For years I’ve joked that my kitchen is about as useful as an Easy-Bake Oven. With two square feet of prep space and an oven that runs fifteen degrees cold, it’s not the kitchen I grew up daydreaming about as a kid. When I first moved into my apartment, I was just beginning my professional career as a cook, and my home kitchen was filled with the basics: a non-stick pan, a paring knife, a cutting board.
It wasn’t until I had spent a year-and-a-half in fine dining and another year learning croissant lamination in a beloved Brooklyn bakery that my mind was open to the bounty of instruments at my disposal to bring my home-cooking game to the next level.
Many folks deal with limitations in their kitchens, especially those of us living in prewar apartments in big cities. Because the square footage of my apartment is smaller, my appliances and workspaces are smaller as well. My fridge sits somewhere between the size of a full-size refrigerator and mini-fridge and my dining table often becomes my primary prep space because of my lack of counter surfaces. Despite these limitations, the strong set of kitchen tools that are in my arsenal picks up the slack.
When the bones of your kitchen space aren’t exactly what you want them to be, these eight kitchen tools will become essential to the way you cook at home.
1.
Offset Spatula — Whenever I use an offset spatula, I always think of it as an extension of my hand.
2.
Kitchen Shears — They’re the most versatile kitchen tool in my book.
3.
Rubber Spatulas — It wasn’t until my roommate informed me that he had never even touched a rubber spatula before living with me that I realized many home bakers and cooks may not be implementing them into their practice.
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4.
Food Scale — When I used a food scale for the first time in a professional kitchen, I realized that this tool alone would streamline my home baking immeasurably.
5.
Eighth-Size Sheet Tray — The eighth-size sheet tray is the little engine that could.
6.
Bench Scraper — Similar to the offset spatula, the bench scraper can become an extension of the professional or home baker’s hand when cutting dough, leveling cakes, and baking bread.
7.
Instant-Read Thermometer — The instant-read thermometer is another tool that implements precision into my home baking practice.
8.
And finally, the Chef’s Press — I think of it as a “cherry on top” tool.
Is there a certain piece of kitchen equipment that you swear by? Tell us about it in the comments!