Something that any keen cook will surely agree on is that having a well-stocked kitchen is one of the most important elements of cooking. If you want to be able to produce meals of any kind, you should find that you will need a kitchen which you can feel comfortable working in. Both professional and amateur chefs alike are well aware of this fact. But how easy is it to make sure that you have everything you might possibly need? One of the most important things that any kitchen needs plenty of is the gadgets. Most chefs like to use a variety of gadgets to make cooking simpler, faster and sometimes even a lot more fun. Let’s have a look at some of the top gadgets that you might want to think about having in your kitchen.
Pestle & Mortar
This is one of the oldest kitchen items known to humanity, and yet it remains one of the most effective and easy to use. With a pestle and mortar, you can crush and grind pretty much any material that you might need to in your kitchen, no matter what purpose it is for. This is great for making spice mixes, bashing out a curry paste, or even just mixing items together for a seasoning mix of your own creation. The best pestle and mortars are usually those which are made of granite, but glass is a close second. Wooden ones, however, are probably best avoided as these tend to be much less effective and can also have a way of getting food stuck into the grains, making it hard to clean effectively. With a pestle and mortar in your kitchen, you will find a huge number of basic everyday tasks are suddenly made a lot easier.
Food Processor
Even only twenty years ago, the mere presence of a food processor in a kitchen was something that would be looked upon with great concern. Most people don’t really know what to make of it, or what you might end up using it for. Fast forward to now, and it is easily one of the most popular kitchen gadgets worldwide. If you think that you would like to benefit from using a food processor, it is a good idea to look into which one is likely to be the best for your own needs. They do vary widely, with different models having very different settings available, so it is a good idea to carry out whatever necessary research you might need to before buying. Some models are pretty good all rounders, however – the Cuisinart 14 cup is the highest rated in most resources, so that is likely to be a good bet. But whichever one you end up going for, there is no doubt that it is the kind of gadget that will always save you a lot of time and effort in the kitchen, without sacrificing on the quality of the meals.
Garlic Peeler
On a much lower tech scale, but no less useful as a general kitchen item, we have the garlic peeler. This is a classic of the kitchen drawer, and there is a good reason for that – it is one of the most effective and simple items which you can possibly come across for your kitchen. We all know the difficulty that can ensue from trying to peel and crush garlic with a knife. It is sticky, messy and you usually end up with more on your fingers than in the dish itself. But a good garlic peeler can make the whole process much easier, cleaner and a whole lot faster too. Make sure that you don’t mind splashing out on a slightly more expensive one – these are generally significantly more effective, and it is the kind of thing where it is well worth a little extra in payment for a much better quality piece of equipment. No kitchen is complete without a garlic peeler; make sure you pick up a decent one as soon as possible.
Wine Aerator
Who doesn’t love wine? For any real wine enthusiasts out there, you might well be aware that wine is much better tasting when it is aerated before drinking. Typically, this is achieved by the simple act of swirling your glass a little before shipping. However, there is now a gadget that can do the same thing for you, and much more effectively. With a wine aerator, you can pour a bottle of wine into a decanter, which also simultaneously aerates as it pours. You will then find that every glass of wine you have is significantly tastier and fuller in body. This is a must have for all wine lovers who also like to spend time in the kitchen.
