Here are a few of my favorite things

I may have a slight obsession when it comes to kitchen tools and equipment.  Of course, I don’t have everything that I want, but I have most of the things that I need to make cooking and baking a breeze.  My Christmas list each year is usually chock full of items for the kitchen.  Yes, they are for me, but my family and loved ones get to reap the benefits.  I have several things that I love, but in my best Oprah voice, I may have a slight obsession when it comes to kitchen tools and equipment.  Of course, I don’t have everything that I want, but I have most of the things that I need to make cooking and baking a breeze.  My Christmas list each year is usually chock full of items for the kitchen.  Yes, they are for me, but my family and loved ones get to reap the benefits.  I have several things that I love, but in my best Oprah voice, here are a few of my favorite things (and you can find the links for these on the Favorite Equipment page).

Sous Vide

I’m sure some of you may be sick of hearing me talk about this gadget, but I truly believe that if you can afford one, you should buy one.  They actually are not even that expensive anymore; you can find one easily for under $100.  You might be asking yourself “what is the big deal with this thing?”  Well, once you cook using it, you will be a convert.  After talking about wanting one forever and chatting up some foodie friends about sous vide immersion cookers, my wonderful husband gifted me with the Anova Precision Cooker for Christmas this past year.  I was so excited, but also terrified to cook with it.  Anyone who knows me knows that I DO NOT take kitchen fails lightly.  At the very least, a kitchen fail puts me in a foul mood.  At the worst, there are tears shed.  Yes, I’ve cried over undercooked chicken, but more on that in a minute.  After much careful thought, I decided that my first attempt would be with a pork tenderloin.  Pork is not my favorite meat and it’s relatively inexpensive, so I didn’t have much to lose.  On New Year’s Day, I embarked on this adventure.  Pork loin in a Ziplock freezer bag with butter, garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper.  Then into the water for 90 minutes while I watched an episode of Cherynobyl with the family.  Once the timer went off, I patted the meat dry and seared it in a screaming hot cast iron skillet.  I can’t remember what I served it with, but I do remember gasping at the amazing tenderness and flavor.  My once-boring pork loin had been transformed into this restaurant-quality deliciousness!!!  From that point on, I was hooked.  Not only is this my preferred method of cooking pork tenderloin (especially my coffee-chili rubbed pork), but also pork chops, steaks, even butter-poached potatoes, buttery carrots, and yes, even watermelon-infused vodka.  I could go on and on, but you get my drift.  I have yet to embark on desserts and those long, 24 or 36-hour cooks for brisket and other roasts, but I soon will expand my sous vide horizons. 

Instant Read Digital Thermometer

While an instant-read thermometer is nowhere near as fun or interesting as a sous vide immersion cooker, it is an essential tool for the kitchen.  Back to kitchen fails, we had gotten a brand new stove that had a convection roast feature.  I could not wait to roast a whole chicken in it.  I seasoned a beautiful bird and popped it in the oven for Sunday dinner.  I cooked it as I usually do, but calculated to cook it for a little less time since I used the convection setting.  Matt went to carve the bird and…blood everywhere.  This was the first time I had ever undercooked a whole chicken.  As I lamented to my friends in Facebook land, one of my seasoned chef friends gently told me “that’s why you ALWAYS have an instant read thermometer.”  The next day, I ordered one from Amazon and always have it by my stove.  This traumatic experience is also why I always spatchcock my whole birds before cooking!  

Mix ‘n Chop

Here is a shameless, free plug for Pampered Chef.  The Mix ‘n Chop is a tool that I never knew I needed.  Each year for Christmas, I give Matt a list of things I’d like for the kitchen.  About 2 years ago, someone was having a pre-Christmas Pampered Chef sale.  I made my selections and stumbled upon this gadget.  I decided to order it, more out of curiosity than anything else.  This has become a staple in my kitchen anytime I am dealing with ground meat.  It is perfect at breaking it up in the pan and browning it evenly.  The Mix ‘n Chop is also amazing at mashing avocados and mixing it for guacamole.  I highly recommend it.  Cheaper versions of this tool are sold at big box stores, but the quality of Pampered Chef products is amazing, especially if you put your kitchen tools to work often like I do. 

Instant Pot

Admittedly, I was late to hop on the Instant Pot train.  I bought one during a sale on Amazon and then it sat in my basement, unopened for over a year.  I just didn’t know what to do with it and my husband had me afraid to use it, with his crazy stories about pressure cookers killing people.  A friend of mine invited me to an Instant Pot group on Facebook and I could not escape the constant posts of people doing everything from boiling eggs and making yogurt, to people cooking Prime Ribs (please people, do NOT ruin a prime rib in a pressure cooker).  I decided to grab mine out of the basement and see what it could do.  My first try was Indian Butter Chicken.  It became an instant (no pun intended) family favorite recipe, which I shared in a Facebook post a few weeks ago.  The Instant Pot does boil several eggs at once to perfection.  I also use it often to make brown rice, deliciously tender beef brisket and pork al pastore for tacos.  Probably my favorite situation to use this device is when I forget to take something out of the freezer for dinner.  It cooks frozen meat beautifully and easily.

Immersion Blender

While the immersion blender is not a tool that I use every day, it is a necessary piece of equipment when making sauces and creamy soups.  I love to make homemade tomato sauce, or gravy as some call it.  There is nothing better than sauteing meat, onions and garlic and then simmering with whole San Marzano tomatoes.  Once this yummy goodness has been cooking for a few hours, I scoop out all of my meat and hit the tomatoes with the immersion blender to smooth out my sauce.  Then you put the meat back in and use the sauce for whatever amazing Italian recipe you need it for.  I also use the “stick” blender to puree my butternut squash soup into a velvety mixture before adding cream to finish it off or to smooth out homemade apple butter.  The beauty of this tool is that you can blend right in your cooking vessel.  That makes one less dirty dish and it’s much easier than getting out the regular countertop blender and having to blend in batches.  

KitchenAid Mixer

One of the items on my wedding registry that I COULD NOT WAIT to receive was a KitchenAid mixer.  Anyone who is a fan of cooking shows or that loves to bake can understand my desire for this coveted kitchen tool.  Yes, it takes up a lot of counter space.  Yes, it is heavy to lug around, especially if you store it in a cabinet above the fridge like I do. But it cuts down on the time to mix many things, especially egg whites and cream.  Iit makes baking dozens and dozens of cookies at Christmas time much easier.  And let’s not forget all of the amazing attachments for this baby.  This is not just limited to the dough hook, the whisk and the paddle for the mixer.  I’m talking about the sausage stuffer, the pasta maker, and my favorite…the meat grinder.  The possibilities are almost endless for the things you can do with your KitchenAid.  They are not cheap, but they are, in my opinion, a true workhorse in the kitchen.