travellers, and party throwers.

And if you feel like saying hi, I love to hear from you.