Salmon is a common favorite, but unfortunately it is frequently overcooked by both home and professional chefs. Whether you’re cooking king, coho, sockeye, steelhead, or Atlantic salmon, one rule applies: Don’t overcook it. Its proteins begin to coagulate at low temperatures, so precision is important. Sous vide cooking is ideal because it allows you to maintain just the right doneness—producing tender, custardy salmon that still tastes of the ocean. If you’ve sworn off salmon before, this method might change your mind.

First, it’s best to choose the right fish, and at the right quality. There’s a dizzying array of salmon options, but knowing a few key facts can help, such as purchasing the right fish during the right season. Salmon isn’t one fish. It’s a group of seven species, each with their own flavor, texture, and seasonality. Most begin life in fresh water, travel to the ocean to grow, and return home to spawn.

Below are some of the most common salmon eaten in the United States:

• White king (ivory king): The Chinook or king salmon is one of the best-tasting salmon varieties. Its succulent, oily flesh is usually bright pink or red, but about one in 100 have white flesh. Marine biologists think that these white specimens are missing a protein that absorbs the pink pigment of the krill that are a mainstay of the salmon diet. These fish are usually in season between April and September. Regular king salmon is usually in season from May to October.
• Steelhead: Technically a variety of rainbow trout, these fish are related to salmon and cook similarly. Just like salmon, they were born to live in the ocean. In season November to August.
• Copper River salmon: Salmon that spawn in the Copper River in Alaska must swim upstream as far as 200 miles. They do not eat during that journey, so their bodies must store lots of energy as fat. This makes them delicious to eat! Both king salmon and the smaller sockeye and coho are harvested from the Copper River during a short catch season each year. In season May to October.
• Farmed Atlantic salmon: Atlantic salmon is the most common type sold at retail. More than 95% of farmed salmon are of the Atlantic variety. Salmon are often farmed in ocean pens, and their feeding regimen and waste tend to decimate their local ecosystems; consider your options. The natural color of farmed salmon is a lighter pink than that of wild salmon; some farmed species are injected with dye to enhance their color. Tank-raised fish are the most sustainable kind of farmed salmon. Available year-round.

Tips for Cooking Great Salmon

• Brine first. This seasons and firms the fish and helps prevent the unsightly white albumin from rising to the surface.
• Sous vide for control. Cook salmon to a core temperature of 51 °C / 124 °F for a firmer texture, or slightly lower for something silkier.
• Finish with hot butter or oil. Just a few seconds in hot fat after sous vide adds flavor and improves surface texture.
• Use oil, not butter, if serving cold. Butter will congeal at cool temps, but oil keeps the fish looking and tasting appealing.
• Pick high-quality fish. This is one case where sourcing really matters—whether you’re serving it raw, sous vide, or seared.

Our Sous Vide Salmon recipe is featured in Modernist Cuisine at Home on page 276. If you don’t have sous vide equipment yet—or the book—you can still get started by trying our Sous Vide Salmon in the Kitchen Sink recipe.

This salmon recipe is a fun and approachable way to start exploring the benefits of low-temperature cooking—no sous vide equipment required. A pot of water can maintain a steady temperature for up to an hour, which is more than enough time to cook fish (and even some steaks). For longer cooking times, a picnic cooler can keep water temperatures stable for up to 5 hours!

Keep in mind that the more food you add to the water bath—or the colder it is—the more the temperature will drop. To help maintain the heat, bring the food to room temperature before cooking, and use your largest pot with plenty of water.

We love serving this salmon with sautéed asparagus and peas in the spring, or with cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, and thyme in the winter.

---

Explore the Modernist Cuisine series to learn more about cooking, baking, and pizza making!

Shellfish are among the ocean’s most flavorful gifts, but cooking them well requires a bit of know-how—and an understanding of the unique biology behind each bite. In this blog, we’ll explore the different types of shellfish (from scallops to shrimp), what makes them tick, and how that affects how we cook them. We’ll also share tips on selecting the best specimens and explain why timing and temperature matter so much.

Let’s start with how shellfish work.

Understanding Shellfish Biology

Shellfish vary dramatically in anatomy, texture, and flavor, but what unites them is their adaptation to life in salty water—and how their bodies handle that salinity. Many mollusks and crustaceans rely on certain amino acids, like glycine and glycogen, to balance the salt levels of their environment. These compounds contribute sweetness and umami, which help explain the complex, savory flavors of shellfish.

The catch is that cooking can diminish these flavor compounds. When exposed to heat, some amino acids get bound up in coagulated proteins, muting their contribution to flavor. Others react to form new aromas—like the distinctive cooked shellfish smell created by aromatic sulfides.

The best cooking methods help preserve their texture and enhance flavor without losing too much of what makes shellfish so special.

Cooking Mollusks

Humans have been enjoying these shellfish for millennia, and for good reason: They’re packed with flavor and require minimal cooking when fresh.

Scallops

Scallops are mostly composed of a single muscle—the abductor—which they use to swim. This fast-twitch muscle is full of glycine and glycogen, making scallops slightly sweet and perfect for quick searing. Overcooking can ruin their tender texture, so keep it quick and hot. 

Abalones

Abalones also rely on their powerful foot muscle, but theirs is packed with connective tissue. This makes them best enjoyed sliced thin and served raw or cooked very lightly. Cook them too long and they become tough and rubbery—though long, slow cooking can eventually tenderize them again. 

Oysters, Mussels & Clams

With these shellfish, you eat more than just muscle but also the entrails, which are full of flavor. Oysters and mussels anchor themselves with a small, inedible foot, while clams have a siphon that filters water from buried sand beds. Smaller clams are often eaten whole, while larger varieties like geoduck are usually trimmed down to their siphon alone.

Mussels and clams typically are boiled or steamed until they open, but by then they’re overdone. For juicy mussels and clams with an intense taste, steam them briefly in white wine, then shuck them and cook them sous vide in their own juices.

Cooking Tips

• All too often mussels end up tough, dry, and disappointing. Cooking the mussels sous vide solves that problem.
• Forget the old rule stating any mussel that doesn’t open when cooked is bad.
• A bad mussel either smells very strongly or looks dry and shriveled, so inspect them as you shuck them before cooking.
• The natural juices that come out of mussels when they open are very flavorful. Chefs use mussel juice to add depth to butter sauces for fish and soups. Be sure to save any extra juices—or at least have some good bread and olive oil handy so that you don’t waste any of this precious liquid.

For example, see our Mussels Marinière recipe in Modernist Cuisine at Home on p. 290. This is a classic dish of tender muscles cooked in wine, savory brine juices, and garlic. 

Safety Note

Because filter-feeding mollusks process vast quantities of water, they can also accumulate contaminants. This is why strict safety regulations exist for certain types of shellfish and why it’s important to source them carefully.

All About Crustaceans, such as Lobster, Crab, Shrimp & More

Crustaceans may resemble insects of the sea, but they’re culinary treasures—when picked and cooked properly. Lobsters, crabs, shrimp, prawns, langoustines, and crayfish all fall into this category.

The Enzyme Problem

One reason crustaceans are often cooked alive or immediately after death is because their flesh contains protein-cleaving enzymes that rapidly break down the muscle, creating a woolly or mealy texture. These enzymes are most active at 55–60 °C / 130–140 °F, so most crustaceans are cooked hotter to deactivate them quickly. But that high-heat approach often overcooks the meat. When possible, consider lower-temperature cooking methods and serve immediately to preserve that delicate texture.

How Molting Affects Quality

Crustaceans grow by molting their shells, and this timing greatly affects their eating quality. Just before molting, they shed muscle mass and fill with water to loosen the shell—this results in bland, watery meat. The best time to eat a lobster or crab is after it has molted and begun rebuilding muscle and shell. Look for a firm shell, deep coloration on the back, and a belly that’s slightly stained—not pearly white. These crustaceans will feel heavy for their size, a sign they’re full of dense, sweet muscle.

Crustacean Chemistry

The sweet aroma of cooked crustaceans comes from Maillard reactions, which typically require high heat. But because crustacean meat contains lots of sugars and amino acids, these flavor-building reactions can happen at lower-than-normal cooking temps. That’s great news for anyone interested in gentle cooking techniques. You’ll also notice their shells turn vibrant red or orange during cooking. That’s thanks to carotenoid pigments like astaxanthin, which are released when proteins in the exoskeleton are heated.

Choosing the Best Shellfish 

Here’s what to look for when selecting shellfish, especially crustaceans: 

• Look at shell color and firmness. When crustaceans are at their prime for eating, their topsides will be deeply colored, and their bellies will take on a stained or dirty look. The shell should be firm to the touch. Crustaceans are primed for cooking when their shells have become very hard.
• Compare size to weight. Crustaceans will feel heavy for their size because they are filled with dense muscle tissue, not tissue that is bloated with absorbed water. Crustaceans that are about to molt feel the lightest because their shells are partly empty.
• Warning signs. Avoid crabs or lobsters with greenish shells and white bellies—they may have just molted. A pinkish rust on the underside can also be a clue that a molt is coming soon.

After you’re done feasting, save your crustacean shells in the freezer until you have enough to make Pressure-Cooked Crustacean Stock (found on page 88 of Modernist Cuisine at Home). If you don’t have any shells, use whole shrimp (with heads on), which are relatively inexpensive and easy to find.

We feature a Lobster Roll recipe in Modernist Cuisine at Home on page 288. You might think it’s hard to improve on an old-fashioned lobster roll—until you taste one made with lobster cooked with precision to attain ideal sweetness and tenderness.

One of our favorite ways to prepare lobster is cooking it sous vide; it gives us precise control over the cooking process. In this recipe, we use the sous vide method to also infuse butter with lobster shells—this adds extra flavor and color to the toasted bun. Green apples and herbs freshen the lobster salad, and infused celery and tomato leather add a Modernist twist. Don’t bother messing with a boutique hot dog bun in this New England classic—go with the usual supermarket variety. Fancier rolls detract from the lobster.

Pro tip: It’s a mistake to cook a lobster whole. One way we perfect our lobster is to cook the tail and claw meat separately, at different temperatures, sous vide.

Shrimp & Prawns

Shrimp and prawns may look alike, but they’re only distant relatives—closer in appearance than in biology. What they do share, however, is a delicate texture that deteriorates quickly once they die. Protein-cleaving enzymes in the abdomen begin breaking down the flesh soon after death, turning it mealy if not cooked in time. That’s why the best shrimp and prawns are eaten as close to the moment of harvest as possible. For true connoisseurs, the most intense flavor is found in the head; many consider it a delicacy to savor the briny, rich juices within.

Our Shrimp and Grits recipe takes advantage of these bold flavors and transforms a Southern classic into something extraordinary. We elevate the dish by pressure-cooking coarse-ground grits in Crustacean Stock to intensify the savory depth, then topping them with Redeye Gravy and a soft-cooked egg. The result is a deeply comforting bowl that blends creamy texture with umami-rich layers. For a more traditional version, seared or sous vide prawns can be added instead.

Shellfish may be diverse in form, but they share a few key cooking principles: freshness matters, temperature is crucial, and timing is everything. Whether you’re searing scallops, steaming mussels, or slow-poaching lobster, knowing the biology behind your seafood can help you preserve what makes it special.

So choose wisely, cook gently, and enjoy the briny, complex flavors that only shellfish can offer.

FURTHER READING

• Good Eating in an Exoskeleton
• Cooking Fish
• Crustacean Butter—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 122
• Crustacean Stock—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 88
• Mussels Marinière—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 290
• How to Kill and Shell a Lobster—Modernist Cuisine at Home p. 284
• How to Shuck Mussels and Clams—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 286
• Clams in Chowder Sauce—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 292

Cooking fish is both rewarding and a little intimidating. If you’ve ever overcooked a beautiful fillet into a dry, mealy disappointment, you’re not alone. Fish differs significantly from land animals in structure and biology—and that’s exactly why it needs to be treated differently in the kitchen.

In this blog, we’ll explore the fundamentals of how fish are built, share general tips for cooking them, and highlight what makes tuna unique.

Before you get started, be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter so you never miss a new recipe, technique, or insight.

Understanding Fish Anatomy

Fish live a more buoyant life than terrestrial animals. Floating in water means they don’t need dense bones or strong collagen to hold themselves up, which affects everything from how their muscles are built to how their bodies react to heat. Their collagen contains fewer stabilizing cross-links, making it much weaker and quicker to break down. In the kitchen, that means fish becomes tender faster—but go too far, and it falls apart.

Fish are also mostly cold-blooded (with the notable exception of some tuna), which means their muscle proteins haven’t evolved to withstand high heat. Proteins begin to coagulate at relatively low temperatures, so cooking fish gently is key. In fact, most kinds of fish taste best when cooked at temperatures between 42 °C and 50 °C / 108 °F and 122 °F. Go higher than that, and the flesh turns dry and chalky—even if the inside would still be considered rare by meat standards.

The one exception is tuna. Tuna stands out among fish for a few key biological reasons. They swim long distances at high speeds, so their muscles are built for endurance. That gives them a high concentration of oxygen-rich red muscle fibers filled with myoglobin—similar to red meat. That’s why their flesh is darker and fattier than that of most fish.

Some species of tuna can even raise their body temperature above that of the surrounding water, which gives them extra speed and adds even more fat to their muscle, especially in the belly. This fat acts as insulation in cold water and contributes to the rich flavor we associate with high-quality tuna.

Because of these unique qualities, tuna should be treated more like red meat than delicate white fish. It holds up well to searing, grilling, or being served raw in sushi and sashimi, where precise slicing techniques bring out its best texture.

Overall, with this in mind, we recommend a few key tips when cooking fish:

• Cook fish gently at low temperatures. Most fish are cold-blooded, so their muscle proteins are designed for cool environments—not heat. Fish flesh cooks at much lower temperatures than meat; the ideal internal range is 42–50 °C / 108–122 °F. Going higher dries it out and makes it mealy.
• Choose the freshest fish possible. Because collagen breaks down quickly after death, fish that isn’t very fresh becomes fragile and prone to falling apart. Freshness is key for texture and flavor.
• Recognize the light vs. dark muscle difference. Most of the fish’s body is made up of fast-twitch white muscle fibers used for short bursts of speed—these tend to be mild in flavor and tender. Darker muscle along the midline (the “bloodline”) contains endurance fibers, which can taste stronger and cook differently.
• Slice and portion strategically. Fish can be filleted in simple or elaborate ways. Large fish like tuna are often broken down into blocks or steaks. The shape and grain of the muscle will determine the best slicing method for ideal texture, especially in raw preparations like sushi or sashimi.
• Slice to control texture. For tougher or more fibrous seafood (like abalone or cuttlefish), use thin slicing or scoring to tenderize it and control the bite.
• Match the cooking method to the fish. Because each species has different fat content and muscle structure, some are best suited to raw or gently cooked applications, while others handle searing or braising better. Lean white fish can dry out fast; fattier fish like tuna or salmon are more forgiving. For example:
  • Black cod, mackerel, and sardines benefit from dry curing for 3 hours with 7 g of salt and 5 g of sugar for every 100 g of fish.
  • Halibut is great when seared over banked coals on the grill.
  • Snapper is delicious when drizzled with spiced oil after cooking sous vide.
  • Tuna is great when seared quickly in brown butter after cooking sous vide. We often cook at 55 °C / 131 °F, after brining the fish first and finishing with an aromatic oil.

Brining Fish

Another incredibly helpful tip is to brine fish before cooking (especially when cooking sous vide).

Salt isn’t just a universal seasoning; it also has a powerful chemical ability to help fish and meat retain moisture during cooking, as long as it’s distributed evenly at the right concentration.

Simply coating the outside of a fish or piece of meat with salt won’t do the trick—unless you’re aiming for the distinctive flavor and firm texture of cured foods like corned beef or smoked salmon. At high concentrations, salt can actually cause muscle proteins to break down.

Brining, on the other hand, has a gentler, more widely useful effect. It involves soaking the meat in a dilute salt solution until the salt gradually permeates the tissue. The goal is a final salt concentration of about 0.5% throughout the meat—much lower than curing. The challenge is ensuring the interior is seasoned as evenly as the exterior. Without care, it’s easy to end up with uneven salt distribution.

Modernist brining, much like sous vide cooking, uses a long soak—up to 24 hours—in a slightly stronger solution to achieve even seasoning without the risk of oversalting. Brining fish this way not only seasons and firms the flesh but also helps preserve its delicate color by preventing the albumin in salmon from leaching to the surface and masking the beautiful orange-red pigment with an opaque whitish color. Make sure to cook your brined fish immediately.

FURTHER READING

• Cooking Salmon
• Best Bets for Brining and Curing Fish—Modernist Cuisine vol. 3:172
• An Illustrated Guide to the Muscle Structure of Fish—Modernist Cuisine vol. 3:20–23
• Cooking Additional Kinds of Fish Sous Vide—Modernist Cuisine vol. 3:102
• Why Slime Is the Key to Crispy Fish Skin—Modernist Cuisine vol. 3:129
• Seaweed Fish Brine—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 133

Whipping siphons have transformed modern cooking, allowing chefs to craft airy foams, rapid infusions, and fizzy drinks with ease. Whether you’re looking to add a cloudlike foam to a dish, infuse fruit with flavorful syrup, or carbonate a cocktail, a whipping siphon is up to the task.

Before you get started, be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter so you never miss a new recipe, technique, or insight.

---

The Science Behind Whipping Siphons

At the heart of the siphon’s magic is compressed gas. A standard whipping siphon uses gas pressure to force a soluble gas to dissolve in the liquid to be whipped. The pressure also pushes the liquid through a valve out of which the gas emerges from the solution, creating bubbles and whipping the foam.

The most common gas used is nitrous oxide (N₂O), which dissolves easily into fatty liquids and remains stable without promoting oxidation or bacterial growth. When released from the siphon, the gas expands rapidly, transforming the liquid into a light, voluminous foam.

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is another option, but it’s best reserved for carbonation, since its fizzy texture and sour flavor make it less suitable for smooth, creamy foams. For most culinary uses, especially when making savory or dessert foams, nitrous oxide is the preferred choice.

Each disposable cartridge holds 8 grams of gas. For a 1-liter siphon, you’ll usually need two cartridges, especially if your liquid is low in fat or volume. You can learn more about the anatomy of the whipping siphon at the link below.

---

Creative Possibilities

Whipping siphons unlock a surprising variety of culinary creations.

• Batters: Teff injera (Modernist Bread, vol. 5:156) and tempura batter (Modernist Pizza, vol. 3:281) both benefit from the siphon’s ability to evenly aerate and lighten texture. Another example from Modernist Cuisine at Home (p. 254) is our skinless chicken wings, which uses an aerated batter to create a new spin on fried chicken (essentially a tempura chicken wing).

• Sauces: Emulsified sauces like sous vide hollandaise or sabayon hold beautifully in a siphon. During service, it keeps them warm and fluffy, also less dense.

• Infusions and marination: By increasing pressure inside the siphon, ingredients like herbs, spices, or fruits absorb liquids faster, infusing flavor in minutes instead of hours.

• Fresh soda: Using carbon dioxide, you can carbonate juices or cocktails for fizzy, fresh drinks.

• Foams: Whipping siphons were designed for aerating cream that’s high in fat. But you can foam any liquid thick enough to hold bubbles. Our Caramelized Carrot Pizza from Modernist Pizza (vol. 3:277) features a vivid coconut chutney foam made with coconut cream, mint, green chili, and cilantro. The result is an aromatic, airy topping that lifts the whole dish.

---

Whipping Siphon Recipes

Sous Vide Hollandaise

Hollandaise is famously delicate, but with a whipping siphon, it becomes far more stable. By gently cooking the egg yolks sous vide and finishing the sauce in a whipping siphon, you eliminate the stress of curdling, separating, or rushing at the last minute. The siphon keeps the hollandaise warm, smooth, and perfectly emulsified, while also giving it a light, elegant texture that’s ready to dispense whenever you are. It’s a simple upgrade that transforms a traditionally fragile sauce into a reliable, make-ahead staple. Just charge, shake, and serve.

---

Striped Mushroom Omelet

What makes this omelet special is the whipping siphon. By transforming scrambled eggs into a light, stable foam, the siphon allows you to prepare the mixture in advance, hold it gently at temperature, and dispense perfectly aerated eggs whenever you’re ready to serve. Instead of standing over the stove and timing everything to the second, you can simply charge, shake, and pipe, leaving more time for creativity—like a striped mushroom omelet.

---

Carbonated Cranberries

This recipe reimagines a Thanksgiving classic with the help of a whipping siphon. Instead of a traditional cranberry sauce, whole berries are gently cooked sous vide, then carbonated using a whipping siphon charged with carbon dioxide. The result is bright, tart cranberries that burst with delicate fizz.

---

Popping Buckeyes & Eggnog Cocktails

This recipe will take your boozy (or booze-free) gatherings to the next level. Crisp, chocolate-dipped “buckeyes” hide a creamy hazelnut (or peanut) center studded with crackling pop rocks for a surprise with every bite. Each 20 g sphere is dipped and set for a clean shell, then frozen, which is ideal for serving alongside a warm, spiced cocktail.

But it’s the eggnog foam that is the true highlight of this exciting drink. The custard base is gently cooked sous vide, chilled completely, and then charged in a whipping siphon to achieve an airy, stable foam that can’t be matched by hand frothing. Because the base is relatively low in viscosity, the siphon is essential because it creates a light, velvety cap that floats atop coffee or tea spiked with rum or cognac. The result is a cloudlike eggnog layer that slowly mingles with the drink beneath.

Finished with freshly grated spices and served to order, these cocktails showcase the power of the whipping siphon in its ability to produce an unforgettable presentation.

---

Instant Infusions: Herb- and Spice-Infused Olive Oil, “Barrel-Aged” Maple Syrup, Candy Cane Vodka

With a whipping siphon, you can create bold, complex infusions that taste as though they’ve been aging for months, but in reality they came together in just minutes. These recipes create memorable, gift-worthy treats that are especially charming during the holidays, but just as perfect for dinner parties, hostess gifts, or keeping a bottle (or two) for yourself any time of year.

---

Explore the Modernist Cuisine series to learn more about cooking, baking, and pizza making!

Let’s get one thing out of the way: Modernist cooking doesn’t require a lab or a $2,000 gadget. With a few smart tools, you can bring a whole new level of precision, consistency, and creativity into your kitchen.

Some of the gear we rely on might not be in your current kitchen drawer—yet. Whipping siphons, blowtorches, immersion blenders, and digital scales might sound more “pro chef” than “weeknight dinner,” but they’re workhorses we use every day because they’re versatile, affordable, and (frankly) a lot of fun.

Take the whipping siphon. It makes stellar whipped cream but we also use it to carbonate soda, infuse fruit, marinate meat, and create light, flavorful foams. Add a fine sieve and a powerful blender, and suddenly you can create purees and textures that would impress any dinner guest.

Of all the tools we recommend, two are absolutely essential:

• A reliable digital scale, for precise measurements that remove all guesswork.
• An accurate digital thermometer, for cooking food to the exact doneness you want, every single time.

These tools might seem basic, but they’re fundamental to any kitchen.

Some other favorites include:

• Pressure cooker—Cooks food quickly while locking in flavor and nutrients
• Blowtorch—Quickly sears or caramelizes food with direct high heat
• Whipping siphon—Creates foams, infusions, and carbonated drinks
• Blender—Makes smooth purees, sauces, and emulsions
• Immersion blender—Blends soups, sauces, and emulsions directly in pots
• Food processor—Chops, slices, and processes thicker or drier foods
• Microplane—Finely grates cheese, citrus, garlic, and more
• Silicone mats—Nonstick, reusable liners for baking and cooking
• Silicone molds—Easy-release molds for custards, gels, and chocolates

The best part is that you don’t need to spend a fortune. Many of these tools are now widely available at home goods or hardware stores—and you can achieve professional-level results without a pro-level budget.

Keep reading to get a more in-depth breakdown of these Modernist Cuisine favorites.

Modernist Cuisine at Home

It is always handy to have a cookbook that can guide you through every level of cooking. Modernist Cuisine at Home opens up a new world of culinary possibility for passionate and curious home cooks. Drawing on the same commitment to perfection that produced Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking, this award-winning, 456-page volume applies innovative techniques to classic home dishes. Filled with helpful scientific insights, mouthwatering recipes, gorgeous photography, and step-by-step guides, Modernist Cuisine at Home makes it easy to bring dining of the highest quality to your own dinner table.

Digital Scales

If you have been measuring ingredients only by the cup and teaspoon, now is a great time to buy a good scale and begin applying more precision to your recipe measurements. Digital gram scales are easy to find at cooking stores, and basic models are not expensive.

We recommend having two at your disposal:

• General-purpose scale that accurately measures weights from one gram or less all the way to 1,000 grams or more
• Precision scale that is accurate to a tenth or hundredth of a gram

A precision scale is crucial for measuring hydrocolloid thickening and gelling agents. These compounds are so powerful that a fraction of a gram can mean the difference between a sauce that is velvety and one that is gummy or slimy. A quality digital pocket scale does the job well (and at a fraction of the price of a lab scale).

Be sure to keep your scales clean, calibrate them regularly (check the manufacturer’s instructions), take care not to drop or jolt them, and always use them on a level surface.

Digital Thermometer

Small changes in temperature can make all the difference in cooking, so thermometers are a must. Unfortunately, many are not as accurate as you might think. The analog thermometer is all but useless at low temperatures, making them unusable for low sous vide temperatures. Sugar thermometers perform fine at high temperatures, but delicate glass can break, creating a disaster. Metal spike-and-dial meat thermometers are often slow to display temperature and often several degrees inaccurate.

Our top recommendation is the digital thermometer. If need be, a good thermometer can even serve in place of a fancy sous vide cooker! Our all-around favorite is the thermocouple thermometer (featured above), but a $10 instant-read thermometer is also fast, accurate, and easy to place just where you want it.

Pressure Cooker

A pressure cooker is a game changer for cooking food quickly while preserving flavor and nutrients. By sealing in steam and raising the pressure inside the pot, it allows water to boil at a higher temperature—meaning you can tenderize tough cuts of meat, cook beans without soaking, or develop deep flavors in stews and stocks in a fraction of the time. Modern electric pressure cookers often come with multiple safety features and cooking presets, making them even more user-friendly. If you’re looking to cut down on cooking time without sacrificing taste, this is one tool worth keeping on your countertop.

Some of our favorite ways to use a pressure cooker is to pressure-caramelize soups and to caramelize grains, vegetables, and fruits.

Learn more about pressure cookers here:

• All About Pressure Cookers
• How Pressure Cookers Work

Whipping Siphon

Whipping siphons aren’t just for making whipped cream—they’re one of the most versatile tools in a Modernist kitchen. You can use them to carbonate drinks, speed up marination, infuse fruit with flavorful liquids, or add dramatic foams to a dish. They work by using gas cartridges (chargers) to pressurize the chamber: nitrous oxide is ideal for foams and infusions, while carbon dioxide is reserved for carbonation. Each cartridge holds about 8 grams of gas and is single-use. The key to success is understanding your ratios—typically 8 grams of gas per 400 grams of liquid. Learn more about whipping siphons here.

Immersion Blender

Immersion blenders are useful for many small blending tasks. We love them because they can blend directly in a bowl or pot while it is heating. They’re also very good for foaming fatty or starchy liquids and for making basic emulsions, such as mayonnaise and vinaigrette. You can find good immersion blenders that will fit within your budget; midrange models work just as well as the expensive professional versions.

Blender and Food Processor

Blenders and food processors are staples in most kitchens for good reason—they make quick work of chopping, pureeing, and emulsifying. High-speed blenders can break down food into particles so small (under 10 microns) that they feel luxuriously smooth on your tongue. Use them for fluid mixtures, soups, sauces, or smoothies. For chunkier tasks or doughs, a food processor’s wider blade is often the better choice.

Blowtorch

Think of the blowtorch as a handheld precision broiler. It blasts a direct flame at roughly 1900°F (1000°C), making it perfect for flash-searing sushi, caramelizing sugar on crème brûlée, or giving sous vide meats that crave-worthy crust. Unlike oven broilers, which rely on radiant heat, the blowtorch uses a jet of hot gas to transfer heat almost instantly. Just be cautious—if used improperly, it can leave a fuel-like flavor on your food. Always wait for a steady blue flame before torching and never point it at your food before ignition. You’ll find plenty of creative uses and guides for this tool in Modernist Cuisine at Home (see page 14). This cookbook also contains recipes for blowtorched caramelized bananas (page 377), using a blowtorch on steak (page 198), coffee crème brûlée (page 362), and more.

Microplane Grater

If there’s one tool chefs can’t live without, it’s the Microplane. More precise than a box grater and more versatile than a zester, this tool shaves hard cheeses, chocolate, and frozen meat into fine, fluffy piles. It’s also fantastic for making delicate citrus zest or grating fresh ginger, garlic, and onions into smooth pastes. Microplane and similar brands now offer graters in different coarseness levels for everything from spices to vegetables. Whether you’re finishing a dish or prepping ingredients, the Microplane brings finesse and flavor to your kitchen in one quick swipe.

Silicone Mats and Molds

Silicone mats are practical tools in a modern kitchen. These flexible, nonstick baking sheet liners come in a few varieties—like fiberglass-reinforced Silpat-style mats, silicone-coated parchment, and pure silicone sheets. They’re great for baking, pan-lining, or making delicate items like crisps or fruit leather. Pure silicone sheets can even be cut to custom shapes (just don’t cut into a Silpat’s fiberglass core). Silicone molds, on the other hand, are ideal for setting panna cottas, custards, or chocolates—anything that needs a gentle release. While they’re not great for browning, they shine when you want clean shapes and easy unmolding.

Injector

The injector is one of our favorite tools to use when cooking poultry. The traditional method of brining the bird helps boost moisture, tenderness, and flavor, but also makes it near impossible to crisp the skin. The solution to this conundrum is using the injector to inject the brine straight into the muscle tissue. This also allows you to double or triple the rate of diffusion, as can be seen in our slow-baked chicken recipe.

Other Helpful Tools

• Meat tenderizer—Useful for tenderizing tough meat as well as for quickly perforating pastry or skin
• Dehydrator—For preserving seasonal fruits and salted meats, making fruit and vegetable leathers and chips, dehydrating pork skin for frying
• Long tweezers—Useful for creative plating and handling delicate ingredients
• Paintbrush—Useful for applying even layers of oil for baking, sauces for glazing, and for creative plating if you want to impress
• Coffee cold brewing kit—Not just for coffee, this tool can help make full-flavored extracts for use in cooking.

What about Sous Vide Equipment?

The gear for cooking sous vide can be as affordable as an adapted Crock-Pot or as foolproof (and expensive) as an industrial process controller. Water baths of various kinds are the most common tools for cooking sous vide—either noncirculating or circulating.

When we wrote Modernist Cuisine at Home over a decade ago, it was hard to find inexpensive immersion circulators, but thankfully that’s changed as sous vide cooking has become more mainstream. Circulating water baths have very accurate temperature control, which is why so many chefs use them to cook sous vide. There are a number of options for different budgets.

Countertop noncirculating water baths are less common to find than a circulating water bath. They rely on convection—the natural tendency of hotter fluids to rise and colder fluids to sink—to even out any temperature differences; however, they still develop hot and cold spots more easily.

Sous vide also requires food packaging. There are many different options to try, including:

• Chamber-style vacuum bags
• Edge-seal vacuum bags
• Retort bags
• Heat-shrink bags
• Zip-top bags
• Oven bags

You can find more information about sous vide equipment here.

FURTHER READING

• Intro to Special-Purpose Tools—Modernist Cuisine Vol. 2:285; Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 5
• Blowtorches—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 15; Modernist Cuisine Vol. 2:21
• Whipping Siphons—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 18; Modernist Cuisine Vol. 3:207
• Blenders and Food Processors—Modernist Cuisine at Home, p. 10
• Juicers, Filters, Centrifuges, and Rotary Evaporators—Modernist Cuisine Vol. 2:334, 355–357, 361–364, 384–393
• All About Pressure-Caramelized Soups
• Caramelized Inclusions with a Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot
• All About Pressure Cookers
• How Pressure Cookers Work
• All About Whipping Siphons
• How Whipping Siphons Work

We’ve shared dozens of recipes over the years, all that dive deep into the science of cooking and baking. While each recipe has its own story, a few have clearly risen to the top as reader favorites.

In this blog, we’re counting down our 10 most popular recipes of all time, revealing the dishes that have garnered the most clicks right down to number one. From weeknight staples to modernized classics, these are the recipes our community loves most.

Before you get started, be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter so you never miss a new recipe, technique, or insight.

---

10. Detroit-Style Pizza Dough Recipe

Detroit-style pizza has a thick, airy crumb and a crispy bottom, with a crunchy cheese crust that reaches all the way to the edge of the pan. This dough uses semolina flour alongside bread flour to add extra flavor and make it easier to handle. It can also be made the same day you plan to eat your pizza, making it perfect for spontaneous day-of decisions.

---

9. Pistachio Gelato

Our pistachio gelato is all about pure flavor and perfect texture. Instead of relying on heavy starches that dull taste and create gumminess, we use modern hydrocolloids in tiny, precise amounts to stabilize the base without interfering with flavor release. That means every spoonful delivers clean, intense pistachio flavor.

Even better, these stabilizers control ice crystal formation as the gelato freezes, creating an exceptionally smooth, creamy consistency without excess fat or sugar. The only fat comes from the nuts themselves, and a touch of carrageenan ensures a luxuriously silky texture that lets the pistachio truly shine.

---

8. 72-Hour Braised Short Ribs

By cooking our short ribs at lower temperatures for an extended period, we minimize moisture loss while giving collagen enough time to convert into rich gelatin. The result is intensely beefy, fork-tender short ribs with a luxurious texture that simply can’t be rushed.

---

7. Fish Brine

Salt is not just a universal seasoning. It also has a powerful chemical ability to retain juices within fish and meat during cooking, provided you distribute the salt evenly throughout the meat at the proper concentration. Our Modernist brining method uses a diluted salt solution, carefully calibrated to achieve about 0.5% salt throughout the fish. This seasons the fish evenly, firms the flesh, protects its delicate color, and eliminates the risk of oversalting. We especially love using this fish brine with salmon before cooking.

---

6. Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe

Neapolitan pizza is the foundation of modern pizza culture, and yet it’s unlike any other style, with its airy rim, soft interior crumb, and signature leopard-spotted char. Made with just flour, water, yeast, and salt, the magic lies in hydration, fermentation, and heat. Our version uses instant dry yeast for reliability, fully develops gluten during mixing, bulk ferments for 20–24 hours, and proofs for three more. At 62.3% hydration, the dough bakes up light, tender, and beautifully blistered in either a wood-fired oven or with home equipment.

---

5. Starch-Infused Fries

We’ve always believed french fries deserve serious attention. Inspired by groundbreaking techniques from leading chefs and food scientists, we explored everything from enzyme treatments to ultrasound baths, but our biggest breakthrough was releasing and re-infusing starch to create the ultimate texture contrast. By manipulating starch both inside and outside the potato, we achieve fries with a shatteringly crisp exterior and a silky, fluffy interior, resulting in one of our most talked-about recipes.

---

4. Sous Vide Hollandaise

Hollandaise is famously fragile. Too cool and it separates, too hot and it curdles. Our sous vide method removes the stress. By precisely controlling temperature in the water bath and then finishing in a whipping siphon, you get a perfectly emulsified, velvety sauce every time, resulting in a rich, smooth, and dependable hollandaise.

---

3. Caramelized Carrot Soup

Many are surprised to hear that soup can be caramelized. All you need is a pressure cooker and a touch of baking soda, which unlocks a deep, nutty sweetness in just 20 minutes. This recipe calls for carrots, carrot juice, and butter and delivers an intense carrot flavor with a warm caramel undertone. Silky, vibrant, and endlessly satisfying, it’s a reader favorite for good reason.

---

2. Melty Queso Dip

This queso surprises everyone. It tastes impossibly smooth and rich, yet it’s made with real cheese, water, and sodium citrate. By applying emulsion science, we keep the water and fat perfectly blended without adding cream or flour to create a pure, clean cheese flavor with none of the greasiness.

---

1. Silky Smooth Macaroni and Cheese

Classic mac and cheese is a comforting dish, but traditional béchamel-based versions often dull the flavor of great cheese or turn greasy when pushed too far. As for our Melty Queso Dip recipe, we use sodium citrate to stabilize the cheese’s natural emulsion. This results in a sauce as smooth as melted American cheese but bursting with the complex flavor of whatever cheeses you choose. It’s creamy, glossy, and intensely cheesy—there’s a reason this has been our most popular recipe for years.

---

Pressure caramelization unlocks incredible flavors with just a few simple ingredients. Take our Pressure-Caramelized Carrot Soup, for example. When you combine carrots, butter, a pinch of salt, and baking soda in a pressure cooker, magic happens. The result is a combination of caramelization and the Maillard reaction (what people commonly call “browning”), which produces a rich, caramelized, nutty flavor. Pressure cookers are particularly suited for promoting the Maillard reaction because elevated temperatures encourage foods to develop their characteristic flavors far more quickly than conventional cooking methods (such as roasting) do, thereby transforming a long process into a short 20-minute cook time. Adding 0.5% baking soda when pressure-cooking further speeds flavor reactions by producing an alkaline pH of about 7.5.

By using this technique, the carrot flavor is further heightened because no heavy cream is needed. It’s just carrots, carrot juice, and butter. It is so delicious that you can only taste two things: the pure intense essence of the carrots and a warm undertone of caramel flavor.

Carrot soup is just the beginning. Using this technique, you can create variations with a wide range of vegetables and fruits. Under pressure, ingredients transform into something dramatically new yet strikingly familiar. Sweet corn becomes a creamy soup with popcorn-like notes, bananas turn into a dessert-like puree reminiscent of baked banana bread, and sweet potatoes intensify into a flavor powerhouse. Below, you can see the many variations that we made in Modernist Cuisine at Home.

If you’re looking for a way to tempt even the pickiest eaters into loving vegetables, this might be it. Simply swap the carrots in our recipe with another ingredient, adjust the liquid (e.g., corn juice, banana puree, or sweet potato water), and follow the same steps. For a thick puree, skip the final thinning steps and serve it as a decadent side dish.

Pro tip: While these recipes scale up beautifully, avoid scaling down too much, as the vegetables’ internal moisture is critical for creating steam.

The Science Behind the Technique

Vegetables have strong cell walls that soften under high heat, but they rarely exceed the boiling point of water in traditional cooking methods. Enter the pressure cooker, where elevated pressure raises the boiling point, allowing vegetables to cook quickly and evenly without drying out. The result? Juices stay concentrated, flavors intensify, and textures become luxuriously tender—perfect for soups and purees.

We exploit a similar technique to re-create a classic vegetable stew. Pressure-cooked barley is quick to make and perfectly toothsome. The pressure extracts juices undiluted from sweet onions, leeks, and garlic to yield an intense broth. And all the season’s best vegetables take on the texture of fudge in a matter of minutes.

You can use whichever vegetables and greens are currently at their peak. This pressure-caramelizing technique is versatile enough to accommodate a wide range of flavors.

Whether you’re savoring caramelized carrot soup, velvety sweet potato puree, or popcorn-flavored sweet corn soup, pressure cooking takes winter vegetables to the next level. Pressure-cooking isn’t just about speed—it’s about discovery. Try swapping carrots for your favorite seasonal vegetables, like parsnips, leeks, or squash, and let your pressure cooker do the rest. Before you know it, you’ll have a repertoire of unique hearty soups to make all year long.

Sign up for our monthly newsletter to learn more cooking tips.