Small Kitchen Appliances

Coming soon

A blender can be easily replaced with a kitchen food processor in the kitchen, but having a blender will make preparation of shakes, smoothies, and other drinks easier. Some people also find a blender more suitable for processing sauces.

This is one of those kitchen tools which most people will not consider buying. In most cases you can successfully replace it with a fry pan and still reach good results. On the other hand, getting a crepe maker is not very pricy and will let you reach the best possible results while preparing French crepes (thin French pancakes).

I would recommend you buy a household one since it will be much cheaper, lighter, and space efficient, and will get warm faster. It is also energy efficient than a restaurant-style one. The household one can also be a more universal tool since it can even replace a griddle in many cases to prepare other food such as potato pancakes, tortillas and, eggs. This all makes purchasing a crepe maker more justified, don’t you think so?

A deep fryer will make deep frying much easier and more consistent, but it is also another piece of equipment that costs money and takes space in the kitchen. Buying a deep fryer should depend on how often you fry. I fry about once a month, so it has been totally reasonable for me to get a deep fryer. If you are not frying that often, a deep fryer is not the way to go.

If you decide to buy a deep fryer go ahead and select a basic commercial one. They are still compact and run on a regular 120V circuit. You can get them for around $100 dollars (not much more than household versions). There are many reasons to go commercial. They are more durable than the household versions and will last significantly longer. They are more powerful and better at holding consistent oil temperatures. They are also not made from plastic, so it is much easier to keep them clean. Cleaning is a snap since they are always easy to take apart. Cheap plastic deep fryers made for home usage will give you too many headaches and will break faster than you wish. So, buy commercial or don’t buy a deep fryer at all.

If you don’t want to purchase a deep fryer, you can use any sauce regular 5 – 8 QT pot you have. Or a special fryer pot is great for deep frying, too. Either option should be followed by a frying basket (sometimes called a drain basket), which is very inexpensive and is sold in multiple sizes (make sure to buy one which fits into the pot / frying pot).

Another tool you will need is a deep fry thermometer (sometimes also called a candy thermometer) to be able to control the temperature during frying (the thermometer needs to be able show temperatures between 100 – 400°F). It is also a very cheap item. Do not confuse the deep fry thermometer with a basic food thermometer. While you can use any food thermometer to replace a deep fryer thermometer if it displays temperatures up to 400°F, most food thermometers are only able to show 200°F max.

A wire or mesh skimmer (similar to an Asian strainer) is a great helper in the kitchen (do not confuse it with a fine mesh skimmer). A small size is the most useful for frying: helps you remove individual pieces from a fryer without removing the basket. Large size is most useful for removing objects from boiling water. It is very inexpensive.

Visit section “Deep Frying” here.

An immersion blender is a slender blender that can be immersed in liquid (even hot liquid if you need to use it while cooking). It is a huge time saver and an absolute necessity in any kitchen since it will help you to smooth your soups, sauces, and more. Simply by using your immersion blender, you can process to liquid, even when it still cooking. The great news is that it is really inexpensive and also often comes with some accessories, which can replace other kitchen tools.

Most immersion blenders come with a whisk attachment, which can be great for whisking food while cooking and to some extent can replace kitchen mixers whisking function. But the most useful accessory is definitely the small food processor, which is sometimes also called a chopper. Definitely make sure that you buy your immersion mixer with that attachment. It partially replaces a big food processor since it is absolutely perfect for preparing dressings or even pesto.

If you have a kitchen mixer (with some additional attachments) and an immersion blender with a chopper accessory, you can consider not buying a kitchen food processor. But if you buy kitchen food processor anyway, you will still really appreciate it. A good food processor can slice, dice, puree, or even prepare dough (it often comes with a second blade just for that purpose).

If you decide to buy one, make sure to buy as big of one as possible because you will be surprised how quickly you fill it even with smaller amounts of cooking (especially when you are slicing or dicing). I would recommend at least a 12 cup bowl (3 QT).

Another aspect to look for is the strength of the engine. I will not tell you what power is optimal since the ideal power depends on the size of the bowl and blade and over all construction as well. But spend some time and read other peoples’ opinions to find out if they are satisfied with the food processor you consider. If you plan to use your food processor for dicing too, make sure that it has a dicing kit since not all food processors do.

A self-standing kitchen mixer is an essential tool in any kitchen. It’s great not just for bakers but for everyday cooking as well. There are a lot of different brands out there, and if your budget is tight or your space is limited, a hand mixer makes a perfectly reasonable stand-in.

Self-standing mixers generally last far longer than inexpensive hand mixers. They’re built from better materials and have stronger motors. The other real advantage is that you don’t have to hold them while they work, which frees you up to do three other things at once — and in a home kitchen, that matters more than any spec on the box.

I’ve worked with a lot of different mixers over the years, and KitchenAid is the brand I recommend. They’re well built, they hold their value, and they’re by far the most versatile: with additional attachments you can turn one machine into a juicer, a pasta roller, a grinder, a sheet cutter. That saves both money and counter space, which in most kitchens is the scarcer of the two.

Which KitchenAid to buy

Cooking for a small family, or working to a budget? Buy the Classic. The bowl is smaller at 4.5 quarts, but the motor is genuinely capable and it’s the least expensive machine in the range. It does the same work as the more expensive models, just in smaller batches. For most households this is the right answer, and I say that having owned one for years.

My first KitchenAid was a Classic, and it went through four years of extremely heavy use — including in my restaurant — before a gear inside gave out. That sounds like a complaint, but it’s the opposite: the replacement gear cost ten dollars, the repair took about half an hour with the help of a video, and the machine has worked like new ever since. Very few appliances at any price are that easy to bring back.

If your budget is more relaxed, the Artisan adds roughly $100 for a slightly stronger motor, half a quart more bowl, a bowl handle, a splash guard and a much wider colour selection. Honestly, the mechanical difference is small. If you want a specific colour, buy it — that’s a legitimate reason. If you’re buying on performance, the Classic gets you there and the splash guard costs about ten dollars separately.

If you cook a lot, bake a lot, or feed a larger household, the Commercial is the one. It’s NSF-certified, genuinely durable, and a pleasure to work with — powerful motor, consistent mixing, and no fuss. The 8-quart bowl lets me run a double batch of bread in one go, which changes how I plan a baking day. It’s still compact enough for a home kitchen, and all the standard attachments fit (the splash guard is the exception). Considering the build, the capacity and the certification, the price is fair. This is the best KitchenAid I’ve owned and I expect it to outlast everything else in the house.

The Artisan Mini I’d skip. It costs about $60 more than the Classic for the same motor and a 3.5-quart bowl that’s too small for most jobs, and it isn’t meaningfully smaller on the counter. If the compact look is what you want, that’s a fair reason to buy one — just go in knowing what you’re getting.

A note on the Professional line

I should be straightforward about this, because it shaped my recommendations for a long time. Some years ago I had a run of persistent problems with the Professional 600 — enough units, returned and replaced, that I stopped recommending that line entirely and steered people to the Classic or the Commercial instead.

That experience is now several product generations old, and I haven’t tested a current Professional, so I’m not going to tell you it’s the same machine I had trouble with. It very likely isn’t. What I can tell you is what I know first-hand: the Classic and the Commercial have both been excellent for me, and those are the two I can recommend from direct, long-term use. If you’re considering the Professional today, look for recent owner reports rather than mine.

What’s good about KitchenAid

• They’re very space efficient for what they do.
• The attachment ecosystem is enormous. One machine and a hub becomes a grinder, a pasta roller, a juicer, a sheet cutter — which saves both money and counter space.
• They’re often discounted. They look expensive at list price, but I’ve bought the basic model for under $200 during promotions more than once. Watch for sales rather than paying full price.
• They last. Not forever, but longer and under heavier use than most of what they compete with, which makes them cheaper over the life of the machine.
• They’re easy and inexpensive to repair. Parts are widely available at fair prices, the work is straightforward, and there are video tutorials for essentially every job. That repairability is one of the strongest arguments for the brand.

Attachments included in the box

Most stand mixers come with three attachments:

• Whisk attachment (read more here)
• Flat beater attachment (read more here)
• Dough hook attachment (read more here)

Some also include a splash guard (read more here).

A kitchen scale is very important, even when you use measuring cups. It is not only great for measuring ingredients but also for portioning dough, burger meat, and other tasks.

How to select a perfect scale?

• An NFS listed scale will be more accurate, will last longer, and will be more durable.
• Buy a kitchen scale with a plate and not a bowl since it will be more convenient for most applications (if needed, you can always add a bowl on top of the scale plate anyway).
• Buy a scale with a removable weight plate (for easy cleaning) and a screen in front of the scale (for easy reading).
• Select a scale that uses AA or AAA batteries that can be also plugged into a regular outlet). Other types of batteries will not last as long, will cost a lot of money over time, and will be less accessible.
• For most versatility, select a scale with the capacity of at least 15 LB even if you think you will never need that much (it will be handy, I promise).

Coming soon.