Mine is a homemade make do. I use it to make cheese sauce. I don’t have to be right on top of it so stuff doesn’t burn.

I sure do! It’s most often used when I am making frosting.

Absolutely. I haven’t in a very long time, but when using chocolate in a recipe a double boiler is often advised. Also, custards. Items that can burn easily on the bottom. I just use two pans when I have to, I don’t have an actual double boiler. Sometimes I get away with a bowl in a bowl if it is something that melts quickly.

You mean a bain marie?

Just stick a bowl on top of a pan. I do it for melting chocolate, tempering eggs when making hollondaise sauce, tempering eggs for custard. Not much else I can think of.

@Kropotkin Yes, that is the same thing. Bain Marie is used for both double boiler on top of the stove and in the oven in the US. I use a bain marie to make flan in the oven. While double boiler is usually specifically talking about on top of the stove.

I promise you, the instant.you get rid of it you’re going to need it!

Not often. The microwave usually replaces it for things like melting chocolate. And as @Kropotkin says, you can use a bowl on a pan.

Put it in the discard box and see if you pull it out in the next two months.

What @janbb said. And it’s not worth worrying about at all. If you find you need one desperately after the move, Goodwill (or equivalent) could probably help you out.

And I haven’t used mine since Seattle, which I left in 1994.

@Dutchess_III That is so true.

It has been a while because my daughter wrecked mine. I miss it, but I never got it inserted in my budget.

Just put a smaller pot into a slightly bigger pot that has water in it.

My family had it for a long time. But now we are getting new kitchenwares and I don’t see it anywhere. Maybe it’s stacked somewhere in the warehouse.

But we now have a slow cooker. And my mom is happier with it.

I have no idea how long it’s been since I used my old double boiler

Get rid of it.

The best cooks I know have the fewest kitchen gizmos. If it fit your cooking style, you would be using it often and it would be an obvious keeper.

@Call_Me_Jay the last time we used the thing, it was to make this. Now you made my mouth watered and I don’t know if our modern cooker can make it again :(

Thanks, Mimi. I added Chawanmushi to my list of recipes I would like to cook. That looks delicous. Using things in my kitchen, I could make that with a stock pot, a steamer, and custard cups.

I also have an Instant Pot, which can sauté, steam, bake, and slow cook. But I have not learned to use it well.

I use it every Christmas to melt chocolate for haystack cookies.

Here is a recipe for haystack cookies that suggests melting the chocolate in the microwave. I prefer using my mom’s double boiler that she got as a wedding gift.

Haystack Cookie Recipe:
https://www.dinneratthezoo.com/haystack-cookies/

No, I rarely used it.