What's your favorite kitchen gadget?

[Pryderi]

I love my Cuisinart Blend Stick and Griddler. :)

[Stinky The Clown]

1. I have too many to have a favorite

The most used items, however, are my two French knives.

[Lucinda]

2. Hmmm....these are the ones I use most often:

My counter top French butter keeper:


Oven thermometer and temperature alarm:


We do a lot of Asian cooking. This is invaluable:


My m&p


I use these for EVERYTHING.


And my favorite kitchen knife. No photo, it stores in it's own sharpner and has been in the family about 30 years.

But I couldn't live without my cast iron skillets.
Though they don't qualify as gadgets. :)

[troubleinwinter]

8. Mmmmm... butter...

I was just today thinking about one of those butter keepers.

Since you like it so well, I think you've helped me realize that I MUST have one.

I like the plain white one you show.

[Lucinda]

14. We have a modern kitchen, so streamline works for me.

There are some cool designs out there, but I like to keep it simple.

[troubleinwinter]

32. I ordered one!

My kitchen is a little more 'rustic' style, so I got the crockery lookin' one.



I was getting a couple of kitchen thingies on Amazon, and this put me into the 'Free Shipping' category, so I got it for about $3!

[Lucinda]

34. Awesome! I love amazon's shipping deals!

Hope you love it!

[yellowdogintexas]

51. got mine for $1.00 at the Christmas Tree Store in Vernon CT. I like it. nt

[NMDemDist2]

9. how the heck do you keep the butter in the keeper??

I always end up with a blob of butter sitting in a puddle of water

:shrug:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

11. I just threw mine away

Same thing happened to me. I got sick of wet butter.

[Lucinda]

13. I've had that happen once or twice.

I think it has to do with the air temperature where you store it. If it's in a cooler part of my kitchen, packed in well, and the water changed more frequently (once a day instead of every 2-3) it seems to solve the problem. I also think it works better when the butter is a little softer, rather than packed in cold.

[kcass1954]

28. I have one of those knives - got it in 1978.

It's made by Wilkinson. Not my favorite knife - very lightweight and the handle is kinda funky - but the damn thing is practically indestructible and always sharp.

[Lucinda]

35. Mine is an old Wiltshire permasharp - with a gnarly plastic handle

that has been scuffed and melted, but that puppy is as sharp as the day it was made.

[NashVegas]

3. This Week

It's this:



(I've been using it on Smithwick's)

close runner up is my 1980s Ekco knife that's been chopping garlic like no one's business

[troubleinwinter]

4. Yer joking, right?

The latest one, of course!

The Danish Dough Whisk.

It came in the mail today. I ordered it Monday, when the post office was closed. It arrived today, THURSDAY! Two days, most of the way across the country.

It cost $8 = $2.02 shipping (other places sell it for $14.95 = $6.95), for a grand total of $10.02 at Breadtopia.

Some of us have been talking about the 5 Minute Artisan bread, which lead me to this item. I mixed a batch of the no-kneed dough in about 90 seconds.

I have read elsewhere that people like this also for mixing meatballs and for mixing stuffing.

I really like this toy, and may need the smaller version... would be good for muffins, etc.







http://www.breadtopia.com/store/danish-dough-whisk.html

Annnnd, it came wrapped in a sheet of merlot colored tissue paper!

[Lucinda]

5. Very cool!

Let us know what you think of it after you take it for a spin?

[troubleinwinter]

7. I already 'spun' it!

Mixed enough bread dough for several loaves in about 90 seconds. Fabulous. People comment about how easy it is to clean... no dough sticking at all (as with a spoon), rinse with cold water, and I did not have to unpack my big ol' KitchenAid.

[Lucinda]

12. I started to use my kitchenaid the first time and decided it was silly. LOL

I used a silicone spoon and mixed it in the storage bowl and poof! no cleanup mess. Couldn't be any easier. LOL

I think I may put that on my "get it" list.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

10. I'm liking that a lot! Those Danes! And what a great price. Sold!

Thanks so much - that looks like a complete winner.-

[troubleinwinter]

19. There's a video

here: http://www.breadtopia.com/sicilian-no-knead-bread/ where he uses the Danish Dough whisk to mix a batch of 'Sicilian No Kneed Bread'. (About half way down the page, video, "Part One", at 3:00 minutes)

It is almost hilarious. He claims it was "about ten seconds" to mix the dough, but it was actually about a whole 30 seconds! It's what made me decide I would be willing to make bread & ordered the thing! I love it!

Took me 90 (!!!!) seconds because I'm a beginner & was mixing enough for several loaves. I'm not using his exact method, I'm using the 'Five Minute Artisan Bread' method.

[NMDemDist2]

6. probably gadget wise I'd have to go with my apple corer/slicer thingie right now

mine looks about like this with red handles



I bought one at a thrift store for $1 and when it broke I had to buy a new one

I also love this guy for zesting citrus and grating hard cheese on pasta

mine isn't this one but is very similar with a wooden handle

[Lucinda]

15. I made apple pies all winter without a corer. I NEED One. LOL

I dont think i've ever owned one. How weird!

[NMDemDist2]

16. they're cheap as hell and great

I love apples and cheese as a snack and this makes it so fast and easy

[Lucinda]

17. It does seem like it would speed things up a lot!

[TreasonousBastard]

21. Oh, it does, but...

just don't get a really cheap one, like at the Dollar Store. Last one of those I got kinda exploded on a not very ripe apple. I found a more solid one at Wal-Mart for maybe five bucks.

[Lucinda]

23. Thanks for the tip!

I'll check wallyworld next time I go!

[yellowdogintexas]

52. no need for a corer. Here is Julia Child's foolproof apple method:

cut apple in quarters.
slip a paring knife under the bit of core that is in each quarter.
Then peel the quarters if you want to peel them.

Now you can slice them into nice slices for your pie, or chunks if that is how you like them

I can core and slice an apple in less than a minute with just a little Pampered Chef $1.25 paring knife.

[Warpy]

18. My immersion blender comes close

as do my mandoline and Mouli grater. However, the gadget I use the most and will lug with me no matter where I go is my Kitchen Aid mixer.

I'll slice things by hand and grate them on the old knuckle buster but they'll have to pry my Kitchen Aid out of my cold, dead kitchen.

[Lucinda]

20. Also the ice cream attachment for my KA.

It's sort of a gadget. LOL

[TreasonousBastard]

22. The swivel peeler...

is probably the most used thing in my kitchen, aside from whisks, knives, spatulas and the other usual stuff. I have several sizes and shapes around for various tasks.

Not only does it peel perfectly, but it thinly slices cheese, zests, and shaves carrots down to nothing in seconds.

(And a lot easier to clean than graters, food processors, or other gadgets that do the same thing.)

[hippywife]

24. See now, I don't have or use a peeler.

I just wash everything very, very well and eat them peel and all. I was always taught that was were all the really healthy stuff was. There is a rare occasion when I will peel, well more like thinly scrape, the peel off of a carrot but not often at all.

[TreasonousBastard]

26. Apple pie with the peels still on? Unpeeled peaches in...

the cereal bowl? Thick slices of carrot in the cole slaw? The green stuff just under the skin of a potato?

(Cleaning the cheese grater?)

[hippywife]

27. The only one I don't do

is the apple pie with the peel on, but I really don't see the harm in that. We eat apple dumplings that way. There's really no harm in it at all. If there is anything below the surface of a potato I just excise that spot with the tip of the knife. :shrug:

[pengillian101]

29. I'm with you!

I don't peel much either, just scrub well. I was also taught most of the vitamins are just right beneath the skin. I actually prefer skin-on potatoes fixed any way.

And hey, restaurants even sell stuffed potato skins :-)



:hi:

[The empressof all]

36. I'm looking for a new Heavy Duty peeler

I've gotten into eating a lot of butternut squash and I prefer to peel,chunk and roast it with a hit of EVOO rather than halving it and roasting with the skin on. My trusty ecko peeler that I've used for years just can't do the heavier peel of the squash. With my arthritis I'm no longer able to use the paring knife safely on such a job. I'd love to find a heavy duty peeler that can do this job.

[TreasonousBastard]

40. Look for a "Y" peeler-- they've usually got a bigger...

business end and they're much easier to pull "down" a squash.

I use mine on butternuts and it works reasonably well-- much better then the small one or the paring knife.

Don't remember where I got mine, but any reasonably stocked kitchen department should have them.

[eridani]

56. I just did butternut squash last night. If you find a good heavy duty peeler, let me know

Resolved to get more into seasonal food after reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, but winter squashes are a bitch to prepare. Halves are too big for a meal for two, so I roast or braise and save leftovers. Last night my hands were sore after preparing just one.

(I used Kingsolver's recipe of braising in apple juice and rosemary after a brief butter saute. Had to remove the chunks and boil the liquid for awhile to get the very nice glaze, though.)

[hippywife]

25. Every last one of them...

so help me Dog! LOL No really, I love them all equally.

[Tab]

30. This?

or this "martini maker"?



Or this hamburger USB drive?



Perhaps the Darth Toaster??



Or this gadget to help you pour sodas?



And although it's not technically a gadget, let's not forget the "Placenta 'n Henna"



Ooh, ooh! And the "Jet Toaster"



There is this smokehouse BBQ chopper (motorcycle):



And the curious kitchen rubber pig head gagdet:





In my estimation, though, and it will be my favorite forever, nothing beats the Jet Powered Beer Cooler...
http://asciimation.co.nz/beer/

Enjoy!

[troubleinwinter]

33. Huh....

ya know it never before occurred to me to serve canned beans on toast.

I wonder if I need one of those rubber pigs? It might be more useful (whatever it's used for) than a "garlic keeper".

[Retrograde]

50. You're obviously not British

canned baked beans on toast is a breakfast staple there, at least at the B&Bs I've stayed at. People seem to enjoy it: I suppose it beats Vegemite.

The soda pourer - there are no words.

Topic? I like my mini-Cuisinart. I've never wanted a big one, but the little one is just the right size.

[Tab]

59. You missed this one

http://asciimation.co.nz/beer

Best damned kitchen gadget known to men (women might take exception).

[Lucinda]

37. LOL

Great stuff!

[troubleinwinter]

38. I started to think I probably need one of those rubber pig gadgets

so started googling. I haven't found one yet, but did find a "Rubber Pig 'Cake Topper'".



This is surely going to simplify my cake decorating.

[Warpy]

41. What's a pig doing with a duck bill?

Or what's a pink duck doing with pig ears?

That must've been made in a Muslim country where people were very, very confused.

[troubleinwinter]

43. Why would anybody put a pink rubber thing on top of a cake, what ever it is?

[Warpy]

48. Chinese New Year will be year of the pig

in a couple of years. Maybe then.

[Warpy]

42. What the hell is that pig thing?

Drain stopper? Garlic peeler?

[Tab]

46. THAT, I'm not sure about

My guess was a drain stopper. It seems the right size and shape.

Honest to god, though, I really don't frickin' know. I'm not sure I want to think about it too much, either.

[Cassandra]

60. It's a pot cover for steaming.

I think it's really cute.

[spinbaby]

31. I'm loving my new food processor

The big Cuisinart 14-cup model. I'm making pie this morning and this thing will do four cups of flour and a pound of butter and hardly notice. It's quiet, too. The last food processor I bought was also a Cuisinart--the blender/food-processor combo. It was such a hunk of noisy junk it's hard to believe this one is made by the same company. For teeny jobs I have a little Oskar that's been around since the mid 80s.

Peach pie in the oven, blackberry pie on the way.

[Lugnut]

39. All of them.

Since I'm a cookie monster I do have a special fondness for my Kitchen Aid mixer.

[bicentennial_baby]

44. Simple...my cheese grater

i grate Parm A LOT. It's a sickness. :D

[ejpoeta]

45. I live my one touch can opener. when it works, that is.

I have dropped it a couple of times. and it is not rechargeable, so when the batteries get low it will die in the middle of a can. but it helps out a lot because my hands hurt so bad when I try to open a can with my regular can opener. well, when i had that one. til the handle broke on it. LOL! i only wish they would make it rechargeable so that I don't have to worry about the batteries.

[BarbaRosa]

47. Insta-read digtal thermometer,

and timers.

[troubleinwinter]

49. I think this attests to how much I like this thing.

My son-in-law is an Executive Chef. About five years ago, he and my daughter lived with us for a few months while they relocated to new digs.

As they were packing to move out, I said to him, "You can have my daughter, my only child, but your scoop stays with me."



I'm going to make Gnudi in the next coupla days.

[yellowdogintexas]

53. I love my mini scoop. I use it for cookies, filling mini muffin cups, putting the

filling in deviled eggs, all sorts of fun things.

I took a pumpkin bread recipe, used the mini scoop to put the dough into the muffin cups and had 70 little mini pumpkin muffins instead of big old hunks of bread. They were cute too.

[troubleinwinter]

57. I like it for making small dumplings, too.

[hippywife]

55. I finally broke down and bought one

at Kohl's after the holidays. It's and OXO sized medium. I would rather have a small, and will, but it was so cheap, I thought what the heck. Takes so much of the mess of spooning cookie batter out of the bowl.

[yellowdogintexas]

54. currently I am in love with my Zyliss Garlic Press

but my favorite kitchen gadget is probably my wok.

[troubleinwinter]

58. I would think there is an advantage

to a press, in that it probably releases more of the aromatic oils by the crushing action, but I always hated cleaning them.

I've taken to the micro-plane-grater type.

[Highway61]

61. Can't live without it