Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I bought a 5" chef's knife a few months ago kind of on a whim but I have been reaching for that now more than my regular chef's knife. I still use the larger one but not nearly as often. Had I known how much I would reach for it I would have bought it sooner.

My most oft-used otherwise are old stand-by's. Electric kettle, favorite little whisk, a ceramic citrus juicer I bought on a trip in Paris, and particular wooden spoon. These are the things that get a regular workout in my kitchen.

How is it that I have come to have a favorite cutting board, too? I have a few, but there is just this one that is the right size (not too big, not too small) for most daily tasks. It used to be a bright cheery color, but has faded and is still sort of cheery especially if you didn't know it used to be much brighter.

Link please for the knife, I am looking to buy a sharp knife

I’m the quoted PP and bought this one. I’m sure there are nicer and a knife snob may pooh-pooh it but it is fine for me.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000QCLEFC?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

It's not being a knife snob - it's that there is a significant, material difference in knife quality.

Get a Global, or something similar.

As I posted, I am happy with it. Not looking to buy another but thanks anyway.

I have those Victorianox knives as well, and love them. They are a perfect fit for me.

Victorinox are solid knives, and often win awards for both quality and value. I have Global, Tojiro, Wusthof and Victorinox in my knife block, and I reach for Victorinox as much as any of them. It's a different knife, much lighter weight, so not perfect for everything but it does work well as an all-purpose, easy-to-handle knife.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I bought a 5" chef's knife a few months ago kind of on a whim but I have been reaching for that now more than my regular chef's knife. I still use the larger one but not nearly as often. Had I known how much I would reach for it I would have bought it sooner.

My most oft-used otherwise are old stand-by's. Electric kettle, favorite little whisk, a ceramic citrus juicer I bought on a trip in Paris, and particular wooden spoon. These are the things that get a regular workout in my kitchen.

How is it that I have come to have a favorite cutting board, too? I have a few, but there is just this one that is the right size (not too big, not too small) for most daily tasks. It used to be a bright cheery color, but has faded and is still sort of cheery especially if you didn't know it used to be much brighter.

Link please for the knife, I am looking to buy a sharp knife

I’m the quoted PP and bought this one. I’m sure there are nicer and a knife snob may pooh-pooh it but it is fine for me.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000QCLEFC?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

It's not being a knife snob - it's that there is a significant, material difference in knife quality.

Get a Global, or something similar.

As I posted, I am happy with it. Not looking to buy another but thanks anyway.

I have those Victorianox knives as well, and love them. They are a perfect fit for me.

Anonymous wrote:I have a sous vide (received as a gift) that I do not use very much. Any found good uses for theirs?
It just takes a long time -- I made a batch of egg bites that were pretty good, and used it to cook some chicken breast and it was fine, but I'm not blown away.

I really only use mine for steak and I honestly think it's worth its real estate just for that. We also use it sometimes to make a big batch of boneless skinless chicken breasts for shredding, and I wouldn't say it's "easy" but they're very good.

Anonymous wrote:I have a sous vide (received as a gift) that I do not use very much. Any found good uses for theirs?
It just takes a long time -- I made a batch of egg bites that were pretty good, and used it to cook some chicken breast and it was fine, but I'm not blown away.

I use mine (anova) quite a bit for perfectly medium rare steaks, which I then either sear and butter baste for a minute in a cast iron pan, or torch. I use it to make custard in a bag too, which my kids think is amazing. I have my eye on the Anova oven as well, but will wait a few years to see if the price comes down.

I have a sous vide (received as a gift) that I do not use very much. Any found good uses for theirs?
It just takes a long time -- I made a batch of egg bites that were pretty good, and used it to cook some chicken breast and it was fine, but I'm not blown away.

People are fighting over ginger grater! Let's get popcorn.. or at the minimum cotton candy..

Never a dull moment..

Okay People, buckle up, 21 century FINALLY arrived! Williams Sonoma wants us to up on our toast making process, clearly if it is not smart toaster
then you are living in Dark Ages!!!

Revolution Cooking 2-Slice High Speed Smart Toaster is on HEAVY sale from 400 bucks to 300!

Oh boy.. for this price I could have them delivered hot for two years every. single. day. from Einstein Bagels, already buttered!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Special ginger grater. I have gone through a lot of ginger graters since living in Japan 20 years ago (where we grated a ton of ginger) and none of them held up the cheap 100 yen model I had from Japan -- which broke years ago. Finally found a good one. It's so good I went out and bought two more for when it breaks so that I will not have to suffer without a good ginger grater ever again. Bonus: works on galangal too.

(And though I didn't buy it during the pandemic, I have made good use of my instant pot, some excellent veg peelers, a microplane zester, and the world's best garlic press that works like new after near-daily use for 10 years.)

Serious question - how is this different, or more useful, than a regular handheld grater?

I put the whole ginger, peel and all but well washed, in the vitamix and then I freeze it in an ice cube tray. I dare anyone to tell the difference.

Love to see my toast browning. One of my fav kitchen toys: toaster with glass window:

Blendtec blender - a gift that we use every morning. It really does a better job than the Nutribullet.

Rice cooker - have the Aroma. Many of our slow cooker meals are served over rice. So nice to have both. And I no longer have to worry about burning the damned rice.

Immersion blender - critical for split pea soup

Breville toaster oven - thought this was ridiculous, but it really is that much better than the cheap toaster oven it replaced. Takes up a lot of real estate though.

Zoodler - after a couple of years of using a julienne peeler to make zoodles, I decided to dedicate some cupboard space to the real deal. Totally worth it. Got the Oxo version. Use it at least twice a month.

10-wedge apple corer and slicer - the one from Pampered Chef is just better than the ones from the grocery store. We use it at least once a day.

Ikea bag clips - these things are just better than standard chip clips or twist ties. Use them on bags for chips, frozen veggies, brown sugar...

produce bags - nylon mesh bags (gift, probably from Container Store) for produce. Somehow they keep veggies fresh longer than going in the drawer in plastic or bare.

Fish spatula - Seems gimmicky, but this is an awesome metal spatula. W-S house brand

GIR mini flipper - great silicone spatula for omelets, etc.

WellnessMats anti-fatigue mat - our kitchen mat was looking pretty sad, so I replaced it with this one. Spendy, but oh-so-nice underfoot. I also fold laundry at the kitchen counter, and this definitely reduces back pain.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Special ginger grater. I have gone through a lot of ginger graters since living in Japan 20 years ago (where we grated a ton of ginger) and none of them held up the cheap 100 yen model I had from Japan -- which broke years ago. Finally found a good one. It's so good I went out and bought two more for when it breaks so that I will not have to suffer without a good ginger grater ever again. Bonus: works on galangal too.

(And though I didn't buy it during the pandemic, I have made good use of my instant pot, some excellent veg peelers, a microplane zester, and the world's best garlic press that works like new after near-daily use for 10 years.)

Serious question - how is this different, or more useful, than a regular handheld grater?

NP. I use a regular handheld grater when I want a coarser grind, and my microplane zester/grater when I don't want chunks of ginger. Count my microplane as one of my most-used kitchen tools! It was a gift, I remember opening it and thinking 'what on earth am I going to use this for', and 10 years later I can't live without it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I bought a 5" chef's knife a few months ago kind of on a whim but I have been reaching for that now more than my regular chef's knife. I still use the larger one but not nearly as often. Had I known how much I would reach for it I would have bought it sooner.

My most oft-used otherwise are old stand-by's. Electric kettle, favorite little whisk, a ceramic citrus juicer I bought on a trip in Paris, and particular wooden spoon. These are the things that get a regular workout in my kitchen.

How is it that I have come to have a favorite cutting board, too? I have a few, but there is just this one that is the right size (not too big, not too small) for most daily tasks. It used to be a bright cheery color, but has faded and is still sort of cheery especially if you didn't know it used to be much brighter.

Link please for the knife, I am looking to buy a sharp knife

I’m the quoted PP and bought this one. I’m sure there are nicer and a knife snob may pooh-pooh it but it is fine for me.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000QCLEFC?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

It's not being a knife snob - it's that there is a significant, material difference in knife quality.

Get a Global, or something similar.

As I posted, I am happy with it. Not looking to buy another but thanks anyway.

Anonymous wrote:Special ginger grater. I have gone through a lot of ginger graters since living in Japan 20 years ago (where we grated a ton of ginger) and none of them held up the cheap 100 yen model I had from Japan -- which broke years ago. Finally found a good one. It's so good I went out and bought two more for when it breaks so that I will not have to suffer without a good ginger grater ever again. Bonus: works on galangal too.

(And though I didn't buy it during the pandemic, I have made good use of my instant pot, some excellent veg peelers, a microplane zester, and the world's best garlic press that works like new after near-daily use for 10 years.)

Serious question - how is this different, or more useful, than a regular handheld grater?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I bought a 5" chef's knife a few months ago kind of on a whim but I have been reaching for that now more than my regular chef's knife. I still use the larger one but not nearly as often. Had I known how much I would reach for it I would have bought it sooner.

My most oft-used otherwise are old stand-by's. Electric kettle, favorite little whisk, a ceramic citrus juicer I bought on a trip in Paris, and particular wooden spoon. These are the things that get a regular workout in my kitchen.

How is it that I have come to have a favorite cutting board, too? I have a few, but there is just this one that is the right size (not too big, not too small) for most daily tasks. It used to be a bright cheery color, but has faded and is still sort of cheery especially if you didn't know it used to be much brighter.

Link please for the knife, I am looking to buy a sharp knife

I’m the quoted PP and bought this one. I’m sure there are nicer and a knife snob may pooh-pooh it but it is fine for me.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000QCLEFC?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

It's not being a knife snob - it's that there is a significant, material difference in knife quality.

Get a Global, or something similar.

Anonymous wrote:I have this immersion blender and love it. Agree with pp, can’t believe people put hot soups in a blender!

https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-CSB-179-Smart-Blender-Stainless/dp/B079NJTL29/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?adgrpid=58882529427&dchild=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAgomBBhDXARIsAFNyUqOjPMew_ptt5uDhBZdl0ufPUqXtapRQ5rj8mGbKWYaJax4v1Kd9_bsaAvGsEALw_wcB&hvadid=274687367457&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=1014895&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=6756278140763869604&hvtargid=kwd-299759832452&hydadcr=14889_10218911&keywords=immersion+blender&qid=1612885343&sr=8-13&tag=hydsma-20

My 20yo basic rice cooker just croaked so I’d love recs for a new one!

It depends on the soup. If it needs to be a true puree, I use the Vitamix. There's not an immersion blender that a home cook can buy that works as well as that. For all other uses, I agree, a good immersion blender is sufficient.