The kitchen is a sanctuary position. Some chefs insist on keeping things low-tech — Christine’s favorite purchase of the year is a piece of plastic by QVC, and Haje thinks the Internet of Things has gone too far with Wi-Fi-enabled toasters. But some of us can’t resist its charm a high precision meat thermometer which happens to come in 10 different colors.
Sure, we probably don’t need an Alexa-enabled refrigerator or anything, but sometimes, a little technology can make our lives easier (or, at least, make cooking more fun). Here are some of the TechCrunch staff’s favorite kitchen gifts.
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Fellow’s Stagg EKG Pro Electric Kettle
Price: $225 on Amazon
Some people are so serious about the quality of their pour-over coffee that they have to adjust the exact temperature of their brew water, down to the degree. If you’re one of those people, you probably already know about Fellow’s stylish temperature-controlled kettles. It’s the bread and butter of a true coffee snob’s morning routine.
This kettle has Wi-Fi, but to be clear, it’s not so you can check Facebook on it or anything like that. Like many Wi-Fi enabled devices, this one allows you to update your kettle much like how you update a phone. You can program the kettle to reach a certain temperature at a certain time, prevent boiling by adjusting the altitude for your location, and pre-boil your water to the maximum temperature to disinfect it.
The Stagg EKG Pro it’ll set you back $225 (or $195 for a model without wood accents), which probably sounds crazy if you’re like me and own a $20 Hamilton Beach Kettle (I drink cold, so I don’t need to boil water. often). But anyone I know who owns a Fellow is adamant about its sheer superiority, even if they’re a bit foolish to admit how much they paid.
If you don’t want to spend more than $200 on a kettle, you can get a refurbished model of standard Stagg ECG for $132. This model lacks some of the pro’s bells and whistles — it can’t connect to Wi-Fi, and you can’t schedule it to turn on when you wake up in the morning — but it still has precise temperature control and a sleek gooseneck spout , which is why people love Fellows so much anyway.
Fellow’s Stagg EKG kettle has become a favorite kettle for fans in need of perfect control over the temperature of their brew. Image Credits: Fellow
Anova’s Sous Vide Precision Cooker Nano
Price: $79 on Amazon
Speaking of tools that achieve very precise temperature… sous vide cookers are, as TechCrunch once wrote, “one of the most high-tech methods of food preparation that home cooks without a chemistry degree can perform and/or kill themselves and those around them.”
Sous vide devices circulate a pool of water at a precise temperature, which cooks a vacuum-sealed piece of meat to the perfect level of tenderness without the risk of overcooking. It’s a technique that’s been used in professional kitchens for years, but it’s a bit newer for home chefs.
More advanced chefs love slow cooker because you can have such precise control — but as someone who is afraid to touch raw meat, I find it useful because you can just take a piece of frozen meat that is sealed in plastic and pour into a stock pot without risking salmonella. Isn’t technology incredible?
The sous vide immersion circulator market has come a long way over the past decade, since Anova opened the floodgates with one of the first affordable, consumer-grade tools on the market. While many even cheaper sous vide cookers have become available since then, the Anova remains—as we stated 10 years ago—the most “with an apple.” The company was acquired in 2017 by Electrolux for $250 million, but continues to produce products under the Anova name.
While Anova has some heavier, more powerful devices, most home chefs can get away with the company’s Precision Cooker Nano (unless you’re cooking for a family of 10 or something). It comes with either Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connectivity, depending on the model you choose, and connects to an app, which is available on both iOS and Android. Do you really need to be able to monitor the temperature of your sous vide from your phone? Probably not. You can simply go to your kitchen and check it yourself. But some people like this stuff!
Despite the maturity of the sous vide market, we still see new companies fighting for their share at CES. After raising $20 million, Typhur Technology announces its sous vide station, for sale a whopping $1,099 and, for some reason, it has a 12-inch screen. We have a feeling consumers will gravitate toward Anova’s $100 models.
Image Credits: Tim Baribeau
Thermapen ONE by ThermoWorks
Price: $70.85 at ThermoWorks
TechCrunch editor Matt says the ThermoWorks Thermapen is “the one [meat thermometer] I would recommend, and not the dozens of clones on Amazon.” Community Manager Morgan says, “The Thermapen is on every kitchen gift guide list for a reason!”
So, obviously, people love this little guy. It comes in 10 colors, which I personally find fascinating and if you don’t buy the pink one, you’re a coward. But the reason people love it isn’t because it will help you keep your Barbie phase alive. It’s called the Thermapen ONE because it’s supposed to be able to give you a reading in one second. If you’re really serious about meat temperatures, this is huge because you’re not going to overcook your steak waiting to see how hot its internal temperature is. It also comes with a five-year warranty, which could make the $109 price tag a little more palatable.
Breville’s Smart Waffle Maker Pro
Price: From $219 at Williams Sonoma
A few months ago, our data analyst Miranda texted me frantically, asking if she’s making a terrible mistake by buying a waffle maker that costs over $200. But as gift guide season rolled around and I asked my colleagues which cookware I should write about, Miranda once again pointed to the Breville Smart Waffle Maker Pro. So, apparently, he doesn’t regret this purchase.
This waffle maker has 12 settings to customize baking and browning, which will satisfy any waffle sommelier’s preferences. And what’s more, there are settings for four types of dough, so really, if this thing can’t make your perfect waffle, maybe you’re the problem?
Image Credits: Michael Hession
Are Instant Pots on sale?
Price: From $79.99 on Amazon
I never understood the Instant Pot craze until I was given one as a gift three years ago, and now, it’s an appliance I use every week. I use it as a rice cooker (which might scare Morgan, who swears this Zojirushi device), a soup pot, a quick dry bean cooker, a curry maker, a meal-in-a-pot boon on busy days… this thing has earned more than its precious kitchen counter space. But the company behind my favorite pressure cooker filed for bankruptcy earlier this yearwhich surprised everyone since the Instant Pot is so ubiquitous and successful.
Perhaps, therein lies the problem—as The Atlantic surmised, the Instant Pot failed because… It is very good? Listen, jobs don’t make sense. The company was sold to a private equity firm in 2019, and unfortunately, selling a well-built, useful, long-lasting product is not what our private equity masters want – they just want to grow, grow, grow. By this nature, having an insanely successful appliance isn’t enough, because once you buy your Instant Pot — likely at a deep discount during the holiday season — you’re done. The Instant brand also sells air fryers and coffee makers, and has even expanded beyond the kitchen to sell air purifiers. But you probably wouldn’t know that if you didn’t navigate to the company’s website because you’re writing about it, like I just did.
Despite the bankruptcy filing, Instant Pots remain on the market — the company got it $132.5 million in funding from lenders, which is supposed to help the brand find its footing again. So in the meantime, can we expect some crazy good Instant Pot deals this holiday season? We hope.
Image Credits: Fabita
Do you want to turn off your stove? Try induction burners
TechCrunch+ climate writer Tim dreams of a range-free kitchen. Induction burners are becoming more and more popular, since they use much less energy instead of gas hobs and heat your pots and pans with magnets, which keeps your kitchen cooler. To sweeten the deals, induction cooktops can boil water faster than gas or electric, so it’s a win-win.
But as Tim points out, some restaurants have been using portable induction burners for decades, giving chefs the flexibility to move around their workstation and turn down the power accordingly. What if you could take this idea home? No, Tim isn’t just thinking about getting an induction stove – he’s thinking about going completely portable all together.
Italian company Fabita makes sleek, minimalist, space-saving induction burner sets, but unfortunately for Tim, they don’t ship to the United States. But if you live closer to Fabita HQ, you can snag the great one Sopresa model, which can accommodate up to six burners. Goran Bjelajac, a designer based in Belgrade, has conceived one foldable induction hobbut it is not yet ready for purchase.
Perhaps our best local pick is Impulse, which raised $20 million last year for its sleek induction cooktops, but you can’t hang this thing on your wall, so it doesn’t save on counter space like its European counterparts.
So, it might be a little early to live out your range-free dreams, but maybe by next year, Tim’s fantasy kitchen will be closer to becoming a reality.
