S/O--which kitchen gadget is a must-have?

[milovany]

In light of the rice cooker thread (which I do not, by the way, classify as a gadget), what true gadget is a must-have or has caused you to eat something more that you were not eating before? To me, a garlic press is NOT a must-have. It's easier to mince fresh garlic. But on the other hand, a must-have for me is the pineapple corer/slicer thing! We went from n.e.v.e.r. buying pineapple to buying it regularly (when in season, esp. when $1.99 to $2.99 each) because of how easy it makes it to get a bunch of pineapple out of the shell quickly. People will tell me "I just cut it," but I've tried that and get a lot of the hard-to-chew stuff in there. With this gadget you can have the entire thing cut up in rings, from start to finish, in about 42 seconds. Love it.

 

You?

 

ETA - Love the early involvement, and I love each one named, but you're naming appliances. Gadget = fits in the top drawer. ;-)

Edited November 23, 2010 by milovaný

[Halcyon]

Crock pot. :)

[Heidi]

A wheat grinder (electric) and a Bosch mixer.

[K&Rs Mom]

Garlic Zoomer - I never used to use fresh garlic, but this minces it quickly and is fun (when I get it out, dc ask if they can zoom it).

[gardening momma]

I checked my kitchen drawers, but I just have the standard stuff...whisk, vegetable peeler, tongs, etc...The only things close to a gadget vs. a standard kitchen utensil/tool in my kitchen would be the egg slicer and the apple slicer/corer (the kind that you push down over the apple in one motion, not the peeler/corer/slicer, which I have too, but doesn't get much use).

[annlaura]

Manual egg beaters - nothing keeps my DSs busier or happier, and as DS4 has gotten big enough, he actually helps beat eggs or mix batters for real. I need to look at that pineapple tool - I'm horrible at cutting them myself too.

[gardening momma]

Just thought of one. It's slightly bigger, so it won't fit in most drawers, but I keep it with my 2 collanders anyway...a fine mesh strainer. Mine is 6" in diameter, and about 3" high. It has 2 hook-thingys opposite from the handle so you can rest it on a pan or bowl. I'm thinking of getting a second one, maybe a bit smaller.

[Luckymama]

I like a good melon baller myself :)

 

oooooh, just thought of one! Dh gave me a fantastic Microplane zester with this cool slide-on attachment---I can put a hunk of parmesan cheese (or anything else) in the "box" of the attachment and slide it up and down the zester to grate/zest without taking off the skin on my knuckles :D

[eternalknot]

The $3 polyester grippy thing that helps me open stubborn jars when nobody else is around or if my hands are too slippery. Mine actually has a small magnet and hangs on my refrigerator, but hey - best danged gadget ever there was.

 

I don't use many gadgets, though LOL.

[cin]

An immersion blender. I make a lot of soup that I wouldn't if I had to put it in a blender in batches. I also make daily smoothies, which I hate making in a blender. I LOVE my immersion blender!

 

 

I use my magic bullet in the same way. I never thought I'd have something from an infomercial, but my friend has one, so I got to see it in action and then they were on sale at Kohl's (what isn't??) so I picked one up.

 

And yeah, my family wouldn't eat without a crockpot.

[justasque]

I'm going to ditto the Microplane and the fine-mesh strainer.

 

I am also a huge fan of scoops, the stainless steel kind with the part that comes across to empty the spoon when you squeeze the handle. I have several sizes and use them to scoop cookie dough, muffin batter, yogurt for parfaits, biscuit dough for pot pie topping, etc. You get just the right amount every time. It's one of those "you don't realize how handy it is until you have one" items - I have several sizes. They're not appropriate for ice cream, though.

[ladydusk]

I love my OXO Mango corer. My children love mango.

[Halftime Hope]

I got one about 6 months ago after wishing I had one when we went low carb and I was mincing up all this garlic for flavor. Yes, you can mince garlic, but with a garlic press why would you ever want to???

 

It is so much easier to use that I use a lot more garlic now--my family, teens and all, love to use it; they still think it's the coolest thing.

 

Tthe other day one of my guys was raving to a friend about it! (My kids all take turns cooking or cook with me, so they really appreciate a time-saver.)

[DianeW88]

An "apple peeler, corer, slicer"! LOVE mine! Making apple pie or applesauce is no longer the pain in the patootie it used to be.

[Sahamamama]

Pizza cutter? -- no, not really a must-have

Ice cream scoop? -- nope, we just use a big spoon

Vegetable peeler? -- yes, this would be it for me, but it's so common and it's really a utensil, right?

 

Hmmmm... can you tell I don't do gadgets? :lol:

 

I know. It's a V-shaped jar opener. Like this. Love this thing.

[cougarmom4]

I love the little plastic strainer that fits right inside the tuna fish can so I can squeeze it tight & strain out all of the liquid.

[alpidarkomama]

A few favorites:

 

Something that looks like a peeler, but it actually shreds the carrot (or whatever) as you "peel" it. Got it in an Asian supermarket.

 

My beloved dough scraper.

 

My zester.

 

My microplane.

 

Those are the ones that come to mind that I use ALL the time. :)

[lynn]

apple slicer that cores and slices apples.

 

mini strainer for straining blue berries in my muffin mix and for sifting powdered sugar.

 

My nice sturdy kitchen aid peeler.

 

I could not live with out my kitchen aid mixer.

[Liz CA]

A food processor - even a small one and with a glass container instead of plastic...or a good set of knives. I like Cutco for knives.

[milovany]

I love my OXO Mango corer. My children love mango.

 

Really? Really? After loving the pineapple thing, which I do, I've balked at getting the mango thing. But we do love mangoes and they're so hard to cut. Does it really make a difference? (I.e., you get more fruit than if you don't use it?)

[BeckyFL]

Let's see, besides the regular appliances (blender, food proc, wheat grinder, Bosch)....

Salad Shooter - I use if for all my grating and it shoots right into the bowl

Immersion Blender - soups

Metal Dough cutter

http://www.cooking-ez.com/autre/four_pain/materiel/materiel.php#m33

Waffle Stick maker

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/cuisinart-waffle-stick-maker?go=DetailDefault&pv=1120214135868

 

I've also been looking at this dough whisk, does anyone have one?

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/dough-whisk

[Guest mrsjamiesouth]

Most often I use a vege peeler and a whisk. I love my Kitchenaid mixer, I also love my Immersion Blender(for smoothies and for soup) and I love my Mill. I wouldn't want to do without a rolling pin either.

[Crimson Wife]

OXO Good Grips Cherry Pitter

[Carol in Cal.]

My Pampered Chef salad spinner. It's so well balanced that it goes and goes, so the greens really do dry out pretty much completely. I eat a lot more salads since buying that. Well worth it. It also comes with a smaller basket insert for berries, and the outer bowl is pretty nice-looking and could be used to serve salads, although I do not use it that way because I don't want to put it into the dishwasher. This is hands down, by far, the best salad spinner I have ever used.

[flyingiguana]

Food processor, bread machine, and a good quality rolling pin.

 

My daughter practically lives on hummus on homemade bread, homemade pizza, cinnamon rolls, and pie. Without the above appliances, all these things would be a lot more difficult. And store bought bread, pie, and pizza makes her sick as she has a number of food allergies.

 

And I love my garlic press -- but it's a really good one so for me it's vastly better than mincing garlic.

 

Also, I couldn't get by without my non-nonstick, high quality muffin pans. I don't understand non stick muffin pans. The coating falls off at the temperatures needed for muffins and popovers.

[Luckymama]

I love my OXO Mango corer. My children love mango.

 

Oh my word! I had no idea there was such a gadget! Just added to Mom's Christmas List :D

[ladydusk]

Really? Really? After loving the pineapple thing, which I do, I've balked at getting the mango thing. But we do love mangoes and they're so hard to cut. Does it really make a difference? (I.e., you get more fruit than if you don't use it?)

 

So much easier with the mango cutter, and not only do I get more fruit, I can get more consistent pieces because it comes off in one cut right around the pit (I often even see the pit).

[Mejane]

A rice cooker. :001_smile: My rice was always mushy no matter what pot I used or how I tweaked the cooking process. With the rice cooker, it's perfect every time.

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

The microplane grater-once you've had real Parmesan you'll never go back to the stuff in a can.

[Jen in PA]

My OXO potato ricer. I actually prefer my mashed potatoes the chunky hand-mashed way, but I have used the ricer to make baby food and mash up all sorts of other things.