Cooking gadget you couldn't do without ? Perhaps a halogen oven?

worded

I've got a 3 tier steamer
Got a foreman grill

What else is particularly great to get

Considering some halogen oven so I can avoid using so much oil ....

Faith

Mod note: Moved to main Food forum.

Dizzyblonde

I love my slow cooker. I don't use it much in the summer, but I use it lots for the rest of the year. Also my Airfryer - if that broke tomorrow I'd buy another immediately.

B0jangles

Airfryer all the way, don't know what I'd do without it.

Have you got a stick blender? They are so much handier to use than a blender when you're making soup.

Day Lewin

Potato masher. It's really difficult to mash potatoes any other way. Apple corer, ditto.

phormium

I gave up using a potato masher years ago, I use a hand held electric mixer, you know the old style small things you stick the whisks in, makes the nicest fluffiest mash ever.

I use my slow cooker a lot and also my halogen oven, ideal instead of turning on main oven for a few goujons or wedges or anything like that. Although I roast chickens/pork steak in it too, did a turkey in it last Christmas as I was cooking 2 so bigger one was in the oven. It bakes great scones too very quickly, no preheating needed.

Psychologeeee

Stick blender without a doubt!

worded

Air fryer sounds good .... less or no oil?

Any make / model / size to go for ?

Thanks

AustinLostin

Sounds stupid but getting a really good food tongs that gets a solid grip on stuff really helped me.

Keedowah

Rice Cooker & Slow Cooker

Tree

I do love my twenty year old stick blender, very much.

Digital scales are great.
The instant pot is excellent.

Coffee grinder might get the most use of all the electrical items in my kitchen though...

dee_mc

AustinLostin wrote: »

Sounds stupid but getting a really good food tongs that gets a solid grip on stuff really helped me.

I've a couple of pairs of metal ice tongs, they're sooo handy! Wouldn't be without them for turning food, making goujons without getting my hands all cruddy etc.
It's the simple gadgets that make things easier!

Dizzyblonde

dee_mc wrote: »

I've a couple of pairs of metal ice tongs, they're sooo handy! Wouldn't be without them for turning food, making goujons without getting my hands all cruddy etc.
It's the simple gadgets that make things easier!

Very true. I got this free at a Tupperware party decades ago and it's very handy for lifting boiled eggs from the pot.



As others have said, a stick blender is a necessity.

B0jangles

Ooh, yes, digital scales are an absolute godsend - the fact that you can weigh things into any container you like AND you can zero the scales after each ingredient goes in is just... magical.

I was quite sentimental about hanging on to my old weighing scales until I got my first digital one. Old one is now at the back of a press somewhere gathering dust.

arian

B0jangles wrote: »

Ooh, yes, digital scales are an absolute godsend - the fact that you can weigh things into any container you like AND you can zero the scales after each ingredient goes in is just... magical.

I was quite sentimental about hanging on to my old weighing scales until I got my first digital one. Old one is now at the back of a press somewhere gathering dust.

Yep, I was sentimental about getting my mother's scales. I thought "I can do sums; I don't need no steenking tare", but once I actually got some digital scales the - err - scales fell from my eyes .

PCeeeee

Slow cooker for me. Brilliant yoke

jimmycrackcorm

Am Irish Mammy. Nobody can match her dinners.

cee_jay

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

Very true. I got this free at a Tupperware party decades ago and it's very handy for lifting boiled eggs from the pot.



As others have said, a stick blender is a necessity.

I keep trying to "procure" my mother's "egg lifter" but so far, I haven't been able to acquire it. I have a particular liking of egg spoons for boiled eggs also but they are hard to come by (smaller than a tea spoon).

My cooking gadget would be the digital scales, or my hand blender. I also use my steamer insert from Ikea quite a bit. I think it cost €4 and use it most days to cook veg with.

arian

We use a perforated ladle something like this for boiled eggs. We bought it for chips, but the oil doesn't drain well through the holes, so we use a wire skimmer now. Haven't had proper chips for ages though .

StripedBoxers

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I love my slow cooker. I don't use it much in the summer, but I use it lots for the rest of the year.

Day Lewin wrote: »

Potato masher. It's really difficult to mash potatoes any other way.

Tree wrote: »

I do love my twenty year old stick blender, very much.

Digital scales are great.

Agree with all of these. I would be lost without them. My coffee machine is another one for me.

I was recently given an Airfryer, I can't wait to start using it.

B0jangles

cee_jay wrote: »

I keep trying to "procure" my mother's "egg lifter" but so far, I haven't been able to acquire it. I have a particular liking of egg spoons for boiled eggs also but they are hard to come by (smaller than a tea spoon).

My cooking gadget would be the digital scales, or my hand blender. I also use my steamer insert from Ikea quite a bit. I think it cost €4 and use it most days to cook veg with.

You'd probably love my precious very tiny spoon that I use for mixing very small sauces (like for stir-fries).



Here it is beside a normal teaspoon for scale. Bottle-opener included, because why the hell not?

Unfortunately I have no idea where another one could be acquired; my one was 'collected' by some unnamed person from an Aer Lingus plane years ago and I've been guarding it jealously ever since.

Whistlejacket

My trusty cast iron frying pan. Naturally non-stick by now. It goes on the hob/BBQ/in the oven/under the grill. Doubles up as a handy pie dish and loaf tin, keeps flatbreads/pancakes/drop scones warm, toasts spices, gets properly hot for frying steak. Using it reminds me of my granny, who cooked and baked gorgeous meals with one of these and a covered pot on an open fire for years. It's one of the most versatile things I have in the kitchen, I'd hate to be without it.

my3cents

After committing the sin of throwing out my wifes favourite but tatty and damaged old plastic potato masher I had to make amends.

I got her this KitchenCraft Potato Masher.

Can't recommend it enough and wouldn't be without one now.

dxhound2005

Any sort of potato masher will do. The secret is to mash the potatoes with the milk and then stir in the butter with a big spoon. This makes it creamy and smooth.

rubadub

Airfryer for me, just annoys me that they were not out decades ago, as it is very basic technology.

B0jangles wrote: »

You'd probably love my precious very tiny spoon

Unfortunately I have no idea where another one could be acquired; .

I have a few small ones. I would guess you might get them for kids or babies, and maybe army/camping shops might tend to have small ones.

dealz have a baby cultery set
http://www.dealz.ie/babys-my-first-cutlery-set

my3cents

rubadub wrote: »

Airfryer for me, just annoys me that they were not out decades ago, as it is very basic technology.
....

I used to sell them about 40 years ago and they have been going for much longer. Nothing like as technical as the modern ones as they were designed for camping and use on a stove.

Some good info on them here https://classiccampstoves.com/threads/optimus-mini-oven.32819/ which also has a link to a recipe book you might find interesting.

arian

B0jangles wrote: »

You'd probably love my precious very tiny spoon that I use for mixing very small sauces (like for stir-fries).

<snip image>

Here it is beside a normal teaspoon for scale. Bottle-opener included, because why the hell not?

Unfortunately I have no idea where another one could be acquired; my one was 'collected' by some unnamed person from an Aer Lingus plane years ago and I've been guarding it jealously ever since.

How about the (plastic) spoon from a Cadbury Egg 'N' Spoon? Just have to wait 'til Easter (or, probably, New Year ).

B0jangles

Oh I still have my little spoon, I hide it carefully so no-one runs off with it I must go and have a look at the baby spoons in Dealz though, it'd be nice to have a back-up one.

rubadub

my3cents wrote: »

I used to sell them about 40 years ago and they have been going for much longer.

you saying that reminded me of an old infomercial, probably in the 80s or early 90s for a "swiss dry cooker", I never saw anything like them in shops here though. I always wanted one as a kid but it looked like a gimmick and I did not believe the claims.

Not sure if I would compare the one linked to a philips airfryer though. The "fryer" term is a misnomer, it is simply a fan oven with a very fast fan. I could knock one up myself.

Found the old advert, it was 1988, 13min 7sec in

my3cents

Brilliant! That "Swiss Dry Cooker" was one of the ones we used to sell only it was 1978 when we were selling it. I think its the next great thing in cooking every 5-10 years. Now I know the name Swiss Dry Cooker its easy to find it again online.

The oldest one which I've seen but not used is the Israeli Wonder Pot and there are plenty of other variations.

the beer revolu

Ha ha, we had one of those dry cookers in the eighties. I don't remember it being up to much.