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The other day, I was thinking about how much we use our kitchen now. Partly because we have a really great work space. Partly because we have a TV in there, which allows us to make it more than merely a work space. And mostly because we have some wonderful kitchen utensils that I can’t imagine living without.
One of my favorites is our Mario Batali 5-piece Measuring Prep Set {$10 purchase here}. Each bowl has two different measuring amounts. They’re great for making a neat mise en place (i.e., prep space for your cooking). And they nest perfectly in one another for easy storage. I love these measuring cups so much, I’ve started buying them as gifts for others.
Now that I’m making salsa on a weekly basis, my lime squeezer has become a very important part of my routine. I have one squeezer that I thought I’d like because it has a little basin underneath the part where you squeeze it to catch the juice. The problem is it can be hard to twist the lime on it without the whole contraption twisting about on our slick granite countertops. That’s why I’ve fallen in love with this hand-held citrus squeezer from Oxo {$13.50 purchase here}. It’s probably not great if trying to measure exactly into a measuring spoon (or you’d need to squeeze the juice into a bowl first and then measure), but for squeezing the juice from a whole lime into my salsa? It’s fast and easy and ensures I get as much of the juice into my salsa, instead of on the counters, the floors, my clothes, etc.
I never realized the importance of good knives until I got a set of exactly that, really good knives. When Sweets and I registered for our wedding, we spent some time thinking about the types of knives we wanted. Many top-of-the-line knives are really heavy and I knew that’d be a problem for me (I already have issues with counters being too high, add in a heavy knife and I might not enjoy cooking very much). So, we spent some time handling knives. We settled on J.A. Henckel’s TWIN Cuisine line {individual knives begin at $50 each – purchase here), which was a very sturdy, high-quality knife that was comfortable to hold (it molded well to the palm of our hands as well as being light-weight). Good knives come at a price, but treat them right and they’ll last a lifetime (my mother has her Henckels that she purchased 30 years ago – and they are still solid!).
Having a good, non-stick frying pan is essential to any and every kitchen. Years ago, thanks to a sweet sale, I started off with a handful of All Clad products. Sweets and I added our 12-inch frying pan when we got married {$144.50 purchase here}. Sweets and I use our frying pan to saute vegetables, to make eggs and even to make skillets that go from stove-top to oven (note, make sure your frying pan has no plastic parts before placing it the oven!). We use it so often that after we clean it, we put it right back on the stove, instead of putting it away with our other pots and pans.
Years ago, people would tell you the must-have reference cookbook for every kitchen was the Joy of Cooking. We got that cookbook for our wedding {$22.73 purchase here} and Sweets used it exclusively at first whenever he had a question in the kitchen. However, a friend gifted us another reference cookbook called How to Cook Everything {$15.72 purchase here}. And while I appreciate the Joy of Cooking for its history, the fact of the matter is How to Cook Everything is easier to read, easier to reference and much more applicable to modern day cooking. I leaned towards this reference book from the start and just this weekend, Sweets acknowledged that he also likes it better than Joy of Cooking. There’s even a vegetarian version of How to Cook Everything. Talk about catching up with the times!
So, there’s my short-list of five of my favorite cooking tools in the kitchen. Runners up that I didn’t discuss here? Cuisinart Food Processor. Robert Welch flatware. Rubbermaid food storage containers. Do you have any kitchen favorites that you just can’t live without?
April 20th, 2010 at 7:33 am
We’re Henckel knife users, too. The best knife we’ve ever owned, actually. Our kitchen staple? Tupperware. Megan’s mother is a consultant, and our kitchen is stocked with it. It makes everything so organized and I love it.
April 20th, 2010 at 7:47 am
My mixing bowls. Clear, glass and Pyrex. Can’t go wrong. They’ve seen countless brownies, cakes, cupcakes, cookies and other dessert bars as well as various sauces, pasta fillings and etc. They are kind of like my lifeline. Add to that my awesome non-stick pots and pans (totally blanking on the brand) and I’m good to go! One thing is for sure: when I buy a house, the kitchen will need counter space and hopefully an island as well.
April 20th, 2010 at 8:10 am
Oh I love the prep bowls! I love working on all of my prep ahead of time (while listening to podcasts lol) so I can cook without rushing. I think I’m going to need to find those bowls- and the Veg version of how to cook everything!
I just won’t tell Mister that you’re a bad influence ;)
April 20th, 2010 at 8:44 am
I love the measuring bowls! I have added them to my amazon wishlist!
April 20th, 2010 at 8:59 am
Ohhhh, fun prep bowls, that is one thing that I really do need. A fun kitchen makes all the difference when cooking. Like Nora, we’re a pyrex household. Most of our pots and pans came from QVC, as did our flatware that is Reed and Barton. Actually most of the things in our kitchen came from QVC. Great quality, great lifetime guarantees, and easy accessibility.
The kitchen staple that every kitchen needs and I absolutely love a KitchenAid mixer!
April 20th, 2010 at 9:21 am
Knives are very, very important. I actually need to desperately replace mine, but want to do so with ones that as you said, will last a long time and of course are not heavy. I tend to stick to non-heavy kitchen stuff in any case because they can be bad for your hands/wrists in the end.
You should check out Ina Garten’s cookbooks (Barefoot Contessa). That lady has some pretty awesome and very yummy recipes!
April 20th, 2010 at 9:22 am
I have a set of OXO mixing bowls that I love because they have grippy rubber bottoms and pour spouts. We got Henckel knives for Christmas, and they are really nice. The other think I love is this gadget for mincing garlic. You put the whole clove in, put the top on, and twist. It makes mincing so much easier.
Biggest letdown -- the KitchenAid stand mixer. It’s SO heavy, a pain to clean, and it shoots flour from here to the ceiling. I never use it.
April 20th, 2010 at 9:32 am
I really want a food processor. And new cookware. And a whole new set of dishes.
Sounds like I should get married for the registry.
Just kidding!
I got new knives recently and it honestly changed how I cooked. SO AWESOME.
April 20th, 2010 at 9:33 am
Those mixing bowls look awesome. I am a proponent of starting a recipe with a mise en place. It’s too stressful for me to cook otherwise since I don’t have an extra set of hands to help chop something up mid-recipe!
My kitchen must have is a garlic press. I am usually too lazy to mince garlic so that works well. I also love my saute pan which is a hand-me-down from my mom. I made eggs every day so it never gets put away & instead get washed & put back on the stove.
I love kitchen gadgets. :)
April 20th, 2010 at 10:02 am
I use my kitchen a whole lot these days too. It is so rewarding to cook rather than order out! My favorite kitchen item is my cast iron skillet. I use it for mostly everything.
April 20th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
I’ve just recently taken up cooking. And by “cooking” I mean I now make omelets, anything with eggs, and bake cakes. Which is crap but, you know, you have to start somewhere right?
April 20th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
Um, I have 3 of the items you listed. Great minds think alike :)
April 20th, 2010 at 1:23 pm
Once you get interested in cooking, you really look at the kitchen in a whole new way. When I got engaged, I was in registry bliss. I would caress my knives like Monica in that episode where she chops off Chandler’s toe. I also have been known to cradle my Le Creuset Dutch Oven. And my blender. And my slow cooker. Oy. This is getting personal.
April 20th, 2010 at 1:41 pm
We have that cookbook! It’s pretty much the only one we ever use. Heart!
April 20th, 2010 at 1:55 pm
Interesting to me that How to Cook Everything is colored and formatted just like the Joy Of Cooking. Is that sales gimmick?
April 20th, 2010 at 2:00 pm
A few of my favorites: My garlic press. I cook with garlic daily and prefer to use fresh garlic over garlic powder or even the garlic in a jar so the garlic press gets a LOT of use.
I also have a sillicone tube for peeling garlic. This is one of the greatest inventions ever: http://www.amazon.com/IMCG-Garlic-Peeler-Yellow-Silicone/dp/B002S3YOXG You just put the clove in the tube, use your palm to roll back and forth a few times and VOILA! The peel just falls off so you don’t get the smell of garlic under your fingernails when trying to peel.
We have a set of small glass prep bowls that I love (they’re also great for putting on the table with sauces and/or condiments (when we have tacos or burritos, we put sour cream, diced tomatoes, guac and salsa in them)
And my knives. I LOVE my knives. I have a set of Cutco that I love, and a few really nice Calphalon knives that are great, too.
I always thought I would love to have a Kitchenaid mixer, but when my boyfriend’s mom bought one for us when we moved in together, I realized that I wouldn’t use it that much. I’m not much of a baker, so…but it is good for mashed potatoes and things like that.
April 20th, 2010 at 2:26 pm
Garlic Press. Life-changing.
April 20th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
The knives are huge! They changed my life. I hate when I am cooking at other people’s houses and the knives suck. It makes me want to chuck my cutting board into the wall.
I also love my immersion blender for making soups. I feel so handy whenever I use it.
April 20th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
We couldn’t do without our lemon/lime juicer (kind of like the one you have, but it has two sizes built in). We probably use it at least 4-5 times a week. Also, our Le Crueset Dutch Oven is THE most used item in our kitchen. We cook everything from steaks and chicken to veggies and soups in it. Love, love, love, love it.
April 20th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
I have these great silicon spatulas that are thicker than an average spatula so they’re great for stirring but are slender enough to still be useful for scraping the sides of bowls. They were a gift so I have no idea where to find them but I wish I had more.
April 20th, 2010 at 4:20 pm
I have a set of the nesting measuring prep bowls and love them. I’ve also been thinking of getting the hand held citrus juicers. I’ve seen different sizes for lemons or limes. In your experience, is that necessary? I’m not a huge measurer for many of the thinks I make, so I don’t care so much if I can’t measure my lemon or lime juice. I do have an electric citrus juicer, but only bring that out for making actual orange juice or lemonade. I would love to find a great book for cooking healthy, not just vegetarian though. But vegetarian is a great start! I am dying for a full sized food processor now. I just have the small size and trying to make tabouli in it is very time consuming. My favorite kitchen utensils/appliaces are our electric griddle, Pampered Chef garlic press, PC food chopper, PC can opener, Tide flatware http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=108&f=33169, and all of our various handmade porcelain dinnerware. I also love the William-Sonoma pocket potholders which I fashioned my potholders after. I like mine because they are a tad smaller to fit your hand into without it sliding around all over. ;-)
April 20th, 2010 at 4:21 pm
oh, I also love those rubber spatulas
April 20th, 2010 at 7:03 pm
I love the measuring prep set! I am going to add that to my collection of kitchen gadgets.
My can’t-live-without kitchen items are immersion blender, the food processor you linked to at the end (mine is white) and Oxo mixing bowls with rubber grip bottoms.
April 20th, 2010 at 8:20 pm
I have Henkel’s knives and love them. They are super sharp and last really long. Great one. I also have the Mark Bittman book but unfortunately don’t use it nearly enough. Need to remedy that. He talks about how to cut rabbit!
April 21st, 2010 at 3:08 pm
That lime squeezer is a nice. And just so you know, you can also use it to make great gin and tonics, mojitos and other alcoholic beverages. ;-)
April 22nd, 2010 at 10:23 am
I am late in the game but I love my Mario Battalie measuring cups, I have two actually and when I bake or cook they are perfect.
We also love the Mark bittman cook book, it was one of the first cookbook that Hubs had. Now we have shelves of them.
My must have kitchen tool is my mini Cuisinart. I use it to make pesto, pasta sauces, salsa etc. Love it!
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:47 am
That measuring set looks awesome! I also have a handheld lime/lemon squeezer which ROCKS. I think my favorite kitchen item is my Pampered Chef food chopper (http://www.pamperedchef.com/ordering/prod_details.tpc?prodId=240&words=chopper) which I use to chop just about everything.
Also, I just might have to look into that How to Cook Everything book!
May 7th, 2010 at 4:32 pm
I’ll have to check out that cookbook! I’m very limited in the kitchen (my boyfriend just showed me how to properly use my new zester at Christmas and how to prep a garlic clove) so this is the perfect kind of book it sounds like for someone like me.