What kitchen gadgets do you have?

J

Jane

Recycles dryer sheets
Joined
Jul 7, 2004
Messages
165
I don't have many but I swear by my Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy Rice Cooker that I got as housewarming gift a couple of years ago. It has settings for different rice (white rice? Sweet? Congee?) and what is more incredible, it has a timer function! Before I leave to work in the morning I can set it up to finish cooking rice at say, 6 PM so I can come home to a cooked hot rice! :D

I also have a toaster oven (is it considered gadget?) which I use everyday, a blender which I use rarely (it was an impulse buy) and an espresso maker which I use few times a week (it came free with my fiance).

This Christmas I am getting a crock pot! Oh yeah! :D

So what kitchen gadget do you have?

Jane
 
I should probably say gadget/small appliances.

Also want to add my electric mixer.

Jane
 
Heh,heh,heh - Jane are you nuts!

Three women plus I used to be an engineer.

Toasters - three sizes
Crock pots/slow cookers - four types.
Woks - electric plus regular.
Blenders three sizes.
Microwave - one (one broke)
Rice steamer. electric grills, gridles, warming thingy's, rice steamers, two types of can openers, three sixes of coffee pots, etc and probably stuff I forgot. And that's only electric - there are some strange things - I don't know what they do.
 
Espresso coffee maker and coffee grinder - Gaggia Evolution - used every day
Breadmaker - Breadman Ultimate - we wake up to fresh bread every weekday morning
Electric knife - works well on still warm bread!
Dualit toaster - used every day
Braun electric kettle - it's a "tea" thing :D
Braun wand mixer - used a couple times a week
Kitchen Aid food processor - used once a week on average
Multiple other things like ice cream maker, sandwich toaster, spice grinder, used once in a blue moon and gathering dust ::)
 
Heh,heh,heh - Jane are you nuts!
Click to expand...

You are not the first who said that. :D

Your post reminds me that I also have a small (4 cup) drip coffee machine tuck somewhere in my kitchen cabinets and indoor/outdoor electric grill. I have bamboo steamers, a marble rolling pin (I am not sure they are considered gadget or not).

I was contemplating a pasta maker earlier this year but decided against it (at least not this year).

Jane
 
The best kitchen gadget we have is the telephone.... Hello, Dominos?
 
Drip coffeemaker used daily
Kitchen aid with a bunch of attachments - not used enough
Bread maker
Vitamix Blender
Toaster oven
Grill like George Foreman (wonderful for salmon)
2 Crockpots used regularly

I got rid of a bunch of kitchen stuff that I didn't use when we moved. Still have more in the cupboard that I rarely use. Like waffle maker.

I make rice in a saucepan still. I always thought having a ricemaker would just be ....one more thing in the kitchen.
 
Turns out we use almost every gadget we have and don't miss the ones we used to have (toaster oven).

Microwave oven, drip coffeemaker, coffee grinder, blender, Braun hand blender (great for mixing), and a very small Cuisinart. We have the world's cheapest toaster from Target (seven bucks) that we bought when a toast-eating relative came to visit, but it'll go to Goodwill before the end of the year.

The thing I use most often doesn't have a motor. It's my "Yan Can Cook" cleaver.
 
One of the best kitchen gadgets we have is a meat thermometer with an alarm. You place the meat into the oven with a probe stuck into it. A wire from the probe connects to the little gadget sitting on the counter. When the meat reaches the temp you set, an alarm is sounded. Roasts are perfect every time.
 
Oh, I want one of those meat thermometers! :D

My favorite kitchen things are:
Toaster oven (use all the time), microwave (ditto), crockpot (ditto), food processor, large, heavy, super-sharp chef's knife, cast iron fry pan, square flat piece of rubber that helps open jar lids.... ;)

Adventuregirl
 
Toaster (rarely used)
Microwave (lots of use)
Blender (rarely used)
Griddle (medium use)
Crock-pot (rarely used)
Miniature chopper (great for chopping nuts)
Non-mechanical can opener (lots of use)
 
I thought of other stuffs I have:

Microwave (a lot of times it is used to defrost meat)
A set of 5 good knifes, variety of sizes (housewarming gift) - use daily
A cleaver - use daily
Hand can opener - use maybe twice a week?
Wine opener - use in the weekend
Stainless-steel pots and pans - use almost daily
Non-stick wok - use almost daily
Non-stick frying pan - use in the weekend for bacon, eggs or pancakes type of breakfast
A coffee bean grinder - gathering dust in kitchen cabinet somewhere

Sheesh I guess I actually have a lot of gadgets...should I count my butcher block chopping board? How about my martini shaker? Now that I thought about it, I think I also have a mocha pot somewhere gathering dust.

Jane
 
Oooh, Oooh, I'll join in - love kitchen gadgets.

Kitchenaid mixer - homemade cookie dough fixed in minutes flat - place in refrigerator or freezer for future baking/eating/gifts - love it - also used for bread dough

mini-food processor - used a lot - make pestos, hummus and other grinded stuff - also have great recipe for pizza dough made in food- processor

Set of All-Clad cookware - makes a huge difference in heat distribution and cooking - love them -got them on sale and discounted... of course

Nut grinder - used to grind coffee beans

Hand blender - used to puree soups, smoothies, etc - love it, too

Coffee maker - for my freshly ground coffee

Toaster

Microwave

You know, my undergrad is in mechanical engineering - must love that moving stuff!!

Bridget aka Deserat
 
I was contemplating a pasta maker earlier this year but decided against it (at least not this year).
Click to expand...

Have you made any pasta yet? I've got a breadmaker that I use pretty heavily for bread and other similar things (I'll often mix in the machine, form by hand, and bake in the oven). I've recently (since my trip to Italy) been experimenting with pasta. I've mixed it up in the bread machine and then hand rolled it. I've had varying results so far but even without the pasta rolling machine you can make generic flat noodles and ravioli.

Getting the semolina flour (needed for good pasta) is tough here in the Bay Area at regular grocery stores but I found some at the Indian grocery stores - 10kg for $6.99. Make sure that you get the fine ground. There are two kinds in the Indian grocery stores - regular and fine - and the regular is kind of course (probably better for rotis and chappatis).

I've also made corn meal bread before too. (Gratuitous mention of southern US bread to keep the religious zealots happy.)
 
I cook every day. My must haves are iron skillets, full range with oven, microwave, coffee grinder and drip coffee maker. Ah yes, corkscrew and some sharp knives!

I have one iron skillet that goes back to the civil war. It belonged to my great-great-grandmother. These things get better every century.

I also have Creuset enameled cast iron pots which I use for all sorts of moist roasting. I wore out one set of them, and true to Creuset's word, they were replaced for free. I have a fish poacher, which I only use when I have guests and want to do a whole fish. I have a George Foreman, which I like for roasted veggies- green onions, eggplant, etc. And finally, I have a nice French pressure cooker. I can come in tired and hungry, and as long as I have some meat in the freezer and a few veggies, I can have a nice pot roast ready soon after I've finished my cocktail.

I bought a couple of things that I don't use as much as I thought I would. Food processor- I mostly use a cleaver, or a Global knife. And Crock Pot. If I could ever make a pot roast in one that didn't seem stringy I know I would like this, but so far no can do.

Mikey
 
I have a pasta roller. I make the dough by hand from a recipe by Marcella Hazan in her cookbook The Essentials Of Classic Italian Cooking - it makes fantastic egg pasta, although time consuming, it's very therapeutic. As I'm making for 5 healthy eaters I need lots of counter space to lay out the dough on (clean) dish towels. Oh, and I also have a special gadget, a pasta dryer. It's a wooden stand with 12 removable dowels along the top, so that you can drape the pasta strands over to dry.
 
I mostly use a cleaver, or a Global knife.
Click to expand...

Hey, how do you like the Global knives? I read "Kitchen Confidential" by Anthony Bourdain earlier this year and between telling all the secrets of the restaurant kitchen he was recommending these. He said that a lot of pros were starting to use them too.
 
Jane,

I just wanted to comment on you getting a crockpot for Christmas. It seems that the new crockpots of today are not made like the old ones. And I mean it is "not a good thing". They boil and overcook on the low setting. Completely worthless. I recently broke the crock on my older crockpot and ended up getting a whole new one. (Big mistake was to throw out the old base unit). I ended up buying/trying/returning several new ones because they burnt the food. Sauces would boil down to nothing. And that was cooking on "low". I finally picked up a NESCO roaster because it looks like a crockpot and has a variable temperature setting in degrees (not just high/low). And in theory cooking at low heat should be a "slow cooker". Made my first dinner in it tonight and it tasted pretty good and cooked almost as similar to my old crockpot.

I'm just trying to save you some grief. I tried the new programables, several brands and ended up returning every single one.

I really love cooking in a crockpot and normally use mine 2-4 times a week.

Good luck.

LovesLife
 
Hey, how do you like the Global knives?  I read "Kitchen Confidential" by Anthony Bourdain earlier this year and between telling all the secrets of the restaurant kitchen he was recommending these.  He said that a lot of pros were starting to use them too.
Click to expand...

Global knives are excellent. My son has the paring knife, I don't really like it. I have the large French chef's knife, and I really like it. I also use an old carbon steel cleaver about as much, so the Global really isn't necessary.

Mikey
 
I was tempted to ignore this topic, but...................
we have some bowls, plates, pots, pans, knives, forks, spoons and a microwave, just about all used.
There, wasn't that fascinatiing? :)

John Galt
 
We made pasta a few times, once with just regular all-purpose flour and the other times with semolina (the semolina tasted better). Pile flour in the middle of wood chopping board, make a well in the middle and crack an egg. Knead and then roll thin with the rolling pin. Lots of work which was why I was considering a pasta maker. I made bread by hand too and at one point in the future will probably want to acquire a bread machine. I guess I want these gadgets because they seem to be a time-saver. I can make bread and pasta more often if I have these gadgets :D heh...right I just like kitchen gadgets.

LovesLife: thanks on the heads-up on the crock pot. I'll look into the Nesco roaster.

Jane
 
Jane,

I just wanted to comment on you getting a crockpot for Christmas.  It seems that the new crockpots of today are not made like the old ones.  And I mean it is "not a good thing".  They boil and overcook on the low setting.  Completely worthless.  I recently broke the crock on my older crockpot and ended up getting a whole new one.  (Big mistake was to throw out the old base unit).  I ended up buying/trying/returning several new ones because they burnt the food.  Sauces would boil down to nothing.  And that was cooking on "low".  I finally picked up a NESCO roaster because it looks like a crockpot and has a variable temperature setting in degrees (not just high/low).  And in theory cooking at low heat should be a "slow cooker".  Made my first dinner in it tonight and it tasted pretty good and cooked almost as similar to my old crockpot.  

I'm just trying to save you some grief.  I tried the new programables, several brands and ended up returning every single one.  

I really love cooking in a crockpot and normally use mine 2-4 times a week.

Good luck.

LovesLife
Click to expand...


Can Mrs BUM have a favorite receipie?
 
I will send you some favs later on today (after work). I have some excellent receipes to pass on. Glad you asked.

LovesLife
 
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