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.
Aux Co. Ltd. Japan Sukueru Knife
This unique serving spoon-knife combo tool is a must-have for serving. Right at the table (or the picnic blanket or the potluck), you can use the serrated edge to cut out your perfect portion of food and then use the dipped bowl of the spoon to easily scoop it into your plate. The concave shape and wider width actually lifts up the food and holds it there—it won’t go tumbling back onto the platter like it would with a classic narrow, triangular server. The blade is sharp enough to cut through pizza crust and it’s ideal for slicing through gooey lasagna without lopping off that top layer of chewy cheese trying to slice and serve. Plus, it’s made from durable, dishwasher safe stainless steel with a satin finish, which is great for camouflaging scratches after frequent use. (And we promise you’ll be using this tool quite a bit.)
KüchenProfi 3 Piece Set Pastry Baking Scraper Set
This compact set includes three bench scrapers to take care of every type of task: A dough cutter—which features a sharp stainless steel blade that’ll slice through even the stickiest doughs—a sturdy plastic spreader for making smooth layers of cake frosting or transporting ingredients from cutting board to bowl and a soft rounded scraper that’s perfect for sneaking into nooks and crannies. The stainless steel blade of the dough cutter is precise not only in its slicing, but also in its portioning—the ruler markings etched along the blade help cut uniform dinner rolls and more. The spreader has a beveled edge that can sneak cleanly under any ingredient, while the curved scraper boasts a sturdy yet flexible construction that easily wipes the sides of a bowl clean. Plus, each has an ergonomic handle and incredibly sturdy construction—even the smallest silicone scraper has a stainless steel core. Plus, they tuck together seamlessly for easy kitchen storage.
​Milk Street Nakiri & Peeler Set
Milk Street Nakiri
What if we told you there is a Japanese knife specifically designed for vegetable prep that will make your cooking safer, easier and faster? It is vastly better than the all-purpose European chef’s knife, which is clunky, heavy and too thick to precisely slice and dice onions, cut carrots into perfect coins or reduce chard into feathery ribbons. The solution is the Milk Street Nakiri. It’s light, thin and sharp, with a design that resembles a mini cleaver—2 inches deep with a squared-off tip. A very thin blade, just 1.6 millimeters at the top, tapers down even thinner toward the end so it slices through even tough ingredients effortlessly without bending. The broad blade shields your fingers when you chop and works as a bench scraper to transfer chopped veggies to the simmering pot. With the help of veteran industrial designer David Lewin, we added a few special touches. The blade is embossed with a nonstick file pattern that replicates the kourochi (blacksmith) or tshuchime (pear skin) finish to traditional nakiris, so sliced ingredients fall right off. A gentle curve accommodates fingers when choking up tight for control, and the handle has been designed to provide a nonslip grip.
Milk Street Julienne Peeler
Shredding vegetables into a fine julienne turns tough vegetables tender and opens up their flavor. However, it usually requires the hassle of hauling out the food processor—and finding the shredding attachments, or using a box grater, which will tear at your knuckles if you’re not paying keen attention. Or, you can try your luck with any number of the cheap, gimmicky shredders on the market, which dull quickly and buckle under use.
The Milk Street Julienne Peeler makes shredding vegetables easy, safe and effective. We married our confidence-inspiring, ergonomic 304 stainless steel handle to a razor-sharp, 16-tooth julienne blade for a lifetime tool. Shred your way through soft and hard vegetables alike for salads, slaws, hash browns and more. And when the blade eventually wears out, its easily replaceable with the turn of the screw.
Work Sharp Rolling Knife Sharpener
Based on a style of manual sharpeners used widely in Europe, Work Sharp, our preferred sharpening partners, have released the first American-made Rolling Knife Sharpener in the U.S. market. Unlike a complicated whetstone or electric sharpener, which require skill or planning to use (no need to soak a whetstone here!), the Work Sharp uses a magnetic angle block and rotating abrasives to bring blades back to razor sharpness. The block comes with four different sharpening angles—15°, 17°, 20° and 25°—to sharpen a wide style of knives. And the three abrasive wheels come in three levels of coarseness: coarse 320 Grit diamond, fine 600 Grit diamond and fine ceramic hone. To use, simply line your knife up against the block on one of the angles, then roll each abrasive along the cutting edge to sharpen, going from most coarse to most fine. We were impressed with the sharpener’s precision performance—dull test knives were returned to out-of-the-box sharpness. And when you’re done, it stores away easily in your drawer.
Milk Street: Julienne Peeler
The Milk Street Julienne Peelers will ship in 2-3 business days
Shredding vegetables into a fine julienne turns tough vegetables tender and opens up their flavor. However, it usually requires the hassle of hauling out the food processor—and finding the shredding attachments, or using a box grater, which will tear at your knuckles if you’re not paying keen attention. Or, you can try your luck with any number of the cheap, gimmicky shredders on the market, which dull quickly and buckle under use.
The Milk Street Julienne Peeler makes shredding vegetables easy, safe and effective. We married our confidence-inspiring, ergonomic 304 stainless steel handle to a razor-sharp, 16-tooth julienne blade for a lifetime tool. Shred your way through soft and hard vegetables alike for salads, slaws, hash browns and more. And when the blade eventually wears out, its easily replaceable with the turn of the screw.
Au Nain Carving Set
Handmade by master artisans in the Thiers region of France, an area renowned for over 600 years for superb knife-making, Au Nain’s Carving Set is the perfect addition to your holiday table. Made from durable stainless steel, the full-tang knife boasts a fine-edged blade that’ll cleanly slice through turkey, ham or beef, while the fork helps keep a sturdy grip. The handles are made from stunning African rosewood accented with gold brass rivets and a bolster. And it all comes packaged in a lovely wooden box, ideal for storage and gifting.
Au Nain Rosewood Handle Steak Knives — Set of 4
Handmade by master artisans in the Thiers region of France, an area renowned for over 600 years for superb knife-making, Au Nain’s Carving Set is the perfect addition to your holiday table. Made from durable stainless steel, the full-tang knife boasts a fine-edged blade that’ll cleanly slice through turkey, ham or beef, while the fork helps keep a sturdy grip. The handles are made from stunning African rosewood accented with gold brass rivets and a bolster. And it all comes packaged in a lovely wooden box, ideal for storage and gifting.
Au Nain Laguiole Olivewood Handle Steak Knives — Set of 4
Handmade by master artisans in the Thiers region of France, an area renowned for over 600 years for superb knife-making, Au Nain’s set of four Laguiole steak knives offer elegance and razor-sharp blades. Made from durable stainless steel, these full-tang, sturdy knives boast fine-edged blades that’ll cleanly slice through even the toughest cuts of meat. The curved handles are made from stunning olive wood accented with stainless steel rivets and emblazoned with the iconic Laguiole-style bee emblem on the bolster. And it all comes packaged in a lovely wooden box, ideal for storage and gifting.