Devices and methods for supporting and preparing foods

A method for cooking unitary foods in liquid utilizing an associated food support member and an associated pool of hot liquid comprising:

• positioning a unitary article of food so that it is supported by the associated food support member as a supported unitary article of food;
• lowering, from a relatively raised position, the food support member while it is supporting the unitary article of food in a first orientation into a pool of hot liquid disposed in the liquid vessel to a depth where a first part of, but not all of, the supported unitary article of food is immersed in the liquid;
• leaving the food support member and the supported unitary article of food stationary in the hot liquid in the first orientation for a selected time period long enough for cooking to occur in the first part of the supported unitary article of food;
• repositioning the supported unitary article of food relative to the food support member to a second orientation such that a second part of the supported unitary article of food including a portion not previously submersed in the pool of hot liquid, becomes immersed in the pool of hot liquid;
• and
• leaving the food support member and the supported unitary article of food stationary in the hot liquid in the second orientation long enough for cooking to occur in the second part of the supported unitary article of food, wherein the first and second parts of the supported unitary article of food mutually.

A method for cooking a unitary article of food comprising:

• associating a unitary article of food with a food positioning and support member;
• placing a first part of, but not all of, a unitary article of food in a heated cooking environment by lowering, from a relatively raised position, the food positioning and support member and associated unitary article of food into the environment;
• leaving the first part of the unitary article of food in the heated cooking environment for a duration sufficient to substantially complete cooking of a first portion of the whole unitary article of food to occur;
• repositioning, by raising the food positioning support member from the environment and inverting the unitary article of food relative to the cooking environment such that after repositioning by lowering the food positioning support member, a second part of the unitary article of food including a portion which was not exposed to the cooking environment becomes exposed, and wherein the first part of the unitary article of food and the second part of the unitary article of food overlap one another;
• and
• leaving the second part of the unitary article of food in the cooking environment hot for a duration sufficient to substantially complete cooking of a complementary second portion of the unitary article of food to occur.

A device to fry comestibles, comprising:

• a cooking vessel configured to hold frying oil, in combination with comestible articles to be cooked in the oil;
• the vessel having generally vertical side walls which include an upper side wall rim;
• a heater configured to heat, to cooking temperatures, frying oil and comestible articles together within the vessel,
• an annular, generally vertical wall, configured, in a first disposition, to circumferentially engage an upper portion of the vessel, and while so engaged, extend upwardly, above the upper side wall rim;
• the wall, in a second disposition, configured to telescope with the vessel, and substantially extend downwardly below the upper side wall rim.

A device to filter cooking liquids, comprising:

• an open-topped cooking vessel, having a generally horizontal floor with side walls projecting upward from the floor, and the open-topped cooking vessel configured to contain associated food and associated cooking liquid,
• a heating source, configured to heat to cooking temperatures, associated food and associated cooking liquid contained within the cooking vessel,
• a filtering partition configured to form a compartment bounded by the filtering partition on its bottom and bounded on the compartment sides by the sidewalls of the open topped cooking vessel in a first disposition, with the compartment containing the associated food and associated cooking liquid,
• the filtering partition being further configured to be positioned outside of the open topped cooking vessel in a second disposition,
• wherein, when the filtering partition transitions from its first disposition to its second disposition, associated cooking liquid contained within the compartment passes through and is filtered by the filtering partition.