Readers weigh in on essential kitchen equipment

THE “Worth It? Not Worth It?”(Oct. 8) article by Russ Parsons and Amy Scattergood about the kitchen equipment they consider a good value prompted more than 100 responses at latimes.com/food and in e-mail. Many readers took issue about whether toasters and mini food processors are indeed not worth it.

OVERALL I agree with most of your selections. But I have had a mini Krups food processor for over 10 years and have used it probably 10 times more than my big processor. It is perfect for making quick dressings, homemade mayo and bread crumbs, and finely chopping pecans and flour together to coat your catfish with . . . and so on. It is very easy to clean (all parts go into the dishwasher).

The toaster argument falls flat. After a couple of years using our large toaster oven to toast a single bagel or a couple of slices of bread, I said enough! It took way too long, had uneven results and used a huge amount of power for what it was worth. So I bought a $25 toaster (four slots, bagel setting), and it does the job.

And yes, many people still toast bread, English muffins and bagels at home.

Ken Goldenberg

Rancho Santa Margarita

I’M WRITING to compliment you on your comments on big red wines.

They are indeed getting too big, and too often the producers of such wines are getting defensive about it. “Come on, get over it,” “It’s just a number,” “Yeah, but it’s balanced,” “OK, sure we can get it down if you want green weedy wines.”

These are just a few of the comments I’ve heard over the past few years from longtime and newbie winemakers alike.

We can speculate all we want as to the genesis of these overblown wines, but when Chardonnay starts running the gamut of 15.7% to 16.1% (2005 Diatom), like you, I think they “got some ‘splainin’ to do.”

Eric Anderson

Irvine

IBOUGHT a set of Le Creuset enameled iron cookware 20 years ago that I still use on a weekly basis!

Nancy Schwartz

Sherman Oaks

YOU HAVE the mini food processor in the “Not worth it” list. Mini food processors are great for making pesto and vinaigrette for two. I agree with having good dried pasta; the differences between brands are not hard to appreciate. There’s a distinctive difference in texture and taste.

Paul Del Bene

Laguna Niguel

IAM writing to take issue with several of your statements about toasters. Here are the facts from HomeWorld Business magazine for 2007:

* In 2006, toaster sales in the U.S. reached $276.7 million, up from $258.6 million in 2005.

* In 2006, 15.3 million toasters were sold in the United States, up from 14.8 million sold in 2005.

As for your claim that bagels get stuck in toasters . . . the majority of toasters today have wide openings to accommodate bagels and thick-sliced bread.

Howard George

Huntington Beach

ICOULDN’T agree more about mortar and pestles and enameled Dutch ovens!

But I’m afraid Wizard Parsons now owes us a recipe for making our own red wine vinegar. He made it sound so easy, but a Google search reveals the process is fraught with pitfalls! I’m sure I speak for thousands when I say that we are waiting!

Sandra Sutphen

Yorba Linda

Editor’s note: You can find Russ Parsons’ instructions for making red wine vinegar on the Food blog, Daily Dish, at latimesblogs.latimes.com/dailydish.

MY COMPLIMENTS on a nice article.

I would suggest that, in addition to high-quality coffee beans, a burr grinder is indispensable. The freshness and consistency of the brew is really amazing. I used to have one of those cheapo wing types, but the burr grinder changed my life. At under $75 for a decent burr model, that’s only about 15 lattes payback.

Chris Howe

Encino