FOOD FOR THOUGHT
New wraps pull kitchen together
By Wanda A. Adams
Advertiser Food Editor
New products keep appearing, even though supermarket shelf space is at a premium. But home shelf space is valuable too — especially in Hawai'i, where homes and apartments tend to be smaller.
The challenge is figuring out which products are worth making room for.
Two new products on the kitchen-wrap aisle illustrate the difference between "a sometime thing" and "gotta have."
A couple of months ago, Reynolds Wrap began marketing its new Release Non-stick Aluminum Foil, coated on one side with a food-safe equivalent of Teflon. The nonstick side is helpfully imprinted "Non-Stick Side."
This stuff works. You can line a baking sheet with it, and cookies slide off after baking. Use it to tent gooey casseroles, and it won't stick to the sauce.
The coolest thing, in my opinion, is the way it keeps the grill clean. Place the foil on a cold grill rack and poke holes at intervals. Remove. Heat the grill; replace foil and add food. The holes allow fats to drain away and smoky flavors to reach the meats.
It works in the freezer, too. It is safe at any temperature from minus 40 degrees to 650 degrees F.
But it isn't going to replace foil or parchment in my kitchen, because it's too expensive. Thirty-five feet (the only length available here) sells for more than $3.25 a box — almost enough to buy a 75-foot roll of regular wrap. So it goes into the same category as heavy-duty foil, which I stock only when I have a planned use for it (usually lining the turkey roaster at Thanksgiving).
In contrast, Glad's Press'n Seal may displace plastic wrap in my kitchen. It's the equivalent of a Post-It note in the wrapping world: It seals wherever you press it, then pulls right back off when you need to open the container.
It works on glass, wood and metal. It can be used in the refrigerator, freezer and microwave, and while it does stick to itself, it doesn't have the annoying tendency of regular plastic wrap to ball up when you're pulling it off the roll.
Press'n Seal closes tightly enough that you can cap a cup of liquid with it and turn the cup over without leaks. The only caveat is that the rim has to be dry. Lay Press'n Seal over the rim, then run two fingers around to establish the seal.
It's even reusable; you can cover a bowl, pull it back and seal it again several times before the seal loosens, according to Mary O'Connell of the Glad Products Co. in Oakland, Calif. She has found the grip tends to loosen if you take something from freezer to micro-wave and then try to seal it again.
The suggested retail price for Press'n Seal is $2.99 a 75-foot roll, slightly more than bargain plastic wrap but on par with high-end brands.
O'Connell said grocery stores will have the product by the end of August.
