Food Prep Tools: Expert Guides and Resources

This Cheat Sheet is your guide through the world of cooking with cast iron. Whether you’re an experienced cook or just starting out, you can find something valuable here, ranging from what to look for when adding cast iron to your kitchen, expert advice on using spices and herbs effectively, handy substitutes for those moments when a few ingredients might be missing from your pantry, and even some measurement conversions.

Not another kitchen gadget, right? Overall, I am a fan of an excellent knife and solid cutting board for most salad recipes. Tools can help with storage and preparation techniques, and they can enhance your use of ingredients. ©Christian / Adobe StockA mandoline tool allows you to easily slice vegetables into a uniform thickness.

You need some basic equipment to start cooking — essential items for working in the kitchen. Here’s a short list of all-I-can-spend-now cooking equipment, including pots, pans, and other tools that no home cook should be without. 10-inch nonstick frying pan: The all-around pan for sautéing and more. 3-quart saucepan: For cooking things such as vegetables and soups.

A mandoline, a rectangular, hand-operated food slicer that slices vegetables quickly. The mandolin has interchangeable blades to give you different vegetable slices — julienne, wavy, plain, even lattice cuts. Compared to slicing vegetables with a knife, a mandoline is a breeze — the size of the slices is always consistent.

Clean and maintain your pressure cooker like any other good piece of quality cookware. If you keep your pressure cooker clean, you can get years of use out of it. Before putting your pressure cooker away between uses, clean it: Remove the gasket from the cover and wash the gasket separately. Wash the gasket in warm water with a small amount of mild soap and a cloth or sponge.

You don’t need to own every small kitchen appliance on the market, but you may find that some small appliances can benefit your cooking efforts and make cooking fun! Small appliances are an investment, so make sure you’ll actually use any of these you decide to purchase: Toasters and toaster ovens: Everybody needs a toaster or toaster oven.

This recipe for Jam Cake with Old-Time Icing was handed down from generation to generation (as so many cast-iron recipes are). The ingredient list calls for blackberry jam, but you can use whatever flavor you have on hand. The icing (recipe below) uses whole milk and butter, which creates a subtly rich finish for the cake.

Test your pressure cooker if you haven't used it in a while or if it's brand new. Putting your pressure cooker through a test run ensures reliable cooking. Test it by heating some water under pressure before you begin cooking any food. You treat your pressure cooker just as if you’re going to cook something, but you add only water to it.