Appliances, Cookbooks & Shortcuts, Oh My!

Discussion in 'General Discussions' started by Amica, Feb 8, 2017.

  1. Amica

    Amica IL Hall of Fame

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    Are you really happy with certain appliances, cookbooks, sauces or other products you've purchased? Please share them with us here.

    If you have any tips/tricks for saving time in the dreaded cooking and household chores departments, please share those, too.

    Thank you.
     
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  2. Amica

    Amica IL Hall of Fame

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    Recently, I've learned about many awesome things on IL:

    @JustAnotherMom introduced us to the Instant Pot. And there's a lot of info on IPs in this thread. @justanothergirl told us about the Multi-Plate Evolve Grill. These appliances have saved me so much kitchen time!

    @Rihana and @MalStrom shared a veggie roasting cookbook. I'm still working my way through the book, trying out the recipes, but I'm already a fan. @MalStrom has shared a batch of salad books. And I hear @jennycee has a large collection of cookbooks.

    Now and then, while browsing IL, I come across shortcuts and kitchen time-savers like this gem from @Laks09. And several others in this thread.

    I feel like I've been living under a rock. :facepalm:

    Please share info about any purchases you love even if you think most people already have one. I'm probably not the only ILite who hasn't heard of it.

    :beer-toast1:
    .
     
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  3. Amica

    Amica IL Hall of Fame

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    The appliance I cannot live without:

    DH bought a Roomba several years ago. It's a lifesaver! We run it every day and it keeps our home looking relatively civilized. I have to run the vacuum every week to get the corners and baseboards, but the Roomba takes care of most of the mess. I especially like that it sucks up dust from under the beds. Mine is an old one, but there are fancier, newer models with bells and whistles that are probably even more efficient.

    If you don't yet have one, get one!

    Next on my wish list is a Scooba. A girl can dream, right?
    .
     
  4. MalStrom

    MalStrom IL Hall of Fame

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    I used to buy a lot of frivolous kitchen gadgets, but have become wiser over time. I gave away all the useless ones and these get the most use:
    1) Vitamix: great for green smoothies. Costco usually has good sales on these and Blendtecs. People also seem to like the Nutribullet as a good option, and it is far less expensive.
    2) Preethi mixie with small and large jar for Indian cooking.
    3) Cuisinart large food processor: great for quick veggie prep
    4) Espresso and coffee maker, coffee grinder. DH is the afficionado.
    5) Milk frother: great for cappucino
    6) Simple rice cooker
    7) Slow cooker (regular crockpot)
    8) Electric steamer
    9) Yogurt maker: quite unneccesary but nice to have in winter

    6,7,8,9 are why I didn't get the Instant Pot

    10) Vegetable spiralizer: I thought this would be a passing fancy but we actually use it almost everyday to make salads and vegetable 'pasta'. I have the basic Paderno model
    11) Salad spinner (OXO): its a space hog but I always rinse all greens even if they are pre-washed so this is very useful
    12) Immersion blender: great for pureeing hot soups/liquids right in the cooking pot
    13) Dehydrator: I make sweet potato and apple 'chips' and jerky treats for my dogs with this.


    Appliances that I don't use often but come in handy when they are needed:
    1) Kitchenaid stand mixer: making cake and cookie batters. I make no-knead bread so don't need a mixer for that
    2) Stone grinder (electric) for grinding idli and dosa batter- this gets dragged out only when my parents visit.
    3) Cuisinart ice cream maker (basic one where you freeze the bowl): very useful in summer
    4) Waffle iron: for when the craze hits us every few months
    5) George Foreman electric grill: this is a sentimental holdout from DH's dorm days. It saved us last 4th of July when we had a barbecue all prepped to go and our grill's gas hose started leaking.

    Home appliances:
    Dyson vaccuum. With two giant shedding dogs this has proven invaluable.
     
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  5. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    After lot of searching, I bought this pan for the recipes from that book: Amazon.com: Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Hi-Side Sheet Cake Pan: Rectangular Cake Pans: Kitchen & Dining

    The dimensions 18 x 13 inch size fits perfectly in my oven, and the 2 inch height makes for faster cooking without burning the vegetable. I like how the size uses up the entire shelf of the oven. This works better than using two smaller pans and moving them from top to lower shelf in the oven while cooking.

    I bought the 18 inch wide aluminum foil from Costco. It is heavier duty. I line the pan with that. So, easy cleanup. Costco Wholesale (much cheaper in-store).

    Some studies advise against using aluminum foil to wrap meat or veges in the oven.
     
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  6. Cantdecide

    Cantdecide Silver IL'ite

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    That's a great pan! I have it too and really like it. Question - what did you hear is the issue with aluminum foil to wrap meat and veggies?
     
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  7. KashmirFlower

    KashmirFlower IL Hall of Fame

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    I always use aluminium foil for baking trays be it a cake, baked veggies or biryani. It is so easy to clean and maintain the trays spotless.
    any alternative for that, to avoid health issues with foil?
     
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  8. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    Why You Shouldn't Wrap Your Food in Aluminium Foil Before Cooking It | The Huffington Post

    I don't know any alternates, and I take such studies with a pinch of salt.

    The few time I wash that tray, I end up with so much soap and water out of the sink and on floor. I just use the al. foil.
     
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  9. Cantdecide

    Cantdecide Silver IL'ite

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    Oh ok! I also like to use Parchment Paper to roast veggies! :) It's more nonstick than aluminum and really good for roasting - or I wrap it around fish in the oven to make a little pouch and the fish steams inside. So good!
     
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  10. Amica

    Amica IL Hall of Fame

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    @MalStrom, thanks for the awesome list! I thought I had too many appliances, but you totally beat me.

    I need to get one. I've been hesitating because I thought it'd end up unused. Do you spiralize anything apart from zucchini and cucumbers?

    Do you use the dehydrator for humans, too? I've been toying with getting one but it doesn't seem worth it just for apple chips.

    [​IMG]
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