What to Buy and What to Skip on Black Friday

Black Friday is one of the largest sales events of the year, and typically results in a seemingly endless supply of internet deals. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the sheer volume of sales and discounts attached to this shopper-loved holiday, you’re in the right place.

When it comes to navigating large sales and avoiding “discount burnout,” it’s best to focus on practical buys. Stock up on essentials and holiday gifts, and always research the products you’re considering before adding them to your cart. Skip lower-quality kitchen products or anything you really don’t need—no matter how tempting those prices are.

We’ve spent years testing the best kitchen products to help you choose what to buy and what to skip. These are the best Black Friday deals we’ve found on high-quality products, so that you can spend your money wisely.

What to Buy on Black Friday

60% Off: Staub 4-Quart Cast Iron Dutch Oven, $150 (was $370) at amazon.com
Breville Fresh and Furious Blender, $150 (was $200) at amazon.com
Allstar-Loved: Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer, $59 (was $89) at walmart.com
Great Gift: Oster Cordless Electric Wine Bottle Opener, $19 (was $35) at amazon.com
Carote 12-Inch Nonstick Frying Pan, $23 (was $40) at walmart.com
Under $10: Zulay Kitchen Powerful Milk Frother, $6 (was $10) at amazon.com
Soup Sidekick: KitchenAid Variable-Speed Hand Blender, $45 (was $65) at target.com
Hamilton Beach 7-Quart Programmable Slow Cooker, $60 (was $90) at walmart.com
John Boos Wooden Cutting Board, $130 (was $175) at target.com
Keurig K-Mini Single-Serve K-Cup Pod Coffee Maker, $70 (was $90) at target.com

Whether you’re looking to save money on a great holiday gift or find the newest addition to your own kitchen, plenty of retailers are offering Black Friday sales this week on high-quality, Allrecipes-approved products. We’re sharing some of the best deals on favorite products that are actually worth buying, including appliances, cookware, gadgets, and must-have kitchen tools.

Staub Cast Iron Dutch Oven 4-Quart Round Cocotte

Amazon

A Dutch oven is on every home cook’s wishlist, but they tend to cost a lot of money. Le Creuset is outstanding, but we also love the less expensive options from Staub. This 4-quart model is 59 percent off during the Amazon Black Friday sale. The textured, black matte enamel interior comes pre-seasoned and makes for excellent browning, heat retention, and heat distribution.

Breville Fresh and Furious Blender

Amazon

When we tested this blender, we were impressed with the convenient controls and stainless steel construction. It earned high marks across all our testing categories—whether we were making fresh mayonnaise, frozen drinks, or soups—but the lightweight, rounded jar design was absolutely ideal for smoothies.

Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer

Amazon

This compact air fryer is a favorite of Allstar Nicole Russell. Despite its compact size, it includes a wide range of cooking features—air frying, dehydrating, roasting, and warming—along with 1550 watts of power. It’s an excellent choice for those with less storage space.

Oster Cordless Electric Wine Bottle Opener

Amazon

If you have anyone in your life with limited wrist mobility (or someone who hosts a lot of parties), this cordless electric wine bottle opener makes a fantastic gift. It features a foil cutter for removing seals and a simple, push-button operation that can open 30 bottles on a single charge. Grab it for 46 percent off on Black Friday.

Carote 12-Inch Nonstick Frying Pan

Amazon

Good cookware doesn’t have to break the bank, and this stylish Carote frying pan will only set you back $23. It works on all types of cooktops and has an attractive wood handle. In tests, we found the sturdy nonstick surface to be easy to clean.

Zulay Kitchen Milk Frother

Amazon

You’ll be surprised at how many uses you can find for this powerful milk frother. Allstar Carol Castellucci-Miller uses her for quick whisking jobs. “I find myself using this little mixer to mix my coffee, or a sauce, or dressing,” she says. They also come in handy for mixing protein shakes or matcha lattes.

KitchenAid Variable-Speed Hand Blender

Amazon

Soup season is here, but when it comes to the blended varieties, a high-speed immersion blender will become your favorite kitchen sidekick. You can break out your bulky blender and transfer your ingredients back and forth—or, grab your trusty hand blender and skip the extra dishes. This KitchenAid model is a staff favorite, and it’s currently on sale for 31 percent off in several colors.

Hamilton Beach 7-Quart Programmable Slow Cooker

Amazon

We’re also well into slow cooker season, but if you’re ready to replace your old model or looking to buy your first one, Black Friday is the perfect time to do so. We love Hamilton Beach for its budget-conscious collections, including this 7-quart slow cooker, which is large enough to cook for a crowd. Even better, it comes in a festive red color and features a matching “party dipper” for keeping smaller portions of dips and sides warm at the table.

John Boos Large Maple Wood Edge Grain Reversible Cutting Board

Amazon

A wooden cutting board is a kitchen essential, and we’ve tested a lot of them. John Boos produces some of the best available, made from high-quality wood and handcrafted in the United States. This maple wood board has a handy juice groove for catching drips as you carve turkey or a holiday roast, but it’s still beautiful enough to leave out on your kitchen counter or use as a charcuterie board.

Keurig K-Mini Single-Serve K-Cup Pod Coffee Maker

Target

Splurging on your own coffee maker is a simple, convenient way to save money, but they tend to be bulky and complicated to use. Enter the Keurig K-Mini coffee maker, which takes up hardly any space on your counter (it’s only 11.3 x 4.5 inches) and fits mugs up to 7 inches tall. It’s an Allstar-favorite single-serve coffee maker, as well.

What to Skip?

Deeply discounted appliances with very few ratings/reviews. If you’re going to spend money on something like an air fryer, blender, toaster oven, or Instant Pot, you need to do a little bit of research. Luckily, we have tested products in all of these categories and know what performs well—so read our reviews. A good deal on a ho-hum product isn’t actually a good deal.
Pricey kitchen gadgets just because they are on sale. Some of our favorite kitchen gadgets are bargains all year-round, and even more so right now. Don’t sleep on cheap kitchen tools that actually work in favor of ones with a higher original price. For example, we love this KitchenAid peeler (always a good deal, and even better right now).
Items you don’t need (unless it’s a gift). It’s tempting to buy items that are on sale just because, well, they are on sale, but don’t forget about items you really do need that are also on sale. Instead of cluttering your kitchen with every new gadget you see online, take a look at items you will always need more of, like dish soap, dish cloths, kitchen towels, and K-cups.