Basic Equipment

Outfitting the Little Kitchen That Could

The Little Big Things

Fads come and go. Beauty fades. #factsoflife.

Chances are, if you’ve entered college anytime after 2018, that along with your twin XL sheets and collapsible laundry bag, someone has given you an Instant Pot that is supposed to Change. Your. Life. Let’s be real here. A 4.0 GPA and a paid internship might do that, but not a big clunker of a suburban kitchen appliance (no disrespect to Instant Pots). It might help if you had a big suburban kitchen and three kids to feed twenty-one times a week, but you’re just a smart young thing trying to feed yourself something good on a budget, maybe in a space that’s not even meant for cooking.

You def don’t need all of these appliances, but even just one of them will up your kitchen cred and preparedness:

Electric teakettle: Besides boiling water in three minutes for tea or coffee, an electric kettle will allow you to make soft-, medium-, or hard-boiled eggs, couscous, or steamed vegetables. (Put your cut-up vegetables in a heatproof bowl, pour boiling water over them, seal with beeswax wrap or a lid, and leave for a few minutes until cooked to your liking. Drink the water afterward—lots of vitamins in there.) You can also poach fish or chicken (see this page) and cook rice noodles for salad rolls (this page) or Bang noodles (this page).

Rice cooker: They should rename this, because cooking rice is the least of its charms. It makes perfectly cooked grains (quinoa: 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa; press button; boom), applesauce, mashed potatoes from scratch, chutney (this page), jam, chocolate ganache (this page), mac and cheese from the box, one-pot pasta (this page), potato chip frittata (this page), lion’s head meatballs (this page), grits, oatmeal, poached fruit, and steamed veg. It also—pro tip—removes the smell of smoke from a room if you simmer two cups of water and a halved lemon in it.

Slow cooker: It will do lots of the things a rice cooker will and bake a loaf of crusty bread; cook a pot of vegan chili (this page) or a beef, beer, and bacon stew (this page); bake a potato (or a sweet potato, this page); make bone broth, hot spiced cider, hot chocolate, fondue, queso, soup, flan, or dulce de leche (this page). You can turn it into an aromatherapy humidifier by simmering cinnamon, cloves, and orange peel in water, or keep towels warm in it for an at-home spa treatment.

Waffle iron: Even if all this did was make waffles, it would be worth it. With a good store-bought mix, you can make them sweet or savory: add some cheese, dried or fresh fruit, chopped bacon, pepperoni or salami, herbs and spices, chopped up vegetables, chocolate, peanut butter, marshmallows—and on and on. BUT you can also use a waffle iron (even a mini one) to make a banging grilled cheese (this page), crème brûlée French toast (this page), brownies, corn bread, refrigerator biscuits, cinnamon rolls, hash browns, scrambled eggs, and quesadillas. And, of course, just plain toast.

Electric skillet: My personal favorite. Think of it as a one-stop-shopping cooktop. You can sauté, fry, deep-fry, make soup, stews, chili, pancakes, pasta, chicken, burgers, steak, fish, scrambled eggs, omelets, ramen, and bake in it! Don’t believe me? Try the brownies on this page. And if all that’s not enough, use it to heat stones for a hot stone massage—finals week just got a lot easier.

Toaster oven: Not essential, but nice if you plan to do a good bit of baking or broiling. I’ve tried making my Banana Bread Granola (this page) and Hot Chocolate Lava Cakes (this page) in every other appliance, but a toaster oven’s best. A small and simple one will do.

Microwave: You don’t hugely need one, since any one of the appliances above (except the slow cooker, for obvious reasons) can get you fed in ten minutes or less. How fast do you really need to eat, anyway? The FDA warns that too much exposure to microwaves can cause radiation burn, and that’s no small deal. If you already own a microwave, I will say that they make great off-season sweater storage and pest-free spice cabinets. And you can make the Paper Bag Popcorn on this page if you stand back.

Mini food processor/chopper: If you plan to make lots of Vim Balls (this page) and Crush Bars (this page), or pesto, chili paste, and Piri Piri Sauce (this page), this might just be worth it for you. It’ll also chop vegetables and make acai bowls, if that’s your thing.

Blender or Bullet: I couldn’t survive without my blender. From smoothies and sauces to soups, pesto, nut milks, nut butter, and Hack-uccinos (this page), this is the appliance that keeps me healthy and sane. Buy either the blender or the bullet, but not both. Most blenders will turn any wide-mouthed Mason jar into a bullet. Just unscrew the blender jar and replace it with a Mason jar, blitz, screw on the Mason jar lid, and go!

Surge protector: You never know when you’ll want to cook a meal, type a term paper, and blow-dry your hair, all at the same time. #BePrepared.

The Big Little Things

The Best Supplies to Keep Handy to Make Your Life Easier

A set of graduated glass bowls (Pyrex, for example) with lids

Wooden spoon

Silicone spatula

Wire whisk

Short-handled tongs

Measuring cups and spoons

2-cup glass measuring cup

Small cutting board (a wooden one doubles as a cheese board)

Can opener

Pepper mill

Vegetable peeler

A few nice big coffee mugs (bake in them, drink out of them, use them as prep bowls)

Dishes, bowls, and silverware

Cheap paintbrush to use as a pastry brush

Cotton dish towels (can double as napkins when you want to get fancy)

Paring knife

Serrated knife for tomatoes and bread

8-inch chef’s knife

Box grater (cheese is cheaper when you grate it yourself)

8 x 6-inch rectangular glass baking dish with lid

A couple of ⅛-size sheet pans

Wide-mouthed Mason jars for drinks, storage, and DIY bullet blender (see this page)

Nonstick foil

Silicone pan liners

Reusable zipper storage bags

Beeswax food wrap