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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 2, 2021 19:30:16 GMT
My kitchen has been the hardest room to downsize, ridiculous when I hardly bother cooking for myself and rarely have guests. Guess it’s a holdover from all those years I hosted all the big family holiday dinners, BD dinners, BBQs, etc., not to mention bulk/prep cooking. I’ve tossed a lot of stuff, but would like to cut back even more. I want to do this once...lay everything out on my counters, choose what I need and toss everything else. So help me figure out the necessities first, then some “nice if I had the room” items.
Don’t need to be super stingy, while I’ll be downsizing my house I expect to have at least an adequate sized kitchen.
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Post by solargeek on May 3, 2021 0:39:11 GMT
We’ve moved 16 times since we were married eight with kids. Here are my “I can’t live without” items as well as my “counter -worthy” items:
Counter:
Toaster – we eat a ton of homemade toasted bread and ours can toast rolls.
Container with most used utensils --such as canning ladles and straining spoons, tongs, wooden spoons. I don’t want to DiIG through a two small drawer trying to separate out needed utensils when something needs to be stirred.
**On that point you should have 2 of everything in that container. When you most need it it will break or you won’t be able to find it or it’ll be too dirty to use- go ahead ask me how I know?
Instant Pot— cannot cook anymore without it. Best food we’ve ever eaten.
Coffee maker.
More on the other stuff tomorrow.
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Post by mzgarden on May 3, 2021 1:16:31 GMT
Off the top of my head my must haves for small appliances are
Toaster/Convection Oven. Ours is inexpensive, <$60 - toasts, bakes small casseroles, etc., has a broiler setting.
Truthfully, I only use the oven on the range if I'm baking a lot of cookies, etc. Everything else (including small batch cookies, muffins, single layer cakes) are baked in the toaster/convection oven.
Coffee maker is a must have for us.
I love my instapot but if I had to give it up I could.
I have a stick blender that came with a couple attachments - small food processor, wire whip plus the blender. I love that thing.
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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 3, 2021 6:39:16 GMT
solargeek, We’re on the same page with the utensil container...I like having everything handy, and yes, it seems like you always need 2 of everything. mzgarden, what brand is your toaster oven? I’ve never really used one. I do have one of those big electric roasters, it comes in handy for bulk cooking, plus things can be baked in it. (I rarely use my regular oven either.)
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Post by mzgarden on May 3, 2021 12:18:27 GMT
wildhorseluvr , here's a link to the most recent one we bought a while ago. linkWe got the first one a couple decades ago, at a swap meet for like $5. We used it until it wore out. The one we have now is at least 5 years old, the one at the link above is one we bought at the start of the pandemic to have as a back up, just in case.
One of them came with a baking tray that I use for broiling, baking cookies, etc. I have an 8"x8" glass baking dish that fits perfectly. The rack inside adjusts up/down so you can put things close to the heating elements. We can fit 4 slices of bread on the rack and it toasts on both sides.
Hope that helps.
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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 3, 2021 13:29:56 GMT
Thank you , mzgarden. I’m not one for kitchen gadgets, but am all for anything that cuts down on work, electricity usage, etc. 🙂 I will check into that, certainly not a bad price at all. |
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Post by woody on May 3, 2021 13:38:21 GMT
I too use the toaster oven more than the stove oven. I just got a new one, it's a Hamilton Beach and costs the same as Mzgardens. I made two apple pies so far, muffins, toast and a loaf of banana bread. It works great! Best thing is the door flips upwards when open. It is a life saver for me. No need to turn on the oven in the extreme temps. Much less expensive too. I use it more than I use my microwave. I'm not fond of warming things in a microwave, like pizza.
I will check the brand of it later. Mine died after about 8 years and I had my daughters saved in the basement....so I'll let you know the brand. It works well. It's smaller than my other one, but perfect for the two of us.
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Post by Jolly on May 3, 2021 14:18:23 GMT
Don't know if you have one now, but I couldn't do without my hanging pot rack. It takes up no counter space, but I have 14 skillets hanging on this one (I'm looking at it) six lids stacked on top (it's rectangular) and a bunch of spoons and ladles on one hand.
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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 3, 2021 20:51:26 GMT
Don't know if you have one now, but I couldn't do without my hanging pot rack. It takes up no counter space, but I have 14 skillets hanging on this one (I'm looking at it) six lids stacked on top (it's rectangular) and a bunch of spoons and ladles on one hand. Don’t have one but that’s something to keep in mind if I end up a bit short on space in the future! |
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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 3, 2021 20:54:41 GMT
woody, I’m always looking for ways to keep the heat out of the house in the summer. One summer I cooked a lot on an outdoor table with a small BBQ and a crockpot. I never run the oven here in the summer.
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Post by woody on May 4, 2021 14:05:05 GMT
I'm really impressed with my new toaster oven and think it's great not having to use the oven for hours. The toaster oven goes up to 450 degrees and boy things bake fast in it!
The roll up top really makes this one much easier getting hot things out of the oven. I really like it. Gee it doesn't take much to make me happy, huh?
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Post by Ozarks Tom on May 4, 2021 23:32:56 GMT
On a lighter note, the most essential thing in our kitchen is our dishwasher - me. Oh, we've got a dishwasher under the counter, but I have a dishwashing fetish. Don't leave something in the sink expecting to just rinse it out and throw it in the dishwasher, turn your back for a minute and it's in the drainer. Hey, every man needs a hobby.
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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 5, 2021 1:01:11 GMT
On a lighter note, the most essential thing in our kitchen is our dishwasher - me. Oh, we've got a dishwasher under the counter, but I have a dishwashing fetish. Don't leave something in the sink expecting to just rinse it out and throw it in the dishwasher, turn your back for a minute and it's in the drainer. Hey, every man needs a hobby. My dishwasher was used several times this past week or so to wash dishes before packing them for moving. I always wash dishes by hand and had forgotten I even had a dishwasher but it came in handy this week. |
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Post by Jolly on May 5, 2021 1:52:45 GMT
Don't know if you have one now, but I couldn't do without my hanging pot rack. It takes up no counter space, but I have 14 skillets hanging on this one (I'm looking at it) six lids stacked on top (it's rectangular) and a bunch of spoons and ladles on one hand. Don’t have one but that’s something to keep in mind if I end up a bit short on space in the future! Mine was custom made for me and I have it bolted to 2x6's, which are in turn screwed into the ceiling joists. You might could hang a hoist on it and pull a small motor!😄 Seriously, you don't need on as big as mine or as heavily built. My daughter has a semi-circular one at her house, nailed to end of a cabinet, that holds around five skillets. |
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Post by wildhorseluvr on May 5, 2021 2:07:34 GMT
Jolly, something like what your DD has would be plenty for me.
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