Favorite Scoop Kitchen Gadgets & Appliances
By The Editors
Named by Andy Rooney on a 1984 60 Minutes episode as a “magic” and “life changing” kitchen gadget, Wilbur Blanks’s plastic citrus peeler, also known as the Quik Orange Peeler, became an overnight sensation. And why not? What is a life without it? (If you don’t already know, you’ll find out if you try it!) Perhaps we all have one or two such items in our kitchens that make life just a little easier and magical. The Coop Scoop Editors shared a few of their own. Perhaps you have a favorite gadget or appliance you’d like to share with us? Drop us a line, we’d love to hear from you.
Mat: Benriner Mandoline Veggie Slicer
Natalie: I use my Instant Pot Pressure Cooker almost daily. It’s great for basics like cooking oatmeal, rice, beans, pasta (yes, pasta!). It is essential for many of my favorite soup recipes. I even use it without the pressure function for proofing bread dough and making yogurt.
Pat: Silicone Garlic Peeler and Fantes Garlic Slicer/Grater
Leona: Cuisinart Chef’s Convection Toaster Oven (especially for the microwave-free household!). It does it all! We use it every day for everything.
Ruth Ann: Joseph Joseph Garlic Rocker: Is it a tool, or a sculpture? I consider it both, especially since I splurged on it years ago at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art and I still keep it where I can see it on an open kitchen shelf. As a tool it is so easy to use and clean, and it absolutely will rock your garlic.
Like Leona, I also love the Cuisinart Convection toaster oven and have no microwave. Powerful and energy efficient, it has a modest countertop footprint is big enough to roast a whole chicken or bake a good-sized pizza. During the early pandemic when we were all at home cooking constantly, we completely switched over to this and a portable induction cooktop, in order to stop using our old fume-emitting gas stove. Now that we have an induction range we still use the Cuisinart for most baking, because it heats up so quickly.
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