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Blendtec owner here. I choose to buy a Blendtec Wildside over the Vitamix because it has a 96oz container and fits nicely on my counter-top under my cabinets.
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Mar 7, 2013 01:30
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I use my Vitamix more than any other small appliance in my kitchen. More than my food processor (I don't think I'd have ever bought one if I'd owned the Vitamix first, but I never use it for the "slicing" stuff they can do). More than my stand mixer. More than my toaster (but I haven't plugged that in since I moved 4 months ago so maybe that shouldn't count). Even more than my microwave. It sounds crazy to me even as I'm typing it out. It doesn't make sense until you use one and then, if you're the kind of person who needs a $400+ blender, you know. And then you can't live without it.
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Mar 7, 2013 02:07
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I would agree except that I use a microwave every day... to warm my plates  (but yes, vitamix is to blenders as thermapen is to instant-read thermometers... but 2x)
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Mar 7, 2013 02:18
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Avenger posted:Blendtec owner here. I choose to buy a Blendtec Wildside over the Vitamix because it has a 96oz container and fits nicely on my counter-top under my cabinets. Yeah, same here. If you consider that route, they're cheaper at Costco than pretty much anywhere. Blendtec also does refurbished sales occasionally, I got one with 2 containers for 200+ tax and shipping. Honestly don't know how they compare to vitamix, I assume it's not that huge a difference.
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Mar 7, 2013 03:31
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I am looking for a pastry scraper / dough cutter, but not your standard 6x3 one. I am looking one for a thinner blade. Obviously, it'll probably be correspondingly smaller, otherwise the blade could bend easily, but I'm okay with that. None of the ones I've found on amazon list blade thickness, but they all seem from relatively the same stock. I don't care about measurements, mostly just that I can get a really thin blade for good slicing.
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Mar 8, 2013 16:51
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Thermohauser makes a small, very sharp bench scraper. Just about sharp enough to draw blood. The only problem I've had with it is a chunk of the handle broke off after a while.
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Mar 8, 2013 21:54
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You could also hit up your local hardware store and look at their selection of putty knives.
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Mar 8, 2013 21:56
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Pollyanna posted:I'm looking for a simple way to make my meals, and I've been told that a slow cooker can help me out a lot with that. If it's basically "put ingredients in pot and wait", I can probably handle it. I had this suggested to me, is this a good slow cooker to go with or is there something better? Here's my go recipe for slow cooker goodness: http://www.goonswithspoons.com/Carnitas#Optional
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Mar 9, 2013 18:44
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v Any other appliance recommendations would be great. I want to try and live off of not much more than a pan/pot, rice cooker, and slow cooker.
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Anyone got recommendations on French door refrigerators? Reviews for all of the common brands seem to be all over the loving place. And apart from the common consumer brands, what's the refrigerator equivalent of a Wolf or Blue Star range/oven, if that makes sense?
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Mar 10, 2013 20:01
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Sub-Zero? http://www.subzero-wolf.com/
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Mar 10, 2013 21:54
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Flash Gordon Ramsay posted:You could also hit up your local hardware store and look at their selection of putty knives.
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Mar 10, 2013 23:04
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Chemmy posted:Sub-Zero? Viking is another high end appliance manufacturer, but looking around the reviews for their free-standing fridges is pretty mixed.
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Mar 11, 2013 01:49
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Does anyone have any experience with the GE Advantium ovens? They're supposed to be an all-in-one microwave/convection/standard oven. We're building a home, and we're looking at the possibility of dropping one of these in, in place of the standard microwave. On that note - while the layout of the kitchen is fairly done, we are approaching the point of customization. Anyone have any suggestions or recommendations as far as adding convenience or utility? For instance, built in spice racks, roll-out drawers, trash roll out drawers, integrated knife holders, what have you? This is our first time building, so I'm not 100% sure of what sort of options we will have, but as we do have say in it, this is my chance to get the kitchen as murdered out as possible from the get go.
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Mar 11, 2013 17:49
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evil spiff posted:On that note - while the layout of the kitchen is fairly done, we are approaching the point of customization. Anyone have any suggestions or recommendations as far as adding convenience or utility? For instance, built in spice racks, roll-out drawers, trash roll out drawers, integrated knife holders, what have you? This is our first time building, so I'm not 100% sure of what sort of options we will have, but as we do have say in it, this is my chance to get the kitchen as murdered out as possible from the get go. How many outlets do you have? You should probably have more. You can never have too many.
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Mar 11, 2013 18:50
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Dish drying shelf above the sink.
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Mar 11, 2013 19:06
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Faucet on an arm above the stove for filling your pasta pot is pretty popular right now.
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Mar 11, 2013 19:12
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Florida Betty posted:How many outlets do you have? You should probably have more. You can never have too many. We'll be adding more, most definitely. FishBulb posted:Dish drying shelf above the sink. Sink is on the island, so I am screwed there. Flash Gordon Ramsay posted:Faucet on an arm above the stove for filling your pasta pot is pretty popular right now. This is definitely in the running.
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Mar 11, 2013 19:18
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Dish drying shelf above stove 
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Mar 11, 2013 19:22
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Knockknees posted:Dish drying shelf above stove I definitely agree on the extra outlets---all else being equal I'd put a double outlet wherever there's a single outlet. I wouldn't really worry that much about a lot of built-in poo poo like spice racks---I know know about your habits, but what I want/need/use regularly changes as I learn more, so unless I was really confident that I was done doing that I'd prefer having flexibility over builtin convenience for a specific thing, if that makes sense. A pasta faucet sounds nice in theory, but I guess I've never really found myself that troubled by filling up pots the old fashioned way. And spilling from the sink to the stove is bad---water on a kitchen floor is an accident waiting to happen---but really I'd prefer something that helped range-to-sink more with the hot water than sink-to-range with it cold. And I'm always a little leery about adding a few more metres of plumbing; I'd be asking myself how I'd know about it if it was leaking, and what's involved with fixing a leak if there is one. But maybe I just have a bad attitude. Really, the things I pretty much always find myself kinda wanting, regardless of how things are set up: more counter space for prep work, and in particular counter space that's close to the cooking surface(s); more storage space for poo poo I always use---knives, tongs, turners, whisks, side towels, and that kind of thing---close to where I'm actually working (so I don't have to walk across the kitchen, even if it's just a couple steps, to grab what I need); more counter space for appliances that aren't builtin but aren't really portable---puddle machine, toaster oven, stand mixer, that kind of thing---so you don't have to muscle them around to use them/plug them in/clean them/whatever. And this is probably outside the scope of what you're asking, but if I was designing a kitchen from scratch the thing I'd worry about most apart from the poo poo I just listed is how much of a pain in the rear end it is to clean: smooth counters instead of tiled; light counters without any patterns so it's easy to see if you spilled poo poo on them; counters and cabinets without that pain in the rear end overhang that they usually have, so cleaning the floor right next to the counters is easier; range hood with an easy to remove/get at/clean grease trap. That kind of thing.
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Mar 11, 2013 19:47
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Chef De Cuisinart posted:Vitamix, hands down. Find a failing restaurant or a restaurant supply auction and buy one for 100bux. Does this really happen? I always hear this "buy it off of a failing restaurant" for many things but I don't ever see it actually happen. Everything goes to Craigslist where the deals are minimal. Vitamix is 325-350. Maybe it's because I live in Los Angeles and too many people are onto this idea.
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Mar 11, 2013 20:22
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Knockknees posted:Dish drying shelf above stove lolled pretty hard irl at this one thing I know I'm gonna put in my next kitchen (and probably regret putting in my next kitchen) is some sort of scrap-hole in my cutting area. like, ideally my counter would be a giant long wooden countertop with a small hole somewhere, so I could just take a rag and clean down my surface and throw away all the scraps and poo poo in one fell swoop. right now, I kind of mop them off the side of my counter into a trash bin below, but I always end up getting poo poo on the floor that way. of course, what could possibly go wrong with a hole to a dark dank area where you repeatedly sweep foodstuff and water over and over every day for the next 10 years? but it sounds good in theory  someone tell me how I could be doing this better. I guess if it was stainless or something that might be slightly more reasonable...
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Mar 11, 2013 20:32
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mindphlux posted:one thing I know I'm gonna put in my next kitchen (and probably regret putting in my next kitchen) is some sort of scrap-hole in my cutting area. like, ideally my counter would be a giant long wooden countertop with a small hole somewhere, so I could just take a rag and clean down my surface and throw away all the scraps and poo poo in one fell swoop. right now, I kind of mop them off the side of my counter into a trash bin below, but I always end up getting poo poo on the floor that way. How about a secondary, 1/3 HP disposal beneath the scrap hole? Wire up some sort of valve that would open only when the disposal is running to introduce a flow of water to let the disposal do its thing.
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Mar 11, 2013 20:43
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mindphlux posted:lolled pretty hard irl at this This has been rolling around in my brain, too - there's the possibility of leaving a hole in the island with a trash bin situated below - or with having a bin roll out in a drawer, making for easy "fell swooping" without a hole in the granite.
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Mar 11, 2013 20:51
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Chemmy posted:Sub-Zero? I have a Sub-Zero built in fridge. The fridge part is fine, the ice maker has been total poo poo. It's nice but certainly not worth the money.
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Mar 11, 2013 21:39
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Gilgameshback posted:I have a Sub-Zero built in fridge. The fridge part is fine, the ice maker has been total poo poo. It's nice but certainly not worth the money.
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Mar 11, 2013 23:41
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evil spiff posted:This has been rolling around in my brain, too - there's the possibility of leaving a hole in the island with a trash bin situated below - or with having a bin roll out in a drawer, making for easy "fell swooping" without a hole in the granite. The latter is what I have - works great. In fact, I have two (one in the counter and one in the island). I will third the recommendation for more outlets - and take it a step further. MORE CIRCUITS. All the outlets in the world will do you no good if they're all in one circuit and you trip the breaker every time you turn on the garbage disposal while you're microwaving something (well, your electrician is at least smarter than that; you'll bro ably have three at least anyway, but MORE can't hurt). (And make sure they're 20 amp, not 15.) I think I have five circuits dedicated to outlets in my kitchen (dishwasher/fridge, disposals, and three for the various other outlets). Also, if possible when you get your cabinetry get soft-close drawers and cabinet doors. I'm a big fan of Ikea's cabinetry but some people have the idea that it is cheap and lovely (it's really quite solid, comes with soft-close everything, and is wonderfully reconfigurable when you feel like moving things around). Choadmaster fucked around with this message at 00:07 on Mar 12, 2013 |
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Mar 12, 2013 00:02
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mindphlux posted:of course, what could possibly go wrong with a hole to a dark dank area where you repeatedly sweep foodstuff and water over and over every day for the next 10 years? Josh Lyman posted:Why does it seem like all ice dispensers in fridges are complete and utter poo poo? Thing is it's surprisingly difficult to find high end fridges that don't have 'em. About the closest seems to be fridges like the Samsungs, where they all are set up for it but it's an option package that you can just not have installed. Really, looking around a lot lately the thing that's most striking is how you just can't find any manufacturers that have uniformly good user reviews.
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Mar 12, 2013 00:47
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If I were talking dream home, I'd get a Kolpak walkin with freezer. We just had one of ours replaced at work, only 6k.
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Mar 12, 2013 01:26
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Gilgameshback posted:I have a Sub-Zero built in fridge. The fridge part is fine, the ice maker has been total poo poo. It's nice but certainly not worth the money. Sub-Zero only added a icemaker to their fridge fairly recently, and the early models went through some serious teething problems. I've heard the current gen has since mostly fixed those issues, but don't take my word for it.
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Mar 12, 2013 02:59
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mindphlux posted:one thing I know I'm gonna put in my next kitchen (and probably regret putting in my next kitchen) is some sort of scrap-hole in my cutting area My wife showed me a long butcher block counter that had maybe a 9" wide hole cut in it for scraps with a matching 9" round butcher block cover with just a thumb hole to pop it off and shove your scraps down in there. Jealousy.
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Mar 12, 2013 03:28
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The Midniter posted:How about a secondary, 1/3 HP disposal beneath the scrap hole? Wire up some sort of valve that would open only when the disposal is running to introduce a flow of water to let the disposal do its thing. this is actually a pretty good idea, I like it. only two negative things are A. I was hoping to compost - but I could still just compost the large stuff and scrub down the small bits into the disposal. but B. the sorts of scraps I don't already toss into my disposal aren't disposal friendly, like potato peels, etc. Still though, I think it could really work. You could even sort of slant the sides of the wood leading up to the hole to build a sort of 'micro sink' or something. and hosing down your counter would be easy as poo poo.
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Mar 12, 2013 04:37
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mindphlux posted:this is actually a pretty good idea, I like it. only two negative things are A. I was hoping to compost - but I could still just compost the large stuff and scrub down the small bits into the disposal. but B. the sorts of scraps I don't already toss into my disposal aren't disposal friendly, like potato peels, etc. Still though, I think it could really work. You could even sort of slant the sides of the wood leading up to the hole to build a sort of 'micro sink' or something. and hosing down your counter would be easy as poo poo. I've seen an in-counter composting system before: http://www.blancoamerica.com/c3/blanco_usa/_www/en/pub/products/new_products/solon.cfm    No idea how well it actually works IRL, though. Also, apparently it retails for $500 despite the fact that it looks like a bucket with a rubber gasket that fits into a holder.
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Mar 12, 2013 04:55
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Whatever you do, if you're planning your kitchen from scratch make sure to have a range hood that vents outside. Avoid above the range microwave units too--if you mount them too high they're a pain to use the microwave, and if too low they don't vent well. Also keep the refrigerator, range, and sink all within a clear triangle so you can easily move between them. I'm not sure what your budget is, but if you don't want to spend a ton Ikea makes really nice cabinets for the price. Granite tiles (big 12x12 ones) make a great countertop for not too much money too. If you shop around at tile stores you might find good tiles on clearance--I found mine for $5/sq foot so my whole countertop and backsplash was about $1k installed (a steal for granite). If you're doing a tile counter go for epoxy grout so it won't get stained and cleans easily. Tile is great for the floor too since you don't need to worry about it getting wet (although don't pick a tile that gets really slippery when wet). Darker grout is probably a smart idea unless you want to be cleaning all the time. If you bake a lot, a double oven is probably a smart idea. If your budget allows convection would be nice too. Stick with electric stoves instead of gas (gas is a wet heat that isn't as good for baking). I've never used an Advantium oven but I'd be a little leery that it's a jack of all trades and master of none. I think one of the selling points of the Advantium was that you could put in frozen food and it would thaw it with the microwave and then heat with the oven--sounds pretty gimmicky since thawing in the microwave sucks and you probably want to season, sear, etc. before heating in the oven. For a range, gas or induction would be ideal. I've stuck with Consumer Report's picks for best appliances and have never been let down yet. Don't forget to plan for plumbing to the refrigerator to use an ice maker.
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Mar 12, 2013 05:58
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mindphlux posted:one thing I know I'm gonna put in my next kitchen (and probably regret putting in my next kitchen) is some sort of scrap-hole in my cutting area. like, ideally my counter would be a giant long wooden countertop with a small hole somewhere, so I could just take a rag and clean down my surface and throw away all the scraps and poo poo in one fell swoop. right now, I kind of mop them off the side of my counter into a trash bin below, but I always end up getting poo poo on the floor that way. Get a recessed kitchen sink instead of one with a lip. That way, you can just scrape everything into the sink. Pick out the large bits and flush all the crumbs etc. down the drain or garbage disposal. My parents insisted on this with their current kitchen and it makes cleanup so much easier. They've also just replaced their glass ceramic cooktop with a 120cm wide 5-burner stove from Ikea. The center burner is brillant for a wok, and the oven is gloriously roomy. It'll hold 2 whole geese or 3 ducks for Christmas with plenty of room to spare. So yeah, get the biggest stove or burners+oven you can possibly fit in your kitchen. Running out of room for pots and pans sucks rear end, and you basically always need a bigger oven than what you've got for stuff.
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Mar 12, 2013 13:16
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Every time I cook, I despair of finding places to park the completed dishes that need to hang out for a bit, but aren't quite ready for the table. If you're eating meat, one of those times is when you rest it after cooking, but aren't done garnishing or cutting it up. As much as I've loved the very fancy kitchens I've cooked in, my father-in-law has a setup that I love very much. He has two ovens built into the wall, along with a regular stove with an oven underneath it. What I end up doing when I'm there is setting one of the wall ovens to warm, and just setting the completed dishes in there, while using the other two ovens to bake. The other thing I really love about his kitchen is that the counter tops are very large. There's a bit of space underneath the shelves that let you park appliances (food processor, blender, etc), while still keeping enough space in front of that to do your work in. If you anticipate lots of cooking, get yourself an anti fatigue mat: http://www.matsmatsmats.com/commercial-industrial/anti-fatigue/armor-fatigue-mat.html And if you can afford it, get a dual fuel setup. http://www.kitchenaid.com/flash.cmd?/#/product/KDRU783VSS/ Gas range, with electric convection ovens.
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Mar 12, 2013 14:15
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mindphlux posted:one thing I know I'm gonna put in my next kitchen (and probably regret putting in my next kitchen) is some sort of scrap-hole in my cutting area. like, ideally my counter would be a giant long wooden countertop with a small hole somewhere, so I could just take a rag and clean down my surface and throw away all the scraps and poo poo in one fell swoop. right now, I kind of mop them off the side of my counter into a trash bin below, but I always end up getting poo poo on the floor that way. My sister bought my mother something similar to this:  http://www.amazon.com/Kitchen-Art-18530-Scrap-Trap/dp/B001UUGWMY Only hers is a smaller floppy green silicone thing and we line it with supermarket produce bags for easy cleanup. Easily moved to where you are and the produce bags make clean-up easy. This might be it: http://www.vine.com/p/full-circle-scrap-happy-scrap-green-collector-and-freezer-compost-bin-green-587442
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Mar 12, 2013 16:01
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I've been following this thread, but I can't remember if it came up. Is there a honing steel that's good value for money? Does it even really matter what kind I get, as long as it's not a crappy "sharpener"? I have some ok knives, a couple of henckels, a cutco and a couple of victorinox.
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Mar 12, 2013 19:52
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I'd say to go for a ceramic rod; if you ever get knives with harder steels you won't have to worry about your hone being too soft. I've used both metal and ceramic hones and definitely prefer the results from the ceramic ones. This one by Idahone gets recommended a lot. Some people complain about ceramics breaking but I use mine every day at work at a restaurant, am somewhat prone to dropping things, and it hasn't broken on me yet.
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Mar 12, 2013 20:18
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In reply to kitchen chat: * I would second the under-mounted sink, and add a tall flexible gooseneck faucet (like in a restaurant dish pit). That is something I love in my kitchen and always miss when I do anything in kitchens at other peoples houses and need to clean up. * I'll also second a powerful vent hood that vents outside. * We have an undercounter microwave and I would never trade it for cabinet space. The counter space is much more important! Also, I can't understand the over range ones - who wants to pull out a hot bowl of something at eye-level?? * I really like our pull-out trash bins. We have a two bins - one for trash, and one for recyclables (we don't separate here) and it keeps them hidden while still easily accessible. * Lastly, I would recommend the simplest range you can find. I have a 6 burner Bluestar and it is just a big box of fire. Big enough to fit a full sheet pan in the oven. No clock, no timers, no probes, nothing really to fail. It just makes fire. You may already have or will probably get better/higher quality stand alone gadgets to do all those extra things. And if they don't work, your ability to use the cook top or oven will not be affected.
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Mar 13, 2013 21:32
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Does anyone have a recommendation for a digital kitchen scale? This one seems to have excellent reviews and it's only $25 plus free Prime shipping, and it goes down to 1 gram. I'm looking to start making my own bread and want to do it right and go by weight, not volume. Thoughts? EDIT: Welp, shortly after I posted this I got a Groupon for this model and pulled the trigger. Reviews seem pretty favorable. Let's hope it works out! The Midniter fucked around with this message at 20:42 on Mar 15, 2013 |
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Mar 15, 2013 18:58
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