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Your subscription includes Quick & Easy Dinners, a FREE digital recipe booklet featuring 8 delicious Vegetarian Times recipes that take less than 30 minutes to prepare!
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| Chef's Apron Lisa Cherkasky Food Stylist I can't really relax if I'm not wearing an apron. I've got to suit up to cook! I need to be able to focus on what I'm doing, and I can't lean against the counter if I'm worried about my clothes. In a pinch, I also use it as a pot holder, a hand towel or a basket—I pile potatoes and lemons in it peasant-style if I'm walking from one side of the kitchen to the other. I always buy aprons with pockets so I can carry a pen (for adding to a shopping list as I use up an ingredient or for making notes on a recipe). And I prefer black ones because they stay clean-looking a lot longer. I buy mine from the Chefwear catalog ($19). |
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| Electric Knife Sharpener Ken Haedrich VT Contributor, Food Writer and Recipe Developer You just turn it on, swipe the blade through and you've got a sharp knife. There's no worrying about the right angle for the blade; it has magnets that hold it in place. For a tiny bit of time—seconds—you get weeks of value. Sharp knives make such a difference. Dull knives are dangerous too: They're more likely to slide off the food and cut your fingers. If you have a good knife, I highly recommend a sharpener to keep it good for years. I use a Chef's Choice electric sharpener ($130). |
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| Immersion Blender Kathy Farrell-Kingsley VT Contributor and Recipe Developer It's just so handy. For example, when you're puréing soup, you don't have to transfer food from a pot to a blender and then back again. You can just stick the immersion blender directly into a pot and whir. And you don't have a whole blender to clean after you use it, just the blade. It saves time, saves steps. I use it to make sauces, dressings, smoothies and puréd vegetables as well as soups. And it doesn't hog counter space—it's little, so I tuck it away in a cabinet. I use a basic Hamilton Beach ($25). |
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| Mezzaluna Frank Melodia VT Contributor, Recipe Developer and Food Stylist I use my mezzaluna (a half-moon cutting blade that comes with a concave cutting board) for cutting herbs and seeds like cumin and coriander. I first fell in love with it when I was working in restaurants: I had to finely chop bunches and bunches of parsley. When I found the mezzaluna, it made life a lot easier. The concave board contains the food, so nothing rolls off it. The curved blade lets you chop really fast and beautifully. You can also use it for scallions, garlic, nuts—anything that needs to be chopped. I take my mezzaluna with me on every photo shoot I do. I can't live without it. You can find one at any fine cooking store. (This one from J.K. Adams is $57.50.) |
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| Nylon Flexible Spatula Mary Margaret Chappell VT Food Editor I love my Oxo Good Grips spatula because it's safe for nonstick pans, and it can withstand high heat. It's strong enough to lift foods, but it's thin and flexible enough to turn eggs and crêpes. It's really great for cookies—it doesn't smush the edges while they're warm. It's super-flexible, easy to clean and oddly sharp (you can scrape it against stuck-on food without scratching the pan). It also comes in fun colors that don't get lost in your drawers. I have lime green and hot pink. It's cheap too—$5. Who needs a $25 stainless steel spatula?! |
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| Food Processor Akasha Richmond VT Contributor, Food writer and Recipe Developer I couldn't live without it. I use it to make breadcrumbs, puréd vegetables, puréd tofu, ground nuts and even bread dough. In fact, I really like the way it kneads bread dough. The time it saves is the biggest benefit—I like to do things fast. My machine's at least six years old. I replaced the blade recently; after years of almost daily use, it had gotten a little dull. Otherwise, it's still going strong. I use a 14-cup Cuisinart ($320). |
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| Mortar & Pestle Patsy Jamieson VT Contributor, Food Writer and Recipe Developer A lot of people think these are for gourmet cooks only. Not at all! I use it the most for mashing garlic. If I make a vinaigrette, I put it together in the mortar bowl with the mashed garlic. It's also great for crushing sturdy herbs such as rosemary. I like really large ones, big enough not only to make a salad dressing in but to double as the salad bowl. I have an old mortar and pestle that I bought in Spain years ago for just a few dollars. (This one from Typhoon is $30.) |
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| Vegetable Chopper Greg Wenger Recipe Developer It's a chopper and dicer, not a food processor. You push food through it, and it spits out chopped vegetables. It's the biggest time-saving device I've ever used. I get industrial ones for my restaurant, but home cooks can get smaller models for their own kitchens. I use it to dice veggies for soups, salads, salsas and garnishes. You can also get blades that will wedge tomatoes, lemons and limes. Large industrial ones are sold at restaurant supply stores or online (Sysco, $136). Cuisinart makes a small chopper for home cooks ($40). |
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| Blender Alexandra Greeley Food Writer and Recipe Developer I use my blender more often than anything else. I love Asian food, and when I make Asian curries, a food processor doesn't mince vegetables small enough. But my blender does! Most Asian cooks I know use a blender to get food really small, which maximizes the flavors. I also swear by my blender because it makes a fine puré, essential for a creamy soup base. I use a Waring model ($70). |
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| Chef's Knife Deborah Krasner Food Writer and Recipe Developer Many chef's knives are made for big male hands. This one fits perfectly in my hand—and almost every woman's hand. It's the first knife I reach for when I'm cooking. It's the love-child of a classic German chef's knife and a traditional Japanese knife—it's a little shorter and wider than a typical chef's knife. It's stainless steel and totally all-purpose: I use it for fine chopping, rough chopping, dicing, slicing, you name it. And it's perfectly balanced; use it once, and you'll be convinced. It comes in a plastic sheath, and I always put it away in the sheath so it won't rub against anything to dull it. That underscores its specialness to me. (The Fri East West knife is $70 at amazon.com.) |
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| Waterless/Greaseless Cookware Vicki Chelf VT Contributor, Food Writer and Recipe Developer It really retains the flavor of food. You can wash your vegetables and put them in the pot damp—you don't need to add any oil or more water. The water clinging to the vegetables is enough to cook them, so nothing dilutes the taste. I was given a set more than 15 years ago and have used it ever since. I'll put onions and garlic on the bottom of the pan with a splash of balsamic vinegar, then pile on other veggies, put on a lid and let it cook. Because I'm not adding any water to the pot, the onions develop an almost caramelized flavor. My cookware comes from Health Craft. It's pricey but lasts forever. (This 1-qt. covered skillet is $239.) |
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Cherry Stoner/Olive Pitter 
a really good set of knives!! there is nothing like knives proerly sharpened to make fast work of cutting hard veggies like butternut squash and turnips, makes prep work easier, so we can get to the eating-the best part!!
I LOVE my vegetable steamer! Just put some water in the basin, throw in some veggies, set the timer and walk away. They are perfect for frozen veggies, fresh veggies, and even tempeh.
I also love my Mortar & Pestle! I use it to mash garlic, rosemary, thyme anything that needs to be mashed I mas it in my mortar and pestle! I couldnt live without it
Really great is a nice big wok. You can use it for anything from veggie stir fries to boiling water to make bagels or heating oil to make donuts!
Kyocera ceramic knives and a VitaMix!
I agree with "chef linda" buy a great set and take care of them keep them sharp and you will be greatful for your investment. I am a chef by trade and I always always rely on my ten inch blade...Simple as it is it is the best tool
I could not live without my wok. I use it for almost everything. I use it for stir frying, soups, deep frying, and all things vegetarian Asian food. My steamer is a close second. After that, my coffee press!
My dream-come-true this year has been a Vita-Mix, and it has fast become my alltime favorite kitchen tool. While I'm not a true vegetarian, this machine delivers my daily vegetable-juice drink with all the fiber, makes wonderful soups, low-fat desserts, and is simply fun to use. Period. Plus I'm amazed how little waste I suddenly have versus heaps of compost scraps before. If there is waste, I now cold compost with this technological wonder as well and give our garden a healthy drink the earth worms love. Best of all, my husband never says no when I offer a glass of fresh juice!