There's a gadget for every job - some will revolutionize your cooking experience, and some are the culinary equivalent of a fluffy novelty hat. Whether it's too big, too hard to wash, too fiddly or too involved for simple tasks, these forgotten pieces of kitchen kit soon get pushed to the back of a cupboard or clutter the counters, and will inspire more than a little buyer's remorse. Read our list to learn which are a waste of money and which you might still regret.
Turkey baster
The idea behind a turkey baster is to give the skin the appearance of moisture and to keep the turkey as moist as can be. Turkey basters actually can be something of a wasted space in the kitchen drawer if you don’t utilize them frequently. If you’re like many of the population that doesn’t make a turkey at more than one sitting a year, the better way to ensure tender turkey skin and flesh would probably be to brine and salt your bird first.
Pasta measurer
Portion control is definitely one aspect to consider for a healthy eating plan and is also another excellent way of avoiding waste. If you invariably serve yourself up far too much pasta, then you may find that a measuring tool appears like a clever purchase – but is it worth the cash and storage room for just the one function? Save the money and skip this rather insignificant kitchen gadget that can very easily become misplaced and opt to use kitchen scales, which can be useful for measuring far more than just pasta.
Taco holder
Making your own tacos at home offers a convivial activity - they're messy, pick-up-and-put-it-all-together-at-the-table-and-stuff-your-face kinds of meals. A taco holder doesn't lend itself to that - you're arranging it all nicely, before it even gets to the table from the kitchen. If you're not looking for restaurant quality then this gadget is kind of redundant.
Honey dipper
They just look amazing and make the honey look sexy in advertisements dripping from it, but is there a reason you should actually own one? A honey dipper, unless you’re looking to wow friends who are over, is just one more kitchen gadget you will hardly ever use. There is absolutely no point in having one when a normal spoon will work perfectly just as well (and will serve more than one purpose too).
Microwave egg poacher
Poached eggs aren’t the most straightforward. This doesn’t mean you should use your microwave egg poacher and create something hard and rubbery though! Try out this easy technique for the most perfect poached eggs. Line a bowl with cling film, lightly oil the film, then carefully crack an egg into it. Pull up the sides of the cling film and twist together tightly to seal the egg up inside a packet. Gently lower the packet into boiling water and poach for 3-6 minutes depending on egg size and doneness preferred. Once you poach them, remove them from boiling water, wait a minute to cool, then cut open the cling film to reveal your egg!
Garlic crusher
Garlic crushers look like a clever, gadgety buy, but for the most part, they're a bit of an unnecessary chore. Bits of garlic stick into all the cracks and corners, meaning they are awful to clean, and you waste a bit of your ingredient as well. Use the flat side of a knife to crush, then the sharp bit to chop. Simple.
Coffee grinder
Countless coffee lovers have gone through a phase when all can be wanted, from roasting and grinding the beans to frothing the milk. If you’re really dedicated, a bean grinder (electric or manual) can come in handy. However, if the appeal of grinding your own coffee is lost, another abandoned gadget will soon be ended up with, taking up space.
Electric knife sharpener
A good pair of knives requires the ability to sharpen, so one way or another you’ll need some form of sharpening gadget. But you can skip the high-powered electric contraption, saving yourself hundreds of dollars in the process, and grab yourself a perfectly fine manual sharpener instead. While electric knife sharpeners may seem ideal for those who have never sharpened a knife before, they only require a minimal learning curve to make them work as well, or even better, than their electric counterparts.
Electric juicer
Fruit juices have long been held up as a good way to get your five a day. And in the opinion of health food fans, fruit juice reigns supreme in the quest for vitamins and minerals. But the truth is juicing may not be the healthiest habit that you practice. If you do juice, you strip away fiber in your fruit and vegetables, which then leads to sugar being released more rapidly because it is no longer contained inside plant cells.
FAQ's
1. What is the single most regretted kitchen gadget of all time?
The Unitasker—specifically gadgets designed for only one hyper-specific job, like banana slicers, avocado pitters, or egg separators. They take up drawer space to do a job a basic chef’s knife or spoon already does faster and with less cleanup.
2. Why do people regret buying Spiralizers and Mandolines?
Cleaning and safety. Spiralizers are notoriously annoying to scrub clean of lingering veggie fibers, and zoodles quickly lost their trend status. Mandolines, while fast, frequently cause finger injuries if used without safety guards and are terrifying to hand-wash.
3. Are specialized appliances like Ice Cream Makers worth it?
For most people, no. They are bulky, require freezing a large bowl 24 hours in advance, generate high noise levels, and usually yield just a small batch of ice cream—leading most owners to stash them in a closet after two or three uses.
4. Why are Quesadilla Makers and Sandwich Presses so heavily disliked?
They lack versatility and create unnecessary cleanup. Standard non-stick frying pans make crisper quesadilla edges and grilled cheese sandwiches just as fast, without requiring extra counter space or non-removable plates that are painful to wipe down.
5. What makes Garlic Presses end up in the regret pile?
Maintenance frustration. While they save a few seconds on chopping, digging tiny bits of crushed garlic out of the pinholes requires tedious picking and scrubbing. Most home cooks eventually return to standard knife techniques.
