5 Japanese Gadgets Tested By Design Expert | Well Equipped | Epicurious

Design and usability guru Dan Formosa returns for another episode of Well Equipped, this time offering up his review of 5 kitchen gadgets made in Japan. Watch as he tests each device and assesses them for effectiveness and usability, commenting on what works, what doesn't, and how he would improve their design with a few tweaks.

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Producer/Director: Ness Kleino
Director of Photography: Eric Brouse
Editor: LJ D'Arpa
Talent: Dan Formosa
Sr. Culinary Director: Kelly Janke
Producer: Jen Osaki
Associate Producer: Sam Ghee
Culinary Producer: Mallary Santucci
Culinary Assistant: Katrina Zito
Line Producer: Jennifer McGinity
Production Manager: Janine Dispensa
Production Coordinator: Elizabeth Hymes
Cam Operator: Lucas Young
Audio: Brett van Deusen
Production Assistant: Sophie Pulver
Post Production Supervisor: Stephanie Cardone
Post Production Coordinator: Scout Alter
Supervising Editor: Eduardo Araújo
Assistant Editor: JC Scruggs
Graphics Supervisor: Ross Rackin
Graphics, Animation, VFX: Léa Kichler

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0:00 Introduction
0:31 Rice Roller
4:05 Awa Taccino
7:34 Grape Peeler
10:25 Gyoza Maker
15:00 Kurara Washer
18:16 Conclusion


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[epicurious]

Check out the products Dan evaluates in this episode!

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[alyssa]

Y’all should have him test some of the first products he help create. It would be fun to see if he still agrees with the design and if he would change anything

[sweetlorikeet]

Dan, the problem with the foam maker was probably the milk. Normal soy milk generally doesn't foam very well, they normally use a special 'barista' soy milk with additives that help it foam.

[rinpaisys]

“A little bit of filling gyoza long way”

Lmao that’s a 10/10 dad joke.

[Hahahahaaahaahaa]

I have to say i'm genuinely impressed by the Gyoza maker. It's certainly a little overkill for something you could do by hand, but really not that much more time consuming unless you are making a huge number of them, and looks great for kids.

[krishnapriyanair]

Love this man for "raisin awareness" and "gyoza long way". We need more of him

[NovaCascade]

Man, whoever does the set design and the art design for the slides, transitions and ratings really love their job. They always look really clean and cute.

[Genthar]

Grape Peeler: There's a variety of muscat grapes which is also very popular in Japan. Those are much larger than the ones used in the test. The skin on those is tougher and somewhat bitter.

[himemiya]

the little onigiri with faces on set are such a nice touch. i adore everyone who helps makes this show

[dillonwyatt]

For the Japanese grape peeler, he made a comment about the wires being too big. In truth the grapes are too small. Grapes in Japan can easily be double the size of the ones shown and those are the ones used for this purpose.

[aschaurora]

The Kurara Washer is made to be used under a running tapwater. It is still something you don't need to have in the kitchen, but I feel it's not fair to down it without giving it a proper test the way it is intended to be used.

[victorseguraibarra]

Just to let you know, I show Dan´s videos to my PhD students when they design something with poor ergonomy. Thank you Mr. Formosa, I'm in the biomedical field, and your videos resonate in many, many ways.

[vanessafanelli]

4:35 soy milk does not turn into foam. It really seems that the other milk you used as a control was regular milk, which does whip well

[LPB]

I never thought I’d get rick rolled by Dan

[sarajayne]

Ric(e) Rolling, bad puns and waste/plastic awareness. I love this show. 😀

[daultonvenglar]

So you’re telling me Epicurious, a brand of the global media conglomerate Condé Nast, couldn’t find one person who knows japanese to help translate these instructions?

[LivetolearnMama]

Watching his redesign the gyoza maker and wondering when he would suggest just using a regular press. I have had one for nearly a decade. It's two halves connected in the middle, and you press them together. Simple, sturdy, and classic.

[TheRoro]

The grape you're using is super small, don't know if it's a country dependant thing, but in france, table grapes (the one we eat, not the one for wine) is 2-3 times larger and more adapted to the grape peeler size

[MrScubajsb]

Always fun when he likes something. My favorite was the fish shaped egg separator.

[nilawarriorprincess]

I'm so happy to see a new video from Dan! I'm so glad you're back. I hope you're doing well