HDo you have a top-of-the-line blender? A handy garlic press you can't live without? Or maybe your grandma's set of measuring spoons? UK households spend around £14 billion a year on kitchen gadgets and cookware. Some we use every day, while others sit gathering dust (and regret) at the back of a cupboard. Sometimes the oldest are the best. A recent report by Waitrose ranked the humble microwave higher than an air fryer in the list of must-have kitchen essentials.
But with so many new gadgets on the market, it can be hard to know which ones are useful and which ones are just hyped. If you want to distinguish between the ones that will truly save you time and the ones that will waste your money, It's best to ask the experts who have tried and tested it thoroughly.
Here are some gadgets that top chefs rave about:
From left: Silicone spoon, Marcato Atlas pasta roller, sauce skimmer, Mexican elbo squeezer, KitchenAid stand mixer.
Rosie Brandreth
Spoonra
£4.95, procook.co.uk
“The spoonla, or spotula, is an absolute marvel. I teach a lot of online classes and my American students kept talking about this, so for a while I bragged about knowing what it was, but finally gave in and Googled it. It's like a cross between a spatula and a spoon, usually made of silicone. It's the best simple tool I've bought recently. The rounded edges leave nothing behind, making it perfect for stirring thick mixtures (even hot ones) and scraping the contents of bowls.”
Rosie is Semi-finalists upon The Great British Bake Off 2019
Roberta Delias
Pasta Maker
£125, selfridges.com
“When I'm making pasta by hand all day at work, the pasta roller helps me make all my favorite shapes, like tagliatelle and linguine, in just a fraction of the time. I've had pasta machines for as long as I can remember, and I've had this model for three years. It looks great in the kitchen and it's the kind of thing that doesn't feel like a tool that needs to be put away.”
Pasta Evangelist
Tom de Keyser
Source Skimmer
£7.59, amazon.co.uk
“Sauces are an essential part of cooking and enhance the flavour. A sauce skimmer allows you to precisely skim sauce from the base until you reach the desired consistency. It's perfect for removing impurities and fats that rise to the surface, resulting in a clean, clear end product.”
Tom is head chef at the two Michelin starred The Hand and Flowers in Marlow.
Jorge Martinez
Mexican Elbow Squeezer
£15, urbanbar.com
“I use this inexpensive squeezer almost daily. My husband bought it for me a few years ago after I had a pretty bad accident with a mandolin and was having a really hard time squeezing lemons. It makes squeezing limes and lemons a breeze and is exactly what you need if you're hosting a party at home making cocktails, lemon tarts, key lime pie, etc.”
Jorge is head chef at Oscar, the Charlotte Street Hotel in London.
Mark Hix
KitchenAid Stand Mixer
£699, johnlewis.com
“I've collected all kinds of kitchen gadgets over the years, but by 'gear' I don't mean the five-blade chive chopper or avocado slicer that you stash in a drawer. I've had my KitchenAid Artisan Mixer for 25 years and it's still going strong. I have one in Dorset and one in London and I use it every week to make sourdough bread. It can whisk, beat, knead and, with a number of attachments, can also grind, grind, shred, juice and strain.”
From left: Bamix hand blender, Konro grill, cherry and olive pitter, garlic rocker, tower air fryer
Thomasina Mears
Bamix Hand Blender
£109, bamixuk.com
“I can't live without my Bamix hand blender. My parents had one as a wedding gift over 50 years ago and it's still going strong, except for a few electrical tweaks. I bought it when I moved into my first apartment after graduating from college. It's such a handy tool, easy to store, takes up very little space, and is great for making soups, purees, smoothies, pesto, and mayonnaise.”
Ollie Bridgewater
Stove Grill
£251, sousvidetools.com
“The stove's Japanese barbecue is truly a revolutionary product – a must-have addition to any home or professional kitchen. It gets extremely hot, allowing you to cook delicate ingredients quickly at very high temperatures, adding colour, flavour, texture and a fantastic smoky aroma without overcooking the food. It uses charcoal and can be placed on your kitchen worktop, but as it produces a lot of smoke we recommend using it outdoors unless you have a very strong exhaust.”
Ollie is head chef at The Sauce at the Michelin-starred Gilpin Hotel in Windermere.
Angela Clutton
Cherry and olive pitter
£4.99, souschef.co.uk
“I love cherries for tarts, clafoutis and ice cream, and this cherry pitter allows you to easily remove the pits with the sharp metal spike, making it hassle-free. It's also great for de-pitting damsons, mirabelle plums and all-year-round olives – I really hate seeing people picking seeds out of their mouths.”
Angela is Vinegar cupboard (Bloomsbury)
Joe Fox
Garlic Rocker
£13, johnlewis.com
“The garlic rocker is a handy tool – it's easy to clean and makes it easy to crush lots of garlic. It's also great for the whole family, it's much safer for children than using a knife and it's less hassle than a traditional garlic press. You do need to peel the garlic first, but it's great for a quick and rustic solution. It's easy to clean under running water and is dishwasher safe.”
Joe is the Executive Chef at the Firmdale Hotel.
Alex Aitken
Tower Air Fryer
£100, argos.co.uk
“I love my Tower Air Fryer. Unlike many other models, it has shelves instead of drawers so it feels more like a replica oven. The best part is that it has a roast chicken feature for roasting whole chickens or satay. Air fryers may be going out of style, but not in our home.”
Alex is Chef Patron at Jetty at Christchurch Harbour Hotel
Lisa Goodwin Allen
Meater Smart Thermometer
£99.99, currys.co.uk
“The Meater is a probe that connects to your phone and is really useful for anyone who loves BBQ and wants to grill the perfect steak. It's also great for when you have a bunch of friends over and you want to grill big chunks on the BBQ. I use it for big chunks of meat and I recently grilled some jerk ham with it too.”
Lisa is the Executive Chef at the Michelin-starred Rango, Northcote.
Ed Kimber
Offset Palette Knife
£4.40, hartsofstur.com
“This little palette knife, which costs under £5 and has a bevelled blade, is incredibly useful for everything from spreading batter into tins to removing cookies from trays and decorating cakes. I keep losing them at home as I often lose them at work.”
Source
Michel Roux Jr.
Boiling water tap
From £1,150, quooker.co.uk
“It's very practical. You can put a small tank under the sink and have hot water boiling in no time. You can boil pasta or make tea in no time. A kettle makes a mess in the kitchen and takes a long time to boil water.”
Bruno Loubet
Ortho Spice Mill
£54, dreamfarm.com
“Designed in Brisbane, Australia, this pepper grinder is hands down the best. It grinds with one hand and has six settings from extra fine to coarse. It has multiple glass jars so you can easily change what you want to grind. At my culinary school on the Gold Coast, Australia, we use one for pepper and one for salt.”
Willowval Cooking School
Sat Bains
Aerolatte Mini Whisk
£12.99, lakeland.co.uk
“It's a battery-operated mini frother for frothing hot milk. I use it at work to make sauces and at home to mix protein shakes. I first came across this product whilst having lunch at Heston's and the Fat Duck in the early 2000s. [Blumenthal]”I have two at home and always take one with me when I go on vacation.”
Restaurantatbains.com
Tom Westerlund
Plumber's Torch
£115.25, diy.com
“It may be a bit unusual but my favourite tool is a plumber's torch. I bought it from B&Q. It's an easy way to add a barbecue or burnt flavour to food at home. I use it all the time to barbecue mackerel for salads – just be careful not to catch fire! Luckily fire extinguishers are sold in the next aisle.”
Tom is the head chef at Knipe Grill at Gilpin Lake House in Windermere.
Henry Firth and Ian Sheasby from Bosh!
Wusthof 20cm chef's knife
£139, wusthof.co.uk
“The tool we can't live without is the Wusthof 20cm chef's knife. It's the perfect weight, feels great in the hand, and cuts really well. I bought it six years ago as a reward for Bosh! getting 1 million likes on Facebook, and I still use it every day.”
Aldo Giri
Wolf Blender
£562, cooksandcompany.co.uk
“My Wolf Semi-Pro Blender is an essential on food prep days at our family-run Casa Zilli in Surrey. I use it for bisques, soups (it makes hot soups from start to finish) and pesto. The variable speeds give me control over the blend, as well as the slow cooking, which frees me up to focus on other tasks in the kitchen.”
casa-zilli.com
Stephen Carter Bailey
Stainless steel soap
£4.99, lakeland.co.uk
“Trust me on this one, washing your hands on stainless steel eliminates garlic and fish smells. It was originally sent to me by my aunt in the US and I listened to her and it turns out she was right. I keep it next to my sink to avoid scrubbing with harsh chemicals.”
Steven The Great British Bake Off 2017
Hewel Jones
Lantana Safety Can Opener
£11.95, lantana-home.com
“A few years ago, one of our junior chefs cut himself badly on the edge of a can he opened. A few days later, the Lantana safety can opener showed up in our kitchen. Dino, one of our kitchen porters, told me he bought it for our kitchen to stop someone else from getting hurt. It separates the lid and can by cutting at the folded metal seam, not the side of the can, so there are no sharp edges. It's a great tool, very durable and the best can opener we've ever had. Cheers, Dino.”
Huell runs the Michelin-starred restaurant Huell Jones in Lucknam Park, Wiltshire.
Juliet Shear, Baker
Kenwood MultiPro Go Super Compact Food Processor
£49.99, kenwoodworld.com
“This mini food processor is really handy – it's small but super powerful, with plenty of capacity for most recipes. It fits easily in a cupboard if you don't like the clutter. It has a handy pouring opening so you can chop directly into the bowl to make a big salad or prepare a big chili or pasta dish.”
@julietsear on Instagram
Dean Banks
Julienne peeler
£1.99, lakeland.co.uk
“I bought this about 5 years ago to save time cutting up mangoes. Grab a carrot or zucchini and this little peeler magically peels it for you in seconds. It also works for Parmesan. It doesn't require power and is small enough to store anywhere.”
Dean is head chef at The Pompadour at the Waldorf Astoria in Edinburgh.
Raymond Blanc
Kenwood Autograph Titanium Chef Baker
£599.99, johnlewis.com
“I've been using the original Chef Baker since it came out a few years ago. It's functional, stylish, and built to last, and it has so much more capabilities than your average blender. With several add-on attachments, it can grate, blend, slice, juice, mince, spiralize, and more.”
