What do you use to hold reserved cooking liquid?
January 30, 2020 5:51 PM   Subscribe

What do you use to hold reserved cooking liquid? Glass or ceramic might shatter from the recently boiling water and plastic could melt. Today I used a metal coffee cup, but what do most people use?
posted by soelo to Food & Drink (36 answers total)
 
Pyrex bowl or measuring cup. Generally formulated for some heat shock resistance and thick enough to handle it. At least that's how I handle pasta water.
posted by Maecenas at 5:53 PM on January 30, 2020 [32 favorites]


Either a small metal mixing bowl or a pyrex measuring cup.
posted by stray at 5:53 PM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


I have a big bowl-ish (ceramic) coffee cup. It can handle boiling water, because that's its purpose, so I've never worried about it coping with thermal stress.
posted by pompomtom at 5:55 PM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


Glass or ceramic might shatter from the recently boiling water

Only if you pour a lot of boiling water quickly into a large and very thin-walled glass container.

For a cup or four, Pyrex measuring cups are totally fine. The biggest potential for damage comes from dunking a hot glass vessel into a bath of cold water, maybe that’s what was confusing you.

You can use stainless steel mixing bowls if you want something lighter weight that won’t break if you drop it onto concrete.
posted by SaltySalticid at 5:55 PM on January 30, 2020 [9 favorites]


(was going to add, we have a few stainless mixing bowls, which I'd use if looking at over a pint or so (which would fit in the coffee bowl) - though they get hot quickly, which is a pain)
posted by pompomtom at 5:57 PM on January 30, 2020


Pyrex measuring cup, all the time.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 5:59 PM on January 30, 2020 [2 favorites]


Ditto Pyrex. We have an 8 cup bowl for large amounts, as well as 2 and 1 cups.
posted by KleenexMakesaVeryGoodHat at 6:02 PM on January 30, 2020


Whatever is handy. A pyrex measuring cup if I need a specific amount of liquid. Often a corelle bowl if the cooking liquid is coming from something I have to drain, just because my strainer fits very neatly on top of my corelle bowls.

About the only thing I don't use is my drinking glasses, because they will sometimes break, as you've noted.
posted by jacquilynne at 6:23 PM on January 30, 2020


I usually use a ceramic coffee mug or, more rarely if I need to hold more liquid, a Pyrex measuring cup.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:32 PM on January 30, 2020


This is like, when you're saving some salty-starchy pasta water for adding to a sauce? Pyrex measuring cup or IKEA metal prep bowl, whichever is handier. Size varying as required by volume of liquid.
posted by mumkin at 6:43 PM on January 30, 2020


pyrex, that's (among other things) what it's for.
posted by fingersandtoes at 6:45 PM on January 30, 2020


Best answer: I scoop my boiling pasta water to reserve for sauce with a 1 cup metal measuring cup. It has a decent length handle.
posted by gryphonlover at 6:55 PM on January 30, 2020


Plastic cups that are dishwasher safe won't melt from near-boiling water. Don't go pouring hot bacon grease or fryer oil into it, but for water-based cooking liquids it's fine.
posted by nebulawindphone at 7:44 PM on January 30, 2020 [6 favorites]


The pros use a bain marie.
posted by STFUDonnie at 7:49 PM on January 30, 2020


A pyrex measuring cup. If that's not available I usually use a coffee mug, a measuring cup (ours are plastic) bigger than what I need, or a canning jar (Ball jar).
posted by jrobin276 at 7:51 PM on January 30, 2020


I use these little 1 liter Vollrath pitchers with (hard to see) graduations on the inside, and which I bought at the Goodwill for a dollar or two. I prefer the steel because you can put it right on the burner, and it also cools off faster in the freezer if you're trying to separate the fat out.
posted by jamjam at 7:56 PM on January 30, 2020


Stainless steel prep bowls are great for this. And many many other common kitchen tasks. If you don't already have some, what are you waiting for?!
posted by dbx at 8:15 PM on January 30, 2020


Small saucepan or the Pyrex measuring cup, it depends on how much liquid. Both are good for me because they have handles for when I need to pour the liquid back in.
posted by lepus at 9:03 PM on January 30, 2020 [3 favorites]


I've used a regular plastic 1 cup measuring cup for this purpose with no signs of melting .
posted by AlexiaSky at 9:15 PM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


Stainless steel mixing bowls. Unbreakable. Heat resistant. Much lighter than pyrex. Not porous. Don't hold smells or flavours. There's a reason you'll barely see any other material container in commercial kitchens. I have a whole nesting set sized from very small to very large and use them every time I cook. You'll never look back once you go stainless
posted by Zaire at 10:40 PM on January 30, 2020 [2 favorites]


I just use a small saucepan. Especially handy in my case because they're right next to my stove, plus the heat doesn't travel up the handles.
posted by stillnocturnal at 1:34 AM on January 31, 2020


Boiling water is not hot enough to melt most plastics you'll find in the kitchen, especially hard plastics. (Hot oil, or concentrated sugar solutions, e.g. candy-making, can be.) I use a plastic measuring cup and have never had an issue.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 2:21 AM on January 31, 2020


I use a glass canning jar. Never had any issues, though if I had taken it out of a very cold room or something I'd warm it up before pouring boiling water in.
posted by hannahelastic at 5:30 AM on January 31, 2020


Remember that boiling water is never hotter than 212 degrees. Oven-proof dishes can stand much higher temperatures than that. But note what DevilsAdvocate writes: oil, sugar syrup can be much hotter than boiling water.
posted by tmdonahue at 6:13 AM on January 31, 2020


Yeah, I've never given this a second thought. I just use a glass kitchen bowl. I'm not even sure if it's borosilicate (what Pyrex used to be). It's never been an issue.
posted by uberchet at 6:52 AM on January 31, 2020


Mason jar (I also drink tea out of them daily, and pour rapidly boiling water straight from the kettle. Never had an issue.)
posted by thegreatfleecircus at 7:24 AM on January 31, 2020


I no longer use jars for this after having one crack when adding hot water. For all I know it was because of a flaw or other damage to the jar, but after that I switched to mugs and Pyrex.
posted by Dip Flash at 7:26 AM on January 31, 2020


Glass or ceramic might shatter from the recently boiling water and plastic could melt.

I think you're really exaggerating the risks here.

My (culinary-school-trained) husband, who does 99% of the cooking in our home, almost always uses glass for this: drinking glasses, mixing bowls, or storage containers (eg) depending on the volume of liquid.

He sometimes uses restaurant-grade plastic (eg), too, but I'm guessing most home kitchens don't include Cambros.

No shattering or melting or other negative outcomes to date, and he cooks a lot.
posted by shb at 8:30 AM on January 31, 2020


Glass canning jars should do the job. They're intended to sit in boiling water without fail.
posted by Thorzdad at 8:46 AM on January 31, 2020


One thing to consider is the temperature of the counter you're putting the container on. Even pyrex can break it it's on a cold granite counter and you fill it with boiling hot liquid. To be safe put whatever container you decide to use on a wooden cutting board before you fill it with boiling liquid.
posted by mareli at 10:37 AM on January 31, 2020 [1 favorite]


usually a hefty bowl or pyrex measuring cup.

This made me wonder though - i was taught when i was young if you put a spoon in your bowl before you pour in the hot whatever, it would keep it from cracking. Is this a true thing???
posted by domino at 11:29 AM on January 31, 2020


Best answer: Doesn't anyone else have metal measuring cups? I use my metal measuring cups.
posted by missrachael at 11:37 AM on January 31, 2020


Best answer: I use a metal measuring cup.
posted by ceramicblue at 6:56 PM on January 31, 2020


Pyrex measuring cup, 2-cup capacity.
posted by JawnBigboote at 6:16 PM on February 1, 2020


I've usually just used a coffee mug. I figure it can handle hot coffee, it can handle pasta water.
posted by Kurichina at 6:46 AM on February 4, 2020 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: I have one pyrex cup, but if I am cooking, it is probably in use or dirty. So, I have started making sure I don't dirty the metal measuring cup. Thanks everyone.
posted by soelo at 10:42 AM on March 2, 2020


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