What Every Kitchen Needs...Besides a Good Cook!

I am often asked what makes a great kitchen.  A great kitchen doesn't mean having the largest kitchen with the best appliances.  Sure, that would be awesome, but I've seen many larger well equipped kitchens that suck!  I've also seen smaller kitchens that had everything that you would ever want in a kitchen, but the person that owned the kitchen sucked as a cook!

You only need a few very well planned items for your kitchen to make your area Iron Chef worthy or at the very least, family an friends worthy!  Think of all of the cooking shows that are currently on the Food Network.  What do they all have in common?  They have great nonstick cookware and/or cast iron; They have great cutlery with the addition of a good knife sharpener; They have spices galore; And they have a good (small or large) food processor.  Now, all of those items will make your time in the kitchen much more pleasant and actually cut back on the amount of time that you spend prepping food. 

When purchasing cookware, think about what type of cuisine you are going to be doing.  Cast iron cookware and cookware that doubles its usage for stovetop as well as being oven ready are great to use.  Non stick is a definite plus, but a GOOD nonstick cookware set is essential for every kitchen.  I warn my family to use non scarring utensils when cooking on my nonstick cookware. That preserves your investment for years!  I only purchase cookware that I can use in and out of the oven.  That makes it so much easier while working in the kitchen, especially when you do your initial mixing and searing on the stovetop and then put it directly in the oven.  You retain all of the heat from the skillet or pan!  I'm partial to cookware sets such as Master Chef by All Clad, Chef's Classic by Cuisinart and Simply Nonstick by Calphalon.  All doubles as stove top and oven ready cookware.

Your knives are one of the most essential items in your kitchen by far.  How many of us had those dull, but pretty knives that could barely cut a piece of paper, let alone an actual tomato?  How many times have you tried to cut a sweet potato with your current knives, only to quit in utter frustration because it was virtually impossible to cut?  My wife used my knives when cutting sweet potatoes one day and ran into the living room afterwards.  She had this huuuuuge grin on her face!  She said, "Good knives make all of the difference in the kitchen!  It took no time to cut those sweet potatoes!  Now I don't have a problem cutting sweet potatoes!"  All I could do was smile and say,"Yes, my child.  My job is done!" 

You can purchase a good set of knives at stores such as Williams-Sonoma or most other higher end stores. Shopping at high end stores at outlet malls also will help in finding great cutlery at incredibly low prices.  I've found that you need at the very least (this will cover most of your cooking needs) a 3-inch Paring Knife, 3-inch Serrated Bar Knife, 3-inch Peeling Knife, 4.5-inch Utility Knife, 4.5-inch Tomato Knife, 5-inch Boning Knife, 6-inch Meat Cleaver, 6-inch Sandwich Knife, 7-inch Santoku Knife, 8-inch Bread Knife, 8-inch Cook's Knife, 8-inch Slicing Knife, Sharpening Steel, Kitchen Shears and virtually any knife that you would need for your particular cuisine.  Also, a good grater and food processor is always needed in every kitchen!

I personally am partial to Goetze Knives.  My knifes were about $700 if I would have purchased them from one of the specialty or high end stores.  However, I purchased all of my knives from an auction at a cost of less than $125!  Henckel and Wusthof knives are also very good knives that any chef, whether classically trained or not, would enjoy.  Wusthof, with their laser forged blades are an outstanding addition to any kitchen.  Now, for all that is holy to you and the Kitchen Gods....DO NOT PUT YOUR VERY EXPENSIVE KNIVES IN THE DISHWASHER!!!  That is one sure fire way to damage your knives and make them dull and ineffective.  My kids were nearly flogged and tarred when they washed my knives in the dishwasher!  They learned though!  Quickly! 

The other essential item(s) that you MUST have in your cupboard....HERBS AND SPICES!  While I prefer to use fresh herbs and spices, you should always keep dry spices as well.  Get fully stocked with the herbs and spices that are essential to your specific style of cooking and/or your particular cuisine.

Spices come from the bark, roots, leaves, stems, buds, seeds, or fruit of aromatic plants and trees which usually grow only in tropical countries. Pepper, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, mace, cinnamon, ginger, saffron, and turmeric are spices.

Nowadays you can find herbs such as fresh basil, coriander, chervil, tarragon, rosemary, and dill pretty much everywhere. Since herbs are at their best when they are young and freshly picked, it is well worth growing your own.  Again,you don't need a lot of space to create a table top or window sill garden fill with fresh herbs and spices.

Think about this when buying spices and herbs:

~Don't buy herbs or spices that look faded or uneven in color.
~For whole spices, check that there is very little powder or broken bits in the container.
~For ground spices, the finer the grind, the better the quality.
~When buying spices and herbs from a large bulk bin, make sure there is plenty of aroma.
~Don't buy more than you can use with 6 months to 1 year.


There you have it.  All that you need to help create an effective kitchen.  It doesn't matter the size of the kitchen, only the essential items that you have IN the kitchen.  My kitchen in my townhouse is a 1/3 of the size of the kitchen that was in my two story house.  However, my small kitchen is much more effective for cooking than my larger kitchen was!  Go figure!

Hopefully, this information will help in "building" the perfect kitchen, no matter what the size of your kitchen may be!

From my court...to your kitchen...ENJOY!!!