Water bath is a method of culinary processing of food in which boiling (heating) of liquid occurs without direct contact of the container with fire. This method is used when the temperature of the prepared solution is required, which does not exceed 100°C.

Basically, it is customary to prepare some types of delicate creams for cakes and certain sauces that are served with fish and meat dishes in a water bath. In addition, a water bath is used to melt or soften chocolate, honey and butter. Healing herbal decoctions are often prepared in this way.

There are two types of water bath, which directly depend on indicators such as the name and quantity of products used, as well as the place of their preparation. Thus, it stands out cooking in a water bath And cooking in a water bath.

In this case, cooking is carried out on the stove using the so-called double pan ban-mari, which is considered the most ancient. Water is poured into the lower container of the cookware, and the product that will be cooked in the upper container is placed. water bath.

In reality, this cooking method is quite simple. Structurally, it looks like two larger and smaller containers that are inserted into one another. In this case, small dishes should be smaller in height in order to leave room for boiling water. During the boiling process, the water in the first container heats the liquid in the second. Moreover, the water in a larger container should not boil - ideally, cooking in a water bath involves boiling little by little over moderate heat.

Second method or cooking food in water The bath is suitable for baking in the oven or heating on the stove when a slightly different design is used. Externally, this is a container (or containers) that are placed in a large form, preferably on a grid, which ensures the necessary circulation of water under the bottom of the inner container.

When cooking in a water bath, hot water is poured into a large container, which should reach the middle of the height of the inner mold. It is noteworthy that this entire structure can remain open at the top, but it can also be closed (for example, with foil) - it depends on the requirements of the recipe. Sometimes the water bath itself is left open, and the inner mold is covered with foil.

A large form for cooking in a water bath is selected so that its height is more than 2/3 of the height of the inner container. A mold that is too high is also not suitable, since its walls will not only block heat flows, but also the water temperature may not even rise to 83°C, which will not allow the product to reach readiness.

For cooking in a water bath, the material from which the large mold is made is also important. For example, glass is a poor conductor of heat, while thin steel is characterized by greater heat transfer. Thick cast iron, on the contrary, is able to accumulate heat. So, the most suitable form for cooking food in a water bath is quite thick aluminum.

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What does a water bath mean and how to do it at home? This is discussed in our article.

In various recipes for preparing homemade cosmetics, we can often find the phrase “melt in a water bath.” Not everyone knows what this means. But even those who understand what we are talking about are not always aware of how to properly make a water bath.

The key word here is “water”. Those. We heat the product or substance we need not with fire, but with water. The fact is that water boils at a temperature of no more than +100°C. At this temperature, the products that we need to heat in a water bath do not burn, they warm up more slowly and evenly, while retaining all their beneficial substances.

Honey, gelatin, chocolate, propolis, wax, paraffin, lard, soap are usually melted in a water bath. These substances are often used to make homemade masks, wraps, etc.

It is also very good to brew herbs in a water bath; herbalists highly recommend this method of brewing as the most effective.

Therefore, if the recipe clearly states to melt or brew in a water bath, we strictly follow this instruction. How to make a water bath at home? What kind of dishes or pots are needed for a water bath?

There is nothing complicated here. Just take 2 pans of different sizes - larger and smaller. The smaller saucepan should fit completely, like a nesting doll, into the larger saucepan. By the way, instead of a large saucepan, you can use a basin or large bowl.

What material should the water bath dishes be made of?

As for a large saucepan (or basin), there are no special requirements, the main thing is that it be metal.

A small saucepan can also be made of any metal, except when we are brewing herbs. To brew herbs, use enamel or glass containers.

How to heat in a water bath?

It’s very simple - you need to put a wooden circle or a small plank on the bottom of a large pan.

Then carefully pour water into a large bowl. This is a very important point. There is no need to pour too much water into a large saucepan. The water level should reach approximately halfway up the height of the small pan.

Then we load the product we need into a small saucepan and cover with a lid. Where required by the recipe, add water to the product.

We wait for the water to boil in a large saucepan, then reduce the heat to the temperature recommended in the recipe. Place a small saucepan in a large one. We warm up for the required time.

If you find it difficult to cook in a water bath using the method that we have described, we can advise you on special devices for a water bath at home, which are sold in the store. In particular, you can use an electric “Herbalist” for brewing herbs (see photo).

And now more about how to heat various products in a water bath:

Honey in a water bath

Honey has excellent anti-aging properties, so it is often included in anti-aging homemade masks.

But honey tends to become sugary and hard. You cannot apply solid honey to your skin or hair; it must be heated - then it will become liquid again.

To melt honey in a water bath, heat a large saucepan of water to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Then put a small saucepan with honey in a large one with water. Stirring constantly, melt the honey in a water bath; as soon as the honey becomes liquid, immediately remove the saucepan with honey from the water bath.

Important: do not heat honey above +50-60°C. When heated at higher temperatures, honey loses all its beneficial properties.

Gelatin in a water bath

You can make luxurious face and hair masks from gelatin (see list of recipes for gelatin masks).

To prepare masks, we need liquid gelatin. And in stores it is sold either in powder form or in the form of plates. To make gelatin liquid, you need to dissolve it in a water bath.

Gelatin powder (or plates) must first be filled with water in a ratio of approximately 1 tbsp. spoon of dry gelatin per 2 tbsp. spoons of water. Mix everything. Allow to swell for the time indicated on the gelatin package.

Then put the swollen gelatin in a small saucepan and place it in a large saucepan with water. Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan, then reduce heat and melt the gelatin until liquid, stirring constantly.

Water bath and herbs

As mentioned above, herbs are brewed in a water bath to the highest quality. For any infusions and decoctions of herbs, you should only use glass or enamel containers.

Prepare 2 pans for a water bath. Fill the larger one with water and let it heat up. Place the herbs or other plant materials you need into a small saucepan. Pour boiling water over the herbs at the rate of 1-2 tbsp. spoons of dry herbs per 1 cup of boiling water.

Place a small saucepan of herbs in a larger saucepan of boiling water. Reduce the heat slightly and simmer the herbal decoction in a water bath for about 20 minutes.

Water bath for chocolate

We need chocolate not only for cooking, but also for our beauty. For example, you can make wonderful masks or body wraps from chocolate (we wrote how to make a chocolate body wrap).

For these purposes, we need chocolate in liquid form. To get liquid chocolate you need to make a water bath for it.
First, break the chocolate into small pieces and then place it in a small saucepan. You can add a few drops of water to the chocolate. Then place a small saucepan with chocolate in a large one with boiling water, and, stirring continuously, bring the chocolate to a liquid state in a water bath.

How to melt soap in a water bath
Sometimes we need to melt the soap in a water bath for a recipe. Everything is done as in the case of chocolate.

Water bath for wax

Wax is a natural product that is included in many cosmetic products. But add it to homemade cream, mask, lipstick, etc. only available in liquid form. To acquire a liquid consistency, the wax must be melted in a water bath.

A water bath is made for wax in the same way as for honey. Water is never added to wax. Stirs continuously.

Propolis in a water bath

Propolis is another bee product often used in cosmetology. Propolis is melted in a water bath in the same way as wax.

Lard in a water bath

Few people know that lard is a gift from nature for our beauty. It perfectly softens and nourishes the skin. Therefore, beauty recipes with lard are not a joke, but ideal care, especially for dry or rough skin.

But raw lard is not suitable for cosmetic purposes; it must be melted in a water bath.

First, cut the lard into very small pieces - the smaller the better. Pour the lard into a small saucepan and place it in a large saucepan of boiling water. Reduce the heat slightly and wait until the lard is completely melted.

Water bath for paraffin

Paraffin masks are a super personal care product. They can be done at home. Cosmetic paraffin is sold in specialized stores in solid form.

Before applying to the skin, paraffin must be melted in a water bath. Under no circumstances should we add water to paraffin. The water bath for paraffin should not be too hot. No more than +50. When using or reprinting material, an active link to the site

In fact, it is a simple and effective way to create an automatically controlled environment at a certain temperature. They say that ancient alchemists came up with the idea of ​​creating conditions for gentle heating of some particularly delicate ingredients.

What it is?

The design principle is to transfer heat through an “intermediary”.

The first container filled with water is heated over an open fire.

In a container of smaller diameter placed in it, the contents are heated by the temperature of the hot water surrounding it - that same “intermediary”.

Since boiling water is physically unable to heat up above + 100 °C, the temperature in a small container, naturally, will also not exceed this figure.

Here, nothing will burn a priori - contact with open fire is excluded.

This principle is widely used in the food industry. This is exactly how pasteurizers for milk and canned foods work. The water “jacket” of cheese machines transfers strictly limited heat to the cheese mass during the preparation of some gourmet types of cheese.

But you, too, have probably pasteurized jars of homemade preserves in boiling water more than once? This simple procedure is also a water bath.

Why and when?

What a water bath is in cooking is not difficult to understand if you know where and how to use it. The “bath” technique is quite troublesome; such a procedure is undertaken infrequently - when, according to the recipe, the product requires a temperature not exceeding + 100 ° C.

Gourmets have come up with many such recipes.

These include the most delicate creams for cakes and savory sauces that accompany equally savory dishes (meat, mushroom, fish).

There is a recipe for cheeses, pates and even sausages, which are impossible to make without gentle, uniform heating.

For example, it’s easier to cook if you use a simple design of 2 saucepans - this way the butter and chocolate will melt faster and easier.

This method allows you to carefully heat and melt the candied honey, without fear that its beneficial properties will decrease due to high temperature.

This gentle heating method is also in demand in the preparation of medicinal herbal infusions. In this procedure, excess temperature is excluded, which means that useful components will not be destroyed. By the way, how to prepare healing decoctions is described in the works of Hippocrates.

Instructions

The simplest water bath at home can be easily constructed from two pans of different diameters.

Pour water into the larger one.

We insert the smaller one into the first container.

Select the pans so that the handles and ears of the inner container rest on the edges of the outer one.

Pour water in moderation, up to about half the height of the inner pan.

Important, so that boiling water washes its bottom and walls, but does not overflow over the edge.

A thick-walled pan is the best choice. In general, it is better to take one with a double bottom - heating will be more even.

That's all. Send the structure to the burner.

Heating up any cooled food in a water bath, and not just on gas or in a microwave, is healthier and safer, since everything will warm up evenly, nothing will burn, and exposure to microwaves is eliminated, the dangers and safety of which are still under debate.

Dishes – which one is suitable?

A more convenient bathhouse can be obtained from a wide, stable saucepan and a hemispherical Chinese WOK frying pan, which is larger than the diameter of the saucepan. You can use a bowl or deep ceramic dish of suitable diameter.

It is these water baths made from food-grade stainless steel that are manufactured in kitchenware factories and sold for use in “advanced” home cooking.

The inner container is made in the form of a saucepan or bowl with a lid.

In imported version these sets are called "Bain-marie".

It’s easy to organize a “bathhouse” in a slow cooker - this is quite suitable utensils:

1. pour water into the multi-bowl;
2. if the set of accessories does not include a special stand, place something suitable in the center of the bowl (for example, a low tea cup);
3. place the form with the product on the stand;
4. close the lid and turn on the unit.

The “Baking” mode is suitable for cooking.

Advantages

In Istanbul, in the Sultan's Topkapi Palace, tourists are shown a medieval kitchen turned into a museum. Among the many huge cauldrons, pots and other utensils, there are also water baths. They prepared especially delicious dishes.

But you can also prepare real masterpieces at home.

The low temperature allows you to cook, for example, egg creams or sauces without destroying delicate proteins.

If necessary, the dish in the “bath” container can remain hot for several hours. You can serve it in portions, and the main part will always be hot, but will not burn.

One of the secrets of a culinary bath is that it does not have to be “water”. The coolant fluid can be oil or salt solutions. Such coolants are capable of transmitting almost any desired temperature to the product being prepared. You just need to experimentally select the liquid.

However, the mediating coolant can be a solid component rather than a liquid one.

For example, ordinary sand.

This is how Turkish coffee is prepared: the cezve is immersed in hot quartz sand.

Another alternative to water is air or steam.

There are also such “Bain-marie” designs on sale.

Useful video

You cannot do without uniform heating in a design of two containers if you need to prepare marshmallow mastic, which is so convenient for decorating different things, for example. This video shows how to heat the components for mastic:

What does it mean to heat in a water bath, because many recipes require this, but do not explain how to do it? It's easy and you don't need to buy anything special; below we'll tell you how to do it.

What is it and how does it work?

This technology is used in many areas where something needs to be prepared. This could be cooking, making medicinal infusions, or cosmetics.

The principle of the method is simple: water is taken into a larger container and brought to a boil on the stove; when it boils, a smaller container is placed in it and the required product is prepared in it. It turns out that it is heated evenly at a constant temperature of 100 degrees.

This is the maximum useful processing method, products do not burn, do not stick to the walls, and retain maximum beneficial properties.

This is how it is usually prepared:

• Creams for cakes;
• Sauces;
• Melt chocolate, honey, wax;
• Medicinal herbal teas.

If you often have to resort to this cooking method, buy yourself a special unit, and these are now on sale. However, it will take up extra space in the kitchen and is not cheap, but the result is the same as from ordinary pans. So think before you spend money on it.

How to make a water bath at home?

As you already understand, there is nothing complicated here, the main thing is not to get burned and observe some subtleties:

1. Take dishes with thick walls; they will heat up more evenly;
2. If the recipe says that you just need to heat the substance, do not bring it to a boil, it is enough for its surface to steam a little;
3. Sometimes you need to build a structure in the oven. The principle is the same, there are only some differences - in this case, the inner container should be closed or wrapped in two layers of foil and do not take a very high container, as you risk undercooking the contents;
4. Place the inner pan so that its bottom barely touches the outer one.

You can lower the dishes intended directly for the decoction only when the water has boiled. And be careful, if there is too much liquid - it may spill out when another vessel is immersed in it, it would be better to have a little less of it - estimate how large the cup with the substance will be and how much water it will displace, leave the required amount of free space for it.

Melt honey and wax in a water bath

Many cosmetic masks require liquid honey or wax in the composition. This is understandable, honey is good for the skin, as nothing else smoothes it, cleanses and nourishes it, in addition, it acts as a moisturizer due to the fact that it tightly clogs the pores and moisture evaporates more slowly.

And if your skin is prone to inflammation, honey will calm it down, because it has long been used as an anti-inflammatory agent. To prepare a mask based on honey, you need to melt it, and it is important to try to preserve the maximum benefits, here’s how to do it:

• Place the required amount of product in a small mug or bowl (preferably metal);
• We heat (precisely heat) water in a larger saucepan and put honey in it;
• We heat it in this way until ready.

Do not boil in this case, just heat the honey a little and it will melt, and the beneficial ingredients will retain their properties.

Wax is often added to therapeutic masks, for example, for arthritis or for foot care - hair removal. You need to heat it as described above - the main thing is to heat it slightly, and it will retain maximum nutrients.

Chamomile decoction: how to prepare it?

Not a single herbal tea is complete without chamomile; it disinfects and soothes, and also eliminates spasms, allergies, and cramps. All its advantages cannot be listed. But in order not to lose all the beneficial properties, it is better to prepare tea from it using the named technology. For this:

• Pour 2 tablespoons of dry matter into a mug and pour water into it;
• Cover with a lid;
• Place in a water bath as usual for about 20 minutes;
• Then remove and let it brew under the lid;
• We strain and that’s it.

If, after cooking, the container with chamomile is very empty due to evaporation of the liquid, you can dilute the medicine by adding a little boiled water to it.

Use the finished product for its intended purpose - it is good for rinsing your mouth, throat, wiping your face before going to bed, or treating wounds. If you suffer from stomach problems, drink 2 times a day.

Brew other teas based on medicinal herbs in this way.

How to heat oil in a water bath?

And if you need to heat the oil, is it possible to do it this way, because it simply won’t work any other way? Warm sunflower oil or any other oil, such as burdock oil, is often required for cosmetic purposes. You can put the bottle in a mug of hot water, but in this way you will only make it slightly warm, and warming it means bringing it to a temperature of at least 40 degrees:

• Pour some liquid into a mug;
• Place in boiling water, here it is better to use boiling water, since the oil is very thick and requires a higher temperature to heat it up;
• Make sure that water does not get into the inner container;
• We are waiting for it to begin to become covered with small bubbles;
• Then turn it off.

All is ready. Why is this necessary, why won’t cold work? If you want to use burdock oil as a hair mask, it works best when warm. Applying it regularly to your hair will make it strong and thick.

So, you can heat almost anything in a water bath, the process will not take much time and effort. Therefore, if the recipe requires it, do not hesitate and do not look for other methods. Some advise using a microwave in this case; it will be difficult to prove whether it will be beneficial or harmful, but the option we described will definitely keep all the useful substances intact, which a microwave cannot guarantee.

Video: how to melt honey and preserve nutrients?

In this video, Polina Makarova will show you how a water bath works and how to melt honey with it:

Sometimes after reading a recipe in a cookbook, you get the impression that you have read some kind of strange code for special agents. Blanch, simmer with a little butter, cook until it tastes like a “soft ball” - and these are not all the terms used by chefs. But perhaps the most popular among them is the “water bath”. Many people don’t know how to make it, and therefore refuse such recipes. And completely in vain. It’s easy to make, and dishes cooked in a water or steam bath are tasty and healthy.

It is used in cases where delicate cooking and heating of the dish to no more than 100 degrees is required. The easiest way to make a water bath is to pour water into one pan and place a second, smaller one in it. This is exactly where the products that need to be cooked are placed. Typically this method is used for melting butters and chocolate, as well as for making warm custards and sponge dough. Homemade cottage cheese is also made in a similar steam bath.

Another option for making a water bath is an improvised double boiler. To do this, you need to stretch gauze over a pan of water at a height of 3-4 centimeters from the last one. This way you can cook steamed dishes - vegetables, fish and even meat. In fact, electric steamers operate on this principle, which today can be bought at any hardware store. Before their appearance, special pans with a double bottom were used. This method of cooking is considered the most dietary and healthy.

Many, however, believe that the steam menu is only suitable for children or those on a strict diet. In fact, you can cook many original and delicious dishes with steam. These can be a variety of soufflés, omelettes and even cupcakes. Cooking in a water bath saturates them with additional moisture and makes them juicy, preserving all the benefits of the products. So the steam menu can be quite varied and not only dietary.

But this does not exhaust all the cases when you need to know how to make a water bath. To make cheesecake, cake or soufflé in the oven, this cooking method is often used. This is because for delicate baked goods, you need to moderate the high oven temperature and prevent the top from cracking. To do this, you need to pour water into a deep baking tray so that it reaches the middle of the baking pan. If using a springform pan, it should be wrapped in foil to prevent moisture from entering. It is advisable to wrap in several layers and overlap and, of course, do not rush.

Knowing how to make a water bath at home, you can diversify your menu not only with dietary dishes. Thanks to it, preparing many cakes, soufflés and cheesecakes will become a very common task. This means that you can organize small holidays for your family every day. And steamed cutlets, fish and vegetables often look much more attractive than fried or stewed ones. And most importantly, they combine delicate taste and benefits, as they are prepared without adding oil.