283735 Thu Mar 09 13:33:44 -0800 2006 21 31 Home Cooking 0 1515307 I’ve finally worn out all the kitchen towels I’ve been gifted over the years. You know, the ones with scenes of Paris or pictures of Italian wine bottles, and am on a quest. Needs: 1) an all-purpose kitchen towel, preferably just plain white, no cutesy-poo designs or editorial comments, to wipe up spills, use as a potholder, dry pots and roasting pans. The usual. 2) towels on which I can dry pasta. The two towels need not be the same. Problems: I bought bar wipes and love them for their absorbancy. But they stain something awful and fall into shreds when bleached. I also tried an 80% polyester/20% nylon microfiber towel. Great for dusting and drying glassware (which I don’t usually do anyway), but they stain just as easily, aren’t any good for drying pasta, and can’t be bleached either. Any recommendations and/or sources for me? Thu Mar 09 13:33:44 -0800 2006 0 JoanN 1 1515308 I buy terry cloth or sturdy cotton when I see it on sale at the fabric store, cut squares or rectangles, and hem them with my sewing machine. For presents I attach colorful binding and sometimes add a loop so you can hang them on a hook, but for myself they just need to be hemmed. Cheap, sturdy, and I don't cry when they get stained. Thu Mar 09 13:40:23 -0800 2006 1515307 0 nooodles 1 1515309 I like the Ritz brand and have used them for many years. They are 100% cotton and take bleaching easily. Some I have are over 15 years old, I know because of a change in kitchen color scheme. They just keep on going and get better with age. Thu Mar 09 13:47:17 -0800 2006 1515307 0 Candy 1 1515310 My husband (clean freak) loves the flour sack towels from Williams Sonoma because they are so absorbent. (he can't deal with a water spot) They are thin and will eventually fall apart, but I just toss them...they aren't expensive. Thu Mar 09 13:56:14 -0800 2006 1515307 0 danna 2 1515313 They are fabulous...thin absorbant, large enough, bleach well, don't leave lint/fuzz like terry cloth...they are all I use. They have them at Sur La Table for way less than W-S. Thu Mar 09 14:22:27 -0800 2006 1515310 0 Aaron 3 1515347 I'll third the suggestion for flour sack. Love em. I just bought some not quite as good but extremely cheap and similar type towels at Ikea. Thu Mar 09 21:56:25 -0800 2006 1515313 0 Amuse Bouches 1 1515314 For #1, I like All Purpose Kitchen Towels from Williams Sonoma. It seems as though they would fit your bill perfectly--they are very durable, and very absorbant. And plain white. I believe they are around $16 for 4. [n.b. I work at Williams Sonoma partime--but I think these towels would be worth it even w/o the discount.] Thu Mar 09 14:26:03 -0800 2006 1515307 0 Bev 1 1515316 Dollar store - When they get yucky they are demoted to car washing/waxing rags or thrown out. Thu Mar 09 15:20:36 -0800 2006 1515307 0 EAF 1 1515318 I buy mine at Costco. 48 white towels. All cotton. I think they were $12. They do stain a bit, but I have never had to use bleach. When they get too old, I don't mind chucking them as they are so cheap. But I prefer to use them and not run through a bunch of paper towels. Thu Mar 09 15:34:48 -0800 2006 1515307 0 Tugboat 2 1515326 Those are the ones that I use most of the time. First as kitchen towels and when they do become stained they are good for kitchen and general house cleaning (not to imply that my house is clean)! Too many times with bleach and they do disintegrate but they are so low in price, who cares. The ones that I've been gifted come out when I have dinner guests. Thu Mar 09 16:56:16 -0800 2006 1515318 0 sel 1 1515337 For drying dishes I have a bunch of sturdy old linen towels I've bought at antique malls over the years. Typically about $5 each, and they last forever - I'm sure some of them could have qualified for Social Security before I did! For most kitchen work that I'd rather not use paper towels for, like wiping down meat or drying the inside of a chicken, I have a stack of cotton towels I bought somewhere - I think maybe the sadly departed Lechter's - many years ago. They are indelibly stained, but what the heck. When they get a little shabbier I'll probably get a bundle from IKEA, since they seem to have the best stuff for the least money. Costco would be a decent alternative. While the W-S towels someone else mentioned might be great, I believe the IKEA towels come in at well under $1 apiece. Thu Mar 09 19:30:30 -0800 2006 1515307 0 Will Owen 2 1515420 Wasn't Lechter's a wonderful place to buy kitchen stuff? Can't believe they went under. I thought I was single-handedly supporting them! I still treaure lots of my stuff that came from there. Fri Mar 10 12:23:28 -0800 2006 1515337 0 sudiepav 1 1515338 First, I have to confess that I am a sucker for the Le Jacquard Francais towels, in blue. I also bought lot of other french dish towels a year or two ago in France for a lot less. My big question though is: when do you need to try pasta with towels - please pardon my ignorance - is this a part of making fresh pasta! Thu Mar 09 19:52:43 -0800 2006 1515307 0 MMRuth 2 1515341 no, you hang it on a wooden rack -- or a wooden dowel! Thu Mar 09 20:53:01 -0800 2006 1515338 0 willow 3 1515352 Marcella Hazan dries pasta on clean, dry, towels--and so do I. Thu Mar 09 23:05:10 -0800 2006 1515341 0 JoanN 4 1515377 I've always dried pasta on a cheap plastic tablecloth that I use just for that purpose. Fri Mar 10 07:35:44 -0800 2006 1515352 0 coll 5 1515383 What an interesting idea. That could work perfectly for me since in my NYC apartment I need to dry pasta on my coffee table. It's always a pain laying out half a dozen or so kitchen towels. Thanks for the tip. Fri Mar 10 08:50:36 -0800 2006 1515377 0 JoanN 4 1515421 My Italian grandmother used white muslin sheets Fri Mar 10 12:31:47 -0800 2006 1515352 0 Taralli 1 1515348 I am a Handweaver and enjoy weaving 100% cotton and a blend of cotton and linen teatowels. I usually weave 5 towels in a batch and I get to keep one for myself and the other 4 I sell or give away. I make the towels quite large ( 19"x34 "). I thoroughly enjoy using all the towels I have. They are very absorbant and only get better with each washing. I have never bought a commercial teatowel which measures up to a handwoven one. So if you get the chance, buy a handwoven teatowel. They are worth every penny. Thu Mar 09 22:27:39 -0800 2006 1515307 0 BJ 1 1515441 I actually love the white dishtowels with red loops that IKEA sells. They are thick, very absorbent and look good. But I don't wipe spills with them - I use a sponge for that. Fri Mar 10 14:59:34 -0800 2006 1515307 0 Sir Gawain 1 1515452 A hint, no matter which you pick. I have two types of towels in my kitchen - white and colored. Everyone in my family knows that white towels don't get wet, EVER! White is only used to handle hot stuff and I don't want to ever rush to pick up a hot pan or lid and get a steam burn - so that's the rule. It works very well. Fri Mar 10 15:51:14 -0800 2006 1515307 0 kim shook 1 1516034 I have been using Land's End's kitchen towels, both terry style, and flat weave (flour sack?) for at least 12 years. The old terry ones have been fraying around the edges for a year or two, but they still work just fine. They are large, very absorbent, and well made. p.j. Tue Mar 14 12:24:29 -0800 2006 1515307 0 p.j.