Cooking at home has so many perks.
On average, its about 5x cheaper than ordering in from your favorite restaurant, and 3x cheaper than meal delivery services. Its also typically way healthier, as you know how much salt, sugar and fat is going into your food. Cooking for yourself is also fun and very satisfying when you make something delicious all by yourself.
The only downside? The time. After a long day at work, the last thing you want to do is spend hours in the kitchen prepping, cooking and cleaning. Cooking dinner from scratch is great in theory, but for the busy professional? The call of convenient takeout becomes harder and harder to ignore. Not to worry, weve gathered our favorite devices designed to speed up dinner prep below. So ditch the expensive convenience of takeout and arm your kitchen with these time-and-money-saving devices. With these gadgets, youll be able to whip up the homemade meals of your dreams in way less time.
1. Instant Pot 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker
When we think speedy dinner, the first appliance that comes to mind is the Instant Pot. Whats not to love? Its a pressure cooker designed to cook meat, rice, vegetables, soups and yogurt to perfection, among countless other delicious applications. Its impossible to overcook anything in this device which is great for the newbies out there.
It combines seven devices into one as a pressure cooker, saut pan, rice cooker, steamer, food warmer and yogurt maker. Its sophisticated microprocessor monitors and adjusts temperature, time and heat to cook food 70% faster than other methods and deliver consistent results every time. And after all of this? Youve got one pot to clean. Yup, just one.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: Instant Pot 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker $50.00
2. Fullstar Vegetable Chopper
One of the most time-consuming parts of dinner prep? Chopping. Oh, the chopping. Thankfully there are products like this multi-function vegetable chopper that has everything you need to chop, spiralize, julienne and grate your veggies before adding them to your chosen dish. It also packs a juicer for lemons and a bonus peeler to help you prep your veggies beforehand.
This set comes with a finger guard and protective glove to keep you and your family safe from the stainless-steel blades, and the catch tray picks up scraps for a mess-free process.
Throw the whole thing in the dishwasher (top rack) when youre done.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: Fullstar Vegetable Chopper $31.99
3. Zojirushi Rice Cooker and Warmer
One of the best ways to save time in the kitchen is to have devices do the hard work for you. Cooking rice can be tedious, especially when youre trying to get it just right. This rice cooker and warmer has stellar ratings on Amazon for a reason.
It has a capacity up to 5 cups, an automatic keep warm and reheating cycle and the pot is non-stick so cleaning is a breeze. Cook restaurant-worthy rice to perfection every time with this great gadget.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: Zojirushi Rice Cooker and Warmer $135.99
4. Mueller Immersion Blender
Full-size blenders are great, but deep cleaning them can take a lot of time and effort with the potential for nicks when reaching down towards the blades. Instead, check out immersion blenders. Theyre handheld and do the job just as well.
Whether you need to thicken up a gravy, blend up some baby food for a little one or make soup for dinner, this gizmo is there for you.
It has a no-slip grip and a full copper motor designed to last 3x as long the competition. This set includes the blender head, whisk and milk frother so youll be covered whatever your blending needs.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: Mueller Immersion Blender $29.97
5. KitchenAid All-Purpose Kitchen Shears
A worthy alternative to chopping? All-purpose kitchen shears. Theyre designed to cut through anything with ease and only require a quick rinse afterwards.
Chop tomatoes in the can, separate cuts of meat or slice a pizza with these babies without risk to your fingers or extra cutting board cleanup.
KitchenAids design includes a soft-grip handle and stainless-steel blades so you can trust the precise cut every time. Theyre also dishwasher safe, but a quick hand wash is recommended for longevity.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: KitchenAid All-Purpose Kitchen Shears $8.49
6. OXO Good Grips Garlic Press
One of the most common and most flavorful ingredients to cook with is garlic. We love it, but the process of peeling, pressing and mincing takes a lot of time. Let this device take over and enjoy the taste and smell of garlic without all the work.
OXOs Good Grips Garlic Press has a large-capacity garlic chamber for cloves of all sizes and a built-in cleaner that pushes out the peels for easy cleaning.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: OXO Good Grips Garlic Press $13.99
7. Cuisinart 5-in-1 Griddler
The Cuisinart 5-in-1 Griddler acts as a contact grill, panini press, full grill, half griddle and full griddle all in one. The floating cover adjusts automatically based on the thickness of the food, and is nonstick, which makes draining grease simple.
It comes with a scraping tool for clean-up and some gourmet recipes for inspiration.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: Cuisinart 5-in-1 Griddler Too low to display
8. KPKitchen Pancake & Cupcake Batter Dispenser
We love our baked goods. But the batter has serious mess potential. Luckily there are devices like this one to ease the process and minimize mess.
This batter dispenser squeezes batter out of the bottom using a pulley handle and leak-proof seal so you dont need to worry about drips slipping out between cups in your cupcake tin.
Portion control is a breeze with this gadget whether youre mastering even muffin sizing or spacing out pancakes on the stove. It even works for pizza sauce. The world is your oyster with this gizmo from KPKitchen.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: KPKitchen Pancake & Cupcake Batter Dispenser $18.99
9. The Ringer Original Stainless Steel Cast Iron Cleaner
Cast iron skillets are the best. They heat up quickly, cook meat to perfection and are becoming more of a kitchen staple for good reason.
The downside? Cleaning them. Butter and other grease sticks to it and gunks up, clogging your sponges and taking away valuable chill-time as youre trying to scrub every little bit off.
Weve got a solution for you. Chain link its the way to go. Youll be amazed how quickly the metal strips off all the goo without damaging the iron itself, saving you time and money in the process.
This one from the Ringer is 8 x 6, built for durability and uses premium grade stainless steel thats rust-proof and machine soldered. Just make sure to dry your cast iron thoroughly after you clean it.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: The Ringer Original Cast Iron Cleaner $11.00
10. Glisten Disposal Care Foaming Cleaner
Another savior in the kitchen? Your garbage disposal. Its so satisfying to watch it demolish all the little food bits floating around in your sink. But over time food particles can build up down there and leave your kitchen smelling a little funky. To defeat the funk, throw one of these Glisten Disposal Care Foaming Cleaner packets down the drain and let it do the work scrubbing away and leaving your whole kitchen smelling fresh and clean.
Courtesy of Amazon
Buy: Glisten Disposal Care Foaming Cleaner $5.49