balloon whisk

[hobbess]

Any favorites?

I've decided to start making my own whipped cream by hand, and stop buying it from a can.

[SanityRemoved]

The Piano whip or whisk is the lighter of the two whips and the wires are free except where they meet the handle. The French whip is more rigid and has a retaining wire to keep the shape when used with heavier ingredients.

At a restaurant supply house you could probably pick up both for the price of one of similar quality somewhere else.

[cutipie721]

If you're looking to replace whipped cream in a can, may I suggest getting a nitrogen dispenser instead?
http://www.creamright.com/

I use a mixer to whip cream if it's used for making dessert, like mousse. But if I want a dollop of whipped cream on my hot chocolate or if I want those pretty swirls on desserts as a garnish, I get it from a dispenser.

[hobbess]

Anybody have an Oxo balloon whisk? Its on sale, and would cost about the same as getting one from a restaurant supply store.

http://www.oxo.com/p-650-11-balloon-w...

It looks like it has lots of metal hoops, but I'm concerned about the shape- it looks a lot like a french whisk. But, ouldn't you want a balloon whisk that's shaped more like a ball?

[TeRReT]

To be honest I have a feeling it would be too soft and flimsy, but I may be slightly biased. If you could go to a store and feel it, you want it to be firm and strong, the more soft and give it has the more difficult it is to whip rapidly. It looks like its almost the correct shape, just for some reason I'm not entirely convinced without seeing it in person.

[rainey]

I agree with the first poster -- get a hand mixer for whipping cream and egg whites. Then get a flat whisk that will fit in a kitchen drawer for sauces.

[TeRReT]

I whip whipped cream once or twice a day by hand at work, ranging from 500ml to a litre with any random balloon whisk that is available. We have two that are very good and a number that aren't great but still work. Its all in the technique. Don't whisk in circles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tjxyl6tO0y4 is pretty close to what i do, but i hold it more like holding a frying pan rather then holding a pencil, and use my arm instead of my wrist, i can whisk much faster and get more air into the cream. When you get used to the burn you can have whipped cream in less time then it takes to get your electric mixer out of the cupboard :P

as far as the best actual whisk, one like this is good:

http://content.abt.com/media/images/p...

you want it to be strong, with lots of metal hoops, you don't want it too be too long or weak, the more the hoops move around the more work it will be for you. Go to a restaurant supply store, they will be cheaper, and much better quality. In toronto I could get a decent Browne whisk for $5-$7 at a supply store.

Using a whisk I can have whipped cream in less then a minute and its a good workout!

[Chemicalkinetics]

You are awesome. I have never tried the motion "8" method. I have a wire whisk like the one you show. However, I am curious. Do you think these silicone ones will work? I don't have them, but I am just curious.

http://www.mileskimball.com/MilesKimb...

My guess is "no" because they are usually weakly supported by thin wires.

[TeRReT]

I'm sure they would work eventually, but they wouldn't be as efficient. I have yet to see a silicone whisk with silicon in tact in a professional kitchen, but maybe they last at home :P Silicon may be advertised as able to withstand great heat, but most silicon things don't last very long with the abuse in a working kitchen :P

Whipped cream is just adding air to cream, the more wires you have and the more of the cream you can make contact with the faster you will get air into it. In the video he is all nice and calmly whisking, and is still able to do it in 3 minutes, try actually using some muscle and feel the burn and get your whole arm into it :P And don't worry about doing just a figure 8, i probably do a figure 888 or something like that, i just go east to west as hard and fast as i can and then move my east to west movement north and south

[sunshine842]

CK, I have a silicon whisk, which I use for sauces and such in my nonstick saute pan or Dutch oven, so it doesn't ding the daylights out of the nonstick - other than that, I never touch it, and my SS whisks are the first ones I reach for.

[hobbess]

TeRReT,

Since everybody else is suggesting to use something like a electrical mixer instead of doing it manually with a balloon whisk, why doesn't your work place do that too instead of whipping whipped cream by hand? I'm assuming your place already has a electrical mixer all set up ready to go so it wouldn't seem it'd be faster to do it by hand.

Is there a qualitative difference between using a ballon whisk vs electrical mixer in the texture or taste?

For all the different purposes you could use a balloon whisk for- whipped cream, meringues, souffles, cake batter- when would you want to use a balloon whisk for and when would there be no difference in using an electrical mixer?

[TeRReT]

There is nothing wrong with using an electrical mixer, you just asked about a balloon whisk for making whipped cream so I answered that question. I would probably use a whisk at home if I were making whipped cream because my electric mixer here is in a lower cupboard behind other machines and its more of a pain to wash.

As far as work goes, I don't need much whipped cream, I make it almost daily to keep it fresh and usually make a litre or less. Our mixer at work is probably 3-4 times larger then a normal house mixer and would be overkill for the job, and is often in use doing other things.

Also, one application of the whipped cream at work is a savoury cream so part way through I add herbs and horseradish and its a lot easier to control the degree of whip by hand and to be able to add things when i want and to be able to stop when its as whipped as i want.

I have nothing against using a machine to whip cream at all. If you already have a mixer you can try it and see if it works for you, but if it meant buying a new machine to do it, a whisk is cheaper :P

[freia]

Agreed TeRReT...not a prof cook here, but I make such small amounts that I just whisk it. It goes faster than finding the beaters, digging around for the electric mixer, then washing up. But that's for small amounts. Larger amounts get the electric treatment!

[kaleokahu]

Hi, TeRRet:

Good on you. Practical reality (and necessity) meets soul-satisfaction. From a decidedly irreligious man: "Fruit of the vine, work of human hands." Perfect.

Aloha,
Kaleo

[jaykayen]

Have always made creme chantilly at work in the KA stand mixer.

At home, I use the whisk attachment on my immersion blender. I think using a whisk at home is ok for whipped cream, but prefer the immersion blender for salad dressing (regular blender attachment) and whisk attachment for egg whites.

[freia]

I've made a whole lotta butter whipping cream in my KA LOL I just have to get the hang of it I suppose...

[jkling17]

Hi Hobbess,

I'd recommend an inexpensive immersion blender. Mine was only $15 and has lasted me for many years. It will be useful for many light tasks, with different heads, and cleaning them is the easiest thing in the world - just dip into clean water and let the power rip for a few seconds.

http://www.amazon.com/mn/search/ref=s...

[freia]

Go to any restaurant supply store and check out what they have. You don't need to go with any specific brand, as long as it is a sturdy balloon whisk you'll be fine.
Make sure your whipping cream and your bowl is cold. I've often seen use copper bowls used that are prechilled.
Make sure you are using arm action not wrist action so you don't "burn out".
It takes some time, and that all depends on how much cream you are whipping. Very small amounts by hand go pretty quickly and I'll often do this. Larger amounts become tedious and a pain in the arm LOL. Some may find they have better control over the whipped cream doing it by hand than in a power mixer. Of course, a hand mixer works just fine and at the end of the day, its the taste that counts!

[hobbess]

Would you consider a balloon whisk to be an essential piece of kitchen equipment then?

Whenever I read directions that involve whisking, should I always assume that they're not referring to a balloon whisk if they just say use a whisk instead of specifically calling for a balloon whisk?

In those cases, could I use a balloon whisk in place of a french whisk?

[breadchick]

Yes, exactly! I have joint issues, but do love to whip the heavy cream into a nice thickness and can do so if I'm careful. Silly, I'm sure, but it's the few culinary low-tech things I can boast.

btw - my sister never thought it could be done without an electric mixer last Christmas. Ha! I held the bowl over her head to prove the whip was done. Such small joys.

[Chemicalkinetics]

I have a balloon whisk by Amco. As for using a balloon whisk to make whip cream, I have to agree with sunshin. You are much better off using a electric mixer. Now, if you just want to do it once by arm to see how difficult it is, that is fine, but I won't recommend that as a standard procedure.

[sunshine842]

Oh save yourself!

Do it with an electric mixer - handheld or stand.

It's a LOT of armwork.

[E_M]

Ditto.

But if you want a whisk, around here, the preferred is by Best, a Portland company, as they are the only American company who makes them.