Puzzling kitchen-gadgets gifts?
December 7, 2015 8:11 AM   Subscribe

My mother-in-law likes to give (and get) stocking stuffers of obscure kitchen items, which the recipient then needs to identify. Past items include those square hard-boiled egg thingies, pineapple corers, garlic-peeling tubes, and finger protectors to wear while slicing tomatoes. Suggestions for what I could give her?

I'm repeating my question from seven years ago, in the hopes that exciting new gadgets have been invented.
posted by The corpse in the library to Home & Garden (61 answers total) 32 users marked this as a favorite
 
A fish scaler?
posted by Gilbert at 8:16 AM on December 7, 2015


Might I suggest a spurtle.
posted by bondcliff at 8:19 AM on December 7, 2015 [11 favorites]


Tupperware always had cool things like this as hostess gifts. A lemon zester, boiled egg lifter, all kinds of weird, wonderful things.

Perhaps you could have a Tupperware party! I went to one eons ago and it was a blast. It was slightly dirty, but we all ended up buying useful items that last a lifetime. They might have new thingies to amaze your MIL with!
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 8:21 AM on December 7, 2015




The Guardian has a column full of these, written by the adorable Rhik Samadder. They're worth reading just for the lolz even if you don't end up buying any of them.
posted by greenish at 8:23 AM on December 7, 2015 [20 favorites]


An avocado slicer.
posted by cotterpin at 8:23 AM on December 7, 2015


Sushi maker/bazooka/other gadget?

Actually there's a whole site of them and wow a lot seem useful. A cookie dough pusher!
posted by jeather at 8:24 AM on December 7, 2015


A cupcake corer!
posted by charmcityblues at 8:25 AM on December 7, 2015 [5 favorites]


Banana Slicer! (Read the hilarious reviews)
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 8:26 AM on December 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


Egg Master, obvs. Previously.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:27 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


A Golden Goose, a spinny thing for scrambling eggs inside their shells.
posted by metaBugs at 8:27 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


If you get your order in before midnight tonight, you could have one of these

Flower Pot Tea Infuser

Or depending on the recipient's sense of humour, some of Lakeland's other bizarre offerings.
posted by emilyw at 8:28 AM on December 7, 2015


The iron fish?
posted by mattamatic at 8:29 AM on December 7, 2015 [9 favorites]


Cob-corn holders.

Unwrap them and take them out of the package.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 8:29 AM on December 7, 2015


A walk down the kitchen aisle in an asian market will give you lots of ideas....containers/dividers that fit into the bento box, bento box cutters and molds. Those vietnamese coffee makers. Terra cotta sugar bear
posted by tipsyBumblebee at 8:32 AM on December 7, 2015


I've always been fascinated by grape scissors. Scissors specifically for cutting stems off grapes. really.
posted by kariebookish at 8:33 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Unclutterer's Unitasker Wednesday was made for this question! A search for "kitchen unitasker" is like a gift that keeps on giving. Scallion cutter! Things to hold your butter while you rub it on your corn! Unicorn-shaped sprinkle dispenser! A plastic truck-shaped object that does nothing except hold up your tacos! An electric butter-melting spreading knife for toast!
posted by spelunkingplato at 8:35 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Lakeland Plastics should be a rich source of these
posted by runincircles at 8:35 AM on December 7, 2015


Bento making supplies will send you down an excellent rabbit hole. Food picks! Adorable hard boiled egg molds! Furikake stencil! Nori puncher! Teeny individually-sized sauce bottles! Onigiri maker! Or just a straight up bento box.
posted by tchemgrrl at 8:35 AM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


Yolk Extractor?

Stem-ware Savers?
posted by jacquilynne at 8:35 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Not sure how well they're known outside of my native New England, but this scary device is an apple peeler/corer.
posted by General Malaise at 8:43 AM on December 7, 2015


Carrot sharpener
posted by plastic_animals at 8:50 AM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


Oh my lord, the food huggers in emilyw's link are so perfect. I would never purchase one, but I would totally use them if someone gave them to me...
posted by widdershins at 8:53 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


She might already have a pie vent or two, but they can be fun to collect. Dragons aren't normally my thing, but this one is kind of adorable.
posted by tully_monster at 8:54 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Maybe one of my favorite tools, a strawberry huller. Also mysterious until you know - an apple corer.
posted by bearwife at 8:57 AM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


This jar opener from Lee Valley Tools is puzzling to look at but actually very useful--a winning combination.

Also from Lee Valley, the bizarre silicone egg separator.
posted by booky at 8:59 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Judging by a question I saw on here this year, a spaetzle maker is difficult to recognize if you don't already know what it does.
posted by wnissen at 9:01 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Kiwi cutter
posted by gatorae at 9:09 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


If you look at "Customers Who Viewed This Item Also Viewed" for the Kiwi cutter, there are apparently countless bizarre kiwi accessories. Who knew?
posted by gatorae at 9:11 AM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


A butter curler? Asparagus tongs?
posted by kmennie at 9:13 AM on December 7, 2015


An old-fashioned donut cutter is one of the most mysterious things I ever found in a thrift store.
posted by aimedwander at 9:21 AM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


Larding needles are the most obscure kitchen items I can think of. Google to see other examples.
posted by X4ster at 9:25 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


i don't know if this will work or not, but many people who visit us don't seem to know what these things are. and they're actually really useful if you have a gas stove - you can use them for warming / toasting bread, but also to lower and spread the heat when simmering something. i've even ended up taking a few to the uk as presents (although when we last lived there we did find them for sale in leicester market, so they can't be that unknown).

(i imagine they're called "stove top toasters" or similar. the nicest ones are round with wooden handles.)
posted by andrewcooke at 9:25 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


A Japanese rice strainer (bonus: it's adorable *and* useful)
posted by Gortuk at 9:32 AM on December 7, 2015


Mexican hot chocolate mixer. Another here.
Finger fork (maybe not puzzling enough).
Penguin Tea Timer.
The SensorFreshQ (Should be called the Can I Eat This?)
Excellent question!
posted by Beti at 9:37 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


peanut butter stirrer
posted by cda at 9:46 AM on December 7, 2015


Mango Corer

And, kinda pricey and large for a stocking stuffer, but Juicy Salif?
posted by Confess, Fletch at 10:02 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]




The Good Cook bladeless can opener works great once you know how to use it. Most people pick it up, try a few times, and then ask for help from an initiate into the mystery.
posted by alms at 10:53 AM on December 7, 2015


Spiral cucumber slicer. It's so single purpose that I don't know what the purpose is!
posted by maryr at 10:57 AM on December 7, 2015


My grandfather and father wouldn't eat corn until they'd used one of these.

And then they'd butter their corn using one of these.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 11:19 AM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


This one has instructions printed on it, but quite honestly, I've bought these for friends because they're so handy to have around: multi-use can/bottle/jar opener
posted by janey47 at 11:20 AM on December 7, 2015


Spiral cucumber slicer. It's so single purpose that I don't know what the purpose is!

That clearly has more than one use, because it's called a cucumber slicer and yet the photos clearly depict the slicing of zucchini.
posted by jacquilynne at 11:26 AM on December 7, 2015


Maybe the Monkey Business Lid Sid Pot Steam Vent?

This is for serving rather than prep, but I'm fond of the Kipik Hedgehog Toothpick Holder.
posted by gudrun at 11:28 AM on December 7, 2015


Parsley grater
posted by kamikazegopher at 11:29 AM on December 7, 2015


It's not technically a kitchen tool, but a grout mixer like this is great for stirring up separated peanut butter or tahini. Just chuck it into your power drill and go to town!
posted by contraption at 1:25 PM on December 7, 2015


How about a Butter Bay butter dish?

And, I once had a trained chef ask me what this flour duster was for. (I never used it for flour, just for powdered sugar though.)
posted by SLC Mom at 1:37 PM on December 7, 2015




If you do get a fish scaler, get this one. http://www.cabelas.com/product/magic-fish-scaler/700478.uts Not only does it look different from all others I've ever used, but it is actually way better than any others I've used. Far fewer scales found in random places over the next month...
posted by advicepig at 2:20 PM on December 7, 2015


Those color changing egg timers are really neat and gimmicky, and actually kinda useful if you like soft/medium boiled eggs.
posted by MoTLD at 4:09 PM on December 7, 2015


falafel scoop?
posted by sabh at 5:00 PM on December 7, 2015


They have these on sale now at Bed Bath and Beyond. They are graters you use like a pencil sharpener to make pasta from zucchini or yellow squash. You can also spaghetti out other vegetables for salads, maybe cucumbers.
posted by Oyéah at 5:16 PM on December 7, 2015


I've given one of these balancy wine bottle holder thingies as a mystery 'work-it-out' type gift before.
posted by quinndexter at 6:03 PM on December 7, 2015


Someone today just recommended to me the Loose Leaf.
posted by ClaudiaCenter at 7:42 PM on December 7, 2015


Otoshibuta? (Photo of use about halfway down the page)
posted by ctmf at 8:09 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


I have a Tovolo batter tool and I absolutely love it.
posted by zorseshoes at 9:45 PM on December 7, 2015


Oh, I didn't read carefully enough. I guess that tool's not baffling (but it is useful as heck). Never mind.
posted by zorseshoes at 9:50 PM on December 7, 2015


A wine aerator
posted by esto-again at 1:52 AM on December 8, 2015


Pickled onion fork
posted by like_neon at 4:15 AM on December 8, 2015


Soft boiled egg top cutter.
posted by aaanastasia at 4:33 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]


Not exactly a kitchen implement unless you have a tree within reach of the window, but mrs_goldfish was once defeated by her mother-in-law's gift of wooden spiles.

Another year she received a teabag presser. It's not obscure so much as multifunctional. I particularly like it for moving sauerkraut from its wet home to a sandwich, so as to minimize sog.

And one year there was something red, probably for chopping things, that even mrs_goldfish's mother-in-law couldn't figure out what the heck it was.
posted by feral_goldfish at 6:31 PM on January 30, 2016


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