Indispensable Kitchen Gadgets

[biakbiak]

24 minutes ago, mansonlamps said:

Unfortunately you have to subscribe to their website to get their recipes and I just don't need any more food website emails LOL.

A lot of the time if you google ATK and the recipe name you can find it posted elsewhere. Beef stew. Braised short ribs are also great.

[mansonlamps]

Thanks for the tip.

[Quof]

That's a different recipe than the one I use - no anchovies (ugh) or gelatin.

Do not try to shortcut browning the beef.  All over.

Here's mine.

http://www.abigmouthful.com/hearty-beef-stew/

Edited March 25, 2018 by Quof

[Mindthinkr]

On 3/24/2018 at 12:25 PM, mansonlamps said:

Not a gadget, but I just got my very first Le Creuset Dutch oven.  I'm ridiculously in love with it already even though I haven't used it yet.  Any suggestions for its inaugural use?

I do a French Provencal chicken in mine that’s a hit. Brown chicken thighs (in batches if necessary) on top of the stove.  Then after chicken has been browned put them aside on a plate sauté some onions, 1 carrot diced, a rib of celery diced and a pound of sliced mushrooms until they release all their juices and begin to brown. Deglaze the pan with some wine then add 1-2 cups of beef broth, a bay leave and a few sprigs of thyme. Add the chicken back to the pot and cover. Put into 325* oven for a few hours. The chicken will literally fall off of the bone. Serve over noodles or rice. 

I’d also suggest a Beof Bourguignon. Best wishes with your new cookwear. Just be careful as it retains heat well and I burned a few things getting used to it. 

Edited March 29, 2018 by Mindthinkr

[DeLurker]

1 hour ago, Mindthinkr said:

Just be careful as it retains heat well and I burned a few things getting used to it. 

Me too.

[chessiegal]

And be careful cleaning up burned bits on the enamel You don't want to scratch it. What I do is add water and baking soda, heat on the stove top, the burned bits come right off. Better living through chemistry.

[mansonlamps]

Thanks all for the recipes and the tips.  Can't wait for the weekend to try it out!

[JTMacc99]

I decided to purchase a French press today. Won’t be here until Thursday. Let’s see if it makes better coffee than my drip machine. 

[DeLurker]

What's a drip machine?

[biakbiak]

7 minutes ago, DeLurker said:

What's a drip machine?

Assuming you are serious its the name of most electric coffee makers. There are also percolators but if you have a nonespresso making electric coffee maker chances are its a drip machine.

[JTMacc99]

Hey! @biakbiak, the little 4 cup Mr Coffee pictured in that link is the one I use now. Pretty good for the money. 

Looking like I might need to dig up my coffee grinder as well; I’m pretty sure my little burr grinder is somewhere in the house still.

Edited March 28, 2018 by JTMacc99

[DeLurker]

9 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Assuming you are serious

I was - never heard it called that so thank you.

I was less than enamored with the French Press, but love my AeroPress to an insane degree.  My new pour over set up was purchased only because I loved the look, so aesthetics was the driver.  Turns out it makes a very nice cup of coffee which is an added bonus. 

It did mean I needed to buy a gooseneck electric kettle, but my brother found one at a decent price on an Amazon flash sale or something like that.  I use that to heat the water for my AeroPress too, so yeah!

[Quof]

I just bought a small pour-over. Damn, it's annoying to just stand there and pour the water a little at a time, rather than just flicking the switch on my drip pot and doing other things while it brews. 

But it's delicious.

[DeLurker]

1 hour ago, Quof said:

Damn, it's annoying to just stand there and pour the water a little at a time,

You need to get a little zen to do it.  Hard to achieve in the typical morning chaos, but I've been working on tweaking the morning routine to fit it in.  Some days are much less successful then others.

[JTMacc99]

I’ll see how the FP works for me. I’ve got an hour of getting shot done for all of the lives in my home each morning between waking up and hitting the shower.  It seemed like a French Press was worth a shot. Minimal effort, possibly a better cup of coffee than Mr Coffee can offer. I will start experimenting tomorrow. 

[DeLurker]

Good luck!

I'm way more neurotic about coffee than healthy.  But it defines the start of my day and starting off derailed is never good.

[possibilities]

My third spice grinder has died. I use it almost every day, and I'm very careful to follow the instructions so as not to burn out the motors. But apparently they are all just not made to last. It's driving me crazy. I have gone through a Krups, a Cuisinart, and an Epica. The Epica was actually my favorite. But it lasted only 7 months. The others were not much better.

I would spend more and get something really good that would last for a long time. But I don't know if there's even a better one on the market, or what it is.

[biakbiak]

6 minutes ago, possibilities said:

would spend more and get something really good that would last for a long time. But I don't know if there's even a better one on the market, or what it is.

When my parents moved out of the country my dad sent me a bunch of kitchen stuff that he wasn't bringing including a Magic Bullet which for the life of me I don't know why he had, anyway before I could donate it the coffee grinder I used to grind spices broke and so I used it and it is awesome as spice grinder. It's a workhorse and super easy to clean its been going strong for 7 plus years and I use it a ton.

[possibilities]

Great tip, biakbiak! I didn't think of looking in that direction.

[DeLurker]

7 hours ago, biakbiak said:

When my parents moved out of the country my dad sent me a bunch of kitchen stuff that he wasn't bringing including a Magic Bullet which for the life of me I don't know why he had, anyway before I could donate it the coffee grinder I used to grind spices broke and so I used it and it is awesome as spice grinder. It's a workhorse and super easy to clean its been going strong for 7 plus years and I use it a ton.

My NutriBullet, I think the Magic Bullet v2.0, just died and it was all my own fault.  I hadn't tightened the cup on all the way and when I went to take it off, my salad dressing poured out all over the machine, counter top, etc...  I didn't think it would be that useful when I got it as a gift, but it was employed 3-4x/week for probably 4 - 5 years.  I'll be getting another one soon.

[JTMacc99]

21 hours ago, DeLurker said:

Good luck!

I'm way more neurotic about coffee than healthy.  But it defines the start of my day and starting off derailed is never good.

It’s definitely going to take a few attempts to refine quantity of coffee and time in contact before pressing. I like that I can get the water up to the right temp. 

[DeLurker]

On 3/29/2018 at 5:02 PM, JTMacc99 said:

It’s definitely going to take a few attempts to refine quantity of coffee and time in contact before pressing. I like that I can get the water up to the right temp. 

How's the french press working out?

[JTMacc99]

1 hour ago, DeLurker said:

How's the french press working out?

Fantastic. I've got the ratio of coffee to water down to what I need for two full mugs in the morning. I'll be using more coffee going forward than I had been using, but not by much. Also of interest, the way the ground coffee is sold by the actual Dunkin Donuts (3 pounds for $19.99 by the way) is not too fine for a French Press. There is a little bit of settling at the bottom of a cup, but not bad at all. This is good news because it keeps me from having to go buy a burr grinder. I may still do so, as fresh ground is even better, but for now when I want to do that I can use my regular coffee mill and just be careful about how long I grind it. 

[larapu2000]

On 3/6/2018 at 6:09 AM, jamesluke said:

Hi everyone

I am looking for a best Panini press for my home kitchen and small restaurant located in Main Street. My budget is no more than 500$ .....i think it is enough, Can anyone help me suggesting best recommend for me? Please clean my mind with your kind suggestions. 

 

Thanks, best regards

You really need a commercial grade product.  Have you tried a local Restaurant Depot?  Most foodservice distributors have an equipment and supply catalog as well, you should ask your sales rep if you have one!

 

On 3/6/2018 at 12:09 PM, JTMacc99 said:

And then I got three new gadgets. First is a citrus juicer. Just the standard one that you put the half lime in, fold the handle over it and squeeze it down like a pair of pliers. I have NO idea why I never dropped like $10 on one of these before because it is so much easier than squeezing them by hand. Jeez.

Right????  I felt like such a moron for waiting YEARS after seeing all kinds of tv hosts use them and they looked amazing!  I will say that I follow up the big squeeze with a quick trip of my little reamer.  I want to get every last drop of juice out of those $1 each lemons (at certain times of the year!)

[mansonlamps]

As a follow up, I made Cook's Illustrated braised short ribs for my first adventure into cooking with Le Creuset.  It is possibly one of the best things I've ever tasted in my life.  I have no idea if it would have been just as good in another vessel, but I do know the Le Creuset is what got me to try it.

[larapu2000]

On 4/8/2018 at 7:45 PM, mansonlamps said:

As a follow up, I made Cook's Illustrated braised short ribs for my first adventure into cooking with Le Creuset.  It is possibly one of the best things I've ever tasted in my life.  I have no idea if it would have been just as good in another vessel, but I do know the Le Creuset is what got me to try it.

These are the best short ribs I've ever made.  I made them with some sweet potato gnocchi.  Unreal.

Root Beer Braised Short Ribs

[mansonlamps]

 I just bought the Costco pack of short ribs, so I'll definitely have to try that recipe too!

[DeLurker]

On 3/29/2018 at 9:13 AM, DeLurker said:

My NutriBullet, I think the Magic Bullet v2.0, just died and it was all my own fault.  I hadn't tightened the cup on all the way and when I went to take it off, my salad dressing poured out all over the machine, counter top, etc...  I didn't think it would be that useful when I got it as a gift, but it was employed 3-4x/week for probably 4 - 5 years.  I'll be getting another one soon.

I got a replacement for my bass-o-matic yesterday.  I can't believe I only killed the last one at the end of March because it feels like sooooo much longer. 

[possibilities]

I've had another spice grinder die on me. I've been trying different models but they all die in less than a year. I'm always careful not to run them longer than the manual says to, but apparently they're all just pieces of shit. This one lasted 7 months.

I'm getting tired of this situation. I use a lot of spices and I like them freshly ground, not powdered a year ago and waiting around in a jar getting stale.

RIP: Epica, Cuisinart, and Krups electric coffee and spice grinders.

[DeLurker]

Would a manual spice grinder work for what you need to grind?

[possibilities]

I don't think so. I think it would be too exhausting, plus I do tend to grind a fair amount of stuff and I want it to just happen quickly the way an electric model will do.

[DeLurker]

You must use those grinders a whole lot!

Ahhh...well me and my ancient bottles of purchased spices will wander off now.  I've actually taken to writing the month & year I opened something on my spices since a lot of them I don't use that often. 

[chessiegal]

15 hours ago, possibilities said:

I've had another spice grinder die on me. I've been trying different models but they all die in less than a year. I'm always careful not to run them longer than the manual says to, but apparently they're all just pieces of shit. This one lasted 7 months.

I'm getting tired of this situation. I use a lot of spices and I like them freshly ground, not powdered a year ago and waiting around in a jar getting stale.

RIP: Epica, Cuisinart, and Krups electric coffee and spice grinders.

My husband is a coffee drinker. He grinds whole beans every morning. He bought this Cuisinart model over 4 years ago and it's still going strong.

[biakbiak]

16 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

husband is a coffee drinker. He grinds whole beans every morning. He bought this Cuisinart model over 4 years ago and it's still going strong.

That is our coffee grinder but I don't know that it would be great for spices because of cleaning it between different spices. 

I will once again recommend the Magic Bullet which I use nearly everyday and it's been going for years and is crazy easy to clean.

[DeLurker]

My first NutriBullet came with two different blades - the extractor blade and a flat milling blade.

I never used the flat milling blade so gave it to my nephew who had used his so much he needed a replacement.

 

My replacement one that I just bought only came with the extractor blade (on the left).

 

[possibilities]

I do use it a lot. Sometimes every day, sometimes a few times a week. Sometimes I will powder up a quart each of several different herbs, then grind a cup each of a few different seeds. Some are for cooking, some for teas, some for medicines (no one can tell me raspberry leaf tea doesn't stop menstrual cramps-- I don't even get menstrual cramps, but skeptical guests who have them always thank me). I probably should get a commercial grade machine, but they cost a lot and I haven't been able to find any reviews I trust. I don't want to invest and find out they're not really any better than the regular home models. I would really like something that can do all that without overheating or needing to be used only a few seconds at a time with a prolonged rest period between.

Thanks for all the recs. I am going to look at all of them. I really like a glass or steel cup, rather than plastic, and one that detaches so it's easier to clean, but other than that, I just want it to work.

Also, the warranty is mostly a joke on these things. They always want  you to mail the machine to them at your own expense. So by the time you get done paying postage, you almost might as well just buy a new one. It's super annoying.

I don't kill all appliances. I've been using the same blender for 30 years and for a lot of that time, I used it at least once a day.

DeLurker, no shade implied! I have some jars of stuff hanging around a long time, too, with the year of purchase covered over with magic marker so I don't have to think about how old it is. I'm irregularly fussy, and not judgmental. Life is probably easier if you don't care about half the things that occupy my thoughts. I'm sure your meals are tasty and your family well-nourished without my level of kitchen mania.

[DeLurker]

2 hours ago, possibilities said:

DeLurker, no shade implied!

Oh no, I did not thing you were.  Just fessin' up to my own jars that may one day have value on Antique Road Show! 

For ones I don't use often now I pick up at Fresh Market - they have industrial sized containers of different spices and blends that you scoop into little bags yourself so you are just buying whatever amount you need.  I found that works great for me on spices I normally don't have on hand and am hesitant to go pay several bucks for something I may end up using only once.

[Trini]

On 5/12/2018 at 7:40 PM, possibilities said:

I've had another spice grinder die on me. I've been trying different models but they all die in less than a year. I'm always careful not to run them longer than the manual says to, but apparently they're all just pieces of shit. This one lasted 7 months.

I'm getting tired of this situation. I use a lot of spices and I like them freshly ground, not powdered a year ago and waiting around in a jar getting stale.

RIP: Epica, Cuisinart, and Krups electric coffee and spice grinders.

Okay, so I checked the spice grinder we use at work (a restaurant) and it's Waring Professional model. If you're willing to pay extra, maybe consider getting something commercial grade?

ETA: https://www.waringcommercialproducts.com/c/b55hp/grinders

https://www.waringcommercialproducts.com/p/173j1/commercial-heavy-duty-electric-spice-grinder

Edited May 14, 2018 by Trini

[Trini]

19 hours ago, possibilities said:

I probably should get a commercial grade machine, but they cost a lot and I haven't been able to find any reviews I trust. I don't want to invest and find out they're not really any better than the regular home models. I would really like something that can do all that without overheating or needing to be used only a few seconds at a time with a prolonged rest period between.

Sorry, I didn't read your post carefully. If price is an issue, maybe you can try to find a secondhand commercial model?

The one at my work has been there at least as long as I have (nearly 2 years), and I've never heard of it overheating. However, we mainly do small batches and it grinds fairly quickly so it's not running very long at a time. It's used almost daily, though.

[DeLurker]

Crap.  I've been resisting the urge to buy an Instant Pot, but I was looking up recipes today and came across Ropa Vieja (Cuban shredded beef).  And you don't need a pressure cooker to make it, but it certainly helps.  Crap crap crap.

[JTMacc99]

15 hours ago, DeLurker said:

Crap.  I've been resisting the urge to buy an Instant Pot, but I was looking up recipes today and came across Ropa Vieja (Cuban shredded beef).  And you don't need a pressure cooker to make it, but it certainly helps.  Crap crap crap.

Can you link the recipe for me?

[biakbiak]

15 hours ago, DeLurker said:

Crap.  I've been resisting the urge to buy an Instant Pot, but I was looking up recipes today and came across Ropa Vieja (Cuban shredded beef).  And you don't need a pressure cooker to make it, but it certainly helps.  Crap crap crap.

If you can hold out until early July they typically go on sale on Amazon prime day and triggers other sales.

[DeLurker]

2 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

Can you link the recipe for me?

This is the one I was looking at:  Ropa Vieja

The site has multiple ones though if you care to peruse.

 

2 hours ago, biakbiak said:

If you can hold out until early July they typically go on sale on Amazon prime day and triggers other sales.

Thanks for the tip!  I just found a restaurant fairly near me where  should be able to get my Cuban fix without schlepping down into Houston.

[JTMacc99]

Awesome. That’s a lot of ingredients!

[possibilities]

Someone bought me a plastic "lettuce knife". It looks sort of like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Zyliss-31612-ZYLISS-Lettuce-Knife/

I... appreciate the thought? But, even though I love kitchen gear, this just strikes me as silly.

Does anyone have one? Can you sell me on why it's a great idea?

She told me it keeps lettuce from turning brown after cutting. I confess I have never had this happen, but apparently it's a thing that happens?

[Lisin]

26 minutes ago, possibilities said:

Someone bought me a plastic "lettuce knife". It looks sort of like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Zyliss-31612-ZYLISS-Lettuce-Knife/

I... appreciate the thought? But, even though I love kitchen gear, this just strikes me as silly.

Does anyone have one? Can you sell me on why it's a great idea?

She told me it keeps lettuce from turning brown after cutting. I confess I have never had this happen, but apparently it's a thing that happens?

Yeah, the theory is that metal reacts with the lettuce and it turns brown but if you use a plastic knife that doesn't happen. I also was gifted one and while I think it's mainly silly (I generally don't even cut lettuce at all? I tear it.) it does work. It's not something I would go out of my way to buy, especially because I also don't tend to make salads way ahead of time, they're usually the last thing made right before serving so the whole turning brown thing has never been an issue for a variety of reasons, but the knife does indeed cut lettuce and so I can't be too mad at it.  

[Bastet]

I use a regular knife, and I've never had lettuce turn brown.  Now, yes, I generally make salads right before I eat them.  But I've made salads in the morning for a dinner party that evening, and, when my mom was sick recently, I'd even cut up several salads worth of greens to cover the days in between my visits.  No browning.

[Mondrianyone]

I wasted years of my life tearing lettuce because I believed the nonsense that metal knives turn lettuce brown.  You can Google it--there's zero evidence that it's true.  The truth is probably that it's just moisture + time + enzymes in the lettuce trying to heal the cut edges.  If there was any truth in it at all, it likely goes back to those carbon steel (not stainless steel) knives that people had, with the rust on the knife transferring to the lettuce.  I think you do more damage to the cells in the lettuce leaves by hacking at them with a plastic knife than by slicing them cleanly with a sharp chef's knife.  And this is coming from a person who adores gadgets, but even I wouldn't bother with a lettuce knife.

[Brookside]

I'm generally seen as pretty capable in the kitchen, but I am seemingly incapable of using a tin (can) opener.  Does anyone have a recommendation of how to do it or the best one out there (manual)?  I end up with a strained thumb, jagged edges, a struggle folding back the lid because I can't get the whole thing off, and sometimes blood.

Edited June 15, 2018 by Brookside
because "unable of" doesn't mean "incapable of"

[Athena]

9 minutes ago, Brookside said:

I'm generally seen as pretty capable in the kitchen, but I am seemingly unable of using a tin (can) opener.  Does anyone have a recommendation of how to do it or the best one out there (manual)?  I end up with a strained thumb, jagged edges, a struggle folding back the lid because I can't get the whole thing off, and sometimes blood.

I had the same issues with manual tin can openers. The only ones I use and like are this kind from Starfrit. It holds and removes the lid completely including the side at the top of the lid.