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Thanksgiving should be one of the least stressful holidays: the only accomplishment you're trying to accomplish is driving yourself into a coma, which many of us can do at any time and without any preparation. But there are also hidden sources of stress: consumption put it all together to travel arrangements had to make sure everyone was on time for snacks, not to mention the stress of cooking Thanksgiving dinner. The unfortunate host is responsible not only for feeding a large group of people, but also for making sure that everything is done more or less on time, and then cleaning up this impressive mess.
Luckily, modern science and technology sometimes turns its genius to the kitchen, resulting in a list of tools and gadgets you might not have immediately thought of but that can make cooking, serving, and cleaning up after Thanksgiving dinner a whole lot easier.
Automatic stirrer
Do you have automatic stirrer? Probably not. You need one? Probably yes. One of the key stresses of Thanksgiving dinner (or any large dinner party) is balancing preparing multiple dishes to ensure they're all ready at the right time. Many dishes require constant stirring to ensure they thicken properly and don't stick or burn, but that's the easiest thing to forget when you're juggling a dozen other things. Having one of these on hand means you'll never burn your sauce again.
Electric Turkey Fryer
If you're a purist, you think of Thanksgiving turkey as something that comes out of the oven with great fanfare. If you're a little adventurous, you can try deep-frying a turkey, which results in injuries and property damage every year (since turkeys tend to explode when deep-frying), including approx. five deaths every year. But if you want a faster, crispier turkey than your oven can cook, invest in electric turkey fryer. You'll get a crispy, tender bird in much less time without the turkey turning into a bomb. This will also free up your oven for other uses, giving you a little more space.
Omental cage
I have no stuffing box? It's okay, no one has an omental cage. But you have to receive stuffing cage because it makes it much easier to remove the stuffing from the turkey. You form the stuffing in the cage and insert it into the bird, and when it's done cooking, you simply pull it out and the whole stuffing is ready to go—no annoying scratches, much less mess.
Fat separator
You'll be judged on many aspects of your Thanksgiving meal, but people judge the gravy more than anything else. If you want a smooth, silky and delicious sauce, you need fat separator. Simply pour out the drops and let them filter out the solids. The fat will rise to the top and then you can pour those delicious drippings into a bowl to make the gravy. It's a simple tool, but the impact it will have on your sauce game will be amazing.
Electric buffet
Here's a secret: no one gets the timing right. Your sides will be ready sooner You ready. Something will hold up the main course and you'll be left with bowls of mashed potatoes or toppings. Either dinner will be delayed altogether, or your guests will be late, and your hot appetizers will fade and get cold. Enter compact buffet: Keep multiple items warm for as long as you need them. Whether you need to buy time with the side dishes to finish an unruly turkey, or your guests are delayed by traffic, it's the difference between a microwaved Thanksgiving and a hot, ready-to-eat meal.
Digital measuring spoons
Measuring things can be maddening. You pour, weigh, then scoop and hope you don't spill anything. At some point every year I just stop measuring things exactly and start doing everything by eyeballing everything. By the time guests start arriving, I'm usually just throwing things into bowls and pans with what can only be described as “wild recklessness.” Digital measuring spoon cuts out the middle pitch using a scale or measuring cup. Simply scoop out what you need and pour off the excess until you get the amount you need. Then add it to the dish and move on to the next ingredient you need to measure. Over time, these saved seconds will add up.
Mini pie
Are you making pies for Thanksgiving? Does everyone on your guest list agree on what kind of pie they want? Or will you make four full-sized pies, half of which will be left over when everyone leaves? Leftover pie isn't exactly a crisis, but unless you're going to dedicate your life to eating pie, it can be a huge waste. A mini pie maker means that you can: a) prepare a variety of pies for guests, which b) will not be left without any leftovers. Plus, it bakes pies quickly, so if you miscalculate the number of pies, you can make a few more at the last minute.
Mats for heating food
Keeping food warm is a challenge for most Thanksgiving cooks. The dishes come off the stove and then sit for a while while you come up with the rest of the meal, gather the crowd from the TV into the dining room, and go through the toasting and wood carving ceremony. By the time the gravy goes around, it's warm, a frustrating temperature. A warming mat this is the solution. While an electric buffet can keep side dishes warm, a warming mat can keep everything else ready to eat, and all you have to do is place plates and bowls on it until needed.
If you're me, you know that you waste a lot of time looking for tools when you're cooking a big meal. First, you can't find what you need. Then you find what you need, but after you use it, it needs to be cleaned for the next use. Then it buries itself under oven mitts or kitchen towels, and you spend two frantic minutes searching for it, trying to act cool and calm around your guests. Make life easier with this tool is 5 in 1 or something similar. It combines a cutting tool, spoon, spatula, slotted spoon and lathe into one silicone miracle. Use, wipe, use again—and eliminate the hassle of cluttering your counter space with all those extra tools.
Wiper blade
If you plan to use a hand mixer for some Thanksgiving foods, such as mashed potatoes or desserts, wiper blade is mandatory. Instead of washing whisks and bowls in the sink to get them ready for the next menu item, you can wipe them down in seconds and get right back into action. Plus, it allows you to collect all your leftover food into a single serving, so you're not dumping a large portion of food down the sink.
Splash protection
If you fry anything, you know that splash protection is essential. But traditional screens make it difficult to stir and turn food while cooking because you have to constantly remove the protective lid. This mudguard works differently, protecting your surroundings from splashes while still giving you full access to the cooking surface and food, so you can flip, stir, baste or season as needed without the risk of splashing. This won't necessarily speed up cooking, but it will will making final cleaning much easier and faster since you won't have to wash the walls.
Türkiye lifter
If you've cooked a turkey (or roast), you know there's the last-mile problem of getting it from the pan to the serving platter or carving station. If you've done your job, your turkey will be tender and easy to take apart, which can turn its transfer into a comedy of messy errors. A Türkiye Lifter it's a dumb decision you didn't even think about. Place a lifter under the turkey when you put it in the oven, and when it's done, you can easily pull it out.
