The best kitchen appliances will make certain cooking tasks easier without taking up drawer space. Moreover, some of the most useful ones do not require a lot of money. All recommendations on this list are either products I currently use or more affordable versions of ones I decided to splurge on after years of meal prepping. Not all of the kitchen tools here are essential, but they will save you time when you need to get dinner on the table in a hurry.
victorinox honed steel
victorinox
The Victorinox 10-Inch Swiss Classic Honing Steel has a comfortable handle that makes it easy to learn the motion of honing a knife.
$28 on Amazon
Whether you're dicing vegetables on a cutting board or slicing kernels from a corn cob, there's nothing worse than cooking with a dull knife. It's dangerous and a waste of time. You need a way to maintain the blade. Let's start by honing the steel. Contrary to popular belief, honing steel does not sharpen knives. It's about re-adjusting the blade. If you use it consistently, you only need to actually sharpen the blade once every six months to once a year. Almost any model will work, but consider Victorinox's 10-inch Swiss Classic Honed Steel for an affordable option. With a comfortable handle, you can easily learn the motion of sharpening a knife. Best of all, it costs less than $30.
Lava Tool Javelin
mule tools
Lavatool's thermometer may not be the fastest on the market, but it's accurate to within 1 degree Fahrenheit. The Javelin is also magnetic, so you can easily store it by attaching it to your refrigerator or knife holder.
$27 on Amazon
If you're cooking meat (such as sous vide), you'll need to have an easy-to-read thermometer on hand. It takes the guesswork out of stewing, searing, and roasting animal proteins, making them safer and tastier.
There are many affordable instant-read thermometers, but I like the $27 Lavatools Javelin. It's not the fastest thermometer on the market, taking about 4-5 seconds to read the temperature, but it's accurate to within 1 degree Fahrenheit. The Javelin is also magnetic, so you can easily store it by attaching it to your refrigerator or knife holder. Best of all, the casing is IP65 certified against water and features an antimicrobial coating that Lavatools claims inhibits pathogen growth by 99.9 percent. Oh, and the Javelin is available in nine different colors, including a cheerful “wasabi” green shade.
OXO Good Grip Food Scale
Oxo
OXO's scale has a convenient pull-out display that makes it easy to read the scale even with a large bowl on top. It also has an imperial/metric switch.
$56 on Amazon
Next to a quick-read thermometer, one of the few items I think everyone should have in their kitchen is a food scale. I know what you're thinking. Aren't food scales only useful for baking bread? The answer is no. Eliminating the need for measuring cups streamlines all aspects of cooking, especially meal preparation, while providing more accurate measurements overall. Scales are also essential when counting calories and tracking macros.
After trying out a few different scales, I liked this OXO Good Grip Stainless Steel model. At less than $60, the OXO model is a little more expensive than other food scales, but it does have some features that set it apart from other food scales. The first is a convenient pull-out display that makes the scale easy to read even when a large bowl is placed on top. It also has an imperial/metric switch. The design looks stylish and is easy to clean.
Preparation work with progressive magnetic measuring spoons
progressive international
Progressive's Prepworks makes thoughtfully designed spoon sets with both rounded and narrow ends. The latter fits in most jars, making it ideal for measuring spices.
$20 on Amazon
Let's be honest: sometimes it's not practical to use a food scale to sort ingredients and you need to use measuring spoons. After owning several different models over the years, I've come to swear by the magnetic model. Easy to separate and clean afterwards. His Prepworks at Progressive creates thoughtfully designed sets where each spoon features both rounded and narrow ends. The latter fits in most jars, making it ideal for measuring spices.
Microplane Professional Series Grater
microplane
A microplane makes grating and peeling ingredients much easier, and it's much easier to maneuver over bowls and other dishes than a standard box grater.
$23 on Amazon
If you're like me, you've probably bought a box grater when you first started cooking, only to find out it was terrible. I'm here to tell you that there's a better way to grate cheese and lime zest. It's called a microplane. There are several different variations, but all offer the same benefits over box graters. The microplane's small size makes it easy to maneuver over bowls and other dishes. As for which model to buy, we like the Professional Series for its wide blade and clean design. If you're looking for excitement, we recommend the “Fine” model. If you want to shave chocolate or cheese, the “ribbon” version is also great.
Zwilling handheld vacuum sealer machine
zwilling
Zwilling's affordable handheld models support an ecosystem of budget-friendly reusable bags and containers.
$65 on Amazon
Over the past few years, vacuum sealers have become affordable enough for most home cooks to add to their kitchens. Meat and produce stored in airless bags lasts longer and is a great way to reduce waste. The right ones can also help reduce plastic waste. Zwilling makes affordable handheld models perfect for small kitchens and supports an ecosystem of budget-friendly reusable bags and containers. The bags are freezer and dishwasher safe, so they can be easily sterilized after storing meat. My only complaint about the Zwilling vacuum sealer is that it can be charged via micro USB (!).
Zulay Silicone Utensil Rest
Zurai Kitchen
Before moving to Portugal, my neighbor gifted me and my partner a silicone dish rack. Since then, this simple tool has become a staple in my kitchen arsenal.
$8 on Amazon
Before moving to Portugal, my neighbor gifted me and my partner a silicone dish rack. Since then, this simple tool has become a staple in my kitchen arsenal. Once you start cooking on the stove, it's helpful to have all your tools right in front of you. Utensil rests help with this while reducing the amount of cleanup afterwards. When you're done using it, just toss it in the dishwasher. Best of all, you can buy it for about $10.
cuisinart electric kettle
cuisinart
An electric kettle is a kitchen essential. His JK-17P1 from Cuisinart heats water quickly, looks great on the counter, and best of all, it doesn't cost any money.
$60 on Amazon
Although an electric kettle is not essential for cooking or preparing tea or coffee, this kitchen appliance can make those tasks safer and easier, and reduce cooking time. You can pay more for a kettle with multiple temperature settings, but unless you're a tea lover, I don't think that's a necessary feature for most people. His JK-17P1 from Cuisinart boils water quickly, looks great on the countertop, and best of all, it doesn't cost any money.
Salt cellar with wooden boxes and barrels
wooden box and barrel
Crate and Barrel's nifty and attractive acacia wood salt cellar comes with a lid so the two parts won't get lost or separated.
$15 for crate and barrel
Immediately after reading salt, fat, acid, heat, and learning from the inside out the importance of salting your food, I bought my first box of kosher salt. Storage methods weren't good back then, so I always used small bowls when cooking. The problem with this approach was that the salt would dry out if the bowl was left out. Salt Cellar solves that by adding a lid to the bowl. Crate and Barrel makes a nifty (and attractive) acacia wood model with an attached lid so the two parts don't get lost or separated.
