Top 5 High Tech Kitchen Gadgets

Any great chef should be able to whip up a fantastic meal with nothing more than a knife, some high quality ingredients, and a fire. But a few high-tech toys seem to consistently make their way into all of the top kitchens in the world. Some give chefs better control over their finished product. Some improve efficiency or consistency. Still others are just plain cool. For the kitchen nut who's got everything, here are our top 5 pieces of ultimate kitchen gear.


1. An Immersion Circulator ($969)
By sealing foods in airtight vacuum-sealed bags and placing those bags in water baths kept at precisely controlled temperatures, high end restaurant chefs have an unparalleled degree of control over the texture and flavor of the finished product, they also have the ability to cook and hold foods nearly indefinitely without loss in quality. What does this mean? For one thing, it leaves little room for human error. Drop a vacuum-sealed duck breast in a water bath held at 130 degrees, and it will come out perfectly medium-rare every single time no matter how skilled (or unskilled) the cook is. While most restaurants use lab models from Polyscience, consumer versions (like the $450 Sous-Vide Supreme) are hitting the market. They allow aspiring home cooks to whip out flawless steaks, slow-cooked eggs, or butter-poached lobster tails that are not just close, but exactly the same as those being served at the most expensive restaurants in the world.

2. The Vita-Mix 5200 Blender ($449) 
It would be the Cadillac of blenders if Cadillacs came standard with jet engines and razor sharp teeth. Capable of producing sillky-smooth purees from even the toughest foods (have you ever tried making soup out of chorizo? Now you can), It's the one blender that no high-end kitchen would ever be without. With features like an analog dial allowing you to control the blade's speed anywhere from a lazy spin to a blindingly fast 240 m.p.h., a plastic tamper for pureeing thick foods like nut butters, and a sturdy 64-ounce polycarbonate container, no other blender on the market comes close in terms of functionality or raw power.

3. The Viking Portable Induction Burner ($550) 
Unlike a traditional burner that heats via either gas combustion or by running a current through an electric coil, induction burners create rapidly fluctuating magnetic fields that affect only the pot you are cooking with. Because only pots made of magnetic materials are affected, the cooking surface stays cool, reducing the risk of accidental burns and fires. Viking's induction range puts out a whopping 1,800 watts of power, bringing a full pot of water from room temp to a boil in record time. High energy efficiency and precise, instantaneous response to temperature adjustments means that not only can you cook with more precision than on a regular range, but the kitchen stays cooler as well--a happy thought for anyone who's ever spent time behind the line.


4. The Pacojet Ice Cream Maker (about $4,500)
Used to create ice creams of unmatched smoothness and scoop-ability, the Pacojet is an indispensable tool for any pastry chef wishing to put out a high volume of ice cream in multiple flavors with limited time and space to work in. Traditionally, ice cream must be slow-churned as it freezes in order prevent the formation of ice crystals, and to give it a smooth, dense, creamy texture. With the Pacojet, ice cream bases are instead frozen solid to negative 20 degrees inside specially designed metal canisters. When ready to serve, a blade is spun at high speed through the base, simultaneously creaming and aerating the mixture. Ice creams that once took hours to properly churn and freeze are now ready-to-scoop in a matter of seconds. Sure, it may not be the most versatile tool in the kitchen, but for harried pastry cooks or people who really really like frozen desserts, $4,500 is a small price to pay for freshly-churned ice cream on-demand.

5. Winston Industries CVap Oven (around $10,000)
Imagine an oven that could not only cook a roast to a precisely controlled internal temperature, but could hold it at that temperature indefinitely without loss of moisture or quality, ready to be sliced and served at moment's notice. That's precisely what the CVap oven does. A pressurized steam-filled environment prevents foods from releasing their natural juices into the air, reducing shrinkage and keeping it flavorful and moist, no matter how long it's held. Independent temperature adjustments for the steam and the ambient air allows chefs control over the degree of browning, all the way from none (for a delicate poached salmon, for example), to sizzling, crisp, and brown (for, say, roasting a moist suckling pig or a tender beef roast). It's the superstar oven that every traditional cooker secretly aspires to be.

What's on your ultimate kitchen gear wish list?

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