I try to use as few pots, pans, knives, and the like when I cook to limit the amount of time I spend on clean-up afterwards. But there are a few kitchen tools that I cannot live without. 

Most of my meals start off by me chopping vegetables on my bamboo cutting board with my Zyliss stainless steel knife. I love the bamboo cutting board because it’s super durable and long-lasting. I’ve had mine for years and it looks like I just bought it. It earns bonus points for being made of an eco-friendly material, too. Likewise, I love my Zyliss knife because it has retained its sharpness over its multiple-times-a-day usage. It’s also the perfect size to cut almost every vegetable I throw at it.

My most versatile kitchen essential is my Greenpan fry pan. It goes easily from stovetop to oven, which is great for baking off casseroles and similar dishes without having to transfer it to another pan. It’s also super easy to clean, and due to its not-stick design, food doesn’t get stuck to it. In addition, the material that is used to make it nonstick is free of toxins and other pollutants.

I would not be able to make soups and stews, or even roast or steam vegetables if it weren’t for my four-quart stainless steel Tools of the Trade soup pot. It, like my fry pan, can go into the oven. Although, for cooking giant batches of soup, I find it’s easier to simmer on the stove than to bake in the oven. The pot comes with a steamer insert for veggies, which is a nice touch. It’s also the perfect size for parboiling broccoli and cauliflower before I roast them.

There are a few gadgets that I utilize frequently. Those are my orange monkey vegetable peeler, garlic press and Cuisinart immersion blender. I use the immersion blender to make pureed soups, sauces and even bean patties. In my opinion, it’s the best way to blend things because you can do so in the pot your cooking your dish in.

The last, but certainly not least, essential cooking tool is the muffin pan. Since I bake a dozen muffins every three days, it sees a lot of action. I also use my measuring cups when I bake, but usually just eyeball amounts when I cook.

These items are my must-have kitchen tools. Clearly, every cook will have their go-to arsenal. However, these are the pieces I find necessary and will be referenced the most in the preparation of my recipes.