Handy Equipment and Gadgets
Who doesn't love a kitchen gadget eh?
I certainly do. I actually need an escort if I go into Lakeland. I cannot trust myself in that shop. I once bought a gadget that peeled, cored and sliced your Pineapple ALL AT THE SAME TIME!!
I don't even like Pineapple.
Anyway, here you will find a quick list of tools and gadgets I own that may feature in the upcoming recipes or be handy in the preparation of the recipes you find here. Enjoy.
Knives
The lynchpin of the cooking experience and the kitchen. That's why its popped up first here. In my opinion there is nothing that will ruin your cooking experience quicker than a substandard knife.
I use knives bought from Hocho Knife and they are imported from Japan and they are fantastic. So sharp, so nicely balanced. There's a wide range of knives on the website from eye wateringly expensive to far more reasonable.
However, if you can't stretch to something a bit more high end get yourself a good sharpener. I recommend this little chap. It's a great little sharpener and is really easy to use.
Measuring Spoons
A simple wee thing. Not to be undervalued. Don't use the teaspoons or dessert spoons out of the drawer...please! You won't get an accurate measurement.
Get a wee set of these. In fact, handy hint, get two sets. I do not own two sets but as I have been cooking more and more recently I've come upon situations where I've decided to add more spices to the recipes but realised that I've just used the spoons for oil or some other wet ingredient.
Queue washing and drying spoons to then discover they weren't perfectly dry so now you have moisture in your spices and so on.
For your own sanity get two sets. One for dry, one for wet.
Slow Cooker
Super convenient. Just throw everything in a walk away...for 8 hours.
Great if you're busy and have multiple mouths to feed.
Stock it up in the morning, switch on, off to work or more likely nowadays, upstairs to the makeshift office and forget about it until dinner.
I used to be concerned how slow cooked veg would hold up but as it's cooked at a lower temperature it seems to hold up well.
The one I used to own is here - it was a great thing - you could also remove the inner pot to use on the hob and was really easy to clean and is super energy efficient costing less than a lightbulb to run.
Instant Pot
I decided I needed a Pressure Cooker so I could experiment more. I done some research and bought this.
It does EVERYTHING! (Well..not quite but..enough). Air Fryer, Oven, Grill, Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Sous Vide, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Saute. I've probably forgotten some functions but it's absolute madness.
What's better is, it's actually very low energy consumption. A baked potato in here for example is a fraction of the cost of one done in the conventional oven.
Food Processor
Another essential appliance in some ways. If you need something turned into a paste or really finely chopped or even pureed then this is your go to. Some models have dough blades as well. You can use of these to make a good shortrcrust pastry in a fraction of the time it takes by hand for example.
I use the Ninja - it was a bit of an extravagant purchase but it is a great piece of kit. Absolutely terrifies the cats mind you.
Oven Proof Dishes
I have lots of different dishes. One of my most used dishes is this one. It's hob proof, oven proof, non-stick and really easy to clean. My absolute go to.
Beyond that I have a garage full of different trays and dishes.
One thing I would recommend you do is that if a recipe calls for a 22cm flan dish for example then you use a flan dish that size. If you don't then cooking times will vary and you run the risk of your filling being too thin and overcooked or too thick and undercooked.
I'll link to the ones I use in the actual recipes as there are too many to list here.
Pots & Baking Trays
You know, I actually think trays are pretty generic. I might be wrong. The only tray for the over I've noticed any real difference with is a proper pizza tray. I don't have any pizza recipes here though so I'm just rambling again essentially.
Pots however. Get some good non-stick ones. I use Circulon and you can find them here. I have had my set of Circulon for about 23 years and they are still good as new. Well worth the investment.
The Absolutely Terrifying Mandoline
Oh no...it's here. The time has come.
Ghost of the kitchen. I fear you more than any utensil I have seen. But as I know your purpose is to help me finely slice things, and as I hope to live to be another man from what I was, I am prepared to bear you company, and do it with a thankful heart. Will you not slice for me?
The Mandoline is a fantastic tool and some of my recipes require it. I use this fellow and this cut proof glove due to a previous mishap.
If you buy a Mandoline I implore you to buy a glove as well.
Staples or Store Cupboard Essentials
So, essentials. What stuff you should have in stock and top up regularly. Bits and pieces that you will use regularly.
I'll run you the things I have both stored in the garage and in the cupboards in the kitchen. I've had to start using the garage to store things as I start to amass a weird and wonderful collection of random ingredients such as Vital Wheat Gluten, different flavours of Liuid Smoke, Pomegranate Molasses and so on...you get the idea. I wont cover these here though but be warned - the weird and the wonderful may pop up in the recipes but when they do I'll suggest an alternative that won't involve a trek up a mountain in Tibet to source. Promise.
Oils & Vinegar
From an oils perspective I always have Rapeseed Oil, Olive Oil, Extra-Virgin Olive Oil and Sunflower Oil in stock.
I started buying Rapeseed Oil as it tends to have a lower Carbon Footprint if you pick one made in Britain. I'll probably transition away from Olive Oil eventually. Also - Rapeseed oil makes a very yellow mayonnaise! Stick with Sunflower Oil for Mayo....trust me.
I absolutely love vinegar. It's just such a fantastic taste. I keep a supply of Red Wine Vinegar, Cider Vinegar, Balsamic and of course Malt...but that's really just for chips.
Herbs & Spices
I love herbs and spices. I have two shelves dedicated to them in the garage. All sorts of strange things. Asafoetida (Devils Dung), Black Cardamom, Ajwain Seeds, Mango Powder...all sorts.
Also I was watching a programme with Nisha Katona (the founder of Mowgli). She said as long as your spices and herbs are sealed dont worry - they don't really loose any flavour or strength. I'll take her word it and keep buying strange things.
So staples though - I would say Chilli flakes, Chilli powder, Cumin, Turmeric, Garam Masala, Madras powder, Cinnamon, Coriander, Paprika (hot, smoked and sweet) are good to have around.
Herb wise - Chives, Oregano, Rosemary, Herbs de Provence and Thyme (and I challenge you not to sing Louis Armstrong's 'We have all the 'Thyme' in the World' when you next use that. I can't help it.
Also - dont buy your herbs and spices from the supermarket. If you have a local Indian Supermarket go there or use Ebay. You get much more for your money.
Tins, Pasta & Rice
Tins - Chopped Tomatoes ( I go through so many), Passata, Baked Beans, Kidney Beans, Black Beans, Haricot Beans, Lentils. I dont like Chickpeas so you wont see them much in my recipes but they are handy to have if you want to make Humous - I like Humous...don't like Chickpeas....go figure.
Pasta - Stick to wholewheat where you can and stock Spaghetti, Penne, Macaroni, Tagliatelle. To be honest any pasta shape you prefer.
Rice - I stick to micro rice in the main and always have some Long Grain and Basmati.
Grains - Bulgar Wheat, Pearl Barley, Green Lentils and Red Lentils.
Baking
I don't do a lot of baking but I do keep these baking staples in as they do end up in recipes that aren't baking related.
Flour - Gram Flour (Chikpea), Plain Flour, Self Raising Flour, Cornflour.
Sugars and Syrups - White Granulated Sugar, Caster Sugar, Soft Brown Sugar, Maple Syrup and Golden Syrup.
Nuts and Seeds - Flaxseed, Sesame Seeds, Cashews, Chai Seeds.
And the rest (that I can't think of a category for)
Some of my favourite things are in this section but they defy categorisation.....
Marmite, Peanut Butter, Tahini, Nooch (Nutritional Yeats), Sriracha, Soy Sauce, Tabasco, Franks Red Hot Sauce, Mustard (English, Wholegrain and French).
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