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Kitchen gadgets ...what is/is not essential

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  • Food processor - definitely no 1 item
    Toastie maker - great for lunches
    Hand mixer (I have a Kenwood but only use it occasionally)
    Slow cooker ( recently revived)
    Toaster
    Stick blender

    I'm lucky in 2 ways
    1. My aunt often buys gadgets and then when she doesn't use them, gives them to me eg breadmaker, electric steamer, hostess trolley
    2. I have a big garage where I can store stuff I don't use every day and just bring it in when I want it
    “the princess jumped from the tower & she learned that she could fly all along. she never needed those wings.”
    Amanda Lovelace, The Princess Saves Herself in this One
  • I have a stick blender, electric steamer and electric chopper thingie which I use regularly, but I have cupboards full of other gadgets which I never use like: Turbo Cooker, slow cooker, breadmaker, ice cream maker, smoothie maker, George Foreman grill, sandwich toaster, juicer thingie (a nightmare to clean) and other stuff which is at the back of the cupboard and which I have forgotten. I have a big kitchen (22ft x 8ft) but my experience is that the bigger the kitchen the more junk you accumulate - I am a real sucker for adverts for any kind of kitchen gadget!! I am currently thinking of replacing my food processor as I am trying to cook more stuff from scratch and am torn between getting a Kitchenaid mixer or a Kitchenaid food processor - does anyone have any experience with either of these?
    Jane

    ENDIS. Employed, no disposable income or savings!
  • Used very often:

    kenwood chef attachments
    processor
    mincer/sausagemaker
    citrus sqeezer
    blender

    greenlife juicer

    slow cooker

    stick blender

    magimix steamer

    pressure cooker

    freshlife sprouter

    easy yo

    Given away to family:

    foreman grill

    magic bullet food prep system

    salad xpress

    panasonic breadmaker

    In a cupboard but used when appropriate:
    expresso maker

    small deep fat fryer

    gaggia ice cream maker

    Things I had in the past but wouldn`t buy again:
    turbo cooker

    waffle maker

    popcorn maker

    smoothie maker

    sandwich maker (good result with toastie bags)

    electric knife

    I could easily do without the microwave but it is built in
  • System
    System Posts: 178,346 Community Admin
    10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    I am ashamed to say, i dont use ANY kitchen gadgets (well apart from a microwave). I have had but have given them all away cause i didnt use them. My my most recent gadget was my george forman grill, but it was such a chore cleaning it, i gave up. In fairness i do have a steamer (which is buried in the depths of nowhere that i use when i go on holiday) but i never use it.

    edited to say, i own an iron.
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • I think my hob top steamer is my most used gadget (strange how we're all so different, isn't it? ;) ). I use it every day for my veggies. I also like my food processor for chopping and grating (less painful for my fingers) and my slow cooker, although I only use that maybe once every two weeks.

    I also have a George (barely used because I got fed up with the cleaning) a microwave, used quite a lot by OH for reheating his dinner when home late :rolleyes: and for defrosting bread etc when I've forgotten to take it out of the freezer; a blender for my soups and a breadmaker. I have given away my stick blender, unused and the coffee maker is languishing, unloved, at the back of another cupboard (I love my coffee but the cafetiere does a good job).

    I'm toying with the idea of resurrecting my old pressure cooker but don't know if, after 27 years, it'll still be safe to use without blowing a hole in my ceiling :confused:

    FF
  • Well,I've just retired my ice cream maker(the sort with bowls that you freeze)because I just wasn't using it,even in the summer.

    Other gadgets I've had but got rid of are;
    Deep fat fryer-too big,too unhealthy and used too much oil
    Sandwich maker-the sort that seals the edges of the sandwich,I've got a panini style one which is brill.You don't need to butter the outside of the bread,you can fit any size bread in and it is a breeze to clean.
    Bread machine!!!!-yes really! I make about 9 loaves a week,but by hand,quicker from start to finish and no hole!

    Best gadgets

    Stick blender
    Food processor-don't use this that much but wouldn't be without
    Yogurt maker-use every week
    electric beater
    salad spinner

    Could manage without

    microwave
    toaster
  • seraphina
    seraphina Posts: 1,149 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    Things we use:

    Kenwood Chef + blender - absolutely fabulous for everything - cake, bread, sauce, mashed veg etc.
    Smallish Bosch food processor- great for dips, chilli paste, chopping lots of veg
    Microwave - used all the time because of
    Microwave steamer - we cook all our rice in this

    We also have a Bosch electric handheld whisk which is great but probably won't see as much use now we have the Chef.

    Things we don't use so often:
    Coffee machines - filter and espresso - fiddly and I prefer cafetiere coffee.
    Citrus press - freecycled this as it didn't get used.

    We live in a small house so every so often we have to cull our kitchen contents - a toaster (we prefer the grill for toasting) being a recent casualty.
  • We have two blenders: the normal type and the Braun handblender. The former came with an electric coffee-grinder attachment; the latter we use to sieve soups without having to take them out of the slow cooker. The items used least are the juice extractor, the popcorn maker and the toasted sandwich maker.

    I found it sobering to watch those Ken Hom programmes on the TV: the Chinese, chefs do everything with the bare minimum of tools. I laughed out loud when we in the west have whisks of various sizes, while a Chinese chef whisks with a pair of chop sticks. The only other tool used is the cleaver.
    Small change can often be found under seat cushions.
    Robert A Heinlein
  • I
    I'm toying with the idea of resurrecting my old pressure cooker but don't know if, after 27 years, it'll still be safe to use without blowing a hole in my ceiling :confused:

    FF

    My 30yr old pressure cooker is still in use. Check that the gasket and the release stopper in the top are OK. You can still get replacements for Prestiege (sp) cookers so it may be as well to replace them anyway.

    Good luck
  • I love my Braun hand blender. It's the second one I've had (upgraded for the extra attachments) and I use it almost every day for soups, sauces, scrambled eggs, gravy, milkshakes, etc. I used to use it for mushing up food for the children when they were babies.

    I bought a breville slow cooker from argos at the beginning of this year and it has revolutionised the way we cook and eat. I don't know how I managed before i had it.

    My most recent acquisition has been a panasonic bread maker. I haven't bought a loaf of bread since I got it. I'm working my way through the recipe book that came with it.:T

    Other than that, the yogurt maker has been retired, the sandwich maker gets occassional use and don't get me started on juicers!:rolleyes:

    Would love a dehydrator but don't think the kitchen is big enough!!:rotfl:
    I like cooking with wine......sometimes I even put it in the food!
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