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Barilla passive cooker

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Re: Barilla passive cooker

#461

Post by piva00 »

vineyardmike wrote: post #333
piva00 wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Drip coffee is pretty good, good taste and caffeine content while being pretty simple to brew, a decent machine is cheap as well. It's just a method, the beans you use are what actually count.

Hard Disagree. Espresso and similar pressure based brewing (Moka Pot) is far superior with equal beans. Tastes way better, more flexibility in creating different drinks, very fast to brew, etc . If it’s too concentrated or hard to drink an espresso shot then you dilute it (for all you black-coffee drinkers, it’s ok to use milk, it’s still coffee).

Different methods of brewing give you different results. If you like (or just want) a stronger flavour, use a pressurised method (espresso, moka pot, etc.), more flavour but the caffeine content is going to be lower than a longer brewing method.

I drink coffee in different ways in different days. If I want a large amount in the morning I go for a drip coffee or french press, the taste is smoother and caffeine content higher. If I want to taste the fullness of the beans I use a moka at home.

I don't see other methods of brewing as objectively better or worse, it depends on the result you expect or want, some days I want an espresso in the morning, some days I want a lot more caffeine, etc.

Also, I just drink coffee, I don't make drinks or turned coffee into a hobby.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#462

Post by flipbrad »

jve wrote: post #430
jiggawatts wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A better way to save energy is to use an electric kettle to get the water up to boiling. This is about three times as energy-efficient as a gas hob. Combined with passive cooking it could save real money… Technology Connections on YouTube has a good video about how electric kettles are the superior way to boil water: https://youtu.be/_yMMTVVJI4c

Speaking about electrical kettle: why aren't there insulated kettles that would help me save energy when I re-boil water after 20 minutes? EDIT: Ah, there are some: https://www.amazon.com/DASH-Insulated-Electric-Kettle-Cordle...

I just have a thermos flask next to the kettle. The excess ALWAYS gets put to good use: extra cups of tea (without reboiling), cooking, dishes in the sink, or even the kids' bath.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#463

Post by leoedin »

diordiderot wrote: post #384
vineyardmike wrote: post #328

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Highly recommend this approach if you are stuck with gas. My partner, who cooks more, bemoans that our new apartment has electric. Grew up using gas and claims that it’s better for cooking. I prefer not to intentionally dump gas into our house and welcome the minor benefit of energy efficiency. Funny how different people see the world (and technology).

Watch this video about how the idea that gas was better for cooking was a marketing ploy with no basis in reality and how they used lobbyist to force has connections into building codes https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hX2aZUav-54

"no basis in reality". Do you cook? Gas is functionally superior than traditional electric resistance cooking. That's not some evil lobby, that's practical experience. You can instantly control the temperature without juggling multiple burners at different heats. That makes it better. I'd take gas over electric (resistive or halogen) all the time - and I've lived with both.

Induction is on par with gas in controllability - and although there are some downsides, the upsides (so easy to clean!) Make it worth it (imo). I'm not saying that because big induction paid me to either.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#465

Post by jve »

benj111 wrote: post #438
jve wrote: post #430

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Speaking about electrical kettle: why aren't there insulated kettles that would help me save energy when I re-boil water after 20 minutes? EDIT: Ah, there are some: https://www.amazon.com/DASH-Insulated-Electric-Kettle-Cordle...

If you're reboiling water aren't you already doing it wrong. Ideally you should only be boiling the water you need.

I don't have reverse-osmoze filters, so I get pretty much residue (lime) which I rather leave in the kettle.

Moreover I sometimes want to add extra hot water to my 0,5L cup of tea. When boiling water, I already add the extra water I'll need so I get it just-in-time (except it has already lost much heat thus why I'll try to get insulated kettle). My wife may or may not want to drink tea, but I get ready water anyways (yeah, this could be organized better)

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#466

Post by achairapart »

theCrowing wrote: post #95
paxys wrote: post #30

A 145 year old pasta company just published open-source 3D printing models, Arduino circuit layouts & code and a bluetooth-enabled smartphone app on its website, that too with a decent sized marketing push. All so that you can build an overengineered kitchen timer from scratch in your bedroom. This is exactly the wild future I imagined as a tech enthusiast building cheap PCs two decades ago.

It wasn't Barillas idea. Looking at the quality and stuff used it was most likely thought up by a "Creative Technologist" in an ad agency with the sole purpose to win awards.(...and some PR but trust me it was done for the awards.)

This is their ad agency I think: https://www.publicis.it/

I agree, it's just a marketing stunt, the hardware device is simply useless and probably its manifacturing alone is responsible for much more CO2 than you could save passive cooking your pasta for a long time.

Granted, this is if you use it with its "environmentally friendly AAA batteries"!

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#467

Post by bradleyjg »

shepherdjerred wrote: post #370
bradleyjg wrote: post #250

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s not exactly what you are referring to but I like to call out conservation theater. Like when restaurants in California were forbidden from giving water to people unless they asked for it. As if drinking water was even a rounding error on California’s water issues.

That's the perfect word for it! On one hand small actions can lead to big change. On the other hand, no matter how many small actions are taken, this problem isn't going to be solved with government intervention.

On one hand small actions can lead to big change.

This is one of those things that we teach small children so they can feel like they are contributing but never go back and explain to teens that we were bs’ing about. These kids then grow up with a bad model of how the world works. This dynamic is pernicious.

No amount of at home composting or whatever the latest peacock thing is will make a real dent.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#469

Post by napoleongl »

kergonath wrote: post #428
kalleboo wrote: post #417

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> These things under the glass do not heat anything Glass infrared cookers also exist, my parents had one back in the 90's before induction was much of a thing. It was touted as easy to clean (and looks cool)

Yes, you’re right, I forgot about those! They are mostly historical curiosities now, right? Not as cheap as simple resistive cookers, and worse in about all respects than induction ones.

Probably depends on your location. They are still sold here in Sweden for instance, but otoh almost nobody has a gas stove since electricity used to be dirt cheap here.

Re: Barilla passive cooker

#470

Post by ants_a »

newaccount74 wrote: post #454
kergonath wrote: post #400

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You have the mother of all hotspots on the pan (less relevant for boiling) where the induction ring itself is and getting simmer right is harder. Not at all. There is no significant hot spot as heat is actually produced by the bottom of the pan and not the coils themselves. > Induction as implemented right now is on/off with full blast for the duration and just increased downtime. It is not the same as low constant…

> All the devices I have used were perfectly fine generating a low, constant heat I have never seen an induction cooktop that could generate low, constant heat. Even pretty pricy ones (eg. a 3000€ Bora hob with integrated extraction) showed a clear on/off cycle at the lowest heat settings. But maybe tech has improved in recent years, and there are hobs now that have constant low power output? Maybe the effect also ju…

All of the cheap tabletop cooktop I have seen have terrible cycling at lower powers, there seems to be two power levels and when you need something below the lower one, it cycles power at ~10s frequency. In contrast a Bosch integrated cooktop from a couple of years ago also does cycling, but seems to have more power levels available and the cycling is faster, around 1Hz or so. At least for me that is good enough.

My issues with it are more about inaccurate placement causing hot and cold spots and if you move a pot it can triggers cookware detection, which then clicks different coils on and off for 5-10s before it is satisfied with the new configuration. Both of those issues are probably exacerbated by the "FlexInduction" system that promises one large automatic cook area.

I'm hoping that power electronics development for electric cars creates some innovation in this area, but it's really hard to tell because there are no useful review sites and there aren't any places that let you take a cooktop for a testdrive.

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