I have a few  kitchen essentials that I’ve come to find out I miss when I’m cooking in other people’s homes.

Being a personal chef, I have a “kit” that I bring with me, of course. But when I travel that’s another story. Bringing a bag of gadgets and my favorite knife isn’t too hard when traveling by car, but a different story on a plane.

I’ve been known to forget my items. My sister had to mail me my knife this past November when I left it at her house over Thanksgiving  (Thank You Amy!). I’ve also mailed some of these items overseas to a friend. ( Ciao Maria!) I missed my whisk and microplane while making some of my recipe’s. I decided to send a kit to her so she could enjoy them . That being said, I love these !   You may find you already have and use these items in your kitchen.  If not you maybe ordering off Amazon or running to HomeGoods to find them.

The knife ran away with the whisk and microplane…

Here’s the list, and how and why I love them.

Henkels 8 inch chef knife, a microplane, a medium sized whisk, ( I have many in all sizes but one is enough, I have a thing for whisks), A lemon or lime hinged citrus press, tongs, kitchen scissors. Recently I’ve added a Mandoline.

The knife: It just fits me and I can use anyone’s, but I am more at ease with mine.

Whisk: To make a vinaigrette, or get a sauce together,  whipping everything from eggs to heavy cream, this is a must.

Microplane: For zesting lemons and limes and perfect for grating whole nutmeg and Parmesan Cheese. (I ‘m talking the good stuff, I will address this amazing cheese another time)

Hinged citrus press: Juice away and less messy than other methods.

Tongs: A tool I use daily in cooking,  it’s like have another pair of hands. It can also be used for squeezing those citrus halves.

Scissors: Mine get hijacked by everyone at my house so I hide a pair:). Great for snipping herbs, cutting open packages, and separating chicken parts.

Mandoline: Watch out you will cut yourself..  always use your guard that comes with your tool or stop before you get too close to your fingers. The ease of slicing the most perfect of vegetables and shaving Brussel Sprouts.. I recommend Ben Mineer brand. *This one pictured is not that brand.

I will reference some of these tools in future posts.  Hopefully you will find out having these in your gadget arsenal makes for easy prep work and finishing touches.