Must-Have Electronics in Beijing

We give you all the essentials in Beijing, from events to news to community connections.

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So you have moved to Beijing with your allowed luggage weight’s worth of clothes and no more. You left all your household appliances back home, because, lets face it, most of them might already have the label ‘Made In China’ and the notion of repatriating them back to their country of origin brought a chuckle out of you when you were packing. Or you might be one of those lucky few who moved here fully prepared, with a container full of your stuff from back home, couches, blenders and all. Good for you! But here’s the 411 on your move. You still have to start afresh here in China. Whether you have a mostly furnished apartment or have your own furniture from your home country, chances are you are lacking a few Beijing essentials that all natives and old hands in this city have, which will simply transform your life. Some you might not have because back home, purchasing said appliances would have been financially prohibitive, but that is one of the many positives about living in China. There are appliances to fit any financial capability.

A Trusty Rice Cooker

Unless you come from a country with a rich rice cooking history, or you attended a school for the culinarily-gifted, then you have struggled over a mess of rice in your life. Be it overcooked and soggy or undercooked and inedible, the possible disasters awaiting your pot of rice are numerous. Then you come to Beijing and everywhere you go the rice is nice and fluffy or just the perfect amount of sticky without being total mush. It’s because of this bad boy. Any Beijinger worth their salt has this in the kitchen. It takes the guesswork out of rice cooking, with consistent results every time. The only thing you might have to agonize over might be what rice to go with – Basmati or Dongbei.

Electric Pressure Cooker

Take it from me, since I learned the hard way just how important it is to have one of these in the house. For the times when you crave a soothing bowl of broth, or you are looking to do a slow-cooked recipe of brisket so tender it falls apart when touched, an electric pressure cooker is an invaluable appliance to have around. Having one of these has helped me fight my constant frustration at not finding the cuts of meat I am used to, and has allowed me to experiment with recipes that would have otherwise been unthinkable in the past but are a mainstay in Northern Chinese cuisine. So the next time you’re in the meat isle at the supermarket, don’t turn away from those pig trotters. Get yourself one of these and enjoy a hearty bowl of pig feet soup, with a delicious fall-apart tender meat payoff to boot.

Humidifier

When I started learning Chinese, one of the first stock phrases I learned how to say was “Beijing’s winter is dry.” And they weren’t kidding as I came to find out in my first winter here. I would constantly wake up with a sore throat, inflamed sinuses, and if I coughed hard enough, I am still convinced I would have hacked up a whole sand dune from my drying, or should I say curing, body! A humidifier is not something that you buy as a cute little addition to pull the room together. Unfortunately, in Beijing, having a humidifier makes the difference between a deeply uncomfortable winter indoors, or an easy breezy breathing experience for you and your family. Best thing about shopping for one while in China is the wide variety, ranging from the larger models ideal for an entire household, to smaller portable ones for your table in the office.

Air Purifier

It’s hardly news anymore that Beijing air can get a bit dicey to say the least. While face masks are great for those days when smog levels are a bit too high for comfort, they aren’t exactly what you want to be wearing around your home. But even on days when the air is nice and crisp outside, it doesn’t guarantee the same in your house. As it turns out, the air within the home can be up to five times worse than air outside. With this in mind alone, it would be ill-advised not to have one of these in the house. It especially comes in handy in flu and allergy season – aka right now.

Blender With Soup

I will say without a shadow of a doubt that this is my all time favorite electronic purchase since coming to China. This bad boy makes the Vitamix look like a quaint notion in the world of blenders. Its multi-function features mean it is an all in one blender which essentially eliminates extra steps needed for various blender-related recipes. Want some fish soup? Just toss in the entire thing, bones and all into the blender along with veggies of your choice and choose the soup feature. This blender will not only reduce the fish and veggies into a flawless soup, but will cook it beforehand thanks to its heated elements. It also comes in handy should you wish to make your own soy or rice milk as it not only blends, but also pasteurizes the soy milk so no need to worry about getting sick after. It does the usual stuff as well – fruit juice and all that jazz – but the added cooking feature takes this blender from impressive to a must-have.

Photos: wearefound.com, The Sportsman's Guide, health.clevelandclinic.org, airpurifiersrating.com, pic.1688.com

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