OS Book - Buying Kitchen Equipment

moggins

My blender gets used for smoothies, soups, chopping large quantities of onions, grinding coffee and fresh whole spices.

The hand mixer gets used for cake making, whisking egg whites and whipping cream and also has dough hooks for breadmaking although I have never used those yet.

The slow cooker can be used for both main meals and puddings - what more could we want?

mandy_moo_1

i've got a blender gathering dust in my kitchen cos i thought you could only really use it for soups etc....can you really use it for chopping onions/carrots etc? if you can, i'm getting it out again and giving it a good wipe, cos i hate chopping onions!!

moggins

Yep, I use mine as it chops them into really tiny bits and DS can't find them and pick them out.

I also use them for a curry base when I slice the onions first into thick chunks, brown them off gently and then puree them and add a tin of tomatoes and curry spices, it tastes exactly like a takeaway curry. It is a blender with a goblet though, not a hand one.

Sorry Sue - didn't mean to hijack.

elona

Sue - not all breadmakers will make jam - mine is a Morphy Richards Fastbake and I am really pleased with it.

Ice cream maker will also do fruit sorbet.

Slow cooker will do joints, stews , casseroles, curry, soups and some people use it for rice pudding and other desserts.

Microwave will also make cakes in 5 minutes.

Smiley_Mum

Slow cooker - I have heard of cakes being made in them although I've never done so myself. I make meatloaf in it though, stews, soups, chilli.

Hand Blender - good for grinding up nuts, seeds, blitzing fruit, veg, soup etc.

Juicer - I like my juicer just as I love fresh made juice although I do plan to get another one at some point which is easier to clean and takes whole fruit rather than having to faff about chopping it up.

Small food processor - Handy for the small quantities that I make, good for chopping up veg for stews/casseroles/soups etc and for blitzing soups, making smoothies, cakes, muffins, loaves etc.

verynewmoneysaver

I find George Foreman grill very handy for bacon, hash browns and toasties, But I don't have a good grill on the cooker. I find it easier to clean it whilst its still hot.

Wendrie

I have a Kenwood Chef a free standing mixer/grater/mincer/blender and use it for a wide variety of stuff.
We buy cheese in big blocks and grate it down (makes it go further), grind up coffee/spice/herbs/nuts/breadcrumbs, make sauces/salad dressings, baby food, crush ice & puree fruit for smoothies and milkshakes, puree soups, make sausages (although we haven't in several years - keep meaning to dig it all back out again), in the bowl I make pastry, cakes, biscuits, crumbles, batter, custards for ice cream etc. I also use it to knead my bread when I make homemade bread... and then put it in the oven, keep considering a bread maker but think I'd rather borrow one to try out before I splash out that much money! The kneading hook also gets used to moosh the ground meat up with breadcrumbs etc. to make meatballs/burgers/meatloaves. Almost all of it goes in the dishwasher for easy cleaning and we've had to clean the inside of the case and replace some "O" rings - and blender bodies they don't cope with being dropped onto concrete very well when they are acrylic (came with it), glass (lasted a bit longer) but we've now splashed out on the stainless steel one which has coped with dropping and the kids are bigger so less likely to drop as well

Ice cream maker - one that freezes the ice cream as it is beaten after using two cheapie ones to death. We use it every year in long bursts as soon as it starts to get warm enough (and having bought vanilla ice-cream for dd's birthday dh and I agreed we'll make it from now on - and that was expensive ice cream too )

Stick blender - found I wasn't using it so haven't replaced it after it died.

Hand whisk - used for sauces etc. and Angel Delight/cream when I can't use the Kenwood above.

Slow Cooker - gets used at least once a week on my "night off" put everything in during the morning and ignore it

Electric steamer - bought when it was on sale and works well for whole meals - rice/fish/veggies. Bought it to steam fish & cook rice in mainly which so far has been o.k. Bit of pain to clean (it all does go in the dishwasher but takes up so much room!)

Grill/Toasting etc. tried them at other peoples but prefer my regular grill (in the oven) and a griddle/frying pan. We make toasted sandwiches in a frying pan.

Am still trying to source a cast iron waffle iron that I can use on a gas stove or over an open fire.

brokenwings

George foreman grill - in box for next car boot sale.
Breadmaker - never owned one and personally cant see the point, theres nothing hard about making bread without one imho.
Kenwood chef - couldnt live without it and use it at least once a day.
Slow cooker - agree with whoever it was above who said get a bigger one than you would imagine you will use. I have only had mine 6 months but have found it worth its weight in gold.
Electric hand whisk - useful for whipping cream and mashing mash but not something i would die without.

as has been said - horses for courses : )

Caterina

Juicer: hardly ever used, sitting there gathering dust, mostly
Blender: Comes and goes, prob. more used in the summer for fruit smoothies, but spent the winter also gathering dust
Breadmaker: would use it more if the kids liked the bread it makes - hence: gathering dust
Food processor: Rarely used but so useful when needed that I don't mind the space it takes
Electric hand blender: Could not live without it

Caterina

apple_mint

Panasonic Bread maker with nut dispenser - used all the time in this house. Wouldn't be without it. Getting fresh made bread overnight is the only way to live!

Stick blender - a must for soup making

Microwave - couldn't really do without it (great for making porridge in minutes)

Slow cooker - when I'm in batch making mode this is invaluable (I have the MR 6.5litre one).

Lakeland Electric Yoghurt maker - I was really hit and miss with the flask method but I use my yoghurt maker to make 2 or 3 ltrs of consistently good HM yoghurt every week. No way would I be without this!

Steamer - only gets used on a hit and miss basis - i.e. Christmas when I have run out of hob space

Food mixer - sometimes use it for pastry making but to be honest it is too much faff cleaning it all down afterwards. I now have a mandalin for slicing

Toaster - I need a new one that 'actually' takes a whole slice of the panansonic loaf!

Juicer - sadly sat on a shelf reminding me I should use it but I rarely do!

Kettle - for my cups of tea

I would love a Kenwood Chef .. to make sausages, butter etc ... but it's a bit of dream and I really can't justify the cost.

Food Dehydrator - a luxury really but I got it off Tchibo. This is great for making dried apples, mushrooms, onions .... but to be honest it is not a necessity.