Indispensable Kitchen Gadgets

LaurieLovesLearning
LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
edited November 2020 in Cooking

I have one that I have grown to appreciate. I wasn't sure that I would, but it was inexpensive & worth trying. It is a hamburger chopper with a long handle. It is similar to #4 in this link.

My complaint is that when used with cast iron (my main cookware), the corners of the blades have melted/deformed slightly. Everything seems to be made for teflon friendly these days, but I need tough, sturdy utensils. I tried to look for a stainless steel version. They do not seem to exist. If you find one. Please let me know!

So...what is your favorite kitchen gadget that you were surprised by? Please include a picture of your gadget or a link in case we feel our gadget drawer isn't full enough. 🤣

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Comments

  • Gail H
    Gail H Posts: 359 ✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning I have a friend who has a wooden one. It's the only one I've ever seen like it. Trying not to covet!

    I have a plastic one similar to yours. It's fine, but it's...plastic.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Gail H Well, now I will just have go search online for a wooden one. ;)

  • naomi.kohlmeier
    naomi.kohlmeier Posts: 380 ✭✭✭

    I work in a kitchen store. We have the plastic version as well. I can check our catalogs and see if I can locate a metal one.

    I have way too many favorite gadgets to list. :)

  • JodieDownUnder
    JodieDownUnder Posts: 1,483 admin

    @LaurieLovesLearning I have lived 3/4 of my life without a salad spinner, now I have one, I wouldn’t be without it.

    I was given a very simple wooden spoon that

    has a notch carved out in the neck of it, so you can rest it on top of whatever you’re cooking in, very handy.

    Lastly, i have a vegetable peeler that is at least 25yrs old. I don’t use it as much these days, as I rarely peel vegetables anymore but it has stood the test of time

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
    edited November 2020

    This is fun, hearing about your favorites.

    @naomi.kohlmeier That would be awesome. Wooden or stainless steel...either would suit me just fine!

  • vickeym
    vickeym Posts: 2,134 ✭✭✭✭✭

    As to my favorite gadgets there are two categories....one takes electricity the other does not. Since I live off grid the ones that do not get the most use.

    I have a small basic food processor (only has the chopper blade) that had a pull cord to spin the blade. It gets used a lot. The biggest draw back to it is the pieces I put in there must be fairly small or they get stuck between the end of the blade and the side of the container or stuck on the blade itself.

    My Victorio food mill/sauce maker, can't recommend it enough. Plus my Wonder mill Junior grain mill.

    In the gadgets that require electricity...My dehydrator. It is a Cabela's brand but a copy cat of the Excalibur style dehydrator and my Vitam. The main reasons I miss having electricity are these two gadgets. lol

  • Ruth Ann Reyes
    Ruth Ann Reyes Posts: 577 admin

    Honestly, I have many favorite kitchen gadgets. If I had to pick just one, it'd be my instant pot.

    In lieu of a hamburger chopper, I just use a bamboo spatula. Hehe!

  • Acequiamadre
    Acequiamadre Posts: 269 ✭✭✭

    I love this device which I got from a grandma and use for so many things around the homework.

    Jams, sauces, disciplining children...



  • shllnzl
    shllnzl Posts: 1,820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I have a stick type potato peeler that I purchased from a discount store in the early 1970s. It is beat up and discolored, yet it still works better than any newer peeler that I bought in years since.

    I also have a cheese planer that I got in Holland in the late 1970s; I have never found another one that works as well.

  • Lisa K
    Lisa K Posts: 1,935 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning I got one of those for dad and he said it was the best thing! So I got one for myself even though I do not cook hamburger I have found uses for it (such as soy chorizo and even eggs).

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Lisa K I bet it would work for eggs. I hadn't thought of that. I know that I do prefer using it to a spatula. It usually gets the big meat lumps that I miss as when I am cooking meat, it is usually a minimum of 6 lb at a time.

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    I also use a potato masher for my hamburger. Also love my string processer. I actually have and use many of the things on this thread, I would ad my zoodle maker, since I don't eat pasta it is a must have for me I can't find the exact one I have, but this is close: https://www.amazon.com/Handheld-Spiralizer-Vegetable-Slicer-Veggie/dp/B07PJHFVWQ/ref=sr_1_9?crid=2XS7UW2WSKDMF&dchild=1&keywords=zoodle+maker+spiral+slicer&qid=1605228856&sprefix=zoodle+maker%2Cbeauty%2C251&sr=8-9

  • naomi.kohlmeier
    naomi.kohlmeier Posts: 380 ✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning The only hamburger mashers that I could find that are metal is the one that @vickeym posted above and this one.


  • Jack_Went_Splat
    Jack_Went_Splat Posts: 59 ✭✭✭

    My favorite kitchen gadget??? Hmmm... So hard to choose. After skimming the posts above, my choices would be the dehydrator and the air locks for fermenting. So many uses for the dehydrator. Fermenting has been a life saver for me.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @naomi.kohlmeier Thanks for looking. I like the cutting action this plastic one has. I wonder if there would be a woodworker somewhere that would be willing to make a wooden one.

  • vickeym
    vickeym Posts: 2,134 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I forgot a couple of my old standby gadgets I have had and used for as lo9ng as I can remember. My veg-o-matic...I can't imagine having to slice potatoes without it. Love it so much I once went on Ebay and bid on three at the same time so I would have backups. Down to just one now. Might have to go looking again.

    And my little metal hand chopper. Mine is the serrated version.



  • marjstratton
    marjstratton Posts: 1,132 ✭✭✭✭

    Like many others, it is hard to choose. Use my chef's knives a lot. They are indispensable.

  • Jack_Went_Splat
    Jack_Went_Splat Posts: 59 ✭✭✭

    Air lock in the foreground with a couple quarts of pumpkin seeds being sprouted in preparation for the dehydrator later today. We use a 9 tray Excalibur dehydrator from this company... https://excaliburdehydrator.com/pages/dehydrators Since they are all sold out, makes me wonder if they are going, going, gone now because of extra high demand due to the special corona virus.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @vickeym What it the name on that handchopper handle? I might be interested in something like that. A taller handle might work better for deep pans of meat, though!

  • I'd hate to live without my wooden spoons lol. But the salad spinner and dehydrator are also used a lot.

  • Gail H
    Gail H Posts: 359 ✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning If you can't find a chopper like that, you can always make yourself a chopping can. After you open a can of beans, or something of a similar size, just cut the entire rim off the can. It will be very sharp, but I just kept mine up and my little ones never bothered it. They were allowed to use it with supervision since their hand was always on the closed end of the can. They don't last forever, but there are always more cans available to make another.

    I first heard about chopping cans from the dear lady who was our realtor on our last two transactions in Michigan. She was a farm girl from South Dakota who grew up there during the Depression and she was just lovely. She held the baby and walked down into the woods with us when we were looking at one property. She clued my kids into chewing wheat berries like gum. One day she mentioned her chopping can and how handy it was. I was so taken with the idea that she made me one, put a ribbon on it and gave it to us as a housewarming present.

    As mentioned, chopping cans are very sharp.

  • vickeym
    vickeym Posts: 2,134 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning They are from Rada Cutlery here is the page from their website. If you scroll down the page, it is about the eighth row down. I would be careful using it in a pan such as chopping ground beef as it could cut or scratch the finish.

    https://radakitchenstore.com/collections/all-knives

  • vickeym
    vickeym Posts: 2,134 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @monica197 This is the food strainer I bought. Does the same function as the one you have but has the hand crank instead of pushing the food through. There is a video on the page which shows it working. Separates out the seeds and skins through one direction and the pulp and juice the other direction. Also has available extra screens for doing different foods. From strawberry and fruit sized seeds to tomato. Optionally you can also buy a motor for it.

    If the one you like ends up not being available anymore this might be an option.

    https://smile.amazon.com/Deluxe-Strainer-Sauce-VICTORIO-VKP250/dp/B001I7FP54/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=model+250+food+strainer&qid=1605372612&sr=8-1

  • Sharie
    Sharie Posts: 276 ✭✭✭

    This site is all about the best quality products that will last you your lifetime. https://uk.buymeonce.com/collections/high-quality-durable-kitchenware Not cheap but better than replacing your stuff from the dollar store every few months.

    One of my fave kitchen gadgets is a strawberry huller. Such a tiny little tool but makes a big difference in speed over a knife. I couldn't live long without grapefruit spoons either. They are great for eating any fruit, scooping out avocados, etc. A lemon squeezer is my most recent addiction. I don't know how I managed without one.

  • kfoto
    kfoto Posts: 108 ✭✭✭

    I’ll weigh in and let you know I can’t live without my COSORI Electric Pressure Cooker 6 Qt.

    Just found out you can make applesauce in 8 mins. I added 2 Tbsp of lemon juice and 1cup of apple cider And 2 tsp of cinnamon or more to the pot. Then add 8 peeled, cored cubed apples. Using manual setting put pressure on high and cook 8 mins. Let it naturally release for a few mins then quick release to finish. If you do all quick release the applesauce will spit out and burn you. From here you cool and freeze. Yummy

  • Melissa Burford
    Melissa Burford Posts: 69 ✭✭✭

    A good chef's knife, but I love all sorts of gadgets, like my herb scissors (multi-blade), and my stainless steel straw (for drinking and pitting cherries).

  • ltwickey
    ltwickey Posts: 369 ✭✭✭

    My favorite is my Kitchen Aid mixer. I have acquired many of the optional gadgets for it over the years and my most recent is the ice cream maker. Absolutely love it!

    Next on my list is my stoneware for baking!

    Great tips from everyone, would never have thought of using a potato masher for hamburger. Thank you.

  • herbantherapy
    herbantherapy Posts: 453 ✭✭✭✭

    I’m so glad there were not any new to me gadgets on this list! I’m a kitchen gadget hoarder! The only two mentions that I don’t have and WANT are there sauce sieve (the one with a crank sounds awesome @vickeym and the grapefruit spoons! I grew up with these spoons and my dad still has a set but I can’t find them anywhere @Sharie!

    My favorite!? One?!?!? Instant Pot (from applesauce to yogurt to frozen chicken or slow cooked pot roast this gadget is the most versatile).

    I have to say my multi cherry pitter is a life saver or at least my husband thinks so since my patience isn’t tried as much during cherry canning season! Lol

    I have this one:

    Prepworks by Progressive by Progressive Cherry-It Cherry Pitter - 4 Cherries https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0041DV0WY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabt1_KxuSFb7PDMTMW

  • Sharie
    Sharie Posts: 276 ✭✭✭

    @herbantherapy I've bought some grapefruit spoons in the dollar store when I was in Canada and when I was in Germany I bought a couple of better quality ones from WMF. I tried to get you a link but they only ship to Germany and Austria. Maybe on ebay? I've been wanting one of those cherry pitters! I have a single one but now I rarely buy cherries. In Canada I'd buy at least 25 pounds each August to freeze. I want the sauce sieve too! I bought a tomato seed separator for sauce but it doesn't work very well. That sieve would be better I think.