In article >,
"D.Currie" > wrote:

> I was just thinking about some of the things that I use regularly that I
> thought at first were stupid, useless, or gimmicky, but now I'd have a hard
> time living without.
>
> Prime example is my microwave. When I first heard about them, I thought they
> were insane. Why bother? Okay, I don't actually "cook": much in the mw, but
> I use it all the time for reheating things, and sometimes for thawing. Some
> veggies get cooked in there, just because I run out of burner space. And
> I'll admit to cooking winter squash in there. I'd miss it if it disappeared.

Mom was never happy about the concept of microwaves either, until we got
one. Now we feel so lost without one that if one croaks, I will use the
credit card to make sure we have a new one within 24 hours. ;-)

I don't use it a lot for cooking, just re-heating but it sure beats the
hell out of trying to warm up leftovers using the stove. It's also great
for heating water and melting cheese, and making lemon butter.

And for quick thawing.

>
> Gloves are another thing. Rubber gloves, latex gloves; whatever. I don't
> think food is "icky" and I never saw the sense in using rubber gloves for
> washing dishes or handling food, but lately I've been battling a little rash
> on my hands, and I've taken to wearing gloves when I'm working in the
> kitchen. Seems to be helping while I narrow down the exact cause. Using
> gloves while handling dough is kind of weird, so I just bought some fabric
> "dough gloves" which I never would have bought otherwise. They work. I don't
> know if I'll continue using them forever, but for now, they're a keeper.

I _hate_ mixing ground meat with my hands but it's really the only way.
Latex gloves that I purchase by the box are a godsend for that chore,
and indespensible when working with hot peppers. ;-)

I also use them to protect my hands when using harsh cleaners such as
muriatic acid. I double glove for that and wear a gas mask. Those masks
used to be cheap prior to 9-11. :-( I bought a brand new Israeli gas
mask for $25.00 off of ebay and $5.00 for extra filters prior to that
date. After that, you were lucky to be able to get one for a bid of
$150.00.

I use it to clean the bathtub with acid and it works well. My bathroom
has lousy ventilation, and this is Texas with ultra-hard water. The
water comes from underground limestone caves.

>
> Electric meat slicer. Yeah, who needs a meat slicer if you have a sharp
> knife? This isn't something I use every day, but when I have a beef roast
> and I want thin slices for sandwiches or Italian beef this thing is great.
> Or for nice even slices of anything. Bread, cheese....Yes, I still slice
> things by hand a lot of the time, especially when it's small quantities, but
> this is a nice thing to have on hand when I need it.

After a very, very serious cut to my fingers, I now use a cheese board
for slicing cheese. It's just a wire and gives you ultimate "thin"
control. I use a knife for everything else. Electric slicers are still
not something I use.

My very sharp cleaver can slice meat paper thin with care.

>
> On the other hand, I've gone though so many cheese grating devices in my
> time...this must be my major impulse-buy weakness. I was cleaning out
> kitchen gadgets a while back, and I got rid of quite a few grating devices
> that just didn't do the job. I had rotary graters and box graters, and all
> sorts of stupid gadgets. For big jobs, my kitchenaid has a grater device
> which does a good job, but I went through a lot of hand graters before I
> figured out what I liked for the small jobs.

<lol> I have a nice tower grater that works for various things, I mostly
use it for fresh ginger. I have a rotary grater for carrots etc. If I
need grated cheese, I buy it PRE-GRATED! It's the same price as block
cheese so why not? It freezes well and I mostly use it for cooking so
texture is not an issue.

>
> So...what things to you have that you found out were really wonderful and/or
> terrible?

I used to hate garlic presses until I found the right one. :-)
Now I swear by it.

>
> Donna
--
Peace, Om.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch." -Jack Nicholson