üutensil: innovative kitchen tools and gadgets (review and giveaway)

I spend a lot of time cooking, and I’m always on the look-out for new and interesting kitchen products.If a product can simplify a process, save time or multi-task, I’m interested.If it looks good too, so much the better.

I’ve recently been trying out some kitchen products from British design company üutensil.üutensil products are a little out of the ordinary and really innovative, but they’re still designed with practicality and performance very much in mind.The range is used by Michelin starred Chef Akos Sarkozi from Budapest’s ‘Wine Kitchen’, so you know it’s not all about style over substance.

Skåler looks like a pretty ordinary measuring spoon, with the usual measuring guide on the scoop in millilitres and US cups.But it also works as a rather nifty weighing scale.

You just set the weight using the stainless steel slider on the handle, scoop your ingredients, and balance the whole thing on the edge of your mixing bowl.If it balances evenly, you’ve got the right amount in the scoop.It even works if you balance it on your finger. It takes a bit of practice to get it measuring accurately, but once I’d got the hang of it, it measured quite accurately when compared with my digital weighing scales.

Skåler is really small, and takes up far less room than a standard weighing scale, making it a great option for smaller kitchens. It’s also a really fun way to get the kids involved with weighing and measuring, so it’s no surprise that it recently bagged a prestigious Red Dot Design Award, an internationally recognised mark of quality.

Scooner is a dual-function tool which can be used for frying/flipping and serving up. The coloured base is made of durable, flexible silicone which is heat safe to 250°F, and it’s that flexibility that allows it to multi-task.

Hold it without putting pressure on the handle and it’s a spatula; squeeze the handle together and it turns into a large scoop. This means you don’t need to juggle utensils when serving up, and there’s one less thing to wash up too.

Stirr is a really clever tool, and there’s more to it that meets the eye.It’s like an extra pair of hands in the kitchen; put it into a pan, push the button on the top, and the base rotates by itself, travelling around the pan and stirring the contents perfectly.It’s a real time-saver; apart from turning it on and off, you can leave it to take care of the pan while you get on with other parts of the cooking.

Stirr is great for sauces, soups, gravy, and even things like porridge and baked beans.There are three speed options to cope with a variety of consistencies, and the dishwasher-safe base removes easily for washing.It’s cordless too – operating from four AA batteries – which makes it really portable and also safer.

Not your average potato masher, Spudnik is designed to do the job better and quicker than more traditional mashers.The design is modern and quirky, but there’s actually quite a lot of science going on behind the looks.

Instead of the usual pounding action you use to mash potatoes, the flower-shaped base is designed to be rolled and rotated in the pan.This means it slices through the potatoes at an angle, distributing the force.And why does that matter?Well it produces perfect, smooth, fluffy mash, really quickly.

The Spudnik is actually my favourite of the bunch because, by golly, it works and being able to use less force makes it much easier on your arm, and the spherical handle is really comfortable to hold.

Overall, these are fun, fabulous gadgets that you might not strictly need, but you’re certainly going to enjoy using.