Must-Know Basic Tools for Cooking

There are just some items that can’t be left out of your kitchen if you plan on being a fully functional chef for yourself and the other people living in your household.

When considering to have a fully stocked kitchen, be mindful that the right tools will make all of the differences when it comes to the taste of your food and it is disheartening to find out you can’t make one of your favorite meals just because you didn’t have the right tools on hand.

So, let’s go over the basics for having the right cooking tools:

Knives

As far as knives are concerned, there’s only 3 that are absolutely necessary. The best part is that these knives can be found in a hardware store with sites like Carne Craft available to help you narrow down your choice in manufacturer. You will need:

(1) A chef’s knife to do most of the cutting work, 
(2) Something serrated when it comes time to cut bread, and
(3) A paring knife for the more precise accessory work. 

After you have these 3, you’ll pretty much be able to tackle anything that needs a sharp edge.

Cutting Board

Now that you have your knives, you’ll need a surface on which to cut your ingredients. This is none other than the cutting board. Pick a size that will be easy enough for you to store and still large enough to accommodate the kinds of things you’ll be cutting. Wooden, plastic, metal, it’s all up to you.

Measuring Cups

Proper cooking is all about precision, and how are you going to know exactly what ¾ cups of sugar are just by eyeballing it? Get yourself a set of measuring cups so you’ll always put the right amount of ingredient in no matter the recipe.

Spoons, Tongs, And A Good Whisk

Sometimes a recipe calls for a little mixing of ingredients. It’s unsanitary, just plain old and inefficient to rely on your hands for mixing everything, so you’ll need a good arsenal of spoons and whisks to make sure everything is blended how it should be.

Mixing Bowls

If you’re cooking for more than one, you’re probably going to be working with a big enough volume of ingredients. To accommodate all of this, you’ll need a mixing bowl. Making a cake will be downright impossible without one, for instance, you wouldn’t want to dirty three normal sized bowls meant for eating just to feed all your guests, now would you?

With these 5 basic items, you’ll be able to tackle the most simple of kitchen recipes which is a great way to get started. Don’t expect to be a Michelin certified chef overnight, you’ll have to take baby steps and learn the ropes before you can say anything you make is gourmet. The autonomy and control over your diet that comes with learning how to cook properly is priceless, however, so I wish you all the best in your pursuit of culinary excellence.