Overrated kitchen appliances and taste test secrets: Xanthe Clay answers your questions

Recommended Home Kitchen Overrated kitchen appliances and taste test secrets: Xanthe Clay answers your questions The Telegraph columnist weighs in on expensive kitchen kit, her baking must-haves and the fast food chain she rates Save Comment speech bubble icon Gift this article free Gift article Give full access to this article, free time. You have 15 articles left to gift, this month. Log in or Subscribe Copy link X Icon twitter Facebook Icon facebook WhatsApp Icon whatsapp email Add us as preferred source Share article Log in or Subscribe Copy link X Icon twitter Facebook Icon facebook WhatsApp Icon whatsapp email Emilia Hitching Reviews Writer, Home and Garden Show biography Emilia is a reviews writer for Recommended, specialising in home, garden and sleep product reviews, buying guides and deals advice. Previously, Emilia was sleep and wellness editor at Homes & Gardens where she worked with testers to find the best sleep products, from mattresses to sunrise alarm clocks. Published 02 July 2026 7:00am BST Save Comment speech bubble icon Share article Log in or Subscribe Copy link X Icon twitter Facebook Icon facebook WhatsApp Icon whatsapp email Gift this article free Gift article Give full access to this article, free time. You have 15 articles left to gift, this month. Log in or Subscribe Copy link X Icon twitter Facebook Icon facebook WhatsApp Icon whatsapp email Add us as preferred source Xanthe Clay is not only the Telegraph’s food columnist and taste tester, she’s also a guest critic on MasterChef Credit: Heathcliff O'Malley Emilia Hitching Reviews Writer, Home and Garden Show biography Emilia is a reviews writer for Recommended, specialising in home, garden and sleep product reviews, buying guides and deals advice. Previously, Emilia was sleep and wellness editor at Homes & Gardens where she worked with testers to find the best sleep products, from mattresses to sunrise alarm clocks. Published 02 July 2026 7:00am BST Xanthe Clay has been a Telegraph food columnist for 27 years, and is also our resident taste tester. It’s her job to sample supermarket staples in search of best-in-class products, and those to avoid. Xanthe’s recent reviews range from the stand-out chicken Kyivs for a Seventies-inspired supper, to the picnic food that’s worth a place in your shopping basket. You might also have spotted her on the new series of MasterChef as a guest critic, savouring scallops and racks of lamb. I interviewed Xanthe for our Reader Ask series, where members of the Telegraph Recommended community get to quiz industry experts.  Xanthe on kitchen gadgets  How likely is it that expensive appliances will be better value than cheap ones?Lynda, East of England There’s the million dollar question. Or the £100 question, at least. My advice would be to think hard about whether you need that appliance or whether you can borrow one from someone to play with for a couple of weeks. Give it a go before you buy something that might end up in landfill. Quality varies, but some of the appliances which are made for Lidl and Aldi can be absolutely great at bargain prices. Equally, it’s worth paying out for things like metal casing instead of plastic and decent-quality attachments, because they’re incredibly expensive to replace. What’s one premium kitchen appliance that has genuinely changed the way you cook — and one that’s completely overrated?Ella, North West I would say that a real revolution came with the microplane graters, because they radically increase how much citrus zest you get in a dish. In fact, you have to be quite careful with old recipes. They might say the grated zest of a lemon, but they’d have been doing it on a little box grater where half of the zest got stuck in the holes. If you’re working with a modern microplane, you will probably get twice as much zest in your dishes. I also have a very whizzy oven at the moment called an Anova oven, which steams as well. It’s great when you want to preserve things in jars; it has an internal thermometer so I can probe my meat as it cooks, and it can ping me and let me know when my meat is cooked to perfection. In terms of things that aren’t worth it, there’s a lot. For me, probably not a juicer. I have one, but I’ve used it once in the last three years to make some juice out of lovage leaves for a recipe I was testing. We know that juice is really just pure sugar and it’s not something we should be drinking that much of, so I wouldn’t bother with a juicer. What would be the best kitchen appliance to give as a wedding present?Mary-Grace, East of England The best kitchen appliance to give as a wedding present is the one that they’ve asked for! But if you want to surprise them, I would say a big tabletop mixer is fantastic. There are some beautiful ones around that will last them a lifetime. Plus, it makes so much difference if you’re trying to whip up egg whites. You get better volume in a tabletop mixer than you do with a handheld electric mixer. What is your favourite kitchen tech that everyone else loves to hate?Eilatan, West Midlands I’m going to say something controversial here. About three years ago, I bought myself a second-hand hostess trolley. We never had one when I was growing up because my mother despised them and I don’t use it that often, but it makes me smile when I see it. I feel like I’m on the set of Abigail’s Party, and come Christmas, I use it. I put all the plates in to warm up and having warm plates is such a key part of Christmas. Just saying. Air fryer or slow cooker if you’ve only got space for one?Helen, South West That’s really, really, really hard. I love a slow cooker because I make things like duck confit. It’s brilliant for cooking things low and slow in fat. I also do amazing bean dishes. With that said, air fryers cook in a way that nothing else can replicate, so you could put your pot in a low oven and do the same thing as a slow cooker, but you can’t air fry in an ordinary oven. It’s something about the air coming from the top. And, by the way, don’t believe ordinary ovens that say they have an air fryer function. If the air is coming in from the back, it won’t work properly. Having been a denier for many months, I have come around, recognising that there’s a certain kind of crispness without overdoing the inside that you can only get from an air fryer. Xanthe Clay tries many premium appliances as part of her job Credit: Andrew Crowley Xanthe on taste testing and her career so far  Would you have had a favourite option for a career if you hadn’t been involved with cookery and the kitchen?Trish, undisclosed That’s such a difficult question. I am so immersed now, it’s really hard to imagine. Before I was a food writer, I was a chef, and before that I was a bookseller. I guess maybe I would have gone further down the books route. I’d love to have been a librarian. As a food writer, how do you balance professionalism with your personal tastes?Elmer, London I worked with a really great chef a while ago called Barny Haughton and he told me: “Taste with your brain.” That sounds obvious, but if you start to intellectualise how you’re tasting, then you can get over the fact that you don’t maybe particularly like the taste. I’ve just been doing salad cream, which isn’t something I would choose to eat in the normal way of things. Still, by sitting down first and thinking about what I was looking for in salad cream, and also asking my friends – who do love it – what they’re looking for, and getting one of them to come and test with me as well, then I could focus on the flavours and whether they worked. Who decides the parameters you use in the tests?Jennifer, South East So, the parameters are decided in discussion between me and my editor. They will vary slightly from product to product because obviously for a yoghurt, I’d be concerned about the protein and fat content, but for something else I might be more worried about the sugar and salt content. I also like to think about how many ultra-processed food markers are among the ingredients, because I know it matters a lot to our readers. For meat products, I look at animal welfare as well. How do you avoid taste fatigue after eating too much?Jacob, London So when I’m testing, I spit like a wine taster. I know that sounds disgusting, but it’s necessary. Believe me, after you’ve had eight mouthfuls of Colin the Caterpillar cake, you need not to feel sick when you go in for number nine, because it’s going to colour your judgment. I also like to have sparkling water to rinse my mouth because it’s a little bit more abrasive. And if I’m eating anything hot with chilli in it, then I’ll have some milk as well. Is there any product you’ve tested that you now keep at home?Leon, London I’ve become quite a fan of a brand called Mr. Organic. They have some great beans which have often done well in tests. But the honest truth is I’m always shifting and trying new things. So it’s quite hard to say that there is any one thing to which I’m dedicated. What are the best and worst things you have ever tasted?David, London Oh, my Lord. I’ve had some stuff which has been off, which has had a note of rancidity in it, so there has been the odd thing I’ve had to spit straight away. That’s a bit triggering, even thinking about that. In terms of the best things, there was a cheese tasting of Comté cheese where I tried aged Comté cheese, and they were delicious. I’ve enjoyed some of the steak tastings I’ve done. There have been one or two real standouts there. With steak, it’s worth springing for top of the range; just do it once a year. Some of the really thick ones that you can get are fantastic. And ice cream. Who doesn’t love ice cream? Which supermarket do you think provides the best overall quality?David, Yorkshire I think all the supermarkets have different strengths. One supermarket might be great for meat and another supermarket is particularly fantastic for basic vegetables, but won’t do the bigger range. It’s the same with ready meals. They’ll all have areas where they excel. That’s why I love doing the taste test, because you get real surprises. Places you just were not expecting to do something fantastic: there it is. All supermarkets have different areas where they excel, accoring to Xanthe Credit: Andrew Crowley  Xanthe’s cooking tips  What are your top five spices?Robert, South West Wow. It’s like choosing children, isn’t it? Fennel seed because it’s got this amazing back note. It’s a natural flavour enhancer and makes everything taste better. It’s fantastic with sweet food and savoury. It’s great with sausages. Delicious. Cardamom because it’s got that amazing orangey fragrance and flavour that’s so evocative. Also cumin, because it’s a big beast of a spice that bumps up flavour in the most fantastic way. Take anything that’s a little bit dull, like that purée that’s not quite there, add cumin and you’re away. Next, smoked paprika, which is brilliant for adding smoky notes, particularly for vegetarian food. Maybe it’s raining and you couldn’t get the barbecue going. This will give you that smokiness you’re looking for. My final one is not strictly a spice, but celery salt. It’s usually made with celery seed, but I’ve been getting these amazing bunches of celery from my veg box with long leaves on them. I take those off, I dry them, then I grind them to a powder and mix them with the salt to make a homemade celery leaf salt. Celery is the back note to lots of dishes. We often leave it out, but it can add a depth of flavour without being bossy. Using celery salt instead of ordinary salt when you’re cooking makes everything better. What is your bliss food – the confectionery, snack or meal that transports you away?Nigel, Wales I think for me, the spice is probably saffron. I love saffron. I love its heady fragrance, though it is so expensive. If I had another one, it might be potted shrimps. Just the most delicious thing, but you do have to warm them up a little bit, so the butter’s just softening and running over those shrimps. Then scoop it up with some really fantastic bread with a really good crust. Which affordable ingredient upgrade would you say is especially worthwhile?David, Yorkshire It’s really worth spending money on Japanese soy sauce. It costs more, but it’s made properly with soybeans, not with added flavour enhancers, caramel or other rubbish. It has a much more mellow flavour and is a better product all round. Xanthe spends hours each month working on taste tests  Credit: Jon Super What do you eat when you’re too tired to cook?Caroline, East of England Well, I often tell myself that if I have one biscuit, I’ll be fine. Twenty four biscuits later, clearly, that wasn’t the case. So I have to be careful about this. Bread, cheese and fruit are a great combination. Good bread, a nice, decent-sized chunk of cheese and a good British apple. Happy days. Sometimes I get caught short, so to speak, when I’m out on the road. Recently, Leon has reintroduced its superfood salad, and that’s a great, healthy option that keeps me going for a bit. Do you have any advice for those who want to improve their baking skills?Thomas, London Baking is almost not like other cooking. It’s a science, so make sure that your equipment is accurate. Get some good scales and weigh things carefully, making sure your oven is at the right temperature. Check it with the oven thermometer, or you can take a baking sheet and scatter a thin layer of flour over it. Put that in the oven and bake it at, say, 180C for about 20 minutes just to toast the flour. Then bring it out carefully, and you should be able to see where the hot patch is, where it’s dark and moist. That’ll give you an idea of where you will need to be careful if you’re placing a bake and where you may need to turn things. The other thing is, after you’ve practised a bit, go and do a course. Because seeing a real professional fold the flour into the eggs or make a perfect cake is a fantastic way of sharpening up your skills. I wish I was more confident at going off-piste and experimenting with my meals. Any tips to help me be less rigid?Fiona, South West It can be a big ask to start experimenting because when you come in at the end of the day, you’re tired, and you just want to get food on the table. One of the ways that is clever, if you can afford it, is to spring for one of the meal kit boxes. There’s Gousto, HelloFresh and Mindful Chef, and because they send you everything and the recipe, it can encourage you to try some different things without making it too difficult. They are completely brilliant as a present for somebody who needs a boost, or perhaps a student who has just left home. How do we easily separate harmful ultra-processed foods from less harmful ones?Kirstyn, East of England We’re still in quite early days of the science around ultra-processed food, and we’re still learning which things are harmful and which things aren’t. As a rule of thumb, I would say if it’s not something that I can buy in the supermarket as a separate ingredient, then I’m not sure I really want it in the food that I’m buying. We made your cherry chocolate brownie and it was amazing. Where do you get your inspiration from?Mark, South West Some of the best brownies I knew were made by a friend of mine called Rachel Lucas, who had a company called Sugar Moon Brownies. Sadly, she’s not making them any more, but I still have them in my head. Ottolenghi also makes a great brownie. I don’t want them too thick because you do want a good contrast of crisp versus soft. You want that kind of fudgy centre and a crisp top. That’s really important. That’s down to putting enough sugar in the mix. Recommended Would you like to ask the next expert a question? Join the Recommended reader panel Join the conversation Show comments The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful. Please review our commenting policy. Copy link X Icon twitter Facebook Icon facebook WhatsApp Icon whatsapp email The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful. 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