Eva’s Favorite Kitchen Tools

Knives -

Forgo knife sets - there are just three truly essential knives: a chef’s knife, a paring knife, and a serrated bread knife. Beyond that, a boning knife, a slicing knife (for carving meat), and a good pair of kitchen shears can make certain tasks easier. But anything other than these six pieces is filler.

Chef’s knife - You spend a lot of money on knives, but you don’t have to. If you’re just getting started with your kitchen gear - Victorinox Swiss Army Fibrox Pro 8" Chef's Knife. This knife will set you back only $45.00.

Serrated knife - If you hate slicing bread because it makes you think of sawing or struggling, it’s probably your knife’s fault— some serrated knives are so bad - they can turn glossy loaves of challah into shaggy piles that looked as if they’d been run through a blender. A good serrated knife will make slicing bread a breeze, but also can make life easier for you when you try to slice tomatoes thinly, quarter a loaded sandwich without everything oozing out, and slice cakes like a pro. Try the Mercer Culinary Millennia 10" Wide Bread Knife (15.00)

Paring knives - Paring knives are a valuable tool in the kitchen; you can use them to poke into things without stabbing too widely or deeply, as when scoring chicken skin to help the fat render, piercing boiled potatoes to gauge doneness, or nipping into salmon fillets to see if they’re cooked through. They are great for hulling strawberries, or coring tomatoes, peeling fruits and vegetables such as apples, oranges, or stubborn celery root (whose skin is too tough for a peeler).Try the Victorinox Swiss Army Fibrox Pro 3 1/4" Spear Point Paring Knife ($7.00)

For Sharpening knives-

Chef'sChoice Trizor XV Knife Sharpener

Food Safety-

Color-coded cutting boards to prevent cross-contamination-

https://www.surlatable.com/sur-la-table-set-of-4-small-flexible-cutting-mats/PRO-5125331.html

Instant read thermometers- A good instant-read thermometer does more than take the temp of meats - but it also used for making caramels, taking the temp of oil for deep-fat frying.

There are three price ranges for thermometers - I use the expensive model - Thermoworks Thermapen Mk4 (100.00)

For a mid-range model (around 50.00) Lavatools Javelin PRO Duo

For an inexpensive model (30.00) Thermoworks ThermoPop

Timers: Polder Basic Digital Kitchen Timer

Polder Timer with Lanyard (wear around neck)

Polder Timer with Built-In Meat Thermometer

Cutting Boards:

For a heavy-duty wooden board - these are my top pics:

Teakhaus

Butcher Block Co

For medium-sized plastic boards:

Winco