Can Openers

[sueinwis]

Sorry to bring up such a mundane topic but I can't find a decent can opener. I have gone from cheap to expensive and haven't found one that does a consistantly good job of opening cans. Any suggestions?

[hungryone]

Sorry to bring up such a mundane topic but I can't find a decent can opener. I have gone from cheap to expensive and haven't found one that does a consistantly good job of opening cans. Any suggestions?

I have a $20 heavy-duty kitchen aid hand cranked one. I gave up on the electric (it is good exercise to crank, right?). Bought one of those "safety-edge-lifting" models (it didn't work unless the can's lid was perfectly round & unblemished, the slightest dent caused it to fail). So I purchased the heaviest, sturdiest, cutter-crank model I could find. It works fine and is easy to clean.

[Low-N-Slow]

We had a B&D under-the-cabinet mount for years that worked reasonably well, but, as with many electric openers, it just never got as clean as we would like it, and the little saw-tooth wheel started rusting and letting cans slip out. We tried to get another like it, but the housing design had been changed in a way that would not let it mount under our particular cabinet and still be operable. So a counter-top model was the only choice (we researched those hand-held electrics and clean-edge types, and they all got lousy reviews). We ended up with this stainless steel Cuisinart model, for about $50 locally. It has a weighted base for stability, and the cutter removes easily for cleaning. It's like this one, but the base on ours is grey.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000PYF72W

[buzd]

I like a basic hand held manual can opener. Nothing else seems to work quite right (except the big commercial crank ones, but I don't open enough cans for that).

[Isabella Maja]

Sueinwis, I am in the same camp as Buzd. I really do not open that many cans & when I do, I am low tech with the cheap hand held type model that we grew up with that you pick up in the grocery store. Works fine for me.

But the answers to this question have me curious!

What are you opening that requires a can opener?

Me?

The very occasional can of pork & beans.
Black beans. Refried beans. Garbanzo beans.
Hmm, I see a trend.

So beans, occasional can of condensed milk & the occasional can of stewed or Roma tomatoes. I'd like to know what I'm missing out on!

[jodyrah]

My canned list is pretty much the same as Isabella's though heavier on the tomatoes than beans. Tuna and canned chipotles too.

[sueinwis]

It's not the frequency of using the can opener it's just finding one that will open the occasional can that I need. I did have an undermount B&D which did work well for awhile and I did have one of those clean edge openers, didn't like that either. I think I saw on Amazon this German made gizmo that's suppose to be the best can opener.

I'm happy to see that I'm not alone in my frustration with can openers. The small tomato paste cans are extremely frustrating to open! Low-N-Slow I may go with your Quisinart although the only review it had was not favorable. Search on, thanks folks!

[Low-N-Slow]

We've never been heavy can opener users, either.

There's a grey model like mine on there-- a factory refurb, though-- that had seven 5-star reviews. I, too, have cast a wary eye on Cuisinart-branded products, finding a lot of their stainless steel counter-top stuff looks and feels light and cheap. The can opener seems to be an exception.

[Occasional Cook]

I bought a Martha Stewart hand-held manual can opener at K-Mart two years ago. Around $15 (?). Heavy duty and well made. Works great.

[Schuarta]

If you can find one that does not say "Made In China", go for it.

Otherwise I have found that even a working can opener becomes hard to use or worthless if it simply gets knocked on the floor once.

My biggest problem is to convince my wife to throw out one that is no longer working well.

30 years ago (1970's) we had a Westinghouse electric which was magnificent! It didn't cut the can, rather it "fractured" (?) the solder joint around the top, and the top just popped off. It lasted about 15 years, but then I could never find another one.