No matter how much time I spend in the kitchen or how many new tools I get to try out, there are a few things I fall back on as “essential tools”1) microplane – I use mine for everything from lemon zest to grating nutmeg, to creating parmesan “snow”2) a good knife that fits your hand! doesn’t need to have a price tag that breaks the bank, but should be good enough quality that it holds a decent edge. Most importantly, it should fit your hand! If you are on a budget, get yourself an 8″ or 10″ chefs knife or Santoku, and a paring knife to start.
3) my hinged citrus juicer! (sometimes referred to by bartenders as a Mexican elbow). This does the most efficient job bar none of extracting juice from all kinds of citrus
4) French rolling pin – for rolling pastry, nothing beats the effectiveness of this simple design. You can also use it to pound meat in a pinch, crush nuts, or soften blocks of butter!
5) parchment sheets! I buy these by the box, and use them for lining sheet pans for roasting all kinds of things, but also cut them in circles to line cake pans, fold them to make collars for assembling cakes or circling souffes. You can also use 2 layers to roll out sticky pastries (very handy with gluten-free baking!) … and in a pinch, they can also be deployed into a piping bag.
What are your kitchen “must-haves”?
#kitchentips #blog
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Janice Mansfield is a personal chef who specializes in creating customized catering and baking for people with food sensitivities. A recipe developer and baker by day, by night, she enjoys delving into the history of classic cocktails and created a line of cocktail bitters for no other reason than she wanted chocolate bitters in her Manhattans! In her spare time, she documents the antics and unbearable cuteness her two Shiba Inus over at Life in the Shiba Shack.
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Spatula. I use it to turn roast chickens. Flip things, spoon things, pat things.
Microplane. I really seem to use it just about every day.
Cheese grater! We have cheese in so much and fresh grated cheese is the best. 😀
Wine bottle opener. 😉 I've started cooking with wine and things are delicious! Do not want to not have that on hand. 🙂
Stock Pot. It's a soup pot, stock pot, brisket maker all in one (not at the same time though.) Great for huge portions of soup or tossing in a few chicken carcasses 😀
Knife,
Circulator,
Pressure cooker,
Mandolin,
Micro plane.
i have a thin spatula that gets in every nook and cranny, when i can't find it and i have to use a normal one i get sad
Knife, scale, bowls for mise, and kosher salt.
+shelley pierce i know exactly what you mean about the specific spatulas! with me its the bendiness of them! i have about 2 that are perfect, get cranky when they aren't handy
I have one double ended spatula that is slender on one side a wide on the other. I love it. Microplane, Santoku, pizza/bread stone, pastry scraper/cutter/flat metal thingy. LOL
1. Serrated peeler: so effective in peeling odd shapes and providing consistent long carrot and cucumber shavings for sushi.
2. Heat-resistant silicone large spoon spatula: mixing sauces, flipping omelettes, emptying every last drop from a bottle.
3. Chef/Cleaver knife: a simple $10 knife I picked up in Montreal's Chinatown in 2005 has been our kitchen "go to" knife for almost a decade. Precise, easy to sharpen, and gives good rocker-action when slicing and mincing.
4. Microplane: frozen Parmesan cheese, zest, garlic, and chocolate shavings.
5. Food processor: I must admit I hate cleaning it – but pulling my big die cast food processor usually means something out of the ordinary is being made. I get excited at the opportunity to blend some chickpeas and spices for some falafels and tahini sauce… or grind up a large batch of basil pesto. Grown-up favourites in our household.
Some kitchen items I can't live without: all of my Pampered Chef kitchen tools like silicone scrapers, self-sharpening knife, mini-chopper and baking stones; mini spatulas (I have 5 and it's still not enough) and tongs; 6 qt. Kitchenaid stand mixer; 14 cup Cuisinart food processor (I love using it to slice and shred veggies); my stainless cookware that includes a nice big stockpot; my large crockpot; and my cast-iron skillets since they keep my iron level up.
The most important thing in my kitchen: my 5 burner gas stove and oven. I truly cannot cook on an electric stove. My daughter told me the other day that she's glad we finally got a gas stove because I burned everything before. We've had a gas stove for almost 8 years.
As for my kitchen must-haves, notice the trend: most everything is large because it takes large quantities to feed my crew.