Hot water bath

A hot water bath (or bain-marie) helps maintain even cooking temperatures and is particularly beneficial for dishes that require consistent lower heat. Many ovens, especially those fueled by gas, go through a range of temperatures. For instance, you may have your oven set at 350°F, but it will cycle between 325° and 375°F, maintaining an average heat of 350°F. For items like custards, you need to make sure that the higher end of that temperature range doesn’t overcook part of the mixture or else you might end up with a soufflé (of sorts). The best way to prevent such disasters is to surround the cooking vessel with water, which changes temperature at a much slower rate than air. To make a hot water bath, place the larger bath vessel in the oven with the smaller cooking vessel or vessels (such as ramekins) inside. (Don’t try to transport a water bath from your counter to the oven; you risk splashing water into whatever you’re cooking.) Using a tea kettle, pour hot tap water around the latter to fill the former. If you’re cooking something particularly delicate, you can also line the bottom of the bath vessel with a kitchen cloth to buffer any heat transference to the baking dish’s bottom. The liquid should come three-quarters up the sides of the smaller cooking vessels. Cover the whole with aluminum foil and you’re ready to go.