That tenderizer has become a staple of my kitchen ecosystem today. But one person’s tenderizer is another’s hand-me-down whisk, Japanese chef’s knife, or grill press. So what do other people consider their ride-or-die cooking tools? What are the baseline peelers, knives, and spatulas that are in constant rotation, the tools that make you feel like a culinary John Wick? I decided to ask not just chefs, but chefs with culinary school teaching experience (aka endless patience and a knowledge of novice-level skillsets) about what they consider to be the best beginner cooking tools.
I picked the brains of four teachers with experience in a variety of programs, from Hot Bread Kitchen — a New York City nonprofit that helps immigrants break into the food industry — to the legendary Institute of Culinary Education, all in the hopes of answering the inherently relative question of what constitutes an essential cooking tool for beginners.
Whether or not your new kitchen workhorse is destined to become an heirloom, some dos and don’ts for your search
Do: Look for tools that don’t just do one thing.
Do: Read product reviews.
Don’t: Spend more than you need to on, say, a pair of tongs. And if you’re lucky enough to have a grandpa with a sick filet knife, maybe ask him about it.
First, grab a meat tenderizer.
A workhouse vegetable peeler
At home, Williams relies on a high-quality peeler to prep everything from mashed potatoes to causa peruana with her kids; it makes prep work much faster for her students and more efficient for her as a culinary instructor. “I always show how to use a peeler safely by peeling away from the body and using short, controlled strokes. They use it to peel potatoes, carrots, butternut squash, and more vegetables. It’s also a great tool to introduce them to different textures.”
Johnson also swears by the power of the classic Swiss peeler, specifically — and not just for veggies. “It’s efficient and precise,” she says. “Use it on chocolate, cheese, or citrus. Get creative. FYI, the purpose of the protruding circle to the side of the peeler is to remove potato eyes.”
Williams Sonoma’s straight swivel-action, steel blade peeler contours to the shape of whatever potato, pear, or state fair butter sculpture you’re peeling:
A solid paring knife
As Williams says, a paring knife is “small and versatile, perfect for tasks that require precision, like peeling, trimming, or slicing small fruits and veggies.” She introduces the tool to beginner students to use for more delicate tasks — such as cutting strawberries, scoring tomatoes, or trimming herbs — in order to build their knife skills safely. “In classes my students use a paring knife to practice the concasse technique,” she says, “They love to prepare ratatouille. The paring knife is often called the ‘extension of the hand’ because it’s so maneuverable.”
Quality knives can be a costly investment, but beginners will appreciate the affordable paring knife from Quince. Its 3.5-inch paring knife is made out of 33 layers of Japanese Damascus stainless steel — which helps it achieve excellent blade balance — and it features a naturally water-resistant Pakkawood handle.
The best beginner cooking tools, according to Celine Beitchman of the Institute of Culinary Education
The Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) was founded in 1975, and is ranked as the number-one culinary school in the United States, with locations in New York City and Los Angeles. Celine Beitchman, director of nutrition, tells me that she has been “teaching health-promoting culinary arts for about a decade,” and “became a chef over a 20-year period working in prep kitchens, restaurants, catering, and as a private chef,” first at the Natural Gourmet Institute and now within ICE’s Plant-Based Culinary Arts program.
A big, sharp chef’s knife
If you don’t know where to begin with your own knife drawer, Beitchman recommends starting with an 8- to 10-inch chef’s knife. As she says, “It’s vital to handle most of the essential vegetable cuts, and for slicing everything from cheese to cake. A good knife will last, and it’s worth investing in one that you are comfortable using — one that’s not too long or heavy for you.” Check out our full guide to the best chef’s knives here, for every budget and purpose.
One of my first kitchen knives was a Made In blade, and I remember thinking, Wow, so this is what it feels like to hold a knife with its own backbone. Or, maybe what I was feeling was the single rod of stainless steel that extends from tip to handle, which is what the brand claims sets it apart. Years later, my 8-inch Made In chef’s knife still chops everything from crunchy cabbage to a tarte tatin with ease, despite my less-than-perfect knife skills.
Spring-loaded tongs
“Spring-loaded tongs with metal or rubber-coated tips can be used to toss salads in dressings or vegetables in seasonings before they hit the oven,” says Beitchman. “When I started cooking, tongs were almost an extension of my own hand and they let me reach further down the stove or up to the salamander.”
These stainless 12-inch long steel tongs come from one of my favorite affordable cookware brands, OXO. Scalloped edges are a big plus for me when it comes to tongs, because they allow for better precision and grip when I’m flipping whole padrón peppers on the grill or prodding my veggies around in a skillet. Plus, the slight concave of the tongs make it easy to ladle excess oils or sauce from a pan, (which I love to do when I’m frying eggs in chile crisp).
The best beginner cooking tools, according to chef Vanessa Seder
Vanessa Seder has worked as a chef, food stylist, cookbook author, and associate food editor at Ladies’ Home Journal — to name just a handful of her culinary accomplishments — in addition to teaching for many years at the storied Stonewall Kitchen Headquarters in York, Maine. She, too, sang the praises of sharp chef’s knives and different-sized spatulas, but she also recommended a few more less-obvious tools.
A high-quality wood cutting board
It seems easy enough to remember, but a quality cutting board can sometimes go overlooked when you’re outfitting your kitchen with beginner cooking tools and equipment. Seder recommends John Boos & Co., one of the oldest manufacturers of butcher blocks in the country. She says that she loves the sturdy feel of her Boos board, which is 1.5 inches thick and perfect for rolling out dough while baking or making pasta, and also gives the board a bit of a height boost — a plus that she appreciates, she says, given that she’s on the taller side and doesn’t want to slouch while chopping or rolling herbs. It’s also quite a looker in terms of items that can take up precious real estate on your kitchen counters. As Seder says, “I use it sometimes as a cheese platter when we have guests over.”
A fish spatula
Seder says that she still has her fish spatula from culinary school, a trusty Wüsthof that continues to go the distance. This 6.5-inch slotted fish spatula from the German brand is about more than just fish, and acts as a flexible tool for cooking not only fish, but anything delicate. The Wüsthof version has earned heaps of praise for its being lightweight, angled, and slotted, which allows excess oils to drain through when you’re moving things around. Or as one reviewer writes, “Sometimes it is the small things in life that give you the motivation to be a better cook.” Our thoughts exactly.
