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Gifts for a foodie?

m3nacem3nace Registered User regular
in Help / Advice Forum
My brother is that guy, the man who has everything he needs, and who doesn't bother with a wish list since he couldn't possibly come up with anything to put on it.
However he's a massive foodie who loves to explore the culinary world and so I'm thinking of buying him something practical like an ice cream machine or a spice grinder, except he already has these things. The gift has to be 100% practical, no fun or gimmicks.
Any ideas?

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    djmitchelladjmitchella Registered User regular
    A sous vide machine? There's a lot of them around now, from "portable" ones that just sit in a pot of water and control the temperature, to complete boxes that have their own heating element and such built in. This page has a comparison of the "portable" ones; I'm sure there's reviews of the bigger ones out there as well.

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    djmitchelladjmitchella Registered User regular
    Or you could get him a pot of liquid nitrogen, there seems to be a lot of things you can do with that -- it's not a gimmick like a "kiss the cook" apron but it's also unusual enough to be something he's probably unlikely to have already tried himself.

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    DaenrisDaenris Registered User regular
    edited July 2014
    Sous vide machine? Similar price to a nice ice cream machine and he probably doesn't have one. There are three newer clip on models that just work with whatever container you have.
    Sansaire
    Anova
    Nomiku
    http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/12/sous-vide-circulator-review-sansaire-nomiku-anova.html
    On there they don't seem to recommend the nomiku.

    edit: and apparently beat while I was writing my post.

    Daenris on
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    NoisymunkNoisymunk Registered User regular
    A knife. You can never have enough good, sharp steel laying around the kitchen. Shun, Global, Henckels, ask him if there's any style of knife he's missing, like a boning knife or a carving knife. My friends have taken to chipping in and buying me a knife for christmas since I cook for them so often, and it's the best gift.

    brDe918.jpg
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    CauldCauld Registered User regular
    A fancy ingredient. Like a Himalayan salt slab, or a high end olive oil or balsamic vinegar. Something that keeps.

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    JuliusJulius Captain of Serenity on my shipRegistered User regular
    Cauld wrote: »
    A fancy ingredient. Like a Himalayan salt slab, or a high end olive oil or balsamic vinegar. Something that keeps.

    Yeah or spices. A small selection of different oils and other stuff is a great gift and you have a lot of choices.

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    BlindZenDriverBlindZenDriver Registered User regular
    edited July 2014
    Not sure if you count books as practical, but if so there are loads of great books to pick from. For instance some on the New Nordic cuisine which is all the rage these days, with NOMA being ranked the worlds best restaurant three times during the last four years (just google NOMA to learn more).

    Or if your brother being into food also means him being into Coffee there is a whole area there with tools for grinding one own coffee beans, special methods of brewing the Coffee and so on. It doesn't have to be a huge machine as in some ways simple is great also. A grinder and a Coffee press or a Moka Pot accompanied by a bag with great coffee beans would be a great gift, if you go for a press by Bodum or a pot by Bialetti you can even make it some design classic on the same time (and they aren't too expensive).

    BlindZenDriver on
    Bones heal, glory is forever.
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    EntriechEntriech ? ? ? ? ? Ontario, CanadaRegistered User regular
    If there are any kind of food festivals, or tastings in the vicinity, tickets to those can be a real boon. Alternatively if he's a foodie, and likes indulging in beer and whatnot, maybe purchasing him a custom craft beer pack might be in order.

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    MichaelLCMichaelLC In what furnace was thy brain? ChicagoRegistered User regular
    Not to be 'that guy,' but this always comes up in gift idea threads. If they're really into something - food, games, etc - they probably have whatever you're thinking of, or there's a reason they don't already.

    It's why gift cards were invented. For example, I got an Amazon GC which I used to buy a set of Fibrox knives. They might have got me some weird ceramic chef knife because Fibrox look like a cheap gift but are good knives for those in the know.

    So long rant on why gift cards are OK too. Or maybe a recommendation for Victorinox knives :)

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    Typhoid MannyTyphoid Manny Registered User regular
    a good rule of thumb when you're giving an art-related gift to someone who practices that art is to give them materials rather than tools. tools are very personal and everyone has their own preferences and you probably won't be able to top that. so @Cauld is right, a fancy ingredient that will keep would be a good plan if you don't want to go the gift card route

    from each according to his ability, to each according to his need
    hitting hot metal with hammers
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    QuidQuid Definitely not a banana Registered User regular
    I'd hazard a guess there's a high end spice shop somewhere in your vicinity.

    A gift card to a place like that would probably work.

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    iRevertiRevert Tactical Martha Stewart Registered User regular
    Quid wrote: »
    I'd hazard a guess there's a high end spice shop somewhere in your vicinity.

    A gift card to a place like that would probably work.

    Gift card is the most logical thing, if nothing else Sur La Table or Williams Sonoma both are great places to give gift cards from

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    see317see317 Registered User regular
    Do you have a price point in mind for the gift? I mean, cooking gadgets or rare ingredients can get pricy, especially when you're looking for something unusual.
    Cauld wrote: »
    A fancy ingredient. Like a Himalayan salt slab, or a high end olive oil or balsamic vinegar. Something that keeps.
    Along these lines, maybe some fancy salts and a salt cellar to store it in.

    (Note:I don't know anything about SaltTraders.com, they were just the first link to pop up when I googled "rare salts".

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    m3nacem3nace Registered User regular
    Okay I think I'll probably get him some ingredients then. We're suckers for spicy shit in our house and there's a bazaar in the next town over with at least six spice stands. Think I'll go there.

    PRINTS TUMBLR
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    illigillig Registered User regular
    Take him out to eat somewhere - an experience ALWAYS beats an object. Long after that himalayan salt block or whatever has been used, he'll remember a fantastic meal. Find a michelin star rated place and go for it.

    I've been to a couple and the meal is always amazing. And i'm planning on going to Per Se next year - i'm still trying to justify a >$1K meal though :neutral_face:

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    tinwhiskerstinwhiskers Registered User regular
    http://mantry.com/


    I got a couple months of these as a gift. The stuff is all really good, and tends to be pretty unusual.

    6ylyzxlir2dz.png
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    KyouguKyougu Registered User regular
    Yeah, sign him up for a "Something of the month club".

    Last year as a gift in the SS gift exchange I got gifted a couple months of Craft beer of the month, and that was really awesome as I'm into craft beer and got to try new beers.

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    m3nacem3nace Registered User regular
    Nah, my brother is quite frankly the best cook I know. Nothing beats his food and nothing says I appreciate his cooking skills more than
    tinwhiskers wrote: »
    http://mantry.com/


    I got a couple months of these as a gift. The stuff is all really good, and tends to be pretty unusual.

    This looks awesome, but I should probably have clarified that I'm from Denmark. Does anyone know of anything similar in Europe? (preferably UK or DK based)

    PRINTS TUMBLR
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    PinfeldorfPinfeldorf Yeah ZestRegistered User regular
    If you guys like spicy stuff, look into getting an assortment of various curries or chili oils/powders. The only thing I like more than a good red curry is a good green curry or vindaloo.

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    DjeetDjeet Registered User regular
    m3nace wrote: »
    Nah, my brother is quite frankly the best cook I know. Nothing beats his food and nothing says I appreciate his cooking skills more than
    tinwhiskers wrote: »
    http://mantry.com/


    I got a couple months of these as a gift. The stuff is all really good, and tends to be pretty unusual.

    This looks awesome, but I should probably have clarified that I'm from Denmark. Does anyone know of anything similar in Europe? (preferably UK or DK based)

    Closest I can find (http://www.aarstiderne.com/), but it looks more like delivery of domestic fresh produce, meats and cheese rather than really unique items. Found a few that deliver to UK, but they said UK only. I'm guessing food import restriction are going to make it tough to find except in big markets.

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    GrisloGrislo Registered User regular
    Most places in Denmark that deliver food on a monthly basis are going to be along the lines of Aarstiderne, in that it'll be geared towards meal planning (for families mostly).

    I do think Aarstiderne has a thing where they'll deliver Danish fruit and veg when it's in season, down to 'only this week' stuff, which might be interesting depending on where OP's brother lives and what he has access to.

    This post was sponsored by Tom Cruise.
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    V1mV1m Registered User regular
    m3nace wrote: »
    My brother is that guy, the man who has everything he needs, and who doesn't bother with a wish list since he couldn't possibly come up with anything to put on it.
    However he's a massive foodie who loves to explore the culinary world and so I'm thinking of buying him something practical like an ice cream machine or a spice grinder, except he already has these things. The gift has to be 100% practical, no fun or gimmicks.
    Any ideas?

    Foodies are always glad to get a nice new kitchen knife, in my experience.

    Have you considered maybe buying him some really nice tableware in which his delicious productions could be served from or eaten off?

    How about a nice marble pastry board?

    All else fails, turn up with a couple of bottles of good wine and some really nice cured meat and/or cheese and consume them with him.

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    V1mV1m Registered User regular
    Quid wrote: »
    I'd hazard a guess there's a high end spice shop somewhere in your vicinity.

    A gift card to a place like that would probably work.

    All foodies know that the best place to buy spices is the skanky looking asian supermarket downtown.

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    WassermeloneWassermelone Registered User regular
    edited July 2014
    The sous vide machines are actually a really good idea! I've been thinking about getting one for my brother who is also a chef/foodie.

    I don't know where you would be able to get it where you are but they are not that expensive anymore:
    http://smile.amazon.com/Dorkfood-Sous-Vide-Temperature-Controller-DSV/dp/B0088OTON4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404095357&sr=8-1&keywords=sous+vide

    Wassermelone on
    http://steamcommunity.com/id/wassemelone
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