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Kitchen Items I Can't Live Without

Isn't it fun to go into a kitchen store or the department store's kitchen section and see all the wonderful tools and gadgets out there to make your life easier?  Also when you watch the home shopping channels on TV, you just can't live without some of these items.  Well, maybe. First I'm going to list a few things that I consider essential in my kitchen in order of importance.  Following will be some miscellaneous items that are nice, but maybe not essential.  Then let me say that I have had lots of items that never got much use like the hors d'oeuvres maker and the cake decorator.

• Dinnerware that can go in the oven, microwave, freezer and still look great on the table.

•   Stainless steel cutlery that is heavy duty, has nice balance and isn't so kinky in design as to be hard to use. I mention that because I found that forks with only 3 tines are not easy to use because they only hold a little bit of food.  I also feel it is nice to have both soup spoons and double the amount of teaspoons for your place settings, salad/dessert forks as well as dinner forks, plus all the accompanying serving spoons, ladles, meat forks, cake server, etc. There are times when I don't want to set a formal table with all the fancy sterling and china, but still want to have a somewhat formal setting with a casual air.
• Glassware.  Your family size determines how many you will have of each type, but with children, you need lots of juice glasses.  Be sure to get those with a small circumference to accommodate little hands for youngsters.  Then you should have what I call large 10 or 12-ounce old-fashioned glasses.  I prefer these to tall glasses because as someone reaches for a dish the taller ones tip easily.  Tall glasses are great for iced tea and beverages out on the deck or patio. Don't forget to get plastic if you will be out on a cement patio or poolside.  If you enjoy alcoholic beverages, you should have both red and white wine glasses, champagne flutes, brandy snifters and pilsner glasses or mugs with handles for beer.  Don't forget coffee mugs.

• Pots and Pans. A really good heavy duty, stainless steel cookware set that will last a lifetime (expensive) is an absolute necessity. Some heavy duty non-stick cookware.  I’m really fond of the non-anodized cookware which is non-stick, but can go into oven or stovetop.  You can use metal utensils and it doesn’t scratch like other non-stick coated cookware. I have and like some of the newer non-stick for things that will be cooking for a long time and I have 2 stockpots, several skillets in varying sizes (all with lids), 3 saucepans, one that is a double boiler and a pasta cooker with a removable insert that has holes for the water to drain out.  Also, plan to spend $90 or more for a really good, heavy-duty non-stick coated roaster with lid.  Some come with lids that double as a platter.  This is essential for turkey, roast, ham or large casserole dishes for a crowd.

•   Knives with holder.  Good knives are also essential.  I find that there are several sizes that I use regularly, but a couple of good paring knives, a boning knife, carving knife, French knife and two other knives that I call larger paring knives.  See my article on knives.  Also get a good set of steak knives - not the cheap serrated type, but a good set of knives you can sharpen and that have a solid blade rather than a flexible one.

• Several pieces of Corning Ware.  I have a large square pan with a lid, a small short square with a lid, a large round with a lid, a smaller round with a lid, several cruets, some storage dishes with lids and one square with a browning bottom.  These are all attractive and can go from freezer to oven or microwave and then to the table.  They also can be used carefully on stovetop.

• Rotado.  Don't laugh, but this is a potato peeler and makes really short work of peeling potatoes along with several other fruits and vegetables, removing the peel in one long piece.  You lock your potato vertically in place, turn the handle and peel a potato in less than 10 seconds.  I love it.

• Baking Pans.  There are several you need and you can get cheap ones, stainless steel ones, Teflon ones, Pyrex ones, glass ones and a new product called Lorente Cookware which is a jelly like substance that is completely flexible and absolutely nothing will stick to it.  Here is a list of the ones I think are essential although there are dozens of different cake pans that I'm not going to even try to address.

8 or 9-inch square pan - 2

loaf pan - 2

9 X 13-in rectangular pan

large cookie sheet with sides - 2

9-inch pie pan - 2 (also get metal pie edge protector)

9-inch or 10-inch deep dish pie pan

9-inch round cake pan - 2

6-cup muffin pan - 2

9 X 14-in metal broiler pan with rack

11 X 16-inch broiler pan with V-rack

large cooling rack for cookies, cakes and pies

colander

fine strainer or sieve

tart pan

springform pan

egg poaching pan with 4 or 6 non-stick inserts.

measuring cups, both metal or plastic individual cups of the various sizes for dry ingredients and glass ones for liquid.  Also measuring spoons.  Get with narrow bowls so they will fit into spice bottles.

• Bowls.  There are lots of bowls to choose from.  I like a nested series of stainless steel bowls - a set with some very large bowls, which I use when I make a dozen meat loaves at a time to freeze.  In addition I want some pretty ceramic and glass bowls in various sizes that can go on the table.  Then, of course, you will need lots of sizes of Tupperware bowls with lids and I use the brand name here because they are the best I've found.  Spray them with vegetable spray before putting things with curry, cumin, tomatoes or anything else that might discolor them and they will stay nice.  Only use the ones they recommend for microwave for that use. There are also ones that have a thermal liner type of finish to keep things cold or warm and those that you can take in a thermal pack to keep things hot or cold.  They are nice, but unless you do a lot of visiting to take food, don't spend the money.  Take the food in something that can go in the oven or microwave. However, they do have pie and cake transporting/storage containers that are super. Don't forget gelatin molds.  Last of all, you will need custard cups - at least 8 of these and they need to be oven safe for baking custards and crème brulee.  These are available at your local supermarket if you don't find them in our shopping mall.
• Storage Containers.  Be careful here.  Certain foods like rice flour, corn meal, semolina flour, some cereals, etc. will take on a bad smell and taste if stored for any length of time in a flexible plastic storage container.  Those containers are good for dry pastas, rice, salt, chocolate chips, gelatins, bittersweet, semi-sweet, German and milk chocolate, raisins, currents, sugar, powdered sugar, all-purpose flour, etc.  You may want to store a few things to test it first.  Be sure to label things and date them.  Now there are also plastic canisters with lids that seal too and they are more for storing cookies, sugar, flour, coffee and tea.  Don't forget about storage containers for some cereals, bread or bagels.  Check out the containers that go to the freezer.  Don't forget the bowls and containers that go in the refrigerator. Finally there are those with the rubber seal and a flip switch that makes them absolutely airtight. These are nice because they are see-through and they really are airtight.  They also come in various sizes.
• Tools and Utensils:  I could go on forever here.  Peelers, grating tools, wire whisks, large solid and slotted spoons, pancake turners, wooden spoons, good spatulas made of silicone that don’t melt, tongs, garlic press, potato masher or ricer, a spider strainer and the list goes on.  On http://cookingwithshirley.com website, check out our newsletter archives and you will find gadgets starting in the late 2002 articles with the pros of these items and even some pictures.  You will even find some interesting electrical appliances in there.

Miscellaneous Items

• Barbecue Tools.  Don't forget to get those items for outdoor use on the barbecue.  Be sure to get the silver fire-proof oven mitts, long-handled tongs, spatula, grill cleaner and scraper, kabob skewers, disposable aluminum pans, burger-grill pack, fish-grill pack, a skillet with holes for tiny items like shrimp and long handled lighter.  Always keep a metal box of baking soda close by the grill in case of fire.
• In my estimation, a lettuce spinner is a most important item. If you wash and soak your lettuce, spinach or other greens in icy water for 20 to 30 minutes first, then spin them dry, wrap them in paper towel and store it in a zip lock type bag, your greens will last twice as long and stay fresh and crisp.  You may want to replace the paper towel occasionally. There is also a wonderful Tupperware container that breathes and keeps lettuce twice as long.
• A good coffee thermos so you don't scorch the coffee is also a must.  Did you know that leaving the coffee pot on the warmer uses a great deal of electricity?  Try pouring hot water in the thermos first then empty it.  Pour in the rest of your coffee after you've poured your cup. Another thermos for cold items is also nice to have.  Or better yet, buy a coffee pot with the thermos container rather than the glass pot.
• The most used item in my kitchen is my carousel spice rack. It holds 32 bottles of spices plus a few stored on top.  Go to my article on spices to find a complete listing of spices, their most common uses and where to buy them FRESH.  I often use fresh grown herbs or those I grow myself for cooking too, but this rack is for the dried spices.  I have a second cupboard of additional spices.  You can cut back on salt and other non-essential ingredients and make a recipe your own creation by using spices.  Don't over spice a dish.  I've stopped using restaurants unless they are a 3, 4, or 5 star establishment because most cooks think, "if a little is good, a lot is better". Wrong!  That is what happened to Cajun cooking.  It tastes good in New Orleans because they know how to season it, but most cooks in the rest of the country kill your taste buds.  Also, don't forget to buy kosher salt, sea salt and both black and white pepper- corns.  Get a couple of good pepper mills - one for black and one for white pepper.  Mine is brass and was sold by The Galloping Gourmet. There is also a mix of several kinds of pepper and just about any kind you might want to buy from a good spice establishment.  I also have a salt mill for the sea and kosher salts.

This isn't meant to be everything you need in your kitchen, but merely those that I find important and the reasons why.  It will probably be out of date in a few years, with the new technology, but for now it is a fairly good example of the essentials.

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