Under-Appreciated Kitchen Design Superstars

[Chris Amirault]

I'm sick of seeing so-called "designer" kitchen equipment that costs a boatload and doesn't do the trick, and it's prompting this shout-out to unheralded designs that many of us take for granted.

Hats off to Earl Tupper, who gave us Tupperware. We are nearly finished with a determined project to eliminate all junky food storage units from our house to be replaced with vintage Tupperware being tossed into donation bins by fools who don't know the stuff is perfectly shaped and will outlast the species -- all while refusing to retain the smell of the fish cakes you stored in it and forgot about last month.

All hail the Ekco Kitchamajig, an ingenious tool that you can use for a variety of purposes and is so underappreciated that the Ekco Corporation doesn't even include it on its website.

Screw Alessi. What are the unsung design heroes in your kitchen?

[Fat Guy]

Surely the design team at IKEA deserves a tip of the hat.

[weinoo]

Not that they're unsung, but OXO makes, imo, some of the easiest to use, highest-quality stuff at that price point I've ever seen.

[Fat Guy]

I think also a nod to Michael Graves and the Target people.

[Chris Amirault]

Pyrex measuring cups with stackable handles.

[Toliver]

Hats off to the maker of the simple little chopper thingy of which there are so many clones. Here's one currently making the rounds on TV:

The Slap Chop

I like to think I have adequate knife skills but I use a similar chopper when cutting up veggies for my green salads. It's quick..I don't mind the pieces ending up too small.

Slap. Chop Chop. Done.

[snowangel]

A gift from a dear friend, my mushroom:

No longer made by AMCO. It smashes. Take a little bowl, and you have a mortar and pestle. Wash your stinky hands with this, and the smells disappear. Plus, it looks cool on the counter to boot.

Then, there are these Edlund Tongs. If you click to enlarge, you'll notice that the locking mechanism is not a circle, but a squared-off one. Means that to open the tongs, you can just put that squared off part under the kitchen counter or deck rail to open. One-handed operation!

Finally, Cuisinart. I still have the original that I received as a wedding gift in 1980. My old mini-prep has been a work-horse. Then, there are these Cuisinart Prep Boards. I love the upturned edges -- no more tomato juice all over the counter -- and the fact that they are attractive enough to serve as serving dishes.

[Anna N]

. . .

Finally, Cuisinart.  I still have the original that I received as a wedding gift in 1980.  My old mini-prep has been a work-horse.  Then, there are these Cuisinart Prep Boards.  I love the upturned edges -- no more tomato juice all over the counter -- and the fact that they are attractive enough to serve as serving dishes.

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Ever since my Cuisinart (VERY PLAIN) prep board had an unfortunate encounter with a red hot electric coil I have searched for a replacement! Thank you for letting me know these are still available!

[JAZ]

Messermeister, for its serrated peeler. Several other manufacturers make similar peelers now, but this was (I believe) the original, and it's certainly the best.

[baroness]

Microplanes!

[weinoo]

I kinda like my Chinese bamboo strainers. Just used one at lunch to take the pasta out of the boiling water and into the frying pan.

Cheap and brilliant...click me.

[Edward J]

Microplanes are about the only new gadget I use. I use an apple peeler/corer on a daily basis, but if I'm not mistaken, this design goes back almost 200 years.

I do make a lot of my own stuff, I'm handy with tools and wood, so I make my own rolling pins, stir sticks, pastry equipment, etc. c

[Chris Amirault]

The little mesh sink drain thingie that traps junk from going down into your broken dispose-all.

[David A. Goldfarb]

It may seem like overkill, but for $5-8 the Oxo silicone sink strainer is really a major improvement over other sink strainers I've had. It's easy to clean, and the stopper works.

Has anyone improved on the simple wooden spoon?

Another great simple thing is a $6 wok grate that I picked up in a Chinese market. It replaces the flat grate on an ordinary gas stovetop and is way more solid than those metal rings. I posted photos and a description of this a while back on my sister's "Family of Food" blog--

http://familyoffood.blogspot.com/2008/11/5...-tradition.html

Incidentally, re: the rondeau thread, that's my rondeau there on the back burner.

Edited June 19, 2009 by David A. Goldfarb (log)

[Kerry Beal]

It may seem like overkill, but for $5-8 the Oxo silicone sink strainer is really a major improvement over other sink strainers I've had.  It's easy to clean, and the stopper works.

Has anyone improved on the simple wooden spoon?

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I like a bamboo spoon in place of a wooden spoon. Doesn't stain, doesn't absorb flavours.

[Toliver]

Has anyone improved on the simple wooden spoon?

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Yes. I believe Oxo has.

The handle is larger so you can get a better grip (which greatly improves stirring) and the bowl is just a wee bit deeper than a regular wooden spoon.

[Emily_R]

My favorite kitchen innovation of late is these stackable *magnetic* measuring spoons. No more ring! No more getting every spoon dirty when using one because they are all stuck together on the ring, and if you take the ring off then they get lost in the drawer. They are flat on the bottom so that you can fill them and then sit them on the counter awaiting whatever you need that ingredient for... And I also like the fact that they are doublesided, with a long narrow version on one end and a wider rounder one on the other, just in case you need to get into smaller spice jars. Every time I use these I marvel at their excellent design.

http://www.amazon.com/Progressive-Internat...s/dp/B000V8F07E

Edited July 1, 2009 by Emily_R (log)

[David A. Goldfarb]

I recently got a Mario Batali wooden soup spoon that I like. There are some other interesting wooden utensils in that line, like a combination spoon/spatula with a flat edge for scraping.

There's also a thing with a large spoon for stirring at one end and a small tasting spoon at the other end, which seems like it would be messy and unsanitary. It reminds me of an elementary school cafeteria I remember from the third grade, I think, where they decided to try out a spork that had a knife as a handle. They quickly realized that they needed to include a knife on each tray, because the sporknife was not only unsanitary, but there was no way to cut with the knife, if you couldn't also hold down the food with a fork.

This looks like an interesting concept--

http://www.dezeen.com/2009/08/11/elevate-b...-joseph-joseph/

I don't know that these utensils are so attractive qua utensils, but the handles that prevent the working end from resting on the counter look great.

Edited August 28, 2009 by David A. Goldfarb (log)

[maggiethecat]

I adore the cheap molds bento box Moms can buy to turn hard boiled eggs into Volkswagon Bugs.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I adore the cheap molds bento box Moms can buy to turn hard boiled eggs into Volkswagon Bugs.

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My sister is a "bento box mom." I didn't even know this was a concept, but she's always posting photos of her bentos for her twin daughters on the family blog. I'll have to find some egg molds for her.

Our toddler is a couple of months younger than my sister's kids. He starts preschool next month, and I'll be making his bento lunches, so I will probably get sucked into this trend, but for now he really loves to use the egg slicer (who doesn't really love to use the egg slicer?), so egg-shaped eggs are of sufficient interest.