Hannah Hill confesses about kitchen gadgets and discovers some more…
I’ve got this thing about kitchen stuff: colourful chopping boards, funky bowls, nifty spice grinders, you name it I either have it or want it. My latest fad is for vintage Pyrex bowls and spatulas in every colour of the spectrum, but don’t get me started. I like to think of my obsession with culinary gadgets and gizmos as a ‘collection’ rather than an ‘addiction’, although I suspect the latter is closer to the truth. In fact I know it is: when I moved house there were far more boxes labelled ‘kitchen’ than any other room in the house, which speaks for itself really.
In celebration of September’s Food Festival, I’ve compiled a list of little known but must-have kitchen gadgets. Well, OK, not strictly must-haves, but quirky and nifty for sure.
Fruit and Veg cushion
This spongey mat creation sits in the bottom of the vegetable drawer in your fridge and keeps things fresher for longer and also helps to prevent mould and bruising.
Onion dome
Only used half an onion in your spag bol? Pop the remaining half in this handy pot and prevent your fridge from stinking and the taste of onion invading your fresh food. A lot less fiddly than cling film too.
Corn on the Cob Stripper
This gizmo strips a cob of corn of its kernals! I can’t say I need one, I don’t regularly engage in kernal stripping, however, there looks to be something intrinsically satisfying about this. Not to be confused with a computer mouse – could do terrible shredding things to your mouse mat!
Garlic Peeler
This innocuous looking tube peels garlic with some sort of internal magical wizadry. You shove the garlic in, roll it about a bit and pop out a naked clove without getting your hands smelly!
Fresh Sensor
I’m fairly sure these are only available from overseas retailers, but certainly available online. Apparently you wave this device about in front of fresh food and it gives you a red, amber or green reading. I want this. I want to wave it about in front of my husband’s socks, just to prove a point.
Spatulas
Oh come on. Indulge me!
