We’ve come a long way in the area of kitchen gadgets since the arrival of the basic coffee machine. In fact, we rely quite heavily on gadgets in the kitchen (especially on campus in our Culinary Arts kitchens) to save us time or money, or offer us a healthier convenience to buying ready-made food or drinks. But if money were no object and you could enjoy the convenience of a few high-tech gadgets in your kitchen, which of the below would you pick?

AeroGarden Ultra ED

Growing your own herbs, veggies or fruits in pots on your windowsill is old school. Why not grow these items with NASA-proven technology using dirt-free hydroponics and fast-growth LED lighting in various colours? (white speeds growth, blue yields bigger harvests, red is reserved for tomatoes and peppers). This device also optimises nutrients for whichever plants you choose to grow – using its own computerised brain (in case you forget to use your own brain). Just US$350 for all this home-grown love. What a bargain!

Air X Water Generator 

This fancy little gadget produces drinking water from the air. Basically, this appliance (the size of an office water cooler) draws in air, condenses it, passes the new water through a series of water filters, ultraviolet lights and bacteria killing technology, before pouring out lovely fresh water (up to 20 litres, hot or cold). It boasts no chemicals.  You could use water from this gadget to plant fruits or veg in your AeroGarden Ultra LED! #JustAnIdea.  Available later on this year for a cool US$2,395. Do you think it’s worth it? Do you think this is every chef or hotel managers dream?

ChefJet 3-D Printer

How would you feel about ‘printing’ your desserts in 3-D? It’s the latest craze in culinary art and food technology, and many chefs are keen to try this out in their restaurants. The ChefJet countertop 3-D printer shapes chocolate and other desserts/sweets in ways that would be really hard to do using traditional methods. ChefJet ($5,000) is limited to monochrome creations, but ChefJet Pro (US$10,000) produces multicoloured designs. Would you give it a try?

Juicepresso Cold-Pressed Juicer

Basically, this is the juicer of all juicers because it boasts a little magic trick. It uses a low-speed motor (40rpm) to extract more juice out of any fruit or veg without damaging the cells of the fruit and in so doing, it retains the nutritional value of the juice for up to 3 days (as opposed to hours from a normal juicer). It comes with a recipe book and is dishwasher safe…and for US$450, it should be.

Crock-Pot Smart Slow Cooker ENabled by WeMo

This amazing Crock-Pot slow cooker is likely the closest thing to remote-control cooking you’ll get to experience. A WeMo smartphone app lets you adjust temperature, change cooking time, check status and cut power at the click of a button. It can also send you a reminder when your food is done – convenient. And at just US$130, this really is one of those must-have gadgets we highly recommend for the winter months.