Kitchen Gadgets.. The brilliant and the useless

Good, as in used a lot in my house: Standing mixer, food processor, dutch oven, popcorn air popper, blender (one that also crushes ice), electric grill/sandwich maker, potato ricer, orange juicer, ice cream maker, all sorts of pans and muffin tins etc, scissors, rolling pin, silicone oven gloves.

Things bought and rarely used: juicer (too bulky, and blender serves the same purpose), waffle iron (usually it is simpler to make pancakes or crepes and my kids prefer them), coffee pot (only one who drinks filter coffee is me, so I just use a single serve coffee press), potato peeler and apple corer (thing bought and then pretty much forgotten about), cookie press (too messy and kids prefer cookie cutters anyway), fondue set (used maybe once every couple of years or so).
Things I have never bought, although I love all sorts of gadgets, because I suspect I would never use: microwave, bread maker, spiraliser

One I haven't seen on this thread is a silpat -- it's a silicone liner that goes on a sheet pan and prevents the food from burning to the tray. It washes really easily and is nonreactive. Ours gets used all the time.

It's especially good for foods with a lot of butter, white flour, and sugar.

emmacken wrote: »

Good/useful:
Bottle opener (I like beer)
Mason jars
Crock pot
Immersion blender
My aluminum pan that I can use on the stove top and then immediately transfer into the oven. Though, I'd probably have a le creuset if they weren't so expensive.

Bad/useless:
Wok (I can't get the thing to heat up well on my electric stove)
A microwave s'mores maker
A chocolate milk mixer
Quesadilla maker

The above were mostly gifted to me by my well-meaning mother, but they are either too specific or were of such poor quality that they broke within the first couple uses.

Lodge sells enameled cast iron that's just like Le Creuset, but a hell of a lot cheaper. They don't have the variety of colors or the French name, but the stuff is every bit as good. I have some of both and there is no difference in quality. Cast iron is cast iron.

Jruzer wrote: »

One I haven't seen on this thread is a silpat -- it's a silicone liner that goes on a sheet pan and prevents the food from burning to the tray. It washes really easily and is nonreactive. Ours gets used all the time.

It's especially good for foods with a lot of butter, white flour, and sugar.

I hate adding to the landfill, but I had one and I could never really get it clean, so I use parchment paper. I have about a lifetime supply from the restaurant supply.