Tools of the Trade

[amadi]

A comment axelrod made in an earlier post struck a note with me: rice cookers are awesome because you put ingredients in, can go back to bed and wake up to hot food waiting for you.

For the same reason, I love my slow cooker. I appreciate something that lets me make even complex meals with no tending, just prep and go.

I've also been recently reminded that a good knife makes prep work so much easier. (I now really grok why chefs will use anyone's pans, pots and appliances but carry their own knives with them.) With arthritic hands, I am far more capable of doing cutting/chopping prep work with a good knife that fits my hand and has a good sharp edge on it than I was with a drawer full of mediocre knives.

Our focus thus far has largely been on recipes, but I'm curious what tools, appliances and "hardware" are important parts of your kitchen arsenal?

Comments

[killing_rose]

I picked up a rice cooker this summer and I'm picking up a crockpot when I get back to campus (unless there is enough room in my suitcase to pack the parents'). I overextended myself trying to cook last year, even though a) I use a food processor which helps my joint pain and eliminates about twenty steps depending upon the recipe, and b) I have an electric kettle and boiling hot water can cook enough things that I don't always have to worry.

And I'm actually going to be buying another ulu today; I've always preferred the design and the way that it fits a person's hand to regular knives. I haven't had one in my kitchen since high school and I miss not having to switch out knives/cutting utensils for various tasks.