Kitchen Equipment

It’s a well accepted fact that I spend far too much time and money on exciting kitchen gizmos – but having the right tool for the job can make a dramatic difference to how easy it is to follow a particular recipe, or achieve a particular result. Most of my stuff comes from Nisbets, Lakeland or Amazon. Below is a list of items that have pride of place in my cupboards:

Frying Pan – De Buyer Force Blue, recommended by a friend these steel (non non-stick) pans are superb. Heavy, sturdy and, if well cared for, completely brilliant to use. Seasoning is very important, as is careful cleaning and oiling, but once you’ve built up a good coating on it, you’ll never go back to teflon.

Knives – I currently have at least three sets in the kitchen, but a couple of good knives is easily enough. I have a handful of Global knives, and they really are superb. Ruthlessly sharp, good looking and easy to sharpen and clean. I also have an ‘every day’ set of Kitchen Devils, they aren’t as sharp as the Globals, but they cost a fraction of the price, and are more than up to most jobs, for specialist knives, like skinning and boning, I can’t recommend Victorinox enough, their Fibrox range is cheap, sharp enough to shave with and very durable.

Iron Griddle – I bought a simple square cast iron griddle pan from Nisbets for about £10 and it’s got to be one of the best purchases i’ve made. It’s very very heavy and thus holds the heat a lot better than a thin frying pan. It sears steaks beautifully, cooking them quickly while leaving those lovely burn marks.

Sous Vide – I love sous vide. I’ve written plenty of blogs on it. If you don’t fancy building your own, splash out on a proper version. They’re available from most major high street stores now.

Kenwood Chef – If you don’t have a stand mixer, you’re missing out. They are very expensive, but they will never wear out. My grandmother’s Kenwood from the early seventies is still doing regular duty in my sisters kitchen. It makes kneading bread, whipping meringues and creaming butter and sugar a doodle. It’s essential for macarons. The attachments can be great as well – its by far the cheapest way to grind meat and fill sausages!