Serious Eats - Gadgets

Gadgets: The Spifter

2013-05-16T18:45:00Z

[Photograph: Spifter]

I always hope to find new, quirky, innovative, unique, interesting, useful, improved, and fun products to review. But it's pretty unlikely any product will check all those boxes. I mean, there aren't that many truly new kitchen gadgets being invented.

This time, I think I actually found something new: The Spifter ($19.95). After I saw it, my very next thought was, "Why didn't someone think of this before?" It's perfectly logical.

The Spifter is a spoon-sized sifter. It would take you forever to sift flour with this for your cake, but it's ideal for neatly spewing paprika onto deviled eggs or sprinkling colored sugar onto cookies. Since it's small, you get more controlled placement of whatever you're sprinkling.

There are three removable mesh sifter bowls that snap in and out of the spoon, with fine, medium, and coarse mesh, so you can sift fine powdery stuff or slightly coarser salts or sugars or herbs.

Perfectionists and food bloggers looking for pretty presentation are going to love this gadget. Cooks who care less about messy garnishes probably won't be as excited. And I'm sure there are professionals who can manage perfect paprika placement without needing a gadget.

On the other hand, I can use all the garnishing help I can get.

I almost wish this was a three-spoon set instead of having the removable bowls since I'm terrible at losing small things in my kitchen drawers, but that's my issue and not a flaw in the product. Overall, this is a pretty cool idea.

About the author: Resident yeast whisperer and bread baking columnist Donna Currie also has a serious gadget habit. When her father-in-law heard about this column, he upgraded the nickname for her kitchen from "gadget world" to "gadget heaven." You can find her on her blog, Cookistry or follow her on Twitter at @dbcurrie.

Gadgets: Microplane Elite Star Grater

2013-05-09T21:15:00Z

[Photograph: Microplane]

Do remember when Microplane graters first arrived in kitchens and were on everyone's wish list? How could they possibly top that innovation? Well, they tried.

The latest revision of those graters is the Elite series with a more ergonomic design. It comes with a plastic cover that holds up to a cup of the grated product, and there are measurements on it so you can see how much you grated. To keep the grater from sliding around on the counter as you grate, there's a non-slip base.

Are these earthshaking features that will make you throw out your current Microplane graters and buy these new ones? Probably not. But if you're in the market for a new grater for yourself—or as a present for someone who doesn't already have a drawer full of Microplane graters—these Elite graters are worth a good look.

One of the Elite series graters has a grating surface that wasn't available in the original series: the star grater ($16.95) that's intended for grating hard cheeses like parmesan. For me, this is the perfect grater since I tend to grate at angles rather than straight up and down, and the star-shaped teeth work no matter which direction you're moving. The result is a really fine and somewhat irregular pile of fluffy shreds.

The other graters in the series are the usual suspects: fine, coarse, extra coarse and ribbon. All very useful graters, if you don't already have them.

I have to say that the star grater is now my favorite for grating hard cheeses, no doubt about it. Before this, I was using a fine grater, but this one definitely is easier to use and I'm pleased that the grater cover holds a reasonable quantity of cheese. Maybe not enough if you're planning on grating a pound of cheese, but plenty for that pasta dinner.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: OXO Mini Adjustable Measuring Cup

2013-05-02T19:15:00Z

[Photograph: OXO]

You know those big adjustable measuring cups that are supposed to make measuring goopy stuff like molasses or peanut butter easier? Now they have a little brother.

Let me be perfectly honest. I had one of the original cups, and I really didn't like it. Moving the pusher to the right measurement was hit-and-miss and the pusher was just hard to push. And then when I took it apart for cleaning, it was a pain to get it back together.

Besides being small, the mini adjustable measuring cup from OXO ($5.95) has solved the problems I had with that old adjustable cup. Instead of shoving the pusher up and down, this one is designed to twist, and it's a pretty smooth movement. It also comes apart and reassembles easily.

There are two sets of markings, so you can level off the top for dry or really thick ingredients like peanut butter, and liquids measure slightly below the top, so there's less risk of spillage. Obviously you don't have to use this just for the sticky substances—it's just a little measuring cup.

And I mean little. The capacity is 2 tablespoons in 1/4-tablespoon increments, and it also has ounce and milliliter markings. I sort of wish it had 1/3 tablespoon markings to measure teaspoons as well.

If you already have a kitchen full of measuring devices, this isn't going to be an essential addition to your kitchen. But for someone with a less-comprehensive setup, or who measures a lot of small amounts of goopy substances or who needs to measure 1/4 and 1/2 tablespoons a lot, this could come in handy. Since it's adjustable, it takes the place of other measures.

OXO also makes a 2-cup adjustable measuring cup that has the same twisting function. I haven't tested it, but if it works the same way this little one does, it might be worth looking at, if you're in the market for a larger adjustable measuring cup.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Ball Dry Herb Storage Jars

2013-04-25T21:00:00Z

[Photograph: Ball]

I don't know about you, but I've got a bit of a storage issue with herbs and spices, particularly when I buy in bulk or dry my own garden-grown herbs. I end up using random jars and containers that used to hold something else. That works well enough (and let's face it, it's the cheapest option), but those odd-shaped and sized jars don't make for a neat spice cabinet. And then there's that fun game when I have jars and lids and I can't find the matching pairs.

Although it's not the most innovative product on the planet, the new dry herb storage jars from Ball ($6.95/4) are pretty handy. They're small—just four ounces (1/2 cup)—and the lids have built-in shaker tops. If you want to dig in with a measuring spoon, the opening is the same size as a regular canning jar, so it's a wide enough opening for pretty much any standard measuring spoon.

The jars themselves can be used for canning, but not with the lids. But, hey, if you use the little jars for canning, you can use the shaker lids on your other canning jars.

I think that's the thing I like best about the jars: there's no need to keep track of which jars fit which lids. Any standard (not wide-mouth) jar I have can be turned into a shaker-top jar, and I can use the little jars with regular lids.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Mastrad Egg Poaching Cups

2013-04-18T17:15:00Z

[Photograph: Mastrad]

Poaching eggs isn't all that difficult, if you practice for a while. And by a while, I mean you're going to eat a lot of misshapen and broken poached eggs. There's also all that wispy white stuff that comes off the eggs in the water and makes a mess.

The secret to getting rid of that wispy stuff is to, well, get rid of it. Kenji demonstrated his method using a fine-mesh strainer. Michael Ruhlman sells a special egg-draining spoon for the same purpose.

But here's the deal. If you don't have super-fresh eggs, you'll lose a lot of the white. Or, as my husband said when I served him poached eggs made that way, "Why are these eggs so small?"

If you don't have super-fresh eggs and you don't want to lose half the whites, egg poaching cups might be the answer. I tested a pair of silicone egg-poaching cups ($7.99 for two) from Mastrad and I have to say they worked pretty well. Technically, you're not poaching the eggs since they're not cooking directly in the water, but for many people the point of a poached egg is that it's not fried in fat.

The silicone cups I tested stood upright, which made it easy to load the eggs and have them ready to go, and they have detachable handles so you can gently place the cups in the hot water and retrieve them when the eggs are done. Since the cups float, you need enough overhead clearance in the pot to cover it with a lid so the eggs get a nice steam bath. In about six minutes, they're done. Unlike with making poached eggs, you can add seasoning to these cups before cooking, which is a bit of a bonus.

A few times when I used these, a bit of egg white stuck to the silicone, but it wasn't tragic. If I needed absolutely perfect eggs, I might be tempted to cheat with a drop of cooking oil or melted butter. Shhh, don't tell anyone.

Overall, I like these things. Is it a cheat? Heck yeah. But unlike someone who works in a restaurant, I'm never going to poach enough eggs to be 100 percent confident that I'll get decent-looking poached eggs. A minor quibble is that these are sold in 2-packs and I'm betting most folks would want four or more.

These aren't total uni-taskers. When you're not poaching eggs, use 'em for mise en place or little baskets for small items in your kitchen.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: OXO Egg Separator

2013-04-11T21:30:00Z

[Photograph: OXO]

I tend to like OXO products. They're well-designed, sturdy, innovative, and ergonomic.

But...an egg separator? The egg separator has to be the poster child for the anti-unitasker movement. It has no other purpose than separating whites and yolks. It doesn't open cans or flatten chicken breasts. It does one single thing. Yolk here, white there. That's it. Toss it in the dishwasher.

Talk about egg separators out loud, and it's pretty much guaranteed that half the crowd will talk about using the eggshells to separate eggs, and the other half will talk about scooping out the yolks with their fingers. But scattered among the eggshell people and the grab-the-yolk people, there might be two quiet ones: the person who can't separate an egg without breaking the yolk, and the one who is freaked out about touching raw eggs. Maybe there are more than a few of those folks. A lot of egg separators get sold. Someone's buying them.

This OXO egg separator ($4.99) does its job well. It sits nicely on the edge of a fat-edged bowl or a thin bowl. It's got a hard, sharp edge where you can crack the egg. And it separates the yolks from the whites.

This unitasker isn't an earthshaking, innovative device, but someone probably needs it. If you have egg-separation anxiety issues, this product is for you. Otherwise, I'm sure you've got your own favorite method already.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Wüsthof Precision Edge Knife Sharpener

2013-04-04T17:45:00Z

[Photograph: Wustof]

Sometimes the best way to get an unbiased review of something is to hand it to someone who doesn't know how to use it, and see what happens.

That's what I did with the Wüsthof Precision Edge Knife Sharpener ($185). I grabbed a bunch of cheap kitchen knives and let my husband have some fun. I had Band-Aids ready just in case.

I have several sharpening stones, and I know how to use them, but I've also got some inexpensive knives that don't hold an edge really well. They're handy for some things, but they don't necessarily deserve the time it takes to hand-sharpen them. A faster way to get an edge would be great.

So I handed over the knives and they came back sharp. Just like that. Magic.

My husband said the instructions were really clear and the process was simple and relatively fast. Just slide the knives in the slots and they're sharpened at the correct angle. For really dull knives, you start with the coarser grind, and work your way to the finest grind. For less-abused knives, you can use the finest grind.

The nice thing about this unit is that you can also use it for sharpening serrated knives, which many sharpeners can't do. For those, you just use one of the slots on the finest grinding setting.

I'm still not set on the idea of using an electric sharpener on my favorite, more expensive knife. There's something about hand sharpening that's sort of pleasing and zen-like—it's nice to sharpen a knife the way they've been sharpened for so many years. But not everyone knows how to hand sharpen a knife, and in some areas it might be hard to find someone trustworthy to do your sharpening for you. And not everyone has knives that they want to baby—they just want a sharp edge and not a lot of fuss.

No electric sharpener is going to match a skilled expert, but this sharpener does a good job. It's so easy to use, you can get a sharp edge even if you don't really know what you're doing.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Magnetic Knife Guards from Bisbell

2013-03-28T15:45:00Z

[Photograph: Bisbell ]

If you're a professional cook or even serious home cook, there are probably times when you want to bring some of your knives out with you—like if you're planning to cook with a friend and you want to use your favorite knife. Some of you may use a knife roll for carrying around a whole lot of knives, but if you're like me, you usually only need one or two knives. In those situations, blade guards make a lot of sense.

The magnetic blade guards ($9-$12) from Bisbell have a couple of advantages over plastic guards. First, they're easy to cut with scissors so you can shorten them to fit specific knives. Second, they hold the knives snugly, so the edge of the blade isn't bumping around the way it could inside a hard plastic guard. Maybe not a big deal if you're just taking your favorite knife to Aunt Susie's house to carve the turkey once a year, but it's more important if you use those guards to store knives in a drawer.

Although these things are magnetic on the inside, they don't stick to each other, so you can carry or store them together or with other metal items without worrying about them grabbing onto everything they touch.

While this isn't the most earthshaking gadget I've seen, I have to say it's a nice improvement over the slip-on plastic guards.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Measuring Colander

2013-03-14T22:00:00Z

[Photograph: Chef's Planet]

I must have a bazillion measuring devices—spoons, cups, beakers, jars, pitchers, and, of course, a scale. But the measuring colander from Chef's Planet ($10 for 2-cup; $13 for 3-cup) is unique among its brethren because it has holes. Lots and lots of holes. The idea is that you can use the colander to measure, drain, and rinse foods, like when you've got berries. Or cherry tomatoes. Or olives. Or canned goods where you don't need the liquid.

A measuring colander may not be the most revolutionary product ever, but I've never seen anything quite like it, and it makes a lot of sense. Even if you don't need to measure, it makes a nice colander. At home I use a big colander when I've got a lot of stuff to drain or rinse, but I usually use a strainer for smaller batches. That works well enough, but sometimes I lose a few bits that sail over the edge of the strainer. Since this is shaped like a cup, I'm less likely to lose those canned beans as I drain and rinse them.

I wish it were easier to read the measurements—which are marked at the holes in the colander—but like any measuring cup, after I use it a few times, I'll know which mark is the one I'm looking for. It measures in half-cup increments, which is good enough for lumpy-bumpy foods like strawberries. You can certainly eyeball quarter-cups if you need to.

My only slight quibble is that I wish the holes were a bit smaller so I could use this for rinsing rice or other grains. On the other hand, that would make it less efficient for rinsing dirty strawberries and getting rid of all the grit. In that regard, the hole size makes sense.

As a little bonus, the bottom of the colander is designed to fit a standard tuna can so you can use it to drain tuna. I usually just use the tuna can lid, but I can see how this might be a little more efficient if you're draining a lot of cans.

Overall, this is a pretty useful item. Not essential, but handy to have.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Excalibur Dehydrator

2013-03-07T13:30:00Z

[Photograph: Excalibur]

I never thought I needed a dehydrator. I mean, I can buy prunes...um, I mean dried plums, at the grocery store. Dehydrators are large. They're not something you'd keep on your counter all the time, and unless you have huge cabinets, storage might not be convenient.

So why are they so popular? I know a lot of people who have dehydrators. Some of them don't have food processors.

My first foray into doing any sort of food dehydrating was with the stove I got a few years back that has a dehydrating setting. That's just fine except it ties up the oven for a looooong time. And my oven wants to do other things.

So when I got the Excalibur 5-tray dehydrator ($250), I was more than happy to clear a little counter space to free up my oven while I was busy drying fruit and vegetables. This isn't an appliance that you'd keep on the counter long-term—unless you have tons of counter space—but when you're in the midst of drying season, I can imagine it would stay parked for quite a long time.

Unlike my oven, this is designed for drying, with five trays in a reasonably compact space. I can dry more product in this than I could in my oven with its three racks, and it does a mighty fine job. The instructions suggest turning the racks for even drying and removing the pieces that might be done sooner. It dried foods more evenly than my oven—not perfectly, but better. Another plus is the built-in timer, a great feature if you can't be around to turn the dehydrator off. I don't think I'd want a unit without this feature.

If you want to park your dehydrator on the counter and get more use from it, you can use it for proofing dough, re-crisping crackers, drying pasta, or incubating yogurt—pretty much anything that needs a reasonably stable temperature. The thermostat range is from 85 to 155°F.

So far, the only problems I've had with this unit have been user error. The first few times, I got a little carried away with the drying and ended up with crisp rather than still-moist dried fruit. But that's okay. I figured it out, and subsequent batches were a heck of a lot better. It's also important to cut pieces into even thicknesses—but that's true with any dehydrator.

Not everyone's going to need a food dehydrator, obviously, but if you're in a market for one, this unit's got a lot going for it.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: OXO Mini-Beakers

2013-02-28T17:45:00Z

[Photograph: OXO]

These little measuring beakers from OXO ($9.99) appeal to the science-geek side of me and to the side that says, "Oh em gee! Cute little things that are normally big! Squeee!"

Mostly the science-geeky side wins because not only are these little and cute, but they make sense. Think about it. Measuring spoons are the small version of dry measuring cups. These are the small version of a wet measuring cup. It's more convenient—and less messy—to measure liquids into a container with graduated measurements. It's also more accurate. And if you have a recipe that uses a lot of different liquids in small amount, you don't need to use different spoons for a teaspoon, half-teaspoon, and quarter teaspoon.

The smallest of the set measures up to 1 teaspoon, the next size is up to one tablespoon, next is up to 1 ounce, and last is up to 2 ounces. Milliliter measures are also included.

My only quibble is that I wish these had markings on the tablespoon measure for teaspoons as well as the 1/4, 1/2, and 3/4 tablespoons measures. And it would be nice if the 1- and 2-ounce measures also listed tablespoons. It's easy enough to do the math since there are 2 tablespoons to an ounce, but it would be more convenient have that written on the beakers.

On the other hand, these little guys nest, so they take very little storage space.

Does anyone need another set of measures? Um, yeah, it seems like I've always got measuring spoons in the dishwasher, and it's not unusual for me to grumble that I just measured vanilla with my last clean teaspoon, and now I need a teaspoon of baking soda. I really do like the idea of having several sets of measures, and these make perfect sense in my kitchen.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Chef's Planet Clip & Drain

2013-02-21T13:30:00Z

[Photograph: Chef's Planet]

The other day, I was straining some spaghetti and watched in horror as a good handful of noodles wriggled past the strainer and into the sink.

Okay, the sink was clean enough, but most of 'em went down the drain, and there's no five-second-rule for that.

Two days later, the Clip & Drain ($11.95) showed up. It's a simple idea: you clip it to the edge of your pot, and you have both hands free for pouring. The shape of the Clip & Drain makes it work with a huge variety of pot sizes, from small to pretty darned big. The fit wasn't quite as good on pots on the far ends of the size spectrum as it was for the mid-sized pots, but it was good enough to keep my spaghetti from going down the drain.

Although I like using this thing for draining potatoes, pasta, and vegetables, I found it even more useful when I was straining some stock. Maybe it's just me, but that process usually ends up being a mess since it's the liquid that needs to be saved. With this, it was pretty easy to just strain the stock into a storage container and toss the remains that were left in the pot.

I can't say how long the clip part of the Clip & Drain will last, but it seems pretty sturdy, and it grips the pots firmly. I was a little bit skittish the first few times I used it, thinking that if it slipped off, I'd lose a whole pot of vegetables, but it held firm.

The curious thing about this product is that no one thought if it before. It's a genius idea, and it works really well.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Blomus Tea Stick

2013-02-14T14:30:00Z

[Photographs: Blomus]

There must be a bazillion tea-infuser devices on the market, and among them is the Blomus Tea Stick ($20). The design is modern and the idea is good. You press the stick's plunger, insert the other end into your loose tea so it fills the stick's container, then release the plunger to neatly contain the tea.

It works well if the loose tea you're using is the right size. Big leaves and chunks won't fit.

When it comes to infusing, the tea stick is pretty tall, so it's fine if you drink your tea in a mug. If you're using a short, fat teacup, this isn't going to work so well.

My pet peeve when brewing tea is that I don't want bits and pieces in my tea—I want a clear liquid without bits of leaves floating on top and gritty bits falling to the bottom. The tea stick doesn't spew bits the way my poorly-designed tea ball did, but small bits escape through the holes.

I like the way this tea stick looks, but I'm less enthusiastic about its function. With some teas—the ones that had pieces just the right size—it worked perfectly. With other teas with larger or smaller bits, it was much less successful.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Korin Cutting Board

2013-01-31T18:00:00Z

[Photograph: Korin]

I have a few cutting boards, and I have to say that like some of them better than others. And frankly, my knives like some of them better than others. A cutting board needs to be a little bit soft so it doesn't dull the knife, but not so soft that it gets gouged every time your knife touches it.

The Hi-Soft cutting board from Korin ($69.90 for the 15.75"x11.5"x0.78" board) is made from polyvinyl acetate, which is about the same hardness as wood—just about right for your knives. In using the board, I thought it might have been just a tad softer than my favorite old wooden board, but I could be wrong. Maybe it's just that, unlike wood, there's no grain in the material.

The benefit to this type of board over wood is that it can be soaked in water and washed with whatever soap you like or cleaned with bleach. Since it's not porous, it won't absorb the soap and it won't warp, crack, or split. However, this board can't be washed in the dishwasher or exposed to very hot water—too much heat could soften it or make it warp. So, hand-washing it is. Not a big problem for me since this wouldn't fit in my dishwasher anyway.

I have to say this board is a nice size—big enough to be useful, but small enough to be easy to store (and you can order larger sizes as well). The color isn't quite as pretty as a wooden board, but it's not shockingly ugly either. One of the things like I most is what the board doesn't have: there aren't any feet, so the board can be used on both sides, and there are no handles or grooves, so he whole surface of the board is flat and usable.

This cutting board isn't so outstanding that I'd suggest you throw out the ones you own, but if you're looking for a new board this one is a good choice.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.

Gadgets: Hightailer, a Shrimp Peeler and Deveiner

2013-01-17T18:45:00Z

[Photograph: Chef'n]

Some gadgets I approach with glee. I know I'm going to love them right from the start. Others, I'm skeptical about, and I have to convinced of their value.

Others, I want to cheer on...encourage them to be good.

That's how I felt about the Hightailer ($14.99) by Chef'n. It's a strange device that's designed to devein shrimp and remove the shell. I really, really wanted this thing to work because I don't like cleaning shrimp.

My first problem was that finding completely uncleaned shrimp at the local stores was a little more difficult than I thought. The shell-on shrimp I found all were the easy-peel variety where the shell is split and the vein is removed. Let me tell you, asking for shrimp that still have the vein gets you some funny looks in stores.

Finally, I scored some shell-on shrimp that needed to be cleaned.

The device is pretty simple to use. Just insert the blade-like part into the shrimp, press the lever, and the shell is suppose to pop off while a little notch grabs the vein and pulls it out. The results were fair. There were some shrimp that came pretty clean, others where I had to pick the vein out, and still others where the shell didn't come all the way off like it was supposed to.

I have to admit that I got better at using the Hightailer after a while. With more practice on a lot of shrimp, it might be a bit more efficient. And it's possible that this would work better on fresh shrimp rather than frozen-and-thawed shrimp. But where I live, in the middle of the country, fresh shrimp are pretty impossible to find.

Even with the shrimp that were imperfectly cleaned, using the Hightailer was a bit quicker than cleaning with fingers and a knife. Whether it was enough of a time savings to make this device a must-have—well, probably not for me. I guess I'll stick with the easy-peel shrimp.

Disclaimer: Testing samples were provided to Serious Eats.