I’ve teamed up with my chef friends on our culinary team to put together a list of our top eight essential kitchen tools. You’ll save time in the kitchen with these go-to tips!
Chef’s knife + honing steel
A kitchen is NOT complete without a sharp knife. It sounds like an oxymoron, but a sharp knife is a safe knife. A chef’s knife is ideal for almost everything—dicing onions, chopping herbs, slicing through melons, mincing garlic. A honing steel should be used before you start chopping. This doesn’t sharpen the knife, but it realigns the metal on the knife to produce a sharp edge.
Wooden spoon
A wooden spoon is also an essential kitchen tool. Let’s make a vow to get rid of all plastic utensils in the kitchen (minus a bench scraper—see below)! A wooden spoon can be used in place of plastic to prevent scratching nonstick surfaces or simply as a tool for sautéing garlic and onions in a pan.
Peeler + paper towel
One of the best things about working with different chefs is that you pick up tricks. Simply peel veggie peelings into a paper towel on a cutting board, so when you are finished all you have to do is crumble the paper towel into the trash. This is one of the more obvious tools, but it’s a must-have to peel carrots and root veggies.
Zester/Grater
This handheld grater is great for taking a thin layer of citrus zest or shaving Parmesan, but I think the true value of the zester/grater lies in grating garlic. Say goodbye to ruining your whole cutting board with minced garlic, and instead save time using this essential kitchen tool by grating garlic directly into a dish.
Bench scraper
This is one of my favourite kitchen tools! Not only is it great for getting every last bit of dough out of a bowl when baking, but its secret use is for scooping up veggies from a cutting board for transferring to a pan or container.
Fish spatula
Besides the obvious use, which this spat is great for due to its flexibility to get under filets, it can also be used for scooping out blanched veggies from a pot or unsticking them from a baking sheet. What’s great about this tool is that if you get a good one, it’s delicate enough to transfer pastries, but sturdy enough to scrape off bits of food.
Kitchen scale
One of my favourite tools to have in the kitchen is a scale. For more precise kitchen activities like baking, a scale is essential. This is because volumetric measurements can differ even if you are using the same instrument every time. For example, a cup of packed flour is different from a cup of loosely packed flour. I also use my scale for weighing out coffee for our French press every morning (I know, fancy). Scales are easy to use, and cheap.
Japanese mandolin
A mandolin is another essential kitchen tool. If you are looking to save time and quickly julienne carrots or cucumbers, this is your best bet. These Japanese versions are razor sharp and produce some of the prettiest cuts. I particularly like to use mine for shredding cabbage and carrots for slaw or very thinly slicing cucumbers for noodle bowls.
Amanda Vuu is an Associate Culinary Product Specialist for Conagra Brands, with contributions from Jackie Cuthbert, Development Chef of Conagra Brands.
