Turkey Tech: The 10 Tools You Need for the Perfect Thanksgiving Dinner

By Reena Jana
November 5, 2010

Kate McDonough

Kate McDonough; The City Cook by McDonough

Okay, we confess. One of the most fun aspects of Thanksgiving is pulling out—or purchasing new—kitchen tools and gadgets to prepare a once-a-year extravagant meal. To figure out what kitchen tools we might need to round out our own kitchen arsenal, we asked blogger and cookbook author Kate McDonough what she can't live without. McDonough founded the recipe and cooking Website, The City Cook and wrote a book with the same name, which Simon and Schuster is releasing on November 16 (just in time to plan your Thanksgiving dinner). Our goal was to have her guide us toward cooking tools that would help us prepare a Thanksgiving dinner as easily as possible, not only this year, but also for Thanksgivings to come.

In the forthcoming book, The City Cook and on her blog, Kate McDonough's cooking tips and recipes focus on helping busy urban dwellers create unforgettable meals in, shall we say, less-than-giant kitchens. Her guiding principle toward buying kitchen tools and gadgets? "I like tools that serve multiple purposes," she says. You don't need to live in New York or Chicago to find her cooking advice relevant; anyone who's short on time, and not necessarily short on space, can benefit from her list of top ten kitchen gadgets that can help make Thanksgiving dinner easier to prepare. Here it is.

Kate McDonogh's Can't-Live-Without Thanksgiving Dinner Kitchen Gadgets

1. Immersion Blender

A hand-held blender is "great for anyone without counter space for a food processor, blender, and a mixer. It can do much of work of all those tools by itself—mash potatoes, puree vegetables, make a creamy soup," says Kate. "Plus it’s easy to clean."

Kitchenaid Hand Blender (buy it now price $ 94.90) This sleek hand-held immersion blender from Kitchen Aid has a no-slip grip and comes with attachments for chopping nuts and whisking batters.

2. Compact Digital Meat Thermometer

"I travel with a digital meat thermometer. It lets you know instantly when food is done."

Taylor Professional Waterproof Digital Thermometer (buy it now price $ 12.99) This small, tech-y looking kitchen gadget has a large, easy-to-read display and its case is made of anti-microbial materials to keep your food safe.

3. Chef’s Knife

"It’s important to have good knives. Buy the best you can afford. The most necessary and versatile: chef’s knife. You can slice anything, bread, cake, or tomatoes, with it."

Global Knives 2 Piece Set (buy it now price $123.88) Try this combo set from Global, known for the slick design of their high-end cutting instruments. The Global Knives set features a chef's knife and a smaller paring knife, which McDonough says is an instrument serious cooks might want to consider buying to supplement their chef's knife.

4. Knife Sharpener

"A knife sharpener is a really important tool. If your knives aren’t sharp, they can slip when you’re slicing, which is dangerous.”

Green Pro Knife Sharpener Station (buy it now price, $119.95) This newly released, professional-grade device can sharpen a variety of knives, from flat-edged to serrated. The technological breakthrough: a flexible knife sharpening disc that helps you precisely customize degrees of sharpness.

5. Melon Baller

"A melon baller seems very 'Mad Men'—who thinks she needs a melon baller to scoop honeydew these days?" McDonough says. "But I use it to remove cores from apples for pie and from pears for poached pears. It seems like an 'extra' gadget, but it’s really efficient and easier to use than a knife for this purpose."

Titanium Citrus/Melon Baller (buy it nowprice, $9.99) This chic-looking new melon baller was engineered to release fruit quickly (thanks to the cross-shaped hole in the scooper) and features an ergonomic grip that's easy to handle, so your hands won't strain when you're using it.

6. Digital Food Scale

"Many professional chefs weigh ingredients for precision, instead of using measuring spoons and cups. The weather—humidity, for instance—can affect density, and that can affect results."

EatSmart Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale (buy it now price $21.99) This tiny, futuristic-looking digital kitchen scale has a high-resolution screen and can weigh up to 11 pounds of food. Plus it comes in five glossy, sexy colors.

7. Mandoline

"A helpful tool is a mandoline, which slices vegetables really thin, which is necessary for making side dishes like Potatoes Anna (layers of potatoes cooked in butter), or healthy snacks for guests like baked potato chips," McDonough advices.

Norpro V-Slicer Madoline (buy it now price $28.89) The designers of this sleek mandoline added a safety guard to protect fingers.

8. Microplane Grater

"A tool I love that is amazingly versatile is a rasper-also known as a Microplane grater-which I use to grate cheese, onion, garlic, and chocolate quickly and directly into sauces or onto dishes and desserts."

Microplane Grater (buy it now price $17.99) This kitchen tool was designed with tiny, extra-sharp cutters that provide even shavings. It also has a large handle to provide a comfortable grip and an extremely flat surface, which eases its contact with foods to be grated.

9. Slow Cooker

"A slow cooker can be very useful for Thanksgiving. You can warm soup or any other dish you may have made in advance while using the rest of your stovetop for making dinner. It's also great for warming dinner rolls."

Hamiliton Beach Programmable Slow Cooker (buy it now price $ 42.88) This high-tech model can be custom-programmed, but you can also make use of automatic settings. Plus, the slow cooker will shift to “warm” mode if the device reaches its set temperature, meaning food won't spoil if you forget about it.

10. Covered Sauté Pan

"You can use a sauté pan, also known as a 'sauteuse,' for making stuffing, starting it on top of the stove and finishing in the oven. Add a steamer and the pan's cover and steam vegetables. It's perfect for risotto—I love pumpkin or butternut squash risotto with Thanksgiving dinner." Plus, it's good for making gravy.”

Food Network Stainless Saute Pan (buy it now price $84.95) This elegantly designed sauteuse is dishwasher safe and has slightly flared edges designed to avoid drips when pouring out sauces.

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