Best budget gadgets & tools

Morning Glory

Morning Glory

Obsessive cook
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What are your favourite low budget kitchen gadgets or tools? I have a few favourites, not least a simple julienne cutter which looks like a potato peeler with serrated edges and cost only a few pounds. So simple and so effective!
 
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I think I'd have to nominate my salad spinner. I try to do one main course salad and a couple of side salads each week, and I wouldn't do that without my spinner. One thing I can't abide is a watery salad. It'll kill my appetite dead.

Second choice would probably be my lemon/lime squeezer. I went many a year doing the badass chef thing of just squeezing them in my hand and using my fingers as a sieve, but that's really a crap way of doing it, unless your goal is to leave quite a bit of juice behind. Also, 30 years in IT and 40 years as a musician has left me with some fairly painful wrist problems, so I finally broke down and bought a squeezer last year and I swear by it now.
 
TR, are you talking about one of these?

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They are great! I juice more limes than lemons (TexMex uses limes), and you get lots of juice, no seeds, with a lot less effort.

CD
 
My most used small kitchen tools are my tongs. I have about ten of them, in a few different sizes. I have found that OXO (Good Grips) make the best tongs. They are very rigid, so I can use them on just about anything, up and including a decent size roast.

Link> 9.

You can get them with silicone tips, for non-stick pans, but I prefer steel tips -- I'm just careful with them around my non-stick.

CD
 
caseydog said:
My most used small kitchen tools are my tongs. I have about ten of them, in a few different sizes. I have found that OXO (Good Grips) make the best tongs. They are very rigid, so I can use them on just about anything, up and including a decent size roast.

Link> 9.

You can get them with silicone tips, for non-stick pans, but I prefer steel tips -- I'm just careful with them around my non-stick.

CD
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I have those in the silicone tips - a long pair and a short pair. I use them all the time.
 
Tongs, we just bought two more, always in the wash. We have about 6 tongs. And an Asian tool I bought about 25 years ago? From Hong Kong. Cost about 2 dollars. Used about once a week. Does about 6 different things. I'll get a pic. Lemon squeezer is being used here twice a week, lemons are in season, we have two trees, I squeeze and freeze into ice cube size. Lime tree has only one lime on it.


Russ

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TastyReuben said:
I think I'd have to nominate my salad spinner. I try to do one main course salad and a couple of side salads each week, and I wouldn't do that without my spinner. One thing I can't abide is a watery salad.
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I agree a salad spinner is essential - soggy, wet salad is just not right. We have a one in the house and a mini one in the motorhome.

I think my best budget tool is this £1 Ikea rubber spatula - I think I have about 4 of them and I use them for all sorts....scraping out bowls, stirring sauces, making scrambled eggs.
 
This is a microwave dish cover. It was stupidly cheap. I now use it all the time. No more fiddling about with cling film. Its slightly larger than a dinner plate so covers most things. I store it in the microwave. Sorry about the lousy photo.

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morning glory said:
Can you describe what this tool does?
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More than I know, I use the pointy bit to cut angles of 45 deg in tomatoes for decoration.the serrated curves cuts ribbons out of carrots etc, then slice carrots up and you get cogged carrots if you know what I mean. Grandkids love shaped veges.far right is a hole for cutting into melons etc. it came with a list of about 6 things to do with it. I havnt found anymore,lol.

Russ
 
caseydog said:
TR, are you talking about one of these?

View attachment 40605

They are great! I juice more limes than lemons (TexMex uses limes), and you get lots of juice, no seeds, with a lot less effort.

CD
Click to expand...

Persian limes have no seeds. Are you referring to the limes used in Mexico, which are similar to our Key Limes? We have a small electric juicer that I use primarily for sour oranges.
 
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