Icing Bag
If you have experience cooking cakes you may already know a thing or two about an icing bag, but only if you have spent time learning how to get elaborate with the decorating. This type of baker’s tool is great for home cooks or the most skilled pastry chefs. You may only have watched one of these being used on one of many reality cooking shows based on the world of cake making, but now you can learn more about how to use it and why you may want to add one of these to your collection.
What This Tool Does
An icing bag is also referred to as a piping bag. That is because it is used to decorate the icing, add icing or make detailed piping on the icing. This item is basically a bag, but one that is triangular shaped. The material the bag is constructed of is flexible and is impenetrable. There is a hole at one of the triangle corners and this is where the tip is inserted.
The tip is generally a cone made of either plastic or metal and can be one of a few shape variations. Usually, the tip has a circular hole, flat ridge type of opening for flatter piping or can be star shaped. A piping bag may also be called a forcing bag. This item is used as an instrument for piping or applying soft but structured or moldable substances.
For sweets, that would be icing, meringue or whipped cream. It is also often used for other types of foods. So, to apply dollops of mashed potatoes to the top of a Sheppard’s pie, you would use a forcing bag. Some cooks do also use this to fill certain types of foods, as well, like for stuffed food recipes. These are commonly used for filling doughnuts.
Is it Icing, Pastry, Forcing or Piping Bag?
These are basically different names for the same device, cooking instrument or decorative baking tool. There are some differences among the products, but mainly these are all one and the same. The fact that the bag is cone or triangular and is hand held, doesn’t change. The bag part of this kitchen product can be plastic, cloth or paper. Higher quality, reusable bags can also be constructed of nylon, rubber, cotton or polyester. In fact, one can technically make a disposable forcing bag themselves, but for regular use it is wise to invest in one.
Once the tip is applied to the cone bag, whatever semi-solid food is inside can be squeezed out for whatever purpose is needed. Generally, this means rolling or twisting, similar to how one extracts contents from a tube of toothpaste. Other uses include using the pastry bag for filling deviled eggs, éclairs or adding flower petal décor to cakes and cupcakes. Different types of tips for piping bags can include construction from plastic, stainless steel or a chrome-plated tip. Tips can be bought in sets or individually for your icing bag.
