Are you looking for some last minute Christmas gifts? Maybe
you are registering for your wedding and would like to build up a quality set
of kitchen tools (who needs crystal candle stick holders?). Well, fire up your
Amazon Prime account, and get shopping!
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| Time to upgrade |
Top 10 Kitchen Tools
(no, I was not paid to endorse any of these items, but if you work for one of
these companies, get in touch with me!)
1.
12-in non-stick skillet with cover
2.
kitchen aid mixer
3.
dutch oven
4.
stackable cooling racks
5.
julienne peeler
6.
kitchen scale
7.
Thermapen
8.
lilly pad cover
9.
microplane
10.
magnetic measuring spoons
1.
12 inch non-stick skillet: This is my go-to to
make dinner. I like the 12-inch size because it's large enough to hold a pound
of pasta + sauce + meat +veggies or a stir-fry. I also like my skillet to have
rounded sides so I can toss items while I sauté. I also like the skillet to
have a cover that helps with cooking things through or steaming veggies. You
can pay anywhere from $10 to $100+ on one of these skillets, so go with what
you like. I had a great one for about 5 years but it eventually wore out and
the non-stick coating started to flake off (yum!). I replaced it with a $95
skillet that I like but it's not holding up as well as I thought it would.
2. Kitchen
Aid Mixer: What can I say? I'm a baker and I love my mixer. I got it as a
gift from my mother-in-law and I use it all the time. It’s a pricy piece of equipment
but it's so useful and it makes baking so easy. I love that it comes in a bunch
of colors, comes with a paddle, whisk, and dough hook, and you can buy a bunch
of other attachments to make it do all kinds of things (make pasta, grind meat,
juicer, ice cream maker, etc). I have also purchased a scraping paddle
attachment which is great because I don't have to scrape down the sides of the
bowl as much.
3. Lodge
Dutch Oven 6 quart: Everyone who likes to make soups, stews, or roasts
should have a large cast iron Dutch oven. I use mine at least once a month to
make a soup. They hold their heat really well, don't burn the food (great for caramelizing
onions for French onion soup), and hold up to a lot of abuse. Yes, they are heavy.
Yes, le creuset is the top brand but the price difference between lodge and
them is huge ($275 for Le Creuset vs $80 for the Lodge). It’s a great staple and
will last forever.
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| Not my kitchen. Yet. (Mine is about 1/20 of this size) |
4. Stackable
Cooling Racks: If you have limited space in your kitchen and you like to
bake a lot of cookies, you need a set of stackable cooling racks. They fold up
nearly flat for storage but can hold 3 pans worth of cookies in the space of
one rack. Plus, they're cheap. Sold.
5. Julienne
Peeler: If you would like to add some extra veggies to your diet, check out
this item. It makes perfect small julienne cuts (matchstick) of vegetables like
carrots, zucchini, squash, etc that can be added to pasta dishes or stir-fries.
I also use it to get small pieces of carrot to add to my sushi rolls. My hubby,
who says he doesn't like zucchini will eat it if it's julienned into a pasta
dish. I like this one because it works just like a veggie peeler, is dishwasher
safe, and seems to hold up well after many uses (even on hard vegetables like
carrots).
6. Kitchen
Scale: I love my kitchen scale. I like this one because it was small,
cheap, and had a bunch of nice features (tare or zero, several weight scales,
etc). I use it to get precise measurements of flours and sugars, because
serious bakers know that flour can vary in weight depending on how compact it
is. To truly know what you are adding, you need to measure your dry goods by
weight. This comes in very handy if you start using recipes written in metric. It's
also nice to get a handle on serving sizes when on a diet (cereal serving sizes
are deceptively small!).
7. Thermapen:
Have you ever over cooked a steak or chicken? Over cooked a cake? Well, with a
good, accurate thermometer, this is no longer an issue. And Thermapens are top
of the line. Yes, they are expensive, but they are super fast (3 seconds or
less), extremely accurate, and can hold up to abuse. I just got one for
Christmas, and I'm so excited to use it!
8. Lilly-Pad
Cover: This was an unexpected find for me. I don't often make impulse purchases,
and I usually do a bit of research before buying anything, but this did it for
me. The lilly-pad cover works great for sealing up bowl or plates without annoying
cling-wrap. Its microwave and dishwasher safe, there is no adhesive, but its strong
enough to lift a large glass bowl. I have the medium size and it just fits a 4
quart glass mixing bowl.
9. Microplane:
You have one of these, right? Right? No?!?! Ugh. Get one. Now. I use this
microplane all the time. It grates fresh parmesan cheese, ginger, fresh nutmeg,
garlic, zests citrus, etc. I use it at least 2x a week. It cleans up nicely in
the dishwasher and has a nice plastic cover to keep the blade (and your hands)
safe. And it's less than $13. Buy one.
10. Magnetic
Measuring Spoons: I hate it when I lose a measuring spoon. Or when I have
to use one spoon on the ring and they all get dirty when I put them down. Well,
no more. This set clicks together magnetically, stores easily, and has round
and oval sides for easy scooping into small containers. Again, they're
inexpensive but will be used for years. Also dishwasher safe!
I hope you liked this list. Are
there any gadgets you use regularly that you would recommend?
