Salter 11-Pound Digital Kitchen Scale

Toss away that old manual scale with that springboard and jerky red needle. The times have changed, man, and you need to get yourself a digital scale. Three or four years ago, I wouldn't have been saying these things, much less agreeing that a scale is a good thing to have in the kitchen. You see, some recipes call for ingredients that need to be measured by weight and not by volume. For instance, in my recipe for Braised Green Lentils, the lentils are measured by weight. The difference between this and measuring them by volume is astronomical, thus rendering the word "braise" completely pointless.

Digital scales are not a common item that you can find in the kitchen aisle of your local grocery store. This Salter 11-pound Digital Scale of ours came from Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and it was not an easy find at all. It was tucked back in with the various kichen cutlery and bakeware, and it was the only brand available.

Turns out, Salter is a really good brand for digital kichen scales. Ours is an eleven pound maximum capacity, but that's OK. I don't think I'll be trying to weight turkey any time soon.

It's extremely lightweight, runs on AAA batters, and features metric and standard displays as well as an auto shut-off feature. It measures 7 by 8.25 inches and weighs only 1.5 pounds. The platform is durable glass with rounded corners so no one gets cut. The glass resists stains and flavors and can easily be cleaned with Windex or Formula 409.

It's extremely simple to use, too. Just set it out on a flat surface, place the bowl or vessel you want to measure in directly onto the glass, hit the zero button and it turns on. Add whatever ingredient you want, and the scale responds instantly.

This is a great scale for all of you bakers who need exact measurements of ingredients, and the Salter Digital Scale is perfect for all dieters wishing to measure and control their portions. The possibilities are endless. Let's not forget to mention diabetics who need precise portion measurement to control insulin ... this is a good tool have. It measures to the tenth of a pound/kilogram, which is extremely accurate.

I highly recommend picking one up. Ours is a permanent fixture on the counter top.