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Effective, inexpensive kitchen gadgets you couldn't live without

Fat Guy

By Fat Guy
in Kitchen Consumer

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Smithy

Smithy

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, TdeV said:

I'm looking to replace these spatula spoons which I originally bought in the early 2000s. Two of them have just cracked and broken. The devices came from Traex, which I've looked for over the years without result. Model #609. Heat resistant to 400F. They're not much good for getting in the corners of things, but they're great for scooping stuff.

 

Any idea where to find something similar? What do you use?

 

P.S. I'm very annoyed that no seller seems smart enough to show 3D pictures of items on the internet. Why is that, do you suppose?

 

P.P.S. The popcorn popper is for roasting coffee per @rotuts 's directions. As you can see the device is still in the box. Closer to the back door though, so I'm progressing. 😃

 

IMG_2278_cropped.thumb.jpg.db8725c453bb9eb5d870ac9b1f900091.jpg

 

IMG_2277_smaller.thumb.jpg.a636306ad776f57284f37e3a1ac6df4d.jpg

 

IMG_2279_cropped.jpg.397550e7fe3e3b0d6e3f2a01886cddd1.jpg

 

Amazon has quite a selection of them. Here are three:

 

OXO 1241881 Silicone Spoon Spatula, White/Black

 

Di Oro Seamless Series Pro Grade Silicone Spoon Spatula - BPA Free Pro-Grade Non-Stick 600ºF

 

Rachael Ray 55780 Silicone Spoonula, Red

 

I also see them around in kitchen shops - at least, I did the last time I was in one - and in various discount stores. I don't have any specific recommendations for brands.

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Nancy Smith, aka "Smithy"
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chromedome

chromedome

Posted
Posted

Now that I slow my mouth long enough for my brain to catch up, the brand I used to see most often in restaurant kitchens was Rubbermaid's commercial line. Durable, and you could get them with extra-long handles for deep pots.

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“Who loves a garden, loves a greenhouse too.” - William Cowper, The Task, Book Three

 

"Not knowing the scope of your own ignorance is part of the human condition...The first rule of the Dunning-Kruger club is you don’t know you’re a member of the Dunning-Kruger club.” - psychologist David Dunning

 

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kayb

kayb

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, BeeZee said:

I have one that has been sitting on a shelf above my kitchen counter to remind me to replace it. It was a victim of scraping a bit too harshly around the inside of the Cuisinart with the blade still in place. I'm leaning towards a one piece molded design, there are tons of them on Amazon which I am starting to sift through.

On an unrelated note, but relevant to this topic...I LOVE my kitchen shears. When I have to trim up some boneless chicken breasts, they are quick and effective. I can even roughly butterfly them if they are too thick by using the tip of the shears to carefully snip at the meat. The pair that I bought come apart for cleaning and came with a magnetic "holster" so they live on the side of the fridge.

'What brand are the kitchen shears? I'm not pleased with mine.

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Don't ask. Eat it.

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lindag

lindag

Posted
Posted
22 minutes ago, kayb said:

'What brand are the kitchen shears? I'm not pleased with mine.

I have these.

I bought them when CI top-rated them.  They’re not particularly cheap but they are really excellent.

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chord

chord

Posted
Posted (edited)

This scooper/strainer thing is my favorite.

 

IMG_4046.thumb.jpg.3975af158375c2c353db2fe4529fe4ef.jpg

 

I don't know who designed it, but that nameless individual was almost certainly a cook. The oval perforations work better than round ones. They let a lot of liquid through, but will stop even small bits of food like cooked Israeli couscous. (I don't know why you almost never see colanders with oval holes.) The tines on the edges work well for grabbing long pasta. And the tines also allow the strainer bowl to bend, so it can get into the corners of a saucepan and fish out the last remaining bits of food.

 

I use it to grab food from boiling water, to pull out the meat and vegetables after making stock, to remove the mini plastic balls from my sous vide set up, etc.

 

I've seen other scoopers that sell for $10-20, but I think this one is better designed than any of the ones I've seen at Williams Sonoma, Sur La Table, Crate and Barrel, etc. I paid something like $2.50 at a HomeGoods/Marshall's type store. I'd love to get a second one, but I've never seen another for sale anywhere.

 

ETA: I've looked for it online before and haven't had any luck, but after posting the above I searched Amazon and found it in red for $7: https://www.amazon.com/Home-X-Extra-Deep-Strainer-Straining-Vegetables/dp/B011CGR7Z6/

Edited by chord (log)
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BeeZee

BeeZee

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, lindag said:

I have these.

I bought them when CI top-rated them.  They’re not particularly cheap but they are really excellent.

The shears I have look very similar (except with neon green grip), but are a cheaper knock off version...bought in 2016 and not available any longer.

"Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast" - Oscar Wilde

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chord

chord

Posted
Posted (edited)
7 hours ago, TdeV said:

I'm looking to replace these spatula spoons which I originally bought in the early 2000s. Two of them have just cracked and broken. The devices came from Traex, which I've looked for over the years without result. Model #609. Heat resistant to 400F. They're not much good for getting in the corners of things, but they're great for scooping stuff.

 

Any idea where to find something similar? What do you use?

 

 

While digging around on Amazon, I found this Traex spoonula: https://www.amazon.com/SPOON-13-0367-TRAEX-SPATULAS-LADLES/dp/B001E0JOVQ, although it doesn't look like it's in production anymore.

 

It seems that Vollrath bought Traex several years ago. So if you want something similar, this one is probably the successor model.

image.thumb.png.ca00e5d2d23abb9e757100a1973b431a.png

 

Edited by chord (log)
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Toliver

Toliver

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, lindag said:

I have these.

I bought them when CI top-rated them.  They’re not particularly cheap but they are really excellent.

Can you please explain the notch in the scissor blades? I have a pair of kitchen shears with a similar notch and I curse it every time I go to cut something in the kitchen.

 

“Peter: Oh my god, Brian, there's a message in my Alphabits. It says, 'Oooooo.'

Brian: Peter, those are Cheerios.”

– From Fox TV’s “Family Guy”

 

Tim Oliver

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MokaPot

MokaPot

Posted
Posted
11 minutes ago, Toliver said:

Can you please explain the notch in the scissor blades? I have a pair of kitchen shears with a similar notch and I curse it every time I go to cut something in the kitchen.

 

I have a pair of scissors that have a notch like the Kershaw scissors that @lindag posted, but they're Fiskars brand. I bought my Fiskars from a hardware store (long time ago) and they were labeled as a pruning tool. I did used to cut flower / plant stems with them. They work well for stems and just for cutting in general.

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heidih

heidih

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, SLB said:

Mine are Messermeister, and I have been thrilled with them for almost 30 years.  Mine are close to what

s second from the left in this picture:

 

https://www.messermeister.com/collections/culinary-tools-sets-scissors

 

Mine would have been that old but got lost in a move. Got a replacement (same style) in 2011 when Messermeister came to do a knife sharpening demo at local cookware store and gave discounts :)

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  • 1 year later...
btbyrd

btbyrd

Posted
Posted

Made some mashed potatoes tonight and remembered another Foley tool that I'd forgotten about. Not a masher, but I'm hoping that my mentioning it in this thread won't be unwelcome.

It's a "kettle draining device" (according to the patent) or "pot strainer" (as I call it). It keeps your potatoes (or pasta or whatever) in the pot but lets the boiling water out. I got it as a bonus when I bought a different Foley fork on eBay (with the same green handle as this strainer) that I gifted to a friend. The strainer/drainer takes up a lot of space in a drawer, but it hangs nicely alongside my other hanging kitchen tools. Not a necessity, but I do use frequently when I make mashed potatoes. And sometimes making pasta. Saves the trouble of washing a colander.

 

C429991F-1AA4-4527-B415-0BF2EBB8960E.thumb.jpeg.ac0fd9fcf05c38c98360d76208a73ece.jpeg

 

 

D9F5BD75-9FF5-459D-90F6-91484B2C62AC.thumb.jpeg.4c45cb72c978a5cab000429e731e4d3b.jpeg

 

Mipples. Minn.

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gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted
26 minutes ago, weinoo said:

Jacques always uses a similar contraption.

 

I tend to use a spider or the lid or a colander. And try to avoid burning myself.

 

Always a spider unless its fine stuff, then a strainer , for me

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Margaret Pilgrim

Margaret Pilgrim

Posted
Posted

Not a bad idea/tool.    There was the Thanksgiving at a relative's house at which her husband and I were in charge of mashing the potatoes.    Trying to work together, we  managed to dump the entire pot of potatoes down the garbage disposal.   The two of us quickly looked at each other in horror, then with cold water running. we retrieved the scalding hot potatoes, rinsed and mashed.    No casualties that we ever heard of.

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eGullet member #80.

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gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted (edited)

1/8 sheet pan or sizzle dish. Zillion uses.

 

And This.  Check oil temp, or fridge temp, or cooling soup temp.

https://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Lasergrip-1080-Non-Contact-Thermometer/dp/B00DMI632G/ref=sr_1_14?keywords=digital+foodthermometer&qid=1639673877&sr=8-14

Edited by gfweb (log)
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Anna N

Anna N

Posted
Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, gfweb said:

1/8 sheet pan or sizzle dish. Zillion uses.

 

And This.  Check oil temp, or fridge temp, or cooling soup temp.

https://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Lasergrip-1080-Non-Contact-Thermometer/dp/B00DMI632G/ref=sr_1_14?keywords=digital+foodthermometer&qid=1639673877&sr=8-14

Your link leads to a thermometer when I click. 
 

oops. I am reading too fast this morning. Please ignore my comment about your link. 

Edited by Anna N
I’m also dictating too fast! (log)
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Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

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