$300 at Sur La Table - What Should I Buy?

Non-regional discussions Cookware
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Got a bunch of stuff as birthday gifts I’m returning for ~$300. I cook 4-5 times a week at home. We have a pretty good arsenal of equipment and I’d say I’m a pretty decent home cook. Leaning towards a sous vide machine like Anova or the Instapot. People seem to really love this instapot. We already have a high end rice cooker and a crock pot so was leaning towards the Anova. I work from home so the speed/convenience of the Instapot doesn’t really do much for me.

Anybody come across any good tools or equipment lately?

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If o had to go to a desert island with just one, I would take the Anova over Instantpot. I use both regularly, but I can’t replicate what a sous vide does. With a Dutch oven, I can replicate pretty much anything a pressure cooker does (given time, of course).

3

Save up and get this ice cream maker.

Cuz summer is right around the corner.

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Weber 22.5" Smokey Mountain

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Not knowing what’s in your kitchen, how about going for things in your dining room? Or food ‘items’?

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Thanks, this confirms my earlier thought process. Between a crock pot, dutch oven and rice cooker the Instapot seems unnecessary.

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Already have one of these bad boys but I haven’t been using it enough so thanks for the reminder. Maybe I’ll smoke something this week with nice weather finally hitting the OC.

8

Has my wife been emailing you on the side? Please don’t put any thoughts into her head. She is trying to take my $300 to buy new serving dishes and flatware.

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I consider cooking and serving simpatico.

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You are a bad bad man. That ice cream maker looks sweet but way out of my budget. I just found out that the Smart N Final near the Salt N Straw on Ventura Blvd carries dried ice. I’m making monthly pilgrimages and stocking up. I don’t think I’d ever get enough use out of that gorgeous machine.

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I would tend to agree. I think our existing serving dishes an flatware from our wedding registry is holding up well. The wife wants to upgrade. I’ve seen this movie before.

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Well, it IS your birthday money. And it IS your partnership. I’ll bow out. Oh, but, have you looked at their ‘other’ stuff?

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Oh, but, have you looked at their ‘other’ stuff?

…are we still talking about cooking?

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If you have a rice cooker and a crockpot, an electric pressure cooker is semi-redundant.

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Not a destination for these items… save up for the fancy frenchy stuff

Anova sounds like a good option, compact doesn’t take up much space.

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Sign up for their sale emails. IMO Sur La Table is overpriced, but they have great sales. I snagged a large All-Clad sauce pan for 60% off and a Sauté for 40% off. My boys bought me the 5-1/2 Qt Le Creuset Dutch Oven for about $250. Have fun!

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Do you mean expensive? I think SLT has lovely things. In my kitchens I have pretty much run out of anything I need. But for dining, switching things around can always be pleasant.

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If I had $300 to spend at SLT, I’d probably get a Le Creuset oval pot in between the two sizes I currently have.

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Off topic, can you imagine the day that you’d say ‘no, I really don’t want anything more.’ I’m at that point. Walked through a small but great kitchen shop in Vancouver and didn’t see a single thing that even remotely tempted me. Granted I’m almost 70 y.o. so I’ve had longer than many here.

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For the price is the Anova the best sous vide machine out there?