Kitchen Basics: 6 Essential Tools and Accessories

Taking stock of your culinary collection by noting what you have and don’t have is critical. For the most success in the kitchen, you need to have these six essential tools and accessories. The culinary tools in this list can improve your cooking experience and streamline a lot of processes. Enhance your cooking abilities with these utensils for ideal results.

Tongs

One of the most basic tools a cook should have in their lineup of tools is tongs. This tool has many applications, primarily acting as a means to grip food items. Whether that means turning meat while it’s sizzling on the skillet, mixing and stirring pasta noodles, or pushing and pulling a pan in the oven, tongs come in handy all over the kitchen.

Stand Mixer

Whether you’re making brioche dough or mixing different ingredients for a cake, a stand mixer is a necessity. Automatically mixing all your ingredients in a bowl prevents any messes that can result from doing it by hand. This also makes things easier, since mixing by hand can be a long, tiring experience for even the most experienced cooks.

Prep Bowls

Sometimes you need to keep ingredients separate. Therefore, it’s best to have a few prep bowls on hand to make sure everything stays where it should. When you need to keep minced vegetables in one bowl and some soup in another, keeping them in a container that can go in the fridge or microwave as needed is convenient.

Saucepans

Pots and pans have their places in the kitchen, so don’t forget the saucepan. Boiling water and other liquids is common when you’re making a meal, and you want a pan that excels at that. Saucepans come in several sizes, so you can always turn to the right size saucepan.

An Assortment of Spatulas

When you’re cooking pancakes, eggs, vegetables, or fish, you’ll need to flip the food item; that’s where spatulas come into play. But you need to know the best spatula to use in any given situation. For instance, a metal spatula is best for flipping stir-fry. But when you need to scrape excess sauce or batter from your pots and pans, that’s when you need a softer silicone spatula.

Thermometer

A thermometer is an essential tool and accessory to have in a kitchen, as it prevents you from serving undercooked meat and makes sure your baked goods remain safe and edible. You often won’t want to open your food to check inside for doneness, but you can stick in a thermometer to gauge the internal temperature.

As a home cook, you have to make sure you have everything you need before starting a meal. Go into your culinary endeavors with the right tools for the right dishes to ensure you can get your ingredients to the plate.