More gadgets in a new kitchen?

What @Thimes said. You need to see how you’re going to use the new space before you decide to buy more things to put in the new space.

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One working burner is exactly why I bought the rice cooker. I used to cook my rice with my LC pot. Yes, it’s very heavy (the mister dislikes my pots and pans) but it reduces the cooking time for the rice down to 10-12 minutes instead of an hour with the cooker. Lots of socarrat, yums!

For the time being, the mister does not wish to spend more money to do up the kitchen - we probably need to do tearing down the wall dividing the kitchen and living room. Just using whatever has been provided in the house by the developer.

Instant Pot seems to be very popular in US (I happen to follow some US cooking sites and blogs such as kitchn, BA), but not so in Singapore. In any case, the voltage is different too. People here are always talking about Anova precision cooker and air fryer.

Sad to say, I have never own any kind of oven. Not into built-in ovens though. Small countertop one should be sufficient. Breville has always been on my wishlist (old model but it has gotten a lot of good reviews), but I also like Hitachi/Panasonic smart ovens from Japan (the ones available in Singapore are actually EOL in Japan). Been waiting to own a bigger place so that I could try my hand on baking and roasting.

If you want an air fryer, the newest Breville Smart Oven is also an air fryer (called Breville Smart Oven Air). This can be a two for 1 combo for you. The oven is fantastic in the Breville, and it does about a good a job as my real oven (if not better since I tend to cook smaller portions). If you like to bake or want to roast, then that sounds like a good investment for you.

I have a sous vide machine, but not the Anova. I use it, but not nearly as much as some other equipment if only because it cooks food one way. If you are going to spend a lot of time to get your meat or proteins cooked to a certain temperature for texture or other reasons, then it can be a useful tool. I do enjoy cooking vegetables this way to preserve the natural freshness and sweetness of certain vegetables (asparagus, carrots) but it does require extra prep and I don’t always have time for that. Of course…it’s definitely not quick cooking! I need to plan out when I’m going to use it since it takes time for the water to heat up and for the food to sit long enough in that water bath. If that appeals to you, or you will experiment a lot with this, then go for it. These are not big gadgets and don’t take up much space. If you are using a separate bin (not to take up a cooking pot) to cook in, or you need to seal your food up and need the food sealer, then yes…it’s a lot more space! Just remember to take those items into account.

Yes, not worth importing an Instant Pot if it’s not available locally. The voltage is a pain to deal with, and also if parts start to wear down or break down. Non-Instant Pot brand multi-cookers though are becoming popular, so if some of the functionality appeals to you, maybe a local option is available.

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What a thoughtful gift!

Haha, I have a 110v Kitchen Aid Mixer, bought on US Amazon refurbished, it was a 6 qt pro version, 1/3 the price in France’s 5 qt home version. Bought a super transformer that could deal with the monster power of KA.

Personally, I love the Breville smart oven. It works well as a toaster and since it’s usually just two of us it works for a lot of dishes without heating up one of the big double ovens.
Rather than run out and buy a bunch of stuff I would first take some knife skills classes. Once you become more accomplished and if you actually like cooking then you can think about more “stuff”. A good knife and good cutting board will take you far. If your current one burner situation is a problem consider getting a portable induction burner. (Note that magnetic cookware (your ECI) is required.)

Once you are established in your kitchen ask yourself, what kitchen gadget am I wishing I had on hand over and over. It could be an appliance, it could be a multitasking handheld gadget. Never rush and regret. Items are sold everywhere and sales are worth seeking.

If I want something bad enough but space is at a prem, I stow it under the bed.:grinning: In my case, a few instruments…ha!

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it is a very small item so I leave it next to my sono speaker . I let it charge each time I use it but was advised it best to unplug when charge is full. Of course, I can not remember to DC until a few days after as it really does not obtrusive . Well, I have 5 years warranty and so, within the next 5 years, I hope I can get a new one if battery breaks.

I only remember the stupid converter that my sister had to transfer around because she wanted to bring her US appliances to HK when she moved there. And then she brought it back because she brought a few HK appliances to the US when she moved back 2 yrs ago. That thing weighed a ton and took up too much space.

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Lovely!

Oh… Just like what David Lebovitz shared. Some of his cooking devices are scattered around his Paris house.

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There’s only BOV845 available in Singapore. Not cheap, S$598 (~US$428). Hopefully there might be newer models coming into the country by the time I collect my keys for the new place.

Did search for knife skills some time back, but the cooking schools here only conduct that under diploma courses, not on its own.

I’m a fan of Japanese stuff - got a Hinoki board and a mid-range priced Damascus Santoku that’s popular among locals when I was in Japan.

Currently all my pots and pans are IH compatible, just in case I might get an induction cooker hob in the new place. The only complaint I have is that they are so bloody expensive and heavy - couple hundreds each for All-Clad (got it from US Amazon when it still offered free shipping to my country) and Le Creuset.

There is a lot of good stuff on YouTube. Jacques “The Human Cuisinart” Pépin is a good start. Here is one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1y5h1pDHhzs . The way he cuts off the root with a paring knife toward his thumb is a little advanced. He does that because it is fast and his thumb is a mass of callus and scar tissue. You might trim the root off against the cutting board.

Learn to properly cut garlic, onion, bell pepper, hot pepper, tomato, and potato and just about everything else will be variations on a theme. Remember that there are a number of good ways to cut most things, even more bad ways, and use your judgment. If it isn’t clear look around or ask. For example for almost anything you start cutting an onion “pole to pole” but for onion rings (fried, sauteed, or raw for a hamburger) you start around the “equator.” Why? is always a good question.

Instead of paying for knife skills classes buy some produce and practice.

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Good advice. My biggest kitchen mistakes have been buying what other people recommended as mandatory. As someone wrote above, unless you are willing to change the way you do things, adding a labor saving device will probably not be helpful, just space usurping. As in all things, “Know thyself.”

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Think for most basic cuts, I’m still alright.

Have watched quite a bit of chopping videos and I follow what the Japanese do. Some of my Japanese cookbooks do have step-by-step pictures on the different cuts as well. Just not as fast as the professionals and most people. :laughing:

Thanks for sharing~

The difference is just discipline and practice. Consider https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emlRFQAsoUg . Meryl Streep is no Julia Child but the concept of practice is really important.

Keeping your knives really sharp and knowing the difference between sharpening and honing makes a real difference. A dull knife is a dangerous knife. Serrated knives are for bread and maybe–just maybe–tomatoes.

Very best wishes for your knife skills. Improve those and lots of expensive appliances become less interesting.

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YouTube suggested this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMA2SqaDgG8 also. I think M. Pépin is brilliant.

I’ve always thought a well sharpened knife and astute observation are the very most important tools in a kitchen. Of course you need to remember your observations and learn from your mistakes.

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Which leads to this: https://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/Norton-3-Stone-IM313-System-P48.aspx?gclid=Cj0KCQjwzozsBRCNARIsAEM9kBN1ogw5Q-ilrNcjKqXatIAyAJT3uak9ahkgjwljROjxqbTrzK7-TMsaAj2eEALw_wcB

People make these all the time for tiny NYC apartments (though not so nice as yours sounds). I lived in two different ones that had these for the bathtub in the kitchen.