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Kitchen Equipment
Independent, non-commercial guides to the tools that earn their place on the counter. We do not sell products, take commissions, or accept gifts from manufacturers.
The essentials
A chef’s knife you will keep for a decade
Weight, balance, steel, and the case for one good knife instead of three mediocre ones.
Pans
On cast iron: care, myths, and the real rules
Seasoning is simpler than the internet would have you believe. Soap is fine. Drying matters.
Pans
The case for one good Dutch oven
A wide enameled pot is the most-used piece of equipment in our test kitchen. Here is what to look for.
The essentials
Cutting boards: wood, plastic, or both
They serve different purposes. We use both and explain why.
Bakeware
Why a half-sheet pan is the most useful pan you can own
Light-colored, rimmed, heavy-gauge aluminum. The reasons, in order.
Small tools
The five small tools that matter
A wooden spoon, a fish spatula, a microplane, a bench scraper, a digital thermometer.
Small tools
Why a digital thermometer changes weeknight cooking
Take the guesswork out of chicken, bread, and a few stranger things.
Baking
On using a kitchen scale (and starting to bake by weight)
Cups are inconsistent. Grams are not. The case is short and convincing.
Pantry hardware
Salt cellar, pepper grinder, oil tin
Three small things on your counter that quietly improve everything you cook.