Raw Kitchen Equipment #1

I love reading and seeing how other people live their lives, not just in terms of food, clothes, partners, family, friends, ideas, careers and dreams, but ‘dressing’ their homes as it were too. I like anonymous old things and places, rather than the ‘names’ of interior design and destinations. To that end, this site, and also this (this too!), give me great pleasure and inspiration. I’ve been thinking interiors recently, specifically kitchens. As much recycling and natural light as possible is a given, and whilst I muse on ideas and inspiration (pic from the non-raw Tassajara Bread Book), I thought I’d introduce my occasional series on raw kitchen gadgets. To tell the truth, I’m not a gadget person, I like as little kitchen kit as possible and preferably things that have been handed-down, or bought at boot-sales, flea markets etc. But there are certain (new) things that make life easier.

#1 in my occasional series is my coconut machine. Mature coconuts can be more than a little - ahem - tricky in terms of preparation, but this machine purchased from Southall, West London, for about £10 if I remember rightly, makes light work of the task in hand, and means there’s no more battling in trying to prise the shell from the meat. Simply open the coconut eyes to retrieve the milk, whack the coconut in half, and then wind the handle of the machine to grind the meat whilst holding the shell in your hand. It’s quick, easy and hand-powered - perfect! You can blend the results with a small amount of the coconut milk to make a fantastic coconut sauce, or dehydrate for use in various recipes. A particular favourite of mine is the live coconut pie from I Am Grateful (new book out in the UK on the 1st of November - can’t wait), which I sprinkle with home-grown redcurrants (yes, they’re still going strong).

For me, the blurb on the back of Tassajara Cooking says it all in terms of recipe guidance (indeed life): ‘... The recipes are not for you to follow, they are for you to create, invent, test. It explains things you need to know, and things to watch out for. There are plenty of things left for you to discover, learn, stumble upon. Blessings. You’re on your own. Together with everything’.