Must Have Kitchen Equipment / Gadgets?

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Replies

  • goal06082021
    goal06082021 Posts: 2,130 Member
    Scale - mine is a little silver Escali that works great, about $30 on Amazon and available in a bunch of pretty colors. Very sensitive, stays on long enough to be useful (IIRC the timeout is 4-5 minutes or something).

    Prep bowls - there's something to be said for mise en place, but also it's so easy to weigh things out into a bowl and then set it aside to prep the next thing. I could use more of these, actually. I don't remember which Food Network personality introduced me to the concept of the "garbage bowl," but that's also been a game changer - it's just a bowl that you designate for all your vegetable peels, bones, trimmed fat, whatever. You wouldn't think it would make that much of a difference, but it really helps make cleanup quick and easy, if you're like me and often accidentally spend all your energy cooking and don't have any left to clean up afterward.

    Good, sharp knives - I had a literal nightmare the other night about trying to cut some sausage with a knife so dull it might as well have been a rock. I woke up mad about it and everything. Sharpen your knives - there are few things more satisfying than cutting meat or produce with a good, sharp knife.

    Good cutting board - right now I have a crappy plastic one I've carted around for the past 7 years, but hubs is going to make me a nice wooden one for Christmas, so I have that to look forward to! Also, pro-tip if your cutting board slides around on your countertop - put a kitchen towel or a wet paper towel underneath it, keeps it in place.

    KitchenAid stand mixer - GAME. CHANGER. It's not just for baking. You can shred meat in it using the mixing paddle - pop that roast in the Instant Pot for an hour, then in the KitchenAid for literally like a minute, and you have instant shredded pork/beef/whatever. You can make your own butter with the whisk attachment (although shaking a jar is a good arm workout and, frankly, a lot of fun!) I got mine secondhand, she's a gorgeous emerald green color and she turned 31 this year. Great thing about KitchenAid is that all of the attachments are compatible with all models, so no matter where you get your bits and bobs, they'll work with your machine. I have a spiralizer attachment that's only kind of a PITA to clean, LOL ;) but it works amazingly well.
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,413 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    I need to buy assafoetida. :D

    OMG. OMFG! You use that stuff for pleasure cooking?

    When I was a kid, my mom used to mix it with something and force it down our throats as cough medication.

    Quite simply, THE worst thing that has ever passed my lips.

    You’ve reawakened all kinds of toxic buried memories there.

    I think I’ll go rinse my mouth out now with gasoline or something to get rid of the reimagined taste. Meh! Bleck! Urp!!!

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,389 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    I need to buy assafoetida. :D

    OMG. OMFG! You use that stuff for pleasure cooking?

    When I was a kid, my mom used to mix it with something and force it down our throats as cough medication.

    Quite simply, THE worst thing that has ever passed my lips.

    You’ve reawakened all kinds of toxic buried memories there.

    I think I’ll go rinse my mouth out now with gasoline or something to get rid of the reimagined taste. Meh! Bleck! Urp!!!

    Ugh.. I do use it for Indian cooking. It goes really well with fenugreek in vegetarian dishes. Carefully of course and not a whole spoon full :D
  • Dogmom1978
    Dogmom1978 Posts: 1,580 Member
    I have discovered that I also must have my dehydrator. I never dehydrated fruit before this weekend. In the past, I used it exclusively for my dogs, but now I dehydrated a bag of apples and they are heavenly!
  • nooshi713
    nooshi713 Posts: 4,877 Member
    Food scale, of course.

    Cast iron pans.

    Instant Pot.

    Spices.

    Good knives.

    Good quality blender.

    Citrus juicer (because I use a lot of lemons and oranges).
  • Dogmom1978
    Dogmom1978 Posts: 1,580 Member
    senalay788 wrote: »
    Dogmom1978 wrote: »
    I have discovered that I also must have my dehydrator. I never dehydrated fruit before this weekend. In the past, I used it exclusively for my dogs, but now I dehydrated a bag of apples and they are heavenly!

    Try pears with a sprinkle of cinnamon. I have 2x2L jars of each apples and pears.

    Oh! I shall! Thanks!

    Next time strawberries are on sale I’m going to try those also! 😊
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    sgt1372 wrote: »
    tony2545 wrote: »
    What items do you have in your kitchen that are essential to keeping you accountable for preparing & tracking your nutrition?

    What's ESSENTIAL for food prep and nutrition tracking?

    Nothing more than a few knives, some basic cooking utentsils, a basic set of pots and pans for food prep plus a food scale ad MFP for nutrition tracking.

    Everything else is extra and I've got a lot of extras; far too many to list here.

    Ditto, lol

    And don't even get me started on how many spices I have.

    Shhh...ix-nay on the ices-spay! 😉
    Actually, probably on the cookbooks too, in my case.. 😳
  • vivo1972
    vivo1972 Posts: 129 Member
    Measuring spoons
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,413 Member
    edited December 2020
    Sorry, have to disagree on that one. Now that I think about it, I haven’t used measuring spoons in a couple of years.

    It’s so much more accurate, loggable, and simply easier to weigh, once you get used to it.

    Wow. Maybe I can get rid of my measuring spoons when I do my annual “Ain’t Used That/ Get Rid of It” kitchen survey in January.

    What I do go through daily is regular spoons. Mixing teas, blending marinades, spooning out spices, or cottage cheese etc. Luckily I found someone selling spoons in the pattern I bought 40+ years ago, so I have a life long supply. Thank the Lord for dishwashers.
  • Dogmom1978
    Dogmom1978 Posts: 1,580 Member
    senalay788 wrote: »
    Dogmom1978 wrote: »
    senalay788 wrote: »
    Dogmom1978 wrote: »
    I have discovered that I also must have my dehydrator. I never dehydrated fruit before this weekend. In the past, I used it exclusively for my dogs, but now I dehydrated a bag of apples and they are heavenly!

    Try pears with a sprinkle of cinnamon. I have 2x2L jars of each apples and pears.

    Oh! I shall! Thanks!

    Next time strawberries are on sale I’m going to try those also! 😊

    Strawberries will be a disappointment at this time of the year, unless you add sugar. But still, they will not have that strawberry taste. When picked fresh in season and then dired..... WOW !!!

    Dry whats in season, to enjoy later. I am now on the hunt for Persimmons.

    I have never in my life eaten a persimmon. But, I’m on a try new things kick lately, so I might have to look for those!
  • vivo1972
    vivo1972 Posts: 129 Member
    edited December 2020
    springlering62 wrote: »
    Sorry, have to disagree on that one. Now that I think about it, I haven’t used measuring spoons in a couple of years.

    It’s so much more accurate, loggable, and simply easier to weigh, once you get used to it.

    Wow. Maybe I can get rid of my measuring spoons when I do my annual “Ain’t Used That/ Get Rid of It” kitchen survey in January.

    What I do go through daily is regular spoons. Mixing teas, blending marinades, spooning out spices, or cottage cheese etc. Luckily I found someone selling spoons in the pattern I bought 40+ years ago, so I have a life long supply. Thank the Lord for dishwashers.

    Each to their own, I'm not that fussed about things being a couple of grams out. I use them a lot for things like honey, sugar, spice, peanut butter etc.

    Also a lot in baking for extracts, baking powder,ginger and the like.

    PS I also use scales a lot, just did mention it as it was already popular on the thread. I've had mine for 25 years :)
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    vivo1972 wrote: »
    springlering62 wrote: »
    Sorry, have to disagree on that one. Now that I think about it, I haven’t used measuring spoons in a couple of years.

    It’s so much more accurate, loggable, and simply easier to weigh, once you get used to it.

    Wow. Maybe I can get rid of my measuring spoons when I do my annual “Ain’t Used That/ Get Rid of It” kitchen survey in January.

    What I do go through daily is regular spoons. Mixing teas, blending marinades, spooning out spices, or cottage cheese etc. Luckily I found someone selling spoons in the pattern I bought 40+ years ago, so I have a life long supply. Thank the Lord for dishwashers.

    Each to their own, I'm not that fussed about things being a couple of grams out. I use them a lot for things like honey, sugar, spice, peanut butter etc.

    Also a lot in baking for extracts, baking powder,ginger and the like.

    PS I also use scales a lot, just did mention it as it was already popular on the thread. I've had mine for 25 years :)

    Same here. Not so much for sugar or pb, but I do for baking powder and soda, and usually vanilla when baking...typically things that don't specify weights and are too small amounts to care about doing the calculations. I weigh the majority of things, but not every single ingredient.
    Also use them for spices and when adding oil to a hot pan.
    Measuring cups and spoons aren't all bad. Sometimes they're useful.

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