10 Crucial Cooking Utensils You Cannot Do Without

10 Crucial Cooking Utensils You Cannot Do Without

The list can quickly be long, between the big and small appliances the must have kitchen gadgets or even novelty gadgets that are especially welcome in households.

There are just a few utensils that are crucial and that will allow you to deal with any situation. I do not mean professional utensils that fill professional kitchens, but the ones useful in a household. I propose a list of 10 utensils any cook should have in a family kitchen to calmly deal with any recipe.

1. A few good knives

Do not be deceived, by the look nor the price, nor by the bragging. It's the steel and how it was forged that will determine its performance. The knife should of course be of the highest quality, but it also needs to be comfortable. Ideally is better a knife in less but a good stone instead! It is ideal to have at least a good puntilla knife, a cook knife, and a knife to fillet (used for to filet fishes like soles etc..). Japanese knives are very trendy. These are often well suited to one type of technique.

2. An assortment of strainers

Important, you will need small and medium size Chinese strainer and conical mesh strainer. The first one for a rustic filtering and to tread, the others to refine and filter finely.

3. A selection of spatulas including a silicone one

Polycarbonate or in silicone, choose them adapted to the situations. Rigid for mixing work, and more flexible and square for custard, mounted sauces, deglazing ... and the famous "Maryse" (on the right) essential to minimize waste and to work cleanly.

4. A scraper
Necessary to work chocolate on marble, fill pastry bags, or pick up creams, meringues and other mixtures.

5. A Kitchen Aid mixer robot 

The star of the kitchen, not really more expensive than its competitors but extremely loyal and robust, adopted by a majority of professionals and households.

6. Kitchen Mandolin cutting blade

Ideal for regular sizes as julienne and other thin slices, a necessary complement to good knives.

7. A thermometer / probe

Because everything must be under control, in order to make foie gras, to cook meat, to check the poaching bath, the chocolate temperature, the cooked sugar ... .. so many jobs that will make the probe necessary.

8. A good pan without Teflon

Because that's how we cook in a kitchen. You'll get a much better Maillard Reaction, abundant juices and the necessary temperature accumulation. Choose a good quality stainless steel pan and do not look at the price, it will be your lifelong friend.

9. A pair of tongs

It will help you to turn your meat or poultry, and move products that are cooking safely and accurately while avoiding poking clumsily into the flesh of the meat and risk damaging or corrupting the cooking.

10. A selection of cooking whisks 

Depending on what you do and on the volume of the mixture you are working with you may need different types and sizes of whisks: long, thin, small, stronger and more rounded or flat ... don't get stuck on one shape, select your whisk according to the mass, density, volume and container receiving the products.

Do you share my list? Do you have other tools essential to your happiness or your culinary exploits? Share with us.