For many, the kitchen is the epicenter of the home: It’s a place to gather, unwind, indulge and cook. Preparing meals for friends and loved ones is utterly rewarding—especially when you have essential kitchen tools and equipment to help you get the job done. If you are setting up a new kitchen, check out our guide to what you'll actually use in the kitchen. Our guide boils down to the best kitchen tools, from cooking and bakeware to cutlery.
RICE COOKER
Rice is a staple of any frugal cook’s pantry and is probably used often. Think about the number of times your rice has boiled over, cooked for too long and burned, dried out without enough liquid, or taken up valuable burner space so you had to wait to cook another part of your meal. Rice cookers remove every single one of these obstacles.
Another great use for your rice cooker is making oatmeal for breakfast. You’ll find a lot of different recipes out there – read through them, and pick one that creates the type of oatmeal you prefer (some like it soupy, some firm and chewy, some in between the two).
KNIFE
One of the key things every kitchen needs is a knife. A good knife is a chef’s best friend. Choose a knife that you feel comfortable handling. It should feel balanced in your hand, easy to hold and control, not too heavy, but definitely not flimsy. As you develop your cooking skills, this will be one of the first things you must equip.
CUTTING BOARD
If the most important tool in your kitchen is your knife, then you better believe you need a cutting board. There are many materials that you can choose from, plastic, bamboo, and wood. You can consider having a bamboo one as it is famous for being exceptionally hard, lightweight, and water-resistant, this is one cutting board that will see you through years of use.
NON-STICK FRYING PAN
Every household needs a non-stick pan for breakfast duty since eggs and pancakes are best made on a non-stick surface. It’s also a super versatile pan that can be used for searing meats, sauteing vegetables, and making sauces. Just be careful to use non-abrasive tools on the surface! Buying a two-piece set lets you have two sizes around and makes it possible to cook two things at the same time.
MEASURING CUPS & SPOONS
If you are into baking, you’ll definitely need a set of measuring cups. You need the cups to measure the number of ingredients that you put into the dough mixture. Could you spend a lot of money on a set? Sure. But a cheap metal set will get you where you're going. Apart from the measuring cups, you also need calibrating spoons. You will use these ones to measure smaller portions of ingredients. The good ones tend to be double-sided so that they can measure both liquids and solids.
STORAGE CONTAINERS
Your kitchen should also have quality storage containers that you can use to store food for consumption later. You can use these containers to store food that you’re going to carry for lunch to work. Since plastic containers tend to be unsafe with some appliances, you should consider going for glass ones. The good thing about storage containers is that they are sold together in a variety of different sizes.
VEGETABLE PEELER
Some vegetables should be labeled as a kitchen hazard considering the fact they can be so difficult to peel or cut. The peeler is in this list of kitchen items because it makes it easier for you to peel carrots, arrow roots, sweet potatoes, and many other different kinds of vegetables.
