Prep school

Essential cooking tools everyone should have

By Kelly Myers

December 6, 2007

When it comes to the right tool for the job, those of us who cook day in and day out settle into strange habits. In the privacy of our homes, we make do with what we have. Were the light of day to truly shine in most kitchens (which, in my imagination, means the lights and cameras of a reality TV show) it would reveal a batterie de cuisine of scarred plastic mixing bowls, rusty vegetable peelers, and dented measuring cups.

Some kitchens don’t even possess baseline necessary equipment. When I lived alone, I could not bring myself to buy a box grater. If I wanted a quesadilla, I had to scrape cheese over the arc of holes in my food processor’s grating disk.

My sister avidly follows the recipes of such luminaries as Dorie Greenspan, Marcella Hazan, and Diana Kennedy. Yet despite her hard-won culinary chops, ownership of a soup ladle was a luxury that somehow eluded my sister until recently. Now I kind of miss the days when she would call to say that she had made a pot of soup, but didn’t know how she was going to serve it.

But the queen of kitchen-tool deprivation is our friend Kim. In much the same way an infant reaches for its mother when hunger pangs grip its little stomach, Kim is known among a certain set of artists, workaholics, and single men for her nurturing dinner parties. When they haven’t had a proper meal in a while, they secretly hope for the call inviting them to her groaning board of pastas, salads, brisket, and barbecued chicken.

Go to help Kim in the kitchen, though, and you may not find a pair of tongs to turn the meat on the grill, or a rubber spatula to scrape coleslaw dressing out of the bowl. I have seen whisks in her kitchen with such big gaps between the wires that they could move through a bowl of marbles with little resistance. Yet every summer, Kim celebrates life with rosé, grilled vegetables, and bowls of garlic aïoli she has managed to emulsify with only her ghost of a whisk and the motion of her wrist.

Eventually, Kim’s regular guests saw what needed to happen and began leaving things behind after potlucks. Whether this was a subliminal or a conscious decision I’ll never know, but Kim still cherishes the two-quart liquid measure with a lid, perfect for storing pancake batter, that someone “forgot.” A close friend presented Kim with a brass pepper grinder and a set of chef’s knives in recognition of years of meals and late-night talks. And two years ago Kim’s partner, also famously thrifty, finally broke down and bought a set of measuring cups.

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We cannot all be aïoli savants like Kim, able to fill in with skill when our tools are sub-par. I know that she, too, appreciates the boost well-made tools give to those cook.

So I say, enough with making do! Evenings out aside, it’s the home cooks who really feed and comfort us, without benefit of the restaurant chef’s walk-in refrigerators, industry discounts, or crew of prep cooks. It’s the home cooks who need and deserve equipment to brighten mundane tasks.

Here’s my list, then, of low-tech kitchen utensils and small-scale equipment that I find useful on a regular basis. I’ve focused on the tools professional cooks rely on that home cooks don’t always have, as well as gifts of particular versatility. I’ve also included items that wear out frequently or are always needed.

As you shop, look for objects that appeal to the senses. Cooking is a tactile craft, and natural materials like wood, marble, and ceramic are pleasing to handle. How utensils, bowls, and pans feel when you hold them matters; they should look attractive and feel comfortable enough in your hand for sustained use.

Cast-iron tortilla griddle.

It’s round, flat, and 10 inches in diameter, with an offset handle. As its name suggests, a cast-iron tortilla griddle ($13-$25) is perfect for heating tortillas, flatbreads, and day-old pizza. A tortilla griddle has no sides, just a slight lip around the edge, making it easy to flip pancakes and quesadillas. The heat of the solid cast-iron gives grilled cheese sandwiches an especially crunchy crust.

Dutch oven.

At $50 and up, depending on size, the Dutch oven is about the priciest item on my list, but it’s essential. Sometimes called a rondeau or a brasier, this is a wide pot with a heavy bottom, two handles, and a tight-fitting, ovenproof lid. Although it performs well in a range of uses, from rice pudding to roast chicken, the Dutch oven is the pot for braising. You can brown on the stovetop, braise in the oven, and serve from it at the table.