Some of these gadgets may seem frivolous, but for disabled people like myself (and I imagine the elderly who aren’t as spry) these are game changers. Yea, you could use a pot on the stove, but if you’re a wheelchair user and it’s hard to use the stove, personal electric appliances like these give back some independence and makes it easier to cook for myself.
So glad you mentioned this. I also get a lot of use out of small tabletop appliances for the same reason, and it does seem like some could be very handy for people dealing with other sets of challenges in the kitchen.
The mini 1 pot lunchbox is really useful for students living in dormitary! You can save washing space and plates and cook all dishes at the same time! It was my best friend during my college days
This is a nice change of pace from Costco products which are all designed for large families. In general, products designed for single people seem to be an overlooked and niche market.
Costco currently has products that are good for single people, like the ramen bowls from Snapdragon, the curry pouches from Saffron Road, and the very useful Bibigo single sticky rice bowls.
It can be hard to cook for 1. To save money and time you just cook up meals for two or four and fridge, freezer, then reheat or if applicable eat cold. The more days you cook ahead and store. You can save and meal plan for the month.
My wife was perusing the internet and came upon some "interesting" products. I noticed quite a few of them seemed geared towards single people, so I thought, "Hey, why not test some of them out!" What do you think of them?
Thanks for this. Finding kitchen tools for single people is difficult. Most things start at four servings. I don't need four. I just need one. Maybe two for leftovers. But I don't want to eat the same thing all week. And I hate wasting food because it's gone bad. The struggle is real. That multiple skewer thing looks like a nightmare to clean! The egg/toaster thing might be good. Less messy cooking the eggs that way. Though the design needs some work. I'd be burning myself constantly. And yeah, cooking and doing everything alone is sad. That's single life.
I think the little grill would be the only one. I've a rice cooker, we eat a lot of rice, and I think it works fine and isn't much bigger than the small one. The grill looked great. I could and would make use of that. Even though I'm married now there are times I still eat alone and I think I could use that for several different meals. I love that I saw Tabasco sauce on the table. My family is from the region that is made, bottled, and shipped out.
the toaster thingy and grill looked the most convienient in my opinion. space efficient, not finicky and complicated (bar the egg pan) and overall user friendly
I grinned when I saw the rotating yakitori cooker. I have its grandma in one of my kitchen cupboards. It was my mother's, and it's called a "Kabobit" by Wearever. It is from the 70's. It still works, and we use it quite often for kabob skewers and sausages/hot dogs. Pro tip: Take the end tips out of the bottom of the grill, skewer your meat and then put the end tips firmly on the skewer, then put the skewers into the machine and then put the enclosure on. If the end tips are on firmly enough, they won't come off the skewers until you remove them manually, and you won't have to play Yakitori Operation anymore! 🙂
As someone living in a small apartment in Japan with only one stove top, I can see how those electric cooking devices can be really handy serving as additional cooking stoves. And good alternatives to just microwaving everything!
Who eats one (1) loaf of toast with 2 eggs though, think i rather stick with a toaster and an normal egg cooker for breakfast, it's not much bigger either. A few of the other appliances however seem useful under certain circumstances.
I think the two-layer Bento Box Rice Cooker would be really good for college dorms for late-night meals when studying or when one is traveling and staying in hotels. I would like to see a handle included for lifting the separator from the rice. I liked the hot pot as a means of doing noodles or a soup and this is also something that might be very useful in a college dorm. The electric Hibachi would be really nice for a small apartment, not sure about using this in a college dorm room.
The tiny grill would work great for one person especially an old person. Because we got time to sit around and mess with stuff and it’s fun to cook alone it’s not sad at all. Through different stages of life what seems sad changes :-). Cooking small amounts can be difficult. Purchasing small amounts is even harder in the US. Example: a gallon of milk is 3.60 dollars and a quart is $2.70.
...and for those that are metrically inclined (i.e. outside of the USA) there are four quarts in a gallon. So, a gallon of milk bought as a gallon is $3.60, but that same gallon bought as four quarts will cost $10.80. Domo arigato re jn. ;-)
Especially in a pandemic, I’m not sharing air when I don’t have to, so eating for 1 is fine with me. The grill is the only multi-use item that isn’t easily found in multiple sizes (the kebab maker looks like a nightmare. Toss those cubes on this mini grill)
I made all my meals in a rice cooker for a few years (eggs, sausage, even mac&cheese) and it wasn't so bad. Before rice cookers were popular in the US, apparently my mother did the same thing in college... with a coffee pot?! It was all she was allowed to have.
In college in the 1970s - there was no meal service Sunday nights. My friend Don used his popcorn maker on Sunday nights to make soup and pasta! This was before air popper popcorn makers.
I'm definitely getting the individual rice cooker! I hate not-fresh rice, so being able to make it at will is wonderful! And the mini-grill looks so much more useful than trying to figure out how to grill something on the stove.
You two are always adorable and I love watching you go, especially the re-enactions. And as a disabled person myself, I've got to agree with Gromlin; some of these might work well for me with my limited mobility. It's dangerous to cook on the stove sitting in my rollator, but I'd probably be okay with the pot. And if you have no cooking facilities at all, like in a dorm, then things like the egg toaster would be very handy, though I'd still go with a real, if small, rice cooker instead of the 'bento.' And as I thought, the upright spinning 'grill' didn't do too well, but the flat one didn't look too bad. For a combination of delight *and* practicality, I think the egg toaster wins, but I'd be most likely to buy the pot.
Every time your sil is in a video, she’s happy and laughing. She has a lovely predisposition. I enjoy her appearing in the videos. I mean this in a really innocent way. I just enjoy that kind of personality. Cheers.
The voice overs are so funny! As a single person who loves kitchen gadgets this video is speaking to me in a big way. Granted I mostly stick with my tiny rice cooker since it can do so much, but I think I would use the yakitori grill. Not that rotating one, that one scares me.
that mini grill looks fun/cute. it's not really practical to feed a bunch of people, or cook things quickly but it would be fun to use during a little get together. people could make their own skewers and cook them while having other food and drinks like you guys did here. It would be a good way to get folks to slow down and unwind.
It was interesting and fun seeing you both test "convenient" appliances! I have a small kitchen and only use a 2 cup rice/oatmeal cooker, an air fryer and an insta-pot. Less electricity than a stove top and oven!
I have a bento box rice cooker, but mine has two ceramic cups side by side instead of a square box, and the rice never has to be washed. It comes out perfect every time, and you can either make two servings of rice or make rice on one side and steam veggies or other things on the other side. It works great, and was about $50. I think it is the one appliance we use the most often in our little apartment.
Could I ask you to check the brand on your appliance please? I would love an item like this, especially with the more convenient design that you're describing.
I live in a small studio without a kitchen so I've purchased a single burner induction stove from Ikea, which I keep in a cupboard. It's great for people without a stovetop! Plus a rice cooker and microwave, I can make anything that doesn't require an oven (and roughly make a few things that do, hahaha) and I can move the induction stove to the table if I have people over. I can't imagine any of these making my life more convenient, but that tiny baby grill does look like a lot of fun!!
Have you tried one of those three-tier electric steamers? I live in a studio and cook almost everything in mine- steaming makes everything taste nicer, too!
Would love more of these appliance focused videos. Let's learn about ALL of them. I love the zojirushi fish roaster which I understand is built into most Japanese ranges. And you could do multiple episodes about the venerable rice cooker!
I think the electric pot you used to cook cheese fondue is the thing I would use most. Over a decade ago my friend had an electric "wok" (just a non stick pan in the shape of a wok) that was really convenient to cook one pot meals in. I would highly recommend something like that for people living in a dorm room or any situation where you might not have access to a cooker/stove. The only downside of my friend's electric wok was that you could not submerge it to wash it.
I have a few items like this. A single person rice cooker that cooks up to 2 or 3 cups of rice. (tho it's not just for rice) Single portion deep fat fryer. Small size bread maker. Tabletop electric stew pot/frypan. Small size slow cooker. Every one of them, I managed to find in charity/thrift shops. Here in the UK we get stuff from a company called 'Coopers' that make single person electrical items, they sell them in a magazine that gets sent to our homes. If you are eating alone, or live alone, they are a bit more economical than using full size items.
What a fun and funny video! Seeing you klutz around trying everything out and especially hearing you read out your words after Akko had been told she sounded like she was reading a line IRL - lol! I think I'd give that electric nabe pot a go and make sukiyaki in it. Yum!
these eccentric inventions are an underappreciated piece of japanese culture these days. in the 80s and 90s it was one of the things japan was known for.
I live alone, but I have plenty of kitchen space, so none of these gadgets would be of any use to me, but I do like the idea of microwaving the precooked and frozen rice! It was a fun video to watch, regardless! My 3 gadgets I like the most for single life, is the air fryer, the George Foreman grill, and the multicooker.
The last time that I went to Japan, I found a "10分で炊ける" for only 6000¥. Was very convenient to cook rice for my wife and me while we traveled around Japan... In the instructions, we found the proportion for only one person.
As I watched you test the mini toaster and found that the eggs hadn't quite cooked at the recommended temp and time, I was thinking that it probably would've cooked perfectly if it had just been one egg.
We have a little oven called "the Diner". It can cook an egg on top or remove the round egg pan to slide bread for toast down 2 slots, the oven is big enough to heat a large muffin or biscuit and you can make toast in it like the mini oven you showed us, and it has a 2 serving coffee/tea maker on the end of it. I love it. We keep it in the craft room and make tea and mini cakes for snack breaks. I call it my adult easy bake oven lol
The egg-toaster is a great idea. I would use that. Multi-purpose gadgets appeal to me because my kitchen is very small and only has counter space for ONE appliance, so I am always swapping coffee maker for toaster or instant pot. Making a meal with toast and coffee requires planning ahead.
A lot of these gadgets look convenient for office lunches or dorms, and maybe travel (except for the rotating yakitori maker). You can use metal tongs to handle the toaster and bento box trays.
I like this trend of westerner and Japanese together in videos. Akko is a great addition! Akkoさんもちょおしゃれじゃん！可愛いです。It was a great video. Everything really was well considered! This video needs more views!
Good demonstrations of these prodicts, Greg! It looks like you and Akko had a good time recording this video. Although we won't be getting any of these, some might be useful for a dorm room or extended stay some place where eating options are limited.
I’m such a bit fan of Akko-san! I’m glad she appeared, again! I was surprised by how well the “breakfast set” toaster oven worked! I wonder if it is hard to clean? (Even with the splash guard, crumbs and everything else must still be an issue.)
One thing often overlooked when it comes to products like these is they save on power. An electric kettle uses less power than heating an eye on the stove. I have a stove but I use small appliances more
My mom bought that self rotating kabob machine (although the style is different. Ours has a metal lid and the barrier is glass and we can use regular bamboo skewers) and it's one of the most used appliances as my mom really likes making chicken and beef Cambodian skewers.
I did find a different version of a double-decker rice cooker bento on Amazon and put it on my wish list. It would be nice to make a small meal for myself at home without cooking an entire pot of rice, or for my husband to use at work for some variety.
these mini appliances function and usage seem to be so niche that it reach a diminish of return - you end up with multiple mini appliances that would take up more space than one regular do-it-all cookware. p.s. thanks for sharing tho. it is very entraining to see these appliances and you video quality is super high as always!
I live alone and 80% of the time I use only two appliances, rice cooker and airfryer... you can make so many things with an airfryer and it is so easy to clean it! The best gadgets to single life
Would love to see you take a tour of other regular-sized gadgets in Japan. I understand that microwave devices there are truly advanced compared to those in Canada - would be great to see that and know if it's possible to order them internationally!
You can order most things from Amazon Japan and just filter for international shipping! I'm in California and we can order here. Just make sure to account for Customs fees!
Man, that tiny toaster is kind of intriguing. I don't own a microwave and I just can't make myself cook in the mornings, and I just can't do a cold breakfast in the mornings now that it's cold, so I usually go without. Something I can just throw eggs in and walk away to get ready for work?? That would be ideal!
If you ever want to downsize to a tiny house, these products would be great. So if you don’t have a lot of space and you don’t want to put in like a full on stove, these are a good substitute.
The dubbing is so funny! A happy accident. I don't like single-use products, but I think the yakitori maker would be such a fun thing for a small party. Fun video! Greetings from Sweden 👋🏻
I am addicted to getting appliances like this - I call them as Plan B’s when our gas runs out and we don’t have money to replace it immediately. And also investments for the day I move out because I will be taking them all with me 😂 Note: My Plan C is a portable gas burner, the one with butane on it - for emergencies when we don’t have gas AND electricity and I can’t be bothered cooking the old fashioned way of burning wood or it was raining 😂
Woaw japan really made goods for people who lives alone, I quite like the idea of small rice cooker. Since I like better if my rice is freshly made compared store long in rice cooker. And it quite small so I see no problem to wash them every time, compared to big basin rice cooker that usually have dried rice on the bottom that were hard to rinse off.
Yoooooo the mini toaster impressed is far more impressive than I thought. Those perfectly sized holes for dealing the egg apparatus answered my only question with the product.
As someone who lived alone, you are better off with a small induction cooker + induction marble saucepan (with 1-2 steaming attachment) + airfryer. That's all you need to have very decent homecook meals
I could see the cooking bento being really useful in a lot of specific situations. Like people have said, it seems very useful for for those who live in dorms or other areas with poor or shared kitchen spaces. For travelling, especially in Japan where so many places can be accessed without flying (making the weight less of an issue) it could be a great way to keep eating home cooked meals while moving from place to place. I would be interested to see if the product can be made any lighter or have handles added to the tray, and if so would totally buy one!
I think the Mini Toaster wins, Normally well atleast in the UK the toaster only cooks toast and you have to break out the frying pan to cook sunny side up eggs. But with that 2 and one, its fast, and you only have to clean that egg holder, as for the Thanko rice x steamer. I think its nice if you are travelling. But if you are at home, I think I prefer to just cook one batch of rice and put it in the fridge. Same for other meals. Meal prep then store it in the fridge enough for 1 week.
I'll suggest getting a big hand-sized hand mitten for dealing with cooking and microwaving things you can use the hand mitten/gloves as/like a large wooden board(e.g a pizza cooking wooden spatula) to take and place the food from your cooking surface to your eating table along with the knife method you used in the video and will also help with the other products that are hard to handle due to being too hot to the touch and difficult to work with.
You guys are so cute together 🥰 Especially at the end 🌷🥳The review you both did was an eye opener for some products. Like when they were too hot to touch, I would not want that!
I love your videos on home gear comparisons. i'm always on the look out for small appliances like these to bring back home to Singapore. unfortunately they are usually rated for 100-120v which is not practical in a 220-250v country. i've ended up mostly with gas canister types of appliances. it's also nice to see the larger family come into the video at some point and the interactions
I lived in China for 7 years and had a couple of the Bento Boxes. I LOVED them. I could take them to work, at school and heat food up. Now I have gone one step further. When I went home to the UK I bought a time switch for my plug. So I can set the time it cooks from. This makes my eating habits so much healthier and convient for me.
These seem so handy for situations where theres only one or two people cooking in a situation without a real/full kitchen (like living in a dorm or wanting to keep your things in one room when living in someone elses house, or even a really tiny apartment)
I’d buy 1 storey rice cooker & tabletop hotpot. I’m planning to build small outside yakitori grill myself next summer from leftover bricks & scrap metal so I don’t really see the point in getting myself a tabletop one. Besides, If I want yakitori some time apart from summer I’ll just go to a place where they’ll definitely make it better than myself 😅 Thanks for the video! 😊
3 quart instant pot (or other electric pressure cooker)+ a small air fryer is all you need. That is how I fed myself well when I became single again 6 years ago. I STILL love those 2 appliances and they will do all the things these gadgets will do.
I think Day Drinking and playing Operation sounds fun! 🥳 I actually like the mini hot pot and the tabletop grill. I like tabletop grills in general. The rice makers? ehh I like my AROMA steamers, I know how to make a meal for 3-4 in 30 mins in one. And the little breakfast nook toaster and egg maker, I've actually considered getting a similar toaster unit for my room, the egg maker on top is a bonus. I'm going to think on that still. You two are adorable 💕 Happy New Year to you and your family!
Some of these gadgets may seem frivolous, but for disabled people like myself (and I imagine the elderly who aren’t as spry) these are game changers. Yea, you could use a pot on the stove, but if you’re a wheelchair user and it’s hard to use the stove, personal electric appliances like these give back some independence and makes it easier to cook for myself.
I live alone, these would save on electricity and cleanup. Considering how fast my bills rose this winter, it's almost magical...
THE GROMLIN
O So Truuuuu. 🤔🤓👍🌻🌻🌻🐣🐤👍.
You have to remember that space is at a premium in Japanese cities. So having small appliances to be self sufficient is a lucrative market
So glad you mentioned this. I also get a lot of use out of small tabletop appliances for the same reason, and it does seem like some could be very handy for people dealing with other sets of challenges in the kitchen.
Absolutely! That's why I clicked the video
The mini 1 pot lunchbox is really useful for students living in dormitary! You can save washing space and plates and cook all dishes at the same time! It was my best friend during my college days
That's what I was thinking. I really wish it would have been available when I was in college.
This is a nice change of pace from Costco products which are all designed for large families. In general, products designed for single people seem to be an overlooked and niche market.
Costco currently has products that are good for single people, like the ramen bowls from Snapdragon, the curry pouches from Saffron Road, and the very useful Bibigo single sticky rice bowls.
Strange consider families are becoming a thing of the past
true, being a single with not enough space on the countertop I need some of these here
@@someguy782 can't make tomorrow without a couple of kids. Think of the future purchases we'll need to sustain our unsustainable lifestyles!!! Gahgh
It can be hard to cook for 1. To save money and time you just cook up meals for two or four and fridge, freezer, then reheat or if applicable eat cold. The more days you cook ahead and store. You can save and meal plan for the month.
I’m disabled and standing at the stove is sometimes difficult. These table top appliances seem perfect! The pot especially!
With other words your house is not set up well to accommodate your disability.
I'm enabled, and i don't think it's a problem. Maybe you're not trying hard enough?
@@HeWhoShamesNarwhals you b+%&ard
@@HeWhoShamesNarwhals bro what?
@@catzfive I'd like to think it's satire, though sadly... there's no easy way to separate satire from just plan bad takes sometimes. XP
That butter knife is the MVP tool of this video. 😂
Chop sticks might work too.
My wife was perusing the internet and came upon some "interesting" products. I noticed quite a few of them seemed geared towards single people, so I thought, "Hey, why not test some of them out!" What do you think of them?
Thanks for this. Finding kitchen tools for single people is difficult. Most things start at four servings. I don't need four. I just need one. Maybe two for leftovers. But I don't want to eat the same thing all week. And I hate wasting food because it's gone bad. The struggle is real.
That multiple skewer thing looks like a nightmare to clean! The egg/toaster thing might be good. Less messy cooking the eggs that way. Though the design needs some work. I'd be burning myself constantly. And yeah, cooking and doing everything alone is sad. That's single life.
I think the little grill would be the only one. I've a rice cooker, we eat a lot of rice, and I think it works fine and isn't much bigger than the small one.
The grill looked great. I could and would make use of that. Even though I'm married now there are times I still eat alone and I think I could use that for several different meals.
I love that I saw Tabasco sauce on the table. My family is from the region that is made, bottled, and shipped out.
the cook time for eggs and rice are accurate. 6-10 mins for eggs, 30-45 mins for rice regardless of the equipment used.
the toaster thingy and grill looked the most convienient in my opinion. space efficient, not finicky and complicated (bar the egg pan) and overall user friendly
Hopefully she isn’t trying to hint something to you.
I seriously love your relationship with Akko. You guys have that brother-sister relationship and I love that she's not shy in your videos.
Is she your sister? Kinda annoying.
@@Adeline9418 Hi troll! Delete it, troll!
Sometimes she whines. I stopped watching for awhile, but he is very informative to a new person in Japan
@@cherylperkins7538 Don't all women whine? 😂😂😂
I grinned when I saw the rotating yakitori cooker. I have its grandma in one of my kitchen cupboards. It was my mother's, and it's called a "Kabobit" by Wearever. It is from the 70's. It still works, and we use it quite often for kabob skewers and sausages/hot dogs. Pro tip: Take the end tips out of the bottom of the grill, skewer your meat and then put the end tips firmly on the skewer, then put the skewers into the machine and then put the enclosure on. If the end tips are on firmly enough, they won't come off the skewers until you remove them manually, and you won't have to play Yakitori Operation anymore! 🙂
As someone living in a small apartment in Japan with only one stove top, I can see how those electric cooking devices can be really handy serving as additional cooking stoves. And good alternatives to just microwaving everything!
I thought about that as well. Small kitchens with tiny stove..
Instant Pot is the way to go, that and a small rice cooker!
I would think that finding the space to store all of these items would be a challenge in a small apartment?
Get an induction burner to make your food taste better.
The toaster that also cooks eggs is actually kinda genius. Also, it saves energy since you don’t need to use a toaster AND your stove.
It does remind me of an easy bake oven I had as a child
Could just use a normal toaster oven though and then you'd have more space and flexibility, put the egg in a small ramekin or similar container
My exes mom had one and it had a small coffee pot on it as well
Who eats one (1) loaf of toast with 2 eggs though, think i rather stick with a toaster and an normal egg cooker for breakfast, it's not much bigger either.
A few of the other appliances however seem useful under certain circumstances.
The mini hotpot looks useful and fun, especially for younger cooks and handy for people with no access to kitchen facilities.
I think the two-layer Bento Box Rice Cooker would be really good for college dorms for late-night meals when studying or when one is traveling and staying in hotels. I would like to see a handle included for lifting the separator from the rice.
I liked the hot pot as a means of doing noodles or a soup and this is also something that might be very useful in a college dorm.
The electric Hibachi would be really nice for a small apartment, not sure about using this in a college dorm room.
The tiny grill would work great for one person especially an old person. Because we got time to sit around and mess with stuff and it’s fun to cook alone it’s not sad at all. Through different stages of life what seems sad changes :-).
Cooking small amounts can be difficult. Purchasing small amounts is even harder in the US. Example: a gallon of milk is 3.60 dollars and a quart is $2.70.
...and for those that are metrically inclined (i.e. outside of the USA) there are four quarts in a gallon. So, a gallon of milk bought as a gallon is $3.60, but that same gallon bought as four quarts will cost $10.80. Domo arigato re jn. ;-)
Especially in a pandemic, I’m not sharing air when I don’t have to, so eating for 1 is fine with me.
The grill is the only multi-use item that isn’t easily found in multiple sizes (the kebab maker looks like a nightmare. Toss those cubes on this mini grill)
I made all my meals in a rice cooker for a few years (eggs, sausage, even mac&cheese) and it wasn't so bad. Before rice cookers were popular in the US, apparently my mother did the same thing in college... with a coffee pot?! It was all she was allowed to have.
Yes! I cooked a lot of meals in a 4-cup coffee maker! We also made grilled cheese sandwiches by wrapping the sandwich in foil and ironing it. 😅
In college in the 1970s - there was no meal service Sunday nights.
My friend Don used his popcorn maker on Sunday nights to make soup and pasta!
This was before air popper popcorn makers.
I'm definitely getting the individual rice cooker! I hate not-fresh rice, so being able to make it at will is wonderful! And the mini-grill looks so much more useful than trying to figure out how to grill something on the stove.
You two are always adorable and I love watching you go, especially the re-enactions. And as a disabled person myself, I've got to agree with Gromlin; some of these might work well for me with my limited mobility. It's dangerous to cook on the stove sitting in my rollator, but I'd probably be okay with the pot. And if you have no cooking facilities at all, like in a dorm, then things like the egg toaster would be very handy, though I'd still go with a real, if small, rice cooker instead of the 'bento.' And as I thought, the upright spinning 'grill' didn't do too well, but the flat one didn't look too bad. For a combination of delight *and* practicality, I think the egg toaster wins, but I'd be most likely to buy the pot.
Every time your sil is in a video, she’s happy and laughing. She has a lovely predisposition. I enjoy her appearing in the videos. I mean this in a really innocent way. I just enjoy that kind of personality. Cheers.
She's bright and cheerful! I enjoy Akko being there too!
"Kawaii" when that little oven came out. Love it!
I laughed out loud at the rotating yakitori maker. The mini toaster is so cute, i can see myself getting it.
There are some versions where you can bake in it. Not that small, a bit bigger but still small.
The voice overs are so funny! As a single person who loves kitchen gadgets this video is speaking to me in a big way. Granted I mostly stick with my tiny rice cooker since it can do so much, but I think I would use the yakitori grill. Not that rotating one, that one scares me.
that mini grill looks fun/cute. it's not really practical to feed a bunch of people, or cook things quickly but it would be fun to use during a little get together. people could make their own skewers and cook them while having other food and drinks like you guys did here. It would be a good way to get folks to slow down and unwind.
The little kettle looks really useful; I think it’s the most practical one of the bunch.
The small toast cooker is really good didn't expect it to work that well at all, also the small yakitori grill looks really convenient aswell
It was interesting and fun seeing you both test "convenient" appliances! I have a small kitchen and only use a 2 cup rice/oatmeal cooker, an air fryer and an insta-pot. Less electricity than a stove top and oven!
I have a bento box rice cooker, but mine has two ceramic cups side by side instead of a square box, and the rice never has to be washed. It comes out perfect every time, and you can either make two servings of rice or make rice on one side and steam veggies or other things on the other side. It works great, and was about $50. I think it is the one appliance we use the most often in our little apartment.
Could I ask you to check the brand on your appliance please? I would love an item like this, especially with the more convenient design that you're describing.
Brand, please? I need one of these.
@hollywebster6844 the one I bought I Thanko brand.
I live in a small studio without a kitchen so I've purchased a single burner induction stove from Ikea, which I keep in a cupboard. It's great for people without a stovetop! Plus a rice cooker and microwave, I can make anything that doesn't require an oven (and roughly make a few things that do, hahaha) and I can move the induction stove to the table if I have people over. I can't imagine any of these making my life more convenient, but that tiny baby grill does look like a lot of fun!!
Have you tried one of those three-tier electric steamers? I live in a studio and cook almost everything in mine- steaming makes everything taste nicer, too!
@@peterclarke7240 I steam everything in the microwave, so I wouldn’t need one of those!
I bake everything in my airfryer... it is really easy to cook with it and clean it
Would love more of these appliance focused videos. Let's learn about ALL of them. I love the zojirushi fish roaster which I understand is built into most Japanese ranges. And you could do multiple episodes about the venerable rice cooker!
You and akko have such a pleasant relationship, it's so calm, caring and fun!
That pot that holds 1000 litres is one amazing pot 😁.
Great video enjoyed watching, keep up the good work 👍
I think the electric pot you used to cook cheese fondue is the thing I would use most. Over a decade ago my friend had an electric "wok" (just a non stick pan in the shape of a wok) that was really convenient to cook one pot meals in. I would highly recommend something like that for people living in a dorm room or any situation where you might not have access to a cooker/stove.
The only downside of my friend's electric wok was that you could not submerge it to wash it.
I have a few items like this.
A single person rice cooker that cooks up to 2 or 3 cups of rice. (tho it's not just for rice)
Single portion deep fat fryer. Small size bread maker. Tabletop electric stew pot/frypan. Small size slow cooker.
Every one of them, I managed to find in charity/thrift shops.
Here in the UK we get stuff from a company called 'Coopers' that make single person electrical items, they sell them in a magazine that gets sent to our homes.
If you are eating alone, or live alone, they are a bit more economical than using full size items.
What a fun and funny video! Seeing you klutz around trying everything out and especially hearing you read out your words after Akko had been told she sounded like she was reading a line IRL - lol! I think I'd give that electric nabe pot a go and make sukiyaki in it. Yum!
these eccentric inventions are an underappreciated piece of japanese culture these days. in the 80s and 90s it was one of the things japan was known for.
I like all your videos but this one was really cute because of the voice overs. Akko seems like she’d be fun to hang out with.
Indoor smokeless yakatori would be my favorite. It has a nice way of making it seem like you are eating a lot of meat but are not
I live alone, but I have plenty of kitchen space, so none of these gadgets would be of any use to me, but I do like the idea of microwaving the precooked and frozen rice! It was a fun video to watch, regardless! My 3 gadgets I like the most for single life, is the air fryer, the George Foreman grill, and the multicooker.
The last time that I went to Japan, I found a "10分で炊ける" for only 6000¥. Was very convenient to cook rice for my wife and me while we traveled around Japan... In the instructions, we found the proportion for only one person.
As I watched you test the mini toaster and found that the eggs hadn't quite cooked at the recommended temp and time, I was thinking that it probably would've cooked perfectly if it had just been one egg.
Oh yeah, it would have been exactly as it should be with a single egg.
I wonder how that toaster would work for tofu.
OIL AND FATS ARE HEALTHY, YOUR BODY NEEDS THEM [in moderation, like everything] (about the "no oil, so it's healthy")
Fun video. Always on the lookout for kitchen gadgets (particularly like this), so would love to see more!
I like the thorough testing! Gives a lot of nuance to what's being advertised.
We have a little oven called "the Diner". It can cook an egg on top or remove the round egg pan to slide bread for toast down 2 slots, the oven is big enough to heat a large muffin or biscuit and you can make toast in it like the mini oven you showed us, and it has a 2 serving coffee/tea maker on the end of it. I love it. We keep it in the craft room and make tea and mini cakes for snack breaks. I call it my adult easy bake oven lol
It's important to not stop experimenting with invention. And it's equally important for consumer reviews like this to improve the design
The egg-toaster is a great idea. I would use that. Multi-purpose gadgets appeal to me because my kitchen is very small and only has counter space for ONE appliance, so I am always swapping coffee maker for toaster or instant pot. Making a meal with toast and coffee requires planning ahead.
A lot of these gadgets look convenient for office lunches or dorms, and maybe travel (except for the rotating yakitori maker). You can use metal tongs to handle the toaster and bento box trays.
I like this trend of westerner and Japanese together in videos. Akko is a great addition! Akkoさんもちょおしゃれじゃん！可愛いです。It was a great video. Everything really was well considered! This video needs more views!
Good demonstrations of these prodicts, Greg! It looks like you and Akko had a good time recording this video. Although we won't be getting any of these, some might be useful for a dorm room or extended stay some place where eating options are limited.
I’m such a bit fan of Akko-san! I’m glad she appeared, again! I was surprised by how well the “breakfast set” toaster oven worked! I wonder if it is hard to clean? (Even with the splash guard, crumbs and everything else must still be an issue.)
One thing often overlooked when it comes to products like these is they save on power. An electric kettle uses less power than heating an eye on the stove. I have a stove but I use small appliances more
When I was in college in the 90s, we had a pot like yours, and it was perfect for dorm room meals.
My mom bought that self rotating kabob machine (although the style is different. Ours has a metal lid and the barrier is glass and we can use regular bamboo skewers) and it's one of the most used appliances as my mom really likes making chicken and beef Cambodian skewers.
I did find a different version of a double-decker rice cooker bento on Amazon and put it on my wish list. It would be nice to make a small meal for myself at home without cooking an entire pot of rice, or for my husband to use at work for some variety.
1:23 that mini rice cooker used in every video by Yagai No Moriko the N-VAN youtuber. You can check in her channel
This is a fun one. Akko certainly makes it more fun.
I bought a kettle hotpot in the U.S. for $20 and I love it. I have used it to cook chicken, rice, hamburger, soup, scrambled eggs and tea.
I feel like the most important kitchen gadget for you two is a decent pair of oven gloves.
Hahaha. Or even a washcloth will do.
😂
I’d love some of these for van camping or overlanding
I really appreciate how thorough you are with these reviews, like testing for convenience & odd heat spots, thank you so much!
these mini appliances function and usage seem to be so niche that it reach a diminish of return - you end up with multiple mini appliances that would take up more space than one regular do-it-all cookware.
p.s. thanks for sharing tho. it is very entraining to see these appliances and you video quality is super high as always!
What a cute couple! I love this video. Not only do I love adorable couples but these reviews make it even better.
I live alone and 80% of the time I use only two appliances, rice cooker and airfryer... you can make so many things with an airfryer and it is so easy to clean it! The best gadgets to single life
Would love to see you take a tour of other regular-sized gadgets in Japan. I understand that microwave devices there are truly advanced compared to those in Canada - would be great to see that and know if it's possible to order them internationally!
You can order most things from Amazon Japan and just filter for international shipping! I'm in California and we can order here. Just make sure to account for Customs fees!
Ah, just make a list, take a vacation there, and haul in the goods.
The mini grill looks absolutely fun. I live alone and would use it 100%
The toaster and the yakitori maker would have been a hit in at a small office I used to work.
That small rice cooker seems to be popular with Japanese "Van Life" UA-camrs. I guess it works well when powered from an inverter.
Such well made videos! I have learned so much about Japan from you
So, what I learned is… you need to use oven mitten and have long chopsticks for all the devices. 😂
And a knife ;)
Loved this video - made me smile to watch it. That toaster + egg combo machine is magic!
Man, that tiny toaster is kind of intriguing. I don't own a microwave and I just can't make myself cook in the mornings, and I just can't do a cold breakfast in the mornings now that it's cold, so I usually go without. Something I can just throw eggs in and walk away to get ready for work?? That would be ideal!
If you ever want to downsize to a tiny house, these products would be great. So if you don’t have a lot of space and you don’t want to put in like a full on stove, these are a good substitute.
thank you greg! i always enjoy your wholesome videos
The dubbing is so funny! A happy accident. I don't like single-use products, but I think the yakitori maker would be such a fun thing for a small party. Fun video! Greetings from Sweden 👋🏻
Should also talk about using it in an RV..
What voltage n power needed n how convenient for those living inside camper van..👈😁👍
20:00 appreciate that you two went through the effort to re-record audio :') 🙏
I am addicted to getting appliances like this - I call them as Plan B’s when our gas runs out and we don’t have money to replace it immediately. And also investments for the day I move out because I will be taking them all with me 😂
Note: My Plan C is a portable gas burner, the one with butane on it - for emergencies when we don’t have gas AND electricity and I can’t be bothered cooking the old fashioned way of burning wood or it was raining 😂
the voiceover was super fun, especially the drinking part.
Woaw japan really made goods for people who lives alone, I quite like the idea of small rice cooker. Since I like better if my rice is freshly made compared store long in rice cooker. And it quite small so I see no problem to wash them every time, compared to big basin rice cooker that usually have dried rice on the bottom that were hard to rinse off.
Yoooooo the mini toaster impressed is far more impressive than I thought. Those perfectly sized holes for dealing the egg apparatus answered my only question with the product.
Love and sharing is always the answer. Thank you for making such a beautiful channel.
As someone who lived alone, you are better off with a small induction cooker + induction marble saucepan (with 1-2 steaming attachment) + airfryer. That's all you need to have very decent homecook meals
So fun and interesting watching the two of you try out things!
it's like they didn't actually USE the devices before manufacturing them...
I could see the cooking bento being really useful in a lot of specific situations. Like people have said, it seems very useful for for those who live in dorms or other areas with poor or shared kitchen spaces. For travelling, especially in Japan where so many places can be accessed without flying (making the weight less of an issue) it could be a great way to keep eating home cooked meals while moving from place to place. I would be interested to see if the product can be made any lighter or have handles added to the tray, and if so would totally buy one!
the re dubbed bit was hilarious xD
I think the Mini Toaster wins, Normally well atleast in the UK the toaster only cooks toast and you have to break out the frying pan to cook sunny side up eggs. But with that 2 and one, its fast, and you only have to clean that egg holder, as for the Thanko rice x steamer. I think its nice if you are travelling.
But if you are at home, I think I prefer to just cook one batch of rice and put it in the fridge. Same for other meals. Meal prep then store it in the fridge enough for 1 week.
what a great video! thankyou ! so fun and edited just right, entertaining! i liked the single toaster best.
7:27 so nice of you to troll the people watching this video 😂
Literally I, was thinking that I would prefer that if I alone, watching a movie 😂😂
I'll suggest getting a big hand-sized hand mitten for dealing with cooking and microwaving things you can use the hand mitten/gloves as/like a large wooden board(e.g a pizza cooking wooden spatula)
to take and place the food from your cooking surface to your eating table
along with the knife method you used in the video and
will also help with the other products that are hard to handle
due to being too hot to the touch and difficult to work with.
You guys are so cute together 🥰 Especially at the end 🌷🥳The review you both did was an eye opener for some products. Like when they were too hot to touch, I would not want that!
I love your videos on home gear comparisons. i'm always on the look out for small appliances like these to bring back home to Singapore. unfortunately they are usually rated for 100-120v which is not practical in a 220-250v country. i've ended up mostly with gas canister types of appliances. it's also nice to see the larger family come into the video at some point and the interactions
3:05 you're single. so you get a single egg.
I lived in China for 7 years and had a couple of the Bento Boxes. I LOVED them. I could take them to work, at school and heat food up. Now I have gone one step further. When I went home to the UK I bought a time switch for my plug. So I can set the time it cooks from. This makes my eating habits so much healthier and convient for me.
thank you and your wife for the great information on cooking tips in the kitchen japanese style
With the rotating one, I think those black bits are supposed to be on the bottom to prevent slide-offs.
These seem so handy for situations where theres only one or two people cooking in a situation without a real/full kitchen (like living in a dorm or wanting to keep your things in one room when living in someone elses house, or even a really tiny apartment)
This reminded me how lovely the Japanese language sounds.... I would love to be able to speak it.
I’d buy 1 storey rice cooker & tabletop hotpot. I’m planning to build small outside yakitori grill myself next summer from leftover bricks & scrap metal so I don’t really see the point in getting myself a tabletop one. Besides, If I want yakitori some time apart from summer I’ll just go to a place where they’ll definitely make it better than myself 😅
Thanks for the video! 😊
3 quart instant pot (or other electric pressure cooker)+ a small air fryer is all you need.
That is how I fed myself well when I became single again 6 years ago.
I STILL love those 2 appliances and they will do all the things these gadgets will do.
Thank you for the vid! My mom actually has an electric barbecue maker like this but much taller. and with no cover.
I think Day Drinking and playing Operation sounds fun! 🥳 I actually like the mini hot pot and the tabletop grill. I like tabletop grills in general. The rice makers? ehh I like my AROMA steamers, I know how to make a meal for 3-4 in 30 mins in one. And the little breakfast nook toaster and egg maker, I've actually considered getting a similar toaster unit for my room, the egg maker on top is a bonus. I'm going to think on that still.
You two are adorable 💕 Happy New Year to you and your family!