What’s for Dinner? With Five Tools Under $20, You Decide!
Are you ready to take back the kitchen? Holiday cooking doesn’t have to mean sitting it out—or only showing up when the plates do. Five adaptive tools put the whole meal in your hands, using just arm motion and palm pressure. They’re available online and they are all $20 or less: a rocker knife ($12–18), Dycem non-slip mat ($12–15), universal cuff to hold any utensil securely on your hand ($8–12), suction spike board or clip-on stabilizer ($12–18), and a large-hole spice shaker you can bump open (under $10). The total cost if you’re starting from zero: under $75. Bowls lock down, boards don’t slide, and you’re the one chopping vegetables, glazing the protein, or stirring the sauce. Unless, of course, the game’s on and you’d rather watch football—no judgment here.
A full holiday meal—glazed ham steak, portobello cap, tofu slab, or any plant-based roast you prefer, plus rosemary roasted baby potatoes, buttered baby carrots, warm dinner rolls, and quick spiced apple-cranberry sauce—works from your chair with exactly those five tools.
Ready to get started? Set up on a cleared counter or roll-under table. Lay the Dycem first—everything stays put after that. Season or glaze your protein with a spoon or brush in the cuff, then onto a sheet pan. Quarter baby potatoes on the spike board with palm-down rocking strokes on the rocker knife, toss on the Dycem with oil and rosemary, and slide both pans into the oven or air fryer at 375–400 °F. Steam baby carrots in a microwave bowl anchored by the Dycem, finish with butter and brown sugar using the cuff-held spoon. Warm the rolls. Dump ring-pull cans of cranberry sauce and sliced apples into a bowl on the Dycem, add cinnamon, two quick stirs—done.
Fifteen to twenty minutes of active time, forty-five hands-off, and you plate exactly the holiday dinner you want to eat. So, what’s for dinner? Whatever you say it is! Enjoy the meal!
If you end up cooking this, or any holiday meal with adaptive tools, let us know how it turned out by filling out the form below. Share what worked, what you changed, a quick photo of the plate, or just a “yeah, I actually cooked Christmas dinner this year.” Your real experience is what encourages the next person to give it a try. We’d love to hear from you!
