A culinary torch is essentially a magic wand that can transform your meals into those of a professional chef. A culinary torch is an ideal tool to finish your dish with the finesse of a chef, whether it be a perfectly made Crème Brûlée or a straightforward sweet marshmallow.
What is a Culinary Torch?
A small, handheld butane torch known as a culinary torch is frequently used to melt cheese, caramelize crème brûlée, brown baked meringues, roast small peppers, and caramelize crème brûlée. They are sometimes referred to as chef’s torches or cooking torches and are used anywhere a quick toast is required or melts.
Mini-butane torches, brazing torches, and soldering torches are some common names for the culinary torch. They have gained popularity as a useful addition to the chef’s toolkit due to their simplicity of use and wide range of uses.
Types of Culinary Torches
Culinary torches come in two main types: refillable and detachable.
1. Refillable Kitchen Torches
Once the fuel runs out in a culinary torch with a refillable design, you can refuel it by adding more fuel to the canister. Additionally, getting the hang of refueling them might require some practice. Refillable models, on the other hand, are equipped with numerous safety features for maximum security, ensuring that nothing can go wrong while you use them.
2. Detachable Culinary Torches
A separate canister is required for detachable torch heads. Detachable kitchen torches won’t save you the trouble of having to learn how to refill fuel, even though they might not have as many safety features as their refillable counterpart. For safety’s sake, you can also just take the torch out of the fuel canister.
Fun Uses and Benefits of Culinary Torch
A culinary torch is used to add a little magic and a lot of flavor to your dishes, from caramelizing sugar over the pudding to flaming cocktails. For the cheese lover in you, you can use it to grill cheese on your pizza. In the kitchen, a torch is also used to skin tomatoes and toast bread. Here are some additional creatives uses and benefits of using culinary torches:
1. Toast Oatmeal Toppings
The ideal way to transform your oats into something new and exciting is to torch your toppings. Additionally, it will wake you up. Add cinnamon and fat-burning unsweetened cocoa powder to the top of the bowl, then torch the spices to give them a smoky flavor. Simple bananas foster oatmeal can be made for those with a sweet tooth by adding a few drops of vanilla extract to the oats and topping it with sliced bananas, cinnamon, and honey. After that, let the toppings caramelize under the torch. Or, if you’re in the mood for something savory, spread some heart-healthy almond butter on your oats and melt it to perfection with a few passes of your torch.
2. Crisp your Dinner with Protein
Before putting the protein in the oven, lightly char the surface of any meat that is best served a little underdone, such as lamb, prime rib, and roast beef. Fish respond well to this technique as well. To give your salmon fillet that extra bite, simply scorch the skin. And to impress your guests before dinner is even served, wrap grilled asparagus in turkey bacon and set it on fire for a crowd-pleasing appetizer.
3. Simulate Grill Marks
After expertly searing your preferred meat, go the extra mile by swiping your torch across the surface of the meat or a vegetable side dish several times until it produces the lovely charred marks that grillers swoon over.
4. Roasted Pepper and Beans
Avoid the canned variety and roast your tomatoes and peppers instead. These red superfoods will be scorched by your culinary torch much more quickly than your oven would like. It is a fantastic way to quickly dress up a sandwich. Additionally, numerous studies demonstrate that red fruits and vegetables, which derive their rosy color from flavonoids called anthocyanins, are particularly effective at battling fat.
5. Set Fruit Aflame
Simply torch the surface of your preferred fruit for a quick breakfast or nutritious dessert. There is no requirement to sprinkle any saccharine crystals because the flame will quickly caramelize the fruit’s inherently sweet sugars. The best fruits to use are figs, peaches, bananas, and grapefruit, though you can try any fruit.
6. S’mores Indoors
You don’t need to round up a lot of busy friends to go camping or bug your boyfriend to get wood for the backyard fire pit when you have a food torch. Simply place two graham crackers, a marshmallow, and a cube of rich dark chocolate between them, and toast with a torch.
7. Melt cheese on Anything!
With a kitchen torch, perfectly melted cheese can be made in a matter of minutes, whether you’re sprinkling the good stuff on a bowl of homemade French onion soup or layering slices on sourdough.
8. Brown Breadcrumbs
Use your kitchen torch to scorch the breadcrumbs instead of simply scattering them on your salad for a more flavorful Caesar salad. Or, when you’ve made up your mind to make your version of mac and cheese, skip those endless minutes spent watching the breadcrumbs bake under the broiler. Just pass your food torch over the plate until the crumbs are flawlessly golden.
9. Spruce Up your Corn Salsa
Put fresh or frozen corn kernels in a metal bowl and lightly scorch them with your torch for a tasty twist on a traditional Mexican dish. Add a few shakes of salt and pepper along with your homemade roasted red peppers, chopped jalapenos, red onion, and cilantro.
10. Decorate Desserts
Burn some brownie brittle or gently ignite frosting. In either case, a creation that has been touched by fire will give all of your favorite desserts a deep, rich color and smoky flavor.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many things you can do with culinary torches. As you can see, cooking torches have unique benefits, creative applications, and strengths. Your culinary creativity will increase with the use of this tool.