Kitchen Utensils

Cluttered Kitchen Drawer - The Surprised Gourmet

Everyone seems to have at least one cluttered kitchen drawer filled with utensils

Having the right ingredients is always essential when preparing that perfect dish. But without certain kitchen utensils, making that dish would be difficult.

While, for the most part, we all have at least one kitchen drawer that is jammed packed with utensils, there are always one or more tools we keep in a special place and dare anyone to move them (or touch them). These are those kitchen utensils we use time and time again. They can be ones that have been handed down in your family for generations, items you can’t even remember where they came from or pieces purchased recently by you.

Among my go-to items are a heavy-duty chef’s knife, a small paring knife and a nonstick skillet. It seems no matter what I prepare, I use at least one – if not all – of these items.

I am careful what I use to stir, flip or remove food from my skillet. I adore cast iron skillets, but seem to use the nonstick more except if I’m preparing cornbread. The nonstick skillet is light-weight and easy to clean which makes it much handier.

four-star-6inch-santoku-knife-1

A Zwilling knife

I take extra special care of these two knives, as well as all my other knives. These two, however, are never placed in a drawer and are kept extremely sharp. I’ve found that it’s easier to cut yourself with a dull knife than it is a sharp one. While you can find good knives at reasonable prices (like I did), if I were to splurge on knives I’d have a complete set of Zwilling J.A. Henckels Knives. They are quite pricey, but I believe would be well worth the money. Made in Germany, the knives are hand sharpened and polished with a full tang. Zwilling Knives are durable and long-lasting. They’re on my Christmas wish list.

60″ RNB SERIES RANGE WITH 24″ FRENCH TOP

60″ RNB Series Range with 24″ French Top

In addition, if I were building my dream kitchen, one of the first things I would make sure to include is a freestanding, restaurant quality gas range like one of these 60-inch BlueStar RNB Series with a 24-inch French top. To me a gas range would make cooking so much easier. You have instant heat with gas and more even cooking. Having a range that is both efficient and fun to use is a perfect combination. There are so many sizes and styles to select from to fit every cook’s needs. BlueStar also has a variety of hoods to go with that perfect oven. In addition, they have a Built-In Refrigeration line that would complete any kitchen.

Thanks for stopping by today. If you were building (or have built) your dream kitchen, what would be your first ‘must have’ item? Do you have any favorite kitchen utensils you use time and time again? Were they handed down through generations or a special find you discovered yourself?

Cucina Felice!

Please follow and like us:

8 comments

  1. Liz says:

    Yes, I love my high-end knives—slowly collected over the years. And my non-stick skillets get a good work out—almost time to replace my larger one! Great picks for kitchen must haves.
    Liz recently posted…Raspberry Coffee Cake #BrunchWeek #GiveawayMy Profile

    • Liz, I hear what you’re saying about almost time to replace your large non-stick skillet. I just picked up a second large non-stick skillet to replace mine, but then decided to use both. 🙂 You can never go wrong with high-end knives.

  2. Hotly Spiced says:

    Definitely I couldn’t do without my knives. After that I think my next essential item is my dishwasher! I couldn’t do without both. And with Mother’s Day on the horizon I’ve sent out my wish list and once again, everything on it is for the kitchen – as if the cupboards aren’t bursting at the seams as it is! xx

    • Charlie, I’m with you when it comes to my knives. I’m extra protective of them. We rarely use our dishwasher, but it’s nice to know it’s there when we really need it. Hope you get everything on your wish list for Mother’s Day.

  3. Probably my chef’s knife (10-inch) and my kitchen scale are the two things I use the most. I have a ton of skillets, but tend to use my nonstick ones the most. Love flipping eggs in the small one (7-inch). Fun post — thanks.
    John/Kitchen Riffs recently posted…The Blue Moon CocktailMy Profile

    • John, a chef’s knife is a must. I’ve just purchased a digital kitchen scale and am looking forward to using it. Maybe it’ll become a must-have on my list too. You’ll have to do a video flipping eggs, that would be fun to watch. Thanks for stopping by.

  4. We recently had to choose a new kitchen, when we had to rebuild our house.

    I had so many wonderful ideas in my head! I love what we have but it isn’t quite the grand, chefs kitchen that I would have loved. Much more of a standard home kitchen. It does have plenty of bench space and a lovely 5 burner hob, and a walk in pantry 🙂 So I really can’t complain, but that oven still makes me weak!!! One day I would love to have a space (and the money) for something like that!

    If I could go back a year and tell myself two things it would be a) get a cupboard that comes right down to the worktop so I can hide away my coffee machine – I just didn’t think it would fit (now I disagree!!!) b) make the fridge recess deeper so the fridge doesn’t stick out past the edge!

    But they are small things, especially given the tiny, mismatched farm kitchen it replaced (which I also loved!!!!)

    p.s I love my non-stick fry pans! And like you I use them far more often than my cast iron one!
    Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts recently posted…Saffron And Prawn LinguineMy Profile

    • Claire, thanks for stopping by. I know what you mean about that oven. It is something else. Sounds like you made some very nice improvements to your kitchen. I especially like the idea of a walk-in pantry.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge