My kitchen is on the small side, which means every inch of space must be efficient and tidy. While most funnels are bulky and take up valuable room, this one is compact enough to fit in a studio-size kitchen or be a welcomed addition to any camping pack.

The accordion-style pleats not only allow you to collapse the silicone funnel so it fits neatly even in a shallow drawer. The pleats also allow you to adjust the height and width of the funnel for pouring into various-sized containers.

Since the funnel is made of high-quality silicone, it is dishwasher safe and heat and cold resistant, making it more durable and longer-lasting than plastic funnels. Other potential uses: changing your car’s oil or adding washer fluid. If you plan to use it in the garage, of course, I’d recommend getting a second one.

After a year of regular use, I’m still struck by how much of an improvement this collapsible colander is over traditional ones. For small apartment or galley kitchens this colander brings serious space savings.

The bowl section folds flat and the legs swing under, clicking into place. When collapsed, the colander is 1.5 inches thick. It can be easily stored upright like a book between cupboard items or behind a counter-top appliance. It even has a hole, if you prefer to hang it on a rack.

Though the colander is compact, it’s well-designed. The legs are set broadly apart, making it extremely stable. The tall legs give ample clearance underneath the colander, which can be handy if there are dirty dishes in the sink and the pasta needs to be drained right away. The wide handles offer a solid grip. Also, it’s dishwasher safe.

The only benefit to another colander would be volume. I rarely cook for more than a few people, so the 2.5-quart Dexas suits my needs fine. If you’re cooking larger portions, I’d recommend one from OXO.

I’ll admit it takes a fanatic to appreciate an $80 dishrack when you can get a plastic one for just a few bucks. But if anyone can design a superior, beautiful and functional kitchen product that many folks usually don’t think twice about, it’s Simplehuman.

Made of stainless steel with ABS plastic parts, this dishrack can handle pretty much anything you toss at it. The “flip-top” allows you to make room for larger pots and pans. The “dual direction” draining mat actually works. A bamboo knife block inserts into part of the utensil holder, but still leaves space for other utensils and tools. The cup holders along the edges will dry four at a time. And there are even two additional clip-on holders specially designed to accomodate wine glasses.

I first used the dishrack while visiting my sister. Both my wife and I were amazed at how good design can improve an everyday tool. I hunted down and ordered one as soon as we got home!

King Arthur’s dispenser is a sturdy, reliable container that accommodates a five-pound bag of sugar or flour. You just slide in the bag, open it up, trim the bag top to the top of the container, and put the lid back on. A little flap inside the lid holds the bag open and keeps the sugar/flour from sifting down the sides. When sealed shut, the whole thing is ant- and water-proof. Another practical benefit is that the lid has two openings: One is a pour spout; The other is large enough to allow for scooping with a measuring cup. Since the spout is slightly flexible, I find I can squeeze the sides to crush any lumps or clumps.

Obviously, this is not a sexy matte-black high tech kind of tool. But using it makes me very happy. It’s a solid, well thought-out product that makes working with and storing sugar/flour much simpler, easier and cleaner.

Note: King Arthur Flour’s online store and print catalog are packed with tons of other nifty cooking tools. The King Arthur Flour’s Cookie Companion and Baker’s Companion books are fabulous cookbooks.

We’ve been searching for an efficient way to store spices for ages. Those rotating towers are too large, and we didn’t want to devote kitchen counter space to a separate rack. I finally came across this horizontal filing system on Amazon. It’s the perfect solution. The whole thing is sized to fit inside standard kitchen cabinets; the dimensions are 7.75″H x10.85″W × 10.75″D. It takes both large and small grocery-size spice bottles. Also, it comes with labels for the front of the drawers. After several months, my only reservation is that the plastic feels as if it could eventually be prone to breakage at the hinges. Nevertheless, for now, it’s holding up just fine.

Zojirushi’s Mr. Bento Lunch Jar is a modern spin on the Japanese bento box. However, it will keep cold things cold and hot things hot. Mr. Bento features four microwaveable containers: a watertight soup container, a large main-meal container with an insulated lid, a smaller container I use for salads, and an even smaller container for snacks like cheese/grapes. All these containers stack neatly inside a stainless jar in a specified order that creates a seal, keeping the soup/main container hot or cold while the other containers remain at room temperature.

Mr. Bento also comes with a spork, so you don’t have to carry extra utensils; the spork even has a cover. Mr. Bento himself fits inside a nice bag (included) that has pockets for napkins and the like, and enough extra room for another small food container should you desire a bigger meal. In my case, I typically take a small container of oatmeal to work, so I just place Mr. Bento on top and put the entire stack in the bag. A fully-packed Mr. Bento with bag and utensil weighs around 3 lbs.

As for how long things stay hot: Typically, I pack my lunch around 6:45 a.m., then don’t eat until 12 noon. I never feel the need to microwave. For example, recently at 7 a.m., I microwaved a frozen burrito and cut it in half to fit in the meal container. At 11 a.m., the burrito was still hot and steam came from the container when I opened it. Zojirushi advises preheating the jar with hot or cold water for maximum temperature retention, though I’ve never tried that.

When you first look at Mr. Bento, you might worry you’re going to walk away hungry. Your mileage may vary, but I am a whopping 240 pounds of man and sometimes I wonder if I should have purchased a smaller Bento like the Ms. and mini (I also have Zojirushi’s rice cooker).

My impetus for buying a lunch box was that I discovered I was spending over $100/month going out to lunch. I wanted to save money and did not want to get bored eating-in. So far so good! I also found Mr. Bento has a cult following, including the “Mr. Bento Porn” group at Flickr (Despite the name, it’s safe to look at during work). This is what really sold me on it.

Some folks are comfortable leaving out the butter, as-is on the counter for days on end. For those who aren’t, but still want the convenience and pleasure of a steady, safe supply of spreadable-yet-fresh butter: You’ll love the Butter Bell.

Begin by leaving a stick of butter on the counter for an hour, or just long enough to soften it up. Place the butter in the Bell, then add a little water to the base. This creates an airtight seal around the butter, discouraging bacteria. Voilà! You’ll never again be stuck trying to spread rock-hard butter on a piece of toast.

It’s a design that’s been around in various forms for centuries.

What’s truly superb about this countertop pail—aside from its fun design, reminiscent of a classic galvanized trash can—is that it’s made of stainless steel and is dishwasher safe. We fill ours daily with kitchen waste—messy coffee grounds, used tea leaves, aging cornmeal mush, soggy cucumbers—but a quick cycle in the dishwasher and it looks almost as good as new. Years ago I used a plastic bucket designed to perform the same task, but it was difficult to keep clean and less rugged for trips to our backyard compost bin (the lid kept breaking). Since it gets banged around inside the house and out, I prefer this stainless steel, one gallon-capacity model to its ceramic lookalike.

Yes, there are many clever ways to repurpose some other household container into a waystation for outbound kitchen waste, but I haven’t seen one work as well as this sturdy, ventilated design. The charcoal filters keep rotting smells in check, while allowing for airflow. Frequent trips to empty a simple Tupperware container would be fine, but our bin’s about 30 feet from the back door. With this one-gallon pail, we only end up heading out there every other day.

Most free-rolling paper towel dispensers just don’t work for me. Since I do a lot of food prep from my wheelchair, I can only grip with one hand. The genius of this “Perfect Tear” dispenser is how it allows enough freedom for the roll to unwind with a steady pull; yet, there’s still enough friction to prevent further unwinding when you pull to detach the sheet.

The secret? 1) The center post is a series of bowed wires that contract and hold the paper roll snugly in place; and 2) The base weighs about four pounds, which adds stability.

No more chasing unwinding rolls of paper across the kitchen floor. Or getting five sheets when I only need one. Better still, it works just as well at the end of the roll as it does at the start. When a roll is out of sheets, just unscrew the top cap, slide off the cardboard tube, push on another roll and replace the cap. All of this can be easily performed one-handed.

After a couple of years, it’s still well worth the precious space it’s claimed on my very limited counter.