If Your Knife Skills Are Abysmal, You'll Wanna Check Out These 26 Kitchen Gadgets And Tools
We hope you love our recommendations! Some may have been sent as samples, but all were independently selected by our editors. Just FYI, BuzzFeed and its publishing partners may collect a share of sales and/or other compensation from the links on this page.
Because every time you use a knife in your kitchen, it feels like it could turn into a Final Destination scene.
1. A chicken shredder with suction cups to keep it in place on your kitchen countertop while you do the pre-dinner twist.
RedRoko is a small biz.
Promising review: "After watching a video on this it seemed I had to buy one and try it. This makes life so much easier. No cutting board, no knife. Can make chicken salad professional style in shreds now. It does an excellent job staying suctioned to the countertop while you swirl the top to get perfect even shreds from your chicken." — Katie
Get it from Amazon for $15.99.
2. Or some meat-shredding claws that'll help you do a whole lot of shredding in a little bit of time. And according to reviewers, they're fun to use!
www.amazon.com
Promising review: "They're great (I've used them on a chuck roast and chicken so far) and pretty fun to use. They make quick work of needing to shred whatever you need shredded." — CoyKoiCourtney
Get them from Amazon for $9.44.
3. A jalapeno corer and deseeder will have you whipping up jalapeno poppers like you're running a Chili's. This spicy gem makes it easy to slice off the pepper's top, and then reach in and grab all the seeds.
www.amazon.com, www.amazon.com
Promising review: "Started using jalapeno and such along with the green peppers when I do my skillet chicken just for a bit more flavor. Jalapenos lack heat to me since I love heat and enjoy carolina reaper level heat if I'm just looking for a hot kick, but jalapeno does class up my skillets.
And this makes it so easy to core them and prep them. So much better than using my knife alone as I had up to this point." — LegoDude
Get it from Amazon for $7.99.
4. A corn stripper with a serrated stainless-steel blade because the last time you tried the bundt pan corn hack you ended up tossing corn all over your kitchen and (thankfully) missed yourself with the knife.
www.amazon.com
Promising review (from August 2023): "So let's start by saying that this gadget seriously did some damage. It's survived 80+ ears of corn, which yielded about 28 cups. It was relatively easy to use; however, it had its flaws. For the most part, it removed the kernels flawlessly. There wasn't much waste left behind in the mid-section to the end. However, it at times missed quite a bit at the narrowest part of the cob. We went back through and focused the edge on each side and cleaned it up. The other challenge was removing the gadget from the thickest end without practically throwing corn. It took some practice but you were able to control it a bit more by slowly rotating the cob and striper in opposite directions until it basically twisted off. Overall, well worth the money! I couldn't imagine stripping the kernels by knife. It held up great, will be used again and is definitely something I'd buy again!
Update on 9/15/2024: This gadget lasted yet another season. This time shredding 138 cups of corn and still going strong!" — amaesing5683
Get it from Amazon for $9.59.
5. A reviewer-beloved veggie chopper can make onion tears and food prep mess a thing of the past! This way, you can actually pull off that Pinterest recipe you've been meaning to make instead of paying Uber Eats $30 for Taco Bell. (Sometimes that's worth it, though.)
www.amazon.com, Amazon
Check out a TikTok of the veggie chopper in action.
Promising review:"Makes life so much easier. I can't imagine chopping onions or bell peppers by hand anymore, and it does so much more. We used to have a Prepworks chopper, which was a similar idea, but you had to press so hard to chop and it broke after not too long. This one requires very little effort to cut through the food and it has a generous container." — Amazon Customer
Get it from Amazon for $24.97+ (clip the $5 off coupon on the product page to get this price; available in four colors).
6. Plus, a mandoline slicer to let you whip up all kinds of things from sweet potato fries to chopped herbs. Reviewers with limited mobility say this is a great knife alternative!
www.amazon.com, www.amazon.com
Promising review: "I had a stroke almost 10 years ago, and my dominant side was paralyzed as a result. I suffer random bouts of spasmodic shaking.
Using a knife in cooking is no longer an option for me. But THIS device is a godsend for me. I'm still able to slice dice and shred. This tool is perfect.
Thank you." — Christina Jackson
Get it from Amazon for $27.99+ (available in five colors).
7. A"Gracula" garlic crusher will be adorably helpful and remind you that it's always a good night to rewatch Francis Ford Coppola's Bram Stoker's Dracula and then text the group chat to see who thinks if Winona and Keanu are legally married because they used a real priest for that scene. (I vote YES.)
www.amazon.com, www.amazon.com
Promising review: "I love this little guy. I found him on a BuzzFeed list and had to have it as soon as I saw it! I've minced as many as five cloves in it in seconds. It's a little tricky getting all of the garlic out once minced (I use a silicone basting brush to get most of it but I always use more than the recipe calls for anyway so it's not a deal breaker). Cleanup is a breeze because he goes right in the dishwasher!" — Barbie
Get it from Amazon for $24.95.
8. Or a garlic rocker for a much easier solution to use (and clean) than your traditional garlic press. The bread is waiting!
www.amazon.com, www.amazon.com
Promising review:"I like garlic very much, so I use this garlic press every day. It works very well, is easy to use, and easy to clean. Compared with the garlic press I used before, this is more labor-saving and comfortable." — Jessica
"Just what I was looking for. Saves so much time. A little difficult to clean...but I don't see how that could be remedied. Would definitely buy it again." — MRH Speech
Get it from Amazon for $10.97+ (available in two colors).
9. A pair of cut-resistant gloves to help safeguard yourself for when you DO have to use a knife. Even with all the tools and gadgets, you've gotta use one occasionally!
www.amazon.com, www.amazon.com
Food-safe and machine-washable. Check out our full review of these NoCry Cut Resistant Gloves.
Promising review:"After my husband sliced his finger on our mandolin, I decided to check out these gloves. We are both very impressed with how well they work. The company who sells these is also wonderful — they sent a follow-up email to ensure that we liked the gloves and would have replaced or refunded our money if we weren't happy. The only thing I was concerned about when I ordered the gloves was if I was buying the right size. My husband and I have different hand sizes, but the medium is working well for both of us. And knowing that they would send a different size free of charge was wonderful. Now, we don't have to worry about slicing off our fingers!" — That Author Guy's Wife
Get them from Amazon for $13.59 (available in sizes S–XL and in five styles).
10. An electric potato peeler you'll be SO glad you bought any time you use it, but especially come the holidays when all of a sudden you're on mashed potato duty for 40 people. (FYI, it also works on fruits and veggies like apples, kiwis, and tomatoes.)
www.youtube.com, www.amazon.com
Promising review:"Love it! It's light and easy to use. When I use a potato peeler, I was always peeling too much potato with the peel. This blade is fine and only gets the skin, in seconds. Except for the 'poles' of the potato, but I don't mind. It's easy to clean if you have a sprayer to just rinse off the spikes where you insert your potatoes. Small enough and doesn't take up much room." — yestfl
Get it from Amazon for $19.98.
11. A 3-in-1 watermelon cutter to help you serve up your fave warm-weather snack nearly any which way you want. I see a whooooole lotta watermelon in your sun-dappled future!
Amazon
Promising review: "Works great!! I had given up on cutting watermelons as it's such a pain and a mess, but this tool makes it so easy and painless and no mess!! So I eat much more watermelon now! I told everyone I know about it!!" — christy
Get it from Amazon for $3.14+ (available in three colors).
12. An incredibly handy cheese grater to help you actually swear off the bagged stuff like you keep saying you will since you found out that if you want a cheese pull, you need to rinse that pre-shredded cheese! This makes quick work of the task so you won't feel inconvenienced.
Check it out in this TikTok video to see it work its magic.
Promising review: "The one I received was sharp enough to get the job done! I shred a large head of cabbage in less than five minutes, counting clean-up! Shreds potatoes just as quick with peels on, or thin slices just as easy! Cheese I would partly freeze before shredding as it will get a little gummy the warmer it gets! Clean counter suction works great. I lightly dampened, dried, placed on counter, holds real strong! Oh, I also slice a cored apple in no time!" — Macy S.
Get it from Amazon for $32.99+ (available in 11 colors and two styles).
13. Some kitchen shears can help you slice through all sorts of stuff, whether that's some green onions, raw chicken breasts, OR a bag of frozen mozzarella sticks you're about to eat for Monday night dinner.
Amazon
Promising review: "I got these adorable scissors for my kitchen scissors. They are super cute. Amazingly sharp, I was not expecting them to be as sharp and solid as they are. The handles are perfect for any adult-size hand." — Kim
"These scissors are awesome. On top of being shaped like a bat, they do the job in the kitchen really well. They're sharp, and I've used them on chicken and vegetables (separate and cleaned between uses.) Many times I don't feel they need to be sharpened yet. They cut everything else really well also, so like paper lol." — Alexis
Get them from Amazon for $19.95.
14. Plus, some herb scissors that'll help you use your herb garden even more on the reg! Its cover also has some handy notches to help clean cuttings form the shears.
Promising review: "These are sharp and work well. I like how it cuts three pieces at a time so you can cut your herbs faster. I actually got them because we use a lot of green onion and these work well to cut that. They are easy to clean, too. They are lightweight and sturdy." — Nederland*brasil
Get it from Amazon for $9.99.
15. A clever 2-in-1 knife and cutting board so you don't have to dig through to find a clean cutting board (oh, the struggle!). It's like a step up from chopping shears thanks to the flat surface (aka, a mini cutting board). Now you can chop your salad ingredients right over the bowl!
www.amazon.com, Amazon
Ronan is a small business that specializes in multipurpose tools for home use.
Promising review:"This is a kitchen must-have. We use it all the time — it's so easy to use that even our kids use it. Very durable blade that continues to perform and get value for your money." — Dawn R.
Get it from Amazon for $15.99.
16. A super efficient Oxo Tot grape cutter anyone with kids or just an appreciation for grapes (or grape tomatoes!) can really appreciate.
www.amazon.com, www.amazon.com
See why one parent on TikTok loves it here! Note that Amazon currently only carries the grape cutter in blue. It's also perfect for cherry tomatoes, berries, olives, and many reviewers say it works on a variety of fruits!
Promising review: "Our 2-year-old and 10-month-old LOVE grapes and cherry tomatoes, and it was a chore to manually quarter them. This gizmo made it a breeze! Only complaint is if the grapes/tomatoes they kind of roll a bit before being cut and some of the resulting pieces are a little bigger. Otherwise 5/5 would DEFINITELY buy again and recommend to others!" — Abby K
Get it from Amazon for $11.95.
17. A ceramic herb stripper that'll be pretty enough to leave out on your kitchen counter as a reminder to actually use it.
Lily Lane Ceramics is a Lehi, Utah-based small biz.
Get it from Lily Lane Ceramics on Etsy for $12 (available in a variety of styles).
18. A set of toss-and-chop salad tongs, or "salad scissors," can help break your $16-salad habit from that place down the street. This chopping tool (that costs less than two of those salads, btw) will bring a little bit of action to food-prep while helping convince yourself that your homemade salads are delish.
www.amazon.com, Amazon
Check out a TikTok of the salad scissors in action.
Promising review: "Love these! I hate big leafy salads so I bought these and they're perfect for chopping greens into bites. I also use them to quickly chop cherry tomatoes, onions, and other veggies. VERY nice quality." — asoon
Get it from Amazon for $24.99.
19. A manual food chopper for quick work of herbs, fruits, veggies, and ice in case your knife skills could use some practice or you just wanna make food prep a lil' more fun.
www.amazon.com
It's also dishwasher safe (top rack only!) so cleanup is super simple.
Promising review:"This is great for cutting lots of veggies super fast. All you have to do is roughly chop down your veggies, toss them in, and give it four to five pulls for perfectly diced chunks for salsa or toppings on eggs or tacos. It comes with a handy cover too so all you have to do is rinse the blade and toss the container in the fridge or cooler." — Kevin B.
Get it from Amazon for $14.71+ (also available in green).
20. A Cherry Chomper to help you get a snack AND practice your "NOM NOM NOM" cartoon voice while removing cherry and olive pits.
Amazon, www.amazon.com
Promising review:"Hands-down, one of the coolest and cutest kitchen gadgets I own. I bought this pitter because my father is a HUGE bing cherry fan. When cherry season is in, you can guarantee he'll be sitting in his recliner with a bowl full of cherries. He normally eats cherries and pits them in his mouth, but at his older age, I worried about him cracking a tooth or choking on the pit. So I bought this pitter, and it was an INSTANT hit! He loved how cute it was, and the pitter does an amazing job. Easy to use, not a ton of force needed, and then the pits are in one place and easy to throw away!" — cocade27
Get it from Amazon for $17.99.
21. A cleverly designed lemon juicer that'll still efficiently squeeze out the good stuff and then fold down flat for easy in-drawer storage.
Amazon
Promising review: "The best! TikTok made me buy it. The squeeze power is unique, this product wastes no juice, and the way the seeds stay inside is just a great feature. This is the best, look no further!" — MJ Zuniga
Get it from Amazon for $16.93 (available in three colors).
22. A three-pack of egg slicers in case you're a hardboiled egg fiend but have had some scary slips with those shell-less bad boys. They're just SOOOO slippery.
Amazon
Kare & Kind is a small biz.
Promising review: "It is easy to use, very durable, and allows for many dissections of the egg to whatever size/shape you prefer. Because it is a bit larger than others, it is better and more comfortable. I had a smaller size I gave away when I got this one because I prefer it so much more." — MrsBowl
Get them from Amazon for $12.49.
23. An avocado tool because it's QUITE easy to cut yourself while opening up that fruit early in the morning for your avocado toast. This 3-fer tool helps you slice it open, pull out the pit, AND scoop out the innards.
It'll slice open the fruit, painlessly (aka no knife needed) pop out the pit, and create perfectly Instagrammable slices.
Promising review:"I thought this was a unitasker, but it isn't at all! I eat avocado daily and this thing saves me from having to use three utensils. I finally gave in and bought it after I was trying to remove a pit and cut my hand. It was the last cut! Best purchase I made this year. Do your hands a favor and get two of these if you eat 'cados frequently like me." — JR
Get it from Amazon for $11.29.
24. A Bluapple produce extender you'll def wanna re-up after you see what it can do in a mere three months. Time to actually get through all your fresh produce you went to the trouble of slicing and dicing before it goes bad!
Amazon
This absorbs ethylene gas that would otherwise ripen your fruits and vegetables. It's safe to put in the fridge or even in a fruit bowl. Each packet lasts three months.
Promising review:"These REALLY work! We have to move them away from our fresh fruit so it would ripen! My produce is lasting at least three times as long without spoilage. This is a great product, and I have already bought many as gifts. They don't seem to work on tomatoes, but they are great with bananas, apples, kiwi, pears, grapes, plums, peaches, lettuces, mushrooms, and many more fruits and vegetables." — Jacki
"This has literally made my produce last longer! I love this. I will definitely be buying again." — Lavone
Get it from Amazon for $23.99.
25. An excellent chef's knife can help you cut up those whole ingredients with finesse so that's one less thing you've gotta worry about. ICYMI, cutting with dull knives is extremely dangerous!
Amazon
Promising review:"I was a butcher for years and always used good knives for my work. Now, I love to cook but can't afford pricey knives. I saw the other reviews here and was very skeptical. After using this knife for two months as my main kitchen knife, I couldn't be any more impressed with it. I use and abuse it, throw it in the dishwasher, and use it and abuse it again, and it keeps coming back for more. I use it on bone-in meats, veggies, tomatoes...whatever, and it retains its edge and still looks brand-new. I haven't had to sharpen it at all yet and it is still razor-sharp. I highly recommend it." — HSHS Dad
Get it from Amazon for $23.99.
26. And a color-coded Cuisinart knife set can help you jazz up your cutting skills and provide a little more color to the white subway tile backsplash that the former owners installed.
It includes a chef's knife, paring knife, bread knife, slicing knife, utility knife, and santoku knife. Psst — the knives don't come with this a holder, but you can snag an easy-to-install magnetic bar for knives on Amazon if you want to display them like this reviewer did!
Promising review:"This is my best buy of the month, and best knife buy of the year. Yeah, I've had sharper, better-quality knives in the past, but for hundreds of dollars more. For basic kitchen use, this is the set to buy. I like that they're colorful, because I've already been able to familiarize myself with which knife is which color and what I need to use them for. I haven't had to sharpen them yet and I've been using them pretty steadily for about a month. The blade cases they come with are extremely handy. I like that I don't have to use a knife block. These fit nicely in my drawer. At this price, they are worth every penny. I wouldn't have a problem spending $40–$50 for these knives." — GWP
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I have social media only because it's how I communicate with family. He has full access, and I have full access to his phone, etc. Why? Because we trust each other. It's so nice having a partner who doesn't give a fuck about what others think of him as much as I don't give a fuck. If you think it's a red flag, you need to ask yourself why." —Anonymous, 36; Tennessee "Having a quirky or weird interest. That does not automatically make someone a weirdo or obsessive. For example, my husband has ADHD and tends to get very interested in a hobby or topic quickly and loves to geek out about it. Some of his interests are kind of out there. For example, he's 27 and LOVES Disney (especially the parks and movies), LOVES gardening, LOVES caring for our bearded dragon, LOVES working on his tank, and LOVES improving his life quality. A lot of other girls in college thought he was weird for his niche and intense interests, especially because he can be kind of shy and quiet. I was the only girl who gave him a chance. And I won the jackpot! He's caring, romantic, respects me, takes great care of me and our home, and he's wicked smart. Sure, he's quirky. Sure, he doesn't have typical 'masculine' hobbies. But he's a great guy, and I wish more people saw more for him than his quirks." "Not doing surprise gifts, dates, etc. Spontaneity and big gestures are highly romanticized, but they can often set both parties up for disappointment or unrealistic expectations. Communicating and involving your partner instead is a green flag for me. My partner and I like to discuss and plan fun ideas together. We go shopping for gifts together as well, so we get to pick out exactly what we like. It's so much more fun, and there is less pressure to like a gift or hope they like a gift. (And wastes less money)." —Anonymous, 30; Canada "Inserting himself into my college life. We currently go to different colleges, but he makes the effort to see me at my college because he wants to get to know my friends and new interests I've picked up. It's so, when I talk, he knows how to contribute to our conversations in a way that he understands what and who I'm talking about. Some people may see it as signs of insecurity or jealousy, but he truly wants to see the way I've been growing as a person now that I'm in college." "Online gaming. I've dated a couple of people I've met through online gaming. I know people tend to think that's a bad thing (to game a lot), but it requires communication and planning skills, especially when their gaming group includes people around the world." —Anonymous, 39; Phoenix, AZ "Not being close to their parents. It's great if your family is close. It's also absolutely okay if it's complicated, but sometimes it is better to cut ties with abusers or toxic people. I think it can be healthy to be no or low-contact, and it can protect partners and future children. It takes a lot of strength to break cycles." "It's not toxic to have never dated someone before. Like, they're waiting for the truly right person to date." —Anonymous, 20; South Carolina "When people always respond with 'What do YOU want to do?' People find it weirdly annoying, but I think it just means they care about how you feel. I don't like it when people are like, 'What do you want to do?' 'Oh, I was thinking ice skating, then lunch at this restaurant, then a museum…' That just feels like they've been creepily putting this whole date together for months. No, thank you." "Not responding to texts quickly. My bf was sooooo slow to respond to texts when we first exchanged numbers. I thought he wasn't interested, but it turned out that he was not a very tech-savvy guy and had no interest in his phone. This makes dates great as we can converse for hours on end and away from screens. Our interactions are always genuine, and he's so thoughtful!" —Anonymous, 16; Oklahoma "Having girl friends as a man. It's not a red flag. It actually tells me women feel safe around you, and you can build a relationship with a woman other than a romantic one. So that means you don't see women only as objects for your pleasure. You actually see them as human beings you can interact with just like you do with other men." "Not telling someone their WHOLE life story. The older I get, there are things people keep to themselves for a reason. Doesn't mean they don't trust you or you can't trust them. If it's significant enough, it will reveal itself. I am not going to force someone I am with to tell me everything if they're not comfortable doing so. That being said, if you don't communicate what is important to you for them to share about themselves, that is all on you." —witchysorcerer621 "Not being a self-proclaimed nice guy. This might be specific to my relationship, but he straight up told me he was 'kind of an a**hole' on our first date and said he wasn't good with emotions. It was refreshing as hell, coming from seemingly endless dates with self-professed 'nice guys' who were anything but. Turns out he's not an asshole at all, and he's pretty damn good with emotions now. That first date was 15 years ago." "A guy cooking, cleaning, and being able to do stereotypically 'female' stuff." —Anonymous, Maddi, USA 26 "Being upfront about dating other people. It might seem like a red flag at first, but it's actually a green one. Honesty about where you stand shows emotional maturity and respect. It also sets the stage for clear communication when the time comes to discuss exclusivity — if and when both people are ready for that step." Finally, "On a blind or first date: I am totally OJ with small talk. People have all sorts of different levels and experiences when it comes to meeting with a person for the first time. Being nervous is OK, and not knowing what to say is OK." —sparklysalt40 Have examples of your own where a perceived red flag is actually a green flag? Let us know in the comments or through the anonymous form below!
