Hello, 2020! If you’ve made a goal to try new things in the kitchen, this post should serve as a jumping off point for inexpensive, yet helpful kitchen tools. I hope that you’ll find that these purchases of $50 or less can make your culinary goals easier to achieve this year.

Julienne Peeler: $10-15

Julienne is a french term which refers to a knife cut where a fruit or vegetable is cut into long, skinny pieces. These cuts make your extra veggies look great on a salad and can help make them small enough to be incorporated into a stir fry. Cutting ingredients into thin matchsticks is incredibly time intensive. To save your sanity and speed things up, I recommend getting yourself a julienne peeler. It operates just like a regular vegetable peeler but its serrated blades do the work of cutting julienne pieces for you. Personally I use this set from Sur la Table which comes with a regular peeler as well as a mixology peeler (which has the added benefit of getting underneath citrus rinds for extra garnishing).

Specialty Truffle Salt/Oil: $12+

The number one thing you can do to improve your home cooking is to use high quality produce. Let your ingredients do the work of tasting delicious. Treat them simply and you’ve taken a huge amount of pressure off yourself at dinner time... To elevate even the simplest combination of flavors, I recommend adding truffle oil or salt to your spice cabinet and incorporating them into your cooking routine. Truffles have a natural garlic/savory/umami flavor and pair well with nearly any recipe. My source of high quality truffle products is Truffle Queen and I usually pick up some Truffle Salt or Truffle Oil for home use. I make a mean popcorn for home movie nights and I have to give credit to a drizzle of white truffle oil for its popularity!

Ceramic Knife: $20+

Knives are an investment in your culinary skills; selecting one if you haven’t been well acquainted to the kitchen can be intimidating. If you’ve never purchased a knife and want something to start out with, I recommend buying a simple ceramic knife. These lightweight knives are excellent for precision work and are a terrific introduction to what quality chef knives are like to use. They’re also very sharp, don’t rust, and unlike more expensive chef knives, you do not have to worry about the kind of soap cleaner you use on them. Keep in mind that you’ll want to steer clear of things with hard bones or pits as ceramic is brittle and can break on especially hard materials.

Hand Juicer: $15-25

Have you ever noticed how freshly cut orange slices taste so differently from store bought orange juice? The reason why is oxidation. After you break open your orange/grapefruit/any citrus, its juice will immediately start to oxidize and lose Vitamin C. In just 48 hours nearly all Vitamin C in freshly squeezed citrus will be gone. Many companies try to make up for this by making their juice from concentrate, using stabilizers or storing juice in an anaerobic environment. In these cases, you’ll end up with a product that may contain the same vitamins but its original flavor just won’t be there. Up your OJ game and use a hand juicer to improve this favorite morning beverage. I use my hand juicer to make lime/lemon juice vinaigrettes several times a week, or you can make my favorite childhood topping to waffles: sugar and lemon juice.

Matching Measuring Supplies: $40-50

This is something that can be easy to overlook. Maybe you’ve gotten used to using incomplete sets of measuring cups and spoons from living in shared spaces. I found that after a while it was normal for me both at home and at work in the kitchen to use different types of mix-matched measuring sets. Aesthetically it doesn’t look great, but the real issue is that it becomes difficult to keep track of your measuring equipment and creates a frustrating extra step to cooking. Donate what you have and pick up a new set to start the new year feeling right.

While there are certain things I use every day (such as a gas stovetop and my vitamix), many can be seen as investment pieces that are might seem too expensive to purchase immediately if you’re still getting comfortable in the kitchen. By taking small steps, you will find that it will be much easier to determine what kinds of tools are best for you and what you want to invest in as you get more confident in your food prep. As always, if you’re curious to know more talk to the professionals at Eat Seattle! Whether you’re taking a class or tour with us, you’ll be spending face time with a Chef who can help give guidance on your home cooking as well as different facets Northwest Cuisine through Pike Place Market.

Happy new year and happy cooking!