Kitchen Gadgets & Tools To Make Life Easier

Whether you're living and cooking solo or cooking for a family; whether you're looking for a gift for a foodie friend or just want to save time and effort in the kitchen - we have a list of some interesting tools & gadgets that could be just what you're looking for!

Let's divide our kitchen essentials into three broad categories:

• Preparation
• Cooking
• Serving

Needless to say, every home & kitchen, every home chef and family is different, so you may or may not agree with our suggestions. Also, the tools and appliances available today are endless. Nevertheless, our key picks are as follows.

PREPARATION

In this category, essential appliances such as a food processor, OTG, microwave oven, refrigerator, and stove are a given. As are basic items such as cooking spoons, knives, strainers, cutting boards, spatulas, vegetable peelers, etc.

For preparation, we would like to suggest some more, such as:

Knife Sharpener: This saves time and money by keeping knives sharp to help you work faster and better. Also, you don't have to replace your old knives sooner than you really need to!

Hand-Held/Immersion Blender: A versatile, do-it-all appliance with multiple attachments so you can blend, whisk, mash, etc. at the flip of a button.

Digital Weighing Scale: This food scale quickly measures the volume or weight of ingredients required in different recipes.

Measuring Spoons/Bowls: A set of prep bowls for mixing and measuring spoons are essential to whip up a salad or batter for cookies/cake, etc.

Veg Chopper/Slicer: Dices onions, slices vegetables, minces garlic much faster than if you were doing it by hand.

Metal/Plastic Colander: For draining pasta or vegetables, this tool is indispensable.

4-Sided Grater: For shredding and grating cheese or vegetables, this gadget doesn’t require much time - or muscle.

Garlic Press & Slicer: This nifty gadget crushes and slices garlic, as and when you need it.

COOKING

When it comes to cooking, every kitchen is usually equipped with the ubiquitous tawa, frying pan, saucepan, pressure cooker, kadhai, etc. Aluminium is the common material but of late, there is a movement away from this metal as it is supposed to leech into the food. Some studies have found that it increases the risk of Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis, kidney failure, and many other health problems.

Consumers are rediscovering traditional cookware made of cast iron or earthenware made of mud clay. Newer materials like glass and ceramic are also growing in popularity, while stainless steel is the obvious long-time favourite.

Our suggestion is Triply Stainless Steel, a recent innovation that looks good and works even better. Triply is a three-ply material made up of a layer of aluminium sandwiched between two layers of stainless steel. So, you get the advantage of aluminium's fast and even heating while ensuring your food does not come in contact with it. With Triply cookware, you don't have to worry about hotspots and burns. You need less oil for cooking, and cooking takes less time - so you save on fuel as well.

Hybrid Tasla Kadhai with Klasp: Made of triply with the world's safest coating: HexaRidge. HexaRidge is a German technology coating that lasts five times longer than any other 'non-stick' coating. This kadhai has no handles so it makes stacking and storing easier. The Klasp innovated by Stahl can be used as a detachable handle for easy lifting, pouring, and placing.  It is made of premium Bakelite material that is heat-proof and durable.

SERVING

To add class and convenience to your home, we recommend some interesting serveware – other than the basic cutlery, crockery, platters, trays, glasses, tumblers, etc.

Salad Servers: A set of salad spoons & forks and/or salad tongs come in handy when mixing and serving salads.

Butter Dish: A smart butter dish not only protects butter from odours & bacteria inside the refrigerator, but also provides a touch of class to your breakfast table.

Insulated Casserole: A necessity to keep food warm and covered until you're ready to eat. Your casserole could be purely serveware or it could be cookware that doubles as serveware - just like Stahl's smart Triply Casserole with ergonomic handles and stainless steel lid that's great to cook and serve in. While not insulated, Stahl’s casserole or saucepot does retain heat longer due to the triply material, so food stays warm for a while.

Wine Glasses: Elegant add-ons for serving wine at parties, or simply for yourself at home.

Ice Cream Dishes: Small bowls that can just as easily be used to serve other desserts or snacks like nuts

Tall Milkshake Glasses: A must-have for serving lassi, milkshakes, fruit juices, and slushes.

Cake Knife & Server: This makes cutting and serving cake, pies, and tarts so easy. You can also use them to serve lasagna, pizza, flatbreads, quiche, etc.

CONCLUSION

This is by no means an exhaustive list of kitchen add-ons, and naturally, most of us will add or omit items as per our need and preference. In fact, as you spend more time in the kitchen and cook more food, you will see for yourself, which tools and gadgets you need and which you don't. However, this list will surely help to get you started.

Enjoy filling up your kitchen - and have fun cooking for yourself, your family & friends.

Here’s an easy-to-follow checklist that will help you tick off all the items in the above lists: Download Kitchen Gadgets & Tools Checklist