The Things That Have Lasted in my Kitchen, and Advice for the Ordinary Cook

Subhead: Kitchen Gadgets That Have Stood the Test of Time and other musings

I have an aunt that, when she got wind that I like to cook, started buying me all sorts of “gadgets” for cooking at Christmas. I love her dearly, but all too often they’d wind up in the way, way back of the topmost cupboard, used once but never again. The screwiest kind of stuff — garlic crushers made of clear plastic that you were supposed to make the chore of chopping garlic a “One two three!” type of thing — you know, the Slap-chop, the Itsy Bitsy Pressure Cooker and so on. But they didn’t stand the test of time.

Who on Earth comes up with this stuff? A "Garlic Twister???"

Here’s what DID stand the test of time, and stuff I really couldn’t do without. You can probably Google all this stuff, so I won’t post links, but they are, in rough order of importance:

1. A chef’s knife, preferably Japanese. Kasumi is the one I have and it’s going nigh on ten years. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. People who’ve used it have told me they’re scared of it, and indeed, they should be. I could split a blade of grass with it, when it’s coupled with a:

I have two, one that goes down to the finest polish available

2. Sharpening stone. Don’t get freaked out by the concept and say “I could never learn how to use one,” and then get some goofy metal tent-pole from Germany that promises to sharpen your knives. The stone (I have two, with four different grades of grit) will keep your Japanese knife to a degree of sharpness that you have every right to be afraid of. Once you start to use it properly, which is extremely easy, it’s a form of meditation when you sharpen your knife. To know if your knife is sharp, do the Tomato Test: lightly rest the blade on a ripe tomato and draw it back slightly without putting any weight on it. It should carve a millimeter-thin line into the tomato. If it doesn’t, your knife is not fit to use and is therefore REALLY dangerous.

3. A sink-wide colander. These are extensible and sit above the drain on the sink so your spaghetti doesn’t get mixed with the Palmolive you used to wash the last dish.

Really great for pasta and washing vegetables

4. A Microplane grater. All others should be lined up against a wall and shot.

There is no substitute

5. A Gel-pro mat. If you spend a lot of time in the kitchen, these mats are a godsend. They’re easily cleanable and really help out in the achy feet department. But beware — they’re expensive.

My feet thank me every day

6. A pot rack. This is to hang all your skillets and frypans. There is no substitute, but this might be your single savviest investment.

My actual pot rack. I can't conceive of life without it.

7. A condiment dispenser. These are those things you see behind the bar, which are filled with olives, onions, cherries etc. These are fantastic for putting a bunch of chopped ingredients, say, for topping a pizza. You won’t be using it every day, but it’s indispensable when you’re making a complex meal for lots of people. You can chop one day and then refrigerate the whole thing so you don’t have to work when the guests arrive the next day.

This isn't the one I have, but it's similar. Great for prep for a big project.

8. A digital oven thermometer. These have a wire that clips onto the oven rack and a digital readout that tells you how completely wrong your oven temperature really is.

My actual model. Highly recommended.

9. A mandoline. No, not the playing kind, although you could entertain the potatoes while they’re boiling with it. Great for delicate slicing jobs. Kiss your fingertips a sweet goodbye.

Use occasionally, but amazing. Watch fingertips.

10. A library full of cookbooks. You can never have too many.

Brigitte made me prune it. But it'll be refilled in no time.

11. Garlic. Triple the amount called for in all recipes. Buy the hardneck kind. They usually only have one huge clove with a stalk.

12. Love and respect for your kitchen — keep it clean at all times, never let things build up, always have clean, inviting workspace.

!3. Last but not least, a TV. I can’t cook without a TV. With both VHS and DVD capabilities. I need that background hum which I listen to or not listen to, as I choose. Music won’t do. Cooking in a kitchen without a TV is like being hung upside down and fed kippers and stale beer.

The "brain" of my kitchen