Kitchen gadgets ...what is/is not essential

Smiley_Mum

My kitchen is only small too, about 9ftx8ft with counterspace on two sides. I have the slow cooker and food processor out all the time. How many people who have posted in this thread with small kitchens own a microwave. I did have one but found I didn't use it very much so got rid of it. It took up the bulk of one of my counter tops so now I have the space to have the FP and the SC out all the time. I don't miss the microwave at all. If you need more counter space, and do own a microwave, then perhaps you could place the microwave on these supports you can buy which attach to the wall. For everyone who uses a microwave a lot then I came across this link.

http://www.microwaveassociation.org.uk/recipes/index.htm

raeble

You're kitchen sounds bigger than mine - 8ft 5 by 5ft 5. The boiler is on the back wall and I've moved the microwave onto the wall by the boiler. On one side I have a window and a door. I have the sink cut into the work top with one cupboard and a washing machine, cooker is on that side. Then there is three wall cupboards and a narrow worktop(20cmapprox) which folds down. I can barely swing a cat in there.

Curry_Queen

My kitchen is even smaller than that! :eek:

It's probably about as long but not as wide and only has worktop down one side which is broken to accommodate my cooker (glass lidded so can can be used as a surface too) and my fridge freezer stands at the end, so I've got about 3 units worth of worktop, then my sink/drainer take up the end wall, with washing machine under. I do have a microwave too which sits up the top, taking up far too much room, but I can't wall mount it, even though I have the brackets, as it's a stud and plasterboard wall :doh:

It used to live on top of the fridge freezer, until I replaced that with a slightly taller one, so now I wouldn't be able to reach it safely. Due to lack of space none of my gadgets can live out as there's barely room as it is, what with the kettle/toaster, tea/coffee/sugar canisters and a variety of oils, salt/pepper mills, and jars of spices etc, so they remain in their boxes on top of the fridge/freezer or in my bedroom. The breadmaker now takes up residence in my bedroom anyway as I use it too much to have to keep dragging it out every other day :rolleyes:

The gadgets I use regularly now are breadmaker, slow cooker, GF grill, stick blender for soups, an old Kenwood Chef (which lay dormant for about 3 yrs!!!) but is now back in use to make pastry, crumble toppings, pesto, hummus etc ... I know I have extra plates somewhere for slicing and dicing and grating etc but not sure where they are ... a Braun blender, which also crushes ice, so excellent for smoothies, but doesn't seem to handle food too well as it gets caught under the blades

I also have one of those 3-tier electric steamers which I used to use a lot but has been relegated to the back of the cupboard since the new pan set I treated myself to a few months back (bargain I found on Grabbit when I first got here!) has a triple set of steaming pans which are more feasible to use if I'm also cooking something else on the cooker top, as the electric one takes up too much room then.

What else have I got ... oh yes, a little hand mixer I bought on Amazon recently (a James Martin model :dance: ) as I'm finding it harder to mix/beat things by hand these days, and it also has dough hooks and a balloon whisk attachment so was excellent value at just under £20

If, and when, my Kenwood ever gives up the ghost then I'll treat myself to one of those Magimix processors, and I would also love a Kitchen Aid mixer and the Gaggia ice-cream maker, but they're luxury items and not necessities in my book


Oh, and going OT for a moment ... you're all gonna be so proud of me today!!! (well at least I am anyway ) cos I've been out this morning to the shops ... TWICE!!!!!

I woke up quite early and decided I was going to do some baking today (my new Be-Ro book arrived yesterday) but on checking the cupboards I found I was missing a couple of vital ingredients, including plain flour ... got loads of bread/wholeweat flour etc and and a bag of SR, but no plain flour :eek: (unusual for me to not to have plenty of supplies!) Then I remembered the free vouchers plus £5 of McDougall's products that I'd got off Hovis a while back, which I know DS won't be able to manage to choose the right products and use them, and as he's not here today anyway I had no choice but to go get them myself :eek:

I went to the Co-op just after they opened at 7am (not many people about then) but found they don't sell any Hovis/McDougall's products ... managed to pick up a few other things I needed though so all wasn't lost, but got myself stressed cos I didn't get everything. I then had to wait till 10am for Budgens to open (I knew they sold McDougall's flour at least) but I was more anxious going out so late as I knew everyone would be surfacing for morning papers etc and almost decided not to go, even though it's only a stone's throw away and not on the main road, and I'd managed to walk up the road earlier! Anyway, I managed to get there in the end and got everything I needed, and used my £5 voucher, and even managed to pick up some new baking sheets and a 12-hole deep muffin tin which will come in useful (and cheaper than Lakelands!!) so now I'm feeling exhausted but very pleased with myself

I better go do some baking soon after all that :rotfl:


OMG!!!! :eek: ... just realised I wrote so much

moggins

CQ, that is absolutely fantastic. I'm sat here feeling so proud of you and I don't even know you, silly ain't it??

Well done

Curry_Queen

moggins wrote:

CQ, that is absolutely fantastic. I'm sat here feeling so proud of you and I don't even know you, silly ain't it??

Well done

Thankyou!!! :A

I know it probably means nothing to many here but for me that was one hell of an achievement and i still don't know how I managed it

The downside is though that I've had to have a glass or two of wine to get help get over the stress of it all, so not much baking is happening yet ... but give a while and I'm sure I'll be back in the kitchen PDQ!!!

I have on my list to bake so far ... the Milk Chocolate Cake, Gingerbread, Melting Moments, those sponge and jam things in pastry (forget their name) and the jammy buns (big biscuity type thing with a blob of jam in the middle) ... oh it brings back some memories as I originally learnt to bake from the Be-Ro book, and this is what I used to bake on a Sunday as a kid

Lucie_2

I have the opposite problem to you lot - my kitchen is huge. The floor space is about 10ft by 12 ft (& that doesn't include the cupboards!). The problem with having such a big kitchen is you fill it with junk - most of which never gets used. The cupboard space is really badly organised too. The boiler takes up one cupboard & the fuse box another.

I wish my Be-ro book had arrived, I've just had to hunt through all my books for a flapjack recipe. Found one on here eventually
There goes the oven beeper..................

raeble

Lucie wrote:

I have the opposite problem to you lot - my kitchen is huge. The floor space is about 10ft by 12 ft (& that doesn't include the cupboards!). The problem with having such a big kitchen is you fill it with junk - most of which never gets used. The cupboard space is really badly organised too. The boiler takes up one cupboard & the fuse box another.

Good grief that is the size of my bedroom. :eek: I think I'm having a case of kitchen envy now. I want a kitchen that big so I can acumilate even more junk and spread out all the gadgets on the worktop.

Curry_Queen

raeble wrote:

Good grief that is the size of my bedroom. :eek: I think I'm having a case of kitchen envy now. I want a kitchen that big so I can acumilate even more junk and spread out all the gadgets on the worktop.

I am totally with you!!!!!!!

I've previously had the huge farmhouse type kitchen, complete with breakfast bar, full range cooker, and old central pine kitchen table that everyone sits around while you cook etc, but I never had the time to do it justice then as I was so busy working, and also attending college, plus extra curricular activities with my horses etc, and I sooooo miss it now

I'd give anything right now just to have a workable kitchen with enough worktop space to house all my gadgets, and still have room to cook, and also a central table for people to sit around to chat to whilst you cook

VickyA_2

Curry_Queen wrote:

I'd give anything right now just to have a workable kitchen with enough worktop space to house all my gadgets, and still have room to cook, and also a central table for people to sit around to chat to whilst you cook

Me too. We have a very very slim kitchen. The word "galley" would come close. However, my gadgets are quite small too as there's only the two of us: two portion slow cooker (bought for my birthday by MIL-to be!) and a very small food processor (bought for previous birthday by my gran). Other than that we have the essentials: bottle opener, corkscrew, oh and a microwave which isn't essential, but can come in quite handy when the spag bol hasn't defrosted fully!

I'm just looking at hand (stick) blenders on the internet as our food processor is far too small to blend soup and that's something that I would like to attempt next. Any suggestions?

PS Well done Curry Queen on popping out to the shops. That's brilliant! You say it's not far, but you should be feeling really proud of yourself (and getting bargains too!)

Curry_Queen

VickyA wrote:

Other than that we have the essentials: bottle opener, corkscrew,

How on earth could I forget the most essential ones

Although it was panic stations earlier in the week when I almost broke the corkscrew on a bottle of Zinfandel, cos the cork was stuck :eek:

I'm just looking at hand (stick) blenders on the internet as our food processor is far too small to blend soup and that's something that I would like to attempt next. Any suggestions?

Mine's one of the original Braun ones, with an attachable whisk thingy, that I've had for years so no idea what's available now, although I gather the multi-ones (that have various attachments including coffee mill type things) are pretty good these days and see them used a lot on Ready, Steady Cook

PS Well done Curry Queen on popping out to the shops. That's brilliant! You say it's not far, but you should be feeling really proud of yourself (and getting bargains too!)

Thanks hun :A

I do feel good that I managed to get out, but it's really taken it out of me, not just mentally but physicaly to, and I've not been able to do anything productive since, apart from fill my breadmaker pan

I'm just lucky that I cooked double dinner yesterday for myself, so I just need to re-heat the rest for today, and I'm so disappointed I've not been able to go and start baking yet