My Top Five List of Kitchen Items

List of Kitchen Items That Will Improve Your Time In The Kitchen

Learning to cook is one of those journeys that can develop into a deep love and passion.  Gathering and cooking recipes and creating meals help build memories of spending precious time with loved ones around the kitchen table that last a lifetime.  To make the process of cooking these meals a little bit easier I have created my top 5 list of kitchen items I would highly recommend everyone to have.  This list of kitchen items I use regularly at home and they help speed up the preparation and cooking of meals so that I can spend more time with my family.  The list below includes some recommendation on products that I find to be cost effective as well as fitting the purpose they are required for.  I hope you find this list of kitchen items of use.

Stir Fry Pan

In my home this is probably the most used pan in the house.  The design of the pan allows for easy stir frying but also the deep design holds a good amount of liquid.  The bowl design shape of the ban distribute heat over a greater space so this is great to reduce liquids such as sauces.  A stir fry pan is great for one pot cooking and this is one of the reasons I recommend this as one of the first items a person should purchase.  Combined with a lid this pot become a multi tool in your kitchen and allows you to reduces sauces very fast or cook on low with the lid on for longer cooking.

Recommended Equipment: Stainless Steel Stir Fry Pan

Kitchen Hand Blender

A kitchen hand blender has multiples of uses in the kitchen and is something I regularly use in my kitchen at home.  It is fantastic for blitzing soups and pureeing vegetables.  This became an invaluable tool when my children were young and I preferred to make all our baby food from home.  It is easy to use and you can put it directly into a pot of soup take off the heat to puree before finishing it off.

Recommended Equipment: KitchenAid Classic Hand Blender

Instant Read Meat Thermometer

For ease of mind when cooking a instant read meat thermometer is a valuable tool in the home kitchen.  My wife is always concerned about the temperatures of meat and having a instant read thermometer to hand always gives her peace of mind.  As a chef we can build skills up over time of knowing by time and feel if meat is cooked to the required temperature.  An instant read meat thermometer cuts out the guess work and lets you cook the meat to correct temperature.

Recommended Equipment: Alpha Grillers: Meat Thermometer

Cast Iron Casserole/Dutch Oven

This one is an investment but one of the best you will make.  A cast iron pot is something that will last a number of lifetimes if taken care of and can be passed on to family members after years of use.  The heavy cast iron design holds heat incredibly well so you get even heat distribution when cooking.  A cast iron pot can be used for cooking low and slow as it holds heat much better than other pots and is oven friendly.  I regularly use a cast iron pot for slow cooking beef strews and even baking bread.  Bread baked in a cast iron pot is just amazing and has to be tried to be believed.

Recommended Equipment: Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven

Food Processor

I’m a big fan of appliances that can be used for multiples of tasks to ensure the space they take up is wisely used and that they make many tasks easier and fast.  A food processor is one tool in the kitchen that makes many jobs extremely easy and helps you save time.  It can be used for bulk chopping of vegetables to speed up prep time for your weekly cooking needs to preparing dough’s for pastas and breads.  A food processor is the next step up from the hand blender.  It allows you to create a wider range of recipes such as healthy dips, sauces, stuffings, ice creams, sauces as well as cutting down the time on making various dough’s.  It will really speed up your time spent in the kitchen if you have a busy hectic lifestyle.

Recommended Equipment: Cuisinart Food Processor

These are a list of kitchen items I think every home cook looking to improve their cooking skills or expand their cookery skills should invest in.  As a home cook you want to be making the best use of your time in the kitchen as possible and I hope these items help you cook much better meals while giving you more time outside of the kitchen.

Don’t forget to check out some of my recipes and tips on my Blog.