If your family hangs stockings as a way to exchange small gifts, teas, home-made jellies, and spice mixes may be fine. We suggest you add a few small kitchen tools because these helpful items can be used over and over to make cooking easier.
All of the following cooking tools are described in our upcoming book “$10 Meals for a Family of Six,” and are on our list of essential kitchen items. Many are available for $1 at the Dollar Tree.
Digital meat thermometer to measure whether your meat is safe to eat.
- Scrub brush for washing vegetables.
- Hand grater for making zest.
- Bamboo mat for making sushi or egg and rice rolls.
- Refrigerator or oven thermometer to accurately measure temp.
- The green plastic mat is a flexible cutting board.
- Wooden spoon and fork
- Wire whisk for mixing sauces.
- Stainless sieve for sorting and washing legumes. It is also useful for dipping seafood into hot oil and removing vegetables from boiling water.
- Measuring spoons and cups. Each child can have a set and practice measuring.
- Funnels are useful when transferring liquids and spices to small containers.
- A steamer basket is used almost daily for cooking vegetables or reheating planned-overs.
- Use a pastry brush to spread oil, baste roasts, spread sauce and glaze pastries.
- The tea ball holds bulk tea and spices.
- The green rubber mat helps you grip bottle and jar tops for easy removal
- 1/16″ mesh covers a wide-mouth jar to make a sprouting jar.
- Grow sprouts from seeds in your new sprouting jar.
- Peeler for serrated carrots and potatoes.
- A spring clip helps keep bags sealed and notes hung.
- Wooden skewers are great for making broiled or grilled k’ bobs. Soak in water before using.