A Turkey-Day Parade
Of Cooking Gadgets

Even in today's speeded-up world, the preparation of Thanksgiving dinner still takes an eternity -- an all-day affair of chopping, mashing, baking and boiling. While some are thankful for that, others are decidedly not.

Making cooking faster has been the goal of gadget makers since the invention of the toaster, but this year there is a fresh batch of labor-saving devices hitting store shelves. Many are high-tech, reflecting an important trend: the increasing digitization of the home that will stop only when we finally achieve a Jetsons-level lifestyle or have another blackout. Others are updated versions of some old, reliable, low-tech equipment.

But are these devices really useful? And, more importantly, are they worth the money? To find out, we picked a few being heavily hawked by kitchen-supply retailers this holiday season, and put them to the test preparing a Thanksgiving feast.

Among other things, we tried a device that fits over the top of a saucepan and automatically does the stirring for you, the increasingly popular turkey fryer (which can cook a 15-pound bird in about an hour), and various silicone-coated items -- including oven mitts so heat resistant that you can dunk your hands into a pot of boiling water to retrieve potatoes. We also tested a remote cooking thermometer that lets you check the temperature of meat in your oven from anywhere in the house, as well as a hunk of metal that instantly removes cooking odors from your hands.

To help with the test, I drafted my brother Jeff, an accomplished cook who is also dubious about kitchen shortcuts that sound too good to be true. In many cases, his instincts proved correct. Still, some of the timesavers turned out to be surprisingly innovative and effective.

That was certainly the case with a remote digital thermometer we used to cook a beef roast. We found the unit performed beautifully. Once your stick a metal probe into the meat, it transmits the temperature readings to a remote receiver that can be carried around the house. You can set the device to various settings, by temperature, meat type and desired doneness. Old-fashioned thermometers, of course, require constant opening and closing of the oven. By contrast, we left the remote unit with Jeff's kids, who dutifully reported the cooking progress to us as they watched a DVD of "Finding Nemo" in the living room. The remote even read the temperature from outside the house. As the roast approached doneness, the device beeped a warning. We got another alert when the cooking was complete.

We used a version sold under the Redi-Chek name, but there's an increasing range on sale at most retailers. For the $50 or so these devices cost, it's surely a discretionary item, but ours did save time by freeing us from oven monitoring.

Less successful was the StirChef "Hands-Free" Saucepan Stirrer, a gadget that came out this past year. Even at a high retail price of $29.95, it seems like a laudable concept -- no more boring stirring. With an adjustable trio of clips to fit pans of varying sizes, the battery-operated unit has several lengths of paddles that attach to it and turn either continually or occasionally.

But while the mechanics of it all worked well, its usefulness was questionable in several respects. For one thing, it stirred far too slowly when set on the constant setting, and speed isn't adjustable. Thus, we were unable to stir our gravy vigorously enough to break up lumps of flour. In addition, the unit covers the pot almost completely, leaving no room to see what's going on in there, or to stick in a regular spoon to fix the situation. For the most part, it saved no time. "It's unnatural," said Jeff, who reverted to his old wooden spoon with relief.

But he was thrilled with several silicone-based items we tried. From nonstick baking sheets to trivets to spatulas, the material is showing up more frequently in kitchens because of its heat-resistant properties. Particularly impressive was the Orka brand silicone oven mitt, a long glove that not only can handle temperatures of up to 500 degrees, but also washes up quickly when you're all done. Even at $19.95, the mitt was worth it. We wore a pair to pull potatoes quickly out of boiling water and skin them by hand without discomfort. In fact, we were so confident with the gloves, we also yanked the fried turkey out of a vat of peanut oil without worry.

Worry was all we had about the fryer itself, however. Essentially, the device is a dressed-up version of the traditional fish fryer/lobster steamer. There are many brands available, most with stainless steel lifters, needle injectors for marinade and thermometers. We used a $49.95 Thermos unit, but others made of better materials can cost up to $100. It promises one-hour cooking and a bird that's juicier than if it's cooked in an oven.

But, frighteningly, the fryer's instruction book spends more pages issuing various warnings than telling you how to cook a bird. Frying has many potential dangers, from burns to the risk of hot-oil spills. All of this is well illustrated by a scary video on the Underwriters Laboratories Web site. There, the testers were able to easily light up one fryer like a Roman candle. And don't ever dunk a frozen bird into a fryer; the water content causes explosive splattering.

For safety, a fryer must be set up outdoors to avoid Armageddon. But it was raining on the day of our test, forcing us to wait for the sky to clear. We also had to buy five gallons of oil, not an inexpensive proposition, though it is reusable.

We finally got the water-free bird in the pot and it bubbled away beautifully as we watched in awe. But despite following instructions carefully, we managed to burn the outside of the turkey. Still, under the crisped skin, the meat was perfectly cooked and juicy. That is, until we carved down a bit and found it to be raw. Since by now, it would have taken too long to reheat the oil, we popped the bird into the oven. Naturally, the turkey dried out badly.

Happily, most of the remaining timesavers were worthwhile. Kudos, for example, go to the Peel Away Peeler, a handsome metal version of the old-fashioned crank apple and potato corer, made by Back to Basics and selling for about $28. It cored and sliced with ease and speed, and was entertaining, too.

The same was true for both a glazed ceramic "Butter Bell" and an angled measuring cup, strong improvements on well-worn kitchen essentials. The $23.95 Butter Bell, made by L. Tremain, lets you keep butter at room temperature for 30 days by keeping it submerged in water upside down. Thus, zero waiting for the butter to soften. The cup, made by Oxo for $8.95, lets you read measurements more conveniently from above. It saves only a moment of lifting, but the ease is worth it.

But I'm not so sure about the Rub Away odor-removing bar. Looking like a piece of soap, the $7.50 chunk of stainless steel quickly eliminates odors like garlic, fish or onions if you rub it on your hands. That may indeed be something to be thankful for -- but soap and water is just as fast and effective.

Email your comments to rjeditor@dowjones.com.