Gagging for gadgets?

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Posted at 11:37AM, 09 June 2008 by Sylvia Howe - journalist

I have had my own kitchen for many years, and I have come to the reluctant conclusion that I really, truly, don't need anything else for it. Need, that is. I want lots - to upgrade my Magimix, have a steamer, a whizzer, a thumper, a peeler, but that is simply self indulgence. Which, believe me, has its place...

When I first had a kitchen and thought about cooking my own food - properly, one or two steps up from the can opener - I was delighted by wanders around Peter Jones. I glued my nose to the window of David Mellor and gasped at the gorgeousness of Divertimenti. And I dreamed of buying a fish kettle - as you do.

This gawping led to much purchasing. Nothing too grown up, but I know my melon baller dates from that time (used, say, three times; well, would you?). My zester, though, is brilliant and I continue to use it to this day.

The humble potato peeler didn't excite me until just the other day, when I discovered that there IS a difference between a good one and a bad one. I had tried the ones that have a revolving head (didn't do it for me), ones with long handles, ones with short, but I have learnt from my local kitchen shop that Victorinox is the only knife company that makes them, and yes, dear reader, they do work better.

The wonderful thing about gadget addiction is that the craving can be satisfied very easily.

I debated long about a food processor. I did have a Magimix, and it did do its stuff brilliantly, but when I moved house, it didn't, for some reason. I wasn't too sad - I had an excellent excuse to buy something else. And I did. I got a smaller one that does perfectly well, as I never really cooked for multitudes anyhow. I then tried one of those choppers on sticks and that was fine until it burnt its motor out. I bought a larger processor, but that just confirmed that it was bigger than I needed.

So now I have a stick thing that has attachments - a whisk, a chopper and a bowl with a little blade that it attaches to the top of and spins around. It works perfectly well. I love the idea of things that are low tech. I long for a pasta maker, but so far have resisted. I yearn for a hand mincer but ditto. I did buy a herb mouli - I have nothing but good to say about it, but it lies in the drawer. I have an electric steamer, but used it two years ago, preferring those bamboo stacking ones, until they went a bit fuzzy. Now I use steel ones, and they work fine.

My recent favourites? A little spatula (a spoonula, I think) that has the scoopability of a flat-headed one, but is in fact shaped like a spoon, in palest blue. Lovely. And - and I almost hesitate to tell you this - my avocado slicer cum scoop is absolutely brilliant!

I shall be going to the Good Food Show this summer to indulge my secret vice. The wonderful thing about gadget addiction is that the craving can be satisfied very easily. It doesn't really matter how much you spend or how serious the gadget you buy is. It just has to be new, and full of promise.

I got my fish kettle - as a wedding present. Everyone's is a wedding present, with the possible exception of Rick Stein's. It is in the garage, I think.

Comments

James

9 June, 1:59PM
James

Melon ballers have other uses too - I made roast butternut squash balls for some kids who have an aversion to anything unusual and the parents passed them off as carrots and they loved them - bingo, got them eating something different by deception..... If you have a kenwood mixer - that's all the gadgets you need - mixer, mincer, blender, cream maker, grater - and it lasts for decades (mine came from my gran and is at least 30 years old). If something is cluttering up my kitchen it needs to ave a use, and be used more than once a year or it goes to free cycle.

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James

9 June, 1:59PM
James

Melon ballers have other uses too - I made roast butternut squash balls for some kids who have an aversion to anything unusual and the parents passed them off as carrots and they loved them - bingo, got them eating something different by deception..... If you have a kenwood mixer - that's all the gadgets you need - mixer, mincer, blender, cream maker, grater - and it lasts for decades (mine came from my gran and is at least 30 years old). If something is cluttering up my kitchen it needs to ave a use, and be used more than once a year or it goes to free cycle.

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James

9 June, 2:03PM
James

..... and if you can't do it in the kenwood mixer you just use a knife - in the time you save using a gadget, you save it in the washing up. A herb mouli? Great way to ruin herbs - might as well chop them with a spoon. The one gadgt that would actually save lives is a temperature probe - so people can take the temperature of the Christmas turkey - that would reduce the number of food poisoning cases, which do kill every year.

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LizMacau88

10 June, 8:10AM
LizMacau88

I too have an ancient Kenwood and I love it. I equally love my Braun hand held with its bowls and whisk and probably use it every single day. Also, although not really a gadget as such -- I have a granite pestle and mortar purchased years ago in Penang and it is the world's best pepper grinder (and other spices) and a wonder at crushing garlic, with a pinch of sea salt flakes you get a lovely cream in no time at all. I got a pasta machine (hand cranked) years ago but have yet to use it -- it's my next project, home made pasta.

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LizMacau88

10 June, 8:12AM
LizMacau88

Oh yes, and a round metal thingy with handles that cores apples and slices them into wedges in one easy swoosh!

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Caroline

10 June, 11:45AM
Caroline

I bought a cherry tomato deseeder once, needless to say it's a pointless object that I've never used. My favourite gadget at the moment is my newly bought Kitchenaid mixer and my husband can't get enough of his boiled egg cutter, which slices off the top perfectly for his soldiers.

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Koeksister

11 June, 7:45PM
Koeksister

I too have a lot of kitchen gadgets bought over the years by my husband for me. I think men are more attracted to gadgets than women, but they don't realize that it usually takes more time to clean them afterwards than to prepare the ingredient by hand. But I must admit to still having my Kenwood Chef and blender which he bought me in 1973, and cost twenty four pounds, only having its bowl replaced when I broke the original glass one. It has travelled 24,000 miles with us and still works well.

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Jules

20 June, 9:32PM
Jules

For me it has to be my Bamix Stick blender, it is amazing from making mayonnaise in seconds to grinding coffee beans!

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kd40

20 August, 1:04PM
kd40

I too love the Victorinox potato cutter after failing with a swivle head thing - I love kitchen gadgets, can't wait to get my new kitchen when I have more space! Love my breadmaker though - comes in very useful when I run out of bread.

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