Tropicalsenior

Call me nosy if you like, but one of my favorite things to do is to see what topics other people are reading, especially our online guests. It takes me down some very interesting rabbit holes. Some of them are very old rabbit holes. Occasionally I find one that I think should definitely be revived. This is one of them. Recently, our discussion of Wooden Spoons prompted me to clear out the ones that I never use. This one has sent me back into my drawers and cabinets and I can't believe the useless junk that I have found. Some things I have gotten as gifts, but most of the junk, I am guilty of buying myself. A tiny ricer, can't even put a quarter of a potato in it, probably used once. Two plunger type choppers that only work for chopping nuts. A donut cutter, probably only used once because it cuts the dough just fine but it wouldn't come back out of the cutter. And I probably haven't made donuts in 20 years. I'm just getting started pitching things so I can probably add more as I go along. How about the rest of you? What totally useless things do you have hidden in your kitchen?

I just want to say thank you. I spent many happy hours going down rabbit holes on About.com.

I seem to be totally incapable of cooking just a little bit of spaghetti. Short pasta, noodles, no problem. But give me a package of spaghetti and I'm going to make enough for us, the neighbors and the dog. And I don't even have a dog anymore. I've used measurements from the internet, those stupid little things with holes in it and every other trick. It just seems like when I get the spaghetti in my hand it just doesn't look like enough and I just have to throw in some more. So, now that I figured out how to weigh it on the scale how many ounces should I use for two small portions?

I'm even out of luck there. My last dog died last November and my cat won't stoop to touch human food.

Only for the well coordinated. I would have it in my hair and over half of the kitchen.

I always do with short pasta but the Spaghetti would always roll off the scale. And those pasta measures with holes in them are a big PIA. But as I said before, too soon old, too late smart. However, I am still learning.

Let's face it, you and your recipes are unique. But yes, it is a great way to make sure that they will be here forever for you. Too many other recipe platforms have crashed and burned. Personally, I use Drive to save my recipes but who knows if it will be there forever.

How to make your fellow member feel stupid. I never thought of using a glass. Perfect!

I never even thought of using it for that. I always thought it was just to let the water drain.

Although there isn't a chance in a Million that I could recreate any of your dishes here in Costa Rica, I enjoy reading them. Your repertoire is amazing and I do so admire your attention to detail in recreating the food that you love. In the late sixties I had an Indonesian neighbor and I saw the frustration that she went through trying to recreate the dishes that she grew up with. You are lucky that you live in New York and are able to find what you do. Thank you so much for taking the trouble to post the recipes.

I've had the plastic equivalent and believe me, they can't hold a candle to the wooden ones. I can see them being very useful as a back scratcher. Now that I remember, the first wooden spaghetti catcher that I had was actually a big back scratcher, made in Costa Rica. My husband stole it from me and I bought this one.

I've been reading through this topic from the very beginning hoping to somehow resolve my relationship with these nasty little critters. Had I started this topic I would have called it The Curse of the Spoon Holders. They are oh so necessary and yet none of them fit my needs. If I get one I like, I break it. If it's only adequate, it lasts forever. First, I have one like @Darienne's. I keep it in my baking area because it is fine for a whisk or for one spoon. Second, I have one on my stove that is adequate. Not that I'm all that crazy about Christmas all year long but at least it's big enough for a spatula and a tasting spoon. Finally, I have one from Belize that my husband brought back as a souvenir. It's hanging above my stove and I can grab it when I'm desperate. Other than that it's completely useless. For now I think I'm going to start using a small plate. It makes more sense to me and I don't know why I never thought of it before. As they say, too soon old and too late smart. I'm going to start looking for something like Fat Boy's. I've seen them in the stores all the time here and always thought that they look like a pretty useless little dish. Now that I know what they would be good for, I will probably never see one again. If I do, I will buy four of them because if they work and I like them I'm sure to break them.

You hit it right on the head. The spiky thing is for lifting spaghetti. Once you get used to it it works like a charm. I always wanted a spaghetti pot with a strainer but I never could find one that I liked or that fit my storage space so for small amounts of spaghetti, this is great.

These are everything that came out of my spoon holder beside my stove and after due consideration, very few will be going back in. The one that I use the most is the pathetic little critter on the right. I made that one. When we first came to Costa Rica, I couldn't buy a decent wooden spoon for love nor money. They were more just like wooden paddles. So I bought a paddle and carved it into a spoon. I spent hours burnishing it to a high polish. It has been well worth it because it has given me 30 years of good use. Anything that doesn't go in my stand mixer gets mixed with that. I have gone almost exclusively to silicone spatulas for cooking so the rest are like "dead wood" for me and I might as well get rid of them.

Aren't they those disgusting little marshmallow chickens?

Wouldn't work for me. I can trip over my own feet, I can only imagine what would happen with an ashtray in the middle of the floor.

I would just use the eggs. These are awfully pretty.

Compared to some of us, you are a baby. I even have Darienne beat when it comes to age. Welcome to eGullet. I hope that you are ready to jump right in. You will find a really friendly group when you do.

@liuzhou special!

Truer words were never said!

Yes, it is pronounced with a hard C. The herb is called cilantro.

In Mexico it is called cilantro. Culantro is slang for c**t. Don't ask me why, I don't understand Mexican slang. This is one thing that did stick in my mind because I learned it in a very embarrassing way when we were there. I don't remember seeing the Sawtooth variety when we were in Mexico but I'm sure that they must have it because it grows like a weed in all the other Central American countries that I've been in. Although it grows wild here, it is extremely hard to cultivate and grow when you want it to. It is almost impossible to germinate from seeds and the plants do not transplant well. Every once in awhile one will pop up in my yard and I will have it for a while. But I usually don't worry about it because it is so cheap here and all the supermarkets carry it. About 25 cents a bunch.

Most definitely wrong. In fact, don't even think about it.

Here in Costa Rica it is called cilantro as is the small leaf variety. But it is distinguished from that by calling it cilantro coyote because it grows wild here like a weed. I'm delighted when I'm find one that has popped up in my yard. I use it just as a seasoning and I much prefer it to the other variety. I've never thought of using it as vegetable. How do you use it, in stir fries? As an interesting aside, culantro is not a word that you want to use in Mexico. It is slang for a part of the body of a woman and not used in a complimentary way.

My first thought was monkeypox.