Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I make sure if I buy it, I will use it. I take my time in deciding and yes, I have a lot of gadgets but nothing like some people. I do use my rice cooker, yet I think I could live very well without it.
I don't use a blender cause I have 4 food processors plus I have to admit, I had a blender but when we remodeled our kitchen in January and I rearranged everything I misplaced it. I know, how does someone misplace a blender? Beats the heck out of me, but I did.
I couldn't live without my crock pots and food processors, but I rarely use by 16 cup one. It is the best one and great for canning, but obviously not an product to be used daily or weekly.
My two favorite gadgets are my juice squeezer and my zesters.
I also love my seal a meal, bat again, I lived years without one, like most of us did.
Now here we are, most of us food junkies to some degree and thinking the world would stop moving if we didn't have a kitchen full or toys, but they I think of my dad and my maternal grandma: both could cook anything, to perfection and they didn't even have a vegetable peeler. Dad's big thing was top of the line knives and great cookware. Grandmas was fresh produce for starters.
As for electric/motorized gadgets, I have but two: an electric instant read thermometer/timer & an immersion blender. The immersion blender has been a fine replacement for a full-size model for me, as I really only ever used it to puree soups. My kids recently discovered it does a fine job of making smoothies, too.
As for non-electric gadgets, my kitchen really doesn't have any to speak of. I have very basic tools: a long-handled metal spoon, a flat-headed wooden spoon, a whisk, a metal spatula/turner, two silicon spatulas (one large, one small), a ladle, a set of tongs, a pair of kitchen shears, a cork screw, a pastry brush, a fine mesh strainer, a box grater, a can opener, a vegetable peeler, three really good knives, a cutting board, a trivet, & a hot mitt. For baking, I also have a set of metal measuring spoons & cups, plus a rolling pin (which I hardly ever use).
My cookware & bakeware are similarly simplified. For storage, I use French canning jars in a variety of sizes.
Last edited by randomparent; 08-24-2014 at 07:40 AM..
Reason: Added a couple of things after surveying my kitchen
If you love cooking, then gadgets are your toys, and you enjoy playing with them. If cooking is only a chore, I can see the minimalist approach.
I love watching the old black-n-white Julia Child French Chef shows...she introduced me to 'gadgets' like a chinoiserie, mortar and pestle, double boiler, and countless other toys.
Wish I still had my ancient aluminum garlic press. Nothing since has worked as well.
I see it differently. The minimalism feeds my creativity, which I enjoy immensely. Cooking is sometimes a chore (Isn't it for everyone at one time or another?), but for the most part it is a pleasure. I enjoy playing with ingredients.
Last edited by randomparent; 08-24-2014 at 08:43 AM..
If you love cooking, then gadgets are your toys, and you enjoy playing with them. If cooking is only a chore, I can see the minimalist approach.
I love to cook, but I don't have a lot of "gadgets." I don't consider a food processor, a juicer, a pasta machine, etc., to be mere "gadgets," though I use them only infrequently. You'd consider my cooking style fairly minimal, I believe.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nonchalance
I love watching the old black-n-white Julia Child French Chef shows...she introduced me to 'gadgets' like a chinoiserie, mortar and pestle, double boiler, and countless other toys.
I grew up with a mortar and pestle and a double boiler. I don't have either, but I don't consider them "toys." My grandmother found them very useful. BTW, is this what you mean by "chinoiserie"?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
