Thursday, May 14, 2009

Hazlopro

I know this is going to make me sound like a spoiled american brat, but a lot of the time living here it feels pretty 3rd world. So many of life's little details seem like so much more of a struggle here, and efficiency and customer service aren't exactly prized. The rest of Europe doesn't seem that way to me (not that I've spent as much time anywhere else), and even in Istanbul there's tons of things you can find/do/buy that are impossible here. I'm not complaining, not exactly, because this all has its upside too, but I do think it's a fair observation. But even here in Espain, the times they are a-changing.

Hazlopro, literally "Doitpro", which I stumbled on the other day taking a different route home is symbolic to me of the new madrid. I could easily spend an hour here. It is filled with all kinds of kitchen goodies, and no one hovers over you while you browse. And while there's tons of cool gadgets that were relevant to my life in the kitchen, there's also tons of fun spanish-centric stuff. Like there's a section for paella-making and for fideua, and a section for all things jamon-related, for those people who keep a leg of it at home.

I bought nothing. But I came home with a pretty sizable wishlist. One of my biggest discoveries was this spanish brand, Lékué (2 accents in one word? That doesn't happen in this language...). They make silicone things. Boring? No way. They make all kinds of silicone things. Here's a modern version for making things en papillote:

And yeah, no, I've never done that. But I have been known to steam things. And this just looks cool.

Then there's this steamer, and it's collapsible! Which is great for a teeny tiny kitchen like ours with very little cupboard space. Or counter space. Or space of any kind really.
But my favorite was this weirdo invention:




Also loving some Joseph Joseph cutting boards I saw there. I'd seen the Chop 2 Pot one somewhere before, but I still think it's brilliant. And the one with the tabs for vegetables and meat and fish and something else that I can't tell what it is from its icon (can't actually be for eggs, right?), well that'd be perfect for a germaphobe like my husband.



Also saw another space-saver collapsable miracle by good ol' Oxo. Yeah, it looks like the steamer at the beginnig of the post. But this one's a strainer. See why I woudl need both of them?
I also saw these little guys, which are ingenious. Not that I've ever made poached eggs in my life. Or even wanted to really. But if I had these I just might...


And one last goodie I want to share with you. They didn't have it at Hazlopro, but it's one of my favorite kitchen gadgets ever. I think everyone should have one of these. Best egg timer ever.



1 comment:

  1. wanna go.

    that weird invention thing that lets things drip or whatever, i really can't figure it out. am i brain-dead? i would actually love the egg poackers, 'cause eggs can look really ugly when poached the traditional way.

    so make this: poach eggs, make sure yoks are runny, pour on it lots of warmed yogurt, hot butter, red pepper flakes. sort of soupy. but then you break the yolk, and it oozes into the yogurt - yummmm

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