My Top 12 Essential Kitchen Tools

I am not going to include major appliances or basic items that most people that use their kitchens most likely already have such as measuring cups and spoons, vegetable peelers, meat forks, spatulas, etc. I also will not include a microwave or regular toaster because we do not have these items in our kitchen.

• #1 – A good set of knives. We have several knives but I prefer Wusthof knives. My most used three knives are a Chef knife, a paring knife and a boning knife.
• #2 – A good solid cutting board. We have several but I prefer the wooden or bamboo ones.
• #3 – A Cast Iron skillet. We have a couple of different sizes but use mostly our 10″ one that is older than our children.
• #4 – A good mixer such as a KitchenAid. This may not be a essential tool for everyone, but it is for me because I love to bake bread.
• #5 – Copper skillets. Again, we have several different kinds, sizes and brands but really like the Copper Chef ones we purchased a few months ago.
• #6 – A digital scale. Having one of these is essential for weighing ingredients accurately for cooking and baking. The spring loaded ones are not very accurate. Have you ever tried to weigh an ounce of spinach on one of those spring loaded scales? Not happening.

• #7 – A Dutch Oven – We have 2 different sizes of these. They are ideal for braising meats, roast and stews. They make several different kinds, but I prefer the ceramic coated cast iron ones.
• #8 – A good instant read thermometer. Essential for checking the temperatures of meats and other baked goods.
• #9 – a mortar and pestle. Again, these are tools that are essential for me. These are probably not on many people’s lists, but I use these to blend spices and make pastes and rubs.
• #10 – A rolling pin. Again, I like to bake and NEED to have one of these.
• #11 – A good Steel. Because knives won’t sharpen themselves.
• # 12 – A Microplane. Great for zesting fruits and fine grating garlic, cheese, etc.

These are MY essential tools. What are YOURS ? Is there anything that you would add or take off this list? I’d love to hear from you!

In a future post, I will list My Top Luxury Type Essential Tools.

The Batman and banana cutter photos courtesy of the World Wide Web…