Effective, inexpensive kitchen gadgets you couldn't live without

[scubadoo97]

I have two sizes of those citrus squeezers.  One for lemons and limes and one for oranges. Plus two old style crank down juicers

[TdeV]

@Margaret Pilgrim, what brand is that squeezer? @scubadoo97, do you like all your squeezers interchangeably?

[blue_dolphin]

I've had a few different citrus squeezers. All miserable and more likely to spray juice across the room or in my face than in any useful direction.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

2 hours ago, TdeV said:

@Margaret Pilgrim, what brand is that squeezer? @scubadoo97, do you like all your squeezers interchangeably?

Ooof.    I just took a picture off the web of the style.   

I bought mine from the "dollar lady" at the flea market.     You know the pegboard kitchen utensils at your local supermarket?    Rather than fill in stock, it is cheaper for the jobber to replace whole categories.    He then sells the mishmash to flea market vendors.   Lots of what I buy from her is preticketed from 5.99 to 9.99.   

I would just make sure that it is metal, seems to have a good connection top to bottom and feels good in your hand.    I should cost around $8.    My guesstimate.  

 

You put the fruit in cut side down, which is slightly counterintuitive.   

 

Edited August 27, 2019 by Margaret Pilgrim (log)

[gfweb]

22 hours ago, Smithy said:

 

Me three. I finally fished (ha) mine out of the toolbox where they'd been stashed so they'll be readily available near the kitchen.

 

eta: Oh wait, mine is a hemostat. Same idea for this purpose, though not for its original use.

 

 

I like a needle holder for fish bones. It’s like hemostat, but you can get it without serrated teeth so it doesn’t cut thru the little bones when you pinch em to pull out. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

1 hour ago, gfweb said:

 

I like a needle holder for fish bones. It’s like hemostat, but you can get it without serrated teeth so it doesn’t cut thru the little bones when you pinch em to pull out. 

 

I just use Japanese fishbone tweezers.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

 

 

$4.02 with next day shipping.

 

 

[TdeV]

10 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

$4.02 with next day shipping.

 

How do you use that thing?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

2 hours ago, TdeV said:

 

How do you use that thing?

 

https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157787-dinner-2019/?do=findComment&comment=2213383

 

[palo]

2 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

 

https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157787-dinner-2019/?do=findComment&comment=2213383

 

Sorry, I think you referenced the wrong link.

 

p

[andiesenji]

6 hours ago, TdeV said:

 

How do you use that thing?

Use it to fry corn tortillas to shape them for crisp tacos.

[scubadoo97]

 

My  yellow one is for lemons and limes and the larger orange one is for oranges 

[Katie Meadow]

In Mexico many years ago we became enamored of the small limes available at all the markets for cocktails and limeade, and those colorful squeezers were everywhere. I still love mine, but it really isn't big enough for anything but a small lime. If I were to measure, I believe my wooden citrus reamer is the most productive way to juice a lemon or a lime in my kitchen. And for some reason I find it satisfying. Yes, you do have to strain the juice or spoon out the seeds afterwards, but that is an easy chore. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

8 hours ago, palo said:

Sorry, I think you referenced the wrong link.

 

p

 

Nope, correct link.  The device is for frying tacos.  Here's another picture...

 

 

[palo]

Sorry, it all makes sense now.

 

p

[dtremit]

On 8/26/2019 at 9:01 PM, Margaret Pilgrim said:

Ooof.    I just took a picture off the web of the style.   

I bought mine from the "dollar lady" at the flea market.     You know the pegboard kitchen utensils at your local supermarket?    Rather than fill in stock, it is cheaper for the jobber to replace whole categories.    He then sells the mishmash to flea market vendors.   Lots of what I buy from her is preticketed from 5.99 to 9.99.   

I would just make sure that it is metal, seems to have a good connection top to bottom and feels good in your hand.    I should cost around $8.    My guesstimate.  

 

You put the fruit in cut side down, which is slightly counterintuitive.   

 

Believe it or not, the metal citrus squeezer I had snapped in half -- they're often cast from very soft metal.

 

I ended up replacing it with the Chef'n Fresh Force at the recommendation of (I think) an ATK testing. It's got a geared compound action that makes it much easier to use. 

 

The handles are plastic, but the piece that presses against the citrus is metal. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 17, 2019 by dtremit (log)

[KennethT]

1 hour ago, dtremit said:

 

Believe it or not, the metal citrus squeezer I had snapped in half -- they're often cast from very soft metal.

 

I ended up replacing it with the Chef'n Fresh Force at the recommendation of (I think) an ATK testing. It's got a geared compound action that makes it much easier to use. 

 

The handles are plastic, but the piece that presses against the citrus is metal. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Years ago, I also snapped the handles of a lime squeezer on an especially dry lime. Hurt like hell! Now I'm a lot more careful when I use its replacement.

[EMichels]

15 hours ago, KennethT said:

Years ago, I also snapped the handles of a lime squeezer on an especially dry lime. Hurt like hell! Now I'm a lot more careful when I use its replacement.

 

If you have only ever used the 'handle style' citrus juicer, I highly recommend picking up one of the style pictured below. I immediately disposed of all of the handle style after the first use of the 'bowl style'. I found the handle style to make a giant mess and leave a lot of the juice behind while the bowl style never has overspray, is very effective at separating all the juice, collects it in a handy cup (with ounce and ml measures on many) and has a convenient pour spout. I use the smaller one for lemons and limes when making cocktails and the bigger one for larger volumes or larger fruit like oranges, grapefruit, or big lemons.

 

 

The smaller one is made by Trudeau and available from Amazon. I also have a couple of knock-offs that look exactly the same (but are not as good) sourced from our local $0.99 store. The big one I purchased for less money than the small one at Smart and Final. It is very high quality with a heavy glass jar and very strong hard plastic top. I have multiples as I use them nearly every day and always have some cycling through the dishwasher.

[Dave the Cook]

On 9/18/2019 at 1:36 PM, EMichels said:

I immediately disposed of all of the handle style after the first use of the 'bowl style'.

 

Funny: after trying the handle style for the first time, I disposed of my bowl-style juicers.

 

On 9/17/2019 at 7:41 PM, dtremit said:

It's got a geared compound action that makes it much easier to use. 

 

The handles are plastic, but the piece that presses against the citrus is metal. 

 

I've used these in teaching situations, and they are generally very decent, as long as you don't stress them.  Those gears are plastic, and when you run into a really stiff, pithy lemon, they collaborate with the plastic body to temporarily deform and fail. I'll put it another way: the additional leverage that the added length and gearing provide make the squeezer (in some cases) too strong for its own good.

[EMichels]

1 hour ago, Dave the Cook said:

 

Funny: after trying the handle style for the first time, I disposed of my bowl-style juicers.

 

Well, there you go. Proof that I don't have the answer to all the world's problems!  😁

[Margaret Pilgrim]

I have a simple all metal no gear model,    My D-I-L's mother ships me a bushel of Meyer lemons every Christmas.    I spend a lot of time prepping them for various dishes.    And this juicer has served me well for some 4 or 5 years.    These are plump and juicy fruit, not tough or dried out specimens.    Before I bought this juicer, I used several bowl types which I thought were super, but not after trying the handled one.   But I read here that YMMV,

[JoNorvelleWalker]

5 hours ago, Dave the Cook said:

 

Funny: after trying the handle style for the first time, I disposed of my bowl-style juicers.

 

 

I've used these in teaching situations, and they are generally very decent, as long as you don't stress them.  Those gears are plastic, and when you run into a really stiff, pithy lemon, they collaborate with the plastic body to temporarily deform and fail. I'll put it another way: the additional leverage that the added length and gearing provide make the squeezer (in some cases) too strong for its good.

 

I use a Hamilton Beach 932 citrus juicer.*  Not exactly inexpensive so I hesitated to bring it up.   The handle is plastic but the gears are metal.  I cannot imagine the lemon that would make it fail.  Maybe if I were juicing nutmegs.

 

 

*every day.

 

 

[TdeV]

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. 😃

 

 

 

[chromedome]

Can't help you on that specific brand, but most kitchenware stores seem to have things that are similar. Truthfully, I just buy mine at the dollar store and discard 'em when they get grubby.

[BeeZee]

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.