Last year I really experimented with cooking. Perhaps my favorite discovery was Korean food, introduced to me by a close friend. Filled with healthy foods like kimchi, Korean cuisine has a variety of flavors. I ordered a box of organic gochujang (Korean red pepper flakes) as I was trying to cook my own Korean food. As I approached half way through the box, I noticed, to my horror, that it was lumpy and bad.
Application of Silica Gel Pack
It may not be immediately obvious to everyone, but your kitchen is often the wettest part of the house. Whenever something is cooked or boiled, moisture is released into the air. That moisture may be good for all the herbs you keep in your kitchen, but it’s a whole different story when it comes to dried spices. If you find clumps of spices and sugar, moisture is to blame.
So what can you do about it? The last thing you want to do is move your spice cabinet away from where you need it most. This may come as a surprise to you, but one of the best things to do is to use silica gel packets. You know those packages that say “DO NOT EAT”? These wraps are my favorite way to keep spices from clumping, and they’re also great for bagging potatoes and other sprouting veggies.
You can find these packages in everything from dried seaweed to shoes and bags. Like spices, silica gel does not allow moisture to destroy these products. But is there any reason to worry about silica gel?
Warning labels can be a cause for concern, but it helps to know what silica gel is. Silica gel or silica is the same thing that is made of sand. Think what happens when you pour a little water into a sandcastle. It absorbs the environment like silica gel. The warning signs are there because of the danger of suffocation to children. It’s a non-toxic substance so you don’t have to worry about getting sick!
Instead of throwing them away, why not keep a few on hand? Simply toss it in your jar or snap the lid on and it will transform your herbs and spices. If you notice that your packs are becoming less efficient, you can bake some silicon in the oven (be sure to remove it from the paper packaging) and recharge it!
Besides being used in the kitchen, silica gel packs can be used for many things that you use throughout the day.
Use in silica gel packets
Notice your Halloween sculpt softening within a few days? Throw a flint or two inside and your neighbors will enjoy it for a long time!
Do you have a big bag of dried pet food? Glue one pack of silicon to the edge of the bag to make it last longer.
One thing I have struggled with this winter is condensation on the windows of the house. Keeping the silica gel pack near the window should do the trick. This will also work for fogged car windshields.