YouÂre right. The food processor has to be the pinnacle of Western achievement. My Cuisinart was the first serious gadget I ever bought and I could not live without it. Now, you must get a mini one too.

IÂve thrown out most of my gadgets because I never used them, but there are three more I will never part with:

1. My pineapple corer. I only use it 2-3 times a year, but itÂs worth having for only those few occasions.
2. My bread machine. Use it every week. I would never make bread if I had to do it the traditional way.
3. My Flavor Wave Infrared Oven. My sister watches a lot of late night TV and saw this advertised. She bought one for each of us. When she gave it to me, I thought it was a total waste of money, but I use it almost everyday now. You will never use your oven for cooking turkey breast again. I cook 99.9% of my meat in this baby.

K

my side cutting can opener. I agree about the food processor, grating carrots, making pesto and lots of other things has become sooo much easier.

I also like my stand mixer...you can walk away from it and get the next item to put in without stopping mixing.

I'm trying to think of little gadgets...I like my oxo peeler, but wish that they would make a metal tip on it for taking out the eyes on potatos....I have to use my old one for that.

Since I'm not an epileptic, I also like my knives....and I wish that when I started out I would have purchased the most expensive knives I could afford. I have some really nice sabatiers and Wustoffs (I mispelled that one too) and need to weed out the others...although having several paring knives seems to work for me...I can get dd and dh to help. :)

I like my old fashioned table mounted apple peeler/slicer, if I am going to do a lot of apple pies or something, but it does take a lot of finagling to get the peel slice right....

I still have to figure out my bread machine...the one bad experience has made me afraid of trying it again!

Count me in as a food processor lover. We've got the full-sized one and a mini prep. Also love my stick blender, sharp knives and the stand mixer. We're slowly getting more attachments for that last item having acquired the ice cream making bowl. Next I believe will be the pasta rollers followed by the grinder and sausage stuffer.

Ooops! Almost left out the most essential thing--the cork screw :)

Cannot do without the Kitchenaid mixer - I make several desserts every Sunday for my voracious family, and even in the middle of the week, as well as breads, scones, and quiche.
2 big whopping French style knives with 2 hardwood cutting boards. Several small sharp paring knives and the sharpening stone.
Very large one flitch bread kneading board passed to me from my grandma, with rolling pin.
One *small* Black & Decker food processer.

Just *buryied* the "Iona" (wahtever happened to that brand?) hand held beater which I got for Christmas when I was 11 years old!(Let me tell you, that is OLD) I received a new one for Christmas from said voracious family and It is TOO loud and does not do the beating any better. Husband uses it more than I do - give me an old fashioned Whisk!
I am not as into gadgets as my mom was. I think the best are straight forward, no electrical "tails". Knife - used for all kinds of purposes, cutting, whacking, mincing, trimming the ends off a bouquet of flowers or fat off the pork chops ;-) and you just rinse it off and use on the next job....

Just bought a wood handle flat scraper from the King Arthur store in Vermont (like Disneyland for bakers) to go with my plastic and silicone bowl scrapers...you gotta have good scrapers if only to get the last smidge of batter - kids volunteer to lick the scrapers :-)

Geez, what do I sound like? Best to quit now while I'm ahead :-D
Cheers and happy baking
Maryanne

I second the food processor and the Kitchenaid mixer. If I didn't have a Kitchenaid, I'd never make bread. It makes it so easy - does the kneading for you. As far as small gadgets, the two that I find I can't live without are a good set of tongs and bamboo skewers. I went to our lake house with my husband last weekend and had a little hissy fit because the tongs I bought for over there were no where to be found when I was making dinner. I was making some fried green tomatoes and it almost killed me to turn them with a fork!

Laurie

I used to have lots of kitchen gadgets but found the simple things like knives and even a manual can opener (I completely gave up on electric can openers)are just easier to use and clean. And since I'm not Susie homemaker....

But since you can't use knives...

I can't live without my 6 inch frying pan.

I do have a mini Cuisinart. I don't use it much but when I need to chop large quantities of stuff, yes, it's great.

I also have one of those Oxo potato peelers and they are definitely better than other peelers.

A shrimp de-veiner/peeler combo is great to have around.

I use a mini coffee grinder to grind fresh pepper, works a lot better than any hand grinder.

A couple of years ago I bought a Pampered Chef stoneware (I think they refer to it as something other than stoneware)pizza/cookie sheet thing that I love. I use it to cook all kinds of things. It turned out to be much more functional than I expected.

Oh, don't forget a garlic press.

A lettuce spinner is handy. I don't care how many times lettuce etc., has been pre-washed, I insist on doing it myself. Maybe that's why I survived eating 4 pounds of spinach produced/packaged by that company implicated in that mess (I am so pissed that spinach is still not available).

I know people who swear up and down that a George Foreman grill is the greatest thing ever invented and use them almost daily.

How could I forget the most essential "gadget", a dog to clean up anything that falls on the floor.

A small screw driver with a flat head on one end and Phillips head on the other.

A can of WD40.

Did I mention I wasn't Susie homemaker?

I hate to not be able to take the flavor wave seriously, but I don't know that I can. I do know some people who can do some serious meat cooking in a microwave oven, and it does astound me. Will your thingie hold a leg of lamb, Kev?

The stand mixers are awesome (Kitchenaids are great, although I play with the bowl lift for hours before I actually do anything), but I don't know how you guys manage with the electric can openers. I can't get the things to work. They're absolutely impossible, unless you use it to beat the can open or something...

I'm with you on the whisk, Maryann. The handbeaters, for me, always end causing a terrible mess and eggwhites or cream all over the walls. Easier and faster for me to use my arm.

I had no idea how invaluable a dog was to kitchen work until I noticed that I mopped twice a week without her and only once a week or twice a month (or less, depending on how obsessive I feel) with her. Tongues seem to be easier on wood flooring than scrub brushes, too.

I'm Susie homemaker from a bad horror/comedy.

Stacy

This is not like a microwave at all. Things brown on the outside, but are so moist - no wet - on the inside you wouldn't believe it. I would rather give up my oven than my FW. It's about 12 inches in diameter and maybe 10 inches high and cooks a whole turkey breast or whole chicken with no problem. When sis gave it to me, I also thought it was a real dumb gadget. Not any more.

Agree about the salad spinner. Also great for drying lots of basil leaves or parsley sprigs.

Forgot this: My little no-name peeler. Again, something sis picked up at the state fair. Razor sharp and worth having just to peel mangos, but I use it for everything.

{{gwi:135589}}

My side cutting can opener is a non-electric variety....it just makes it safer, no sharp edges.

Yep, Kev, I have one of those too, they work great....I get mine at garage sales and auctions.... I have purchased a bunch of those funny green handled 1920s-40s kitchen tools....some of which you go "huh? and what was this used for."

And don't forget scissors!

Can't live without my Henckels Professional S knives... I have an 8" chef, 4" parer, and a boning knife. Expensive but worth every penny.

I love my garlic press and microplane zester.

About the salad spinner: I toss my greens into a clean cotton pillow case (reserved just for this occasion), step outside, and whirl it around and around like a helicopter... you look weird but it works really well! And it feels good.

That's a wicked peeler. It reminds me of the thing that grandma uses to remove the feather pips from birds.

Oooh! The microplane zester is soooo cool! It's so much easier to clean than a regular cheese grater, and it rocks for parmesan cheese. I love the thing and it makes a nice zing when you pull it out of the sheath.

I just Googled the Flavorwave and it looks really cool. Have you ever stuck a whole chicken in yours and have it turned out perfectly browned and juicy? I really want to see the infomercial for this. I am now fascinated.

Here is a link that might be useful: FW

I'm a sucker for gadjets of any kind. OK--I just ordered the infrared oven. Hope it makes cooking easier in my declining years. Am back to a wheelchair and anything will be an improvement. (NB: If it doesn't meet my high expectations, I will haunt you, Kevin!)

Stacy

That's the beauty of it. Chicken turns out golden brown on the outside and very moist and juicy on the inside. Turkey does too. I love skin. I did burgers in it last night. 6 min on one side, 7 on the other. I don't think it cooks any faster than traditional methods, but everything turns out better.

I think Target carries these now.

Alberta - I really hope you like it. Once you get it and if you need any tips, just email me. Here's a couple right now: I never cook on the rack. It's too hard to clean, so everything goes in some kind of pan. Don't wash the dome when it's still hot. It may form small cracks. I always wait until it's perfectly cool before I do that.

Before I got my oven fixed, I used this for everything: meat, cookies, cakes. Roasted potatoes are also very good in here. Just cube a bunch of them, toss with olive oil and spices, put in a shallow dish and cook away. Again, they turn out very moist on the inside, but golden brown on the outside.

K

I meant a whole FROZEN chicken; but after extensive googling, it seems that it's true! (or astroturf) I think I may have to get one. This is now going to be the Flavorwave thread.

Nope, never did anything frozen, but I guess you can.

We could start a CLUB and everything!! How cool would that be?

I think it would be rather...scary. And unthinkable.

But we could trade patterns and ideas for little FW covers we would make ourselves. Ones with little kitties and puppies and butterflies all in bright festive colors to match out kitchens. Oh it would be so much fun!

K (who's had too much crack today)

Can we have a secret hideout or treehouse, too?

I only want the covers if they're lined with sparklers or something. Then you could have flaming FW covers.

I think you've definitely got to start something that gives you a bit more mellow of a high, soon, K.

Stacy

I would have to say that my must have kitchen gadgets would be:
A non-stick wok (good for stir-frying, macaroni and cheese, and soup)
A good paring knife
Metal skewers for veggie kabobs

oh lord...I read that as frying macaroni and cheese....I guess if they can fry Snickers bars, then anything is possible....

I can actually attest that deep fried mac and cheese is really pretty tasty.

In related news, the other night my consort and I decided to accompany our dinner with fried leek rings -- think onion rings but on a calamari scale. Very tasty but I ate waaaaay too many. At 1 AM I was debating whether to call an ambulance or die at home. Fortunately the Angel of Death-by-Leek had other things to do so when I awoke on the cold bathroom floor I just crawled back into bed and didn't even miss a minute of work the next day. Would I do it again? Probably. They're that good.

You guys need to come to the MN State Fair. ItÂs famous for all the deep fried stuff on a stick. This year they had mac and cheese on a stick, deep-fried Oreo cookies on a stick, spaghetti on a stick, alligator on a stick and tons more. I think they even had a deep fried dill pickle on a stick.

fried dill pickles are great! Love em!

Fried dill pickles...eugh...

That's really scary. Fried spam, fried bologna, and fried twinkies.

Fried oreos sound interesting, actually. I'm intrigued.

Well, not to break the fried thread here, but I have been lurking this thread, almost afraid to post my favorite kitchen gadget, after listening to all of you. But here goes...

...My favorite kitchen gadget is *anything* that keeps me out of the kitchen! That could be DH (he likes to cook, I DO NOT). That could be the telephone and a take out menu. Definitely not the microwave (unless it is to reheat chinese takeout), I prefer a pan to heat (canned) soup. Hmmm, frozen chicken fingers are easy to cook in the toaster oven, frozen pizza is OK, but I don't cook it for myself. A fried egg/english muffin sandwich is a great meal.

What else will keep me out of the kitchen?

LOL,
Carolyn

Okay, regarding the Flavorwave...here's an interesting tidbit.

They market it under a different name in stores like Sears, Target, etc., I'm guessing to eliminate the 'as seen on TV' stigma. They are Halogen Ovens by Morningware in stores.

Stacy

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to page on Target website.

Any info on the energy efficiency of these things?

Oh, duh. It says right in the ad.

A cook?
Anything that will take me away from a hot kitchen, actually.

Hi Sunita! Long time, no see!

Fortunately we don't have the overheated kitchen problem much here and then we just go outside and cook. (Did I mention I love the side burner on our new gas grill?)

Hi Shady and everyone else ! Blame my long absence from the forum on a nasty back problem and then once I started getting better, my internet started giving me trouble. I really think I'm jinxed this year!
I so envy you for not having to deal with rivers of sweat pouring down every time you step into the kitchen. Gross!

Saves on salting the food.

Flavorwave oven, I received a flavorwave for Christmas.
I have followed all the instructions but I still can not get it to start.

Please help if anyone has any requests.

Thanks,

Linda

Linda,

I still love my machine, but have an older model, so I don't think I can help you. Is there a help number to call or something online?

Kevin

all of these old threads age gonna drive arthurm nuts!

My Cuisinart only comes out of the cabinet when I'm in the mood for coleslaw...

My favorite kitchen gadget is the Ulu I got in Anchorage, but it is wicked sharp.

nick

I am surprised that your post was not filtered. At the moment however I think we'll just call you if we ever need the stuff you market. Thank you.

On another note ( the note of this thread)I use the microwave everyday.

I am thinking of getting an ice cream machine, a bread machine, and father off, perhaps an espresso machine. Hey, a guy's toys become bigger, right?

Wow, more activity over on this side than I expected.

Yeah, I saw that guy's spam all over the place. On the plus side though, his spam posting did dredge up some interesting old posts I would never have seen otherwise.

I got an ice cream machine for my birthday. I love it. There's something nice about making your own ice cream, with fresh ingredients, and customized to your tastes. I made a Meyer lemon sorbet that was especially good, and extremely simple.

Was not impressed by the bread machine. Bread machine bread just doesn't turn out that great to me. It doesn't get kneaded well enough, in my opinion, so you often end up with crumbly bread because the gluten didn't develop well enough. Which in turn means that it isn't able to develop enough structure to properly hold all those air bubbles that yeast develops. Hence, crumbly or dense bread. In a weird shape, no less.

But hey, I do think an espresso machine is a fabulous idea. Haven't made it that far though. I'm too broke anyway.

I love my Lamson Sharp knives. Oldest cutlery forge in America. Love the Cuisanart too, I have two,one big one small. Finally the Weber grill if my best friend.

OHHH hold the phone, how could I forget! Hubbie got me a big set of Falk cookware one year for Christmas. All stainless inside all copper outside with cast iron handles,wow they are heavy as hell. Just as heavy as my cast iron pans. As much as he paid for that he could have bought me a new wedding ring,but I'm not complaining. I can make some really spectacular stuff in those; but I always have to chuckle to myself when the kids want Spaghetti-Os. Here I am warming up Chef Boy-Ar-Dee in a saucepan that cost a couple hundred dollars.

Maybe I need to check out one of those little Flavorwaves?
ginnibug

my favorite tool is my kyocera ceramic peeler, even come with a weird little nubby bit for removing eyes on potatoes.

I love tools which require effort such as a stone mortar & pestle. The stone mortar & pestle grinds spices in a way which can't be duplicated by electric grinders. Mashing spices is different from whacking.

or my grandmother's hand crankin' meat and vegetable grinder with multiple options.

There are others. If your grandmother was born in the 19th century, you know....

--Stitz--

WOW! I hit the jackpot! I haven't checked here for ages and was so surprised to see this subject recently rekindled. Like an old friend surprising you! Kevin, I totally agree with your opinion of the flavorwave. It took me months before I got up the nerve to try it, but it has become a reliable old friend. I think my favorite is stuffed turkey breast. I do, however, finish browning it in my convection oven for 15 minutes or so, for the perfect presentation.

Stitz, my coffee grinder was in the repair shop for a week, and I ended up grinding my beans in a mortar and pestle.

Full flavor. I love it.
But the grinder is back today, just when I was starting to resent having to work my right wrist twice a day.

Alberta

I'm happy you're using the Flavorwave. I still use mine almost every day. You probably have a newer model than mine, but the only complaint I have is with the dome. After years of use, it cracks and falls apart. I only have about 3/4 of the dome still in place. The rest of it has cracked and broken off. I'm not sure if this is a design flaw or what. Maybe the newer models won't have this problem.

Kevin

That sounds wierd--does it still function OK? I used the extension ring when I do the turkey and find the skin too light for my taste. Maybe without the ring might be better. But the flavor was *****! Frozen thick loin lamb chops in 24 minutes were another bonus when unexpected company arrived. I bless you every time I use it, so your way to heaven has been well paved!

Alberta

I think you're model is very different from mine. I don't have an extension ring. I've never had a problem getting really crispy brown skin on turkey, but the turkey is only an inch or so below the heating element. Maybe that makes the difference. Have you tried hamburgers yet? 6 or 7 minutes on a side and they're just perfect.

Kevin

Kevin--I gave mine to myself for Christma in 2006, so it is definitely a newer model.Next time I do a turkey breast, I will leave the the extension ring off. I thought the extra clearance was wiser, but I have been wrong before. (Once, a long long time ago!!) As for hamburgers--yes yes yes!Best ever!