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What Are the Most Important Kitchen Tools?

Michael Pollick
Michael Pollick
Michael Pollick
Michael Pollick

Acquiring the most important kitchen tools is a marathon, not a sprint. Young adults furnishing their first apartments may get by with a few nonstick pans and a fork. Newlyweds often receive essentials such as cookware, bakeware, and kitchen gadgets as wedding gifts. Homemakers add to this collection of kitchen tools over time, finally owning a strawberry corer or nutmeg grater by the time they completely retire from cooking.

So what are the most important tools to own? Each cook's checklist may vary, but there are some essential pieces of equipment that everyone should have in order to prepare proper meals. In the simplest terms, raw things must be converted into cooked things, and big things must be converted into little things. These are the basic principles behind most kitchen tools.

Kitchen with a blender, toaster, kettle, food processor, and espresso machine.
Kitchen with a blender, toaster, kettle, food processor, and espresso machine.

One of the most important tools is the multi-purpose manual can opener. There's simply no other way to open most canned foods, and a separate bottle opener or church key is usually one of the first items to disappear in an emergency. A quality manual can opener will last for years with minimal maintenance and allow homeowners to open cans even when there is no household power available. A multi-purpose manual can opener is one of the most essential tools for all stages of adult living.

A nonstick pan.
A nonstick pan.

Knives are also important kitchen tools, since they aid in both food preparation and service. A set of steak knives is essential for cutting through meats and other fibrous foods. A quality chef's knife is versatile enough for chopping vegetables, carving meats, and even rough peeling. Other important knives to own are paring knives for processing fruits and vegetables, filet knives for preparing meat and fish portions, and a butcher's knife for breaking down large meats.

A measuring spoon.
A measuring spoon.

For raw food preparation, peelers and graters are also vital tools. A vegetable peeler can make short work of peeling carrots, potatoes, cucumbers, and other raw vegetables with skins or peels. Foods such as hard cheeses and whole spices may need to be grated, so a grater with several different blades is also an important kitchen gadget. Many beginning cooks start out with a four-sided grater featuring a coarse grater, fine grater, and cheese slicer on the exterior walls.

Important kitchen tools may include kitchen scales.
Important kitchen tools may include kitchen scales.

Sometimes, food preparation requires a little more horsepower, so blenders and food processors are also important for a well-stocked kitchen. A food processor with several different blade attachments can perform a number of services for the cook. Ingredients can be blended together in a puree or simply combined for a salad. Dough can also be kneaded in a food processor, or prepared in another important kitchen tool - a standing mixer. For other blending or mixing tasks, an electric blender with variable speeds is also an essential tool for the kitchen.

A butcher's knife is an essential kitchen tool.
A butcher's knife is an essential kitchen tool.

Other important tools involve the measurement of ingredients. No kitchen should be without measuring spoons, measuring cups, or a form of kitchen scale. Recipes hinge on the cook's ability to gauge proper portion sizes, so a complete set of measuring equipment with readable gradations is a wise investment. Be sure to purchase both wet and dry measuring tools, since there is a difference between a cup of water and a cup of flour.

A can opener is a must-have kitchen item.
A can opener is a must-have kitchen item.

Finally, another set of tools all kitchens should have are spatulas, spoons, and ladles. All food must eventually be served, so it is important to have the right tools to transfer the food safely from pan to plate. Serving spoons can have a solid bowl, such as the wooden spoons used for stirring sauces, or they may be slotted for serving ingredients held in boiling water or broth. Ladles are also important for serving soups, stews, and other dishes with both liquid and solid ingredients. A spatula is also an important tool both for cooking and for serving foods from a hot plate or grill.

Stand mixers may be used to blend a variety of ingredients.
Stand mixers may be used to blend a variety of ingredients.

There are many other kitchen gadgets available which could be considered important for household cooks, so anyone shopping for new kitchen gadgets may want to consider how useful each new item will be. Not everyone needs a nutmeg grater or a melon baller, for example, but they are still useful kitchen tools for certain cooks. In short, the most important tools may be the ones you use the most to create the foods you enjoy cooking for yourself and your family.

Michael Pollick
Michael Pollick

A regular DelightedCooking contributor, Michael enjoys doing research in order to satisfy his wide-ranging curiosity about a variety of arcane topics. Before becoming a professional writer, Michael worked as an English tutor, poet, voice-over artist, and DJ.

Learn more...
Michael Pollick
Michael Pollick

A regular DelightedCooking contributor, Michael enjoys doing research in order to satisfy his wide-ranging curiosity about a variety of arcane topics. Before becoming a professional writer, Michael worked as an English tutor, poet, voice-over artist, and DJ.

Learn more...

Discussion Comments

cougars

It may be more of a kitchen tool then utensil, but I love my stand mixer. I can use it for everything from making bread and pizza dough to making cake and brownie batter. I also have a few attachments to slice, grate, and grind.

The slicing option is great for days when I make tempura vegetables, or when I want to slice potatoes for homemade kettle chips. The kettle chips are especially nice on nights when we have home ground burgers or fish fry.

highlighter

@ fiorite- I am a sauce person, so my wonder kitchen cooking tool is a wire whisk. My whisk is used for making the best and smoothest sauces. I don't know if I could function in the kitchen without one.

Fiorite

Of all the kitchen tools and gadgets (not counting knives and pans), I cannot live without my kitchen tongs. I use my tongs for everything. I use them to stir sauces, flip meats, grab hot items from the oven, toss salads, even pick hot sauté pans form the oven. I use my tongs more than any other kitchen utensil, and i actually own a few different pair. I have silicon tongs for handling foods in coated pans, as well as long and short metal tongs for precision turning and heavy lifting. They may seem like a trivial tool, but they are one of the most versatile kitchen tools.

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    • Kitchen with a blender, toaster, kettle, food processor, and espresso machine.
      Kitchen with a blender, toaster, kettle, food processor, and espresso machine.
    • A nonstick pan.
      By: maxximmm
      A nonstick pan.
    • A measuring spoon.
      By: jrtb
      A measuring spoon.
    • Important kitchen tools may include kitchen scales.
      By: akulamatiau
      Important kitchen tools may include kitchen scales.
    • A butcher's knife is an essential kitchen tool.
      By: jeremias münch
      A butcher's knife is an essential kitchen tool.
    • A can opener is a must-have kitchen item.
      By: Denis Junker
      A can opener is a must-have kitchen item.
    • Stand mixers may be used to blend a variety of ingredients.
      By: VL@D
      Stand mixers may be used to blend a variety of ingredients.
    • Measuring cups are often considered an important kitchen tool.
      By: GraphicHead
      Measuring cups are often considered an important kitchen tool.
    • Baking molds are sometimes made of silicone.
      By: nito
      Baking molds are sometimes made of silicone.
    • A ladle is an important kitchen tool to have on hand for serving soups, broths and gravies.
      By: ILYA AKINSHIN
      A ladle is an important kitchen tool to have on hand for serving soups, broths and gravies.
    • A mortar and pestle is an important tool for those who frequently use fresh herbs in their cooking.
      By: Gorilla
      A mortar and pestle is an important tool for those who frequently use fresh herbs in their cooking.
    • Kitchen utensils and tools should fit in with the overall decor or theme of the kitchen.
      By: Elenathewise
      Kitchen utensils and tools should fit in with the overall decor or theme of the kitchen.
    • Soup kettles are important for large families or those who entertain regularly.
      By: Jasmin Merdan
      Soup kettles are important for large families or those who entertain regularly.
    • Rubber spatulas are important in baking and cooking.
      By: rigamondis
      Rubber spatulas are important in baking and cooking.