Eight Kitchen Must Haves
giant towering whisks are first on my list of kitchen essentials
There are tools out that do anything and everything you want done in the kitchen. Most of them are unnecessary gadgets that will ultimately clutter up your kitchen drawers and cabinets. But that got me thinking about the things I own and use on the reg that other people see in kitchen stores and think the same thing, like who still uses a rolling pin? raises hand
The following might not be your idea of kitchen must-haves, but I'd recommend putting them on your radar. After essentials like sheet pans and good knives, these are tools I use regularly:
-Mandoline
I'm not gonna lie, I wanted a mandoline to make homemade potato chips. Which, in my defense, I did make. Once. After realizing store bought are quicker and yummier, I put the mandoline to better use slicing tomatoes. There's nothing worse than a giant slab of tomato stealing the show of your grilled cheese, so now my slices are uniform and to my liking. Tomatoes, apples, potatoes; you get the picture here.
I'm not gonna lie, I wanted a mandoline to make homemade potato chips. Which, in my defense, I did make. Once. After realizing store bought are quicker and yummier, I put the mandoline to better use slicing tomatoes. There's nothing worse than a giant slab of tomato stealing the show of your grilled cheese, so now my slices are uniform and to my liking. Tomatoes, apples, potatoes; you get the picture here.
-Hand juicer
Citrus juice sneaks its way into a zillion recipes; guacamole, marinades, muffin batter. Fresh is so much better than the bottled stuff. You can get one of these for a few dollars, so it's not even an investment. It's almost Cindo de Mayo, so do yourself a favor and get one for all the margs you'll be making.
Citrus juice sneaks its way into a zillion recipes; guacamole, marinades, muffin batter. Fresh is so much better than the bottled stuff. You can get one of these for a few dollars, so it's not even an investment. It's almost Cindo de Mayo, so do yourself a favor and get one for all the margs you'll be making.
-Microplane/zester
Before juicing your citrus with your dexterous hand juicer, take your microplane to it and save that beautiful zest. It brightens up anything, from cake to steak.
Before juicing your citrus with your dexterous hand juicer, take your microplane to it and save that beautiful zest. It brightens up anything, from cake to steak.
-Mesh strainer
For flour, cocoa powder and clumpy baking soda, a mesh strainer/sifter is clutch. Besides baking, you can use it for making cheese, steaming veggies, or getting the gritty pieces out of sauces and purees.
For flour, cocoa powder and clumpy baking soda, a mesh strainer/sifter is clutch. Besides baking, you can use it for making cheese, steaming veggies, or getting the gritty pieces out of sauces and purees.
-Food processor
I used to hate mincing garlic and ginger, things I always keep on hand in my fridge, and now I just buzz them in the food processor and they're good to go. Dressings and marinades and sauces? Check, check, check. If you don't want it for much more than these small tasks, save the space in your cabinets and get a small one. Mine is one cup and I love it.
I used to hate mincing garlic and ginger, things I always keep on hand in my fridge, and now I just buzz them in the food processor and they're good to go. Dressings and marinades and sauces? Check, check, check. If you don't want it for much more than these small tasks, save the space in your cabinets and get a small one. Mine is one cup and I love it.
-Rubber spatulas
My mom doesn't enjoy baking, but part of me thinks this is because she doesn't have the right tools. Whenever we made cake or brownies, we always mixed by hand with a serving spoon and then scraped the bowl with it, too. Rubber spatulas do this so. much. better. They help you fold batter more evenly and ensure nothing gets left behind when you're pouring it into your cake pan. They work wonders for getting out the last dregs of salsa, mayonnaise, peanut butter, whatever. And they're relatively inexpensive, as long as you steer clear of the cutesy ones that can cost like $15.
My mom doesn't enjoy baking, but part of me thinks this is because she doesn't have the right tools. Whenever we made cake or brownies, we always mixed by hand with a serving spoon and then scraped the bowl with it, too. Rubber spatulas do this so. much. better. They help you fold batter more evenly and ensure nothing gets left behind when you're pouring it into your cake pan. They work wonders for getting out the last dregs of salsa, mayonnaise, peanut butter, whatever. And they're relatively inexpensive, as long as you steer clear of the cutesy ones that can cost like $15.
-Silicone baking mat
Whether it's the French brand, Silpat, or a generic silicone baking mat, these are game changers. They're great for making candy, baking cookies and saving the earth, one parchment piece at a time.
Whether it's the French brand, Silpat, or a generic silicone baking mat, these are game changers. They're great for making candy, baking cookies and saving the earth, one parchment piece at a time.
-Rolling pin
As good as store bought pie crusts can be (there's no doubt Pillsbury knows dough), something about a from scratch pie is just so warm and homey. Pie crusts, pizza dough and cutout cookies all need the help of a rolling pin. A wine or liquor bottle isn't quite the same, trust me.
As good as store bought pie crusts can be (there's no doubt Pillsbury knows dough), something about a from scratch pie is just so warm and homey. Pie crusts, pizza dough and cutout cookies all need the help of a rolling pin. A wine or liquor bottle isn't quite the same, trust me.
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