Kitchen gear for a newbie cook

[damned_colonial]

This is a hypothetical question -- not for me, but for some theoretical newbie cook. Imagine said person asks you, "What kitchen equipment should I buy to learn to cook?" What would you suggest?

Comments

Okay here goes:)

[dreamweaver]

I've been cooking for nearly thirty years..So here's my two cents worth..

Basic tools for those learning to cook:) Of course this also depends on what you want to cook. I cook everything, LOL, so I'm making a list going by what I could have used when I first started cooking;) And if you get a good basic cookbook, like Betty Crocker's basics cookbook, you can look through it and make your own list. I highly recommend obtaining the book first.

1. Graduated measuring cups for liquids.. Small, medium, and large. Pyrex preferably with nice readable measurements written on both sides.. You'll have to be able to read the measurements. I prefer pyrex because you can see the contents of the cup from outside the cup.

2. Dry measuring cups.. I prefer stainless... Graduated in size.. There are usually 4 or 5 together in the set...

3. Graduated measuring spoons... clearly marked, and easy to read.. Stainless steel is my preference, because acidic things can mark aluminum.. plastic can stain and wear out, and stainless will last you a lifetime...

4. A sifter.. A good 4 cup size at least.. again stainless is my preference, with interior measurement markings. You should test any you buy to make sure the sifter fits your hands comfortably, and you can turn the sifting handle well. Everyone has different sized hands.

5. A set of nested mixing bowls.. 1 quart in size and up. I have a great set I bought for 5.00 at a Dollar General store that has 7 graduated sizes from 1 qt all the way up to 2 gallons:) They're plastic with lids, and they double as storage bowls.

6. A mixer of some sort.. You might want to get just a cheapy at first then research until you find one you want to spend more money on. It's easier to do cake batters, stiffer sauces, and mashed potatoes than with a wire wisk..

7. A rolling pin.. If you plan on making pies, biscuits,dumplings, and other stuff of that type, a rolling pin is a necessity.

8. A regular straight Spatula.. silicone is great... You can use this to mix just about anything.. And can be used to apply icing and fillings and other neato stuff..

9. The pancake flipping style spatula... this is for, burgers, pancakes, anything that needs to be flipped,,

10. A wire wisk...used for beating creams, sauces, gravies, eggs, whipping cream, and etc..that you won't use a mixer for.

11. Knives..at least three good ones.. An all purpose chef's knife, a serrated knife, and a paring knife...And truly I'd add a fourth..a utility knife.. And maybe some kitchen shears.

12.. A vegetable scrubber with nice stiff bristles.. for cleaning veggies.

13. A cutting board that can be easily cleaned and disinfected..

14..Heat resistant pot holders of some type..silicone is your best bet..

15. A small chopper or food processor is not a must have but it certainly makes things easier. If you don't have time to chop nuts or veggies. And whole nuts generally cost less than chopped nuts of any kind.. The same with veggies.

16. A Blender..It's not a must have, but it's very convenient for bunches of things.. In a pinch a food processor can be used depending on the size of your processor and what your recipe calls for:)

17. A good Apron to protect your clothing from spatters:) And your skin from hot splashes and etc...

18. A potato peeler..It's quicker than using a knife and save more of the flesh..And it can be used on cucumbers, carrots, potatoes etc...

19. A good strainer..In a pinch you can use a steamer basket if you have one.. It's needed for washing veggies and draining pasta and etc...

20. A good set of pots and pans..I'm going to recommend cast iron..They're my favorite, and can be bought pre seasoned. So you don't have to know how to season them.. Just follow the directions that come with a set or find instructions on how to care for them online... They cook evenly, hold heat, and give breads an excellent crust.. And they're the best non stick ever if you take care of them properly..They last a lifetime.. So you'll need: A couple of frying pans..And one or two sauce pans sized depending on the number of people you're cooking for.. A dutch oven, for stews, soups, chili and that sort of thing..A roaster, for whole roasts, chickens, turkeys and etc....A baking sheet, for cookies, pizzas, and whatever..A 9 X 13 baking dish for other miscellaneous stuff.. (If you want to do cakes and pies, then two cake pans, and a pie pan)

21. At least one BIG spoon for stirring your soups and chili and stuff, it can also be used for transferring into serving dishes.....

22. At least one BIG slotted spoon, for draining anything in liquid as you remove it from your pot, it can also be used for stirring..

23. A ladle..for essentially the same things as the spoons.. But it works great for basting and ladling liquids into serving dishes..

24. A meat thermometer, and a candy thermometer...One cannot be substituted for the other.. If you want to make candies you need the candy thermometer, and it can be used for other foods (except meat) you have to melt, and for checking the temps of yeast mixtures..You kill your yeast if the mixture is too hot, and the yeast won't multiply properly if the mixture is too cold... A meat thermometer is necessary for safety..different meats have different internal temps when they're fully cooked..

25. A timer of some sort:) A timer that you can hear can be your best friend;) Just make sure you get a timer that has enough time on it for anything you might want to try:) I prefer the old fashioned wind up timers:) Suggestion: you can get an old fashioned wind up Big Ben or something and set the alarm as needed:) That works just as well, and may be more reasonably priced than a fancy schmancy timer;)

26. A food scale if you're trying a diet, or if you're cooking for someone with special dietary needs.

27. A great beginner's cookbook. I recommend Betty Crocker's basic cookbook. It has everything, definitions and pics. The instructions are very clear and easy to follow. It has pics of all the equipment you'd find in a kitchen to cook with, and tells you what they're used for. It has pics of cuts of meat, and where they come from on the cow, pig, and sheep. It even shows you how to cut up a chicken and fillet fish, with directions and pics! It tells you which cooking method usually works best for which cut, and what the grades of meat are. It defines cooking methods. Heck it even has pics and directions for making pie crusts. It also has direction for and pics of folding, whipping, mixing, and etc. It covers everything someone just learning to cook would want or need to know. It's the most helpful cookbook I have ever owned. And it was my very first cookbook when I was learning to cook nearly 30 years ago:)

Okay, that's all I can think of right at the moment..These tools ought to have you set up to try out anything you want to experiment with. You can pick and choose whatever fits your situation.. Leave out some things if you don't plan on baking much.. But I consider these the basics for cooking beginners. And it's awful when you're learning to cook and you don't have the right basic tools.