ComfortChannel.com Blog

Deep fryers are handy for making snacks or preparing meats. However, you need to know how to use the machine. Here are some helpful hints.

• If unit fails to preheat or if the cooking process stops, check cord assembly to assure plug is properly attached to the fryer appliance

• When using the fryer for the first time, a slight odor or light smoking may occur as manufacturing residue evaporates. This is normal during initial use.

• Before deep frying, always remove excess moisture or ice crystals from food by blotting with toweling. Moist foods cause excess foaming, spattering, and crackling.

• When preparing your favorite recipes, fry 1 to 4 cups food, in unit, at a time. If too much food is fried at the same time, the food will not get crisp.

• For breading or coating foods, use commercial breading, finely ground bread or cracker crumbs, corn meal, mixture of corn meal and flour, pancake mix, or prepared bread mixes.

• Use only metal cooking utensils in the fryer as plastic or rubber will become damaged from the hot oil. Do not leave metal utensils in the fryer as they will become hot.

• After each use, strain oil through a filter or a double thickness of cheesecloth to remove the accumulated residue.

• It is time to replace the cooking oil if any of the following occur: The oil is dark in color, The oil has an unpleasant odor, The oil smokes when heated, the oil foams rather excessively during frying.

Here are some quick tips and updates on yoga mats for those in the market. We have found that as yoga classes are being offered at more fitness centers, people may be tiring of the germy frayed yoga mats offered for rent at the local gym. Today, Comfortchannel.com has partnered with several manufacturers that are rolling out new materials incorporated in exercise mats that are environmentally friendly and give a more comfortable surface for yoga positions.

The Pilates yoga mats offered on comfortchannel.com provide more cushion and are heavy enough that they do not move around when you are stretching. Users found that new products do help them from slipping during practice and provided enough padding to ease the pressure.  According to the Yoga journal, Americans spend 5.7 billion a year on yoga classes and products, an 87% increase since 2004.

Some of the keys to mats are the thermal plastic elastomer which makes the mat recyclable and less toxic than commonly used pvc.

Straight lines on the mat help you align your feet. There are also some types of mats that are for hot types of yoga, synch as a Bikram class. The goal is to be able to lay on the mat without sticking to it. These types of mats are made with machine washable cotton.