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My new favorite products - kitchen products

If the pan is in good shape (the stainless interior isn't scratched to hell), then even at $80, that's a pretty good deal.

But as you keep looking for pans, better deals will come around. I've got enough of them to impress Martha Stewart or Tyler Florence, and I don't think I've spent $500 total.

Everything came from eBay, thrifts and used restaurant supply stores.

Now you know what a good copper pan feels like. So you should be able to make a snap decision next time.
 
My favorite technique on this thread is heating the pots in the oven while I am prepping vegetables. It is SHOCKING how much faster things go with this headstart.

Once the vegetables are prepped you take the pot out of the oven, put in your vegetables and you get instant sizzle --- amazing!

The pan is in great shape --- and it seems to get hotter, not just heat up faster, than my other pans.

This morning I am making a beef paprikash with grass fed beef.

elaine
 
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Pressure Cooker

I use my TeFal pressure cooker a lot. Although it's not in the kitchen, I wouldn’t want to go without our Weber gas barbecue. And, I do like using the phone for reservations too. :)

Thanks for all the great ideas for kitchen gadgets and tips.
 
muranojo said:
Just ordered these from a Pampered Chef party:

Smooth-edge can opener (we'll see how it works, sounds like one a couple of you have).

So far, the few things I've purchased from Pampered Chef seem to be good quality and I've been happy with them.
Click to expand...

Resurrecting an older (but mostly fun) thread. Wanted to report back that after a getting used to a smooth-edge can opener, this Pampered Chef version is pretty slick. Glad I got it.
 
glypnirsgirl said:
I have the following items on my "what to buy next" list:

A garlic mincer

. . . .
Click to expand...

Elaine, did you get the garlic mincer yet? I was considering one at a kitchen store the other day, similar to the one you pictured but had metal blades top and bottom. (Maybe your linked one does too, not sure from the picture.) I skipped it for now.....

I also want a GOOD egg/mushroom/etc slicer - along these lines:
http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KAT135ER-Cooks-Series-Slicer/dp/B000ESN6ZY
I have at least 3-4 of them, most quite old. The ones with wires instead of blades really don't work worth a darn on mushrooms, as the wires either don't go through or get warped. I bought a mushroom one with blades -
http://www.ontelcatalog.com/mushroom-express-kitchen-p-223.htm
DO NOT BUY THIS - by about the third mushroom, the top and bottom parts were just a tad misaligned, so the blades were hitting the plastic instead of going inbetween the plastic parts, and it's junk. I should have known better than to get "as seen on TV" for half price :crash:

Yeah, I know I can mince and slice by hand, and it's probably more trouble to use one of the little doodads than just grab a good knife.....but some gadgets, if good quality, may get heavily used.

Ahhh....that reminds me of juicing lemons. I have a small collection of old juicers, such as:
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=anti...dsp=36&ved=1t:429,r:21,s:28,i:179&tx=71&ty=86
and
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=anti...4&start=28&ndsp=36&ved=1t:429,r:29,s:28,i:196
and
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=anti...39&start=64&ndsp=35&ved=1t:429,r:5,s:64,i:222

I got one of these but have never used it
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004L3G8EE...e=395261&creativeASIN=B004L3G8EE&linkCode=asn

however the chef at a cooking class I went to recently (Tuscan......yummmmmmm), used a good version of that so maybe I will.....

but this is what I use when I really want to get all the juice out and not just squeeze it by hand:
http://www.surlatable.com/product/P...ype=pla&mr:ad=9439506461&mr:keyword={keyword}
 
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pjrose said:
Ahhh....that reminds me of juicing lemons. I have a small collection of old juicers, such as:
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=anti...dsp=36&ved=1t:429,r:21,s:28,i:179&tx=71&ty=86
and
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=anti...4&start=28&ndsp=36&ved=1t:429,r:29,s:28,i:196
and
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=anti...39&start=64&ndsp=35&ved=1t:429,r:5,s:64,i:222
Click to expand...

PJ, I love your old juicer collection. I've seen the green ones before, but never the blue over the top of a measuring cup. We have an old clear glass one that used to belong to DH's grandmother.
 
I just love this thread. I used to enjoy cooking, but once the children got to that certain age when we would be running all over the place and then I had gastric bypass surgery which totally ruined my apetite and led to health problems, I am lucky if I cook the holiday dinners. My children prefer the crappy food like hot dogs, pasta with jar sauce (I haven't made home made sauce in years). It also became difficult to keep my kitchen organized. No matter how much I would label stuff as to where things would go, my children and husband would put things away in god forsaken places where I would never see them again. It just got so frustrating.

It is weird though, when on vacation, I will cook home made meals much more.

This thread makes me want to get back into it slowly and I really need to get back to basics.

Thanks everyone for sharing your knowledge.
 
muranojo said:
PJ, I love your old juicer collection. I've seen the green ones before, but never the blue over the top of a measuring cup. We have an old clear glass one that used to belong to DH's grandmother.
Click to expand...

Muranjo, those aren't exactly like mine, just similar ones that were online. I have quite a few of the one-piece glass reamers in various colors, two or three of the separate reamer/strainer on top of a measuring cup, and a few of the bird or other shape metal squeezers. Now if I had a glass-fronted cabinet that wasn't already in use to put them in, they'd look a lot better than they do jumbled on my pantry shelves!

Maybe this summer we'll work on the pantry (a good sized walk-in one with lots of shelves and lots of unused stuff). So far we've done the tall pantry cabinet in the kitchen, which had mostly food - we pitched probably 1/3 of the stuff that was way outdated, much of which was junk food that DD just had to have and then didn't like any more :rolleyes: . The winner was a bag of bread machine mix dated 1998! :eek:
 
pjrose said:
Elaine, did you get the garlic mincer yet? I was considering one at a kitchen store the other day, similar to the one you pictured but had metal blades top and bottom. (Maybe your linked one does too, not sure from the picture.) I skipped it for now.....
Click to expand...

I did. And I use it a fair amount. And I like it. It requires strength in both hands and wrist to use. It makes great minced garlic.

I mainly use it when I am not chopping other things. If I already have out the knife and cutting board, I just go ahead and mince.

I love our juicer. Ian had it when we got married and it is fantastic. I make fresh squeezed orange juice for breakfast almost every day.

I bought the whisks that were recommended by you and Jim Ricks. I love both of them.

I bought a set of prep bowls that I use. I frequently do a mise en place when I am cooking by recipe.

The best thing that has happened is that I cook a lot by intuition. It is faster and easier for me. I have such bad eyesight that reading a cookbook is a strain for me. (Tonight I wanted to make cornbread from an OLD (1943) Joy of Cooking. Ian took a picture of it, downloaded it, enlarged it and printed it out for me).

After about 6 months of elaborate meals, I have grown tired of the time and expense. I am cooking much more simply. A salad, pangrilled meat, steamed or sauteed green leafy vegetable. Sometimes a starch, a simple baked potato or sweet potato, a serving of pasta, and I make brown rice in the Zojirushi --- the induction/pressure cooker one which makes GREAT rice and can be programmed in advance. Ian bought that appliance before I started this thread. I am only occasionally making more elaborate meals.

The most amazing thing is that I am still cooking. I cooked for 10 people last week while I was on vacation. Everyone was happy with the simple things that I made.

elaine
 
CarolF said:
A few years back I went to buy a cherry pitter, willing to pay for a good quality steel pitter, only to find the ones like this were too wide for my grip. I would need to pick it up with both hands.
http://i00.i.aliimg.com/photo/v0/264129220/cherry_pitter.jpg

Despite my doubts, the store keeper convinced me to buy a cheap plastic $1.50 pitter. It is fantastic, light, easy to use and never fails. Sometimes cheap and nasty works.

http://www.wheelandbarrow.com.au/images/P/65099.jpg
Click to expand...

Lee Valley has a nice one, not too big. I got a $100 gift card for Christmas and for the life of me, I couldn't spend it, so I got a leather tool belt and a cherry pitter. It works great with olives for my greek salad.

http://www.leevalley.com/US/garden/page.aspx?p=64173&cat=2,40733,44734
 
MULTIZ321 said:
Trap Door Colander Will Revolutionize Your Kitchen

Richard
Click to expand...

Revolutionize? Someone can't just turn over the colander and dump it? Sharp knives that someone else sharpens would revolutionize mine.

Jim
 
Ahhh nooooo temptation!

It has been at least 2 months since I bought the copper pans. For a while, I was getting two or three boxes per week from Amazon. (And I love the stupid comments about the difficulty is getting the pasta back into the tpan --- like the trapdoor has to be used to serve, only).

elaine
 
LOL, Richard. And thanks for bringing this thread back.
 
we are empty nesters

Two weeks ago, my bonus son got a job that required him to move to Ohio. He is a regional sales representative for toy companies --- it is a dream job for him.

Unfortunately for me, it has meant the loss of my best kitchen appliance - my grocery shopper. If I would cook it, John was always happy to shop for it.

As a result, I am cooking very little. And what I do make is repetitive because Ian shops at Costco. So we end up with huge amounts of whatever. This week it has been grapefruit, apples and cheese. Typical dinner is a grapefruit, 2 apples, and a chunk of extra sharp cheddar.

Three weeks ago, I was on vacation with my siblings. My brother's partner, Barry, is a former merchandiser. He went shopping with me. While walking through the store and visiting with him, I realized that one of the reasons that I dislike shopping is because I cannot find things.

As a teenager, I worked in a Minyard's grocery store --- a relatively small, local chain (that is now out of business). Every store was arranged the same way. And everything made sense.

In modern stores, so many things are cross merchandised and there are so many brands, I get overwhelmed. And shopping is a chore because I spend so much time looking for what I want. Barry suggested that I choose one store and stick with it so that I can learn that particular store. And just stop trying to find the perfect store. I am going to try that.

There is a Kroger that is less than a mile from our house. It does not carry a lot of the things that I like but that I do not use very often (Allegro steak marinade immediately comes to mind). Because of that, I have never shopped there very often. I think with Barry's suggestion, I may be able to overcome my shopping aversion.

Bon Appetit!
elaine
 
I am a nut about my knives, I bought quality years ago and treat them well, my wife not so much. She did buy me a chefs choice sharpener for Christmas this year to compensate and it works great. We own 2 weeks of TS in a 20 unit resort in Islamorada and, like every TS, the knives are painfully dull so this year I'm bringing the sharpener (we drive there) and I will offer to sharpen all the knives in the other units in exchange for a cold beer. Win,win! :whoopie:
 
Elaine -

Speak to the store manager and see if they could order the missing product(s) for you. With a large corporate store, you might have to send the request to their main office.

It might seem that today's stores are arranged haphazardly, but they have a method to their madness. Low profit items are on the bottom and top shelves; weekly ads have a loss-leader or two, but usually don't offer big savings overall; healthier items are around the perimeter of the store, etc.
 
Tia said:
http://www.pamperedchef.com/orderin...992&catId=123&parentCatId=123&xPrntItmId=2759

Anyone have something that works to open difficult jars when other half isn't home?
Click to expand...


This is what we have - and it works well. I have never had a jar that it wouldn't open. If the Pampered Chef model works, it would be more convenient because you could stick it on the refrigerator. I have to dig ours out of the "junk" drawer.

http://www.amazon.com/Amco-Swing-A-...TF8&qid=1368996386&sr=1-7&keywords=jar+opener
 
They're actually for opening 2 different containers. The Pampered Chef ones is designed to open 2 liter and other 'liquid' type bottles of the twist-off variety, whereas the Amco one is made to open jars- like spaghetti sauce, or sauerkraut type jars. I use one of these when necessary, http://www.amazon.com/MIU-Stainless...eywords=jar+openers+for+people+with+arthritis and so haven't had trouble with the soda bottles.
 
pjrose said:
I also want a GOOD egg/mushroom/etc slicer - along these lines:
http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KAT135ER-Cooks-Series-Slicer/dp/B000ESN6ZY
I have at least 3-4 of them, most quite old. The ones with wires instead of blades really don't work worth a darn on mushrooms, as the wires either don't go through or get warped. I bought a mushroom one with blades -
http://www.ontelcatalog.com/mushroom-express-kitchen-p-223.htm
DO NOT BUY THIS - by about the third mushroom, the top and bottom parts were just a tad misaligned, so the blades were hitting the plastic instead of going inbetween the plastic parts, and it's junk. I should have known better than to get "as seen on TV" for half price :crash:
Click to expand...

I know you posted this a long time ago, but I wanted to tell you that I use my hand-held pastry blender for chopping eggs. I can make egg salad in about a minute, not including peeling the eggs. I bet the pastry blender would slice mushrooms really well. Slicing eggs would be a little trickier because you'd have to hold the edges. Although, I've honestly never sliced an egg for anything, just chopped them. What do you use sliced eggs for?

My other time save is putting fresh herbs in a coffee mug and using kitchen shears to chop them up. It makes small pieces really quickly. There is no place for the herbs to escape.
 
I have a jar opener my parents bought about 1950. It looks like a Zim jar opener and it made it easy to open jars as soon as I could reach it, about age 8. They mount on a wall, or under a cabinet.

I have never seen another one, but figured I'd find a historical photo on Google. I was quite surprised to see they're still sold. No moving parts; it outlasted my folks, and it will outlast me.
 
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