Benriner Mandoline Slicer
A mandoline vegetable slicer by Japanese company Benriner is standard equipment in most Japanese homes and restaurant kitchens around the world. We prefer this tool’s simplicity, durability and efficacy over other more complicated models. It comes with three interchangeable blades: The fixed straight blade—which is also removable and replaceable, ensuring long-term durability—creates slices ranging from .5 mm to 5 mm. Use the dial on the underside of the mandoline to fine-tune and adjust the thickness of your slices. You can also screw in one of other two blades, which allow you to julienne or finely shred your vegetables. We especially love that the finger guard, which extends across the width of the entire blade, is easy to handle and keeps a firm grip on ingredients while slicing. Additionally, a non-skid base, safety handle and notches in the mandoline will keep the device steady whether you lay it across a bowl or prop it against a countertop.
Skeppshult Cast-Iron Spice Kryddkvarn "Crush" Grinder
The gritty texture of Skeppshult's hand-held grinder makes it easier to coarsely grind spices and is designed so ingredients stay in a concentrated area for efficient crushing. The softly radiused iron base fits the hand well, and the walnut-wood top provides a better grip and looks beautiful. Weighing just over two pounds, it feels great, looks great and is a pleasure to use.
Skeppshult Cast-Iron Spice Mill
Skeppshult Cast-Iron Spice Mill
The gritty texture of Skeppshult's hand-held grinder makes it easier to coarsely grind spices and is designed so ingredients stay in a concentrated area for efficient crushing. The softly radiused iron base fits the hand well, and the walnut-wood top provides a better grip and looks beautiful. Weighing just over two pounds, it feels great, looks great and is a pleasure to use.
Christopher Kimball for Kuhn Rikon All-Purpose Kitchen Grater
This sturdy, stable coarse-holed grater is terrific for much more than just cheese. We grate all manner of vegetables for slaw, stale bread for crumbs, apples for sauce. We also follow the lead of Middle Eastern cooks and grate onions and tomatoes to a pulp, which melt quickly into sauces.
Christopher Kimball for Kuhn Rikon Slotted Spoon
Slotted spoons are valuable for straining small items and all sorts of stirring—in fact, we use slotted spoons more often than solid spoons for our cooking. Our smartly designed version is sturdy stainless steel and will easily last a lifetime. The 14-inch long, stay-cool handle is suitable for the deepest pot.
Christopher Kimball for Kuhn Rikon Serving Spoon
This 14-inch long stainless spoon does double duty as a cooking tool and serving utensil. It’s just the right size for anything you can throw at it, and its stainless steel handle stays cool if you happen to leave it in a simmering pot.
Cuisipro Silicone Balloon Whisk
Because of their robust construction and fine machining, Cuisipro’s award-winning precision tools are elevated kitchen essentials and a pleasure to use. For a whisk that won’t damage your nonstick pan as you make a roux or scramble eggs, the company’s patented Silicone Balloon Whisk is a must-have item. Its tines are made with stainless steel that is sturdy enough to whisk molten caramel into a smooth sauce, while the silicone coating protects cookware that might get scratched by a conventional balloon whisk. And, with a high heat resistance of 575 degrees Fahrenheit, you can use it directly on the stove. A cap at the end of the handle ensures that no cake batter or meringue will get stuck at the base of the tines, making clean-up easier. It’s even dishwasher-safe.
Christopher Kimball for Kuhn Rikon Comfort Balloon Whisk
This sturdy, fine-wired balloon whisk is broad enough for whipping eggs, yet small enough to fit into any utensil drawer. It’ll easily whip stiff peaks and the thickest pancake batter.
Christopher Kimball for Kuhn Rikon Ratchet Grinder
Most pepper mills (this model also grinds spices) take forever to grind just one tablespoon. This new design—which we developed with Kuhn Rikon—is easy to use and produces all the spice you can use quickly and easily. Its innovative back-and-forth ratchet action is easier than a twist-style mill, especially for those with hand issues. The precision ceramic grinder is effective and durable, and the front-loading hopper is far easier than top-loading grinders, where half the spices inevitably spill during filling. Perhaps our favorite feature is the removable bottom container, which makes it easy to measure and transport spices to a stovetop pot or mixing bowl.
Shun Kitchen Shears
These shears have a heavy-duty build and comfortable rubber-edged handles, so they are a pleasure to use—I can spatchcock a chicken in mere seconds and don’t feel as if I just had my hand put through the wringer! The 3.5-inch cutting edge is relatively short compared to the weight and length of the rest of the scissors, which means you can exert a lot of force without a lot of effort (much like having a long, heavy crowbar to turn over a rock). And they easily come apart for cleaning but will not fall apart during use, unlike some models. You can also use these shears for cutting up a chicken or trimming off fat or bones. Hands down, this is my favorite pair of poultry shears. — Christopher Kimball 
Stainless Steel Mesh Spider Strainer
When Andrea Nguyen, author of The Pho Cookbook, visited Milk Street , she used this mesh spider/strainer to cook a small portion of noodles in the same pot she also was using to cook vegetables. This was new to us and we immediately fell in love with this inexpensive kitchen tool for cooking small portions of pasta, blanching vegetables and even deep frying. Made from stainless steel, it has a wooden handle and two hooks for hanging on the side of a large saucepan or stockpot.
Kilner Fermentation Set
Homemade sauerkraut and kimchi are made safe and easy with this home fermentation kit. The set includes a three-liter glass fermenting jar—large enough to easily accommodate a large napa cabbage—as well as a silicone lid that seals more easily than twist-top metal lids. Simply slice vegetables, layer with spices and leave to soak in a brine solution. Kilner provides two ceramic stones that will keep your vegetables weighed down beneath the surface of the brine. Additionally, the airlock releases the carbon dioxide that results from fermentation without letting in any oxygen. We love to make homemade kimchi and we use it with our Pork and Kimchi Stew (Kimchi Jjigae) or Kimchi and Bacon Fried Rice; the pickled napa cabbage also serves as a spicy, crunchy key element of our Sesame Stir-Fried Pork with Shiitakes. Or make fresh sauerkraut, whose bright and clean flavor is far superior to store-bought canned and jarred varieties; it's perfect for dishes like our Paprika-Caraway Kielbasa Soup. And don't worry—the Kilner fermentation set is large enough that you will have plenty of homemade pickles for snacking even after you use them generously in recipes.
Kuhn Rikon Smart Lid
No more scrambling to find the right lid for your pot or pan: Kuhn Rikon's Smart Lid has a stepped edge that fits cookware between 9 and 11 inches in diameter, and the silicone material provides a tight seal. We especially love the ingenious steam valve built into the lid handle, which adapts to a number of cooking methods. You can set it to the off position to seal in moisture (such as for steaming) or set it to automatic, and the lid will release steam as needed—as opposed to the vents on other lids that stay open and might let out too much moisture. The lid’s convenient glass center allows you to keep an eye on cooking food, and the flower-shaped handle makes the lid easier to grip and maneuver.
