Top 10 Favorite Kitchen Gadgets ~ Inexpensive AND Durable

Need ideas for a Wedding Shower Gift Basket? Do you have College-bound kids who you hope eat more than takeout or a daily menu of Ramen Noodles and boxed cereal? Or how about a House Warming Party for a new apartment renter or home owner?

This is a list of often forgotten gadgets, and inexpensive items, for the kitchen. Some of my choices are time savers, and even better, double-duty items that make kitchen storage count. All have been tested for a least 10 years to give you the best reviews possible.

FYI: It does not include the usual pots, pans, measuring cups, or the usual items needed in a well-stocked kitchen. I think most could find those on their own. :)

Do I? Yes! It's the best way to see if a product is a good purchase

I always check before a purchase. I figure I can learn from others who have a little experience with a product. But I also consider bad reviews with a little doubt. I usually write off 10-20% of them to not understanding proper use. If a complaint comes up time after time, I'm more apt to believe it true. If it's a minor inconvenience, but a great bargain, I'll buy it anyway. If a online product only has 1-3 reviews, I'll discount them completely. Could be friends or family of the seller.

This classic manual can opener is easy to use, low cost, and super durable. Like most of my treasured, and most used, kitchen gadgets, this one is more than 15 years old! Opposed to the electric can openers that take up valuable counter space, this one goes right in my kitchen gadget drawer.

Eco Green, too! This opener won't add to your footprint as it doesn't use a lick of energy beyond a few simple hand turns.

Oh, and these can openers are appreciated by newer generations, too. At least one, if not both, of my daughters has one of these handy dandy openers. Perfect small purchase gift for college student, and for equipping teeny tiny studio or one bedroom apartment kitchens.

Believe it, or not, I don't actually use this grinder for coffee that often.

I most use this to grind:

Spices

Hardened brown sugar

Croutons into bread crumbs,

and more.

Why not? Who says a Coffee Bean grinder is just for coffee beans?

This is the best , most powerful, handmixer I've ever had or used. Love the bag and different mixing beaters for whipping, bread hooks, and standard batter mixing, too. And yes, the Mixer fits in the bag, too, for a very small footprint in your kitchen cabinet.

While this is not a cheap handmixer, it's more than makes this purchase worth it as I have yet to need a stand mixer. Saves valuable kitchen space and money, too.

Unfortunately, this product is no longer available. Since it is still going strong 20 years later, I'm not sure I will ever need another.

Just in case I have found that KitchenAid makes a handmixer that I feel comfortable to place on my list if this one should fail me. It has a powerful 9 speed motor, and also includes the dough hooks, whip, and bag.

Another classic, but long lasting, and highly durable, kitchen probe thermometer.

Maybe it's just me, but I figure a digital probe is not going to last as long as this always dependable 20 year old. Maybe I'm just a kitchen dinosaur.

15 years old, and just as sharp as the day I bought it at a Pampered Chef home party. I do love this rotary cutter, but they have improved the design to be more ergonomic. I may need that one in a few more years. No, I'm not getting older. Really.

Not just for Ice cream! Makes perfect size serving portions of mashed potatoes, for baking cookies, and so much more. There's very good reason the lunch lady in your school cafeteria used these wonderful scoops. I'm sure you can think of many more.

I also have, and recommend getting, the 1 1/4 inch size scooper. Great for silver dollar pancakes, small cookies, candy making, and mini-sized cupcakes.

Kitchen shears are a must have for the kitchen. I regularly use then to cut chicken, prime beef for stews and soups, and have been known to use them for non-food things like stubborn, hard to remove, zip ties and other bindings. :)

Mine have broken after 20 years of dependable usage, so my next purchase will be the Wusthof kitchen scissors below. I'll post a new picture of my set soon.

Easy to use, and a breeze to clean, this little giant saves space and time by doing big food processor jobs on a smaller scale. Also frees up kitchen space since it measures only 5-1/4"H x 7-1/2"W and 4-1/2"D.

I've owned many, many pastry brushes, and until I purchased this one, they have all ended up in the trash after a short period. Mop and bristle styles give my the heebie-jeebies since even very well washed, they never looked very clean. Using standard barbeque brushes on the grill could burn or singe them too. YUCK!

Silicone solves that problem!

This pan is not a gadget, of course, but I felt it needed to be shown here as I absolutely think every kitchen should have a square griddle. Perfect for pancakes and toasting sandwiches, a regular fry pan just can't cut it.

My pan is coming to the end of it's life after 20 years. It's time to think about replacing it. My quandary is purchasing a pan without chemical based non-stick coatings. After many reviews, I've come to the conclusion:

I don't want ceramic because of the possible chipping of the glass-like surface.

I don't want an Earth pan because of the high-temperature burning and sticking.

I recommend going back to cast iron like my grandmother used all her life. A recent bonus... You can now buy pre-seasoned cookware! And the cast iron griddle below has 2 handles for a comfortable grip when lifting.

I'm sold! I will update this with my review of my purchase soon.