Useful vs. Useless Small Kitchen Appliances

Over the last twenty years or so, advances in technology have contributed to an explosion of small kitchen appliances. Some of these are very good ideas, time-saving and convenient. However, some are just silly and take up valuable counter and storage space. As frivolous as some of these things are, you would be surprised at how many people have them in their homes. Here's a look at the ones that can make your life easier and the ones that you can lose.

Useful small kitchen appliances

One of the most useful small kitchen appliances is a toaster. Although you could conceivably make toast in an oven, it is much more efficient to use a toaster. If you drink coffee, than another useful product is a coffee-maker. A small counter-top grill is also a useful tool, especially for grilling in the winter or for small families. It also makes grilling, which is much healthier than say, frying, a lot more convenient, which can encourage better eating habits. If you have small children, a waffle maker is a fun thing to have. It is not technically necessary, but the cost of store-bought waffles adds up if you have to buy a lot of them. One last product that is very useful is an electric hand mixer, especially if you do a lot of baking. The amount of time it takes to make a meringue with an electric mixer is nothing compared to how long it takes with a manual mixer.

Useless small kitchen appliances

For as many useful kitchen appliances as there are, there are twice as many useless ones. Many of these are more novelty-type items rather than functional, time-saving devices. All of these appliances you could toss (maybe take to Goodwill) to free up some counter and/or cabinet space. The first useless gadget is a Sno-Cone maker. I actually have one of these and we've used it twice in three years. Fortunately, it was a gift, so I didn't waste my money. Besides, who wants to eat shaved ice in the middle of winter? And in the summer, you can get them from an ice-cream truck for $1.00. Another useless item is a deep-fryer. You really shouldn't be eating fried foods often enough to require an actual appliance for this. In the last 15 or so years, popcorn poppers have fallen into the useless category as well. There are countless varieties of microwave popcorns and even the old stand-by, Jiffy-Pop stovetop popcorn. A popcorn popper really is just another thing to clutter up your cabinets. Hope this gets you started on clearing out your cabinets!