Bamboo steaming baskets

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worldmachine

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Does anyone here use bamboo steaming baskets for Chinese cooking? These are circular wooden cylinders with a criss cross lattice of bamboo inside. They are designed to stack one above the other about three or four high. Different items for steaming are placed on each deck and on top of the highest basket goes a wooden lid. These baskets come in a variety of sizes.

The technique for steaming is that a wire rack is placed in to the wok and water is poured in leaving the rack standing clear. The water is brought to the boil and the steaming baskets are placed on the rack. Items such as wontons and pancakes are perfectly cooked in this way.
 
No I don't, but I have been looking at them because some of my new recipe books call for them in some recipes I am particularly interested in trying so I am also keen to know a touch more about them and if anyone else uses them.
 
I don't have any steaming baskets, just a steamer pan. I have never steamed my Asian style food though, mostly just cook rice in my usual way and stirfry the veggies.

Those sound like pretty cool baskets, but how do they hold up? Bamboo is a wood, so I'm a little curious about that.
 
Bamboo is a very sturdy wood and it does well in wet enviroments, hence why it is found in tropical jungles and rainforests, so it can take being steamed many, many times. I have never personally owned a steamer basket, but I have watched people steam food in them before and it is a rather neat process. A couple of helpful hints are not to stuff your baskets too full of food because the steam has to circulate, and make sure you have a lot of steam going so that your food cooks properly. I don't cook many Asian foods in my home just yet, so I don't think I will have a need for baskets any time soon. Maybe someday though when the kids are grown and I have more time to experiment and cook:roflmao::clown:
 
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