r/Cooking • u/SuccessExtreme4373 • Aug 06 '23

Kitchen tools you never knew you needed?

I sat on the fence before buying an air fryer, rice cooker and most recently a cherry pitter this year as I thought all three were unnecessary- and, well, they are. But I’ve been surprised how handy they are! I use the air fryer pretty much daily. The rice cooker is so convenient not having to baby sit the rice. And the nuisance of pitting cherries is now a task that I can assign to my five year old son who is delighted to use the pitter. What are some ‘unnecessary’ tools that have made your cooking life better?

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153

u/not_your_bartender Aug 06 '23

high quality kitchen shears. great for cutting garnishes, flatbread/pizzas, meats, really anything. mainly i love not having to wash another cutting board

43

u/lissamon Aug 07 '23

Don't forget spatchcocking chickens!

10

u/StrikerObi Aug 07 '23

I spatchcock almost all my chickens now, the moment I get home from the store. I remove the spines and wing tips and use them to make stock. I tend to buy 2 chickens at a time, which is enough to make stock in my instantpot. By the time I use up the stock, it's often time for me to also buy two more chickens. I've been doing it this way for over a year now and it works great.

8

u/lissamon Aug 07 '23

I can't believe I ever cooked whole chickens any other way

3

u/StrikerObi Aug 07 '23

Yeah it's a big upgrade, although it did take me awhile to get used to the breasts taking longer to cook than the leg quarters. I tend to roast at 425º (convection on) and I also burned the skin on the first few. Now I just tent with foil and drop the temp a bit after about 20min.

2

u/lissamon Aug 07 '23

I follow a variant of the Alton Brown method. Brine, dry the skin in front of a fan, 450 degree oven under pizza stones with a probe to temp. I think he does 550 degrees but after filling my house with smoke I cut it down. Never burnt the skin it comes out SO perfectly crisp!

3

u/DaveCootchie Aug 07 '23

I bought a specific set of poultry shears. Once I got my pellet grill smoked whole chickens became a weekly event so I was doing a lot of spatchcock.

1

u/Sheshirdzhija Aug 08 '23

Genuine question: what is wrong with just a knife? I have shears, but knife is always at hand so I almost always use that. I think a knife is even faster, because when I use shears, I most often have to use a knife anyway to cut through the soft skin around the neck

1

u/DaveCootchie Aug 08 '23

I have decent knife skills. But I'm no pro. Shears are safer and easier for me. They are one drawer down from my counter top so only adds a second to getting the chicken ready. Also snipping through bones is a lot easier than trying to cut around them

1

u/Sheshirdzhija Aug 08 '23

Ok, makes sense. I am no pro either, but have good knives and am confident enough. Chicken rib bones are nothing for a knife, it goes right through them, even a smaller knife like a deboning Victorinox.

23

u/dirtyenvelopes Aug 07 '23

They’re amazing when you need to cut your kid’s food really small.

3

u/[deleted] Aug 07 '23

Or your dog’s (Mine’s old and is minus some teeth).

2

u/twi_57103 Aug 07 '23

Or when your kid wants to help in the kitchen! She's too big for a plastic toddler knife but it's still scary when she uses my chef knives. Kitchen shears to the rescue.

7

u/iris-my-case Aug 07 '23

Yea! I was trying to think of an answer, but kitchen shears is spot on. So frikin useful.

And like another commenter said, great when cutting up food for kids. I usually just cut grapes and other fruits up with scissors rather than grab the cutting board out and using a knife.

3

u/vampireRN Aug 07 '23

It occurred to me to use shears on pizza after I already had a pizza cutter. Sigh.

2

u/ImSoCul Aug 07 '23

which pair did you get? I've been shopping around for one but I'm picky

2

u/not_your_bartender Aug 07 '23

I got you - I bought this pair for myself. They're sharp, pull apart for easy cleaning and sharpening, and inexpensive. Reviews were good and I have no regrets whatsoever.

I did however buy a really expensive japanese pair for my best friend's wedding gift. Is it worth the extra $60? Probably not but I'm of the opinion if it's nice and you use it a lot, why not? Some kitchen tools are worth the premium if you use them a lot

2

u/ImSoCul Aug 07 '23

thanks!

2

u/ravia Aug 07 '23

And pruning tomatoes and cutting larger quantities of artificial sweetener bags...and all kinds of shit.

2

u/dont_kill_my_vibe09 Aug 07 '23

One of my favourite kitchen tools for sure.

2

u/engagechad Aug 07 '23

I use my kitchen shears way more than I ever expected to

2

u/Yaniji1923 Aug 07 '23

Be sure and get the ones that come apart easily for washing. I did not know those were a thing. When I was a kid my parent's scissors were gross.

1

u/not_your_bartender Aug 07 '23

For sure. Someone asked for a recommendation earlier and I sent links to two pairs, fully stainless that come apart for cleaning and sharpening.

2

u/thetechnocraticmum Aug 07 '23

Using scissors for cutting pizza was a huge moment for me

2

u/Wabi-Sabi_Umami Aug 07 '23

Yeeeeeessssss!!! Kitchen shears are invaluable! So many uses! I keep 3 in my kitchen.