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What is your most valuable kitchen appliance?


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Posted (edited)

Hi friends, 

I'm thinking of writing on the most valuable kitchen appliances that should be in every home. 

This will help a lot of us make better choices for our kitchens. 

So I'm throwing the question into the air. 

What is the most valuable appliance in your kitchen? Or home. 

All responses, whether direct answers or not, will be highly appreciated. 

And as for me, the most valuable (best) appliance in my kitchen is my convection toaster oven. It enables me prepare a variety of foods quickly. Most of the times, especially when I'm bored, I just browse a random recipe and give it a shot. Funny enough, it ends up tasting good. 

Edited by Victor (log)

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Posted

 Your question is confusing. Do you mean valuable as in costly or do you mean useful?  If the former then my Thermomix. If the latter it depends. If I want to make waffles it's my waffle iron but if I want to make a stirfry it's my wok. 

  • Like 1

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

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Posted
5 minutes ago, Anna N said:

 Your question is confusing. Do you mean valuable as in costly or do you mean useful?  If the former then my Thermomix. If the latter it depends. If I want to make waffles it's my waffle iron but if I want to make a stirfry it's my wok. 

I mean your best kitchen appliance. 

Browse the best home and kitchen appliances on my blog

You can also see our home improvement tips.

Posted
3 minutes ago, Victor said:

I mean your best kitchen appliance. 

Best for what?  

  • Like 1

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

Posted (edited)

@liuzhou 

 

has it right.

 

your knives , as long as you respect hem and care for them properly.

 

otherwise their junk

 

Japanese are nice Ice recently learned.

Edited by rotuts (log)
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Posted

My interpretation of that question is 'most used'.  In that case, mine would be the fridge/freezer...so obvious.

Next would be the microwave because I actually use it for something every single day.

Coffee maker, every single day as well.

CSO, nearly every day.

Range.

Knives (Japanese edges only), though they're not really appliances.

 

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Posted
5 hours ago, Victor said:

Hi friends, 

I'm thinking of writing on the most valuable kitchen appliances that should be in every home. 

This will help a lot of us make better choices for our kitchens. 

So I'm throwing the question into the air. 

What is the most valuable appliance in your kitchen? Or home. 

All responses, whether direct answers or not, will be highly appreciated. 

And as for me, the most valuable (best) appliance in my kitchen is my convection toaster oven. It enables me prepare a variety of foods quickly. Most of the times, especially when I'm bored, I just browse a random recipe and give it a shot. Funny enough, it ends up tasting good. 

 

 

Like liuzhou and rotuts, my first thought was my knives. However, in common modern usage, and inferring from your choice, I'm guessing "appliance" means something powered, either gas or electric. Could you clarify that, please?

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"There is no sincerer love than the love of food."  -George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman, Act 1

 

"Imagine all the food you have eaten in your life and consider that you are simply some of that food, rearranged."  -Max Tegmark, physicist

 

Gene Weingarten, writing in the Washington Post about online news stories and the accompanying readers' comments: "I basically like 'comments,' though they can seem a little jarring: spit-flecked rants that are appended to a product that at least tries for a measure of objectivity and dignity. It's as though when you order a sirloin steak, it comes with a side of maggots."

 

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Posted

My thoughts.

Hmmm...I don't think I'd call knives an appliance—implement, utensil or tool maybe—but not an appliance.

I consider a "burner" or "oven" an appliance—so that's my answer.

 

~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

Posted

According to the OED, one definition of 'appliance' is

Quote

A thing applied as means to an end; apparatus.

 

so I'm sticking with my knives.

...your dancing child with his Chinese suit.

 

"No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot"
Mark Twain
 

The Kitchen Scale Manifesto

Posted

Thanks everyone for the contributions. I said 'appliance' in my post but I'm still okay with general kitchen utensils like knives as @liuzhou suggested. 

 

I have taken note of the following: Waffle iron, range knives(Japanese edges), fridge, microwave, coffee maker, microplane grater, oven,...... 

 

I'm still expecting more replies.... 

Browse the best home and kitchen appliances on my blog

You can also see our home improvement tips.

Posted

The following list is in order of everyday usefulness to me. Of course, if I'm catering the order will change depending on what I'm cooking.

 

fridge/freezer

gas cooktop

espresso machine

toaster

microwave

Thermomix

Chamber vacuum sealer

Oven

Sous vide circulator

Bamix stick blender

sandwich press

pasta maker

Spice grinder

 

Despite having many gadgets, I don't think I'd ever use a convection toaster oven.

Nick Reynolds, aka "nickrey"

"The Internet is full of false information." Plato
My eG Foodblog

Posted
19 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

According to the OED, one definition of 'appliance' is

A thing applied as means to an end; apparatus.

so I'm sticking with my knives.

 

That's the definition from the 16th century. 

"1560s, "action of putting into use," from apply + -ance. Meaning "instrument, thing applied for a purpose" is from 1590s."

I'm talking the modern, common definition. :)

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~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

Posted
7 minutes ago, nickrey said:

The following list is in order of everyday usefulness to me. Of course, if I'm catering the order will change depending on what I'm cooking.

 

fridge/freezer

gas cooktop

espresso machine

toaster

microwave

Thermomix

Chamber vacuum sealer

Oven

Sous vide circulator

Bamix stick blender

sandwich press

pasta maker

Spice grinder

 

Despite having many gadgets, I don't think I'd ever use a convection toaster oven.

You wanna share a reason why you wouldn't use a convection toaster oven? 

Browse the best home and kitchen appliances on my blog

You can also see our home improvement tips.

Posted
2 minutes ago, DiggingDogFarm said:

 

That's the definition from the 16th century. 

"1560s, "action of putting into use," from apply + -ance. Meaning "instrument, thing applied for a purpose" is from 1590s."

I'm talking the modern, common definition. :)

 

The OED has examples from the 16th century through to the 19th. It is still certainly used that way in at least parts of the UK today.


So, again, I'm sticking with my knives.

 

9_9

...your dancing child with his Chinese suit.

 

"No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot"
Mark Twain
 

The Kitchen Scale Manifesto

Posted
24 minutes ago, nickrey said:

The following list is in order of everyday usefulness to me. Of course, if I'm catering the order will change depending on what I'm cooking.

 

fridge/freezer

gas cooktop

espresso machine

toaster

microwave

Thermomix

Chamber vacuum sealer

Oven

Sous vide circulator

Bamix stick blender

sandwich press

pasta maker

Spice grinder

 

Despite having many gadgets, I don't think I'd ever use a convection toaster oven.

So I'm intrigued with the Thermomix.  What do you use it for mostly?

Posted
17 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

It is still certainly used that way in at least parts of the UK today.

 

;)

~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

Posted

A knife is of not much use without a cutting board. :-)

When I was in college, a can opener. :-)

If you are Chinese, chopsticks. :-)

There are cultures, bow and arrow. :-)

 

dcarch

 

 

 

 

 

Posted

I am going to disregard the four I use, without fail, several times daily: the stove, the fridge and the coffeemaker and coffee grinder. Sticking to small electrical appliances, here, some that I would hate to be without are:

 

1. Steam convection oven.

2. Stand mixer

3. Sous vide circulator

4. Immersion blender

5. Instant Pot

 

I use each of those several times a week.

 

Used less frequently, but still quite valuable:

 

Food processor

Blender

Electric kettle

Foodsaver vacuum bagger

Ice cream maker with freezable bowl

Waffle iron

 

In the realm of "handy, but could easily do without them":

 

Spice grinder

Toaster

Rice cooker

Slow cooker

Electric skillet

Electric griddle

Warming tray

 

Don't ask. Eat it.

www.kayatthekeyboard.wordpress.com

Posted

I use my Calphalon Knock-off flat bottomed wok and wooden utensils almost every day. Do they count?

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"As life's pleasures go, food is second only to sex.Except for salami and eggs...Now that's better than sex, but only if the salami is thickly sliced"--Alan King (1927-2004)

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