Splurge-worthy smart kitchen gadgets | Pro Well Tech
While it’s always fun to score a bargain or to get something you really covet on sale, there are times when a gadget or appliance is simply worth the splurge. We review a lot of kitchen tech, appliances, and accessories and these are the ones that have earned a place in our kitchens. Consider them an investment.
Erika Rawes/Pro Well Tech
Anova Nano
Master sous vide cooking
Pros
Compact size
Touchscreen display/controls on the device
Sleek design
Durable construction
App control
Cons
Lacks Wi-Fi connectivity
Clamp is small
Tends to sit too high on the pot, requiring higher water
Anova Nano is a free-standing sous-vide cooker that can be placed in any pot, pan, or basin. It plugs into the wall and can be controlled via an app. The Nano will heat water to a specified temperature and hold it there for hours, meaning it’s impossible to overcook something. Sous vide cooking ensures your food holds at the optimum temperature so you can make the perfect steak (or a number of other foods) every time.
Anova Nano
Master sous vide cooking
Tineco Toasty One
Smart toaster is surprisingly helpful
Pros
Cooks two pieces to different crispiness
Color touch screen
Perfect results
Cons
Expensive
A bit bigger than average toaster
Tineco’s Toasty One is a smart toaster that detects your bread and adjusts the heat to ensure it comes out perfectly every time. You can even make two pieces of toast at the same time with completely different doneness levels. It has a touchscreen, so you can choose the exact shade of toast you want. It’s not cheap, but it will be a gadget that dazzles your houseguests.
Tineco Toasty One
Smart toaster is surprisingly helpful
Cuisinart EvolutionX hand beater
Cordless appliances in the kitchen makes sense
Pros
No wires
Use anywhere
Great for RVs and camping
Cons
Not as powerful as corded models
For those on the move, Cuisinart’s Evolution X is a hand-held blender with several different heads for immersion blending, whipping, and even drink frothing. It’s perfect for moving around in the kitchen. Since you don’t need to be tied to a wall outlet, you can mix up batter or quiche anywhere: on the stovetop, or even the dining table. Even if you already have a handheld blender, there are all kinds of reasons why a cordless version comes in handy, particularly for campers and those who own RVs.
Cuisinart EvolutionX hand beater
Cordless appliances in the kitchen makes sense
Amazon Smart Soap Dispenser
Touchless is the future!
Pros
Compact
Touchless; no germs
Nice design
Cons
Might be bulky for some homes/sinks
A couple of years ago this might have seemed like a silly splurge, but these days it’s a wise investment. Any time we can eliminate touch points we’re avoiding contact with any kind of germs, whether that’s COVID or salmonella. Amazon’s Smart Soap Dispenser is an excellent idea for those with kids or for people who like cleanliness. You can control how much soap it dispenses by how far you place your hands under the spout, and it lights up for 20 seconds (the recommended washing time). You can also use it with your Alexa routines and have it play music.
Amazon Smart Soap Dispenser
Touchless is the future!
Looft Lighter X
A wire-free way to fire up your grill
Pros
No chemical-way to start fires
Rechargeable
Resuable
Acts as a bellows to stoke fire too
The rechargeable cordless Looft Lighter X is worth a look if you use a charcoal grill. It’s a unique tool made to both spark up your charcoal fire, and do double duty as a bellows to provide all important oxygen to your grill. Just click it on, touch it to the charcoal, and when the charcoal sparks or begins to glow, you pull the lighter back to provide a wider area of heat and lots of airflow. Within a minute, your charcoal is lit, and you’re off to the races.
Looft Lighter X
A wire-free way to fire up your grill
Thermomix TM6
All in one kitchen robot
Pros
20 different cooking functions in one device
Easy to use
Thousands of recipes available
Nice big screen
Automated cooking modes in addition to recipes
Self-cleaning
Cons
Pricey
Yearly Cookidoo recipe subscription required
The Thermomix TM6 is an all-in-one cooking device; it’s a blender, food processor, cooking pot, rice maker, whip, and steamer. In fact, you can cook an entire meal simultaneously, with the protein grilling above your steamed veggies. It also sous-vides, slow cooks, and even emulsifies. It’s quite pricey, but if you consider that it replaces about a dozen other appliances and gadgets, you’ll be pretty excited to give it a try. Oh, and this “kitchen robot” is all the rage across Europe.
Thermomix TM6
All in one kitchen robot
U by Moen smart faucet
Talk to your tap
Pros
Delivers precise water temperatures
Accurate measurements
Voice control works great
Nice design in many styles
Battery power or AC
Can be DIY-installed
Versatile: Sse handle, motion or voice
Cons
Require substantial initial set up
Some may be intimidated by installation
You might think it’s a bit decadent to talk to your tap, but hear us out. U by Moen is a smart faucet that can deliver a precise amount of water on voice command and can be activated by hand movement. It has a setting for wand washing that will keep the faucet running for 20 seconds, pause while you soap up, and continue. Plus, with the ability to set presets to fill your coffee pot or the dog dish, it means no wasted water.
U by Moen smart faucet
Talk to your tap
Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro
Execute chef recipes like a pro
Pros
Cooks food evenly
13 cooking options
Smart app that works seamlessly with oven
Eliminates the need for multiple small appliances
Cons
Bagel function doesn’t work quite right
The Joule by Breville is an oven and an air fryer combined. You can activate it by voice, and it has a number of smart functions designed to optimize cooking time. You can also use it to proof dough and dehydrate fruit. The companion app is filled with hundreds of recipes from New York Times Cooking (no subscription required), Top Chef alum, Breville Test Kitchen, and more. Best of all, recipes with a flight plan basically cook themselves. Want to wow your guests? Quickly cook up a batch of delicious croissants that proof and bake themselves to perfection.
Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro
Execute chef recipes like a pro
With so many amazing gadgets on the market, and new models being introduced all the time, it’s never been easier to incorporate tech in the kitchen. Try out something new and see if it saves you time and money.
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