A decent chef can work wonders with basic culinary tools. Having the right cookware, cutting boards, and knives can definitely help. But what about those goofy kitchen gadgets you bought on impulse and only used once? Maybe it serves one specific purpose or you only use it during the holidays. Either way, many kitchen gadgets are unnecessary.
Before you buy another pair of onion goggles, let’s explore the top ten kitchen gadgets that never should have been invented. Hopefully, this list can save you money and drawer space in your kitchen.
10. Pickle Fork
Everybody wants to avoid smelly pickle juice, right? Or maybe you hate sharing a communal pickle jar and don’t want to stick your fingers into a jar that others will be grabbing from. While most people would grab a regular fork to jab into a pickle, some spend $5-$10 on a pickle fork.
Some may find a pickle fork amusing, others will find it practical. Skip it and use a regular fork to spear your pickle. Avoid your “needed” pickle fork being stuffed into a junk drawer, collecting dust.
9. PB&J Spreader
PB&J’s, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, are a lunchtime favorite for many. Apparently, enough people complained about the assembly process to have a PB&J Spreader invented. Many PB&J Spreaders promote sturdy handles, long blades, and features that scrape every last bit of peanut butter out of a jar.
Instead of buying a PB&J Spreader, grab your trusty kitchen knife to do the same work and save your money! Better yet, to scrape all the peanut butter out of the jar, reach for a kitchen spatula. While you may need to use two kitchen tools, you will save money and drawer space.
8. Banana Slicer
The banana slicer is another kitchen gadget that just doesn’t make sense. Why spend money on this tool when you have a butter knife? It makes economic sense to save money and use what you have. The only benefit to the banana slicer is the equal uniform cuts it makes. A special dessert or dish may call for these equal slices.
Despite the one benefit, most banana slicers only allow you to slice small portions of the banana at a time. By the time it takes you to peel the banana and begin cutting bit by bit, you could have cut the whole banana using a knife and cutting board.
7. Egg Slicer
Let’s add another cutting tool to our list. The egg slicer seems convenient when you need sliced eggs for a cobb salad, but again, use a knife. When eating eggs, a person will bite into a hard-boiled egg or cut it in half—there is very little need for a gadget geared toward cutting a soft egg.
The egg slicer can create equal shaped cuts with food. While many at-home chefs boast that the egg slicer can cut more than just soft eggs, we don’t see the need when you have knives readily available. And with practice, you can cut food equally in size and shape.
6. Hands-Free Bag Holder
This kitchen gadget will cost you more than $20. The bag holder keeps your plastic bags open and in place while you fill them. Many people who meal prep or make freezer meals find the hands-free bag holder ideal when working in large batches. But we think you should save your money and buy more plastic bags for your snacks.
Hands-free bag holders had to make the list. Many sandwich bags are made with flat bottoms, so you can set the bag on the counter while filling it with food. If you are worried about making a mess, open the bag and roll the top over itself, creating a cleaner fill. Holding the bag with one hand while filling it is easy, and free!
5. Bear Paw Meat Shredder
Don’t spend money on a set of Bear Paw Meat Shredders when you have perfectly good forks sitting in your utensil drawer. You’ll only need two forks to dig into your cooked meat. Using the forks, pull the meat apart in different directions. If your meat is soft enough, the forks will easily shred the meat.
Many BBQ cookers will use meat shredders due to their durability and ease of use when shredding large quantities of meat. Despite the love from BBQ cookers, meat shredders will only take up precious kitchen drawer space. While they look appealing and easy to use, their function can be completed with items you already have.
4. Butter Dispenser
Butter dispensers are not practical, no matter how you slice it.
Working as a large syringe, the butter is pushed out onto your desired food. You will have to take the butter out of its original packaging to use the product. Spreading butter on your food is easy with a knife or even a spatula if you are baking and using large quantities of butter.
Many chefs find that washing the butter dispenser is the biggest downfall of this time-wasting kitchen gadget. The syringe gets discarded or shoved to the back of your kitchen cabinet. Save yourself the cleaning hassle and just spread your butter with a knife from its container or use your trusty butter dish.
3. Egg and Bread Toaster
If you need to save on kitchen counter space, this device isn’t going to help you. This Egg and Bread Toaster is larger than your average toaster. You’ll also need to part with a cool $50 to purchase one. The toaster has large wide slots that will toast your pieces of bread. At the same time, the end of the gadget has a spot to cook an egg simultaneously.
While the gadget does cook two things at once, users report inconsistencies in cooking temperatures. Also, if you have a big family, you will be spending all morning standing at the egg and bread toaster since it can only cook one egg at a time, which isn’t ideal on busy mornings.
Use a conventional toaster and stovetop instead to cook your morning breakfast. You’ll have more control over your food’s temperature, and you will save counter space by avoiding another bulky appliance.
2. Tuna Squish
The Tuna Squish gadget helps to remove water from canned tuna. And for $20 per gadget, it feels like a rip-off. If you’ve experienced opening a can of tuna, you know how to remove the excess water. You only need to press down on the tuna using the lid, then remove the cover and throw it away. It’s not rocket science.
While many users swear by the device to avoid smelling like tuna from touching the water, we can’t get behind a product with no other use, except maybe opening a can of cat food.
1. Jenaluca Herb Scissors
The Jenaluca Herb Scissors function like a regular pair of scissors but with specialized functions. These scissors easily cut herbs using five blades or more, depending on the brand of herb scissors you purchase. The multi-blades allow for precise small cuts of herbs at a fast pace.
Regular kitchen scissors can also cut herbs; they only have the two blades that accomplish the same task. You’ll find the herb scissors to be a waste of kitchen space and money. $15 is a lot with only the guarantee to save tiny bits of time slicing herbs. The scissors are bulkier than regular kitchen scissors due to the multiple blades. If you purchase these, they’ll take up more space in your kitchen than a standard pair of kitchen scissors and only serve one purpose.
So, before you splurge on the latest kitchen gadget, think twice! Many of these tools are just a waste of money and space. Stick to the basics, and you’ll be just fine.
What’s the most useless kitchen gadget you’ve ever bought? Leave your comment below!
