If there’s one thing I can’t say no to, it’s efficiency and organization. This comes from moving, on average, once a year the last five years or so. I quickly learned that anything that was not absolutely necessary to survival nor happiness (happiness equating to art equipment, a teapot, and my cookbook collection) had to go. Case en point: When I move to Birmingham, I’m only taking what I can fit in my (very small) car, which equates to about three boxes worth of belongings.
There is one thing I will occasionally bend on, and that is any kitchen gadget or accessory that I deem essential to happiness. And, gosh darn it, where was this cutting board with a colander (and knife!) when I needed it?
When I cook for myself, I usually take the vegetarian or vegan route because I don’t like handling raw meat, nor am I fond of the delicatessen. This means a lot of vegetables find their way onto my plate. Especially when I make ratatouille—and I make it a lot. In Paris, it was the easiest thing to shop for at the market. But prepping the vegetables? Some days I wanted to forget about it. In a tiny (I mean TINY) studio, there was barely any counter and storage space. Some days, my vegetable haul barely fit. There was no room to think about a colander and separate cutting board. I was trying to make sure it didn’t all fall on the floor. This cutting board with a colander may have made me think differently.
BUY IT: $15.99; amazon.com
It’s a prime study in efficiency and minimalism—if you want it to lay flat, it becomes a cutting board, and the ample surface will handle several vegetables at a time. If you want to wash your vegetables, the cutting board expands into a colander and fits neatly in the sink. It even comes with a little plug you can use to drain the water out afterwards. Then, simply re-collapse the colander and it becomes a cutting board again.
This cutting-board-with-colander contraption certainly has its fans. Everyone from mobile homeowners to campers in travel trailers have good things to say about it. It’s sturdy enough to handle a watermelon or slab of meat at a campsite. Someone used it to give their toy poodle (named Lucy) a bath. Yet another repurposed it as a washtub for dirty dishes.
So, it’s safe to say this invention can be close to anything you might want it to be. Whether that’s the run-of-the-mill vegetable chopping board to prep your summer okra and fried green tomatoes or another inventive purpose, this cutting board and colander is up to the task.
