Friday, July 09, 2010

Your Favorite Kitchen Gadget

I need your help. Honest. Cross my heart.

The very generous people from CSN stores who had sponsored a giveaway at my blog some months back, asked me to review one of their products. Anyone who has been to their site knows what gorgeous products they have.They sell everything from Housewares, Home Decor, vanity to Furniture. Check out their site for their amazing collection.

Now I am a dummy when it comes to Kitchen gadgets. It is my plain ignorance about things that can be bought for the Kitchen, makes me not buy them. All I buy is pretty kitchen things from HomeGoods but they are not gadgets.

I want something that can be plugged, that will whir, make a mean noise and output some amazing result. Actually I don't even know what that sentence means.

To educate myself and maybe some more souls like me, I need your help.

Please tell me in your comment Or on Facebook

What is your favorite kitchen gadget ? It has to be something you own and have used. Also tell me why do you like it so much. If you can remember the brand etc., it is better.


It can be anything from the mortar-pestle, to your favorite wok, to the Kitchen Aid mixer, to the spoon that you lick all day. Ok maybe not the spoon.

Please, pretty please help me here.

34 comments:

  1. Is there a budget you have to stay within?

    Right now I am obsessed with knives so I would recommend one of the Shun Santokus or the Miyabi Chef knife (I tried the Miyabi at one of my local stores and really liked it).

    I got one of those mails from CSN too- for either a review or giveaway- but was asked to stay within $35- any recs?? :)

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  2. It says '1 comment' but doesn't show my comment..*puzzled*

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  3. ok- now it does- sorry about the barrage of comments..:)

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  4. Yeah knives sounds good, I will look it up. There is a budget but I think you can pay the extra

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  5. I would probably get an ice cream maker. Perfect for the current weather!

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  6. Hy ,
    Chanced upon ur blog while blog hopping...Wonderful space you have..loved d interesting posts...
    Am your happy follower now...:)
    Do drop in at my space sometime..

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  7. i love my KitchenAid Stand Mixer.
    I love it because I do not have to stand there and stire or mix things and I love the fact that there is the whisk to whip up shipped topping and also a dough hook. I love to make bread.
    msgb245 at gmail dot com

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  8. Sandeepa, undoubtedly my favorite (read that as most used) kitchen gadget is the Cuisinart food processor (7 cup), got it for about $65 from Bed-Bath I think. Chops my weekly ginger, garlic, onions, atta for roti, paratha, luchi, cake batters (without nuts), slices, grates cheese, bread or pizza dough. I totally swear by it.

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  9. SJ

    I have got a Cuisinart and I am miserable with its performance. It does not work well for ginger, garlic etc. in small quantities :( I love my Magic Bullet instead.

    I think I have the wrong one. Also I do not have the dough blade.

    Which one is yours ?http://www.google.com/products?q=cuisinart+7+cup&hl=en&aq=f

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  10. They wanted me to do a give away again but had to say no as I don't blog that much as it is summer holidays here for S.
    I have been having hand blender from the time i came here. I use the so much , to mix up soup, to chop veggies, to may mayoo etc...

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  11. I love my Bajaj OTG, which lets me bake, toast and grill. but the most used one is the phillips mixer grinder. without its presence am lost.

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  12. Some of my favorites:

    1. Cast iron skillet for dosa, quesadillas, grilled cheese.

    2. Immersion blender for smoothies, pureeing soups and curries.

    3. Microplane zester for lemon zest and grating ginger.

    On my "want" list:

    Ice cream maker (the one from Cuisinart).

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  13. This is such an informative post for me as well, since I have been asked to do one as well.
    We have been thinking of buying a grill for a long time. So I am looking at indoor grills.
    Also toaster ovens are on my "look out" list.
    i will watch this space for more ideas. Also heading over to FB to be your fan!

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  14. hi... my favourite kitchen gadget (although it doesn't quite whir) are the set of four measuring cups i have... 60-80-125-250 mls! they are very important to me especially when I am making desserts and baking!
    And the one that whirs is the ... cuisinart!!! i suppose kitchenaid is just as good.

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  15. Sandeepa - sent you an email with details at desimomzclub.
    BTW, if I were to buy a new gadget it wouldprobably be a hand mixer - the types you hold in the cokking pot and blends the gravy.
    Am enjoying all the suggestions from other readers.

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  16. On my wish list is the Kitchen Aid stand mixer - but the one thing that I do know everyone *can* afford and would love to buy is just a decent hand blender.

    I have the Phillips hand blender http://www.naaptol.com/price/69860-Philips-Hr-1453.html

    and it is great for mixing up cake batter as well as just beating eggs for a Spanish Omelet. One can also knead dough (it has a separate dough hook attachment) but I haven't used that yet.

    Miri

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  17. Hey, you joined FB!! OK, your blog did, not exactly you but that's still great!! :)
    Same as you - love the stuff from HomeGoods (and one of the places I really miss now) but don't really have gadget-y things in my kitchen.

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  18. Hey Sandeepa.. reviewing gadgets.. cool!! Well I own a Sumeet Mixer-Grinder, one generic chopper, toaster and microwave. That's about it. What I would like advice about is immersion blenders, the kind one uses for icecreams, smoothies and microwave khandvis. :) Other than that I think I might like to find out whether those silicone based baking pans work well and really get cakes/cupcakes out with less grease. That's all wrt gadgets for me!

    Look fw to your review post no matter what you choose to try!

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  19. kenwood's food factory is no doubt the best!!!i don't own it anymore as i got married. my mother still uses it :) i am using panasonic's food factory now a days but i still miss kenwoods. its too expensive for me and i can't afford it! ure gonna love it if u do a lot of baking :) well u wont need anything else if u get kenwoods food factory :p it ... See morehas everything in it. 2nd best is my philips hand mixer. if u have to cook for 2 u don't want to take out ure food factory :p just use the hand mixer/blender for cutting chopping etc :)

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  20. kenwood's food factory is no doubt the best!!!i don't own it anymore as i got married. my mother still uses it :) i am using panasonic's food factory now a days but i still miss kenwoods. its too expensive for me and i can't afford it! ure gonna love it if u do a lot of baking :) well u wont need anything else if u get kenwoods food factory :p it ... See morehas everything in it. 2nd best is my philips hand mixer. if u have to cook for 2 u don't want to take out ure food factory :p just use the hand mixer/blender for cutting chopping etc :)

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  21. Le creuset pot would be my suggestion.I bought one with some guilt seeing the price but love it.Use it for dals, stews ,soups,pulao.Keeps food warm for long and you can serve it in the pot itself since it looks good too.And I could even pass it off to the next generation if they want it!!!So sturdy and reliable.
    And a braun stick blender with whisk and small blender attached.300 watt.Since I broke my sumeet I use this very efficient product to grind all my masalas.
    Hope this was helpful.

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  22. i think the mixer is the Lords blessing to us...be it a smoothie or "pyajh tomatoe paste" for the macher kalia..its a blessing..i have a Baja one, though the tiny chutney jar is taking its last breath, the others are with me for a long time :)

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  23. HC

    Yeah remember that is the one I voted for at your giveaway

    Sayantani

    Yeah true, I use my toaster oven more than the regular oven

    Nupur

    I bought a microplane after seeing it in one of the blogs and love it.
    Which immersion blender do you suggest ?

    RC

    I have a very small indoor grill but don't use it at all. The outdoor one is used a lot during summer though. Where you live an outdoor one should do you good service

    Deepanjana

    Cups, that is cute :)

    SJ

    I am rooting for that one too

    Miri

    I love how the Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer looks. The hubby is totally against it. He thinks it is a waste of counter space. And then I don't bake all that much and neither do I intend to so maybe I will have to give that one a miss.
    I have one of those hand mixers which I use for cake etc. but I want one like Nupur suggested, the one that you can immerse and blend and looks like a stick.

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  24. Vani

    Sadly I am not able to go to HG much these days. It is so overflowing with goods that LS is like a "bull in a china shop" there :)

    SS
    I have some silicone cupcake bakeware, really good and easy to clean
    Really immersion blender for icecream and khandvis ? I am now sure what I am buying

    Maryam
    Thanks. Kenwoods Food Factory, I need to look that up

    Poornima

    Oooh yeah yeah the stick blender, I really want that one

    Sulagna

    My Mom had a Bajaj for the longest time

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  25. I have to agree- the hand mixer is something I use all the time! (I have the cuisinart one from costco- it has a teeny food processor, a chopping and a whipping attachment)

    Am loving all the recs- I need a microplane zester!!

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  26. Ice cream maker!!!!!! I am not a gadget person at all, but can't say how happy i am not to mention the kids.

    or a food processor who will chop, cut slice (the chopping shaak becomes a breeze) shred and make a dough.

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  27. Icecream maker!!! You can make your own magic at home!!!

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  28. Sandeep I love your blog and have tried the phool gobhi dish. My husband commented 'authentic bangla' since he is from Kolkatta otherwise it is usually something is lacking. Thank you.

    For the kitchen gadget I love my hand wisk Cusinart with a chopper attachement bought it for 20 or so dollars. I love it and use it to beat yogurt for kadi, beat my dals,chop onions, cabbage, gobhi (for filler), chop herbs and make my soups. Cannot live without it seems like my hands are broken.

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  29. T fal cookware set: you can take off the handles, then bake, store whatever...easy to clean, temperature indicator
    http://www.t-fal.co.jp/All+Products/Cookware/Ingenio/

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  30. Sandeepa,
    I have been a lurker on your blog for the longest time! But your question made me want to comment right away!
    I would join the others in voting for the immersion blender - just make sure it has an attachment for a mini-processor. Mine is a wolfgang puck one that i got for 25 bucks at costco, and I love the mini-processor - i use it practically every single day.
    The other appliance i have a high regard for is my bread machine. Its amazing! In the year since buying it, we've had store bought bread only a handful times - and that only because I didn't have time to bake a loaf. The bread is fantastic, there are so many things to try, you know exactly went into your bread.. and the best part is that i use it to knead my chappati dough as well.. I love it!

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  31. The Philips hand blender that I use is super nice. It comes with a whisk and a chopper :)

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  32. My latest find for a good kitchen gadget is my splatter guard. It's made of stainless steel wire mesh and at 12 inches across, it covers my fry pans perfectly. It's great any time you fry Bengali foods that tend to splatter oil everywhere (have you noticed the layer of grease that often coats the wall behind the stove in many desi homes?), but doesn't trap in heat and moisture like a lid would. I also use it when I make pasta sauce. It keeps my kitchen clean and me happy =) I found mine at Whole Foods for $17. You can get a good one for under $20, but I've seen ones that go for $60.

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  33. Ya.. The knives sounds good =) That's pretty cool.

    JK
    @ Bedroom Furniture Store

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  34. I love my Electric tandoor the most,, (in my kitchen , ofcourse).. i can make pizzas, open sandwiches, toast bread, make rotis and naan, potato wedges, etc etc etc...not branded got it from an exhibition...

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