Rochow Swirl Mixer

Let's face it, when it comes to making sauces and gravies, some people are stirrers, some people are shakers. Me? I'm a whisker.

But for the shakers out there, there has never been a more favored tool than the Rochow Swirl Mixer -- an aluminum contraption with patented swirled ends which are reported to lesson the need for vigorous arm-numbing shaking, allowing a "gentle shake" to do the job.

The originators of this device ( Rochow Swirl Mixer Co. Inc.) don't sell the Swirl Mixer on their web site, but luckily, Vermont Country Store does -- and it's the orignal Rochow design.

I'll probably stick with whisking for sauces and gravies, but I have to admit that reading about this little device did get me to wondering how it would handle gin and vodka.

Price: (at the time of this review)
$6.95

Resources

• Rochow Swirl Mixer at Vermont Country Store
• Rochow Swirl Mixer Co. Inc. (company site)
• Gramma's Cutters (while looking for the Rochow company site, I found this great little web space featuring 1940s Aunt Chick's cookie cutters (adorable and available for purchase) and recipes (cookies and pies) -- if you don't know who "Aunt Chick" is check out this site). How did this site relate to Rochow? Here's a quote from Aunt Chick's tips on cream pies: "When adding starch to hot mixture, either blend the starch and sugar thoroughly by shaking in a little covered blender cup called swirl mixer, or blend the starch with part of the measured liquid in the same swirl mixer."