If you could have one professional cooking appliance...

[Andy M.]

Agreed! Except for the deli slicer. They're evil and want to kill me.

That's your fantasy, not mine.

 

[DampCharcoal]

Funny, I never got hurt on a deli slicer...the lettuce shredder and potato cutter and the deep fryer were my nemeses. And the band saw in shop class...

Do your friends call you "8 Fingers?"

I'm lucky mine don't!

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I already have most of the stuff listed here; deli slicer, mandoline, juicer, deep fryer, etc. I probably could use a double oven stove, but only for holiday cooking. Salamander? I'd rather have a cameleon. They take up just as much room, but you hardly notice them.

 

[DampCharcoal]

That's your fantasy, not mine.

Don't have much of a sense of humor, do you?

 

[HistoricFoodie]

Professional grade or not, I often wonder why a slicer is on so many people's wish list. Personally, I see no use for one in a home kitchen.

My father had one. All it did is take up space. He probably used it as much as twice a year.

So, could somebody explain it to me?

 

[FrankZ]

For me it would have to be a stove. The heart of cooking... Everything else seems to be secondary to getting the food cooked. And you can get em with a salamander built right in, though I am not sure I want one. Looks like a good way to overcook a steak.

 

[DampCharcoal]

Professional grade or not, I often wonder why a slicer is on so many people's wish list. Personally, I see no use for one in a home kitchen.

My father had one. All it did is take up space. He probably used it as much as twice a year.

So, could somebody explain it to me?

Well, they are nice because you can slice just about anything (meats AND vegetables) from razor thin to an inch or more thick, accurately.

That's fine for a commercial application but just not practical for home use.

 

[gadzooks]

The stove we had in the Vets' House when I was in college. Six burner Wolf with a raised griddle, broiler underneath the griddle, warming shelf and two ovens that would (and did) accommodate a pair of forty pound steamship rounds.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Do your friends call you "8 Fingers?"

I'm lucky mine don't!

I took the very tip of my middle finger on the left off...no bone involved. Never felt it, until the school nurse put Merthiolate on it. Now, it still has no feeling and I never put Merthiolate, or anything that will really sting, on the wounds of my patients.

I never did get a cool nickname...

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I already have most of the stuff listed here; deli slicer, mandoline, juicer, deep fryer, etc. I probably could use a double oven stove, but only for holiday cooking. Salamander? I'd rather have a cameleon. They take up just as much room, but you hardly notice them.

N-O-T allowed to do that when I'm drinking coffee....I not only got the computer, but I got Shrek from across the room...

 

[HistoricFoodie]

That's fine for a commercial application but just not practical for home use.

That's exactly my feeling, DC.

I used one when I was cooking professionally, and recognize it's usefullness in that kind of environment. But I can't imagine it being a benefit in the home kitchen.

In the home kitchen, given the quantities involved, there's not much I can't do with either my knives or mandoline.

But many people do have/want them. So I figure there must be some sort of benefit that I'm missing???

 

[Somebunny]

We received a meat slicer as a wedding gift 25 years ago. I can honestly say that it was used maybe 4-5 times in the first couple of years and has just been taking up shelf space since then. It's just not something I use often for two people. I think I might get some use out of a salamander tho

 

[PrincessFiona60]

That's fine for a commercial application but just not practical for home use.

That's exactly my feeling, DC.

I used one when I was cooking professionally, and recognize it's usefullness in that kind of environment. But I can't imagine it being a benefit in the home kitchen.

In the home kitchen, given the quantities involved, there's not much I can't do with either my knives or mandoline.

But many people do have/want them. So I figure there must be some sort of benefit that I'm missing???

I shop at Costco...I like to buy the whole hunks of lunchmeats, cheeses and slice them myself. I can set it up, dial in the slice and let her rip. Also the Biannual clan meetings would go alot quicker in the food prep area. I also do lunches for work at times, a deli slicer would kick butt! Cooking for 200 is quite the undertaking.

 

[LPBeier]

Professional grade or not, I often wonder why a slicer is on so many people's wish list. Personally, I see no use for one in a home kitchen.

My father had one. All it did is take up space. He probably used it as much as twice a year.

So, could somebody explain it to me?

I actually have one from my catering business and I use it at home now all the time.

I buy whole salamis, roasts, chicken breasts, etc. and slice them for deli meats for DH's lunches. Even the deli meats (beef, pork, chicken) have additives he can't have and this way I cook them from scratch and get a nice thin slice.

I also use it for onions when making French onion soup, salads, pizza toppings, sugar cookie dough and on one occasion even used it to slice fondant evenly for decorations on cupcakes (I made a tube, refrigerated it and then sliced - I still cut the actual round out of each piece, but they were nice and flat and thin!).

 

[4meandthem]

I would say wood fired oven but there are too many days when it is illegal to one around here. (Bay Area air quality mgmnt)

A salamander would be next choice.

 

[Claire]

Mom had (and probably still does) a meat/cheese slicer; not pro quality, but we used it a lot. It was heavy metal of some kind on a heavy wooden base, and she used it a lot. But we were a large family and she did buy meats and cheeses in bulk, then slice them thin herself. I bought what I though was the same thing once but it was made with flimsy materials and was a danger to fingers.

For two people with an average size kitchen, don't see the need for "professional" kitchen equipment. In order to own any of it, I'd also have to wish for an entire new kitchen. Just the though of that much renovation makes me nervous, and I'm not a nervous person! I will say I do have a "pro" Bron mandolin, for much the same reason I wanted the slicer for many moons ago. Thin, uniform slices -- and, mostly, for julienned vegetables, without fingers coming off, which happened when I bought the plastic affairs. I understand they've improved over the years, but when I had them, they'd slide all over the place and be a pain. I find the finger guards for any of the above very clumsy to work with, and found a metal mesh glove and really enjoy it, for both the mandolin and the old-style knuckle scrapers.

My mandolin is about 8 years old, and it doesn't seem as sharp as it used to be. I wonder if they can be sharpened? Anyone know? It just occurred to me, I'll have to post this elsewhere.

 

[gadzooks]

I have a Bron mandoline, older probably than yours. It is nickel plate rather than stainless steel, and yes, the blade can be removed and sharpened. I also have a plastic Borner V slicer, nearly as old, I think, that is still sharp enough to use. The angled blade seems to work better than perpendicular.

 

[taxlady]

Professional grade or not, I often wonder why a slicer is on so many people's wish list. Personally, I see no use for one in a home kitchen.

My father had one. All it did is take up space. He probably used it as much as twice a year.

So, could somebody explain it to me?

When I lived in Denmark we had a hand crank slicer - not as scary as motorized. We used it all the time, even when it was just me and my mom. I'll admit we used it mostly for slicing heavy rye bread into 2 mm thick slices.

I make Danish cold cuts and roasts make great cold cuts as does homemade corned beef. Like LPBeier, I don't like the amounts of additives found in commercial cold cuts. This would all be easier with a slicer. It's also important to have pretty slices when making Danish "open-face sandwiches".

I have that slicer, but it is missing a part. If I can find someone to machine it for me, I will be very happy.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I'd be happy to have the typical home gourmet kitchen, including an island. I think I might prefer to have the sink in a separate counter, facing a greenhouse type window so I can enjoy watching outdoors as I wash stuff. I'd be happy to try both that and the in the island sink and decide which is better. I've never had an island at all. And lots of counter space, besides the island. You can't have too much counter space, can you? And lots of cabinet space to store pots and pans and all that other stuff. (Skip the rack, I'm not good at cleaning and if I had a rack my pans would always be covered with dusty grease, or greasy dust.)

A double oven sounds nice. Viking stove sounds nice too. I've seen 'em in stores.. I'd be happy with 4 burners or maybe with 4 and a griddle. Convection ovens are not unusual in homes but I hear some commercial ovens have steam injection. Is that good?

I'd like a walk in pantry please, and a side-by-side refrigerator too! And a deep freeze, but not in the kitchen. Garage is okay for that.

Sorry if I violated the concept of the topic. All my wants are in terms of a nicer kitchen, not a gadget. If just one appliance, then probably a heavy duty mixer suitable for bread making. ... But I'll still take the over-and-under oven and the side-by-side refrigerator!

And no way do I want one of those slicers. I have 10--count 'em--10 fingers (if you can count thumbs) and I want to keep them all. I'll be just as happy to use a big honkin' knife to satisfy my limited slicing needs. A hand mandolin satisfies the rest of my slicing needs, along with my food processor.

 

[Siegal]

This is more of a tool then an appliance but I bought a 24 quart pot at the restaurant supply b/c I never had a pot big enough to make stock. I am using it right now....