Kitchen Essentials

Great apologies for how long it's been since I've written.  Haven't been cooking that much lately because I've been away from home a lot in the past couple weeks.  I don't have a real magical recipe to share with you today,  but I thought I'd outline some items that I believe are kitchen essentials.  I am open to suggestions as well.

These are the tools that I believe are a necessity for successful, easy cooking.

• Sharp Knives.  Without sharp knives, you will just get frustrated.  It's also safer.  You need a paring knife, a good serrated knife and a large knife for chopping.  If you get more, that's fine too, but you'll probably just stick to these three.  I've found that more expensive does not equal a better product.  My steak knives are from the dollar store and my big knives are just store brand.  I've used more expensive knives and found that they get dull quickly.  Though, if you have money to burn, ceramic blades are amazing.
• A couple cutting boards.  This is especially important if, like me, you don't have a dishwasher.  Regardless, it's a good idea to keep a separate cutting board for meat and another for produce.  Flexible plastic cutting boards are useful for chopping then pouring into a pan or bowl, but I have a certain love affair with my bamboo boards.
• A glass 9'' x 13'' casserole.  You can use this for anything: casseroles, brownies, quiche, cornbread, whatever.  9X13 is the standard recipe size.
• At least one mixing bowl.  You can get a set if you'd like, but one is a good minimum.  Get a sturdy one.  I have a set that has rubber on the bottom so they don't slide around the counter when mixing.
• A good can opener.  There is little more frustrating than a crappy can opener.  Like knives, higher price does not equal higher quality.  Get a sturdy one with a big handle.  Mine is from Goodwill and works better than a new one I used to have.
• Rubber (or silicone) spatula.  Essential for scraping bowls and other dishes.  Be sure yours has a sturdy handle.
• Plastic spatula.  So you don't scratch your nonstick pans.
• A good skillet.  Get a nonstick skillet that's heavy with a thick bottom.  Insulated handles are nice, but not necessary.  You can get a million sizes, but just get a big one if you're on a budget so you can cook a lot or a little.
• A sturdy sauce pan.  A medium size pot will serve most of you needs.  Doesn't need to be nonstick, but can be if you'd like.  Most important here is a very thick bottom.
• A heavy duty jumbo size stock pot.  Again, thick bottom is essential.  No need for nonstick.  This is what you use to boil a dozen ears of corn or cook for 20 people.
• A sturdy jelly roll pan (cookie sheet).  Like the pots, thicker is better.  Don't go cheap.  Air-puff pans are amazing, but if you grease a good one, that's fine too.
• Freezer bags.  Be sure to get these if you plan on doing any real freezing or keeping for the winter.
• Wooden spoons.  More environmentally friendly than plastic and last longer too.
• Ladle.  For serving soups or for transferring from pot to storage containers.
• Glass liquid measure.  Pyrex or Anchor.  I never understood the point of a one cup liquid measure, so I say at least 2 if not 4-6 cup measure.  You can use it for measuring, melting butter, or mixing ingredients in.
• Measuring spoons.  I don't have much of an opinion on these, but get some you can keep straight.  I, of course, prefer metal.  It's nice when they attach so you don't loose them.  I have metal, double-ended spoons (ie one end is a tablespoon and the other is a teaspoon etc) that hook together.
• Measuring cups.  Just get 1 cup, 1/2 cup, 1/3 cup, and 1/4 cup.  Everything else is unnecessary.  I have metal ones that can hang up.  Like spoons, good if they have a way to stick together.
• Cheese grater.  If you shred your own cheese, you'll save a lot of money.  Also comes in handy for grating veggies for things like cole slaw or carrots for salads.  Get this kind that has different types of surfaces for grating, zesting, slicing.  Mine has a clear plastic side with measurements so you know when you've grated a 1/2 cup of cheese.  It also has a bottom that slides on and off.  Very handy features, but not essential.
• Kitchen shears.  ie sturdy, very sharp, stainless steel scissors that come apart for easy cleaning.  Great for cutting herbs.  Some have built in bottle openers.  Some knife sets come with a pair.
• Whisk.  Essential for beating eggs or whipping cream.

So, that's what I deem necessary.  Here are a few more items that are nice to have, but nonessential (I have very few).

• Food Processor.  I crave one of these so badly it hurts, but you can survive without them if you are patient.  It will improve your knife skills if you don't have one.  Still, I crave one so badly.  Get a good brand, splurge on something like Cuisinart.
• Stand Mixer.  Another thing I crave.  You can make do with a hand-crank mixer, but this speeds things up certainly.  The very nice Kitchenaid mixers have attachments for making pasta, kneading bread, and many other features.  They will last you 30 years, so it's worth the investment.
• A colander.  I survived without one in my place for two years.  Having one now is easy, but if you're good at holding a pot lid on, you can live without one.
• Tongs.  Metal, restaurant-style tongs that lock are such a convenience.  I use them for everything, probably more than any other utensil I have.
• Muffin pans.  Just opens the door for more creations.
• Funnels.  Having a variety of sizes makes for easy storing of food and transporting from one container to another.
• Pastry cutter.  I've debated buying one of these for a long time because it certainly makes combining pastry dough loads easier, but I'm surviving with my own method.
• Probe thermometer.  This way you know for sure if your meat is done.  Without one, you'll get pretty good at touching steaks or chicken breasts to know if they're done, but it's very very difficult to know if something like a ham is done.  You can spend as much money as you want one one.  I splurged and got one that connects to a digital screen that you can magnet onto your oven.  That way, you can know the temperature is without opening the oven.  You can also set alarms to go off when it reaches a certain temperature.
• Vegetable peeler.  If you have a sharp paring knife, you don't need this, but it sure makes life easier.  And besides peeling veggies you can use it to make nice long strips of veggies like carrots for salads or omelets.  

Beyond these goods, I always keep a few food items well stocked in my kitchen.  If you have all of these items, then you can make any number of meals very quickly, easily, and without a trip to the store.

• butter
• rice
• pasta
• canned or jarred beans (your favorite kinds)
• canned tomatoes
• frozen veggies (whatever you know you'll eat, but especially things like corn, spinach, etc. that are good in many many things)
• canned tuna
• a myriad of spices
• kosher salt & coarse ground pepper
• flour
• sugars
• baking soda
• baking powder
• all-purpose baking mix
• cocoa
• nice and not so nice olive oil
• cooking spray
• canned tomato paste
• oatmeal
• a variety of vinegars
• bouillon
• garlic
• onions
• eggs
• cheeses
• milk
• a hot sauce you really love

With these ingredients and some imagination, you can make about a million things.  You'll see that all the recipes on my list use some of these ingredients plus something special.

Alright, that's my pedagogical post.