20+ Awesomely Handy Kitchen Tools with Small Price Tags
1. An unbelievably versatile trivet that will get more work done than you in the kitchen
Promising review: “These pads are great! They lay flat or hang, and look nice sitting on the counter (where a normal oven mitt would not). They are very flexible and the little nubs are great for gripping pans, and they work wonderfully to block heat from hands and counters. Color is exactly the same as in the photos.” – Madeleine
2. Oven Liners – non stick and fully reusable – because life is too short to spend it cleaning your oven.
Promising review: “I expected to be happy, but I’m thrilled! Each mat is pliable and fits the entire width of my standard oven. When the mat is against the back wall, it extends up to but not over the front lip of the floor. On first use, pizza cheese and sauce dripped onto the front edge of the mat and onto that uncovered lip. The baked-on cheese and sauce slid right off the mat! Effortlessly! After I cleaned up the lip, I layered a second mat to cover the lip. These mats are so great that I almost want food to drip on them so I can show off how wonderful they are.” – Artset Outset
3. This amazing 7-in-1 Instant Pot gives you a delicious meal with almost zero cleaning, just pop in the ingredients and go.
Promising review: “I’ve been using the 6 qt IP, but always had way too much food left over. I bought the 3 qt mini for use in our camping trailer. However, I ended up dragging it home and using it there. It’s a perfect size for just the wife and myself. Things have gotten to the point that my wife says, “I don’t want to cook. Pull out the little pot (IP mini) and make dinner (spaghetti, soup, whatever).” My fault for becoming proficient with the use of the Instant Pots. When we have company to dinner, I use the 6 qt. IP. I love it! Just had to order a stainless 3 qt. liner pot for it (with a silicon lid) in case I need to put something in it in the refrigerator … or use it to cook something separately.” – Trucking Pilgrim
4. This funky vegetable chopper cuts down on the mess by making sure your veggies stay put, no more bits to track down or liquid to mop up.
Promising review: “This is definitely a life saver! I really like onions but I usually can’t see by the time I am done dicing them. In comes the Vidalia dicer to save my teary eyes. The plastic is not cheap looking or feeling, the parts are easy to clean and the dicer works well. Just place your vegetable and apply a bit of pressure and that’s it.” – MTN
5. This spoon clears up the need to clean up your counters by just sitting on the side of the pan. Absolute genius!
Promising review: “My wife loves these spoons and I have to admit they are a genius idea. Keep the mess in the pot and makes it so you only have to wash a spoon and not a spoon holder or wherever you set your spoon! They fit nicely on the Rachel Ray pans and match the color well (we have the orange set).” – Matt S
6. It’s a lid AND a strainer! Cut your washing up by one full pot – no need for a colander when you have this ingeniously designed pot.
Promising review: “I love love love this pan. I thought it was a bit gimmicky when I purchased it a year ago, but the purple called to me and we do make a lot of pasta…. so I decided to give it a try. It is so nice to be able to drain the pasta right in the pot without getting another dish dirty or trying to juggle a pan in one hand and a hand held strainer in the other. Some noodles shapes are too small/will slip right through the ridged lid side, but you can just as easily drain from the other side of the pan where the seal is tighter – it just takes a bit longer. The bottom of the pan has discolored slightly along the bottom where the gas flames on the burner sometimes lick up around the sides when the kids leave the burner on too high, but this pan has held up remarkably well. The light weight, vivid colors, time savings and great price make this two thumbs up. I just wish I *needed* one in every color…. !” – kemilie
7. This multi-section pan gets eliminates a ton of washing up – multiple sections meaning you can use one pan and cook a whole meal.
Promising review: “Now that I have cooked a few meals with this pan I can honestly say that I will no longer be needing all my other pans. It just does it all. Cooking multiple ingredients at the same time and then infusing them together to mix the flavors is something that I have never been able to do before. Keep the pan at a medium heat to always get the best cook because food cook differently and you can take your time in preparing your meal. I recommend this to pretty much anyone that likes to cook and mostly to the ones that dread it! A++” – Den S
8. With this 3-in-1 pancake batter mixer making your pancakes is super easy, and you don’t need more than this one gadget to do it.
Promising review: “I LOVE this thing! Breakfast has never been faster or easier! And it doesnt make noise that will wake everyone up while I am mixing. The silicone tip is real silicone (for those wondering about the pinch test) and does good against cast iron. I have never been able to get my pancakes this fluffy until now! So great! Planning on buying more from this brand! It is also super easy to clean. The bottom comes off to fill it up and it turns into a holder for the bottle by setting the top into the bottom setting. It suggests putting in your liquid first them your mix but if making a large amount you might have to gently tap it a bit.” – KC Hunter
9. One utensil – five uses. This cuts out the need to use four more utensils, just use this bad boy and the job is done.
Promising review: “I really like this utensil. I use it as a spatula to flip the food on the griddle, while using the small spoon to stir the rice, and the knife part to quickly check if the meat is done. Sure, if you had bought the entire set maybe you would feel this tool is redundant, but I don’t have the set. Or maybe you are the sort of person who likes to do things the ‘right’ way and use task-specific utensils. I prefer to minimise the amount of items I have to wash afterwards.” – M.C
10. This cutting board prevents escapees by folding, letting you pour the veg into the pan – no more sweeping the floor for lost veg.
Promising review: “This cutting board rocks! It is a little larger than I expected it to be but I actually prefer it that way. The thing I like about it the most is that it stays flat when you want it to and it easily folds when you need it to. I’ve used other cutting boards that fold and they never seem to stay flat when you’re trying to cut/chop on them. This cutting board is very nice in quality and super easy to clean. I would definitely purchase it again and maybe even in other sizes in addition to the large one!” – Anna
11. This can size colander is just big enough to drain your cans while avoiding having to clean the full size strainer.
Promising review: “It sounds silly but this little guy is truly a game changer. I have been using the top of the can to strain water out of my tuna for years. Never thought of ever considering an alternative until I came across this on Amazon. It really is a time saver and very convenient. Fits perfectly nice and snug in 5oz tuna cans. Easy to clean and seems pretty durable as well. I have not tried to was it in the dishwasher however so cannot comment on that. I have not had a reason to, actually. Just rinse off with water and pat dry. Highly recommend.” – studiotime
12. A practically self cleaning garlic press. It does it all, then you just empty it and stick in a dishwasher, it’s as simple as that.
Promising review: “this is the ULTIMATE garlic press. if you’re tired of tediously peeling garlic, then attempting to extricate it from your press, this little kitchen gadget will change your life. NO peeling, virtually NO picking it out of the press and easy clean up. some of the reviewers here have found issue with the way that it ejects the garlic, but i have rarely had that problem, unless i was crushing only one clove. one amazing gadget…and one that you’ll use near every day (if you love garlic as much as i do 🙂 and yes, this thing is heavy-duty and built to last. feels solid in your hands and easy to clean too…” – mister bob
13. This dish squeegee takes the strain and the squeak out of removing waste food before the plates go into the dishwasher.
Promising review: “Scraping things into the trash or getting stubborn food off the dish made easy. I don’t have to dirty up my sponge.” – Brittany
14. This bad boy is a sponge the like of which you have never seen before: It lasts, it smells divine and it scours like no other.
Promising review: “Wonderful, durable sponge. I cannot stand a stinky sponge…uck. I read about these spongeless sponges and what they say is true. Durable, works well, scrubs well, holds soap well. Put it in your dishwasher 1x a week. No gross mildew smell anymore!! Cost is higher but they outlast sponges quite a bit, and aren’t bacteria traps, so well worth it.” – L.H.
15. This silicone mat is non-stick so because there is no more scraping and scouring those baking pans there’s more time for cooking (and eating).
Promising review: “I wanted a way to use my sturdy old, or vintage 🙂 cookie trays without placing food directly against metals of unknown content. They have worked beautifully. Most recently, I broiled fresh Alaskan salmon atop one Artisan baking mat in a cookie pan (the pan has a good sized lip to prevent any spillage). The salmon was heavenly – better yet was the easy clean-up. I wiped them first with diluted soapy water & a damp cloth, did a quick rinse with warm water and left to dry. Had only to wipe a bit of the fish oil from the bottom of a corner of the cookie tray. I often cook with tumeric – it has left a faint orange/gold streak on one of the baking mats….gives it character! 🙂 I had looked all over for silicone baking mats. These are exactly what I was looking for. For quality mats like these you’ll pay more – these are the best price around. Definitely recommend.” – andromeda
16. An amazingly easy to use microwave rice cooker that’ll always make perfectly fluffy results without having to mess around with stove top pot or steamers. Plus, you can throw it in the dishwasher and it’s good to go again
Promising review: “I’ve had this for 7 months now, and I think it’s still my favorite tool in my entire kitchen. I eat a ton of rice, and I love how easy this is to use and how easy it is to clean. I put in one cup of white rice and two cups of water, and microwave it for 15 minutes. It comes out consistent every time” – C. Stone
17. An almost dark magic like stainless steel soap that will save your hands from all the fishy and garlicky smells while cooking
Promising review: “Nobody likes smelly hands from working in the kitchen. And I have a volunteer job that involves working with animals that eat mouse and quail. There is nothing like the smell of mouse on your hand when you’re trying to eat lunch. I originally got one of these as it is able to be used in a zoo facility since it is just steel and isn’t something involving harsh chemicals that could harm animals. It has been working very well. Once I had success there, I bought 3 or 4 more as gifts for people who cook a lot and often cook with garlic, onions, meats, etc.” – Camille Elise
18. A tiny 2-Stage knife sharpener that’ll bring all the dull knives in your drawer back to life.
Promising review: “I’m very surprised by how well this product works. I make knives and sharpen my knives by Japanese wet stone or belt grinder. I sharpen my mom’s and grandma’s knives by stone whenever I visit. I’ve tried to teach my mom to use a honing stick while I’m gone to keep the knives in good shape, but she can’t seem to get the hang of it, so I decided to buy this product because of the simplicity of use. I tested it on a few of my dull knives at home, and it takes about 10 strokes on the course grind, and 10 strokes on the fine grind to get a sharp enough edge to slice printer paper without tearing.” – Source
19. Tired of ice cream spoon handles that bend under pressure and leave you with aching wrists? This scoop will be the last ice cream scooper you’ll ever buy. Plus, it also comes with a lifetime warranty
Promising review: “This is one heavy-weight spoon! It feels like one solid piece of steal with an ergonomic handle wrapped around one end. I can’t imagine how this SUMO Spoon will ever “wear” out… I mean, I’m only scooping ice cream – this thing was obviously made under the assumption that ice cream is made not of frozen milk and sugar, but of solid rock. I’m not typically impressed by simple kitchen utensils, but here we are… impressed! Cuts through ice cream like a warm knife through butter… or ice cream. Highly recommended!” – ST
20. An ethylene gas absorber that’ll save you so much money on your hard-to-maintain produce by extending its shelf life by 2 to 3 times.
Promising review: “These blue apples really, really work! We have a fruit and vegetable share from a CSA and in the past some produce just never got eaten. With the blue apples the refrigerator life of fruit and vegs is greatly extended- even leaf lettuce. I was skeptical, but these are great. On in the fruit drawer and one in the veg drawer.” – DeeWNY
21. With this speedy 5-blade kitchen scissors, you can officially say goodbye to all the tedious chopping.
Promising review: “I like to grow herbs and use them in salads, soups, and many other recipes. I received these Jenaluca Herb Scissors as a birthday gift, and can’t believe how fast and easy it is to cut up cilantro, basil, parsley, lovage, etc. My husband tried them today too for the first time while making guacamole, and found that slicing the cilantro went very quickly. The storage case-cleaner is very efficiently designed too. I ordered 4 of these sets to give as gifts.” – Lucille P. Nawara
22. A sworn-by microwave pasta cooker for busy individual who just doesn’t have the time to wait around for water to boil. Plus, you now only need one pot to prep for your sauce!
Promising review: “I don’t want to get all gushy over a pasta maker, but man…I really love this gizmo! I try to limit my monthly food expenditures and the Fasta Pasta helps me work in at least one inexpensive pasta meal every week. If not more. First of all, I like spaghetti — either with normal Prego-type sauce or sometimes just with butter and Romano cheese sprinkled on. But I’m lazy and impatient and don’t like things that take a long time to make, with a bunch of steps, and a big clean up afterwards. The Fasta Pasta is perfect for me. I get the exact amount of correctly-measured spaghetti; it’s faster than boiling water in a big pot then having to watch and stir the pasta; the pasta comes out perfectly cooked every time; and the cleanup is a snap. No big pot; no colander; no spaghetti fork to lift out the pasta. Just the easy to clean Fasta Pasta, and a pot to heat up the sauce. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!” – Smilin Sam
24. Takeya – Literally the cheapest and easiest way to make cold brew coffee in house you will ever come across. No joke.
Promising review: “I have been drinking caffeinated beverages everyday for half my life. Usually brewing hot then cooling it down with ice which was quite a process to do every morning. Then I came across this cold brew pitcher and thought I’d give it a try. It’s great, easy to use and clean, very convenient, lasts for a couple weeks, I love it! Making a pitcher of coffee take less time than a normal brewer and makes enough for at least one cup a day for about a week, depending on how much coffee concentrate is used. I Haven’t used my normal coffee or espresso machine since I got this cold brew system. The coffee seems to taste better as well, not a huge difference but it’s somewhat noticeable.” – Jeremy Birnbaum
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