Kitchen Essentials

Here are five things that should be in your kitchen to make you a well-rounded cook. I definitely could not live without them.

There is a giddy feeling that comes over a person when they are handed a scanner gun and turned loose in a store filled with prospective wedding presents. It's what I imagine runners feel like when they wax poetic about endorphins. Suddenly, sanity and logic fly out the window as you begin to collect bar codes of items that you would never normally purchase in a million years but now find yourself unable to live without. It's probably why so many of us end up with avocado slicers.

 
To be fair, I do own a lot of kitchen gadgets, but I also cook for a living and do actually use many of them to experiment and practice. My friends and family know this about me, so inevitably the question of "kitchen essentials" comes up a lot. In truth, of all the tools in my kitchen, I probably only use a handful of them on a regular basis. Here are some of my favorites.

1. Chef's knife.  I own a lot of knives, many more than I actually need or use, and fancy department stores do a brilliant job of convincing us that we need the giant wooden block, storing enough knives to arm a small militia. The truth is you only need three: a paring knife, a serrated knife, and, essential to every cook and worth every penny, a good quality chef's knife. Think of your chef's knife as a culinary sidekick, your Pancho Villa, your Ed McMahon, or your Ethel Mertz. They come in different lengths, weights, and price ranges so you will want to handle a few models in the store before you commit to one. Oxo makes several excellent well-priced chefs' knives, while Wüsthof and Shun make some fabulous top-of-the line versions.

2. Zester.  It's hard to fathom cooking without my Microplane zester. I use it to add fresh citrus zest to dressings and marinades, to easily shred hard cheese over pasta and salads, and to freshly grate spices, such as whole nutmeg, into sauces. It is truly a multitasker.

3. Vegetable peeler.  Kuhn Rikon Switzerland's Original Swiss Peeler is simply the best vegetable peeler around. Its carbon steel blade stays sharp for years, its Y shape is good for both righties and lefties, and best of all, it only costs $3.50!

4. Measuring cups and spoons.  I cannot stress enough how important it is to have a trustworthy set of measuring cups and spoons. You simply cannot bake without them. My hands down favorites are Oxo's Good Grips Angled Liquid Measuring Cups, for their easy to read top angled markers, and Good Grips Stainless Steel Dry Measuring Cups. RSVP's Endurance Spice Measuring Spoons are fabulous because they fit into small spice jars so easily, eliminating spills and waste.

5. Basic reference cookbook.  Essential to every kitchen library is a basic reference cookbook, such as The Joy of Cooking, The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, or The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics. While it is fun to peruse the glossy pages and photos of the latest trendy cookbooks, a classic tome will prove indispensable for your culinary pursuits. A good reference cookbook will provide you with much more information than a simple recipe. It will give you the who, what, when, where, why, and how of cooking. Also, a good reference cookbook will allow you to build upon techniques you've previously learned by experimenting with additional flavors and ingredients. Definitely a kitchen must!