What Do I Need In My Kitchen? – Knowing What To Get
Cooking can either be a fun and rewarding activity or a nightmarish experience, and the crucial factor that decides your fate in the kitchen is your cooking tools. Ingenuity, such as using a spoon or knife to open cans, doesn’t work well in the kitchen, and inventiveness with tools is best left in other home areas. Keeping a decent set of the basic things you need in a kitchen is the key to ease your cooking task every time. Plus, it lets you prepare meals with ease and accuracy to produce consistent-tasting food a la chef. Now you probably want to know, “What do I need in my kitchen?” Let’s find out.
Equipping Your Kitchen with the Basics
You don't need grand equipment in the kitchen to make it a functional one. Just a few pieces from every major kitchen tool category is enough to navigate your way around the pantry seamlessly.
The following are the basic categories of kitchen tools:
- Prepping tools
- Cookware
- Kitchen appliance
Prepping Tools
This set of tools help you prepare your ingredients. They are indispensable instruments for food preparation. So, what do I need in my kitchen to start my cooking journey? Read on.
Chef’s Knife
If you want to go minimalist in your kitchen, then get a chef’s knife instead of owning different types of knives. This knife is designed for multi-purpose use and works well for mincing, slicing, chopping meats, and partitioning large cuts.
Cutting Board
This is another essential utensil in the kitchen that's non-negotiable. It's every kitchen's must-have tool, and its task is too vital to let it go. It acts as a shielding surface for when you have to cut your ingredients. They are made from wood, cork, glass, or plastic. You’ll need two cutting boards in your kitchen, one for cutting vegetables and another one for meat. Raw meat may contain bacteria that could make its way into the fresh produce, hence the need to dedicate a cutting board, especially for it.
Can Opener
Unless you're pretty confident that you'll never be opening cans in your kitchen, which I highly doubt, it’s impossible to work with ease without a can opener around. Not only are they handy for canned pineapples and whatnot, but they also come with more functions. Have you ever heard of a 5-in-1 can opener? They can open bottles and wines, too!
Measuring Cups
It’s hard to imagine a kitchen without measuring cups. Guess working is a recipe for disaster. Need I say more?
Mixing Bowls
Where else do you prepare your salads but in bowls! And your soups, too!
Colander
To save space on your countertop while ensuring you got all the basics, go for multi-purpose products instead of buying separate pieces. Look for a grater that can produce fine to coarse and ultra-coarse results.
Whisk
I can't think of anything simpler to substitute a whisk, and that's why it's essential. This tool is one of the most utilized items in the kitchen; you'll regret not having one.
Shears
If you want it easy in the kitchen, make sure to have shears around. Whether it's for cutting up meats, opening pouches, stemming off produces, and shedding herbs, you'll indeed find this tool quite useful.
Knife Sharpener
What can be frustrating than a dull knife? A knife sharpener always comes to the rescue. Make sure you have one.
Now that we've listed our prepping tools let's get to know the main cookware that makes a highly functional kitchen.
Cookware
What comes next to prepping is cooking, and skills can do little without the right cookware. Equip your kitchen with these basics and flawlessly maneuver as you prepare gastronomic delights for the family. But just what do I need in my kitchen to pull off the perfect meals? Here’s our list of rudimentary cookware:
Stainless Steel Skillet
It is one of the most versatile performers in the kitchen. You can use it to fry, sear, sauté and brown your food.
Saucepan
From your soup to your sauces and stews, a saucepan is the right choice for the job. It's what you also use to cook al dente pasta.
Large Pot
If you need to prepare a little more food portions, it pays to have a large pot on hand.
Grill Pan
It makes a great replacement to traditional grilling if you can’t start a fire but wants to achieve the Millard browning effects only grilling can produce.
Bakeware
A kitchen without baking tools is like food without color. Baked stuff is just too delectable to skip. From cookies to cakes and pizzas, who doesn't want some? But, what do I need in my kitchen to bake? Here are the basics for baking:
Baking Sheet Pan
A flat metal pan is often rectangular where you put baking and roasting in the oven.
Casserole Dish
It's what you need when you're feeling a little sluggish and would like to toss in some one-dish feast for the night like lasagna and its likes.
Appliance
Just one more piece to go, and your kitchen is well-stuffed with the necessary tools you need to start your culinary journey. Now that you have your prepping tools and cookware, you need just one more appliance whose job can’t be done by any other items we’ve mentioned above – a blender. Because nothing can substitute a blender, it's a must-have. Here's how to learn more about kitchen essentials.
Conclusion
It's probably safe to say that we're all dreaming of a grand kitchen filled with all the fancy kitchenware we've been keeping on our bucket list for like forever. But while we're still getting there, suit yourself with the list we prepared above, and you're off for a good start in the kitchen. So what do I need in my kitchen? Just the basics.
