My Kitchen Tool Staples

I want your experience in the kitchen to be as seamless and easy as possible. It can be discouraging when recipes don't turn out the way you planned, or you have to skip a recipe because you don't have the proper tools in your kitchen. If there is one thing I have learned in this journey it's that without eating the right way, no real substantial progress will be made when it comes to your health. Because of this, I have slowly built up my stock of kitchen tools and supplies in order to cook healthy, simple recipes. Today, I am going to show you all of the kitchen staples I use at least weekly, and give you links to these tools, what I use them for, and why I think they're important!

The first Item that I'm recommending you have in your kitchen is a food processor. I use my food processor at least once a day and it's called for in a lot of the recipes I'll be recommending in the future! I use my food processor to make bread crumbs,

chop up my veggies, knead my chickpea pizza dough, combine my protein bars, and for countless other tasks. There are different sizes and capacities you can buy when it comes to food processors, but I have the 12-cup Hamilton Beach processor, which I will be putting the link for below.

The next item that I'll be recommending is an air fryer. The air fryer is another appliance that I use almost daily. I make most of my food in the air fryer since it adds such a nice crisp, is super easy and quick to use, and doesn't require the added oils necessary for deep frying foods. I use my air fryer to make chicken tenders, falafel, shrimp, taquitos, parsnip fries, etc. I have the 4 quart Ninja Air Fryer. It is definitely smaller than some air fryers but it is perfect for our little family of three, and it cooks food so quickly that having to split your frying into batches is no big deal or time constraint. Scroll down for the link to my air fryer!

One item that I couldn't live without in my kitchen is a solid set of pots, sheet trays, and skillets. Having basic cookware for the stovetop and oven is a necessity when cooking, no matter if you're making healthy or treat meal foods. I'm sure most of you have these items in your kitchen, even if you aren't in the kitchen everyday. This is another item that I use daily. While my pots and pans are all donations from my parents, I bought some basic, cheap sheet trays on Amazon and they will be linked at the end!

While the next item I couldn't live without isn't necessary for cooking, I couldn't plate my meals without it. I didn't start out counting my calories, but eventually I realized that I was eating too little. So I went out and got a scale, started researching the proper serving size for my foods, and I use my scale to measure out my meals. Before I bought one, I was trying to eyeball the amounts I needed to eat, and I was way off and ended up severely underserving myself. Because eating enough and staying healthy is so important, having my scale has been a necessity. I bought a basic electric scale off of Amazon that has different measurement functions. Again, it will be linked below!

For Christmas, my mom and dad got me a dutch oven. When I say it changed the cooking game for me, I mean it. I am a soup lover, and having this dutch oven made developing flavors and combining all ingredients into one pot so easy. It's a versatile tool that can be used both on the stove top and in the oven, and it's something that I've looked at as an investment since its shelf-life is so long. The 7-quart dutch oven my mom and dad gifted me will be linked below!

Speaking of soups, having either an immersion blender or regular blender is a huge help. When making soups such as butternut squash or tomato (two future recipes I'll be sharing with you all), a blender or immersion blender is a must to get that creamy, smooth texture everyone knows and loves. I have a cheap, Amazon bought immersion hand blender that I'll be linking below. I didn't buy my regular blender as it was handed down to me, but I know you can go to any grocery store and buy a cheap but dependable blender. You can use this item to make smoothies, batters, dips, sauces, etc.

The next item that changed my life was recommended to me by my sister, Shelbi, and her advice was spot on. She told me that it's extremely easy to overuse oils when cooking. Because of this, she recommended I get a spray bottle specifically for my oils I use. I ended up ordering a glass spray bottle off of Amazon, which I will link below, and I use it for every meal I make. It's a great way to add just the splash of oil you need rather than throwing a heap of Olive Oil into your skillet full of veggies.

The last kitchen staple I recommend is a salad spinner. This is another item that I bought off of Amazon, and it makes cleaning your fruits and veggies so easy. You simply take what needs to be cleaned and place it into a strainer, run it under water, and put the strainer back into the spinner. You push a button and in 30 seconds your fruits and veggies are clean and dried off. This is another item that, while it isn't necessary, has made my experience in the kitchen a lot easier.

I've always enjoyed cooking, baking, and simply being in the kitchen. Not too long ago I was a broke college student that was making struggle meals with improper kitchen utensils. Now, through smart shopping and people who were nice enough to give me hand-me-downs, I have elevated my cooking. I truly believe that having the proper tools can inspire and encourage you to cook more. It makes for a more seamless, easy experience, and you get to have the satisfaction of making delicious, successful recipes. Check out the links below for all of my kitchen tool recommendations!

Food Processor:

Air Fryer:

Sheet trays:

Digital Scale:

Dutch Oven:

Immersion Blender:

Olive Oil Spray Bottle:

Salad Spinner: