kitchen favorites

Everyone has their favorite type of kitchen gadget in their kitchen. Here are few things I can’t live without.
 
Early in our marriage my husband and I took possession of our parents stainless steel hand cranked meat slicer. My husband occasionally would use the slicer to slice leftover holiday turkey breast into uniform slices. However, several years ago to better control the sodium level and use a variety of seasonings, I decided to roast my own boneless turkey breast and have my husband slice it for lunches,

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When our handle broke off during the Christmas season, I went to Williams-Sonoma for a new electric slicer. As I am on the Williams-Sonoma mailing list, they continually send me coupons for either 20% or 25% off a purchase. I purchased the Chef Choice electric meat slicer for $120 (a 20% off coupon).  It was well worth the price. I use an assortment of dry rubs and liquid pastes that I purchase on sale at Williams-Sonoma to season the meat. Instead of paying approximately $10/lb. for turkey, it costs me $5.79/lb. for skinless, boneless turkey breast. Now that my husband has grown tired of deli ham, I also roast a boneless beef sirloin roast ($7.99/lb. at Wegmans).  For the roast beef I use dry rub brine that, unfortunately, is no longer available at W-S. However, they do offer a wide variety of new and exciting flavors for poultry and beef.
 
Before the InstaPot, there was the basic crock pot or pressure cooker. My mother used her pressure cooker to make stew, Italian gravy and other one pot meals. If I don’t have time to cook a beef brisket, I’ll use my pressure cooker. It’s been a great time saver for me. I purchased a Fagor brand at Williams-Sonoma a little over 6 years ago.
 
I bake a lot of cookies and I find a scraper helps to wipe the sides of the bowl better than a rubber scraper. Another handy tool for picking up chopped nuts or any chopped/diced item is a bench scraper.  A silicone mini spatula and spoonula are also very handy in the kitchen. They’re great for getting that last bit batter out of the cookie scoop.
 
A must in any kitchen are good, sharp knives. I have two 8” chef knives and one 6”. Last year I purchased a Mercer Culinary Millennia 10" Wide Bread Knife recommended item by America’s Test Kitchen. Slicing crusty Italian bread is a breeze.
 
When I started preparing more fish for dinner, I found the fish sticking to my standard stainless steel frying pan. It was suggested to me that I try a Greenpan™. The pans have worked beautiful for sautéing and frying fish. I use a minimal amount of oil, basically for flavoring. The fish doesn’t stick and comes out with a nice golden crust. A good flexible stainless steel slotted spatula is also a must.
 
To make cookies a uniform size, I use a 1-1/2 teaspoon size cookie scoop for my baking. I also have three sets of measuring spoons so that if I need to use one size for both wet and dry ingredients, I don’t have to waste time washing.
 
I also love my kitchen spider. Lidia Bastianich uses a large spider to remove pasta from the boiling water and into the sauce. I picked one up many years ago in Chinatown in New York from Kam Man Food Products, Inc. I’m in the market for a larger one like Lidia’s. I have seen them recently at my local Wegmans.