Kitchen tools

Gift pick Knives

Wüsthof Classic 8-Inch Chef's Knife (4582-7/20)

A forged, full-tang German knife with a stiff, durable edge that takes a honing steel well. It is a standard in professional kitchens and a common first serious knife.

Budget pick: Victorinox Fibrox Pro 8-inch Chef's Knife

Gift pick Knives

Chef'sChoice Trizor XV EdgeSelect Model 15XV Electric Knife Sharpener

A three-stage diamond sharpener sets and holds a 15-degree edge on Western and Japanese-style knives without a learning curve. Most home cooks never learn stones, so a sharpener that gets used beats a stone that does not.

Budget pick: Presto EverSharp Electric Knife Sharpener

Knives

Victorinox Fibrox Pro 8-Inch Chef's Knife (5.2063.20 / 47520)

A light stamped blade with a grippy handle that holds a working edge and is cheap enough to replace. Restaurant kitchens stock it by the dozen, and ATK has named it its winner for years.

Knives

Mercer Culinary Millennia 10-Inch Wide Wavy Edge Bread Knife

A long serrated blade saws through crusty bread, tomatoes and layer cakes without crushing them. Mercer's Millennia line is common in culinary schools and restaurants.

Knives

Victorinox Fibrox Pro 3.25-Inch Spear Point Paring Knife

A short, sharp blade for peeling, trimming and hulling that costs less than a sandwich. Kitchens keep a drawer of them and replace them freely.

Gift pick Cookware

Le Creuset Signature Round Dutch Oven, 5.5 qt

A 5.5 quart enameled round oven handles braises, soups, stews and no-knead bread, and it is the piece of enameled cast iron a working kitchen reaches for most. It lasts decades and is resold and passed down.

Budget pick: Lodge 6 Qt Essential Enamel Dutch Oven

Gift pick Cookware

Made In Seasoned Carbon Steel Frying Pan, 12 inch

Carbon steel is the standard saute and egg pan in restaurant kitchens: light, quick to heat, and it builds a nonstick patina with use. It goes from stove to oven and takes metal utensils.

Budget pick: Merten & Storck Carbon Steel Frying Pan

Gift pick Cookware

All-Clad D3 Stainless 12-Inch Fry Pan with Lid (41126)

Tri-ply stainless heats evenly, takes metal tools and goes in a hot oven, which makes it the everyday pan for searing and pan sauces. It is the clad pan most often seen in professional and teaching kitchens.

Budget pick: Tramontina 12-Inch Tri-Ply Clad Stainless Frying Pan

Gift pick Cookware

Smithey Ironware No. 12 Cast Iron Skillet

The machined-smooth interior and thinner wall make it lighter and easier to season than standard cast iron. ATK keeps it as the upgrade pick over Lodge.

Budget pick: Lodge 12 Inch Cast Iron Skillet

Cookware

Nordic Ware Naturals Aluminum Baker's Half Sheet Pan, 2-Pack (43180)

Heavy-gauge natural aluminum half sheets are the standard roasting and baking pan in professional kitchens. They conduct heat evenly and last for years.

Budget pick: Chicago Metallic Commercial II Uncoated Sheet Pan

Cookware

Tramontina Professional Nonstick Restaurant Fry Pan, 12 inch

Heavy aluminum restaurant nonstick pans are treated as consumables: cook eggs and fish at medium heat and replace the pan when the coating wears. A cheap pan used correctly beats an expensive one used hard.

Budget pick: Tramontina Professional 10 inch

Gift pick Thermometers and scales

ThermoWorks Thermapen NANO

ThermoWorks rates it at 0.4 second reads and plus or minus 0.5 F accuracy with a NIST-traceable certificate, and it is the instant-read most working cooks carry. A fast probe is the cheapest way to stop overcooking.

Budget pick: ThermoWorks ThermoPop 2

Thermometers and scales

OXO Good Grips 11 lb Stainless Steel Food Scale with Pull-Out Display

Weighing flour and salt beats measuring cups for repeatable baking, and the pull-out display stays readable under a large bowl. A scale is the first upgrade a recipe reader should make.

Budget pick: Escali Primo Digital Scale

Gift pick Prep

Teakhaus Traditional Cutting Board, Large (model 106)

Edge-grain teak is gentle on knife edges and holds up to daily use. Keep an NSF plastic board for raw poultry and use this one for produce, bread and carving.

Budget pick: Epicurean Cutting Board

Prep

Super Benriner Japanese Mandoline Slicer

The Japanese-style Benriner is the mandoline restaurant cooks use for paper-thin slices and julienne at speed. It is lighter and cheaper than large stand-style models.

Budget pick: OXO Good Grips Handheld Mandoline Slicer

Prep

OXO Good Grips 12-Inch Stainless Steel Locking Tongs

Spring-loaded locking tongs with scalloped heads grip both small and large items, and cooks use 12-inch tongs at nearly every station. They are the cheapest tool upgrade over a fork.

Budget pick: 304 stainless steel kitchen cooking tongs

Prep

Microplane Premium Classic Series Zester/Grater

A rasp grater zests citrus, grates hard cheese, garlic and nutmeg in seconds and takes no space in a drawer. It is standard equipment in professional kitchens.

Budget pick: Generic rasp grater

Prep

DI ORO Living Seamless Silicone Spatula, Large

A one-piece silicone head has no seam to trap food and handles high heat, so it scrapes bowls and stirs sauces without staining. Cooks keep several.

Gift pick Small appliances

Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender (10-speed, 48 oz container)

The E310 is the entry model of the blender line chefs know from restaurant and bar kitchens, and it carries a 5-year full warranty. It purees soups and sauces smooth enough to skip straining.

Budget pick: Ninja Professional Blender

Gift pick Small appliances

KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer (KSM150PS)

Most bread, cookie and cake work in home and small commercial kitchens is done on this mixer, and attachments and parts are easy to find. The 5-quart bowl handles a double batch of dough.

Budget pick: KitchenAid Classic Series 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer

Gift pick Small appliances

Cuisinart Custom 14-Cup Food Processor (DFP-14BCNY)

The 14-cup Cuisinart is the long-standing home standard for dough, purees, slicing and shredding, and it takes a full batch of pie dough or pesto without working in stages. Parts are easy to replace.

Budget pick: Hamilton Beach Stack & Snap Food Processor

Gift pick Small appliances

Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy 5.5-Cup Rice Cooker and Warmer (NS-ZCC10)

Fuzzy-logic control cooks rice evenly and holds it at serving quality for hours, with settings for brown rice and porridge. Cooks who make rice daily replace cheaper cookers with this one once.

Budget pick: Aroma 4-Cup Rice Cooker

Gift pick Small appliances

Instant Pot Duo 6-Quart 7-in-1 Multi-Use Pressure Cooker (112-0170-01)

A pressure cooker cuts stock, beans and braises to a fraction of stovetop time and doubles as a rice and slow cooker. It is the cheapest way to get a hands-off braise.

Gift pick Small appliances

Anova Precision Cooker 3.0 (AN525-US00)

Holding protein at an exact temperature gives the same doneness every time and lets a cook hold food for service. The 3.0 is the widely used home circulator and has Wi-Fi control.

Budget pick: Anova Nano 3.0

Gift pick Baking

Lodge Bread Baking Set with Double Dutch Oven (LBBSET1)

The double Dutch oven gives a no-knead loaf a sealed, steamy chamber for oven spring, and the shallow lid doubles as a skillet. It costs a fraction of an enameled oven.

Budget pick: Lodge 6 Qt Essential Enamel Dutch Oven

Baking

Silpat Perfect Cookie Non-Stick Silicone Baking Mat

A silicone liner lets cookies, sugar work and roasted vegetables release cleanly and replaces many sheets of parchment. Pastry kitchens use Silpat-style mats on nearly every sheet pan.

Budget pick: Amazon Basics Silicone Nonstick Baking Mats

Storage and meal prep

Cambro Containers with Lids, 4-Quart and 6-Quart Set

Cambro is what commercial kitchens use for stocks, prepped vegetables and sauces: clear, stackable, and tolerant of freezer and dishwasher abuse. Quart deli containers in the same family cover small portions.

Budget pick: Generic 32 oz deli containers with lids

Storage and meal prep

Souper Cubes 1-Cup Silicone Freezer Tray with Lid

Freezing stock, sauce and chili in measured blocks makes batch cooking practical for a home cook. A professional kitchen would use deli containers for the same job, so offer both.

Budget pick: Cambro or deli containers

Storage and meal prep

Checkered Chef Stainless Steel Cooling Racks, Set of 2

A wire rack set inside a half-sheet pan lets air circulate under roasted meat and fried food and keeps baked goods crisp. It is a basic restaurant setup for roasting and resting.

Budget pick: Nordic Ware Half Sheet with Multi-Purpose Oven and Cooling Rack

Gift pick Grilling and outdoor

Ooni Koda 2 Gas-Powered Pizza Oven (14 inch)

A gas-fired oven reaches pizza-oven temperature quickly and needs no fire management, so a cook can bake pizzas back to back. It is the practical home version of a deck or wood oven.

Budget pick: Ooni Koda 12

Gift pick Grilling and outdoor

ThermoWorks Signals 4-Channel BBQ Alarm Thermometer (Wi-Fi and Bluetooth)

A leave-in probe with an alarm lets a cook track a roast or a smoke without opening the door, and four channels cover several cuts plus pit temperature. Holiday roasts are the main use for a home cook.

Budget pick: ThermoWorks ChefAlarm

Gift pick Grilling and outdoor

Traeger Woodridge Wi-Fi Pellet Grill

A pellet grill holds temperature with little attention, which suits long cooks such as brisket, pork shoulder and holiday roasts. Traeger has the widest dealer, parts and recipe support of the pellet brands.

Budget pick: Traeger Ranger

Gift pick Consumables

Graza Sizzle and Drizzle Extra Virgin Olive Oil Set

A squeeze-bottle cooking oil and a separate finishing oil mirror how a kitchen divides oils by job. The set is an easy, low-risk gift for a home cook.

Budget pick: Graza Sizzle alone

Consumables

Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, 3 lb box

Most American restaurant kitchens season by hand with Diamond Crystal because the light, flaky crystal pinches evenly and dissolves fast. A teaspoon holds noticeably less salt than a teaspoon of Morton, so recipes should give weights or name the brand.

Budget pick: Morton Kosher Salt