Continuing our series on cooking, this week we’ll look at some basics.

Today our topic is the basic equipment you need in your kitchen. If you don’t cook a lot or you are just starting to cook, you really don’t need a lot – despite what people selling kitchen goods may tell you. Focus on items that have multiple uses rather than a single specialized use. For example, unless you are canning cherries or the like, you don’t need a pitter. You don’t need a special egg cooker or dedicated bacon pan or a tart pan. Get the fundamentals in place. If you find you need additional items later, the stores will still be there – or you can put it on your Christmas list!

So what do you need?

• Large and a small skillet.
• One or two medium-sized saucepans.
• Big pot for stock and pasta.
• 9×13 pan for roasting and for brownies (double-duty, remember?)
• At least 2 cookie sheets.
• One or two cooling racks. (They do double-duty for cooking bacon in the oven.)
• Y-peeler.
• Several wooden spoons.
• Slotted spoon.
• Silicone spatula.
• Pancake turner.
• Tongs.
• Kitchen shears.
• Knives (an all-around chef’s knife, a serrated knife, and a paring knife). Spend a little more on these and buy good ones. It’s better to have 3 good knives than to have 8 mediocre ones.
• Two cutting boards – one for meat and one for everything else.
• Box grater.
• Hand-held can opener.
• Containers (preferably glass, multiple sizes) for leftovers.

And that’s it. That relatively short list will adequately supply a kitchen and allow you to get started with cooking at home.

If you want to add a few extra things to make life even easier, I recommend a small food processor, a microplane, a hand mixer, and a blender (immersion or stand).