Must-Have Tools for Any Kitchen

It’s easy to get seriously excited about expanding your kitchen repertoire.  And in debt buying for that kitchen. Here are kitchen-related things you really need and how to use them efficiently.

Knives

You need two knives, minimum:

• Chef’s knife
• Pairing knife

The third option is a bread knife, if you see yourself cutting bread.  There are other types – here’s a run down.

Knives require maintenance, which means knowing the difference between sharpening and honing.  So a sharpener and a honing steel should be included.  And a cutting board – plastic or wood, the debate continues.

Pots and Pans

You want at least two pots, and a pan.  The choice is yours about whether the pan should be non-stick Teflon or cast iron.  It can be really nice to have both.  Cast iron will last a long time, if you maintain it.

Scale and Thermometer

Depending on what you’re doing, you can get away without these until actually needed.

• You want a scale you can calibrate (you can do it with pocket change)
• It’s crucial to get a quality thermometer, rather than cheap

HowTo: Use a Chinese Chef’s Knife

In this video [series], Chef Martin Yan shows you the right way to use a Chinese chef’s knife.

Source: The Right Way to Use a Chinese Chef’s Knife

• Diamond cut
• Shredding
• Roll cut
• Slant cut
• Peeling and crushing

You only need a chef’s knife and a pairing knife.  Bread knife if you need.

Do You Know Your Knives?

Direct link to the infographic.  Here’s a different infographic.

Earlier, there was a post about how to sharpen the knife.  But a butter knife isn’t good against steak…  This graphic explains the proper use of teach type of kitchen knife, along with a few useful tips.

I guess they include Santoku under “asian cleaver”?  No mention of bread knife either…