I really love kitchen tools and what you’ll find in my kitchen is a good mix of super-specific items and general use. I don’t tend to get a lot of one use items, but when I do, I think long and hard before I purchase. This is my ultimate kitchen gadget-y wish list – a mix of high-end and affordable products. To make these products even more affordable, you might be able to find some voucher codes! I would love to receive any of these items this holiday season and I’m sure the cook in your life would too!
Ever since I tried rigging up a ghetto-sous vide machine to make Momofuku’s 48 hour short ribs, I’ve been wanting a sous vide machine. Nomiku just came out with a new wifi home sous vide machine and I backed it because I was so impressed with their past incarnation. Essentially, a sous vide machine lets you cook food (usually in a vacuum sealed bag) in water bath set at an extremely low temperature. The sous vide machine both heats and circulates water and your food is gently cooked to scientific precision.
If you’re going to ask for a sous-vide machine, the next thing you might want to add to your wish list is a Searzall. I don’t have one of these (they just finished their kickstarter and are gearing up to sell on Amazon), but it’s definitely on my radar. It’s basically a portable salamander – use to sear sous vide steaks, melt cheese, or finish dishes off with a blast of heat.
The above two items are things that I think I’ll love, but they’re definitely more things I wish I had rather than things I need. These spatulas on the other hand, I have in my drawer right now and reach for all the time. I’ve talked about my love for silicone spatulas previously and I’m still a big fan of them. These colorful guys from Get It Right make me happy every time I reach for them. They make a perfect little gift. They’re unibody (which means no grotty parts to clean), hold up to heat well, and are dishwasher safe.
One of my favourite kitchen tools is a garlic press. I actually like mincing garlic (I’m weird, I know) but I don’t really like my fingers smelling like garlic every time I do it. Garlic presses take that problem away. This press from Savora is both pretty and functional. It’s an excellent gift for a garlic lover.
I wish I could send everyone a holiday present but since I can’t, I’m doing the next best thing and hosting a little Le Creuset Giveaway!
Giveaway: I’m giving away a Le Creuset Cherry Wok, a Le Creuset Balti Dish and a cute little Le Creuset Condiment Pot. They’re cherry red and perfect for the holiday season – thank you Le Crueset!
Enter: Leave a comment letting me know what the best gift you received was and why and then use the widget to enter. Open to US residents only. Winner will be selected at random and contacted by email. Good luck!
Update: Congrats Vicky! Get ready to start cooking! :D Look for an email from me shortly.
A surprise holiday trip to a warm sunny beach. Best remedy for the long, grey winter!
My dad built me a dollhouse when I was little.
Love my Le Crueset! I found my first one in a thrift store for $7 and had to have more. I mixed it up with sizes and colors.GREAT gift for your favorite cook…and to treat yourself!
As a moving-away-from-home/19th birthday present, my mom gave me a rice cooker and a jar of chilies she roasted and crushed herself. She gets me.
The BEST gift I ever received was a Vitamix!! ❤️
Hmmmm this is tricky! But not really because the best present I have ever received is my amazing pug Augusta! Commonly referred to as Gooser and sometimes Chunker. She is truly the gift that keeps on giving and the amount of joy I get out of poking her nose and squeezing her little fat rolls is disturbing. You rule by the way!
The best gift I ever received was a ‘welcome home’ present that my fiance greeted me with at the airport. He got me a balloon, which was wonderful because balloons are basically visual happiness, and a container of garlic-chili marinated olives from a local deli – i.e. the perfect snack.
Totally the most romantic gift ever because it was tailor made for me.
Best gift I ever recieved was a digital video camera. Being able to hear the voices of loved ones and them being able to make me laugh when they aren’t always around is priceless!
My JCrew cocoon coat from my then fiance, because it keeps me warm everyday :)
A handful of years back I received a Williams-Sonoma gift card from my in-laws, which I used to purchase a gorgeous Le Creuset dutch oven which was deeply discounted and I never would have been able to afford otherwise. I use it on a weekly basis.