With the Right Kitchen Tools - Cooking can be More Fun
As a keen home cook and kitchen aficionado you will always hear, at weekends and in the evenings, the staccato sound of chopping, the sizzle and bubble of the pans and the organized clatter utensils, pots and pans emanating from my kitchen. I now have a good range of kitchen equipment to create this symphony of sound- but this was not always the way.
Quality Kitchenware is King...
When I bought my first flat and finances were tight, I fitted out my late 1980's kitchen in the then-in vogue, red and black tools and kitchen accessories - which although looked quite good at the time, but were of poor quality and have all been replaced over the years.
My lesson was learnt after visiting the kitchen of a chef friend who showed me the quality and consideration he had taken in the purchasing of the impressive collection of his cookware.
It became immediately clear to me that by buying the best quality kitchen equipment I could afford, I could ensure that cooking and entertaining would become a lot easier, faster and fun. Below is my essential kitchen tools list.
The Cutting Edge Kitchen...
- Top of my list of for everyday use are my chefs cutting and chopping knives, which, as yours should be, are top quality and are sharpened regularly.
- I have a carving knife which is made of a forged steel blade with high carbon content [as my other knives are]
- Cutting boards are equally important for convenience and should be well positioned. It is best to have more than one -I use a large wooden one for the big jobs and have discovered that small plastic ones are good for the smaller regular jobs like slicing onions - and are easier to clean in the dishwasher!
- My oldest kitchen tool is a large black iron frying pan given to us by my wife's Swedish grandmother, which is always great for cooking at high heat and not burning.I find that heavier pans with a thick base are always the best.
- Build up a good range of oven proof baking and roasting trays and dishes - you can never have enough.
- A good vegetable peeler is useful for speed and saving -which you would cut off using a knife - no matter how sharp.
- A ceramic pestle and mortar is always surprisingly useful - I use it to crush garlic.
- Get the best and most robust wheel can opener -for efficiency and safety.
- A wide range of steel spatulas and serving spoons - It's no use creating a great meal if you can't serve it efficiently!
-Scissors are a tool I did without for a long time, but are invaluable for those extra jobs like opening packaging.
Other important kitchen utensils are; tongs, whisks, a simple steel grater, a bread knife and anything which is labour saving in the type of cooking you do.
There's no use in spending a fortune on a designer lemon squeezer you hardly use, when you do all you whisking with a serving fork!
After you have the core equipment - then you can have fun with the kitchen gadgets and accessories.
No comments:
Post a Comment