Must-Have Kitchen Gadgets for Your Frugal Kitchen

By ERIN TURNER

It’s a no-brainer that if you want to save money and eat healthier then homemade is the best option!  I have found this theory true over and over in my own kitchen.   So I try, as much as I can, to do most everything from scratch.   Whether it is bread, sandwich meat or a birthday cake, I try to cut my costs and improve the quality of the food by making it myself.

Now, I will admit there are many things which I avoid doing because the process is long and sometimes tedious.  I spent many summers on my parents’ patio shucking peas for hours and despite my love of peas, the work was laborious.  As an adult I have avoided growing peas which need to be shucked.

My eight year-old had a great time with the new cherry pitter.

Another chore I remember is pitting cherries with a small, handheld pitter.  Like the peas, it was fun for the first 3 but then the novelty wore off and there I was facing a huge box of cherries.

So, this last week when I had the opportunity to purchase some Flathead Lake Cherries at a ridiculously low bulk rate, I broke down and got multiple pounds.  As I looked at the box in my refrigerator, I knew the clock was ticking and I needed to process them soon.

I headed out to buy the loathed Cherry pitter.  Seeing that our local Ace Hardware was having a great canning sale, I headed there.  No little hand-held pitters only a large countertop model was available and it was on sale for a good price.  So, it came home with me and I set it up.  Then I began what I thought was going to be a long, drawn-out ordeal–the pitting.  In about 30 minutes, I had knocked out 10lbs of cherries!  It was amazing!  Nothing laborious or monotonous about it at all!  In fact, it was so entertaining my 8 year-old son even got in on the fun!

What I realized then and there is the importance of good, effective and time-saving kitchen gadgets.  When you have a good gadget it makes the job smoother and faster.   Thus making you want to do that task again.  In my case, wanting to pit those cherries saves me money because now I have lots of jars of Cherry Jam and other Cherry delights which my family will enjoy this winter!   So, my cherries didn’t go to waste by sitting in the refrigerator while I avoided the long and laborious task of pitting them.

I LOVE my Pampered Chef Corn Knife for stripping the kernels from the cob.

It’s long been preached that a tool will make or break the success of a job.  Think about screwing in a screw…if you only have a screwdriver how likely will you complete a job with just using that?  But imagine you had an electric screwdriver, now how likely will you complete the job?  Much better odds, huh?

The same principle holds true in the frugal kitchen.  If we are to be productive and efficient then the right tool makes or breaks our success in providing healthy, homemade, budget-friendly meals.

So, what are my favorite kitchen gadgets which save me money?  Obviously, the cherry pitter is now at the top of my list.  But I also have saved oodles of time and money with my Pampered Chef Corn knife which strips the kernels from the cob, lickety-split!  Thus, motivating me to freeze more corn for my family.

I would be lost without my Pyrex measuring bowls…4 of them from 1 cup up to ½ gallon with pour spouts!  Life savers!  Also, I have to say I depend almost daily on my Kitchen-Aid mixer.  It makes all my kitchen chores so much easier and faster, from kneading bread to whipping butter to making cookies.

My Kitchen-Aid mixer is a must-have gadget in my kitchen.

Now, if you’re like I was early on, you are probably thinking about the cost of these effective tools.  I will agree that many of them are high priced but if you think of it as an investment which will have a high return then it makes it worth it.  But I wouldn’t be true to my frugal heart if I didn’t suggest a few ways to save when buying these items!

First of all, don’t just buy to buy.  Make sure it is a gadget you KNOW is effective and will be used and don’t buy them all at once.  Secondly, wait until it goes on sale and even then price shop and don’t forget to check online!  Save up rewards at a particular store and use the rewards on a higher priced gadget.  Finally, use these gadgets as ideas for your Christmas or birthday wish list.  Most people would be delighted to buy you something which would be useful in your frugal kitchen!

If being frugal is your goal, then making your kitchen highly efficient is critical.  Having gadgets that increase your productivity, cut time and MAKE you want to tackle a project will reward you with high quality, healthful and frugal meals for your family!

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