Basic Kitchen Equipment

All the basic gear, cookware, knives, and tools you need to properly stock a kitchen, none of the junk you don't.
water bottles laying on a green surface water bottles laying on a green surface
Leakproof and Lovely: We Tested 12 Water Bottles to Find the Best Ones for Staying Hydrated
A charcuterie board with cheeses, sliced salami, and grapes on it. A charcuterie board with cheeses, sliced salami, and grapes on it.
I Tested 11 Charcuterie Boards to Find the Best Ones for Meats, Cheeses, and Spreads of All Sorts
The Breville Barista Express Impress on a white marble countertop The Breville Barista Express Impress on a white marble countertop
17 Incredibly Great Kitchen Items I’ve Bought After Working at Serious Eats for Two-Plus Years
three hexclad skillets in different sizes with lids on a gray surface three hexclad skillets in different sizes with lids on a gray surface
HexClad Pans Are Everywhere—But Are They Worth the Steep Price Tag?
a variety of bamboo steamers in front of each other a variety of bamboo steamers in front of each other
We Steamed a Whole Bunch of Broccoli and Dumplings to Find the Best Bamboo Steamers
baked choux pastry puffs on a sheet baked choux pastry puffs on a sheet
Which Is Better: Parchment Paper or Silicone Mats?
Amazon Prime Day Zeppoli Classic Towels One-Off Amazon Prime Day Zeppoli Classic Towels One-Off
Our Favorite Kitchen Towels Boast a 141% Absorbency Rate—and Are About $1 a Towel Right Now
mops leaning against a white tile wall mops leaning against a white tile wall
I Soaked, Wrung, and Scrubbed for Days to Find the Best Mops for Cleaning up Kitchen Messes
a black kitchenaid stand mixer on a marble surface a black kitchenaid stand mixer on a marble surface
Our Favorite KitchenAid Stand Mixer is Available Refurbished...and Is $300 Off
a water faucet filter filtering water a water faucet filter filtering water
We Tested 4 Faucet Water Filters—Two Produced Fresh, Clean Water
A fine mesh strainer straining strawberry sauce A fine mesh strainer straining strawberry sauce
A Fine-Mesh Strainer Is Incredibly Useful—and Our Favorite Is a Whopping 44% Off
a hand pulling a knife out of a cork-lined drawer insert a hand pulling a knife out of a cork-lined drawer insert
I Own Dozens of Knives—And Love This $35 Cork-Lined Box for Storing Them
A person searing meat in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop A person searing meat in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop
16 Long-Lasting Kitchen Items You Can Buy Once and (Probably) Never Have to Replace
fried eggs in a carbon steel skillet on a marble countertop fried eggs in a carbon steel skillet on a marble countertop
Why a Carbon Steel Pan Is One of the Most Versatile Pieces of Cookware
three wooden cutting boards on a marble surface three wooden cutting boards on a marble surface
Why Bamboo Cutting Boards Are Terrible for Your Knives
Staub Cast Iron 5.5-Quart Round Cocotte Staub Cast Iron 5.5-Quart Round Cocotte
Your Kitchen Needs a Dutch Oven—Here’s Why
a variety of cookware on a stovetop a variety of cookware on a stovetop
What Does Non-Toxic Cookware Even Mean?
using the oxo bench scraper to cut up pizza dough using the oxo bench scraper to cut up pizza dough
Scrape, Lift, Divide, Clean: Why You Need a Bench Scraper
Cookware on a glass stovetop, including a stainless steel skillet, nonstick skillet, saute pan, rondeau, and stockpot. Cookware on a glass stovetop, including a stainless steel skillet, nonstick skillet, saute pan, rondeau, and stockpot.
Cooking on a Glass Stovetop? We Rounded Up the Best Cookware for the Task
A roast chicken sitting in the center of a wooden carving board A roast chicken sitting in the center of a wooden carving board
The Best Cutting Boards, According to Our Very Detailed Testings
a hand taking a loaf of bread out of the oven in a pink loaf pan a hand taking a loaf of bread out of the oven in a pink loaf pan
We Tested 10 Loaf Pans by Baking Dozens of Loaves and Recommend Half Of Them
three cast iron skillets on a kitchen countertop three cast iron skillets on a kitchen countertop
Should You Buy a Cast Iron or an Enameled Cast Iron Skillet? Here’s a Comparison
Best Swedish Dishcloths Best Swedish Dishcloths
We Tested 8 Swedish Dishcloths—These Are Our Favorites
nine different saute pans on a marble counter in two stacks nine different saute pans on a marble counter in two stacks
We Tested 9 Sauté Pans, and 3 (Shallow) Fried The Competition
Best kitchen towels laid out on marble surface Best kitchen towels laid out on marble surface
We Tested 17 Kitchen Towels to Find the Best All-Purpose Ones
three stand mixers on a grey surface three stand mixers on a grey surface
We Tested 12 Stand Mixers—Four Stood Out Above the Rest
A Thermapen one taking the temperature of a sous vide water bath set to 134 degrees A Thermapen one taking the temperature of a sous vide water bath set to 134 degrees
The Best Gear from Our Equipment Reviews, According to Serious Eats Staffers
hand putting water in a measuring glass into the microwave hand putting water in a measuring glass into the microwave
Everything (Important) You Need to Know About Microwaves
tojiro bread knife on marble counter tojiro bread knife on marble counter
Our Longtime Favorite Bread Knife Is Only $25—and It Slices Like No Other
mini mortar and pestles mini mortar and pestles
We Tested 10 Mini Mortar and Pestles—Three Crushed the Competition
Two knife blocks and one magnetic knife strip set on a marble countertop and white wall. Two knife blocks and one magnetic knife strip set on a marble countertop and white wall.
The 4 Best Knife Sets, According to Our Sharpest Tests
Le Creuset and Staub dutch ovens collaged against patterned yellow background Le Creuset and Staub dutch ovens collaged against patterned yellow background
Le Creuset vs. Staub Dutch Ovens: The Battle of the Best
a closeup look at crispy Brussels sprouts in an air fryer basket a closeup look at crispy Brussels sprouts in an air fryer basket
Our Favorite Deals This Week Include an Air Fryer That’s $84 Off
a handful of cleaning products (oven cleaner, dish cloths) on a blue background a handful of cleaning products (oven cleaner, dish cloths) on a blue background
The Best Kitchen Cleaning Products, According to Serious Eats Staffers
wiping mineral oil over a wood board wiping mineral oil over a wood board
Do You Really Need an Expensive Wooden Cutting Board?
Pastry cream being strained through a fine mesh strainer into a stainless steel bowl Pastry cream being strained through a fine mesh strainer into a stainless steel bowl
Kitchen Gear and Tools We Think You Should Have Two (Or More) Of
a HydroFlask and a Yeti water bottle side-by-side on a marble surface a HydroFlask and a Yeti water bottle side-by-side on a marble surface
Hydro Flask vs. Yeti Water Bottles: Which One Should You Buy?
Minced carrots in a food processor bowl Minced carrots in a food processor bowl
Food Processor vs. Blender: What's the Difference?
A person using an offset spatula to frost a cake on a cake stand A person using an offset spatula to frost a cake on a cake stand
Why an Offset Spatula Is the Tool I Can’t Bake Without
7 squeeze bottles lined up in front of white tiles. 7 squeeze bottles lined up in front of white tiles.
We Tested 7 Squeeze Bottles to Find the Three Best for Cooking, Sauces, and More
An assortment of olive oil dispensers on a marble counter An assortment of olive oil dispensers on a marble counter
We Tested 9 Olive Oil Dispensers and Found Two Favorites for Storing and Pouring
lineup of carbon steel skillets on a white surface lineup of carbon steel skillets on a white surface
We Seared and Sauteed to Find the Three Best Carbon Steel Pans
eight different miniature whisks on a marble background eight different miniature whisks on a marble background
We Tested 8 Mini Whisks and Came Away with Three Favorites
four Anyday cookware dishes of varying sizes on a blue countertop four Anyday cookware dishes of varying sizes on a blue countertop
We Reviewed Anyday Cookware: Are the Microwavable Dishes Worthwhile?
A group of vegetable peelers on a grey surface A group of vegetable peelers on a grey surface
We Tested 14 Popular Vegetable Peelers to Find the Best Ones
A person walking across a stripped anti-fatigue mat on a kitchen floor A person walking across a stripped anti-fatigue mat on a kitchen floor
We Tested 7 Anti-Fatigue Mats—Here Are the Best Ones for Your Kitchen
baked cookies on a piece of parchment paper on a sheet pan. baked cookies on a piece of parchment paper on a sheet pan.
Sheet Pans Aren't Cookie Sheets: A Baking Sheet Explainer
a collection of 12 different garlic presses on a counter a collection of 12 different garlic presses on a counter
We Tested 12 Garlic Presses—Two Crushed the Competition
best steamer baskets horizontal lead best steamer baskets horizontal lead
We Tested 10 Steamer Baskets—Here Are the Best Ones
nonstick sheet pans stacked on each other on a marble countertop nonstick sheet pans stacked on each other on a marble countertop
We Tested 11 Nonstick Sheet Pans to Find the Best Ones
A stack of carving boards on a marble surface A stack of carving boards on a marble surface
We Tested 8 Carving Boards—Here Are the Best Ones for Roasts, Turkeys, and More
a variety of kitchen tools and utensils on a blue surface a variety of kitchen tools and utensils on a blue surface
The Best Utensil Set Is No Utensil Set
pie pans stacked together on a blue countertop with black backdrop pie pans stacked together on a blue countertop with black backdrop
We Baked Dozens of Pie Crusts (and Whole Pies) to Find the Three Best Pie Pans
An uncooked roast surrounded by potatoes and fennel and situated in a roasting pan An uncooked roast surrounded by potatoes and fennel and situated in a roasting pan
Why the Misen Roasting Pan Is the Exception to Our No-Roasting Pan Rule
a variety of Japanese style chefs knives a variety of Japanese style chefs knives
What's the Difference Between Western and Japanese Chef's Knives?
Several food storage containers displayed on a marble counter Several food storage containers displayed on a marble counter
We Tested 11 Food Storage Containers—These Are Our Favorites
the lineup of water filter pitchers on a blue countertop the lineup of water filter pitchers on a blue countertop
We Tested 7 Water Filter Pitchers—Two Stood Out
Peanut butter being made in the Vitamix Ascent 3500 Peanut butter being made in the Vitamix Ascent 3500
The Best Cyber Monday Vitamix Deals (Including the Prettiest Blender We’ve Ever Seen)